Written mostly on the subway in Hong Kong. Each chapter will highlight one thing that Pearl comes to terms with about humanity. Or attempts to understand, anyway.

Ships are secondary, always. Enjoy the story. :)

at first

"Rose, we've been looking everywhere for you!" Pearl rounded the top of the hill, spotting her commander's mountain of pink curls from some distance away. "There's been another security breach of the fence and Garnet-"

"Shhh!" Rose called over her shoulder. Pearl startled and then approached more cautiously, silently drawing her sword from her gem.

"What's going on?" Pearl whispered. "Has the lighthouse been compromised? Are you-"

"C'mere, Pearl. Look at this!" Rose's voice was full of quiet delight, and Pearl hurriedly stashed her weapon. Rose gestured for her to join her, seated on the cliffside beneath the lighthouse's sweeping beam. "Look at him."

It was that human. Greg. He sat on the other side of Rose, his guitar in his lap, but his eyes were closed and his head had slumped forward against Rose's arm.

"It's sleeping," Pearl said. She lifted her eyebrows and said, "Awww," which she figured was the correct response.

"I've never seen one sleep up close before," Rose whispered. "Isn't it just the most incredible thing?" With her free hand, she brushed back the hair from his face. He didn't stir.

"I do like when they are silent and unresponsive," Pearl agreed. "Now about the security breach-"

"That was Greg again. Sorry. We'll try to warn you guys next time he's here!"

Next time. Goodness, he's already been here upwards of four times, and now he's just sleeping at the lighthouse? He was probably more comfortable there than in that cramped van, anyway.

Greg twitched, and his right hand plucked a few random strings on the guitar. Rose giggled. "He fell asleep in the middle of playing a song," she said. "And every now and then he- oh! Listen!"

Greg stirred and strummed the guitar lazily. "...light up my life..." He murmured, out of time and tune. Rose could hardly contain her laughter.

"That's enough of an encore for tonight, Mr. Universe." She took the guitar out of his hands and handed it to Pearl, then guided Greg's head down to rest in her lap. He let out a loud snort that made Pearl jump.

"Rose, I've noticed that you've taken quite the interest in humans lately. Or the one, at least," Pearl began, eyeing Greg warily, lest he surprise her with another horrifying outburst. "So I've gone to the liberty of researching a little bit more about the species. I know we've coexisted for millennia, but this-"

"-is different," Rose finished.

Pearl cleared her throat. "I've already learned so much from my studies. Did you know that the average human spends about one third of its lifespan in that condition?"

"Asleep?"

"Yes! I'm sure you know how long humans live?"

Rose frowned thoughtfully. "Only a couple of centuries."

"Oh, no, no. Less than one, actually," Pearl corrected politely. "And the male of the species lives an even shorter amount of time. Maybe 75 years... And that's a male that's watching its cholesterol, which, let's be honest..."

Rose blinked in confusion.

"So let's say he lives for 75 years... He'll have spent about 25 of those years asleep. Isn't that just fascinating?" Pearl clasped her hands together.

"Oh wow..." Rose was silent for a moment. "Well, that's all right. He's cute when he's asleep."

Pearl glanced at Greg again. There was a string of saliva dripping from his mouth down to his chin.

"I'll help you move... him back to his van so you don't have to stay out here all night. We don't have to wake him."

"Oh, no, it's fine. It's a beautiful night."

The moonlight shimmered over the rippling waves down below. Rose stroked Greg's mess of hair again. Greg drooled.

"Well, goodnight," Pearl said, setting aside the guitar and standing. She hesitated, then turned around, one hand on the lighthouse. "And Rose?"

"Yes?"

Pearl blushed. "Keep an eye on his slobbering problem. It- it could be rabies."

She left in a hurry.

but then

"He doesn't do anything," Amethyst complained loudly. She leaned over the newly finished crib that sat in the main room of the temple. It still smelled like fresh wood and furniture polish. "He's been like this for hours…"

"He needs to sleep," Pearl said, hardly glancing up from the book she was reading- Surviving the First Month- The Parent's Ultimate Guide. It was the second book in a particularly enlightening series- between the first week and the first year. "It's natural. Especially for the young."

Pearl watched out of the corner of her eye as Amethyst reached a hand into the crib. "Do not poke him. Do you want him to scream again?"

Amethyst grinned lopsidedly. "I like it when he screams. Kid's got a set of LUNGS."

"He only screams when he's in distress," Pearl said, trying to swat away Amethyst's hand with only a dirty look. "Just don't disturb him." She turned back to her book again.

Amethyst huffed, raising her eyes heavenward."Rose, why your baby gotta be so BORING?!"

Pearl slammed the book shut. "Amethyst!"

"What, so I'm not even allowed to say her name?" Her tone was surly.

"Don't START with this. Just- not today."

"Oh, well then, let me know when it works for your schedule for me to have feelings-"

"You were being deliberately disrespectful and-"

"You KNOW I didn't mean-"

Neither of them heard the warp pad whir to life. Garnet took one look at her arguing companions and made a beeline for the crib, where Steven was fussing quietly. She picked him up and bounced him against her hip several times. Pearl and Amethyst immediately fell silent.

They forgot that it had been a long month for him, too.

Garnet turned to the others. "There's a gem monster circling the beach right now. I was going to stay with Steven until Greg returns, since I figured you two would want to get out of the house." She looked from Pearl to Amethyst. "But that's not going to work. Pearl, do you mind staying here and watching Steven a while longer?"

"Of course not," Pearl murmured.

Steven had curled up against Garnet's shoulder, sticking his thumb in his mouth. His eyes were already drifting shut again. She tucked him back in under the blankets and motioned for Amethyst to follow her.

"Have fun being bored out of your brain," Amethyst called, climbing onto the warp pad.

"I'm glad to have some peace and quiet for a change," Pearl snapped. "I can catch up on my reading."

Amethyst opened her mouth, ready with a retort that Pearl could read in her eyes- Yeah, because that stupid book is gonna solve everything- but Garnet shook her head. "Let's go. If you need to talk about anything, you can talk to me on the way."

"Forget it," Amethyst said, folding her arms across her chest.

The warp pad lit up and Garnet and Amethyst disappeared. Steven started to fuss again at the sudden flash of light and noise. "Hush now," Pearl said, sitting beside the cradle. She grabbed the side of it and rocked gently. He grew quiet. Pearl flipped through her book again. Her eyes scanned the pages vacantly as she listened to him smack his thumb in the otherwise silent temple.

After a moment, Pearl laid aside her reading and peered between the slats of the crib. His eyelids fluttered but didn't open, entirely unaware of his surroundings. Tiny fingers curled and uncurled around nothing in particular. She watched his chest rise and fall under the blankets in time with the rocking motion. The movement was slight, but the rhythm was steady.

She wiped her eyes and watched for a long, long time.

More to come, probably.