Sky flipped on the auto pilot and sat back in Red's seat. She found a peace in Red's cockpit that she couldn't find anywhere else. Sky was tired. Tired of being depressed, tired of crying, tired of eating anything and everything she could find with peanut butter in it, tired of waiting. Every day that she didn't hear from him, not even an email, was torture. So she was doing everything in her power to keep busy, to keep from giving into her misery. Even if that meant helping Cady prepare for her engagement ball and wedding while pretending it wasn't painful.
It had been two days since Gideon and Lynnai's encounter with the muggers. The story had gotten out and a press release had been written and given to the press. Three of the four men involved had been arrested while the fourth was still at large. The members of the Force were now required to carry their weapons at all times and accompany any of the other members of the royal family if they wanted to go into town. The three younger princesses and prince were driven to and from school every day.
Sky glanced at her watch and saw that she had been flying over the woods and the flatlands for over an hour.
"I guess I should head back," she mumbled to Red.
The castle was quiet when she returned. It was mid afternoon on a Sunday, so no one had classes, all practice was finished and since Tristan was doing well, Keith decided to give them all the afternoon off. They would have to start again the next day, the Commander won't be happy until Tristan was able to move seamlessly with the rest of the team. Sky couldn't help but smile as she thought of her best friend's fiancé. He was so focused, so intent on doing well, that he didn't even want to take the afternoon off. But the rest of the Force was bogged down with the double practice needed to train Tristan and their schoolwork. They needed a little time off.
For her own part, Sky didn't want the time off. Time off meant her mind wandered, she thought about the wedding she should be planning along with Cady, the free time alone without Erik, trying to keep her mind off her problems. Maybe I'll walk down to Mom and Dad's house, she thought as she entered Castle Control.
It was quiet, or rather as quiet as it can be in Castle Control. The hum of the machines, the lowered murmurs of the guards on duty, the click of boots on the marble floors. They were comforting sounds to Sky, they were the sounds of home, of safety. She smiled and nodded to a few of the guards who saluted her.
It was a beautiful day and she knew that Cady had been wanting to go into town and look at dresses with her. Sky was sick and tired of everyone avoiding the topic of weddings with her. Cady wanted her to be her maid of honor and she was thrilled and honored as well as depressed and hurt. But this wasn't about her, this was about her best friend. If Cady wanted to go look at bridesmaid dresses, then she would go look at bridesmaid dresses. But she would put her foot down, there are only so many ruffles and flounces she would actually wear.
Sky made her through the hallways and to the rec room, assuming Cady would be in there discussing wedding colors with her sisters. Charlotte was pushing for pink and purple while Tess wanted blue and pink. Sky just hoped it would be any color but pink.
"Get him! Come on, Dec, you can get him!"
"Geez, Nicky, I thought you liked me better." Gideon teased.
Sky stopped in the door and watched as Declan put Gideon in a headlock, forcing him to his knees.
"Be careful," Brina said worriedly.
Cady looked up from the binder on her lap, "Come on, Gid, are you really going to let him do that to you?"
"No." Gideon kicked out and laid Declan flat on his back.
Sky stepped around the twins as they wrestled on the floor while Nicky jumped up and down, clapping his hands, and joined Cady and Brina on the couch. "What's going on?"
Cady shrugged, "I don't know. Something about Gideon being a jerk and Declan being a moron and the next thing I knew, they're on the floor trying to kill each other."
"They're going to hurt each other," Brina said.
"They deserve it then," Sky looked over Cady's shoulder at the binder. "Have you decided on colors yet?"
"Nah, but I have it narrowed down. I think you'll like the color I picked out for the bridesmaid dresses."
"What is it?"
"I can't really describe it, hold on," Cady flipped through the clipped pictures and articles that filled her wedding binder. "Here it is."
Brina and Sky leaned over the picture.
"It's beautiful," Brina gasped.
"That's just the color and fabric, I haven't decided on the style of dress yet."
Sky studied the picture. The fabric was a sophisticated, shimmering cross between smoky gray and pale lavender. "It really is beautiful," she whispered. "And it's not pink."
Cady rolled her eyes, "Come on, Sky, I know better than to ask you to wear pink."
"Ow! Damnit Declan!"
"Gideon swore," Nicky announced. "I'm gonna tell Daddy."
"You are not!" Gideon grabbed his seven year old brother around the waist and tackled him.
Nicky laughed uproariously as his the twins attacked and tickled him.
"Boys, get up," Keith ordered as he walked into the rec room. "Dec, Gideon, Sky, Brina I want you guys in the conference room in five minutes. Okay, Cady, you can come too." With that, he turned and left.
"I wonder what that's about?" Declan asked as he stood and hoisted Nicky over his shoulder.
"Can I come too?" Nicky asked as the blood rushed to his face.
"Nope, obnoxious little punks aren't allowed," Gideon teased.
"Then why are you going, Gid?" Nicky shot back.
Declan laughed, "Good one, Nick, for that, after the meeting, we'll go outside and play ball."
Cady closed her pink and white covered binder and stood, "I'm going to run this back to my room. Don't let Dad start the meeting before I get there."
Five minutes later, the Voltron Force along with Cady, Keith, Allura, Lance, Hunk, and Pidge crowded around the table in the conference room.
"What's going on, Keith?" Lance asked.
"This," Keith threw a copy of the newspaper on the table.
They all leaned forward and caught the headline splashed above the fold, Corruption In The Palace: How A Terran Soldier Manipulated His Way On To The Voltron Force.
"What the hell is that?" Hunk asked.
"It's Mytch Martyn, isn't it?" Tristan asked quietly.
Keith nodded, "Yeah. He went to the press and told them that we gave Tristan the position of Blue's pilot because he was seeing Cady. He went on to say that Tristan was not qualified and had no loyalty to Arus."
"That's not true!" Blue's pilot insisted. "I'm going to marry Cady, I'm here for the rest of my life."
"And Blue choose you," Allura added.
Lance picked up the paper and flipped through the pages, "This is pretty long."
"And detailed," Keith said. "Martyn does not have a lot of nice things to say about the Force, Tristan, or those of us from Terra who he believes came to Arus and have tried to take over and turn Arus into another Terra."
Allura scowled, "That's just ridiculous! You guys saved Arus, you helped modernize and save us. We've rebuilt and been safe for over twenty years because of you. Why would the paper print such lies?"
"Because it sells," Lance said, folding the paper back and showing them a picture inside. "He must have gone straight to the press after your little encounter, Tristan."
He leaned forward to see a picture of Mytch with a swollen lip and a black eye.
"That's what you did to him?" Cady whispered.
"This is just asinine," Tristan snapped. "I'll go to the press myself and give my side of the story."
"No you won't," Allura told him. "We'll put together a statement on behalf of the royal family."
"And then we'll go find Mytch and beat the snot out of him," Declan added.
"After the statement is written," Keith said, ignoring his son's comment. "You can read over it, Tristan, and see if you have anything to add."
"Yes, sir," Tristan mumbled, already formulating his statement.
"For now, I don't want anyone to speak with the press, we will handle it," Keith continued. "All the other precautions stay in effect, none of the royal family goes out without a guard."
"One more thing," Allura added. "Cady and Tristan have chosen their wedding date, February 20, which gives us just over seven months. I was thinking we could plan for the engagement ball next month."
"Yes," Cady said excitedly. "And by officially announcing our engagement everyone will see how serious Tristan is about staying."
"We'll need to be careful, I'm going to up security and we'll be screening everyone who comes," Keith said.
"Is that really necessary?" Cady asked.
"I don't want any of those gang members in the castle," Allura told her. "They are trouble and they use drugs. I don't want them near the children."
"But how do we know who is and who isn't in these gangs?" Pidge asked.
"Paton is working on that," Hunk said.
Keith nodded, "And we're helping in any way we can."
"You can't think that anyone we'd invite would be involved with these gangs," Cady gasped.
"I'm sure they wouldn't be, but we can't take chances," her father told her. "We just wanted to warn you guys about what is being said and to warn you against any possible problems with the press. If you are approached, just tell them you have no comment. Any questions?" He waited a beat. "Okay, you're dismissed."
Allura grabbed her daughter and Sky before they could leave the room, "Come on, girls, we have a party to plan."
"Tristan, do you want to help?" Cady called over her shoulder.
"Uh, thanks, hon, but I think I have to…" Tristan trailed off as he tried to come up with a believable excuse.
"Play ball with us," Declan finished for him.
"Yeah, play ball with them."
"Come on, sweetie," Allura threaded her arm through her daughter's. "It'll be easier without the boys."
"And what are you doing this afternoon?" Tristan asked Cady a few days later.
She sat at her vanity brushing out her hair as he walked into her open door, "Mom, Sky, Charlotte, Tess, Brina and I are going in to town to speak with a caterer for the ball and then we're going to meet up with Lynnai to look for dresses."
He leaned against her dresser and crossed his arms over his chest, "The three of you are going with just Sky and Brina?"
"We're going to be driven into town by an armed guard and there will be two other guards escorting us as well. Geez, Tristan, you're starting to sound like my father."
Watching as Cady pulled her hair back and clipping barrettes above her ears, his fingers itched to touch her, so he stuffed his hands in his pockets. "I'm allowed to worry. When will you be back?"
"We'll be back in time for dinner. Why?"
"Just wondering. I thought, maybe, tonight we could do something. We've both been busy, I thought it would be nice to hang out."
Cady stood and walked over to him, slipping her arms around his waist, "That would be nice."
"So it's a date?" He asked, bringing his arms up around her.
"It's a date. Did I tell you my dad talked to Uncle Sven last night?"
"No. What did he say?"
"Uncle Sven said Erik is helping him out and actually going out and doing stuff."
"Stuff? Like what stuff?"
"Going out with his friends and working out. He's even attended a couple of meetings with his father."
"That's great," Tristan said. "Maybe he's starting to turn around."
"We sent them all an invitation to the ball, I hope he can come."
"You're imagining some great romantic reunion between him and Sky, aren't you?"
Cady shrugged, "Of course I am."
Tristan chuckled softly and gave her a quick kiss, "Don't cause trouble. Let them work this out themselves."
"I will, I just want to nudge them in the right direction."
"Ready to go Cady?"
The two of them looked up to see Sky standing in the open doorway.
"Uh, yeah." The Princess slowly pulled herself out of her fiancé's arms.
"You girls be careful," Tristan said as he walked with them down the hallway. "Don't talk to the press if they approach you."
"Yes, sir," Cady saluted.
"I'm serious."
Sky rolled her eyes, "I promise to deliver her home safely, sir."
"I appreciate that, Sky, and if you can, feel free to come home safely yourself," he teased.
She ignored him.
"Oh, lighten up, Schuyler," Tristan threw his arm around her shoulders. "Of course I want you to come home safely, I need you on my team for the baseball game this weekend."
Biting back a smile, she elbowed him in the side.
"You girls have fun now," Tristan said, stealing a kiss from Cady as he left them with the others.
"When are we meeting Lynnai?" Cady asked Allura as they headed down to the garage.
"We're meeting her in front of the 'Beauty Boutique' in an hour. I've spoken to the caterers already this morning so that shouldn't take long."
"Is Nanny still not talking to you?" Sky asked.
Allura smiled softly, "She isn't happy, but I think she's beginning to understand that this would be too much for her. She is still going to help, but the caterers will take the pressure off her."
Brina shook her head, "When is she going to just give in and retire, put her feet up."
Allura, Cady and Sky all laughed.
"Oh, Brina, sweetie, Nanny will never stop and put her feet up," Allura explained. "If she couldn't fuss and work and worry, that would be the end of her."
"Have you given any thought to what dress you want to get?" Cady whispered to Sky as they slid into the SUV.
Sky shook her head, "Nah, who do I have to impress?"
"We're going to do you up," the Princess announced. "We'll get your hair done and get you a new dress, new shoes. You'll knock 'em dead, Sky."
"I don't think so."
"Oh, it'll be fun," Allura said. "And you'll feel better."
"I don't know about that."
"I do," the Queen assured her.
Sky sighed and turned to look out over the beautiful Arusian landscape as they drove into town. The others all chatted excitedly, discussing dresses and hairstyles. She pressed her forehead against the glass and closed her eyes. I am going to have fun today, she mentally told herself. I am not going to think about Erik, I am not going to get depressed, I am going to have fun.
"Sky, have you tried contacting Erik at all?" Brina asked.
She lifted her head from the window and looked at the others, "No."
"Maybe you should," Allura suggested.
"Why?"
"I spoke with Romelle this morning, he's getting better. She said he's getting out, seeing his friends. Sven has been helping him a lot. Maybe he's ready to talk."
Sky felt her heart sink as she looked back out the window. He's getting better, he's more like his old self and it's all happening without me. He doesn't need me.
"I just want to run in here and see if any new magazines have come in," Cady said three hours later as she stopped in front of the small newsstand store.
"In the past four days?" Sky teased.
The gaggle of women had spent the past two hours trying on dresses and checking out shoes. Even Sky was feeling better. It had been fun to just goof off, laugh and relax with the girls.
"I might have missed one."
Brina pulled open the door, "Seeing as you have enough bridal and wedding magazines to plan sixty different ceremonies, I doubt you missed any."
"When you guys are planning your weddings, I am going to remind each and everyone of you of how mean you're being," Cady huffed as she entered the store.
Cady, Brina, Allura, and Lynnai went straight to the fashion section while Tess and Charlotte hurried over to the teen magazines. Sky wandered around the perimeter of the store, skimming her eyes over the magazines and the candy racks. Idly, she picked up a general interest magazine and flipped through it. There was a picture of Cady and Tristan sitting at an outdoor café with a side bar showing a timetable of their relationship. Sky held it closer to examine the picture and saw the circle drawn around Cady's left hand and the text 'Engaged?' printed beneath it. She shook her head and walked over to where Cady was, knowing the Princess would be annoyed to know the media was already reporting about the engagement.
"Cady?" Sky crossed the store, marking the page with her finger and flipping through the pages.
"What?" The Princess looked up from a magazine Lynnai was showing her.
"You have to see…" Sky stopped abruptly and nearly dropped the magazine.
"What is it?" Cady asked as she and Brina approached.
Quick tears filled Sky's eyes as she looked at the picture she had stopped on. Under the words 'New Love For Polluxian Prince?' was a picture of Erik sitting in a seat at the stadium, his arm across the back of the seat next to him as he leaned toward the girl occupying the chair. Beneath the brim of his hat and dark glasses, a smile spread across his face.
Cady pulled the magazine from Sky's hands and shook her head, "That's Kendall Lockwood."
Sky knew who that was. Kendall Lockwood, with her fair complexion, thick black hair and dark eyes was exotic and beautiful, the daughter of Romelle's former lady-in-waiting Paget and her husband, Rankin. Erik had grown up with her and she was Delora's best friend.
"Now, don't jump to conclusions," Allura said. "We all know how the media can get the facts mixed up."
"Can we go home?" Sky asked quietly.
"Oh, of course, we've done and bought plenty," Allura took the magazine from Cady and stuffed it into a nearby rack.