26. The Revival

The air in the savanna was dry and the yellow grass crunched beneath Keith's feet as he dismounted from his dragon. Slowly, he walked across the plain to the large group of Builders stacking stones onto platforms that were then pulled up by a large wooden device. Other Builders were working on the back of dragons putting the stones together with cement. They were building a tower. By the looks of it, Keith guessed it was just about half bottom half had been easy to put together, but long in making as the Builders had to find enough metal to recreate the white metal used on the refurbished parts of the Altean castle, but the black stone was easy enough to find in the volcanic region between Ko-gane and what was now the Western Head Plains, previously the Galra Empire.

Weeks had passed since Zarkon had been defeated. It was still too early to call the war with the Galra over, but there had been little rebellion from those who had escaped the onslaught of their attack and those still waiting in the west. When they had dug through the remains of Zarkon's castle, they had not found Prince Lotor and among those they had taken prisoner, none seem particularly high in status and had quickly been taken care of before they could encourage the loyalty of the Galra that decided to move to their side. Any who held even a bit of rank were handed over to Lance ten led to meet the others.

Keith turned his head and stared at what remained of the Galra castle and factories. It was mostly just floor plans with underground passageways that were still being explored, many blocked off by secret rooms. It appeared the Galra had started their castle underground, but they had been quick about building it. It was the factories that had given them away as they billowed out black smoke at every hour of the day filling the sky above the castle with dark clouds. Now, the sky was clear again.

"Lord Keith, you've finally arrived," a voice called.

"Prince Shiro," Keith greeted as he turned and smiled at the Ko-gane prince.

Shiro reached out with his right arm, an arm built of an almost metal like clay and pockets of steam by Matt and Pidge. He placed it on Keith's shoulder and squeezed. The arm squeaked and Keith barely felt the press. The Ko-gane prince was still use to trying to be gentle with his enhanced arm that the much softer material was lost on him. Keith had seen him grow aggravated trying to pick cups up with his right hand only for them to slip out. It reminded him of the days when he had first returned to Ko-gane. He had been much more use to moving that arm, but he had crushed many things in his grip on accident.

"Is Prince Lance not with you?" Shiro asked.

"No, he is still training soldiers and then he has to meet with dukes to prepare for the coming Day of Prayer. I'll be taking note of the construction on Altea's part. I'll also be staying the night," Keith said.

Shiro moved his arm to wrap around Keith's shoulder and tugged him close. "In that case, let's go below and get you a bag set up."

Keith followed Shiro to the entrance of the tower they were building. Inside, more Builders were working with the help of Ko-gane and Altean volunteers hooking up electricity and bringing in pews. There were Altar Masters directing the flow of the decorating and also discussing the differences between the Altean and Ko traditions of their religion. In the back of the main floor there was a large door heavily decorated and Shiro moved away to hold it open for Keith.

"Is it alright for us to go in?" Keith asked.

"The Shrine Masters haven't blocked it off yet. They won't make you get blessed, but I will be as I'll be stationed here to look after the front," Shiro said.

"This is the most dangerous place for you to be if the Galra do make an attack," Keith pointed out then walked in immediately ending up on a flight of stairs.

"The Galra won't attack a place heavily guarded like this. Besides, I'm to have Black. That's why father put me here and Queen Allura agreed," Shiro explained and began walking.

Keith followed reaching a hand out to graze along the wall. There was a hum in the stones, a warm one, but not the warmth of fire. It was cool, too. It reminded him of a sunny day's breeze. When they got to the bottom, Keith immediately walked over to the large crystal housing the stone lion with the mechanical face. Parts of it still glowed purple from where the Galra had infected it, but those patches had not grown.

"An altar for the head of Voltron, what a thing to build in the middle of what use to be our enemies empire," Keith said softly shaking his head.

"Well, Altea and Ko-gane both wanted the head so we decided just to build an altar out of the way of both our territories. The Builders have the other arm and when the other leg gets here from the Extreme South, we'll put another shrine in the east for it," Shiro explained.

"People will begin to move out there," Keith pointed out.

"It's fine to expand as long as it is natural," Shiro said. "I've spoken with the Blade of Marmora. They will be settling here as well to help me watch over the head. The last few rulers of the Galra forced expansion. They stripped areas around them of natural resources then moved on when food became a problem."

"I speak with them often as well." Keith knew the stories. Ulaz and Thace came to the Crystal Castle often to join Keith in his small war councils to decide on training and where to move their soldiers along the borders. Sometimes Lance joined, but the Heir Prince had not been lying when he said he was only Prince Commander in name.

"They quite like you," Shiro said. "Oh, how is Matt? I haven't seen him in a week. He's helping reestablish the flow of the Builder tribes."

"He's also been planning your wedding," Keith pointed out. "Good thing Chief Holt allowed you to postpone it until after the Day of Prayer. Matt is a mess with the time he has now and Lord Pidge is no help."

"I hear Allura has been excited to help. I'm glad they get along."

"I'm glad they do, too," Keith said and turned to look at the bedrolls laying across the floor of the bottom level of the shrine.

"You can have the one next to mine," Shiro said leading Keith over to a group of bedrolls in a private corner of the floor closest to the crystal. He sat down and patted the one next to his.

Keith moved and took the offered spot staring at the crystal. "It's beautiful."

"We plan to erect it by the end of the week. The Builders will be almost close to finishing the ceiling by then."

"I'm glad they agreed to help out. This isn't something we're paying them for."

Shiro shrugged. "It's not like they really care for our money. They supply most of our weapons and food. There's nothing they really need from us other than space and freedom."

"Is it really freedom, though? They're stuck between us, they've always been stuck there, like prisoners. Sometimes I wonder if we're treating them any better than Zarkon treated his prisoners," Keith said.

Shiro's good arm lifted and wrapped around Keith's shoulders. Keith turned to look at the Ko prince. He was smiling softly, an understanding look in his eyes.

"The point of my initial engagement to Allura was to combine our two kingdoms," Shiro said. "Then there was the exchange. Children born between an Altean and a Ko have a two third chance to be a master. How strong of a master, I don't know, but it is more the concern of which elemental they will master that is the question. Allura could have given birth to a Fire Master and then that would have been Altea's heir."

Keith nodded. He understood, but such a thing would take generations and it had only just began. "Shiro, Matt wanted me to ask you something when I got here."

"Oh, what is it? If it is about flower colors, I told him too many black flowers would dull the affair, purple is a better choice."

"No, it's not that. He wants to know how your nightmares have been out here at the shrine."

Shiro pulled his hand away and ran it through his white bangs. The roots were still white, the stress of that year in Zarkon's arena still showing through. "You knew about the nightmares, too?"

"You've always had them, but these aren't nightmares, are they? You never remember your nightmares. I noticed before you left back to Ko-gane. Did you remember something?" Keith asked.

Shiro leaned back and stared up at the ceiling of the bottom floor. It appeared as if someone had started a glass collage with Builder's lightbulbs flashing light from beneath. "I've been remembering my time in the arena more and how I got out. The reason why Zarkon wanted tried to capture Black wasn't because of her threat, but because he use to have a Black. He wasn't bonded to them, but he kept them below and forced them to breed to make the eggs they used to hold babies in. Some of the masters have come by to research the room we found in the castle where the process was being made. I didn't know it was my Black and never realized I was the reason she got out."

"What do you mean?" Keith asked.

"I was a jumble of mess. I destroyed a lot of panel trying to get out of the castle. Ulaz had told me certains to hit. I must have hit the one that let her out. They were diversions and I suppose her getting out made a great one.. I always saw glimpses of her memories so I knew she hadn't been treated well, but they were strange thoughts, all darkness, glowing tubes, pain, and unfamiliar hands. She didn't know any better than I."

"Oh, no wonder she bonded with you when you got back to Ko-gane. She could probably feel it. But, there were other things weren't there?"

"I remembered Matt," Shiro said. "They were going to force him to fight and I volunteered in his stead. He ended up proving he was smart and went to work with Chief Holt. I refused every offer to give me an enhancement whenever I won until they said they would take Matt and Chief Holt away. I still refused, but then couldn't find them and they brought me proof that they had disposed of them so I gave up. I didn't even want to leave when Ulaz tried to help me escape during a routine upgrade to my arm, but he said 'If you want to see your two partners again, you must leave now and bring an army'. He gave me hope, so I left."

Keith moved an arm to one of Shiro's shoulder this time. "It's alright. They wouldn't have been happy if you gave in. You and Lance wouldn't be happy with me either if I did the same."

"That's true," Shiro said then let out a puff of air. "I remembered my opponents, but I rather not go into detail about what I did to them. For a while I was not myself. It was horrible."

Keith's hand moved to squeeze Shiro's neck instead. "It's alright. Matt still loves you no matter what. And I love you."

Shiro chuckled. "Lance would have a fit if he heard you say that."

"Lance had a fit when I told Pidge I loved her," Keith said. "I didn't even say it emotionally. She just said something funny."

"Oh, and how did my future sister-in-law react?" Shiro asked.

Keith shrugged. "She blushed and sputtered and then Lance couldn't decide if he wanted to tease her or get mad at me."

Shiro smiled. "I'm glad you're finding more people to love. I knew you loved me and you love Red, but the only other things you seemed to love was fighting and your knife."

"I love King Akira and the rest of the royal family. When I became your protector, they were good to me. And they were good to me before then as well because of Red and because I am a Ko-gane."

"You're not Ko-gane now, though, you're Kuro-gane. You're of the Iron House."

Keith's ears perked up. "I've been that for a while now, haven't I?"

"Yes you have, but you seem to always forget," Shiro teased.

Keith glared then hummed thoughtfully. "Matt Shiro-gane. Prince Matt Shiro-gane. I wonder if he realizes he'll be a prince."

"Quiznak," Shiro whispered under his breath.

Keith stared at the Ko prince for a moment before suddenly laughing. "Just because you're the third son doesn't mean your husband won't be a prince, too, when you're married. I can't believe you forgot."

Shiro glared at Keith, but a smile tugged at his lips. "I guess I have an excuse to visit Altea now when you leave tomorrow."

The chill on Keith's fingertips as he held the blade of his sword was something he had yet become accustomed to since coming to Altea. And with the marred flesh of his hands from the rejection of Zarkon's blade, the cold was only made worse, but he refused to light up his sword with fire. He didn't want to risk Zarkon's sword rejecting his flames as well. Even in its sleep state the sword was large. At first Keith thought not to use it, but he wanted to overcome the sting he got from it every time he touched the handle barefisted. It had reacted to his blood, but there was a deeper meaning to it that Keith didn't think Pidge and Matt could ever figure out. It was blood magic, the Galra's old forgotten magic. Keith didn't think it had much to do with numbers and physics, but instincts. Plus, he just liked swinging it in the faces of small Zarkon enthusiasts that thought they could set up on the border again as if they wouldn't be noticed, or those that tried to ransack a castle or a city in protest. It was a reminder that their tyrant was gone and if they wanted to follow the blood line, here was Keith. But, there might always still be Prince Lotor marred by Keith's flames, and that was the thought that plagued Keith after every minor battle.

Keith jumped from Red into the snow with a crunch before walking to the camp he and a small fleet had set up near a town Zarkon enthusiasts had recently tried to ransack in the south west border of Altea and the Head's plain. He pulled the scabbard belt swung over his shoulders off as he headed to the fire pit closest to his tent before plopping down. He removed his gloves and held his hand out to the orange flames glowing in the evening shadow of the forest.

"You still get cold?" a voice asked and there was a heavy plop on the space beside Keith.

"I'm still a Fire Master, I get cold." Keith turned to see Lord Hunk smiling brightly at Keith, blood smeared across one of his cheeks. It was a strange sight and Keith threw him a cloth he had been carrying in his pocket.

"This is one of Lance's," Hunk said and wiped his face.

"Yeah, called it a token or something when we headed out."

Hunk chuckled and handed it back. "He still flirts with you even now, that's good. I'm glad your relationship has stayed up even though it has been about a half a year since your marriage."

"Close to it, yeah," Keith said. He didn't want Lance to stop flirting with him even if it was annoying sometimes.

"Hey there, Commander," Pidge said swinging around and plopping down on the bench across from them, legs spread wide and gun powder covering her hands spreading onto her knees as she dusted them off.

"I'm not the commander, Pidge."

"Proxy-Commander then. Doesn't matter. Lance only agreed because the court wouldn't put a Galra in charge of their army if their lives depended on it, which it does, but they're idiots," Pidge complained.

"Lord Pidge," Keith groaned looking around at the other soldiers and knights he had brought to deal with the small raid. For someone who was suppose to be the heir's and Prince Commander's protector, Pidge still spoke of the Alteans with little respect.

"If the court wants to put someone else up in my spot, they can feel free, but I'm not stepping down for just anyone," Pidge continued.

"Pidge, just because Green is in heat doesn't mean you can spout whatever comes out of your mouth to deal with the bond's affects," Hunk said.

Pidge reddened and looked away. "It's not like Gold isn't in heat, too."

Lord Hunk sighed and looked up into the sky. "That was the reason we came out here. Battles help to deal with the pent up frustration."

"I know, that's why I insisted on having you both," Keith said. "I only brought knights with female dragons out to help clear up the stench in the caves."

"Yeah, ever since Black moved out, the dragons are having to readjust their heat cycles. Without an Alpha to trigger it, they kind of just go off as they like. Red must be having the worse of it," Hunk said then sent Keith a sympathetic look.

Keith looked up into the sky to see Red flying over head. "It hasn't been bad in that way. She misses Black, but it is easier for her to go see Black when she likes than it is for me to see Shiro. Besides, she has friends here. But, you're not wrong to think she will be going into heat before the Day of Prayer comes."

"I could care less about these heats, I'm just excited for my brother to get married already. I'm tired of having to help him plan it."

"You're no help, Pidge. Queen Allura and Lance have been doing everything while you just sit there and be miserable," Hunk pointed out.

"I made confetti canons, that helps," Pidge argued. "It's not like you do any better standing in the corner watching the door."

"tI was doing my job," Hunk protested. "Besides, I made the meal plan. You know how much I like cooking."

"Of course I do, but you know who doesn't? Shay, your pregnant girlfriend."

Keith's ears perked up and he turned to Hunk surprised. "Shay's pregnant?"

Hunk's face burned and he scratched at a cheek turning to Keith. "Well, yeah. The Balmera don't really like for pregnancies to happen outside of their yearly fertility ceremony, but I rarely get a chance to see her nowadays. I was planning to ask Queen Allura's permission to bring her to the castle until the baby is born."

"She'll agree to it," Keith assured.

"Oh, I know that, but I'm worried about the cost of a wedding. Balmera don't marry, but if we have to, we will for decency sake. It's not like I don't want to be with Shay forever."

Keith frowned. "You don't have to be forced into marriage. Don't do it for the court's sake."

Hunk chuckled and shook his head. "No, it's not like I haven't always wanted to marry Shay, but that's just not something the Balmera tribe does. It's not like I would hate it."

Keith leaned in and placed a hand on Hunk's shoulder. "Don't worry about the funds, I'm sure Lance will want to help out when you tell him. It'll be like he's an uncle. He'll be too excited and won't let you say no."

"Thanks, Keith," Hunk said, "but if Lance thinks of my kid as his nephew or niece then that makes you an uncle as well, right?"

An uncle? Did that make Keith an uncle?

"Uncle Keith," Pidge said then started laughing.

"Hey, you'll be Aunt Pidge," Hunk pointed out.

Pidge made a face. "Don't remind me. There's no way Matt and Shiro won't adopt a couple kids. Matt has actually been looking into a safe way of doing that egg embryo thing the Galra were doing so maybe they won't even have to adopt."

"Hey, that would be cool. Oh, then Lance and Keith could have a child and the court could stop harping on Allura to get knocked up."

Pidge raised her hands and shrugged. "Or Allura could just make a baby without a particular father and it wouldn't be a scandal."

"You have a point there," Hunk agreed.

Keith, however, was stuck on the first option Pidge had presented. A baby that was his and Lance's. If Lance really wanted children, Keith was fine with adopting, but the court wouldn't be happy with letting one of them rule. They wanted the blood of the Altea House to stay as the ruling line. Still...well, it was too early to be thinking about that. They hadn't even been married a year.

"I'll talk to the court about putting more funds into researching that," Keith piped in then added, "for Allura's sanity."

The sun felt warm against Keith's skin in the late morning with a clear blue sky covering the wide expanse of the world above him, but Keith barely got to feel it flying so quickly above the Lair on the back of Red. The cool air slapped his cheeks red and mad his nose run, but Keith smiled through it, a laugh escaping his lips as he passed through a formation of Golds.

"Keith, stop running through the other knights! You're getting Blue all tangled up," Lance yelled after Keith.

"That's the point," Keith called back and glanced behind him to see Lance holding onto Blue as the large serpent like dragon did a quick corkscrew to get around the surprised Golds before continuing to chase after Keith.

They had called an early practice so the knights could have the rest of the day to enjoy time together after a week without a single sign of Zarkon lovers on the border. There had been little such activity since the last emergency raid stop. The pop ups from Galra angry in the loss of Zarkon or angry confused on what to do with themselves now that their tyrant was gone had simply become an annoyance. Certainly, there was the possibility that Prince Lotor or other high ranking officials might attack them on a full scale, but with the raising of the Tower of the Head, they were starting to spread outwards with their guard. They wouldn't be caught with so much surprise if someone did try and cause trouble again.

Lance's Blue snapped at Red's tail catching up to them with its longer body. The smaller dragon took to a nose dive straight down, a purr deep in her throat as she flew. The rumble only encouraged Keith's laughter and he held on, eyes closed to keep the wind from stinging them as he looked through their bond to steer. When they evened out, he patted Red's scales.

"You did good, girl. Tell Blue to meet us at the dock. He's got to catch us before then if he wants to win," Keith told his dragon.

A flash of Lance's head nodding moved across Keith's vision telling him that the Blue rider agreed. Immediately, Keith started to fly, eyes focused on the dock of the cabins.

"There's a Brown readying to take off. Go in beneath him," Keith instructed.

Red brought her wings in and started in quick going under the Brown at the last moment, only to pull up as a spring of Blue scales surrounded her. The Brown roared softly in annoyance and their young rider glared at them both before bowing his head and scooting further down to take off.

"Hey, you were suppose to be behind us," Keith said. "This wasn't a race."

"No it wasn't," Lance called, his voice not coming from his dragon, but the docks Blue was holding them back from landing on. "The deal was I had to catch you which I did by getting to your destination first. I used tactics, you should be proud."

Keith pressed his lips. "I am proud."

"You don't sound it," Lance said laughing.

"Can you get Blue out of the way, I want to land," Keith said.

Suddenly, Blue uncurled himself and moved off to the side and Keith was met with Lance standing on the edge of the dock with outstretched arms.

"You want me to jump?" Keith asked.

"You do it all the time. I can bet you would have jumped off Red if I had continued chasing you."

Lance wasn't wrong.

"Come on, Hot Stuff. I can already tell you're cold. Let me warm you up."

Keith rolled his eyes, but moved from his laying position into a standing position before jumping. Lance did catch him, but not well. They landed in a pile on the dock with Keith straddling Lance's waist. Keith immediately grabbed onto Lance's arms and held them above his head.

"H-hey! I'm suppose to be warming you up, I can't do that if my hands aren't free," Lance protested.

Keith just grinned down at his husband. "Are you sure all you want to do is warm me up? I can't trust your hands when we're in public."

Lance looked at him confused before his eyes widened and he laughed. "You think I want to start anything with you when you have snot running down your face?"

Embarrassment added to the red already on his cheeks and Keith let Lance go to rub at his nose. Immediately, Lance sat up and grabbed Keith's face between his hands, kissing him sloppily and Keith soon melted into it, his body instantly warmer.

"I was kidding," Lance said pulling away and leaning back. "I always want to kiss you. It's been awhile since we've gotten to play around."

"We've got more responsibilities now," Keith pointed out settling into Lance's lap, a position far more natural than it use to be.

"Yeah, you keep going off to fight battles I can't join. Luckily, those are few and far between now," Lance said and reached up to push some of Keith's hair back revealing the point of his crown which he had only now began to wear. "You're a good commander."

"You're the actual commander. I wouldn't be anything without you to keep me from rushing into things," Keith said.

"You're not wrong," Lance said and leaned in to kiss Keith's crown. "It's been busy lately. We'll have to make some time for us soon."

Keith nodded and shifted against Lance's waist. Warmth was filling into him just being close to his husband and he leaned in to wrap his arms around Lance's shoulders and kissed softly at his neck. Lance brought a hand up to Keith's hair, tangling his long fingers into the small ponytail Keith had pulled his hair into and tugged it free.

"You're purring," Lance said, voice deeper than usual.

"Yeah, so what?" Keith asked. Lance smelt good. There was a bit of musk from the sweat of training earlier and his usual sharpness, but also a coolness that Keith could only describe as cold wind.

"And you're instigating in public," Lance said.

That point stumped Keith. He did occasionally kiss Lance in public, but he didn't do half of what Lance did to him when there were too many other people around. It was more out of respect for other people's comfort than being ashamed. Keith moved from Lance's neck and looked up to the sky where Blue was curling around Red then letting her zoom off before catching her still nipping at her tail. It was only a few seconds later that Red zipped into her cave with Blue chasing after her.

"Red's in heat," Lance said.

Keith chewed his bottom lip. He had already known that. It was part of why he had wanted to fly around in the cool air. His body was hotter than usual. "Her last heat started when we raided Zarkon's castle. She worked most of it off during that fight."

"And you were in no state to let anyone help you through it," Lance said placing a hand on Keith's side where the scars from Haggar's ice prick still marred his skin.

A low rumble escaped Keith's chest and he moved to stand up. Lance moved to hold Keith in place, but an unconscious groan had him letting Keith free.

"Blue, should I get him to stop?" Lance asked.

Keith looked towards Red's cave entrance, his breathing becoming labored. If Red was to mate she would definitely become pregnant and that would put her out of commission for a few months. But, Keith could ride Blue and Shiro's Black if need be. Both dragons trusted him enough if a battle called for them. Others might trust him, too, but Keith wouldn't chance it. They weren't in a war any longer. They were post war. It was a time Keith never thought he'd live to see when every day was spent learning how to kill people like the man he so deeply loved.

Keith turned back to Lance and reached a hand out to help him up. "How about you give me a hand through this heat, Commander?"

Lance immediately grabbed onto Keith's hand and let the other pull him up. Once on his feet, he brought Keith into a tight embrace, his nose nuzzling against Keith's ear. "I told you not to make that a thing. I can't get a hard on in the middle of training."

Keith chuckled and pulled away grabbing hold of Lance's hand. "Let's commandeer a cabin, Commander. You've got some mounting to do."

Lance groaned, but let Keith pull him along. There were eyes on them as they walked through the hallway hand in hand, purring loud in Keith's throat, both of their bodies radiating more heat than usual. They caused little worry, though. Let the other Alteans know. Red's pride was making Keith hold his head high in front of them. Dragons didn't just mate because there was a male that wanted them. It was an honor for the male and the female had to be proud of her chosen. Mating for dragons wasn't just sexual pleasure, they could do that any time of the year, it was a show of power and Keith felt powerful leading Lance into a cabin lit dimly by an open curtain.

The moment they were inside, Lance pulled his hand away and shut the door before pinning Keith against the wall. He held Keith's wrists at his head and moved his lips in a hard descent onto Keith's. Keith gasped giving Lance entrance to the inside of his mouth and the feel of Lance's tongue rolling against the sweet spots in Keith's mouth had him purring louder, ears flattened. Lance pulled away only to come back, tugging Keith's bottom lip with his teeth. Keith responded and tasted the sting of blood in his mouth.

"You bit me," Lance said finally letting Keith's wrists go and wiped at his lip where a small cut was pearling with red drops on his lower lip.

"S-sorry," Keith said, but he didn't really feel it. His sharper canines felt more obvious in his mouth and he had the urge to bite more, partly from his bond with Red and partly his own animalistic fantasies.

"It's fine," Lance said moving his hands to Keith's waist. He started to tug the fabric of Keith's shirt out of his breeches leaning in to start kissing again as he did. "I'll be leaving my own bites on your skin soon."

Keith growled at that, but didn't move away. Lance's hand immediately moved under his shirt and began to feel up the skin of his stomach. His fingertips tickled at the scar on Keith's side and he jerked at the touch. The coldness of Haggar's magic still residing in the wound reacted strongly to Lance's. Lance's fingers grew colder and Keith could feel his flames move to touch Lance's cold encouraging it to burn away any remnants of the druids magic still there. Lance moved his fingers away from the scar after some time and let his cool fingers move up until he was pinching one of Keith's nipples.

Heat tented Keith's pants to the point they felt hot and he arched his body towards Lance's. Lance only reacted with a growl and leaned down, his head disappearing beneath the loose fabric of Keith's shirt. Then there was a mouth and a cold tongue on his other nipple. Keith reached above his head and scratched at the wall. Lance's ice felt so good on his overheated body. Red could sense the relief too, but Keith was unsure if it was from their bond or if the Blue's bond with Lance meant a shared amount of knowledge.

"Quiznak! Lance," Keith growled arching his body more against Lance's. He wanted more, but he couldn't bring himself to reach out to Lance and force it. He was the displayer, not the one trying to mount. All he had to do was lay there and be pleased, that was what Red's instincts told him and Keith couldn't fight against such a strong feeling when he had a willing mate right here who was filling the same needs as his dragon. "I need to be breeded, Lance. I need to be mounted and thrusted until I'm full and raw."

Lance stilled then pulled his head from beneath Keith's shirt to look at Keith with lust glazed surprised eyes. "Voltron's ass, I want to mount you so much, Keith. This...this is way better than last time."

Of course it was. Lance knew little about heats, but last time Red had been seduced by her emotions and Blue's closeness, but stopped realizing it wasn't a good time for eggs. This time, there was no excuse.

Keith finally moved. He lifted a leg between them and pressed his foot just above Lance's crotch. His heel touched the very tip of the obvious bulge as he applied soft pressure to get Lance to back up. Lance groaned, but obeyed the wordless command looking at Keith pleadingly like Blue would while circling Red right before she would allow the larger dragon to mount.

"Dragons don't wear clothes, Lance," Keith said. "Strip."

Lance's hands were immediately at his breeches. He pulled them off with little grace and then threw off his tunic and shirt as well before moving back to Keith. Lance kissed him quickly, hands working the strings of Keith's breeches opened then pushed them down and had Keith's shirt off before Keith could protest at the roughness. He gasped when he was suddenly thrown onto the small bed near the window in the room and caged in by strong tanned arms.

Keith's heart was beating erratically as he looked up at Lance's wild face. He was breathing heavily, confusion and eagerness written in his eyes, but patience pulled at his face. Just like Blue, Lance would not dare continue until Keith had given him the go ahead.

Keith squirmed against the sheets below him then reached up and ran his hands down Lance's arms then back up before moving them to hold Lance's face. Keith moved a thumb to Lance's lips, pressing them, and got a lick in return for his teasing that made Keith shiver. Keith looked away from Lance's face and down his built body to see his large member hard and ready. It wasn't time, but the sight of Lance's manhood and knowing what it could do during normal sex had pearls forming on his own tip.

"If you're mounting then I should turn," Keith said and moved in the cage of Lance's arms to crawled out from beneath them so he was at the head of the bed on his hands and knees. He then lowered himself onto his elbows and spread his legs, ass barely a foot from Lance's face. He wiggled his hips and turned to watch Lance force himself to keep restrained. A dragon male did not want to be bitten for being too eager. "We're not dragons, Lance. You're my husband, mount me."

Lance groaned and placed a hand on Keith's lower back before leaning over him and reached for the drawer of the bedside table in the cabin they had rolled into. He pulled out one of the oils someone had left there before then moved back behind Keith. "I want to stick it in you so bad right now, Keith, but you're right, we're not dragons. It must be way worse for you, but even Blue won't mount Red without some preparation. I taught my dragon well."

"What did you teach him?" Keith asked, a purr building up again as he reached out to stretch his body, nails digging and kneading into the pillow at the head of the bed and he wiggled his bottom more. A sudden slap to his ass had Keith gasping and getting back up on his hands. He turned and looked at Lance surprised. "What was that for?"

"That was more for me than you. I like your ass. Also, Blue is getting ahead of me and I want to focus. You might be getting Red's feelings, but I'm being fed images and it's not as appealing as you might think watching Blue's fascination with your dragon's girl parts."

"Lance~" Keith moaned and got back on his elbows. "I swear if you don't shut up and do something, I'll find something else in this room to ride or I'll go jump in the lake. It's so hot!"

"Right, well, I've got the perfect thing to occupy my mouth with," Lance said and suddenly grabbed both of Keith's buttcheeks, spreading them.

Keith was about to protest. No matter how much his body wanted to be mounted, he was certain he couldn't take Lance at full girth without preparation. They hadn't been having sex every night. It wasn't often that they did have sex every night. His brain froze, though, when he felt something wet licking at his hole and then it was cold. A cold tongue licking at his heat. Keith's ears flattened and he kneaded at the pillow in front of him harder pressing back.

"Voltron's ass, Lance, do this more often," Keith groaned. It was a strange sensation that made him wiggle both to get away and to get more of it, but it left him with fluttering in his lower stomach. Keith didn't think it would feel this good if he used his power on Lance like this, but he could barely think at all. Red's lust and pleasure was coursing through him so strong now, he was on the verge of losing words. It had never been this bad. Red never asked for much help of her clan during her heats, so Keith was always left just jerking off in an empty room when it got to be too much.

Lance pulled away with a slurping sound that had Keith shivering in pleasurable disgust. His tongue was quickly replaced by slimy hard digits that weren't half as cold as Lance' tongue had been and didn't give Keith the same satisfied relief with equal amounts of torture. But, Lance's fingers were long and experienced and they reached deep inside Keith. When they curled against that spot, Keith came dry with a low growl.

"Hmm," Lance hummed and pulled out his fingers. "You really do need to be mounted or else you won't release, huh? Are you going to present yourself all pretty like? You're in charge here, I'm just doing your bidding."

Keith groaned. His tongue felt heavy and his body was tingling all over from the small orgasm he'd just experienced, perhaps more from his bond with Red than from Lance's actual touch. He opened his mouth to retort, but just ended up growling. He scooted his knees closer to his arms so his bottom was higher in the air then reached behind himself to grab onto his own cheeks and spread so Lance could see his wet hole already spread open and prepared by Lance himself. It was an open invitation.

"Quiznak," Lance growled low and grabbed onto Keith's hips. He started to kiss and nip at Keith's waist like a dragon would to get their mate to relax. The kisses moved up the spin of Keith's back until Lance's hips were aligned with Keith's, tip pushing in as Lance tried to fold himself over Keith who was almost already bent in half.

Keith stretched out as he felt Lance pushing in. He moved his hips on instinct to help guide his husband's sex deeper and deeper, pushing up so he was on his arms again when Lance was fully seated. It was so hot and hard. Keith stared blankly outside the window by the bed, his vision blurry with tears from the pleasure. Lance brought a hand to Keith's throat then moved it up to his chin. He caressed Keith's face, not moving his hips even an inch letting Keith feel him and get use to him. Lance's hand moved to his hair, just brushing through his choppy locks then suddenly, Lance grabbed a fistful and forced Keith's head down. Teeth buried into the back of Keith's neck holding on for dear life as Lance started to piston his hips.

The moment Lance started to move, Keith began to growl loudly. He clawed at the pillow below him, seething with a strange rage that didn't hurt. It felt good. He wiggled back against Lance almost too hard, but Lance's teeth didn't stop biting him. Keith's chest rose up and down with rough breaths nowhere close in time with Lance's erratic thrusts that went way too deep and way too hard. Keith felt his own member, stiff beyond compare, still wagging beneath him with Lance's movements and the bed creaked, headboard hitting against the wall by the window.

Keith wasn't sure for how long they went, that pleasurable rage making him feel like he was going insane, but when he felt Lance spill deep inside him, Keith came as well. Lance's bite broke and he arched back with a groan. The Blue knight was only allowed one second of glory before Keith's instincts told him to move and he turned snapping at Lance with a growl forcing Lance to move away majestically, still lose from his orgasm. Keith turned onto his back and rubbed himself against the sheets as if he truly was Red trying to get Blue's seed to take inside her, the growls turning into purrs. After a few moments, Keith finally settled down and he stared up at the ceiling of the cabin.

"Keith?" Lance called softly from the edge of the bed, peeking over it while sitting naked on the floor.

With a curious look, Keith turned to Lance and seeing the cautious fear in his eyes, he laughed. "Lance, you look ridiculous. Get back on the bed."

"I thought you were going to tear my head off," Lance said slowly getting back onto the bed.

Keith made space on the blankets for Lance to settle next to him. "We're not dragons, I can't tear your head off. Mating isn't about cuddles, that's the rest of the year."

Lance made a face then reached out a hand to push Keith's hair back from his face. He leaned in and kissed Keith's forehead. "We can cuddle, though, right?"

"Yeah," Keith said and reached out for Lance. "Red and Blue will cuddle, too, but Red needs some time to process it. I mean...I wanted to tear something to shreds."

"Really? I just wanted to cum more than I ever have in my life. It was almost painful not reaching it immediately when I started to thrust. Blue was never this impatient playing around with other male dragons," Lance said. "It felt good, though. Not how I want every love making session to be, but it'll be fun a few times a year."

Keith hummed his agreement. He definitely prefered sex with Lance when it didn't involve also wanting to tear his head off. "Blue and Red will probably mate again later if Red is serious about eggs."

Lance's eyes widened and he pulled Keith close to him. "Do I have to bite your neck again? It's bleeding a lot already. I have blood in my mouth."

Keith moved a hand to the back of his neck and his fingers came back covered in blood. He spread it across his fingers then wiped it against one of the bed sheets. "I'll wear something I guess. You could try a shoulder."

"Do you want to be plagued with bite marks?" Lance asked.

Keith shrugged. "For today, I don't mind. On another day, well I never minded the kiss marks."

"They look good on you," Lance said and ran a finger along Keith's pale arm.

Keith shivered at the touch and closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, Lance was staring at him softly. He leaned in and pressed his lips against Keith's.

"I love you," Lance said softly.

Keith smiled. "And I love you."

Lance laid back down onto the mattress and let one of his hands wander along Keith's skin. Keith purred loudly in return just enjoying the touches.

"I'm hoping we can get some time to ourselves soon. I really do want to go on a proper honeymoon so we can do some real love making and be all sappy without people staring at us," Lance said and gestured towards the window by the bed where anyone could see and probably had seen them. It only made sense since no one came to their door to see what all the fuss was about with the growling. Then again, lots of dragons had gone into heat recently and Keith knew one of the real reasons for the cabins was for knights during those times.

Keith's ears perked up. "Should we go to Ko-gane?"

Lance grinned, eyebrows raised. "Oh, yeah, that's a good idea. Hey, how about we go for the Day of Prayer. I'm not Allura, I don't have to do any ceremony stuff, so I could get out of it with a little fight. I still really want to see you in your Ko prayer outfit. Prince Shiro promised they were scandalous."

Keith rolled his eyes, but he felt happy. "I want to show you Ko-gane, Lance."

"Yeah, and I want to see," Lance said and dipped down for another kiss. "First, though, we need to get you through this heat and Pidge would be very upset with me if I made her stay here in the cabins when she has a perfectly good chamber in the castle, or a window seat in the Master's Tower. Either way, for someone who hated the very thought of walking into the Crystal Castle, she sure is picky with where she sleeps."

Keith laughed and sat up. He could feel Lance's cum leaking out of him. He was much fuller than he'd ever felt before after just one round. Instinctively, he closed his legs to keep it in and reddened at the action.

"Greedy, huh," Lance teased and reached out to touch the back of Keith's neck. "Well, we'll have to take care of this wound, too."

Keith moaned at the touch. "Mate bites are sensitive, Lance."

Lance suddenly grinned mischievously. "I'm going to wreck you later, Prince Keith. Make you feel that title, make you feel how much you're my mate."

Keith just stared at Lance blankly before shoving him off the bed. "If you make it so I can't perform my duties tomorrow, I will burn your bed while you sleep. I'm perfectly fine with sleeping in the Masters Tower with Pidge."

Lance's face fell and he scrambled onto his feet only to wince and place a hand on his waist. "You know, I don't think I'll risk that today. Wanna take Blue back to the castle?"

A sudden low growl in the back of Keith's mind had him agreeing and reaching out for Lance's hand to help him up. "Red won't take a single step out of her cave, we've embarassed her."

"Because of the window or the bond sharing?" Lance asked.

"Both."

Lance laughed.