So what was spinel thinking when she regenerated with a star for the first time.
There was no Gem equivalent of a family. Gems were their cut and material, along with their purpose and programming. Add a few personalized touches, and that’s all there was to them.
Except Spinel. Spinel was a one-of-a-kind meant purely to keep her Diamond company. At the time, she relished in her task. It was always so much fun, playing with Pink. Looking back, the gem almost considered her Diamond to be something more akin to a sister, but not quite. There was a rift between the two, a divide that never went away, even after Pink swooped in to save her from the garden.
But at the time, Spinel had no idea. She was a best friend and her best friend was Pink.
That is, until she wasn’t.
Running through the trees, tears in her eyes, her emotions overcame her in a brilliant explosion of light. She’d been a good friend, hadn’t she? She’d done everything Pink asked and more. So why? What happened?
When she came to, she was surrounded by a bunch of unfamiliar gems. The only face she recognized there was someone she’d never given much thought to before, but was happy to see her now. She and her leader explained who they were, and what they stood for. Deep down, Spinel knew she could never go back to Pink, and this place-these people- seemed nice enough. So she decided to stay.
It only took a few short weeks for her to adjust, make friends, and create deep connections with a lot of the other Gems there. So, naturally, when she gripped her weapon and dove head-first into war herself, her first move was to try and prove herself to her new companions. She fought hard, and right, and true, but so was everyone else.
She saw someone familiar out of the corner of her eye. She raced over to her friend, and stopped the war hammer from shattering her, taking on the hulking form of an enemy Homeworld gem. When Spinel poofed, it was almost painless. She saved her friend, and she was there when Spinel reformed.
Spinel knew she could never go back to Pink, but now, she knew she didn’t need to. She’d only knew this gem for a few short weeks, and she already knew she’d do just about anything for her. For all of her friends. For everyone fighting for freedom.
The points of the star poked out from under her gem, seamed into the light material fabric of her shirt. She was one of the many hearts of the Crystal Gems, and now, she had a family, one that she’d always want to fight for and protect. They had taken her in even though they had every reason not to, and she was forever grateful. Of course, she couldn’t be everyone’s friend, but she tried. Oh, she tried. Many bonds formed, some strengthened, very few weakened, and soon, she had a close-knit group of friends she could finally, finally, call her own.
And bonds only grow with time.
