A/N: Although this is a human AU, it reflects the events of "Back to the Barn" and "Too Far". Enjoy!

SMALLER

Sometimes, Peridot really hated Pearl.

Pearl was tall and graceful.

Peridot was short and clumsy.

Pearl was athletic. She was good at ballet, fencing, volleyball, gymnastics, etc.

Peridot had two prosthetic limbs and asthma.

Pearl could play the piano and the violin like a virtuosa.

Peridot could only play video games.

Pearl had a beautiful voice and was an amazing singer.

Peridot had a nasally, high-pitched voice that a lot of people considered annoying.

Pearl was naturally pretty and took good care of her appearance. Her clothes were fancy, but tasteful, and they accompanied her form so perfectly that it was like they were part of her body.

Peridot's clothes were meant to be comfortable and nothing else. Sometimes, she looked like she had gotten dressed in the dark. Her big round glasses and vaguely triangle-shaped hairdo didn't really flatter her, either.

Pearl had several fiercely loyal friends who would take a bullet for her.

Peridot's closest things to friends were her little robots and the school bully Jasper who made a deal not to harass her in exchange for Peridot doing her homework and hacking into Mrs. Universe's computer to steal her passwords and other private data.

Really, Peridot was a mess. The only thing she had going for her were her brains and ability with math, engineering, and computer science.

But Pearl was just as good at those things...

Peridot's only advantage over Pearl had been her origins. Born to a relatively well-off family and having received the highest quality education, Peridot had always been able to dedicate herself to her true call. She had always felt proud of that, knowing she would get to study in one of the best universities and have a successful career, since it was only natural for her.

Pearl had come from a very poor family. She had had to start working from a very early age to help her family make ends meet, doing menial jobs and God knew what else. She had in fact worked as a housekeeper for Mrs. Universe, and later on as a babysitter for her son Steven.

Still, Pearl had managed to get a scholarship at the same university as Peridot. All through dedication and hard work.

And everyone thought she was even more amazing because of it. Even Amethyst, who had never seemed impressed by academic achievements before.

Everyone had cheered and congratulated Pearl when she had told them the news. Everyone had praised her and hugged her.

No one had congratulated Peridot. Or praised her. Or hugged her. Or even looked at her. Except for Steven, of course.

But not Amethyst.

It was only natural that she had gotten accepted into that university, after all. Had she failed, she would have been punished by her family. So of course she had gotten in. It couldn't have been any other way.

So of course no one thought of it as an achievement.

She had always thought she didn't care what other people thought of her, especially not Pearl and her friends, but... this new feeling had recently started growing within her, and she didn't like it.

It made her feel... smaller.

THE END

A/N: Thank you for reading!