Purring. Lotor was purring and he couldn't help it. Not when that boy was standing there looking delicious. Mouth-watering. He closed his eyes, remembering when he started noticing the paladin.
Galras, not all mind you, but some galras were really good at judging the character of people. Like a sixth sense, an instinct, a small voice commenting on someone's character. Lotor was one of the lucky few with that skill, he suspected the only one in a long time, making him dangerously good at manipulating anyone. All he needed to do was to pay attention to someone for more than a few seconds and bam. He already knew how that someone behaved.
That's why Allura was so boring. Predictable. She was a child trying to win a war, a very smart and determined child, but a child nonetheless. Lotor, after a few hours together with her, was confident he could easily manipulate her from fury to calm and vice versa with a few words and a smile. He knew how she would react at any circumstance and and knew how to guide her to follow his wishes.
Allura was boring.
However, that boy? He was a treasure. Shame his team couldn't see that, but, hey, better for Lotor. It would be easier to take him away.
You see, that sixth sense had a flaw, just one flaw. A flaw so baffling science had never found out why it exists.
People with that skill could not, under any circumstances, read people who had the same ability. No matter how weak that instinct was, if someone had it, or anything similar to it, would immediately be immune. However, it needed to be something they were born with, not acquired.
Lotor could read the others, some took more time, yes, but he could read them all... Except for Lance.
That got the prince's attention.
Lance was a mystery, for he could not be read, but choose to show the whole universe how he felt. He carried his heart in his sleeve, as the small Paladin once said. Or that's what he wanted them to see.
After their first encounter, Lotor didn't think much of the boy. What was the benefit of being unreadable and yet willingly show the universe what makes you, well, you? Stupid human. It wasn't until he witnessed the frown on the human's face Lotor finally understood. Lance was smarter than he was given credit to.
Instead of straight up lying, the boy showed a small bit of his personality. It was easier to act upon a percentage of his own personality than an entirely fabricated one. It's was extremely more believable because it was a half-truth. Moreover, it worked perfectly with the neglectful tendencies of the group, where they would fill the other half of the truth with their own assumptions. The perfect cover.
Lotor decided to keep an eye on the sharpshooter, first out of curiosity, then fascination, and then finally love. Or what he understood as love. It is hard to differentiate feelings you've never felt before. The first thing he learned was that Lance was a trusting person, so if so when he suspected someone, it was for real. He may not have told the others—they probably wouldn't listen anyway—, but he kept this suspicion and it would be difficult to get him to let it go. Therefore, if the prince wanted any chance to get closer to the paladin, firstly he needed to be trusted.
Thankfully, the half-truth didn't hide the good sides of Lance, like his loyalty and protectiveness.
The team obviously found odd to see Lotor try to help them so much. Pidge couldn't understand why he decided to help her with her updates. Hunk was very hesitant in accepting the prince's help on the kitchen. They were the two closest to Lance in the team, so Lotor had to start by them. Quite easy, a few lessons about galra tech and a few recipes of galra food. Coran and Shiro were a little more difficult, however, the knowledge he had about the past, war strategy and fighting methods were enough. In a few days, they would defend him; some even actively looked for his company. It was annoying, the Voltron team—with exception of his beloved—was boringly predicable, but he managed. For Lance, he kept repeating.
Allura was enamored with him, which was good for getting information only she and Coran had access to, but it made Lance even more distant. The boy had convinced himself he felt something for her—humans needed to hold in some stray of hope otherwise they would just lost the will to live—and that he needed to be jealous of her relationship with Lotor. Allura quickly stopped being just boring to be instead a great bother. To the point of the half-altean caught himself questioning if he could just take Lance away and be over with the stupid alliance. Patience, he had to remind himself, everything would end in your favor.
Lotor found his chance to approach his paladin when the boy decided to spent the night in the pool. The artificial lighting and the water made Lance look even more ethereal. The way he smoothly floated was beautiful. So relaxed, so complete, so tempting. The prince made a note to himself to take Lance to one of those beaches Hunk talked about one day. He could already see the yellow sand glued on dark skin, cold water dripping from brown bangs and the golden Sun making blue eyes shine. Thin lips in a full smile, painted with the prince's name. So tempting.
He had to take a second to calm down before talking to the object of his affections.
"And what do you want, prince?"
"Good night, paladin. Why are you here at this hour?"
"None of your business."
Not good. Hostility was a great look on the paladin, but not when directed at him. Made him feel desperate. Made him want to force Lance in submission. And Lotor knew the only thing someone who made others submit unwillingly gained was rebellion and hate. Hate was the last thing he wanted the boy to direct to him.
"It must be hard for you, paladin. To do so much and be so little recognized, I mean."
Shivers ran down the blonde-haired man's spine when Lance's full attention focused on him. Oh, how had he dreamed about that, how had he fantasied, how had he desired it. Lotor didn't need the sixth sense to see the cracks on the walls Lance hid his bad sides with. He could tell by looking at Lance's eyes. Bluest blue.
"Have Allura ever thanked you for your attempts of cheering her up? Or have Shiro ever told you how well you do on missions? Have Pidge commented on your intelligence at least once? Have Hunk offered a hug after a rough day?"
"Shut up…"
"Have Keith told you how much he cares?"
"Shut up."
"Have any of them remembered you of how much you're necessary?"
"Shut up!"
Rage. Tears. Lotor thought for a moment that he had thrown away his shot.
"I don't need you to rub salt in it."
Oh. That was a human thing.
"I'm not rubbing anything in your injuries, paladin. I am truly concerned about the neglect you seem to suffer."
"Why?" Voice wavering, he was cracking more. Lotor should have felt pleased, but he was furious. Voltron had a treasure, a real jewel, rare and unequaled. And they were throwing it away as if it was a simple pebble.
"You, paladin… Lance." Said boy widened his eyes, tears falling on the pool. The half-galra had to hold himself; otherwise, he would've destroyed those stupid heroes immediately. "Lance, I see you as someone of unspeakable value." Truth. "I see you as a jewel, a rare and unequaled jewel." Also a truth. "I just want to be close to you and… Bask in this otherworldly feeling you bring." Half-truth, Lotor wanted to have Lance all for himself like the selfish bastard he was.
Silence took place for a few minutes. The man turned to leave, already planning how to approach the paladin again. Stopped by Lance's voice, together with the soft sound of water being disrupted, another wave of wrath made its wait through his body. It sounded so hurt, so small, so unsure. So different from the usual joyful tone. So distant from the confident tone it should always have.
"What feelings?"
Lotor didn't turn, he did not dare. He needed Lance to want him to turn. In that moment, the Cuban boy had total power over the prince. Power given willingly. How could anyone say it wasn't love?
"I love you." Truth.
A gasp.
"Why?"
A gulp.
"You are you, I need no other reason." Truth.
A body leaving the pool.
"I don't believe you."
A heartbeat skipped.
"Let me make you believe, then."
A slow breath intake right behind him.
"Is that what you want?"
A love struck sigh.
"More than anything." Truth.
A hand touching his back hesitantly.
"I am very broken."
A shiver.
"So am I." Truth.
A tired chuckle.
"You better not let me forget you love me, Lotor."
"I'll remind you every minute we have together, my beloved jewel." Promise.
Arms circled his body. Lotor turned around, bringing the boy to his arms. Where no one could underappreciate his precious treasure, where no one could hurt his feelings, where no one would made him feel less than the rarity he was.
They decided to keep it a secret to the others; they would have time to tell them after everything was settled. Lotor was floating in a cloud of happiness. Lance was finally his. All the secret smiles, all the playful looks, all the insinuating puns. The jealousy had changed; Allura was the one too close, the one being too touchy, the one being too friendly. Lance was actually quite possessive, jealousy flaring when someone else stayed too close for too long. The prince had no problem with that, he wanted to rip the other's heads for being too close to his boy since he noticed the feelings growing in his heart.
They took small steps, Lotor wanted first to take away all the bad things those pathetic "heroes" feed to his beloved's mind. It took some time, Lance was still cautious. As people with broken hearts are. Smart people. The sixth sense was no help, but the soon-to-be-emperor almost completely forgot its existence. Having Lance show parts of himself slowly was a torture he enjoyed maybe a little bit too much. It made him open too. Who would've thought? They opened completely to each other, they bonded so strongly they could feel each change of emotions the other had. They could understand each other more than the universe in its vastness could.
"Loyalty, my universe, is not only that should be mutual, it should be earned."
"I trust them with my life."
"Would they do the same?"
Silence.
"I would. I would give you a gun and let you make the decision; my life is yours to take."
"Spend it with me; that would be enough."
The first kiss came after a particularly tiring mission. No praise came from the others, not for him anyways, but Lance could not be bothered. Not when Lotor suddenly appeared in the paladin's room later that day and gave him the kiss of his life. And the night of his life. When the prince held him as if he was porcelain, when he looked at him with so much want and admiration, when he took him with so much reverence. When he was so intoxicatingly saying "I love you" and a million praises again and again and again and again to the point Lance had no idea if it was dream or reality and, quite frankly, he had no wish to know. He didn't want to wake up alone.
He didn't. Lotor stayed the whole night there, admiring the tired form of his lover. For a second he felt bad for over exhausting his Lance, but the satisfied expression on his boy's face was enough to assure him it was alright. Morning came and Lotor melted with the vision of Lance snuggling closer to him to hide from the light.
"What are you thinking about to smile do fondly, my emperor?"
Opening his eyes, Lotor stared at his treasure. It an arm he pulled the man until he was sitting on the emperor's lap. Lance did not waste time on snuggling in his neck.
"You, my precious jewel."
"Yeah?"
"And the faces of Voltron when you betrayed them." Lotor smirked, watching a sly smile lazily form on his Lance's face.
"You can't betray someone you're not loyal to, my everything."
To say Lotor was proud of his most prized jewel was an understatement. With a long kiss, he wondered how he was able to live 10.000 years without the taste of his universe in his lips.