Pink Diamond has been forced to stay in her room for several days. She doesn't like being here anymore. It has become too difficult to ignore the gaze of the other Gems: many are staring at her with the same horror that was in Pearl's eyes. Her life in the garden kept her away from it all. Why did Blue and Yellow force her to come to this year's great ball? All the festivities organized by the other Diamonds are boring to death. Pink's sole activity is to sit still, smile, and listen to the servants singing her praises. Even worse this time: the same people who look at her in terror were forced to come before her throne to enumerate each one of her qualities! Why does she have to go through this? Would this be a way for White to remind her of her mistakes again?

Memories come back to her, like the day she was offered her Pearl. It was the best moment of her life. The centuries that followed brought with them unprecedented happiness, as well as pleasant nonsense. How many times have they locked her in the Tower? This miserable prison, built specifically to punish her? It seems that this is the only structure on the planet that can resist her temper tantrums. Most of the time, her only fault was having fun. Other Diamonds reject any form of distraction and do not understand its usefulness. It's not for lack of trying to change their ways, though.

For centuries, Pink has personally organized all the balls and parties held at the palace, as a reward for every accomplishment of her sisters. Yellow succeeds in an invasion? It's time to party! Blue is designing a new gem? Let's prepare a ball! White leads something to perfection? Take out the confetti! They seemed to enjoy it, for a while. Until White and Yellow got tired of it and stop coming. What was the point of making such an effort, if two-thirds of the guests no longer bother to come?

Pink remembers that with each one of her mistakes, they always threatened to take away her Pearl. It was their best argument! Losing her was something she feared more than anything, if only for a few days. More than once, she was confiscated until Pink learned how to « behave like a real Diamond ». So Pink would pretend to be good Gem for a month or two, then start again. White and Yellow seemed terrified to see her fraternize with Pearl. This is why she never had Pebbles in her room, until recently: Yellow feared she would become too friendly with them. Anything to prevent Pink from having any positive relationship anywhere.

She used to draw a lot. An effective way to overcome boredom, but that did not last. She also tried her hand at sculpture, without success. She was even given, for a short time, the task of naming the Gems coming out of the Kindergarten! White changed her mind quickly when she saw a dozen Pyrites arrive in her quarters, all named « Fool's Gold » and numbered in a highly fanciful way. Of course, Pearl was confiscated and Yellow made a annoying speech about the importance of taking your job seriously. This joke was funny enough, however, to justify the punishment. Besides, Blue enjoyed the prank, since she was the one to bring back her Pearl the same evening, telling her « to avoid, in the future, making her laugh so much while she is preparing an invasion ».

« It's boring! » Exclaims Spinel, before insisting even more: « It's boring, it's boring, it's boring! »

« Come on, Spinel, calm down. »

For the past few months, it has been lovely to have Spinel nearby. She turned out to be very funny and helped her endure the terrified eyes of the other Gems. All the creatures of this palace watch her as if she embodied their inevitable destruction. Pink Diamond can't help but hate herself.

« What are we going to do today, my Diamond? » Spinel adds.

She gets on the bed and walks through Pink's hair, looking at her with a huge smile. The latter gets up, grabs the little one between her fingers and puts her in front of her feet, answering:

« Let's find a joke! Something that would make the Rubies I saw hanging out in the hallway laugh. »

« Yes! It'll be fun! Quick, quick! »

In the end, Pearl's disappearance still weighs heavily, despite the presence of this new friend. Time has passed. A century of games and laughs in Spinel’s company. Yet the image of Pearl never left Pink’s mind. Not even once. She perfectly remembers the scattered pieces. Her eyes full of horror. Pink doesn't even dare to approach White's quarters anymore. Everything there is tinged with sadness. However, and for the first time in a long while, other gems are laughing in her presence! It's nice to finally have some creatures around that don't make her feel like a monster. Spinel doesn't quite understand why « entertaining others » makes her Diamond so happy, but that doesn't matter. All that matters is that her mistress is happy! The habit quickly stuck and, when Pink is not locking herself in the garden, she spends her days brightening up the life of as many Gems as possible.

Yet her action is quite limited, since Blue and Yellow have not left their subordinates with Pink in a long time. She didn't understand why before. Today, she unfortunately has no trouble guessing the reason. As the Rubies begin to burst out laughing at Spinel's antics, Pink feels a strange presence:

« Pink Diamond? I am here. »

The little voice comes from below, it sounds like a... a Pearl!

« Pearl? » she asks, suddenly taking a step away, noticing Blue Diamond's maid. The little one has her hair in front of her eyes, which makes it difficult to distinguish her face. Her voice is soft but incomprehensible to anyone who is not seriously paying attention.

Pink struggles to hide her disappointment. For a second, she sincerely thought her Pearl had returned to her. Spinel approaches at full speed:

« Hey, little one! What do you want with the great Ponk Diamond? The great Pink Diamond, sorry. It's difficult to say. »

« My Diamond asked me to deliver a message to your Diamond, here it is: ‘Sweetheart, you wanted to visit the Kindergarten where the Diamonds were born. I finally got White's permission. However, I'm sorry: my presence is required on one of my colonies. But do not hesitate to go yourself! My Pearl will guide you.’ End of the message. »

Pink Diamond's face lights up. Finally! White agreed to let her see the Kindergarten where the Diamonds were made!

« Let's go now! » Pink asks impatiently.

« Yes! Come on! » Spinel reacts.

« As you wish, Pink Diamond. »

The three start to move towards a teleporter, which leads the group past a crystal bridge. The structure passes over a lake containing a silvery metallic liquid and leads to a sort of spherical building without any decoration. On its roof, we can see a fossilized injector. Its shape is unique. It seems more advanced than anything the Gems have been able to produce. Pink Diamond does not really know how these machines work. All she remembers is that a fluid is put in it, which, mixed with the raw resources of a planet, creates new Gems. Depending on the composition of the compound and the resources available, different models are obtained.

« Here is the Diamonds Kindergarten! It was the first structure built on our planet. The creators sent that injector into the crater of this volcano and, several centuries after the initial injection, four Diamonds were born. This process has absorbed all the energy of the planetary core. It is White Diamond who, later, ordered that the crater should be filled with mercury, mostly to hasten your gestation, Pink Diamond. »

The little servant steps onto the bridge, which lets Pink notice that a hundred Gems covered with a veil stand on each side, perfectly still. They seem to be decorating this place... or watching over it. As she gets closer, the Diamond discovers that they are Pearls! Each time Pink walks past a pair of them, the little ones kneel down, heads on the floor. It's awfully embarrassing. Damn it, White, why Pearls? Is this still some kind of lesson? It's cruel! She tries not to linger, seeing those gems on their knees hurts her.

Unfortunately, Spinel finds it very amusing that they bend down on command and decides to take the opportunity to jump from one to the other, just to see if she can make them make a mistake. Pink’s new friend suddenly seems to be getting so... superficial and disturbing. Everything about her reminds Pink of her own behavior before the incident. Her egocentricity, her blindness to the suffering of others. That childish way of seeing everything as a game. The more time goes by, the more Pink sees herself in Spinel just as she did with Pearl before. Except this time, the Gem reflects the worst of her! Spinel represents everything Pink Diamond would like to see disappear in herself. The slightest word, the most insignificant grin irritates her a little more every day. She’s a walking mockery. She feels like a thorn in Pink’s side, or a record player which would repeat over and over again: « That is who you will be forever: a stupid kid! »

« Spinel, that's enough! » She says sharply.

The little one stops without a word. She does like torturing the Pearls. Her mistress always recoils as soon as one of those things approaches. She has never asked to play a game that involves them! These scoundrels make her Diamond uncomfortable. That is why Spinel is merciless: everything that makes Pink Diamond unhappy deserves to suffer!

The group reaches the entrance to the sphere. A minimalist work, more sober than what Gems are used to making. The smooth surface is made of a strange material, both silvery and sparkling. Chrome? No, maybe platinum. It’s very large inside. There are murals on each of the walls, as well as four holes in the ground. Each is the size and shape of a Diamond, inscriptions are engraved in front of them. The words are strange, it seems to be a more simplistic version of the language of gems.

« This is the place where the Diamonds were born! » The little Pearl exclaims suddenly, kneeling down, head against the ground.

No Gem would have the audacity to look at the place. Spinel herself knelt down, not without some irritation. Pink Diamond approaches, touching the murals with her fingers. Each hole is easy to recognize, since it shines with the same color as the one that came out of it: Blue, Yellow, White and Pink. Looks like the floor has been vitrified. Pink Diamond is moving towards the inscriptions. She understands their meaning, but with difficulty.

« Do you know what all of this means? » She asks Blue's maid.

« Yes, Pink Diamond! My Diamond translated the texts. What do you want to know? »

« Everything. I want to understand everything! »

« The large symbol in front of the yellow opening means ‘one that acts’ and the text translates into: ‘through action, we forge our destiny.’ The one facing the blue opening means ‘one that thinks’ and the text: ‘through the mind, we see the path to greatness.’ The white opening, for its part, is decorated with the symbol ‘one that perfects,’ below which we can read: ‘through renouncing the easy way, both mind and action can achieve excellence.’ And lastly, yours, Pink Diamond, is more... difficult. »

« What do you mean? »

« My Diamond has found suitable words, but has not been able to decipher their exact meaning. Your symbol translates to ‘one that transcends’ and the text to: ‘beyond excellence, life can be created.’ The thing is, we do not understand what ‘transcend’ means, and therefore... »

« Nobody knows what my purpose is. »

« Indeed. My mistress believes that you had to accomplish a mission if our creators did not reach their goal, unable to comprehend what it was about. »

Pink Diamond watches the room. Each hole is positioned in the same way as in the flag of the Great Diamond Authority: diamond-shaped, with Blue and Yellow on each side, White at the top and Pink at the bottom. A clear hierarchy. White dominates and Pink brings up the rear. She will indeed be last for all eternity. The one that nobody can understand, because it's impossible. The only Diamond whose burden will remain inexplicable. How to find her place in these conditions? Pink notices that Pearls are cleaning the room, blindfolded. It's too much! She comes out. Blue's maid follows immediately, with Spinel just behind:

« Is everything all right, Pink Diamond? »

« Yes... that will be all. Let's leave this place! I will not find anything more here. »

« So be it! » Concludes the Pearl.

The little Gem is content to follow the Diamond in silence. Spinel uses her extendable arms to play tricks on her, but the maid ignores her. Pink Diamond feels foolish for having thought that such a visit would make her feel better. The very idea! It's even worse now that she knows she has no role! She puts her foot on the teleporter and leaves without even waiting for the other two.