Secret or not, you have to fix Pearl

You pinkified Pearl. She would have hated this more than anything. You have to turn her back, first. You have no business calling yourself her friend if you don't. But how?

The obvious solution is mix up a can of Goth Juice or Emo Juice, and pray the conversion from pink to black is one-to-one. But, just to be safe, you search the Juicer Max's controls to see if there's some kind of undo button.

Beneath the big red "JUICE" button that got you into this mess, there's an unassuming gray button labeled "CLEANSER". That must be what you're looking for.

"As much as I hate to interrupt a professional Quenchologist at work," says Indigo, "but we did pay for tickets to a rave. How about we come back when the party's winding down?"

A murmur of agreement passes through your friends. You, however, remain strategically silent.

When your friends start filling out - including Pearl, to your dismay - you press the CLEANSER button. The button lights up, and the machine emits a high-pitched whine - all other soda and flavor indicator lights switch off. The pour button, however, remains lit.

When they're mostly out the door, you jab the button.

The Juicer fills, seals, and delivers an ice-cold can labeled simply Cleanser. The cure to Pearl's pink problem.

Quickly, you snatch the drink and run to catch PEarl before she's filed out of the lab with the others. You tap the suddenly blonde girl on the shoulder to get her attention.

"Sorry for making you drink something called Bimbo Juice," you say, secure that you're the only one in the room. "Honestly, I think this one's more your speed."

Pearl skeptically accepts the gift. "What's 'Cleanser'? Sounds like a cleaning detergent."

"It was one of Popple Quench's unreleased soda lines," you BS. "I think the concept was that it removes aftertaste - like what you get when you drink grape or orange soda. Or in this case -"

"Bubblegum," says Pearl. She frowns and works her tongue around the inside of her mouth. "The aftertaste isn't that bad, but it is lowkey making me want to drink another. Sort of like how you can't only have one potato chip. Well, let's see if it works. If this is a mint soda though, I'm going to sue."

Pearl pops the can and tries a sip, her expression reserved. But as with the Bimbo Juice, it seems taking "only one sip" is not an option. The tiny sip leads into a longer pull, and a deeper drink, until Pearl simply pours the whole can of Cleanser down her throat in one go.

When the can empties, Pearl rights herself with a totally neutral expression, staring straight ahead. "Huh."

"How do you feel?" you ask, taken aback by her non-reaction.

"I feel fiiiiiiiiiiineeeeee," drawls Pearl, her eyes losing focus and her expression going blank. The pink lipstick and eyeshadow fade away, as does the blonde in her hair. The rest of the pink in Pearl's outfit also saps away. It's working!

But your relief is short-lived. As blonde and pink seep out of Pearl, the color isn't replaced by anything else.

Her makeup disappears entirely. Her pants and shoe laces turn a light shade of gray, and her hoodie evaporates, revealing a greyscale Power Wolf t-shirt. But the logo fades away, leaving the shirt a blank white. Her bleach-white sneakers turn into a pair of nondescript flats, and the pockets disappear from her cargos. The pants lose their bagginess, becoming totally unremarkable in any way.

Pearl's hair shifts from blonde to a light shade of grey. Even Pearl's irises turn grey. Her skin, which was pale before, turns almost as white as paper.

"Pearl?" you ask, startled at the extensive transformation.

"Yes?" says Grey Pearl, still staring straight ahead and holding the empty can.

"Are you... okay?"

Grey Pearl turns expressionlessly toward you, and answers in monotone. "I am okay."

"You're not acting okay."

"I'm not?" she asks, faintly puzzled. "How should I be acting?"

"I don't know," you say worriedly. "Complaining? Sarcastic? What's with this neutral act?"

Neutralized Pearl frowns. "I'm not acting."

Crap. You were trying to fix her, but you just made it worse. "At least tell me you noticed the change this time," you say.

Pearl gives you a blank look. "How so?"

"Seriously? When you drank that last can, it destroyed your favorite hoodie."

She regards you for a second, unimpressed. Normally Pearl would scoff at you, or call you an idiot if she didn't believe you. But Pearl only gives you a quiet look. "If you say so. Are you ready to go back to the party now?"

"You don't remember wearing a hoodie?"

"What are you talking about?" asks Pearl, looking at her white t-shirt and plain pants. "Is there something wrong with my clothes?"

"No, no..." Shit. She doesn't remember being any different than she is now.

On the verge of panic, you reason with yourself. Maybe you did something wrong. Maybe she wasn't supposed to drink the Cleanser, but pour it over herself? Maybe Pearl's in the middle of purging the Bimbo Juice, and she didn't drink enough Cleanser to flush the drink out of her system? Or, well, can't you just reflavor Pearl by serving her a can of Goth Juice or whatever?