Pearl got back to the beach early in the morning. The sun was barely over the horizon, but as she climbed down the cliff she realized that the light reflecting off of the ocean was enough to light up the entire encampment.

The first thing that she heard was hysterical laughter, and then noticed the camp was entirely empty.

What? She had to get down there to find out what was wrong. She jumped down, making sure that she landed properly. She made a fair-sized, crater in the sand, but that was about it.

She found it almost looking like a polished temple. Still, it was rudimentary at best, but compared to the bumpy sharp mess it had been the evening before it looked like it was constructed by a team of Peridots.

Finally, she tracked down the laughing. Peridot. She was almost doubled over, but she almost flailing her arms to point at something.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"It works!" Peridot screeched. "I've actually done it!"

"The peridium?" she accidentally said aloud.

"Of course, you…" She put a hand to her face, grasping for her brow. "Clod! What else?" She started dancing, kicking up cloud after cloud of sand.

She really needed to calm down, but then again, Pearl felt herself getting strangely… happy. They had a base. A place where they all could live without this awful planet glaring her down from all angles? "Well, how does it work?" She herself felt a massive grin growing on her face.

"Can I show you?" she asked. She didn't extend her hand, but instead started pacing frantically for the cave. She walking in a bit, looking to see if there was anything that she could use. "Here!" she shouted, her voice echoing against the walls. She waved her arms frantically again, this time at a small door-thing. On the centre of it were many small gems. Two of them were indistinct and shimmering like the normal crystals. The others looked exactly like Gemstones.

"Are they poofed?" she couldn't help but ask.

"Of course not." Peridot smirked and slipped her limb enhancers off. She walked up to the door and wiggled her brows at Pearl. "Watch and learn."

Pearl stepped in closer to see Peridot walk up to the door and stare directly at the green gemstone.

"Hnnnnnnnggggh." Peridot put her hands in front of her gem and clenched her teeth. She vibrated visibly from the focus, until the door started to shift. Metal plates seemed to form out of it, shifting until they shifted away and opened to reveal a place not unlike a spaceship's cockpit. Rows and rows of shelving lined the edges and in the centre was a huge sort of screen. After that, there were littered bags around a table beneath it. Small orange things were scattered on the floor.

"What's… that?" Pearl asked.

Peridot lost focus, but the door stayed open. She looked around until it seemed she trained on the orange things. "Just something the Amethyst showed me."

That made sense. It was definitely something Pearl had never seen.

"So how do the others work?" she asked.

Peridot shrugged. "Same way, I guess. I mean, all they had to do was focus until it opened. You shoulda seen Rose Quartz work it though."

Pearl nodded.

"Well, she got within like ten feet of it, and it opened flawlessly!"

That sounded a lot like Rose, that was for sure.

So how did they end up looking like Gemstones?

Peridot's face brightened before she ran to the door. Her leg enhancers were still on, and coupled with her lack of arm enhancers, it made for a very unbalanced gait. She stumbled against the door and grabbed one of the unformed crystals carefully. She ran back to Pearl and held it up to her.

It was almost oily and shone brightly in the shafts of sunlight making their way to the end of the cave. "What do I do with it?" she asked.

"Oh!" she said. She seemed to remember something so held it with only two fingers. "Well, you've got to rub your hands over it and then hold it against your gem for a bit. Then it becomes synced with your Gem and then you have your own room. I haven't figured out group rooms, but it's a work in progress!"

Pearl nodded. It was sensible enough, but given Peridot's previous views against her, it was clear that this could be a practical joke as well.

But who was watching? So she did it. Her skin crawled again with the feeling of its natural oils. Holding it to her Gem ended up being a struggle, because that's what she usually did when she wanted to store something in it. Eventually, it worked, and Pearl held it in front of her face.

The rough-shaped slab started turning smooth and circular. Then, it became small, as if shaving parts of it off. Soon, it was the exact perfect shape to fit in her hand. Wow.

"I know, right? Come on, put it in the door."

Alright. Pearl stepped over to it, her soft steps against the floor enough to cause echoes.

She inspected it. Where would she put it? The general pattern appeared to be in a star-shape. There were only a few spaces where she could put it that would fit the pattern. What about the right corner, there? That looked right. So she put it there. Then, the gem's bottom liquified just enough to adhere to the door.

"Now try opening it!" Peridot said.

She was just a Pearl, would it even work? Why should it? Maybe she only had a Gem for decoration. She zoned out, the door blurring out in front of her. If she couldn't, she'd probably just sleep outside in the cave. She probably wouldn't open the door anyway. But harm was there in trying?

Open the door.

Lo and behold, it worked almost instantly. The door faded away to reveal a shield of water. Of course it wouldn't let her in. Even this Peridium hated her.

"Well, go into it!" Peridot prodded.

She turned back and looked down. Already her hands had reached for her veil. Peridot smiled proudly at the waterfall.

"Don't worry, Tiger's door was a stone wall. She just had to punch through it."

Oh. Pearl nodded and silently put her finger to the water. It slipped off her fingers, the thin sheet parting to reveal more water. Wow. It felt soothing, calming. Water hit water in there. Pearl dipped her head inside to take the sights.

A dull roar hit her ears, but it was pleasant. It blocked out other noises, even the now-chuckling Peridot. Wow. She stepped in further, holding her hand against the door's frame to keep herself stationary.

She stepped on smooth stone with shining stones embedded in it. In front of her, water fell down into a seemingly bottomless pit. She stepped in further, letting go of the frame. She looked back through the water-fall door to see the blurry shape of Peridot.

This was a completely secure space. This was her completely secure space! She started running around.

She howled.

Her mind's worries fell away with the waterfall. This was perfect!

"Thank you!" she screamed at the ceiling, black with multicoloured lights, foggy from mist. She jumped up to the top of the waterfall. It was a perfect circle. Everything was in perfect order up here. Everything felt right.

When Rose had started this "rebellion," she lost her home.

Now, this seemed to fit the description pretty well.

AN: I feel like an awful person right now. I went to work at a camp for pretty much the entire summer and didn't have any time to write! I prolly should have told ye...