This North African desert might have been agonizingly hot for a human, but it was nothing to a Gem, since Gems easily adjusted to the temperatures and gravity of other worlds they meant to conquer.
Rose had witnessed early human civilizations in Africa, such as Ancient Egypt, and they had surprised her. From the way the other Diamonds had described organic life, she had been left with the impression that organics lacked the intelligence to build cities. Rose admired how ancient humans had been able to build cities, despite not having the technological advancements of Gems.
There was another creature that had captured Rose's fascination in in Africa: the lion. Rose admired how lions lived together in groups and looked out for each other, and she thought lion cubs were among the most adorable of all Earth's creatures. A lion's furry mane did look somewhat ridiculous, and yet majestic at the same time. Rose understood why humans called the lion "the King of Beasts."
As Rose stepped off the Warp Pad, she looked around for the pink lion. Lion would sometimes greet her at the Warp Pad, but other times, she would have to look for him. It all seemed to depend on Lion's mood. Often, he would be wherever the moving sand castle was.
Rose was right: Lion was indeed curled up by the sand castle, apparently asleep. He raised his head and blinked slowly as Rose approached him.
"Hello, my friend."
Lion stood up and gave Rose a penetrating stare, one as intense as the desert's heat. Rose felt a little ashamed.
"I'm sorry I haven't visited for a while. I've had a lot on my mind."
Lion tilted his head, then came closer to Rose and nuzzled her. Then, he bent his head down, and his mane glowed. Rose shook her head.
"No, I don't need to go in there today. I just wanted to take a walk."
Rose and Lion walked across the desert at a leisurely pace. This reminded Rose of the old days, when she had an entire pride of lion companions.
As much as Rose admired humans, she often preferred to be around non-human life, such as her lions or her moss. Humans were such complex creatures; even after so many millennia on Earth, Rose still had trouble fully understanding them. Maybe she never would understand them, a most sobering thought.
Rose didn't really have a destination in mind as she and Lion crossed the desert, but she found herself at her personal dump.
Ah, Rose's garbage dump, filled with things she didn't need or want. She could see her old Diamond ship poking out of the sand, and remembered how excited she had been on first receiving it, not unlike a human teenager receiving a car of their own.
Rose and Lion moved on.
As night fell, Rose and Lion cuddled together. Though Lion was a proud creature, he was more than willing to cuddle. Rose petted his fur and mane, recalling when Lion was just an ordinary lion. Even before Rose brought him back to life, this lion had been her favourite. He seemed more attuned to her than the other lions and the lionesses.
Petting Lion's mane made it glow, but that was an accident. Lion stared at her, and Rose moved her hand away.
She didn't want to go into her pocket dimension. She didn't want to face Bismuth, even if Bismuth was bubbled away. It was too risky to release Bismuth; that would unleash so many secrets to Garnet, Pearl, and Amethyst, and Bismuth probably would not be in a good mood, to put it lightly.
Rose gazed up at the stars, and focused on the full moon. She thought of the Moon Base, and then tried to focus her gaze elsewhere. Rose tried to think about all of the names humans gave to constellations, and Greg's stories about how looking through his uncle's telescope contributed to his fascination with space.
Space, space, Moon Base. No, that thought was not about to go away. Rose had to find a way to let it go.
"Lion, I hate to ask so much of you, but...could you please take me to the moon?"
Lion gave Rose another withering look. Rose sighed.
"If you do, I promise I'll visit more often."
Lion nuzzled Rose, and she took that as a 'yes."
