Steven continues to face unexpected repercussions from his space adventure for his friends back home.

Poor Steven is struggling to deal with Connie ghosting him when Lapis and Peridot decide to check in on him via videochat.

Peridot: Lapis was worried you lost your phone on Homeworld, but I said, no way! He’s probably just ignoring us!

Steven: Sorry guys. There’s been…a lot going on.

Peridot: Like what? Tell us!

Steven: Well, Connie’s really mad at me…

Peridot: No no no no no! Tell us about space!

Lapis: And start from the beginning.

Steven: Uh, okay. I was trying to protect Beach City, so I surrendered myself to Homeworld, and I was put in a big empty room, and I ended up on trial in front of the Diamonds!

Lapis: On trial? In front of the Diamonds?

Steven: Yeah, and-

Lapis: You were in front of Blue Diamond?

Steven: And Yellow. But it’s okay. I escaped in a palanquin, and went underground, and-

Lapis: You ran? From Blue and Yellow Diamond?

Steven: Yes?

Lapis: Peridot, we have to leave Earth now!

Clearly, one does not simply escape from the Diamonds.

Steven runs off to talk things over in person, and while Lapis may have wanted to actually leave immediately, Peridot stalled her with practical (and not-so-practical) concerns, like what to do about the farm they’ve put so much work into, or how they’re going to continue rewatching their favorite TV show.

Lapis: Oh, Steven! Good. Let’s go.

Steven: Wait, what?

Lapis: We’ll find some remote spot in the universe to hide out in! The Diamonds will never find us.

Steven: Lapis, don’t worry. They’re looking for me on Homeworld. They don’t know I’m here. We’re safe.

Peridot: Yeah! Come on, we’ve gotten away with worse. They’ve never been able to hunt me down for my many crimes against them.

Lapis: This is different! Steven is important! And our transgressions are piling up. They’re going to take their anger out on this planet just like they did before. I can’t…I won’t let myself get caught up in another war.

Steven: I don’t want you to leave, but I won’t ask you guys to stay if you don’t feel safe. If you have to go, I understand.

Eventually, Lapis tries to bypass any of Peridot’s complaints by using water to move the entire barn and take it with them.

At which point they’re distracted by the not uncommon problem of the pet running away during the stress and excitement of a move – Pumpkin is nowhere to be found!

Steven takes the opportunity to chat with Peridot, who is clearly not as eager to leave her life on Earth as Lapis.

Peridot: You know, I can probably still help you when I’m out in space. I’ll just videochat from my tablet!

Steven: Uh, there’s no wifi in space.

Peridot: Well, maybe it’s best if we can’t reach you. If the Diamonds do show up and destroy the planet, we’ll never know. Lapis was very agitated when she heard you were on Homeworld. […] Maybe it’s good that we’ll be away from everything. Where nothing can change. No surprises or developments…she’s been through so much. She needs consistency.

Steven: But what about you?

Simply moving house can be a very stressful experience, let alone one that’s motivated by a fear for one’s safety (not to mention how quickly Lapis made the decision, without really consulting anyone else).  Peridot’s come to think of Earth as home, but Lapis struggled to adjust at first and still seems to feel like she has to look out for herself.  She does crave stability, but that’s not what she’ll get from a life on the run, barn or no barn.

And then they discover Pumpkin hiding in the cornfield.

Peridot: Come on, Pumpkin! We need to leave. Pumpkin! Don’t you walk away when I’m talking to you! Sometimes, you have to do things you don’t wanna do! Like get jettisoned into space to live forever on a floating rock with a barn and just us for as long as time exists! Lapis needs us!

Steven: Peridot, give her a second!

Peridot: She’s doing it to herself! Pumpkin, do as you’re told!

Steven: Woah, Peridot, it sounds like you don’t really want to go.

Peridot: I’m sorry, Pumpkin. I didn’t mean to yank you around. It’s just, we don’t have a choice in this.

Steven: What do you mean you don’t have a choice? Peridot, you should really talk to Lapis about this.

But when Lapis shows up again and finds everyone accounted for, she proceeds to lift the barn again.

Peridot: Wait, Lapis? Pumpkin doesn’t want to go…

Lapis: Pumpkin doesn’t know better. We do.

Peridot: Actually, I…I don’t wanna go, either.

Lapis: Why are you telling me this now?

Peridot: Because we’re about to leave!

Lapis: Isn’t that the worst time?

Peridot: Yes!

Lapis: Then why didn’t you tell me sooner?

Peridot: Well, there are many things I should say, but they would upset you, so in general I…don’t say those things?

Lapis: Peridot, that’s lying!

Peridot: Okay then! The truth is, I think that we should stay, and if the time comes – if the Diamonds do come to wipe this planet off the starmaps, I think we should fight for this life we’ve built instead of tearing it up out of the ground! I think we can win. I think you can win. Earth is our home now. Isn’t it worth fighting for?

First of all, not saying things isn’t actually lying under most circumstances.  Potentially deceptive, sure, but normally keeping your mouth shut about your own feelings just means your opinion isn’t heard, which can certainly lead to miscommunication, but is not technically a lie.  Not saying things because they could potentially be hurtful to someone present is generally known as “tact”.  The only real problem arises when you’re so used to not “offending” someone that you never contradict them even when they’re doing something stupid or wrong, which she just spoke up about.  Considering how quickly all this escalated, I really can’t blame Peridot here.

Lapis: I’m not getting caught up in another war.

Peridot: Wait, no! You’re supposed to reward me for my emotional honesty!

Sorry, Peri.  Sometimes, PTSD overrides the power of friendship.

Honestly, as someone who frequently struggles to speak my mind (and have also moved around a fair bit), this one hit kind of close to home.  Sometimes people just need different things, so they split up to pursue them separately.  Or they’re running away from things and don’t yet have the strength to stand and fight.  And sometimes that results in losing a place (or a person) you love, but hopefully not forever.

Peridot: What do we do now?

Until next time…