Hell Hath No Fury
Disclaimer: I do not own Voltron or any of its characters nor any of its alternate universe personas. So sad, I could become fond of a Lotor with green eyes…
Part 5 of the Chivalry story arc: 1. Chivalry; 2. Lion House Restored (& 2A. LHR – Allura's POV); 3. Doomed Quest; 4. Alternate Choices; and 5. Hell Hath No Fury. While some of the stories can be read as stand alone, this one must be read AFTER Alternate Choices for it to make sense.
Rating/Setting: Rating is T, bordering M. There are some topics that could be triggers for some people; I will try to post warnings for those chapters. However, I'm never graphic or explicit in any of my writing. If you've read Alternate Choices, you should know what the trigger topics are. Setting is DotU in flavor.
A/N: I had seriously only planned to have 4 installments to this story arc. However, I just couldn't get the Mirror-verse out of my head. Would the alternate Allura track Keith down? What would our Allura do if she did? They were questions my mind had to answer and instead of just keeping those answers to myself, I decided to write this story. I hope you enjoy it and our trip back through the looking glass. :-)
Chapter 1
Six months after his return from the final quest, Keith was in the midst of a scene of domestic bliss. Standing at the kitchen island, he was slicing up vegetables for the evening salad. Allura was due back within the hour, and he had promised to have dinner ready. The grill was fired and ready, and he would put the steaks on shortly. He wanted to be sure they were hot when she arrived. Smiling, he thought of living on the edge – whatever would they do if the steaks were cold? Having finished with the cucumbers, he was reaching for the carrots when he heard the front door open. Crap, she's home already. Glancing up, he saw Allura drop her bag on the floor near the door and walk toward him with a large smile.
"Did your meetings go well?" Keith asked as he continued to chop.
"As well as usual."
Snickering, he said, "That well, huh?" Lilting laughter followed that comment. Keith used the wide blade of the knife to scoop up the carrots and drop them in the bowl. Picking up a damp cloth, he wiped his hands off and went around the island to take his wife in his arms. He never tired of thinking it or saying it. His wife.
Allura wrapped her arms around his waist and felt him lean his head against hers. Her thoughts went to his clothing. He was wearing short sleeves; it was perfect.
Inhaling deeply, Keith breathed in the scent of Allura's shampoo… and he didn't recognize it. The urge to tense up was almost impossible to control, but he did control it as his eyes snapped open. Glancing over to the island, he saw the knife wasn't within easy reach. He'd have to be fast because if he was right, the woman in his arms wasn't his wife.
Nonchalantly, he asked, "Did you get a chance to speak to Robert today?"
"I'm afraid not. Perhaps tomorrow."
Keith pushed her away and spun for the island and the knife only to be dropped painfully to his knees by a stunner. He heard Allura's laughter behind him as he fought to catch his breath and move his muscles. Time was of the essence and he didn't have much of it.
Walking over to Keith, she carefully placed a metal circle around his bicep and snapped it closed. Pulling him back by his hair, she knelt beside him and whispered in his ear, "I told you I'd come for you, Keith. You're meant to be mine."
Time had run out.
A step sounded outside, and Allura laughed softly because they both knew who would be entering the house momentarily. The Queen of Altea stood, but kept her fingers in his hair, pulling his torso up and back. She looked down into his eyes as he struggled to control his breathing and calm his twitching muscles. "Time to see how much she wants you, Keith."
Allura waved as Lance turned the speeder back toward the castle. As he sped out of sight, she turned to Altea Hall. She smiled as she thought of the name they decided to call their little getaway. It's was way too grandiose for the quaint, non-pretentious cottage. But the name came up, and it stuck. She was glad they had this place to escape to on occasion. And tonight was definitely one of those occasions. What a day in meetings! Ugh! She hoped that Keith would have supper ready as he planned… but if he didn't, she knew how they could kill some time.
The Queen of Arus opened the door of her home and stopped dead in her tracks. As she stared into her own eyes, she wondered how she could get the dagger from her boot without drawing attention to it. But she had no ideas. The Queen of Altea had Keith on his knees, and it was obvious that Allura Alt (the name that Keith used for her) had used the stunner that sat on the table. His chest was moving rapidly, and he hadn't spoken yet. It was then she noticed the bond-mate band that had been placed on Keith's bicep. Her eyes narrowed.
Stepping into the cottage, Allura pitched her voice low and menacing. "Just what do you think you're doing with my husband?"
Keeping her eyes locked on the Arusian queen, Allura Alt replied, "He may be your husband now, but I claimed him as my bond-mate before you chose to degrade yourself and… marry him." The word 'marry' came out of her mouth like a word describing some kind of filth.
"I'm afraid that your claim of bond-mate means nothing on Arus." Allura halted about ten feet away from them.
An evil smile graced Allura Alt's face as she responded in kind. "Just as your marriage will mean nothing on Altea." She took pleasure in watching her alternate's face flash to fury and then to a controlled veneer. "However, I'm willing to give you a chance. I'm willing to fight you for him. A fight to the death, winner takes all."
"No."
Both women looked to the man on the floor who appeared to have regained his breath, if not control of his emotions and body. "You will not fight for me." He looked at his wife. "She won't fight fair; I can't… let you… do it." Keith struggled to get the words out.
Allura Alt yanked on his hair and hissed, "You do NOT tell a Queen what she can or cannot do."
In what would probably be the only time she agreed with her alternate, Allura said, "She's right in this, Keith. You can't tell me what to do." She then looked from Allura Alt to Keith and saw the pleading in his eyes. "Just as I couldn't stop you in the Right of Challenge, you can't stop me now." And then she had to smirk because it was incredibly ironic how the tables had been turned on him. "This time, I fight for you Keith Kogane."
"Then it's settled," Allura Alt said. "You have one week to find a way to my universe and to the planet Ormond. I will hold off completing the bond-mate process until then, but no longer."
Allura drew a deep breath. One week. That wasn't much time. "I'll be there."
"See you on the other side." Allura Alt pushed a button on a device in her hand and she and Keith winked out of sight.
Allura dropped to her knees. Keith was gone. She had one week to get to the alternate universe and engage in a fight to the death to get him back. She didn't have time for self-pity or analyzing how she might have stopped her alternate. Standing and moving over to her com, she called Lance, who probably hadn't made it back to the castle. "Lance, this is Allura, switch to secure channel."
"Acknowledged."
After a moment, he continued, "What is it, Allura?"
"She's got him, Lance." Allura was pleased that her voice didn't break, but it did sound shaky. "It's time to implement Plan Mirror."
"Acknowledged, my Queen. I'll contact Castle Control; on my way back to pick you up."
"I'll be waiting."
Allura picked up a few items she wanted to take with her back to the castle. She wouldn't come back here without Keith. Too many memories. Standing on the porch, she looked at the castle glowing softly in the evening light as she waited for Lance and thought, you're mine Keith, and I'm going to bring you home. Even if it means it's over my own dead body.