Across the Shimmering Ocean

by biggangnam

Chapter 3: Mistaken Identity

Chapter 3: Mistaken Identity

Lapis had collapsed onto the ground before she was even remotely aware of what had happened.

An agonizing pain, like a ball of fire, throbbed in her Gem and the rest of her body and was growing worse by the second. She could feel water slowly start to leak from her eyes and from every crack and wound upon her body, alternating between ice cold and boiling hot as the last of her temperature control left her.

She tried to scream, but the only result was a strangled groan as another jet of water sprayed from her mouth, this time flecked with shards of her own Gem. Cracks and splinters ran up and down her arms as she clutched her stomach, desperate to prevent another eruption. Her legs flailed about with every spasm of her body, unable to find any footing to move at all.

Lapis could just barely see the others crowding around her, their voices a cacophonous din of inaudible white noise as their forms, now indistinguishable from one another, formed a semi-circle around her. She couldn't even tell if they were looking at her or at each other.

There was only one person she could see with any sort of clarity, and that was Sunset, staring down at her like some kind of vengeful deity, her expression completely inscrutable as she towered over the broken Gem. Her memory recall began to fall out of control as her visage flickered between her human disguise and the face of the demon she truly was. Lapis slowly curled into a ball as she clutched her head in her hands again, a pool of alternately steaming and frosting water forming around her body.

She was toying with her. That had been her last chance and she had failed spectacularly. And Sunset knew it.

Lapis clutched her hands to her chest as a terrible, choking fear began to fill her from head to toe. But with fear comes a certain kind of clarity. She had to run. She had to hide. She had to do something, anything, even if it killed her. She knew what would happen if she didn't.

Lapis reached out with the last of her energy and drew some of the steaming water towards her right hand; her temperature control was nowhere near as precise as Sapphire's but she had just enough left in her to keep it hot if she focused. She had to wait for the right moment, and sure enough Sunset was already reaching down towards her...

With a swing of her arm an arc of boiling water slapped Sunset across the face. Her yells were tinged with white noise in Lapis's distorted hearing as she clutched her hands to her face, staggering backwards and shrieking in agony. It was far from a lethal blow and she'd be angrier than ever once she recovered, but it did give Lapis the moment she needed to get some distance.

Focusing on her vision and legs, Lapis summoned the last of the water she had spilled out to propel herself to her feet; in her hazy state she just barely noticed Applejack and the others crowding around Sunset. Lapis glanced back at them for only a moment, reaching out her hand to Applejack, but it was as if she was invisible compared to the screaming Sunset.

No. She had no time for this. She'd already fallen once before in a moment of weakness. She would not be imprisoned again.

Lapis used all of her energy to run, or rather, attempt to run, her slowly disintegrating legs barely able to attempt a limping stumble as she began her escape towards...somewhere. Anywhere. Her journey through the town had been such a hazy blur that she had no idea where anything was anymore.

The agonized screaming faded into the background as Lapis kept running. All that mattered was putting distance between her and Sunset.

Even if she had nowhere to run to.

***
"God damn it, why didn't we see that coming?!"

For once in her life Applejack didn't feel the need to call Rainbow Dash out on her cussing, focused instead on grabbing some cold water from the fountain to splash on a towel for Sunset's face. Not exactly an ice pack, but it would do in a pinch to get her to calm down for a moment.

Applejack's gullet churned as she listened to the poor girl, her screams slowly quieting down to muffled sobs as she patted down the red streak across her face. She was grateful the water hadn't been too hot; the guilt was too much as it was.

"Shhh...shhh, it's going to be alright. It's just a surface burn, that's it. See, Applejack's making it all better now, sweetie."

The quiet voice of the light pink haired girl gently caressing Sunset's head seemed to be meant just as much for Applejack's benefit, as she reached out to grip the farmgirl's hand to make sure she wasn't too rough with the towel. Her gentle blue eyes stared right into Applejack's, and she wondered if her poker face really was that terrible.

It amazed her how Fluttershy could behave some times, really. The entire time Lapis had been here she had hidden behind the tree, making Applejack wonder if she had just run away, but the moment Sunset had been injured she had been the first to rush over and assess the damage. It kind of made her wonder what she could have done for Lapis, and her face once again contorted with guilt.

Fluttershy could say it wasn't her fault until the end of time. But it didn't change a damn thing.

Rainbow Dash stomped around next to the fountain, kicking aside debris and either screaming or swearing at the general area. Every now and then she would accidentally kick the fountain and a much longer spew of profanity would emerge. And to be fair, Applejack could not blame her. They'd all been caught flat on their feet and stood around like chumps while Lapis tried to kill Sunset. It was hard not to feel inadequate after a botch like that.

Rainbow stomped over to the two of them, blitzing by Rarity as she continued her cell phone search as per her instructions.

"Alright, what's the plan here? Are we going after this bitch or what?"

Applejack stared pointedly at Rainbow as her free hand clenched. "Look, sugarcube, Lapis ain't a bitch. She just...overreacted. She panicked and I don't know why." Applejack struggled to get the words out, her weak poker face crumbling in embarrassment.

Rainbow's own face contorted into anger; Applejack could tell she was holding a lot of it back as she glared down at her, but she would not budge.

"Panicked? Overreacted? Did you SEE that thing? She was going to slice Sunset in half! Who cares if she panicked?!"

Rainbow slammed her fist into her hands as she began looking around. "If she's still here we need to find her. We need to make sure she knows who she's dealing with. And this time we'll be ready."

Applejack stood up, handing the towel to Fluttershy so she could face Rainbow directly. "We're not even close to ready, Rainbow. Pinkie's nowhere in sight, Sunset's still hurtin', and Lapis knew who she was so she probably has the drop on all of us now! We're just as much in the lurch now as we were ten minutes ago; running off half cocked ain't going to accomplish anything!"

Rainbow could be just as stubborn and pigheaded as Applejack, and refused to back down, Fluttershy watching nervously as she held the slowly quieting Sunset. "So what, are we just going to let her get away with this? Just let her run off, get her strength back, and then come back for Sunset again?!"

"It's better than just stormin' in and gettin' ALL of us killed! We need to sit down, cool our heads, and actually come up with a PLAN!"

Rainbow opened her mouth to keep going, but her face dropped as she seriously considered the plan she had in mind, nonexistent as it actually was. She visibly blushed as she looked down at her sneakers.

"Rainbow, Ah get it. Ah know you wanna make sure we're safe, and Ah appreciate the hell out of you fer it." Applejack placed her hand on Rainbow's shoulders, lifting her chin up to face her with the other. "But if Lapis is gonna come back or we're gonna go after her...and Ah ain't sayin' she will...we have to set up a plan of attack. For now we need to regroup, figure out our options, and THEN try to find her. Sound like a good idea?"

Rainbow continued looking down sheepishly, but soon worked out a smile. "Um...yeah...yeah, that sounds better." For all her bluster, it was remarkably easy to make Rainbow Dash nervous if you knew what buttons to press. Lucky for her, Applejack knew exactly which ones.

The click of stiletto heels interrupted the moment, Rarity interceding between the two with a stern look about her. "We might not have the time for that. Depending on how much Lapis knows about her condition, and how much she wants to go after Sunset, she may come back sooner than you both think."

A quizzical look crossed Rainbow's face, surprised by the seriousness on Rarity's. "What do you mean? As soon as she started hacking up water she bolted like hell. She's just trying to buy time."

"Time she does not have, darling, and I think she knows that. What she did wasn't a retreat, it was a moment of panic. Once she calms down she WILL come back to exact her revenge. And if she's even remotely aware of her condition she knows that she doesn't have much longer to do it."

"Yeah, she looked pretty banged up, but-"

"Rainbow, Lapis was more than "banged up." I saw her Gem. I saw the cracks on her body. If someone offered me an emerald with that much damage I doubt I could get a penny for it. And she isn't simply a human, she's a walking, talking stone. If it was a human the damage would be catastrophic! As it is?"

Rarity closed her eyes and sighed, Applejack remembering the expression from her days working on their prom dresses and the exasperation at their "helpful"ideas. She had been giving this matter a great deal of thought.

"As it is...she's dying."

The fountain, split and cracked, had finished draining onto the walkway. All the water had been spilled, and slowly began to dry. A hush fell over the girls as they realized the gravity of the situation. A shuffling sound could be heard as Fluttershy seemed to backed away from Sunset.

"SO, Applejack, Rainbow Dash? If we're going to do this, we have to start getting ready. It will probably take the poor dear a while to get her head straight and realize what's happening, so that gives us some time to set up."

A rustling noise went unnoticed next to them, as Fluttershy spoke up. "Um...Rarity? Applejack?"

Rarity was too focused on the task at hand to notice. "Firstly, we need to find Pinkie Pie and calm her down for five minutes so we can have all of us together. I'd prefer we had Twilight or some more effective equipment, but at the moment beggars needn't be choosers. Besides, we always have our accessories." Rarity grinned as she whipped her diamond headband off her head and held it up like some glorified Henshin morpher.

"Rainbow?" Fluttershy quietly spoke up again as Rarity began to do an elaborate dance that she had seen in one of the girlier anime she had watched with Rainbow Dash.

"Oh sweet salty Christ," Rainbow muttered, herself too embarrassed to notice Fluttershy's concerns despite being the only one who could hear her clearly.

"ANYWAY," intoned Rarity as she got back on track, "the important thing is that we take this to an isolated area; the fewer people that get caught up in this the better. I honestly don't think Lapis would attack random strangers, but we can't take the chance. I know a few places where she can't cause any problems...but we need to move Sunset first."

Rarity's expression softened as she said Sunset's name; they had been so focused on keeping Sunset safe that they had practically ignored her this whole time. Even if the burn itself had not been serious, the crack of the water must have felt like a whip to the face.

And goodness knows the last thing the poor girl needs is more pain.

Rarity couldn't help but wonder what Sunset had done to make Lapis so angry, so vengeful, so hateful. The sad truth of it was that, with Sunset's past, it could have been just about anything. Maybe Lapis had spilled water on her dress, or had lured away a boy she liked. Maybe she had run into her history with Equestria and the Portal and seen too much.

But Rarity felt her heart begin to chill as she thought about how close Lapis had come to killing Sunset in her anger. It didn't matter what she had done in the past. This was the here and now.

And right now, Sunset needed her to be strong.

"Sunset, darling, I know you're still in pain, but we need to get moving. Lapis will be coming back any minute and...and..."

Rarity had started speaking before turning around to see how she was doing, and as she turned she found only Fluttershy, sporting a look of irritation...or as irritated as Fluttershy could manage, anyway.

"Fluttershy...where's Sunset?"

***

"Get the hell off the street!"

Horns blared around her as Lapis desperately weaved her way through the traffic, only vaguely aware of each car as it narrowly zipped by her. On one or two occasions her arm was nearly clipped by a passing motorist, but in her half-dead state she was in no condition to care.

She thought back to Beach City, how Steven had panicked and dodged the trucks and cars on the road to avoid being hit, and while she was certain getting struck herself wouldn't do any good, she knew it would be worse for her.

Still, she kept running, drunkenly stumbling onto the sidewalk as water sprayed from her legs with each passing step. Her memories of her arrival in the city were hazed and jumbled, but she could just barely recall hearing the sound of human traffic over the river she'd found herself in. Perhaps if she followed the streets she could find a bridge, or at least some kind of sign as to where she could go next.

All she had to do was get to the ocean. All she had to do was get to the river. All she had to do was survive. All she had to do was...

A barb of pain shot up her leg, causing Lapis to stumble and catch the nearest wall. A spiderwebbed crater had appeared on her left thigh, sending deep cracks throughout her leg. Just the slightest bit of pressure on it left her in absolute agony.

Lapis slumped against the rough bricks. Every part of her body felt like solid lead.

"All I have to do is not die." She laughed bitterly at that lovely sentiment.

Struggling, Lapis held onto the wall with her good arm for dear life, dragging her slowly decaying leg behind her as she followed the flow of traffic away from that damned fountain. Occasionally even her good arm slipped, steam beginning to slip from her fingertips as she slowly lost sensation. It would not be long before the rest of her limbs followed suit.

Lapis stared up at the blazing sun, the oppressive heat more apparent now than ever as it filled up her vision. She could feel it on her body, seeping into it, and averting her gaze left her with spots in her vision for far longer than normal. The sound of rushing water in her ears was now overbearing, and she could just barely hear the traffic and the shouting and the sound of someone calling her name...

"LAPIS!!!"

***
Rainbow and Applejack, equally distracted by their discussion, turned around in surprise at the statement, surprise which turned into panic for Applejack and complete bemusement for Rainbow Dash. Fluttershy simply stared at them for a moment before her irritation turned into apologetic shame.

"Sorry, I should have spoken up earlier. Sunset got up and ran away. I tried to stop her, but she said she had to handle something alone."

Rainbow's voice was incredulous, but Rarity could tell she was restraining herself for Fluttershy's benefit. Rainbow tended to do that. "Wait, what do you mean handle it alone? You don't mean Lapis?!"

Fluttershy took a moment, before nodding her head in shame.
***

She did not recognize the voice until it was practically in her ear. Lapis spun around to face the end of the sidewalk. Even in the intense light Sunset stood out, black leather and piercing green eyes contrasting with her rapidly decaying vision, like a dark blot on pure snow. Her boots stood on the trail of water Lapis had left behind like an idiot.

Lapis and Sunset stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity, the red blotch upon her face from Lapis's attack just beginning to welt. All it had done was make her angry, and now Lapis had absolutely no chance of pulling off another attack.

Sunset began to walk towards her, a walk which erupted into a sprint as Lapis stumbled backwards. A loud and nasty crack rang out as she landed on her broken arm. Lapis could feel it fold in half before a million hairline fractures spread across it like melting ice. Only the fear kept her from passing out again.

Barely able to regain her footing, Lapis turned and fled, willing her decaying leg to move as fast as she was able as her arm began to slowly disintegrate from the fingertips up. Chunks of stone fell from the fracture on her leg with each step as she moved faster than her body could maintain. Fear tends to inspire such a response.

Lapis dared not turn back; she knew that Sunset was faster than her and gaining ground, and that made actual escape almost impossible. Her field of vision had been reduced to about ten feet in any given direction, everything else a haze of red and vague shapes, so she could no longer see any landmarks.

Nor could she see the street lamp that she slammed into in her panic. Lapis screamed out as her broken arm shattered to pieces, floating about her like snowflakes as she spun about in the confusion. Water spilled out of the broken stump and sprayed across the sidewalk, causing Sunset to pause in her pursuit for a moment in a play at caution.

The pain was unimaginable, worse than anything short of being trapped in the Mirror for the first time. Static rang in her ears as she heard people around her begin to scream, a small crowd having gathered in all the commotion. Lapis struggled to her feet again and large chunks of her legs began to fall away, causing the screaming crowd to break into complete hysterics as they backed away from the decaying Gem. And as she shambled forward like the walking dead the crowd began to disperse in a mad panic, running in a hundred different directions.

To her relief she noticed how a fair chunk of the crowd headed in Sunset's direction, a few even grabbing her shoulders to try and pull her away. She saw Sunset struggle against the crowd, reaching her arm out towards Lapis as she began to limp away...only to burst out of the throng and make a mad dash towards her, not stopping for even an instant.

Lapis no longer had even an inkling of a plan left now; that crowd had been her last chance and she had been unable to exploit it in her condition. The end of the street was a straight shot ahead and Sunset would surely catch her. Crossing the street itself would lead to almost certain death with the cars moving faster than she could keep up with. And with her vision now reduced to, at best, five feet in front of her, she could not see any other escape routes. All save one, a dark intersection between two shops.

She turned on her good leg and stumbled into the alley, her run reduced to a mere walk as her various extreme injuries finally all caught up to her. Her blurred eyes scanned
left and right for any possible escape route, but any windows were either barred or too high for her to reach. Her attempts at each door were met with locks or broken handles. But she had to keep moving, find the end of the alley, get to some kind of shelter...

Her leg shattered, whole slabs of stone sloughing away and disintegrating as it gave out from beneath her.

Lapis crumpled to the ground, her remaining leg and arm struggling desperately towards the exit. She could hear boots stomping outside the alley as her predator drew ever nearer. She had to escape. She had to get away. Every inch was an inch away from death. She could not walk, but she could crawl, get into another building, hide under some garbage, something, anything, any option she could find.

But it was as she placed her hand out for the exit, only to feel hard brick, only to see the looming building wall above her, devoid of doors or windows or even sturdy footholds...that Lapis realized where she had come to.

A dead end. Every hope of escape she had clasped onto crumbled in her heart like every other part of her body. Despair filled her to the brim as she heard the boot steps come to a halt in front of the alley she had trapped herself in.

Heavy breathing resonated in her ears. Lapis struggled to lift herself as she clawed against the wall, struggling to grip onto anything she could find as a weapon or escape. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she began rapidly bashing her hand against the wall, more cracks forming on her fist with each strike.

And then...she heard her voice, looming over her like an angel of death.

"I found you."
***

Applejack was the next to step forward, guilt spreading anew on her expression. Her hands clasped nervously, making Rarity wonder if she had some kind of insight. "Fluttershy. When did she make a run for it? Was...was it after we said something?"

Fluttershy seemed to roll the memory over in her head before she had a response. "It...it was after..."

Applejack knelt down to Fluttershy, gently but firmly gripping her hand. "Fluttershy, this is important. What did we say?"

"...it was after you said Lapis was dying."

It took a moment for what she said to register, but it was Rainbow Dash to first realize just what had happened. "Oh fuck."

"So much for having a plan," groaned Applejack. "Think we can catch her before she does something stupid?"

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "She's ALREADY done something stupid! Now we need to make sure she doesn't get herself killed!"

Rarity was already on the way to her car, having realized right away exactly what Sunset was about to do. "Come on! I think I have an idea where she's going! And if we follow the water we can probably catch up to her first! Rainbow, you text Pinkie Pie to meet us in the town square, that's where Lapis is likely to try and hide!"

Applejack lifted a profusely apologizing Fluttershy on her shoulder, following Rainbow as she began her wild typing. She'd blame Rarity for being overdramatic, but it was all of their fault for not realizing what Sunset might try to do if she heard something like that. Lapis was like a cornered dog; no matter what her intentions, she was bound to lash out.

All she could do was hope Sunset knew what she was doing.

***
Lapis had often wondered what it would be like to die.

She had entertained the thought many times while trapped in the mirror, begging for any kind of relief from the agony she felt. Even back when she was on Homeworld, she remembered many times asking Sapphire about it, although even then she had admitted that, even with her powers, she could not see far enough ahead to tell what would happen to them.

But now, backed against a wall, two limbs destroyed and the others rapidly following suit, almost totally blind, and a literal monster stepping towards her...she wondered if Sapphire had been lying to spare her this moment.

"Stay back!!! Get away from me!!!"

Lapis once again whipped a cord of water at Sunset, but it only succeeded in mildly splashing against her face. Panic gripped her as she summoned another strand and hurled it, and another, and another. Lapis put more and more of herself into each swing, but every "attack" had less and less impact in spite of the effort. It was like throwing a glass of water on a forest fire. But still she kept going, lashing out with as much strength as she could manage, even as each splash of water failed to even reach Sunset.

"I SAID STAY BACK!!!"

Lapis's cries were becoming hoarse and strangled as she struggled to even lift her arm for another blow. She summoned all of the water she had left into a spinning, spiraling ball, lifting her arm in front of her to make the shot...

...only for her hand and a good chunk of her forearm to explode into a million shards, the water evaporating into steam.

Lapis stared at the leaking stump dully for a moment, unable to feel any sensation at all from the injury. It only took a moment or so for the reality to sink in, and the last shreds of defiance died in her.

She began to push her back against the wall, putting as much distance between Sunset and her Gem as possible. Her angry screams from before had fully devolved, a strangled moan bursting out into full, body racking sobs. Tears streamed down her ashen cheeks, forming into ice droplets as they hit the ground.

"Please...please..." Her voice barely registered above a whisper as she sensed Sunset's presence over her' having finally reached her. Lapis dared not look up, curling into a ball with what little remained of her limbs. Her entire body trembled and shivered, her wretched sobbing muffled as she buried her face in her arm.

"I don't want to die."

Lapis heard the rustle of clothes as Sunset knelt down...she could feel her monstrous aura begin to engulf her...she felt her hand reaching, further, further down...

...and rest gently upon her head. She heard more rustling as Sunset seemed to kneel in front of her, slowly drawing another hand across her destroyed arm. A soft gasp escaped her mouth unbidden.

Lapis was unable to comprehend any of this. "Wha-what are you doing to me...?" She dared not look up at her.

"Lapis." Sunset spoke her name quietly, almost whispering it, as if a single breath would wipe her away. "I need you to stay still. Just for a minute."

Lapis attempted to move to the side, but Sunset's grip was suddenly firm. Not rough, but firm. "Get your hands off me..." Lapis tried to scream, but she could barely manage a soft yelp as Sunset's grasp did not budge. "You're a monster..."

"We can deal with that later. Right now you need my help."

Lapis spat in Sunset's face. With what little strength she had left she began to struggle from side to side, desperately trying to escape as Sunset muttered unintelligible things under her breath. She felt her hands move to various points on her body, arms, legs, across her face...until she felt Sunset's fingers touch her Gem.

"I just need you to trust me."

Lapis stood stock still in that moment. She felt Sunset run her fingers along the contours of the Gem, tracing the cracks and crevices and occasionally mumbling some obscenities, something about a princess and higher knowledge. Lapis had no idea what she was babbling about, only that in that moment, she was completely and totally at her mercy.

"What are you going to..."

"Hold still," whispered Sunset. "This is going to feel a little weird."

Lapis heard a low sound coming Sunset, what she could only guess was her humming a song, low and melodious. It was a song she somehow recognized, as if from a dream. And as her humming grew louder a sudden burst of heat emerged from Lapis's Gem where her fingers had touched. It felt...warm, radiant, like the light of the sun she had felt on her body when she first arrived on this wretched planet. It felt...good.

That warmth soon began to radiate from her Gem, flowing throughout her body and coursing along her arms and legs, and as it did she felt something impossible. The heat traced where her arms and legs had been, across her eyes and face, and that warmth seemed to expand into the vague shape of the limbs she had lost. The humming became clearer with every second as her hearing returned, and the darkness of her curled position seemed to glow with a golden light. Was...was her sight coming back too?

What was she doing?

As soon as it began, however, the magic seemed to fade, and Lapis heard Sunset step away from her. The sound of traffic rang out on the edge of the alleyway. And her body seemed heavier than it had been. Had Sunset done what she thought she had done?

Lapis lifted her head, and stared down. Her legs...her arms...they were back, healed, as good as new! She could see them clearly, her vision was better than ever! Lapis leapt to her feet, staring at every part of her reformed body, completely free of pain!

Did...did she dare to hope? Lapis twisted her left arm to reach her back. She felt around for her Gem and found it...still cracked. The healing had only extended to her physical form, she realized, her face slowly falling with the realization.

"I'm sorry. I tried to fix your Gem, I really did. But...I don't know why it didn't work."

Lapis stopped, the tone in Sunset's voice completely catching her off guard. She spun around to face her pursuer, the monstrous Sunset Shimmer...who was staring down at her own feet, looking absolutely crestfallen. She seemed almost ashamed to look at her, and her eyes seemed to be shining, as if she was about to cry. Some part of Lapis broke a little at the sight.

This was the monster she had seen in her visions, the girl who had tortured Steven...and she had just saved her life.

Lapis stepped forward, but Sunset had no response. Neither one said a word as they stood in the alleyway. But Sunset was the first to break that silence.

"Lapis...I don't know what I did to you. It's hard to keep track of all the people I hurt, and I know this probably doesn't come close to making us even. But I want to help you fix your Gem...in any way I can."

Her voice was as deep and husky as ever, but it carried a gentleness to it that Lapis was not used to. It had been so long since someone had ever tried to help her, and to have it be another human was even more shocking.

Sunset stepped forward this time, reaching her hand out and placing a piece of paper in Lapis's hand before she could even draw it back.

"You need more time to think about it, I know. But...when you've made your decision, come to this address later tonight. I'll explain everything to the other girls and then we can figure out what you want to do from here. I'll be in the area for a while, so don't worry about getting lost."

Sunset reached out her other hand, towards Lapis's cheek, an unreadably sad expression crossing her features before she pulled it away and turned around, running towards the street. Lapis noticed she never once took her eyes off her until she reached the exit, staring at her with those same sad green eyes for a solid minute before she ran off.

Lapis stood still in the middle of the dark alley. The sounds of city life rang out around her as she backed herself against the wall and slumped to the ground. She found herself, once again, staring into the sunlight peeking out from the rooftop behind her, clear as day and much softer than she remembered.

And once again, Lapis had exactly no idea what to do next.

What the hell just happened?

Author's Note:

Dear God, I sincerely apologize for the lateness of this. I had an editing session with some friends and realized two things: I needed to tone down the...tone, and I needed to have a real plan for the story. The tone I can work on, and now I have a plan. Updates are back on track, you awesome people!

Read, review, critique, and lemme know whatcha think!

Comments

[Dirty Bit]

For a second there, I thought she actually would've done what Steven had did in the show (Without the saliva, of course ), but this is the next best thing.

[biggangnam]

6945128
Hahahah, next chapter you'll see part of why I didn't do that yet. ;)

[Wandering Eye]

HMMMM! i like where this is going, yes-yes. ooh, whats in store for Lapis?

[Perry Pinkie Potter]

Ooh, intrigued I am!

[DAPLR]

Man, some serious body horror in this one, eh? Poor Lapis, poor Sunset.

Man I'm on the edge of my seat reading these!