Disclaimer: I do not own Voltron or any of its characters.

Rating/Setting: Rating is T for kissing and groping. I know, who knew that I would write a story with some mild groping? Flavor is DotU, but is part of the "Just a Kiss" story arc. 1. Just a Kiss, 2. Shirts vs Skins, 3. More, and , Answers, and Intrigue. You really need to read them all to make sense of the story. Stories 1-3 are all pretty short and should be a quick read if you are interested.

Author's Note: I'm on vacation sorry for delay!

Chapter Twenty-One

As Keith docked the small ship in the castle's hangar bay, he saw that a small crowd had gathered in the area. He climbed out of the cockpit and down the ladder that had been placed against the ship and then jumped to the floor. Turning, he faced his friends and the people identified as Princess Allura and Coran. There was a man he could not identify.

Lance stepped up and pulled Keith into a hug and hit him on the back several times. "So good to have you back, Keith." He released him and stepped back as Sven stepped up to embrace him as well.

"Glad you're back. I'm glad that I don't have to ask Romelle to join me here on a permanent basis." He stepped back with a smile.

"Romelle?" Keith asked with a puzzled look.

Sven looked to Allura and back. "When you get your memories back, you'll understand."

"Speaking of that." Keith held out a small data chip. "Merla tells me that everything needed to restore my memory to what it was is on the disk."

The man that Keith didn't know stepped forward and reached for the disk but Keith pulled it back protectively.

The man looked up startled. "I'm sorry. I didn't introduce myself. I'm Dr. Gorma. I'll be performing the surgery."

"Oh," Keith said as he extended his hand once again with the disk. The doctor gently took it from him. "I'm sorry. I'm sure everyone here knows who I am. I just don't remember anyone."

"That's okay, son," Gorma said as he patted Keith on the back. "I'm afraid you'll have too many memories of me once your surgery is complete."

"Was I injured a lot?"

"In the line of duty." Princess Allura she stepped forward and extended a hand to him. "I'm Princess Allura," she said as she shook his hand and gestured to the man beside her. "This is Coran, my royal advisor and guardian."

Keith shook his hand as well. He scanned the group. "I really want to remember. Dr. Gorma, when can you perform the surgery?" All eyes turned to Gorma and Keith was sure the doctor knew they were all waiting for his answer.

"I can't say yet, Commander. I need to review the procedure and then do a simulation with the staff that would be assisting me. This would be our first surgery of this type and I'm sure you want us to practice on the sim before we operate on you."

Keith let out a sigh. "Yes, you're right, doctor." He shook his head. "I just can't explain how disconcerting it is to see everyone and know that I have memories with each of you and remember nothing about them." He scanned across the group and noticed that Allura blushed as he spoke. He looked at her for a moment longer and then looked beyond her to the crowd that was growing. "Why are all these people here?"

Allura glanced over her shoulder. "Many are castle staff and some of the local villagers who have learned that you returned. They've come to see for yourself that you're really here." Her voice softened, "You've been sorely missed, Keith."

His eyes returned to hers and saw the blush creep into her face once again. He'd have to ask Lance about that. Looking back to the crowd, he asked, "Are there any security concerns?"

"Concerns?" Coran asked and then continued, "Ah, you mean from the Circle." He shook his head. "We have apprehended those in the leadership. They are a minority faction here on Arus. Most Arusians were appalled and outraged at your abduction, Commander. Do not judge the feeling of Arus on the minority that took you captive."

Keith nodded and looked at Allura again. "Can someone show me to my quarters? I'd like to see what I have in there, maybe it will give me something to think about until the good doctor can perform the surgery."

Lance slapped him on the back. "I'll take you to your room, Keith."

The pair left the others behind as they headed toward the elevator.

"So tell me, Keith, what really happened on that ship with you and Merla?"

Keith laughed. "You heard her comment about being shirtless didn't you?"

"I think she purposely let us hear that before closing the channel." Lance paused, "So tell me. The two of you seemed almost chummy."

Keith shrugged. "I saw firsthand what was being done to her people. I couldn't let them be slaughtered and enslaved. I couldn't find anything showing that helping her would hurt the Alliance."

"So that's all you did. Help her win the battles," Lance continued to press.

Keith glanced at his second-in-command, "That's all, Lance. Merla said something to me about wanting to push Allura's buttons." He stopped and asked, "And just why would my being shirtless push the Princess' buttons?"

Lance opened his mouth and then closed it. Finally, he shook his head and just started walking. In just a few strides they reached the elevator.

As Keith entered with him, he asked again, "Why?"

"I'm not at liberty to say," Lance responded as he looked at the elevator controls and selected the correct level. "Our quarters are on Level 3."

"Lance?"

Lance turned to him and said, "Princess Allura asked me, all of us actually, not to say anything. If you want more before your surgery, you'll have to ask her."

Keith looked thoughtfully at his friend. "Does it have something to do with why she was blushing so much when we met?"

Lance couldn't help the grin that formed on his face. "Definitely. But that's all I'll say."

Keith turned to exit with the doors opened. "I can't wait to have that surgery. This is like some kind of game where everyone has the answers but me."

A short walk down the corridor had them at quarters for the Force where Lance pointed out their rooms. Gesturing to the room on the right, he said, "That one's yours."

Keith keyed the sensor with his hand and stepped into the room that had been his… was his. He didn't recognize it at all, but he did see some things that had meaning to him. A picture here and there. He went to the closet and smiled as he opened it. He definitely remembered the red flight suit. "I see I didn't change too much."

Lance chuckled behind him, which caused Keith to turn. "You changed more than you know."

Keith glared at him, "But you're not going to tell me."

"Nope," Lance said with a huge grin.

"Well, I see you haven't changed much."

Lance continued to grin.

Keith waved him away. "Go on. I'm fine here. I'll call you or one of the others if I get lost."

As Lance went to the door, he turned back one more time. "All joking aside, Keith, it's good to have you back."

When his friend left, Keith sat on the bed and looked around. "I just wish I remembered."

.**********.

The next day Keith stood in Castle Control with the rest of the Force. "So I just jump in that chute and it takes me to the Black Lion?" Keith pointed to the dais.

"Yes," the group chorused.

"And I can fly it?"

Sven walked up and clapped him on the shoulder. "When has there been a ship you couldn't fly?"

Keith finally smiled. He had never lacked for confidence when it came to flying. To be honest, he was nervous. All the other pilots had been flying these Lions for a year and while he had as well, he had no memory of it. "You're right."

"I'll go out with you, Keith," Allura said as she stepped closer. "I should be able to answer any questions you have in flight."

Keith looked with surprise to Lance, but his second-in-command didn't see anything unusual with the princess going. "Sounds good," he finally said when Lance didn't say anything. Keith walked to the chute and looked into the black abyss and the T-bar in front of him. With a deep breath and a silent prayer he grabbed the bar and dropped into the inky blackness.

As he dropped into the shuttle, he noticed that his clothing had changed, just as Lance had told him. In moments, he was rising from the shuttle into the Black Lion. As the command chair clicked into place, he looked around the cockpit. His hand immediately went to the key on his uniform and he positioned it correctly in the slot. Hands moved over the controls with the muscle memory that comes from repeated action.

"I… I don't remember any of it, but my body does," Keith said over the comm link. He took the Lion through a series of maneuvers that looked perfect.

"Keith, follow me, we're going to the Flatland Mesa for some target practice," Allura said through the link.

"Moving to follow you, Blue Lion," Keith responded.

.*********.

The Voltron Force plus Coran watched Keith's maneuvers with a critical eye.

Lance muted the comm link. "He looks perfect. Even if his memory doesn't return quickly, we should be fine. He hasn't lost any of his reflexes."

"I'll stay until he's recovered from the surgery," Sven responded.

"I think that would be the safest thing," Hunk agreed. "He's good right now, but what happens if the brain surgery doesn't go as planned."

Hunk's words hung in the air. They were all counting on Keith getting his full memory back.

.**********.

The exercise ended; Black and Blue hung suspended in the air over the Flatlands.

"Princess, I was wondering if I can go to the Chozzerai River Bridge?" Keith asked over the comm.

"Of course you can, Commander. Would you like for me to accompany you?" Allura's image showed on his side screen.

"I'd like that." Keith turned Black Lion toward the river. Arriving at the point where the river entered the Altean Sea, he set the Lion down and climbed down. The wind was blowing steadily from the sea onto the land and the breeze wiped his dark hair around his face. In just a few moments, he felt her presence beside him. A sideways glance showed that she was looking out to sea.

"Is there a reason you wanted to come here?" she asked.

"For some reason it seems familiar but I have no memory of it. Should I?" He asked as he gazed out to the open water.

"We had a battle with Lotor here."

Keith looked around. "The area seems to have recovered well."

"My people are resilient. They wanted to rebuild even after Doom destroyed the bridge."

They gazed in silence at the white-tipped waves and then Keith spoke. "I have only one image in my memory that is after the team was captured by Zarkon." He turned to face her, not caring about how the wind blew his hair across his face. "The image was of you, Princess."

The princess turned to him but looked at his chest, not his face. "Do you know why that would be the image you would remember?" Her eyes rose to his.

"No, but I was hoping you might tell me," he said as softly as he could in the wind.

"Let's see what you remember," she said after a moment and then turned back toward her Lion.

Keith heaved a sigh of frustration. He was convinced more than ever that there was something going on between him and the princess, but if no one confirm it, he had nothing to go on. His eyes closed as he prayed that all of his memories returned.

.**********.

Two days later, Doom attacked and Keith flew the Black Lion. His commands were only slightly slower than normal and Voltron remained victorious. As the team returned to Castle Control, Keith received acknowledgements and slaps on the back. Sven looked at his friend and smiled. "Good job, Keith," he said as the team filed in.

Keith looked at his hands. "Everything seemed to come back to me. Maybe a hesitation here or there," he looked up to Sven, "but it all came back."

"It'll be even better when your memory returns," Hunk added.

Coran cleared his throat. "Just before the claxons sounded, Dr. Gorma contacted me. The surgical team will be ready to perform the surgery first thing in the morning."

Keith sighed with relief, "Finally."

.**********.

Allura watched Keith carefully. Even if he never regained those memories, he was still a capable pilot and commander. There wouldn't be any need for Sven to stay or to request a replacement. The only thing that could be truly lost would be her personal relationship with Keith. It was a high price to pay if she had to pay it, but the alternative of him being dead or the slave of some person who would abuse him. It was a price that would be very dear if she couldn't rebuild the relationship.