For so long after he'd been born, Steven was 'not-Rose'.
Pearl grew out of it, just as the baby grew up.
Still, the thought had lingered in her mind, as she watched him learn how to walk, and talk, and sing, and dance, and fight: I wish you were more like Rose.
Less silly. Less distracted. Less baffling.
But what Pearl had always admired most about Rose was her kindness, her passion, her protectiveness. The willingness to do anything to help others, no matter the personal cost.
In the end, it turned out Steven was too much like his mother.