Disclaimer: I don't own Voltron or its original Japanese version Golion; nor do I own The Scarlet Pimpernel by the Baroness Orczy. Both are the property of their original creators and/or importers/dubbers. I'm just borrowing them for some non-profit entertainment.

The Azure Pimpernel

Chapter Four: Amue Departs

Sincline did not stay on Altea the entire time he was the Galran "envoy". He would often travel too and from planet Galra without any more explanation than 'Work, work, work. You know how it is.' It was widely assumed that his trips were futile attempts to capture the Azure Pimpernel as every time he would go leave another shuttle of escaped slaves would arrive shortly there after claiming that it was the Pimpernel that had helped them.

When questioned, the escaped slaves would lamentably explain that they had never gotten to see their savior's face, instructions were given to them via notes signed only with the image of a small blue flower. One slave girl claimed to have heard his voice, or rather, what she believed to be his voice. It was gruff but soft and sounded almost as if he were trying to mask his actual voice as one might do when reading a character's dialogue from a story out-loud.

Fala listened to all this with wrapped attention. It was becoming painfully clear to all those around her that the Altean princess was quickly falling in love with the mysterious phantom-like hero.

And then Prince Sincline would return, looking tired and haggard and the princess' spirits would drop at the reminder that a relentless enemy ever pursued her beloved hero. Almost a month this continued for, until one day Fala became tired of it and confronted the Galran prince. She marched right up to him as he was still descending his ship's gangplank. There was the slightest of drag to his steps, almost as if he were walking asleep on his feet. His hair was wile and unkept and his eyes sported dark smudges beneath them as if he had not gotten much sleep during his little excursion back home. All these things were ignored by the Altean princess, however.

"You might as well give up!" She snarled at him as she climbed up his ships gangplank, meeting him in the middle.

"Wha?" He blinked at her startled.

"You'll never catch him!" She continued. "The Pimpernel is to clever to be caught by the likes of you. So brave and selfless a man as he could never fall victim to your evil schemes."

"Oh," He yawned. "My father said much the same thing, only instead of 'evil' he used 'moronic'. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a date with a pillow and I don't want to stand it up."

He brushed past her, but Fala grabbed his arm at the elbow making him pause. "I'm not finished with you."

"No doubt." Sincline muttered. "But I'm in no mood to entertain your sad little-girl crush on a man that you would most likely despise if you ever were to meet him for real. You don't care about the man, my darling; you're only interested in the idea of the man. If you were to learn his true identity and meet him face to face, you would be severely disappointed."

"That's not true!" She snarled.

"It's a dangerous business, my dear, falling in love with a phantom." He continued. "Why, for all you know, his heart could already belong to someone with whom he's desperately in love with." At these words he lifted a lock of the princess' hair to his lips and kissed the golden strands affectionately. "Or he could be a selfish and petty man who's only doing all these 'heroic acts' as you call them for selfish and petty reasons. Now, as I've already said: I'm tired and want nothing more than a long nap."

…

"I can't believe you have to leave." Fala grumped to her cousin. She and Amue sat in one of the many common areas of the castle enjoying a quiet cup of tea. It had sort of become a tradition of theirs and the Altean princess was sorry to see it end upon the departure of her beloved cousin from Heracles.

"Things are nice and peaceful since Galra's stopped attacking Altea, but that doesn't mean that they've stopped committing all their grievous acts against humanity." Amue reminded her slightly more naïve cousin. "The Pimpernel has been a great help to Ryou and I, almost half of the slaves he's freed have joined our militia, but with Sincline ever on the man's heals we both fear for him. Ryou wants me back to offer whatever help I can in both aiding the Pimpernel's work and running interference between him and the Galran forces that are constantly hunting him."

"I understand." Fala muttered. "But still, I'm sad to see you leave. It was nice having another girl to talk to."

"Oh, believe me, I know the feeling." The Heraclesian princess laughed then she sighed. "All of this would be so much easier if the Pimpernel would just reveal himself to us and let us know who he was. Its kinda hard to protect something when I'm not even sure what to protect."

"Must be difficult." The Altean princess nodded. "So, when do you leave?

"This evening."

"So soon?" Fala was disappointed to not have more time with her cousin.

…

As she had said, Amue departed from Altea early in the evening. The sun hd just set over the western hills when she climbed into her one-man shuttle. Fala and Raible saw her off, the Heraclesian princess had refused anyone more. Large pompous ceremonies were not suited to covert missions such as hers. Amue waved good-bye to her Altean cousin and Steward before taking off and shooting into the night and over the stars.

She was only several hours away from touching down on Galra when the enemy beset her shuttle. Two capitol ships poured countless fighters out of their hangars and she was quickly over-taken. They captured her alive, no doubt with the intention of returning her to their prince the next time he visited the homeland.

…

"You seem sad, darling." Sincline observed when he found Fala the next morning sitting alone in a public parlor of the castle, a cup of morning tea sitting untouched on its saucer in front of her.

"Must you always call me that?" She asked in annoyance. "I am not your 'darling' or your 'dearest' and you should not be addressing me so informally is the first place."

"Mm, you may look sad, but you're still as snappy and spirited as ever, sweet-heart." The prince sat across from her uninvited. "Could this have anything to do with your less adorable and more bitchy cousin leaving last night?"

"How did you know about that?" Fala's eyes flashed in suspicious surprise.

To this he did not answer, instead opting to pour himself a cup of tea and drinking it strait, no sugar, lemon or cream to speak of. "God, what I wouldn't give for some coffee!" He said after the first sip. "This Altean tea of yours is just so damn weak."

Fala had no mind to put up with his irritating antics that morning and stood to leave. Much to her great annoyance, however, he also stood and followed her out of the parlor.

"Can't you leave me alone ever?" She snapped. "Always you're hovering around me. Shouldn't you be sitting with Raible trying to organize a treaty between our two worlds as you claim that is the reason why you're here? Or instead hunting down the Azure Pimpernel, as I know is your real purpose. Why must to always bother me?"

"Its no mystery, my dear." He smiled an almost mischievous smile at her as if he knew something she did not. "I simply find your company to be much more enjoyable than stuffy old statesmen or mysterious masked-avengers. And besides, as I've said before: I already know who the Pimpernel is."

"And I do not believe you."

"Of course not." He smiled a mischievously knowing grin at her as if he had just played a prank but the princess just wasn't aware of it yet. Sincline stopped walking and grabbed her arm, turning the princess to face him, he backer her up until she was against the corridor wall and he leaned in close, inhaling the scent of her anxious excitement.

"What are you doing?" She breathed.

"Just wondering…" He whispered. The prince leaned down to place a gentle kiss on the side of her neck and smiled against the porcelain perfection of her skin when she gasped at the sensation. "You're so sensitive, Fala."

"Stop." She breathed. "This isn't proper. Let me go! If someone saw us it would cause a scandal!"

"Maybe for you it would…" There was slightest hint of a threat in his words but his tone was innocent.

"If you… If you care about me as you claim, you'll respect me enough not to do anything that could damage my reputation." She whispered in his delicately pointed ear, the sensation of her breath making him shudder in a way that the Altean princess did not like one bit.

"Of course, my darling." Sincline eased back, giving her her due space. "I imagine your believe Pimpernel wouldn't care for you if he thought you engaged in romantic trysts with the enemy."

"Don't scoff!" She was suddenly angry again. "He's twice the man you'll ever be!"

"And yet, he's afraid to show his face even here on friendly ground, among allies who want to work with him toward their mutual goals. If you ask me, darling, your Azure Pimpernel is nothing but a coward!"

Fala looked as if she were about to strike him but just then Kogane came striding down the hall towards them. He smiled at Fala and then frowned at Sincline.

"I was coming to see if you wanted to have breakfast with the rest of the team, but I see you've made other plans." The Black Lion pilot glared darkly at the Galran prince.

"The prince and I were just talking." Fala said, she moved to stand beside Kogane and perhaps a little behind him, placing her Chief and champion between herself and her self-proclaimed 'suitor'. "But I'd be happy to sit with you and the guys for breakfast."

The corners of Sincline's mouth turned downwards in the frown while Kogane's curled up in a smile.

"Oh, that reminds me, Sincline." He said. "I wrote a poem while you were away. I did have the chance to share it with you yesterday after you arrived but since I have you now…"

"I do not care for poetry." The prince scoffed. "A warrior has no need for such frivolities and weak sentiments."

"Even so, I think you might like it." That smile of Kogane's turned mischievous as he began a short limerick.

"They seek him here, they seek him there,

Those Galrans seek him everywhere.

Is he in Heaven or is he in Hell?

That damned illusive Pimpernel!

"Well, what do you think?" Asked the Black Lion pilot. "I think it's rather good. I've also got a few extra verses cooking in my head. I might just turn it into a song."

The prince's features were drawn into a silent snarl of displeasure. "Mm, how cute. Especially that line 'those Galrans seek him everywhere'."

"Yes." The Golion Chief nodded. "Because you see, I hear that they do…" he glared accusingly at Sincline, "… and that gives the poem a certain special something."

"I'm sure." His attention then shifted from the hated Black Lion pilot to his beloved Altean princess. "I'm afraid I'll have to leave you now, my dear. As pleasurable as your company is, I have made other plans for today. By your leave."

He kissed the princess' hand before executing an overly flashy about face and leaving back the way he and Fala had originally come.

"That man is more full of himself that I thought possible." Kogane muttered.

"I'm just glad he's not attacking every week." Fala shook her head. The two of them turned and began waling down the corridor in the opposite direction that Sincline had taken. "Though, I would like to know what these 'other plans' are that he mentioned. I don't much like the idea of him running around my planet freely."

"Oh, don't worry about that." Kogane assured her. "He's been watched since the first moment he arrived."

"Really?" She was relived.

"Mm-hm." Kogane nodded. "According to Raible he hasn't done much of anything suspicious. Although, he does go to the Blakeney estate often. We assume he's still looking for a link between Lord Blakeney and the Azure Pimpernel, but aside from that, he hasn't done anything particularly 'villainous'. Its kinda strange."

"Mm, he's so strange sometimes." Fala muttered.

…