Through the Looking Glass
Summary: An accident during the research on quintessence transports Keith and Lotor into the bodies of other versions of themselves in a reality where they're married.
(WARNING! Slash, Reality Travel, AU, Lotor/Keith)
Disclaimer: I do not own Voltron: Legendary Defender.
Chapter 1
Everything was white.
Keith couldn't see a thing in front of him, not even his hand as he held it out in front of his face. He knew something had gone wrong with the research on the quintessence, but he didn't know what. He did know that it could mean nothing good.
Quintessence was a lot of things, but he didn't think good was one of them.
He didn't know how long he had been trapped in that nothingness, but by the time the whiteness started to recede from the corner of his eyes, he was bored to the point where he was almost willing to beg for anything to happen. The white didn't disappear so much as colors swirled into existence around it until suddenly he was looking up at a ceiling high above his head.
Keith frowned at it.
He didn't recognize the ceiling.
The covers around him were hot and constricting and with a quiet hiss, he attempted to sit up. Attempted, because there was something around his waist that was keeping him trapped to the bed.
Keith pulled down the covers far enough to see a purple arm around his waist.
His eyes widened in shock and he pulled the covers up again before he could examine it further. Keith spent a few precious seconds just staring at the spot where he could see the arm under the thick covers. What the hell was going on?! He could understand if he had passed out after the contact with the quintessence, but for someone else—presumably galra—to be in bed with him, in a room he didn't recognize? It didn't make a good first impression.
He supposed it could be another member of the Blade of Marmora, and maybe they had a perfectly reasonable reason for laying in bed with him, but even from his vantage point, he could tell that the room was much too fancy for the base he was used to. He was sure he had never been here before.
He pulled the covers—a dark red color—down again and stared down at the arm. It wasn't as thick as he would expect a galra arm to be.
Squirming around until he could pull himself up a little, Keith sat up when the arm was low enough that is was around his thighs as opposed to his waist. He wasn't sure if that was better or worse.
Sitting up, he could see the room around him.
The bed he was sitting on was in the middle of the room, backed up against a wall and if he wasn't wrong when he looked over the edge, raised above the rest of the floor by two steps. The bedroom was big, gigantic by his standards, with the walls colored a light purple and large windows along one of the walls, from floor to ceiling. In the middle of the windows was a glass-door that he was pretty sure led to a balcony that would—if it measured up to everything else around him—probably be absolutely stunning.
In a corner of the room was a pair of comfortable looking black couches as well as a screen that was the alien equivalent of a TV. The entire floor was covered by a rusted red rug that looked comfortable and inviting even from where he sat on the very nice bed.
On another wall, there hung a banner with a Galra Empire symbol on it.
Keith hissed, almost a reflex at this point, and swiveled his head around to stare down at the body next to his, that was still holding onto him.
The first thing he saw was the white hair.
It was long and captured in a braid that laid spread out over a black pillow. The hair was attached to a purple head and when Keith twisted his head to get a better look, there was no mistaking those features. He might not have spent a lot of time around him—it had been a coincidence that he had found his way to the quintessence lab—but Lotor was unmistakable.
The new Emperor of the Galra Empire was laying right next to him.
Lotor still had a tight grip around his legs, a grip Keith unfortunately couldn't break, and his face was almost pressed against his skin. Evidently, Keith wasn't wearing a shirt, a rather belated realization. And evidently, neither was Lotor.
Somehow, Lotor had managed to twist himself into a mess with the covers, which was why it was so difficult to get them off of him completely. As such, Lotor's upper body and the majority of his legs were in plain sight. Without his will, Keith felt his eyes stray to the muscles on that body, the purple color that only made him appear more beautiful and otherworldly, and truly, it was unfair how a Galra could be so pretty.
Keith was pretty sure Lotor was only half-galra, but still... he was way too beautiful.
And laying down like that, twisted around Keith and looking almost vulnerable, just made him appear more so.
The grip around his legs tightened to almost painful degrees and with a groan from Lotor, Keith was pretty sure he was starting to wake up. There was no telling if that was a good thing or not, but hopefully it meant that he had some answers, considering it had been his experiment that had gone wrong.
Keith could see Lotor blinking, starting to wake up, and he found himself sitting perfectly still, almost afraid to breathe and be caught. He wasn't sure what he was being caught doing, but it couldn't be a good thing. A part of him wanted to fly at Lotor and make him tell him exactly what had happened, but he had no weapons, was—to his knowledge, he hadn't checked—half naked and had no idea where they were or how to begin to get out. And if he attacked the Emperor, he was pretty sure he'd have to fight his way out.
At the moment at least, they were supposed to be allies, so maybe he could get some truthful answers out of the galra.
Hopefully.
Otherwise, he would have to resort to drastic measures, but he was trying his best to learn that thing Shiro and Kolivan was always talking about. To think before he reacted.
And the best way to go about this would probably be to treat and think of it as a mission until further notice.
Another groan from the body laying next to him brought Keith out of his thoughts and made him concentrate on the present problem. Lotor twitched and this time, his eyes stayed open. The grip around him tightened again before Lotor let go of him completely and against his better judgement, Keith found himself feeling slightly colder now that Lotor had let go. He didn't understand it.
The Emperor of the most powerful race in the universe sat up with hair slipping from his braid and curling around his face, his eyes tired and blinking rapidly. It was almost, dare he say it, cute.
Keith was absolutely going insane.
There was no other explanation for the thoughts running through his mind right now. He had always known that Lotor was attractive, in a distant obvious kind of way. It was just fact that he was beautiful, but Keith had never given it any more thought than that. Obviously, he was suffering form severe poisoning from the quintessence.
That was the only option.
Lotor's eyes went from tired to aware alarmingly fast. Keith watched with a bated breath as the Emperor took in himself and everything around them, together with the situation they were in. Keith was fully prepared to defend himself if Lotor attacked.
But Lotor didn't do anything at all.
When he was finished taking in everything, Lotor turned back towards him and Keith stared at him apprehensively. Lotor tilted his head and stated, "The experiment went wrong."
Keith scowled and snapped out a, "Obviously."
Lotor hummed in thought and just continued speaking. "Our surroundings are unfamiliar to me, I'm afraid."
Keith scowled harder and turned his gaze away from the Emperor. "That's a galra symbol." he pointed out as he tilted his head in the direction of the hanging banner.
Lotor turned around to stare at it as well. "So it is. I suppose it would be useless to ask if you recognize this place?"
"Yes."
Again, Lotor hummed in thought and began untangling his legs from the covers. The realization that the galra was naked was a slow thing, because Keith's attention was more on the hair that fell out of his braid. It reminded him of Allura. But when Lotor stood up on his side of the bed, Keith couldn't help but notice that he was very much naked. Immediately, he turned around to stare resolutely at the wall, ignoring the blush he could feel climbing up his cheeks. He just wasn't expecting it!
A thought hit him and he let his hand wander below the covers that still covered his lower body. Breathing out in relief when he found that he was at least wearing underwear, Keith ignored the chuckle coming from the Emperor when he realized what Keith's problem was.
The blush staining him disappeared when his fury returned.
Keith heard more than saw Lotor disappear through another door and the sound of water starting to run. Amusingly enough, showers were essentially the same no matter where you went in the universe. It was a small comfort, but a comfort nonetheless. While Lotor was busy, Keith climbed out of the bed carefully and shivered slightly at the colder temperature that met him.
He turned around until he found another door that Lotor hadn't exited through and approached it warily. There was no telling what awaited behind it.
Keith turned the handle, a golden color, and swung the door open.
Clothes upon clothes upon clothes met his sight. There were shelves and racks and boxes and more. In short, it was some sort of alien version of a walk-in closet. Keith gulped and walked in. There were a lot of clothes that were obviously Lotor's, purple and black mostly. There were clothes that were so formal in image that he was almost scared of touching them. And there were clothes that looked more like galra uniforms. In the end, Keith managed to find a pair of black pants and a red t-shirt that fit comfortably enough.
He found a pair of regular looking shoes that fit as well and considered himself finished.
When he walked back out of the closet, it was to see Lotor standing in the middle of the bedroom, hair loose and combed back from his face, still sightly dripping with water. The galra was still naked and Keith had to resist the urge to cover his eyes in embarrassment, having the strange feeling that he would be losing somehow if he did. Instead, he walked right past the galra, staring forwards and refusing to let his curiosity win. Behind him, he could hear Lotor approaching the closet while Keith entered the presumed bathroom to finish getting ready to find out what the hell was going on.
The bathroom was just as big and luxurious as the rest of the place. The floor was shining white, the mirror was framed in gold and there was both a shower and a big bathtub. If he hadn't needed to figure out where he was and how they had ended up here from contact with quintessence, he would have been tempted into trying the bath. It looked inviting, at least.
Keith did his business hastily, brushing his hands through his hair and brushing his teeth. Once he deemed himself decent enough, he exited the bathroom and reentered the bedroom. This time Lotor was thankfully not naked. Keith had already seen more of the galra than he had ever wished to.
The galra stood in the middle of the room, fully dressed in his usual clothes and a haughty look back in his eyes. If Keith didn't require his help—he knew virtually nothing of quintessence beyond what he had picked up from Pidge and Hunk—he would have let his offense show. As it was, Keith kept his feeling behind a wall as he always did and approached the impressive figure.
"Now what?" he asked with a slightly sarcastic tone.
Lotor raised a white eyebrow and smirked. "We gather intelligence, of course."
And with that, Lotor made his way to the much fancier door that Keith had avoided thinking about. It didn't seem like they were prisoners, as the room was much to nice for that, but there was no way to tell for sure without attempting to leave.
Lotor threw open the door with a flourish.
When he wasn't immediately shot at, Keith wandered closer to the door. Lotor stepped through it and walked on with confidence dripping from every step. Keith rolled his eyes but followed along after. At the moment, he supposed Lotor was his best bet.
Outside the door, there stood two giant silent galra. They stared ahead of themselves and made no move to even acknowledge Keith's presence. They were clearly guards, but they made no move to stop him or Lotor leaving, so hopefully they weren't prisoners. That would be a hassle to deal with.
Despite the fact that Lotor claimed to not recognize their whereabouts, the galra strode down hallways as if he knew exactly where he was going. Keith kept an eye out for every exit and guard he saw and built a mental map in his mind. Every corridor they walked through, every window and door that he saw, he memorized them all and if he wasn't wrong, then so was Lotor.
Of course, Keith knew that Lotor was smart, but again it was in an objective way. Aside from the battles they had had before Shiro came back to retake his place in Voltron, Keith had never really met or interacted with the galra prince. He'd never felt the desire to.
He could admit that he was curious, because Lotor's general's were all half-galra and he thought that Lotor was as well, but he had been busy with missions from the Blade of Marmora and couldn't very well take off on his own to satisfy his own curiosity. Not when it was curiosity just for the sake of curiosity, not to better their intelligence.
Eventually, after spending more than an hour just wandering the halls and walking through empty rooms, they reached the kitchens. The kitchens reminded him of the one in the Castle of Lions and Keith found himself hoping he wouldn't be forced to eat space goo again. He had gotten used to the taste and he could stomach it, but he didn't enjoy it. Especially now that he had gotten used to other food with the Blade.
Lotor bypassed the dining table in order to start opening every nook and cranny there was.
Keith stayed back, not sure if the galra would appreciate him interfering in what was probably a search for both food and poison.
After a while of examining everything in the kitchen, Keith was treated to the sight of the Emperor pulling out utensils and equipment to presumably cook something to eat. Keith rose an eyebrow and watched the process critically. He hadn't expected Lotor to be able to cook, much less find his way around a kitchen. There was just something about the air he gave off that gave him the impression that he had someone else doing all that stuff for him.
But here Lotor was, cooking and by the ease of which he was doing it, well.
The silence that settled over the kitchen wasn't oppressive. It was the calm sort of silence that made you relax and lean back in your chair, closing your eyes and forgetting that maybe you didn't know the other person at all.
It was a silence that demanded noting at all.
Keith let his thoughts drift and went through the options off the top of his head on what was happening. Where they were and why they were here. He shut out his surroundings and the presence of a former enemy close enough that if Lotor attacked, Keith wasn't sure who would win. Instead, he concentrated on the smell that was starting to fill the kitchen, the enchanting scent surrounding him and making him realize that he was actually quite hungry.
He couldn't remember the last time he had eaten.
Lotor settled down two plates on the table and left only to come back with glasses filled with water and utensils to eat with. Keith blinked his way out of his mind and stared down at the food in front of him, confused by its presence. That just made Lotor chuckle at him again and Keith scowled in irritation.
He picked up a spoon and started to eat the soup, surprised that it actually fit his tastes.
Once he was finished with his meal, Keith cleared his voice and stated, "Who knew that Emperor Lotor could cook?"
Lotor looked up from where his gaze had slid away in thought. "I find it to be a relaxing pastime."
Keith just hummed at him. "So," he started. "we've eaten and dressed and explored. What do we do now?"
"Oh," Lotor smirked at him mockingly. "you didn't learn such things from the Blade? And here I thought you were a valued agent."
Scowling, Keith kicked Lotor's legs under the table. "I'm asking because this is obviously galra territory and you seem to be doing just fine taking the lead."
"And so you can blame me if things go wrong."
Keith smirked challengingly. "That too."
"We'll have to find someone to subtly question." Lotor drawled and drank the last of his water. Keith pretended that he hadn't already reached the same conclusion and nodded in understanding. From the way Lotor eye'd him, he probably wasn't very successful.
Well, not like it really mattered.
"So," Keith added. "where shall we find this mysterious person to subtly interrogate?"
At that, Lotor smiled, a slow beautiful thing, and said, "I know exactly where."
— —
"Are you sure this is the right way?" Keith asked Lotor with doubt plain to hear in his voice.
Lotor just gave him a hard stare, an unsettling thing due to the yellow sclera that surrounded his blue eyes. "I'm sure." he stated flatly.
"If you're sure." Keith muttered and for a second, he thought he could see amusement in the galra's eyes. It was gone too quickly for him to be certain.
They were walking along a dark corridor, the light above them blinking and flickering. Keith had never seen lights do that at a galra facility without outside tampering, so he wondered what it was about this hallway that was so different. So far, he had seen nothing special about it. Lotor was walking in front of him, with Keith following not long behind. The only reason Keith hadn't raised any protests of this was because if they were attacked, he could use Lotor as a shield.
Keith wasn't sure how it had taken him this long to notice, but he wasn't carrying his knife. The knife his mother gave him, the only thing she left him, was gone. If he had even so much as glimpsed its presence anywhere in the castle—considering how far they had been walking, it was either a castle or a cruiser—he wouldn't have wasted a second in retrieving it, but he hadn't. It was the first time he could ever remember being without it and he found that he didn't enjoy the sensation. The knife was a comfort, if a dangerous one for a child to have, and without it, he almost felt lost.
The pain of losing the knife was nearly more agonizing than the loss of Shiro had been.
Both times.
The hallway they were walking in was deserted, it contained neither doors, guards or even paintings. It was a long narrow thing, the walls a dark grey rather than the purple the decorator had seemed to favor so much. Lotor never glanced behind to make sure Keith was actually following, and Keith wasn't sure if it upset him or not. There wasn't a lot for Keith to do as they walked but observe Lotor.
Lotor cut an impressive figure, no matter where he was. There was just something about him that make Keith think—know—he was undoubtedly born for great things. It wasn't the way he spoke, eloquently and clearly well-learned, nor was it the way he walked, with purpose and confidence, no it was more the way he looked at the things around him when he thought no-one else saw. Keith hadn't spoken much to the other half-galra, but when he was at the Castle, he usually took a swing down by the labs just to check up on things.
When Lotor thought he was alone and no-one else was around to see, the way his eyes just came alive was absolutely breathtaking.
It was like until that moment, they had been blank, even when Keith thought he could see things in them. They were a mask, fitted over a persona that was slitted over a facade. Just thinking about it was confusing. But when Lotor was alone, his eyes sparkled. They took in everything around them with curiosity and wonder and eagerness and the desire to understand and learn.
When Lotor was alone, he was beautiful.
He seemed like the strongest person in the universe.
Now, as Lotor strode down the hallway without paying any attention to Keith at all, his shoulders were tense and his hand kept twitching in that way Keith knew intimately meant he was wishing for a weapon. Despite the fact that not a hair was out of place on him, he was clearly on guard and ready to kill anything that would even think of threatening him. Keith knew that though they were presently allies and caught in this situation together, if it appeared like it, Lotor wouldn't hesitate to kill him. That thought should have been frightening, or at least made him uneasy, but instead it just brought him a strange sense of comfort. After all, he would do the same.
Eventually, Lotor stopped walking.
Keith stopped as well, and stared as Lotor dragged his hands over the tapestry on the wall. They had reached a dead-end and Keith was about to inquire about what Lotor was doing when he heard a click. He had been sneaking around enough galra facilities to know what it meant. Lotor had found a secret passageway.
A square piece of the wall slid away to show a dark path.
Keith, after staring into it for a few seconds trying to figure out where it led, followed after Lotor into it.
Behind them, the wall slid closed.
Keith didn't stop walking when the lights disappeared and they were making their way forwards in complete darkness. He didn't say anything to Lotor or complain about anything, the way Lance undoubtedly would have done. He just followed the sound of Lotor's footsteps and kept a hand out in front of him to make sure he wasn't about to walk straight into something. A few times, the path turned and he had to switch directions, but it wasn't a big deal. Lotor's steps were silent, but in the absence of sound or light, Keith could hear them well enough that it wasn't a problem.
He didn't know how long they spent in there, following a secret passageway they didn't know where it led, but when Lotor finally seemed to find the end and another wall slid open to show them light again, Keith's eyes had adjusted to the darkness enough that he had no difficulties seeing.
They were greeted by the sounds of multiple people—galra—talking and gossiping and laughing. It was clear that they were in a different part of the castle (still only an assumption) just by the sounds alone. When Lotor stepped out of the passageway, into the room they had ended up in, the people in it silenced immediately. A tension rose in the room and it was only when Keith stepped out behind the galra emperor that it dissipated. He had no idea why, but it made the staring that faced him easier to bear, so he didn't say anything.
Keith ended up standing next to Lotor as the half-galra let his gaze slide over everything around them. The galra around them didn't look like warriors, they weren't wearing armor, nor were their faces expressionless. It was clear they didn't know what to do when faced with Lotor in all of his glory.
Lotor, after studying all that he could, cleared his throat and caught the galra's attentions. "Tell me where we are."
Keith abruptly turned his head around to stare at the galra Emperor, a stunned look on his face before he managed to hide it. There was nothing subtle about that at all! Lotor was pretty much broadcasting that something was wrong and from the way the other galras reacted, he guessed he wasn't the only one who could tell.
A lone brave galra who Keith suspected was a woman, answered the demand. "This is the capital city of Aureola, your highness."
"Why are we here?"
The same galra answered again. "You live here, your highness. This has been your home since your mating."
Because Keith was looking, he saw the way Lotor's eyes widened at the word mating. Keith wasn't entirely sure what they were talking about, as no-one had ever thought to explain it to him, but he thought it was the galra equivalent of marriage. And Keith was pretty sure Lotor wasn't married. If he was, as the Emperor of the Galra Empire, everybody would know. And Keith had never even heard someone as much as mention it before.
That wasn't something he would just forget.
"Who did I mate?" this time, the demand was accompanied by a voice on the edge of growling, like Lotor was going to kill anyone that gave him an answer he didn't like. It was also the moment that Keith was certain something was wrong with him, because while his instincts should have been telling him he was in danger, they were telling him that he was perfectly safe. His instincts were never wrong, thus the fault must lie with him.
The galra that had been answering the questions so far swallowed visibly in fear and stated, in absolute certainty, "With Empress Keith."
It felt like the ground gave way underneath him. Keith swallowed and all he got out was, "Wha-what?"
In his rising panic—because he didn't know what it meant, nor did he remember what the galra claimed had happened—he faintly noticed that he was letting out a sound he hadn't made since he was a child and still lived with his father. Before his father died or he met Shiro.
It was a sound of pure instinct, one he couldn't stifle if he tried, and it conveyed his anxiety perfectly.
Keith felt warm hands on his cheeks and a sound started up around him that he had never heard before. When he made this sound as a child, his father would always hold him and hum a melody until he calmed down. This sound was so much more and it enveloped him into a feeling of security and safety that swept him away in a sea of emotions. The panic faded until he was aware enough of his surroundings to notice that he was leaning against a warm body and a pair of arms were all that was holding him up. His eyes were closed, though he had no recollection of doing so, and his hands were clinging onto the fabric he was holding.
It felt like he was in a bubble of safety, like it was only him and this noise in the universe and that all else had ceased to exist. His heartbeat slowed down in his chest and the arms that were enveloping him were like a wall that kept everything out and away from him. If he died like this, he would die happy.
He wasn't sure how long it took him to calm down to such a degree that he could think again.
The sound stopped and Keith pushed against the arms keeping him trapped to another body. He felt more than heard Lotor say something, but he was too caught up in his thinking to spare it any mind. When Lotor finally let go of him and Keith stepped back from the other half-galra, he saw that they were the only ones left in the room, alone to witness what had happened to him. Keith grimaced and dragged his hands over his face to give him some time to hide from the inquisitive looks of Lotor. He knew the galra was curious, but he also knew that he was in no mood for questions or anything like it.
Instead, Keith cleared his throat and asked, "So, what did you figure out? That the universe has collectively gone insane?"
Lotor smiled at Keith and answered, "I have my suspicions, but we'll have to find a database to make certain. But I assure you Keith, the universe isn't insane. There is a perfectly logical explanation for what is happening."
Keith wasn't sure if he was supposed to be happy or upset that Lotor didn't mention his lapse in emotional control. He twisted his hands in his chair, only now noticing that it was longer than he remembered. It was a subtle enough difference when he looked in the mirror, subtle enough that he hadn't noticed it, but as he played with it, he could feel the difference. He scowled, unsettled by all the things he didn't know or that didn't match up to what he knew and remembered.
He decided that the whole mating thing was an issue that could be dealt with later, once he knew for certain what it was that was happening to them. "So," Keith began and frowned. "lead the way."
"As my Empress commands." Lotor smirked and laughed at the look on Keith's face.
A/N: So... that happened. Thoughts?