"I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner!" White exclaimed. "The answer is you two!"

"Us?!" Yellow and Blue asked at the same time.

"Your powers! Blue, you can change his mood; and Yellow, you can simply make him small enough that he won't be a threat!"

"Size didn't stop Steven's powers from being dangerous when he was going through his, ehm, rough patch." Yellow reminded White.

"No, indeed not. But he has no idea of our powers. He has no idea what to expect; he won't be dangerous Blue's powers take effect."

The pieces connected in Blue and Yellow's heads. "I must admit, that is a good plan." Blue said with confidence. "When will Black Diamond be here?"

"By now, he'll have found out about Homeworld and its coordinates. It won't take long."

"But long enough for the people and gems around Beach City and Little Homeworld to get to safety." Yellow added.

---

Doug and Priyanka went upstairs to Connie's room. Her door was left open a little bit, so the sobbing they heard from within told them that Connie heard the rest of the conversation they had with Pearl. The two parents looked at each other, nodding in understanding and remaining firm in a decision they'd just made.

"Honey?" Piryanka called out, slowly pushing Connie's door open. Connie was balled up in her bed.

"Connie, we understand the pressure of this sort of thing is overwhelming." Doug started off.

"The world might as well be ending!" Connie said abruptly with a slightly raised voice.

"I take it you heard the whole conversation?" Asked Doug with a gentle tone.

"If there's nothing we can do at all, why can't I help?" Connie asked amid sobs.

"Yeah. . . we thought that too." Priyanka agreed.

The sobs slowed down. Connie sat up abruptly with a, "What?!" Her eyes were red, and her cheeks were stained with tears.

Both her parents sighed heavily, then sat around her on her bed. Priyanka used her thumbs to wipe away Connie's tears. "Oh, Connie. Once, you were a timid little bookworm; our little girl."

"After all these years, you've grown into so much more." Doug added, "You're a warrior. You've been to space; and more than that, another planet!"

"You've accomplished so much, and have so much to show for it. Connie, we couldn't be prouder." Priyanka said, looking very emotional.

"The gems would be lucky to have you by their side to save the world. Who knows? Maybe your help will give us the edge we need to survive."

Connie reached over, grabbed a tissue, and wiped her nose. She couldn't believe her ears. Her parents actually changing their minds on something they already said 'no' to? "You mean...?"

"Yeah." Priyanka interrupted with a deep sigh. "You can go."

'Yep. That just happened.' Connie couldn't believe it. She quickly squeezed both her parents in tight hugs. She grabbed her sword and backpack, which she'd packed much earlier when news broke out, and left. Before she did, she looked back at her parents again with a smile and said, "Thanks. Love you."

"We love you too, Connie." Her parents said in unison, waving goodbye.

The second Connie shut the door behind her, Priyanka fell off Connie's bed, onto her knees, and began sobbing into her hands. Doug began crying, too. He slipped himself down beside his wife and put his arms around her. "It's okay, Priyanka. It's okay; it'll be fine. . . it'll, it'll be," He said the words of course, but he wasn't sure he believed it, himself. He didn't finish his sentence.

---

As the gems were escorting people to safety via the catacombs, Garnet suddenlly stopped. She turned to Pearl and said, "Take it easy."

"Huh?" Pearl asked.

"I'm here to help!" Connie spoke up from behind Pearl.

Pearl turned around immediately as she recognized the voice. "Oooooh no you're not, young lady! You and your parents are going to wait this whole thing out down here. We have an orderly system; we're bringing people and families down, alphabetically by last names. Now you go back and wait with your family."

'I expected her to freak out.' Garnet thought. She continued minding her business and let Pearl handle her situation.

"If the odds are really as bad as you say they are, what difference will it make?"

"The difference is that you might survive down here."

"If this is how things end, then all my training will have been for nothing."

"Don't you get it, Connie? Your training is nothing in the face of this. What we were told about this enemy, I. . ." She lost her words a bit, but took a deep breath to calm down. "Why else do you think we're not with the Diamonds?"

. . .

"They're the only ones big and powerful enough to stand a chance." Pearl answered herself.

". . . Big?" Connie emphasized one word of Pearl's?"

"That's a very reckless line of thought, Connie." Garnet said, seemingly out of nowhere, obviously having used future vision.

"But not without its merit." Connie said before running off, hopping on Lion and running off.

"Where does she think she's going?" Pearl asked. Garnet chose not to answer.