Authors' Note: So, something a little different this time.

In Chapter 44 of Faded Blue (Hologram), we mentioned that it was one of the earliest scenes we wrote for the story, over a year ago. It went through a lot of extensive re-writing, but we did save a copy of the first draft we had. We thought it might be interesting to post that here, and give some insight into just how much changed. Hope you all enjoy!

oOo

Old Hologram

The ship was huge. That was his main line of thought has he wandered through the ships over large halls. Everything towered over him. The walls, the windows, what little there was in the way of art. It made him feel tiny.

Steven knew he should have waited for Pearl to return from the Palanquin, but… his curiosity had gotten the better of him and Steven had gone in before Pearl had gotten back. Steven hadn't thought he'd be able to, but the ship had responded to him fairly easily, opening its hatch as he approached without any kind of button or command to be used.

The inside of the ship was… blue. Very blue, and very sparse. Flat walls, tubes of vary sizes moving up and down the ceiling. It looked like a lot of Homeworld engineering, though to be honest Steven was a little unimpressed. This was supposed to be a Diamond's personal flagship. Surely it deserved more spectacle then this? Gold and murals and chandeliers and stuff?

Surely there was a hint of Mom somewhere among its halls?

He continued down the hall, ignoring the doors he passed as he didn't want to risk getting turned around or lost. His ignoring of door's however soon led him to the end of the hall, at which there was a massive door, that stretched from the floor all the way to the ceiling. Steven stared at the door for sometime before his eyes wandered over to the control pad next to it. He stepped towards it, but before he could do anything, there was a sound and the door opened up on its own.

The ship listens to me. I barely have to do anything, Steven thought to himself.

He stepped past the threshold and found himself in what he thought must have been a cockpit of some sort. Dozens of seat lined the outside of the are, each one having their own screen. And in the center of the of the room was a throne, of a build and size similar to the one at the Palanquin.

"That's where Mom sat…" Steven walked over to the seat and thought about climbing onto to, but reconsidered. He needed to get back outside so that he could meet up with Pearl. He gave one last lingering look at the throne, his thoughts on his growingly mixed feelings for his mother, before he began walking away.

However stopping him in his tracks was a buzzer. He quickly turned around and saw that one of the consoles had grown bright and before he could move closer, it shot shone a bright light at him. Slowly tracing his form. As it hit his chest, he could feel an odd sensation from his gem.

"Identity confirmed. Blue Diamond."

The light blinked away instantly and for a moment, Steven thought that was all, but another robotic sounding voice sounded from the machine.

"One: most recent log. Title: 'For Steven'."

Steven felt his mouth drop a little. A log. From Mom. And it was for him. He knew he should just let be, that he should go back outside and wait for Pearl and maybe they could watch the message together.

But… it was titled 'For Steven'. Surely that meant it was only for him, right? He wasn't sure. Before he fully knew what he was doing, Steven found himself slowly saying, "Play most recent log."

The console was silent before it flashed brightly again. Though this time it didn't direct its light at Steven but instead it projected it in front of him, towering over him. The light was various shades of blue with dashes of white but it seemed to be taking some sort of shape, a humanoid one and one that looked almost—

"Mom!"

Steven realized all at once that the figure before him was none other than his own mother, Blue Diamond. As he gaped openly at her wonder, she thought that she looked just like her pictures.

Well, almost.

What hadn't been in any pictures, at least not that Steven had seen, was her hugely pregnant belly. Judging by that alone, this had to have been recorded shortly before he was born. And shortly before Mom was gone.

Mom looked down at him with a neutral, passive expression, before that broke and she smiled gently at him.

"Hello, Steven." She spoke softly, her voice like a musical note. Just like Dad had always described it. "You're… you're watching this now? Aren't you?" She laid a hand on top of her swollen belly. "That means you've gotten back into the ship on your own accord. So your powers are developing… Good. I'm proud of you, Steven."

Steven smiled wildly back at her. "Thanks, Mom…"

"I knew that you would come here one day, Steven," Mom went on. "The universe, it's… it's full of such wonder and life. On this planet alone there is so much life and it just lives . Day in and day out. You'll be a part of that, Steven. And that is… so wonderful. You'll be a part of that more than I ever could be and… that's exciting to think about."

Steven didn't say anything, couldn't really say anything. He was just enraptured by his mother.

"But Steven, even though you will be a part of it, you must always remember something."

Steven nodded vigorously. He knew she couldn't see him, couldn't hear him, but still he spoke to her: "Yeah. What is it, Mom? Tell me what I—"

"You are a Diamond, Steven. It is your destiny to lead."

Steven felt his bright smile begin to melt away. "My… destiny?"

"You were born on Earth as a human, but you are of Homeworld and of the Diamonds. So you are a part of them, but better than them. Above them."

Steven felt his mouth begin tremble as he took a step back. "No… No, I'm not…"

"That's what you must do. Gather your strength here, secure Earth from those rebels, and then return to our Homeworld, to take up your rightful place among your fellow Diamonds."

Steven began shaking his head. "No… no, no, no!"

Blue Diamond took a step closer to him and lowered her hood, revealing her full face. She was still smiling, though it no longer looked sweet and inviting, but rather sinister and taunting.

"This is your destiny, Steven. To be better than them. To be better than me. And you will be able to do it. I know you will."

The hologram of Blue Diamond lingered for a moment, before disappearing all at once, leaving Steven completely alone.

Steven looked at the ground, unable, or unwilling, to believe what he had just seen.

It was true, it was all true. What the Crystal Gems had told him about his mother, what he had seen himself.

It was all true.

"She… she…" Steven couldn't even finish the thought. He looked at his hands, as if making sure they were as he remembered, when he saw the cuff of his hoodie. His blue hoodie that he thought made him look like his mother. Like a Diamond.

A wave of disgust flooded through him and Steven tore the hoodie off and threw it to the ground. He collapsed onto his knees, crying into his hands.

"It's true… It's true…"

Steven heard footsteps echo behind him, followed by a voice calling his name.

"Steven? Are you here?"

Steven wanted to call out to Pearl, but he couldn't. The sobs were too much, robbing him of his ability to talk. But the footsteps drew closer and he heard a much more prominent exclamation. "Steven! Are you alright?"

Pearl rushed over to him and bent down next to him. She put a hand on his shoulder and before she could ask any more questions, Steven turned and wrapped her in the tightest hug he could manage.

"Pearl… Pearl… I—" It was all he could get out, despite his desire to want to tell her everything.

But Pearl, as she always did, seemed to know exactly how to respond. "It's okay, it's okay," she soothed as she drew her fingers through Steven's hair. "Sweetie. It's okay. We're both here, together now."

Steven nodded, the side of his face pressed against Pearl's chest. It wasn't okay, of course. The last hope he had for his mother had been whittled away to nothing. But they were together, as they had been his whole life.

And there was comfort to be had there.