Keith stood before his four unsuspecting teammates, failing in an effort to conceal the panic and worry that he had just come to know in the last five minutes. He had tried desperately to calm his fraying nerves before entering the briefing center, but mere willpower would not settle his unsettled insides this day. Keith couldn’t even remember the last time he felt such an onslaught of emotion. Unfortunately, his friends were being witnessed to it, and this only added to his discomfort.

In the past, Keith had prided himself on remaining rather calm in desperate situations. If the team knew their captain to be worried, it only added to their own fears. But this situation was different - it was personal.

Keith readied himself and stood tall. “Team, we have a situation.”

Coran, also present, stood off to the side and just behind the head of the table where Keith, who was thinking of what he might say next, wavered in his footing. It was very reminiscent the position Coran took when Allura was about to make a formal announcement. Not that Coran could be certain the Captain had any to make, but the nature of the impromptu meeting and the appearance of the man who had called it dictated that support might be necessary. It was a rare occasion to see the Captain so befuddled, and it left Coran with a very nasty sense of foreboding. Even moreso because Allura’s governess was absent from the room, and at Keith’s own request.

“Please continue, Commander,” Coran said after a few too many seconds had passed.

Keith looked to the large yellow envelope that lay on the conference table. “Everyone, Lance was…there is…let’s start over. I was not exactly being honest with you about what happened to me. Yesterday, I mean.”

A nearly inaudible gasp could be heard from those present at the meeting, but no one said a word. Keith slid the envelope across the table, offering it to the only one in the room not at all stunned by the announcement.

“I’m sorry, Lance. I should know better.”

The pilot of the Red Lion regarded his friend for a moment and went about opening the envelope. He removed the contents, examined them briefly, and lay them on the table. Stealing quick glances from everyone waiting, his eyes came to rest on his commander and friend. “I don’t know what to say, Keith.”

The Captain smiled, but there was no mirth in his eyes.

“If you don’t mind, Keith, I would brief the team.”

Keith nodded, glad for the offer.

Lance slid the contents of the envelope to the center of the table for everyone’s examination and began, his words deliberate. “Team, as you know, both Keith’s father and mother were declared missing in action over seventeen years ago while on a mission. Although the Galaxy Garrison has been conducting an ongoing investigation into the matter, no leads have come about to give any indication as to what’s actually happened to them. Until now, that is. Keith seems to have obtained what appears to be two death certificates, one for each his mother and father - dated over 16 years ago, signed by Space Marshall Graham.”

As the others listened with disbelief, Keith stared at the far wall of the conference center. It was just all too strange. He knew the source of these certificates to be unreliable at best, but his gut told him they were authentic. Maybe because he had somehow always known that his parents were dead. He had no proof, but there didn’t need to be. He knew. He knew because he had always felt alone in the Universe.

“Keith?”

Remembering himself, he brought his attention back around to meet the curious and sympathetic gazes of his team.

“Where did you get these? Garrison?”

Keith shook his head. This was the part he was dreading, but there no longer existed the option to keep it to himself. He would need help in handling this, no matter how painful and personal it was. He chose his words carefully. “No, not the Garrison. Actually, this is the main reason why I’ve called everyone in here. Like I said, I wasn’t exactly truthful about the events surrounding my injury…my whereabouts during those hours you couldn’t find me. Last night, I ran into Zarkon. Cossack delivered the one-two to my skull, but it was Zarkon. Haggar was there…I think. Some things near the end get hazy, and that’s the truth.”

Those words silenced the room as if they’d cut the very tongues of those residing in it. No one even moved. The team only listened and waited for their commander to finish the entire story. All eyes remained focused on him, except for Allura’s, whose were closed for the entire duration of the account. Keith presented the events as vividly as his clouded memory would allow, save for one important detail. Long before the meeting started, he had decided to omit any of the conversation that he had with Zarkon concerning the direct threat on Allura’s life. He would have to deal with that situation separately. Any added tension could only result in flared tempers and irrational, emotional decisions. No, now was not the right time to share this piece of information with anyone. Keith was going to have to find another way to keep Allura in his sights, just until the situation was under control.

When he had concluded his version of the unbelievable episode, the room filled with silent awe. Keith waited patiently, hoping that someone would end the silence soon as reliving the event had somehow tired him, and he felt the sudden urge to lie down.

Pidge was the first to form any sort of logical inquiry. “So according to Zarkon, if you work for him, he won’t attack Arus anymore?”

Keith’s expression could only mirror that of the Green Lion pilot’s face.

“Well then, sounds like a good idea to me. We’ll miss you, Keith. Keep in touch.”

Everyone made an attempt at laughter, except for the Princess, who seemed to be getting more agitated by the minute.

Lance, much to his own surprise, had no amusing comment to add. For some reason, nothing about this seemed at all funny. “You do realize,” he began, “we have to report this to Garrison right away. Maybe the Space Marshall can fill us in on those phony death certificates.”

Keith shook his head. “I don’t think they’re fake, Lance.”

“So you think good ol’ Zarkon is on the level with you? I’m sorry if I disagree.” As if reading his captain’s mind, he continued, “I’m sorry, Keith, we just can’t keep this to ourselves. Even right now, I’m thinking of about eight hundred protocols that we’re breaking.” It was definitely out of character for Lance to think of contacting Garrison at the first sign of trouble, but considering the circumstances, it seemed the logical thing to do. “Besides,” he added, “we need a definitive answer as to whether or not those certificates are fake.”

Keith felt better having told the team, but he wasn’t so sure about broadcasting it to the entire Galaxy Alliance. At least not until he knew who to trust. “I have a better idea. I’ll contact Space Marshall Graham myself about the death certificates. Most likely, it will catch him off guard; his reaction will tell me whether or not they are authentic.” Keith chose his next words carefully. “Depending on his answer, I might hold off on telling him about the entire Zarkon situation.”

Lance’s eyes widened in understanding. “Keith is right. If he mentions to anyone that Zarkon got to him with the intention of coercion, Garrison will pull him in so fast for questioning; and I guarantee they wouldn’t give a spit of consideration to Voltron, or even give us enough time to find a replacement. The Garrison takes this type of thing very seriously. Keith’s right. Unless we want to lose Voltron for any period of time, we can’t tell them.”

Keith couldn’t help the apprehension he felt regarding the decision. Above all else, his job was to do his team no harm. Involving them in a cover-up would no doubt result in consequences, and he could never live with himself if he ended up the cause of any of their grief, especially when it came to their futures at the Garrison.

“I don’t want you to lie for me.”

Hunk, who usually remained quiet during such meetings, spoke up. “Lie? What lie? Pidge? Did you hear anything about lying? I know I didn’t.”

“Who me? Pidge chimed. “No, I don’t remember anything about lying. Hmmm… Do you know what Keith is talking about, Lance?”

“Well Captain,” the Second concluded, “I guess this matter is settled on official terms. I suggest we all get together later this evening and discuss the situation in a …less formal forum.”

Keith knew that his teammates would stand by him because he was their friend, but as their captain, he could not allow such a blatant disregard of Garrison protocol. He would have to put his personal vendetta on hiatus and tell the Space Marshall everything, even if it meant being hauled in for questioning and sidelining Voltron. The team would just have to function without him. Of course, that was the most honorable and sensible thing to do. But then there was that other factor involved in this situation. If he left Arus, he was also leaving the Princess unprotected, and that would be just the window Zarkon needed. Keith just couldn’t do that to her…or to himself.

He managed to avoid her gaze the entire meeting, but curiosity finally forced him to face her.

Her usual appearance was off, to say the very least. The soft, gentle lines of her normally kind features were absent, and she was as white as if she’d been left out overnight in the snow without a coat. He did see sympathy in her eyes, but he also saw something else. Was it anger? Maybe she was uneasy about the idea of breaking protocol. Like him, she was meticulous about following proper procedure (probably a good quality of any leader), but Keith thought it might be something else. Her eyes, that’s where he would find it. And he did find it – a blue, cold pain. She was hurting. Keith hardly saw it since this was the first time he’d actually been the cause of it. Usually, he was the one that took it away and made it better.

Under any normal circumstance, Keith would have waited to confront her when they were alone, but there was an urgency to fill his own emptiness, that caused by knowing he had somehow wounded her. “Princess?”

She shifted her gaze to meet his, but her expression remained the same. She began to speak before he could say anything further. “I think the boys are right. Let’s find out what Marshall Graham has to say about your parents, and then we’ll move from there.” She hesitated. “Keith, we’re not covering up anything here. We just can’t sacrifice Voltron for the sake of some bullshit protocol that would only serve the purpose of allowing Garrison to know they can still keep their finger on you. We just don’t have that luxury. The matter is settled. If everyone agrees, we’ll meet again after Keith has spoken with the Space Marshall.”

Allura looked around the room, acknowledging the nods of approval from her teammates. “Alright then, Coran and I are doubling security for the time being. Zarkon is after Keith for some reason, so we all have to do our best to watch out for him…and ourselves.”

“The Princess is right,” Coran interjected. “We should be cautious. For now, we should all stay inside the castle. No external outings.”

The princess jumped at the remark. “No, Coran. That’s just what Zarkon would want. He’s trying to scare us. We will conduct business as usual. We’ll all just have to be a little more cautious than usual. In fact, tomorrow we will have a giant picnic on the front lawn. I’ll have Nanny get to work right away, and you boys will inform the surrounding villages. We need to show Zarkon that he can’t force us to hide. We have to remain strong.”

All seemed to agree…all except one.

“Princess, a picnic isn’t a good idea. Zarkon was somehow able to land on Arus before without our knowledge. He could do it again.” At this point, Keith was grabbing at anything. He couldn’t tell them the real reason for his reservations, that Zarkon meant to kill the Princess. But putting her out into the open so soon was putting her in danger’s path, and he couldn’t allow it.

“I’m sorry, Keith,” replied the Princess coldly, “the matter is settled. You have dealt with the situation your way, and now we’ll deal with it my way. This is a security matter, and the final word is my responsibility as protector of this planet. The decision has been made – we’re having a picnic.”

It would do no good to argue the issue any further. Keith knew all too well that when Allura’s mind was set, no one could change it. He would just have to keep close eye on her tomorrow, whether she wanted it or not.

He nodded and took one last look around the table. “I’ll try to contact the Space Marshall immediately. We’ll meet…I mean…we’ll talk out front just before sunset.”

Each nodded and slowly made separate exits until all but three remained.

Coran briefly hesitated, but thought better of bothering the Captain with anything else at the moment. He had already suffered enough in the past day. After finding no words of comfort, he simply departed, leaving the captain to answer only to his Princess.

Allura meant to leave, but to her own surprise, she halted abruptly and turned to face him with a controlled emotion that held a concealed fire. “I stood up for you,” she said finally.

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“What’s worse is I believed you. Even though your story didn’t make sense, I trusted you. I kept telling myself that you would never lie to me.”

He stood but dared not approach her. “Allura…”

“Do you have any idea how I feel right now?”

Keith paused, not really sure how to answer that.

She continued, her voice shaken. “Do you ever think about how things affect those around you? We all trust you, Keith…with our lives. You’re the heart and soul of this team. You can’t afford to do something like this. You can lie to yourself all you want, but you better not damn well lie to us again.”

Keith paled. Never before had he known her to lose her temper and lash out in this way. Of everyone on the team, she was usually the last to lose her cool. He suddenly felt sick, not from the guilt of what he’d done, but because he had hurt her. Her words told him that she was angry, but her misty, glass-like stare told him that she was wounded.

“Allura, I’m so sorry. I never meant to hurt anyone…especially you.”

He gave in to the temptation to go to her. Cautiously, he took her in his grasp, pulling her close when she didn’t resist. Only briefly did he hesitate before wrapping her entirely in a desperate embrace, one that betrayed his current state of mind as well as those other, deeper feelings that he had held guarded for so long.

Neither moved, for they were contented to remain in this rare stolen moment, and they might have stayed there forever had Keith not begun to stir. She held on tighter, believing his intent was to move to dissolve their union.

“Not yet,” she said, but it was not desire to break from her that had Keith becoming uneasy. It was the increasing pang of a sensation nearing physical pleasure from the act of holding her close that had him backing away. Rarely did he have the opportunity to touch her, and when the occasion arose, it was never the kind of contact that could qualify as intimate in nature. The feeling coming over him should have made him feel a lot of shameful things, but if the truth be told, he felt good. A little guilty perhaps, but moreso, he simply enjoyed pure and instant pleasure, the very gratifying kind. It had been so long since he’d last known the touch of a woman, and he couldn’t help but take a moment to remember her smell, the way her slim back felt against his battle-worn hands, and the way she fit so well into his larger frame. Only when this information was solidly put to memory did he let go.

She stepped back and tried for a deep breath, but the air in the room was thick with emotion and trepidation. Her throat tightened, tears flooded her eyes, and she could help neither. Normal circumstances would have her horrified to gush with such a display of raw emotion, but fear has a way of fraying the edges just enough to unravel the entirety of a situation. And somehow, her devices never worked that well around him. Fear. She’d spent almost her entire life drenched in it that it was now so much part of her that it was the only way of life she could imagine. She lived with it, conquered it when necessary, and let it loose when times got very difficult. But this…this was somehow very different. It wasn’t her life that was in danger…it was his.

“Everything will be fine Princess.”

Allura blinked hard and looked to the ceiling in an effort to stop the tears from falling. “Keith, you just don’t understand. Zarkon took my father, my mother, Coran’s family, my people, my friends…just about every person I have ever loved.”

Keith watched helplessly as she again faltered, her next words shaking with intent. “But I’ll be damned if he ever takes you away from me.”

The pain in her eyes betrayed her as he saw the panic not far behind. He could actually feel it as it seemed to vibrate the air between them. While he had never seen her in such a state, the heaviness surrounding her was intoxicating. Never before had he seen such passion in another human being. Her openness seemed to latch on to something inside of him, and he slowly reached down to wipe away her tears with careful hands.

There was something about the way her skin felt when he touched it…the way she didn’t back away when he came even closer. He could barely keep himself from touching more of her. So many times he had dreamt of holding her like this, but he just couldn’t take advantage of the situation. She was too emotional. He wanted her to want him, but not in this way. But yet he was a man, and when she began placing soft kisses in the palms of his trembling hands, he began to falter.

He stared unbelieving as she put each of his fingers to her soft lips, favoring each of them with sweet, untouched affection, and when the sudden warm rush began to course through his veins, he didn’t fight it. He languished every touch…every second of her wet, pink lips on his skin until he started to feel that undeniable urge to respond to her.

“Oh God. Allura, you can’t…do…that.”

She responded by looking up expectantly.

That was all he needed. The events of the past day had taken what was left of his self-restraint and better sense, and all he wanted was to give love, and better yet, get it.

Thrilling, yet vicious shock waves took hold of him as she pressed her soft lips to his. There had always been a force, a drawing energy between them, and when they touched, that force finally gained way to take over each of them completely.

Her slight but strong form pressed deeper into his body, and he responded with a curt, almost imperceptible groan. They began to move against one another, a sign that things were heading out of control, but when he tried to draw back, she whispered, “Kiss me.” He did as was told, and they moved to increase their contact. He was about to say the words, the ones he’d so longed to have her hear. He might have, he wanted to, but this was not to be the night.

The swift open and close of the conference room door had them caught in a passionate embrace, so far from innocent that Keith almost couldn’t place blame for what happened next.

“You get your hands off her, you scoundrel! You filthy hooligan! You just wait until Coran hears of this,” she warned, throwing a fiercely pointed finger in Keith’s direction. “Oh Princess, what would your father think?!

“It’s about time?” The response earned her a smile from her partner in crime.

Nanny stormed her way over to the couple, barely noticing that the two were still quite intent on each other. She angrily pushed the captain aside and pulled the Princess from him, all but dragging her from the room. “That’s not funny, young lady! You just wait until I discuss this with Coran!”

Allura could barely keep from falling from the urgency of her Nanny’s pull, and she only managed a quick, light-hearted smile for her captain on her way out.

The door slid behind them as quietly as it had opened.

How could he have let things get so out of control? Not three days ago, his life was in perfect order. Now every aspect of it was a perfect mess. He needed time to sort things out, but that was the one luxury he didn’t have. Now things were even more complicated.

Keith couldn’t begin to think about what had just happened, but whatever did, that thing he’d been feeling for her for so long had finally surfaced, and probably for good. He just hoped that somehow, Allura would find a way to calm down Nanny before this became a big carnival show. It always seemed like someone or something was trying to interfere in their lives…or at least in hers.

And then without another thought, Keith made for the exit.

He hurried down the main hall toward the Princess’ chambers, for that was where he knew Nanny would be, subjecting Allura to one of her near-famous uninvited lectures. He had never much minded Nanny’s intrusiveness before, but she’d crossed one of those lines.

Nanny did mean well, but good intentions or not, she had overstepped her place. Allura was twenty-one years old. Did Nanny expect her to stay asexual for the rest of her life? To him, it seemed like more of an issue of power and control over the Princess than anything else. Here was an old woman who had no children of her own, but somehow found a way to make everyone around her feel like one. Well, it was about time someone put a stop to it.

Pausing at the closed door, Keith could hear the familiar shrieking of the half-cocked governess, interrupted only intermittently by the voice of another who could not seem to get in a single word. He knocked loudly.

After a brief silence, the sweeter voice answered from within. “Yes?”

“Princess, it’s Keith. Can we talk?”

Another silence ensued before the solid metal door slid open, revealing the angered Nanny. He might have held his temper, but the air of condescension and contempt in her eyes had him on the verge of saying something he would soon regret.

“Captain, I would think that you would be the last person who would be knocking at the Princess’ door! Aside from what I just saw five minutes ago, it is still inappropriate for a common man like yourself to come knocking on the door of royalty. I suggest that you go to you quarters until Coran and I have discussed this issue.”

Nanny then looked back into the room to an unseen Allura within. “Oh Princess! How could you? I raised you to have class and taste. Why cohort with commoners when you could have Kings?”

Those same harsh words that usually fell on deaf ears somehow found meaning that day. They hit a painful nerve that Keith couldn’t ignore. Instead of collecting his rage and releasing it on the battlefield as was his device, he found his restraint suddenly slipping away.

Side-stepping the red-faced banshee, he pushed through the door and into room. Acknowledging the stunned Princess therein with a curt nod, he turned to face his adversary.

“Nanny, I have only one thing to say to you: Mind your own business.”

Nanny retorted with her usual flair. “Get out!! You…you…Commoner!”

“Listen Lady,” he began.

“Keith, don’t.”

But the plea went unheard. “I might be a commoner, but this is one commoner that has saved your ungrateful ass more times than I can count!” He struggled to temper his tone. “Nanny, you have to understand that Allura is a grown woman now. You can’t keep her under glass bowl her entire life.”

The nanny, still fuming, only knew to push back harder. “She was bread to marry royal blood, not academy excrement.”

Keith took a deep breath, but it did him no good. The words poured out like hot lava from the mouth of an angry volcano. And like fresh magma, these words would burn to the bone.

“If it wasn’t for this commoner, she would already be married to royalty - Lotor. Oh, and I suppose then she would be living the life you want for her? Nanny, I swear to God, sometimes I wonder if you even think before you open your mouth. It’s almost like you just like to hear yourself talk. I’m sick and tired of you giving me, my team, and Allura a hard time. Do you even realize the pressure we are under twenty-four hours a day, ten days a week? Give us a break, will you? I mean, we appreciate the free meals and all, but if it would keep you out of our lives, we would rather just cook our own food thank you.”

Keith stopped to catch his breath, only slightly noticing the gaping mouths of both the Nanny and her charge. “And in regards to this situation with Allura and I, your rude interruption was uncalled for, unasked for, and completely disrespectful. It was private moment between her and I, and it will stay that way. You haven’t the right to comment, criticize, or spread gossip about it, and I won’t stand to have you slandering Allura’s good name because you don’t know how to knock.”

The ensuing heavy pause was broken by the woman sitting on the bed behind him. “Keith, don’t be so hard on her. She means well.”

Keith turned round, remembering himself instantly as he met the Princess’ tear-filled eyes. Turning his attention back to the nanny, he could see that she had also begun to weep freely. “Nanny…I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…Please, just go. Just go.”

Her expression was that of a barking dog who’d been given a good swat – stunned, angry and a bit confused. Streams of tears rolls down her pink, swollen cheeks, and the picture she made reminded Keith of a circus who’d had his toe stepped upon.

The nanny made an almost frantic retreat, not bothering to close the door behind her. The echo of her sobs could be heard fading down into the distant corridor.

He shook his head. What had he done? Was it the stress of what was going on? It seemed as if he had just released the weight of his world onto this poor woman, she who only meant to protect and love the same person he did. This was not the way to have handled the situation. He could just imagine how she must be feeling. Lance always reminded him to keep his temper intact because he could be so intimidating that his words often had an impact much greater than their actual intent. He would just have to find some way to make it up to her later. But right now it appeared that there was someone else to whom he owed an apology.

He fought to regain his usual stoic form, a task that was becoming more and more difficult as of late. “Allura, I just don’t know what’s gotten into me. I deeply apologize for my behavior. Nanny did not deserve to be treated like that. And another thing - I should have kept my hands off you in the first place. Please forgive me.”

A sudden urge to leave the room had him quickly moving toward the door.

“Keith…wait.”

He stopped but dared not turn around.

Making her way over to the door, Allura closed and locked it.

“Keith, we all understand. Well, we can only imagine what you’re going through, but we’re concerned, and we’re here for you. If you weren’t reacting to what was happening I would wonder what was wrong.”

Seeing him grow uncomfortable at the mention of his situation, she quickly opted to lighten the mood. Offering him a more than friendly smile, she reached up to trace a finger from his cheek down to his chin. “And as for keeping your hands off me…I’m sort of hoping that you won’t.”

“We’ll see,” he replied, allowing a small smile to creep up into the corners of his mouth. “Depending on whether or not Coran and Nanny let me live.”

“Keith, everything will be fine. I’ll talk to Nanny. She won’t say anything, although the sheer gossip factor will probably drive her crazy before long.” Allura giggled, something that instantly put a bit of a sparkle back into the captain’s eyes. “You’ll see; the picnic tomorrow will take your mind off things.”

“Allura, I still don’t think that a picnic out in the open is a very good idea.”

Sensing an impending lecture, she silenced him by reaching out to straighten the white collar on his red flight suit. “Oh hush. I won’t let Zarkon rain on my parade. I don’t scare that easily.”

Unable to ignore her unrelenting determination, Keith was forced to concede defeat. Besides, he really couldn’t keep her inside forever, and now was as good a time as any to let Zarkon know that he couldn’t intimidate them. “Fine Princess, but promise me that you’ll stick close by my side at every second of every hour all day tomorrow.”

“Deal, but only if you’re my date, not my bodyguard.”

He could barely hide his amusement at the Princess’ attempt to turn such a serious matter into something of personal gain. “My Lady, it would be a pleasure to escort you.”

Her smile fell then, and he sensed the quick shift in mood. “Keith? Are you going to contact the Space Marshall about the death certificates?”

“Right after this.”

“Do you need me for anything?”

“No, but thank you. I’ll be fine.”

“Would you do me one more favor?”

“Anything.”

“After you take care of that and talk to the boys about it, could you come and tell me…?”

“Sure.”

Keith wasn’t even sure if he himself wanted to know the truth, but he at least owed it to his parents to settle the matter. If the certificates did turn out to be authentic, he would have to deal with some unpleasant truths. Only he wasn’t sure which of those would be harder to deal with…the loss?…or the betrayal? The sinking feeling that he’d known so well over the course of the last couple days found its way back to his gut, and he suddenly felt a determination to settle things, once and for all.

“I’ll be right back.”

Before he could draw away, she wrapped her arms around him - partially for support but mostly for her own selfish reasons.

He favored her with a brief, lingering kiss to the back of her hand and retreated into the main hall leading to the Control Room. Striding down the corridor with a regained spring of purpose in his step, he was finally determined to slay his demons once and for all.