Author's Note: I thought it was finally time for Coran to tell his side of things.
He watched her pacing back and forth backstage as she rehearsed her speech for the hundredth time. Coran had no idea what the final product even looked like but he didn't think she could screw this up nearly as badly as she believed she would. Just through that set of metallic doors were the stage and a banquet hall full of soldiers. Nayni seemed so wrapped up in her own little ritual that she didn't even notice him enter the room. She looked like some crazy person that was ranting at the potted plants. Nayni's biggest concern had been giving a good speech where she didn't stammer or blank out. The reality of the situation was that most of those soldiers were probably just going to be mesmerized by how the curves of her thick body looked stuffed into that tight uniform. Maybe it would just be Coran who was distracted by that.
Coran had dressed rather conservatively for this evening's festivities. He wanted all eyes to be on her tonight. Nayni finally noticed his presence and froze. Her ears turned red. She slipped back into that rigid posture that she always tried to maintain around him.
"Mister Smythe, did no one teach you how to properly announce yourself as a child?" Nayni seethed.
He knew she wasn't actually that mad. The ease with which the Captain of the Guard got so flustered was one of her most adorable traits. Nayni was all stoic and straight-laced to most of the world but if any slight change happened to her routine she became a mess. This speech was a big change.
"I'm sorry, I just came to give you a little pre-show pep talk," Coran said.
Nayni massaged her forehead.
"I think I might just fake being sick," Nayni said.
He wasn't going to allow her to escape that easily. She was more than capable of handling this. Coran just wished she could see that on her own.
"It's too late for that now," Coran said. "You've just got to go out there, flex those muscles of yours, and dazzle the crowd with your brilliance."
Another minute of rehearsal wasn't going to make her delivery any better. He caught a glimpse of her trembling hands before she stuffed them behind her back.
"I'm not brilliant though," Nayni said. "This is going to be a disaster and I'm going to make a fool of myself in front of the King and the Princess and-"
He knew she was going to say his name. The fact that she was so concerned about his opinion meant quite a bit to him. But he suspected she'd be too afraid to admit this.
"-in front of all those people," Nayni finished. "What have I gotten myself into?"
The dobashes until she had to step out onto that stage were quickly ticking away. He couldn't have her going out there shaking like a child about to be scolded.
"Just imagine everyone is naked!" Coran said.
He was always imagining that she was naked so if she gave it a shot, it would balance things out a bit more.
"When has that ever actually worked?" Nayni asked.
All his classic lines weren't going to work on her. It was quite possibly the most intoxicating trait she possessed. Coran normally would've put his hands on her shoulders and given her a good look in the eye but neither of them could probably handle that.
"Just imagine we're sitting in my office having a chat," Coran said. "Just act like nobody else is there. It's just an ordinary thing that you do every day."
He realized that this might not be the best suggestion. Even he had trouble dealing with her alone in his office. Coran always found himself fantasizing about pushing everything off of his desk and having his way with her on top of it. Nayni must've picked up on his intentions because she always seemed incredibly uncomfortable when they were alone. Her situation was still so delicate. Coran was so used to making the first move with people but he couldn't do it with her. He didn't want to push something on her if she wasn't ready for it.
"Just picture yourself alone in the banquet hall with the biggest idiot you know," Coran said.
That actually made her smile.
"You're not an idiot, Mister Smythe," Nayni said.
Every time she complimented him he felt slightly prouder of himself. He'd puff out his chest a bit more and walked with a bit more sway in his step. Coran heard the muffled sound of King Alfor introducing her over the sound system. Nayni's ears drooped a little and she turned a shade paler.
"Just take some deep breaths. It'll be fine," Coran assured.
He really shouldn't have asked the busty Guard Captain to take in those breaths because it made her chest rise and fall in the most tantalizing way. Coran was having trouble keeping his gaze locked on her eyes now. She kept taking in those deep breaths as she stood by the door. Nayni clenched her fists tightly when Alfor finished his introduction. Coran gave her an enthusiastic thumbs up before she walked out on the stage. He lingered in the doorway and looked on.
The blinding white lights engulfed the whole stage. Her march over to the podium was rigid and disciplined. Nayni looked at him nervously before she began speaking. It was impossible for him to whisper an encouragement in her ear but he wanted to. Coran just gave her a nod with a warm smile. Nayni placed her hands on the podium. She was barely tall enough to reach the microphone but to him, she was leagues above anyone else. Except maybe King Alfor but, who didn't want to bed him anyway? He was on equal footing with her in Coran's mind.
"I always found these occasions to be absolutely boring," Nayni began.
Coran had not expected her to start on that note. She drummed her fingers on the podium.
"But the food was good so that made it worth coming to," Nayni said.
That got a laugh from the crowd. She seemed surprised by this. Nayni glanced down at the notes on her datapad and went on. The whole time she was as rigid as a statue but she commanded the attention of the entire room. She completely held his attention too. Coran leaned against the side of the doorway and folded his arms across his chest. Even though he'd helped her come up with some of these jokes he still found himself laughing at them. To him, it was truly as if no one else was in the room. Nayni started to drift away from the material that they'd come up with together. She went on about why she joined the Royal Forces and how it completely changed her view of the universe. But just as Nayni had intended, she kept it short. When she finished, she was met with thunderous applause and joyous hollers from the soldiers. Nayni slipped off stage as quickly as she could.
Nayni let out a massive sigh as soon as she passed through the doorway. He was so proud of her that he wanted to embrace her but Coran knew that wasn't for the best.
"I am never doing that again, Mister Smythe," Nayni said.
She didn't seem that terrified when she'd been on stage. They could hear the muffled chatter from the banquet hall and the sound of the music starting to play.
"But you're a natural! We should have you do this every year!" Coran said.
Coran expected Nayni to scowl but she didn't. The edges of her lips curled up in the tiniest of smiles.
"That was mostly due to your assistance," Nayni said. "I was putting on your show out there not mine."
That wasn't entirely true. Coran's hand hovered over her shoulder. He hesitated for an instant but still rested his hand on her. Her muscles were so hard and defined but he had never actually seen what the skin lying beneath her uniform looked like. He patted her gently.
"It was all you, Nayni," Coran said.
Her cheeks flushed and his grin became more devilish. Coran knew how to deal with a lot of different situations. He could operate a Teludav, pilot the Castle, negotiate complicated treaties with alien races, and explain the intricate biology of every known creature in the universe. But he didn't have the slightest clue what to do about Nayni.
They wanted each other. It was clear as day to him but she constantly kept pulling away from him. Nayni had her reasons. He hadn't the slightest clue what they were but he had to respect her boundaries. Coran just wanted to take her by the hand and tell her everything he felt but this didn't seem it would be the right way to go about things. He'd tried all the traditional methods of courtship. He'd brought her that extravagant gift and they'd gotten intoxicated together. He'd thought he'd had her then but she literally slammed a door in his face. Nayni just didn't operate by the same rules that he'd become accustomed to and it drove him mad.
"At least now I can run away back home and hide in a pile of sweets," Nayni sighed.
She had such a difficult time receiving compliments. She just seemed to not know what to say.
"You can't run away just yet, you're expected to go out and mingle," Coran explained. "Everyone will want to talk to you after that phenomenal presentation."
Nayni's face immediately twisted up with a look of pure horror. Her ears twitched as they always did when she was nervous.
"A masochist must've invented all of these societal formalities," Nayni said. "Must I really go back out there?"
"Have no fear, Madame Nordontu, I shall be your escort," Coran said.
He bowed before her, it was much simpler than his usual. He held out a hand to her. This gesture only seemed to fill Nayni with more terror. Her whole face reddened and her eyes darted around the room nervously. She couldn't even look at him.
"I'll be your right-hand man. You know I'm an expert at getting out of awkward conversations," Coran said.
Nayni really had to mull that one over. Coran did genuinely want to be there for her but he had other motivations. He wanted to have Nayni on his arm just to pretend for one night that they belonged to each other.
"I think I could handle a varga of painful social interactions," Nayni said.
"Then just a varga it will be, no more than that. I promise," Coran said.
He held out his arm. She stared at it as if Coran's arm had been replaced with a cybernetic prosthesis. Nayni awkwardly reached for his arm a few times before she finally hooked her arm around his. She was stiff as a board and was taking great effort to have as little physical contact with him as possible. Coran wanted to tell her how much he savored physical contact with her but he knew it would do nothing to ease her nerves.
When they stepped out into the lights of the banquet hall, he felt a swell of pride. Coran wouldn't let reality dampen the mood tonight. He wanted to live in this moment and enjoy every tik of it. She tightened her grip on his arm in the banquet hall. It actually hurt quite a bit but he didn't want any of this to stop. Nayni bumbled up a bit with the first few handshakes and awkward greetings. If the conversation got a bit too tense he would come up with some excuse to steal her away from them. Her vice grip on him loosened slowly over the course of the night.
They came upon an older looking Altean with grey hair and yellow-brown skin. The lines of his face ran deep and he had a faint scar flicking up from the bottom of his chin. Coran recognized him immediately. It was General Fragnar, a well respected military advisor to the Court. He had a significant amount of gold badges plastered across his chest. Coran sensed a familiarity between him and Nayni. The old soldier gave Nayni a salute and a warm smile. Nayni's responding salute was stiff and performed flawlessly.
"Captain Nordontu," The General said. "It's been quite some time."
Nayni relaxed much more around this soldier then she had with the others. Coran could barely feel her thick fingers wrapped around his forearm.
"General Fragnar," Nayni said. "It's good to see you."
The General had a genuinely warm smile on his face. The Altean usually looked so hardened and gruff. He softened around Nayni as if he was addressing a child.
"That was quite the rousing speech," The General said.
Nayni gazed down at her feet and blushed a little. An awkward silence hung in the air. The General examined Coran from head to toe and flashed a smile.
"I see you've found yourself another red-head," The General teased.
Nayni went rigid. She looked to Coran in horror and slipped her arm out of his. She was blushing furiously.
"Oh no no no no, sir," Nayni stammered. "Mister Smythe is just my escort—I mean—we just work together a lot we're not—ya know-"
Coran couldn't hold back his smile. So she had a thing for red-heads? This was a rather pleasant revelation to have tonight. The General just shook his head and smiled.
"That's a shame, Captain, the Royal Advisor would be quite the catch," The General teased.
Nayni's eyes widened. She looked as if she were staring a weblum straight in the mouth. She was too panicked to utter a word. Coran hooked his arm back with her's and gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. He couldn't help but sprout that devilish grin. He toyed with the end of his mustache. The whole encounter had left him feeling rather smug.
"We should take our leave, we have to finish making our rounds tonight," Coran said. "It was a pleasure, General."
Coran whisked her away before Nayni fainted from embarrassment. Coran was holding his head up a little higher as he took his strides. Nayni's gaze was glued to the ground. The fact that someone had actually thought they were together was delicious to him.
"I-I'm sorry, Fragnar was my commanding officer in the Army," Nayni stammered. "He was like a father to me. He still takes great joy in teasing me."
Nayni couldn't even look at him as she spoke.
"I'm not saying that it would be a joke to be with you—I mean you're a fine man even though I call you an idiot all the time," Nayni said. "Not that I want to be with you—I don't mean to insult you—I just-oh, ruggle, I'm digging myself quite the hole now."
Coran laughed. There was nothing as incredibly charming as how easily she got flustered. It was cruel of him but he loved seeing her get like this. Coran watched her bark orders at the Guardsmen all day and carry herself with such strength and dignity. So, when she fell apart like this it was absolutely delectable. There was a real woman underneath all that rigid formality. And she was one of the most tender and genuine people he'd ever met.
"It's fine, Madame Nordontu, I understand," Coran assured.
This seemed to do little to ease the Guard Captain's nerves. She'd probably want to scamper off now and he'd be left alone for the night. He'd have to stay until the banquet died down and the soldiers started trickling out of the hall. He'd have to go back home then to his empty bed and his quiet room. Coran would lounge in his favorite worn out, violet, suede chair and stare out the window. He'd look at the stars twinkling in the sky over Altea and sip on his hot cup of spiced tea. That scent of shoe polish that seemed to follow Nayni everywhere would probably still be clinging to his clothing. He'd stroke his mustache and ponder as to how the two of them ended up trapped in this never-ceasing loop of inaction.
Coran toyed with the end of his mustache as he stared at the main interface on the Castle's bridge. It was really boring. Really, really boring. Nayni had run off to try and track down Hunk and Pidge. His jaw stretched out as he let out a loud yawn. He really should've listened to Nayni last night and tried to sleep but he'd been far too hungry for her. He snickered to himself over that pun. Nayni would've given him the dirtiest look over that one. Having her now felt so surreal. He kept wondering if he'd wake up and realize it was all just some dream he'd cooked up.
When the Paladins had awoken him and Allura, Coran sincerely believed that she was gone. That she had been gone for thousands of years. The new reality of the universe had been so hard to accept but he'd had to. The only reason he got through it was because he and the Princess had to focus so much on training the Paladins and striking back against Zarkon. Well, that wasn't the only reason. His chats with Lance had proved to be quite therapeutic. Those had started off as a way for Coran to comfort the boy but then they became something much more to him. Lance taught him so much about Earth and Coran was able to unload some of his grief too.
It was so much harder for him to look Allura in the eye and tell her these things. They'd talked of Altea too but bringing up all of the people they'd known just seemed too painful for both of them. Nayni especially. He'd been left with a lot of emotional wounds but the loss of the King and the Guard Captain had been the deepest.
But she'd come back to him. Coran thanked King Alfor's spirit every day for it too. He knew it was selfish but after all the sacrifices that had been made over the course of the war, Coran couldn't let things slip away again. That's why he'd let his passion get the best of him and kissed her on the bridge. He was fully prepared for Nayni to punch him in the nose afterward but it had all resulted in something far more pleasant.
Coran heard the doors to the bridge slide open. The Princess stepped in, her silver hair fell loosely about her shoulders. It had been quite some time since he'd seen her that relaxed. He arrival was most fortuitous. It was an old formality that had little relevance now but Coran still felt the need to respect it. Doing everything by the book was still such a deep part of him. It was in his very blood and had been for generations before him. By the look in Allura's indigo eyes, he had a feeling that he didn't really need to explain much to her.
"You have fantastic timing, Princess," Coran said. "I needed to have a chat with you."
Allura crept up to him. She looked very mischievous with that little grin on her face. It was during moments like these that he was reminded that she was still very young.
"Oh really?" Allura said.
She was doing a horrible job of playing innocent.
"Protocol states that I must let my superiors know if I'm engaging in any fraternization with any other members of the Court," Coran said. "And you are my superior."
Allura's smile widened and she leaned in closer. The Princess looked like she was about to burst from excitement. Coran couldn't help but feel rather smug about all of this. He'd been dreaming about having this conversation for many years, though he'd expected to have it with King Alfor, not Allura.
"And who are you fraternizing with?" Allura said.
Her voice was dripping with excitement and anticipation. Coran was so much older than the rest of the Castle's crew that there was really only one possible answer. He knew that the Princess had already put the pieces together before she'd even walked onto the bridge but he was taking great delight in making this announcement.
"Madame Nordontu," Coran said.
Allura squealed as she leaped on him. She wrapped her arms around him. The way she latched onto him reminded Coran of how she used to hug his leg when she was just a little girl. The Princess was bouncing she was so overjoyed.
"This is so overdue!" Allura squealed. "I'm so happy, Coran! You two have always been family to me and to finally see you happy means so much to me."
It was horrendously overdue. Coran gave her a gentle pat on the back. He held the Princess in his arms. She would always be the daughter that he'd never had. Her approval meant everything to him. Allura pulled away and put up a big show trying to act regal and formal. She still couldn't wipe the smile off of her face though.
"I'll take note of this in my logs," Allura said. "And I expect you two to not let this affect your duties."
Allura spoke with an overly authoritative attitude. Coran couldn't hide his satisfaction. It had already affected his duties a little bit. He was operating on no sleep after all. But he'd waited so long for this he didn't really care.
"Where is Nanny?" Allura asked.
"She's probably down on the engineering level with Hunk and Pidge," Coran said.
That was a conversation he would like to sit in on. Nayni hadn't really been alone with either of them since Hunk walked in on them. She was probably struggling not to faint. Allura placed her hand on his back. Her demeanor was much more gentle now.
"Why don't you get some rest? You look exhausted and it's my turn to monitor the bridge anyway," Allura said.
Coran wasn't really interested in getting rest. He was still riding high on the rush of last night. He'd go check in on Nayni. It was quite likely that she'd be in need of rescuing and that had always been his job. It was nice to have that duty again.
Coran arrived on the engineering level. Pidge was fiddling with Nayni's shield generator, a cornucopia of shiny tools was scattered all around the Green Paladin. Pidge could work wonders with anything but she was never very organized when it came to her belongings. Hunk was making some adjustments to the strap. The Yellow Paladin and Nayni had something in common. They were both heavily built though she was in a shorter package. Nayni was barely taller than Pidge. She must've felt some joy over finally having someone around that was shorter than her. Nayni already looked rather vexed. She glared at Coran as soon as he walked towards them.
"Why did you fail to tell me about Earth marriage practices?" Nayni snapped.
It was only relevant because of what had happened in the lounge. Nayni had already been so horrified by that incident that Coran hadn't wanted to make it worse. So he'd kept that little secret to himself. Apparently, humans would kneel before their partners when they'd ask to enter into a marriage pact. That had probably been why Hunk was so alarmed to see Coran kneeling before Nayni. Hunk's eyes darted between the two of them nervously.
"Hey, I didn't mean to start a fight. I was just wondering if I needed to by you guys a toaster or something," Hunk said.
Coran vaguely knew what a toaster was. Lance said when humans got married they tended to be given quite a bit of kitchen appliances. Nayni was just completely lost again. Her thick brows were furrowed and her lips were pursed.
"Is that some kind of Earth firearm? Do you exchange armaments for your weddings?" Nayni asked.
She genuinely meant that inquiry. Coran and the Paladins snickered. Pidge finished fiddling with the shield generator and passed it back to Hunk. The Yellow Paladin looked it over and attached it back to the wrist strap. He engaged the shield and the blue particle barrier spread out on the work table. It was much wider than the other models. Hunk poked at the barrier with a probe and the shield's surface flickered with blue sparks. It didn't look exactly like the shields that the Guardsmen used to carry around but it was pretty close.
"And whats this groveling business? Why would you beg for your partner to marry you when you're supposed to be equals?" Nayni pressed.
Pidge had started to put back together the disassembled parts of Nayni's blaster.
"Well, how do Alteans propose to each other?" Pidge asked.
The only human Paladin on the Castle that knew the answer was Lance but Coran kept that to himself.
"We stand on equal footing, look each other in the eye and ask," Nayni said.
Hunk smirked.
"So, Coran would have to kneel to look you in the eye," Hunk teased.
Nayni's face went red. Coran wasn't sure if it was out of anger or embarrassment. She leaned forward and gave Hunk a swat on the head. Coran and Pidge erupted into a fit of laughter. Hunk didn't find this nearly as amusing, He rubbed the back of his head as he pouted.
"Mister Smythe did not propose to me," Nayni said.
She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest. Her large bosom made this rather difficult but Coran loved to watch her struggle to do so. Pidge and Hunk looked to Coran and a grin crept across both of their faces.
"Mister Smythe?" Pidge giggled.
Coran twirled the edge of his mustache. He still loved when she called him that but it was for much more devious reasons now. She let that title out in a few desperate moans last night. It had been out of blind reflex but he very much liked how it sounded when it rolled off of her tongue.
"It's just a very old title," Coran explained. "Old habits die hard, as they say."
Their oldest habits had died though. The constant avoidance of their unresolved tension and the sleepless nights spent pining for each other were done and gone. That was the only thing that had really needed to change though. He was happy to have Nayni just the way she was. Coran was happy to have her in several different positions too.
Pidge finished assembling Nayni's blaster. It looked much sleeker now and its components were glowing as they should've been. Hunk handed Nayni the shield generator and Pidge tossed her the blaster. Nayni failed to catch it and the gun clattered to the floor. The Altean's face flushed as she scooped it off of the metallic floor.
"They should be all good now," Hunk said. "But try them out in with the combat simulator and come tell us how they work out."
Nayni looked at Coran rather sheepishly. She probably had no idea how to get to the simulation chamber. She could've told him the layout of the old Royal Palace in great detail but she'd been to the Castle so few times that she had no idea where to go.
"I can show you where it is," Coran said gently.
Coran led her towards the elevator and he rested his hand in the small of her back. Her ears still flushed when he touched her. Coran knew one day that would have to stop but he never really wanted it to. He took great pleasure in having this power over her. Nayni could probably snap his neck if she wanted to so he had to take the satisfaction in the small advantages like this. Getting her flustered was what he was best at anyway.
"Goodbye, Mister Smythe!" Hunk and Pidge teased in unison.
They giggled amongst themselves. Nayni turned on her heel. Her face was red and her eyes were wide with anger.
"Watch it or I'll end you both, you insufferable children!" Nayni snapped.
Her threat only made them laugh with more enthusiasm.
"You can't murder the Paladins, Nayni, we've already gone to a lot of trouble finding pilots for the Lions. No one wants to go through that hassle again," Coran said.
She glared at him like she was going to kill him too. Coran gave her a wink and she recoiled a bit shamefaced. He loved how much more openly she reacted to his games now. She used to fight against it so adamantly. But he could always see through the walls she put up. And it had always been him alone that had that effect on her. He hadn't been around to see what things had been like with Tomyko but from what Nayni had told him it was a very similar situation.
Coran escorted her to the elevator. By the time they reached the doors, she seemed to have calmed down. She was so quick to anger over the silliest things but when Allura had been a child Nayni would literally allow the Princess to tear her hair out and she would just sit there patiently. No one else was ever allowed that privilege though. Nayni's devotion to Allura ran deep and that unwavering commitment was part of why he loved her so.