Disclaimer: I don't own VLD!

A/N: So glad to see people are enjoying this! ^_^ Oh, and if anyone's wondering, Shiro, Allura and Matt are around 28/29, Lance, Keith, Hunk, and Shay are mid-twenties, and Pidge is early twenties! And yep, for now at least, Emi is my go-to Shallura kid.


Chapter 2

"Do you think we could put up a disco ball? Since we're going for the 70s theme?"

"Ooo, yes, Chloe, genius! She'll love it!"

Allura glanced at the ceiling of her tea shop, wondering how she could rig up a disco ball to appease the bachelorette party planners. They were a nice enough bunch, if overly zealous about the party and its ever-increasing amount of decorations.

Honestly, Allura didn't understand the point of renting out a place like Quintessence, which already had a nice upcycled theme, and then splattering a ton of decorations over it. However, it wasn't her party, so she wasn't putting her two cents in unless they asked.

"We could hook up a disco ball to the chandelier," Lance put in, "We can totally do that for you ladies." He was behind the cash register, pretending to be busy while he was really checking out the bridesmaids.

"That would be so pretty!"

"But the light might look odd coming off of it."

Allura shot Lance a glare for even suggesting that something be tied to the chandelier. That thing was an actual antique that she had found after hours of roaming a flea market with a grumpy toddler in a kid backpack, and it was not going to be ruined by a disco ball. He simply shrugged and grinned back at her, as if he couldn't help but voice such "good" ideas.

"I'm not sure if it would work on the chandelier, but maybe you could hang it in the window seat," she said, pointing over at the shop window. People loved to sit there and read, and there was a hook holding a fern in a hanging basket. It would be easy to take down the fern and put up a disco ball, even if it wouldn't be the focus of attention.

"Or we could cut it in half and have a disco ball punch bowl!" the red-haired one suggested.

The maid-of-honor nodded rapidly. "But we'll have to call it a disco hemisphere."

"Or there's that," Allura said, smiling. She walked over to the counter to pick up two teas that Shay had set out for one of the tables. There weren't many customers in the shop since it was the afternoon lag, but there were a few. "Where are these going, Shay?"

"That table by the window," Shay said, nodding her head in the right direction. She was already onto her next project, which was completing a tea blend for one of the online orders. Her fingers dipped and dived through the ingredient containers, adding different things to the rooibos base.

"Thanks." Leaving the party planners to gush about their ideas, Allura headed over to the pair of elderly ladies at the table. Gently, she set their teas down then picked up a cup and saucer set that had been left behind on a nearby table. If Lance just would work more and flirt less…

As she headed to the kitchen, her cellphone started ringing. Balancing the china in one hand, she fished her cell out of her apron pocket. The number was Emi's school, which alarmed her. Emi's class was on a field trip to the city's history museum, so there was no reason the school would be calling unless something bad had happened.

"What's wrong?" Lance said, automatically noticing the change in her expression.

"Hello?" she said into the cell, shaking her head at her brother.

On the other end of the line, there was a calm, clear voice. "Is this Mrs. Altea?"

Not the time to correct that to just 'miss.' "Yes, is something wrong with Emi?" she asked, jumping straight to the point and startling both Lance and Shay. They immediately clumped together and moved over toward Allura, staring at her and ignoring the customers' curious looks.

"This is Mrs. Cooper, the principal at Montgomery Elementary School, and I don't want you to panic, but there's been an incident at the museum." Allura felt a hot rush of fear and anger and a fierce need to start yelling, but the principal rushed on. "Emi had gone missing from her group at the museum."

The tea cup slipped from the saucer as her hand tilted. It shattered against the floor, sending porcelain shards and hot tea in every direction. One of the elderly ladies let out a shriek at the crash, and the bridesmaids backed up while Lance leaned over and plucked the saucer out of her hand. "Allura, what happened?"

For a moment, her breath caught in her chest. Her baby was missing. "She's what?" Allura demanded, completely focused on the principal's voice on the other end of the line.

"I can't apologize enough, but I assure you, the police have already been called and the museum attendants are looking for her."

"How did you lose my daughter?" Allura snarled, "Where is she?" Her hand tightened around the phone. She wanted to do so many things at once. Cry, scream, punch someone, start a search party. Her throat tightened, and she put her hand on the back of a nearby chair.

Lance's mouth fell open. He launched himself around the edge of the counter and touched Allura's arm, panic in his eyes. "What's going on, what's wrong? Tell me!" he hissed, but she waved him off and turned around.

"Ma'am, we're doing everything we can, most likely she's hiding in the museum—"

"Or someone could have kidnapped her," Allura snapped. She slapped her hand against the table and stormed toward the counter. Pocketbook, credit card, phone, she needed a taxi, how far away was the museum, not her baby…

"If you could please wait until the police come to your workplace, I'm sure—"

Allura gave a harsh laugh. "I'm going straight to the museum, so you can tell them to meet me there."

"Mrs. Altea, I'm sorry—"

Allura swiped the phone off. For a moment, she pressed her phone to her forehead, gathering herself. Okay. Time to push the fear to the side and pull out determination instead. She had to get out of the shop and to the museum, and then she was going to find her daughter and scold her ears off. "Shay, can you watch the shop? Lance and I have to go find Emi."

"Sure, yes, don't worry about it," Shay said, worry in her dark brown eyes, "Do you want me to close up and search too?"

"No, just call Hunk or Coran if you need help," Allura said, trying to stay levelheaded.

"How did they lose her?!" Lance said. He was already at the door, swinging it open, his blue eyes wide. "She's seven! She wears hot pink! And sparkles! Were they not watching her at all?"

Allura was about to answer when her phone rang again. Feeling like she could burn a hole in it with her eyes at that point, she glanced down. The caller was 'unknown,' but maybe it was the museum. Hopefully they had found Emi and this was the call to let her know everything was okay. Lord, let that be it.

"Hello?" she said, still walking out the door just in case it wasn't the museum.

"Hi, Mom!"

Allura gasped, relief washing over her. "Emi! Are you all right? Where are you? Why aren't you at the museum?"

"I'm okay, I'm at the Garrison," said the perky voice, "But I'm okay, really, so don't worry."

"What's the Garrison?"

"A coffee shop. Sort of."

What. "The school just called to tell me you were missing," Allura said, suddenly finding it easy to tap into the anger instead of fear, "Did you sneak away from your class?"

There was a long pause and then a tentative little, "Eh, yesss?"

"You are in so much trouble, I can't, you, Emi Altea…"

"Can't word well?" Lance said, looking much more relaxed now that Emi was apparently not in immediate danger. He hung on the open door and made a face. "Tell her that I'm going to put a monster under her bed for scaring me like that."

"I had a good reason!" Emi declared, "I went and found my dad. I think he wants to talk to you, he keeps asking for the phone."

It was Allura's turn to go silent. She stepped out of the tea shop and leaned heavily against the brick wall beside the door. Her fingertips tingled as she stared out at the sidewalk, her eyes fixing on a concrete planter of flowers in front of the shop. Emi's. Dad.

Shiro.

He was here? In Arus City? How. What. How did Emi find him? What was she supposed to say to him? She had practiced it so many times in her head, had started so many emails and letters, but now…

"Allura?" Lance said, letting the door shut. He hovered near her, his hands out as if ready to catch her. "You face is freaking me out. Do you need to sit down?"

"I don't think she wants to talk to you, she's not saying anything," Emi told someone, sounding farther away from the receiver. Someone replied in a muffled tone, and then it was his voice, bringing back memories of a weekend long ago. One that had changed her life completely.

"Hello, Allura."

She closed her eyes. He sounded the same. "Hello, Shiro."

Beside her, Lance gaped. "Shiro? As in Key West Weekend Shiro? Emi's Dad Shiro?"

"I'm sorry if you don't want to talk to me, but I think we need to." Shiro sounded kind and sympathetic but a little freaked out. He was probably a lot freaked out. She was, and she hadn't just found out she was a parent. "And please don't worry about Emi, she told me about how she left her field trip. She's fine, she—"

"I said I was okay!" Emi said in the background.

Allura let her head rest on the brick wall. "Thank you for looking after her. I'm sorry, I…" What did she even want to apologize for? Their daughter showing up on his doorstep? For not telling him earlier, like she had planned? It had just become so complicated, and now it was worse.

"Don't be sorry. I mean. She's…" He let out a breath, and it rasped against the receiver. "I can bring her to you, if you'd like?" he said, "Or you can come here? I don't mind either way, I just think we really need to talk."

They certainly did.