Episode Twenty-Six

Aunt Orla Comes to Visit

It was a beautiful morning. The sun arose over the distant mountains, bringing light to world of Arus. Slowly, the sunlight crept down through the valley and up to the Castle of Lions. Allura turned in the bed, letting the sun warm her back. Waiting up, she fluttered her eyes open to the new day.

He was still sleeping peacefully. She watched his back, expanding and contracting with each gentle breath. She lay there, pondering for a moment. They had been like this for a while now—sleeping in the same bed. He would stay on the left half and she would stay on the right. There was a gap or chasm in-between them. The last few weeks sleeping like this became sort of an unspoken ritual. They had learned to tolerate each other enough to share the same bed, but she sighed, realizing that there should be more to it than this. As he started to stir, she buried her face into her pillow.

Looking into the scanner, she saw the bones of her brother's arm. After examining the area where the break occurred, she pronounced him fit and ready to fly again. Cassie pushed the scanner away and headed over towards the closet. She pulled out a small cast saw. She turned the saw on laughed at the horrified look Rick gave. He stuck his arm out on the table, and Cassie began to cut through the cast. Soon, Rick's arm was free as the pieces of the cast fell to the side. He lifted his dirty arm into the air and looked closely at it.

"That's really gross," He said, looking at the dirt and skin cells on his arm.

Cassie nodded. "Does it feel okay?"

Rick carefully waved his arm around. "Yeah, it feels okay. Just really weird though—like fragile and weak."

"Well, the x-ray says your arm is fine. You've probably just feel vulnerable without your cast on."

Rick walked over to the skin and began to wash his arm. "Will I be able to fly right away?"

Cassie nodded, looking down at her paperwork. "Yes, you're free to do anything you want now."

Rick shut off the water to the sink and grabbed a towel. While wiping off his arm, he walked over to Cassie's side. "I must admit that I feel somewhat bad about this."

"What do you mean?" She looked up.

"I don't mean to be taking your position on the Voltron Force…"

"Being on the Voltron Force is more than just piloting the Lions, Rick," She answered. "You were never off the Voltron Force—you only took a different position for a while."

He nodded. "Nevertheless, I don't mean to be bumping you out of the Blue Lion." He sighed. "I know how much you like it and all."

"Yes, I love flying, just like you do, but my true passion is here, not in war. I only wanted to protect you and the people of Arus. I wasn't trying to steal your position. Flying is your dream and medical science is mine. Sure, I loved flying in that Lion for a time, but I know my calling is here. Yours is in the Blue Lion."

He pondered for a moment then looked up. "I'm going to make sure none of us every have to fight again. I'm going to help put an end to all this fighting."

She nodded. "I dearly hope so."

As she ran her laps through the mountain passes, her stomach growled and screamed in hunger. She glanced up towards the sun—it was high in the sky. She looked down to the lower level. Gabriel was ahead of her, running at a comfortable pace. She, on the other hand, was tried and exhausted. The Black Lion, at the bottom of the hill, was in sight. She pushed on, seeing that the end was close. After a few more yards, she made it to the bottom of the hill. Standing before the Black Lion, she bent over and gasped for her air.

Gabriel popped his head out of the Black Lion. "Not bad, Allura. You kept up most of the way, but you do look a bit too fatigued. We'll have to work on your endurance some more."

"I'm sorry. I missed breakfast. I'm starving." She walked over to a nearby tree and sat down in the cool grass. She didn't care about the fact that her white uniform could get stained by the grass. She looked up as Gabriel walked over with a large basket. "What is that?"

"I had Nanny make us lunch. I know how much you hate those army rations." He set the basket down on the ground and opened it. First, he pulled out a large blanket and spread it across the grass. He knelt down onto the blanket and started pulling out the lunch. Allura crawled onto the blanket and grabbed a bottle of water. She chugged half the bottle then wiped her mouth. Once the basket was unpacked, the two immediately ate their lunch.

"Are we ever going to take a break?" Allura asked, just before biting into a turkey sandwich.

"Does evil ever take a break?" Gabriel answered.

She rolled her eyes. "We've been training non-stop for weeks." She took another bite.

Gabriel finished chewing before he answered. "I know it's miserable, but you'll thank me later for it."

"I doubt it," Allura said, with her mouth full.

The gentle breeze tickled against their skin. Above them, the leaves from the lush oak tree rustled gently. After eating a full meal, heaviness fell over them. Soon, they found themselves lying on their backs looking upward into the deep blue sky. Even though he said earlier that they had more training to do, she didn't remind him of that fact. Shortly after lying down, his eyes closed, and he fell asleep.

She found herself doing the same, but only for a couple of minutes. After a short nap, she woke up at the sound of chirping birds. She glanced over at the still Black Lion. It sat tall, silent, and proud as it watched over them. Turning her head to the left, she saw that Gabriel was still asleep. She stared at him, watching his locks of blonde hair gently rustle in the wind and scrape against his forehead. He stirred for a moment, and her heart pounded like a drum, but he didn't wake up. She sighed and relaxed her position. She gently shifted her position, but then he woke up. She quickly turned back over to her back and stared up at the sky.

Gabriel fluttered his eyes then rubbed them with his fist. He glanced over at her for a moment then looked back to the sky. Only one questioned circled through his mind over the past few weeks—why did she not choose to go with Keith when they hadn't realized it was Hagar yet. He always tried to answer that question—it was for the children. While that answer was a good one, it still didn't seem to explain everything. He couldn't stand it anymore. "Allura?"

"Yes?" She asked.

He kept his eyes towards the sky. In that moment of vulnerability, he couldn't bring himself to look at her. He couldn't speak.

She looked over at him. "What is it?"

He bit his lip and took a deep breath. "When we were on Planet Styx…" He paused, trying to regain his strength. "…and when you thought the ghost was actually Keith…" He closed his eyes, pausing for a long while. "Why didn't you want to go with him?"

Allura pondered for a long time before she answered. "I had really loved Keith, and in some ways, I still do, but…" She paused. "I've come to the realization that he's gone now. He'll always have a special place in my heart, but I cannot change what happened. If he were still alive, so many things would be different, but he's not. My life has taken a different path."

"I understand," He uttered, hiding his face from her.

They laid in silence for what felt like an eternity. Even though she had answered the question he asked, she thought about the answer over and over again. If Keith were still alive, perhaps she would have told him how she felt and something would have happened between the two, but the fact was, he wasn't alive. Slowly, the ache and pain of losing him healed. The pieces of her heart were painstakingly sown back together over the course of time, and through it all, she was a different person. She had emerged into a different life on the other side of the dark tunnel. She marveled, wondering how she made it through such pain and tragedy, but as she glanced over to her left, she knew why. It was his patience and compassion that kept her alive. She paused realizing the ramifications of her own thoughts. Clearer than she ever realized before, she knew that she loved him.

It was unconditional love that saved her, and it was the unconditional love flowing out of her heart that made her want to reach out to him so badly. Feeling such an overflow of emotion, made her want to scream to the heavens. He was so close, lying next to her with his eyes closed. Her heart seemed to stop, aching heavily within her chest. She slowly started to roll over towards him. Once she rolled, she leaned up on her elbow, feeling her entire body shake and tremble, as she kissed him.

Her lips brushed against his only for a few moments. He gently pulled back, looking confused and frightened at the same time. She locked with his saddened blue eyes for a moment. "I love you." She whispered.

"You…love me?" He said, almost choking. His heart stopped, not knowing whether to leap or break into pieces. "You love…me?"

She nodded gently while reaching her hand up to his face. "Yes, I really love you," She said before their lips met again. For the first time, he actually accepted her love, knowing it was real, and let her kiss him. They only brushed lips gently for a few moments, but after his initial shock dissipated, he began to respond to her. He overpowered her, pursuing her fervently and hungrily. She gasped as he pushed her to her back and rolled over, but before the gasp could escape her mouth, he covered her with his lips. Her arms wrapped around his neck tightly. Pulling back for air, she turned her head and panted heavily. She could hardly breathe. She gasped harder as his lips trailed down her check to her neck.

Before she could even think, her hands grasped onto the shirt his pilot uniform, pulling it up over his stomach, arms, and then over his head. She kicked off her own boots and helped him kick of his with her feet. He savagely tore her out of her pilot uniform. She shivered, feeling the chill of the wind against her bare skin, but the warmth of his skin pressed against her within moments. Passion took over, and with desire coursing through every fiber of her body, she screamed his name to the heavens.

Lance was sitting on the couch reading a magazine when Cassie walked into the room. Seeing that nobody was around, she sat down and cuddled next to the pilot of Red Lion. He tossed down his magazine and smirked. "Where have you been?"

"I'm working again," She said, pulling her legs up under her. "Dr. Gourma has me playing catch-up for the weeks I was gone."

"Geeze, as if Gabriel didn't work you to death on those flying lessons. Now you have this…"

"I know, but it's necessarily. If I want to make the next certified examination deadlines on Planet Ebb, I have to study extra hard…"

"Cassie, why don't you take a break for a while?" He looked at her seriously. "I mean, would it really be a bad thing if you had to get your medical license six months later than you anticipated?"

She smiled. "You're adorable when you worry."

"I'm being serious."

"I know," She leaned in to kiss him, but she jumped upright when Rick walked into the room. He solemnly sat down at the table and looked out the window. Lance and Cassie glanced at one another then looked back to Rick.

Lance cleared his throat. "Are you alright, Rick?"

Rick looked over. Usually when he looked at Lance, he shot a dirty look, but this time, he was preoccupied with something else. He had been like this for the past couple of weeks, which Lance didn't mind so much, but it worried Cassie. Rick nodded his head towards Lance. "Yes, I'm fine."

"You don't look fine." Cassie leaned back in her seat.

"Yeah, you look like you've seen a ghost or something," Lance said.

"I'm nothing, really. I'm fine." Rick picked up a book off the table.

In a great and excited commotion, Nanny walked into the room. Happily waving her arms in the air and ordering around the other maids, she rejoiced around the room while making preparations.

"What's going on?" Lance stood up off the couch as the maids started furiously cleaning the room.

Nanny clapped her hands excitedly. "Queen Orla is coming to the Castle tonight!"

"Are you sure, it's not Hagar this time?" Lance asked, remembering the last time Queen Orla came for a visit.

"No, it is not!" Nanny said, offended. "The sister of Allura's mother is coming to stay with us for a week. It will be most splendid occasion."

"Well, that sounds great, Nanny," Cassie said, standing next to Lance. "You seem really excited to see Queen Orla."

Nanny nodded. "Yes, and she's bringing her nephew with her."

"Her nephew?" Lance asked.

"Lord Fabian," Nanny sighed. "He's a most respectable and handsome man…"

"Sounds like someone has a crush," Lance teased.

"No, no, silly!" Nanny waved her hand playfully. "He is to begin courting my daughter, Janna. He is an excellent match for her. Most advantageous!"

Cassie looked over at Rick's stoic face. She knew him better than anyone—he was upset.

Nanny turned back to the maids. "Hurry now! We only have a few hours until she arrives!" Nanny turned away and started helping the other maids clean up the room.

Rick got up from his seat and walked away.

The overhead sun dropped across the sky all afternoon as the lovers lie entangled in each others arms. As the sun began to drop under the horizon, the two started to find their discarded uniforms and pick up their things. Gabriel grabbed a black belt with the gold communicator and tried to put it around his waist. It was too short. "Um, Allura, I think I have your belt."

Allura turned towards him, with his belt and looped it around his waist. She reeled him closer and kissed him.

"Thanks," He faintly smiled.

She fastened the belt for him then bent over to grab her boots. While he slipped his hands back into his gloves, she danced around trying to put her pink boots back on. He grabbed their helmets off the ground while she finished putting her uniform on. Once she was finished, he handed her the pink helmet, and they headed back into the Lion. She dropped down first from the top, and he followed closely behind her.

"Why don't you fly us home?"

She took a seat in the pilot chair. "Yes, I suppose we didn't get any training done this afternoon, did we?"

"I thought we had plenty of exercise," He said, trying to sound serious.

She laughed as she looked over her shoulder at him. She reached up, putting her hand on his arm. "I don't know about you sometimes," She said teasingly. She held her hand out. "I need the key, dear."

He smirked, hearing her term of endearment, and reached down to the key latched to his uniform. He pulled it off his shirt and handed it to Allura. "Here you are, pookie bear," He teased.

"Oh, no! I don't care that we get along with each other now, we are not calling each other those stupid names!"

"Oh, but we more than get along now, muffin-cakes," He leaned down and kissed her cheek.

"You are such a…" She trailed off. She started up the Lion with the key. Instantly, Coran popped up on the screen.

"Coran!" Allura and Gabriel gasped in surprise.

"Where have you two been? I've been trying to page you all afternoon!" Coran scolded.

Gabriel and Allura exchanged awkward glances. "We were…uh…well…we…"

"Nevermind that! You need to hurry and get back to the Castle."

"Why? Is there something wrong?" Gabriel asked.

"Queen Orla has arrived for a visit, and she's looking forward to seeing you, Allura."

"Really? Auntie Orla has come for a visit." Allura sat up in her chair excitedly. "We'll be there right away, Coran."

"Please do, your Majesty." Coran said before ending the transmission.

Allura sent the Black Lion into flight towards the Castle.

Dinner had already started when Gabriel and Allura arrived. Wheeling in a large carriage, Allura walked into the room with her two children resting peacefully. Queen Orla rose to greet Allura, and the two women embraced tightly. After a few moments, Gabriel pulled out Allura's chair, seating her, and then he left for the head of the table.

"It's about time, you got here," Pidge said. "Hunk's been eating all the food!"

"I have not!" Hunk exclaimed with a mashed roll in his mouth. "I'm just hungry, that's all."

"You're always hungry!"

After Allura finished tucking in the twins, she looked up at the table. Sitting at Queen Orla's left was a young man with long blonde hair tied back into a ponytail. His posture was straight and firm like the features of his face. Dressed in the finest red linen, he sat very dignified while swirling the wine in his glass. "Lord Fabian, I was unaware that you would be joining us."

"It is always a pleasure to see you, My Lady," He nodded his head to Allura.

"Is he one of your relatives?" Hunk asked with his mouth full.

"You shouldn't speak like that in front of our royal guests," Nanny scolded. "Only animals make noises with food in their mouths."

Hunk rolled his eyes. "Sorry, I was just tying to make conversation with him. I'm sure he doesn't mind."

"Right," Fabian looked away in disgust.

"What is it that you exactly do, Fabian?" Lance asked.

"Lord Fabian," Fabian cleared his throat. "It's Lord Fabian."

"Lord Fabian," Lance said dryly.

"Well," He sat up in his chair. "Being the nephew of Queen Orla and all, I have important diplomatic duties and all…"

"Yeah, but aren't Gabriel and Allura the sole rulers of Arus?" Pidge asked.

"Well, technically yes…" He muttered.

Coran looked over at Pidge. "There have been many Kingdoms on the Planet Arus over the course of time. It was Allura's father and mother who united the last two kingdoms in marriage and created a single planet kingdom."

"Auntie Orla is still considered a Queen by title and ceremony, but really, the ruling authority now lies with the House of Alfor," Allura added.

"So what you're saying then is that you really do nothing at all," Lance looked over at Fabian.

"That's not true! I have many important roles and obligations, don't I, Aunt Orla?" Fabian looked over at his Aunt.

"Yes, yes, you do," Orla said, almost exasperated, before taking a drink out of her cup.

Fabian puffed out his chest. "I am Lord of the Rigel Province. My family has governed the province for centuries."

"Do you have any family, Lord Fabian?" Nanny asked, trying to change the subject.

He shook his head. "No, I am the last of the Rigel House. It will be my duty to help bring nobility and civilization back to this planet." He look a deep breath, puffing his chest again. "Most of our nobility died in the war, but I can help make Arus strong again."

"How will you do that?" Lanced asked.

Rick looked over at Lance before taking a sip of his soup.

Fabian smirked. "First of all, which by the way, I've been meaning to talk to you about, King Gabriel."

Gabriel looked up.

Fabian pointed to himself. "I believe it would be in the best interest of this planet if you made me General of your armies."

Gabriel wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Do you have any military experience?"

"Well, no, but I am a noble, and nobles always have been officers in the army." Fabian said. "With my skills, I can bring victory to Arus over the forces of Zarkon."

"I'm pretty sure Voltron is doing that!" Rick snapped.

Fabian glanced over at Rick, giving him a dirty look, but Cassie looked over at Rick, signaling him to calm down. Rick turned back to his dinner.

"Secondly, to make this planet great again, I will find a beautiful wife and restore the House of Rigel. Once the nobility of this planet is restored, the rest is soon to follow…"

"As if one isn't enough, he wants to reproduce," Lance muttered under his breath.

Pidge laughed as he overheard Lance.

Fabian turned to his left, looking at Janna. Quietly, the young girl sat in her chair all night. Nanny had decked her out in a forest green dressed trimmed in gold. He smirked, beaming with pride. "You should consider yourself lucky, my dear. I have my eye set on you."

Nanny perked up in her seat as Fabian spoke to Janna.

"Yeah, while the other eye is wandering towards someone else!" Rick snapped again.

"Do you have a problem, boy?" Fabian turned back forward, staring towards Rick. "You have been nothing but rude since the moment I arrived. If Arus was what it used to be, you'd be my stable boy!"

"The only thing worse would to be your horse!"

"Fabian!" Orla scolded. The two men fell silent as Orla gave them both displeasing looks. "We've come here to see Allura and the twins. I will not have this vacation ruined by childish bickering. Fabian, you need to show a little more respect for your people…"

"But he started it!" Fabian whined.

"Yeah, and I'll finish it!" Rick stood up from the table and angrily walked away.

"Rick!" Janna called out, speaking for the first time tonight. Fabian looked over at her, disgusted.

"Just let him go for now," King Gabriel said. "Let him cool down."

Janna nodded then looked back to her plate.

"Anyway!" Nanny interjected. "Who's ready for dessert?" She got up and immediately started serving the mint ice cream she made. Even though most weren't finished with their dinners, Nanny still passed out the frozen treat.

Orla looked down to the carriage at the sleeping twins. "Allura, tell me how the twins are doing. They look like they've groan so much since the christening ceremony." She reached down into the carriage and picked up Lathan. "It is wonderful to see your father's legacy strong again."

Allura nodded, reaching down into the carriage for Serenity. "They are doing very well, Auntie. Serenity's very fussy, but she's precious." Allura smiled as her daughter squirmed in her arms.

"You were fussy as a baby too, Allura, but you grew out of it…"

"No, she didn't!" Lance interjected. Everyone heartily laughed.

"I sure hope so," Allura yawned. "Excuse me."

Pidge looked over at Allura. "You look really tired, Allura. Geeze, Gabriel what'd you do to her this afternoon?"

"Nothing!" Gabriel exclaimed, immediately blushing a furious red. He glanced around for a moment as everyone looked over at him. "I mean, nothing," He repeated much softer.

"What I think he means is that we spent the afternoon exercising," Allura glanced up with a smirk spread across her face.

"Yes, that is what I meant, exercising." He grinned like a mountain lion before taking a drink from his cup.

Coran wiped his face with his napkin then laid it over his plate. "Well, I suppose I should be getting back to the control room." He stood up from his chair. Everyone else followed suit.

"I better get out on night patrol then," Pidge said.

"Perhaps we should adjourn to the recreation room for some tea and after dinner cookies?" Nanny motioned towards the door.

Fabian turned towards Janna and extended his arm. "That would sound lovely, don't you think, Miss Raining?"

"Of course she does!" Nanny added.

Fabian took Janna by the arm and started leading her out of the room. "Perhaps I can give you a complete history of the Rigel House. It's quite fascinating, you know."

Janna pulled her arm away from Fabian. "I would prefer to retire for the night."

"May escort you to your room then? I wish for a conversation with you"

"No, you may not."

"Janna!" Nanny exclaimed. "Lord Fabian is our guest, and when he makes a request, you must…"

"Then why don't you talk to him then?" Janna stormed off.

"Well," Fabian said, snidely. "Perhaps the girl is not worth my time anyway," He charged towards the exit.

"Lord Fabian, don't say that! I promise she'll be much more behaved next time!" Nanny chased after him.

Everyone glanced at one another awkwardly.

Surprisingly, both twins fell asleep right away. Usually, Serenity would stay awake long into the night and wail loudly, but tonight, she was sound asleep. Allura marveled at the blessing as she looked down at her daughter. She reached down and gently stroked Serenity's head then Lathan's stomach. She smiled and turned away from the crib. She shut the lights off and quietly headed out of the room.

As she walked back into the bedroom, Gabriel looked up at her, surprised that she was finished with the twins so soon. "They're asleep already?"

Allura nodded. "Yes, both sound asleep."

Gabriel looked over at the time. "It's only 9 o'clock." He sat down on the edge of the bed, bewildered. "So what do we do for two hours?"

As she walked by, she gave him a shove back onto the bed. "I can think of a few things," She said, crawling onto the bed. She rested her face against the bed, looking towards him.

He stared at her quietly for a moment then smiled.

"What?" She asked.

"I never thought this day would come," He said.

"I didn't either, but now that it has, I wouldn't trade it for the world."

He reached up, putting his hand on her cheek. "Allura."

"I love you, Gabriel."

"I love you too," He said, just before kissing her.

It was dark in the kitchen as he weaved around the tables and chairs. He headed towards the refrigerator and opened it, filling the kitchen with light. He quickly made himself a sandwich with the turkey, ham, lettuce, cumcumbers, mayonnaise, and wheat bread.

"Hello, Coran."

Coran spun around with his sandwich. "Oh, Nanny, you scared me!" At the table in the kitchen, Nanny sat in the dark with a glass and a tall bottle. Coran gasped. "Nanny, are you drinking?"

"No, no, Master Coran. It's grape-juice." She sighed.

Coran set his plate down onto the table. He pulled out the chair and sat down.

"You want some?" She asked.

Coran sighed. "Yes, it has been one of those weeks." He took the glass after Nanny poured him some juice. He took a sip and set it back down on the table. "So why are you sitting in the dark and drinking grape juice, Nanny?"

Nanny shrugged, pouring herself another glass. "Oh, that girl will be the death of me, I swear it!"

"Janna," Coran nodded.

"I've really have my work cut out for me if I'm going to make her into a proper lady for Lord Fabian," Nanny sighed. "That girl is so stubborn!"

"Just like her mother," Coran mumbled.

"What did you say?" Nanny jerked her head towards Coran.

"Nothing," He quickly said.

Nanny poured herself another glass. "I must say, Coran, despite all the troubles I've been forced to carry with this Castle, Arus has never had happy times since the days of good King Alfor."

Coran nodded. "Yes, things are slowly returning to normal."

Nanny sighed. "More, Coran?"

He looked down at his empty glass then raised it up. Nanny poured more grape-juice into his glass then she set down the bottle.

"Yes, these are happy times." She raised her glass. "To Arus!"

Coran nodded. "To Arus." He tipped his glass against Nanny's.