The Reluctant Flight

The Eclipse Congregation was due to commence in less than a single cycle.
Time was not on her side.

"Can you please not stand so close to me? You're projecting a shadow on to the screen…"
"Ah…of course, I apologise…"

She watched the Peridot intently, with mounting, feverish agitation.
The much smaller gem's brow line would occasionally twitch and furrow before returning to the same, unamused, complacent plane as she surveyed the data before her.

The co-ordinates across the screen danced in an almost beauteous corps de ballet, reflected by the visor of her verdant companion. Every now and then, the Peridot would make a noise as though she was being prodded uncomfortably.

It wasn't long before Kimberlite's patience broke entirely.

"You can do it, can you not?"

She kept her voice low; the chamber may have been outwardly private but the metamorphic gem was not as naïve as others may have painted her.
She knew that surveillance was never far.
Carrying out this conversation in her own quarters was risky enough but she had few other options.

"Mmph."

She also knew that approaching one of her Diamond's Peridots was also a notable risk but one that she desperately needed to take. Her window of opportunity was small.
Small but definite.

Kimberlite dared herself to lean a little closer to the rather skirmish engineer, murmuring silent prayers to the stars above her that the Peridot wasn't already contemplating sending a message straight to the domestic command.
The taller of the two wasn't very adept at reading code but she could tell that the Peridot had loaded quite a bit more than just the initial co-ordinates on to her screen.

It wasn't long before she was prompted to speak again.

"It would only be for a single visit. Just once. Just to see if-…"

"Pardon my asking," the Peridot suddenly cut across her, eyes lifting momentarily from the screen. "But you stated your original mission objective was one of…" Her eyes briefly flicked back to the data before returning to Kimberlite's own gaze. "Observation. Why this particular planet?"

"Just to see one of our non-domestic colonies. I feel it would be beneficial…"

"These co-ordinates do not indicate a colonised or even remotely occupied planet." The Peridot sighed, massaging the bridge beneath her nose and her visor. "In fact, specifically speaking, this planet is a failed colony. So again I ask, why this particular planet?"

The heighty gem hesitated for a moment before replying, crouching down so that she was at eye-level with the Peridot.
"I…I need to see if the rumours are true. I need to see if the Earth really is as the murmurs suggest…I need to see if it changes gems…"

"My Kimberlite," the Peridot sighed, slightly condescending as she lifted a hand to mindfully polish the Blue Diamond emblem, proudly adorning the most southerly incline of her uniform's pristine collar. "I can assure you that whatever slurs from the labour class drivel that have managed to trickle through these walls, are far from any kind of reliable fact. Now, it is my personal recommendation that you forget about-…"

"I can't!" Kimberlite interjected suddenly, surprised at her own volume and quickly forcing herself back into hushed speech. "I…I can't stop thinking about it. Peridot, I may be naïve by your standards- ignorant perhaps- but I am more than perceptive enough to know that there is truth to all of the stories. Even if there is no gem life on the planet Earth following the war, I need to see the war's aftermath. If I am truly carrying part of the future of our race then I need to know the depths of our race's history and what values I am expected to uphold…"

The Peridot gave her a withering look from behind her visor, folding her arms. "We have mission logs, archival diaries, simulations…plenty of perfectly good learning apparatus for you to-…"

"It would not be the same. You know that. I know that. Please Peridot. This trip would not take longer than a mere demi-cycle. No one would even know that we were gone. We could be there and back before the next court congregation…"

"Absolutely not," Peridot hissed in response, her eyes narrowing. "Your little designs on this hunk of organic wasteland evoked my curiosity but an unplanned mission to largely uncharted starmap? Without my Diamond's knowledge? Not a chance. Do you have any idea of the kind of trouble that I would be in were we to be caught?" The Peridot's eyes widened slightly at this rhetorical question, as though this prospect had only now just dawned on her.

"You could claim that I placed you under duress," Kimberlite suggested, partially stunned by her own desperation as she added: "By a technicality, you work for me as much as you work for Blue Diamond. If I were to issue this as a command…?"

The implication hung in the air for a moment before the Peridot responded dryly.

"For a gem who supposedly "more than perceptive", you seem to be a little confused regarding the directed chain of command within my Diamond's sector. I am not one of the Pearls that cleans your chamber, the Jaspers that stand outside your door or that little Tourmaline that administers your mineral injections. I may be beneath your stations but you have no authority to issue any orders to me that I should be expected to follow."
She seemed to be unable to restrain even the slightest of smug smiles.

Kimberlite felt a sinking feeling overtake her and even though she knew appealing to the Peridot's more empathetic side was more than likely in vain, she found herself murmuring: "I am not permitted to leave this temple unless it is at Blue Diamond's side. I have lived my years watching the world from behind a veil and through a screen. This could be my one chance to experience something real. Would you deny me that one chance?"

The Peridot abruptly turned off the screen she'd been examining.
"In a word? Yes. Now, if you have no real faults in your communication systems that need seeing to, I'll be on my way…"

She replaced her limb enhancers, rising from her perch at the control panel and making preparations to leave.
Kimberlite watched her with mounting anxiety: this was her last chance.
She did not like to think of herself as a malicious gem in any capacity but pure desperation was coercing her to be harsher than usual.

"Peridot, if you refuse to escort me to Earth, I will be forced to take drastic action…"

"Is that so?" the Peridot responded coolly, flexing her hovering digits without so much as giving a second glance to the Kimberlite beside her.

"You may work for Blue Diamond and not for me, that much is true. But if I were to try to get to Earth alone and I were to get hurt…whom do you think the blame would fall to but the Peridot who put the idea in my head?"

The Peridot's head suddenly whipped around, her eyes narrowed. "I did no such thing."

"And that would be your word against mine." Kimberlite sighed, not liking what she was being pushed into doing but feeling the weight of having no other option in sight. "You know as well as I do that our Diamond would believe me, long before she would believe you."

"You…you wouldn't do something like that…you…you couldn't…!"
Now she had the Peridot's attention. The smaller gem's uncaring demeanour seemed to have completely deteriorated.
Kimberlite felt guilty admitting it but there was something rather satisfying about seeing a Peridot so flustered and uncertain.

"Please Peridot," she continued to beseech the gem, daring to place her hand on the Peridot's shoulder. "This could be my only chance to leave the temple…it would not be for long, the Diamonds would be at the Congregation and with the Eclipse, no one would be able to detect a ship entering or exiting the atmosphere…"

The Peridot vigorously shrugged Kimberlite's hand away. "I can maybe understand wanting a change of scenery but you want to go to Earth! For your first trip…anywhere? What in the stars is possessing you to think this is a good idea!?"

Unable to properly verbalise her desires, the taller gem could only shake her head voicelessly before managing to repeat in a soft, waning voice: "Please, Peridot…I wouldn't trust anyone else to help me with this…"

"Well it's not as if I have much of a choice anymore, is it?" the Peridot hissed in annoyance, bringing back up the screen co-ordinates she'd been looking at, this time using her hand console. "If you're really intent on pulling off this farcical endeavour, we'll need to start prepping a ship immediately."

"Thank you so much, Peridot!" Kimberlite gushed breathlessly, abandoning her own composure to double over in a clumsy bow. "Thank you, thank you, thank you…an aeon's worth of thank yous! I promise to make this worth your while when we return. Anything that I can possibly provide you with is yours! And should we be caught, I will openly take all of the blame!"

"I would expect nothing less," the green gem responded woodenly, beckoning to the grey-skinned gem to follow her as she started off one of the main corridors. "Bribery following blackmail? If I didn't know any better, Kimberlite, I'd say this is the first time you'd ever done this…"

The taller gem did not respond, shivering a little and still hoping that the Peridot didn't plan on immediately alerting the nearest higher authority of their plans.
Then again, what she had said was completely true; she had never given Blue Diamond any reason to doubt her and due to her stature, it was unlikely that her dear Diamond ever would.
That said, however, this was not a situation that she wanted to see an innocent gem getting shattered because of.

The worst thing that Blue Diamond would ever do to her would be to deny her archive privileges or deny her access to the rest of the temple for a few orbits.
The worst thing Blue Diamond was capable of doing was not worth thinking about.

Perhaps this entire pursuit was selfish, Kimberlite would later reflect, gazing out at the rows and clusters of stars as they passed by in a small, commandeered flying vessel.

She had only ever witnessed a single execution before in her entire existence and despite the raucous claims of her Jaspers that it was "exciting to see someone get what was coming to her" or the haughty remarks of her Pearls that it was "just the ordinary repercussions of civilised society", Kimberlite could not bring herself to ever attend a second one.

The Onyx acting as executioner hadn't even redacted the Topaz's physical form.
The gem's desperate screams still rang in her ears to this very day.
She could recall having looked up at Blue Diamond during the breaking procedure, searching for her Diamond's eyes. She needed consolation: reassurance that this everything was still alright. As always, they remained carefully cloaked by her veil.
She had flinched when her Diamond's large hand lightly touched her upper back, shortly following the breaking. Her long fingers grazed the gap between her shoulders- as they often did when the Diamond detected any level of discomfort in her subordinate.

"Does something trouble you, Kimberlite?"

Her voice could be so comforting at times, inviting as a soft, warm chaise on a cold evening. This often posed a surprise to those who knew Blue Diamond as the most withdrawn and glacial of their matriarchs.

"I was just wondering what exactly…what…what was the Topaz' crime, my Diamond"

"That is none of your concern, little gem. You should not worry yourself over trivial matters such as the disobedience of the common ranks."

"Yes, my Diamond."

The much larger gem's hand travelled down to Kimberlite's lower back, prompting for her to sit down upon the plush folds of the former's robes.

"I can tell that you are still perturbed."

"Admittedly, yes, my Diamond."

Blue Diamond gave a soft snort of mirth. "Kimberlite…your penchant for concerned behaviour is amusing at times." Her hand came to rest upon the smaller gem's head, dwarfing her entirely. "All you need to remember is that the actions of a single gem have the potential to impact the entirety of her race. Our laws protect the sanctity of our civilisation and this is for the safety and well-being of all gems, regardless of class or type…" Her voice had become quite gentle at this point, almost lulling. "And you should remember that even, we the Diamonds, can be compassionate. We can be forgiving."

"Forgiving..." Kimberlite found herself echoing her Diamond's words.
She flinched at the sudden feeling of Blue Diamond coaxing her to look upward, taking her by the chin with one colossal finger and guiding Kimberlite's eyes to meet her own.

"But Kimberlite?"

"Y-…uh, yes…my Diamond…?"

"It is only when gems test the boundaries of our forgiveness that we must take…harsher approaches to discipline. You understand, don't you?"

The sight of her Diamond's eyes from beneath the hood briefly brought a tremor to the smaller gem's shoulders and she had no chance to respond.
At that moment, a Blue Pearl lifted one of the veils surrounding the litter.

"My Diamond."
She genuflected with enviable, fluid grace, holding forth the delicately carved box that she carried.

"Ah yes." Blue Diamond's hand retracted to her lap before gesturing to the Pearl to display the contents. "The shards of today's criminal…"

The great Diamond leaned forward to inspect what was left of the decimated yellow gem.
Kimberlite averted her eyes, though the words of Blue Diamond were still echoing in her ears.

"Pearl, take these to be harvested…Kimberlite? Are you paying attention? This is the fruit of disobedience. Those who wish to destroy our society will be forced to serve it. Dead or alive…they are the ones who choose their own fate…we all ultimately choose our own fate."

"You're lucky that Blue Diamond doesn't use gems with future-sight anymore!" the Peridot snapped, loading the new co-ordinates into the ship's control panel. "Or else she'd know about this pantomime already…"

Kimberlite was dragged forth from her melancholy reverie by the engineering gem's wheedling. She probably might have felt a little exasperated if she wasn't the one putting this poor Peridot in harm's way.
She pulled her legs into her chest, resting her cheek upon her knees.

This was her one chance to see any other part of the galaxy.
And she had always told herself that if a chance like this presented itself, she would make Earth her first destination.

The Peridot mumbled something mildly profane as the ship took on some turbulence, heralding its official leave of the Homeworld's galaxy.

" If we are caught," Kimberlite thought, her fingers starting to dig into the sides of her arms. "We will ultimately test the boundaries of the Diamond Authority's forgiveness."

Blue Diamond had said that every gem ultimately chose her own fate.
Now it was time to see if this were true.

The Humble Wish

"So then, I just totally dive over the guy! He doesn't see me coming and wham! Headshot! Level Up! Best score in the campaign! Heh-heh! This is why little kids need to stay off the online gameplay…"

He was at it, again.

Sadie sighed, watching as Lars continued his erratic bragging dance, still harping on about his latest exploits playing some indie first-person shooter that she'd been too tired to pay attention to the details of.

It was early in February, the start of the Spring tourist season and as such the doughnut shop had been weathering its usual boom in business.
Management had insisted that having the two of them alone was more than enough to keep everything running smoothly during the day but it may as well have been a solo shift as far as Sadie was concerned.
Between Lars flirting with and offering discounts to anything bikini-clad, (or remotely female, for that matter) ,that walked through the door, her work was hardly cut out for her.

And she was almost always certainly working with Lars, regardless of whatever shift she managed to pull.

It was almost closing time- the extended summer hours- leaving the duo behind the counter until the blazing azure heavens had turned dark.

Well, leaving one of them behind the counter.

Lars was currently prancing around the tables, deeply engaged in his video-game related monologue as he tried to win the admiration of Beach City's resident royalty: Sour Cream, Buck Dewey and Jenny Pizza.

They had always seemed like a nice bunch, Sadie though.
They were definitely the laid-back sorts and they played by their own rules but never seemed to cause too much trouble for their fellow beach-dwellers.

She was never going to be friends with any of them though.
It was nothing personal- she had long accepted that- but she and people like that just ran in different circles. Her mother had always said that a friendship that was all work and no fun wasn't one worth keeping.

She wasn't sure if she had the energy to keep trying to stay in their good books the way Lars did.

Lars.

The young woman leaned on the counter-top, pretending to be re-arranging the napkins as she stole glances at his warping and wefting reflection in the glass case.
Why did he still have this effect on her?

He could be a total jerk to her.
He could humiliate her, berate her, laugh at her, treat her like utter dirt…

And then all it took was that stupid puppy-dog begging or a well-placed touch of the arm and suddenly she was a blushing, gushing mess who was willing to do whatever he wanted.
The thought of their lips touching still made her heart race.
And that, in turn, made her stomach sick.

She was a fool for even entertaining the idea that Lars would ever really want someone like her, she thought sadly, habitually twisting a lock of pale blonde hair around her finger.
She was only ever his "player two" when there was no better option in sight and when someone more popular, more important or more beautiful came along, he was happy to toss her aside like yesterday's chocolate-glazed doughnuts.

Sadie caught her own reflection in the glass and cringed.
Where had her self-respect gone?
From time to time, a tiny voice inside her head that would remind her that she was so much better than all of this. Then the sight of a budding pimple, an extra dimple where her belly met the line of her jeans or a fleck of hair on her upper lip would effectively drown out that little voice to the point where she couldn't hear it any longer.

She was abruptly jerked from her slightly self-pitying reverie by the sound of Lars flinging himself against the Lion Lickers refrigerator.
Apparently he was attempting to re-enact one of the cutscenes from his latest obsession.

"C-Careful!" she shouted out, stammering slightly and unable to restrain a very audible sigh as Lars' outstretched, flailing elbow managed to send Buck's coffee soaring off the table.

Her lanky co-worker was already garbling apologies to a very disgruntled Buck Dewey, all while trying to maintain some kind of cool composure. Sadie grunted, tearing herself from the counter-top and dragging herself into the supply closet.

By the time she managed to rustle up a mop from the back room, Lars had lapsed back into his impress the cool kids routine and the steaming coffee puddle was starting to grow a skin.
He hadn't made the slightest attempt to clean it up, leaving a red-faced, slightly stumbling Sadie to see to the mess.

She exchanged some awkward glances and mumbled apologies with shop's remaining clientele as she attempted to clean the mess.
Her face became slightly flushed in the wake of Lars' "you're seriously cramping my style" glower.

"We need to get out of here," Sour Cream muttered eventually. "My grandma wants me home before eleven and I need to start working on my DJ set for Saturday…"

And now came the part of the evening and Sadie had been absolutely dreading.
Just as Buck, Sour Cream and Jenny started to pack up their things, Lars' embarrassed lower suddenly turned to a wide, warm smile.

"Hey Sade, great job on the mopping there…you know I'd love to do it but I'm so awful at this cleaning junk- you'd only have to do it again anyway…you know sometimes I wish I was more like you…"

Sadie wrung the mop out into the bucket, trying to tune Lars out but she couldn't help but crack the same stupid smile that crept over her every single time he spoke: "Oh…it was nothing…really…"

Stale coffee was one of the worst smells in existence.

"Gee, I know we need to lock up at eleven thirty," Lars continued to whine, stepping over the bucket so that he was in her full-view. "But if I don't go with the guys now, I won't get a chance to see Sour's new decks! See he's got this-…"

She averted her eyes, dodging him and trying to coax the bucket back into her tenure.
His mouth was moving but all of his sudden his words seemed to faze into one garbled drone.

"…and Jenny's practically my only ride back home. You don't want me to walk back in the cold again?"

Sadie swallowed back her groans, dragging the mop back towards the counter with Lars at her heels. She had no idea why she even bothering to put up a passive front when she knew exactly how this conversation was going to end.

Exactly as predicted, Lars clasped her hand and her breath briefly stopped.
As soon as their eyes met, an uncomfortable dryness began in her mouth.
And when he said:

"So will ya do this favour for me, Sadie? You don't need me to lock up, do you?"

She exhaled, dropping her head a little as a defeated smile crossed her lips.
"…no. I guess I don't. You…uh…you go have fun. I've got things here."

Lars bolted out of the door so quickly, hurtling his apron at her, that Sadie barely heard his bark of: "Hey-thanks-you're-the-best!"

When a rather crestfallen Sadie peeled the apron from her face, she was surprised to see Jenny Pizza standing in front of her.
"Hey, Sadie…sorry 'bout keeping you here late."

The blonde woman felt a slight shiver come into her step as she smiled shakily in response; it wasn't often that girls like Jenny Pizza actually spoke to her.
In fact, up until this point, she hadn't even been sure that Jenny even knew her name.

"Awh, it's ok. The manager gets kinda aggro if we don't stay until closing anyway."

Jenny followed her to the counter and placed a bundle of notes upon the counter.
"That should cover everything, I think."

"Uh…gimme a second and I'll get you your change…"

Jenny smiled warmly, her gold earrings jangling as she shook her head. "Nah, consider it a tip. It's not easy pulling the late shift. I had to beg Kiki to cover mine tonight and I still can't believe dad let us off for Saturday…you going to the Valentine's beach ball?"

"…uh…I dunno…" Sadie murmured as she hung up Lars' apron, shrugging with a small smile. "I normally kinda just chill out at home…dancing in front of people…it's not really my thing…but I guess…" She paused for a moment, considering. "I'd go if someone asked me."
She couldn't help but steal a glance at Lars through the window of the doughnut shop, goofing around the car with Buck and Sour Cream.

Jenny followed her gaze and moved a little closer to the counter, dropping her voice.

"Hey. Uh, mind if I say something a little personal?"

"…yeah, sure."

"You could do better than Lars, you know." Jenny grinned widely, raising an eyebrow at the shorter girl. "Way better."

Sadie opened her mouth to say thank you but what immediately came out was; "Y'thinkso!?"

Jenny laughed softly. "I mean it. I really do. I mean, Sadie, you're so nice and you work so hard, all the time. You're like friggin' Cinderella. You deserve royalty for what you put up with…" She shot a glare over her shoulder, rolling her eyes at Lars' antics before turning back to the doughnut shop employee with a wink. "…or at least a break. So, give the Valentine's dance another thought, ok?"

Sadie watched in slight awe as Jenny turned and walked back out of the doughnut shop, in admiration of the other girl's confidence and just managing to call back: "…thanks for the tip!" She sighed a little, adding under her breath. "Both of 'em..."

Just over half an hour later, Sadie was locking up that back door.
It wasn't too cold outside, she noticed.
The sky was beautifully clear too.

Up above her head, the heavens were dotted with clouds of over a million, sparkling stars.
It was almost an ethereal sight and just when she thought she'd found the brightest one up there- her eyes would suddenly be drawn to another glowing beacon, nestled amongst the wispy, lilac, summer clouds.

She liked star-gazing; she and her mother used to always go looking for shooting stars when she was younger.
Or at least before she'd started working late nights.

At that moment- almost as if she'd somehow willed it to happen- a argent bolt lit up the sky above her.
It had to one of the most stunning shooting stars she'd ever seen.
Sure, shooting stars were pretty common at this time of year in Beach City, but she'd never seen one so dazzling.

Smiling to herself and deciding that she wasn't too old for a wish upon a star, Sadie whispered to herself:
"Go on then, do your thing, star. Send me royalty…or at least a date for Saturday, if you're not too busy…"

She wasn't sure if she had imagined it or not but for a brief moment, as she stole a second glance up at the Heavens, she could have sworn the star was falling straight to Earth.

Thank you for reading thus far!