LOG-041.

  My small smile remained in place as Rose wandered out of my...out of Amethyst's room. Leaving me with a still widely grinning Garnet, my fellow fusion happily tapping her fingers together as she glanced at some of the clashing colours adorning my lightform.

  "So...how is it?" The question was full of anticipation, like a proud mother, almost. Which...huh?

  Brushing the stray thought aside, I turned towards where I knew Amethyst had left a cracked mirror sitting propped up beside a pile of boxes, catching my own multicoloured eyes as I did so.

  "It's...fascinating. My components...Viridian and Amethyst that is, both had their doubts that this would actually work, but it seems they're much more in tune than previously thought."

  It did feel somewhat similar to Opal. The other Opal, rather. However the faded impressions my Quartz half continued to give out seemed to give off the vibe that I was a bit more...stable? Yes, more stable in comparison. Even my projected lightform seemed to reflect the fact that my two halves fit together well, considering I largely kept to an unmodified Gem's form. No extra eyes or arms to be seen.

  Neat.

  Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Garnet bring a hand up to rub at her chin, the Crystal Gem humming contemplatively, even with a slightly smaller smile still firmly attached to her face.

  "Well, it's certainly impressive. I can't say that I didn't have a few doubts about all of this, but I know for a fact no Gem loyal to Homeworld's laws would ever fuse with someone outside of their type."

  I nodded along, before pausing as a sudden bout of curiosity took over.

  "What about Honey Lemon? Wouldn't she also be an example of that, or are Pearls permitted to fuse as well?"

  Garnet's smile faded slightly as she carefully considered the idea, befote slowly nodding to herself.

  "Technically, they would be allowed to do so, since they're the same Gem type. But the Empire never really approved of fusion outside of combat related situations, and even then they'd likely be punished for doing so without 'permission.' I highly doubt that's changed, even in...Era Two?"

  Part of me confirmed the question, prompting me to nod in turn.

  "Yes. The Diamonds proclaimed the end of Era One shortly after Pink Diamond's shattering."

  A small huff escaped her lips in response, then she sighed.

  "Figures, they'd never declare something like that for anything else."

  Any response I could have given, whether that be an attempt to comfort my friend or even just to ask more questions, was interrupted by the door to Amethyst's room opening up, the entryway permitting a trio of figures inside.

  "Viridian!"

  I blinked as a familiar red figure rushed forward, only for the Pearl to freeze in place as she caught sight of me, her hands going to clench at her chest's lightform fabric as she took in my own form. My only response as her mouth dropped open was to awkwardly raise a hand and scratch at the back of my head, taking a slight interest in the way the long strands curled around my fingers.

  "But...but..."

  Now now, don't just leave her to fold in on herself like that.

  Repressing the urge to heave out a long sigh, I stepped forward and crouched slightly to bring myself closer to my...or rather Viridian's startled Batchmate's level.

  "Hello Vermilion."

  Behind her, I spotted a slightly concerned looking Rose Quartz, alongside a similarly shocked Pearl. Seeing the normally snooty Gem so utterly befuddled did almost bring a smile to my face, but I held back. They could all wait for now, namely because Vermilion had finally gathered enough courage to step forward and inspect me a little better, her eyes tracing parts of my lightform as if she could pick out and separate bits of it.

  "Viridian? Is that...is that y-you?"

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  Letting an amused chuckle escape me, I nodded my head to the Pearl's apparent relief.

  "It's Slate Opal, actually. But Viridian is in here as well. Like with Honey Lemon, remember?"

  The crimson Gem nodded along slowly, before shaking her head and sending her hair flying about slightly as a result.

  "B-but that was me and you! Or uh...me and Viridian. And Honey was technically still a Pearl...isn't this...wrong?"

  Standing up straight and planting my hands firmly at my hips, prompting another grin from Garnet, a subtle smile from Rose and a quiet "my Stars..." from Pearl, I ensured my desires presented themselves clearly, both in my expression and in my voice.

  "Nope. Trust me, it's rather nice. You should see if you can manage it with Amethyst as well when you get the chance."

  She hesitantly nodded once, hands already wringing each other as she glanced back at the three Gems behind us before turning to face me again.

  "A-alright. So...why did you fuse now?"

  She stepped back slightly, eyes widening as I grinned.

  "We're going out to eat."

  I was practically starved, after all!

  ---

  Beach City wasn't the largest of settlements. More accurately, it was a small oceanside town that likely and largely depended on tourism over the summer to properly support itself. Particularly in terms of attracting various people looking for a chance to spend some time cooling off in the water beneath the hot sun.

  What that meant, rather unfortunately, was that I actually didn't exactly have a wide selection to choose from in terms of possible locations to gorge myself on carefully prepared meals. But what it did mean was that I only had to lead the Crystal Gems (plus Vermilion) around for a few minutes before we found a suitable spot.

  "This is just silly, their...first fusion, and they choose to make their way to a restaurant. What's even the point of interacting with this human nutritional dispensary anyway? It's not like we even need food!"

  Pearl continued to vocally protest the entire thing, even as Rose giggled from beside her, prompting a brief bit of silence from the renegade Gem as the far larger Quartz's hand landed on her shoulder.

  "Pearl, you said it yourself, it's their first time! Slate should be allowed to do what she wants right now!"

  The statement was immediately followed up by a strong grunt and nod from Garnet, naturally. At the very least, it prompted a bit of visible contemplation from both Pearl and a still silent Vermilion, the former slowly crossing her arms and lifting her nose into the air as she evidently made up her mind about something.

  "Well...I suppose if Amethyst is one of her components and Viridian truly is curious about eating organic food like Vermilion said...it makes sense that she's so fixated on this endeavor. I just want it on the record that I still think she's going to be disappointed, though. The feeling is utterly revolting and I'm certain she'll agree once she actually gets to try it."

  Rolling my eyes at her usual antics, I instead turned to face a familiar yet utterly foreign sight.

  Fish Stew Pizza. The name was proudly emblazoned upon the pizzeria's compact exterior, the red and green colours behind it briefly drawing my eye before I turned my attention towards the large windows showing off the inside of the building, surrounded by simple painted bricks as they were. Beside it stood another potential stop, but for now I would focus on just one objective at a time.

  It would enhance the experience, after all. Mm.

  What must have been a slight bit of drool steadily dribbled out of the corner of my mouth as I vividly imagined the sensation of biting into a perfectly formed pizza, the crust breaking apart between my teeth and the cheese melting atop my tongue, all topped by the additional taste the sauce would no doubt provide.

  I hastily brought a hand up to wipe away the excess saliva, briefly surprised that my mouth even had drool to dribble before rather quickly setting the thought aside.

  That didn't matter right now. No, what truly interested me was getting past the brick walls and glass door of this fortress and inspecting its armoury of cuisine!

  Clapping my hands in sheer unadulterated excitement, I hurriedly reached for the door and made my way inside. The interior was just as small as the front outside had suggested, but in a comforting, cozy way rather than anything that truly felt cramped. To my pleasant surprise, I was immediately greeted by an attentive figure, even as the rest of my fellow Gems steadily piled in behind me.

  "Good afternoon madame, and welcome to Fish Stew Pizza! My name is Kofi and this is the Pizza family owned restaurant! May I show you to your seat or will you be taking a table for the group behind you?"

  The young man's rather distinct accent brought a hint of nostalgia to mind, even as I glanced down at the nametag proudly clipped to the shirt of his uniform.

  Kofi Pizza.

  Letting a polite yet genuine smile take hold, I nodded to the worker and gestured to the group of Gems idling around behind me, Vermilion noticably standing at attention as his dark eyes went her way before Garnet gave the red Pearl a light pat on the back.

  "We'll be taking a table for five, please. I'm rather eager to sample the very best you can possibly offer us."

  A glint entered Kofi's eyes at my statement, before he bowed his head and beckoned me forward.

  "But of course, madame! The Pizza family deliver the best and only the best!"

  How promising. Surely a family that were quite literally named after their profession would deliver product of spectacular quality?

  Regardless of my inner thoughts, I found myself taking a seat quickly enough at one of the mini-restaurant's tables, Rose and Vermilion sitting alongside me, even as Garnet and Pearl were forced to take positions on the other side of the neatly set table in order to seat all of us.

  Bringing my hands together, I waited patiently, a wide smile on my face as I listened in to the harsh 'whispers' being exchanged just behind the opening to the kitchen.

  "Who is it Kofi? You look worried. Is it more customers?"

  "Yes mom! It's those strange women again. But there's a problem!"

  "What problem? Spit it out son."

  "One of them...she has the air of an inspector! I can feel it!"

  A small gasp answered the hilariously dramatic proclamation, and seconds later a short woman was practically shoving the man out towards us, now holding several menus in his hands.

  "Go go go! If she's here to evaluate the restaurant, we must present an impeccable front! Our reputation is at stake! Now shoo!"

  Ah Nanefua, never change.

  As the slightly harried looking man trudged towards me with all of the nervous determination of a soldier going to war, I merely let my smile widen even further as I contemplated just what I could convince Rose to order for all of us.

  For whatever reason, the happy expression only seemed to increase his pace.

  How utterly fascinating.