Harlan and Fiona looked back and forth between the two beauideals for a moment. The sounds of the guards' footsteps were quickly growing in scale.
Kitten frowned as she opened her mouth, but Harlan acted quicker.
The Zenotote quickly produced a board from her suit and presented it to the pointed ear beauideal.
"A signature, please," Harlan shyly asked.
She had prepared something to sign beforehand to set up a story of passing as fans, but she was secretly glad Kitten was the beauideal she could ask. The green Zenotote bore a small, smug smile as she considered showing the signature to Rheba later.
"Oh, a fan!" Kitten went into her beauideal mode as she clapped her hands together," Of course, I'll sign."
Scarlet sat on the other side of the room with her eyes squinted. She glared at Fiona, who tried to look in the other direction shyly.
Kitten took notice of the red Aqueenian's staring after finishing her signing. She leaned around Harlan and looked at Fiona.
Banging at the door soon followed.
"Guards, open up!" echoed from the closed door.
Kitten squinted her eyes, and then a devious smile went across her face. She grabbed Harlan and Fiona by the arms and maneuvered them across the room to hide them under the vanity. Afterward, she threw a blanket over her and began applying makeup. To justify the cover, the beauideal deliberately poured some cosmetics on the sheet to appear messy.
At that moment, the guards burst through the door with Batty at the head. They looked all around the room. Scarlet looked away from the guards without a word while Kitten smiled in their direction. Those that were fans of the beauideals shivered as they saw their favorites.
"Can I help you?" Kitten asked in a sugary sweet voice.
"Some intruders snuck in, and we have reason to believe they came this way," Batty replied.
"Intruders! Oh my, I haven't seen any, but I wish you luck!"
"Kitten's such an angel!" one guard whispered from behind.
"No, you fool, Dia's the angel!" a fan of the winged Aqueenian snapped back.
Batty grunted and glared at the feuding guards. They snapped to attention and nodded to each other to say, 'we'll continue our argument later.'
"Well, sorry to disturb you," Batty said. The guards began to shuffle out and continue their search for the intruders. Kitten didn't remove the blanket until the dressing room door was firmly shut.
"Why did you do that?" Scarlet asked in a low tone. The pointed ear Netzian made a laugh which resembled an 'ohohoho' before responding.
"For fun, of course!"
Harlan and Fiona carefully navigated out from under the vanity. As the Zenotote scientist brushed her clothes off, the Aqueenian princess spoke up.
"Thanks for your help!"
"Anything for a fan!" Kitten replied in kind. "Now, to sneak out of here, you just need to–"
"Actually, we need to find the beauideal Dia. Do you know where she is?" Fiona interrupted.
Harlan froze and stared at the blue princess in shock. Kitten's face turned from happy to sullen in a flash.
"Dia, huh?" she said with a low growl shaking her voice.
Harlan's slitted eyes darted around the room between the others as she tried to think of what to say to break the tension. It was considered treacherous to mention another beauideal when asking for an autograph, as Harlan had done moments before.
Fiona punched her flat palm with her Needaimus bonded fist.
"Yeah, and we have some business to attend with her," the Aqueenian princess added. Fiona had not meant it, but her actions suggested enough for Kitten's face to soften. Harlan let out a deep sigh of relief as she saw a way out of the treachery.
"Dia killed her father, you see," the Zenotote scientist explained. She didn't like giving up crucial information about their mission, but she liked the idea of her favorite beauideal, believing she wasn't a loyal fan. Fiona looked at Harlan with shock while Scarlet made an 'ah-ha' expression.
"Your Princess Fiona," the red Aqueenian whispered. Kitten was the only one who heard, and she jumped in shock.
"A princess! Here in my changing room!" the pointed ear Netzian gleefully said. Fiona looked slightly uncomfortable, but her time in Horizon had let her get used to the princess role enough to go with the flow.
"Yes, I am the second daughter to the late Jolon Whitlock." Fiona channeled everything she recalled from her classes, which wasn't much, to speak politely and curtsy.
"Amazing!" the bright-eyed Kitten said, "And the rumors were true after all!" she added.
"Rumors?" Fiona asked.
"Of Dia killing a foreign leader! I always knew that biaskylo had it in her."
"Kitten, language!" Scarlet whispered only loud enough for the pointed ear beauideal to hear.
"So what do you plan to do? I recommend a shoulder throw followed by drilling your elbow in her stomach!" Kitten happily suggested.
"Kitten! We should report her to the authorities!" Scarlet whispered back.
"No way! Do you know how many times she went off script and beat me! No, retribution is needed," the pointed ear beauideal said with a sinister grin.
As the exchange happened, Harlan sadly looked at the ground. She knew beauideals personalities were not necessarily accurate to their real ones, but she had not expected the sweet Kitten to be so violent and the violent Scarlet to be so shy. Her image was shattered, but the conversation continued without care for Harlan's feelings.