So . . . I may or may not have gotten into Steven Universe.
updated 12/14/17 for more details and a little epilogue (?)
.-.-.-.-.
"Is . . . this okay?"
"Yeah. It feels . . . right. Like . . . "
"Like I belong here."
.-.-.-.-.
"What is that? A . . . a peridot, maybe? And how many amethysts is that, now?"
"Too many."
The pearl sighed, cupping one of the pink bubbles in her hands. The tiredness was evident in the dark circles sunk into her pale skin, and how her pale pink pixie cut hair was ruffled and disorderly. Her svelte thumbs delicately traced an outline on its smooth surface in the shape of the small green crystal inside.
"I still can't believe they did this. How could they?" Pain flashed in her eyes. "To everyone. Everyone that served them, worshiped them. Even their own Pearls . . . "
Rose reached forward, large, gentle fingers wiping tears from her old friend's eyes. Contrary to Pearl, Rose Quartz was as stunning as always, large and beautiful and elegant, her pink curls tumbling over her shoulders and cascading down her back, ever untouched in the battles she fought. Her kind eyes betrayed her exhaustion and sadness, but she was as strong as ever, hands and voice steady.
"I don't know," she admitted honestly, staring sadly at the bubbled gems. "Selfishness. But it's alright," she added. "This helps them. Protects them. And soon, we'll figure out how to fix this. Them."
"Do you really think so?"
"I know so." A fond smile formed on pink lips, and Rose gazed at the amethysts she'd brought back. "Look at how beautiful this one is."
"She is rather shiny," Pearl relented, a smile quirking her lips as well. The emotions overwhelming her left her sounding a tad congested.
"I bet she's the biggest, strongest amethyst around," Rose continued, tapping the bubble softly. "You're going to be such a great friend when we figure out how to purify you."
"Alright, alright. I'll get these in with the others." Pearl took command of the spheres, waggling her fingers in farewell at her friend. "Good luck out there. Come back to me in one piece, okay?"
"Of course, my Pearl." But just as Rose was leaning in to press a kiss to her cheek, the large gem straightened abruptly. "Oh! I nearly forgot!"
"Forgot?" Pearl inquired curiously, eyebrows lifting. "Did you find something interesting?"
In response, Rose held out her hands, and two bubbles appeared above them. Pearl cocked her head, observing them with eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
"I suppose sapphires are fairly rare, but we have plenty of those by now. And rubies are everywhere. What are you trying to show me, Rose?"
"But they're special," the tall gem breathed, bringing them close to her face in fascination.
"What makes you say that?" asked the smaller gem, trying to hide her impatience.
"They were fused." Before Pearl could express her awe, Rose continued, "Corrupted, but still fused. We've never seen one fused! Does that mean they were fused when they became corrupted?"
Pearl, shaking off her shock, asked, "But why would they have been fused? Different gem types never fuse - well, I mean, we fuse, but still - it's frowned upon. Or, well, was. And a lowly ruby with an aristocratic sapphire? They would have shattered the poor thing."
"It's not uncommon for aristocrats to have ruby guards," Rose mused.
"But to be that close? To care enough for one another to fuse?"
"Anything is possible." Rose passed the bubbles over to Pearl, a tender look on her face. "Keep them close to each other."
"Do you think it'll do anything?"
"It might. It's worth a try."
Pearl sighed softly, then offered a smile. "I trust your judgment."
Rose smiled wide in return, sweeping her friend in a huge hug. "I can always count on you to entertain my crazy ideas!" She kissed the thin pearl's cheek, laughing softly. "Thank you."
"You know I can't resist your charm," Pearl teased lightly, trying to ignore the soft blue blush tingeing her pale cheeks. "I'll hold down the fort here."
"And I'll go find some gems to bubble," Rose replied brightly.
.-.-.-.-.
Pearl's laboratory was plagued with a sense of unrest and discomfort from the moment Rose brought in the fusion.
She could feel it constantly, nagging at her subconscious. It was making her uneasy. She couldn't work on her experiments; she had decided she was in no condition to fight the corrupted gems for her tests, and she couldn't focus on any of her research or theories. She couldn't go out in the field for more information unless she wanted to risk corruption.
Pearl was restless, endlessly so, and it was driving her up the damn walls. What was creating this atmosphere? What was making her so distressed? She didn't understand.
"How are things going?"
"They aren't going at all," Pearl groaned, leaning back in her chair and rubbing the heels of her palms against her eyes. "I can't work like this. Can't you feel it?"
"From the moment I walked in." Rose made her way to the bubbles, eyes passing over the various specimens.
All sorts of shapes and sizes of gems were present. Rose passed through them, pushing aside several in her search for the cause of their unrest. Jasper. Agate. Carnelia. Lapis. All moved aside as she wandered, eyes half lidded, feeling rather than seeing. Finally, she stopped dead.
"It's the fusion," she said, wonder in her tone and eyes. "Pearl - their bubbles! They're pressed right up against each other!"
Pearl blinked, swiveling in her chair. She scooted back and stood, moving to join her friend.
"The ruby and sapphire?"
Surely enough, she could see them from there; the two pink bubbles were touching, misshapen from the pressure they were exerting to stay close. Were it not for the barriers between them, they would be touching.
"Yes, it's amazing! I've never seen a bubbled gem do this before!"
Pearl watched from across the room as Rose reached out to touch the two of them, her fingers outstretched and eyes wide with excitement. The atmosphere in the room grew almost heavier as her fingers closed the distance between her and the bubbles, tension so thick in the air it was practically palpable.
A sense of dread came over the pale gem. Pearl didn't know what it was - there was no reason to be afraid, obviously, as bubbled gems were completely dormant and could not do anything to them - but she knew something was wrong. Bubbled gems weren't conscious. They shouldn't be moving. She couldn't let Rose touch those gems.
Pearl found herself sprinting, desperate to stop the contact, desperate to prevent this unknown catastrophe.
"Rose, wait! Don't!"
There was no way she could have traveled that distance quickly enough, and she recoiled in horror when she heard Rose's weak cry. Pearl had never heard so much agony laced in her voice - not even when she'd lost that human lover of hers. Pearl skidded to a halt and fell to her knees beside her friend, eyes roaming all over her form to check for some injury or harm. She gasped loudly when she saw the tears shimmering in those big brown eyes, nausea overwhelming her like a punch to the gut. It had been thousands of years since she'd seen Rose cry.
"Rose, are you okay?!"
"They're hurting so much," the pinkette whispered, voice cracking slightly. One of her thumbs stroked over the surface of the bubble encasing the ruby. "They're in so much pain, Pearl . . . "
"They're putting you in pain!" Pearl responded almost indignantly. The nerve of these stupid, corrupted gems, hurting her Rose! Oh, why couldn't she have moved sooner and just prevented this? "You need to get away from them!"
"I can't! They need me!" Rose trembled, holding the bubbles to her chest. Her eyes were wide like a doe's, terrified, mourning. Guilt stabbed at the paler gem's heart. "They need help, Pearl. They're lonely, they're hurting . . . "
"You can't help them!"
"I have to!" Another wave of pain coursed through her, and she gasped out, tears spilling forth. "I'm right here, please . . . don't be afraid, please, you're not alone . . . I'm right here."
Pearl rested a hand on Rose's shoulder. The pain was so heavy in Rose's heart, so strong Pearl could feel it, too. Tears pricked at her eyes and she pleaded, "Rose, this isn't good for you. You can't stay with them."
But Rose wasn't listening, wasn't even looking at Pearl. She observed the captured gems with gentle, mourning eyes, lip trembling. And then a soft intake of breath signaled understanding.
"They want each other," she whispered in realization, then corrected herself, "They need each other." Almost frantically, she pressed the bubbles together once more, voice cracking in desperation. "Look! She's right there! You're right next to one another . . . please, don't be sad anymore . . . "
The heartbroken note in Rose's voice had Pearl's throat swelling with shared grief. She closed her eyes and counted to ten, controlling the waver in her voice. "You have to go, Rose. You can't help them."
Rose finally released the bubbles, a single tear dropping onto one of them. It rippled above the sapphire and disappeared. They lingered where they were left as she stood, wiping her tears away. She laced her fingers with Pearl's, obediently following her out of the room.
If they'd looked back, they would have seen the sapphire pressed against the edge of the bubble, seeming to watch them go.