Steven hadn't noticed every one staring at him for an entire hour as he cooked. Their weak tones hadn't fettered his excitement since he had a bit more energy today. He felt good after he got out of the shower and the steam was so thick he could hardly see. Yes, to bathe in hellfire was his greatest creature comfort.

He flipped pancakes with protein powder and sang to the music in his head, surprised at his comfortability with some of them. He hadn't sang Bewitched in a long while.

"Steven!" Connie finally snapped.

He spun around with wide eyes and the pan clutched tightly in his hand. "Wh-what? What'd I do wrong?"

Her face softened and she took careful steps to him. That was his first clue that something was terribly wrong. Connie was... closer than usual. 'Actually..,' he thought as he looked around at his friend's pale faces. "Shit." He grabbed at his hair and noted the significant difference in length. He grabbed at his face and felt the nearly smooth shaven stubble. "No..." He raced to the bathroom and groaned, sliding down the door in horror.

His friends followed the sound and watched him slump all the way over the floor and sulk. "I'm 20 again."

Hazel shook his head in bewilderment. "Why?"

"I don't know," He lamented. "I-I had a dream." He sat up as his face flooded a horrified red. "Uh oh."

"Uh oh?! What's uh oh?" Anna wanted to move, but she felt paralyzed. So much for trying to make Steven feel more human when this was the most alien thing she'd ever seen. Still, Steven was clearly miserable and needed comfort. "Why are you guys acting like he just turned into a ten year old you don't know what to do with?!"

"Ah! Don't say that, he might actually turn into one!" Connie yelped. She could not handle staring down at her childhood best friend and husband as a literal child again. "Uh... okay..." She approached Steven carefully and wrapped him in her arms. "I'm glad you're not a– I mean... Something like this happened when you were 13, right?"

Steven melted into her touch and groaned softly at the feel of her fingertips exploring his hair. It felt so nice he almost wondered if his body at 20 was touch starved. Everything seemed so vivid but inside he felt a hazy delight slurring his thoughts together. Boobs. He turned into them and nuzzled. "Uh huh. I don't remember what changed."

She looked back at the band, all paralyzed in place. "He's a little loopy it seems. Are you guys okay?"

"Is he... s-t-u-c-k?" Adam asked nervously.

Steven snorted and pulled away to look up at them with an unnerving amount of innocence in his face. "I can still hear. And spell. It's still me. I'm just disoriented."

The worst part about the band gawking at him was the fact they all seemed to know this was around the age he was officially with Allison. Their hands were firmly kept at their sides, minds probably thinking of all the times Allison had assaulted him like this.

He stood and tried to shake his anxiety. He didn't want to think about that. "The burners still on." They let him walk out and he tried not to notice that Hazel and Jacob were taller than him now.

Making pancakes mostly consisted of Steven writing songs in his head as he went, and then in the heavy impending silence singing aloud. "Tell me what you really like
Baby I can take my time
We don't ever have to fight
Just take it step-by-step
I can see it in your eyes
'Cause they never tell me lies
I can feel that body shake
And the heat between your legs," He stopped mid motion and glanced back at the band to see their cheeks flushed and eyes wide with the purely sensual magic pulsing from him. "Oh, right. We just have to act normal with me and it'll correct itself. Do you guys want any pancakes?"

Being the youngest by three years and now closest to his age, Jacob cleared his throat. "So... how exactly does... does this equal yesterday at this time?"

He tilted his head and shrugged. "I had a massive growth spurt a bit before Nova. Is that why you guys are creating puddles of all sorts on our nice hardwood floors? Cause I'm shorter?"

"I don't think that's why. I think they all feel like perverts cause you're younger than all of us now." Alex frowned at his eye roll. "Plus I mean, your voice always gives us goosebumps."

"I'm just shorter." They gave him apprehensive looks. "Guys, I'm still 27."

"He was this tall at 18 too. 5'10, I think," Connie mumbled as she bit her lip. She was 24. Was she a cougar now? She was so used to looking up at him that having him at eye level was strange.

"Ugh, don't do that. He's 27," Adam sighed. "All I can think about is how Alliso– whoa." He held up his hands as the mention of her name changed his form again almost instantly.

"Good job."

"Way to go, hotshot."

Jasmin sarcastically clapped as best she could as they stared up at Steven in now much more open surprise.

"Jesus, I'm sorry! Unfiltered goth boy, remember?"

Connie seemed to be frozen to the spot but managed, "Steven, are you okay?"

There were a few attempts to speak as he tried to figure out what form he'd taken. Obviously something happened and he could feel the change. His vision was sharper, and he was not only taller than his friends again, but much taller. The sudden preference for being mute gave him the for sure answer to that question. "It's just a trauma response. I think I'm on the fritz."

"It's that voice again," Adam whispered.

Connie stepped forward with her eyes shining over a stoic face. "I don't think I've ever seen you in this Diamond variation unless..." She trailed off, feeling unnecessarily guilty. It wasn't the kind of thing one could equate to be more than it was, but his form changing so frequently was fucking with her mind too much not to turn to the band. "I think... This is the closest he gets to Pink Diamond, but that usually only happens–,"

"It's me at my most perfect, basically," Steven interrupted quickly. Connie looked a little faint and upset, he didn't want her to feel obligated to explain for him. "This is my strongest, fastest, and biggest form. It usually only happens when I'm feeling really strong emotions or I happen to be repressing. I'm not upset though, Adam. You didn't trigger me." Adam sagged a little with relief. "I don't know what's going on, either." He summoned his shield in record time and snapped it in half so it burst into hard light fizzles. "Unfortunately, I'm now officially at my peak dangerousness." He turned on them expecting a flinch. When they didn't, he grinned. "I could explode."

They exchanged a look for a moment before Jasmin raised a hand. "I have a question."

Steven smirked a little. "Speak."

She blushed and stammered for a good minute before she finally got out, "Where's your baby fat? Where are the cheeks?"

Hazel laughed tensely. "Right? What is happening?!"

They all started lamenting, acting as if this were the end of the world as they knew it because Stevens cheeks were no longer squishable when he was on God Mode, and how would they survive if they couldn't baby him because of it?

"This is a whole ass attack dog," Hazel mourned, taking in his form as much as he could. "Where's my giant puppy boy?"

Connie giggled. "My brain attributes the color pink to sex because it happens every time. How am I personally going to survive this if every time he looks at me he's got his Diamond eyes on?!"

"Oh shut up, there's not even a way for you guys to bang more often." Adam circled the behemoth of a man and grumbled. "How is it fair you get to max out at 8 feet?"

Steven picked him up under his arms and hugged him to himself. "You guys are like dolls. You're so small."

"Where's my princess?" Jasmin patted the half fake distraught Hazel as he half fake cried.

Adam giggled as manly as possible while blushing like a schoolgirl. "Guys he's definitely still our Steven."

Anna shuffled over with wide eyes. "Hi."

"We've met before, Anna," Steven laughed. "I'm not a new person, it's just hard to talk when I'm so absolutely massive. Too much space in my chest and a lot of gravel." He crouched down to set Adam back on his feet and watched them. Now that the initial panic was gone, they seemed fascinated and eager. Sighing, the Diamond crouched lower until he was sitting and motioned them close. "Come on, then." He would just have to get used to speaking like this right now. He didn't want to be silent lest they be afraid of him.

They crowded and ran their hands all over him out of pure curiosity while Connie rubbed and kissed his head. "I forget your hair gets longer."

"Sex is that forgettable like this?" He teased lowly. "Guess I'll have to stop–,"

"No, no," She insisted seriously. "Don't change your habits for my benefit." When he glanced away she smirked to herself, but couldn't get rid of it before he caught her. Sex with Steven was never in the dark, so she recognized those eyes violently undressing her and at the same time, simply just watching nearly emotionlessly.

"It's all gone," Jacob sighed as he took a second to feel how warm his glow was. "All the baby fat we love to dote on. Poof."

"Oh my stars. Connie got you guys onto hidden muscle, didn't she?"

Alex shook his head as the others started scoffing in a very convincing way. "There's so much bass to your voice. And you're... so bright."

Steven hesitated to answer. Maybe he could be his normal tone? But no, there didn't seem to be an accessible way to turn it off at the moment. He'd just have to be okay with it. "I'm stuck. May as well try to snuff out the glow. But I swear to god if you guys start making jokes..."

"Why would we make jokes?" Hazel raised his hands in surrender. "I don't want you to beat my ass."

Five minutes later, they stared at him and tried to think of a single thing to say that wasn't a joke.

Steven chuckled as he threw his hair up into a tighter bun. "Fine."

"I thought I was the only edgy boy in this house. You're challenging my status at home." Adam glared at him for a moment before dropping his head in his hands. "Dammit, Steven! Don't you have an awkward phase?"

"Aw, he's so edgy now. Very goth. It's kinda cute, especially with the pink glow." Anna pulled her hair over her shoulder and frowned. "Oh God, I might have a type."

Steven chuckled at Adam dusting himself off proudly while Hazel pouted. Anna gave Hazel a kiss and then a few more until he grinned against her lips. "If I wear my normal outfits it's two kinds of pink clashing."

"You're worried about pink clashing? Dude, you look like you eat whole families for breakfast," Jacob cried.

Steven gasped in in disgust. "I would never! Maybe a whole family of like... baby chickens?"

"That sounds so much worse!" Connie keeled over laughing and shook her head. Her poor husband was walking himself into the worst possible places.

Steven sulked against the counter, crossing his arms. "I meant eggs. I think my coding is fucked up cause I haven't been using my powers."

Connie went upright at that and bit her lip, catching Hazels gaze over her shoulder as she walked her hands up Stevens chest. "I uh... I think I know a way you can get rid of some spare power by the loads. Hypothetically."

Steven rumbled and watched her cheeks flood with color just at the sound. "They couldn't handle it. The only reason you have any right to be cocky right now is you're stubborn and refuse to back down from a challenge even if it might kill you."

Hazel gave him a once over. "If anyone could take what Steven lays down, it's me. I'm the tank."

Anna scoffed. "I could take it!" She pouted while the rest cackled and Hazel patted her head. "I can!"

"Anna, you can't even take me fully normally," Steven teased. "It's such a tight fit for Jacob he mumbles a prayer every time."

Jacob took a moment to focus on something other than the gigantic version of one of the hottest men he'd ever met. It caught up to him and he shot finger guns. "Damn straight."

Jasmin raised her hand again. "Next question, was that implying you're even bigger?"

Jacob burst out laughing and hooked an arm around her waist. "Scared I'm gonna make you ride it?"

Adam snickered, earning a smack upside the head from a now annoyed Jasmin. "Ow! Hey, I wasn't even there for that one! You can't get mad at me!"

Connie pulled him down for a lingering kiss and pulled away breathless. "I forget it's like kissing the energizer bunny."

Steven sighed as if this were the most laborious task he'd ever have to do. "If you're gonna twist my arm about it..." Steven stretched a bit and eyed his suddenly shy friends. "Alright, then."

Around four hours later, Steven brushed a hand through his hair, pleased when he noticed his arm was the correct hue and size. "You guys okay?"

Connie mumbled something on top of him that was completely unintelligible and possibly a mix of two languages. Steven nudged her and she sighed dreamily. "We have a photo op tomorrow, Biscuit. You give such good dick."

"Uh uh. Cancel it," Hazel moaned. "I'm not going anywhere. Tomorrow we're eating crème brûlée while living like nudists."

Jasmin tugged the blanket over herself and nuzzled into the crook of Jacob's arm. "Who's it for?"

"Dunno."

"Then who cares?"

Alex pulled out his phone. It would never cease to blow his mind how his deeply his body was exhausted, but so full of magic that it was making him shiver with energy. "Cancellation in 5... 4... 3... fuck it, whatever."

Anna giggled. "Tell them we all got a really nasty fever."

"Tell em we might die," Jacob quipped.

Steven nudged him with his foot. "You should be a camboy with those squeals."

"I'll kill you when I feel the need to move again, I swear it."

He only grinned wider. "I dunno man, Connie might be right about the pastels and skirts. Paired with those sounds you were making, we could be millionaires."

Jacob held up his middle finger with vigor. "Fuck you."

"I just did. And I did it really good."

Hazel snorted, half asleep and exhausted but not enough that he couldn't stare down Jacob's annoyed grimace.

Jacob grew warm from head to toe, condensed and relentless magic still pumping instead him enough that he could swear that heat was a glow. "You did," He admitted, mumbling because he couldn't bear to speak it any louder. "You totally fucking did. On three. One, two—,"

"Good boy!"

Steven didn't even bother to hide his huge grin and tucked his hand behind his head. "Thank you for the free serotonin." His praise kink made him feel all melty. "Now say, 'Thank you, my Diamond'."

"Thank you, My Diamond."

Connie chortled and waved her hand frantically. "Guys he's twitching against my leg, you'd better stop it!"