neti neti

Why are some people calling her "queen"? Apparently, she conquered some place called China.

RUIBO QUIAN as ZHENG YI SAO in OFMD s2 episodes 1 to 3

So, I’ve always been pretty curious about who Lapis Lazuli is - or, more specifically, who she was, and what led to her being imprisoned in the mirror. Following the Steven’s Birthday Bomb week, however, I find myself asking the same question… but with a slightly different angle. 

In the latest episodes, “The Answer” especially, it’s been confirmed that any gem that isn’t a same-gem fusion or a Diamond is regarded less as an individual and more of a copy - all Rubies are the same, all Pearls are the same, and while some gems might be rare (like Sapphires), there are still always more than one. 

Ruby’s a very clear example of this. The flashback introduction of Ruby and Sapphire demonstrated that 1) Gems of the same type often look exactly the same 2) when gems of the same type fuse, it’s just a bigger version of them, and they don’d ‘disappear’ while becoming a different person. Ruby describes it as, “it’s always just me, but bigger!”

It seems like the concept of individuality and singular, personal thoughts/experiences is near nonexistent when it comes to gems as a species. Rose is downright awe-struck by the fact that humans have unique lives and experiences, totally different from any other person. 

All of this new context surrounding identity and gem culture has now led me to think back on Lapis’ introduction and some of her dialogue in a new light. 

Even before she’s brought out of the mirror, Lapis seems to have a distinct personality, shown through her interactions with Steven. If we’re to believe that she was once part of Blue Diamond’s court (which I think is meant to be implied), we might assume Lapis’ (Lapis..es?) are probably obedient and quiet and elegant, as the rest of Blue Diamonds’ court seems to be. 

But that’s not the Lapis we know.

The Lapis we’ve encountered is passionate, opinionated (”I never believed in this place”), and likes fart jokes. And of all the Homeworld gems we’ve encountered, she seems to have the strongest sense of identity of them all.

This was always a very strong, chilling line, but in retrospect it holds a new level of significance. Lapis seems to regard herself as a distinct individual; she’s not just a Lapis, she IS Lapis Lazuli. 

This is also suggested by a few of her other lines: “You three knew I was in [the mirror], and you didn’t do anything. Did you even wonder who I used to be!?”

I began to think if this might be due to her imprisonment - I’d say being trapped in a mirror for a couple thousand years is a unique experience. Then I got to thinking, what if she really is very unique? What if she is the only Lapis Lazuli, or at least, one of very few.

It’s already been shown that there can be rare gems. Sapphire is an example. And what’s something both Lapis and Sapphire have in common? They each have notable abilities that aren’t universally shared between gems. Sapphire can see into the future. And Lapis…

Lapis can manipulate water. She can call it to her, bend it to her will, even create water clones of other gems and make them fight for her, seemingly with very little concentration. She steals the entire freaking ocean, for goodness sake. You can easily make the argument that Lapis Lazuli is by far the strongest gem we’ve ever seen in action. 

There’s another aspect of her powers you have to take into consideration, too - not all planets have water. While her powers are impressive, for a species whose singular goal seems to be ‘colonize as many planets as possible’, the ability to manipulate water might’ve been seen as extremely valuable. 

It’d make sense to bring a gem like Lapis to Earth, then, a planet where there’s more water than land. Lapis might’ve been an invaluable asset to the colonization of Earth. Which then begs the original question: why was Lapis Lazuli trapped in a mirror? Who put her there? 

I’m starting to think that she was imprisoned in the mirror for this exact fact. The Resistance may have seen Lapis to be a huge threat to their cause - she’s extremely powerful and gave Homeworld a huge edge. Her very presence on Earth was a danger to it. So I think, perhaps by Rose’s own command even, Lapis was confined to the mirror in order to keep her away from Homeworld’s hands. 

As a mirror, Lapis was also used as a tool for relaying information. Though it’s not elaborated on exactly how much ‘the mirror’ knew and what it could show, it could be speculated that since it was Lapis’ powering it, The Resistance may have been able to get information about Homeworld’s plans through Lapis via the mirror, asking it questions on locations and plans only Lapis would know. 

“Don’t trust them, Steven”

This would also explain Lapis Lazuli’s clear contempt for the Crystal Gems. They may not have captured/poofed her directly - Pearl’s line “How could I have known the gem contained in that mirror could be so powerful?” makes me think she didn’t know exactly what Lapis was like and what she was capable of. Maybe Lapis’ was poofed and her gem cracked, and the Rebellion found/took her before ever knowing what she was like when fully formed. Perhaps Lapis had an accident and was discarded/imprisoned by Homeworld after being cracked (and thereby useless), and the Rebellion got her then, but never freed her?

Either way, new context has lead to Lapis Lazuli becoming an even more interesting character than she already was. I’m growing ever more excited to find out who she really is.

“Hey, hey, hey. It’s alright. Charlie, you’re all right now. You are Paimon, one of the eight kings of Hell.”

Two of Wands and The Star