Myra, your post cracked me up.
unicycleharry, it sounds like your parents need to read the forum a bit, and/or watch some videos showing unicycles on the road, perhaps they’re stand may soften a bit. (Just don’t show them any Kris Holm or similar ones, that would only make it worse.) (Although your age may also be a factor, you don’t mention that detail.) Unicycling is at least as safe as regular bicycling, and, statistically, has fewer (reported) injuries. (Refer them to scholarly report here: What Was Your Worst Unicycling Injury? , but be careful not to let them read the rest of the thread, which shows numerous unicycle injuries – not the right direction to go I think.)
If their main complaint against commuting to school is the dark early morning, then perhaps you could bring it along with you to school in the morning (assuming you get a ride), and then ride it home in the afternoon, when the sun is nicely illuminating the landscape? Sounds like a good compromise to me. Good luck!