Keith watched Allura out of the corner of his eye as they walked down what was becoming the main street of Alforia.  Storefronts had gone up and merchandise was being unloaded into the buildings.  The University and schools for younger children were completed with limited classes taking place.  The orphanage was finished and furnished, the children had been moved in and guards had been placed to make sure they were safe.  Neighborhoods were beginning to take shape and a large park was being constructed.

Allura gnawed on her lower lip, taking in the changes that had sprung up.  It is really happening, she thought excitedly.  Arus was once again going to be what it once was.  They were going to thrive, the economy was going to grow.  It was so exciting.  As she took it all in, she couldn't help but think of her parents and a lump began to form in her throat.

"You okay?"  Keith whispered.

Allura smiled and nodded to a man who walked passed.  "This is amazing, Keith."

"Yeah, it is."

She stopped and looked at him, "And it wouldn't be possible if you guys hadn't come here."

"We just helped, it wouldn't have happened without your leadership."

Allura grinned, "We did it together."

"And it's just the start."

They made their way down to the far end of the shops where construction was taking place.


"Princess," the foreman tipped his helmet to her.  "How are you this beautiful day?"

"Just fine, Mr. Hiller, how are you?"

"Great, great.  Things are going well.  We should have this building done by the end of the month."

"Wonderful.  It amazes me how much work you have completed, you are doing a terrific job and you have so much to be proud of."

"Thank you, Ma'am."

"Barring any unforeseeable interruptions," Keith spoke up.  "My men and I should be down tomorrow to help."

"Sounds good, Commander, we can use any help we can get," Hiller said.  "I believe Ms. Zipner is moving into her shop today."

"Well, we'll have to stop in and see how she's doing," Allura told him.  "Thank you so much and keep up the great work."

"This is just incredible," Keith murmured as they walked past the already completed buildings.

"I know, we're already way ahead of schedule, at least by three weeks."   Allura ran her hand over the brick façade of the storefront they were passing.

"Now what kind of store is Ms…Zipner, is it, opening?"

"Yes, Rowena Zipner, she and her mother are reopening the bakery her family had built years ago.  It had been destroyed and her father passed away last year, so she and her mother and her sister, Cecelya, are planning to restart his business.  They were the first the rent out a storefront."

"Sounds nice."

Allura slipped her hand into his and said slyly, "You'll recognize Rowena when you see her, she's Euclida Remikade's best friend."

Keith rolled his eyes, "You don't think she'll be there, do you?"


"You mean you didn't keep in touch with, Lida?"

"Knock it off, Allura."

"What?  Are you ashamed of your ex?"

"You're asking for it."

"And what would it be, Captain?  Did you give it to Lida?"

Keith stopped short, "When are you ever going to get over that?"

"You used her to try and make me jealous," Allura teased.

"No, I did not use her, I was fond of her."

"Are you still fond of her?"


"Don't be silly, Allura."

"It's a legitimate question, Keith, you two had been close."

He sighed.  If he lived to be a thousand, he would never understand how his beautiful, smart, kind Princess could even think he would look at another woman when he had her.

"Allura, I love you, nothing is going to change that," he assured her.  "Yes, I dated Euclida and I have dated other girls in the past, but if I hadn't had those relationships then I wouldn't have known what love really was when I fell in love with you."

Allura pursed her lips and studied him a moment, "Did you really just come up with that?"

He nodded.

"Smooth, Captain, very smooth," she took his hand again and they continued toward the future Zipner's Bakery.

The door was propped open with a piece of brick, allowing fresh air to breeze through.  Laughter and the sounds of hammer on wood greeted them as Allura stood in the doorway.  Rowena and her sister were sitting on the floor putting together shelves while their mother polished the counter.

"Hello," Allura knocked on the door.

"Oh, your highness," Mrs. Zipner turned to the door as the hammers stopped.  "To what do we owe this visit?"

"Please, continue working," she told them.  "The Captain and I were exploring the work being done and I was told you were setting up shop.  I thought we would stop by and see how everything was going, if you needed anything."

"We're getting along just fine, Princess, thank you very much.  Would you like a tour?"

"That would be lovely."  Allura allowed Mrs. Zipner to lead her through the front and to the back room.

"Here, let me," Keith stepped forward quickly to help the two girls lift the shelves into an upright position.  "This looks great, good handiwork."

"Our father put his bakery together by himself and we helped," Rowena explained, wiping the back of her hand over her forehead.

Keith looked around, taking in the walls painted a friendly green, the polished wooden counter and the matching shelves.  "Well, it looks like it is really coming together.  How much more do you need to do?"

"We need to stock the larder and we're waiting for our stove, it's coming from Planet Ugina.  We should be ready to open in another week, around about the same time the shop next door opens."

"It won't be long before the entire town is thriving again."

The young woman nodded, "I'm sure it will be."

"Ro!  I have the fabric you ordered, I picked it up when I got the…"  Euclida trailed off when she entered the shop and saw Keith.  "Keith."

"Euclida, how are you?"

"I'm fine, and yourself?"

"I'm great.  How's your father doing?"

"Very well, busy with the rebuilding, but he's well.  And the others…are well?"

"Yes, everyone is fine."  Keith hated these awkward moments of loud silence.

Euclida looked down at the checked fabric in her arms before asking, "And the Princess?"

"She's great, she's, uh, here…now."  Keith nodded toward the door leading to the back.

"I hear the two of you are seeing each other."

"Yes."

Euclida nodded, "Well, I wish you only happiness."

"Thank you."

"I can't say I'm surprised."

"No one is," Rowena added.


Keith blushed, embarrassed that his personal life was fodder for the town rumor mill.

"This is just wonderful, Mrs. Zipner, you have done such a terrific job," Allura said as she entered the room again.  "I remember when my father would bring me down here for the half-moon cookies you used to have."

"We'll have them again, your highness, I still have the recipe," Mrs. Zipner smiled.


"Wonderful, let me know when the first batch is ready and I'll take a dozen."  Allura's smile flickered when she saw Euclida standing beside Keith.  "Ms. Remikade."

Euclida curtsied, "Your highness."

A moment of awkward silence once again filled the air.  Taking control of the situation, Allura turned to the matriarch of the family and clasped her hand in both of hers, "I am so glad we had the time to stop in.  Please, let me know if there is anything at all that you need."

The older woman smiled and laid her other hand on top of their joined hands, "It was an honor to see you, your highness, I hope you'll…" She trailed off and removed her hand, looking down.  "Your highness, is that what I think it is?"

Allura looked up at Keith, her eyes wide and watched his mouth fall open.

"Uh, well, um, it is, but, uh…" Allura was blushing.


"It is, Mrs. Zipner," Keith crossed over to stand with Allura.  "But we're going to ask you to keep it quiet, please.  Because of safety reasons, we're keeping it under wraps for now."

Rowena stepped closer, followed by her sister, "What is it?  Are things getting worse with Doom?"

"You are safe," Keith assured her in his confident Commander voice before turning back to Mrs. Zipner and lowering his voice.  "We don't want Lotor to know, so please keep it to yourself."

"Of course," Mrs. Zipner nodded and tightened her hold on Allura's hand.  "You can depend on us."

"Thank you," Allura smiled.  "We must be returning to the castle, though."

The three women saw Keith and Allura to the door, Euclida standing to the side, watching them.

"I can't believe the Princess and the Captain were just here," Cecelya sighed.  "They are so romantic together."

Rowena jabbed her sister in the side with her elbow, "Quiet, Cece."

Euclida cleared her throat, "Are they, uh, are they engaged?"

"It looks that way," Mrs. Zipner said dreamily.

"He is so handsome," Cecelya whispered to her mother.  "Can you imagine what the wedding will be like?"

"It will be like a fairy tale, but we have to keep it quiet.  For the Princess' sake."

Rowena watched as her friend's jaw tightened, "Euclida…"

She shook her head and shoved the fabric into Rowena's hands, "I have to go."

"What's wrong with her?"  Ceceyla asked.


"She's still in love with the Captain," Rowena sighed.

"I thought she was over that.  We all knew the Princess and the Captain were destined to be together."

"There was a time when she had hoped it could be different."

"Come on, girls," Mrs. Zipner clapped her hands. "Let's finish getting the shelves up and we'll lock up for the day."

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

"I should have taken the ring off," Allura cried as they walked back to the castle.

"Don't worry about it, it was silly to think we could keep it quiet any way," Keith took her hand.  "We are the most talked about couple on the planet."

"I don't think Mrs. Zipner and her daughters will say anything." 

"Hm."

"But Euclida…" she trailed off.

"She won't tell anyone."

"Are you sure?"

Keith shrugged.

"What happens now?"


"I don't want you to worry, Allura, everything will be just fine."

She nodded and they walked on in silence.  It was a beautiful day with just enough of a breeze to blow aside any standing heat.  Birds were singing, a sound that, until recently, had been nearly nonexistent.

"Keith?"

"Hm?"

"Does this mean we can call Pollux tonight?"

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

The news of their engagement spread quickly and congratulatory notes and telegrams began arriving a week after the discovery at the bakery.  Mrs. Zipner had even sent a dozen half-moon cookies along with a note. 

Keith knew it had been Euclida who had let the news slip, he just wasn't sure if it had been on purpose or not.

"Okay, Romelle and Sven are supposed to be here in two days," Allura entered his study and flopped down on the couch.  "I can't wait to show them everything that has been done in town."

"Is that all you're looking forward to?"  He teased.

"Well, I guess there will be a little time to discuss weddings," she said stretching her hands out in front of her and looking at her ring.

"A little?"

"What about you?"

"What about me?"

"Aren't you guys going to talk about the weddings?"

Keith shrugged, "Nah, we'll probably sit around and grunt while scratching ourselves."

"Fine," she sighed deeply.  "I guess it'll be up to us to plan."

"Allura, you have plenty of time.  It will be at least another year before we can marry."

"I know.  Stupid Lotor."


He threw his head back and laughed.  "I thought we were also waiting because you wanted to wait until the planet was in better shape."

"I know."

"And I have to go through some Garrison red tape to see if I can be permanently assigned here."

"I know."

Keith stood from behind his desk and sat on the couch beside her, flinging his arm across the back, "We're meeting Nanny today for dance lessons."

When they had told Nanny that they were engaged, she cried for her "little girl all grown up."  But the tears dried quickly when Allura reminded her they had a wedding to plan now.

Allura tilted her head to rest against his shoulder.  "You're being such a good sport about all this."

He shrugged, "This is stuff I have to know if I'm going to be a Prince Consort."

She looked up at him, "I wish you could be named King."

Keith smiled down at her, "It's not my title that's important, it's that I get to be with you."

Allura kissed him gently, "And I am so glad you're going to be ruling with me."

"Is this a private party or can anyone join in?"

With a groan, Keith lifted his head and looked at Lance who was standing in the doorway, "What do you want, Lieutenant?"

"Mail call," Lance walked in carrying more envelopes and a floral arrangement.  "It really did not take long for your engagement to spread.  There's even one here from my mother."

Allura jumped up and grabbed the mail from Lance.  She loved getting all these cards and notes, they were piling up in her room and she was planning to eventually put them all together in a scrapbook.

Keith took the flowers from Lance and read the card, "These are from the ruling family on Planet Cadica."

Allura glanced up from her seat at Keith's desk where she was tearing into the cards, "They're lovely."

He set them on a table by the couch and ruffled through the envelopes she had yet to open.  "What's this one?"  He held up a dark purple envelope with no return address.

Lance shrugged, "They all arrived together."

"What is it?"  Allura asked.


Keith picked up his letter opener, sliced open the envelope and read the note inside.  "Shit."

"Lotor?"  Lance asked.

Keith nodded, "I guess he has heard."

Allura stood, "What is it?"

"Don't worry about it," he crumpled the note up.

"Let me see it."

"We knew he would eventually find out."

"Let me see it, Keith."

"It's nothing, I'll take care of it."

Lance, sensing that this was about to get personal, sneaked from the room, closing the door behind him.

"Stop trying to shield me from everything, Keith, we're in this together."

Despite his better judgment, he handed her the piece of paper.

Allura laid it on the desk and smoothed out the wrinkles as best she could.

                           My Dear Princess Allura,

            Word has reached me that you have agreed to marry the Commander of the Voltron Force.  I must say that I am terribly disappointed in you.  He is beneath you and it is an insult to your heritage to take such a man as a husband.

            My offer of marriage still stands.  It would be beneficial for you to reconsider.  I can offer you and your planet wealth and growth.  It would be best for you, Arus, Doom, and all of our people if we joined together in marriage.

            I will be awaiting your answer.

                        Respectfully Yours,

                                    Lotor, King of Doom

"Allura?"

She looked up at the man next to her.  The sweet, wonderful, strong man she was going to marry.

"He won't get to you.  Don't even think of responding."

"I wasn't going to.  I just…"  She trailed off.

He slipped his arm around her shoulders, "What is it?"

"It's just, well, what he says about it being beneficial for me and my planet to marry him.  He sounds like Prince Kelton when he proposed to me."

"I never liked that guy."

"Neither did I."

Keith kissed the top of her head, "Come on, we have to meet Nanny in about ten minutes."


Allura crumpled the letter up again, feeling uneasy.  Part of her had wished she had listened to Keith and had not read the letter, but she also realized she had to know.  If there was a threat, she had to be prepared for it.

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

Keith sat in the chair in front of the main console in Castle Control watching the monitors.  The note they had received the day before from Lotor had him feeling unsettled.  He was quite tempted to send Lotor a letter and tell him what he could do with his offer.  But acting passionately rather than logically almost always had bad consequences.

He sighed and leaned his head against the back of the chair.  Their dance lessons had been rather unproductive.  Being so close together meant they were frequently snatching kisses and getting yelled at by Nanny.  A smile crept across his face as he remembered how Allura teased and flirted every time Nanny turned her back.  God, how he loved her.  He didn't want to wait any more than she did, but there were so many things they needed to consider.  They were not just another normal couple.

A light blinked on the screen to the left of the main monitor.  Before Keith could react, his communicator beeped.  "Whitaker."

One of the guards on duty out front responded, "Captain, there is a woman here who says she needs to speak with you." 

"Who is it?"

"A Miss Rowena Zipner."

"What?"

"I think you better come out here, Commander."

"I'll be there in a moment," Keith said, snapping his communicator shut.  He waved a guard over and placed him at the console with instructions to contact him if there were any problems.

"I want to talk to Keith!"


"Yes, Ma'am, he's on his way."

Keith stepped out into the cool evening air and took in the scene before him.  Private Layden was standing, his feet spread and his arms crossed over his chest, blocking the way of the two women in front of him.  Rowena was holding Euclida by the arm, trying to stop her.

"Is everything alright?"  He asked.

"No, it isn't!" Euclida said loudly.


"You're dismissed, Private, I can handle this."

Layden nodded and saluted, "Yes sir."

Keith lowered his voice, "What's going on, Euclida?"

She swayed slightly and her words were slurred when she spoke, "You used me."

"You're drunk."

"I'm really sorry about this, Commander," Rowena spoke up.  "She showed up at my house like this and told me she was going to talk to you.  I tried to stop her."

"It's alright," Keith assured her before turning back to the intoxicated woman.  "You need to go home, Lida, and sleep this off."

"You used me!  You never loved me, you used me to get the Princess' attention!"

Rowena blushed, embarrassed for her friend, and tugged on Euclida's arm, "Come on, Lids, let's go home."

She ignored her friend, wrenching her arm from her grasp, "Not until he admits he used me!"

"I didn't use you," Keith said calmly.  "I did like you, I do like you, as a friend."

"If she wasn't the Princess you wouldn't have even noticed her!"

Keith clenched his teeth, reining in his temper, "Go home, Euclida, I'll have a guard escort you."  He waved over Private Layden and turned back to the women where he was greeted by a slap in the face.

Rowena gasped in shock and tried to grab her friend's hand.  "I am so, so sorry, Commander, she isn't herself.  She is going to be really sorry in the morning."

Keith laid his hand on his cheek, "Just get her home."

"I will," she promised pulling hard on her friend's arm.

"Damn you!"  Euclida cried.  "You can't just toy with a person's feelings."

Keith ignored her and instructed Private Layden to make sure the two women got home safely.  He waited a moment and watched while Rowena and the Private each took one of Euclida's arms and half carried, half dragged her away from the castle.  With a sigh, Keith turned back toward the castle and saw Allura standing in the doorway, silhouetted against the light coming from inside.

"Is everything alright?"  She asked as he trudged toward the door.

"Yeah.  What are you doing here?"

"I went to Castle Control and Private Fforden told me you were called out front because of a disturbance."

He stopped right in front of her and reached out to straighten the shawl she had wrapped around her shoulders, "It was Euclida, she had a little too much to drink."

"Oh."

"Don't worry about it.  Rowena and Private Layden are taking her home."

Allura nodded.

"What is it?"

"She is beautiful."

"Allura…"

"And she is the smartest woman I've ever met, smarter than me."

"Allura…"

"She could probably…"

Keith cut her off by stepping up and kissing her.  "Stop it," he whispered when they broke apart.  "Stop comparing yourself to her because no one can compare to you."

Chewing on her lower lip, Allura nodded and stepped aside to let him enter.

"I mean that," he said, taking her hand.

She smiled up at him, "I know."

"So what did you want?"

"What?"

"You said you went to Castle Control.  What's up?"

"Oh, well, Koran and I finally finished processing the numbers for the stores in town and I thought I would stop by and see you."

"No reason?"

"Just that I wanted to see you."

He squeezed her hand, "That's a good reason."

"When is your shift over?"

"Another hour."

"It is getting late," she said, thoughtfully.  "Maybe you can swing by and wish me a good night when you're done."

"Maybe," he winked at her.  "You need to get some sleep, Romelle and Sven are arriving early tomorrow."

"Fine," Allura tried to pull away from him.  "I'll just leave you now."

He didn't let go of her hand, "I'll see you in an hour, Beauty."

"Only if I open the door, Beast."

Keith laughed and kissed her quickly before dropping her hand, "You're such a tease."