Pearl watched as Rose Quartz walked the shoreline, picking up shells and examining their unique designs. Usually, Pearl would join Rose on her walks, but something about this day felt off. Garnet had gone to do a routine checkup of the Kindergarten, leaving the remaining two Crystal Gems to themselves. Rose didn't mind and basked in the free time, but Pearl always felt jittery when there wasn't much to do. So, she observed.
Whenever Rose Quartz walked, it looked as if she was floating. Her footsteps were always precise and cautious, and the way that she moved resembled a soft melody. In her room, Pearl would spend hours every night trying to teach herself how to move in the same, graceful manner, just so she could impress the Goddess of a gem - but Rose never seemed to notice her the way that she noticed Rose.
Pearl clasped her hands together and stood, pacing back and forth on the platform that held up the warp pad. Rose had managed to make it further down on the beach to the point that she was a mere speck, almost blending into the sand.
If only she would notice me…
Suddenly, Garnet appeared on the warp pad, illuminating the entire cavern of the cave in bright colors. Pearl stopped pacing and looked up at the tall gem, only to let out a loud gasp.
"G-Garnet?!" Pearl choked, taking in the sight of the small gem that was riding on Garnet's back, playing with her hair. "What is...what is that?!"
"This," Garnet pulled the purple gem from her hair and held her out towards Pearl. "Is Amethyst."
Amethyst looked Pearl up and down, before turning away. A dark purple blush spread across her cheeks.
"Where did you find her?" Pearl whispered, shocked to see a new gem. Since the war, there weren't any gems left on Earth to be found. "How do you know she isn't hostile?"
"Well, I found her playing on the rocks in the Kindergarten. She hid from me once she saw me, but I managed to coax her to come out of her hiding place." Garnet smiled, looking down at Amethyst with a soft expression. "I don't think she's going to hurt us."
"Why, hello there,"
Pearl turned, taking in the looming presence of Rose Quartz. It took only a second for her eyes to take in all of Rose's regal features, right down to the gem that accented her belly button. Rose breezed past her, leaning in to get a better look at the gem that was hiding from her. Amethyst crawled down Garnet's frame and poked her head out from behind Garnet's calves. Rose kneeled to meet her line of sight.
"My name is Rose Quartz. What's your name?"
Amethyst blinked, digging her heels into the platform.
"I'm...I'm a Amethyst," Her smile grew large and her eyes began to sparkle. "Nice to meet ya!"
Pearl felt a soft blush rise to her cheeks, and instantly looked away. What was that feeling…?
"Nice to meet you too, Amethyst!" Rose chuckled, allowing the small gem to crawl into her arms. "Has Garnet introduced you to Pearl yet?"
Amethyst wiggled in Rose's arms, trying to get a better look at the lithe gem. Pearl smiled softly, brows furrowing together in anxiousness.
"H-hi there," Pearl stuttered, giving a slight wave of her hand. "I'm Pearl."
Amethyst looked her up and down before sticking her tongue out and blowing Pearl a raspberry. Pearl gasped, her lips forming a tight line. She crossed her arms and looked away.
"Sorry, Pearl." Amethyst giggled, reaching a hand out towards her new teammate. "I hope we can be friends."
Hesitantly, Pearl took her hand and allowed Amethyst to lock their fingers together.
Friends.
Pearl watched as Amethyst ran along the shoreline, ignoring the ornate seashells that she broke with every step. Rose walked slowly behind her, taking in the beauty of the Earth. Amethyst had been a part of the Crystal Gems for a long time now, but every day with her was an entirely new experience. Garnet was taking care of something in her room, which left Pearl to her own thoughts. Lately, whenever she thought of Rose, she would also think of Amethyst.
Whenever Amethyst walked-which was rare, as the gem preferred to gallop on all fours like a wild stallion-she looked free. She looked mighty, as if she could carry the world on her shoulders. She exuded nothing but confidence. Pearl knew, beyond that mask, there was a broken gem who wasn't quite sure of who she really was. Pearl felt the same way about herself. She had become a valiant soldier in Rose Quartz's army, going as far as to being Rose's 'right hand man'. Pearl had done nothing but dedicate her entire life to that mess of pink curls and long, white lace, and along the way, she forgot what she was meant to be fighting for. Freedom. Rose had her caged, almost like a small bird. It was the same way that White Diamond would have caged her, minus brutality and violence. It was lonely. However, Amethyst had become her best friend; a bird of the same flock. She was in love with Rose, of course, but could not deny the solace that she felt with the younger gem. There were some days where she questioned how much she really loved Rose; days where she questioned how many more of these games she would be willing to play to win over her affection.
"Hey, P!"
Pearl snapped out of her thoughts, jerking her head in the direction of the smaller gem. Amethyst was running straight towards her, arms stretched out to the side, ready to jump. Pearl opened up her long arms, a soft smile growing on her face. Unlike Rose, whose features had long since become memorized in Pearl's mind, it took more than mere seconds for Pearl to take Amethyst in. Amethyst was always different. A different coating of dirt every day, or messy tangles from whenever her hair became dried with salt water. Rose was pristine and well put together, while Amethyst was...sporadically unique.
The younger gem suddenly collided with Pearl, jumping into her lap. It had become a thing for them, the older gem noticed. Amethyst loved to be held by all of her teammates, but she spent most of her time being carried around by Pearl. Pearl wrapped her arms around Amethyst's waist, giving her a wide smile.
"Pearl, I found you somethin' in the sand! I thought it was really pretty. It reminded me of you!" Amethyst held out her hands, shaking loose pieces of sand onto Pearl's clothes. "I really hope you like it."
It was a shell, small and twisted. The soft periwinkle color shone brightly from the rays of the sun. Pearl ran her slender fingers over its form, taking in its imperfect ridges and grooves. She worked back a lump in her throat, closing her fingers over the small shell. Rose, despite walking the beach in all of her free time, had never once brought her back a single shell.
"A-Amethyst…" Pearl choked, meeting the suddenly timid eyes of the smaller gem. Her cheeks were painted a dark purple. "I don't know what to say. This shell is absolutely beautiful. I-I don't know if I deserve something this precious, but if you want me to have it..."
"Of course I want you to have it!" Amethyst guffawed, throwing her hands into the air. "You're, like, my best friend! It was luck that I found it, too. I was trying to be 'specially careful with the shells today. Usually I just crush them all without realizing it, but…"
Amethyst chuckled, rubbing the back of her head with her hand. Pearl wasn't quite sure what to do, so she pulled Amethyst in for a long hug. The gem on Amethyst's chest was warm, heating the center of Pearl's chest as they pressed against one another. There was a soft breeze that fell between the two, but Pearl only held on tighter.
Sometimes, in the middle of the night, Rose would come for her. The pink gem's eyes would be filled with tears formed from nightmares and lost Human lovers, and she would take Pearl into her arms and make love to her. Those tears would fall onto Pearl's naked frame, pooling in the center of her thin chest, but the slender gem had long since chosen to ignore them. In those sorrow filled nights, Rose was finally her's. When it was over, and Rose left, Pearl would watch her go. The sight had become burned in the back of Pearl's eyes. Rose's retreating form wasn't filled with the same flowing grace as it usually was, instead, it was filled with regret.
Whenever Amethyst held her, Pearl would allow herself to feel whole. She would take in the warmth of gem over clothed bodies, shining brightly in the thin space between them. She would allow her own gem to glow and overheat, and that day on the beach, they formed Opal for the very first time.
The fusion sat, hand clutching the seashell to her heart, other hands going everywhere at one time, trying to figure out her own body. For a moment, Opal could see color radiating from the cave and realized that Garnet had returned from her room, but it didn't matter. The peace that was being shared between them, bouncing back and forth in a rhythmic lullaby, became the only thing that mattered.
Opal lasted only for a few seconds, but it left Pearl thinking that maybe Amethyst wouldn't ever walk away from her, hips swaying in a tune that resembled regret.
Pearl watched as Greg Universe chased Rose through the waves of the ocean, splashing water through the bouncy locks of her hair. They had been walking the shoreline in peace before Greg pulled her into the waves, allowing the tide to wash over them, carefree. Pearl sat further away, her back resting against the cool stone of the cave walls. Garnet was in town, surveying the city, and Amethyst was somewhere. Pearl frowned.
Rose Quartz no longer walked like a Goddess; instead, she walked the same pace as Greg. Like a human. Two legs, one after the other, just trying to make it to wherever they were going. Living life without worrying over the consequences. All of the time Pearl had spent trying to groom herself into the gem she thought Rose had wanted her to be was wasted.
"Hey, Pearl." Amethyst greeted her, walking into the cave from her room in the temple. The smaller gem sunk down onto the floor beside of Pearl, scooching closer so that there was no space between them.
"What do you want?" Pearl muttered, watching as Greg swooped down to kiss her Rose. She balled her hands into fists and brought her knees closer to her chin. She wanted to disappear.
"Well," Amethyst sighed, blowing her hair from her face. Ever since Greg became the smaller gem's best friend, she had grown her hair out to look more like him. However, Pearl knew that Amethyst would never have the misfortune to lose her hair like Greg was slowly losing his. "Pearl, I'm just gonna be honest. You're not the same person that you used to be, okay? We don't even talk anymore. I just want you to talk to me." Her voice was desperate. Pearl scoffed.
"How can I confide in anyone when the only person who ever mattered was stolen away from me by the likes of him? How can I trust anyone after she pulls something like this? I thought I had a chance."
"Hey, you're not the only one who's hurting, you know! Maybe she was the only one who mattered to you, but you were the only one who mattered to me!" Amethyst hissed, scooting away from the older gem. Pearl instantly missed her, but felt too prideful to tell the truth. Prideful and maybe a bit too angry.
"Excuse you! You have no idea what it felt like to be with Rose! No one can understand what we had, especially someone like you!" Pearl's voice echoed off of the cave, bouncing back into her own ears. Instantly, she regretted it, reaching out for Amethyst desperately. The purple gem yanked herself away, jumping up from her position on the wall.
"This is what I get for caring about you!" Amethyst hissed, turning her back to Pearl so that she wouldn't notice the tears. "Ya know, Pearl, maybe if you took a closer look at how Rose actually treats you, you'd see that she's never really loved you the way I love you!"
Pearl felt shallow breath exit her thin lips, words escaping her. She reached out, trying to grab Amethyst up, pull them together in the way they used to meld, but Amethyst ran. Pearl watched, feeling the warm tears gather in her eyes, before wiping them away.