Thank you to all those who review, some of them had me laughing...I truly enjoy all of them, even those telling me to hurry up and post faster. ;)

I make no claims to Voltron or any other WEP characters.

Enjoy Chapter 11

Mertz

Allura slowly walks into the dining room for breakfast the next morning as she fights the anxiety she awoke to. Her eyes move over Lance, Pidge, Hunk and Brian talking at one end of the table before she moves on. Finding Keith sitting a little further down the table sipping his coffee, Allura slides into the seat next to him as she whispers, "Good morning."

Keith sets the cup down, turning his head to look at her. Taking in the dark marks under her eyes, he asks, "Nightmares again?"

He studies the tired, bloodshot eyes that turn to look at him as she nods briefly before turning away again. Sighing, Keith's attention returns to the door as Dr. Killian walks in, avoiding everyone's gaze as she sits down at the far end of the table, away from Lance.

His eyebrows arched in wonder, Keith looks across the table at Lance, whose gaze is firmly on the end of the table and the woman who was doing her best to ignore him.

Lance tries to calm down the sudden anger he feels at such an obvious snub. He rises intending to move beside her when the castle alarms go off. As the Force members rise and run out of the room, Alex watches Lance's departing back before she rises as well.

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Coran looks over from the monitors as the team runs in. Turning around in the chair, he informs them, "Lotor's launched a new robeast."

Hunk yells, "Well, what are we waiting for?" running to the launch tubes as Coran raises the dais followed by Lance and Pidge. Keith pauses as he turns toward Allura to gauge her response. Her face paling, her eyes have a glassy look to them as he whispers, "Allura? Can you fly?"

Allura looks away from the robeast pictured on the screen to look into Keith's concerned gaze. Swallowing hard against the painful lump in her throat, Allura starts trembling then shakes her head at him.

He nods to her then turns to Brian, "You fly Blue…" and both men run for the launch.

Tears run down her face as she watches the lions fly by on the monitor. Turning around, Allura runs out of the room past Dr. Killian as she enters. Alex looks at her fast departing back before she feels a slight tremble from the floor. Turning back she walks over to Coran as the dais lowers to ask, "We're under attack?"

Coran nods to her as he says, "Hang onto the back of my chair if you feel unsure of your footing."

She grasps the chair as her eyes move up to the monitors. The robeast is man-like in that it has arms and feet, but Alex feels blown away by the sheer size of the ugly thing. With gray skin, the eyes and hair are green in color and as it opens its jaw, rows of sharp pointy teeth become visible as it lets out an ear piercing scream when the lions fly by with razor blades in their mouths, leaving gashes across the beast's chest.

"Coran…how do they fight something like that?"

Coran turns back to look at her briefly as he replies, "They've had lots of practice I'm afraid…" Turning back around, he orders the castle defenses, "Missile turrets, open fire!"

Alex's fingers dig into the back of the command chair as she watches missiles from the castle head toward the beast, barely leaving a scratch. Her breath catches in her throat as she watches Red lion being snatched out of the air and thrown against Green lion. As both lions fall to the ground, she soundlessly utters, "Lance…"

Keith's voice comes across the comm. as he calls out to the two downed lions, "LANCE! PIDGE! Answer me dammit!" It takes a moment for Lance's voice to come across the comm., "I'm fine Keith...just a little shook up." Pidge's voice comes across next, "I'm good Cap...let's go."

Alex finally releases the breath she didn't realize she had been holding at the sound of their voices. As the castle shakes once more, she looks over as Coran calls out, "Fighters…are attacking the castle! Gunners, return fire!"

She listens to Keith swear before he calls out, "Let's form Voltron and end this!"

Amazement fills her as she watches the lions head straight up into the sky and the mighty robot is formed. She lets out a deep breath and finds Coran turning back to look at her as he states, "It is a wondrous sight to see…isn't it?"

Alex nods wordlessly as she watches the lion heads detach then go through the robeast's torso. Moments later she watches as a sword appears between Green and Red lions and she once again holds her breath as she watches Voltron run the robeast through with it.

She can't take her eyes off the screen as she watches the robeast explode then listens to Keith give the commands to disengage Voltron and go after the fighters. Her eyes stay on the command ship just out of the castle's firing range as it fires on the lions briefly before turning around then leaving Arus airspace.

Coran sighs with relief as he listens to Keith call off the lions from pursuing the command ship any farther. He smiles at Dr. Killian then turns his gaze to look around the room.

Meeting Alex's gaze again he asks, "Where did Princess Allura go?"

Alex takes in his look of concern as she says, "I passed her on my way in here. She was going down the hallway."

Coran turns back around in the chair and presses a button before grasping the microphone, "Princess Allura, come in please…"

Alex listens as he continues to try to contact the princess. She notices a light blinking on the control panel when Coran turns back to her, "You may want to step down…they are returning." and goes back to trying to contact Allura.

Stepping down off the dais, Alex watches as it rises into the air, her eyes resting on chute two as Lance comes running out. Her eyes look him over briefly until she finds him staring back at her. The raw look of need in his eyes consumes her and turning around, she walks away from him.

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Keith sighs as he rides the T-bar back up into control. Running into the room, he turns around to find Coran yelling at him from above, "Commander…we are unable to locate Princess Allura and she won't respond to calls on her comm. unit."

Anxiety fills him as he looks up at him to ask, "When was she last seen?"

The dais lowers as Coran responds, "Before you left in the lions. When I turned to look back after you had left, she was gone. Nanny reported she isn't in her room or office."

Keith turns toward the men, "Spread out and look for her…" He turns, "Lance, check out the crypt… Hunk, the gym, Pidge take the throne room, Brian check out the conference rooms, report back on your comm. unit. " The men take off and Keith turns back to Coran, "We will find her…" as he rushes out of the room.

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Keith rushes down the hall toward the rec room, pausing when he hears a soft beeping. Pulling his comm. unit off his belt, he starts swearing under his breath when he notes the low battery light flashing. My spare battery is in my office…

Smothering his irritation, he turns down a hallway. Rushing to his office, he practically runs into the room then over to the stand where his spare battery sits on the charger. Picking it up, he pauses while changing the battery when he hears a noise.

Pushing the battery in place, Keith places the comm. unit back on his belt as he slowly walks around his desk to find Allura sitting with her knees up to her chest on the floor, her back resting against the drawers of his desk. Taking note of the still pale face and the cheeks wet with tears, he whispers, "Allura, what's wrong?"

Allura jerks in response, crying out as she turns her face toward him while holding up her hands as if to ward Keith off. He drops to his knees in front of her, gently grasping her arms as he whispers, "It's alright Allura…it's just me."

Sagging in relief, Allura cries softly while sliding over to lay her head against his chest. Keith reluctantly wraps his arms around her as he softly questions, "What's wrong?"

A sob escapes her as she replies, "I don't…know…" her fingers tighten as she wraps them into his shirt as she continues, "I saw…the robeast and…I was…afraid…" Another shuddering sob escapes her as she adds, "I don't know…why I'm…so scared."

Keith takes a deep breath while picking Allura up in his arms and walks over to the couch with her. He tries to put her down on it only to have her cling to him whimpering, "No…" Turning around, Keith sits down on the couch with her in his lap and reaches for his comm. unit, "Kogane to control…"

Coran's anxious voice responds, "This is control, Commander, did you find her?"

He feels Allura's fingers dig into his back slightly as he responds, "Yes, call off the search, I'll bring her to her room in a while. Kogane out." He turns off the unit before rubbing Allura's back slightly and saying, "It's alright Princess…you are safe."

Her cheek rubs against his chest as she whispers, "Why am I always so scared now?" Lifting her head, she looks into his eyes with tears still sliding down her cheeks while saying, "I'll be fine one moment and scared to death the next and I…don't know…why."

Releasing a sigh, Keith reaches up with a hand to gently wipe the tears off her cheeks as he quietly replies, "Princess…there is a condition known on Earth that soldiers on active duty can suffer. It's called Post Traumatic Stress Disorder."

Confusion fills Allura's eyes but before she can open her mouth, Keith touches her lips to keep her quiet and adds, "I think you are suffering from that. That is why I asked Dr. Killian here to examine each of us, but more importantly, to help you overcome these problems you've been having lately."

He withdraws his fingers from her face and she studies his eyes for a moment before asking, "What is it?"

Smiling softly at her, Keith responds, "I think I will let Dr. Killian explain it to you, she will do a better job and still needs to verify the diagnosis. I know you don't want to, but please spend more time with her so she can complete the diagnosis then create a plan of action to get you past this."

Several quiet moments pass as Allura studies Keith's dark eyes before he asks, "Feeling better now?"

At her nod, Keith pushes her up off his lap and onto her feet as he says, "We better get you to your room…Nanny and Coran are worried."

He stands up as well and Allura takes his arm, hanging onto it tight, like he is a lifeline. Swallowing his discomfort with it, Keith turns and leads them out of the room. Walking down the hall, he feels Allura's fingers dig deeper into his arm and turns to look at her.

Her face paling even more, Keith whispers to her, "It's alright Allura, you're safe." as he continues to lead her to her room. Just outside her door, they meet Coran who, after noting Allura's death grip on Keith's arm, turns his thoughtful gaze onto the Commander.

Keith flushes as the door opens and Nanny steps out to say, "Oh Princess…there you are! I was so worried…" and grabs her arm to lead her into her room. Keith manages to smile reassuringly at her as Allura turns her head to look back at him before the door closes blocking her view.

Coran's clearing of his throat has Keith turning to gaze at him as he asks, "So where did you find her?"

Releasing a sigh, Keith responds, "My office…she was sitting on the floor, hiding behind my desk."

His eyebrows arching, Coran asks, "Kind of a strange place for her to hide, don't you think?"

Keith narrows his eyes at Coran as he replies, "I don't think Princess was thinking about where she was going when she hid Coran…"

Coran shifts his feet, putting a neutral look on his face as he agrees, "I suppose not…" He is quiet for a moment then adds, "The others are in the conference room waiting for the debriefing. I'm going to check on Princess and then I will join you."

Keith nods in response then turns to walk away. Coran watches his departing back for several moments before pressing the button and walking into Princess' room.

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Allura keeps her eyes closed and her breathing even as she listens to Nanny move about her room. She can feel a set of concerned eyes on her more than once, telling her that Nanny has stopped whatever she was doing to watch her again. Several minutes later, she finally hears the footsteps head toward the door.

Staying still in the bed for a minute or two more, Allura opens her eyes and turns over to find herself alone. Rising from the bed, she takes a lap blanket from the bottom of the bed, wrapping it around herself before walking across the room to lie down on the chaise lounge in front of the window. Her eyes take in the snow covered ground and the gray clouds that are blocking the sun as she tries to relax.

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That afternoon, Dr. Killian sits at her desk working on Allura's file when she hears a knock at her door. Looking up, she calls out, "Enter." wishing she hadn't when Lance walks through the door. Keeping her face carefully neutral, she asks, "What can I do for you, Lieutenant?"

Lance's eyebrows go up at the formal address before he sits down in the chair in front of her desk, "I have a problem Dr. Killian…"

He watches as her brow furrows in concern before she asks, "What would that be?"

Sitting forward in his chair, Lance reaches over to pick up a paperclip off of the desk and starts playing with it as he responds, "I find myself attracted to this beautiful woman from Earth… She kissed me last night then ran away. This morning she won't meet my gaze and has been avoiding me."

Alex keeps her tone carefully neutral as she replies, "Maybe you should take the hint and leave the poor woman alone. Obviously, she doesn't want your attentions."

Those warm brown eyes settle on her for a moment and Alex feels a tingling down in the pit of her stomach when he finally whispers, "Oh…I think she does… For some reason she thinks she shouldn't want them and is fighting it…" He stands up and slowly walks around the desk as he adds, "Even now her eyes are darkening with desire and if she pays attention, her breathing is a bit ragged."

Her breath catches in her throat as Alex stops breathing entirely for a moment as Lance leans over her chair, staring down into her face as he says, "I myself…want her attentions…I want them very much." and he lowers his lips toward hers.

Panic fills Alex as she pushes back and swiftly rises from the chair, keeping it between them. Her voice rises as she says, "Stop it Lance…I mean it."

Lance crosses his arms as he perches himself on her desk, "Why? I want you and you want me…what's wrong with that Alex?"

She feels that tug deep in her belly once more as her eyes move to his lips. Shaking her head to clear it, Alex looks back into his eyes as she states, "I will not be just another notch on your belt, Lance McClain… If that is all you are looking for I suggest you leave and quickly."

She watches those warm eyes studying her for several long moments before he rises. His lips part as he tells her, "I really don't know what I'm looking for Alex…I was hoping maybe you would be the answer."

Turning around, he walks out of the room. Alex puts a hand to her chest as she tries to calm her fast beating heart. His parting words echo around in her head and it is all she can do not to run after him. Berating herself, she speaks to the silence in the room, "The answer…how can I be the answer when he doesn't even know the question."