"So he wasn't working alone."  Allura said.

"No," Keith shook his head.  "It would have been almost impossible for him to have done this alone."

"Do you know who he was working with?"  Dante asked.


The entire Force, along with Allura, Darcy, Becca, and Koran all sat around the table in the conference room. 

It had been a week since the shooting.  Pidge was released a couple of days earlier, but was under strict orders to take it easy.  His arm was still in a sling, he was prone to horrible headaches, and weakness made it hard for him to stay out of bed for long.  Cheyen was still in the hospital.  He was taken off life support and was expected to survive, but he had yet to regain consciousness.

Keith sat beside Allura, notes he and Lance had put together on the table in front of him.  "We went through Cheyen's quarters.  Apparently he was placed here by Landor, not Lotor.  Cheyen had to send him weekly updates and he kept a sort of diary.  He intercepted the papers on Lance's physical therapist and presented Dr. Gorma with Fatina's forged papers.  He had helped Lotor and Haggar into the castle when they attacked Lance and Darcy."

Lance sat beside Keith, glaring at the polished finish of the tabletop as the Captain listed the atrocities Cheyen and his cohorts had performed against them.  Everyone had been fooled by Cheyen, but it seemed like he and Darcy, and Schuyler for that matter, had all been at the center of his deception.  He felt like a fool and a worthless protector.  When they discovered everything Cheyen had done, Keith had to forcibly restrain Lance to keep him from running to the hospital and throttling Cheyen with his bare hands.

Darcy reached her hand out and rubbed Lance's back as he leaned over the table.  He wouldn't tell her what was on his mind, but she had an idea.  She knew him too well. 

"Who was it?"  Pidge asked.

"Privates Iyre, Bruc, and Denton."

"But Iyre was killed when Lotor and Haggar broke into our room," Darcy pointed out.

"Collateral damage."  Lance muttered.

"If they had let him go, it would have seemed suspicious," Keith said.  "We figure Cheyen did all the computer work and the other two did the leg work.  It was Bruc who had broken into Pidge's room.  It seems Cheyen was really angry about that, he didn't want Bruc to leave a note, but Bruc remembered Landor doing it and he thought it was a nice, dramatic touch."

"So what happens next?"  Allura asked.

"Bruc and Denton have been interrogated and arrested.  They are locked in the dungeons under guard until the Garrison can pick them up and take them to Zettle."

"Are we sure they're the only ones involved?"  Hunk asked.

"Yes.  The three of them were the only ones mentioned in Cheyen's log and Lance was able to scare an admission out of both of them."

Pidge looked up at him, "What about Cheyen?"


"When it's safe for him to travel he will be moved to the prison hospital on Planet Zettle."  Keith looked down at his young friend.  Pidge was pale and tired looking.  "Okay, you guys are dismissed.  We'll have a full report put together for the Garrison and you guys can check it out if you want to."  He watched as everyone stood and shuffled from the room.  Lance was still in a foul mood, but Keith knew Darcy would find a way to help him out of it.  Pidge leaned heavily on Becca as they left the room and Keith couldn't help but smile.  Becca had been so good for Pidge, he was dreading her leaving as much as Pidge was.

"I'm so glad to see you looking like your old self."

Keith looked over at his wife.  They were alone in the room, Allura sitting back in her chair, her feet up on another chair, watching him.

"How're you feeling?"  He asked.

"A lot better knowing it's once again safe in the castle."

Keith lifted her feet off the chair and sat down, placing them down on his lap, "I think you should consider taking a maternity leave until the babies are born."

She smiled at him, "I can't do that, you know that.  I don't have a nine-to-five job."

"Will you promise to take it easy?"  He asked, removing her shoe and gently massaging her foot.

She sighed, "Keep that up and I'll promise you anything."

He raised an eyebrow, "Anything?"

Allura laid her hands over her stomach, "As long as it doesn't require me to be on my feet for long periods of time."

"I don't think you have to worry about that."

She smiled softly, "You're terrible."

"Come on," Keith stood and offered her his hands.  "I have to go put this report together and I want you to relax."

"Now that this is all over, will you relax?"

He smiled and pulled her into a hug, "Maybe tonight we'll find a way to relax together."

****************************************************

The atmosphere within the castle changed dramatically after the capture of Cheyen and his men.  Everyone was much more laid back and playful.  The guys were playing games together and tricks on each other.  Allura was taking fewer meetings and more time to relax.  Hunk and Paton were back to planning their wedding, Dante was back to dating a new girl almost every night and Becca and Pidge were able to spend more time together.

A week after the arrest of Bruc and Denton, the Force settled into the rec room.  Rain poured steadily down from the sky, forcing them all to stay indoors.  Caleb and Pidge were bent over a chess board, Darcy and Becca sat on the floor playing with the babies while Allura sat back on the sofa with Keith.  Lance and Dante were immersed in a movie and Hunk was in Castle Control on duty.

Becca found herself glancing over at Pidge from time to time.  He shed the sling a couple of days earlier, but his shoulder was still stiff and sore.  They had spent time together every day since the arrests, most of that time just hanging out in his room and watching movies since he was still tired and weak. 

Pidge had just gotten off medical leave the day before.  He looked over and caught her watching him.  She blushed slightly, but smiled instead of looking away.  He returned her smile and winked at her.

"Keep your mind on the game," Caleb said.

"I can let my mind wander and still kick your butt."  Pidge responded.

A guard appeared in the doorway and cleared his throat.

Keith went to stand, but Allura, who was leaning against him, grabbed his leg and prevented him from leaving.  "Come on in, Private."  She said.

Pvt. Whitman walked quickly into the room and bowed to Allura, "Your Highness."  He turned to Keith, saluted, and held out a piece of paper.  "This just arrived, sir."

Keith took it and skimmed over it, "Thank you, Private, I'll take care of it."

"Yes, sir."

"You're dismissed."

The young man saluted and then bowed again before turning on his heel and leaving the room.

Allura snatched the paper from his hand and read it, "Oh, good.  When is he leaving?"

"As soon as possible."

"What is it?"  Lance asked.

"Dr. Gorma has cleared Cheyen for travel and contacted the Garrison to come and get him."  Keith told them.

"Good," Pidge muttered.  "The sooner he's gone the better."

"It will probably be tonight," Keith said, picking up Cady as she ran into him, hugging his leg.  "Col. Hurst will be in touch when he sends out the retrieval crew."

"So he will be alright?"  Becca asked, tickling Schuyler's stomach.  She wanted to know how he was doing, but Pidge and Keith had asked her to not go into the hospital asking about him.

"Unfortunately," Lance muttered.

Darcy looked up at him, warningly, "Lance."

"What?"  He slid out of his chair and onto the floor, taking Schuyler onto his lap.  "We're going to take Becca to a shooting range and teach her how to properly injure a person."

"I don't think that's funny, Lance."  Becca told him.

Caleb stood and stretched, "I think she injured him enough."

"Where are you going?"  Pidge asked him.

"I'm on duty."

"We're in the middle of a game."

Caleb nodded toward Keith, "Take it up with the boss man."

"Becca," Pidge whined.

Smiling, she stood, "You are such a baby."

"You better let him win," Caleb whispered as he passed her.  "He whines even more when he loses."

"Thanks for the advice," she whispered back.

Pidge winked at her as she sat down, "I'll go easy on you."

Becca looked at the board and her eyes widened, "I'm not quite the chess player you guys are."

"Move the white horsey guy there."  He suggested.

"You mean the knight?"  She kicked him under the table, which started a playful game of footsie.

None of this flirting escaped Lance and he spoke up, "So, are you guys going to give little Sky a cousin soon?"

Darcy smacked him upside the head, "Stop that!"

Becca felt the heat rise to her face at his innuendo, but she kept her mouth shut and stared at the board in front of her.

"Way to embarrass them, Lieutenant."  Keith smirked.

"Will you two behave?"  Allura said, shifting in her seat.

"I'm just saying, if you need any advice on satisfying a woman, feel free to come to me."  Lance said.

Pidge slid his gaze over to him, "If you weren't hiding behind your baby right now, I would be kicking your ass."

"Oh, don't start," Darcy said, taking Schuyler from Lance as he stood.

"I can't allow him to talk to me like that in front of my woman and kid."

Darcy rolled her eyes and stood to sit beside Allura on the couch, "You have nothing to prove Lance, we already now what an idiot you can be."

Lance ignored her.  "Bring it on Little Man."

Pidge stood so fast he knocked his chair to the floor.

Lance crossed the room while Becca got out of the way, walking over to sit next to Darcy.  "Is it usually like this?"  She whispered.

"You mean are they always this immature?"  Darcy asked.  "Yes."

Keith stood, setting his daughter on the couch and walking over to separate the two men who were engaged in mock fight.  "I should just let them kill each other and then I'd have two less pains in the ass."

Cady stood on the couch and hugged Allura, laying her head on her mother's shoulder.  Allura wrapped her arm around the little girl and held her.  "You get used to it after a while."  She told Becca.

"Are they going to hurt each other?  I mean, Pidge's shoulder is still sore."  Becca said, worriedly.

"Don't worry about it, they'll both grunt and throw a few punches and then Keith will put an end to it."  Allura assured her.

"So, have you guys settled on names yet?"  Darcy asked, trying to change the subject.

"I think so.  If they're two boys they'll be Gideon Alfor and Declan James.  If they're two girls they'll be Audrey Lynn and Madelene Abigail."

"What if it's one of each?"  Becca asked, watching as Lance pushed Pidge's good arm behind his back before Pidge kicked his feet out from under him and they landed on the floor.

"Then they'll be Gideon Alfor James and Madelene Abigail Lynn."

"The middle names are yours and Keith's fathers?"  Darcy asked.

"Yeah, and the girls are our paternal grandmothers."

"Is Cady ready for the babies?"  Darcy asked, gently tugging one of Cady's curls.

"Bay-bay!"  Cady squealed, patting Allura's stomach.

Allura smiled and stroked Cady's back, "We like to think so, but we won't know for sure until they're here."

"Are you planning on having any more kids?"  Becca asked as Pidge stood and raised his fists.

"I don't know," Allura said.  "I think we're not really going to plan for it, but if it happens, we'll be happy."

Darcy snorted, "In other words they'll have enough children to start their own football team in a few years."

"Probably," Allura smiled.

Cady crawled off the couch and went to stand by her father.  At this point, Lance and Pidge were slapping at each other's hands and tossing insults back and forth.    Keith scooped up his daughter and pointed to the two men, "See, Cady, these are the kinds of men you are never allowed to get involved with."

"What?"  Lance turned, the distraction allowing Pidge to smack him upside the head.  "Cady loves us.  Come see Uncle Lance, Cady Bear."

In response, the little girl buried her face in her father's neck and hugged him tightly.

Keith laughed, "Thatta girl.  Let him know you don't go for the big stupid men."

Darcy stood, cradling Schuyler in her arms, "I'm going to go put the baby down for her nap."

Lance bounded over and took the baby, "I'll do it."

Smiling and shaking her head, Darcy followed Lance out of the room, "She needs a nap, Lance, not to play."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah."  He waved his wife off.

Keith offered Allura a hand as she struggled to stand.  "Are you okay?"  He asked her.

"Yes, I just have to use the bathroom."  She waddled out of the room with him.

Pidge fell back across the couch, his head landing on Becca's lap, "Hi."

"Hi," she smoothed the hair back off his forehead.  "Your arm is still sore, that was a stupid thing to do."

He rolled his eyes, "I can still kick Lance's ass with one arm tied behind my back."

"Neanderthal," she murmured.

He sat up and turned to face her, "What was that?"

"I said you are a Neanderthal.  You're smarter than that, you don't need to fight."

"Oh, come on," he leaned closer to her.  "You told me a couple of weeks ago in the hospital that I looked good kicking butt."

"Yeah, kicking the bad guy's butt, not my brother-in-law's."

Pidge leaned closer, "You didn't specify that before."

"Well, I am now."

"I'll keep that in mind," he brought his mouth down on hers, leaning forward, forcing her to lie back in the couch beneath him.

Becca brought her hands up and tangled her fingers in his hair, shifting beneath him as he settled against her.  She loved the feel of his weight against her, pressing her further into the couch as his hands ran down her sides.

Pidge lifted his head, breathless, and looked down at her.  "I just felt the need to do that."

Smiling, she reached up and took his glasses off, setting them on the coffee table.  "I'm glad you did."

He took her hands in his, stretching her arms above her head while he lowered his mouth to her neck.  He kissed his way up to her ear where he whispered sweet words she never expected to hear from him and they sent a pleasant warmth through her body. 

"Pidge," she whispered.  "Let go of my hands."

"No," he murmured, skimming his lips across her cheek to capture her lips again.

"I want to touch you," she breathed against his lips.

He raised his head slightly and smiled mischievously down at her, "Oh, you do, do you?"

She bit her lip and nodded.

His heart raced so fast he was sure it would burst right through his chest.  It was still hard for him to believe someone like her could love someone like him.  She was so beautiful, smart, and fun.  He was just a computer nerd.

When he released her, Becca framed his face with her hands and whispered, "I love you," before bringing his mouth to hers.

The sound of someone clearing his throat had them both jumping.

"Don't mind me," Keith said, shielding his eyes.  "I'm just here to get Cady's blanket.  I didn't see anything.  Although I would suggest you go find a more private place to do that."

Blushing bright red, Pidge buried his face into her throat, hiding the smile on his face.

"Come on, he's right," Becca whispered.

Pidge pulled himself up and offered her a hand, "I have a few more hours before I go on duty, lets go find something to do."

"I don't wanna watch Star Wars again," Becca whined, letting him pull her to her feet.

"How about Star Trek?" 

"Ugh!" She made a face.  "That's even worse."

************************************************************

Becca woke slowly.  The rain was still falling steadily against the windowpane, there was one light on, and the televiewer was on low playing Empire Strikes Back.

"What time is it?"  She murmured into Pidge's chest.

He looked over at the clock beside his bed, "It's almost four."

She lifted her head and looked down at him.  They were stretched out on his bed where she had dozed off with her head on his chest.  "Sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep."

"That's okay," he reached up and toyed with a loose curl.  "I like watching you sleep."

Becca felt herself blush at the thought of him watching her.  "You were watching me?"

He nodded, tracing his finger along her jaw.

She sighed and studied his face.

"What's wrong, Bec?"

"I leave in a few weeks."

Pidge felt a tightening in his chest, "That's still a lot of time."

"But it's not enough."

He flashed her a weak smile, "We'll make it enough time.  Besides, you'll be back to visit and I'll visit Terra."

"Yeah," she leaned down to kiss his neck. "I'll get to show you off to all my friends."

"What?  Show off the fact that you're dating a member of the Voltron Force?"  He realized as soon as he had said it, it was the wrong thing to say.

Becca lifted her head and looked at him with a mixture of hurt and confusion.  "Is that what you really think?"  She didn't wait for him to answer.  "Pidge, I want to show you off.  The sweet, intelligent, good man that you are.  I love you for you, not for what you do for a living.  I don't know if I should be angry for what you insinuated or pity you because you feel that way."

He shifted his gaze, his cheeks reddening. 

Smiling slightly, Becca leaned down and kissed him.  "You're an amazing person."  She began unbuttoning his shirt.  "You're smart. Kind. Handsome."  She punctuated each compliment with a kiss. 

"Becca," he whispered as she spread his shirt open and ran her hands over his torso.

She lifted her head and looked down at him, earnestly, "Do you believe me?'

He nodded, "Yes."

"I need you to believe me, Pidge, I want you to understand how important you are to me."

"Becca, I…I love you," he lifted his head and kissed her.

She broke the kiss and moved her lips across his cheek, down his throat, and proceeded to trail small kisses down his chest.

"Becca, please, don't."

She lifted her head, looking hurt again, "Don't you want to…"

"Oh, God, yes.  I want to be with you more than you could ever know.  But I go on duty in an hour and I don't want to be with you and then leave.  I want to be able to stay with you," he ran his hands down her sides and back up to cross his arms across her back.  "I want to be able to make love to you and then fall asleep with you in my arms."

She smiled, her heart racing and tears filling her eyes.  She lowered her gaze and pushed the shirt back on his left shoulder, exposing his fresh scar.  Becca gently traced it with her finger, feeling him stiffen.  "I know how you got this one, tell me about…" she leaned down and kissed the thin white scar on the curve where his neck met his right shoulder, "this one."

"Doom soldier.  I was on duty when Lotor attacked.  They broke into the castle and I was on duty so I was the first one they encountered, he tried to cut my throat.  I also got this one that day."  He pointed to a wide, pink scar over his right rib.  "I was grazed by a blaster."

"Wow," she breathed, suddenly realizing how dangerous his life had been.  "What made you become a space pilot?"

Pidge shrugged, "It was just Chip and I.  We were both good with computers and we received full scholarships to the Academy."

"Lance said you were a child genius."

He blushed, "I wouldn't say that."

"It's nothing to be embarrassed about."

"I was book smart, but I was socially awkward."

"Well, you certainly aren't socially awkward anymore."

"Yeah, well, Lance took me under his wing."

Becca smiled and laid her head back on his chest, "Remind me to thank him."

A little while later, Pidge slid out from under her, it was time for him to get ready to go down to Castle Control. 

"When are you off?"  Becca asked as she stretched on the bed.

"Nine."

"We can do a late dinner."

"You don't have to wait for me."

"I want to."

"Alright," he smiled at her.  "You going to stay here?"

"Yeah, for now."

Pidge leaned down and kissed her, "I'll see you in a few hours."

"Have fun."

"I have to admit," he whispered.  "I like seeing you in my bed."

She smiled up at him, "I have to admit, I like being here."

He groaned quietly, "I'll see you at nine."

Becca looked around his room after he left.  For the most part it was sparsely decorated, but it was cozier than the room she was staying in.  He had framed movie posters of all six Star Wars movies hanging on one wall.  A handful of pictures were scattered around the room, one of him and his brother, one of his family when he was quite young, a few pictures of the Force, including pictures from Sven's, Keith's, and Lance's weddings.  A desktop computer was set up on his desk and a laptop sitting on the table beside his bed.  He had a small radio, but no stereo system. 

She grabbed the remote for the televiewer and began flipping through the channels.  After settling on a channel showing old sitcoms, she grabbed his laptop and decided to email her best friend back on Terra.  It was true, when you fell in love you did want to tell everyone.

*********************************************

A knock on the door tore her attention away from the movie she was watching.  It was 6:30, dinner time, Darcy was probably wondering where she was.

"Come in!"

The door slid open and she gasped.  "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I was looking for Audric, but this is even better."

Becca stood and looked for a way out, but he was blocking the door.  "How did you get here?"

"I know this castle like the back of my hand."

"They're going to notice you missing."

As if on cue the castle alarms sounded.

Cheyen turned and locked the door, "I'm not worried about getting out of here alive, but if I'm going, I'm taking Audric with me."