Allura couldn't breathe; oh her lungs were contracting and expanding but it didn't feel like there was enough oxygen in the air. She felt tears fill her eyes she stared at the small, seemingly innocuous object on the table before her. She wanted to touch it but she was terrified it would fade away and dissolve as it had so many times in her dreams.
"Where-" she managed to gasp out around the knot in her throat, "Where did you find this?"
Lotor stood to her side, arms behind his back and, to the casual observer, he would have seemed calm. However after several phoebs, Allura quietly prided herself on learning his tells; the unconscious ones he couldn't control. And at that moment he was as unsure as she had ever seen him. It probably didn't help that the other Paladins were staring at them silently, in various states of shock, awe or suspicion. Not that Lotor hadn't brushed such things off without blinking before, however she had a feeling that it also came back to his…gift.
"I came across it during the early years of my exile Princess," He explained, using her title like he always did, however his voice carried an odd timbre. "There were ancient Altean ruins nearby, some kind of research facility from what little I was able to determine. I had surmised that the two were related, but I didn't know for sure. Not until a few movements ago."
Allura knew that he was referring to some down time she had spent with him going over what little he had been able to learn about his Altean heritage and expounding upon it. They had sat with holo-sheets for four or five vargas going over everything from the planet's weather patterns and native flora and fauna to cultural holidays and even biological illnesses. Lotor had been equal parts amused and horrified has she told him the story of Coran's relatively recent experience with the Slipperies. Now she realized that there must have been something else she had spent a great deal of time on.
"You described them so well," Lotor continued, "I immediately knew you were referring to these flowers. Juniberry… the name suits them."
Allura stared at the cluster of flowers and soil in a pot before her. Two of the seven buds were open, the flower's dark petals swaying gently in the castle's circulating air. Allura bit her lip; she could even smell them now, and it almost undid her.
Why?" Allura choked, tears streaming down her cheeks. She wouldn't look at him, she couldn't; she didn't want him to see how much this affected her.
"So you could have what I cannot." Lotor paused, debating his next words, pointedly not looking at any of the Paladins around him. "I was a child when Daibazaal was destroyed. Even though it was not nearly as pastorally idyllic as Altea, it was still my home. There are things about it that I remember fondly and that at times…I would do a great deal to see them again. However, I cannot. Nothing exists from Daibazaal anymore. The planet is nothing but a dead rock in space and its people have been twisted and warped over generations by the lies of a fallen emperor and his witch. However in your case Princess Allura, the planet and its people may be gone, but parts of Altea still exists."
Allura couldn't help but think of that alternate reality they had visited, the one with the "Altean Empire". While Altea has still existed there, her people…were no longer her people. She didn't know what she would have done if her father had frozen her only for her to wake up to that reality.
Tentatively Allura reached out and brushed the petals with shaking fingers, feeling her calloused fingertips catch on the velvety surface. With her thoughts and emotions churning, Allura barely heard the conversation continue on around her.
"How do we know this isn't some sort of trick?" Lance asked skeptically, alternating between eyeing Lotor and the plant that sat before Allura.
"Dude, they're just flowers." Hunk replied, giving his friend a strange look. "Can flowers be booby trapped?"
"How do we know they aren't some kind of weird space-mimic flowers that release spores that allow him," Lance pointed a finger at Lotor who merely arched an eyebrow at him, "to mind control people?"
"While I appreciate the level of…subterfuge you are attributing to me, I can only assure you that they are what you see." The former prince replied to the accusation.
"Yeah, but I don't trust you, so your assurance doesn't mean much!"
"Well do you trust me?" Pidge piped up. "'Cause the whole time you've been squawking I've scanned them four times and there is nothing wrong with them." She smirked up at the Red Paladin, "They're just normal plants and soil."
"Hmmm, I still don't- Hey!" Lance caught himself mid-sentence, "I don't squawk!"
The conversation digressed from that point and Allura saw Lotor turn to leave the room. Allura bit her lip again briefly before coming to a decision. She stood quickly and called after him. Lotor paused and turned back towards her,
"Yes, Princess?"
Allura felt a flush of self-consciousness creep up her neck when she realized that the others had mostly stopped their squabbling to watch her. Matters were made worse when she stepped closer to Lotor and was reminded of just how tall he was.
"Why do you have to be so bloody tall?" Allura muttered under her breath.
"Shall I kneel for you Princess?" The remark was rather snidely made and it instantly raised her hackles. However, Allura let it go with a sigh; the former prince had just gone out on an emotional limb for her. To give her a piece of home. Of hope.
That aside, what she wished to do had nothing with him subjugating himself, rather the opposite as a matter of fact.
"That won't be necessary." She lifted her chin to meet his gaze. "However, I do require you to lean down."
Lotor simply stood there for a moment, starting at her suspiciously before sighing himself, and leaning down.
Allura reached out to put a hand on his shoulder, her hand pausing for a moment in uncertainty before she laid it on his armor. Lotor said nothing, but simply looked at her with wary unease. Feeling bolder, Allura slid her hand up to the back of his neck, feeling the cool weight of his hair against her fingers and guided his head down lower until his forehead pressed against hers.
More specifically against her crown.
She saw his eyes widen fractionally and she knew he understood; it was something they had touched on during their discussion of Altea. Unless invited to by the monarch wearing it, it was incredibly taboo for a layperson to touch one of the royal crowns of Altea. And to invite that touch was a sign of recognition, a sign of trust. Allura could have just have easily taken his hand and brought it to her forehead, but she wanted to look him in the eyes when she spoke to him.
"Lotor," she spoke his name, clearly, knowing everyone in the room was listening. "Thank you," she felt tears well in her eyes again, "I don't know if I can properly convey just what you've given me. And how much it means to me." She took a breath to steady herself. "So again, thank you."
She felt the tension leave his shoulders and she watched his eyes slide shut.
"You are most welcome…Allura."