White's ship docked just outside her palace. Even without Inconel shadowing her, the journey home had not been easy. She had unsuccessfully racked her mind for even a whisper regarding Magnetar, Inconel, or any other such Metal entities Inconel had called 'Alloys.' The attempt left her mentally exhausted, frustrated, and ready to get out of her ship.

Homeworld's sky was dark, but the crisp night air put her at ease. There were so many new scents that elated her after incorporating organic plants into the surrounding architecture. It brought about a clam in White that she was in desperate need of.

The click of her shoes on stone ground was slow and weary. She wasn't used to such a lack of confidence in her stride. It reminded her of her inability to shatter Inconel or protect Spinel from him. She was the strongest Gem, the first Diamond, and Inconel wasn't bothered by her strongest attack. It was troubling to say the least. Not to mention, Inconel wasn't even the leader of this group of unknown enemies. If Inconel was just a flunky, what would a fight with a leader of these Alloys look like? "I'll just have to learn more. If I know their weakness, then I can exploit it," she reasoned with herself.

The soft sniffle made White pause. She already knew whose sorrow she would have to face. In the open archway of the palace stood two large forms. Blue Diamond was leaned into Yellow Diamond for support. It had been ten years since Blue last cried, and one look at the tears made the guilt ravage White all over again.

Cradled in Blue's hands was White's bubble, which contained the fragments of Spinel. Yellow didn't cry, but she was shaken. She tried so hard to be Blue's rock. Both their eyes found White, their silent gaze demanding answers. White came to embrace them both. Under normal circumstances, she was more reserved. She was the one the other two Diamonds looked up to. "There is much we need to discuss. But Spinel needs us as of this moment." White said.

"Steven would be ashamed how quickly I tried to shatter Inconel," White sighed. She explained everything to her fellow Diamonds while they pieced Spinel back together in Yellow's study.

"Though he can't be shattered," Yellow huffed. She didn't look up from her careful work while she spoke. She used her tweezers to put another pink shard into place. There were only a few more pieces before the heart was whole. "You're stronger than us, so I doubt my destabilizing trick will work."

Blue wiped a stray tear with her shoulder, as her hands were engaged with holding the last few shards of Spinel. "Don't feel bad for what you did, White. I would have tried to shatter him too," she promised.

"I'll speak with president Zircon," Yellow added. Her brow was furrowed down as she put in another piece. "We need to bring in forces from across the colonies to reform the army. Warrior Gem's are spread thin across the stars on peace missions, and we are out of practice with fighting. No matter how advanced this 'Magnetar' and his followers are, one of his generals attacked one of our vessels, attempted an attack on a Gem colony, shattered a Gem and then attempted to kidnap a Gem diplomat. Each individual action is horrid. All together it is an impressive declaration of war."

"I would usually lament the concept of war," Blue whisper. Her tone brought White's focus onto her. Her eyes were steely and unfocused. "Steven would tell me to be more understanding. I find it hard though, after we finally achieved peace for ourselves."

White shared the vengeful sentiment. The fact she couldn't have shattered Inconel herself and save them all from the heartache was still a hard truth to swallow. She took in the fury of her other Diamonds and she reminded herself she had to be the leader. She forced a smile and placed a hand on both Yellow and Blue's shoulders, "Our peace doesn't have to be gone. Remember, we are the faces of Gem Kind. Our Gems look to us to remain levelheaded and positive. I know that is hard when we are hurting ourselves. But I am here for you both whenever you are weary from the job."

Blue leaned into her, and even Yellow cracked a smile. 'They rely on you, White. I can take on their burden as a leader.' White thought. Plus, Inconel had placed her as the target, and didn't mention her other Diamonds at all. She had to keep it that way.

The little gem heart lit up with a warm pink glow. White, Blue, and Yellow touched it as it floated, and their combined powers fixed the cracks. Spinel's light form grew from her Gem. Spinel's color returned to her as the light dimmed. Her new form wore a flared pink skirt, a matching puffed blouse with a red ribbon tied around her gem. Similar ribbons held up both her pigtails.

She was disoriented but she still smiled when she noticed the three Diamonds over her. Without a word she stretched her arms to hug all three of them.

"Thank the stars," Blue said to her.

White lifted Spinel's chin with her fingernail to catch her attention, "Spinel, I'm sorry I wasn't able to protect you. Inconel caught me off guard. It won't happen again, I promise." She wasn't sure how she would keep that promise. She wasn't stronger than Inconel. Plus, White doubted he was far from the strongest of his kind. She wasn't accustomed to being on the weaker end of a fight.

Spinel blew off the comment with an over exaggerated raspberry. "I'm the one who should be sorry! I didn't have the chance to sucker punch that big metal joke," she tilted her head as she observed White. "Are you ok? That looser really shook you up."

White felt the comment draw Blue and Yellow's confused gaze onto her. She recovered and thought up an excuse. "I'm rusty is all. We'll reestablish our army and come back stronger."

Spinel cracked her knuckles. "Good to hear! We'll send that metal boy dented and back to wherever he came from."

"But before any of that," White said sternly with a raised hand for emphasis. "We won't leave ourselves open to attack by being complacent, but we still can't give up on an attempted peaceful conclusion. I don't want to risk more Gem's being shattered. If I am a distraction for our new metal 'friends', then perhaps a different negotiation is in order."

Spinel squealed with delight and spun which made her skirt twirl. "There is only one guy in the Universe who can stop a war before it starts!"

"Steven would know what to do," Blue agreed with a smile. "We are also overdue for a visit. I'll get the ships prepared."

"Wait!" White protested. Blue blinked at her, unsure how to handle White's urgent tone. She masked it fast. "Inconel was able to trace the Sun Incinerator's Crystal Core Engine. Space flight risks him locating us, and that is the last thing we want to bring to Earth. Warp pads are the safer alternative."

Spinel let out a snorting laugh. "Easy enough for me, but you Diamonds may want to shrink a bit before we take the Warp, least we smash Steven's house, again."