Freshwater opened her eyes briefly, the grogginess from sleep slowly ebbing away as she closed her eyes again with a smile, enjoying the feeling of her girlfriend's arms wrapped around her as the gem's chest rose and fell as she snored lightly. As soon as Steven and Jet had informed the gems of the ball that the Diamonds were planning, training had been kicked into full swing. With no way to get to the ball to stop it, they knew they would have to be ready for when the Diamonds showed up to eradicate them to finish the job. As soon as the gem was contemplating turning around and letting sleep overcome her again, however, she heard a loud banging from the front door.
Groaning, the gem carefully got out of bed, doing her best not to disturb her girlfriend as she leaned down and kissed the gem on the cheek before making her way to the front door, groaning when she saw Ronaldo on the other side, still loudly banging on the front door.
"What do you want, Roinaldo?" the gem said, glaring at the boy on the other side of the front door.
"Is Steven home? It's important!" Ronaldo said, his eyes lighting up. "He's probably in bed. Come back tomor-"
"I'm right here, Freshwater." Steven said, exhaustion and frustration in the boy's voice as well as he rubbed his eyes. He'd had all of a week to relax and catch up on his sleep without gem stuff messing with his head, and he wasn't exactly excited about the idea of that short vacation being cut short. Even if it meant entertaining one of Ronaldo's theories. "What do you want, Ronaldo? It's the middle of the night."
"It's the lighthouse! You have to come see it. I found something super weird!" Ronaldo insisted.
Freshwater pinched her nose as the boy at her side rubbed his eyes. "You find something weird every day since Greg had that amazing idea tog et you that telescope."
Ronaldo nodded as his eyes lit up, completely oblivious to the gem's frustration. "I know; I'm amazing!"
Freshwater rolled her eyes and scoffed as the human continued. "You won't believe my latest discovery. There's something on the moon!" he exclaimed, gesturing to the moon.
Steven and Freshwater exchanged a look. "If we go with you, will you promise to never come back here at the dead of night? My girlfriend is asleep and I'd rather not wake her up with some stupid conspiracies."
Ronaldo nodded excitedly. "I swear!" he promised as he lead the way to the telescope, Steven and Freshwater at his heels. When they reached the telescope, Steven stepped up and peered inside, unimpressed. "This is the Moon Base. It's always been there." he said, stepping aside so Freshwater could look as well.
"You have a moon base?!" Ronaldo exclaimed as Freshwater looked inside, starting to move the telescope to check if they had missed anything. "I have so many questions! One, why didn't you tell me about your moon base? Two: take me to your moonbase! Three: why does it look like a-"
"The BARN?!" Freshwater said, her jaw dropping as she stared in shock at the still-in tact barn sitting on the moon.
"What are you talking about?" Steven asked as Freshwater stepped aside for Steven to look for himself. "I thought you said Lapis took the barn as far from Earth as possible?" the gem said, arching an eyebrow. "That's what she said she was doing." Steven said as he confirmed what Freshwater had said. "Well, the moon certainly isn't far enough from the Diamonds as she would like. Do…you think she's in trouble?" Steven said, looking up at Freshwater with fear in his eyes.
Freshwater pursed her lips. "I don't know." she admitted, putting a hand on the boy's shoulder and gesturing to Lion. "Let's go check. Maybe she didn't feel like bringing the barn with her to wherever she was going and just decided to drop it at the moon because she was afraid of coming back to drop it off. And if she is there, maybe we can talk to her and maybe convince her to come back to Earth. I'm sure she's terrified out there on her own."
Steven nodded decisively as he and Freshwater left, Steven clapping Ronaldo on the back as they made their way over to Lion, the Pink feline yawning as he stood up to allow Freshwater and Steven to climb aboard before letting out a loud roar before jumping through the portal he had created. When they were safely on the Moon Base, Lion collapsed in the dark room out of sheer exhaustion.
"Thanks, Lion. I know the super warp takes a lot out of you." Steven said as he and Freshwater pet the pink cat affectionately. "I don't get it. If I were running from the Diamonds, I definitely wouldn't even stay in the Milky Way." Freshwater said, stroking her chin as Steven summoned his bubble around both of them before stepping outside of the Moon Base and making his way into the barn, both gems calling out for the water gem.
"The meep-morps are still here, too." Freshwater said, arching an eyebrow as the Moon Based door slid short and Steven popped the bubble surrounding them.
"This is so weird. What is going on?" Seven said, stroking his chin as he and Freshwater continued to explore the Moon Base.
Freshwater started to respond, but froze when she heard humming coming from upstairs. Tugging Steven's jacket sleeve, the gem pointed upstairs, both gems hurriedly taking the stairs two at a time.
"Lapis!" Steven exclaimed as he and Freshwater skidded to a halt in front of the gem, the water gem spinning the orb and shutting off the projection, standing and giving the pair a small, sad smile.
"Hi Steven. Hi Freshwater." the mirror gem said, hugging Steven, the Pearl at his side waving with a smile. "It's so good to see you again!" Steven said excitedly.
"Are you okay? What's going on? Steven said you took the barn and you were going as far away from Earth as possible. I thought you'd be halfway across the galaxy by now." Freshwater asked, arching her head to the side, her eyes widening when they landed on the orb Lapis had spun before standing to greet Steven. Meeting the shorter gem's gaze for a moment, Lapis sighed. "I got…distracted."she muttered, tapping on the orb to turn it back on, revealing the hologram of Earth, which was projecting Beach City in the room.
"Beach City?!" Steven asked, shocked.
"It's an observation device. The Diamonds used them to watch activity on their colonies from far away." Freshwater explained, arching an eyebrow at Lapis, who sighed and changed the projection to the outside of the Crystal Temple, where the Crystal Gems are seen training with Peridot.
"You're…spying on us?" Steven said, shocked.
Lapis grimaced. "Well, I wouldn't call it spying, because that would make me feel bad." she said, looking away, ashamed. "I couldn't stand not knowing what was going on. I'm so terrified of the Diamonds coming to Earth, but I got just outside the Milky Way, and I... felt so lonely. I want to come back. But I just can't. Not after the way I left. What would Peridot say? What if the Diamonds show up? What if something bad happens?"
"Well, what if something good happens?" Freshwater asked, cocking her head to the side, Lapis looking at her in silent shock.
Freshwater nodded. "Look, Lapis, I get it. I'm as scared of the Diamonds as you are. Hell, the last time they saw me was when I blew open the case on the Perfect Pearl and revealed their real plan. No matter how much they try to deny the existence of the plan, the fact a defective Pearl was able to not only escape their prison, but get completely off planet and cause a shitload of chaos on their way out is not going to sit well with them." the gem said, hugging herself. "The Diamonds are terrifying. I know that. You know that. Honestly, sometimes I contemplate running again. Getting away from Beach City and never coming back so I can save myself and maybe even convince my friends and family to come with us. But…I'm tired of running, Lapis." the gem said, raising her eyes so the water gem could get a clear view of the bags under her eyes.
"My whole life all I've known is being terrified of other gems and what they will do to me" she muttered, looking away and projecting a hologram of Holly Blue Agate from her gemstone. "Will Holly Blue Agate grow tired of my incompetence and shatter me in a fit of rage?" she said, the holograph changing to depict the Diamond insignia. "When will they decide they have what they need from me and can shatter me?" she said, looking back at Lapis as the holograph showed a final depiction of Pearl with her back towards her. "If Pearl knew how much I betrayed her….would she still love me? Or would she want to poof me and put me right back where I was before Steven popped that bubble so long ago?" she said, taking a deep breath as the light dimmed again.
"Always running to find shelter. Never feeling safe or secure. It's…exhausting. Spending all my time and energy running and fighting for just another day to live. I spent so much time fighting to survive…" she said, nodding towards the depiction of Peridot sitting next to the rest of the Crystal Gems, Lapis following her gaze. "I've only recently feeling like I'm actually living. Yeah, it's terrifying on Earth, but trust me. It's…so much more worth it."
Lapis hesitantly looked from Peridot to Freshwater. "And…you're happier. On Earth. Even though you know the Diamonds are coming back here eventually, and they're going to kill everyone."
Freshwater nodded decisively. "Yes. I'm very happy on Earth. I'm still terrified of the Diamonds, but the fact that I know I have an amazing support system makes it so much less terrifying. Because I know I have the gems to fight by my side." she said, looking Lapis in the eye. "And so do you. I mean look at me." she said, motioning to herself. "My fuck up almost killed all of the Crystal Gems. But they've somehow found it in themselves to forgive me and help me try to change my behavior. And now? I'm here to tell you you can have that too. You don't have to run anymore. You can come back to Earth. With us."
Lapis pondered the gem's words, sighing as she spun the projection to change it to the sea,under an evening sky before sitting and leaning against a wall. Freshwater and Steven exchanged a look before Steven plopped down next to her, Freshwater on his other side.
"I...might have overreacted about the Diamonds." the water gem murmured, pulling her knes to her chest. "If you're still here and they aren't here yet, then maybe we aren't as much of a priority as I thought we were." she murmured, glancing at Freshwater. "I don't even know if they're coming anymore. I've done so much because I was afraid." she muttered angrily. "I left Peridot behind, took the barn, and, to add insult to injury, I took her morps. I was so sure the Diamonds would destroy my new home, that I did it myself. It's like I'm back inside the Mirror, except…" the gem trailed off, putting her head on her knees. "
"I put myself here."
Steven chuckled. "Oh, the Moon's not so bad."
Lapis scoffed. "Are you kidding!? The Moon sucks. There's nothing here!" she muttered, looking away as the gems lapsed back into comfortable silence before Lapis spoke up again.
"Maybe…maybe you're right, Freshwater." Lapis said, glancing over at the Pearl. "Maybe I'd rather be with everyone and be in danger than be safe and... alone. It's just…I don't know. If I went back now, there's no way things could go back to how they were."
Freshwater nodded. "You're right. They won't be the same."
Lapis sighed. "Not encouraging." she muttered, looking away.
"Yes it is." Freshwater said with a small laugh. "Just because you come back doesn't mean we have to pretend nothing happened and go back to 'normal.' " she said, putting air quotes around the word normal. "When I first got back, I had to have a serious heart-to-heart with a few gems because of how my decision to betray them and then turn myself into the Diamonds affected them. Hell, I still have some apologies to make about how I treated people." she murmured as Amethyst's face popped into her head.
"But….that's my burden to bear. I had to apologize, and now I'm trying to fix my mistake. I'm sure everyone will be glad to have you back." she said, offering the gem a smile as she yawned and sank against the wall, closing her eyes as Steven nodded in agreement.
"Yeah! What if you weren't way out in the country? You could drop the barn on the beach, then we'd all be neighbors. I'd come over to borrow a cup of sugar, and you'd be like, "What's that?" " he suggested, him and Lapis laughing together as the boy leaned against the wall as well, yawning and closing his eyes.
"When you go back…we should all hang out more." he said, resting his head against a sleeping Freshwater's shoulder as he stifled a yawn before falling asleep.
Freshwater jolted awake, rubbing her eyes and looking around as she pushed herself to a sitting position, the confusion on her face dissolving as she realized she was in the familiar dream scape she and Steven occasionally met in.
"You fell asleep too, huh?"
Freshwater jumped when she heard Steven's voice, playfully ruffling the boy's hair. "What can I say? Small downside to being an organic."
"This is weird. We haven't met like this since you got to Earth."
Freshwater blushed and looked away. "Yeah, Pearl noticed that too. She thinks it's because I feel safe on Earth." she paused. "With her." she murmured, a dark blush coming to her face.
Steven's eyes lit up with stars. "Aww!"
Freshwater rolled her eyes but laughed lightly. As the gem opened her mouth to respond, however, she froze when she blinked and the Beach City area around them blinked away, replaced with a brilliant white floor, wall, and ceiling.
Looking to her right, she was equally shocked to see Steven sitting on the ground next to her, looking just as shocked. Before either gem could question what was going on, however, Freshwater felt a shiver run down her spine at the familiar sound of a soft-spoken voice chastizing someone.
"But this is what you wanted. You begged us for a colony of your own. And now, all you want to do is be rid of it." Blue Diamond said, her silhouette rubbing her temples in frustration as she chastised Pink Diamond's silhouette, Yellow's standing with her back to both of them in angry silence.
"First, there were too many organics, then their cities were too difficult to dismantle, a-and now these... Crystal Gems? We're tired of your excuses, Pink. This Rose Quartz can't hurt you. You can't be swayed by a few unruly Gems." she said, halting the Diamond in question as she opened her mouth to protest. "Enough! You must understand. You... are a Diamond. Everyone on this planet is looking to you. You don't even have to do anything. Just smile, and wave. Show everyone you are unfazed by this little uprising. Your Gems will fall into line, and these Crystal Gems will be no more. As long as you are there to rule, this colony will be completed." she said, she and Yellow Diamond walking off, and leaving Pink Diamond alone in the room.
Before Freshwater or Steven could question what was going on, a silhouette emerged from the shadows, both gems gasping loudly in shock as Freshwater clutched her chest, slack jawed when they saw it was Pearl holding Rose's scabbard.
Slack jawed, Steven and Freshwater watched intently as Pearl approached Pink Diamond from behind, taking an attack stance and drawing out the sword from its scabbard, raising it.
"Is that-" Freshwater whispered, trailing off in shock.
"Mom's sword? Is that…Pearl?!" Steven exclaimed, as Pearl turned to intimidatingly at both gems, both gems immediately waking up and shouting loudly and startling Lapis.
"Are you guys okay? Were you dreaming?" Lapis asked, fear etched in her face.
"I….we saw…" Freshwater said, she and Steven far too stunned to put words together coherently.
"We saw the Diamonds." Steven explained. "I dreamt about them. I think because Freshwater and I were already connected in the dream, she got sucked in with me and, well…They were right in this room."
Lapis looked stunned. "What does that mean?! Are they coming?" she demanded.
Steven and Freshwater exchanged a look. "I…I don't know." Steven admitted to the water gem's dismay.
"Wh-What if they are?! What if they're close?! Why else would you see them!? Steven!? Freshwater!?" Lapis exclaimed, clutching onto Steven's shoulders, trying to get an answer from either gem to no avail. When this failed, the gem grunted in frustration and runs downstairs.
Finally managing to compose himself, Steven jumped to his feet before chasing after her, leaving Freshwater to stare in stunned silence at the mural on the wall, not snapping out of her state of shock until she heard the door of the Moon Base slide open. Sensing that the boy was about to run up to Lapis, she jumped onto Lion's back, riding him up to Steven and holding on as the pink cat clamped down onto his jacket, holding him back.
"Where are you going?" Steven yelled over the loud roaring of the wind outside the moon base.
"As far from Earth as I can. I'm leaving! You should be used to that by now." Lapis said, looking away, ashamed.
"You don't have to run, Lapis! Just- Just stay with us!" Freshwater pleaded. "Please! Don't spend the rest of your life running from them!"
Lapis shook her head. "I don't know what I was thinking! I-I'm not like you, Freshwater. I can't just let go of what happened to me. I can't go through that again."
"I didn't let go!" Freshwater argued. "I'm still terrified of the Diamonds. We all are. But I….I've got people who care about me and who will fight for me. And so do you! You leaving hurts people more than you can ever understand, and you can't take it back. Please, Lapis. Don't make the same mistake I did." the Pearl pleaded.
Lapis returned her gaze to Freshwater, and for a long moment the Pearl thought she had convinced her. That was until she looked down sadly. "I…I can't. I'm sorry." she said, turning on her heels and stepping out of the Moon Base, sprouting her water wings and flying away in space, the door closing moments after.
Freshwater sighed in frustration as she climbed off Lion's back, offering her hand to help Steven up when Lion let go of Steven's jacket and the boy dropped to the ground, despondent. "Come on." the gem said, leaning into Lion as he nuzzled her and licked her face before doing the same to Steven.
"I…I think we need to talk to Pearl."
…
Freshwater's hands shook as she poured a fifth cup of coffee that day, her mind flooded with questions. Pearl wouldn't shatter anyone. Not her girlfriend. Not the loving gem who always spoke against shattering and stood for second chances.
"You didn't sleep well, either, huh?" the gem said, looking up when she heard Steven coming downstairs, bags under his eyes.
"Between Lapis leaving again and finding out Pearl might have shattered a Diamond and then lied to everyone about it?" Steven said bitterly, plopping at the seat and resting his head on the table. "No. I didn't."
Freshwater sighed. "Yeah…you and me both." she muttered, staring into her cup at her reflection, both gems shifting into tense silence.
"Pearl wouldn't….would she?" Steven asked, raising his head to look at the gem. Freshwater grimaced. "Before last night I would vehemently deny it. But now…I don't know. I've been trying to gaslight myself into thinking it was a dream, but…that didn't feel like some random dream. It felt more like a vision." she murmured, taking a seat on the couch, Steven at her side.
"Eyeball said she watched mom shatter Pink Diamond, but...I don't know. When I was on trial in front of the Diamonds, the Zircon pointed out that how unlikely it would have been that a Rose Quartz would have even been able to get near Pink Diamond without raising suspicion. I…I think she might have been right." Steven murmured, rubbing his temples.
"Well…maybe she was right. But, that doesn't mean Pearl was the one who shattered her." Freshwater said, sounding more like she was trying to convince herself than Steven. "I just…Pearl would never shatter anyone?" she said, lowering her gaze to look at Steven, for once seeking comfort from the shorter boy.
"Would she?"
Just as Steven was opening his mouth to respond, the temple door flew open making Steven jump with a yelp and Freshwater immediately drop her cup of coffee with a loud crash as Pearl and Amethyst came in.
"I can't believe you've had your phone for over a month and you haven't used it at all!" Amethyst said.
"And I can't believe I can't leave you two alone for even a minute without you breaking something." Pearl said, rolling her eyes with a small smile as Freshwater stood and grabbed a broom to clean up the mess. "Anyway, Amethyst, that's not true. I use it to tell the time.
"Maybe we can get you a phone too. That way I can talk to you when we're not actually in the same room. Human technology is so amazing." she said, clasping her hands together with a grin.
"Yeah. That sounds cool." Freshwater said, doing her best to hide the fact that she hadn't heard a single word the gem had said since she'd come through the door, her mind elsewhere.
"Come here, P." Amethyst said, patting the seat at the table and taking the gem's phone. "First, let's change your wallpaper." she said, opening the camera app and pointing it at the lithe gem. "What's a wallpaper?" Pearl asked, arching an eyebrow. "It's basically the picture you have on your phone in the background of all your other apps and junk." Pearl's eyes lit up, turning to Freshwater who was putting the contents of the dustpan in the trash.
"Ooh, I have the perfect picture." she said, taking the phone back and pulling up a picture she had taken of Freshwater while the gem slept, open mouthed and drool going down her face.
"Pearl, the only thing creepier than watching people while they sleep is taking pictures of them while they sleep." Amethyst said, rolling her eyes.
Pearl scoffed. "I like looking at my girlfriend. Sue me." she said, rolling her eyes as Amethyst took the phone back and made it the gem's wallpaper and starting to explain messaging.
Freshwater stiffly made her way back to the living room, freezing when her eyes landed on the picture of Rose hanging on the wall.
"Pearl, can I ask you something!" Steven blurted from his spot on the couch, the tension killing him.
"Hold on a sec, Steven! I'm in the middle of a demonstration." Amethyst said, waving him off as she showed Pearl how to send messages. Freshwater grimaced, exchanging a look with Steven and sitting on the couch next to him, her leg bouncing nervously.
The gem's jittering was interrupted when Steven reached into his pocked and pulled out his phone, reading the message Pearl had sent him.
"We really need to get you a case for that. I think I have one in my room." Amethyst said, standing up and making her way to the door. "Don't throw that thing against a rock or anything until I'm back." she called over her shoulder with a grin before disappearing.
As soon as the door slid closed to the temple, Freshwater and Steven exchanged a look before nodding and standing hesitantly.
"Hey…Pearl?" Steven asked, fidgeting with his hands as he looked at the gem, unsure how to ask his question.
"What is it, Steven?" Pearl asked, not looking up from her phone.
"Well…you know how mom shattered Pink Diamond?" Steven asked, the gem in front of them freezing immediately and slowly raising her gaze.
"We were just wondering if…maybe…." Steven fumbled, looking up at Freshwater, who grimaced.
"We…were wondering if you had shattered Pink Diamond." she said, forcing herself to look Pearl in the eye.
As soon as the words left Freshwater's mouth, Pearl dropped the phone she was holding, her hands immediately flying to her mouth.
"Hey, it's okay! You can tell me. You can tell us." Steven said as Freshwater picked up her girlfriend's phone and put it on the table. "Look…I'm sorry we brought it up. It's just…Steven had a vision yesterday and we just - it's really been messing with our heads." she explained, putting her hand on Pearl's shoulder, her eyes full of concern as the gem kept her hand clamped over her mouth.
"Why can't you talk to me about this?" Steven pleaded, frustration in his voice. "I'm sure if you did there's a reasonable explanatio-" the boy's words were interrupted by the door sliding open and Amethyst stepping through, phone case in hand. "I got the…phone case." she said, confusion crossing her face at the sight in front of her.
Not giving the gem a chance to answer, Pearl stood abruptly and picked up the phone. "Aah, yes, the phone case! Thank you, Amethyst. It's probably just safer if I keep it in here." she blurted, putting the phone in her gem and making her way to her room.
"What? Wait, no! Just put it in the case, then put it in your head." Amethyst said, watching in confusion as Pearl walked by as if she hadn't spoken.
"What was that?" the gem asked, turning to Freshwater and Steven as the door slid shut behind her.
"Come on." Freshwater muttered, motioning for Steven to follow her. "Let's get breakfast. Maybe we can ask her later when she's calmed down a little."
Steven sighed, looking back at the door with a frown and following the gem.
Freshwater and Steven walked in silence, both gems deep in thought. Maybe they were just being paranoid. Maybe the vision was really just a dream. Maybe they were overreacting.
Freshwater's attempts to convince herself of this were ineffective, but it was all she could do to steel her nerves as Steven ordered his fry bits, offering the gem one.
"No, thanks. I'm not in the mood." Freshwater murmured, staring off at the beach as Steven nodded in agreement before starting to eat. When he was halfway through his fry bits, however, he jumped when the familiar buzz of his phone went off in his pocket, immediately reaching in and pulling it out, his eyes widening as he read the message Pearl had sent to him out loud.
" 'I want to tell you, but I can't.' What does that even mean?" he said, holding up the phone so Freshwater could see the message accompanied with a monkey with a hand over its mouth.
Freshwater opened her mouth to say she didn't know, but froze when a memory hit her like a truck. "She wants to tell us…but she can't." she murmured, her eyes widening as she turned on her heels and took off towards the temple, Steven at her heels as she threw open the temple door, both gems finding Pearl vacuuming the Warp Pad.
"Pearl, I'm ready to talk!" Steven yelled, Pearl jumping in surprise and turning off the vacuum. "What?" She asked, arching an eyebrow in confusion. "We got your message. 'I want to tell you, but I can't!' " he said, holding up his phone.
"Pearl. What are the Diamondsnot letting you tell us?" Freshwater asked bluntly, taking the gem's hand in hers as Steven looked up at her, confused as Pearl's hand flew to her mouth again, muffling her attempts to speak. "When I was with Yellow and Blue Pearl, they really wanted to tell me about Project Perfect Imperfection. But they said they couldn't. And every time I ever brought it up around them, they put their hand over their mouth like you're doing now." she said, locking eyes with Pearl before turning to Steven.
"She wants to tell us something about Pink Diamond's shattering." she said, gritting hre teeth. "And from the looks of things, she's under a direct order not to." she said as Pearl slowly lowered her hand, glancing between Steven and Freshwater.
"I…I need you two to go inside my gem and get my phone. There are certain things I can't tell you, but I CAN tell you that I need my phone. Please. I can bring you back out once you find what you're looking for. I'll keep your phone, text me with mine when you find it." she said
" Pearl said, choosing her words carefully.
Steven and Freshwater exchanged a look before Freshwater nodded, stepping up and taking Pearl's face in her hands. "No matter what you have to tell us. I promise I'll still love you." she said, leaning in and planting a gentle kiss on the gem's lips.
"You say that now." Pearl said, looking away, but offering the gem a sad smile. "And I mean it." Freshwater said, narrowing her eyes. "You know about every shitty thing I've ever done, and you still love me, right? Well, the same goes for you." she said, looking deep in the gem's eyes.
"I promise. I'm going to love you no matter what." Freshwater said with a smile as Pearl took Freshwater's hand in one hand and Steven's in the other, a bright blue light filled the room as Pearl took both gems and put them in her own, Freshwater's words ringing in her mind as she disappeared.
"No matter what." Pearl said, glancing down at the phone in her hand with a sigh.
She hoped Freshwater was right.
….
Freshwater rubbed her eyes as the blinding light died down around her, surprised to see Pearl standing in front of a row of spears and humming to herself.
"There's a Pearl inside Pearl's Pearl?" Steven said, looking on in shock as he and Freshwater approached curiously.
Looking over at the sound of footsteps, Pearl's eyes widened. "Oh! Steven! Freshwater!" she said, summoning one of her holo-pearl's to pick up Steven while she easily picked up Freshwter bridal style, who blushed furiously.
"Steven. I definitely don't want to put you with the spears. Maybe personal items? Human paraphernalia? And of course you." she said, cocking her head to the side as she regarded Freshwater with a smile. "Girlfriend? Love? Hm…." she murmured, swiping around to find the perfect spot.
"Wait, don't file us!" Steven protested just as hollo-Pearl held him up in the spot with the S's. "Why not? I don't want to put you in some random spot."
"We're here to get your cellphone." Steven explained, letting out a sigh of relief when hollo-Pearl put him down and changed the section to the Ps.
"Hm…weird. It should be right here." she murmured, running a hand through Freshwater's hair absentmindedly. "Maybe I put it under C for cellular phone." she said as hollo-Pearl changed the filing again.
"Wait a moment…it should be right here." Pearl said, panic coming into her voice when she saw the blank spot. "It should be right here!" she insisted. "Unless….some other Pearl took it?" she said, frowning.
"I swear I didn't take it." Freshwater said, shaking her head when Steven looked up at her.
"Oh, believe me, love, I know. I trust you." she said, giving the gem a squeeze and kissing her forehead. "It was probably one of the…others."
"There are other yous in here?" Steven asked, confused.
"Oh, thankfully no. I'm very good at compartmentalizing everything. See, that's why I get to be surface. And the others have to be put away." Pearl explained.
"Well, if one of the others has the phone can you tell us where to find her?" Freshwater asked.
Pearl grimaced. "Oh, you don't want to go where they are. It's a mess. Let's just stay here, where everything is alphabetized, orderly, and put away!"
Freshwater leaned up and planted a kiss on Pearl's cheek. "Pearl. No matter what kind of mes you have hidden away, we'll love you." she said. "Remember what I said."
Pearl sighed. "Right…no matter what. Don't say I didn't warn you." she murmured as the room filled with the same blue light from last time and Freshwater and Pearl were transported further into the Pearl Dimension.
"Woah. This place looks beautiful." Freshwater said, looking around at the purple sky above and the beach around them. "Yeah. It doesn't look like a mess at all. It looks more like…the past." Steven murmured, both gems freezing and turning when they heard soft sobbing nearby and making their way to the giant hand on the beach.
"Oh…that kind of mess." Steven murmured as Freshwater ran over, Steven at her heels.
"Hey Pearl inside Pearl inside Pearl's Pearl. You upset about the whole missing phone thing too?" Steven said as Freshwater put a comforting hand on the gem's shoulder. "No. It's Rose. What was she thinking? She can't have a baby."
Steven grimaced, looking away. "Well…this is awkward." he said, sheepishly running a hand through his hair.
"What am I going to do when she disappears? I'm going to lose her." Pearl said, glancing at Freshwater as tears streamed down her face. "Just like I lost…what was it again you said you were looking for?"
"Your cellphone." Steven explained, frowning when the gem nodded, bursting into tears. "My cellphone."
"Hey, it's going to be okay." Freshwater said, rubbing her girlfriend's back as Steven hugged her. "That's why you sent us in here. We're going to help you find it. I promise." Steven said, offering the gem a smile as Pearl pulled away, wiping her eyes.
"I…I think I know where it is." Pearl murmured, looking away. "It's probably where I lost everything else." she said, closing her eyes and taking Freshwater and Steven's hand, putting them both further into the Pearl Dimension.
"Oh yeah…this is definitely a mess." Freshwater murmured as Steven appeared by her side, both gems looking around at the blood-red sky and the poofed gemstones around them.
"I'm going to lose my mind if Pearl's phone was in her pocket." Steven said, hugging himself as he and Freshwater made their way around the area. "Or on the dresser. Or dropped it in the toilet." Freshwater said, trying to keep an upbeat mood to hide the fact that she was absolutel horrified.
"Seems about as likely as putting it away in your repressed war memories." Steven murmured as the gems came to a stop in front of another Pearl.
"Pearl?" Steven said, arching an eyebrow. "I mean Pearl inside Pearl inside Pearl inside- ugh this is ridiculous." Steven muttered with a grunt. "Is this really about your phone or what?"
Pearl kept her back to the gems, staring out at the carnage around them.
"We're the only ones left." Pearl whispered. "Homeworld….they were all leaving. We thought…we thought we'd won." she murmured, sinking to her knees. "There was a bright light and…" the gem hung her head, looking up when she felt a reassuring hand on her shoulder as Freshwater sat next to her in the sand.
"Everyone is…why did I do it." she whispered, staring at the gem shards that were near them.
"Pearl…I don't know what you did. But whatever it was…I'm here." Freshwater said, hugging the gem tightly. "Just…tell us. Please." she said, pulling away slightly to stare the gem in the eyes, her heart sinking when the gem shook her head slightly before raising her hand and transporting Steven and Freshwater into her gem.
Freshwater groaned as she pushed herself to her feet, gasping when she saw the gem shards laying in the sand. Just up ahead, she felt her breath hitch in her throat when she saw Rose Quartz standing with her sword drawn, shaking slightly.
"Mom?" Steven whispered as he made his way over to the gem, his eyes wide with fear and Freshwater at his side.
"What are you doing here?" Steven whispered, him and Freshwater gasping when the Quartz soldier raised her eyes, revealing the two big, beautiful eyes Freshwater had fallen in love with so long ago, her gemstone glinting in the moonlight.
"You….you shattered her." Freshwater said, shocked. Pearl shook her head, gingerly holding out her fist and opening it to reveal a Diamond gemstone, still fully intact.
"What…but that's…" Freshwater whispered, looking up at the gem in shock.
"Pink Diamond? I….I don't understand." Steven said as the area faded away in a flash of blue light. When the light died, Freshwater and Steven were shocked to find they were sitting inside Pink Diamond's palanquin atop her throne.
Wordlessly, Freshwater and Pearl exchanged a look before making their way to the voices coming from around the corner.
"And then we'll be done. It's going to be easy!" Rose whispered, she and Pearl arguing back and forth.
"There's got to be another way. I mean, maybe-"
"Blue and Yellow don't care; they never have. This is Pink Diamond's colony. We can end it all right here, right now."
There was a brief silence where Pearl clutched Rose's sword, staring down at it. You know this is crazy, right? Your status, my purpose. None of it will matter anymore. This will change everything.
Rose nodded, her eyes brimming with excitement. "I know! Isn't it exciting?!"
Pearl raised her head with a sigh, looking at Rose in a way that reminded Freshwater of how Pearl had looked at her, the gem blushing as she spoke. "It is."
"We can leave our old lives behind. If this is really my world, I want to give it to the Crystal Gems. I want to live here with human beings! I wanna live here with you! We'll both finally be free!" Rose said, stars in her eyes.
Pearl smiled and looked at Rose determinedly, taking a deep breath. "Okay. I'm ready."
Rose grinned excitedly, taking the gem's hands in hers. "Peeearl!"
Pearl smiled sadly, hugging her Diamond. "I can't believe I'm going to do this." she whispered.
"I can't exactly shatter myself." Ros whispered back, closing her eyes and shapeshifting into Pink Diamond, Freshwater and Steven staring on in shock as Pink Diamond stepped out of the palanquin and came back with a single hibiscus flower and a pile of dirt in her hand, gently reaching out and putting the flower in the shorter gem's hair.
Pink Diamond then blew into the dust pile and tightly squeezed it, compressing it into fake gem shards. "Look convincing?" she asked with a smile.
Pearl grimaced. "Very much so, my Diamond." she murmured as Pink Diamond popped the shards into her mouth and swallowed them as Pearl began to unsheathe the sword.
"Wait." Pink Diamond said, holding out a hand to halt the gem. "Wait! There's one last thing I need to do." Arching an eyebrow, Pearl nodded, putting the sword tot he floor. "Yes?"
"No one can ever find out we did this. I never want to look back." she said, reaching out and folding Pearl's hands to cover her mouth. "So, for my last order to you as a Diamond, please, let's never speak of this again. No one can know." she sai, standing up and making her way to the battlefield just outside her palanquin.
"Sorry to make you come all this way." Pearl said, making Freshwater and Steven jump as the gem handed Steven the cellphone. "No…no matter what, right?" she said, looking at Freshwater with a sorrowful expression. Freshwater nodded, wiping her misty eyes as Steven texted Pearl that they had found the cellphone.
"No matter what." she promised, nodding decisively as Pearl smiled as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders, the room filling with a bright blue light as she and Steven were transported out of Pearl's gem, both gems tumbling out and onto the floor.
"I…I know." Steven said as Freshwater picked herself up from the floor. "I've wanted to tell you for so long." Pearl said, wiping her tear-filled eyes and watching with baited breath as Freshwater made her way to her girlfriend and hugged her tightly, allowing Pearl to sob into her shirt.
"Mom was Pink Diamond." Steven whispered, picking himself off the floor and hugging himself, jumping when he heard Amethyst and Garnet gasp and Amethyst let out a loud "WHAAAAAAT?!"
