"Viri, are you doing alright?" Blue asked softly as they drew nearer to base. The taller gem had been quiet and distant since they'd left, the opposite of her cheeriness on the way there.

Viri nodded, then shook her head, then shrugged. "I don't know," she said, one arm coming up to her chest to settle over the length of her baroque gem. "Sometimes…Sometimes I wish I was back home."

"Back with the other gems like you?"

"Well, we were all different, but yeah. My first family."

Blue hesitated. "Was it easier when you were there?" It was such a strange thing to ask, when she couldn't imagine being happy while in service, couldn't imagine not longing for an escape or a small glimpse of freedom.

"I think it was easier because I didn't know anything," Viri murmured. "I didn't know how lucky we were to be alive and whole, or to have each other. And thinking that any of that family could just have easily been lost to…to that horrible…"

"But they weren't," Blue said gently, interrupting Viri's train of thought. "And you kept them as safe as you possibly could, right? You made sure their owner wasn't implicated in any of it."

"I guess so."

"You know so. And you know that the rebellion is going to do its best to make sure we save as many of those Pearls we retrieved as we possibly can."

Viri nodded, straightening up a bit. "I'll stay with them while they heal. For as long as they need."

Blue smiled. "I'm sure they'll appreciate that, whatever happens."

"Thanks." She tilted her head slightly. "Hey, Blue?"

"Yeah?"

"You've seen a lot more than I have. Of Homeworld, I mean. Do you think maybe you could tell me about it?"

"Me?"

"If it's okay," Viri replied, nodding. "I understand if you don't want to talk about the bad things—a lot of gems in the rebellion don't. And I understand it, since they want to protect themselves and protect me from having to hear it but…" The hand on her gem curled into a fist. "I need to hear about it. I need to know, so I'm not the only one who sees things like today and doesn't know how to process it."

"I think I can understand that," Blue said slowly. "And, um, yes. If my history can help someone, then I'd be happy to share it. I'm used to just sharing through projections, but I'll try."

"Really? Thank you so much." A relieved smile found its way to Viri's lips. "It's really alright? You're not too busy already?"

She flinched slightly, shaking her head. "I'm not. I'm still looking for a job, actually."

"I know, that's why I wanted to check. You've been running all over, sometimes literally!"

"Oh," Blue laughed. "Thanks, but I don't mind the running around. Have to keep up with all you young gems somehow, right?"

"I'm not young," Viri protested. "I'm nine hundred-ish!"

"Sorry, sorry," she said, glad to see that Viri seemed to be relaxing a little now. "That's older than I would have guessed, but you're still young to me."

"What would you have guessed?"

"A couple hundred? Though that has more to do with my faith in a Peridot to keep a handful of illicit Pearls hidden than it does about you."

"That's fair," she laughed. "I'm sure it got pretty tricky for her sometimes."

Blue watched as Viri ran her hand lightly over the long gem in her chest. "You know, just because the rest of us are used to seeing or feeling terrible things, it doesn't mean we know the best way to process it. We're all learning."

Viri stared at her for a moment, then gave her a wobbly smile and a nod. "Thanks. You're really sweet."

Before Blue could say anything else, the taller gem jogged forward a few steps.

"Chroma, are you feeling okay? How about you, Silver? I could carry one of you if you're tired from fusing."

"I've got enough energy to carry you right now," Silver projected with a grin.

"And I'm not going to be trying that," Chroma laughed, "but yeah, I'm fine!"

As the three of them struck up a more lighthearted conversation about fusion, Blue smiled and sped up too. She caught up easily with White, who was several paces ahead of everyone else. "Hey. Doing alright?"

"Yeah, I just want to get back," White answered curtly. "Make sure Caddy and Sky are out of there."

"Yeah," she agreed. "Come on, everyone, I think we're safe to run the rest of the way now."

"Welcome back!" It was Cyan and Mercury who greeted them in the entrance, Cyan stepping forward to congratulate them first.

"Tell Crimson to get Caddy and Sky," White said immediately, before anyone could say anything.

"We already did," Mercury said. "As soon as you told us you got back to the tunnels safely."

White nodded, hanging back by the door while the others came further in.

"So," Mercury added, turning to Chroma and Silver, "a fusion?"

"Slate," Chroma answered, nodding happily. "She was wonderful."

"Did all the bubbles get back alright?" Silver asked.

"Yeah, Aura and the others are taking care of them now," Cyan said. "You did great."

"And you too!" Viri added, rushing over to them and scooping Mercury up in one arm and Cyan in the other. "You planned everything out so well! And you didn't fight the whole time either!"

"We're not that unprofessional," Mercury huffed, but her words were almost missed because of Cyan's immediate flailing.

"Put me down! Down!" she shrieked. "Viridian!"

Viri looked rather taken aback by her outburst, and immediately made to lower them both back to the ground. "Sorry?"

"Oh, no, please continue," Mercury said, a small smirk appearing on her lips. "Cyan loves heights."

"I do not!"

"No? Then it'll be good for you to get out of your comfort zone of, what, two inches off the ground?"

Viri laughed, setting Cyan down and steadying her by the shoulder for a moment. "I'm not sure I want to be in the middle of this."

"Thank you," Cyan said pointedly, her cheeks flushed as she fixed her hair. "I'm glad not everyone thinks it's hilarious to chase me around under threat of being picked up."

"I'm not responsible for what Cheval does in her spare time," Mercury replied.

"Of course you are! You'd be the one trying it if you were tall enough."

"You can't prove that."

"Want to bet?"

"Sure, we can go set it up with Quin right now. I know what I want if I win."

"Alright, you two, leave it," Silver cut in, though she seemed just as entertained by their exchange as the rest of them. "Is there anything else you need us for or can we go see Aura now?"

"You're free to go," Cyan said. "Good job today, both of you. Or all three of you, I guess."

"Thanks!" Silver grabbed Chroma's hand and the two of them were quickly out of sight.

"Tin and I wanted to ask them some more questions," Mercury sighed, "but I suppose it can wait. Viri, you can put me down now, you know."

"I know, but you're so cuddly! And you don't try and kick me in the gem like Cyan did."

"Sorry," she apologized sheepishly.

"It's alright," Viri laughed, giving her a little pat on the shoulder. "Now I'll definitely remember not to pick you up again."

"Feel free to forget."

"Mercury!"

Blue smiled as the two strategists launched into another verbal sparring match, and slipped away from the group. After all, she had someone she wanted to celebrate today's successful mission with too.

Crimson had spent the last few hours in the tunnels, waiting impatiently to hear whether the mission had been a success. Aura was sweet, checking in with her a few times to update Crimson on what was happening, but she really just wanted the go-ahead to get Sky and Caddy away from their Diamonds. She knew they must be ten times more worried about this than she was.

"Crimson? You can go ahead, everyone's on their way back!"

"Thanks, Aura," she whispered, already on her feet. She opened up the small door above her and jumped up to peek out. No one in sight.

Crimson hauled herself up and straightened out her clothes quickly, making sure there were no messy frills to draw attention when she didn't want it. She didn't like being this close to the courts, to the Diamonds, but she knew she was the best gem for the job. She could blend in.

Sky had said she was likely to be cleaning and decorating the hallways in preparation for an upcoming event, and Crimson was relieved to see her familiar figure up ahead as she approached. They couldn't risk words, or even acknowledging each other, especially at such a vital time as this.

Instead, Crimson curled her right fist tight as she approached, their signal that they'd agreed on. Had she not been looking, Sky's glance over would have gone unnoticed. The tiny smile on her lips, however, was a little more apparent. Sky reached up as if to adjust her ponytail, her own hand forming a fist momentarily before slipping back down.

Message delivered.

Crimson continued on without pausing, turning into another hallway where a few Aquamarines were conversing loudly, and then took two more rights to get her back to where she'd started. Back to the tunnels to wait for Sky and Caddy.

She hoped, with her whole gem, that they'd soon be home safe.

Sky was brimming with anxiety up until the point she saw Caddy approaching with her Diamond. Their eyes met only briefly, and Sky gave her a tiny nod.

"Wait outside today, Pearl," Blue Diamond said.

Sky straightened her already straight back even more when she was addressed. "Yes, my Diamond." She'd expected that to be the case—her Diamond had tried to keep her away from White Diamond lately. Caddy was the one she was worried about though. If she had to go inside—

"You too, Pearl," Yellow Diamond said. "I anticipate this being a short visit, don't you, Blue?"

"Yes, I certainly hope so. I have things to attend to in my own court…"

And they were gone, leaving Sky and Caddy to close the doors behind them. The two of them took up their usual positions on either side of the door for a moment, waiting with tense shoulders to see if any of the Diamonds came out. But there was nothing, and soon Caddy was turning to Sky.

"Now?" she mouthed silently.

Sky nodded. "Let us attend to our errands," she said at normal volume, though there were very few passersby to hear it. A good thing too, because her voice didn't sound quite normal.

The two of them began walking down the hall, doing their best to keep their usual pace despite the desire to run. Around one corner, then another, then ducking into a room they had no Diamond-approved reason to be in.

Sky threw her arms around Caddy and hugged her tight as soon as the door was closed. "We're free now," she whispered. "We're free."

"Well, I hope you've learned your lesson," White Diamond said smugly. "All of this could have been avoided if you'd listened to me but, no, obviously I was the one being ridiculous."

"White, you have to admit it was farfetched," Blue Diamond replied.

"A conspiracy theory at best," Yellow Diamond scoffed. "And it still is. You really believe that a handful of Pearls could have destroyed that factory?"

"That's what my Agate reports."

"Your Agates are useless, White. Remember what happened with your favorite one not so long ago? The one that made off with your Pearl?"

White Diamond scowled. "This Agate is loyal."

"Aren't they all."

"And furthermore," she pressed, "she says that one of the Pearls was none other than yours, Blue!" She turned to the other Diamond, eyes shining with triumph. "What do you have to say to that?"

"My Pearl? That's ridiculous."

"Is it?"

"Yes," Blue Diamond snapped. "I don't know what you have against my Pearl, White, but it's beginning to border on obsession. She's perfectly well-behaved and I do not intend to destroy her simply because of your bizarre paranoia."

"She's a traitor!"

"She's mine. That is all she is. Make your own and shatter it, if you're so inclined."

"Yellow, make her see reason."

"What reason is there to see?" Yellow Diamond asked tiredly. "You have no proof of this beyond your Agate's word, correct? Forgive me if I don't immediately believe the word of a gem begging for her life." She crossed her arms. "She told you what you wanted to hear, White. I'll believe her loyalty to you, perhaps, but I'm not going to believe this outrageously convenient story she told you."

"There were other gems there too," White Diamond insisted. "They say the same thing."

"Of course they do, their Agate's authority is the only thing they've got left to cling to."

"Must you always be so stubborn? I'm telling you, it's the Pearls! There's something wrong with them! Mine, yours, all of them."

"The Pearls are not the problem here. Our immediate concern needs to be rebuilding that factory and reinforcing your authority."

"That won't be a problem. I won't rebuild it."

Yellow Diamond stared at her. "What did you just say?"

"That I'm not rebuilding—"

"Be quiet," Blue Diamond snapped. She had gone to the door while they were arguing and looked around outside. "Yellow, did you send our Pearls somewhere?"

"No, why?"

"White, did you do something with them?" she asked, ignoring her.

"Not yet. But if you bring them in, I'd be more than happy to."

"It seems like you won't need to," Blue Diamond said tersely. "They're both gone."

"Gone?" Yellow Diamond and White Diamond spoke almost in unison.

"Yes, gone." Anger blazed in her eyes. "Who would dare to steal from us?"

"White's Agate, for one," Yellow Diamond said dryly, coming over to join her. She looked both ways in the hall, then pulled Blue Diamond inside and shut the door. "Whatever's happened, we don't need to be broadcasting it to the rest of the courts."

Blue Diamond nodded, then rounded on White Diamond. "Is this your idea of forcing our hands?"

"Of course not."

"You destroy the factory, destroy our Pearls, so we've no choice but to do what you've wanted all along?"

"It wasn't me!" White Diamond snapped.

"It wasn't," Yellow Diamond said, narrowing her eyes. "You would have come up with something less blatant. But there's no doubt this originated in your court, whatever it is. We need to determine why this was done."

"A show of disrespect. Treason. There's been something going on with these Pearls lately, you've seen the evidence."

"A few reported disappearances are not evidence of anything besides theft. Now today, on the other hand… Whoever planned and executed that attack, yes, it was meant to get our attention. We have the beginnings of another rebellion on our hands, and that must be addressed swiftly."

"Someone is influencing the Pearls," Blue Diamond agreed. "And we need to put a stop to it immediately. Do you have any idea how much information could potentially fall into the wrong hands?"

"I'll have a few of my top Zircons begin an investigation. The sooner we discover the culprits, the better."

"You may avail yourself of mine too if need be," Blue Diamond offered.

"Thank you. White, if you have any useful information to contribute—"

"I gave you all my information. And seeing as this happened in one of my sectors, I will be conducting this investigation."

Yellow Diamond just looked at her for a moment. "And I will be conducting my own as well, since I have a feeling yours might be biased. Do your best to be discreet until we've both reached our conclusions."

"Don't act so superior! I am perfectly capable of handling this." White Diamond lifted her chin. "Maybe instead of investigating, you ought to be coming up with a way to explain away your Pearls' absence. I know you wouldn't want to admit the truth to everyone."

"White—"

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have a few interrogations to attend to."

Crimson let out a huge sigh of relief as the hidden door above her opened up and Caddy and Sky jumped down to join her. "You're alright," she breathed softly.

Sky rushed to hug her the second she had steadied herself, Crimson cringing slightly as her arm grazed the surface of the gem in her shoulder. "Sorry," Sky whispered, noticing and quickly repositioning her arms.

"It's okay." She smiled as Sky squeezed her once and let go. "I'm so glad you're both safe."

"Thanks, boss," Caddy said quietly as she got a hug from Crimson too. "We're so ready to get out of here."

"I can imagine. Come on, let's be quick, just in case."

Sky nodded. "They'll notice we're missing soon, we disappeared right as they were going in to talk to White Diamond."

"It's gonna be a mess," Caddy agreed, nervous grin on her face.

"A mess we'll enjoy watching from a distance," Crimson said with a nod. "Come on, let's take you home."

And while they couldn't shake the feeling of Diamonds looming over them the whole way back, the relief Crimson felt as she brought Sky and Caddy home to stay was well worth every risk.