This story is not related to the Voltron one I'm currently working on – What's Best for Arus. This is completely standalone. I was listening to "Let it Go" from Frozen (the Idina Menzel Version) while writing this – I have no beta, so I'm not sure how 'good' it is! K/A, Allura standing up for herself.
Allura stood watching as the sun began its nightly descent from the balcony outside of her rooms at the Castle of Lions. The orange rays streaked through the air, highlighting the few clouds on the horizon in shades of pink and purple. She closed her eyes and let a tear escape… she was tired, so tired of hiding everything!
She ran her hands down the loathsome pink jumpsuit that Nanny insisted that she continually wear when she wasn't in the gowns that Nanny tried to force her in. Allura hated pink. HATED IT!
"I'm so trapped…" she whispered. She was tired of it all. Tired of being the perfect princess. Tired of being the young girl in the minds of Coran and Nanny. Tired of being seen as the little sister that needed protection from the men on the Voltron Force. And she was tired most especially, of hiding how she felt for one Commander Keith Kogane.
She could feel the anger and rage deep inside of her. It was normal for her, she would often temper it down. But this time, this time…
It was time to let it all go!
She screamed once, letting all her anger and rage and despair echo throughout the castle. Running back into her room, she began to tear the pink jumpsuit off her body, not caring who may come running from her scream. Ripping through her closet, she threw all the pretty pink dresses and jumpsuits on the ground, not caring where they landed. Deep in the back, she found what she was looking for… a pair of jeans that Lance had smuggled her from the last shipment from earth and a simple black tshirt. She ran from her room, pulling the t-shirt down over her head as she ran, not caring who saw her in her dishevelled appearance.
Bursting through the doors of Command, she ran barefoot to where the chute that would take her to her lion. The alarms were starting to sound, and she could hear shouts. It wouldn't be much longer before they would try to take her back, and she needed to make this break!
Leaping into the chute and grabbing the zip line, she felt the air rush past her as she made her way to the cockpit of the Blue Lion, her sanctuary.
Entering the area where she normally would put on her flight suit, she gasped. The pink and white confection that she normally wore was torn to shreds. In its place was a form fitting suit of black and blue. She reverently touched the material before changing quickly.
Even Blue Lion approves! She thought viciously, entering the transport pod.
As the air rushed past her, she opened her mind to her lion and could feel the fierce satisfaction that the lion held. It's about time you tested your limits.
She smiled, settling herself in the cockpit. "Let's go!"
With a great roar, the lion launched out from the lake of the Castle, and she could see all the sirens going. Punching a few buttons, she let her comm link open to the worried face of Coran. She could see Nanny, Lance, Hunk and Pidge standing behind him with worried faces.
"I'm not your little girl anymore!" she raged. Her lion roared again in approval. The stricken faces of Nanny and Coran looked back at her, and for a moment she felt pain at hurting their feelings. She chose her next words with care.
"I need to be me! And I don't care what you have to say about this… I am a grown woman!"
"You're not acting like it, young lady!" Nanny screeched. Allura scoffed.
"If you didn't smother me, maybe I wouldn't need to act out like this. And another thing, Nanny… I HATE PINK!" With a flick, she turned off the comm link.
She flew in communion with her lion for a few minutes, before breathing out sharply. "Am I being childish, do you think?" she asked softly. She could feel a rumbling from the blue lion.
You have tried, time and time again for them to see you as an adult. Perhaps this is something they need, more than you.
"Maybe you're right. I just hope they understand eventually." Allura sighed, and pushed the buttons for her thrusters. "Let's put some more space between us and Castle Control. Mach 7, my friend."
The lion roared its approval again. Allura felt the g-forces kick in as they flew, her heart soaring.
Allura breathed deeply as she sat on the metal paw of her lion, watching the stars and moon above her. She had flown for a few hours before settling her lion down on one of the tallest mountains on Arus, and she let herself be lost in contemplation. A soft rumbling echoed from Blue Lion as she sat there, comforting her. She had always known the lions had their own souls, but now that she was able to commune with Blue Lion… well, nothing would close that door now.
"I'll have to teach the others how to do it." She mused softly.
Some will be more ready than others. Some have already begun this mind link, but are scared. The Earth-men are not used to the fusion of magic and machinery that you are.
"Mmm." Allura continued watching the sky, making a wish on the falling star that she saw streak across the sky. A few moments later, the comforting rumbles of her lion began to die off. "What is it?"
Visitors… Allura lept off the paw of her lion, reaching for the blaster she had found.
"It's ok, Princess. It's only me." Keith moved around the lion, his hands in the air. Allura gasped as Keith was clad similarly as she was, but instead of blue, his uniform was black on black. She took a moment to enjoy how the fabric hugged his muscles. "New uniforms, huh?" he smiled, turning around for her perusal.
"I found this one when I left earlier." She murmured, conscious of how the material hugged her.
"I approve…" Keith grinned suddenly, letting his eyes travel over Allura's body. She felt her cheeks heat up. "Ahem. Sorry Princess. That won't happen again."
"It's ok…" she smiled despite her flaming cheeks. "Come to bring me back?"
"Nope. I came to make sure you were ok, and if you needed someone to listen. But no, you'll go back when you're ready, I'm sure." She could feel the slight thread of Blue's purring start up again, and she climbed back onto her lion's paw, relaxing slightly. "Blue approves of these changes, I see."
"You can talk to them?" she gasped, staring at her commander with wide eyes.
"Sort of." Keith rubbed the back of his neck, trying to think of how to explain it. "It's like, I know what Black wants to say to me. I also know that he approves as well. I get the feeling from him that all the lions approve."
"Really?" Allura smiled.
"Really." Keith hopped up on Blue's paw, patting her leg before settling himself in next to Allura. "I do too, actually."
"Why?" She looked up at him. He shrugged.
"You need to see what you can do as yourself. You need the chance to be Allura, not just some figurehead or doll. That's really all they treat you like." Keith smiled slightly. "I could tell when you fought so hard to be a part of the force with Nanny and Coran that there was more to you."
"Thanks, I think…" she laughed softly. Keith grabbed one of her hands and held it between his.
"Ally, listen to me. This is your chance to let it all go. The chance for you to stand before them and tell them that this is who you are… pink dresses be damned." He chuckled softly. "Nanny nearly had a fit when you said that you hated pink earlier."
"You were there? I didn't see you."
"I was already heading down to Black. Lance told me when I was in flight looking for you."
"Oh." Allura shivered suddenly, feeling the chill from the mountain top. Keith wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close.
"Cold?"
"Mmm. Sort of." She looked up into his eyes and sighed. "Keith… I need to tell you something." Keith's arms tightened around her and he smiled slightly.
"I love you too Ally. When you ran out of there, the only thing I could think of was getting to you. I wanted to make sure you were safe, but I knew… this time there'd be nothing to stop us. No duty, no council, nothing. You're finally freeing yourself, letting it all go, and I feel like I can admit it to both of us. I love you, Allura."
Tears filled Allura's eyes as she wrapped her arms around Keith, hugging him tightly. "You're right. There's nothing to stop us, nothing! I'm the princess, dammit, and I'm going to make sure they can't stop this." She pulled back and stared into the deep pools of his eyes. "I love you Keith." Very gently, she pressed her lips to his. He held her tightly as the kiss began to deepen.
A loud roar echoed throughout the night, interrupting their embrace. Keith laughed. "Black approves." Allura blushed and snuggled into Keith's arms.
"I'm really glad I did this."
"Me too, Ally… me too."
