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Lonsdaleite has always been one of the strongest gems around. There’s others, of course, but none of them are as unique as he is. They come and go, but he remains a constant — so sometimes he takes on solo missions when there’s no other available gem for him to partner with. As a result, he’s no stranger to loss. Despite the fact that all gems are immortal, they don’t stay forever. Too many of his kind have been captured and brought to the Moon, and all he can do is preserve as many of his comrades as possible, while protecting himself simultaneously.
It’s a heavy burden, but Lonsdaleite doesn’t mind. He knows, after all, that no one else can do the things he does. The situation would worsen if any other gem took over his duties, so even though he’s almost always busy without a moment for reprieve, he deals with it. It’s easier to focus on work than to lament over things he’s lost, for there’s too many to grieve if he had the time to sit down and think. In this world, he’ll fight his constant fight, and he’ll do as he’s told because he loves and trusts in Master Adamant. Easy enough, right?
Sometimes he causes trouble and annoys the other gems, but this one is really not his fault, he swears. Lonsdaleite is wandering around the Shore of Nascency on patrol, gazing into the seemingly endless ocean that expands far and beyond this island. The sea stretches as far as the eye can see, while the sky reflects a similar hue of blue. Maybe if he had more time off, he’d invite a few other gems to go swimming and relax for a while. Lonsdaleite misses the feeling of water around him — he practically feels nothing, but the cool sensation can drag him under for hours and he won’t complain. Maybe this is a sign that he needs a break.
As he thinks of how to convince Master Adamant for permission to host the swimming hangout for the gems, he hears a crash in the distance. Lonsdaleite turns towards the origin of the sound, breaking into a run when he realises it came from the layered rock formation. He has never witnessed the birth of a new gem — should he help them first, or go to Master Adamant and bring him here? Admittedly, he has no idea. He rushes across the beach, stopping under the massive rock as he watches the final fragment of a purple gem fall into place. The vaguely humanoid gem falls face-first onto the sand, half-buried by the grains.
Lonsdaleite supposes he doesn’t have time to make a decision. He can’t just leave the gem there. He approaches them with caution, helping them sit up. Only when he’s this close does he realise that they are made of pure purple diamond — a rarity with a beautiful sheen sought after by the Lunarians. “Hey,” he says, as the gem’s eyes open for the first time. “how are you feeling?”
They mumble something incomprehensible. Lonsdaleite sighs, hefting them over his shoulder. He stands, making his way back to The School.
『••✎••』
Purple Diamond is a quick learner. They pick up on things easily, and soon enough they’ve joined Lonsdaleite as one of the strongest fighters amongst all the gems. Lonsdaleite himself isn’t sure what to make of that — it’s good to have less work burdening him day and night alike, but he feels an unfamiliar sourness when he thinks about how quickly Purple Diamond has progressed. It makes him feel weird about his own abilities, though he has no reason to doubt himself. No matter how strong they are, he is still Lonsdaleite. He worries too much, sometimes.
Because he’s the one who first found Purple Diamond, Lonsdaleite is tasked to be their companion and comrade-in-arms. He isn’t used to having someone cover his weaker spots — he’s far too accustomed to fighting on his own, and it’s hard for him to adjust to fighting with a partner. His swords have smacked Purple Diamond on the face far too many times to count, earning him a reproachful expression from them every time. “Sorry, sorry,” Lonsdaleite apologies half-heartedly yet again, already thinking about his next task.
“You’re not listening to me, aren’t you?” Purple Diamond asks, sheathing their sword. They readjust the stray lock of hair that frames their face — Lonsdaleite has called it stupid multiple times before, because it has gotten into the way during certain occasions, while they defend their stylistic choice of having this specific strand of hair placed this specific way, with passionate agreement from Red Beryl, who has forbidden Lonsdaleite from adjusting Purple Diamond’s hair. “I knew it,” they sigh and shake their head, but they still follow Lonsdaleite along all the same. “So, what’s next on the agenda?”
“We just have to report back to Master for the day.” Lonsdaleite says, turning down the familiar route that leads back to The School. “What, is there anything else you’d like to do?”
“I’m not sure.” Purple Diamond hesitates. “What about you?”
“I—I don’t know.” Lonsdaleite is caught off-guard. No one has really asked him this before, and he doesn’t know how to answer this question. Should he tell them about the ocean? About his thoughts of the sky and the sea, about how sometimes he feels like he’s living in a dreamy haze, awaiting his turn to inevitably be taken to the moon like so many others? He has troubling thoughts sometimes, but he’s good at keeping those to himself. Something tells him that he doesn’t have to when it comes to Purple Diamond though. “If I tell you, Purple, will you promise to keep a secret?” He’s saying before he realises the significance of his words.
“Sure.” They smile. “If you say so.”
Lonsdaleite returns the gesture. The smile makes him feels warm from where the heart should be, even though he doesn’t feel any change of temperature with this body. “So, before I met you, I’d always go patrol around the Shore of Nascency and look at the ocean from there. It’s beautiful, it’s vast, and I want to go swimming into its depths and see what awaits me under the sea. But I know it’s dangerous, so even though I think about it, I’ve never actually tried. Plus, if I take the powder and go down there, someone will notice.”
“They don’t have to know.” Purple Diamond turns in the direction of the shore. “Now, I want to see the sea for myself. As long as we return before sundown, nothing will happen.”
“But,” Lonsdaleite hesitates. He’s never thought of just breaking the rules. He knows a few troublesome gems don’t listen sometimes, but he’s always looked down on them. He stays to his own path, and that path is paved according to his duties. Ever since his strength on the battlefield was realised, his way is set in stone. But what if he just lets go? What if he—
“Don’t worry.” They continue along the path, walking further and further away from Lonsdaleite. “If they say anything about it, I’ll tell them that it’s my idea.”
They’re almost out of sight now. Before Lonsdaleite realises what he’s doing, he’s running after them, asking them to wait up. Of course, they do, and they meet in between the expanse of the sky and the sea in the distance. “Come on,” Purple Diamond says, “let’s see what it’s like.”
When Lonsdaleite first steps into the water, he watches as the pale powder coating his body swirls into fine lines atop the ocean surface, revealing the stone underneath. He isn’t the brightest, but his composition is unique. Not even Master Adamant has seen anything like him. But still, since he isn’t the most beautiful gem in existence. he tends not to think about his lustre. Purple Diamond is practically glowing wherever they go, reflecting light all over their delicate features. They’re the brightest gem Lonsdaleite has ever seen, and he’s seen plenty. In the water, they glow differently. Lonsdaleite can see rainbows reflected in them, forming a pretty picture.
He can’t believe he’s graced with such a sight. They’re beautiful, and they’re nothing like him. As he wades deeper into the ocean, moving in synchronisation with Purple Diamond, more of the powder coating their bodies washes away, and before long they’re completely submerged, feeling the water flow all around them as they gaze into each other’s eyes. All the powder has faded away by now, and they’re left staring at each other, witnessing the most vulnerable parts of each other’s bodies. “You’re so bright,” Lonsdaleite says, reaching out to play with the reflected beams, pulsing and flickering all around them in the water.
“And you’re prettier than I could have ever imagined.” Purple Diamond smiles. “Look, we’re moving in sync now. Surprising that the only training that we really needed for us to work together is to let go.”
“Right.” Lonsdaleite laughs, for the first time in a long while.
『••✎••』
Before long, Lonsdaleite and Purple Diamond have become inseparable. They go everywhere together, they do everything together, and they wouldn’t have it any other way. They’re known as the strongest fighters, whose strength doubles when they’re together. They become perfect partners, knowing each other’s weak points and covering them easily. Their movements complement one another’s, and together they have nothing to fear against the Lunarians.
Perhaps, this is what makes Lonsdaleite become less cautious over the years. He allows himself to unleash the recklessness that he’s been concealing, knowing that Purple Diamond always has his back. “Together, we’re the strongest,” he says, whenever they warn him kindly that perhaps he’s going a little too far. “Besides, why should I worry when I have you by my side?”
Now, Lonsdaleite finds himself bitterly regretting his decision. He grits his teeth, feeling a section of him splinter under the heavy impact, but still he pushes forward, slicing off heads from a line of Lunarians from his vantage point on the sunspot. He spots Purple Diamond on the opposite end, fending off an neverending flow of Lunarians, whose ammunition is as ceaseless as their attacks. Lonsdaleite groans, dashing right back into the scene and taking away another row of enemies. He should have known that things would escalate to this point. Purple Diamond is a sought-after gem, after all. He should have done something more—
But by lamenting over the past, he fails to notice the present. Though he tries to block the attack before it can reach Purple Diamond, Lonsdaleite ultimately falls short by a mere inch. “Purple,” he cries, with the most desperation he’s ever felt flooding his voice, “run—”
Purple Diamond turns, eyes wide and bright. They don’t notice the arrow embedded into their neck until they feel themselves splinter and crack, fragments of gems crumbling onto the sunspot as their head splits cleanly in two from the neck onward, landing on either side of their body. Their knees buckle, and they fall gracelessly onto the ground, shattering into a thousand pieces right before Lonsdaleite’s eyes. As the light begins to fade, they murmur a few words that he fails to catch in the rush of adrenaline taking over his senses.
Lonsdaleite lunges at the nearest Lunarian, but he’s struck and has to narrowly dodge the flood of arrows heading his way. He’s forced back step by step until he’s at the edge of the sunspot, one step away from falling to his own demise. “Purple,” he yells, knocking away an arrow with the blade he holds, “get up, get up, pl—”
The plea doesn’t fully fall from his lips before he’s shocked into silence, watching as the Lunarians swarm all around Purple Diamond’s fragments, placing them piece by piece into platters, carting them all away before Lonsdaleite can even attempt to reach for them. “No,” the word slips from him as he makes another dash for it, only to fall from the sunspot, feeling the wind howling in his ears as the sky swirls, a hauntingly beautiful shade of blue.
As he collides onto the hard ground, he barely feels the impact as he fractures into a few chunks strewn across the grass. He whispers as the sunspot fades, taking every single piece of Purple Diamond with it, “come back to me, please…”
But it’s as if Purple Diamond was a fleeting dream, one that only lasted mere years before being ripped away from the gems in the cruellest ways. As Lonsdaleite allows the realisation to sink in, he wonders who would ever perfectly complement his fighting style as Purple Diamond did, and who would be willing to see past his unassuming surface and gaze into the depths of his soul.