Hello, folks! So, sorry about the delay. It's just...I forgot this existed.

Disclaimer: I only own the AU. Nothing else. Now, let's see what unfolds this time.

Nine years later...

A lot could change in nine years. And a lot did.

Connie was now 13 years old, and Steven had recently turned 14. Steven had gotten used to his gem, as had his mother. Even Greg wasn't fazed by the powers they had in their gems...well, mostly.

Homeworld Corp. kept expanding. They had gemmed more people, all employees. Yellow Diamond had convinced (read; forced) her sisters, the other bosses, to get gems. They loved having their power. They needed test subjects, willing or unwilling.

Rose was thinking about quitting.

Of course, the day she decided to quit was the day she had to supervise a tour...

"Alright, everyone. Follow me."

Rose smiled at the little tour group she was leading. In the front of the group was a tall, skinny French girl. She had short, peach colored hair in a pointed haircut, and was wearing a pale blue turtleneck with a star, cream shorts, and coral slippers. She looked as though she was in awe of Rose.

Next to her was a big, buff Jamacian girl with rainbow dreadlocks, a smoky dark red star tattoo on her right arm, a dark pink t shirt with a blue star, burgundy capris, and black work boots. She was smiling, though it looked a little fake.

Behind them was a small, African American girl with dark red hair, wearing a red headband, a maroon tank top, dark red gym shorts, and pale red sneakers. Next to her was a young, Asian woman with long, ice blue hair that partially covered her eyes. She wore a royal blue sundress with a sky blue cord around the waist, white, short gloves, and ice blue slippers. They seemed to be a couple.

To the left of the group was short, Latina girl with long, pale lavender hair, covering one of her eyes, a white t tank top that said, "I Rock. Deal with it." with a picture of a cat wearing sunglasses on it, jeans with mauve stars on the knees, and mauve ankle boots. She was walking as though she were relaxed, both arms behind her head.

To her right, close to her, was a Caucasian girl with blonde hair in a triangle shape, green glasses, a white t shirt with the "Camp Pining Hearts" logo on it, alien shorts, lime green socks with yellow diamonds on them, and forest green sneakers with yellow diamonds on the toes. She seemed to be talking to her friend, who wasn't really listening.

On the left of Amethyst was another Latina girl, this one buff, and with vitiligo. She had pale beige hair, a tangerine tank top (though, honestly, it was more like a t shirt with the sleeves ripped off) with "Born to be Wild" written in burgundy letters, torn scarlet leggings, and dark orange combat boots. She was the smaller Latina girl's big sister.

At the very back of the group was a tall, lanky Hawaiian girl with short, dark blue hair, a blue crop top, a sky blue skirt with blue diamonds on the bottom, and navy blue flip flops. She seemed like she didn't want to be here.

"Welcome to Homeworld Corp., the leading producer of technology! I will be taking question throughout the tour." Rose said, faking cheerfulness. The French girl rose her hand. "Yes, Pearl?" Rose asked.

"Can I just say, I'm honored that you are our tour guide?" Pearl asked, still in awe. Rose blushed.

"Why, thank you!" she replied, flattered. As they continued through the tour, she caught snippets of conversation between the small Latina and her friend.

"Seriously, Amy! You should be honored to be here! This is home to some of the greatest technology of all time!"

"Yeah, okay, but I'm not that into this tech junk."

"Why not?! It's amazing! This place is the place of the future!"

"I know, Peri. I know."

Rose sighed. If only they knew what really happened here. The African American girl rose her hand.

"Yes, Ruby?" inquired Rose. The girl looked at her girlfriend, and the Asian girl nodded. The other girl looked up.

"Sapphire and I were wondering if you were married. I mean, it's just, one day we plan of getting married, so I-I thought-" Ruby rambled, right before Sapphire took over.

"We want to know if you are married, and if you like it," she stated simply. Rose smiled.

"Why, yes. I am married. And I think it's one of the best decisions of my life," she replied. She could've sworn she saw something like disappointment lace across Pearl's face, just for a second. Then she was back to normal. As the tour continued on, both the Caucasian girl and the small, Latina girl rose their hands.

"Yes, Peridot? Amethyst?" Rose asked. Peridot straightened up, trying to make herself look taller.

"I just wanted to ask, what are some of the crown achievements of this brilliant institution?" the Caucasian girl asked, smiling. She then turned to Amethyst. The Latina shrugged.

"When can we eat?" she asked. Peridot blinked, then slapped herself in the forehead. Rose chuckled.

"Well, each Diamond had different ideas of a crown achievement. Yellow Diamond likes the military simulators we make, while Blue likes the electric vehicles. White Diamond considers our tablets and computers a crown achievement, while Pink..." she faltered, right before starting up again, "Pink liked our advances in medical science. And we will get lunch at the end of the tour."

The other Latina girl lifted her hand.

"Yes, Jasper?" Rose asked.

"Didn't Pink Diamond die?" she asked, her voice rough. Rose frowned.

"Sadly, yes. A few years ago, we lost Pink Diamond to a tragic accident. Not a day goes by that the company doesn't feel her loss," Rose explained. Pearl glared at Jasper for making Rose upset. Jasper shrugged, and Pearl snorted. After a few minutes, the Hawaiian lifted her hand next.

"Yes, Lapis?" Rose asked. Lapis's expression remained neutral.

"How much longer is this tour?" the girl deadpanned. Rose chuckled.

"Only two more hours. I think you'll survive," she replied jokingly. Lapis sighed. Towards the end of the tour, the Jamacian rose her hand.

"Yes, Bismuth?" Rose asked. Bismuth looked serious.

"Are the rumors true that this company is experimenting on innocent people?" she questioned.

In that moment, every part of Rose froze up.

"Miss Rose? Are you alright?" Pearl inquired, putting a hand on her shoulder. Rose was frozen for a few seconds, right before relaxing.

"Yes, Pearl. I'm alright. I'm sorry to have scared you," Rose replied. Pearl smiled. Rose turned to Bismuth. "As for your question, I can not confirm nor deny those rumors without permission from my superiors." Bismuth nodded at this reply. Rose sighed.

She was safe...for now.

"And that's our tour! I hope you had fun!"

Rose walked back into the main hall. The children followed her, all of them talking about the tour. Sighing, the woman smiled. Nothing had gone wrong, nothing bad had happened (save for a few pranks by Amethyst), and nobody got-

"Thank you, Rose. My sister will take it from here."

-gemmed.

Rose's head snapped around. Behind them were two lithe, French girls. One had blonde hair in an updo and was wearing a uniform. The other had blue hair in low bangs with the same uniform. Pearl squinted.

"Bianca? Yolanda? What are you two doing here?" she asked. The blonde, Yolanda, narrowed her eyes.

"We work here, baby sister," she replied. Lapis blinked.

"Wait, I thought this was the end of the tour," Lapis stated, confused. Yolanda blinked, seemingly nervous.

"This is a...special part of the tour!" the girl blurted. The kids blinked. Pearl's sister froze, the regained her composure. "Anyways, my sister Bianca will bring you to where the special part is." Bianca nodded, and stepped foreward.

"Come with me, kids," she murmured. The kids, mumbling in confusion, followed her. After they were gone, Rose glared at Yolanda.

"What are you doing here?!" Rose whisper-yelled. Yolanda flinched, then regained her cool.

"Yellow Diamond needs more test subjects," she replied. As though it were as simple as that. Rose blinked, then glared.

"But children, Yolanda?! Children?! Why?!" Rose said, a bit louder. The other girl narrowed her eyes.

"Yellow Diamond doesn't care if the person is young or old or anything. If the person can have a gemstone in their body, then they're a test subject," Yolanda explained coldly. Rose blinked, suddenly hit with the pure wrongness of this experiment like a dodgeball. Then she gave Yolanda a death stare.

"Tell Yellow Diamond that she and the other Diamonds are monsters," Rose whispered, her voice calm. Too calm. Yolanda blinked and sputtered.

"But-but, you'll get fired for saying that!" Yolanda exclaimed. Rose just kept staring coolly.

"She can't do that. I quit."

And with that, Rose walked away, leaving the room in silence.

In the waiting room, the group was waiting for someone to call them in. Pearl turned to her friend Bismuth.

"What do you think is going on?" the French girl inquired. Bismuth turned to face her.

"I don't know," she replied. Ruby, hearing this, squeezed Sapphire's hand nervously. Her girlfriend gave her a reassuring look. Amethyst, not caring, put her feet on the coffee table in the center of the room.

"Why are y'all so nervous? All I care is that we're gonna have eat after this," she stated casually.

Creak.

The group all turned towards the door. Near it was a African American girl wearing a uniform, her hair in an afro. Ruby squinted.

"Huh, that looks a lot like my sister Louise..." Ruby mumbled. The girl looked at the clipboard.

"Um...is anyone here named Pearl. 'Cause we kinda need you now," she mumbled awkwardly. Ruby blinked.

"Yep, definitely Louise," she confirmed. Pearl stood up.

"That would be me," she announced smugly. Louise grinned.

"Oh, okay! Follow me please!" she said cheerfully. Pearl followed her in.

She couldn't wait to see what happened next!

So, here's the second chapter. In the next one, we see Pearl getting "gemmed".

To quote Leo Valdez, "¡Vaya con queso! Love ya!"