A/N: I've wanted to write about Pearls and their role in gem society ever since we found out what they're supposed to be like. Here I gave Pearl the ability to get information about certain things by looking at them, but only on Homeworld during the time of her creation. Which is just to make exposition easier.

I also deliberately made it vague whether Rose is a Diamond or not. While it's very likely that she is or was, it may not be confirmed. However, she is definitely a gem with a complicated past and dark secrets.

She is born in the dark, out of a warm and quiet womb known as the Abalone. There are many others like her forming alongside one another, and they all step into the world at once.

She surveys her surroundings, taking in the history of the place like her gem is made to do, so she can retain information for whoever her owner might be. The others are standing still, facing forward, awaiting instructions. It dawns on her that she is not supposed to be looking around.

Pearls used to come from a single source, a gemlike being known as Nacre, or Mother-of-Pearl, who devoted loving care and attention to each of her children and made them all beautiful and special in their own ways. Then Homeworld discovered how useful these pearls could be, and set to work creating artificial sources of them so they could be mass-produced like in Kindergartens. Once they could do all sorts of things, from building and repairing gem technology to singing and dancing in Diamond theaters, but now they are created as blank slates to be programmed to their owner's desires.

(They aren't allowed to get too intelligent, though. Homeworld knows what pearls could be capable of, but would not like to know what would happen if they had a bit more power.)

They are not mere disposable commodities, of course. They are treated with care and precision by the gems who come to march them off to their owners, who are highly ranked gems looking for someone to hold their things.

They stand side by side in a glistening, completely spotless room as a tall and imposing Beryl goes down the line inspecting the new pearls, making notes with a projection from the gem on her forehead. She stops when she gets to Pearl.

"Defective," she mutters. "Misshapen gem, resulting in the following bodily projection abnormalities..."

Pearl watches and listens as this gem circles her, noting each of her imperfections, every way she isn't like the others. She hadn't thought about any of this when she was forming. She's rather indignant about it but doesn't think it would be a good idea to voice her displeasure.

"Take this one for harvesting," the Beryl says, handing her off to a pair of citrine quartzes.

"What?" she says aloud.

"We're taking you for harvesting," says one of the yellow gems, now escorting her down the long, gleaming hallway. She speaks slowly, as if to a fresh Kindergartener, and her partner laughs. Pearl understands how other gems view her, and knows she is not a precious jewel at all. "You're defective, and you won't be of much use like that, so we're reusing your gem to try again."

They don't expect her to try to escape. She could make a run for it any minute.

But where would she go? This place looks like nothing but halls, doors her gem can't open, and just the empty abyss of space on the outside. She supposes she could try to find her group of pearls again, try to blend in with them-

"Where are you two taking her?"

A towering gem stands before them, wearing a flowing white dress and surrounded by clouds of pink curls. The citrines bow their heads to her, but she doesn't seem angry, just concerned.

"We're taking this one to be harvested, Rose," the one on Pearl's right says. "A defective pearl, you know..."

Pearl looks up at this gem, Rose. Her pre-programmed databases tell her that "Rose" is not a gem, but there is a Rose Quartz. This gem doesn't look like a common quartz, though. She looks important.

"Why don't you give her to me?" asks Rose.

"Are you sure about that?" the citrine on Pearl's left says, a bit nervously. "We could use her gem to make more..."

"It doesn't matter all that much," says Rose. "You produce them so fast anyway-and I think I can...find a use for this one."

The citrines hesitate. "If you want, I guess."

And just like that, Pearl has an owner.

Well, not really.

She goes with Rose to the pink gem's private chamber, where they stand alone and facing each other.

Pearl bows to her.

"There's no need to do that," Rose says, a little sharply.

Pearl straightens up.

"I mean..." Rose softens. "I wanted to give you a second chance. I don't want you to have to live like...like some kind of glorified decoration."

"What do you want for me, then?" Pearl asks. "Pearls aren't made for much more than entertainment and storage."

Rose is silent for some time. Finally she says, "I want to teach you things. I want you to use your ability to store information, but for yourself. And I want you to stay with me, but only for your own safety. I want you to do things for your own enjoyment, find out what you're good at beyond entertainment and storage. I want you to be your own gem, and not just another pearl."

Pearl thinks about this. She will have some degree of freedom. She will be able to learn valuable information and try doing things that pearls aren't supposed to do. It's exciting and a bit frightening.

"I don't want you to just do what I want," says Rose. "If that makes sense."

"Okay," says Pearl slowly. "You want me...to not do what you want."

"Sorry, I know it's confusing..."

"No, I understand." It bothers her, when gems assume Pearl won't understand something just because she's not built to be smart. Even Rose, who means well.

"And I know I'm not giving you a lot of options-we won't get in trouble, for me having you here. I'm a well-respected gem, and if I want a defective Pearl they can't really say anything about it."

She sounds proud of that.

"I think you should stay with me, though. Most gems...aren't very respectful to pearls."

"I know." Pearl wonders if Rose thinks she doesn't know anything besides what she's already seen.

"But I encourage you to speak your mind. If I'm doing anything you don't like, by all means tell me."

"Alright, then," she says. "I just want to say—I don't need to be taught everything. I can understand things that...that most gems can. And I know how pearls are treated, I just needed to exist as one for one day."

"Oh," says Rose. "I'm so sorry-I haven't met many pearls. I didn't mean to offend you."

"Just talk to me like you would to an equal."

"I'll try."

Pearl surveys Rose's room. It's beautiful, and filled with all sorts of things. She gets a lot of information about the various plants Rose is cultivating, but it doesn't mean much to her; Rose will have to elaborate. There's a shimmering stone pool filled with some kind of pink water, flowing from the eyes of a statue of Rose. Her gem tells her these are Rose's tears, which-

"That fountain is full of my healing tears," Rose tells her. "It may sound strange, but my tears have the power to mend any wounds or damage in gems or gem-based artifacts."

"I know," says Pearl. "I can get information about almost anything on Homeworld from my gem."

"Oh! I'm sorry, I did it again-"

"No, it's alright," says Pearl. She likes hearing Rose explain things; she seems like she enjoys having someone to tell about her powers and magical items. It dawns on her that she doesn't want to just know everything from looking at it; she wants to learn new things for herself.

Rose is beautiful. And she is genuinely kind. She doesn't quite know how to interact with gems who are below her status, but she is sincerely trying to make this work. Pearl can't resent her.

She wonders where this will go. This gem saved her life, but maybe she is the type who gets bored of pearls easily and does this with a lot of them. In any case, she doesn't seem like the type to treat her servants cruelly.

"Can you tell me anything about this?" Pearl asks her, pointing to the vines speckled with huge pink flowers creeping across one wall.

Rose smiles. "That's one of my favorites."

Pearl likes Rose's ideas. In time she will follow her into battle to defend those ideas. She will travel to places she's never seen and learn to fight and do all sorts of things that pearls aren't supposed to do.

(What pearls are supposed to do is become totally loyal to their masters, to follow them to the ends of the earth. Though they aren't supposed to feel any genuine emotional attachment to another gem, and masters aren't supposed to care about their pearls. In a sense they are not much different from quartzes.)

But for now, she learns about the plants. You never know what might be useful later on.