#once i get my stupid notes together i'll post my thoughts on the short stories. rahhh

[dellamortethelesser]

The sentence "who cares? it's only illario." hit me like a literally fist to the stomach, ow, but also it made me think because that is how Caterina treats Illario. He has a lot of freedoms that Lucanis probably feels like he doesn't. Lucanis feels pressured to be the perfect assassin Caterina expects him to be, where Illario can be unprofessional and mess around and joke on the job and be a bit of a disappointment in his personal life or his methods and who cares, because it's not like Caterina can favour him any less.

But on the flip side, Lucanis gets to change his mind about contracts and live to tell the tale (the banters with Davrin about refusing to kill a target bc they were a teenager). Lucanis gets to risk the job in favour of doing what he thinks is right. Lucanis has the freedom to decide which parts of himself he's willing to change for Caterina and which ones he will not compromise. Because she won't get rid of him, because he's the favourite and he's famous and he's her successor.

I just love thinking about how they might both see each other as the one who's more "free", and how throughout their lives they may have resented each other for it.

Yeah! I think Illario resents that perceived "freedom" though because what he wants is Caterina's attention, favoritism, etc. (which you did point out). One of my annotations on the wigmaker job as I was working through it was:

'How often has Lucanis withheld information from Illario on these contracts? How often has he changed the job? And does Illario only go along with it because he knows there's no protesting against Caterina's favorite? I know there's no way he'd be allowed to pull these stunts if it was his contract.'

[silentmajesticfox]

Falling In Love With Chrollo Lucilfer

Part one:

Part two:

Panic Room



As Fred, Rose, and Daisy made it to the mansion. Rose looked at her surroundings, telling herself, I just have to hold him off til Chrollo's here. What a suicide mission this will come out to be, Daisy I hope you understand I can only save one of us this time.. Rose glanced at Daisy winking her eye and opening the door for her. Daisy would be an actress If she could. She giggled, "Yay!! We're finally home, I can wait to go to bed with my teddy bear!" She ran in, not unusually fast since every time they would get home, she would practically run to her bed. Before Rose could step out, she felt a tight grip on her left arm by her hand, and a few cracks emanating from there. Fred had already planned to confront her. A deadly gaze staring into her ice blue eyes. Rose held in a yelp, sure than the cracking was probably her bones.

"Who do you think you are? Talking to another man, showing him more affection and attention than you've givin me this past year, wish I knew I married a whore. I would like to have a word with you inside, Rosalie." Rose knew this couldn't be good, for he never used her real name, and for however long it took Chrollo to get here, she'd have to deal with it. She could feel his blood lust, and the fact he already had the advantage on her, her nerves kicked up. She just nodded her head, knowing soon this would be all over. She wished right then that she had her book, inevitably he would die if she did.... As she got out the door once he let go of her arm, with a fired up Fred behind her. She looked down the street they had came from. Please don't let me down Chrollo. She turned her head towards the mansion and walked through the doors. She felt his Nen get stronger, a hitch in her breath as she started to panic. He was a minute behind her, but she could make a run for it to her room and make sure Daisy was ready. The deadly aura making it hard to breath, she was going to do exactly that. Once she made it through the door, she turned around and latched the door closed. Soon a hard pounding was heard, but as Fred was a Enhancer, he was going to have no problem knocking that door down. With every hit, she started to feel a whoosh of power with every blow. Rose rushed up all the stairs, nearly tripping on her feet, turning the corner right before she heard a big boom, the door spiraling across the room and a manic laugh coming from Fred. "Aw... Rose, don't be like that. You know I'll find you. I told you I wanted to talk!" He screamed. She ran to her and Daisy's room they shared, busting it open and soon turning around to lock it and push the chair near by, under the door knob. Daisy was sitting on the bed with all her things in a backpack, and her favorite stuffed animal, her bear. Hearing Fred slowly stomp down the hall, busting open the doors as he went by, one by one. Rose realized she had less time than she calculated..

"Daisy, are you ready?" She asked her baby sister, her sister nodded and as about to say something, Rose could tell she had been crying. Rose put her finger up to her sisters mouth, shaking her head and mouthing no. "Here's my phone. You need to leave. Now Daisy.." she grabbed her sisters arm gently after daisy put the phone in her backpack pocket, leading them to the only window In the room. Rose unlocked it, and quietly lifted it open. "Don't let him see you through the window, ok? I love you." She hugged her sister very tight, before hearing a roaring pound at the door now. More tears fell from Daisy's eyes, as she nodded staring at Rose, quickly exiting the room from the window, waving to Rose. Rose waved back and blew a kiss to her, then signalling her hand for her to sit on the specific part of the roof as discussed.

Glancing at the street below, she turned around when the door was buses open. She was thinking quick on what to say and what to do, Fred huffing as he walked up to her. He walked up closer, how hands going to her throat and holding her against the wall. Her hands went to his forearms as she struggled to breath. "Stop.. please.." she pleaded. She had only one option. If she wanted to live, and as her consciousness faded in and out. Memories flashing all the way from when she was little. Chrollo was always by her side. In a way, she knew Chrollo would never love her the way she loved him..

Chrollo and Rose were sitting on top of the garbage pile, the highest one they could find. Holding each other closely watching the sunrise together. "Now wait. Soon the sun will make it look like a city of diamonds and jewels. This is what I've been telling you about, I know you'll love it.." Chrollo's words were happier than normal when he spoke about this so Rose was convinced it was something great if he loved it. She set her head on his shoulder, grabbing his hand. "Chrollo, do you think when we're older, we can be together?" Rose slipped those words out. In the heat of the moment. Chrollo tensed up a little bit, but that went away as soon as the sun rose. Before her eyes, what he said was true, who knew a city so bad, could have such a beautiful view. "You were right Chrollo, thank you for showing me this.." she said lifting her head from his shoulder. He turned around to face her, grabbed her chin, and kissed her with passion. Once they parted, chrollo spoke. "Maybe one day... I know you can find someone better than me when you make it out of here.. realistically I can't see it, us being together. I like you, but who knows how we'll feel years later, you know?" Rose would have cried, but Chrollo stood up, taking her hand and pulling her up. "But there's nothing wrong with having what we have now.." He kissed her again, she wrapped her arms around his neck and he wrapped his arms around her waist, and maybe that's when she fell in love with him.

When Rose came back to reality, she knew she still had things she needed to be here for. She had to fight. She released her hands from Fred's arms, and went for his face. Poking as hard as she could towards his eyes. Kicking as hard as she could. He dropped her and she gasped for air. "please stop Fred.." she quickly came to her feet, cornered and not sure what to do. Glancing around, she looked at the lamp. She quickly darted, fred attempting to grasp her, hot on her tail. She picked up the lamp and threw it at Fred, it stattering at he deflected it with his arms. Just enough time to run. And that she did.

"You're funny Rose.. you think you can out smart me? Take me for my money? You really are stupider than I thought.." she heard him, she ran out the room, running down the hall and going to the staircase, running up all the steps which felt like a million years. She heard Fred's foot steps and felt them rattle the staircase. Rose was now wheezing, but couldn't let herself get tired, not yet. Soon she was on the third and last level. She sprinted as soon as she saw the big doors, in which was the safe where her book was. Rose backed up, and ran into the door to break it open. Yet it did not open. She started to panic, and kept ramming herself. The wood started to splinter, and after four times of brute force, it broke opened. By then, she had seen Fred come around the corner, so she ran over to the vault. She starting pushing in the code, getting denied every time. Fred was walking up to her at this point, a low laugh coming from his chest, gasping she turned around. "I changed it. Unfortunately you won't be getting it back ever. Why do you hurt me Rose?.." He was calmer, but his blood lust was rising.

"Because you wanted to be with her instead of me, you wanted me to give you this so it'd be equal, yet you feel it's okay to hit me when your in the wrong, and you have your nen?" She was trying to hit him on a personal level so he could apologize and maybe this would pass. Not this time.

He walked up to her, "because I fell out of love with you. The instant I saw you never stopped writing him... " She couldn't believe Fred at this moment. This was a new thing he had brought up. "So why should I care to fix this? when every woman I've been with, has been so much better? Fills all my needs, and actually wants me. Also, I could make alot of money for your book." Rose was letting her anger get the best of her, tears started streaming and she went for it. She got a few punches in, before he grabbed her arm.

"Then end it. Since i am nothing to you and this world, take me out of this miserable life!!"  And with that, Fred hit her and she had went flying into the wall. Laying in the debris, she was gasping. Fred had walked up to her, and picked her up by her hair. If she could, she'd scream. But the impact before had broken ribs, so she just stared at him, before being thrown to the wall again. Blood started coming from her mouth, she was ready for this. Daisy crossed her mind and she smiled, knowing she was in good hands.. her life fading and things went black, she heard alot of booms and yelling going on, and someone picking her up.

"Please hang on Rose.. stay with me..." She heard Chrollo say to her softly touching her face. She drifted off into a peacefulness of black, knowing Daisy was alright, and she could finally let go of this life for good.

--

A/N: sorry it's short and kind of meh, I had a major writers block and this is definitely getting edited. Lucky not alot of people have read this- but if you do thank you for supporting me!! Much love. If you feel open to request something for the story or pitch ideas I'm all ears!! This is the last part I have on wattpad. Might be a minute til I can write the next chapter, of course when it gets a little intense. 💀

[afoxysunny]

Jives as High Duke

So Jives gets a second pick and oh my G did i struggle with choosing this one. In the end I'm pretty happy with the decision to give him the Monkey Miraculous

The whole story for how he ended up with having to pick a second time is already on the post about Stingy, who gets the Turtle from Jives, so I'll try not to repeat myself too much

So here are the references for this design

This design came out a lot simpler than it probably should be considering that it's based on the Chinese Monkey King but Jives isn't one for overly flashy and elaborate costumes in my opinion

Also, yes, again, his eyey should be blue but making colour changes to coloured pencil drawings is really hard, I'm sorry

Again, i just did what felt natural to me and in no time this was the outcome. Conclusion: drawing Jives comes very natural to me and i appreciate him for that

Design Notes:

Chest Pattern - i wanted to make the chest pattern here resemble the one he had as Grinder Turtle, this was also a big factor that sold me on giving him this Miraculous. I just think it looks really cool and it connects the two designs in a vague sense

Beanie - my boy Jives always wears some sort of hat, this is no exception. The Monkey Miraculous is a Crown and here it blends in so it now replaces the brim section of the beanie. On second thought it might be a little basic to choose a beanie but it just really suits him, i couldn't think of a better fit. Especially because it goes along really well with the headshape of the monkey i based him on

Toque Macaque - I'll be real with you, I'm not a huge fan of monkeys which makes them one of the few animal species i don't love and also makes the biggest reason i wasn't immediately happy to give my dear Jives this Miraculous xD I'm shallow i know. Anyways. I may not know a lot about monkeys but i knew enough to pick this macaque because the colours go well enough with the Monkey Kwami Xuppu and i liked the markings it has. [coicidentally this specific kind, the Toque Macaque, happens to share its natural habitat with the peacock ;)]

Tail - on his back you see how the rope detailing from his chest and pants combine into the belt and eventually the tail. I wanted the markings to kind of resemble a harness for climbing, i don't think it comes across too well though

Hair - the little bit you can still see of his actual hair coincidentally blends in almost seamlessly with the colour of his costume, that wasn't planned but i like it a lot

Reasoning:

At the point in time where i made the decision that Stingy would take the Turtle Miraculous from Jives i already had most Miraculous assigned to most other characters, in fact i was only really missing one for Ziggy. So spoiler alert i guess for him. I fudged around for a while between the Mouse and the Monkey, both would've worked well with either but in the end settled on the Monkey for Jives for multiple stupid timy reasons. For example the chest pattern i already mentioned, my ship-trash side going "a monkey and a peacock fit together way better aesthetically than a mouse and a peacock would", he and Xuppu would have a funny bro dynamic together etc.

Story:

I already explained why and how Jives loses the Turtle Miraculous to Stingy in my post about the latter so I'll just give a short summary here before moving on

As per usual Jives didn't eat much throughout the day and ends up fainting. This time it's a much bigger deal though. Usually he doesn't actually fully faint, just sway a little, maybe collapse but for the most parts he stays conscious just really weakened. That day the team of new heroes is fighting an important battle when he full on passes out in the middle of it. Luckily Stingy is able to step in to build their defense up again.

Obviously, instead of saying "i eat as little as possible because i have a problem" Jives just shrugs it off and goes "guess i didn't eat enough again, my bad guys, sorry" and thinks it'll be fine. He didn't expect Álfurildi, aka Sportacus, to take this very literal and announce that he planned on having them eat in his airship as a whole group anyway gor team moral and to make sure they're all healthy enough to actually handle a Miraculous. They deduce that must have been the reason Jives full on fainted this time, while going by his usual life he obviously didn't need as much energy as he now needs to be a superhero so the simple solution is to just eat more.

He makes excuses to not eat with the others as often as he can but one day he'd have to actively leave the others to do so as he already is in the airship with them when they start preparing to serve the next meal. That day he actually snaps at Sportacus that he just doesn't want to eat. Unfortunately, thanks to being such a gentle soul and also sensing Jives frustration and hunger Sportacus tries to comfort Jives with the worst thing he could've said. "heroes gotta eat well, so you can become big and strong" to which Jives absolutely loses it. He snaps at him "I'm already too big without eating anything, can't you just leave me alone!" and just jumps out of the airship. By now he already has Xuppu as his new partner so of cause he makes it down unharmed to run off into the forest. Sportacus wants to follow him but Robbie stops him. Robbie, who so far was pretty quiet and reclusive when the teens came to visit, says he will go find and talk to him taking Pixel with him as he is his best friend after all.

I'll spare you the unnecessarily details i cane up with and just say this is the moment Robbie gets to explain how the powers i gave him work and we get to see that he does really deeply care but just can't really express it. They find Jives and thanks to Robbie being able to relate to him about some of his insecurities and Pixel being a great friend he ends up confessing to them about his eating disorder. He never wanted to be the odd one out but never managed to fit in with the others. It's hard to hide you're different when you're towering over your peers so he figured if he just stopped eating he'd stop growing and though it had no positive effect on him he just couldn't stop doing it even after realizing how bad it had gotten.

Going back to the airship together once the situation calmed down a bit and with Jives' permission they let Sportacus in on this secret. As Robbie figured, the local health expert knows exactly what foods wouldn't upset such an empty stomach too badly and they start the process of finding a few good things for Jives to eat so he doesn't break down again.

Name:

Quick, something more lighthearted

When Jives gets his second pick for a Miraculous his eyes fall on the little Monkey, Xuppu. The two pretty quickly get along thanks to Xuppu being a jokester and Jives liking how bro-like they can talk and poke fun at each other. This turns out to be a great pick as this Kwami of Jubilation not only like shouting random noises around just like Jives but is also sassy and straightforward enough to remind him to eat every once in a while by poking fun at him using something Pixel once said to him "I'll not let you eat less than the Kwamis" (yes this part should've technically been in the reasoning section but you kinda need the context of the story for it so i put it here)

So Trixie explains that Xuppu's transformation and powers are based on the Chinese Monkey King (she knows that from the Guardians) but Jives really isn't one for flashy costumes and important titles so not only is his costume more basic than it probably should be but also he wamts to name himself "Duke". Stingy immediately objects "A duke is about as royal as a prince! You're completely underselling this concept. You have to trade with me! You get yoir turtle back. Let me be King!" Xuppu and Wayzz look at each other and roll their eyes, Xuppu then steps floats forward to say "well, he's not entirely wrong. Wouldn't you like to pick something higher?" so Jives chuckles and goes "High Duke". Again Stingy is outraged by this disrespect "that's ridiculous!" but Xuppu laughs and says "no, i like his style! Let's do this!" and so their new duo is established

Look, don't judge me, everyone headcanons Jives with growing not all legal things in his garden so now that he's actually a teen in my au I'm keeping it xD

Thank you so so much for reading so much of my rambling. You're so cool for taking the time to read this!

[ghost-btch]

He Could Be The One~ 5 Seconds Of Summer

(Chapter One: Phoenix)

Prologue was posted right before this on my blog. I would link it but I'm scared it won't show up in the tags if I do.

Rating: literally for everyone lol

Warning: none besides the fact there may be grammatical errors, oops lol

Word Count: 1.6k

Author's note: You can read this also on wattpad, @/raineyC4. I may update quicker on there then here so go check it out on there aswell. This is my first Tumblr Fanfic so this is quite exciting, though I've been making stories on wattpad since 2016. Anyways enjoy the story!!

*******************************************

3rd Person P.O.V

   The blue-eyed blonde singer stood right off stage. Her show would start in a few minutes. She was incredibly nervous, like always. She's done this for years but the anxiety is always there. But as clique as it sounds, every time she steps on stage that feeling fades away. She shook herself and prepared to walk on. Then before she knew it, it was her que to walk on.

The big screen on the back "wall" was flashing in black and white, then red "Phoenix". It glitching as it did so to the beat of the song.

That song was ...Ready For It? by Taylor Swift. Phoenix only had about 10 songs of her own out so she did a lot of covers.

"Knew he was a killer first time that I saw him..." Phoenix began to sing trying not to smile to create an effect.

As she sang she danced around the "T" shaped stage to the song. It seemed be choreographed but really she just made them up as she went. She was a true performer.

She wore a black body suite much like Taylor Swift wore during her preformce of the song. But it had more of shorts at the bottom. And it had a few red sparkles. Her hair was slightly curled and she wore crimson red lipstick. Her reddish boots went up to her knees.

When the song came to an end the next song, I Did Something Bad, started to play.

Phoenix loved to preform this song more then even her own songs. She had managed to learn Taylor Swift's original choreography to the song from watching the AMAs preformce over and over again. It was a dramatic performance and Phoenix loved it for that exact reason.

When she finished she was at the very end if the "T" stage in the middle. She laughed and smiled like an idiot looking over the crowd. And starring back at her where around what seemed a thousand people.

"Oh my God! I can't- I can't believe this is my life! Y'all have no idea how much I've dreamed and wished for the chance to do this. I love each and every one of y'all for being here. Whether you wanted to, weather you were bored and went to the nearest concert just because, or you were dragged here by someone else. Just thank you and I hope you guys like the show so far! You seem to be, but are you?" the crowd screamed, "Okay I'm gonna take that as a yes. Anyways she next song's called 'Don't Blame Me' and oh I'm Phoenix!" Phoenix said into the mic.

****

When the song finished she was back in the place she started. A trap "door" under her lowered her to under the stage. There she had to quickly change into the next costume while the ending music of "Don't Blame Me" played to the crowd.

While this happened a red piano was rolled out onto the stage. Phoenix walked out wearing a red sequined top with a red skirt that went to her knees.

She sat down on the little bench and started to play a few keys, "So this I wrote a while back when I was in middle school. I had this friend who I'd geek out with. Eventually I realized I liked him. After awhile I couldn't take it anymore and told him in a note that I practically threw at him out of nerves," she laughed at this, "Then after about a week he gave me a small piece of paper that read 'sorry I just want to be friends'. I was devastated of course, but I just hoped nothing would change. Oh how I was wrong. He never spoke to me again. Here's a song I wrote about a year later."

She proceeded to sing a song called "Let Things Go". It was written so long ago, and she was definitely, definitely, over the kid. But she every time she sang it she felt as if it was a new scar. 'Guess scars don't really ever go away?' She thought one day.

As soon as it finished she started to play another Taylor song, The Moment I Knew.

It of course started on the piano, but when it came to the chorus she stood up. And after the chorus she walked around the stage almost acting out the lyrics.

During the bridge Phoenix looked out into the crowd almost crying as the lyrics said it too.

As it finished ahead gave a soft smile. Just two years ago in her 20th birthday this song became so real for her. She wasn't quite over this scar yet.

She walked back to the piano and when she walked out from behind it she was no longer wearing the skirt, but now a pair of black shorts.

She then jumped up onto the piano and sat on it, her legs dangling off. The music of We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together started to play.

She began singing while still sitting until the "What?" part and acted out the song the rest of the song. Phoenix always had the most fun singing this song, it never got old. And by the end she was sat back on the piano.

"Liked that little costume changed?" Phoenix laughed as the crowd cheered.

She hoped off the piano, "So I was wondering if it was okay for me to do a little something different now? I won't be able to run around though, so there's a negative. But I really think you're gonna lie the positive! Just give me a second, I'll be right back."

She scampered off stage and when she walked back on she held a red guitar in her hands. She walked up to the microphone stand in the middle of the stage right before it extended out.

"So uhh, surprise!" Phoenix said into the mic smiling.

"So how about I play my guitar here for a few songs? I'll take that as a yes. So this first one is an old one. It's from an old Disney show called Hannah Montana. It was definitely my favorite TV show and this was one if my favorite songs. Never thought that eventually I'd laugh at a few lyrics because of someone. No I'm not saying who, though most of y'all probably already know. Anyways hears a song called 'He Could Be The One'!"

"Smooth talkin', so rockin'

He's got everything that a girl's wantin'

Guitar cutie, he plays it groovy

And I can't keep myself from doin' somethin' stupid..." she sang smiling at a few certain lyrics.

The girl completely jammed out to the song like there was no tomorrow. Running around in that one area when she wasn't singing. Yep definitely a performer.

"Well that was fun!" Phoenix laughed.

"Well I think it's time for one where I know y'all will have fun aswell." She said as she started to play "She's Kinda Hot" by 5 Seconds of Summer.

"Surprise!" She said right before singing.

But there was one thing that the girl had yet to find out. It was that, that very band stood only a few yards ahead of her.

The boys were just all hanging out in L.A. with nothing to do. Ashton suggest that they should just go to the nearest concert because why not? So they did. Now they stood towards the back kinda freaking out because someone was singing there song.

Then at the end of the song the music faded into "Babylon", another favorite of the blue-eyed singer.

The girl had so much fun playing this song and the audience loved it. Even the people who didn't know the original singers they still acted as if they did.

****

Phoenix changed into ripped back pants and a while shirt to sing the next few songs, all if which being her's.

Falling For You- a song revealed to be about fictional/celebrity crushes

Me- a song about her excepting who she really is

My Story- a song about her childhood and teenage years

We Don't Care About Anyone Else- a song she wrote about her friends and her, and the fact that they know they're weird but totally okay with that

After adding a leather jacket to the mix she also sang a song by Bea Miller called "We're Taking Over".

****

The last part of the concert was all the songs Phoenix felt was the funniest to sing/dance to.

Blank Space- making sure to point her tattoo of "Darling I'm A Nightmare, Dressed Like A Daydream" during that part.

New Romantics

This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things

Then it came to almost a close:

"Well I'm sorry to say but this is the last song of the night. Thanks to all of you, you've made this a night to remember. And I hope that I was able to make you as happy as you've made me! This last song was my first single I put out. I've always been so proud of it and promised to sing it every show. It's about how my life was back in school, to what I'd hope my life would be, and now it really is. Oh and enjoy the original music video playing on the screen!" Phoenix smiled.

Phoenix danced around and sang like her life depended on it. She never wanted it to end. But unfortunately it did. When she finished she said "Thank you" once more and then ran around the perimeter of the stage to touch as may people's hands as she could. She did a bow and then waved with the biggest smile and went off stage.

~~~~

As the show came to a close the 5SOS boys decided to see if they could surprise the girl they just watch perform. But they had to figure out how to get back stage.

"We don't need another last time something like this happened." One said referring to a certain person.

"Hey!" was Ashton's response.

....

Tag list: @rip-lukes-balsamic @euphoric-swift //just comment if you'd like to be on my tag list//

A/N: try to guess who the person Phoenix likes hehe lol

[kalluralove]

Both sites: BlackEvyl. (Who needs to be creative XD). And you're welcome! I look forward to read it! (And thank you, good to know I haven't wasted all those years of learning. XD But still, writing actual stories is quite different than just talking with someone ;.; I'm not sure my writing style works well with different language, at least when I try to write in that language from 0... I guess I'll just end up translating it or something. Once I publish anything, that is). Thank you again! : D

Thanks again to @blackevyl for the cool idea on this post https://kalluralove.tumblr.com/post/173329099840/i-imagine-that-at-some-point-keith-would-actually

It’s short but sweet and I hope I did your idea justice!

IN HIS DEFENSE

The late-night knock on the door startled Allura. She was just now ready to call it a night but had assumed that the tired members of the Voltron team would have long been asleep. It was their first mission since Keith had resumed flying the Black lion and once again the bickering between the paladins meant things didn’t go as smoothly as they should have. The others still resented Keith’s long absence with the Blade of Marmora, making them slow to warm to his leadership.

She opened the door to see a haggard Keith.

“Please, come in. Have a seat,” the Princess insisted, motioning to a couch in the sitting area of her bedroom.

“I’m not going to stay long, I just needed to give you something,” the young pilot replied as his body swayed slightly.

Realizing he was unsteady on his feet, Allura decided to take a different tack to get him to rest. “I’m too tired to stand another second,” she complained, “and Coran will understand you being in my room if it’s related to Voltron affairs.”

She noted that Keith blushed a little and shifted uncomfortably at the word. Allura made a mental note to ask Pidge later if it had a different meaning on Earth. The fact that he chose to sit on the far end of the sofa, well away from where she sat, indicated it likely did.

“So, what brings you here at this hour?” she asked, quirking her eyebrow to show that she was curious, not annoyed.

The Captain looked down at his hands as he contorted his fingers in and out of a fist. “I wanted you to take care of something for me.”

Now the Princess was genuinely concerned. Could he be planning to leave again? Did Lance’s constant badgering force him to give up already? In her mind she began to formulate any number of arguments against such a distasteful idea. If he planned to leave she would not let him go easily this time.

Her thoughts distracted her so much she missed him pulling his Marmoran blade from its sheath. He didn’t seem to notice that she wasn’t looking, either; the glimmer of the light bouncing off metal was what brought her back to reality.

“I want you to keep this for me,” he continued. To her ears he sounded conflicted by the offering.

As he extended the hilt towards her she saw that his hand was trembling slightly. It was understandable, seeing that it was a family heirloom and his go-to weapon.

In fact, that’s what had begun the tension with the team to start. Hunk pointed out that he was using it instead of his bayard, questioning Keith’s determination to stay with the Voltron force instead of migrating back to the Blades. None of the others seemed to notice the hurt in his eyes at the accusation. Allura stepped in to remind the others that their leader had returned because he wanted to, not because he was forced. They quieted down a bit after that, but the glares they shot at him seemed to land like bullets. It had been a while since she saw Keith flinch around them.

“Why do you want to give this to me?” She held her breath for what seemed like forever while he worked up a response he was satisfied with.

Finally his eyes were able to meet hers as he spoke. “I need you to trust me,” he sighed. “I need you to know that I’m all in.”

Allura reached over to place her hand over his, slowly pulling the knife from him. She cradled the cold blade in her other hand, marvelling over the fine craftsmanship.

That he worried so much over something that didn’t particularly bother her left a pain in her chest as tears began to well up. While she didn’t want to push Keith out of the room too quickly, she wasn’t sure how long she could hold them back.

“I…I can’t accept this,” she responded, turning her head slightly toward the shadows. She hastily dropped the knife on the table in front of them.  “You don’t owe me anything. I’ve done nothing to deserve your loyalty. And yet you’ve come back to me– I mean the team– time and time again.”

At this she stood quickly, intending to usher Keith to the door. Instead his voice stopped her suddenly.

“I’ll always come back to you,” was all he said, and that was all it took.

The dam burst and Allura began to weep. She knew he probably meant “you” in a plural sense, yet she wanted it to be directed at her exclusively. Regret for every time she had asked him “please come back to us” instead of “please come back to me” washed over her.

The Princess realized things had gotten even more awkward and expected Keith to rush out of the room. Instead he gently pulled her by the wrist back onto the sofa, this time much closer to him. His hands grasped hers, his thumbs rubbing her fingers in an attempt to calm her. Allura attempted a smile to assure him that she would be okay, although she imagined it looked more pained than comforted.

“Let me do this. Let me prove myself to you and to the others,” he continued. “I need to be sure the team works together. I need to be sure everyone comes back safely… especially you.”

Allura almost didn’t hear the last part as his voice dropped to a whisper.

Keith felt the sweat on his back shift directions as he maneuvered to avoid the sword swinging wildly at his head. Few Galra carried such weapons so the Black Paladin was caught off guard when the first hit landed on his shoulder. He was glad to be back in his armor since it provided somewhat better protection than his Marmora suit, but it did stick out amongst the dark shadows of the destroyer he had boarded. The grey-clad soldier he was fighting had the advantage here.

Suddenly the crack of a whip sounded from his left; its electrified barbs latched onto their target before bringing the convulsing body to the ground before him. Keith smiled when he saw Allura approach, although he quickly ducked his head to hide it lest the other paladins be nearby.

“Thanks, that was a tough one,” he offered quietly, fighting every urge in his body to run over and hug the Princess.

“I’m just glad I got here in time. You never used to struggle like that,” she noted, her voice filled with concern.

Keith returned the bayard to its original form and put it away. He was annoyed that after several weeks he still didn’t feel right wielding it. It felt clumsy compared to his blade, but he would simply have to learn to use it again.

“Just a bit off today, no big deal,” he replied, offering a quick thumbs-up to reiterate his statement.

Allura stepped in front of him, forcing him to look at her. He could tell she wasn’t convinced by the set of her jaw and the furrow of her brow.

“You say that every time,” she countered angrily. “You’re going to get yourself killed like this.”

“Get himself killed like what?” Pidge stepped through the doorway and looked at the two of them. “What’d he do this time?”

Soon Lance appeared behind her and propped himself against the doorframe, his arms crossed as he studied the scene. “I’m guessing he did something stupid like using his head as a battering ram.”

“Maybe he tried to blow something up without thinking,” chimed Hunk, who had been skulking in the hallway.

“Enough!” shouted Allura, startling everyone into silence.

Keith instinctively took a step backwards towards the darkened corner of the room. The Princess rarely shouted at the paladins and he desperately hoped an argument wouldn’t begin. Certainly not one that centered around him.

Allura looked back at Keith, then took a deep breath before pulling the Marmora blade from her armor. The others looked confused as to why she was holding it, but none dared question her. The Black paladin’s eyes met hers and they never wavered, even as she approached him.

She reached for his hand and pulled it towards her, palm up. “It’s time I returned this to its rightful owner,” she conceded, placing the knife in his palm.

The Captain was taken aback, unsure how to respond. He’d given this to her as a sign of his faithfulness to her as well as to the cause. Had he done something make her question his loyalty? His body began to tremble and his throat tightened so that he could barely breathe.

“Princess, whatever I did I’m sorry,” he muttered, not wanting to engage the others in their personal conversation. “I’ll make it right, I’ll-”

Allura didn’t allow him to finish. She leaned in to give him a chaste kiss on the lips before stepping back to offer him a genuine smile. It wasn’t their first kiss– far from it– which was much more passionate on the night he gave her the knife, but it sent shivers down his spine nonetheless.

“What the quiznak?!” echoed a chorus of voices from behind Allura. Keith had momentarily forgotten they were watching the entire transaction.

“Anything you’d like to share with the rest of us?” demanded Lance, slinking closer to the couple.

“As a matter of fact, there is,” Allura retorted. “Keith is the leader of Voltron. He’s also a member of the Blade. The fact that he’s here with us now stands as proof of his loyalty to the team. His actions in the past reflect his fidelity to the cause. He has earned his place as the leader of Voltron and you will respect that.”

The rest of the team stood silent, mouths agape– even Keith. It wasn’t that he had never heard those words from her, just that she’d never uttered them in front of the others. If he were being honest he’d have to say that he fell in love with her all over again at that moment. Still, he didn’t understand the reason she was giving his blade back to him.

“Keith,” she started, as if answering his unasked question. “Someday you will give this back to me, and if the fates allow to our child. But you need to survive for that to happen, so keep it as long as you are a soldier. You can’t come back to me if you can’t defend yourself.”

Allura spoke in a hushed tone so that the others couldn’t hear, but Keith understood every word.