(Up top is a quick, simple headshot of Brigitta Parent for reference)
Bully had barely gotten any sleep last night. Before they went to bed the night before, Apple and Bully watched a mini-documentary on Georgia Tann, a prolific human trafficker who ran an unlicensed home that served as a front for black market baby adoptions. It was estimated that she sold a whopping 5,000 babies without getting caught.
She wasn't alive anymore--she died of cancer--but even so, Bully still worried about what could happen to his precious daughter. Being in the music business himself, Bully knew how dangerous and dark a life of fame could be.
"What's the matter, My Diamond? You seem...troubled." Sakura Pearl asked, interrupting Bully's train of thought.
He sighed deeply."I'm just worried about Rose. She's gotten inta alla this show biz, I'm worried about her safety."
Sakura nodded."Understandable. May I provide a suggestion?"
Bully shrugged." Go for it."
Pearl's gem glowed as she summoned Bully's laptop out of it and had him sign in. She typed TheReef.com into the search engine and clicked on the first result.
"And this is…?" He prompted.
"Ah yes, in the olden days of Gem culture, the Reef was a frequently used structure, specifically made for the use of Pearl creation, repair, and modification. The structure was equipped with an Artificial Intelligence named She--"
"Ok Pearl, I don't need a history lesson. Why did you bring me here?" Bully interrupted.
She blushed sheepishly and clicked on one of the tabs titled Pre-owned Pearls. "Because we're in more modern times, instead of going to an old building to get Pearls, The Reef has moved to a website where Shell moderates the site. It's much more convenient.
Pre-Pearls are geared towards younger aristocrats or those who don't want to pay the lofty price of a brand-new Pearl. There are so many different kinds of Pearl's to suit different kinds of needs. You can request Pearls and order Pearl accessories straight from the website. Each profile has background info, resumes, and qualifications of each Pearl and if you don't really have what you want in mind, you can take a quick quiz." Sakura explained.
Bully nodded and slowly. "Yes, yes….this could work."
********************
"Is she here yet, Daddy?" Rose Quartz asked for the bazillionth time.
"Not yet, dollface."
"When's she gonna be here?"
"I dunno, sweetheart, but she'll be here soon."
Rose sighed dramatically. "Well, she's not makin' a very good impression by bein' late."
Just as Rose was about to say something else, there was a knock at the throne room entrance. An Aquamarine opened the door and in walked a tall, black woman dressed in black from head-to-toe. She saluted the King. "My Diamond."
"Um, hi. So you're the black Pearl from TheReef.com?" Bully guessed.
"Yes, it is I, darling. Who else would it be? Allow me to introduce myself: I am Brigitta Parent but you may call me Ms. Parent or Brigitta, or whatever you choose to address me by. Oh! And this must be the Crown Princess Rose Quartz, I've seen your work and I must say I am quite impressed."
Rose smiled. She thought that Ms.Parent was very beautiful and classy. The way she carried herself and the way she spoke made her seem a little intimidating to Rose.
Like usual, she hid behind her Father shyly. "Th-thank you." She stammered.
Ms.Parent walked over and kneeled down so that she looked Rose in her sunglasses. "Hello, I'm going to be your new Pearl."
"W-what's a Pearl?" Rose asked.
"Well, Pearls can be and do many different things. But in your case, I'm going to be your guardian, protector, voice coach and nanny. Your Father and Mother are very busy people so I'll be here to spend time with you. I have already spoken with Agatha Taylor, and I will also be taking over the role of Rose's manager. Because we'll be spending a lot of time together, she believes I'll have a better understanding of what kind of roles Rose would be best for." Ms. Parent explained.
"Wait just a minute! A voice coach? Lady, I don't need a voice coach. My voice is perfect just the way it is!" Rose exclaimed.
"Rose, even though you believe your voice is perfect, there will always be ways to make it better. There will always be room improvement. Which reminds me, your Father has scheduled a vocal lesson for you today so we can spend some useful time together, so come along." Ms. Parent replied.
Rose turned to her Father. "Daddy?! How could you betray me like this?!"
Bully peeled his daughter off of his leg. "Look, Rosie, I'm sorry but it's all true. If you want to be the best, you gotta practice."
"My Diamond, you have a meeting with the Governess of the Bank of the Rock Candy Mines in a few minutes, we should get going." Dreyfus pointed out.
"Ah, right. Rosie, be good for Ms. Parent, I'll see you later!" Bully said, kissing Rose on the cheek and then setting her on the floor before leaving the room.
After her Father left, Ms. Parent brought Rose to the Garden on the roof of the Diamond Palace. The weather was very nice that day, the sun was shining and there were hardly any clouds in the sky.
"Now Rose, do you know how to do a scale?" Ms. Parent asked. Rose didn't answer.
"I see. Do you know Every Good Boy Does Fine?" Rose didn't answer again. Ms. Parent sighed, this was going to be harder than she thought.
"Rose, answer me." Ms.Parent ordered, more strictly this time. Rose Quartz stayed quiet, her arms crossed.
"Oh well, I suppose I'll just have to tell your Father about your terrible behavior." Ms.Parent sighed.
Rose Quartz hopped up. "You wouldn't."
Ms.Parent nodded. "Actually yes, I would. And he'll be so disappointed, you know. But he deserves to know that his daughter has been disobedient."
"No, no, no! You better not or I-I'll--"
"You'll what?" Ms.Parent challenged. "You need to learn to be more respectful, young lady."
"B-but I'm a Princess--"
"And Princesses are supposed to be kind, respectful, and well-mannered. You are a disrespectful brat." Ms.Parent replied.
Rose Quartz scoffed. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"Anyway," She began, summoning her phone out of her gem, "I'll give him a call right n--"
"NO!" Rose screamed. But this was no ordinary shout, it was a sonic scream.
The force of the sonic scream threw Ms.Parent violently against the railing of the roof. The stone railing cracked and she fell off the side of the roof. She was quick enough to catch herself but her phone fell out of her grasp and plummeted to the ground, shattering on impact.
Rose Quartz ran to the edge of the roof.
"No, no darling back up, it's not very safe over here!" Ms.Parent told her as she struggled to hold on. For once, Rose actually obeyed.
Rose couldn't believe she had actually done that with her own voice. She didn't know what was happening. She didn't know what to do.
"Ms.Parent, what should I do?" She asked, afraid.
Ms.Parent didn't know what to do either. This was quite the predicament. "U-um, I don't know darling...I-I...uh…"
Rose concluded that she had to do something. She couldn't let Ms.Parent die, her Daddy would get very upset with her.
Despite the warning, Rose moved closer to the edge, holding on to the railing so she wouldn't fall. But the railing she grabbed onto was not stable enough and it broke off, causing her to fall off the edge too. Ms.Parent let out a blood-curdling scream.
But Rose was fine. In her attempt to grab something to hold onto, her hand stuck to the wall, with rose pink light appearing where her palm made contact with the wall. She tried to pull it off but it wouldn't budge. She tried again and her feet ended up getting stuck to the wall. She pulled with all of her might and managed to get her hands free.
"Ms.Parent, come to me, I'll catch you!" Rose exclaimed.
Ms. Parent shook her head. "Don't be ridiculous darling, go and save yourse--"
"HOLY SH*T, WHY IS MY BABY WALKIN' ON THE F***IN' WALL?!" Bully exclaimed, when he came outside. He had been in his meeting inside when he heard screaming and shouting going on outside.
"My Diamond, just calm do--"
But Bully didn't sit around to hear what Dreyfus had to say. He climbed off the balcony and put his feet on the wall, pink light appearing where they made contact. He walked up the vertical surface, picking up his daughter and Ms.Parent on the way. When he reached the roof, he set them both down.
"Dreyfus, tell the Governess we'll have to continue this conversation later!" Bully called.
He sighed deeply. "You two have a lot of explainin' to do."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"She what?!" Apple screamed.
"Dollface, calm down, wouldja? Everyone ended up okay, well, except for that railin', but that's gettin' fixed." He chuckled.
"This is no laughing matter! My baby could've been hurt, or worse, killed, and you don't even care! That woman is a danger to Rose, you better fire her right now!" Apple exclaimed.
"Come on, it wasn't her fault. Rose's powers decided to show up unexpectedly, that had nothing to do with Brigitta." Bully replied.
"Yes, but what if these new powers get out of control, hmm? That woman obviously can't handle the responsibility of keeping our daughter safe. Our daughter had to come save her!" Apple pointed out.
"Calm down Redb, you're actin' like a Karen." Bully responded.
"A Karen?! W-well…..fine!" Apple scoffed, stomping off.
Bully gave a sigh of relief. "Sorry about all that. And by the way, congratulations on your new powers Rosie! We've gotta start your trainin' right away!" Bully cheered, swinging his daughter around.
His face then turned serious."Rosie, darlin', you were the only on the roof earlier, no one knows what happened betta than you. So, like they say, with great power comes great responsibility, these new powers are a sign of maturity. And because she'll be your nanny, I think it's only right for you to decide if she stays or goes."
Rose Quartz thought for a moment. She remembered the not so nice things Ms.Parent had said to her, but deep down, she knew they were all true. Ms.Parent was the first one to stand up to Rose, to tell her the truth rather than what she wanted to hear, and Rose somewhat respected that. And perhaps, if Ms.Parent stayed, she would teach Rose to be as classy as she was.
"I-I want her to stay." Rose said finally. This was a surprise to Ms.Parent.
"Really? Are ya sure, Rosie?" Bully asked.
Rose Quartz nodded. "Of course, I'm sure."
"Well, if that's what you want...I'll have to tell your mother about this and she won't like it…" He replied, setting his daughter down on the ground before walking off to find Apple.
"I don't really understand but, thank you, Rose." Ms.Parent said.
"You're welcome! Don't tell anyone I said this Ms.Parent, but you were maybe just a little bit right about what you said earlier. But just a little bit, so don't let it go to your head!" She replied.
Ms.Parent chuckled. "I won't. And by the way, you can just call me Brigitta."
"Brigitta…" Rose repeated, feeling the sound of the word in her mouth." I like it!"