The Green Princess

Summary: Having been taken to a strange castle by a giant lion Lance, Hunk, Keith, and Shiro did not expect to literally wake up a sleeping beauty –much less two. No pairing, humor only, warning for Pidge's dirty mouth. Featuring: Altean!Pidge!

AN: Based solely on the idea of Altean!Pidge. No warnings other than it being a little OOC, will explain why at the bottom of the story. Enjoy!

The Green Princess

Walking down the now brightly light hall the four earthlings can't help but be in various stages of awe and confusion at the strange… castle's architecture. White metal walls seemed with neon blue lighting directs all four of them down the long and somewhat narrow hall. Having a computerized female voice, in English no less, directing them threw the maze-like structure of the castle and the lights always telling them were to go, all four wonder at what awaits them at the end of their journey.

"I don't like this," Keith mutters one hand resting on his dagger.

"Aw, come on. It's not that bad mullet. Besides if Blue wanted us to come here, and she considers this home –then it can't be that bad."

"I don't know," Hunk starts still slightly green from vomiting earlier. "I mean the blue lion is cool I guess and Voltron seems wicked and all –but we're basically being led down into a haunted castle."

"Pff," Lance smiles twirling his arms around, "if this castle is haunted then why are the lights in perfect order, even more so there isn't any dust or cobwebs or anything."

"That's just it man –there isn't anything… or anyone." Hunk argues back his eyes fidgeting around from side to side.

"You have reached your destination." The computerized voice prompts as the group stops at what appears to be a narrow and curved staircase. "The Heir shall see you down below."

"Well," Shiro takes the first step down, "I guess this is our chance to see someone."

Down the short flight of stairs the group comes up to tall and narrow doors, perhaps has tall as two stories, with a flick of blue lighting the doors automate themselves and swing inward. Trailing into a large circular room with eight tall and thick white metal columns the dark space is illuminated first in blue light as circuits turn to operation again before large white light floods the space from three large metal chandeliers. In the center of the large space is a circle with eight circle steps around a step down circular platform with what looks like a central computer. As with the rest of the castle there is only the themes of white metal, an almost black looking blue metal, and a neon blue.

"Wow…" Lance looks around in awe at the first space since they entered the castle to actually have –well, space. No narrow corridors anywhere to be seen.

"Hello?" Hunk calls out, loudly. But there is no response –only his voice echoing back. "Uh…" he continues, "Mr. Heir? Mrs. Heir? Um, captain?" but still his calls get no response.

Standing over the central hub Shiro hears Lance ask, "I wonder what this room is supposed to be." Grazing his human arm lightly over what appears to be a computer of some sort he answers, "I think it might be some sort of control room."

With a light beep from sensing the pressure, even as light as it was, the computer automates and a strange symbol in blue lights up before beeping again. From behind the earthlings one of the raised circular steps rises up, then the second one next to it, and a third one as well. All three of the… pods appears to have a humanoid shape contained within it.

Crouching up from his spot behind the computer, control panel, whatever it is, Hunk asks, "Are… are they dead?"

Illuminating the same neon blue light at the base the first two pods beep in unison as the strange fogged teal barrier bubbles away revealing two identical looking –princesses?

Tall, with dark brown skin, white hair, strange pink markings under the corners of their eyes, elven ears, and a gold crown with a triangle shaped teal jewel paired with a long flowing grown in shades of blue and white. At the same moment both open their eyes to reveal to the earthlings that the irises are a rich light blue color surrounding lilac purple pupils.

"Father!" both princesses reach out instinctively –only to begin to fall forward toward the ground. Lance and Keith, who were standing closes to these two pods, reach out and just in time each catch one of the princesses.

With Princess One, as he dubs the beautiful young lady, even if she is an alien, Lance blushes at seeing her stare up at him in such close proximity, and instinctively without a single thought in his head he smirks and in an attempt to be seductive greets her with a "Hello."

"Who are you? Where am I?" she completely ignores any of his attempts to be charming.

Continuing on Lance replays in his flirting voice, "I'm Lance. And you're right here in my arms."

"Your ears," she whispers with slight disgust in her voice, completely breaking any moment that Lance was trying to have with her.

"Yeah?"

"They're hideous. What's wrong with them?" She pulls off from him and stands back still with a look of distaste directed at him.

"Nothing's wrong with them. They heard exactly what you said about them!" He calls out at her standing back up as well.

Meanwhile over at Princess Two: Keith only has to deal with her giving him a once over, snapping her fingers near his ears, and once positive he can indeed hear correctly stands up and offers him a hand completely calm and collected about the whole scene. Both look over at the yelling occurring right next to them between Princess One and Lance and grimace.

Shaking her long white hair, Princess Two nods her head toward Keith and softly says, "Thank you," before walking over to the third pod. Standing by it is Hunk who looks from her and the other princess, now attacking Lance by grabbing him by his ear and walks slowly away from her as she presses her hands against the barrier and a holographic screen.

More interested in what she is doing than really paying attention to the mess Lance is doing Keith and Hunk try to ignore the yelling behind them and pray to Shiro who is stuck being involved.

With a handful of clicks onto the holographic screen the same teal barrier bubbles away and reveals a light skinned, orange haired, teal scaled alien. "Your, Majesty!" He shouts instinctively reaching out as well.

Completely ignoring him Princess Two lets him drop to the ground and walks back over to the central computer carrying the holographic screen with her as well.

"You!" the orange-haired alien shouts point at poor Hunk, who in turn points at himself confused and scared. "Yes! –What is wrong with your ears?" he asks his head tilted in… fear? Grabbing his own ears he then turns around and stares at his reflection making sure they were still pointed.

Walking away while he is still distracted, Keith and Hunk pick Princess Two as the least insane of the alien bunch and walk back towards her. Shiro is still separating Lance from Princess One who is still pinching his ears basically off his head.

"Which lion brought you here?" Princess Two asks never looking up from her screen.

"Blue." Keith answers scanning over the strange and foreign lettering.

Nodding she continues to presses buttons on the screen to a large point ignoring the two of them as well as the chaos around her. "Lots of water on your planet I can assume?"

"Yeah," Hunk answers seeming to calm down more. "How'd you know?"

"Blue wouldn't go anywhere she couldn't protect herself or anywhere she couldn't have hidden her presence from unwanted visitors. You also probably have lacked first contact with individuals of another planet –right?" She looks over at the two of them with a quick glance.

"How…"

"The Castle's scans indicate you completely lack any form of the standardized universal antibody serum created to avoid cross-contamination of diseases among different species, you also are completely reliant on the already enabled UT, Universal Translator, which is only working because that individual," she points to Shiro, "has an enabled IUT, Individual Universal Translator, clipped into his ear drums and allowing the two units to relay to one another."

She falls silent once again just as Shiro begins to explain to Princess One that they were led to the castle after finding a blue lion in the desert on their planet and they were then chased away from home by the Galra and a voice led them here to meet the Heir.

"Likely story," Princess One mutters under her breath but finally releases Lance's poor ear, now bleeding slightly from her nails.

"Would you like me to take them down your majesty?" The orange-haired alien offered with an exaggerated motion of a… karate-chop..?

Sighing loudly with a roll of the eyes Princess Two presses her palm onto the central computer cutting the lights off entirely.

"Hey!" Lance shouts jumping up slightly. With the exception of Keith, everyone else isn't doing much better: Hunk looks absolutely terrified, Shiro's arm is ready for action, and the orange-haired alien is standing guard by Princess One.

Then, just as suddenly as the lights going out, a bright star map lights the way. Literally.

Just as the silver lights comes up a path made in blue connects from one end of room to another. At the end near all of them is a black light, a green light, and a blue light with a red light blinking off in the distance and a yellow light standing strong and far off.

"Blue has been returned to the castle and is resting in her hanger, she seems to have chosen her paladin in the screamer," Princess Two points toward Lance, "and would like you very much to stop hurting him. Red is currently on the move but has no paladin listed, Yellow is still asleep, Black is locked away but pleased to see Blue return, and Green has over grown her hangar again with a fresh supply of food for us. Also," Princess Two holds out the holographic screen.

Princess One sighs and walks over to her doppelganger. Once she has taken the screen from the other, Princess Two also seems to enter a stance of bring at command: arms straight to the side, back straight [not that it was slouched], and facing straight toward the other princess.

For a moment there is only silence. Then: "No. No. No. No, no, no…" Princess One shakes her head one hand now viciously attacking the screen as if trying to prove information wrong.

"Princess," the orange-haired alien walks over to the twins, "what's wrong?"

As tears run down her face Princess One shoves the screen into his hands before shoving her face into her twin's chest. Seemingly ignoring her, Princess Two makes no move to comfort her emotional twin and instead stars up at the stars twinkling all around her. Still her calm disposition does not stop Keith, still standing close to all the action, from hearing her almost silent shaken sigh.

"Ten-thousand deca-phoebs! We've been kept asleep for ten-thousand deca-phoebs! But…" the male alien trails off.

"Deca-phoebs…" Shiro trails off, "Isn't that just over a year each? Over ten-thousand years…"

"How does someone even stay alive that long?" Hunk asks. "Do aliens just happen to live that long?"

"The standard Altean lives a life span of around a thousand to two-thousand universal deca-phoebs. Our sleep cycle was place on an infinite route by the late King Alfor to keep all of us in a coma induced by the healing pods, which luckily were powered by an almost infinite power source of the castle's central hub –that is as long as the castle was in its own personal coma-like stance. The only thing that the king placed as an unlocking code said pods was the Heir's quintessence accepting that of the potential paladins. The castle's operating systems were notified by Blue as she entered the planets orbit to the presence of potential paladins. All of us standing here right now is proof that the Heir has accepted you all as paladins."

Looking down at the princess still softly crying against her chest Princess Two pokes her cheek softly before continuing. "It's time for you to be the Heir. You might not like it but Voltron is ready to be reborn."

"But," Princess One lifts her face up to the other, "your team…?"

"Has been dead for ten thousand deca-phoebs. And in reality they never were 'my team'. I'm a programmer and that is what I was brought on for. Just because now I am no longer an apprentice of Voltron but one of its paladins doesn't change anything." Stepping back from the princess she continues, "You are the Heir," and slides to her knees. Within a beat the male alien does as well.

Gripping her hands together Princess One stops her tears and nods, now standing tall once more. "I am the Heir." Wiping away her tears away she calm's her breathing with a deep breath. "I am the Heir." She says this time with more conviction.

"Coran," she turns to the orange-haired alien, "please give our guest the standard UT and antibody, then escort them meet me on the Control Deck. I am going to go to the Control Deck and coordinate the locations of the two other lions and run diagnostics from the computer hub there. Pidge," Princess One finally addresses Princess Two, "I want you to head down the Engine Deck and run a full scan down there –diagnostics on everything, alright?"

Rolling her eyes Princess Two, Pidge, finally let's go of proper posture and slouches with a nod.

With a dismiss of her head, Princess One turns back to the earthlings. "I am sorry for how we met paladin candidates, I am Princes Allura –more formally known as the Heir of Voltron. For now it will be best to get all of you set up with translators and antibodies, but after that I will be more than willing to have a proper sit down with all of you and answer any questions you have."

But what really catches Shiro, Lance, Keith, and Hunk's attention is not princess Allura. Turning around to follow their stares Allura groans to see a copy of herself almost completely stripped of her clothing.

"Pidge!"

"What?" Pidge snips back growing frustrated with the complex dress.

"You can change once you've left the Healing Chambers!"

"Ugh! I already almost have this stupid gown of yours off anyways. Oh, damn it! I give up." With hands on hips the tall, dark-skin, white-hair twin in swiftly replaced with cream-skin, amber-colored hair, bright green eyes, almost half the height, and emerald color eye-scales. Suddenly the frustrating cloth can be pulled over with ease leaving the far more ambiguous alien down to a short white gown similar to an old-European under-cloth.

More satisfied now Pidge, clearly no longer appearing as Allura's body double, gives the golden tiara a hard throw onto the ground before leaving the room barefoot.

"Ugh! That child, why can't they act their own age? Pidge is already 372 deca-phoebs old! So why do they have to act like their 209!"

Chuckling Coran pats Allura's shoulder. "You know that Pidge hates having to play your double and especially hates having to wear gender-specific clothes especially since Pidge hasn't even gone through the Passage of Gender yet. They just much rather be left alone with their machines, programs, and Green –and nobody can change that."

With a sigh Allura exits the space as well –but from a door to the opposite of the one Pidge used.

With a loud clap of the hands Coran turns back to look at his new paladin recruits. Only to find them still gob-smacked from Pidge's shapeshifting ability. "What? You're species doesn't shape-shift?"

The Green Princess

AN: And that is it. Came out a little different from how I had it in my head but still good all around. Now, why are the characters a little OOC? Well in order to fit Pidge into the idea of her being basically a 'body double' for Allura I imagined she would have been trained to a certain point in how to act and behave like a princess, whereas Allura completely loses her cool and does not pass for the typical calm-minded, not-a-fighter, democratic princess that an Altean by have been portrayed by other species to be. Also I figured that she would have been smart enough to realize that the gang [Shiro, Lance, Keith, and Hunk] were not a threat from very early one and would have been more worried about what is going on and reestablishing her link with Green, which is why I kept her quiet. Also I imagine being a programmer for Voltron, as I imagine it to be –not like on the original design but someone who cares for the lions in that capacity, she would have been more used to keeping an emotionalist façade and scientific descriptions. Still inside I image Pidge would hate having to wear Allura's clothes or act like a 'proper young lady'.

I hope that explains a few things and have a wonderful day!