Despite it's name, the Beach City Ocean Breeze Spa, as it turned out, wasn't near the beach at all. Instead, the Gems found themselves walking into a secluded, forested area of Beach City. After about half an hour of walking, the spa came into view.
It was a far cry from what was typically seen in Beach City. The forest opened up to a grassy plain, on which stood a massive, multi-storied building made of polished white stone. The road leading to the entrance was flanked with statues and rows of flowers and ended in a cul-des-sac, with a large stone fountain as a centerpiece.
"Ooh, this is nice," Pearl mused to herself as they walked along the road.
"The kids did say it was fancy," Amethyst added. The three of them passed the fountain (Pearl taking a moment to admire it) and entered the building.
The lounge was bowl-shaped and appeared to be carved out of the same polished stone as the outer building. The walls and floor appeared to sparkle as they were hit with sunlight from the overhead skylights. A stone walkway led from the front doors to the check-in desk, behind which stood a floor-to-ceiling mural of a mermaid sitting upon a rock. On either side of the walkway were, among many rows of flowers, large stone basins that caught streams of water pouring from the ceiling. Along the sides of the lounge were sitting areas with comfortable couches and chairs. To top it all off, the scent of perfume hung in the air.
Amethyst slapped a hand to her forehead at the abundance of decor. "Boy, they wasn't kidding,"
"Quite the ambiance," Pearl admired. She sniffed at the fragrance. "And that smell is almost as good as my room in the Temple."
"Come on, you two," Garnet said, leading them over to the check-in desk.
A blond women in a white blouse and pants sat behind it, typing into a computer. At the sound of approaching footsteps, she glanced up and smiled. "Hello," she said. "May I help you?"
Garnet stepped forward. "My name is Garnet and this is Pearl and Amethyst. We have scheduled appointments. They should be under 'Universe.'"
The woman quickly looked up a list of names on her monitor. "Universe. Universe. Ah, here you are. Let me just call up Jolene." She placed a hand to a microphone in her ear. "Jo, we have guests."
A moment later, a second woman in the same outfit entered the room, clipboard in hand.
"Jo, this is Garnet, Pearl, and Amethyst," the receptionist explained. "They have the noon appointments."
"Thank you, Cilicia. I'll take it from here," Jo said before turning to face the trio, a smile on her face. "Welcome to the Beach City Ocean Breeze Spa. My name is Jolene and I will be responsible for your care and comfort."
She held out her hand and Pearl, not wanting to come off as rude, stepped forward and shook it.
"It's nice to meet you, Jolene," she said, "I must say, your spa is very... attractive with all this decor."
It wasn't Pearl's finest attempt at a compliment, but Jolene seemed flattered anyway. "Well, thank you. I take it this is your first time here at the spa?"
"It's our first time at any spa," Amethyst said abruptly.
"Amethyst," Pearl hissed under her breath.
"Oh no, no, no. It's nothing to worry about, Miss Pearl," Jolene assured her. "There's a first for everything. We consider it an honor that you've chosen Ocean Breeze as yours first spa experience."
"Well, we didn't have a choice really," Garnet stated, folding her arms. "Our little boy pretty much forced us to come."
"Yeah, we pretty much overworked ourselves and he ended up grounding us," Amethyst added, jokingly. "Said this was our punishment."
"Well, I can assure you that this will be one of the most relaxing and rewarding 'punishments' you'll ever receive," Jolene said, with a chuckle. "Now, why don't we get you all started?"
Jolene led the Gems out of the lobby and to the shower rooms. There, she handed them each a white robe and pair of slippers. "Cleanliness is one of our top priorities," Jolene explained. "We require that all spa visitors shower upon arrival and between treatments."
"No argument there," Pearl happily took her robe and slippers.
"Just head in there, wash off, and slip into these robes. We'll escort you to your individual treatments afterwards."
And with that, Jolene stepped aside and the Gems entered the shower rooms.
Upon entering, they were immediately accosted by a thick layer of steam and the sight of at least twenty or so naked women occupying the various shower stalls. Garnet shifted her gaze, Amethyst giggled, and Pearl felt her cheeks turn red. Obviously, they hadn't expected to be sharing the room with others.
"Oh, hello," one of the women greeted them as she stepped out of a stall, drying her body off with a towel. "If you need to shower, these over here are empty."
She directed the Gems over and they each got into their own stall. They turned on the water and the woman began to giggle.
"Aren't you going to undress first?" she asked.
"Oh, well..." Pearl stammered. said uneasily.
"No need to be shy," the towel woman said with a smile, "We're all girls here."
"Oh, it's not necessarily shyness," Garnet explained in a more relaxed voice. "Our bodies are just, well, different from yours."
"Oh, you don't have to worry about that. We see all sorts in here," the towel woman nodded at the other bathers around them. "Go on, take off your clothes."
The Gems looked at each other in consideration.
"Well," Pearl said, "I guess she has a point."
Garnet nodded. "Let's do it."
All three stalls filled with bright flashes of light, forcing all the other occupants to shield their eyes.
"Whoa," the woman said once the light finally faded and she regained her sight. "What was up with... AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"
"I'm as anatomically impaired as a Ken doll."
"Wow, this actually feels good," Pearl admitted.
She and the other Gems began to shower, but stopped upon seeing the horrified expressions of everyone else in the room.
"What?" Garnet asked, her three eyes uncovered.
The towel woman smiled nervously. "Oh n-nothing," she said in a rather unconvincing tone. "You know, they let you wear bikinis in here too."