Hi all,

Thank so very much for your amazing, thoughtful reviews. You have no idea how much they mean to me, to know that you are enjoying something that I love to do. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

I am sorry for the delay in getting this chapter up. I went in for some minor surgery earlier this week and I am laid up for about another week. I hope to get the next chapter up soon, but I am still unable to sit up for long periods of time. Hopefully things will be back to normal by the end of next week.

Enjoy!

Failte

"Hey, how're you feeling?" Sky asked Cady as she entered her room in the hospital late the next morning.

"Oh, I'm just great," the Princess whined. "I'm sore, I'm sick of being here, I'm angry."

"What are you angry about now?"

"That I'm stuck here."

Sky sat in the chair beside the bed, "You were shot, Cady."

"I am fully aware of that, Schuyler."

"Don't get pissy with me, Princess."

Cady sighed dramatically, "I want to leave the hospital, but Aunt Becca wants me to stay another day. And even then I can only go to my room and stay on bed rest until further notice."

"She knows best."

"That's what Mom said."

"Cady, you need to relax, get better."

"I have work to do, I have classes to take. I'm going to fall behind. And what if there's another attack? Who will take care of things in the caves?"

"Cady," Sky interrupted her tirade. "Stop it. All you need to do is get better."

"You don't understand, Sky."

"No, I don't, I've never been injured."

"Not that," Cady sighed. "I lay here all day and night, not doing anything, and all I can think about is Tristan."

Sky laid a sympathetic hand on her friend's arm, "I'm sorry Cady."

"Have you guys heard from him?"

"Uh, no, not since the day before last, after he arrived on Zettle."

"What…what if I never see him again?"

"Then it wasn't meant to be."

Cady glared down at the fabric sling cradling her arm, "That doesn't help, Sky."

"I don't know what to tell you, Cady. I'm worried about you, I don't want to see you hurt."

"I know, Sky, and it really means a lot to me. I just…I just don't know what to do."

"Tell you what, I'll ask Erik to email him again, see if he can find anything out."

"Speaking of Erik," the corners of Cady's mouth quirked up. "How did things go last night?"

Heat rose to Sky's face and she couldn't meet her friend's eyes, "It went very well."

"Very well?"

"Extremely well."

"Are you going to elaborate?"

Sky bit back the foolish urge to giggle and said, "It went unbelievably well. Better than I could have imagined."

"Uh, Sky, why do I think this is more than a nice jacket and a cake?"

"Because it was more."

Cady's eyebrows rose, "What do you mean?"

Sky leaned closer and whispered, "We, uh, well, I had another present for him. A more personal present."

"You mean…" Cady's voice trailed off as realization dawned on her. "Sky! You and Erik had sex?"

"Shh shh shh!" Sky hissed, waving a hand at her friend. "Be quiet you moron. And…yeah, we made love."

"Well?"

"Well?"

"How was it?"

"Amazing."

"Amazing?"

"Amazing."

Cady rolled her eyes, "Get to the point, Sky."

"I am so in love with him."

"I knew that."

"No, I mean, I don't know how to explain it. I knew I loved him, but, I just feel…complete."

"Complete?"

"Complete."

"I'm not getting it, Sky."

"You will, Cady, some day, with the right guy, you will get it."

"I guess it is something you have to experience, huh?"

"Yeah."

Cady smiled softly, "All I want is a man who can love me for who I am, not because I'm a Princess or because I'm Commander Whitaker's daughter. I want what you have."

"Stop pitying yourself, Cady, it will happen. I'll be the first to admit I'm lucky," Sky said. "And you will be too."

A quick knock on the door interrupted their conversation.

"Come in," Cady called.

The door slid open and Erik walked in, a piece of paper in hand, "How're you doing, Cady?"

"Oh, I'm just peachy."

"Glad to hear that," he said cheerfully, dropping a kiss on Sky's head. "How about you, Sunny?"

She looked up at him and smiled, "I'm terrific. You?"

He grinned back, "Couldn't be better."

"Oh for Pete's sake," Cady grumbled. "Do you want me to leave you two alone?"

"Would you mind?" Erik asked.

"Stop it," Sky smacked his arm gently. "What's up?"

"Well, I got an email from Tristan and I thought Cady would like to read it," he held up the paper in his hand.

Cady held out her hand for it, "Give it to me."

"Where are your manners, Princess?"

"Give it to me now, jerk."

Shaking his head, Erik handed her the printout and took Sky's hand. "Come on, Sky, Keith wants us in Castle Control for a quick meeting."

"But…" Sky started to protest.

Erik cut her off, shaking his head, "Come on, Schuyler."

Cady didn't even hear them leave as she read the printout:

Erik,

Let me just start out by saying that although I agree with your assessment of Captain Klari, she was my superior and I can't really elaborate on your description. In other words, yeah, she is, but there is nothing I can do about it. I know she brought in a new second, Cpl. Noral. I don't know much about her, but I've heard she's a good worker. I'm sure she'll do well.

I wanted to let you know that I have been ordered to go on leave. There was an incident the night I arrived here, it's not something I'm proud of. I got into a fight and I was sent to the camp psychiatrist the next morning. He has ordered me to go on a two week leave and they're sending me to Terra for some R&R. After that, I don't know where I'll go. When my leave is up I have to report to the Garrison HQ in New York and they'll give me a new assignment then.

As you can see, it is not that I am giving up, there are just circumstances beyond my control. I have six more months before I reup with the Garrison. By then the Princess will have forgotten I had ever even been to Arus. Even if I didn't reup, I don't really know what else I would do.

I'm sure she has plenty of suitors who would be a better choice than me, I would never want to expose her to this kind of life, with me always out on assignment and she has her responsibilities on Arus, we'd never be together. She has so much to offer and I know she will go far and meet the right man. I appreciate your offer to help, but it's not that easy. You are lucky enough to work and live with the woman you love, right now I don't have that option.

I'm glad to hear that Cady will be all right. Tell her I send my regards and I wish her a speedy recovery.

Thank you for all your help and for keeping me posted. Good luck with everything, Erik. I'll be following what is happening with Vinn and you will all be in my thoughts and prayers.

Regards,

Tristan

Cady felt the tears burn her eyes. Angry, bitter tears. Who did he think he was? Did he really think she was shallow enough that she would just forget about him after six months? She would remember him until the day she died! There is no way this could be the end.

She scanned the note again and reread the line: You are lucky enough to work and live with the woman you love, right now, I don't have that option. Does that mean he loved her? Cady knew she could wait six months, but could he? Maybe this was just his polite way to blow her off.

Very slowly, she folded the paper and set it on the bedside table. Covering her face with her right hand, she quietly cried.

………………………………………………………..

"I thought practice went well," Sky said as Erik led her from the hospital. "Why does Keith need to see us?"

"He doesn't, I just think Cady needed a moment alone."

"What is it, Erik?"

"Tristan isn't coming back, Sky. He's in love with her, he all but admits it, but he is tied to the Garrison and is being sent to Terra, first for two weeks of R&R and then to be reassigned."

"Oh, Erik," she sighed. "Poor Cady."

"I know. Give her a couple of minutes." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Did I do the right thing? Giving her the email? She needed to know what was going on and I wasn't sure how to tell her, so I thought it would be best coming from him."

"You did the right thing, hon," she assured him. "Maybe this will be for the best. Make a clean break. She needs to move on."

"Yeah, I guess so."

"Did you email him back?"

"Not yet, I was going to see if Cady had anything she wanted to say to him."

"Maybe we should go check on her."

"I'll let you do that, I doubt she wants me hanging around."

Sky kissed his cheek, "I'll see you for lunch."

He gave her a half-hearted smile, "Yeah. Did I thank you for last night?"

"Several times," she teased.

"And yet it doesn't seem like enough."

She laughed quietly, "You are so easy."

Erik dipped his head and stole a quick kiss, "I love you, Sunny."

"Glad to hear you still respect me the next morning."

"Yeah, I think it's safe to say you earned my respect."

"Oh yeah?"

"Oh yeah," he wiggled his eyebrows at her. "And then some."

"See you at lunch, Commander," she patted his cheek. "Try and contain yourself, will you?"

"I'll try."

They shared another quick kiss before going their separate ways.

……………………………………………………………………..

"She doesn't want to see anyone," Becca sighed when Sky returned to the hospital.

"What do you mean?"

Becca set the folder she was holding down on the desk and crossed her arms over her chest, "I went in there to check her wound and change the dressing, she actually ordered me to leave."

Sky raised her eyebrows and gave her aunt a disbelieving look.

"Okay, I didn't leave right away. I threatened to sedate her if she didn't let me check her shoulder, but she seems very upset about something."

"I'll talk to her," Sky said. "I know what's wrong."

Cady was sitting up in her bed, dabbing her moist eyes with the edge of her sheet. "I said I wanted to be left alone."

"Too bad."

The Princess glared at her best friend, "Please, Schuyler."

Ignoring her plea, Sky sat down and gave Cady a sympathetic look, "Erik told me about the email."

"Then you know why I want to be alone."

"Cady…"

"He's not coming back, Sky."

"Maybe we can talk him into…"

"No," Cady shook her head. "If he really wanted to come back, he would find a way. I just have to move on."

"I am so sorry, Cady."

"It just wasn't meant to be. You were right, Sky."

"I wish I wasn't."

"I know," Cady sniffled.

"Uh, Erik is going to email him back, but he wanted to know if you wanted to add anything."

She shook her head, "No, thank you."

"I really am sorry, Cady."

"I know."

"If there's anything I can do…"

"If you could talk Becca into letting me out early, I'd appreciate it."

Sky smirked, "I'll see what I can do. But no promises."

"Thanks."

………………………………………………………….

"Keith?"

The Commander looked up from his desk and smiled at his wife, "Hey, honey. What's up?"

Allura swept into his office, shutting the door behind her, "We need to talk."

He set his pen down and sat up straight, "Is it Cady? Is she all right?"

"Cady's fine. As a matter of fact, I just spoke to Becca and apparently Cady is being bratty, she's ready to get out of the hospital."

Keith smiled, "Nice to see she's starting to feel better."

"No, we need to talk about your son and Euclida Remikade's daughter."

"My son? Didn't you have something to do with all the children? Which son and what about Brina?"

"Are you telling me you didn't notice?"

"Notice what?"

She threw her arms up in the air, "You are so dense! I'm talking about Declan and Brina!"

"What about them?"

"I think they're seeing each other."

"I know Declan has been flirting with her, but they're teammates, friends. Don't read too much into it."

"While we were in the hospital, waiting for word on Cady, she held his hand the entire time. They were inseparable."

Keith sighed and sat back, "I think we can all agree that dating within the team is not the way we would prefer things to be, but, well, we know that it happens. They're both young, honey, if they are enjoying each others company and it doesn't get in the way of their work, who are we to judge them?"

"I just don't like it," Allura pouted. "She's older than he is."

"I'm older than you."

"But, you're a man and I'm a woman."

Keith laughed, "Allura, sweetie, that is the weakest argument you have ever come up with."

"It's all I can think of right now."

He stood and walked around the desk, taking her hands in his, "Honey, this is about Euclida, isn't it?"

She shrugged and looked at the floor, "I don't want that woman's daughter hurting my baby."

"You need to get over the fact that I once dated her. You are the only woman I have ever, really, truly loved. She is not and never will be a threat to us. Brina is a good kid, you can't deny that. I think Declan could do worse."

"I know. I just…three of our children are seriously entering the dating world. I mean, Cady has gone out on a few chaperoned dates, but she is officially out there, going on unsupervised dates. Lynnai is a good girl, we've known her for years and I think the world of her, but she and Gideon are getting closer. Before this war broke out, they spent every possible minute together and even now, he is always running off to call or email her. And well, then there's Dec and Brina. I don't know. I'm not ready for this, Keith."

"I wasn't the one pushing for Cady's coming out ceremony."

She slipped her arms around his waist and hugged him closely, "When did they grow up?"

"Well, it was probably at some point during the last nineteen years," he replied, hugging her tightly.

"When did we get old?"

"We didn't."

Allura tilted her head back and looked at him, "If she hurts my boy, I am going to have her executed."

He chuckled, "Stop that, you are not."

"Well, no, maybe I'll just threaten her a bit."

"Or maybe you'll let Declan deal with this himself. Who knows, maybe someday Euclida and her husband will be our in-laws."

She stepped out of his embrace, "Not funny, Keith."

"Oh, come on, honey, you're being silly. Let's not jump to any conclusions and you have to let Declan live his own life, make his own decisions and if it ends up as a mistake, hopefully he will learn from it and move on. Or it could end up being the best thing to ever happen to him. Maybe our children are finding what we have."

Allura sighed, "You're right, I know. I just…well, I changed my mind. I want all six of our children to stay home and not date until they're thirty-five."

"That's not going to happen, baby."

"I know. Maybe…" She trailed off.

Keith was afraid he knew where this was going, "Maybe what, Allura?"

"We're not old yet, Keith," she whirled around, clasping her hands to her chest. "We could have another baby."

"Allura…"

"Becca and Pidge are doing it."

"They're a little younger than we are, honey."

"Only by a couple of years. Let's do it, Keith, let's have another baby."

He ran a hand through his hair and rubbed the back of his neck, letting out a long breath. He loved his children, dearly, and would do anything and everything for them. But he was forty-five and he wasn't sure if he wanted to have another child at this point in his life. When he spoke, he did with a careful tone as he took her hands again, "Sweetheart, this isn't something we can take lightly. We aren't as young as we once were. Why don't we take some time and think about it."

"I take that as a 'no'?" She asked quietly.

"No, take that as a 'let's think about it'."

Allura laid her hands over her stomach. After having six children, she wasn't as svelte as she had once been, but that didn't matter. Keith had told her numerous times how beautiful she was and whenever she pointed out her flaws, he smiled and kissed her, and told her that it was her beautiful body that bore six beautiful children and it only made her sexier. She longed to feel life growing within her again. Another baby. "Okay," she sighed. "I'll think about it if you promise to give it some actual thought."

"I promise," he kissed her forehead.

………………………………………………………………….

With Gideon on duty in Castle Control, Declan decided to steal a few moments with Brina. He ran his hands through his hair and checked the mirror one more time. It still thrilled him to think that Brina Morrigan was dating him. She was beautiful, smart, sweet, and beautiful, not to mention the fact that she was almost as good a pilot as he was, almost.

He knocked on her door and leaned against the frame.

"Hi," she smiled at him when the door slid open. "What's up?"

"Well, I'm off," he stepped into her room. "You're off. I thought that, maybe, we could get together."

Brina wiped her hands on her thighs, her heart racing at his nearness, "Maybe."

"It's a beautiful day," he said, reaching up to play with a tendril of her silky, auburn hair. "Want to take a walk around the lake?"

"I would be honored to," she smiled, taking the hand he offered.

"You looked good in practice," Declan said as they walked, hand-in-hand, down the hall. "You nailed the landing."

"I guess I have you and your extra practice to thank for that."

"Don't sell yourself short, Brin, you are a great pilot and you are doing a terrific job."

"Thank you, Declan, that means a lot to me."

The two of them left through a side door and made their way down the yard toward the lake. It was a beautiful day, a slight breeze causing the leaves on the trees to tremble. The sun was high in the sky and the lake was an amazing crystal blue.

"We should go get our suits and go for a swim," Declan said as the rounded the water.

"I wish we could, but I go on duty in another hour," she sighed. "Maybe tomorrow."

"When this is all over, when we're clear to leave the castle, I am going to take you out on the town for the time of your life."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah."

"So you know how to show a girl a good time?"

He laughed quietly, "I don't want to brag or anything, but yeah, I do."

"I was thinking," Brina began.

"What about?"

"I, uh, I was talking to my mother the other night and I told her about us."

"And?"

"She said it's nice we got together, she thinks very highly of you and your family."

"We should invite your family up here for dinner or something," Declan suggested.

"That would be fun," she agreed.

"I'll talk to my mother, see what she thinks."

"I know my sister would love to visit the castle."

"She's welcome anytime, Brin, you live here now, your family doesn't have to wait for a formal invitation to come and visit."

"Huh," she smiled and squeezed his hand. "I'll call Brigid later and see if she wants to come up and stay the night."

"Oh crap," Declan muttered under his breath.

"What?"

"Don't look now, but Captain Bitch is heading this way."

Brina looked around and groaned when she saw Captain Klari and Cpl. Noral jogging toward them, obviously out for an afternoon run. "Quick, let's try and get out of here before she sees us."

Declan turned quickly, pulling her with him, "I can't wait to dispose of Vinn more to get rid of her than any other reason."

"Good afternoon."

He sighed, annoyed that they hadn't been fast enough. But he had to be polite, so Declan turned and smiled charmingly at the two women, "Captain Klari, Corporal Noral. Beautiful day for a walk, isn't it?"

Klari looked from Declan to Brina to their joined hands and back up to Declan, "It certainly is. Now tell me, young man, is it common for military personnel on Arus to get their girlfriends jobs or is it only for the royals?"

Brina flinched as she felt Declan's fingers squeeze hers almost painfully.

"I'm afraid you're opinion is misguided," he said stiffly.

She shook her head, "I have never been witness to such an unprofessional display within the ranks."

"With all due respect, I'm not quite sure how this is any of your concern, Ma'am."

"It is most definitely my concern when your relationships could get in the way of fighting Vinn."

"It hasn't yet and it won't," he assured her.

Throughout this exchange, Corporal Noral kept shifting her gaze around them, taking in the lovely surroundings and trying to ignore the rising feelings of unease as her Captain argued with the young Prince. Holly Noral was a young soldier, this being her first assignment out of the Academy. She was so excited to hear she had been accepted to this position, to work on Arus with the Voltron Force. But then reality hit. She wasn't working with the Force, she was standing aside, watching them work while she took notes for Captain Klair to use against them in her reports to the Garrison. While she had once been excited at the thought of coming here, now she felt letdown and uncomfortable. And she couldn't help but feel a little jealous at the closeness the five members of the Force showed. Holly had hoped to join a crew, to work closely together, but, once again, she was stuck watching from the sidelines.

Brina cleared her throat, uncomfortable with the conversation going on between Declan and Captain Klari, "If' you'll excuse us, Captain, I am due up in the cstle for guard duty."

Captain Klari nodded stiffly and turned to the girl beside her, "Come along, Corporal, we need to finish our run, I feel the need to send a report to the Garrison tonight."

"What did we ever do to deserve her?" Declan grumbled as they walked up to the castle.

"Don't let her upset you, Dec, we are doing the right thing."

Before they reached the door, Declan took her hands and led her to the shadows of the orchard, "Tonight I would like to get together with you, forget all about Klari and Vinn for a couple of hours."

She smiled, pleased with herself, "I would love to."

He bent his head and kissed her gently, "Then it's a date."

………………………………………………………….

"Careful, Cady," Keith said as he helped her into a wheelchair.

"I know, Dad," she mumbled, feeling a bit dizzy at the movement from bed to chair.

Becca had finally caved to allowing Cady to move to her own room, as long as she stayed in bed and Becca checked on her regularly. Cady also had to promise to stop whining, but everyone knew that was a 'pie crust promise', easily made, easily broken.

"I still don't like this," Allura sighed as she picked up one of the larger vases of roses.

"I can't stay here any longer," Cady whined.

Sky picked up a vase in each hand, "It's only been a couple of days."

"Too long."

A large group had joined in the room to help carry Cady's jungle of flowers and pile of gifts to her room. Erik, Lance, Hunk, Pidge, Gideon, Declan, Allura, Becca, and Tess all carried vases of flowers while Keith pushed her wheelchair and Charlotte and Nicky each carried a couple of stuffed animals.

"You can have that one, Nicky," Cady said as her little brother half-carried, half dragged the huge stuffed bear.

"Can I?" He asked excitedly.

"Of course, you and Charlotte can fight over the other stuffed animals."

"I don't play with stuffed animals any more," Charlotte said haughtily.

"Oh, okay, sorry," Cady said slyly. "I guess you don't want the giraffe."

"There's a giraffe?" Charlotte whispered, looking over her shoulder back into the room. "I didn't know there was a giraffe." Ever since their parents had taken them to Terra years ago and they had gone to visit a zoo, Charlotte had fallen in love with the tall creatures.

"In the corner by the televiewer," Gideon told her. "Give me the bear and you can go get it."

"Thanks, Gid," she said, shoving the small, pink stuffed bear she had been holding at him and running back into the hospital room.

It took two trips for them all to bring the flowers to her room. The vases and arrangements covered the mantel over her fireplace, her desk, bedside tables, vanity, and were in set in the corners and on both sides of the fireplace.

"Oh, it smells so nice in here," Allura said as she sat on the side of her daughter's bed. "There are so many thoughtful young men out there."

"Yeah," Cady yawned, leaning back against her pillows.

"All right, sweetheart," Keith stood beside her. "This communicator is set up so all you need to do is hit 1 and it connects you straight to the hospital and Becca. 2 is me, 3 is your mother, and 4 is Sky. Is there anyone else you need to be connected to?"

"I don't think so, Dad, thanks."

"Is there anything you need?" Allura asked.

"Just to rest, I'm very tired."

"Okay, don't be afraid to call me if you need anything, at all, for any reason."

"I know, Mom, thanks."

Keith and Allura both took turns kissing her forehead and wishing her a good rest, promising to check on her later.

"Sky, hold on a second," Cady said before her friend could leave.

"What is it?"

"Can you get me my computer, please?"

"Sure," Sky moved the flowers aside and dug out the pink laptop computer. She carried it over to the bed and plugged it in. "You need help or anything?"

"No, thanks, Sky, I can take it from here."

Sky nodded, "Just…just be careful, Cady."

"I will." The Princess waited until her friend left before reaching into her sling and pulling out the folded email. The lightweight computer was small enough for her to lift with one hand as she set it on her lap and began to compose a letter to Tristan.