"I mean, yes, she disincorporated me, but it was an accident," Gold snapped. "I did it because I was trying to stop her disincorporating someone else, because there was no way she could have taken on several Gems at once and she was about to get herself into a fight! I did what I was supposed to do." Gold huffed and swiped her hair out of her face.
Gray pondered. If she was honest, she didn't really expect the Gold to calm down any time soon. But. That really wasn't the priority right now. "Ah, I see. Thank you for answering my questions. I'm sorry Amber was crushed."
Gold was a bit taken aback by Gray's sudden back down, but she hesitated, and then nodded. "....thanks." Turning back to Carnelian, she added, "It's definitely my fault that I'm here, and that Amber got crushed. And even if you aren't that much higher ranking than me, it still matters." Shaking her head slightly, she wondered what was with these Gems, that they could dismiss rank so easily. With a sigh, Gold sat back down on the ground, wondering how the heck she'd ended up here, with a group of rebels and no way out of it. Sure, Amber hadn't liked her, and sure, Amber had never treated her like a person, where these Gems did. But honestly? She'd have traded being treated nicely and like a person for a little security right now. And it had all happened because she'd wanted to help...Diamonds, things had gone so wrong today.
"What matters is that you have a choice now. If you want to go back and find a new owner, as long as you don't hurt the rest of us you can do that. But if you want to come with us, come be free, we'll do everything we can to help."
"I don't think they'd take me back," Gold said unhappily. "Not after Amber got crushed...they'd think I had some part in it." As much as she didn't like to admit it, Gold knew the realities of how the Diamonds and others thought, and if something went wrong, a Pearl was sure to be blamed.
"I--um--I mean, well, yes," Gold replied, a little taken aback. "Why wouldn't I? I didn't ask for freedom, I don't know what to do without someone telling me what to do and where to go, I'm...I'm just a Pearl, I don't have any useful skills or anything, and I can't handle this kind of thing..."
"You don't understand, I can't--I'm not good at learning stuff, I'm not...flexible, or smart, or anything like that," Gold explained, her cheeks flushing a bit at having to explain this.
"I don't believe that," she said, smiling. "Maybe Amber didn't bother to teach you anything but that doesn't mean you can't learn."
"No," Gold said flatly. "Amber always said Pearls aren't capable of learning. We're just made to look pretty."
"That's okay. Just...you're not a toy. Or a tool, or an ornament, or whatever else load of dirt they've told you. You're a Gem."
Gold shrugged. "Maybe." Maybe not. Personally, she wasn't that inclined to think she was a Gem when she didn't particularly feel like a Gem. She felt like a useless ornament.
That was all she could hope for, really. It had taken Carnelian herself long enough to stop thinking of herself as just an extension of her instrument. She reached out a hand, offering it but not demanding. "We're gonna figure this out."
Gold looked at the hand for a moment, then took it and got to her feet. "If you say so, I guess," she answered, although she had to admit she felt a little bit better with someone reassuring her that things would be all right. Not much, but a bit.
"Yes, that's what I meant. I have a ship, but there are a lot of us. I could take everyone, but it might be a bit crowded. It's not a small ship, but I've filled a lot of the space with cargo, and more importantly with evidence of the Diamond Authority's crimes against other civilizations, which should not be forgotten. We would do well to steal another ship, so that we wouldn't all be lost if one group were captured...and stealing ships is not that hard." Melon nods. "I've never met Rose Quartz, but I owe her my life. I'll be happy to do it." "We have to get off this planet, it just isn't safe here. The further out you go, the safer you are, and the more you can actually do against the Authority." "Have you ever considered why Amber might want you to think that? Because I'm seeing Pearls learning all over the place."
