#they are so much like twin ship with kallura

[pygmalimoon]

Them. 🌕💗

Art by my friend 阿容

[kallura-icedcoffee]

I just saw you were taking prompts. I don't know the themes for the week, but how about a bit of comedy up in here. Kallura (side of plance), where Acxa is actually their daughter from the future. This crack headcanon has been in my head for days now.

A/N: I decided to make this a continuation of this other drabble where Allura is jealous of Acxa and Keith. It’ll make more sense if you read the other drabble first. Thank you @kentaruhinaka for waiting patiently!

“What happened? Is everything ok?” Hunk asked.

“Who knows, maybe? Yes? Remind me to never fall for someoneif it makes you crazy like that.” Pidge shook her head as she took a seat nextto Lance.

“Oh please, you’re gonna crush on someone someday and it’sgoing to totally wreck you before you even realize it’s happening.” Lanceteased as he mussed her hair playfully.

Pidge looked up at him, at his irritatingly cute smile, andhuffed before turning to the fire, hoping it was the flames making her cheeksburn. She snatched up a stick and stoked the fire.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about” she grumbled.

“Are they ok?” Acxa blurted out suddenly.

She’d stayed quiet during the entire ordeal starting withAllura snipping at Keith around the campfire to them excusing themselves totalk privately. While everyone else was chatting or pretending to absolutelynot be eavesdropping on the argument, she was staring at the spot where’d they’dsnuck off to rather intently and the louder they seemed to get the morefrequently her eyes would dart to her hand on her knee which unbeknownst toanyone else, was subtly fading in and out.

“Hmm?” Pidge looked up from the fire.

“Are they ok?” Acxa asked again a bit more persistently.

“Yeah,” she shrugged, not sure why the ex-general seemed tocare so much, “they were saying some mushy stuff before I walked away.”

“Oh thank god” she sighed with relief.

Everyone turned and looked at her strangely.

“I just mean…it’s good that everyone is getting along.” Sheshifted uncomfortably.

“Well since all’s well that ends well I’m ready to hit thehay.” Lance yawned.

“Same!” Hunk followed with an even bigger yawn.

“Yeah I’m beat, let’s call it a night guys.” Shiro chimedin.

“Should we tell them we’re going to bed?” Romelle askedpointing to where Keith and Allura had gone off to.

“Better not, they could be doing lord knows what now that it’sgotten quiet back there.”

“Like what?” Romelle asked with naïve curiosity, eyesblinking.

“He’s probably givin’ her the ol’ razzle dazzle!” Lanceperked his eyebrows before snatching Pidge in his arms.

“Oh princess kiss me before I get extra emo!” Lance deepenedhis voice as he mocked Keith, dipping Pidge and frantically nuzzling his facein her cheek while making exaggerated kissing noises.

Pidge’s face went red, redder than the red lion red, codered red, atomic red. His face had moved to her neck which sent a sharp tingledown her spine.

“G-g-g-get off me you dork!” She tried to push him away.

“Oh Keith!” His voice suddenly jumped to a higher octivewith a fake British accent. “The Marmora can go on without you but my loins, myheaving bosom, they cannot! Make love to me you mulleted fool!”

“Lance!” Pidge screeched as he picked her up and spun heraround.

“This is so exciting what happens next?!” Romelle clappedwith wide bright eyes.

“What happens next is we all go to bed before you scar usall for life.” Shiro rubbed his temples.

“I don’t know if I’m happy or worried that my son has youall as friends” Krolia’s forehead creased with concern.

“You know your acting has improved, perhaps I should havehad you play the princess during The Voltron Show” Coran said thoughtfully.

Lance winked while popping a signature finger gun.

“I’m a man of many talents.”

“Including making me sick.” Hunk joked.

“Ouch!” Lance retorted which clutching his heart.

They continued to tease each other as they walked towardtheir lions. Pidge was left standing there, still a flustered blushing mess.She patted her cheeks, trying to calm herself when she noticed Acxa was stillstanding there staring at her.

“What?” Pidge blurted out a tad accusingly.

“Nothing.” Acxa smiled knowingly.

“That isn’t what you think it is” she stated adamantly.

“And what do I think it is?” the Galra woman asked.

“He just caught me off guard that’s all! I don’t actually…Imean I would never…with him…like that.”

“Mhm.”

“I wouldn’t!”

“Of course.” Acxa nodded as she rose to her feet. “Wellgoodnight then.”

“Goodnight.” Pidge was still a little on edge and quicklystomped off to her lion.

Axca waited until Pidge was out of sight to look at her handagain. Everything seemed to be back to normal and she took a deep breath as sheclenched it into a fist to confirm its solidity. She thought maybe she shouldcheck on Keith and Allura but thought the better of it and went back to hertent.

She plopped down on her makeshift cot and looked around thetiny space decorated with what little belongings she had. She lifted up therolled up fabrics she’d made into a pillow and pulled out the worn, slightlycrumpled photo underneath. There was just enough light seeping in from thedwindling fire outside to make out each person, although she’d looked at thispicture a million times and could have described it in her sleep.

An air strip. Garrison in the background. A large Alteanship. A group in the foreground. A very old Iverson. Pidge and Lance inuniform, their two twin toddlers in regular civilian clothes. Keith looked important, like a knight…or perhaps a king. His physical appearance was a bit different, moreGalran. His arm was around Allura. She looked elegant.

And in her arms a baby…

Tiny…beautiful…violet skin with a small tuft of dark hair,eyes the perfect mix of blue and purple.

She’ll grow up hearing how pretty her ears are from her mamawhile she pinches said ears while placing raspberry like kisses on her cheeks.

She’ll get her first dagger from her papa when she’s far tooyoung to even have one, to her mama’s aggravation.  

War will prove nothing is certain and a very irritating caterpillar-likealien will put it in her mind that there are a million possibilities and she’llhave to go back to make sure the two people she loves the most don’t screw itall up.

“I wish you two would just admit you love each other alreadyso I don’t have to keep worrying about ceasing to exist” Acxa muttered toherself with a smile as she ran her fingers over their faces.

“Idiots” she added with a chuckle.

Meanwhile Keith and Allura finally took themselves to bed,Allura’s bed in the blue lion specifically. He rubbed her bare back as he heldher, using his fingers to trace the additional Altean markings on her skin asthey faintly glowed in the dark. She rested her head on his chest listening tothe sounds of his beating heart, the way he breathed. Their clothes were in apile on the floor.

“Are you sure it’s…y’know, ok that we…?”

“Yes, fertility cycles, alien stuff, you’re fine.”

“Whew.”

“Not ready to be a father yet?” Allura giggled.

“I can barely get you guys to listen to me let alone a kid.”

“Well I think you’d be a wonderful father, someday of course.”

“Someday.”

There’s a long pause.

“Keith Jr. is a good strong name though” he joked.

Allura laughed.

“And what about you, do you want kids someday?” Keith asked.

“I think so, when the time is right, once we’ve been able tobring peace to the universe.”

“That sounds like a tall order.”

“It is but I believe we can do it. I want my daughter toexist in a time of harmony.”

“Daughter huh?”

“Yes, I’d love a girl,” Allura smiled to herself, “beautiful,strong, smart, independent with a name that reflects her strength and grace. Perhapsa name that starts with an ‘A’.” There was a playful arrogance in her voice.

“Hmm,” Keith sighed contentedly as he held her closer, “thatcould be nice…”

[phoenixyfriend]

The Bachelor AU

The thing is that Lance is really easy to ship with... well, a lot of people, for me.

Klance? Allurance? Kallurance? Hance? Lidge? Fuck it, it's all good.

Outside of Voltron? Nyma works. Plaxum's GREAT.

firebirdeternal

He just feels like the kind of guy who'd be easy to have a nice fulfilling relationship with.

He's fun, he's flirty, he's super good with reading emotions and taking care of people

He really just fits with so many different people

So obviously, Lance is The Bachelor.

EVERYONE WANTS TO WIN

Except Coran and Shiro, who are (long-suffering) hosts. (I’ve never watched The Bachelor. Are there hosts? There probably are. Point is, Coran and Shiro are on-site but not participants, and Shiro is Very Tired.)

It's the most bitter and competitive season EVER because literally everyone? Just? Falls for him?

Lotor's the producer who sends in his Galra Gals to check in on the show. None of them actually like it, but it rakes in the money and they just? Okay, you get another season, Voltron.

It's not even about the goddamn money, by the end of it the contestants all burn the money in a garbage can if they got to win for it

Nyma wouldn't.

Nyma's still a little more interested in the money than in the boy, because her life outside the show? Not great.

No, but also Lance wouldn't ask her to because he Gets It, which does Not Help Nyma with her Feelings Problem

Keith and Allura team up at one point like "a threesome might do it and we get along fuck it let's do this."

Oh god, there's only one problem: Who the hell actually WINS!?!

Because Lancey Lance is just like: "How? Do all these wonderful people? Like me? Must not be real?"

The problem is the same as the usual one for that show, but for different reasons. Most of the time it's "How does the Bachelor know they don't just want the money/to win" but now it's "How do they Convince the worlds' lowest self-esteem millionaire that they value his personhood and love him for who he is?"

Hm... you know what?

Nyma wins the prize money.

Lance pools his personal money with Allura's to buy an extra big mansion and they all go live in polyamorous harmony.

Meanwhile, Shiro screams into a pillow.

And Lotor greenlights another season.

firebirdeternal

THE BEST SOLUTION

Like, they don't all have to be in a relationship with Each Other, (But Keith and Allura are) but they all love Lance and they can fucking Make it Work

and they have enough money that they can all have as much and as private of a space as they desire, which is a huge greasing of the wheels so to speak

Acxa and Narti show up one day like "Hey, so the audience wants to know how this is all working out. Are you okay with us filming your lives here for a new show?"

At one point Coran and Shiro just show up because Lance and Allura were like "Yeah, okay, we need help with just... organizing life." Keith was the one to call in Shiro, and Allura already knew Coran and nobody’s actually sure why a rich girl like her went on the show. She refuses to tell and Coran just gives a smile and launches into a long-winded story about a trip he took around the world once.

Keith got his spot on the show because of Shiro.

One day Ryou and Matt just show up and Lance is like

"are... are you trying to join in on the poly because I know it's big but we're not actually open to--" "Look at my face and think about--" "OH MY GOD YOU'RE MATT. PIDGE’S MATT. Hi, no, sorry about that, come in, she’s upstairs, does she know you’re here?" “Nah, it’s a surprise!” *three minutes later, Pidge and Matt chase each other into the pool, screaming*

Okay, but Lotor wants to drive up Ratings with Drama. But it never works?

All the manufactured drama just? Can't penetrate? The sincere love and trust?

See, I like the idea of Lotor being vaguely easygoing?

He pokes and prods at the relationships to see if he CAN manufacture drama, but he kind of just sits back and lets things go their own course.

hmm. maybe someone else in the production company then?

"Only one person can win and they're all falling for him, that's enough drama on its own."

Haggar might.

also: the Galra gals get into shipping wars

But I LOVE the idea of Lotor doing his David Attenborough impression on this.

He just sits back and... watches them do their thing.

He is the epitome of "Okay, You Do That."

There is a massive subset of people shipping Kallura just because they're the ones that START the whole "Okay but poly though" idea.

And Shay is on the show, the only one not falling for Lance but for Hunk instead. Hunk’s personally torn between the two but kiiiiiiinda leaning towards Shay. The audience has mixed opinions. (Zethrid is very much rooting for Hunay. She thinks any baby they have could probably bench press a truck and she is DOWN for that.) (Ezor’s favorite contestant is clearly Nyma.)

ALSO THERE WAS A SEASON AT SOME POINT WHERE RYOU (Kuron) WAS A CONTESTANT.

Shiro had been working on the show for several seasons by that point and they introduce Ryou as a contestant and the camera just whips to Shiro’s face.

Which is obviously a rictus of horror.

The entire season is Ryou being very laidback and kind of a doofus while the camera pans to Shiro just staring into the middling distance off to the side.

There's an entire major subplot just based around the fact that the host is eternally embarrassed by his twin brother.

Ryou lasts for a long time mostly because everyone finds this hilarious instead of because anyone actually wants him to win.

"Do you want to win?" "No, but I want to see if I can make Shiro's hair go a little greyer than it already is."

"Shiro, as a host, are you--" "I'm disowning him." "YOU CAN'T DISOWN ME." "I'LL ADOPT KEITH AS MY BROTHER INSTEAD." "RUDE."

Two seasons later, Keith is on the show and Shiro is just like "If you do what Ryou did, I'm leaving."

Keith makes his own messes, but at least he doesn't have Shiro's face, and it's not done with the express purpose of fucking with Shiro, unlike Ryou, so that’s nice.

[eastofthemoon]

Empress’s Tears Chapter 2

So, not too long ago I wrote this Empress Allura prompt but the plot bunnies kept poking me and I’ve decided to expand on the idea.  The story is just going to pick up where the drabble left of.

And since it is Kallura Month I thought this chapter would fit today’s theme “Lost and Found.”  @kallurapositivitymonth

Title: Empress’s Tears Chapter 2

Rating: PG

Series: Voltron Legendary Defender

Characters/Ships: Keith/Allura, Lance, Sven, Pidge, Hunk, and Slav

Summary:  he paladins end up in the Altean Empire reality again, but this time they've also gone back in time and Keith makes a big discovery.

Archive of our Own

Allura moaned. Everything was sore. Her arms, her legs, her hands and feet, every single muscle felt stiff. It didn’t help matters that her bed felt like she was laying on a cold hard ground. Also, why did it feel so drafty? Didn’t Coran fix the room temperature settings in her room?

“Allura?” Hunk’s voice called. “Hey, she’s coming to!”

“Oh, thank God,” Pidge voiced. “I was getting worried there.”

She moaned again as she felt Hunk’s large hands force her to sit up.

“Just a few more tics, please,” she whined.

“Come on, Allura, you got to wake up,” Hunk urged as he patted her cheek. “We’re in deep trouble...and not the ‘Lance made a mess in the kitchen’ kind either, I mean big trouble.”

Allura’s eyes fluttered opened to Hunk looming over her with a concerned frown. “Hunk,” she muttered as she slowly regained her senses and noted they both were in their paladin armor. “What happened? Where are we?”

Hunk cringed as Pidge appeared next to him. “You don’t remember?”

Allura opened, but then promptly shut her mouth. “Wait..I do remember...we received a distress...from-”

“From me!” Slav cried as he waved as he hovered over a small machine. “My probability manifold calculated that in all possible realities branching off from ours, there was a ninety seven percent chance of being in a reality where none of us could possibly survive! However, by introducing outside elements, our odds would improve exponentially - so using the quantum entanglement formed by interactions with someone who knew myself from another reality-”

“In other words, the Slav from the Altean Evil Empire reality called us for help, so we used Voltron to cross over in the rip in space and time we entered before to get here,” Hunk stated.

Slav pouted as he crossed his top four arms. “You make it sound like it was complicated.”

“Because it was,” Hunk cried and Pidge rolled her eyes.

Allura rubbed her head. “I do remember that, and we left Coran and Shiro behind.” She recalled Shiro had been very hesitant in doing so, but they didn’t have much choice. The castle still needed repairs after their last battle, and Coran needed all the help he could get repairing it.

“And after that?” Pidge said as she examined Allura’s face.

“We met up with the Sven and the other rebels.” Allura recalled Lance being delighted upon seeing Sven. “Then we had to leave the lions behind so we could enter the base because-”

Allura froze as the memories came back to her. The Alteans still had a sample piece of the comet. They had it hooked up to a machine hoping to open a rip into another reality. They had fought their way in, and the machine was about to activate. Allura had charged forward, and without thinking grabbed the piece of comet to rip it out. The magic inside her reacted. There was a blast and then she blacked out.

Allura’s eyes widened as she dropped her hands into her lap. “What did I do?” she asked and looked around them. “And where exactly are we? We’re not in the base anymore.”

Pidge, Hunk and even Slav exchanged an awkward look. “Yeah,” Hunk said as he rubbed his neck. “There’s no easy way to say this but...we’re back in time.”

Allura blinked. “What?”

“Ten thousand years to be exact,” Slav said as he scooted closer. “It seems the combination of your Altean magic and the piece of the comet caused a rip in time itself and we travelled back in time.”

Allura frowned. “When you say ‘we’ you mean as in-”

“You, Sven, Keith, Lance, Hunk, Slav, those twin rebels that were with him and me,” Pidge said as she pointed to herself. “None of the Alteans travelled back with us.” She cringed. “Which is good considering where we landed.”

“Don’t you mean ‘when’ we landed?” Hunk asked.

Pidge shot him a glare. “Hunk, please no time travel jokes.”

Hunk frowned. “Pidge, we actually travelled back in time. I am making all the time travel jokes here, it’s the only way to keep my nerves calm!”

Allura squeezed her eyes shut. It was difficult to wrap her mind around the concept. Going to another reality was bizarre enough to comprehend but also travelling back in time? She could barely believe it. Ten thousand years that was..wait, that would mean…

Allura locked her gaze upon Slav. “We are ten thousand years in your reality?” Slav gave a solemn nod. “So..that would mean, it’s when I ..err..when Empress Allura-”

“Was ruling the Alteans,” Slav finished for her as he waved his third hand, “that would be correct.”

“Oh, quiznack,” Allura muttered as she ran a hand through her hair.

This was bad, very bad. Allura had tried not to imagine often of what exactly the her in this reality had become. To force brain implants on planets and take away their free will, Allura desperately didn’t want to picture what could drive the other her to do that. A part of her feared there was a risk of herself choosing that option someday if she wasn’t careful.

Allura swallowed hard before she looked up, and suddenly realized there were only the four of them in the cave. “Wait, where are Keith and Lance? And the others?”

Pidge cleared her throat as Hunk winced at the question. “Yeah..um..you were unconscious during this part,” Pidge began, “but we landed in the middle of the castle.”

Allura paled. “The castle?” As in where the empress lived? Oh, no.

Pidge nodded. “Needless to say the guards came after us pretty fast.” She pointed to Hunk. “Sven had to carry you, while Hunk carried that small machine that had the comet piece and Keith held everyone off so we could escape.”

Allura’s eyes narrowed as she felt a knot in her stomach. “And what happened to Keith?”

Hunk sighed as he shook his head. “He got captured, while the rest of us fled and found these caves to hide in.”

“WHAT?!” Allura cried as she sprang to her feet, but had to grab Hunk’s shoulder to balance herself. “Keith is in the hands of the empress?! We must go and rescued him. Who knows what they might do to-”

“Calm down,” Hunk said as he stood and patted her shoulder. “Lance, Sven and those other rebels went to go back and get him.”

“And do not worry,” Slav interjected as he gave a thumbs up. “There is a 66 percent chance of them succeeding,” he grasped his chin, “although our chances would be better if in this reality we had a tank, but we must make do with what we have.”

Allura’s shoulders relaxed slightly at that. “I see,” she said softly as she sat back down. “So, how do we get back home?”

“That’s what Slav and I are figuring out,” Pidge said as she moved back over to Slav’s side and looked over the machine. “We have a suspicion we’re going to have to go back to the place where we came in since that’s where we made the rip.”

“However, since that requires us returning to the palace we’re trying to find an alternative,” Slav said as he typed on the machine and sighed. “However, the chances of that happening in this reality are 12 percent.”

Hunk groaned as he slumped forward. “Fantastic, we barely made it out of there without getting our heads blasted off.”

Allura nodded as she turned her head to where the opening to the cave would be. So she was on Altea, but the truth was it wasn’t her old home. Not really. Part of her longed to go out and take a glimpse, but she forced herself to stay put.

This wasn’t her homeworld, and she had no idea what the other her did to it. Allura was fearful if she stepped outside to look, she wouldn’t recognize anything, but perhaps that was for the better.

The sound of footsteps broke Allura’s train of thought as she instinctively reached for her bayard.

“Look, I’m just saying no would care if you cut off that mullet!” Lance’s voice echoed.

“And no one cares if I have it either, except clearly you,” Keith shot back with a huff. “Why do you care so much about it?”

“Because it’s a fashion disaster and and that is a crime in itself.”

Allura gave a relieved smile as she climbed to her feet, and thankfully she felt more stable this time. She raced to them as they appeared. Lance was poking Keith’s shoulder with Sven and the two rebels behind them.

Keith scowled slightly until he saw Allura and he looked relieved. “Allura, you’re alright?”

“Yes, but I should be asking you that,” Allura said as she looked them over. “Hunk and Pidge just told me you were captured? Did they do anything-” She then noticed Keith was neither wearing or holding his helmet. “And where is your helmet?”

Lance shrugged. “Got left behind, although I don’t get why Keith couldn’t just grab it.”

Keith growled. “My hands were tied behind my back, how else was I supposed to pick it up? With my teeth?”

“He has a point,” Sven spoke as he crossed his arms. “It was hard enough for Linka and Tinka to locate his bayard, and we barely had enough time to do that.”

Allura frowned. Who was that? Oh, right the twins. Allura glanced to the two rebels that stood behind them. As if on cue, they removed their helmet revealing they’re matching blue skin and long flowing hair. If Linka hadn’t had red hair and Tinka blonde, Allura was certain she would never be able to tell them apart.

“Yeah, and that was a pain in the butt,” Linka said as she held her arms. “My maps I had for the castle are completely out of date!”

“Or more like too advanced,” Tinka said with a grin. “I mean your map is from the future, so it’s more the castle is outdated itself, right?”

Linka looked tempted to argue, but Sven held up his hand. “Please, do not go into another time travel argument. My brain is still trying to process on Slav’s explanation of it.”

“Even so, we should try to get Keith’s helmet back,” Pidge said as she approached. “Our helmets have a lot of information in it.” She counted on her fingers. “Schematics on the lions, the castle layout, how our bayards work, etc.” She flinched as she lowered her hand. “And I am not comfortable living that kind of info in the hands of the race that’s going to conquer the universe.”

She paused and glanced to Allura. “Um...no offense.”

“None taken,” Allura said dryly and grasped her chin. “Although, the helmets are designed so only it’s owner can access the information.”

“Doesn’t mean they won’t try though,” Lance said in a grim tone as he leaned against the wall, “and we don’t want to screw up the future.”

Slav waved a hand and scoffed. “Our future won’t change no matter what we do.”

Everyone exchanged a quizzed looked until the twins spoke in unison “What do you mean?”

“Our reality is already set, it’s like trying to move a mountain. It can’t be done.” He turned back to them. “The only thing that will happen is our presence here will result in another whole reality will be created.”

“So, even if we say tried to stop the Alteans from conquering the universe, if we went back to our time nothing would have changed?” Sven asked as he kneeled next to him.

“Correct,” Slav said with a thumbs up and frowned. “With that said, I don’t believe it’s needed to make this reality anymore difficult for the future rebels that will be fighting in it.”

Pidge looked doubtful. “I’ll admit, I’m not sure I agree with that time travel theory..but I’m with Slav here. Let’s try not to change anything since we have no idea what will happen as a result.”

“Oh man, that just makes me paranoid,” Hunk stammered as he pointed his fingers together. “What if we caused the Alteans to find Earth earlier? Or what if we cause Earth to be destroyed? Or what if-”

“Dude, breathe,” Lance said as he patted Hunk’s shoulder. “We’ve both seen enough time travel movies to know what not to do, right? We’ll be okay.”

Hunk breathed deeply. “Right, right, you’re right.” He placed his hand over his chest. “And at least we don’t have to worry about running into the teen versions of our parents, so that’s cool.”

Allura wasn’t quite certain what Hunk meant, but she decided to save that question for later. Keith had been awfully quiet and stood off in the corner as he stared off into space. Allura tucked her hands behind her back.

There was something she had to ask, and it wouldn’t leave her until she knew. “So...did you see..the empress?”

Keith looked up, blinked and there was a sudden sadness in his eyes. “Yeah..they took me to her, but I didn’t talk to her very much.”

Allura chewed her bottom lip as she saw Hunk, Pidge and Lance glance over. “What was..I like?”

Keith rubbed his neck. “You were older and she looked like you, but she definitely wasn’t you..I can’t describe it.” He shut his eyes. “I kind of felt sad for her.”

Allura’s eyes widened. “Sad? Why? What did she say?”

Keith sucked the air through his teeth. “Before I go into that, I got a question for you guys,” he said as he looked to Sven, Slav and the twins. “Did Empress Allua...ever get married?”

Sven raised an eyebrow and shrugged. “Sorry, but I never bothered to look much into the history of her.”

“Same with us,” Linka replied with a shrug.

“But Slav probably knows,” Tinka said as she pointed. “He did try to research the history of her for..some percent thing or another.”

Slav didn’t bother to turn around as he focussed on the machine. Keith approached and kneeled behind him. “Well, did she?”

Slav glanced up. “Huh? Sorry, what were you asking? I was figuring out the percent of this machine not blowing up if I rewire it.”

“Did Empress Allura ever get married?” Keith asked.

Slav grasped his chin and waved his fourth hand. “Uh..yes, yes she did.” He turned back around to his work. “Although, I don’t see why it matters.”

“What was his name?” Keith asked in a soft tone.

Slav’s eye twitched with annoyance. “Oh for, his name was…” He trailed off and stopped typing. Gradually he turned around and stared at Keith as if he just told him the odds of him crashing into a mountain were over 80 percent. “The..empress saw you?”

Keith nodded with a grim frown.

“And what was her reaction?” Slav asked as the others drew closer.

“Pale and looked as if she saw a ghost,” Keith said in a dark tone.

Slav’s eyes narrowed as he twiddled the fingers on his second row of arms together. “Oh..oh dear, that makes this more complicated..and also increases the likelihood of her coming after us.”

“Um..mind filling the rest of us in?” Lance asked as he raised an eyebrow.

Keith stood up as he rubbed his eyes. “I..there’s no easy way to say this, but..” He opened his eyes and stared directly at Allura. “The me in this reality...married Empress Allura.”

Silence fell upon the room, until in exactly five tics everyone yelled. “WHAT?!”

Allura blushed bright red as Lance stammered. “Who? What? How did this happen?!”

“I don’t know,” Keith replied, “but all I know is that when the empress lifted my helmet off she was apparently shocked to see her dead husband.”

“Dead?” Allura said softly as she looked at Keith with her hands over her chest. “So..the you in this reality…”

“Is dead,” Keith confirmed as he ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah, looks like it.”

“This doesn’t make sense,” Sven said as he crossed his arms. “Altea didn’t have contact with Earth until long after the empress died.”

“No it did not,” Slav answered as he straightened his posture, “but the ‘Keith’ in this reality that married the empress was an Altean.”

Hunk looked to Slav and then pointed to Keith. “You were an Altean here? Man, are you just an alien in every reality?”

Keith twitched an eye. “Hey, I’m only part Galra.”

“Which likely means in another reality you are a full Galra,” Slav commented, “and in another reality you’re probably part Galra and part Altean-”

“Slav, not helping,” Sven commented as he shook his head.

“It is intriguing though,” Slav continued as he looked to Keith. “The empress’s consort was a soldier, her personal knight in a sense. They were together for quite some time, but he died in battle. Some scholars have even theorized his death was what caused her to create the hokril implants.”

“What do you mean?” Allura asked as she leaned forward.

“The empress’s whole family had been killed in the war with the Galra, including a faithful servant named Coran. Her husband had been all the family she had left.”

Allura’s heart stopped at that, but she remained focussed as Keith placed a hand on her shoulder for comfort.

“The records state there have been debates about the implants, the empress herself seemed uncertain, but it wasn’t long after her husband was killed that she approved the method.” Slav scoffed as he crossed his arms. “I suppose you could argue it shows how deeply she loved him in a twisted way.”

I don’t know if that makes it better or worse, Allura thought. But Keith? Keith and I becoming...I admire him, and he is family to me, but to love him in that way…

She glanced to Keith and blushed the instant he looked back to her. Allura noted Keith’s cheeks were also quite red.

Lance looked between the two of them and coughed. “Oookay, so I’m guessing this is bad news that the empress saw Keith then.”

“It’s a safe assumption,” Pidge said as she began to pace. “I mean, if you saw someone who looked identical to your dead spouse you would have some questions to ask, right?”

“And since this is Allura we’re talking about she would probably try to hunt us down until she got those answers,” Lance said, paused and gave a sheepish smile to Allura. “Um..no offense.”

Allura gave a pout and sighed. “None taken.” I have a feeling I’ll be saying that a lot today.

“In any case, we have got to get out of here and back to our own time,” Sven stated as he looked to the twins. “You two go and guard the entrance and keep an eye out for anyone looking for us.”

“Will do!” the twins said in unison as they placed their helmets back on.

Allura watched them go and then glanced to Keith, but found no words would come. She scrubbed her face with the palm of her hand. This whole thing was a mess. I just hope we can get Keith’s helmet back with no further complications.

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Elsewhere, up in her room, the empress quietly traced her fingers over the helmet. She raised her unreadable face to the picture of her wedding day with her husband at her side. Her eyes narrowed, and without saying a word she placed the helmet next to it.

“One way, or another,” she vowed under her breath. “I’m going to find you.” Her hand brushed over the picture before she left the room and shut the door behind her.

[littlemisssquiggles]

Voltron Musings: I know everyone’s all about Team Shallura (Shiro and Allura) and I totally dig that. But have you ever considered the possibility of Alluron, y’know Allura and Kuron (S3 Shiro/Clone Shiro)?

I know romance isn’t the main factor in Voltron at the moment (the closest thing to a love story we got was Haggar and Zarkon and that took us three seasons) but imagine if Allura and Kuron (S3 Shiro/Shiro’s clone/#NotMyShiro) fell in love.

How sad would it be to fall in love with someone only to find out that they’re not the person you thought they were but a clone of them instead, manufactured by the enemy to basically deceive you? What makes it worse is the aftermath? What happens when the real person returns? There in pegs many questions? Are you in love with the clone or the original?

Did you (Allura) fall in love with the clone (Kuron) because you thought he was the real person (Shiro)? Or do you love the clone because he possessed traits that the original never had and it is those traits that made you fall in love with the clone in the first place?

Then if you are in love with clone, then this brings up another important question---Were the clone’s feelings for you genuine? Was everything he said to win your heart over true or was it all just a facade? A spiderweb of lies---a vicious act devised again by the same enemies to further infiltrate the team by winning over the heart of the very person who brought the paladins together.

Man, I know Voltron isn’t about romance but...damn would I like to see this done in the show. It’s the perfect recipe for love and angst to really tug at a shipper’s heartstrings. I mean if the show does decide to go the shipping route and in the event of the show creators deciding, for whatever reason, to NOT pair Allura off with Shiro, then can you she at least be paired up with his body double? I know Kuron is a clone spy of Shiro for the Galra but...the sad thing is, I don’t think the poor guy even knows he’s a clone and that’s what’ll make his character and story all the more tragic when he realizes that his very persona is that of somebody else. It’s gonna be a very depressing thing to discover that your entire life, or what you thought was it, was a fabrication. He didn’t even get the privilege of being born. He was made in a lab; genetically designed to be used as a pawn for a vicious space colony hell-bent on taking over the galaxy.

Thinking of this makes me feel so sad for Kuron’s character. I really hope that even when the real Shiro returns, the team still decide to keep Kuron around as an important member of the group. I imagine that it’ll be difficult to trust him at first...given what he is. But after realizing that he’s just as much a victim as everyone else under the Galra’s tyranny, they’ll come around and eventually accept him.

He can keep Shiro company along with Coran while the paladins venture out. I heard that in the 90’s version of Voltron, Shiro had a twin brother back on Earth. Maybe Kuron can become like Shiro’s little twin brother and the two can develop a relationship like that.

It’ll be even cuter if Shiro’s all like ‘...I’ve always wanted a sibling...I kinda like being the big brother...’. This would explain his relationship with Keith. Shiro is always the big brother (and space dad) to everyone. He’s that way with Keith. He’s that way with all the paladins and team and...he could be that way to Kuron too; which would be sweet.

I remember in the 80’s/90s Voltron, it was said that Allura had a crush on Keith. I don’t know if it’s cause he was the strong leader type or...something else, I never really watched the original. But if there’s anyone I’d like to see Allura fall for it, it’s Shiro. If not Shiro, then Kuron.

I know Kallura (Keith and Allura) was the shizz back in the ole Voltron buuuuut....this is Legendary Defender. And yes, while S2 did touch a bit on Keith and Allura’s relationship (especially after Keith was revealed to be part Galra and the two had their bit of tension), I...would rather Allura not end up with Keith. This is just my personal preference as a shipper. Not really bashing the ship but, if there is anyone on the team I can see Allura hooking up with, it’s Shiro. More so than Keith.

I like Shallura cause I saw them both as the mom and dad of the paladin team. Plus I really want Keith to end up with Lance just cause I see a stronger chemistry between them than Allura and Keith. But again, that’s my opinion.

So yeah...Shallura all the way but... also Alluron! Maybe even a love triangle between Allura, Shiro and Kuron. At the end of the day, who do you really chose? The loveable original or the loveable clone based off the original?

But like I said, it’s up to the writers/show creators to decide where they want to go with the characters. But man, is this not delicious food for thought; am I right?

 ~LittleMissSquiggles (2017)

[eastofthemoon]

The Empress’s Tears- Final Chapter

And here is the final chapter for today’s Kallura Month theme ‘Timeless’.  A huge thank you to everyone who has enjoyed this story.  I never imagined people would be loving this story so much and it was a huge blast to write it.

@kallurapositivitymonth

Title: Empress’s Tears: Chapter 7

Rating: PG

Series: Voltron Legendary Defender

Characters/Ships: Keith/Allura, Lance, Sven, Pidge, Hunk, Slav, some OCs

Summary: he paladins end up in the Altean Empire reality again, but this time they’ve also gone back in time and Keith makes a big discovery.

Author’s Note: Minor note, I noticed I caused some confusion last chapter by having Sven mention their leader who he calls Chief.  That was my attempt at referencing Akira aka the original 'Keith' from Golion.  However, for those wondering how this works narratively, Akira in this universe is a direct descendant of Empress Allura and Keith.  (You note I never mentioned if the two of them had any children or not.)  Akira is a half altean/half human and has decided to put a stop to the Altean Empire's tyranny.  Hence, he's now the leader of the rebellion.  I hope that has cleared up the confusion.

Archive of our Own

Allura held Keith’s hand and didn’t dare to let go as they halted at a corner. They pressed their backs against the wall as they waited for the guards to pass. Allura sighed in relief once he was gone.

“Looks like she kept her word,” Allura stated as she looked back to Keith. “She won’t actively try to stop us.”

“Still means we have to be careful,” he said and then raised an eyebrow. “Which reminds me.” He crossed his arms. “Your ‘betrothed’? This is news to me.”

Allura blushed as she looked away. “That was merely a ruse. I had thought it might further convince her to set you free.”

“Why? Because you had dibs?” Keith asked.

Allura huffed as she placed her hand on her hips. “You don’t have to put it like that. We were in a tense situation and I was desperate for ideas.”

Keith frowned and then rubbed his eyes. “Yeah, okay, you’re right.” He rubbed his neck. “Also, thanks for coming to save me.”

Allura gave him a smile as she touched his shoulder. “Always. I do mean it when I say you and the other paladins are my family.”

Keith gave a smile in return as he gave her hand a squeeze, but then blushed. “Just whatever you do, don’t tell Lance, Hunk and Pidge about that detail.”

Allura tilted her head in confusion. “Why?”

“Because then they’ll argue on who won the bet.”

“Bet?” Allura asked, but Keith didn’t give her a chance to ask further before he took her hand and they ran in the hallway again.

“Where is everyone?” Keith asked as they ran.

“Setting up the machine where the rip is,” Allura explained. “If the plan went accordingly, Lance and Sven have rescued Hunk and are waiting for-”

“Hey, you two!”

Allura and Keith froze and whirled around.

An Altean guard pointed his sword at him. “You don’t belong in this section of the castle! Halt in the name of the empress!”

Keith cursed as they summoned his sword as the guard charged at them. “So much for staying out of sight.” He blocked the attack just as two more guards appeared from another chamber.

“We don’t have time for this!” Allura grabbed the guard and flung him back to knock over the other two. She then shoved Keith forward. “Run! Now!”

Keith didn’t argue and they ran at top speed. Allura could hear more guards arriving, and they didn’t even dare to slow down as they reached the chamber doors. Keith kicked them open and then Allura shut them tight.

“About time you got back!” Lance cried.

Allura glanced back around. Lance was there as was Sven and Hunk. “You’re all alright?”

“Yeah, but sounds like you brought company?” Hunk exclaimed as the guards began to pound against the door.

Keith placed his back against the door. “Tell me the machine is ready?!”

“Almost we just need a few more tics!” Slav exclaimed.

More cries came from the back door. The twins and Sven quickly dashed towards it, and grabbed a long table to make a barricade. “I don’t know how long this will hold!” Sven yelled.

“Almost there,” Pidge said as she rapidly typed into the machine and the piece of the comet began to glow.

Hunk threw himself against the door to help Keith and Allura to keep it shut. “Hurry up!”

The machine began to hum loudly, causing the whole chamber to echo.

“It’s ready!” Slav declared as sparks from the machine began to fly. “Run here towards it,” he counted on his hands, “now!”

Sven and the twins left their door. Allura, Keith and Hunk ran to the machine and the doors burst open. The guards swooped inside.

The rip suddenly appeared glowing in bright gold. Allura, took both Keith and Hunk’s hands. Lance and Pidge reached for them as Slave held his out for Sven and the twins. They all jumped into the rip.

Allura became blinded. She cried out, but no sound could be heard. Allura had no sense of up or down as she felt her body flung around like a leaf caught in the wind, but she didn’t dare let go of the hands she held in her grip.

Suddenly, they dropped to the ground like a stone. Groggily, she groaned as she stood up and glanced around. They were in a base. A military base. Wait, she knew this place.

“Yes!” Lance declared as he jumped up in joy as the others slowly regained their bearings. “We’re back!”

The sound of a dozen blasters being raised and aim to shot, cut short the feeling of triumph. The group stared back at the dozen Altean robots that aimed to shoot at them, and a bunch of Alteans standing behind them along with Hira scowling in front of them.

“Oh..we’re back...yay,” Lance grumbled as he dropped his arms. “Right, I forgot about those guys.”

“I don’t know what you just attempted,” Hira called out and smirked. “But it’s clear you failed. There’s no point in resisting. You might as well surrender.”

Allura glared as she stood up. So, to Hiro they had never disappeared. They must have returned to the exact moment the comet went off and transported them through time. “Hira, I command that you let us leave.”

“You are in no position to give me orders,” Hira snapped and looked over to one of the Alteans. “Secure the machine and once we have these rebels locked up we’ll perform another-”

A dozen blaster shots came from above and took down the front line of the robot guards. More blasts came as Allura and the others looked up. The shooters were more Guns of Gamara shooting rapidly from a railing far above their heads.

“Ha! Right on time!” Slav cried out as the robots attempted to shoot back and the Alteans ran for cover. “I knew there was an 80 percent chance-”

Sven swung him over his shoulder. “Math, later! Run now!”

“But what about the machine?” Keith asked as he sliced a down a robot and Allura yanked a robot away with her whip. “It’ll slow us down if we try to carry it.”

“I got it!” Pidge declared. She transformed her bayard to cut off the comet piece. Hunk grabbed it and held it tightly as he began to run. “Let’s move people!”

The group ran. Hiro cursed loudly. “No! Stop them!”

The robots pursued, but Keith blocked their blasts with his shield as the snipers took more of them down.

“Meet you at the rendezvous point!” one of the snipers shouted. The sniper took a shot at the door’s main control panel and caused it to opened as as they reached it.

“Man, that guy’s got good aim,” Lance commented before Pidge shoved him forward.

“Admire him later!” she said as they ran and reached the outside of the base. The robots that didn’t get hit still chased them along with Hira.

They ran to where a shuttle was waiting for them. They all jumped inside, with Allura the last to get in. She turned around just in time to see the doors shut and Hira calling her a name Allura didn’t wish to repeat in front of children.

The ship took off and Allura stumbled slightly only to get steadied by Keith. “Thanks,” she muttered and quickly took a head count. “Is everyone here?!”

“Looks like it,” Linka shouted as she went over to Hunk and took the comet piece from him. “And this thing too. Man, am I glad to get out of there.”

“In more ways than one,” Keith commented as he looked to Allura.

She smiled back and let her body lean against his, suddenly feeling very tired.

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The ship managed to lose the Alteans ships that chased after them. They flew until they reached the planet that was uninhabited and the rebels used as a hideout.

Hunk let himself slump on the floor as they landed. “That was way too nerve wrecking. I want to sleep for a week.”

“Same here, bud,” Lance commented as he patted his back and then glanced to the comet piece that had been placed into a crate. “So, what are you guys going to do with that.”

Slav grasped his chin as with his third arm in thought. “Do not know. The possibilities are endless. There’s a 30 percent chance of us destroying it, but there’s a 40 percent chance of us using it to take down the Altean empire, and there’s-”

“Let’s discuss it after we get back to headquarters,” Sven commented as he opened the doors. “The main thing is that it’s out of their hands now.”

“Yes, and it’s a good thing those other rebels showed up when they did,” Allura commented as she stood up. “I’m not certain we would have made it out of there alive if they hadn’t saved us.”

Tinka glanced out the window and grinned. “Well, you can thank them yourselves. Looks like they just arrived.”

Allura looked out and saw the ship land next to them. She looked to Keith who also seemed curious. With a silent nod, the climbed out of the ship at the same moment the other rebels exited their ship.

They all wore helmets, and with their matching black suits looked identical to each other. However, Sven waved to the one that stood in front and wore small blue star on his chest.

Is he the leader of this group? Allura thought.

“You have great timing,” Sven commented as he approached and placed a hand on the rebel’s shoulder. “But you cut it a bit close there.”

“Hey, just be glad I was there to save your butt this time,” the rebel replied in a very familiar voice. “You got to stop making a habit of getting shot!”

“We keep telling him,” the twins said in unison and only caused Sven to laugh.

The rebel then looked to the paladins and held his gaze at Lance. “Wait, is that…” He approached to Lance with his arms crossed. “Huh, well I’ll be. Sven wasn’t pulling my leg after all. Lance, right?”

“Yeah?” Lance arched an eyebrow. “Um..what? Who are you exactly?”

The rebel laughed. “Oh, someone you know.”

Lance frowned as he looked him over. “I’ve never met you before.”

“Oh, I think you have,” the rebel said as he removed his helmet, “in a mirror at least.”

The paladins gasped. Lance’s jaw dropped and Allura couldn’t blame him. The rebel was Lance. An older, taller version of him. He had a scar on his cheek and his body was more built, but it was Lance.

“Holy quiznack,” Hunk gasped as he looked between the two of them. “Lance, it’s you!”

“I can see that,” both Lance and the rebel Lance to say said in unison. Lance blushed and Sven laughed.

“This was the friend I told you about,” the continued as he patted Lance’s shoulder. “He’s also the one who had the good aim you admired.”

“Oh,” Lance muttered as he blushed slightly. “Wow, hope I get that good.”

“Oh, knowing me, you will,” the rebel Lance said as he gleefully looked over him. “Aw, it’s so cute seeing a little me.”

Lance’s eyes twitched. “I’m not little.”

“You are compared to him!” Pidge called out as she grinned from ear to ear.

Before Lance could reply, the rebel Lance wrapped his arm around him and began to ruffle his hair. “And your hair is so soft too!”

“Hey, cut it out!”

“And miss the chance of teasing myself? NEVER!”

Keith laughed as he covered his mouth with his hand. “Man, I wish I had a camera right now. Seeing two Lances together is priceless.”

Allura giggled and found herself wishing the same. She then frowned a little as she hugged herself and thought back to the empress. It’s too bad I can’t say the same.

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The paladins were exhausted by the time they left the rebels and returned to their own reality. Coran and Shiro were full of questions and they all did their best to answer them before they declared they needed to recover.

Allura got out of her armour, into her dress and retreated to the command deck. She sat there and looked up to the stars. She wasn’t surprised to hear the doors open from behind and to see Keith sit beside her.

“Hey,” he asked as he placed his hands into his pockets. “You doing okay?”

“Yes,” she began, “no, I don’t know truth be told.” She rested her forehead against her knees before turning her head to the side. “Keith, did she truly not hurt you?”

Keith shook his head. “No, the most she did was try to prevent me to leave, but she didn’t do anything to me.”

Allura frowned as she hugged her knees. “I knew the empress...the other me in the reality conquered the universe, but I never imagine she was like that.”

She wasn’t even sure how to put it into words. It was clear she was a tyrant to have enslaved all those worlds and yet she seemed so lost, and broken. Like how Allura was when she woke up to discover Altea was gone.

“She’s not you though,” Keith said as he placed a hand on her back.

“But she could be,” Allura argued. “The fact remains that because she exists proves I could become like her.” She chewed her bottom lip. “Keith, what if with this war with the Galra, I were to lose Coran, and you, and I become-”

“You wouldn’t,” Keith stated firmly as he raised a hand. “You got to remember, the empress never met Pidge, Hunk, Lance or Shiro. That has to mean something, right?”

“That maybe be true,” Allura replied, “except if I were to lose them too, it could mean I might become something worse than the empress. I could-”

“You could die,” Keith cut in and Allura raised her head. “There’s probably a reality where you died. There’s probably a reality where the Blade of Marmora found you and you became a blade. There’s probably a reality where I didn’t lose my dad. Hell, there’s probably a reality where I was raised by Kolivan and the other blades.”

Allura blinked as she frowned. “Yes, there probably are, but what does that prove?”

“That if you can think of something there’s probably a reality where that exists, at least that’s the gist I understand from Slav.” Keith ran a hand through his hair. “Look, my point is just because there’s a reality where you became an empress that conquered the universe doesn’t mean that YOU will.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “In this reality, you know what it’s like to suffer under an Zarkon. You’ve lost your people and your father, but kept going.” His eyes hardened. “If anything, the fact that you know about Empress Allura will just ensure you don’t become her.”

Allura mulled this over in her head. “You have a point,” she said as she leaned against him. The empress and her were similar in many ways, but they had different experiences. Allura would not become her, at least it wasn’t likely.

She looked up to Keith as the empress’s last words to her lingered in her head.

If you don’t want to become me, make certain you don’t lose him.

“Allura?” Keith asked.

She shook her head. “It’s nothing, but just promise me one thing.” She took a deep breath and looked up to him. “Promise me that if you ever think I’m going down a dark path, you’ll stop me.”

Keith looked hesitant, but then gave a nod. “I will, but only if you promise me the same thing.” He stared up to the ceiling. “For all we know, there’s a reality where I become an evil emperor.”

“Perhaps,” Allura said and giggled. “Maybe there’s a universe with the mice in charge.”

Keith scoffed. “It’s probably a better reality for it.”

Allura smiled as she took his hand. “But in seriousness, yes, I promise.”

Keith held it tightly. “Then I promise you too.”

They smiled as they stared into each other’s eyes just as the doors opened.

“Princess, I thought you might be hungry,” Coran spoke as he entered with Platt on his shoulder, “so I’ve prepared…”

He trailed off as he looked over the couple, coughed and promptly turned back around. “My apologies, I did not realize you were busy, I shall come back later.”

Allura blinked dumbly as she heard Coran mutter to Platt something about ‘winning the bet’.

“What’s the matter with him?” she spoke aloud.

Then it dawned on her. She stared at how Keith was holding her hands and then up to his face. They both blushed and quickly stood up.

“Coran, wait!” Allura called out.

“It’s not what you think!” Keith added as he gave chase.

They ran after the man, and despite the blush on her cheeks, Allura suddenly felt more confident that she would never go down the path the empress had walked. She vowed to make certain of it.

[eastofthemoon]

Empress’s Tears- Chapter 3

Today’s theme was ‘Kidnapped’ for Kallura Month, so here’s another chapter of my Empress Allura fic.

@kallurapositivitymonth

Title: Empress’s Tears: Chapter 3

Rating: PG

Series: Voltron Legendary Defender

Characters/Ships: Keith/Allura, Lance, Sven, Pidge, Hunk, Slav, some OCs

Summary: he paladins end up in the Altean Empire reality again, but this time they’ve also gone back in time and Keith makes a big discovery.

Archive of our Own

Keith woke up with a stiff back, which didn’t surprise him since he slept on the cold hard ground of the cave.  He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes as Lance approached him.

“Morning,” Lance greeted as he held out a food packet for him.  “Here’s your breakfast, rationed emergency space goo.”

“Yay,” Keith replied in a monotone voice as he took it and opened the packet.  It tasted like regular food goo, but with less flavor which was an accomplishment since regular goo barely had any flavor to it.  However, it at least filled up his stomach.

“I take it Hunk wasn’t able to forage for real food?” Keith asked.

“He was tempted,” Lance said as he took a seat next to him, “but the twins scouted ahead and reported there were guards searching the area.  We couldn’t take the risk.”

Keith’s shoulders slumped.  Guards.  Probably sent by the empress...and she’s probably looking for me.  He sighed as he rubbed his neck.  “Did we have enough food packets for everyone?”

Lance nodded.  “Hunk always keep extra in his suit, and thankfully so do I, but that’s it.  We really can’t spend longer than a day or more here.”

Keith squeezed his eyes shut as he leaned against the backwall.  “This whole situation is so bizarre.”

Lance shrugged and waved his hand in a so so matter.  “Eh, I don’t know.  I would argue seeing Coran getting drunk on cactus juice on that desert planet was weirder.”  He frowned.  “Although, imagining Allura as a conquer is up there.”

Keith crossed his arms in thought.  The face on the empress’s face still haunted him.  She just looked so broken and he didn’t like to see that on Allura, even if it wasn’t their Allura.

“Allura and I being married is right up there on the weird scale,” Keith commented.

Lance raised an eyebrow.  “Uh..maybe slightly, but it’s not that weird, dude.”

Keith blinked as he raised his head.  “What’s that suppose to mean?”

Lance scratched his cheek with his finger.  “Well...I mean, you two spend a lot of time together these days.”

“Because I’m the leader and she’s a paladin now.”

“And there are those looks you give each other.”

“Looks?  What looks?” Keith asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Come on,” Lance said with a groan.  “The silent looks you give each other across the room?  Like a pair of longing lovers?”

“What?” Keith said flabbergasted.  “No, we’re just...I don’t know just happen to be looking at each other.”

“And you look at each other like a pair of lovestruck lovebirds and who don’t know what to do next.  Pidge and Hunk will back me up here.  We have bets going on.”  He pointed to him in a teasing manner.  “Actually, if you two started kissing in like a month, I would Hunk’s vest.”

Keith twitched an eye.  “Listen, there is nothing going on between me and Allura.  We are just friends.”  He crossed his arms in a huff.  “Besides, why are you betting on us kissing?  If you thought we were like that wouldn’t you be…”

“Jealous?” Lance offered.

Keith nodded.  Considering how often he use to flirt with Allura, and how agitated he got when he and Allura had run away from the castle, Keith figured Lance would be the first to try to break them up.

Lance shrugged.  “I gave up on Allura awhile back.  Why do you think I don’t flirt with her as much as I use to?”

Keith held up a finger and lowered it.  Now that he thought about it, Lance really hadn’t been trying to flirt with Allura.  “Oh,” he said softly and paused.  “Wait, you stopped because you thought Allura and I-”

“Naw,” Lance replied as he cut him off.  “With Shiro gone, and everyone on edge, just didn’t feel right to do that to her.  Then, when she became a paladin, figured it was better to focus on that.  I was worrying me flirting would become too much of a distraction for her.”  He gave a smirk.  “Because, heaven knows my good looks are enough of a problem.”

Keith rolled his eyes.  “Okay, while that’s good to know, Allura and I aren’t like that.  We’re just friends.”

Lance shot him a dry look.  “You say that, and yet we’re in a reality where apparently you two got married.”  He paused for a moment.  “Huh, I wonder if you two had little mullet haired kids together.”

Keith growled, but dropped it as Sven walked him.  “Good, you’re up.”  He gestured with his thumb over his shoulder.  “Pidge and Slav need to see us.  It’s time to make a plan.”

“Right,” Keith said as he rose and offered a hand to Lance.  “Let’s find out the chances of us getting out of here.”

Lance gave a nod as they followed Sven further back in the cave.  The others were hovering as Pidge and Slav sat next to the machine.  Keith glanced it over.  It was heavy, but it only went up to his waist and the piece of comet sticking out of the top did make it awkward to carry.  He just hoped they didn’t have to lug it back into the castle to get it to work.  

He glanced over to Allura and upon seeing his eyes she blushed and turned her attention back to Pidge and Slav.  His shoulders slumped.  They hadn’t really spoken to each other since he got back.  Not that he blamed her.  

What was he suppose to say? “Hey, funny how you and I were married in this reality and my death might have pushed your other self over the edge into enslaving the universe.”  Keith wasn’t sure what to think of it himself.

“Okay,” Slav began as he clapped his hands.  “The good news is that there is a 67 percent chance we return to our own time.”

“Yeah, but the bad news is that we are going to have to go back to where we came in,” Pidge interjected as she typed into the machine.  “I was hoping we could just open another tear, but we have no way of knowing if we would make it back to exactly when we left.”

“You mean, we could leave but not to our own time?” Tinka asked as she tilted her head.

“Correct,” Slav said as he crossed three pairs of his arms.  “We could even up further back in time, or even the future, maybe back to the beginning of the universe itself.  It’s simply too hard to predict.”

“And too big of a risk to take,” Allura said as she rubbed her head.  “So, we’ll have to sneak back into the castle.”

“It’s probably just as well,” Sven voiced as he grasped his chin.  “We do have to retrieve Keith’s helmet so it doesn’t infect his timeline.”

“Hey, I’ve been wondering,” Hunk asked as he raised a hand.  “What if we located the rebels that exist in this timeline?  We could tell them stuff to avoid and maybe make a better future for themselves.”

“We could,” Keith replied as he crossed his arms, “but we could also accidentally expose them since we got the Alteans after us.”

“Keith’s right,” Linka voiced as she flipped her hair over her shoulder.  “Besides, for all we know we could make things worse.  Better to leave things as they are.  At least we know they have a chance with the Guns of Gamara as their successors.”

“Okay, good point,” Lance said as he sat next to Pidge.  “So how do we get this hunk of junk back into the castle where everyone is actively looking for us?”

“We know the map we have isn’t that useful at the moment,” the twins said in unison.

Allura gave a tight frown.  “The castle is my home, so I can at least suggest a few secret passageways to sneak in,” she raised her head to the others, “but for all I know, the me in this reality blocked those off.”

“In that case, two us should sneak inside to scout it out and possibly get my helmet back to save us time.”  Keith gave the group a hard look.  “It’s my fault I lost my helmet, so I should go get it.”

Allura looked hesitant.  “I am not sure if that is wise.  If the empress is looking for you, then you would be falling straight into her hands.”

“Perhaps, but I’m also the one that got the best look of the castle while I was captured,” Ketih voiced and held up his com wrist.  “Besides, I’m the only one that can track it.”

“He’s right,” Pidge voiced as she glanced up.  “The helmets are linked to a tracker in our armour, so Keith would have the easiest time tracking it down.”

Allura crossed her arms.  “Even so, someone should go with you.  I know the palace layout best, even if it is in a different reality, perhaps it should be me.”

“I don’t believe that’s a wise idea,” Sven voiced.  “We have enough problems with these Alteans being after Keith because he resembles the empress’s dead consort.  Imagine how would they react if they saw you?”

Allura seemed reluctant.  “That maybe true but-”

Sven placed a hand on her shoulder.  “With that said, I do wish to scout the area around the palace and write down information that could be useful to the rebels back in our own time.  You could help me with that since you know the planet best.”

Linka raised an eyebrow.  “Information that’s going to be over ten thousand years old?”

“The chances of that information being useful in our reality would is 40 percent,” Slav voiced, “so it’s worth researching.”  He cast Sven a dubious look.  “Although, the chances of you getting shot AGAIN is 35 perfect, so please make certain that doesn’t happen.”

Sven chuckled as he rubbed his neck.  “I don’t plan to.”

Allura gave a small smile.  “Alright, I suppose I could assist you with that.”

“Um,” Lance voiced as he rubbed the back of his neck, “how about I go with you two?  For backup?”

Keith frowned as he narrowed his eyes.  <i>He looks be more worried than usual?  Wonder what’s up with him.</i>

Slav clapped his two rows or arms.  “Ah, yes, if you went then the chances of Sven being shot would only be 15 percent.”

“Great,” Sven replied dryly as he crossed his arms and placed his hands on his hips.  “Although, you and Pidge will need someone to keep watch while you get the machine ready to take us home.”

“We can do that,” the twins voiced in unison.  “Although, that means the only person left is…”

Everyone silently turned their eyes to Hunk who instantly cringed.  “Yeah, I know my math, it’s clearly me,” he grumbled.

Keith’s eyes softened at him.  “Hunk, if you aren’t comfortable in coming, I can go alone.”

Hunk sighed and shook his head.  “Yeah, but then I would just sit and worry about you getting caught.”  He shrugged.  “So, probably better to just go with you for backup.”

Keith smiled.  “Thanks, buddy.”

Hunk waved a hand.  “Hey, you would insist the same for me.”  He grasped his chin.  “Maybe we could sneak by the kitchen and see if we can find some actual food there.”

“With Altean cuisine, it’s not likely,” the twins voiced.

Allura puffed out her cheeks slightly.  “Excuse me, but our method of cooking is quite refined.”

“On the contrary, Altean food being terrible is an absolute in all of the realities, princess,” Slav said in a sly tone.

Allura twitched an eye, but Keith tuned out the argument as he found himself pondering if they would see the empress again.  He didn’t want to hear what the odds of that happening were.

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Keith and Hunk had located the entrance to a secret tunnel that was outside the castle grounds, and the nearby town.  The tricky part was watching out for patrols as they sneaked their way to it.  Looking over the vast green fields with the glimpse of the town ahead, Keith wished they had more time to look around.

This was Allura’s homeworld, and Keith knew stories could never fully capture actually being able to see it.  With that said, he just hoped Allura was coping with the situation.  It couldn’t be easy to see her home again in this reality when her true home had been destroyed.

Hunk nervously glanced upwards in the tunnel as he let the light on his helmet guide the way.  “Sssoo, what are the chances there are a bunch of guards waiting for us at the other end of this tunnel?”

Keith checked the map that Allura had drawn up for them.  “According to Allura, this was a tunnel only royals knew about, so low.”  He gave a nervous smile.  “But according to Slav about 50 percent considering the other me probably knew about this tunnel and thus the Empress could be expecting it.”

“Great,” Hunk grumbled as he kept his hand on the wall.  “I got to say, Keith, you are taking this whole ‘I was married to an evil conquering empress’ reveal, really well.”

Keith twitched an eye.  “That’s because I didn’t, the me in the reality did apparently.”

“Yeah, but it’s still a version of you, right?” Hunk continued.  “I mean, that is why the empress freaked out at you.”

“Yeah, but, the ‘Allura’ here isn’t Allura either, not the one we know.”  They made a turn around the next corner.  “You didn’t see her, Hunk.  She looked like Allura, but she wasn’t Allura either.  Just like Sven is Shiro, but he’s not too.”

Hunk looked back as he scratched his head.  “Yeah, but, there’s no denying that there are clearly parts of Sven that are clearly Shiro.  Haven’t you noticed they both got the same heroic posture when giving orders?  So, there must be parts of the empress that is similar to Allura, right?”

Keith’s frown tightened.  “Yeah, I guess.”  He rubbed his eyes.  “Look, can we just focus on getting my helmet back and scouting the place?  I don’t want to keep thinking about the details of these things.”

Like what exactly drove the Allura of this reality to become a conqueror, and how had the other him been apart of it?  It made him shudder to picture it.

Hunk was quiet, but then gave a nod.  “Yeah, sure, man,” he replied.  “With that said, we should take a photo of Sven this time to show Shiro.  He’ll never believe-Oh, hey!  I see that door Allura mentioned up ahead.”

Keith blinked in the darkness, and wished again for the twentieth time he had his helmet.  He stayed behind Hunk as he pressed his hand over a wall.  “Let’s see, Allura said there was a place to punch in the code-Ha! Got it.”

Keith heard the beeping of buttons, and then a soft hiss as the door slide aside.  He shielded his eyes as the bright lights of the castle shone into the tunnel.

“Awesome, looks like the empress never bothered to change the code,” Hunk said with his hands on his hips.  “So, now we go into the castle...where a group of evil Alteans are waiting to capture us...and scramble our brains if they do.”  He looked back to Keith.  “You certain we need your helmet back?”

“Yes,” Keith said in a firm tone as he patted his shoulder.  “Come on, big guy, we’ll make it quick.”  He held up his wrist communicator.  “According to the tracker, it’s not far from here.  So, let’s snag my helmet, take a quick look around where the rip in time is, and get out of here.”

“Fine,” Hunk said as he slumped, “but I feel the need to voice that in future we should just make backup helmets so we don’t run into this problem anymore.”

“I’ll make a note to Coran,” Keith replied as they entered the hallway.

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Keeping out sight of the guards was simpler than Keith had anticipated, and, if he was honest, that made him feel rather on edge.  It didn’t help matters that some areas of the castle felt familiar, but they ran into hallways Keith was certain didn’t exist in the Castle of Lions back in their reality.  Including one area they heard some guards muttered was the prep room for honkril operations.

“I’m betting the empress made a few upgrades to this place,” Hunk whispered nervously as they waited for the group of guards to pass.  “And I don’t think I want to know what kind of upgrades.”

Keith gave a nod and looked to his tracker.  “Okay, my helmet is down the hall, and then three doors down.”

Hunk frowned as he checked the map and gasped.  “Keith, that’s Allura’s bedroom.”

Keith winced.  “Yeah, I know.”

“You’ll have to enter Empress Allura’s room,” Hunk said in a higher pitched tone as he gripped him by his shoulder.  “The Allura that we’re trying to ensure you avoid.”

“I know,” Keith said as he removed Hunk’s hands, “but it’s the only to get my helmet back.”

Hunk looked reluctant.  “Maybe I should enter the room-”

“Appreciate the offer,” Keith replied as he patted Hunk’s shoulder, “but I’m the fastest between us, and I’ll need you cover me with your gun if guards chase after me.”

Hunk hardly looked convinced, but he gave a nod.  “Alright, but just don’t dawdle in there okay.”

“Don’t plan to,” Keith voiced.

The two of them checked the hallway before they ran down it.  Keith felt his heart beat rapidly in his chest.  <i>This still feels way too easy.  I don’t like this.</i>

Keith’s fears were doubled when they spotted the doors that lead to the empress’s chambers and there wasn’t a guard in sight.  They swiftly ducked inside a closet and Hunk poked his head out.

“Doesn’t look like she’s in there,” Hunk said as he pulled his head back inside.  “Otherwise, why wouldn’t there be guards?”

Keith frowned as he gripped his chin.  “That makes sense, but this doesn’t feel right.”

Hunk’s eyes narrowed.  “Dude, we could bail right now.  It’ll be harder, but the guys would understand and maybe we can get the helmet when we sneak back in to get to the rip.”

Keith shook his head.  “My helmet might get moved to another place by then that’s even harder to get to, and that’s assuming we have time.”  He slowly began to step out.  “I have to take this risk, but you stay hidden.”  He turned back to him.  “Also, don’t come out until the last minute.  If something happens I’ll need you to contact the others.”

Hunk nodded.  “Just be careful..and fast..this place is giving me the creeps.”

“Likewise,” Keith muttered as he shut the door behind him.  He took a deep breath, double checked the close was clear and crept towards the door.  He pressed the button and the door slide open automatically.

Keith’s body went tense and felt more like he was a mouse walking right into a cat’s mouth.  He peeked inside and glanced around.

He had only been inside Allura’s bedroom a few times back at the Castle of Lions, but he felt liked he had walked right inside it.  The bed was bigger, but it was the same style.  There was a mirror on the far back wall that was identical to Allura’s, and even the gowns that were placed over a chair were eerily similar.  The room was practically screaming Allura lived here.

It’s not Allura though, he reminded himself almost like a mantra.  It’s not her.

His eyes landed onto the vanity table and felt relief upon spying his helmet.  He instantly walked towards it, but froze as he went to pick it up.  

A framed picture stood beside it.  A framed picture of a happy Allura in what looked like an Altean wedding dress and an Altean version of him smiling beside her.  Keith swallowed as he felt like he was staring into a fun house mirror.

The Altean him was older in the photo, but same eyes, same black hair and facial features.  Only real different were the pointed ears, the Altean clothing and the purple markings on his cheeks.

“This...is getting real creepy,” he muttered.  He wanted to look away, but just found he couldn’t.  Without realizing he was doing it, Keith quickly took a photo of the picture with the camera hidden in the bracer of his armour.

It’s weird, but might be useful for later.

He then shook his head of the thoughts and forced his mind back at the task at hand.  “Time to get out of here,” he whispered as he picked up his helmet.

Suddenly, he heard something drop from his helmet and small tiny sphere landed on the floor.  Before Keith could react, a hissing sound was heard and pink smoke was released.

Gas! Keith realized in alarm.

He frantically plunked his helmet over his head and active his face shield, but it was too late.  He had already breathed in some of the gas and he was coughing non-stop.

An alarm was heard, but Keith couldn’t comprehend the meaning.  His mind was getting foggy and he lost control of his body as he collapsed onto the floor.  Keith heard people enter as his vision became blurrier.

The last thing he saw was a pair of fancy boots as a voice said “I had a feeling you would come back for it.”

Keith gave one last growl before he let the darkness overtake him.

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From inside the closet, Hunk felt very tempted to panic.  “Not good, not good,” he muttered as he watched the guards race into the empress’s room.  He had heard Keith’s surprise cry and was about to move in when she saw Allura, or rather the empress, rush inside with five guards behind her.

Hunk debated about rushing in and shooting at them to let Keith run out, but when two of the guards brought out an unconscious Keith, he knew that plan was shot.

What do I do? Hunk thought.  There’s too many for me to take on all at once, and that’s if I didn’t have to worry about dragging Keith with me.  They would definitely catch me too.

“Where shall we detain him, Empress?” one of the guards asked.

The empress frowned as a thoughtful look crossed over her face.  Hunk tensed and finally felt he got what Keith was trying to say.  She looked older, but she looked almost identical to Allura, except her eyes.  Something about them empress’s eyes didn’t seem right to him.  There was a coldness in them he had never witness in the Altean princess he knew.

Hunk held his breath as the empress traced her fingers over Keith’s face.

Ooh, please don’t get creepy, Hunk silently begged.  I don’t think I could stay hidden if you get real creepy with Keith while he’s knocked out.

“Empress?” the guard voiced again.

The empress yanked her hand back like it had been burned.  “Bring him to the room three doors down from me.”

The guards exchanged confused looks.  “But Empress,” a female guard spoke, “isn’t that your husband’s old-”

“Do not question me!” the empress snapped and Hunk found himself flinching along with the guards.  “Place him in there, but chain his foot to the bed so he can not escape.”  Her eyes narrowed.  “And if I discover any of you have harmed him you shall answer to me personally.  Is that understood?”

“Yes, Empress,” the guards said in unison as they carried Keith down the hall.

Hunk didn’t dare to even wingle a finger until they were out of sight and then buried his face into his hands.  “Not good, not good.  What to do, what to do?”

He thought over his options.  He wanted to get Keith out of there, but those guards would be watching him like a hawk.  Hunk would have to wait.

He took a deep breath to calm himself. It sounds like they aren’t going to hurt, Keith.  So, he’s safe for the moment.  He grasped his chin in thought.  Okay, first I got to move out of this area since I can’t risk them finding me here.  I need to go back to the tunnel, and contact the others so we can make a better plan.

Hunk slammed his fist into his palm and felt satisfied with that plan, until he walked out of the closet.  His eyes lingered in the direction where the guards took Keith, but he forced himself to run into the other direction.

Hang in there, Keith, Hunk vowed as he ran.  We’re going to get you out of here.

[eastofthemoon]

The Empress’s Tears- Chapter 5

Today’s theme was ‘Home’ for Kallura Month, so here’s another chapter of my Empress Allura fic.  We are getting close to the end here believe it or not. ^_~

@kallurapositivitymonth

By the way, I know I haven’t gotten too much into Empress Allura’s past, but if anyone wants to ask me questions about her or headcanons I have, please feel free to shoot me an ask about it.

And for those who might have missed it I commissioned some awesome art to go with this fic.  Go check it out (and also @artbyjenisse art too while you’re at it.  She has some great work people should see!)

Title: Empress’s Tears: Chapter 5

Rating: PG

Series: Voltron Legendary Defender

Characters/Ships: Keith/Allura, Lance, Sven, Pidge, Hunk, Slav, some OCs

Summary: he paladins end up in the Altean Empire reality again, but this time they’ve also gone back in time and Keith makes a big discovery.

Archive of our Own

Allura paced back and forth as she hugged herself. “They’ve been too long,” she said as she turned to Pidge. “We should have heard from them by now.”

Pidge glanced up from her typing and sighed. “I agree, but maybe Hunk ran into some complications.”

“He would have told us if he did,” Lance voiced as he ceased his own pacing. “It’s been over a varga. We got to assume something happened to them.”

Slav tapped the fingers on his third and fourth arms. “The chances of them being caught was over 70 percent and the chances of us having to rescue them are over 90 percent.”

“That settles it then,” Sven said as he reached for his blaster. “We’re going to have to go with plan B.”

“You mean sneak in the machine, and get it activated while some of us go save Keith and Hunk?” Linka voiced and sighed. “Oh, that will be fun.”

“Aw, sis,” Tinka said as she placed a hand on her shoulder. “You got to be more positive!”

Linka gave her a dark look. “I’m positive it’s going to be a pain.”

“No argument here,” Pidge voiced as she leaned back against the wall. “We’re going to need a plan.”

“Okay, let’s tackle this thing one by one,” Lance said as he took the map Allura had been trying to update. “Allura, what would be the best entrance to sneak in the machine?”

Allura frowned as she thought. “Well...probably the tunnel Hunk and Keith used to enter since it’s near the servants quarters.” She pointed to the spot on the map. “There are serving carts around there we could use to carry and also hid the machine under a large cloth.”

“And we could snag some servant clothes for disguises,” Lance concluded and nodded. “That could work.”

“How do we know Keith and Hunk weren’t captured while they were in there?” Linka voiced. “There could be guards stationed there now just waiting for us.”

“That’s a valid point,” Sven asked as he looked to Allura. “Are there any other tunnels we could use to enter?”

Allura shook her head. “Only the ones leading to the royal bedrooms and armoury, and we can assume those would be heavily guarded.”

Lance glanced over the map. “And guessing none of those locations would have anything as useful as serving carts to hide the machine?”

“Nothing nearby, no,” Allura said sadly as she shook her head, “the only other way would be to enter through the main gate.”

“And we know that’s not happening,” Pidge said as she rubbed her neck. “We’ll just have to take a chance with the tunnel by the servant quarters and hope for the best.”

“Then if we get inside we’ll have to sneak to the rift without anyone catching on,” Tinka said as she paced with her hands tucked behind her head.

“It has a 60 percent chance of working,” Slav voiced and clapped his hands, “but only as long as I hide with the machine and the rest of you wear hats to hide your ears.”

“Noted,” Sven said, “the next task will be trying to locate where Hunk and Keith are.”

“Lance, Allura and I can track them with our suits,” Pidge frowned, “but I’m going to have to stay with the machine to help Slav set it up.”

“And I doubt the empress kept Hunk and Keith together,” Allura replied. “I’ll go get Keith and Lance can go track down Hunk.”

Lance looked hesitant. “You sure that’s a good idea? What if you run into the empress? Maybe I should go after Keith?”

Allura gave him a half smile. She understood Lance was trying to protect her. Allura would rather avoid seeing her other self if she could, but that wasn’t an option anymore.

“I appreciate the thought, but I would have an easier time to outthink the empress than you would.” She gave a bitter laugh. “I can predict how she would react since she is a version of me.”

“Allura is not wrong!” Slave gave a nod. “She has a 20 percent higher chance of not getting caught than Lance would.”

Lance looked prepared to debate that, but after Allura gave him one of her famous glares he surrendered. “Fine, fine, then I’ll go get Hunk.”

“And I’ll go with you,” Sven replied, “you’ll probably need some backup.”

Lance flinched and coughed into his hands. “Uh, actually, I’ll be fine. It probably makes more sense for you to stay with Pidge and Slav-”

“We got it covered,” the twins said in unison as they raised their hands. “With that two of us there, we should provide enough protection.”

Lance blinked and pointed at them. “Has anyone ever told you two that the ‘talking at the same time’ thing is kind of creepy?”

“All the time,” Tinka replied with a shrug.

“It’s a habit,” Linka said with a nod.

Allura reached over and gave Lance’s shoulder a comforting squeeze. “It’ll be fine,” she whispered. “I would feel better if Sven went with you. You may need the extra help freeing Hunk.”

That was true. With Keith resembling the empress’s dead husband, Allura doubted her dark counterpart would do anything harmful to him. For Hunk however...well, she prefer not to picture what they could be doing to him. Lance could need an extra pair of hands just to free him.

Besides, something told her Lance needed Sven to come with him in order to overcome the guilt he’d been carrying. It was likely the best chance they had for it.

Lance chewed his bottom lip and gave Allura’s hand a gentle squeeze. “Yeah, okay,” he replied and looked back to Sven. “When should we leave? The longer we wait the more danger that puts Hunk and Keith in.”

Sven frowned as he looked to Allura. “I’m unfamiliar with Altea’s climate. Do you have any idea what time it would begin to get dark?”

Allura shut her eyes in thought. She had to admit, as painful as it was, she hadn’t bothered to fully take in her surroundings when she was outside with Lance and Sven. It felt like her home, and yet it didn’t. It felt best for her own well being if she didn’t dwell on that matter too long.

“Judging by the vegetation and weather...I would say it’s close to the harvest season,” she opened her eyes. “Which means the sun should be setting within a few vargas.”

“Then we better pack and get moving,” Pidge decreed as she stood as she put out her hand. “Time to get us back home.”

“And save our friends,” Lance added as he placed his hand over Pidge’s. Sven nodded as he added his hand over Lance’s. A determined glint shone in Slav’s eyes as he placed his third hand, and Linka and Tinka added theirs on top of his. Allura’s eyes narrowed as she placed her hand on the top of the pile.

Hold on, you two, she silently vowed. We will save you.

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Keith stared at his reflection in the mirror. The empress had allowed him to keep his armour, so at least that was that blessing, but his eyes kept locking onto the pink collar that had been fastened around his neck. He fingered the small circle medallion that was attached to the front of it. He knew that was the part that allowed the empress to track him with every movement he made.

When she had present it to him Keith resisted it, but with Hunk’s brain hanging in the balance Keith had no choice. He had to allow her to put it on him.

This is humiliating, it’s like I’m her pet. He gave a soured glanced to the fancy clothes and food that had also been brought to him. I suppose in a way I am.

The doors opened, and in the reflection of the mirror, Keith saw it was the empress who entered. She glanced up and gave a disappointing frown as she spied the bed.

“You haven’t tried on your new clothes?” she asked.

“I’m more concern about this,” Keith said bitterly as he pointed to his collar.

The empress’s face softened as she reached over to brush away his hair to examine it. “I am sorry, but it’s either this or I bring out the chain again, and we can both agree this is more civilized.”

“In a manner of speaking,” Keith said as he jerked his head away. “Where’s Hunk?”

“In his room safe, as I promised,” the empress said as sat on the bed.

Keith crossed his arms. “When do I get to see him?”

“When I feel you have grown more comfortable here,” the empress replied firmly.

“That’s a vague answer,” Keith said as his fists tightened.

The empress narrowed her eyes as she stood. “I do want you to feel this place is your home and not a prison.” She pointed to the clothes as she turned back around. “I shall return later. Try them on so I know they fit and then we’ll have dinner.”

Keith kept quiet until she left. He then cursed as he picked up the clothes that he was certain were similar to the ones the Altean Keith wore in the picture. He promptly tossed them to the floor and let his body drop to the bed. His massage his eyes and prayed the others realized something went wrong and were on their way.

If they didn’t come soon, Keith didn’t want to imagine what else the empress had planned for him tonight.

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The group entered by the secret tunnel Hunk and Keith used before. Allura had partly hoped she would find the two of them merely napping in the tunnel, and proved they hadn’t been captured, but there was no sign of either of them. Yet, there were also no signs of any guards. If the empress had captured them, they had to assume she never discovered this particular tunnel was how they entered the castle.

Lance and Pidge volunteered to sneak inside first and grab the disguises they needed for the others. The tunnel felt cramped as they all waited inside the tunnel. Allura almost banged her toe against the machine three times and had to clamp a hand over her mouth to keep silent. She could not wait to get out of this place and back to their own reality.

Finally, Lance and Pidge appeared with the disguises and tossed a scarf in Allura’s direction.

“Got to make certain you keep your face covered,” Pidge commented as she placed the clothes over her armour. “Don’t want the locals in here believing you’re the empress.”

Allura nodded in agreement as she removed her helmet and adjusted her scarf. The servant's clothes were large enough to fit over their armour, and thankfully the hats they found were able to conceal the other’s ears.

Slav stayed in the tunnel as Allura and Sven went out and brought back a serving cart. The twins kept an eye out as they carried the machine out, and placed it inside the cart. Slav wrapped around the machine and clung to it like a woodland critter clinging to a branch.

“Make certain not to bump into anything,” Slav said as they covered the cart with a sheet. “We don’t know how stable this piece of comet is, and the chances of it going off and sending us into another reality are just under 50 percent.”

“So be careful or we’ll wind up in a place where lemurs are the supreme rulers or something, got it,” Lance muttered as they securely tucked it around him. The twins then checked the hallway and gestured the coast was clear.

Allura took a deep breath before she began to push the cart. The others stayed close to her as they moved. The cart was a bit difficult to maneuver with the weight of both Slav and the machine, but Allura managed it.

Her heart beats speed up as a few guards passed them, but they barely blinked an eye at them. Several more moments passed without anyone barely glancing at them. Then the door to the chamber where the rift was appeared before them, and there were no guards in sight.

It’s too good to be true, Allura thought.

“Stop right there!” a voice suddenly cried.

Allura silently cursed as they all froze. A large Altean woman carrying a large tray scowled at them. “Where exactly are you going?”

Allura chewed her bottom lip. “Um..”

“We’re just on our way back to the kitchen,” Pidge spoke in a firm tone. “To help with dinner.”

The Altean woman raised a skeptical eyebrow. “You mean the kitchen that’s in the opposite direction?”

“Uh, of course,” Lance stammered, “we were just taking the scenic route.”

The woman did not look impress, but shook her head. “I do not have the time for this nonsense,” she shoved the tray into Sven’s hands. “Take this food to the empress’s guest in the east chamber. I need to inspect and make certain the empress’s dinner is ready.”

“Um..,” Sven spoke and cleared his throat. “Which guest?”

The woman twitched an eye. “Oh for Anicent’s sake, the odd young man with the round ears and yellow armour.”

Allura gulped. Hunk! She meant Hunk.

“Ah, yes, of course,” Sven muttered with a nod.

“As for the rest of you,” the woman said as she pointed at them. “Go and see there are clean bedsheets and for Ancient’s sake strengthen those postures! We are not savages.”

“Uh..Yes, madam!” the twins said in unison.

“That is yes ‘Mrs. Hys’,” the lady growled as she stomped away. “Honestly, why is it so hard for you young people to remember?”

No one dared to move until the lady disappeared around the corner.

“Well, she’s pleasant,” Lance grumbled.

“I do not want to know what it’s like to live with her,” Pidge nodded in agreement.

“But now we know for 100 percent Hunk is here,” Slav voiced as he peeked from the table.

“All the more reason to get this inside,” Allura said as she shoved Slav’s head back inside the cart and then hastily wheeled it forward.

The group opened the chamber door, rushed inside and shut the doors before anyone noticed. Allura removed her scarf as she looked around. “You are positive this is where the rift is?”

“Definitely,” Lance said as he pointed to scorch marks on the door on the other side of the room. “I remember shooting at the guards at came in that direction when we got here.”

“What is this room exactly?” Tinka asked as Linka pulled the cloth off the serving cart.

“Yeah, I don’t remember this place from the Castle of Lions,” Pidge voiced.

“I do,” Lance said with a shrug. “I think it’s where Coran has been storing the extra spare parts he finds for the castle.”

“It’s the ceremonial chamber,” Allura voiced as she looked around. “It was barely used even back when my father was alive, but it was used to bless the first harvest of the season or the birth of a noble child.” She wiped the dust off a table. “Although, I would wager it has not be used in this reality for a long time.”

Granted, Coran had commented it was quite covered in dust when he cleaned it out to change into a storeroom as well. A part of her felt a bit guilty for changing the chamber to something so common. Yet, they hadn’t used the chamber for a high number of years while the war was going on.

All the celebrations in this room were for Altea and it’s people, but with Allura and Coran being it’s only survivals, there was just no longer a need for it.

Although, that is my excuse for not using it, Allura thought as she wiped the dust off her hands. The empress still has her Altea. What is her excuse?

“Allura,” Pidge voiced as she waved in front of her face. “Come on, we don’t have time to daydream here.”

Allura shook her head. “Sorry,” she muttered as she removed her servant clothing. The next phase of their plan required much movement and speed, and they needed to do that without their disguises. “Lance, do you have Hunk’s signal”

Lance activated his armour and nodded. “Yup, and looks what the cranky lady said is true. He’s in the eastern part of the tower.”

Allura activated her tracker and then placed her helmet on. “As for Keith...it appears he is in the same room he was kept in before.” The consort chamber. She tried not to interpret what that meant.

“We have better get a move on then,” Sven voiced as he dumped the servant clothes and pulled out the blaster. “Linka and Tinka, guard this place with your lives if we want any chance to get home.”

“You can count on us,” Linka said with a salute.

Twinka raised a hand. “But...can we eat the food on the tray we brought in? I’m starving.”

Sven chuckled as he patted Lance’s shoulder. “Go ahead,” he looked to Lance. “We better go.”

Lance chewed his bottom lip, but then took a deep breath and looked to Allura. “Call us if you run into trouble.”

“Same to you,” Allura said as she approached the door. “Also be careful.”

“You too,” Lance said as he held out his hand. Allura gave a smile as she grabbed it and gave it hard squeeze before she left the chamber.

They would find their friends and they would get out of here. Nothing was going to stop them.