The Voice of Pearl
Chapter Eleven
Pearl's pale blue eyes widened with shock and horror as no sound came out of her mouth. She chocked as quietly as possible and tried to speak again, but she remained mute. The pale gem slowly placed her trembling hand on the piercing pain on her neck. She rubbed it gently, getting a feel for the rough cuts and edges of the dark cracks on her neck while she winced with pain. Pearl quickly moved her hand away from the infected area with a hiss, her eyes becoming glossy as tears started to form. Not only had she lost her voice, but she was loosing her composer as well. The pale gem didn't want to cry in front of all of Homeworld, not when all the eyes were glaring down at her and watching her every single move.
"P..Pearl? Did.. did she take your voice?!" Steven gasped as Pearl tried to process those simple words. She knew he was right, and that there was nothing she could do about it. So the gem remained on her knees on the white tilted floor, looking down at her own pathetic reflection as she nodded. Pearl closed her burning eyes to keep her gaze away from the crowd all around her, giving in to the small tears that dripped from her eyes. She felt like she just lost a very important part of her. Something that she used every day to communicate with the ones she loved and sing out her emotions. Being forced to not speak about certain things was already the worse form of torture ever, and when she finally got rid of that curse, it was replaced with something worse. Her hands didn't need to be forced to her mouth, since now, nothing could come out of it anyway.
Steven stepped forward and past Pearl, an angry look on his face as his fists clenched tightly. He had been trying so hard to not get mad at White Diamond, but this was it. There was not a single hint of empathy towards her any more, but just anger and sadness.
"Give Pearl her voice back!" He shouted, trying not to summon his shield by instinct. The boy gave White a stern look through his eyes during the moments of silence, which was then broken by a loud laughter. She parted her shining black lips and spoke teasingly. "Oh you can't have both starlight! It's ether her voice, or the gems on Earth. The choice is yours to make." White said simply, casting Steven a passive aggressive look before leaning forward in her throne. She was very curious as to what decision Steven would make, seeing that he cared about his Pearl and about the corruptions. Nearly all of the corruptions on Earth where from Pink's court to begin with. Rebells or non-rebells, both sides loyal to the same person.
Steven felt a bead of sweat drip down the right side of his forehead, then switched his panicked glance from White to Pearl, as if asking her to give him permission to make the decision. He knew what choice must be made, and he knew exactly what Pearl would tell him to do- but he had to try to negotiate first. "Why Pearl? This was my fault! Why don't you punish me and then heal the corrupted gems?" He asked, knowing that there was no way White would just do something for free. He started to get a hand of how she thought, and how her mind worked in general. White took away the pain of others by replacing it with a worse type of pain. Similar to the term a head for a head, that's how she saw things.
"Oh stars no. Can't you see that I can see right through you Steven? This is your punishment too. You have to spend the rest of your life with a voiceless Pearl." White chuckled when she saw Steven's upset reaction. This was all too easy for her. "You would suffer more by seeing his friends suffer than yourself. That was proven when you surrendered yourself as Rose Quartz not long ago! I'm sure Yellow and Blue remember that." The Diamond waved her polished hand around carelessly, giving the other two diamonds a quick look through her long eye lashes as they nodded in silence.
Yellow and Blue knew that there was nothing that could be done for the Pearl. This was as close as White would get to helping them. They didn't want to speak up now and possibly cause her to change her mind. In their point of view, everything seemed to be going well. The voice of a Pearl was a small price to pay in their eyes. But to Steven, it was a rather big deal since he cared so much about his Pearl. She was probably the closest thing to a mother he had, and would ever have. Yellow and Blue could never understand, and sometimes Pearl didn't understand ether.
Then Steven felt a slender hand on his left shoulder from behind. He turned around as the hand moved away, and saw Pearl still on the floor on her knees. She was facing him with a smile on her face and no tears left to cry. She seemed content, and determined as if she had already moved past the shocking reality of no longer having a voice. But what Pearl actually did was put that thought aside for another day, deciding to focus on their main mission and keeping Steven safe.
She looked up at the half gem's confused face and wide eyes. He probably had no idea why she was smiling and no longer crying. Pearl may not be able to speak, but she knew how to get across to him. She gave him a confident nod, and the boy knew she meant for him to accept things how they were. This was Pearl saying "I'll sacrifice my voice for the corrupted gems." Through nothing but a determined look in her eyes and a nod. Steven however, hesitated. He wanted to say something back, and tell her there must be another way- but he couldn't mess up now. If he did something wrong- White might cut off the deal and leave the corruptions in to eternal insanity on Earth. He knew what he had to do, and just had to hope that him and his friends on Earth could find a way to lift this curse from Pearl.
"Ok White. I accept these terms." Steven replied in a monotone voice as he turned to face her again, looking up confidently as the shining Diamond clasped her hands. "Wonderful! I'll have the list sent to your ship, and I'm sure Yellow can instruct you on your next steps." White stood up from her throne, her glimmering cape drooped down as she did so. "This ends the case." She said her final words as she lifted her arms to form her diamond-pose, making the crowd roar and cheer. Yellow and Blue got up as well, standing patiently as the Homeworld gems celebrated the successful trial and the magnificence of their Diamonds. Everyone was clapping or saluting, except Steven and the Diamonds themselves- and the Pearls, who had to remain still and graceful as the Diamonds accessories. They weren't allowed to act in such a way, ever, unless ordered to by their owners. And Pearl on the other hand was defiantly in no mood to be celebrating the loss of her voice, but rather to celebrate Steven's success. It may take a long time to go through that list of lost gems, but at least in the end White Diamond was willing to heal them all.
As the little ceremony ended, Steven and Pearl headed back to Pink's room whilst some of the Homeworld Bismuth's and Aquamarine's repaired and cleaned the legs-ship. It was a common thing for the gems to prepare the ship for launch the best they could for a Diamond, even if it was already in fine condition. Yellow had briefly mentioned to Steven before walking back to her own room, that the preparation for his ship should only take about an hour. Thankfully this gave him time to take a short nap since he didn't realize until now that the trial had taken place at midnight for him. No wonder he had been so tired, but he was just grateful that White didn't make the trial last more than two days. Apparently that happened sometimes. Whenever White started to get frustrated, or had something to attend to, she would call for a break that could last as long as a week, keeping everyone at edge. At least this time, Steven was able to come to an agreement with White without having her loose her temper or pause the trail. Everything would have been great if it weren't for her taking Pearl's voice away...
Pink Pearl stood by Steven's bed protectively, while the other Pearl was slumped on the ground with her back turned against them. The depression from the trial was hitting her right now, which was a perfect time since Steven was sleeping- and he wouldn't have to witness her cry and fall apart. How would he feel if his mother figure started crying her eyes out because of a decision he had made? This was a victory. She shouldn't be crying at all, since it would only make Steven feel guilty. The last thing she wanted was to leave Homeworld with a sad Steven standing beside her. He should be happy and celebrating, and Pearl couldn't let this small price she had to pay ruin it for everyone. She had to remain happy and calm in front of him- so this was the only time to break down. The gem sobbed quietly, putting her hand on her chest and wishing desperately to have her voice back.
"I-it's not fun, is it?" Pink Pearl spoke up, an uneasy vibe coming from her. She sounded almost like a child and had a soft tone in her voice, and defiantly exaggerated her yowls like a heavy American accent. "Having something taken from you because of someone else." She sighed, fighting her own feelings that wanted to be sorry for Pearl and maybe even feel sympathy for her. But that thought had been pushed aside quickly. In her mind, Pearl got what she deserved. And now, the pale gem would spend the rest of her life experiencing what Pink Pearl had to go through.
Wanting to say something, but unable to.
Having the pained mark of White Diamond on her physical form.
Most importantly, the loss of Pink.
Now Pink Pearl felt like she had her Diamond all to herself. Steven, all to herself, who she still saw as Pink Diamond. Sure he may not have Pink's memories, but he had her beaming personality and shining gem on the same spot that she did in the centre of her stomach. Since the pale Pearl couldn't speak, she was now a defect. A useless Pearl who wouldn't even be able to accept a command from her own Diamond.
"Don't worry. Steven will be ok.. I know you're worried about him since you can't exactly speak anymore.. but he has me." She tried not to sound too cocky, but couldn't help but feel a little chuffed as if she had the upper hand. She looked over at her with a grin, like a royal looking down at a useless peasant.
But Pearl obviously didn't reply, and that ended the conversation immediately. So until the boy woke up, the Pearls silently remained in the pink room with him. Pink Pearl was still standing tall on the floor near the end of Steven's bed when he woke up, with her eyes closed and hands folded neatly behind her back. Pearl stood on the far side of the room near the triangular door, leaning against the wall with her arms folded in front of herself as if she was protecting her body or giving herself a hug. She had a look of defeat on her face, and seemed to be sulking a little over the precious comments Pink Pearl had made. But when she saw movement from the corners of her eyes, she straightened her back and shifted her weight on to her two feet planted firmly on the tiles underneath. She gave Steven a light smile as he sat up in his bed, smiling back and rubbing his eyes with a yawn.
Pink Pearl opened her peach pink eyes and smiled as she saw her Diamond wake up from his beauty nap. "Welcome back Steven!" She said happily, picking up on how the other Pearl had been calling her Diamond. He was no longer she, and didn't like being called Pink or Pink Diamond, so Pink decided to call him Steven- just how he liked it. She was so happy to see him smile back at her as he hopped out of bed.
"Good morning Pearl! And Pearl! Wait.. I should probably call you Pink Pearl so I don't get you all confused!" He nervously scratched the back of his head with a silly smile on his face. And as if on time, the triangular door on the other side of the room hissed open. Pearl flinched as she felt the sudden gush of cool air blow in as the door opened. On the other side stood Yellow Pearl with her strict gaze. "Pink Diamond, your ship is ready." She said clearly and swiveled around on her heel and started walking down the quiet hallway. Steven whispered a quick fair-well to the pebbles huddled under his bed, and followed Yellow Pearl along the hall with his Pearls behind him.
It had been about a thirty minute walk across the long bridge from Pink's quarters to the football field-sized landing pad where the tall bright pink legs stood up formally. Steven couldn't even see the hips once he stood underneath it, looking up at the blanket of starts in an attempt to see where his ship stretched out to. "Wow." Was all that came out of his mouth as he viewed the shining pair of legs standing on heels and looking like a whole new ship. He almost couldn't believe only a few minutes ago a thousand gems had been working on repairing and improving his ship, since it was so empty and silent now. Not a trace of any gems remained.
Suddenly loud foot steps were heard from behind Steven down the long bridge he had walked along with the three Pearls. He turned around and squinted his eyes to see the source of stomping sounds and shakiness of the bridge. Yellow and Blue Diamond were making their way towards him with ease. To them it must be a four or five minute walk because of their sizes. As Steven predicted, Yellow and Blue arrived a few feet in front of him in less than five minutes. When the Diamonds came to a halt, Yellow Pearl gracefully moved back to stand next to her Diamond with a cat-like smile on her face. Blue Pearl was already standing beside her Diamond, her legs crossed elegantly in front of the other and mesh skirt flowing in the wind of Homeworld.
Yellow cleared her throat and scanned the shinning pink ship in front of her for any imperfections or broken parts. But as usual, the members of her court had done a fine job at the repairs. "Before you go.." The Diamond crouched down, getting a closer look Steven as the boy still his chin up high to look up at her. "I wanted to give you this." She lowered her clenched fist down to Steven, opening her palm to reveal a small three dimensional diamond shaped device that looked very familiar to him. It was only when Steven held it firmly in his hands that he realized it was the same device that Peridot had stolen from the moon base to contact Yellow Diamond a very long time ago. As he held it preciously, Yellow stood back up and smiled in a thin line at Steven who mimicked her smile. "Its a direct communication-hub device that will take you straight to my line if you need any thing. This one is reusable and also has the ability to project the list White sent to your ship. Then you don't have to go back and forth when you're looking for those… gems." She said uneasily, vaguely remembering the creature that was once a Nephrite.
"Steven.." Blue Diamond also smiled, her eyes becoming glossy as she spoke. "You are always welcome here if you want to come back to visit." The gentle tone in her words were almost motherly, but nothing could every top Pearl's soothing words whenever he was upset. He then remembered that he probably wouldn't hear Pearl's voice for a while, and gratefully took in Blue's heartfelt words. "Thank you Blue. Do you think.. you guys could come to Earth with us? It would be so much quicker if we had your help!" Steven had white stars in his pupils from the thought of his now half-family Diamonds coming to Earth again. He could introduce all his friends and then no one in Beach City would have to fear them any more. But Yellow shook her head, a frowning Blue beside her as she watched Yellow speak like business men. "No. We both have things to attend to on Homeworld. Busy schedules, appointments, and we also have to be here for White. She barley let us both leave when we went to Earth for the Cluster." Yellow crossed her arms under her gem as she finished speaking her part. Blue seemed to sense the sudden tension in her fellow Diamond and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. She felt Yellow flinch a bit at the touch, but used her powers to help her destress a little. "Me and Yellow will be here, and maybe we can come and visit- but for now, I think we should all stand down and make sure White doesn't change her mind about anything." Blue said in her soothing tone again, looking down at Steven who nodded in acknowledgement. "Ok." He sighed and looked over his shoulder at the bright ship, and then back up at Yellow and Blue. "I guess this is good bye… for now.." His expression became sad as Blue lowered her hand in front of him whilst kneeling. "One last hug." She had small tears coming out of her eyes, and Steven couldn't help but cry a bit as well despite the happy smile on his face. He hopped on to her palm and she brought him up to her eye level before gently letting him hug her cheek, and this time it was less awkward since he wasn't being rubbed on her cheek. Steven hugged with his own tears in his eyes before stepping back. "Yellow." Blue said as she watched the Diamond cup her yellow gloved hands beside the hand Steven was on. He got off of the blue palm and went on to the yellow one. She brought him up to eye level, and spoke first. "If there is anything else you need, you should tell me now." She said sternly, the darker yellow blush still on her face from holding such a small being in her palm.
"Well.. It would be great if you guys could help even a little bit- You can poof a gem in one zap!" Steven said, even though he knew what Yellow's answer would be. He just never expected to actually be happy about Yellow's powers for the first time, even Yellow seemed proud for a brief second. "Steven, I told you me and Blue have to stay…" She frowned, but then her gaze fell to her boots- and the thin Yellow Pearl quietly standing next to it. She looked back at Steven, the frown no longer on her face. "Our Pearl's are specially trained in combat, you can take them for help." She looked over at Blue for approval, and she nodded. Steven seemed uneasy about that sentence, but brushed it off when the Pearl's didn't look upset or distressed about it. Besides, it would be so much better if he could change the Pearl's perspective on the world, and help them become their own gem! Maybe they would even join the Crystal Gems and decide to live on Earth with him. He hated seeing the Pearls being pushed around on Homeworld, so this was a small start to helping out the all of the mistreated Pearls.
Steven thanked both of them before running off of Yellow's hands towards her- he was still high up from the ground at her eye level. He chuckled while he jumped and fell only a little before hugging on to Yellow's cheek like a star fish. "Huugggs!" He laughed, while Yellow remained wide eyed with a faint blush across her face. "Ok thats enough." She seemed embarrassed as her gloved palm was brought to her chin and Steven let go, landing on it gracefully. Then the hand lowered him back down to the ground, and Steven stepped off. The awfully quiet Pearl let out a silent sigh of relief when she saw him finally touch back down on the floor again.
"Go on Pearl." Blue nudged her frail Pearl with her hand, and the startled gem snapped out of her day dreaming and walked over to stand behind Steven along with the other Pearls. Yellow gave her Pearl a sharp look. "You too." She commanded, and Yellow Pearl replied. "Yes my Diamond." She sounded like a teachers pet as she said so, and then joined the other three Pearls behind him. Steven looked over his shoulder again and scratched the back of his head uneasily as he glanced at all the four Pearls. "Wow.. thats- a lot of Pearls. I hope the house doesn't end up looking like a hotel!" He joked, but no one understood and the Diamonds just looked at each other with a shrug.
"Ill call you when I get back on Earth!" Steven waved to his Diamond family, a pink bubble engulfing him and the Pearls as they were transported to the inside of the ship.
Yellow and Blue both wrapped an arm around each other, looking up at the dark sky covered in a blanket of stars. They watched peacefully as the pink legs launched in to space and disappeared. "Good luck Steven."