"...I-I cried on you…."
"Excuse me?" Sadie whispered in slight discomfort. She had asked what Connie had done. She'd assumed something magical.
"She did, it was absolutely disgusting." Aquamarine quickly added on.
"Well, first that robonoid was going to shatter me but then you jumped in front of me and you saved me, but you died, s-so I cried on you… and now you're back…!" Connie smiled happily through tears. She then realised she'd once again used her powers on Sadie without her permission. "Is that okay…?"
"Wha- Yeah it's okay! You think I wouldn't let you bring me back to…!" It finally sunk in then and Sadie thought it through. She had died, for real. Connie with her weird tear powers had brought her back to life… and… "Oh my gosh, I'm yellow…!"
"Yes, you are. That's a side effect of my powers… apparently…" The young Diamond whispered, tapping her fingers together nervously. She glanced up. "On a scale of 0-10, 10 being you're still dying and 0 being you're fine, how are you?"
"... I-I think I'm at a 10… emotionally." Sadie croaked dryly, staring down at the shot wound that had killed her. "... I'm internally screaming.."
"I am too!" Connie cried way too happily.
They suddenly heard the sound of the more robonoids drawing near to them.
"Not again…!" 7XR whispered in surprise, glancing over the open entryway.
"Guess Pink Diamond remembered we're very difficult to stop." Variscite frowned slightly. She'd already sent 40 to them, no doubt eager to get rid of them once and for all. That was one reason, the other being to kill their new recruits, which had happened once already.
Jasper and Topaz ran up to the nearby rock, struggling to push it into place.
Connie waved them off after running off before suddenly kicking the rock like it was a soccer ball, it very easily rolled into place.
"Wow! Humans are so strong!" Topaz gasped.
7XR grimaced. "If you were always that strong, why'd you not just destroy my ship in the first place?"
Connie winced but knew any response she could come up with would just add to her hatred. She walked back to the group.
"They won't stop coming, not now that they know our base..." Idolite mumbled, mainly to herself.
"Could you find a new base?" Connie asked hopefully, them all watching her pace back and forth. "There weren't too many out there, you could take them!"
"Yes, but that would lead to more as well as actual Crystal Gems coming to dispose of us." The leader sighed in worry.
"So you're going to become sitting ducks…" Sadie mumbled.
"No, we are not!" Aquamarine huffed, upset she'd treat them with such indignity. "How dare you call us that! …. Topaz doesn't know what a duck is, so you shall explain it to her!"
"A sitting duck is an expression, it just means being trapped and waiting for the inevitable. Sorta like when a dumb teen runs into a dead end in a cheap zombie film and….!" Sadie looked surprised and looked at Connie. "Am I a zombie now?!"
"No! That's not possible!" Connie insisted at once. "Zombies stem from a virus, magic spell, or by being bit by a current one! None of those things happened so… you can't be a zombie!"
"You're right, I've seen enough movies to know that…" Sadie sighed softly. Still, her face was twisted in worry, placing a hand to her chest. "... I was still brought back to life though…" Her eyes widened. "M-My heartbeat is super slow now…! And my skin is yellow!"
"I-I'm sure if Pink Diamond knows you're not a gem, she won't put you in the museum because you're yellow!" Rhodonite tried to help.
"Don't…. worry… Sadie… I… think…. you… look… beautiful." Fluorite smiled softly. Since she and Connie supported her look, she was happy to support theirs.
"Me too!" Connie chimed, walking up. "And if it makes you feel any better, at least your hair didn't change!"
She tried to hold Sadie's hair to show her a lock but it suddenly glowed brightly.
The girls gasped in shock, Sadie quickly crawling away.
"What was that?!" Sadie asked in shock before trying to touch her hair too. It glowed again before she pulled her hand away. "Why is my hair glowing?!"
Connie slowly walked up like she was trying to reassure a frightened and jumpy animal. "I'm going to try touching it again… Is that ok?"
"I guess I'll allow it…" Sadie whispered.
The teen winced slightly at the confusing light while Connie gently petted her hair, her fingers phasing into it. Her eyes then widened in shock and she gasped, backing away. "It's just like…! Sadie, I've seen this before! May I try something?"
"... Try what?" Sadie mumbled with apprehension.
"I'm going to be inside of you."
"WHAT?!" Sadie asked, looking disgusted.
"I know it's scary, but I'll be fast and gentle, I'll only be in there for a second... I'm going to use your hair… to go into your head."
Sadie crossed her arms. "Are you going to possess me and tell all these people I have feelings and you just can't say them… If that's what this is, I wanna say on my own terms, I'm terrified and yet intrigued by all the gems here."
"Good." 7XR smirked while the others besides her and Aquamarine seemed confused as to how she could think they were scary.
"It's not that… I'm actually going into your head…" Connie mumbled. "If you don't want me to…"
"Connie, I want to know what I am now, and if you can get some more clues by… going in my head… I'll let you. I won't get mad." Sadie sighed, looking too tired to care much.
Connie smiled. "Thank you."
The girl walked to Sadie's back before she took a breath. "It's going to be on the count of three, alright? 1… 2…. 3!"
Sadie winced but then realized there wasn't any pain. She looked over her shoulder to see Connie had a full hand, in her head. The girls only stared at each other, unsure what to say in their equal horror and surprise this had worked.
"Everyone… stand… back… they're… going… to… make… a… powerful… fusion…" Fluorite announced. Rhodonite hid behind her in slight fear.
Variscite clenched her hand into a fist tightly, taking a sharp breath. "That isn't fusion."
Connie dove into Sadie's hair, and she was gone.
Connie emerged in a familiar yellow field. She luckily had held her breath, because she thought this was the case. She noticed a undecorated oak tree in front of her, making her tilt her head slightly in confusion. She then turned and her eyes caught on something in the distance: her tree.
Connie tried to run to it but found she could only walk at a steady pace. She took the time to absorb it all, the t-shirt her father had given her mother, the flag with the yellow diamond in the center, and her old favorite dress that fluttered in the wind. Her heart swelled in hope when she finally reached the tree, and she plunged down.
Connie gasped for air, plunging out of her lion and into her home. The world came into focus as she stood and tears came to her eyes. "I'm home… I'm really back home!"
She laughed in relief, hugging Lion and then looked around the beach house, before running around a moment, calling out for her mothers. "Jasper, Lapis, Peri! I'm home!"
Sadly, no one answered her, and she noticed all the lights were off and the blackboard they'd used to make their plan was untouched. "...Guess they're not here…"
Connie then noticed a empty cup sitting by the sink and gasped. She hadn't had anything to drink for at least a full 24 hours! She sprinted there in a second with her diamond powers and quickly filled the cup before gulping it down. After she did so, she drank three more, getting the usual intake that was recommended for a full day in case she couldn't come back soon. The girl then quickly grabbed two of her premade veggie snack packs, putting one in a paper sack and scarfing down the other. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she felt overwhelmingly happy now that she was home and had food and water again. "Thank the stars!"
The girl grabbed a few bottles of water, juice, and some lunch meat and cheese, knowing she and Sadie would need plenty of food groups to stay healthy and keep variety in their diet. She turned back to Lion before looking worriedly at the warp pad. "... I wish you guys were back too…"
Lion snuffled a bit, reminding her of her mission. Her eyes then widened in surprise, realizing that Sadie and Lion were now connected in more ways than one. She slowly hugged her pet. "I'm so sorry you had to go through that, my big, beautiful cat…You probably have so many stories you can't tell, huh…?"
Lion nuzzled her slightly as if to say that he was alright before kneeling down before his mistress.
"Alright… I'll see you when I see you." Connie whispered, kissing his forehead before jumping in.
Sadie checked her pulse again, unsure how to feel about her slow heart rate. Did this mean she was going to age super slowly now? Or not at all? What if she was immortal? Would she outlive her parents? Her friends? Lars? Tears came to her eyes at the thought.
Sadie immediately jumped from her seat in shock when her hair started to glow, giving Connie a not so graceful entrance.
"Ouch.." Connie whispered while Sadie helped her up.
"Sorry, but what'd you find in there?!" The older girl asked in anticipation.
"I found home!" Connie beamed with a slight laugh.
"Wait, what?!"
"Sadie's hair, it gave me a way back to Earth!" Connie explained to the waiting rebellion.
"How'd that happen…?" Sadie asked, quickly brushing her hair over her shoulder to touch it. She turned to Connie. "Do you mean you saw my memories or-?"
"No, no! It only looked like I went into your head, when in reality, your hair is a portal to another dimension!" The girl announced.
The cavern was silent for a few moments.
"May I ask for some clarification, please?" Idolite whispered while the others were staring in confusion.
"Of course." Connie smiled like she was a teacher who thought any and every student could understand her, when the opposite was true. "Quite a long time ago, my mother found a lion and revived him, much like I did for Sadie. Like Sadie, I can enter his mane which leads to another dimension. In this dimension, my mother and I kept all our treasures next to and on a pretty tree on a hill. It's all golden and I can't breathe in there. And so," She took a breath. "when I revived Sadie, I unwittingly created another tree, also known as another entry point into this same dimension. The two are connected to each other because they share the same experience of being revived by my and my mother's powers. My lion, he's on Earth so I was able to exit at his tree and return to our home planet!"
"... Alrighty then…" Sadie whispered dryly, trying to process it all.
Connie suddenly handed her the sack bag. "I brought you substance from home!"
"Oh, er, thank you, that's nice but I'm not hungry…" Sadie mumbled, pushing it back.
"Not hungry?" Connie asked in confusion. "You should be starving! You haven't eaten in days!"
"I-I know… Must be your magic… Healed my need to eat too." Sadie realized with surprise.
"... So… the Earth is still alive…?" Variscite suddenly asked, making Connie jump a bit.
"Oh, not this again, Vari!" Aquamarine groaned. "Everyone knows that planet was destroyed eons ago! This human is lying."
"No, I'm not….!" Connie tried to insist but Topaz spoke over her.
"But Yellow Diamond wouldn't allow it to be destroyed!"
"Surely she couldn't stop it though…"
"If… I… may… add… in…"
"If the Earth is still alive, Yellow Diamond and the original Crystal Temps must be too..."
"Um, I've actually been-!"
"Pink Diamond attacked and I was given the message to give to my Morginite that she did destroy it! But then again, she could've been lying…"
"The… Earth… is…"
"The Earth is still there!" Connie cried, interrupting Fluorite. She whispered an apology before going back. "7XR and Fluorite have been there too!"
"Why didn't you tell us?" Variscite whispered, seeing them look a bit worried.
"Wasn't supposed to let anyone know in the first place, and besides, it would bring up a lotta painful memories for you, right?" 7XR asked.
The gem hesitated but then nodded. "Yes, it would…. That's why they locked you up, I'm guessing."
7XR nodded solemnly while Flourite looked down, realizing that the terrible future Pink Diamond promised her components was made up. They would've been locked up and separated either way.
"Pink Diamond did attack the Earth, but she didn't destroy it." Connie grunted, narrowing her eyes. "She couldn't, not with the Crystal Temps and Yellow Diamond protecting it."
"Why protect such a useless and dull planet anyway?" Aquamarine asked with a huff, crossing her arms.
"It's not useless or dull!" Sadie cried. "Have you been there before?"
"Well, I…! No… I haven't."
"It's a wonderful place where you're able to be yourself, love who you love, do whatever job you'd like, choose who leads you..." Connie whispered. "On Earth, you can build a life where you're happy all on your own."
All the gems, even Aquamarine, looked amazed that such a place even existed.
"I want to go to Earth!" Topaz exclaimed.
Idolize hopped up. "Me too, me too!"
"You already know my answer." Rhodonite smiled faintly with Fluorite giving a nod.
"I'll come along, someone has to keep you lot out of trouble!" Aquamarine hummed, hiding a tiny smile.
Connie turned to 7XR who glanced away at seeing her gaze. "I'm not going back."
"But you loved it on Earth, I know you did!" Connie insisted. "I'd never seen a Homeworld gem happier to have discovered Earth than you."
The Jasper grimaced. "Yeah… but… freedom on Earth wouldn't be worth it without my team."
"Then… we'll look for them."
She glanced back in surprise. "What…? You'd do that?"
"Of course. It's our fault they're even in space. We'll… look in the stream of the warps, check Earth's satellites, make a ship, we can even stargaze until we see them again, I'll do whatever it takes to get you reunited."
7XR had turned away yet again to where Connie couldn't see her expression. "... Okay… I'll come."
The space went quiet and they turned to the remaining gem, Variscite.
"Don't you want to come too?" Connie asked, tilting her head.
Variscite gave a small sigh before she shook her head. "I'd love to, but… I can't abandon this rebellion. Someone has to stand up against Pink Diamond, against everything she's done, and everything she's planning."
"Gee, are you sure?" Sadie asked with concern.
Variscite nodded, her expression hidden and her voice cold. "Of course I am."
"But-!" 7XR held Aquamarine back from pulling the broken gem with them.
"She wants this, leave her be."
"How do you know what she wants? You've only been here a little bit, Topaz, Idolite, and I know her and she-!"
"I want to stay here, Aquamarine. Besides, Sadie will need someone to keep her company." Variscite mumbled.
"But Sadie's…!" Connie then realized it was true that Sadie wouldn't be able to go through her own hair. She looked over at her friend who tried to hide her crestfallen face. "Sadie, don't even worry about it, we'll find another way-!"
"No…Don't be stupid." Sadie smiled weakly. "We both know we'll either be captured, killed, and get these guys involved in it too, or you'll bargain your freedom over to Pink Diamond like you were going to earlier. I'm not having any of that, alright? Everyone, go to Earth... It's a beautiful place with wonderful people, and there's no scary Diamonds there."
"No. I'm staying with you." 7XR grunted, stepping over to Sadie. "You're going to need a pilot when I find us a ship. Hope you don't mind hunting for a few of my friends on the way."
"I… won't… abandon… the… first… that… didn't… see… me… as… a… monster…" Fluorite smiled warmly.
Aquamarine gave a groan, knowing all the others would join too given their nature. "I can't say no, can I?"
"Everyone, thank you." Sadie smiled. She then turned to Connie. "Connie, you have to go back now."
Connie's smile fell at once. She had been very excited to go home, of course, but… "I can't leave you here, I want to do whatever it takes to get you home too!"
"I know, and that's why you have to go. Pink Diamond will stop at nothing to see you killed, anywhere you went, you'd put an automatic target on us too. So, don't think about it like you leaving me. We're just keeping each other safe, alright?"
Connie felt tears come to her eyes before she embraced Sadie. "I-I'll bring you whatever you need, and if you ever need my help, I'll be there too! And I'll tell everyone you're alright.."
"Sounds good." Sadie whispered, giving her a squeeze. She smirked, shoving her off a bit. "Get outta here already, you're embarrassing me in front of these cool gems!"
Connie laughed slightly before Sadie turned around to let her see her hair. She waved goodbye to the 'Crystal Temps'. "Be careful, everyone."
The gems all called goodbye in their own form, the leader telling her to be careful too before she leapt in, and left Homeworld behind.
Jasper panted heavily as they warped into the beach house, she hadn't said a single word as they searched for a way to get to Homeworld, shaking with rage and sorrow.
"I could just fly there! Let me fly there and get her!" Lapis cried to Peridot who pouted back.
"I want to find my baby just as much as you do but we don't even know where she is on Homeworld, Lazuli! W-What if Pink Diamond…?!" Peridot held back tears before sobbing into Lapis' dress.
Steven stared at his shield while Doug started to pace back and forth in worry, clutching his hair like his daughter did when she was anxious.
Suddenly though, Connie stumbled out of Lion in a bright glow, making them all turn to her. Tears filled her eyes as well as everyone else's. "GUYS!"
"I like the hair…" Jasper whispered dryly and without thinking before fell to her knees in utter shock and relief, opening her arms just in time for Connie to barrel into them, hugging her tightly as they all cried, Peridot, Steven, Doug, and Lapis joining in on either side, all their tears floating upwards into a cloud as Lapis had lost control of her emotions in that moment.
For this singular moment, in not thinking of the past or the future… Everything was alright.
While the family and friends shared that tiny moment of safety though, a not-so-happy reunion was also occurring.
Pink Diamond slowly stepped into the white throne room, not bothering to glance up, rather staring at her new white sandals.
"You tried… to shatter her…"
The young Diamond tried to speak but she was cut off at once, as she usually was.
"Do you honestly think that would solve anything…? What would you accomplish if you destroyed Yellow, hm? Forgive me, but I don't believe shattering her was a part of the plan! And you reset many gems, honestly these temper tantrums are getting to be less cute and more… upsetting the more times you do them."
"I'm sorry…" Pink Diamond whispered softly, bowing her head. "I was just so angry-!"
"I know…The woman shushed, making Pink stop in her words. "But imagine how upset you would be if you had done away with her… You'd be responsible for yet another Diamond's shattering…!"
Pink Diamond tried to hold back her tears but they didn't obey her wishes as all her gems did.
"There, there, Pink, there's no need to ruin yourself with that useless emotion…" The young Diamond winced when a black-painted fingernail gently lifted up her head to look at her. "All you must do is listen to me, and Homeworld will be back to its glory in your eternal control."
Pink Diamond slowly nodded her head, practically brainwashed after the years she'd spent alone with this woman. "Tell me what to do… I promise I'll make you proud…"
"I know you will, my precious starlight."