Steven Universe: Beyond The Mirror

The Galaxy Warp

A seagull soars over the Galaxy Warp as it casts its shadow from the bright morning sunlight. The warp pads heat up as they absorb the sun's rays like an array of solar panels. The big crystals stand tall on the edge of the surface, surrounding its components as they reflect the light against one another.

Steven and Lapis sit next to each other on the bottom step of the short staircase of the biggest warp pad at the very core of the surface. Steven's stomache grumbles as Steven presses a hand to it, groaning from the pressure building in his body.

"Oh! Lapis, I haven't eaten since yesterday." Lapis looks over at Steven. "In the morning, I mean." She sighs, rolling her eyes. "I have no idea what you're talking about, but right now, we need to find a way off of this miserable planet."

Steven's lips curl down as his eyebrows drop down. "Earth isn't miserable. It's really nice out here actually. The sun is shining. The birds are soaring overhead. I like it here." Lapis scoffs, getting up from the stair. "Well I don't." She wanders off, folding her arms as Steven gets up.

He rushes towards her, panting before pulling back into a steadier pace next to her. "What do you mean?" Lapis stops at the edge, placing a hand on one of the crystals. Steven looks up into Lapis' cold, stern face as it stares into the horizon ahead. "Lapis?"

Lapis remains mute as Steven places a hand on her back just below the gem. Steven sighs as he turns his gaze back to the sparking ocean. "Why don't you like this place?" Lapis bites her lip. "What's so bad about it?" Lapis growls as she whips her body to her left, flashing a glare down towards Steven causing him to detach his hand.

"What's so bad about it?! This place is the Galaxy Warp! I was abandoned here! I was abandoned here in that stupid mirror until she came and she didn't do anything to save me!" She huffs as Steven takes a step back, grimacing from the backlash.

"You didn't know what this place is even though you have been staying with THEM as a member for how long?!" Steven's voice weakens in tone. "Well, I think it was about four years. Maybe?" Lapis' eyes bulge as she clenches her teeth.

"Four years...and you never knew?! You didn't know about the Diamond Authority o-or the Kindergartens either! You see, this is what I was talking about! You say you are Crystal Gem, but you're NOTHING like them!" Steven gapes as his eyes narrow.

"You're right! I'm not like them! I may have this...!" Steven lifts up his shirt to reveal the gem embedded on his stomache. "But I'm also half-human! I need to eat and breathe and sleep--!" He points to the dark bags under his eyes. "But you think I don't need to because I'm a Gem! Well I'm not!"

Steven's stomache grumbles once more as Lapis drops her glare. She looks down at her reflection on the surface of the Galaxy Warp. She blinks her eyes as she listens to the waves crashing on the side of the Galaxy Warp and the seagulls squaking overhead.

She closes her eyes as she sighs. "I don't understand. How are you both a Gem and a human?" Steven groans inwardly as he looks away. "It's a bit...hard to explain." He turns back to face Lapis.

"You see, I have a dad who is half-human, which is about the same as a mom, and my mom is a Gem. They met and they fell in love and they wanted to have me so my mom turned into me and that's basically who I am. I don't know what my mom knew though and the Gems kept a lot of things from me because they felt that it was best for me not knowing these things."

Lapis lifts her head up. "Oh. I guess that makes sense then." She puts a hand to her chin for a moment. "It's not that they didn't care about you. It's the fact that...they didn't want you getting into trouble." She sighs as she brings her left hand back down to her side. She folds her arms as her eyes droop.

"But I made you defy them against their wishes. They just...wanted to keep you safe. They're probably searching all over the planet right now to find you." Steven shakes his head, casting his eyes down towards his reflection. "But I went against them. They probably don't care about me anymore after what happened."

Suddenly, the warp pad a few feet away from them glows. Light bursts into the sky for a brief moment before it fades to reveal its users. Pearl, Garnet and Amethyst stare in the opposite direction, unaware of their ironic, coincidental reunion.