Chapter Text
"Argh! Would you quit that?! I-I'm going to poke my eye out!", Morty yelled, angrily. He glared at Rick, who was sitting in the driver's seat next to him, before adjusting the rearview mirror to see himself better. He was trying to put on mascara, when Rick took a sharp turn to the side and made him lose his balance.
"Pissy much? You know that mirror is for me to see what's behind us, right? It's not designed for your face painting", Rick turned the mirror back to it's original position.
Morty huffed and rolled his eyes, before turning the mirror back to himself. "Oh please, we're literally in space right now, there is nothing on any side from us, you'll survive five minutes without it", Morty said, putting on the mascara.
"If I'd knew you'd be like this I wouldn't have let you keep doing your make-up here. I might have to revoke your privileges, you can get dolled up at home", Rick said, half-jokingly.
"No!", Morty quickly screamed, sudden fear rising in him for no reason he could explain.
Rick looked at him oddly, surprised by his grandson's outburst, "Jeez, I was just kidding, calm down."
"S-sorry…", Morty looked down, embarrassed by his own reaction. He just couldn't do this at home. Rick was chill with it, but the rest of the family… Morty wasn't ready for them to know. And he couldn't go back to only doing it in the middle of the night in secret! Now that he felt what it's like to show off his make-up in some place where no one would ever recognise him, he couldn't give it up. Every time they went on an adventure now Morty felt so much more confident! The feeling alone was too good to give up. Morty put away the mascara back into the tiny bag he kept in the glove compartment.
"Whatever" Rick turned the mirror to himself once more, so he could see the rear window just in time to see a piece of space debris rush towards them. "Shit!" Rick turned the wheel harshly to avoid the thing crashing into the glass. There was a sudden lurch from the ship to the left and one of the small screens started to flash red.
"W-what happened?!" Morty picked himself up to a sitting position.
"W-we got hit on the side, moron! That's why the mirror isn't for playing dress up!" Rick pressed a couple buttons to turn off the blaring alarms of the ship. "We're gonna- We're gonna have to land, so I can fix it."
Morty avoided looking at Rick, slightly ashamed that he caused the collision, instead opting to look out the window. In the distance he spotted a big neon sign. "Hey, Rick? What's that?" Morty pointed in the direction of the light.
"An asteroid city! Good eye, Morty!" Rick turned the ship towards the asteroid for an emergency landing.
As they got nearer to the asteroid Morty could just about make-out the writing on the neon he saw earlier. "Woodenville — a place where gents are charming and ladies precious"
"Th-this place sounds pretty- pretty old-timey, a-are you sure you can fix the ship here?", Morty asked, almost pressing his face to the glass to see as much details as possible.
"Mo-urgh-ty, it's just a- a dent, I-I just need a place to park and a few minutes to fix it. They could be- they could be stuck in the middle ages and it'd be fine. Un- unless they'd proclaim us witches and tried to burn us on the stake" Morty send Rick a quick glare. "Gee, tough crowd. Don't furrow your brows so much or you'll pop a, urp, a vessel."
"Whatever" Morty rolled his eyes and looked out the window again. "Let's just get this over with."
Rick landed the ship next to a lonesome gas station at the edge of the town. An elegant alien approached them and Rick rolled down his window. The alien strangely resembled a human if not for the purple shade of his scaly skin and completely black eyes. He was wearing a full old-timey suit, complete with a top hat and a monocle.
"Good morrow, my good Sir, to what do we owe the pleasure of the visit?", the alien asked, tipping his hat at Rick.
"Are you- are you going to stone us for having technology here?", Rick asked without beating around the bush.
"Oh goodness, no! We pride ourselves in our technological advancements, our ships are the best on this side of the system", the alien laughed and winked at Rick.
"Cool, we got a dent to fix", Rick pointed his thumb in the direction of the damaged side of the car, "know any place we can park for a bit?"
"Ah, yes, just head north until you see the sign for the Horse Wheel, best mechanic in town!", the alien made a wide gesture with his arm, waving his hand across the sky. "Just, err, be careful with your minikin over there", he nodded in Morty's direction, "I try to be an open-minded gentleman, I know this generation gets all kinds of ideas, but a woman in trousers? Now that's just preposterous!"
Rick furrowed his brow, looking at Morty and then back at the man, "That's my grandson."
"So you got yourself a mollycoddle! Now, I may be very progressive", the man stroked his chin proudly, "but the town folks may think you spoony."
Morty shrunk in his seat. Suddenly he felt a deep wave of shame wash over him and he wished to disappear. He didn't listen to the rest of the conversation Rick had with the alien, before he walked off and Rick closed the window again. He pressed a few buttons on the screen, before starting the car and moving forward.
"Al-urgh-ight, listen Morty, this might be a- a huge chance for an upgrade, but we gotta- we gotta play by their rules. These people somehow made huge technological advancements without making any cultural ones."
"W-what does that mean?", Morty asked, though he already guessed what Rick would say.
"Y-y-you gotta get rid of the make-up for a few hours. And maybe wear a hat? I-I don't think we're in the powdered wig era" Rick waved his hand around his head for emphasis.
In this moment, should Morty just give in, wipe his make-up off and then re-do it later? Probably. That would be the smart choice, the easy no-brainer choice that would get them through this whole thing conflict free. At that moment though, after what that alien said to them, Morty felt an awful rage build inside him. Why should he play by their rules? Why should he ruin his make-up that he just finished just because Rick wanted some advancements to the ship? Why should he be ashamed on a planet where no one knew him?
"No."
"W-what do you mean no? Morty, I don't have the patience for this", Rick scowled at Morty.
"No.", Morty said firmer and crossed his arms, "I'm not taking it off."
Rick groaned, rolling his eyes in annoyance. His grandson had the tendency to get defiant at the worst of times and for the stupidest of reasons. He didn't have the patience to deal with this. "Fine." Rick reached into the glove box and took out a small, necklace-like device that he put on Morty's neck.
"Rick? What is this?" Morty examined the thing. It looked like a simple silver chain with a blue pendant hanging from it. Rick pressed the pendant.
"You don't want to play the gentleman? Con-urgh-grats, you're a lady!"
A bright light shone from the pendant right at Morty's eyes, forcing him to close them to not get blinded. The weight of what Rick just said sunk in, when he opened his eyes again to see his clothes completely transformed. His yellow shirt and jeans were now covered by an era-appropriate, long yellow dress with a matching hat, decorated with a feather. "What the- Rick!"
"Hologram clothing! Be grateful Morty, this is a topnotch disguise, undistinguishable from real clothes", Rick said, putting on a similar device, disguised as a bolo tie, on his own neck and pressing the button. His disguise was much more masculine, a proper suit with a top hat, similar to what the alien they met earlier wore. "Look, you can even take off the hat!" Rick took off his hat to demonstrate.
Morty blushed and pulled the already long skirt even further down. "Rick! You can't do that!"
"Listen, June bug, y-y-you had an option for a manly disguise", Rick shrugged, "It's just for an hour or two anyway, you'll survive."
"Rick!" Morty wanted to complain more, but the car pulled forward and they stopped, finally at their destination.
Rick got out of the car, ignoring his grandson's indignant tone. Morty looked at himself in the rearview mirror. His face was completely red and he felt so bare in the dress, yet looking at his reflection, he had admit he was quite a pretty face. That didn't change his frustration at what his grandpa did, but it did make him feel slightly better. He was still mad though. He crossed his arms across his chest and huffed, falling back into the backrest. The window on the driver's side opened and Rick peered in.
"I've got good news and bad news. Good news — I'm going to get a shit-ton of upgrades!", Rick said with a grin.
"And the bad news?"
"It's going to take a few hours." Morty groaned and slid further down the seat. Of course he was stuck like this for awhile, that's just his luck! Rick rolled his eyes, at his grandson's tantrum. "Oh, quit your bitching, we're here in the first place, because of you." Morty slid even further down and looked away from his grandpa. "Fine! Here, go buy yourself something, I'll get you when the car's ready" Rick threw a bunch of tied together bills at Morty who barely caught it, fumbling with it for a moment. He stared at the money surprised and then back up at Rick. "J-just remember to keep up your role, alright? I don't feel like saving you from some sewer back alley, capiche?" Morty nodded quickly. "Good" Rick straightened again and closed the door window behind him.
Morty stared at the cash in his hands. As much as he didn't like this, sitting in the car and sulking wouldn't do him anything good, he might as well go explore. Maybe even get himself something nice.
Morty had to admit that the city had it's charm. Seeing the high tech engines clash with the old cars' designs was interesting and the city itself wasn't so bad either. It was an odd mix of old-timey spirit, mashed with sci-fi technology and bright neon light signs. Morty has seen so many unique planets and dimensions, yet they never seized to surprise him. Usually, he would be thrilled to explore a new place like this, but at that moment his mind was mostly occupied by his disguise. Morty didn't know what to do with himself in the dress - it had no pockets to put his hands in, the fancy hat kept falling to one side or covering his eyes and he kept checking if, by some stroke of bad luck, the skirt didn't roll up at the back to reveal what was underneath. He kept looking down at his feet, afraid that he'd step on the long fabric before him and trip. Could he even trip on holographic clothes? He could take off and adjust his hat, so it didn't seem out of the range of possibilities. He was pondering that and didn't notice an older gentleman, before walking right into him. Morty fell to the ground with a yelp.
"Oh, sorry Miss, I didn't see you there" Morty lifted the rim of his his hat to look at the man speaking to him. "Let me help you up" The older man held out his hand. Morty stared at it for a few seconds. Despite the fact that he knew he looked like a girl at the moment, it still took a moment to register the man was addressing him.
"Oh, yeah…" Morty took the offered hand and pulled himself up, before brushing off the skirt of his dress. "Thank you"
"What's a young lady like you doing out here all by herself?", the gentleman asked, curiously.
"I-I'm just here with my grandpa, he should call me soon."
"How old are you, missy?", the man asked another question.
In Morty's mind there was an immediate alarm that just screamed of danger. "Oh, I-I-I uh.. I-I better go-" Morty tried to slowly back out of the situation, already looking for a way to escape, when a heavy arm landed on his shoulders and the man spoke again, interrupting him.
"See, I have daughter, you seem to be about her age!"
Morty looked up at the man, confused, "What?"
"Yeah! She's a kind girl, a very nice girl, but she's not very, how do I say this… rich in friendships, as to say." Morty didn't know what to say to that. He fumbled for a moment for an answer, but ultimately no words left his mouth and the man continued. "It would mean the world to me if you would spend some time with her, you seem like a nice girl, good influence. What do you say?" Morty didn't even get the chance to register the request, before the man turned around, pulling Morty with himself. He seemed to have spotted someone on the other side of the road as he started to wave. "Daphne! Daphne, my dear, come here!"
Morty looked in the same direction as the man to see a girl that actually seemed to be a year or two older than him on the opposite side of the street. She turned around at the sound of her name. Her skin was a light pink colour, her eyes completely black and her hair pinned into a meticulous bun. She wore a similar to Morty's dress, but in a rich maroon shade. When she saw her dad waving her over from across the street, she turned embarrassed, trying to mime with wide gestures for the man quiet down and that she was coming over. Looking both ways, before stepping onto the busy road she rushed to meet them.
"There you are, Sweetheart! This is my daughter — Daphne", the man introduced. Morty was still flabbergasted by this whole situation.
"Father! I told you to stop making such a ruckus in the middle of the street! Who is this you're holding hostage?", she asked, finally noticing Morty.
"Well, my honey-pie, this young lady agreed to keep you company. Daphne, this is, uh… I'm sorry Miss, I must've not caught your name?"
"Uh, my name?", Morty asked, dumbly and the man nodded in confirmation, "M-my name is Morty."
"Morty? Well, that's an awfully boyish name, what were your parents thinking, naming a lady that?"
Shit.
"It's Morty with an i?", Morty said, unconvincingly.
The man raised an eyebrow. "Morti? Ha! You're parents must be a creative bunch!", the man laughed loudly and Morty sighed a breath of relief.
"Father! You don't even know her name?" Daphne exclaimed indignantly and pulled Morty away from her father's loose embrace. "I apologise for my father, I've told him multiple times to stop seeking new companions for me, but he just won't stop." Daphne sent her father a glare. "You can't just approach unsuspecting girls and ask them to spend time with me!"
Morty raised his hands in a pleading motion and interjected with an awkward laugh, "No, no, it's al- it's alright, I-I-I accidentally bumped into him, I wasn't looking where I was going."
The girl's glare softened at that, but didn't go away completely. "Still. That doesn't give him permission to bother you." Daphne turned to finally take a good look at Morty. "My goodness, father, look what you did to Morti's hair! It's all out of place!" Morty reached up to touch his hair, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary, his hair was still falling loose down his neck. The majority of women on the street did seem to have intricate hairstyles, pinned in various ways, so maybe letting their hair down was out of style for this place. "Come with us, our house is just behind the corner, I can help you with it."
"Really, it's no big deal", Morty tried to refuse.
"I insist, let it be a way for me to repay you for my father bothering you", the girl said and grabbed Morty's hands into her own. Her eyes were so big and hopeful and Morty had no fight left within him.
He let out a resigned sigh, "Alright"
"Splendid!", Daphne's father boomed, "Let us go and quick, it's almost time for afternoon tea."
"Aaand done! What do you think, Morti?" Daphne held up a handheld mirror, so that Morty could examine the back of the hairstyle in the vanity's mirror.
It was meticulously braided into a bun, low enough on his head that he could still put on his hat, that resembled a blooming rose. Daphne used one of her own decorative pins to keep it in place. Morty stared at the reflection of it in awe. It was so carefully intertwined, with such attention, it was absolutely beautiful.
"I…", Morty swallowed, unable to tear his gaze away, "I like it"
"Oh, that's joyous news!", Daphne said, putting away the smaller mirror. Morty felt a bit disappointed, when he couldn't admire Daphne's work anymore. "I reckon it is almost time for afternoon tea, would you accompany us?"
"I-I wouldn't want to- to bother-", Morty started.
"Nonsense! It would be my pleasure to have you as a guest", Daphne smiled and stood up, before straightening her dress. She reached out her hand to Morty, who took it with a gentle smile.
"If y-you say so"
Daphne led Morty through various corridors of her house. Morty suspected she must've been part of some rich family, the place was huge and luxuriously decorated. Morty stopped in front of a huge painting that hung in one of the halls.
"Who is that?" Morty pointed at the portrait of a small girl sitting on some woman's lap.
"Oh, it's, um…", Daphne suddenly got quieter, "That's me and my mother. She's not… with us anymore" She looked away from the painting, her expression darkened and Morty felt bad for broaching the subject.
"O-oh, I'm sorry.."
"It's alright", Daphne let out a sigh, "It's been a long time ago." They stood in an awkward silence for a few long seconds, before Daphne grabbed Morty's hand again. "I think we should go, father is most likely waiting for us."
"Uh y-yeah, sure, let's go", Morty stammered out and followed Daphne further into the house.
Finally they reached a back exit through the kitchen that lead to a small garden, behind the mansion. It was cosy in a way that made Morty forget about all the advanced technology on the other side of the building. It looked as if pulled out straight from a beautifully illustrated children's book, with alien flowers blooming all over the place. In the shade of one of the trees that grew around the property and cut it off from the loudness of the outside world stood a white garden table and matching chairs. The metal furniture was masterfully crafted, the legs and backrests of the chairs decorated with swirls. On one of the chairs sat Daphne's father who, after noticing their arrival, waved them over to join him.
When they reached the table, Daphne's dad stood up, pulling out one of the chairs for Morty, "Here, allow me."
Morty awkwardly scooped the behind of his skirt underneath him as he sat down and his chair got pulled to the table. Daphne's dad did the same for his daughter, before sitting down himself. It was weird being treated like a lady, Morty wasn't sure how to feel about it. He should be embarrassed, maybe even mad at Rick that put him in this situation, but he couldn't really find much anger in himself at the moment. Sitting earlier with Daphne, listening to her talking about life on this asteroid and having her braid his hair, it reminded him of his hangouts with Jessica. It was nice to have someone complement his hair, his make-up, even his dress. He was slowly getting used to the dress, maybe even found it slightly enjoyable, the way it swished when he walked and gently rose when he spun. He would never admit that in front of Rick though, he would never let him live it down.
Morty reached for a the teacup that sat in front of him. The tea set was just as magical as everything else in that garden. The teacups were different pastel colours and were shaped to resemble flowers. The matching teapot sat in the middle of the table along a three-deck serving tray filled with all kinds of biscuits and finger sandwiches. Even the small plates in front of them and the cutlery were adorned with flower motifs. Morty felt as if he got suddenly transported into a British fairytale.
"Say, Morti", Daphne's father started, "You said you were here with your grandfather, where is he?"
"Um, Rick, I-I mean, my grandpa should be at the mechanic, getting our ship fixed." Morty took a sip of his tea, it was purple in colour and tasted almost like raspberry tea on Earth.
"And he just let you wander off by yourself?", the man asked, appalled, "Doesn't he know how dangerous this place can be for young ladies like yourself?"
"Oh, we're just making an unexpected stop here, he couldn't have known", Morty tried to cover for Rick, who definitely could've known. Morty didn't mention that, in case of emergency, he carried a small gun on him and was pretty sure Rick had micro-chipped him at some point, when he was asleep. 'Childproofing' he called it.
"Still, that's widely irresponsible, ow!", Daphne's dad hissed in pain, when his daughter kicked him on the shin under the table.
"Dad! You can't talk like that in front of our guest! I'm sorry for my father, sometimes he lacks a sense of what's appropriate", Daphne sent Morty an apologetic smile.
Morty chuckled at the sweet familial display, before saying, "It's alright, I-I don't mind."
"Here, you must try these jam-filled biscuits, our kitchen staff is especially proud of them." Daphne placed a few round butter biscuits on Morty 's plate.
Morty took a tentative bite. The biscuits were delicious, a delightful mix between the sweet, crumbly cookie and tart jam filling. Morty felt happy, really really happy. It was the most peaceful adventure he's had in a good long while. For just a moment he could forget about high-stake chases, life-threatening situations, incredible inventions, his life on Earth and simply focus on the conversation about nothing and just be Morti. He could just be Morti. She could just be herself for a while…
Morty smiled to himself at the thought, before immediately sobering up. Be herself? What was he thinking? This disguise and constantly being called a miss must've been getting to him if he was starting to think of himself in the female form. He wasn't a girl. He just liked having long hair, because it framed his face better and he liked to paint his nails, because the different colours looked pretty in the light and make-up was just straight up art and he just had a knack for it! None of these things meant he was a girl, he just-
"Morti?" Morty flinched at Daphne's voice. She was looking at him with a concerned expression. "Are you alright? You've gone awfully quiet."
"I-I'm fine, sorry", Morty's cheeks were tainted pink in embarrassment, "Just got lost in my thoughts, I suppose." He tried to smile reassuringly, but it came out a little forced.
Daphne and her dad exchanged glances, but didn't comment on his odd behaviour. The rest of the tea party went by pleasantly, hours passed and the sun started to near the horizon, bathing the whole garden in a warm pink and orange light. Daphne's dad took out a pocket watch and checked the time.
"My, my, it's getting quite late! Morti, won't your grandfather be worried about you?"
"Ah, y-yes, I guess" He probably wouldn't, not yet at least. The sun hasn't set all the way yet and Morty had the tendency to get lost for hours on end on their most peaceful adventures. "I-I should probably go look for him."
"Let us walk you there", Daphne said, placing her hand on Morty's.
"T-there really is no need", he tried to decline.
"I insist, it is not save to travel by yourself at this hour", Daphne's dad interjected.
Morty had no fight in him to disagree. He let the two lead him through the house to the main entrance onto the main street. They started heading back towards the Horse Wheel, but didn't go far, before Rick's ship landed harshly next to them on the street. Rick opened the door on passenger's side for Morty to get in. He looked dishevelled, his suit tattered and stained, his top hat gone and with a brand new black eye.
"Rick? W-what are you doing here?"
"Morty! Morty we gotta go!", Rick yelled from the car, "T-the fucking mechanic fucked me over, Morty, there's no- there's no time to explain, come, urp, on!"
"My goodness! Is that really your grandfather, Morti?", Daphne's dad took a step back and pressed a hand to his heart.
"Uhh, yeah, t-that's him", Morty answered and walked towards the car, "I-I have to go, thank you for the tea, Sir. Bye Daphne!" Morty climbed into the car.
"B-bye, Morti? I hope you get home safe!" Daphne waved Morty goodbye, shocked by Rick's sudden and unusual appearance. Her dad was to stunned to even stammer out anything. Morty waved them goodbye and closed the door behind him. The moment the door clicked shut Rick pressed the gas pedal and sped off into space.
When they got to what Rick deemed a safe distance from the asteroid, he took off the bolo tie device from his neck and chucked it onto the back seat, his clothes transformed back into his regular, non-tattered shirt and lab coat. He took a long swig from his flask and Morty hesitated, before asking.
"So… what happened?"
"It was a shitty, urp, shitty mechanic", Rick grumbled and took another swig from the flask. He didn't elaborate any further and Morty didn't push. He had a nice time that day and didn't want it to get ruined by Rick's bad mood. They sat in silence for a while, Morty staring out the window mindlessly, when Rick finally spoke up. "Y-you know you can take off the disguise now, right?"
Morty suddenly realised he was still sitting in the yellow dress and felt his ears burn red. He reached for the device on his neck, but hesitated when he was about to take it off. He let his hands fall back down to his lap and gently smooth out the fabric. He looked away from Rick.
"I-I-I think I-I'll keep it on for now…", he said in a quiet voice. Rick gave him an odd look, one side of his brow raised. He looked Morty up and down, trying to read his expression, before turning his eyes back to the space in front of them.
"Suit yourself", Rick shrugged. Morty relaxed at that, he didn't even realise he was tensing his shoulders until then. The rest of the ride home went by in a much more comfortable silence.
That night Morty couldn't fall asleep. He was laying on his bed, staring at the ceiling, unable to stop thinking about the time he spent with Daphne and her dad. He couldn't stop thinking about how nice it was and how happy it made him. He couldn't stop thinking about what exactly made it so nice. He also couldn't stop thinking about that one moment, when his thoughts slipped up and about what it felt like to be called a girl that whole day. It felt… odd, but not in a completely bad way. He couldn't quite put his finger on what this feeling was or why that one detail burrowed its way so deep into his mind and made itself comfortable there.
He should probably try to get some sleep. Morty closed his eyes, but instead of falling asleep he felt something light fall onto his stomach. He opened his eyes just in time to see a small green portal above him close. He looked to what was dropped through — on his sheets laid a necklace, a simple chain with a blue pendant hanging from it. Morty took it into his hands. A small tear escaped his eye, rushed down his cheek and dropped from his chin onto the pendant. Morty wiped his eyes and fell back onto his pillow, before rolling onto his side. He gripped the pendant a little tighter beneath his pillow.
He should really try to get some sleep.