Day 4: Selfishness

"We always said one of us would marry Shiro some day."

Pidge half turned to look at her brother as he stood in the doorway of her room. Her floor length gown shifted with her, revealing muted pink and green beneath sheer white. Flowers in those three colors adorned her hair as a crown, pinning back her hair to keep it from falling in her face. "I can't believe this is happening," she admitted.

Matt stepped into the room and made his way over to her, intending to help her finish getting ready. "Nervous?"

Pidge shook her head. "Excited. I'm just... I'm so happy, Matt. I never thought I would be this happy." Her smile fell as she turned back to the floor-length mirror. "It's perfect, except... I feel a little guilty."

"Hey, if this is about my old crush on Shiro, I swear I'm over it. I got over it years ago," Matt told her. "Besides, I mean, Allura's pretty great. She's cute and funny and so smart and-"

"Mom and dad should be here."

Matt's shoulders slumped. "Yeah. I wish they were here too."

Pidge looked down, running her hands over the soft fabrics of her wedding dress. "It feels selfish, being so happy without them here. Getting married when we still haven't found dad."

"Hey." Matt took her by the shoulders and turned her to look at him. "None of that now. We're going to find him, Katie. And then we'll all go home to Earth, mom and dad will have a big, dramatic, happy reunion, tears will be shed and it'll be beautiful. Then you and Shiro can have this big fancy celebration with both families and all our friends and you'll renew your vows, because that's the cheesy sort of stuff you two do. Then we'll all blast off back into space and live happily ever after. But for now, you are going to go out there and marry the man you love and who loves you back."

Pidge's eyes began to fill with tears. "Matt..."

Without caring about ruining her dress or makeup or the hair that Allura and Lance had painstakingly put together, she threw her arms around her brother in a grateful hug. "Thank you."

Matt calmly wrapped his arms around her. "That's what big brothers are for. Also, remember this moment and don't kill me when I deliver the most embarrassing speech at the reception."

Pidge laughed, which was exactly what Matt had been hoping for. They separated and once Pidge wiped away her tears, Matt offered her his arm.

"I'm ready," she said, taking his arm.

"Good. Then lets get you out there."

When Katie was nine years old, her dad came home with news of a brilliant new student attending Galaxy Garrison. It started off with small comments every now and then, but by the time summer came around and Matt himself began preparing to join the Garrison in the fall, the name Takashi Shirogane was mentioned on a near daily basis.

Katie and Matt had taken to teasing their dad whenever Shiro's name was brought up and had their own personal joke that he was their dad's "favorite son".

"You know, maybe one of us should just bite the bullet and marry him," Matt suggested one day. "Then dad can have his dream son."

Katie laughed from where she lay sprawled out on her brother's bed, being absolutely no help as she watched him pack his bags for school. "Well, since it's your idea, I think you should be the one to marry him. I'm too busy for boys anyway."

Matt laughed and affectionately ruffled her hair. "Dad will be glad to hear that. Though I don't think he would really mind as much if you married his precious Shiro. Are you sure you don't want to at least meet him before you turn him down?"

"Nah. He's all yours," Katie said. "I can already picture it: the two of you meet at school and fall in love, dad cries at your wedding, and then the two of you adopt ten kids and live happily ever after. The end."

"You forgot the part where we go into space and discover aliens actually do exist. Also, ten kids? Really?" Matt asked, exasperated.

Katie sat up and shrugged. "It sounded like a good number. Why? Is ten not enough?"

Matt wrinkled up his nose. "I was thinking just two or three." He pulled a few shirts out of a drawer and moved back to the bed where his suitcase was. He prodded Katie's leg after putting them inside. "Are you going to sit there, or are you going to help?"

Katie grinned and flopped backwards. "Neither. I'm going to lay here."

Matt rolled his eyes and affectionately muttered: "Brat."

Four months later, Katie would find herself dealing with an utterly smitten Matt who was just as bad as their dad when it came to waxing poetic about Takashi Shirogane. It would be years still, before she truly understood what it was about the man that made her whole family love him so much. Years which would eventually lead her to standing across from him, holding hands and gazing into those wonderful brown eyes, and professing her love for him in front of their friends – their family.

And after he said his own words to her and Coran pronounced them husband and wife, she eagerly wrapped her arms around his neck and stood on tiptoe to kiss him deeply.

Katherine Shirogane had never been more happy to have given into a selfish wish.