Chapter Twelve

Lance's legs jutted out from underneath the speeder. His jeans were stained with oil and grime, his work boots worn around the edges. A greased hand poked out from under, feeling its way around for the wrench that was just barely out of reach. A mumbled curse word came from beneath the craft as his body stretched further to grasp at the tool.

"Need a hand?"

The sudden voice caused Lance to jump, his forehead promptly making contact with an exhaust pipe. A loud thunk resonated from under the speeder.

"Son of a-!" Lance bit his lip to keep the rest of the phrase from slipping out. He shifted his weight and pushed himself from under the speeder on the wheeled tray. The sunlight caused his eyes to squint shut as he tried to make out the person standing there. After a few blinks, he realized it was Keith. Lance reached up to his forehead to rub over the knot that was rapidly forming. "Mornin' Cap," he mumbled.

Keith grinned down at him. "Sorry, man, didn't mean to scare ya."

"Scared? Who's scared?" Lance quipped. "Just didn't expect to see you up and moving for another…" he paused to look at the invisible watch that apparently he wore around his wrist, "four hours or so."

Keith's shoulders shook with a light chuckle. "Right. I get it. How long have you been up?"

"Oh, about three hours. I have a race this afternoon and needed to do some tweaking," Lance answered. "Not that I'm concerned. Lil' Red here can take on just about anything." He lovingly patted the fender of the red speeder. Lance had painted the front end of the speeder to look like a lion's roaring mouth.

Lance began speeder racing after the war had ended. He loved flying Big Red, but with no combat required during this peaceful time, Lance needed a little friendly competition. So far, no one could compare with his racing skills. He had been a title holder for months now. The race this afternoon he had been looking forward to for about a week. Some new up-and-coming rider from the other side of Arus would be there. Danny Wylde. Even his name was kinda cool, Lance had to admit. No reason for me not to beat him, though!

"I forgot you had a race this afternoon," Keith continued. "I wanted to squeeze in some lion practice with you." Lance paused his rummaging through the toolbox.

"Oh yeah? Feel like taking the kitties out to play?" He raised an eyebrow up at his commander.

"Actually, I was thinking of having you take Black out for a minute," Keith's face was a little solemn. Lance froze. Slowly standing up, he turned to face Keith.

"You mean it, Cap?"

Keith had never seen Lance so intent. "Well, sure." He placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Lance, I'm about to become King. Black is like a dear friend to me, you know that. But if something comes up and royal duties prevent me from getting to him…" his voice wavered a bit. "…I need to know someone else is able to pilot the strongest lion until I can join in. Allura's had training in Black, why shouldn't you?"

Lance's mouth hung open at the words. "Gosh, Keith, I don't know what to say. It'd be an honor to fly Black. I mean, I hope the occasion never arises to where we'd need the lions again," he quickly corrected himself. "But I sure do appreciate the offer."

Keith smiled warmly at his friend. "Great then. How much longer do you need finishing up here?" he nodded his head in the direction of the speeder.

"Oh, maybe ten more minutes. The race isn't until four."

"Terrific. I'll round up the rest of the guys. Maybe Sven will even like to take Blue out for a spin. It'll be like old times…kinda…" Keith grinned.

Lance couldn't help but smile back as he lay down on the trolley. "Sounds good, Keith. I'll meet you in the control room in fifteen."

"Right," Keith turned to make his leave.

"Hey Keith!" Lance called, pushing himself out from under the speeder.

"Yeah?"

"You look like hell, man. Didn't she let you sleep at all?" Lance grinned, throwing him a wink before disappearing back under the speeder.

Keith blushed fiercely, even though he had to stifle a laugh. He tiptoed up to the toolbox and quietly moved it a good foot out of Lance's reach. He then made his way back inside the castle, waiting long enough to hear Lance give an exasperated shout. Keith grinned proudly and went off to find the rest of the team.