Hello again. This fan fic takes place about three months after my other fic "Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder." You don't have to have read it to understand this story, but there may be a few references.
Once again, I do not own any of these characters except Dante, Caleb, and Darcy. I'm just having a little fun at their expense. My stories don't really follow the series too closely, I took a lot of liberties, but then that is the joy of writing fan fiction. R&R welcome and appreciated. Thanks!
Enjoy!
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"So then we're all in agreement?" Keith looked around the table at the other members of the Voltron Force. They were all seated in the conference room, discussing the addition of a new pilot for Blue and the two backup pilots they needed to hire. Lying on the table before him were three folders, each containing the file of a potential pilot.
Second Lieutenant Dante Addison, a 2 year veteran of the Doom War from Terra. He had been flying for years and made Second Lieutenant at an early age. A very intelligent, hard working man, he took to flying Blue Lion very quickly.
The two backup pilots they had decided upon were Sergeants Caleb Marshall and Darcy Barlow. Caleb was a little younger than the other two, but he was outgoing and clever. He and Pidge had become fast friends. Darcy was a bit more introverted than Caleb, but she had shown that she could hold her own with the boys. She had a dry wit that never failed to get a laugh.
All three were very talented soldiers and great pilots. It was Dante's experience in battle that put him slightly ahead of the other two for the position of main pilot.
"Absolutely," Pidge said. "Addison has proven to be a great pilot and I think Barlow and Marshall will pick up the nuances of the Lions quickly."
"Dante and I have already been under Blue's hood, he wanted to know everything about how they work. He certainly knows his way around machines." Hunk added.
Keith turned his second-in-command, "You've been awfully quiet."
Lance shrugged his shoulders, "They're fine choices."
And finally Keith turned to his wife of two months. Allura sat silently beside him, her hands in her lap, fingering the key to the Blue Lion.
"Allura?" He whispered.
She nodded.
Keith pushed back from the table, "It's settled then. Lieutenant Addison will take over the duties of flying Blue and Sergeants Marshall and Barlow will train as backup pilots. If we're done here, I will go speak with Addison, and then I'll hunt down Marshall and Barlow. We start official training tomorrow morning at 0600 hours."
Allura nodded and quietly excused herself.
"She's not handling this well, is she?" Lance commented.
Keith ran his hand through his hair, "She's been flying for over three years and she loves it."
"Why does she need to quit anyway?" Hunk asked.
"She has so much on her plate now. Rebuilding the planet and the duties of a Queen are a lot to deal with. I would rather she didn't have to worry about flying and protection, that's what we're here for."
"But she was able to do it before you were married, why can't she keep doing it if she loves it so much?" Pidge protested.
"She can still fly all she wants, but she won't be partaking in any battles."
"She's a good soldier." Hunk said.
"She's an exceptional soldier. Allura has become one of the best soldiers I have ever known and I am not saying she couldn't handle it. But she is the sole member of the royal family of Arus, she really should not be putting her life on the line like that."
"He's right," Lance spoke up. "There is no doubt that Allura could take any of us on, but now that things have quieted down, it is more important for her to run her planet."
"She'll be fine," Keith assured them. "This has been a very difficult decision, but she did agree that it's the right thing."
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While Keith went to talk to the new pilots, Lance wandered out into the garden looking for the Queen of Arus.
"Allura?"
She was sitting on the small marble bench among the rose bushes Keith had imported from Terra.
She looked up and smiled before sliding over to make room for him, "Hi Lance."
He sat down, "How're you doing?"
"I'm fine."
"No, you're not. Do you want to talk about it?"
She looked down at the key to the Blue Lion she held in her hands. "I can't seem to give it up."
"I'm sure we could convince Keith to let you fly."
She shook her head, "It was my idea to stop flying. We had talked about it before we got married. I want to have children Lance, and if I become a mother, it would be selfish of me to go up and put my life on the line."
"You're still young, Allura, you can put off having kids for a few years and continue flying."
"Keith said that too, he knows how much I love flying. But everything has changed, Lance. I'm married. I'm Queen. This is right, I know it is, but I didn't realize how hard it would be."
Lance looked up at the sky, streaked with the golds and pinks of sunset. "I think you can see Pollux."
She looked up, "Where?"
"Right there." He pointed to a faint, green dot. "You'll be able to see it better after dark."
After a moment of silence, Allura turned to Lance with a sly smile, "I noticed you've been spending a lot of time with Sergeant Barlow."
Lance continued to stare at the sky, "She's a member of the Force now, it's important we all get along."
"She's a nice girl."
"Yes she is."
"Do you ever think you'll settle down, Lance?"
"I'd like to, if the right girl comes along."
"Would you go back to Terra?"
He shrugged. "I don't know. I've come to think of this place as home now. However, the fact is I'm still a soldier in the Galaxy Garrison and I could be transferred from here."
"I hope not. I like having you guys around."
Lance turned and looked at her. "We like being around, but if Lotor is gone for good, there is really no need for us to stay."
"I dread the day when you guys are called to duty somewhere else."
"I don't think it'll be any time soon. The Garrison likes having Voltron around and it would be stupid on their part to remove the five best trained pilots."
"I hope you're right." Allura sighed.
"You still owe me a rematch."
"What?" Allura looked at him.
"The race a couple of months ago, when Keith was away and you were piloting Black. You still owe me a rematch, but this time you're in Blue."
"Name the time and place, Lieutenant Collier."
"How about now?"
She looked at him, incredulous, "Now?"
"Why not? We're both free for now and we could get a couple of runs in before it's totally dark."
"I don't know."
"Come on, one last hoorah."
Allura looked at the key in her hand and grinned, "Keith's right, you are a bad influence on me."
"I am not, Keith's just dull."
"Watch it, that's my husband you're talking about."
"Save it for the race track, sister." Lance stood and offered his hand to Allura.
"You're on!" Allura lifted the skirt of her dress and took off running toward the castle.
"Hey!" Lance called as he easily caught up with her. "Who said you could have a head start?"
"I can't help it if you're so slow."
They entered Castle Control where Hunk was on duty.
"Hey-Hunk-we're-heading-over-to-the-flatlands-to-race-be-back-soon!" Lance shouted as he ran past his teammate toward his entry tube.
"What?" Hunk called, confused.
A moment later his monitor blinked, showing the Blue and Red Lions leaving the lake and the volcano.
Hunk opened a transmission to both cockpits and was soon faced by Lance and Allura. "What are you guys doing?"
"I have to beat Lance in a quick race." Allura told him.
"What do I tell the Captain if he catches you?"
"Don't worry about it." Lance said.
"You guys are going to get 'The Lions Are Not Toys' lecture, again."
Within ten minutes Allura and Lance arrived at the flatlands, an unpopulated desert area where they enjoyed a few good races. Since the flatlands were on a different part of the planet, they had a good hour before the sunset reached them.
"Hey, Hunk," Keith entered Castle Control. "I'm going to have Dante train in here with you tonight."
Hunk swiveled around in his chair, hiding the monitor behind him. "Sounds great, Keith. With the three of them on guard duty you'll be able to spread us out more and give us more time off, huh?"
"Yeah. What are you hiding?" Keith strode over to the console.
"What? Oh, nothing. Everything's clear." Hunk hit a few keys changing his view from the flatlands to a section of woods.
Keith studied the console and noticed the missing lions, "Hunk, what are they doing?"
"Well, um, they said something about racing."
Keith raised his eyebrows, "Racing?"
"Uh, yeah, I think Allura
wanted to take Blue out one last time."
"I'm not going to pretend that was a smart idea on their part and Lance should've known better, but I guess it can't hurt to let her have a little fun before she officially hangs up her uniform."
Hunk looked up, surprised, "You're not angry."
"Well, I'm not happy about it, those Lions are not toys."
Hunk laughed, "That's what I told them."
When Lance and Allura entered Castle Control a few moments later, they were greeted by Keith standing by Hunk, his arms folded across his chest and an eyebrow raised.
"Did you guys have fun?" He asked.
"We sure did." Lance grinned.
"What possessed you to do that?"
Allura crossed to her husband and placed her hands on his crossed arms, "As Lance put it, it was one last hoorah."
"Those Lions are sophisticated pieces of machinery…"
"Built for the purpose of protecting Arus and defending the universe." Lance interrupted, mimicking Keith perfectly. "They are not toys."
Keith's mouth quirked up at the edge as he suppressed a smile, "And yet you can't seem to get that through your thick skull."
"Don't be angry, Keith, we were just having a little fun." Allura said.
He smiled down at his wife, "I'm not angry. I just wish you would've told me so I could have gone along and kicked both your butts."
Lance snorted, "Yeah right."
The door slid open and Dante entered Castle Control.
Allura crossed to the new Blue pilot and held out the key in her hand, "Here, Lieutenant, she's all yours. Just take good care of her for me."
Dante took the key from her and bowed, "Of course, Your Highness."
Keith crossed over and stood next to Allura, "Since you are a part of the Voltron Force now, it is part of your duty to stand guard in Castle Control. You can start training tonight and once you and Caleb and Darcy are fully trained I will make up a new schedule."
Dante saluted, "Aye, Captain."
Keith smiled, "Please, call me Keith. We're not as strict with titles here as they are at the Garrison."
"Yes, sir, uh Keith, I will try to remember that."
"Great," Lance sauntered over. "All we need is for Keith's head to get a little bigger."
Keith reached over and smacked him upside the head, "You could learn a little respect for your superior officers, Lieutenant."
Lance made a rude gesture and left Castle Control.
Keith turned to Dante, who failed to hide the shock on his face. "He really is a great soldier and when we're in battle you'll see that he is as good as the stories you've heard."
The new recruit smiled, "He kind of reminds me of my kid brother."
"Well, he is kind of like everyone's obnoxious kid brother. You'll get used to it."
"Lance is a great guy," Allura came to his defense. "You'll see for yourself. Underneath his smart remarks he is really a sweet guy."
Keith slung his arm around her shoulders, "Don't let that get around. If you ruin his reputation he'll never forgive you."