‘Guard the door and don’t move until I tell you otherwise.’ Ametrine had heard those words so many times from her Agate that she hardly even registered them anymore. Day in, day out, she stood by the same door, watching the same gems go in and out without fail. The highlight of her days was when someone who didn’t usually head inside showed up, and even then, it was just a brief flash of interest. Invariably, they had clearance, and the quartz was yet again left to stare at the same faces. She didn’t even know what lay beyond that room. By the time she got there, the doors were always closed, and she’d had it drilled into her head that she was not to look inside, lest she miss some rebel trying to sneak in while she was distracted.
Sometimes, she almost wished a rebel would show up just to break up the monotony, but if there were any left out there, they didn’t show up, again. The door swung shut, Snakeskin Agate came to fetch her, and she was brought back to the cubbies for the night. As always, Ametrine was left restless. She was one of a few gems who stayed there regularly. The others- while not unkind to her- were rarely there. Most of the cubbies were empty, their occupants off fighting wars, seeing planets she could only hope to see one day.
With a long, lingering sigh, the quartz grabbed at the edges of her cubby, ready to pull herself up, but somehow couldn’t gather the energy to do it. She slumped forward, resting her chin on the cool stone with the faintest of forlorn sighs. It echoed around her in the enclosed space, amplifying the noise, but unless her Agate came back to berate her, she couldn’t exactly bring herself to care much.