A few hours later Lance and Coran had yet to return. This left Pidge and Hunk to check on Keith, seeing as Allura and Shiro were called to another meeting with the coalition. When they entered the door Keith was sitting up in his bed, his hair crazy, but looking a lot better.

"Hey." Pidge smiles, "How are you feeling?"

"Heavy," he replies. "But, not as bad as before."

"We're glad you finally got some sleep." Hunk smiles at him. "You worried us."

"Sorry," Keith says softly. "I didn't think it was that bad."

"Next time, please tell us when you can't sleep before we go out on missions. What if you had collapsed during a fight?" Pidge says, eyes wide. Keith ducks his head and nods.

"I understand."

"Plus, you really scared Lance," Pidge adds softly.

Keith's head snapped to attention, "I did?"

Hunk is nodding vigorously, "I thought he was going to cry."

"Honestly, I think he did when we weren't around."

Keith's heart clenched. That was the last thing he ever wanted. How many times was he going to make Lance cry before this was all over? It was all Allura's fault. For the recent set of tears at least.

They had played by her rules but she kept changing them. It was unfair.

"Where is he now?" he inquired, noticing a very lacking presence or the Blue paladin.

"He went to get some answers. He thought maybe if he could talk to Kolivan or another Galra, maybe we could all figure out what has been causing this fainting spells. We gotta stop it before it gets worse." Pidge says.

Keith avoided her gaze for a moment. Worse.

It had already gotten to that point. He found himself spitting up blood at least two different times this week. He should have brought it up earlier, he realized only now. However, he was unsure if he should even try to talk about it. Everyone freaked out enough when he simply fainted. If he mentioned how intense the pain was or the coughing….

He decided to leave it in the back of his mind, instead saying, "I hope he gets back soon."

"In the meantime time, we brought you some food." Hunk held it up with a smile. "Here you go." Placing it on Keith's lap, (a grilled cheese sandwich) he sat on the end of the bed.

"Thanks." Keith smiles at the two. He loved grilled cheese~

Halfway through his sandwich, he reached under his pillow to let his fingers graze a small journal. He had been writing something very important in this book for the entire month apart from Lance.

He hadn't let anyone look at it, not even his equivalent. Yet, he felt the urge to bring it out now, in front of these two.

It was a big sense of trust to do this… He admits to being hesitant, but Pidge and Hunk had shown they had begun to change their ways.

He wanted to trust them with this. It was hard keeping it all to himself when all he wanted to do was tell someone about it.

Which was a strange feeling all in itself. Before being trapped on Iespion Keith had never wanted to share his emotions or thoughts with anyone before. He'd rather keep them bottled up inside till his dying day.

Wanting to share this with Pidge and Hunk was a sense of danger he was shocked his heart wanted to face.

"Can I ask you two a favor?" he asked, his voice weak.

"Sure thing." they say. "What is it?"

"This." he cautiously handed the journal for Hunk to look at. Looking skeptical he opened to the first page. Reading it over he took a soft inhale.

"Candle lit dinners, spending time by an ocean? Is this a poem?" he flipped through a few pages, puzzled at what he was looking at.

"Don't look at the poem." Keith cringes, "It isn't good. It was a bad idea."

"It's corny with a capital C." Pidge comments over Hunk's shoulder,

It wasn't a story, or even a book entirely of poetry. It was more like random thoughts, ideas, and plans. A journal with everything Keith had been thinking off during this last month.

A few angry speeches to Allura, Shiro, and even to them. The collection of love letters to Lance was uncanny.

All of it was random, but there was a distinct amount of planning within the book, which seemed to be the main point of the pages.

"What is all this?" Hunk motioned to a passage. Dates, possible seasons and even different planets were scribbled down; all to plan some sort of "Perfect day".

Keith cleared his throat, meeting their eyes with a very serious look. "Lance and I were technically married back on Iespion. We discussed plans for a honeymoon since so many things happened while we were there. I wanted to plan it out since Lance has done so much for me…. I don't know anything about romance though."

Pidge voice dropped into nearly a whisper, "Then all of this… is a honeymoon plan?"

Keith's ears were burning, "Yes and No."

"No?" They trailed off.

"By Coeihn standards, we are married… but not by Earth ones. I wanted to take Lance away for a few days." he reached over, turning to the last page for Hunk and Pidge to read. Written, scribbled out, erased, rewritten pages of ideas were crammed into the back. Each one describing in detail the perfect marriage proposal.

Hunk slowly lowered his hands, a soft look on his face. "You've been planning to ask Lance to marry you."

The warmth that spreads from Keith's smile is so infectious that Hunk feels himself tearing up.

"Yes." Keith breathed sweetly, "I want to have a full ceremony. One where all of you are there and Lance's family, back on Earth. Near the ocean maybe. I know Lance would love that." he babbles on, flipping to a few more pages to show them his ideas. "Of course I need to go over this with Lance, a-and that is if he says yes of course." he says nervously.

Pidge had never felt so confident about anything else before, "He'll say yes."

Hunk, on the other hand, was trembling, "This is so cute. Keith, you are doing great. Don't second guess yourself."

"Correction, second guess it a bit. This is wayyyy too cheesy." Pidge disagreed, smirking as she pointed to a few ideas.

"Maybe for you, but you gotta think about Lance here. He will love all of this!" Hunk grins. Pidge opens her mouth then nods, shrugging in agreement.

"You have a point." handing the book back to Keith, Pidge asks. "You know you… never actually explained how Lance and you- fell in love. Back on Iespion."

"We didn't?"

"You explained the big parts. The challenge, getting Lance's eyes healed, the assassination attempts and that jerk Rashra. The Galra attack- but I feel like there is so much more to the story."

Keith lowered his gaze, his eyes softening. "There is so much more. A lot of good and a lot of bad. Every day seemed to just be a constant up and down journey." he agreed. "I learned so many differents things while I was there; About Lance, Tellru and Drava. Ruru, Harri, Manson…. And even about myself."

Hunk and Pidge looked at each other, then leaned against the pillows, getting comfy. They gave Keith expectant looks, ready for a story.

Eyes wide he swallowed. "Oh uh- I'm not the best story teller-"

"Just try." Pidge insisted. "We want to know." they offer little smiles which Keith can't seem to say no to.

"Okay." he agreed. Crossing his legs together he began, "Well- I suppose it all started back when Lance still had his eye injury. He really relied on me and trusted me with his sight impaired. We were sort of forced to get along to survive, though we still tried to push each other's buttons." he snorted. "All he could do back then was talk and ask constant questions. I had never seen him so… scared. Even though we didn't get along, I wanted to keep him safe. I think I had little feelings for Lance a long time ago, I just never bothered to pay attention to them. That all changed when the Coeihns founds us and dragged us back to their Kingdom. And they were so big! I had never seen anyone as tall and menacing as those guards that first found us!"

Hunk and Pidge smile as Keith delved into the unknown tale of the Iespion world.

Lance's "Man on a mission" idea seemed to have fallen pretty short when he actually arrived at the Blade's main intelligence unit. Galra were rushing left and right, a never ending train of motion as each were either returning from missions or heading out on them.

Training, missions, reports, training, missions- These guys worked none stop! He wondered if they even slept or ate. It must have been a rare sight- seeing a Blade member just sitting down somewhere.

Doing nothing.

"Excuse me." he forcefully stopped one member by stepping in front of them.

"Blue paladin." she speaks, "Is there an issue?"

"I just had an important question to ask." Lance says. "It's about Keith, the Red paladin."

"I apologize. I am in a rush right now and cannot stop to talk. Perhaps you should inquire from Kolivan or even Relo."

Lance stepped aside to let them pass, sighing. Kolivan was a little too serious for him, so maybe Relo could help him out. He rushed around in desperate search of him, but he seemed to have disappeared completely. Eventually, he got some answers from two Galra on Relo's location, who had seen him get dragged away.

"Dragged away?" Lance repeated the words. "What do you mean? Is he in trouble?"

They both snort, "He sure is. Whatever he did, he pissed off Krolia, and that is something you should never do."

Lance felt he heard that name before, perhaps in the last mission, but couldn't quite recall. "Do you have any idea where she took him? I need to talk to him."

"She is probably scolding him somewhere below in the next few floors. I would check there." they suggest.

It had taken him almost an hour, but he had eventually located Relo.

Or atleast his body.

He wasn't dead, thankgoodness, but he sure got the senses knocked out of him. Lance walked up to find his body sprawled over the floor, groaning in agony.

Like a cartoon, little stars seemed to circle his head, punched unconscous.

"Um…" Lance paled, stepping over him. "Relo…?" He patted his face but got no response. "Who did this?" he got his answer when he senses a presence behind him from the shadows.

"Do you have business with him?" A voice caught him by surprise. He turns, watching a female galra stepping out from the corner where she was leaning against. Perhaps this was Krolia…?

It was strange. She was the kind of person Lance felt he had met before, but knows for a fact that he hasn't. She just had a familiar face he supposed…

Her eyes were ones he felt he had seen a billion times. He felt trust for her immediately, but that very notion put him on edge. Who was she?

"I needed to ask him a question." he motioned to Relo

"You're Lance." the Galra speaks, eyes narrowed. She stepped closer to examine him.

She knew him, unsurprisingly. He wished he could say the same. "That's me." he nods.

She tilts her head, "Not exactly what I expected." A sort of, quiet judging expression pulled at her lips. He felt annoyance the moment he saw it. Both for the fact that she was judging him and because he has totally seen that expression before too!

"Uh…" he felt awkward. She seems so familiar. "Who are you, exactly?"

"My name is Krolia." she explained, eyes set and dangerous. "I wanted to have a word with you."

"Okay." he says cautiously. "What can I do for you?" It was almost humorous they were having such a conversation with Relo still out cold at their feet.

"It's about Kei- the red paladin." she folds her arms. "Your relationship with him."

The tense feeling he had before worsened. "What about it?" he says, his voice dropping an octave.

"It's very dangerous for two people so critical to this revolution to be so open about it like you two are."

"What?" Lance choked out, not expecting this to be the topic they exchanged. How did she even know about them anyway?

"The Galra will use anything they can against you." she warned, handing him a small screen. Taking it, he read the information recorded across it.

It was some sort of media information site, sourcing a very detailed script of Keith and his relationship. Who had even published this?

"W-Why are you even bringing this up?" he frowned. "And who are you?" she seemed too familiar to him, and he knew the blade… they wouldn't have bothered going to this lengths just to tell him this. They would have left this problem to Keith and him to figure out on their own.

"I told you-"

He cuts her off, "I know what you said, Krolia. But why was this important enough for you to come to me about?"

Krolia glanced away from a moment. "That really doesn't matter."

"It does if you planned to track me down to say it." he countered. Her lower lip puckered slightly, a glare sent his way as she folded his arms. The gesture wasn't that surprising, but he had seen it before.

A lot.

Almost every day.

It was the way Keith stood when Lance said something that was both correct but annoyed him.

"You…" he shook his head, "You remind me a lot of someone."

Her expression changed for a moment and she looked away. "I suppose I would." she agrees. "Keith has more of my face than his fathers… Though, he does have his eyes and dark black hair." she smiled, and the moment she did, Lance knew.

"You're…" he opens his mouth. "Are you Keith's-?" he cut off, stepping back. The resemblance was uncanny. Honestly, he had a feeling it might have been this way, but it seemed too impossible to be true. Especially because she was revealing herself to him first instead of Keith.

She should be talking to Keith right now… not him.

Her shoulders tensed and she sighs, "Yes. I am his Mother. I came to speak to you because i learned you are his Chosen."

"B-But… But how?" Lance gawked at her. "When did you get here?" Keith was going to be so happy. He had found his mom! Ever since he had learned of his blood ties he had been quietly searching for any information involving his Galra side.

Kolivan has been a stone wall in the amount of information he offered Keith. The mission was more important and personal matters could be dealt with later. Understanable except for the fact that Kolivan's life seemed to be a never-ending mission.

She wore the Marmora armor. She was part of Kolivan command! Lance wondered if Kolivan knew this entire time where Keith's mother was or if he was even unsure who in his ranks was the mother of the half-human red paladin.

He figured if Kolivan was as secretive as he was, the rest of the Blade probably followed in his footsteps about their personal lives.

"You- I can't believe I'm meeting you," he says, his breathing coming out in short gasps. "Where have you been this whole time?"

"Undercover," she says simply. "I learned a year ago of Keith's position with Voltron, then you both went missing on Iespion."

Whatever else Lance was going to say, it was suddenly pushed aside.

A year ago…?

Keith and him had only disappeared at Iespion for just a little over half a year. And they had been back for at least a month now. So she had known Keith was the red paladin for at least a couple months before they dissapeared.

Why hadn't she shown up earlier? Why hadn't she come to see him, her own son, when he had been searching desperately for her?

Thoughts and questions were taking over his mind. How was he possibly standing here right now with Keith's own flesh and blood? It felt too shocking to be true.

"Being his mother, it convinced me to come and talk to you. If Keith wasn't my son I wouldn't be approaching you right now. But he is. A war has no place for love." She starts speaking, but Lance can hardly hear her.

"You two could be put in more danger than you know if this information gets to Zarkon. He'll focus on you two, aim for one of you to strike the very heart of Voltron."

He shouldn't be here. She shouldn't be here! She should be with Keith! He is in the same galaxy, the same planet, just a few floors away from each other and she is standing here talking to him instead of going to Keith?!

"Krolia…" he swallowed.

"In fact, I think it is best you two separate while you can. At least for the time being. If we can defeat Zarkon, and you two can have a chance to live in peace, that would be the best time for you two to start something. You aren't Galra, and he isn't a full one. Keith's genetics shouldn't affect-" Whatever she was about to say, however important it might have been, it fell to deaf ears.

"How can you say that?" his voice was cold, piercing through her words like a hot blade. She cut off abruptly, looking shocked.

"What?"

Lance's voice didn't sound like his own, "You want us to separate?"

She took a moment to answer, "It's dangerous in your position. Zarkon will look for any angle he can to get to you and the other paladins. Any method necessary to take you down. If he learns about the bond you two share he'll use it against you-"

"How dare you."

Krolia's words lost their power when Lance's expression morphed to pure rage. While his words were quiet they carried within the room, making Krolia tense.

"You knew where Keith was this entire time." he accused, sickened. "Five whole months before we even disappeared you knew who he was." Krolia closed her mouth, stepping back when a unknown emotion burned in Lance's eyes. "All this time and you said nothing. You didn't even bother to come see him. He had been looking for you and you knew it, didn't you?"

She swallowed, eyes narrowed. "I'm not here to argue with you-"

"No, you're just here to tell Keith and I how to live our lives, like everyone else! You weren't there for him his entire life. For whatever reason, no matter what they are, you left him! Yet now you think you have some sort of right to tell him what to do? Separate. Abandon your feelings? What kind of mother says that?" he seethed.

Krolia took a deep breath, keeping her voice steady. "This is for your sake. I'm only saying this because I know how Zarkon can be. How he twists the emotions of others and breaks them. I don't want my son to be hurt."

"Oh someone give you an award for mother of the year ~!" Lance slow clapped for her, sneering. "Because you leaving definitely didn't hurt him. Growing up alone definitely didn't hurt him! Having to learn from strangers that he is half alien and never knew definitely didn't hurt him either! His life has been nothing but joy and rainbows!" he laughed sarcastically. "And now he is- I don't even know what is happening to him, but you are trying to tell me to back off? To leave him?" he lifts his hand, the silver bond ring clear on his ring finger.

Krolia focused on it, her expression saddening. "That's…"

"My promise to him." Lance declares, holding his hand up orudly. "I will never leave Keith. I will never stop loving him. I don't care what I have to go through to make sure he is happy and safe, but turning away from him definitely won't make things better. It'll just hurt him more than Zarkon ever could. You would know this if you bothered to get to know your son."

Whatever else she planned to say was lost in the anger of Lance's presence. He yelled at her until his voice went hoarse and even after that, he turned and left before she could utter a single reply. He didn't care what she had to say.

All he wanted her to do was go see Keith. Though, at this point, he had no idea if that was even a good idea. It was complicated and right now, the only thing he was going to do was go hug his equivalent and never let him go.

As Lance took the stairs two steps at a time, he sighed. He realized he hadn't gotten even the slightest bit of the information he seeked coming down here. Instead he was returning with something much worse.

Not even sure what he was going to say he braced himself when he entered Keith's room. He had hoped Keith was still sleeping, but instead, he found Pidge and Hunk instead. They were huddled together, staring at Keith with teary eyes.

He was speaking, recalling something from the past. "Then we started to talk about the 5 most important things to us. I'm always bad at saying straight out how I feel, so talking about it like it was a list made it a lot easier for me."

"And what was your number one?" Hunk whispered, like an awe struck child

Keith didn't even hesitate. "Lance is always my number one."

Lance rushed in after that. It took him a moment to understand what exactly Keith was telling them, but once he did he felt his embarrassment growing. "What exactly are you telling them?" he flushed.

Keith jumped, then smiled. "Welcome back."

"Keith was just retelling your love story." Pidge seemed to be wiping a tear from her cheek. "It's actually quite touching… in a mushy sort of way."

"It's so sweet." Hunk gushed. "What about you Lance? Keith was just talking about when you were telling each other the top 5 most important things to you two. Keith said you were his number one? What was yours?"

Lance swallowed. "Well…" he cleared his throat, Hunk eager gaze making him stammer. "I told Keith what it was."

"Yeah but now we want to know." Pidge pushed up her glasses.

"Well maybe my number one is only meant to be heard by Keith." Lance countered.

"Then you're saying the only one who can know number one is number one himself?" she asked.

"Exactly." he paused, realizing his mistake too soon, and falling right into Pidge's trap.

"Then your number one is Keith~!" Hunk cackled, clapping with joy.

Lance let out a roar, charging at the two. They scrambled away, giggling like trolls. "Out! Out! Out!" Lance commanded, nudging the two other paladins out of the room. "Keith needs his sleep!"

Slamming the door shut he huffed. Whiping around he points at Keith. "You."

He smiles, naive. "What?"

Whatever lance was going to say it left him, knowing Keith was just happy to talk about Iespion with the others. "You feeling better."

"Yeah, actually. Especially with you here." he made grabby hands at Lance, tugging him onto the bed. "What were you doing?"

He let his head rest against Keith's chest. His worries seemed to leave his body for a moment, soothed by the gentle beat in the red paladin's chest. "Trying to get some answers. Maybe ask the Blade if your condition is a Galra thing or not."

The red paladin brushed Lance's bangs out of his face. "Find anything out."

"Not exactly." Lance sighed. "I got answers, but not the ones I was looking for."

Keith eyed him curiously, "You seem upset."

"It's nothing." He mindlessly reached over to the bedside table. Finding a brush he lifted it up. "Can I brush your hair before bed?" It was the only excuse he could think off.

His equivalent frowned, "Why would we brush our hair before bed? Doesn't that just defeat the purpose?"

"But it gives me a reason to mess with your hair~" Lance cooed.

Keith snorts, "Okay, fine. Why not. Go ahead and mess with it."

I'm making it nice." Lance corrected. Adjusting positions, Keith settled in his lap. With a gentle touch, he ran the brush down the curls of black hair, straightening the messy clumped up pieces from his nap earlier.

Keith's hair was still soft and sweet smelling from the shower earlier. Lance leaned forward to kiss the back of his head. Keith's mullet had really grown out in the last few months. It's wasn't so much of a mullet anymore since his bangs were almost just as long.

Krolia… has a similar hair style to her son. Another thing they shared in common and Keith didn't have a clue. He didn't know how much he looked like his mother. How similar their eyes were, the way they stand. How they carry themselves in a conversation.

They were mother and son and all you had to do was look to know.

Keith's mother was here. Just a short walk away and Keith didn't even know it.

"Keith…" Lance's voice felt heavy, choked with the weight of knowledge he carried. He tried to focus on brushing Keith's hair, but it was too hard to ignore the crucial facts.

"Are you okay?" Keith asked, noticing his hesitation.

"I…" he swallows. "Something happened today," he admits.

Keith reaches around to touch his hand, "Something bad?"

"I don't know," he admits weakly. "Something I didn't think would happen. I kind of snapped actually…"

Keith's eyes were wide with shock. "What happened?"

Lance sighs, leaning down to wrap his arms around Keith's shoulders, kissing his head. It was so hard to talk about it, knowing it would just be another thing for Keith to worry about. "Can I tell you tomorrow?" he asked desperately. "Wrap my thoughts around it first?"

Keith's hands were warm on his arms. "Of course you can."

"Thanks." he smiled. "Let's get you to bed."

"You gonna stay with me? I can't sleep if you aren't here." Keith reminded him.

"I'm not going anywhere." And he never will.

Coran was startling to realize very quickly the Galra were the most helpful and unhelpful allies they had ever had. During a battle, the Blade's were the best fighters he had ever seen!

In a conversation, not so much. None of them gave him a straight answer or just downright refused to speak with him. Whether they were busy or not didn't matter, he just had a few questions! They were important too!

Plus, Kolivan seems to be gone so he couldn't go ask him.

He felt like he was out of luck! He had originally split up with Lance to cover more ground, but now he had no idea where the paladin had run off too.

"Drats." he sighs, hands on his hips.

"Excuse me?" a voice speaks up, "Do you need any help?"

Coran about jumped out of his socks, striking a defensive form and looking around. "Who goes there?"

"Over here."

Coran turned, seeing no one.

"Look down."

"Oh." Coran paused, his eyes traveling down. A galra was before him, large pointed ears up and attentive.

"Hello." the Galra greets. He was seated in a wheelchair, a blanket laid over his legs. The Galra offered him a smile, gripping the handles of his wheelchair. "Is there something you need help with?" He asked.

"Why yes, I do," Coran says, curling the tip of his mustache. Was this his chance? "I'm after information." he expected to be turned down like every time before, but this Galra simply smiled.

"Oh well, that I can definitely help you with." The galra chuckled, "So long as it is information I am allowed to give. I'm afraid any top secret info on missions and other things aren't allowed to be discussed so openly."

"Oh, that is alright." Coran laughed. "What I seek is a little different. More of- personal."

The ears of the Galra flattened slightly. "If it's about my wheelchair that is a story I'm very tired of telling. And it is a very painful story to remember..."

"Oh no no, not that. I didn't mean to upset you. It is actually about Galra genetics, if that makes sense." Coran moved to sit beside the Galra. "In truth, me asking might not actually help."

Curious the Galra tilted his head, "How about we start about what brought on your question and go from there?" He offers his hand to shake Coran's. His blue eyes, a very unusual trait for a Galra to have, shined softly. "Nice to meet you."

"Oh, yes. Nice to meet you. My name is Coran." he smiled

"Hello, Coran. My name is Zaheen."

"Zaheen." Coran smiles. "I don't believe I've seen you around here. And here I thought I knew everyone in the coalition." he frowned at himself

"Oh, I'm usually down in the lower levels. Not a mission person…" Zaheen's says softly. "You though, I have seen you around. You usually accompany the paladins."

"I do indeed! I pilot the Castle in which their mighty lions rest!" he says proudly.

Zaheen's eyes shine, "Whoa. I used to want to be a pilot myself when I was younger. That ship is so massive, you must be very skilled."

"Oh." Coran felt charmed, batting his hand. "It is nothing."

Zaheen chuckled. "Well, I'm happy to help someone so important to the coalition. What can I do for you? What was your question?"

"Yes! Right, the question. You see I have a friend-" He pauses. Not wanting it spreading around that their own red paladin was under in bad health, he attempted to be subtle. "He is half Galra. Recently he seems to have fallen- under the weather. He collapsed for reasons we aren't sure about. He cannot sleep, struggles to eat."

"I see." Zaheen nods. "Are you sure it isn't just a common sickness?"

"I thought perhaps it was that at first too." Coran sighed. "But it doesn't seem to be the case."

The small Galra nods, "Well- Galra have a few diseases some other aliens species don't have. And since he is only half Galra there are endless possibilities to what it is. A disease from his galra side, or the other. Or even a mix. I'm afraid I am no doctor." Zaheen apologizes, "I only help send out supplies. It's the only thing I can do…" he shrugs.

"I see." Coran sighs. "I'm sorry to have wasted your time."

"It's alright. You are just concerned with your friend." Zaheen's smile was soft and kind. They sat in silence for a moment. Slowly the blue-eyed galra leaned forward, asking, "Well, I suppose the only other thing I can think of is whether they have a Chosen or not."

"A Chosen?" Coran inquired. "Oh- you mean a mate, yes? He does have one."

"Are they close?"

"Very." he nods

"I mean, have they been physically close lately? Within contact with each other. Has one gone away from a while?"

Coran was puzzled by these questions. Lance and Keith weren't exactly away from each other, but there was definitely a forced distance between them from the last month. "They see each other… but, they haven't been as close as they have been the last few months I suppose. Things have come up between them." he cringed a little.

"Well, perhaps that is the problem then. Though, it's hard to say if a bond would even affect someone who is only half Galra." Zaheen says

Before Coran can even ask Zaheen to elaborate on what he had just said a new voice cut in.

" It is affecting him ."

They both turn, eyes wide. Relo, the Galra who had aided Keith and Lance on Iespion, stood before them, looking a little beaten up and tired.

"Relo," Coran says, mainly knowing the Galra to be Kolivan's right-hand man. "What in the world happened to you, my boy?"

"Long story… Krolia beat me up." He huffed, stumbling over. "Hey Zaheen." he greets

"Ah, she is someone you definitely don't want to get mad." Zaheen winced, waving to Relo.

"Yes. I tried to tell her about what was going on with Keith as well but she wasn't listening." he sighed, plopping down with Coran.

"With Keith? What is happening to him?" Coran demanded, worried. So much for trying to keep things subtle with Zaheen, but he had bigger things to worry about.

Relo looked at him, his eyes troubled. "It's the bond he has with Lance," he explains simply. "It's killing him."

"Killing…" Coran trailed off, his face pailing. "What on earth do you mean?"

"I guess Alteans don't really have this kind of thing." he shrugged. "Many differences species have a name for it, and some go a bit further than others. I learned the Coeihns have a similar thing within their society while I was there. They called it their Equivalency bond. Have you ever heard of it, Coran?"

"Equivalency… that is their term for a partner. Their mate and love."

"That is it, but I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about the Equivalency bond." The confusion on Coran's face was enough to answer Relo's question without words. "It is basically a connection that happens between the two. It connects them at a cellular level. For a Coeihn, they are able to sense each other. They know when the other is hurt and sometimes can even share their feelings and senses with each other over a long distance. Galra have something similar. Our Chosen." he smiles. "Though, we aren't as strong as the Coeihn bond. We can't share senses and such, but the concept is the same… including the price"

"What price?' Coran asked

Zaheen cut in, explaining what he was going to tell Coran before Relo arrived, "The price is that the two equivalents cannot be separated for too long. If they do they will begin to feel pain."

"Pain?!" Coran says, shocked

Relo nods, "It will start small, like an ache. Then grow. Bigger and bigger. You can't eat, sleep- you feel distressed after some time. Paranoid and even depressed. After a while, it will get worse. Your own body will begin to shut down. If you stay apart from your partner, or as we call it, our Chosen, for too long-"

"You'll die," Zaheen concluded Relo's explanation

Coran felt like everything was crashing down around him. He didn't need any confirmation to know this must have been what Keith was going through. "Then Keith-"

"I saw it for myself. He was in pain. I even saw-" Relo pauses. "He had been coughing up blood. I can only assume that he must have been separated from Lance for several days to weeks. Usually, a Galra can go a few months without seeing their Chosen before they are threatened by death. But those two are very new to this bond. They haven't had proper time to adjust slowly to this change. Being inseparable for months just to be pulled apart so suddenly rushed these symptoms."

"We almost killed him…" Coran whispered in horror

Relo slowly nodded, knowing there was not point in sugar coating it. "It is important they spend as much time as they can together for the next few days to ensure there are no other issues. Then they must slowly begin to spend time apart to lengthen the time Keith can withstand being away from Lance." he instructs, stressing how important this was to Coran.

Coran was nodding obediently, making sure to memorize every detail Relo said.

"Thank you." he got to his feet, his legs wobbly. "Thank you both so much! I have to go!" he stumbled towards the stairs, knowing he needed to tell Allura about this as soon as possible.

When he finally found her she was within her room, pacing the floor and seething with rage. "Princess..!"

"Coran! There you are!" she snaps the moment she sees him. "Where have you been? The paladins are all going mad!" He paused when she kicked over her chair. "First Pidge, then Hunk… do they not see what tragedy this could bring?" she says.

Coran swallowed, still catching his breath. "Did something happen…?"

"Hunk and Pidge approached me about Lance and Keith. Both were demanding I nullify the rule of relationships within the paladin code. As if I could just take away one of the key laws made by the paladin's of old!"

"Allura…" Coran sighs.

"It shouldn't be that big of a deal for them to move on from each other," Allura insists brokenly, typing her nails angrily against her dresser. "If they could just understand… It could be such an easy fix."

Coran stares at her, slowly closing his eyes to inhale deeply. The information he had was going to change everything, and he wondered if Allura would be able to handle it. "If I may Princess, you are wrong."

"What?" she sniffs

Approaching her, he clears his throat. He needed her to understand calmly and rationally. "A few days ago, I inquired some questions to Pidge of humans and their partners, and most can have up to a few in their lifetime. Some can be together with others for a short time, then split off for someone else," he explains. "Humans can choose to mate for life or have a second partner. Nothing binds them to another human other than law, and even that can be changed."

"So there should be no issue!" Allura smiles.

"There is a very large issue." he shakes his head.

"I'm struggling to see what your point is here then, Coran. Just as I said, they should have no problem separating."

"Perhaps, but love is not so simple. Pidge also told me that just because they can have multiple partners through their life does not mean that every human wants to. Humans can be with each other for their whole life. Love is not something one can simply push aside just by someone's request."

"They don't love each other," Allura turns, "As Shiro said, it was from them being isolated together. They convinced themselves with this illusion of companionship."

Coran is almost amazed at how stubborn she is at this and grabs her wrist to stop her from walking away, "I do not want to overstep myself, but Shiro is not always correct, Allura. Surely you've noticed that these emotions are not from them being stranded. If that was the case they would have no problem with turning away from each other, but clearly, they are. Also, I've discovered something… very important. I did research with the Blade of Marmora."

"Research?" she questions.

"On Galra. I even talked to two of them to confirm these answers. Did you know Galra only ever have one mate in their life? They are like the Coeihns. I'm sure you heard Keith and Lance mentioning Equivalents."

Curious, she turns to face him, listening quietly. "I recall that, yes."

"They grow very protective of their mate or anything that involves them, feeling separation anxiety when they are away from their mate for too long. They struggle to sleep, eat. They even feel pain…" he trails off.

"No." Allura shakes her head, already understanding what point he was trying to state, "Keith is only half Galra."

"He may look human, but we've seen the way he fights- it's more Galra than human. There are many other things about him that could be more Galra than human, Allura."

She steps away, frowning, "Why are you telling me this?" she says quietly.

"The Blade member, Relo, told me that if a Galra is separated from their mate for too long- there could be serious problems. Death could even occur if they are separated for too long."

"Death?" she gawked at him. "How is that even possible?"

"It's the bond they form. It's at a cellular level Relo told me. It connects them but can also kill the Galra. We almost killed him, Allura…"

"That can't be…" she looked away, covering her mouth. "That can't be true!"

"It's up to you to decide, Princess. But it is important for you to know every detail as a leader before simply stating a command. These Paladins we have were not trained as warriors, and are still very young…" when he turns to leave, he pauses at the door, "Perhaps if you wish for them to understand how you feel, or how vital you believe this rule to be, you should explain to them why it was created in the first place?

Allura turns away, seeming unable to do that. "I can't…."

Coran's voice cracks, "Allura."

She starts towards the door, eyes narrowed. "Excuse me, Coran. There is something I wish to discuss with Shiro."

He couldn't seem to stop her and sighed, left alone and hoping everything would work out.

A little while later, Allura knocked on Shiro's door. When he opened it, she stepped inside.

"Shiro, there is something I must discuss with you," Allura tells him. "It is about Keith,"

Shiro raises a curious eyebrow, "Okay?"