Admittedly, Connie felt a bit stifled as she was crammed between Steven and Amethyst on the couch while Garnet was currently very deep in thought, thinking about the future, Jasper was taking her frustration out on the very innocent pillow she just so happened to lay her eyes upon during her moment of seething anger, Peridot was whimpering and clutching onto a very apathetic Lapis, who regarded the smaller green Gem with a soft smirk, and Pearl pacing the room in a very erratic fashion.

But if she was honest with herself, she was happy that this time she was included in the magical affairs of the Crystal Gems, especially after everything that happened with Yellow Diamond. Instead of being the girl everyone insisted be locked out when serious issues arose, she was depended upon just as much as the rest. It was like she was finally their equal despite being a human, let alone a human child.

"Man, the last time something like this happened, it was when Jasper escaped in the snow during Connie's first mission," Amethyst drawled, chuckling after her "sister" gave her a very chastising look.

"I can assure you that Citrine is very different than Jasper," Garnet replied, placing a hand beneath her chin. "She cannot be reasoned with, has no connection to Rose Quartz or Steven whatsoever, and we have cost her everything since we defeated her armada during the invasion. Thanks to her, she has no purpose or meaning in life."

"What does she intend to do after she gets her revenge?" Steven asked. "I mean, it wouldn't make much of a difference if she can't go home."

"Simply being able to slaughter us is enough for a devoted Quartz soldier," Jasper sniffed in contempt. "It probably wouldn't even matter to her if she didn't get the recognition afterwards. Fulfilling Yellow Diamond's orders must be the only thing on her mind right now."

"Luckily, she's the only one we have to worry about," Garnet said as she returned to the present world. "She and Yellow are the only ones who survived the devastation. No more surprises as far as I'm concerned."

"Speaking of Yellow," Amethyst piped up. "How is she taking all of this so far?"

Pearl bit her lip. "I can't say she is remaining calm, and I guess that's one thing we have in common." She laughed for a moment before continuing. "She decided to take a breather in my room."

"Are the two of you roommates now or something?" Amethyst asked with a raised eyebrow, stifling a chuckle.

Peridot failed to hear the joking manner in Amethyst's voice once again. "Oh, if you are, I can lend you some tips to handle having a companion in your private areas. But I suggest to never recording a message for her, especially if it's heartfelt."

Lapis only scoffed at those words while Amethyst chuckled and Pearl slapped her forehead, careful to avoid damaging her gem.

"Do you think she's taking this well?" Connie asked. She knew Yellow and Pearl and certainly different people but Yellow definitely shared Pearl's tendencies to be . . . high-strung. She wondered if the former Homeworld servant was already losing it by now.

"I hope so," Steven muttered. "I mean, I finally got through to her and made her accept her position here as a Crystal Gem and then she had to almost get snatched by a Quartz soldier."

"Perhaps she's a lot stronger than we think she is," Garnet mused.

Yellow hugged her knees to her chest as she contemplated the situation. The calm rushing sounds of water cascading down the various fountains definitely soothed her very much. She wondered if this was why Pearl installed her room this way. Anxiety certainly steadies quite a bit when there were sounds of water accompanying your erratic heartbeat.

For a moment, she believed she might have actually had a normal life on Earth. While her usual duties as a Pearl disappeared for good, there were other things to busy herself with to keep her from descending into madness. And the other Crystal Gems were more than willing to help her, especially Steven. But then everything was forced to change once again, right after she was beginning to feel comfortable.

Yellow shuddered at the thought of visualizing Citrine again. Her piercing eyes that traced every curve and edge of her body like most Gems who took the time to appreciate the beauty of a Pearl, the intimidating muscles that every Quartz were known for, and the thick hair that flowed down to her waist and was tied into a serpent-like braid.

She was always used to elite Gems admiring her like an object made to please, since she knew that was her role as a Pearl, but being subjected to that again made her shiver like it was a foreign feeling. It wasn't like it was a comment she had never heard before; several elites made passing comments that both complimented Yellow Diamond's tastes and the way Yellow herself pulled it off.

Now that it was coming to her again, Yellow realized just how discomforting it was.

She held herself in higher regards than that—at least, she hoped she did. She didn't need to take any of those comments in with pride anymore now that she knew that it really meant.

But still, it was possible that Citrine might take the chance to snatch her away from the Crystal Gems and make her a slave once again.

Yellow hugged herself tighter at the thought. She never wanted another master again, not after how much she realized how toxic the relationship was. She didn't want another Gem to trap her in their shadow, constantly belittle her and threaten her, strip of her dignity and pride. She couldn't handle being blamed for every single disaster that came her way and then subsequently punished for it without anyone bothering to take her opinion into regard.

No, never again.

Yellow thought of the numerous times she saw Pearl defend herself, showing off her strength and agility with pride, like she was allowed to flaunt without any transgressions. Absolutely shameless, she took out her weapon and let her enemy know that she wasn't prepared to get pushed around, even if it was their right to do so.

The steely glint in her eye, the proud way she carried herself, the zero trace of a servant in her stance; Yellow needed that more than anything.

And maybe if Pearl would let her, she could have the chance.

When Yellow stepped out of the Temple and into the "living room" as Steven liked to call it, everyone froze.

Jasper, Garnet, Connie, Steven, and Amethyst were all squeezed into one couch as Lapis and Peridot were forced to share a seat, the petite technician fitting rather well in the blue Gem's lap. Pearl was standing in front of them, clearly in the middle of ranting about something.

"Oh Yellow, there you are," Pearl tried her best to sound pleased but there was no masking the distress in her voice; it was clear that Yellow wasn't wanted here.

Steven was better at being enthusiastic. "We were all so worried about you!"

"Hopefully, you don't suffer the same mental breakdowns Pearl goes through," Amethyst popped in, earning nobody's amusement except Peridot's.

"Are you okay?" Garnet asked softly, which was truly the right thing to ask.

Yellow sucked in a deep breath. "I appreciate everything you did to make me feel comfortable here . . ."

"Oh, you won't believe how many times Jasper warned me not to make another lemon joke," Amethyst interjected.

The glare Yellow gave was extremely reminiscent of the ones Pearl gave, if not outright identical.

"But I can tell that now that there's another threat upon us, you desire there to be more fighters amongst you," Yellow continued.

"Yellow, you don't have to if you don't want to . . ." Steven warned, reaching out to her as if to grab onto her hand.

Yellow shook her head vehemently. "I know we settled that out earlier, Steven, but the truth is, I know that the first thing Citrine is going to do is target the defenseless and we can't afford to have that on our hands."

"So what are you saying?" Pearl asked, wrenching her hands together in anxiousness.

"I want you to teach me how to defend myself from her," Yellow answered with the best confident face she could muster.