Phosphophyllite

Phosphophyllite, or Phos for short, is the main protagonist and the youngest Gem when the story began. They're weak, brittle - not suited for battle - and their clumsiness makes them difficult to maintain any other roles. Phos has always wanted to be useful. Phos's initial job was to make a natural history encyclopedia which they progressed very little on. They promised to help Cinnabar find a job suited for them as well. Phos so far is the only Gem who has had drastic body and personality changes. Phosphophyllite wears a standard winter uniform and black shoes without socks, occasionally accompanied by long black gloves. Phosphophyllite has mint-green features known by the Gems and the Admirabilis as the Lunarians' favorite color. Their hair is short, originally just beneath the ears, but cut shorter in later chapters to imitate Antarcticite's hairstyle. Over the course of the story, parts of their body are replaced with other gems and metals. They lose their original legs when Ventricosus attempts to trade them with the Lunarians for her brother. After a failed negotiation with the Lunarians, Ventricosus changes her mind and gifts them parts of her brother's agatized shell as a replacement, which gave them mobility unbeknownst to any Gems. After losing their arms during winter duties, they were replaced with gold and platinum alloy, which made their arms gold in color and Phos larger in size. Their new arms can shift form and become semi-fluid at will. They also use their alloy to replace the heels of their shoes, likely inspired by Antarcticite. Phos carries Antarcticite's broken blade and uses it during patrol and battles. They switch to a normal sword around meeting with Padparadscha. Phosphophyllite displays a change of personality over the course of the series, mainly due to maturing, trauma, and outside influences. This is mainly due to the fact that the Gems are not equipped to deal with trauma. Initially, Phos is a young overconfident, clumsy and naive Gem, who is the only one capable of getting away with talking back to Sensei. Many gems describe them as “lazy” and “useless” due to their fragility and incompetence, although Phos does display a drive to help Sensei and the others that’s only held back by their low hardness. Once gaining new legs, they become more capable, but not as much as they wished. There is an underlying way of how Phos acts and speaks about themself that hints at them taking the “useless” and “lazy” comments to heart, and impacting their self-esteem (which is generally what the ice floes repeat back to them). These facts indicate that Phos may have something of an inferiority complex. They settle with what they can do and constantly state that they will try better next time. Their drive becomes self destructive in its own sense, leading to them losing their arms and eventually mental stability. Upon witnessing Antarcticite’s abduction, this marks a clear point in change for Phos. Their carefree nature disappears and they are incredibly distraught over the loss. They become reclusive and tend to keep emotions to themselves, although some of Phos' old self shine through from time to time.