"M-mom? You're crushing me..." Katie wheezed
"Oh! Sorry, dear! I'm just going to miss you so much" the woman said, pulling back to look at her daughter. "I can't believe my little girl is going away for so long" a tear rolled down her cheek.
"Mom..."
"I know, I know... you're not a little girl anymore". She brushed some stray hair behind Katie's ear, then brought her hand to cup her cheek.
Katie closed her eyes and leaned into the warmth of her mother's gentle touch. She allowed herself a minute of vulnerability– after all, she had no clue when she'd get another chance to.
Much too soon, a humble horse-drawn carriage pulled up in front of the Holt family's cottage. The two glanced through the front window.
"Looks like your ride is here" Mrs. Holt reached to hold her daughter's hands before they could gather her small case of luggage. Gazing into the girl's now-watery eyes, she said, "Promise me you'll take care of yourself, Katie-Kat"– the silent plea: please, I can't lose you too.
"I will. I promise. You don't need to worry about me". Giving her mother's hands one last reassuring squeeze, Katie promptly grabbed her things and headed out the door. Before entering the carriage, her thoughts were interrupted by a yip from her small dog.
She bent down and scratched him behind the ears. "Take care of mom, Rover". The pooch tilted its head to the side. "I'll be back. I'll bring them home".
Katie boarded the carriage, glancing back once more– her mother waving from the front door of the home she grew up in, with Rover at the woman's feet.
"I'm ready".
The carriage driver flicked the reins, and they were off.
Keith ran up to Shiro, poking him in the stomach.
"TAG! You're it!" he giggled.
"Tag? I thought we were playing frisbee?" Shiro laughed along with the 9 year-old.
"It's both! Frisbee-tag!" at that, Keith ran, clutching the toy to his body.
Shiro followed. "Well, Keith, I'm afraid to say you're looking at the champion of frisbee-tag" he played along (of course neither of them had actually played it before; Keith made it up on the spot).
Keith made a bad turn, now cornered by his big brother. "Catch!" The frisbee flew through the air.
Shiro watched it for a second before racing after it, giving the boy a chance to run away.
"I've got it now, you little booger!" said Shiro, holding the toy up triumphantly. He threw the frisbee toward Keith, but accidentally aimed too high. It ended up nestled in the branches of a tree, out of reach.
"Aww" Keith said, visibly deflating from disappointment.
Shiro ruffled his brother's hair. "I'll get it, bud". He scaled the tree, working his way to the frisbee. Slowly but surely, Shiro grabbed it and began climbing down. All the while, Keith stood and looked up owlishly at his brother. Shiro chuckled and leaned back on a branch until he hung upside down by his knees. Keith gave him a toothy grin, which Shiro returned without hesitation. Then...
"Tag" Shiro poked Keith's tummy (he knew this was one of his ticklish spots) and quickly climbed back up, out of the smaller boy's reach.
After giggling, Keith tried to glare and said, "That's against the rules!".
"What rules?" Shiro laughed.
"I make 'em up as I go" he said, crossing his arms.
"Ah". Shiro made a show of rolling his eyes, a smile still tugging at his lips.
A sudden, "ah-hem" made the two jump, Shiro almost falling out of the tree. They stopped their banter to see Coran, the royal advisor, with brows furrowed and foot impatiently tapping.
"If you were not already aware, the princes' presence was expected in the banquet hall... 15 minutes ago".
The two princes' eyes grew wide. They shared a look before rushing in unison to Coran's side.
"My apologies. It was my lapse of memory that-"
"-Save it" Coran snapped, "Besides, it's not me you have to apologize to".
*
Although late already by a quarter of an hour, the boy's had to make themselves 'presentable' before Coran would even consider letting them out into the view of guests.
They were no longer in casual attire, but dressed fittingly to their royal titles, for today was the much-anticipated dinner with an esteemed ambassador of the Erusian Empire– a strong possible ally in the fight against the Galra Kingdom.
The boys looked at Coran questioningly. "Fine- you look fine. Now for the sake of diplomacy, GO!" he whisper-shouted.
The princes entered the banquet hall through the oaken double doors. The Erusian they assumed to be the ambassador quirked an eyebrow, while their parents, the king and queen of Altea, looked relieved to see them arrive, but their expressions soon took on the form of anxiety and anger. The brothers shared a look: we're so going to get it once this over.
Shiro, being the eldest of the two, took control of the situation. "Good sir, I offer you my most humble of apologies for our absence and lack of proper hospitality. We ask your forgiveness, so we can all sit down together finally to enjoy this meal".
Keith wondered if his older brother could get them into their parents' better graces with some spiel like that. Noticing Shiro had bowed his head in respect, Keith quickly did the same. You see, being only 9, he had many things on his mind– and propriety didn't tend to be one of them. So he usually just copied his brother.
The Erusian smiled, "Forgiveness is granted, your highnesses. It would be my pleasure to carry on with our meeting".
With these merciful words, the tension in the room dissipated and all internally sighed in relief.
*
Thankfully, the dinner went well: the Kingdom of Altea had gained a new ally. The king and queen were certainly pleased with the diplomatic relations, but they weren't just monarchs; they were parents.
Shiro got the most scolding, given he was expected to me more responsible. "Takashi Shirogane, do you realize how much was as stake!?" the queen said.
"But nothing bad happened!" Keith defended.
"And for that we are beyond lucky, but it's not going to be like that every time. You need to start taking your positions seriously! I expect more from you– both of you".
"I'm sorry" Shiro said.
Keith looked down at the ground, suddenly finding his foot very interesting. "Me too. I'm sorry".
"I-", the king pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath, "Just go to your rooms".
"Thanks". Katie handed the driver some coins after stepping out of the carriage.
The man smiled. "No problem, miss" he nodded warmly and drove off.
Katie took a deep breath and gazed almost longingly at the building in front of her: Madame Valentine's Finishing School. Don't get the wrong idea, she would much rather be working on her inventions and gadgets than be 'molded into a proper young lady' as the motto promised.
But this wasn't where she was going, Katie knew, which was beyond anyone else's knowledge. No, while her mother and the others left behind thought she would be walking with books on her head at charm school, Katie would actually be posing as a new recruit of the royal guard. The headquarters, near the school– conveniently for Katie, a 20 minute walk away, would be her lodgings for the next year.
There, she would have access to files on MIA soldiers– particularly those regarding her father and brother. Katie knew they would never ditch their men and refused to think they weren't alive. They worked mainly as scientists, improving the technology for their defense lines. The two would be considered valuable for their expertise on any side. When a man came to the Holt's door, he told Katie and her mother that Samuel and Matthew Holt had gone missing during the most recent invasion. It was believed they had deserted Altea to join the Galra– they were the winning group, currently. But Katie refused to believe that. She knew her family. And from that point on, she devoted herself to getting them back. Everyone else refused to look into the case, despite Katie's endless pestering, begging, and yelling. Even her mother became hopeless, while Katie never stopped.
Colette worried for her daughter. Katie pulled far too many all-nighters, skipped meals, pushed her friends away– all for something she considered a hopeless cause. Neither lost faith in their family's morals, but as much as she hated to admit it to herself, Colette thought they were dead. That they could never come back. That Katie would just end up getting her heart broken all over again when she found the truth.
With all the time Katie spent on her mission, she really never took any for herself. Her books and tech projects were left untouched and coated with a blanket of dust. She hadn't had a real conversation with Hunk or Lance for months. Her friends worried about her too. When they tried to get her out of the house, offered comfort and love, she declined and pushed them away. It wasn't meant to hurt them. She just couldn't afford any distractions. So when she asked her mother if she could attend a finishing school in the city, how could Colette say no? Her daughter was finally moving on with her life, wanted to make something of herself.
Of course she had no clue what the real plan was. Katie felt guilty for lying, of course, especially to her mother, but she tried not to think about it as she made the trek to her true destination.
But first, a pit stop. She still had to change. This area of the city was comprised mostly of market booths, which meant no building with a bathroom. Katie was glad to come across a pub on her way there though. The Bloody Knuckle. Okay then... must attract an interesting crowd, she thought. And indeed she was correct. Making her way in, she smelled the customers before she saw them. Actually, the whole place reeked of hard liquor, smoke, and B.O. How lovely. After getting over the initial shock of the odor slapping her straight in the face, Katie got a real look inside. She wasn't surprised to see that most were big greasy, drunk dudes, some bearing tattoos and piercings, an eye patch here and there. Basically in one word: intimidating. The smallest man in there could probably squash her like a bug.
She jumped at a whistle, followed by a catcall. Flip 'em off said subconscious Katie. And she was very, very tempted to, but her logical side won out (per usual) and decided not to cause trouble– especially not here. Something told her that none of these people would hesitate to get in a bar fight. These guys weren't Jack Vinsky on the playground in fifth grade. Punch one of them in the face, and she wouldn't live to see another day. Jack just ran off and cried like a baby. Never pulled my hair again though. Katie snickered at the thought.
Luckily, a restroom was to be found in the back. And even luckier, it wasn't labeled 'men's' or 'women's'. Either one of those would be suspicious for either entering or exiting depending on which she chose. Of course seeing a girl go into a bathroom only for a boy with a striking resemblance come out wasn't too discreet either. She thought this was a bit better than changing in an alleyway though.
After entering, Katie firmly closed the door and double-checked the lock before she began. First of all: hair. She had been growing hers out for years, and it lay all the way down to her hips. But this hair belonged to Katie. And when she came out of this bathroom, she would be Katie no longer. She would be Pidge Gunderson, at least until she brought her family home. She opened her bag, bringing out a sharp pair of sewing scissors.
Here goes nothing.
She squeezed her eyes shut. Snip. A weight was taken off her head, and when she looked down, there lay a long lock of honey-brown hair. She continued until the tips barely ticked her neck. The style looked a lot like Matt's. Well, she looked a lot like Matt, in general. They were brother and sister, after all.
Next: clothing. No one would believe she was a boy if she wore a frilly day dress. First, she wrapped her chest. Sure, she was never very curvy. Honestly, she did kind of look like a little boy in that aspect. But in tight clothing, it would show.
She then peeled off her dress and petticoat, promptly shoving the items in her bag. Her shoes were already androgynous: lace-up boots made of supple brown leather, so she decided to wear them with her disguise. Before leaving home, she had snuck some of her brother's old clothes into her carry-on. They were before Matt's growth spurt, so they fit pretty well, only a little roomy and a bit long on her petite frame. She had taken simple tunics, leggings, and trousers, and some of Matt's night clothes. Once changed, she took a look in the mirror. She imagined how she used to look and absentmindedly ran her fingers through her significantly shorter hair. With a shake of her head, she cleared her mind and threw away her old image. Hello, Pidge... I'll see you later, Katie. With that, Pidge scooped her locks of hair off the floor.
She was drawn out of her thoughts by violent bangs on the door's other side, which were followed by a low growl.
"Hurry it up! I gotta piss, dammit!"
"Just a second" Pidge squeaked. She looked down at the hair in her hands. Shit. What was she supposed to do with it?
"Don't make me break down this door and throw you out!"
And with that, Pidge quickly shoved the hair into her bag, a bit still sticking out, when she slammed open the door and ran. Well, she was going to run. But before that, the door collided with a large body. Pidge skidded to a stupefied halt, while he howled in pain.
"What the hell?!"
"Sorry! I…um… I had diarrhea! Yeah, ya know, you guys get bloody knuckles, I get bloody diarrhea!" Pidge stuttered. Smooth, real smooth.
The man's angry face slowly contorted into one of disgust. "…Get outta here, kid. You ain't worth my time". With that, he left to do his business.
And Pidge did not hesitate to leave.