Steven's spirits were raised as he climbed into his cozy bed tonight. It was about a day and a half before his funeral would come and though a day with his father made him feel grounded, the jitters made falling asleep a tad challenging. At least that's what he thought before collapsing ten minutes later.
About an hour later, around the stroke of eleven, Pearl emerged from her room where she spent the day debating her eulogy as if the First Gem War's outcome depended on her accolade. She saw Steven snoozing away and decided to halt her incessant writing with one of her favorite pastimes: housekeeping.
She silently moved around the loft folding any discarded clothing, making sure all the water and electronics were off (Greg may be rich, but he wouldn't appreciate them raising his bill), and disposing of all trash in sight. The apartment was as clean as it could be given the rush job and Pearl decided to check on Steven at last.
The graceful Gem tiptoed up the stairs and smiled upon seeing the worry vanish from Steven's sleeping face. She went to properly tuck him in before two unexpected visitors arrived on the Warp Pad.
"Greeting, fellow Crystal Gems!" Peridot shouted while Lapis just rolled her eyes.
"SSSHHHH!" Pearl warned "Steven is asleep! What are you two doing here?" she asked in whisper.
Peridot was happy for a chance to explain "We came for to help with this so-called 'funeral.' According to Connie, we are to construct a 'coffin' for the event with designs that would suit Steven's 'mother…'"
"We need advice from you guys" said Lapis before Peridot could enter full-tilt rambling.
"I was getting to that…" Peridot grit her teeth and tried to get back on topic but Pearl decided to cut in.
"Can we talk somewhere else? Steven just got to bed and I'd like him to stay that way."
The three decided to relocate to the bathroom, somewhere Peridot was especially fond of, and began their conversation anew.
"Alright so you want to help with Steven's ceremony?" asked Pearl
"Correct" answered Peridot. "While we have constructed many meep-morps in our time here, we have never been asked to do one with a specific theme in mind other than the sign for Greg's car wash."
"And that was more out of guilt than anything else…" Pearl muttered to herself
"Guilt? For what?"
"Probably trashing his old one and giving his business a bad name…" added Lapis
"Riiiiiight…" Peridot blushed at the memory of the Crystal Temps' first mission which involved screaming matches, metal v. water tug-o'-war and Connie being forced to deliver an Aesop. IT was an odd day even by even the Gems' standards.
"Regardless of the reason, we wish to accomplish our mission to the best of our respective abilities and so we need to consult you about our project."
"You're coming to me for advice? Wow, Peridot I'm flattered. What is it you need to know?"
"We need more intimate information about Rose Quartz in order to create this meep-morp."
"And we figured you guys have a much better idea of what Rose Quartz was really like" finished Lapis.
"What do you mean 'a better idea?' What do you know about her so far?" asked Pearl, baffled by the idea of how anyone, Gem or no, not knowing the legendary Rose Quartz
"Of course I have a basic understanding of the infamous Rose Quartz who committed an act the likes of which even the Diamonds could not have predicted: shattering her Diamond in what humans would most likely refer to as 'cold blood'… Though I have yet to learn what the latter word refers to…" said Peridot before she felt foiled at her own lack of information.
Before her companion could devolve into another ruckus, Lapis chimed in to ease the mood. "Whatever the case, I know even less than her. I was kind of… removed from most Gem events for a long time. I mean, I've heard pieces of the story from you all before but never the whole thing."
"Well, I'd be more than happy to help you with anything you'd like to know about her." replied Pearl.
"Well, we may as well start from the beginning. Tell us as much as you can remember from the day the Crystal Gems started" exclaimed Peridot who had taken a seat on the toilet preparing for a long endeavor. Lapis remained standing by the door while Pearl began pacing around the room discussing the day Rose Quartz first took to action, began forming the ranks of the earliest Crystal Gems and how she came to be her idol. In fact idol seemed to be an understatement. To Pearl, Rose became the essence of her being, the light of her life, the very reason she stood against any opponent who crossed her. Before long the two Crystal Temps were in awe as Pearl spent hours recalling nearly every moment she spent as the terrifying renegade that struck fear into any Homeworld Gem who heard of her. Hours passed as Pearl began recalling whole battles from memory down to each move and casualty only for a single question to start aching at the back of Peridot's mind.
"What happened after Pink Diamond?"
"Excuse me?" asked Pearl who was in the middle of recreating a complex series of sword maneuvers with Steven's toothbrush.
"While that is an astonishing glut of intel that can be used for our benefit, we were more focused on the time spent after the rebellion."
"You mean the part where Rose fell in love and…"
"Yeah. I mean we can see how Rose was amazing and a great leader but we need something else, you know?" asked Lapis who was now deeply afraid to be on the receiving end of her thrusts.
"Well Greg didn't come into the picture until very recently. Gosh, compared to the war, it seems like he only showed up yesterday… So much has changed in so little time." Her eyes began unconsciously filling with tears as her voice left her and she had to brace herself against the sink.
The two Crystal Temps could not believe they were seeing Pearl, a Gem who defied everything she was made for, who stared down monstrosities like Malachite and The Cluster, risked her entire being for the sake of another Gem, break down. Now they understood why Steven wanted this funeral.
"You're cracked." said Lapis bluntly
"I… what?!" gasped Pearl
"It sounds like your Gem is cracked, but on the inside. And something tells me no amount of Steven's spit is going to fix it, is it?"
"No, I think Steven would have tried that ages ago if he thought it would help" she chuckled. "But that's not entirely the case. It feels more like a piece of my Gem is missing; a vital component responsible for keeping me whole is gone. A piece I can remember every detail of but can never get back…"
Peridot got up from the commode and stood next to her while Pearl was distracted trying not to see her broken reflection in the bathroom mirror.
"I cannot fathom what that must feel like." said Peridot
"I know. I doubt Homeworld has protocol for dealing with emotional trauma."
"Oh, I have an inkling to that. Either shove it down and continue with your designated purpose or be discarded like some defective machine." the smaller Gem snarled
"Peridot…" spoke Lapis who was unnerved by the raw anger and bitterness in her voice
"All they care about is their precious Diamonds and that everything is perfect according to THEM! Who cares about the consequences? What does is matter if countless other worlds, maybe ones just like Earth, have been turned into unrecognizable husks?! As long as 'My Diamond' is satisfied, nothing is matters does it?! Everything else can just vanish or be destroyed!"
As she screamed, the metal faucet to the sink was suddenly ripped off the porcelain causing water to gush into the basin. Lapis quickly solved the issue by freezing the puddle and plugging up the whole while Pearl cut off the pipeline but the damage was still done. All three of them, Peridot included, were shocked by her sudden outburst of power.
"It appears Steven's more sentimental methods have begun rubbing off on me…" she squeaked
Pearl could not help but laugh at her grief "Maybe he can teach you a thing or two?"
"How humorous. Still, I understand now why you would miss someone like your Rose Quartz. Someone with that much strength, the confidence to defy the entire universe in the name of a good deed. No wonder the Diamonds wanted the Earth destroyed, it's an imperfection that shows they cannot conquer everything."
"I think she would have liked you…" Pearl mumbled
"Excuse me?"
"Rose. The way you're talking would have made her snatch you up in a heartbeat."
"Really? I'll take that as a compliment coming from you."
"You've changed so much since you came here, too. The old Peridot would have chosen being shattered than speak like that about Yellow Diamond."
"Most likely…"
The two decided to move away from the mirror and the icy mass now in the sink and chose to sit alongside the edge of the tub as they continued talking.
"It doesn't feel like that long ago when I agreed to help you solely to save myself from The Cluster."
"Or when you asked Garnet to unfuse because it made you uncomfortable?"
"Don't remind me." Peridot still could not look at Garnet quite right after that.
"Fourteen years have passed since Rose left and I feel I still haven't changed. I'm exactly the same from day one…"
"I disagree with that."
"How so?"
"While I obviously have much less research to base my conjecture off of, you appear more confident around others than you did when we first met. Granted your self-confidence was beyond anything a typical Pearl was expected to have, but that is beside the point. Steven has told me more than enough anecdotes concerning your recent life here to verify that you are more advanced than any pearl Homeworld could produce. That, if nothing else, makes you truly unique which I would theorize is why Rose Quartz would keep you in such a lofty position."
Before she could continue with her hypothesis, Peridot was cut off by Pearl wrapping her arms around her albeit somewhat awkwardly given the size difference. She could not see her face was blushing bright blue.
"Thank you, Peridot… I'm glad you are a Crystal Gem."
Even the calculating Peridot could not keep tears from welling up in her eyes hearing this. "It is simply my job as the most experienced technician to analyze these sorts of malfunctions. Even if yours are less tangible than others…"
Pearl's smile only got wider hearing this. Her smile lasted for hours later as she began telling all of Rose's fascinations with Earth, her personal sensibilities and occasionally diving into another one-Gem battle recreation with full choreography. It is no wonder neither one of them realized Lapis left the room several hours ago and was having an insightful discussion of her own.