Pearls

Chapter Two

Blue Pearl looked up at Yellow Pearl quickly. She was standing, but barely it seemed, leaning on the edge of a rickety shelf for support. Guilty terror was written across her face, but it softened when Blue realized then the newcomer was just another Pearl.

She looked beautiful as always, her skin a pale, moonbeam blue, her hair the dulled aqua color of salty waves. The curvy neckline of her skin-tight uniform cut across her chest to show the whitish gem centered in the middle of it, so luminous it was almost glowing in the weak light of the mirage. Her biceps were noticeable even from this distance, the result of standing with her arms in that awkward position Blue Diamond forced her into all day. Her bangs, as always, obscured her eyes from view completely. Yellow Pearl had always wondered what color those eyes actually were. Probably blue, like the rest of her.

Upon closer inspection, Yellow Pearl realized that Blue Pearl sported cuts and bruises of her own. The tips of her bangs were frosted with sticky blood. The thin mesh skirt she wore hung heavy, splotched in places with the dark liquid. Her right arm was being cradled by her left. And based on the way she was holding herself, Yellow Pearl could have suspected that Blue had a broken rib.

Yellow had never seen Blue Pearl hurt before. In fact, she had been under the impression that Blue Diamond was a merciful master. Apparently not.

Realizing that she was lingering in the doorway, Yellow Pearl stepped quickly inside and closed the door. Having assessed that the new arrival was no threat, Blue Pearl went back to what she was doing, turning around to reach for a small bottle of something on the shelf in front of her. Yellow Pearl limped over to the other side of the room, where she proceeded to mop up the layer of blood she was wearing on her face, mend her split lip, spread ointment on her eye, take some painkillers for her bruises, wrap her head in advanced fast-heal bandages, stuff her nose with soft gauze, and put a compress on her neck. Feeling slightly better, she collapsed into a stiff wooden chair to wait for the medicine to take effect. The buzzing in her head subsided a little. She could feel her swollen cheek begin to deflate and her split lip knitting itself back together. Relieved, she took a slow, deep breath and closed her eyes.

And then she noticed voices in the hall outside. A bratty drawl accompanied a pair of heavy footsteps, both growing in volume as the speaker and her listener drew nearer and nearer. Luckily, the mirage was well sound proofed in a way that allowed the Pearls inside of it to be warned of an approaching gem, but withheld noises that could give away the room's presence to anybody outside. Even though Yellow Pearl knew this, knew that she was safe in the mirage, that the door was well hidden and firmly locked, she still felt her heart skip a beat. Blue Pearl must have felt the same fear, because she froze where she stood and remained utterly silent as the voices outside became sharper.

"...not my fault, I went above and beyond their expectations! I should be showered with praise!" The bratty voice complained, high pitched and full of contempt.

"Maybe it's not what you deserve, but I'm just saying, watch your back. If the rumors are true..." This voice was deeper, and sounded as if it belonged to a larger gem.

"Of course they're true! And if anyone's going to get in trouble for this, it's going to be YOU! I'm far too valuable! And besides, you were the one who-"

"Shh, Aquamarine, keep it down!" From the tone of her voice, Yellow Pearl could tell that large gem referred to bratty gem as her superior.
"You would like that, wouldn't you?"

"Look, we don't even know that they'll think to punish us-"
"They shouldn't! We brought them Rose Quartz! She escaped all on her own!"

"Yes, but you know the Diamonds- I mean, if they really shattered both Zircons just for presenting their assigned cases-"