"What do you think of the place?"
Pearl was beginning to understand that Rose was drastically different than the authority she was used to. She tried to imagine Cuprite asking her what she thought of her living space and almost laughed. But Rose seemed to genuinely care about Rose's opinion.
The pink gem was waiting for a response. "Um . . . I find your living quarters to be pleasant."
Rose laughed. "'Pleasant?' Well, I guess that's good enough. Then again, you wouldn't say otherwise." Pearl felt herself blush, but Rose continued, "There's one more thing I wanted to show you." She led Pearl through a garden full of beautiful flora made of a multitude of different colors. They approached a standalone building surrounded by the garden. Some of the plants had begun to grow onto the building.
Inside, Pearl found a variety of shelves and cabinets holding tools and materials. There were a couple workbenches scattered along the walls. Curiosity got the better of Pearl. She walked to one of the benches and picked up a pair of pliers. Turning to look at Rose, she asked, "What is this place?"
"Your own little workspace! I know it isn't that much, but it's better than only having your room to work in, I'm sure. I could never quite get the hang of inventing and repairing, so I haven't used this place in a while."
"It's wonderful," Pearl breathed in amazement. She bustled back and forth, inspecting the tools and materials at her disposal. With a wrench and forceps in her hands, she smiled at Rose. "I don't know what to say! Thank you!"
Rose's laughter reverberated in the enclosed space. "What for? You'll get so much more use out of this room than I ever did." She watched Pearl take stock of everything in the room. "I think I'll leave you here for a little while."
Pearl suddenly felt embarrassed of her gushing. "Oh, no," she stammered, "I'm sorry. You probably have some tasks you want me to do or some –"
"It's okay, Pearl, really! I don't have anything that needs urgent attention. Please, enjoy yourself."
Eyes wide, Pearl thanked Rose again. She placed her tools on the nearest workbench. An idea crossed her mind: she could probably restart her tracking system and make it even better than she had planned. Yes, she could make a battery out of those parts on the shelf. She thought she had seen components she could use to create a magnet. She might have to get a little creative to make an antenna, but that shouldn't be too much of a challenge.
The smile on Rose's face couldn't get much bigger. Seeing Pearl so excited was enough to make her happy. She watched the pale gem for a few minutes before leaving. Her departure went unnoticed. Pearl most likely never had so much freedom in her life. The poor thing had been destined to live in the same cramped living quarters performing the same tasks day in and day out. Rose had lost track of the number of pearls she had seen before she finally chose the one she had, but they were all living the same existence. Thinking about it made her sad; she couldn't help them all. In fact, she was sure she'd be receiving inquiries as to why she chose a pearl that had erred during her inspection. She wondered how she'd explain the dreadful feeling she'd experienced when Cuprite made to strike Pearl. Her higher-ups would need a little more convincing than her spontaneous actions.
They had wanted her to find a personal assistant, and so she did. It had taken them several tries to convince her to do so. She wished they would just be happy with her decision to finally acquiesce. Her fears were that an assistant would contradict every idea she had. She also didn't need a gem that would constantly bug her to report to the Authority. Pearls were different than that, though. They had been made to take orders, not to question. While Rose didn't exactly like ordering around gems, having a pearl was much better than the alternative. Besides, Pearl's reaction to the workshop was a huge step in convincing Rose that she had made the right decision.
When she stepped in her home (Rose liked calling her living quarters a home. Doing so made it sound like she had a welcoming place to live.), she heard a beeping from her holoscreen. She walked through the entrance hall and into the communication room. It seemed the Authority wanted to contact her sooner than she had expected, or hoped.
The tracking device was much easier to construct this time around. There were so many more materials and tools at Pearl's disposal. She didn't have to scrounge around for scraps, nor did she have to go through an extensive screening process on any new tool that she requested. Whereas her last tracking device would've taken weeks to finish, she was certain she could finish this in just a few days.
Pearl didn't hear the knock at the door. She didn't even hear Rose close the door behind her. Only when Rose called her name did she look up.
"I know you're busy, but I've just been informed of a group of gems that are causing some trouble at the capital city. We need to go deal with them."
At the sight of Rose, Pearl dropped to one knee. "My apologies, Rose. I should've been with you. We could've been on our way by now. I shouldn't have been –"
"You don't have to bow, Pearl. You did nothing wrong. We can just leave now."
The gems left the workshop and walked around the outside of Rose's home to the launch pad. There rested Rose's personal ship, the Laser Light, used for transportation to and from wherever the Authority sent her. Pearl had remarked earlier on its sleek design, admiring the way it was shaped for fast, smooth travel. The gems morphed into attire more suited for their trip and boarded.
Pearl watched Rose prepare the ship for travel. She held her hands close to her chest as a feeling of nervousness planted itself in her stomach.
"Alright, everything's set to go. Will you fly us to the capital, Pearl?"
It was the exact question she had been dreading. Pearl pressed her hands closer to herself and felt her face grow warm. "I never learned to fly a ship. I haven't even been on one in flight."
Rose blinked, dumbfounded. "They never taught you how to pilot a ship?"
"I'm sorry. They were supposed to, but with the surge in battles, we've had to keep up with so many damaged ships. There just hasn't been any time. I'm sorry."
"Please, you don't have to apologize. I want you to enjoy the ride. I'll be able to teach you how to fly one of these later." Rose sat in the pilot's chair and placed her hands on the glowing console. Her eyes glowed pink, the same color of the console's glow. The ship lifted off the launch pad and set off into the sky.
The ship rose above the clouds and sped forward. Pearl stared out the window, in awe of the view. The clouds were of all different shapes and sizes, lit up by Homeworld's closest star. Rose gave a small chuckle when Pearl pressed her hands against the glass to get a closer look. The pale gem stayed like that for most of the trip, only drawing away when Rose began the ship's descent. They passed through the clouds and Pearl had her first sight of Homeworld's capital city.
Most of the buildings were blindingly white. There were a few scattered here and there that were different colors, but these buildings were older, most likely constructed before the Authority determined that the buildings should be similarly made. Normally, gems would be bustling around the city to fulfill whatever tasks they were required to do. However, the presence of these rogue gems had cleared the streets. The gems in question stood in a line outside one of the buildings. The city's authority had set up barriers to block off a landing space for Rose's ship. The pink gem flew to it now and made the landing look effortless.
The hatch rose, allowing Rose and Pearl to exit. A yellow tourmaline approached them upon their arrival. "Rose, the gems have refused to surrender peacefully. We've contacted the Authority and they want us to bring them in. They told us to call you in for help rounding them up."
"What are they doing that the Authority wants them brought in?" Rose watched the gems. Tourmaline would've answered her, but she saw for herself. Several of the gems were protesting simultaneously with each other. It sounded like they were calling out the Authority for something. Any gem that publicly ridiculed the Authority was asking for trouble.
Rose stepped past the barrier and approached the gems, making sure to show that she wasn't holding any weapons. Pearl watched as she walked forward, unsure of whether or not to follow. "Hello everyone. I'm Rose. Something is clearly bothering you all. Could you tell me what's wrong?"
The gems stopped their chanting to look at the new arrival. They looked around at each other before a short red gem stepped forward. "The Authority doesn't care about our lives, and it doesn't care about beings on other planets!"
"Those are some serious accusations," Rose sounded concerned. "Do you have any proof to back those up?"
"Plenty!" the red gem spat. "But why would I tell a gem who works for the Authority? You won't listen!"
During the conversation, the city authority gems started to approach the protesting gems. They held their hands over their gems, preparing to draw weapons. One of the gems, a blue one with long, pale blue hair that covered her eyes, shouted out just as the authority gems jumped forward. A struggle ensued with most of the authority gems grappling protesting gems.
The red gem had somehow made it out of the chaos, grasping the blue gem's hand. She sprinted away from the confusion, dragging her companion behind her. They ran toward the launch pad. Rose took to the pursuit, but the red gem grabbed one of the barriers and threw it at the pink gem. Rose tumbled over it and fell onto the pavement.
Pearl took to action, running after the two gems. The blue one glanced back at her and informed her red companion that they were being followed. The red gem made a sharp turn down into an alleyway. When Pearl reached the same alley, she found them stopped at a dead end. The blue gem looked at her and whispered to the red gem. The latter glared at Pearl before turning to face the wall that trapped them. To Pearl's surprise, the blue gem climbed onto the red one's back. The red gem started to scale the wall.
"Stop!" Pearl shouted after them, not entirely sure why she thought it might help. She pulled a spear from the gem on her forehead and threw it at the escaping gems. The spear hurled through the air and embedded itself in the wall, catching a part of the blue gem's dress with it.
"Wait, Ruby!" the blue gem shouted. The red gem hadn't heard in time, however. She had continued to climb. The blue gem let go of the ruby's back and fell backward. The spear kept her from falling to the ground, but she now hung upside down from where her dress was caught. The hair that had covered her face hung downward, revealing the blue gem's eyes. One stared, horrified, at Pearl, while the other stared blankly.
"Sapphire!" Ruby jumped off the wall and tried to reach the spear. She managed to jump up and grab onto it, but couldn't dislodge the spear from the wall. When she heard Pearl approach, she dropped to the ground and brought her fists in front of her face. "Get away from us!"
Pearl reached to her gem to summon another spear, but someone called her name from behind. Rose entered the alley and stood by Pearl's side. She surveyed the situation and then slowly approached Ruby and Sapphire. Ruby growled and took a step back. To her surprise, Rose held Sapphire with one hand and pulled the spear from the wall with the other. The spear dropped to the ground with a loud clatter. Rose placed her other hand on Sapphire and turned her the right way up. Suddenly, a pink bubble formed around the blue gem, trapping her inside.
"Hey! Let her go!" Ruby jumped up at Rose, but Rose grabbed her in the air, letting Sapphire float in the bubble. Rose formed the same bubble around Ruby, enclosing the red gem. Ruby raged inside of the bubble, pounding on it in an attempt to escape.
"Ruby, stop!" Sapphire's voice sounded over Ruby's yelling. To both Pearl and Rose's surprise, the red gem listened. Sapphire looked up at Rose and spoke in a soft, pleading voice. "Please, you have to listen to us. The fate of a planet and all its inhabitants is at stake."
"Sapphire, what are you doing? They won't listen!"
The blue gem ignored her companion. "Please, just hear us out."
Rose exchanged a look with Pearl. "Alright. I'll listen," the pink gem said.
Sapphire was about to speak again, but they heard the sound of running footsteps out on the main street. She inhaled sharply and turned to Ruby. "It's too late!"
"Trust me," Rose said, leaning toward the blue gem. She placed both hands on either side of the bubble and made it disappear. Ruby was too shocked to protest as Rose did the same thing to her bubble.
Before Pearl could react to her leader's actions, the footsteps entered the alley. A group of authority gems stood opposite Rose and Pearl. The tourmaline that had met them earlier asked, "What happened to those two gems that escaped?"
Rose replied, "I'm afraid we can't find them."
I didn't think I'd go so in-depth with this chapter and expected it to turn out like the first, but that's not how things progressed. I hope you still liked it anyways, and there will definitely be more Pearl and Rose moments as promised in the summary. Thanks for reading!