It was, for the most part, a pretty normal day in the house. Steven was eating his cereal at the counter while Pearl tidied up the kitchen. Garnet was on the couch and reading the newspaper. Amethyst, as far as anyone could tell, was sleeping in her own room, or attempting to assemble the trash into more structually sound buildings.

Steven spooned another round of cereal and milk into his mouth, swallowed, and then, "Pearl?"

"Yes, Steven?" She asked, continuing to clean with her back to him. He stirred his spoon in his bowl of cereal, and Pearl turned, confused at his sudden shyness, "You were asking something?"

"Do you think I'm older?" He asked, and Pearl eyed him, "I suppose."

"Older than I was a few months ago?" He asked, and Pearl nodded, wondering if he's going to make a reference to Jasper or Lapis.

"Then...could you tell me about the Kindergarten? And...maybe about Amethyst, too?"

Pearl's eyes widened. She wasn't certain if Steven could take all that information. If Lapis had stayed in that mirror, she could've just shown him.

But instead, Pearl leaned over the counter, looking down at her hands before looking at him, "You're certainly older, Steven. As for Kindergarten..."

"Tell the boy." Garnet remarked from the couch, turning another page of the newspaper nonchalantly. Pearl made a face at her, "Are you sure, Garnet? He still seems awfully young to be learning about those sorts of...complexities."

At that moment, the door peeled apart and out walked Amethyst, adjusting her top, "'Sup."

But Steven wasn't done, and he looked at Pearl, "I thought you wanted me to learn all about Gem history as much as I could. Doesn't Kindergarten count?"

Pearl looked past Steven to see Amethyst's face. Had this question come up a few months ago, Amethyst would've shut them all up about her past. But now...she crossed the room and took up a seat beside Steven, "He's right, P."

"Amethyst, are you sure? Wouldn't you rather tell him about it yourself?"

Amethyst blew a raspberry, giving a sideways glance to Pearl, "I don't remember it that well, anyway, except for what Rose...taught me about."

Steven widened his eyes, "Wait. Amethyst, I thought you grew up in Kindergarten."

"Not...really." Amethyst admitted, while Pearl chuckled, "That was certainly not the case."

Steven eye's darted between the two faces, "Amethyst, you were a baby in Kindergarten?! How'd you even sit on the sitting rock?!"

Amethyst chuckled, ruffling his hair, "I wasn't a baby, smarts."

"But we did have to potty-train her when she came home." Pearl noted, and Amethyst's face flushed a deep purple, "No, you didn't!"

"Rose actually took on that task." Garnet said from the couch, and Amethyst buried her head in her arms, groaning. Steven only clapped her on the back, "That's okay, Amethyst! They potty-trained me too!"

Amethyst eyed Steven before lifting her head up. Pearl glanced between the two, and then Steven beamed, "So, you guys all raised Amethyst? How'd that work out?"

Pearl grimaced while Garnet piped up, "It was a good preparation for you, Steven."

"It wasn't that bad." Amethyst remarked, and Steven beamed, "I wanna hear about it! You guys always talk about me growing up, but I never hear about you guys!"

Pearl and Amethyst exchanged looks, Amethyst looking apprehensive while Pearl looking as if she was trying to swallow something unpleasant. A few feet away, Garnet sighed and closed the newspaper, "If Steven wants to know, we should tell him."

"Story time!" Steven chanted, dropping from the chairs by the counter and sprinting to Garnet. She gave a half-smile as he launched himself onto the cushions and made himself comfy sitting beside her.

Amethyst and Pearl looked at each other, and Pearl wrung her hands, "Are you sure, Amethyst?"

The purple gem suprised her when she grinned and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, "Y'know, it might be fun to tell Steven some stories of us growing up."

8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8

Rose Quartz feels...at peace. Everything from the Kindergarten has been disassembled. The ragtag gems grown and their leaders were being transported back to the home world, where judgement would soon come up with an idea fit for their punishment. All of the younger gems had been accounted for and safely assessed to assure they could handle the journey back. The equivalent of nurses were on hold to attest to the strength and wellbeing of all the gems grown on Earth. Their jobs were to ensure their stability and make sure none of them lacked deformities or anything that could later prove fatal.

If they did...Rose takes a deep breath and tries not to focus on the atrocities had no problem committing.

She eyes Garnet and Pearl surveying the area, feeling proud of them for coming and helping her take on such a large mission. Both seemed calm during the intial fighting, and Pearl had leant a huge hand in organizing transportation. Meanwhile Garnet seemed set on destroying, summoning her gloves at will to pummel anything that looked suspicious to her, or that could be used against them.

For the most part, everything had gone over well. The transportation had been successful, herding all gems back to their home world, and leaving the three: Rose, Pearl, and Garnet, behind. They all knew they had no chance at returning. Plus, the trek back was going to be a hard one from what Rose knew of.

Satsified, she surveys the area one last time, keeping her sword at bay lest anything pop out at her. But Pearl has done her job well, and Rose prepares to round up the two and head back to the temple.

It's then that she sees the thick rock protruding from the side of the mountain, looking as if it's been hastily shoved there, or perhaps attempted to be pushed out.

With a quick strike, Rose slices the rock in two. She peers into the gaping hole behind, looking to see if there's anything that she's missed, and then something launches at her. No, not something, but rather, someone.

A little purple figure with wild hair, clutching to the front of her and weeping. Rose lays a hand on the little gem's back and feels her trembling, feels the shaking that doesn't seem to cease as her cries begin to grow more audible.

With gentle hands, she plucks the gem off of her and holds it out in front of her. Dressed in a oversized shirt and covered in dirt, the little gem stares at her, wiping her eyes every time they well up with tears. She sniffles, and Rose can see the fear in her face, the fear of being tossed back into the space with a rock to block the exit.

Rose's face softens, and she offers a smile to her, not saying anything. The gem stares back at her, face unchanging, and Rose murmurs, "You're safe now. I promise."

The gem continues to sniffle, and Rose balances her on her hip, using one hand to wipe away tears and pluck little pieces of gravel out of her hair.

"Are we going to head home?!" Pearl calls, and Garnet turns after striking down a metal structure, "Be patient."

Pearl huffs, and that's when Rose approaches the two. Pearl's face breaks out into a smile, "Great, now we can—Rose?"

The purple gem looks at the two with big eyes, and Rose re-adjusts her before facing both Pearl and Garnet, "She was trapped during the battle, I believe. I only just found her now."

"We cannot send her to home world." Garnet pieces together, and Pearl eyes Rose, "What are you going to do with her?"

"Well, I'm going to take her back to the temple." Rose says, looking cheerful, and Pearl grimaces, "This is...a spawn from Kindergarten. You don't know how's she going to turn out."

"I suppose we'll find out then, won't we?" Rose remarks, looking pleased at her decision, adjusting the gem on her hip before turning.

8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8

Back at the temple, Rose scrubs the little girl clean until the gem on her chest sparkles. The young gem stays quiet, looking somber as Rose washes her, and downright exhausted. Rose knows that Gems usually aren't plagued by fatigue, or hunger for that matter, but she isn't quite sure about...this genre of Gems. Of those manufactured in Kindergarten, whether they were given more humanoid traits than most.

Rose runs her hands through her pale hair and cringes when she reaches knots. Apparently the little one feels it too, because she winces and presses her hands to her head, "No more!"

"So you talk." Rose notes, and she looks up at her, "I can talk."

"Would you mind telling me your name?" Rose asks, pouring water over her head and attempting to sift through the knots. The little one winces appropriately, and then, shyly, "Amethyst."

"Amethyst, huh? Why, that's a beautiful name."

"It is?" Amethyst asks, sounding more surprised than pleased, and Rose chuckles, "Of course. I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it."

Amethyst falls quiet at the compliment, and that's when Ruby and Sapphire burst in, "We got—!" Ruby begins, with Sapphire finishing, "what you'll need."

"Thank you." Rose says, and the two nod. Amethyst eyes them, and turns back to Rose, "Who're them?"

Ruby steps forward, "Well, I'm Ruby, and then, this is Sapphire."

Sapphire gives a wave to the acknowledgement, and then Ruby begins to step back, "Well, I guess we'll leave—" "Not quite." Rose says, and Amethyst stares her as she takes the wrapped object from Sapphire's hands.

She worms off the fabric covering, and glances at the two, sounding grim, "I'll need your help with another task."

8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8

"No! No, no, no, no!"

The shouts of indignance from Amethyst bounce off the temple walls, as she lies on the floor, dressed after her bath in another yet large shirt. Ruby and Sapphire secure her arms and legs down so she can't run off, although the young gem still tries to kick free.

Rose sighs, wielding a pair of scissors, "I'm sorry, Amethyst."

"You don't have to!" Amethyst shouts, eyes wide, and Rose snips off the first lock. Amethyst shuts up quickly, and but by the fifth snip she's holding back tears. By the tenth, she's sniffling, and by the twentieth, she's bawling her eyes out.

Pearl watches with a morbid fascination mixed in with a sense of boredom. She had asked Rose briefly beforehand why they couldn't just let Amethyst retreat into her gem and reform with unknotted hair. But the look Rose gave her at the suggestion of hurting Amethyst to let her reform shut Pearl up quickly.

After the thirtieth snip, Amethyst had swallowed back her tears and simply kept her lower lip trembling, with Ruby offering her a bribe if she didn't cry any more. Amethyst looked tearful, but had agreed to the bribe.

"There." Rose murmurs, running her fingers through Amethyst's new haircut, pleased when she doesn't run into any mammoth knots. The wet hair is beginning to dry, and in doing so its edges are beginning to flip up at odd angles.

Ruby and Sapphire step back after Rose gives them a gesture and Amethyst promptly leaps to her feet, "Where's a mirror?"

"You look fine." Rose attempts to alliviate her panic, and Amethyst begins to sprint around the temple, "I need to see!"

Pearl only dodges the youngster as she goes zipping under foot, and eyes Rose, "Aren't young gems supposed to be a little more...subdued?"

"Give her time to settle." Rose chuckles, as Amethyst makes her third loop. Now Rose can see in the child's eyes that it's less about finding a mirror, and more about seeing how fast she can run. Ruby and Sapphire both take turns dodging and hopping out of her way as Rose looks on.

By the sixth loop Amethyst is breathing hard, and Rose chuckles, kneeling, "You've gone a little too far."

Amethyst manages to make the trek to her before almost plunging headfirst into the floor. Rose catches her and then moves to carry her, standing up as the young gem settles in her arms, feeling exhausted.

"We'll make her a pallet for the night." Rose murmurs, shifting Amethyst in her arms as she walks off to her room. Pearl watches as they leave, and then Ruby turns to Pearl, "What, you don't like the kid?"

"I...I don't know." Pearl admits, her cheeks tinting blue. Ruby rolls her eyes, "You can't seriously be thinking about sending her back."

"Ruby." Sapphire says, giving her a look, and then she turns to face Pearl, "You can speak freely with us."

"I..." Pearl heaves a sigh and then groans, "Everything seemed so much more peaceful when she wasn't here."

"I kinda like her." Ruby says, and Sapphire gives her a nod, "It's nice to have a little ball of energy running around."

"And tomorrow," Ruby slams her fist into her palm, grinning, "we teach her how to fight!"

"Oh, no." Pearl gasps, bringing a hand up to her mouth as she shakes her head. "A gem like her, with a weapon?"

"How old were you, Pearl?" Sapphire asks, and she shrugs, "Oh, I wouldn't remember. Perhaps a bit older."

The three gems stay quiet, and then, Pearl pipes up, "What exactly were you promising Amethyst in exchange for her being quiet?"

Ruby chuckles, scratching the back of her neck and looking bashful, "I was just gonna show her me and Sapphire fusing to form Garnet, that's all."

"Can you even imagine when Amethyst will start to fuse?" Sapphire murmurs, sounding wistful. "Oh, she'll be so grown up by then!"

"We don't even know if she's staying!" Pearl shouts, stomping her foot, and the two turn to look at her. Her face goes blue again and she stalks off to her room.

8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8

There's something incredibly heavy on her chest, practically forcing her body to cave in around it. Instantly, Pearl is in panic, not yet opening her eyes, imagining herself only being stepped on by a giant creature, waiting to hear its roar, waiting for Garnet and Rose to overtake it.

But instead, she hears a giggle. And then the weight is plucked off of her with furious shushing.

Pearl opens her eyes, taking in Garnet holding up Amethyst, with Amethyst grinning wildly, reaching out for Pearl.

Pearl groans inwardly and Garnet shrugs, "She wanted to see you."

She begins to sit up, and that's when Amethyst lurches forward in Garnet's arms, grabbing the tail end of Pearl's nose, "I got it!"

She gives a hard yank and Pearl turns away, out of reach, hands flying to her nose as her eyes well up with tears. Amethyst giggles and reaches for her again, with Garnet hauling her back, "Amethyst."

"What?" The little gem looks up, and Garnet sacrfices one of her carrying arms to point at Pearl, "You made her cry. Bad."

"I'm hardly crying." Pearl manages, massaging her assaulted nose, and giving a glare to Amethyst. The purple gem only giggles, and Garnet's expression is stony, "Amethyst. We're not laughing."

The little gem's face drops as her giggling ceases, and she looks between both of Pearl and Garnet's disapproving looks. Her eyes suddenly grow big, and her face promptly crumples as she begins to cry, "I'm sorry! I won't do it again!"

"Promise?" Garnet asks, and Amethyst nods furiously, "Promise."

Garnet seems satisfied and more or less cradles her in one arm, using her hand to wipe away the remainder of the tears.

Pearl huffs and gets to her feet, "Where is Rose?"

"She's doing a mission by herself, so you and me are in charge of Amethyst." Garnet remarks, holding Amethyst gingerly in case she's not yet done crying. The gem simply looks up at her with big eyes and makes a reach for her glasses, "What're those?"

"My future goggles." Garnet replies, and Amethyst gasps, "That's so cool!"

But Pearl isn't done, "Why would Rose want to do a solo mission so soon after yesterday?"

"She's worried there could be more like Amethyst."

Pearl nods, seemingly understanding, and Amethyst eyes the two faces before Garnet shifts her in her arms, "I guess we'll try our hand at baby-sitting."

8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8

"Whee-eee! Garnet, again! Go again!"

"What's the magic word?" Garnet asks, smiling, and Amethyst huffs out, "Please."

Garnet throws the gem up in the air again and she squeals with delight, Garnet grabbing her by the ankles as she falls.

Amethyst's shirt falls over her head, showing off her shorts, and the gem holds it up by the hem with one arm, giving a wave to Pearl, "Hi!"

Pearl gives her a wave back, but her mind is elsewhere. Garnet tosses Amethyst back up in the air again, catching her this time around by her ribs and tickling her. The young gem giggles, and then pushes away from Garnet's hands, "No more tickling!"

She drops her to the floor and goes sprinting to Pearl, finding solace in wrapping herself around her leg. Pearl tries to not look disgusted, but from the look Garnet's giving her, she's not pulling it off well.

Amethyst glances up at Pearl, grinning wildly, wondering if she's getting the game, but she sees her expression and backs away, "Oh. Um..."

"It's—it's fine." Pearl stammers, forcing a smile, but Amethyst has already retreated to Garnet, who scoops her up without a problem.

"I have an idea." Garnet remarks, holding Amethyst out in front of her. Amethyst eyes her, looking up for the challenge, "What's that?"

"I dare you...to run to that rock over there, and then run back as quick as you can."

"I'll do it." Amethyst says, and Garnet drops her, the little gem sprinting as soon as her feet touch the temple floor.

Once she's out of earshot, Garnet turns the heat onto Pearl, "I know you don't like her."

Pearl makes a face, "I never...said that."

"Pearl, this is ridiculous. We're not taking her back, so start making en effort."

Pearl doesn't retort, per usual whenever she deals with Garnet. Garnet sighs, "I know you're not good with change, but Amethyst is going to need all of us to grow up right."

Pearl opens her mouth and Garnet cuts her off, "It doesn't matter that she's from Kindergarten. What happens to her now determines how she's going to be."

8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8

Rose smiles as she steps over Amethyst sleeping on the temple floor, curled up with a blanket and pillow. Rain had begun pouring outside, and little droplets were making their way in through the temple roof. One plopped on Amethyst's face and she promptly wrinkled her nose, scrubbing it away.

She picks up the young gem, tucking in the blanket around her. Amethyst stirs sleepily, and then, "Rose?"

"Yes?"

"Pearl...doesn't like me."

Rose frowns and shakes her head, "No, that's not it."

"But today...me and Garnet were playing and Pearl didn't want to join in." Amethyst says, her voice soft with sleep, and Rose chuckles, "That's Pearl. She doesn't like to play very much."

"She made a face at me." Amethyst murmurs, looking away, and Rose sighs, carrying the gem to her room, "I'm sure she didn't mean to."

"But...what if Garnet doesn't like me either? And what if you don't, and then you send me back?" Amethyst's eyes well up with tears and Rose brushes them away with her thumb, "We're never going to send you back."

Amethyst lets out a shuddery breath, beginning to hiccup, "I'll be good. I promise."

"I have no doubt about that, Amethyst." Rose remarks softly, and continues to wipe away her tears, holding her tight as the door closes behind her.

8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8I8

"Aw! Why didn't you guys throw me when I was little?" Steven groaned, and Garnet shrugged, "We did. I did, at least."

"But then P went all crazy after we...um..." Amethyst bit back a laugh, and Steven looked between the two, "After what?"

"They dropped you." Pearl deadpanned, looking at the two with disapproval, and Amethyst burst out laughing, "Oh man, her face..."

"We dropped you on the bed, so you were alright." Garnet added, and Pearl rolled her eyes, "That still doesn't justify you two throwing him!"