Hello friends! I swear I'm still working on stuff, it's just a bit more complicated. I've had to fight a lack of time and an uncooperative computer. So here's an update.

Veronica fastened the buttons on her jacket and hit send. While she waited for the admiral to answer, she saluted at attention. Seconds passed. Then a minute. Yet she didn't dare break form. At last, the call went through and the admiral herself appeared with her hands folded behind her back.

"You're late, McClain."

"My apologies, ma'am. Officer Holt is doing his best to work around our faulty transmission system," Veronica replied. "Shall we proceed with today's report?"

"Affirmative. At your leisure," Sanda permitted in a pinched tone that couldn't have been less leisurely.

Veronica finally dropped her salute with a curt, 'sir', and said, "Today marks our fifteenth day aboard the Altean ship. Cadet Garrette has not relapsed since Officer Kogane and Cadet McClain confirmed he is one of their missing paladins. Morale is high, though I can't help but feel that we aren't being told the whole truth."

"I'm not surprised. Kogane has always valued his privacy. What about this weapon... the lions and Voltron?"

Veronica sat at the console. "As far as I can tell, the lions are Voltron. As I said in my previous reports, the alteans have been hospitable and even encourage us to learn about their technology... it's just..."

"I understand, Veronica. From the small amount I spoke with the galra who brought the others home, knowledge is power. Your instincts are right on point, as usual." Sanda sighed and rubbed her temples. "I wish I had more instruction for you, but your orders haven't changed. Has Kogane given any inclination as to when you will return to base?"

"Negative," Veronica answered. She struggled to keep the annoyance out of her voice and Sanda's lips tightened into a thin line in response. Pushing emotions aside, Veronica added, "The princess's advisor mentioned something about training. It seems Hunk and Pidge have graduated from meditation to light activity. Hopefully, Officer Kogane will provide more information soon."

Sanda's lip quirked as she tried not to smile. "Alright, V. Keep on your toes up there." She went to tap the 'end call' button and paused. "That jacket..."

Veronica looked at her clothes and explained, "The advisor fabricated new clothes for us to wear while we're visiting. It was as close to Garrison Standard as I could get it."

"Oh. It looks good." Sanda stood straight and dropped all humor. "Stay sharp, officer. Your next check in will be at 0600 hours. Don't be late." The transmission ended and Veronica finally relaxed. She reset the alarm to wake her up at 0530 the following day and left the com chamber.

Every room on this castle was a chamber. That was how the castle AI described everything the first day they'd arrived. Once Hunk and Pidge bonded with the lions, Keith had taken them to a different part of the ship. Lance and the princess were seen every now and again, but almost three days passed before Veronica next saw the other three.

The princess's advisor gave them an account of what the castle had to offer and then called upon the castle AI, a strange hologram of an imposing man with a commanding air about him. After a quick tour, Matt made himself scarce as well. If Veronica saw him, it was with a tool belt holding exotic instruments working on even stranger projects.

Veronica stretched as she walked toward the room Coran had assigned to her and Rizavi. Her girlfriend should be waking up soon and they'd decided to try out the swimming pool today. It wasn't like they had anything better to do. So when she heard low voices from an open doorway, she paused.

"I'm doing all I can to speed up the process. It's just... a big task, Keefy."

Veronica snuck closer at Keith's old nickname. A glance in the door showed Keith and Matt standing near a console while faces flashed across the screen above. 'Unknown' was stamped across the bottom of most, though a few were marked 'MIA' or 'KIA'.

"I know," Keith sighed and leaned a hip into the console, shoulders curled forward as he folded his arms, "but every day only decreases the accuracy."

Matt made a small noise in agreement. "There's only so much we can do. We have to start somewhere, Keith."

Veronica tried to back away when the hologram of the tall man reappeared with his hand on his chest. "You have an unexpected guest at the door, young squire."

"Unexpected, but not unnoticed," Keith answered without turning. "If you want to know what we're doing, you only have to ask, Veronica. Or would you rather speculate about this with James and Nadia... like everything else?"

The hologram chuckled with a small half smile at Keith and chastised, "No need to be rude, kitling. Miss McClain, if you would be so kind." The AI gestured into the room. Veronica grudgingly entered and stood in the furthest corner. All of her annoyance and impatience from the last two weeks, even before they left earth threatened to explode from her at her brother's boyfriend. Then the hologram walked toward the door and said, "I shall let the others know to meet you in the training room, young squire."

"Thank you, dynast. I'll be along shortly."

The hologram rested an incorporeal hand on Keith's shoulder in passing, then vanished. Veronica raised an eyebrow and asked, "What's the point of acting like it's really here?"

Matt shrugged and leaned back on the console. "Why not? He's based off a real person."

Vanessa bit back a mean reply and focused on the console that had continued to flash faces. "So what is this?"

Keith faced her straight on and said, "I'm doing what I can to protect my people."

"Your people? This man," she gestured to the image of a foreign man with square glasses, "is nobody to us."

"You are correct," Keith answered in that same serious tone. "I have no idea who he is apart from his age, name, and that his wife had a Pomeranian. They ran a dog grooming salon. They had three daughters between the ages of two months and five years at the time of the galra occupation. The youngest will be turning three this summer."

Veronica pursed her lips and accused, "You made that all up."

Keith blinked slowly, his expression never cracking, and admitted, "Yes, but what difference does it make? He had a family. An identity. There is a small chance someone at your resistance base might have known someone who knew him."

"That's a very small chance and a lot of coincidence at best."

Matt sighed and looked sideways at her. "The empire hit earth hard. We're only trying to make a living census. As best we can," he added with a glance at Keith.

Veronica rolled her eyes and turned to leave. "You talk about giving answers then talk in riddles. What the fuck happened to you, Kogane?"

She was almost out of the room when he said behind her, "To protect others one must first protect themselves."

Veronica paused and inhaled slowly through her nose. Shaking her head, she turned around and held her arms out. "And what does that mean?"

Keith didn't answer, still standing there as stoic as ever. She glared for ten seconds before she realized the hologram had changed. One face had become a dozen. Most had nothing beneath them. Her glare turned to angry confusion and she stomped back into the room hissing, "What the hell is this?"

"I've made myself clear, Veronica... and you're more than capable of drawing the correct conclusion." Keith waited, blinked again, but when she didn't speak, he finally conceded, "I'm looking for your family. And now Hunk's. As paladins, we are putting ourselves directly into the empire's line of fire. I can't protect my people, my team, without knowing every possible threat the empire could throw at us."

Veronica put a hand to her mouth and paced, thoughts going a mile a minute. Her mother smiled down at her the whole time. Eyes shining with tears she didn't want to shed in front of them, Veronica asked, "Does my brother know?"

Keith finally looked away and closed his eyes. "No. I don't want to provide false hope."

Veronica's chest seized and she nodded quickly. "Yeah, that makes sense," she paused bitterly. "After all, the odds are forever against us, right?"

Slow footsteps ended with a soft hand on her arm. She looked over and saw Matt, but Keith was gone. He'd vanished in the seconds it took to look away. She glared at the open door about to mutter something mean, but Matt said first, "Don't, Veronica. It's not like that."

She pulled her arm out of his hold and hugged her chest. Leaning back on the table, she asked, "How can you just go with his ideas? This?" she waved a hand over her shoulder and then put her fingers to her temples.

The blue light from the screen vanished and Matt sat beside her. "Because... he's my best friend? We were basically brothers growing up. We looked out for each other, and when the empire took me and my father, he looked out for my mom." Matt sighed and cleared his throat. "And... this was my idea."

Veronica shot him an incredulous look and he continued unprompted, "It's part of how my mom found my dad and I. Krolia did a bunch of crazy risky stuff before leaving the empire and then her and my mom of all people came to our rescue. Veronica, I owe a lot to the blades. They saved my life and reunited my family. I need to pay that forward both to them and others. Like your family, Veronica."

"Why me?" Veronica asked on the verge of total exasperation.

Matt bumped her shoulder with his. "Lance piloted Blue during the rescue while Keith completed his own mission with the blades. They taught me that the people we care about... are not bound by blood alone. Your family is our family. That's why I applied my mother's algorithm to earth." He took a deep breath and stood. "If we want to join the others, we should probably head to the training deck."

"We're all going to train? Didn't realize Kogane was such a-"

"It's a demonstration," Matt interrupted. "Keith isn't the bad guy, V."

Veronica rolled her eyes, content to hold her grudge a little longer. "Let's get Nadia and James."

"The AI should have already alerted them," Matt said.

So Kogane had planned for them all without telling anyone. How could he talk about trust while displaying so little himself? She made a mental note to ask James later.

She tried to keep track where they went and still felt turned around and lost when they entered the training deck. As Matt had suggested, James and Nadia were already present. Matt angled toward his sister and the princess. Veronica joined James and her girlfriend in morning stretches.

She bent to touch her toes and asked, "Has my brother been showing off all morning?"

Nadia smirked with a sidelong glance toward where Lance and Hunk were doing partner yoga. "Hunk volunteered when Keith didn't show up. I'd completely forgotten how flexible the big guy is."

Veronica glared at the back of Keith's head where he consulted the princess's advisor and the castle AI and James commented, "He doesn't sleep very much. I found him running drills with the AI last night."

"Dude needs to learn to chill," Nadia muttered. "He's so hard on himself."

"True," James agreed. "Keith has always taken things to extremes, but with good reason. He's under a lot of pressure. After all, his new mentor can only help so much."

"Coran's an engineer, after all," Veronica said while she rolled her neck.

"The AI, V," Nadia corrected.

Veronica shot her a confused look, but James added, "Dynast? Like a dynasty? He's obviously a replication of Allura's father, King Alfor."

Veronica looked between the hologram and the princess. The resemblance was undeniable now that she considered the possibility. It put a lot of Keith's behavior from the last month into context. But not enough for her to forgive him yet.

Keith spoke to his alien friends for another ten minutes before walking to a strange armor stand. Lance immediately stopped and met him there. Allura walked over hand in hand with the Holt siblings with Hunk being the last to approach.

Veronica looked over as the princess's advisor stopped beside them and cleared his throat. "My apologies for interrupting, but we must clear the floor. If you'll all accompany me to the observation theater."

With that, he strode purposefully away. Above the training deck, they all crowded around the viewing window. Coran leaned over the console and said into a slim microphone, "The floor is your's, kit."

Keith's voice answered through the speaker system, "Affirmative, teacher. Initiate today's first simulation."

Allura and Matt chose weapons from the rack while Keith triple checked Pidge's armor. Coran finished entering commands and said, "There's no need to be so tense, earthlings. I've helped train others in this very chamber since before the young princess was born. This is all very standard."

There was that word again. Veronica folded her arms and took a seat. "How long will this take?"

James stood at ease with his hands folded behind his back. "Keith wants to test the others' connections with the lions. Then we face off in actual training."

Noticing he hadn't actually answered her question, she didn't get to ask anything more before the training deck erupted into motion. Veronica watched, amazed and impressed by her little brother and his boyfriend. They moved in perfect harmony, each expecting and reacting to the other's every motion. They led the others through the drill.

Hunk and Pidge stayed toward the center, hesitant to enter combat. Not that the others gave them the chance. Keith and Allura dispatched the last of the traning deck 'gladiators' without either new paladin drawing their weapon once. Then the next round of gladiators appeared from sliding panels in the walls.

Veronica watched with growing discomfort for the next hour or so before she realized what bothered her about this. She nearly left the training deck when Coran said over the com, "That's enough for now, children. You've done exceptional work today."

Veronica watched her brother give a thumbs up to the observation deck and stretch his back. Hunk and Katie grinned at each other and put their helmets together. Yet Keith and Allura weren't ready to leave. Matt gently rubbed the princess's shoulders and she looked back to give him a peck on the cheek. They all left, leaving Allura and Keith kneeling in the center of the room.

Coran tapped a button on the console and the AI appeared beside Keith and Allura. Then he turned to leave. Veronica watched, curious, as Allura's helmet visor went dark and Keith pulled out a length of black fabric. He tied it over his face, blinding himself. When Coran turned to leave, Veronica grabbed his shirt sleeve and asked, "What are they doing? I thought training was over."

Coran glanced back with a raised eyebrow. "Keith asked me to prepare an initiation of sorts for Katie and Hunk. After all, I have now recorded data which the training system will utilize in producing the most effective simulations for their level of experience. This," he said with a gesture toward out the window, "is far beyond their capabilities. It has been some time since Allura had a sparring partner... and Keith needs a challenge. They are equally matched."

James had moved toward the door. "Are you coming, V? This is where the demonstration part begins."

Squaring her shoulders, Veronica huffed and followed James and Nadia out of the room. They passed Lance and the others in the hall and her brother breathed a quick, "Good luck."

She whipped around to glare at him, but he only folded his hands behind his head and walked on. What the hell was that supposed to mean? They rounded the corner and re-entered the training deck. Keith and Allura hadn't moved and the AI had knelt so the three of them formed a triangle.

"There's no need to hesitate," Allura encouraged.

"Your heart rate is elevated, Nadia." Keith's shoulders slowly flexed and relaxed. "Don't be afraid. Nothing is wrong." Veronica glared and stepped between her girlfriend and Keith. He sighed and slowly stood. "Let's get this over with, then."

Allura moved to stand beside him and asked, "Would you prefer to fight armed or unarmed?"

James folded his arms. "I thought we were going to spar? There's three of us."

Keith smirked beneath the fabric blind from the depths of his hood. "Three on two is fair. The choice is yours. Weapons or unarmed combat?"

"Fighting you at a disadvantage sounds like an easy win. What's the catch?" Nadia asked.

Veronica noticed how Keith and Allura's attention flicked from person to person as they spoke. Their 'gaze' seemed almost to switch before they heard the speaker. Testing how much they could see, she waved a hand. Neither reacted, but when she stepped aside and opened her mouth to speak, Keith's face snapped to where she'd moved.

Allura leaned on her quarterstaff and giggled. "Disadvantage? Keith and I only want to level the playing field."

Keith half smiled in her direction. "Keep this a fair fight, Princess." To Veronica and the others he asked playfully, "Unarmed or weapons? Your choice."

James cracked his knuckles and folded his hands behind his back. "Unarmed, Officer Kogane."

"I'm not a teacher, James." Keith stood ready and relaxed. "But I'll gladly share my experience." Then both Keith and Allura went into motion.

James groaned and took the proffered cold pack. Sliding it between his shoulders and the chair, he moaned and slunk lower in the seat. "Thanks. You'll have to show me how you did that sometime. I've never had a sparring lesson like that before."

Keith turned the other chair around and sat with a shrug. "I don't think I can. It's... I don't know how to describe."

He looked away and James ducked his head to meet his eyes. "Sensitive? Lance said your friends... the assassins... that you can sense energies others can't."

Keith half smiled then bit his lip bitterly. "...Yeah. I'm..." He waved a hand, then covered his face. "It's not easy. I do what I can. It's... better? When I'm here. Or near the lions."

"Is there anything I can do to help? Lance made it seem like it comes and goes."

Keith ran his hand down his face and settled his chin on his forearms. "The sparring helps. Sitting idle and meditating only works for so long. Then I need an outlet. Allura and Lance have experience fighting the way I was taught." Again with a shrug. "Sorry, I'm not making sense."

James reached out and squeezed Keith's shoulder. "You don't have to. We're friends and even if I don't understand this yet," he emphasized, earning a smile from Keith, "I'm going to be your friend until I do and long after."

Keith sighed and blinked slow as a cat. "Thank you, Jamie. There is, uh, one other thing. You and Ina?"

James held his breath for a second too long and Keith tipped his head when he noticed. James slowly exhaled and prepared to explain when Keith said quietly, "I know why you asked her to stay at the high school. If there had been any privacy, or time, I would have explained that her condition was not a reason to stay grounded."

The ice pack slid as James suddenly sat up. "Condition? She wasn't feeling well after the desert trek."

Keith's eyebrows furrowed and he reached to put a hand on the back of James's. "She's pregnant, Jamie. You knew she was late."

James worked his jaw and asked, "Did she tell you that or was it when you scanned everyone with that medical device?"

Keith cleared his throat and shook his head. "Ah, no, I," he drew back his hand, "sensed it. Her energy was different. Though she's hardly the only one at the school." He rolled his eyes and folded his arms. "I have to find the final paladin before this gets any more complicated. I'm sorry we were so hard on you back there."

"Wait." The pain in James's back dug in to reinforce his theory. "You thought one of us was your missing paladin."

Keith slowly nodded and stood. "I'm sorry. I was wrong."

He started to leave and James called out, "You don't have to apologize, Keefy. We learned a lot... and now Veronica understands she underestimated you and your friends. And Ina. We were suspicious, but didn't have a positive result. So thanks for that. I'll see you tomorrow for the return flight."