Amethyst always followed her heart. She followed it more than Pearl, or maybe even Garnet. She wasn't one to think her thoughts and actions through. She simply did what her heart told her and went with it. It's both failed her, and helped her through. She often followed her heart when Pearl opened her mouth; ignoring her at every turn. Her heart was complicated though. She would admit that.

Her heart always told her to ignore Pearl, but it also told her that Pearl always meant well. She would think that Pearl didn't scold her just to her herself talk. But a part of her that she's not sure which body part is at blame for told her to ignore her and give her the cold shoulder. For some reason, it always felt, to Amethyst, that Pearl just couldn't stand her for some unknown reason. What had she done to make Pearl hate her so much?

She had tried asking Garnet once why Pearl is the way she is, and Garnet's answer wasn't exactly the most helpful.

"People grow up differently." Was what she said. And that was all she said on the matter.

Amethyst wasn't pleased, but she knew that she shouldn't press the issue. Especially with Garnet, because it won't work. Amethyst had assumed, on several occasions, that Rose's death was what caused Pearl's behavior to skew way off track. But Amethyst could remember Rose's death, and, yes, Pearl had changed, but she was still a nag and annoyingly talkative even before then. It couldn't have been that.

Steven was just that funny little guy that nobody could ever hate. Amethyst could feel in her heart that Steven was too sweet to be hated. Of course that was just common knowledge. Except Lars. He must not know this yet.

But Amethyst's heart was temporarily clogged with nervousness as the boat they were on hit shore. Finally.

Amethyst was half relieved to get off the boat, and half scared at what lay ahead of them.

They all got off the boat quickly, stretching their bodies and analyzing their surroundings. Garnet was the first to step foot up the shore, and into the very black dirt. The large gem took a large breathier at her surroundings. It filled her with grief.

The only thing that was growing for miles was the strong musky odor rising from the scorched ground. Small pieces of old buildings riddled the ground, and the sand on the shore was staining the water; sending devilish swirls of black soot into the once beautiful ocean. Garnet inhaled and exhaled deeply, and then turned around to see how her Gem family was doing. Amethyst and Steven where both still trying to stretch out their sleeping muscles, and Pearl was sitting on the backs of her heels, on her tippy toes, and looking down at the burnt earth with her eyes tightly shut. There was no doubt in Garnet's mind that Pearl was trying to rid herself of the memories.

"Woah, this place is…is…interesting!" Steven exclaimed. Garnet turned to look at him. He was half smiling and half curious. The large Gem wanted to scold the boy. There was nothing interesting about this. Nothing at all.

"Hey Garnet, what happed to this place? It looks like everything caught fire or something." Steven asked. Garnet calmed down from her irritation towards the boy. She had to remember, that he wasn't around to witness the tragedy. He was a child that was unaware of his heritage's bloodshed. Or his mother's foolishness. Her understandable foolishness.

Garnet walked toward the boy, and lowered herself on one knee to be as level to the young Gem as she could. She failed.

"Steven, your mother-"

"Don't you DARE!"

Garnet turned her head to see Pearl marching towards them; her face blue with rage. She walked to them and planted herself firmly between the two. It was the first time since they left that she had spoken. Her breath was ragged.

"Don't you dare say that to him. He's just a child, Garnet! He'll grow up with guilt on his shoulders and it'll be all your fault. Why would you, no, not you, why would anyone think that scarring a child like this was a good idea?" Pearl angrily ranted. Garnet got up on her feet but did not silence herself.

"He either knows now or never. I explained this to you over and over. We are on a mission, and Steven matters in this mission." Garnet explained as calmly as she could. But Pearl was anything but calm.

"We could've told him when we got back from the mission! The poor thing…he shouldn't have ever come along…"

"Pearl, he needs to learn what mistakes could cost. He needs to learn the values of his actions. So far, he has not been able to do this. And considering the skulls are rising again, it is the perfect opportunity."

Pearl didn't have any fight in her anymore. She let out a noise, and walked away into the tortured beach. Garnet looked down, and then looked at Amethyst, who was silently watching the whole thing go down between them.

"Amethyst. I want you to go with Pearl in case she wanders off." Garnet ordered.

Amethyst sighed, but obeyed. She started to walk after Pearl, but was stopped by Garnet.

"One more thing, Amethyst."

The purple Gem turned around. "Yeah?"

Garnet was quiet for a moment, and then, "Please be patient with her if she acts up. She's…This is going to be hard for her. Just try and understand."

Amethyst nodded, and then turned back around to follow Pearl.

Garnet looked at Steven. The boy had a confusingly sad face on, and it hurt Garnet slightly. She loved this kid, anything that made him sad she just wanted to punch until it went away. Which is why telling Steven the news was so difficult. It will hurt him, and that hurt Garnet.

Pearl too.

And maybe even Amethyst.

"Pearl, slow down!" Amethyst yelled after the skinny Gem. Pearl didn't respond and kept fast walking across the beach, and onto the destroyed dirt.

"Pearl! What's up with you! C'mon, stop!" Amethyst shouted at her. Her short legs unable to keep up with Pearl's long slim ones. But Pearl stopped abruptly, and Amethyst nearly ran right into her. The Pearl Gem whipped her body around to glare at the shorter girl.

"Either keep up, or get lost." She said with a tone harsh enough to rival Garnet. She turned back around and continued walking. Amethyst was stunned. Normally Pearl has a ten paged rant hidden away to use. But this time, she was quick and to the point. And incredibly stern. For the first time, Amethyst was scared around Pearl. But followed her none the less.

It was an awkward and long walk through the broken debris and the cracking of burnt soil. Amethyst knew what the mission was about, and where they needed to go. But she couldn't help but ponder the sight around her. What area is safe and what area isn't.

She also knew what happened here, but she couldn't remember it. She was too young to remember. She just worked off of what Garnet said. But the emotional impact was nothing compared to what it had on Garnet, Pearl, and even Rose. Amethyst knew this, but she still couldn't even imagine. The problem with Pearl, though, is still a mystery. Could it have just been Rose's mistake that did it? She could see the connection, but still had her doubts. Especially considering most of Pearl's anger is taken out on Amethyst.

"Pearl…?" Amethyst finally said. The silent tension became too much for her.

"Pearl, uhh…you okay?" She asked awkwardly. Pearl stayed quiet for a while, and then perked her head up.

"What did you say, Amethyst?"

"Uhh, I asked if you were okay…"

"Fine."

The conversation stopped there. Amethyst didn't like this. They normally bickered for dozens of minutes, hours if somebody didn't stop them. But this quick silence between the two was just too unbearable. It made the small Gem extremely uncomfortable. It was easy arguing with Pearl, but this…This was just too much.

Amethyst was going to say something else, but was quickly interrupted by a large screeching sound. Both the Gems armed themselves with their weapons, and stood in a defensive stance. They looked around frantically to try and look for what caused the screeching. They got their answer not a moment later.

A large skull, floating through the dusty air, screeching and menacingly giggling, torpedoed itself at the Gems. They both jumped out of the way as the thing hit the ground that they were standing. Clouds of dust and dried dirt sprang in the air as it hit, and spread out through the air. The Gems covered their mouths as to not inhale the dead earth, and raised their weapons in defense. The creature floated up and out of the debris, only to turn to the Gems and laugh wickedly. Amethyst shivered. Pearl took off at the skull, and tried swiping her spear at it. The monster screeched and lighting shot out of its mouth at the skinny girl. Pearl ducked against the ground, and when the lighting shot past her, she bounced up on her feet again, and took off at the thing once more. She stabbed the skull right in the hole where the nose was supposed to be, and then the beast screeched in bloody pain. Soon after, it exploded in an electric firework show. Only this fireworks show was not one of amusement.

Once the skull was gone, Amethyst stared at Pearl in awe. Since when did Pearl learn how to fight like that?

Amethyst got her answer once the Pearl Gem turned around to express deep anger at anything and everything. Oh, I get it. It's anger that fueled her.

"That must have been one of those crystal skull thingies, right?" Amethyst asked.

"Yeah. Watch out. There's most likely more." Pearl said simply, then kept walking. The short girl raised an eyebrow, then continued with her.

After maybe a half an hour of walking, Amethyst started to notice Pearl get fidgety. Something was starting to bother her.

"Pearl, hey, if you aren't feelin' good, we can take a break." Amethyst suggested.

"I'm fine, Amethyst. We need to keep moving in order to slow down the rate of skulls rising."

The plump woman huffed, but didn't press the issue. She really didn't want to deal with Pearl being like this, but she remembered what Garnet said, and obeyed.

Please be patient with her if she acts up. She's…This is going to be hard for her. Just try and understand.

She tried, and boy was it hard. But her heart told her to just shut up and keep walking. Besides, she had to trust her heart. Even if her heart itself thought Pearl was being rude.

Pearl stopped.

She had been walking for quite a long time without stopping, and she finally did. If not abruptly.

Amethyst was relieved, her legs hurt from walking so much with no break, and they came across two more skulls. Pearl defeated them with little problem.

Amethyst stopped behind Pearl, and sat down. Resting.

"What's up, Pearl? Did you spot another skull?"

Pearl was silent. Amethyst peaked from behind Pearl's calves, and raised an eyebrow. They stopped at a pile of debris, most of it broken wood, but there was some artifacts laying around as well. Amethyst looked up at Pearly, and felt incredibly sad at her expression. Pearl's expression was one of true sadness. The kind of sadness that was so big that she didn't even have any room to cry. A very old sadness that grew in the years to come, like a child. She stared down at the wreckage with quiet grief. Her mouth was slightly open, and her eyes where unmoving. It was like she was replaying footage in her head over and over. Amethyst got on her small feet again.

"Pearl?"

Pearl slowly (ever so slowly) stepped forward in the wreckage, and moved a single piece of wood out of its place. Under it was an engraving in the dirt that had a man's name scribbled in it, and then a gem with angel wings drawn under it. It was engraved incredibly deep, and even then, it was hard to make out.

But it was there. Pearl just stared at it. She looked like she would break down any minute, but she didn't. She just kept staring. Amethyst would have let her, if it weren't for another surprise ambush by an electric skull.

"Pearl, look out!" Amethyst yelled as she pushed Pearl out of the way of the skull trying to ram itself into her while screeching. Pearl got up from landing on her side quickly and grabbed a fistful of Amethyst's shirt.

"Dude, what the heck are you doing!? Where supposed to be fighting that thing!" Amethyst cried while pointing to the skull that was recovering from hitting the ground.

Pearl looked at it, then back at Amethyst. She let go, and with drawled her spear from her forehead in preparation to fight. Amethyst did the same, and couldn't help but feel sick while looking at it.

The creature had bits of hair still left on its head. The hair stuck up in all directions as the electricity was sending static through it. They both could tell this one was going to be tougher.

The skull screamed and shot electricity in many different directions. One of the blows hit Pearl In the arm, and made her heart jump in her throat. She was reminded, in that moment, of an old feeling of fear. But she recovered once the shock wore off, and ran at the creature. Amethyst was already near it, whipping the back of its head with all of her strength. It didn't do anything as far as damaging it, but it did make it angry. It screeched, and shot Amethyst with electricity. The girl fell to the ground, body spasming. The numbing sharp pain that ran through her veins sent her body into shock, and she convulsed on the dead ground. Pearl launched her spear at the thing, but it hardly penetrated the marrow of the skull. The thing turned around and screamed lighting at Pearl. Pearl became incredibly angry. With everything. She ducked, and then ran at the creature, she jumped at the thing, and tried to rip the Gems out of its eye sockets. She got one out, but the other was still buried inside when it wrapped a chunk of its hair around Pearl, and shot lighting through it. Pearl's torso suddenly burned with the heat of a thousand suns. It reminded her (dear god, please not again) of her injuries back then. The scar from the gash in her torso still remained, and it reminded her…god, she didn't want this to happen. Not now.

Her body shook from the electricity pulsing through it, but recovered quickly. She pulled another spear out from her forehead, and jabbed the monster in the Gem eye, and managed to shatter it. The beast screeched, and exploded in lightning. Much of the lighting hit Pearl, and zapped her through her body. She fell to the ground squirming like a worm like Amethyst was. Though Amethyst slowly recovered.

The short Gem, upon noticing Pearl's condition, quickly (as best she could) get up on her feet, and run to the skinny girl. She knelt down, and tried to help Pearl up, but the Gem swatted her away.

"Get away from me." She muttered through the small twitches of her muscles. Amethyst almost felt hurt.

"C'mon, Pearl, please don't be difficult." Amethyst calmly tried to say. Pearl shot up on her elbows and gave amethyst a look of true anger. The kind of look that a mother gives the person who's messing with their child. A look of attack.

"Why should I, when you killed my father!?"

Pearl's expression dropped immediately when she realized what she just said. Amethyst dropped her jaw in utter confusion, and maybe even fear. What the hell was she talking about? Pearl stared at Amethyst's face in shock. She slowly crawled on her knees, still staring. Pearl placed her head in her hands.

"Oh my god…"

"Pearl?"

"Oh my god…I can't…"

"Pearl, what's going on with you?"

"Oh god, I'm so sorry Amethyst. I'm so…so…"

Pearl broke down in her hands. Amethyst was surprised, but tried to comfort her all the same. She placed a plump hand on Pearl's bony shoulder.

"Amethyst, I'm so sorry… It…it just came to me why I feel so…rude towards you…I'm so sorry…" Pearl stuttered between sobs.

"Hey, uhh, it's alright. Tell me about it. Maybe get it off your chest." Amethyst suggested. Pearl wiped her large nose on her arm, and looked at Amethyst with hesitation, but continued.

"My father, he was killed by an Amethyst gem. You were just a baby, but somehow, I'm sure, In the back of my mind, that I had hatred toward every Amethyst Gem, including you."

Amethyst almost felt hurt. How could Pearl think that she was anything like that murderous Amethyst Gem? She was on her side.

But then again, she could also understand. It would be hard to trust any Amethyst Gem after something like that. Especially if you aren't aware of it. Like a deep, hidden piece of dirty treasure placed somewhere distant, but still there.

"I never thought…I never thought you killed him, Amethyst, it was just…It's just so hard to trust them after that…It's so hard..to trust anyone like that...after they force you to watched your father die...and then later have to bury him yourself..." Pearl broke down again, this time she tried holding it in, but failed. Amethyst placed her hand on Pearl's back. She now understood what the writing in the dirt was. It was a grave marking. Her father's grave. She could feel every bump in her spine as she rubbed her back to make her feel better. If Amethyst had to admit anything, it's that she felt awkward in this position, but also followed her heart, who told her to do it.

If Pearl was this wrecked from this horrible experience, then she couldn't even imagine Garnet. Or…

Her heart ached at thinking about it.

Thinking about how Steven will take this kind of pain.

yoo! Alright so I know how I've been neglecting Amethyst (which can't happen because she's important), so I decided to make a chapter were she's the spotlight. I kinda owe it to the character anyway. Sorry, no transforming either. I couldn't figure out a way to have her transform without it being weird or ridiculous.

But I digress...review replies anyone?

SpaceWonder368 - thank you! and yes, I'm most likely going to beat Pearl down badly. But it's for a good cause I promise!

Crystal-Gem-Goddess - thank you very much! And what's a Steven Universe fanfic without Garnet kicking some well deserved ass right? ;D

Applebucker77 - Thank you! always glad to have Garnet beat some Gem ass! and yes, I wanted to give Pearl a reason to be so hostile towards Amethyst, and I was debating on whether or not to keep that sort of in the background or just flat out say it in a chapter. I went with the latter obviously because I wanted Amethyst to have a part in this.

unknown - glad you feel better! and never be afraid to share your thoughts! I'm so laid back with that stuff, it's crazy!

Mikeylove241 - indeed.

Hope you Amethyst fans out there get your satisfaction! Peace out until next update you beautiful peeps!