Pearl took a deep, revitalizing breath as she rose through the layers of her gem and popped out into her physical body.
"Wow!" was the first thing she said. The room she found herself sitting up in was all shades of light Pink, including the soft bed she was in.
"Connie," someone just behind her head whispered. She turned to find Steven there, grinning widely. "Hi."
"Steven! I was… inside my gem."
"Oh that happens," Steven said with a shake of his head. His long hair was loose, more wavy and poofy than curly now that Pearl could see it out, and it moved around his face. "You got poofed."
"I can't get poofed. I'm organic."
"Well, yes and no," Steven said. "Your body can't disappear but if you fall unconscious or get hurt too badly, your gem will shield your mind from it, so you don't remember the pain of the incident. That way someone can get you to a rose quartz and when she fixes you up, you'll be good as new, having no bad memories of what happened."
"Oh. Good," Pearl muttered and looked down at her hands. Steven was right. She couldn't remember what her hands had looked like before. Pearl just had a curious notion that at one time they'd been injured, more like a fact she'd read once, than a memory of a horrific injury she hadn't been able to look at. Pearl dropped her hand and sighed. "Did you heal me?"
Steven laughed. "Oh. No. Pink Diamond healed you."
"Pink Diamond?! Really. Is she here? Can I see her?"
"Well, well… she was here," Steven blurted out. "But she's gone now." He sighed. "She heard about the Lunar Sea Spire. Everyone's heard. They're having a party there now. Everyone is so excited that you fixed it. It hasn't worked since the Rebellion. The Rebel Leader destroyed it and then… Pink Diamond sent it to the bottom of the ocean by accident, so everybody's really impressed with you."
"Oh," Pearl said politely. "That's good."
"Anyway, I'm not supposed to be here. Being a secret and all. The Stars will come and take you home soon."
"Home from where?" Pearl asked. "Where are we?"
"In Pink Diamond's tower," Steven answered.
"Oh." Pearl paused for a moment, then said. "Steven. I know there are things you can't tell me yet. Because I can't know them until the Pink Stars tell me about them. But there was something you were going to tell me earlier, before my mission. And now we're here. I just have to know."
"What? Connie? I can explain!" Steven sat down on the bed next to Pearl.
"There's no need to explain," Pearl sighed. "You pretty much said it. I'm your pearl, aren't I. That's why you're always checking up on me. Pink Diamond made you and I'm your pearl. Or I'm going to be once I prove myself."
Steven sat frozen with a blush on his face.
"I'm right, aren't I?" Pearl asked deadpan.
"I… yea. I'm sorry. I—"
"It's fine," Pearl sighed. "It's more than fine. You're a great friend, Rose Quartz. And I'd love to be your pearl."
"Connie…" Steven whined happily. "I… wanted to tell you."
"It's okay. But I do have one more question."
"Anything!" Steven shook his head. "Well… not anything. Ask it and I'll see if I can answer."
"Were you born with your gem in your body? Or did you pop out of the ground with it? How old are you?"
Laughing, Steven put an arm around Pearl. "I was born a baby, just a baby with a gem in me. And I'm twenty-one."
"Really? I'm only nineteen." Pearl frowned.
"Nineteen is a good age. They started pushing me to get a pearl at… never mind."
Pearl smirked and gave him a look. "Right. When will you get matched?"
"M-matched?!" Steven looked up. "Ho-ho-ho. I don't know! When I find the right gem I guess! Like Ruby and Sapphire! Matched! Hahaha!"
"Okay, okay." Pearl laughed. That wasn't going anywhere, but she'd tried. Maybe he'd be willing to talk about Pink Diamond. "What about your parents? Who are they?"
"My Dad's an organic-ametrine."
"A musician!"
"Yep. He plays the guitar mostly."
"And your Mom?" Pearl nudged Steven.
"Mom? Mom is… no longer with us…"
"What?"
"She… when she had me… we couldn't both exist. She was… a natural rose quartz and gave up her form to have me, and I got her gem. Rose Quartz died to have me."
"Does Pink Diamond take care of you now? Did she approve of this!?"
"Well… Pink Diamond did approve this."
Pearl was quiet. How could Pink Diamond allow one of her subjects to die to make a hybrid gem? Was it some sort of experiment? Were Rose Quartz and Ametrine really in love? If so, how could he be okay with her death? Was this the real reason natural-organic matches were forbidden? Would Pink Diamond allow another rose quartz to be matched with a pearl? What about Steven being Pink Diamond's son? Was this sad story all a lie? Could Steven do that to her?
"Connie?" Steven said, squeezing her around the shoulders. "Are you okay?"
"Yea… I just… I'm sorry, Steven."
"It's okay." He held her and pressed a cheek to her hair. "It's hard for people to understand. My parents loved each other, and Mom wanted to have a child. She thought having children was the most organic thing she could do, and she could be pretty stubborn."
"Like sneaking around and breaking rules to visit your pearl when it's not allowed?"
"Yeah, like that."
"Will you stay for a little while?" Pearl asked.
"Anything for my Pearl," Steven replied.
Pearl leaned into Steven. The pink highlights of his hair were especially strong in the all pink room. She decided to let the truth rest for now. Steven was Her Quartz, after all. She trusted him.
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