A lonely smile stains the pearl's lips as she washes the dishes, as she folds the laundry, as she bends over to collect fallen toys and dirty shirts.
She would do anything for Her. And images of pink fill her mind. It was strange how working like this would always bring back memories. The quiet ones. The bittersweet ones. Pictures of the two of them, resting, tired of having to run and hide. Unsaid feelings and ones expressed only through actions. Tiny bouquets and promises to never part, never give in, never fail. Pearl would be perfect. It was what she was created for of course, but this was different. She would be perfect for Her not because she was created to but because she willed it.
Yes, she was a traitor to some; Renegade was what they called her. She wielded it on her cheeks, rose-tinted and proudly as she slashed through her foes. As she defended the only noble cause worth fighting for.
Everything She looked at s h i n e d . Even her, the defected. Life was a chorus of wonderful living. Earth was so much alive and when she was with Her on the humming planet she swore she could feel the heartbeat almost as much as she could feel her own. Faintly but distinctly carrying on with a purpose and she felt relieved in that; they both must beat, they both must live, and she would strive to live in this beat. To be a part of this pattern that her Love loved above all.
She would do anything for Her. Even if it meant losing Her. Even if it meant having to watch Her fade and watch something new be created. The melody was humming out of step but she would fix it. She made a promise to. And Pearl thought to herself that she ought to be happy like this. Rose would be happy to see this. Child. Rose would die to see this... Well.
She folded her hands and clenched them. No use thinking about these things afterall. She still had a purpose, even if it was something she now had to keep to herself.
To love.
Herself.
Them.
Rose, Her above all others.
There are many ways to love someone and not all of them are pleasant. Pearl knew that best in moments like this, when she tried to make peace with the fragments of pink and blue. Memories that she could recreate but never quite display in the same hues. It was okay. It was in the past. There was still so much to do. So much to protect.
She wanted to believe she knew all the ways to love but she was wrong.
She still hadn't learned how to love like Her.
But she tried.