All evening, Coran had been running every which way, making the rounds among the guests, all the while seeing that everything behind the scenes was being handled properly. But when he found a spare moment, he couldn’t help but notice what was happening between the two young people he was now observing from a distance. They had spent almost the entire evening together, dancing and visiting with their guests, laughing and running about together like children. Coran might have assumed that they were simply trying to spend their last night together in each other’s company. After all, the Princess and Captain were good friends, and he would be leaving tomorrow. But something else told him that it was more - the two had been holding hands, all night.

Actually, Coran hadn’t minded the picture in the least. In fact, over the years, he’d grown to respect the young Commander like no other. When the five space explorers had first arrived, Coran had all but given up hope at first sight of them. The Princess had requested urgent assistance from the Garrison, perhaps a fleet to help protect what remained of their devastated planet, and what did the GG send them? Five children! Children, indeed. Never again would Coran be able to judge by appearances. He thanked God every day for the Voltron Force, as he had prayed for their safety daily. Five young men of the utmost character would risk their own lives, if just to protect a small planet in some far corner of the universe. And who would lead them but a baby-faced commander with a living passion for what was right. No doubt, Arus had been blessed.

Coran thoughts about the Voltron Captain lingered for a moment. He had known for quite a while now that Keith had become particularly fond of Allura. His dedication to her was obvious, but it was more than that. It was one thing to protect her life, but it was entirely different to sit up nights just to worry about what might happen. On occasion, Coran would even catch Keith walking the hall outside the Princess’ chamber. The Captain had said he couldn’t sleep, but Coran knew better.

Before Alfor’s death, the King had asked that Coran take care of Allura if anything were to happen, and to this day, Coran had done his best to fulfill that very promise.

He looked up to find the two young people carrying on a lively conversation with the Prince of Pollux. The Commander was standing slightly behind his adopted daughter, one hand on her back. ‘Alfor, my friend, it looks like someone wants my job.’ A smile crept across the aging advisor’s worn features before turning back to his guests.

As Keith listened to the idle conversation taking place between the small Prince and his companion, his eyes began to wander the room. In the past, there would have been a threat of enemy infiltration, but the war was over, and security was high – he had seen to that. The likeliness of anything happening tonight was near negligible. Still, Keith couldn’t help but check things out, if only to ease his mind.

Over the past half hour, Keith noticed that the Princess had started giggling just a bit too much, as her balance had become increasingly more unsteady. It seemed that perhaps Allura’s five glasses of champagne were finally getting the better of her. Keith tried to steady her by placing a hand on her back, but it didn’t seem to help the situation much; she looked as if she might tumble backward at any moment.

Seizing an opportunity, Keith politely excused them from conversation and gradually eased them in a direction toward the exit. He would have to make sure that their departure would be for the most part, unnoticed. Keith searched the room for any curious stares. He found only one, but Lance had been staring at them the entire evening anyway. Keith couldn’t think about that right now; he had other things on his mind.

The couple escaped without incident through a side exit, and Allura soon found herself being led through a series of corridors. She gaily tagged along behind her escort, laughing and stumbling the entire time, playfully asking every five seconds where they were going.

“Nowhere,” he said.

“Where are we going?”

“Nowhere.”

“Where are we going?”

“Nowhere.”

And so on. But she knew exactly where they were headed. It was, after all, her castle. And soon, she found herself out in the cool, evening air, under a blanket of twinkling stars.

Drawing in a deep, cleansing breath, she sighed happily. Much better than that hot, stuffy ballroom, she decided. But still, she was bewildered as to why Keith would have the need to leave the party so abruptly. She thought to ask, but he began pulling her along again.

Maybe it was the bubbles in her head, but he suddenly seemed to be going a bit too fast for her to keep up.

“Slow down there, Cap,” she joked. “You’re not the one wearing heels.”

Keith hadn’t realized he had been all but dragging her since they’d left the ballroom. He hadn’t meant to; it had been the only way to escape the crowd quickly.

“Oh, sorry, Princess.” Glossy eyes gazed at him with merry curiosity. “I just thought we could use some air.”

As they began to walk the bridge toward the lion monument, their gait slowed considerably, and it gave Allura the chance to appreciate the cool winter air that was filling her lungs. She had always been glad that it never snowed at their latitude, but around the holidays, perhaps it might be nice if some freak storm would take them by surprise. But it hardly mattered this holiday season. No matter what, this Christmas would be blue, not white.

Allura couldn’t help but notice that the path to the lion monument seemed somehow a bit longer than usual, but finally, they reached its base.

Keith still had his hand linked with hers, and she couldn’t help but give into the excitement of this simple gesture.

Keith had shown her affection before, but the moments had always been brief. Something or someone would always interrupt them, and he would pull away. But this didn’t seem the case tonight, for he’d barely taken his hands, nor his eyes off her the entire evening. Tonight was going to be different, or at least she hoped. Not wanting to jeopardize the moment, Allura said nothing and simply allowed him to escort her into the maintenance elevator that led to the top of the monument.

Allura had often avoided the top of the lion monument, unless she was actually in the lion, of course. She wasn’t really afraid of heights, but there was no railing, and the wind was usually too strong for her comfort level. She was a little apprehensive about going up, but she wasn’t about to kill the mood by voicing the fact. Besides, however nervous she’d ever been in a situation, she’d never truly been afraid if Keith was there.

He had that way of making her feel secure, without ever speaking a word. Even at Voltron’s most desperate hours, she had never been afraid. Only when she was alone, did she feel fear. Allura had many reasons to fear the evil in the universe, but she never lost her faith that he would always be there to protect her from it. It was unexplainable, but it was powerful. Somehow, Allura just knew that the feeling would stay with her for the rest of her life, even after he was gone.

Just as they stepped off the elevator, the wind suddenly picked up. It seemed to blow a chill right through Allura’s thin dress, and she couldn’t help but shiver. Keith had obviously noticed, because he began unfastening the clips on his jacket.

The top of the monument beheld a spectacular view. Keith figured he could see for ten miles in every direction on a clear day. The castle was taller than the monument, but not by much. It had been an ideal place for Keith to spend time with his more private thoughts. He had spent many nights atop with his lion, sorting through issues concerning Voltron…the planet…her.

The monument was also convenient for another reason; it provided an ideal view of Allura’s balcony. Far enough away for him not to be seen, but close enough that if he really looked, he could make out the features of her face, those expressions that could only hint at the emotions fueling them. He had spent many evenings, simply watching her gaze up into the sky, wondering where her thoughts we taking her. Perhaps she was thinking of her planet, her people, or the war? Keith could only guess, but there had been so many times that he found himself wanting to call out to her. He never knew what it was that he wanted to say exactly, but occasionally, something would urge him to call to her…something…anything. But Keith always tuned out that voice, or any others like it, for that matter. He would always end up leaving her with her private thoughts, alone on her balcony. After all, she needed time to find the peace in her life, too.

Keith had always relished the moments when he could sneak away to his favorite hiding place. He drew a certain measure of strength, just being close to his Black Lion. He would miss more than just piloting it. He would miss what it represented to him - this planet and his eternal connection with its people and its princess. He started to choke on the idea and quickly drove the thought from his mind.

The princess folded her arms in front of her, appreciating the warmth of the jacket that he had wrapped around her shoulders. She could still feel the warmth from his body, the masculine, fragrant heat that she loved so much. So many times, Allura had been close enough to get a quick taste of the air around him, only to have it interrupted. But for now, she could enjoy it as it swirled around her, filling her senses.

The jacket was much too large for her small frame, the tips of her fingers barely coming through the sleeves. For some reason, they both seemed to notice at the same time.

“Well, I guess we won’t be borrowing each other’s clothes any more,” Allura joked.

There followed a brief, electrical silence. Keith had begun to walk the length of the lion, pretending to inspect it.

Allura almost wished that she could let him take it back to Earth. He didn’t seem to be as attached to his lion as Lance was to Red, but she knew he would miss his piloting duties, nonetheless.

She tried to break his train of thought. “I wonder if he’ll miss you more than you’ll miss him.”

Almost half the length of the sitting lion, he turned to walked toward her, stopping only a few feet away. Only when came close could she see that his expression had taken on something of strange, distant quality.

“What is it, Keith?”

“Princess, can you keep a secret?”

She nodded.

“In all of those battles…all those times we used Blazing Sword...” He stopped, searching for a way to say what he wanted to without sounding crazy. Slowly, he began again. “In the beginning, when we first re-activated Voltron, I would always get a big rush from hitting the switch that ignited Blazing Sword. I didn’t really have to say, ‘Form Blazing Sword.’ It just came out of me. It’s not really something that can be explained. There was just something so powerful about it; I could almost feel the energy flowing through it to me, right to my arm.” He paused for a moment. “But after a while, I would start to say it, and…it would ignite, all by itself. I didn’t even have to flip the switch. The sword would energize on its own.” Keith began to laugh at himself, almost as if he were embarrassed for some reason. “Is that strange?”

The Princess was interested, but she was far from surprised. Voltron was always displaying strange abilities. Despite that her father had designed him, she was skeptical that even he had intended Voltron to take on such an energy all its own. “No, that’s not strange.”

Instead of discussing it further, the two let it drop. Some things didn’t have logical explanations. They had seen too many things to deny that there were powers at work in the universe that were beyond what science could explain. The two stood in a comfortable silence as the castle clock chimed 11 o’clock. Lance had once referred to alcohol as “courage in a bottle.” Well, it was a good thing that Allura had consumed her fair share of it earlier in the evening. She was about to need every bit of courage she could get. “Keith, now I need to tell you something, and it’s important that you don’t say anything until I’m finished.”

He took another step forward but simply continued to look upon her with a placid, unwavering expression.

She began matter-of-factly. “Keith, I realize that tomorrow, things will be different. But I just wanted you to know…that you’ll always have a home here on Arus. All of you will. As far as I’m concerned, this is where you all belong. If it’s next week, next year, ten years…I don’t care. You can always come back, and I’ll never ask you any questions of it.” Allura paused before the next words left her mouth. “You’ll always find love and family here…all of you.”

Keith listened, but his expression never changed. Only his eyes reached out to her, trying to say something. Allura couldn’t decide if he looked surprised, happy, or moved by her words. He simply looked up to the star-filled heavens for a moment and took one final step toward her.

Allura’s first instinct might have been to back away, not because she wanted to, but because she was nervous. Luckily, the time to worry had passed, and she found herself tilting up her chin to meet him. In an instant, Allura could feel his breath on her face, but it was gone now. His lips gently pressed against hers.

A surge of something electric immediately passed through her entire body, heating her cool skin from head to toe. His arms wrapped tight around her, they allowed their warmth to come together, and the kiss that had started so soft and sweet, was now starting to intensify. His touch became more confident, and she pulled him to her with more intention.

After several moments, he pulled away, ending the kiss, but his arms remained locked around her in a firm, yet yielding embrace.

In the hundreds of times she had fantasized about this very moment, she never once dreamed it would be like this. So wonderful. So right. She wanted to hold onto it with everything she had. Unfortunately, every moment of happiness in her life was destined to be cut short.

A high pitched tone filled the air. The sound was coming from her jacket pocket - Keith’s com link.

Both hesitated for an instant, but each relented to back away.

“For emergencies,” he reminded her.

Allura reached in her pocket and handed over the devise. “It’d better be a big one.”

Keith sighed and switched the link on. “What?”

A familiar, slightly irritated voice sounded from the other end. “Listen, I don’t care where you guys are. Just thought I’d let you know that Coran’s been looking for you both. He said something about guests leaving and Allura having to say her good-byes. You’d better get back here.”

Keith thought for a moment and did something Allura would never forget. “Lance, tell Coran that Allura is fine. Make an excuse for her. She’s with me, and we’re busy.”

Allura couldn’t believe her own ears! His total disregard for Coran’s authority was completely out of character. Obviously, he didn’t care much about what the others would think. And neither did she, for that matter. Damn the consequences for once.

Keith turned off the link and took on a delayed expression of apprehension. “Was that okay?”

She smiled at him. “Yes, that was more than okay.”

The wind had picked up, bringing with it a slight chill. To shield themselves, they had taken shelter behind one of the Black Lions’ front claws, Keith with his back to his lion, Allura with her back to his. Not exactly a position in accordance with propriety, but neither thought to care. They were far from the hassles of the world below.

And so they sat, watching the sky, talking, laughing, and crying about the things they’d done and seen together, his arms wrapped around her, warming her body and soul. Their lips never met again that night, but they connected in a way that they never had before.

Neither slept that night atop the Black Lion monument, for hope that if they stopped the day from ending, the next morning would never come.