Just Allura

by (Kitty)Shannon

Disclaimers: Voltron and all associated characters are owned and copyrighted by WEP. Original/new characters belong to the author.

Rating: PG - Mild Language and Innuendo

Chapter 4

Lance strolled toward the kitchen, knowing it wasn't going to be as easy to persuade Nanny as it had been Coran. In fact, he had to admit that he'd been surprised at how quickly the Royal Advisor had given his blessing. The old diplomat probably figured there was no way Lance (of all people) would ever be able to get the governess to agree to anything, let alone a party. Which, he was sure, was the same thing his Captain had been thinking when he'd given his okay.

He shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his trusty old leather jacket and decided that he'd just have to show them both that no woman could resist his charming nature.

The lanky young man reached the kitchen door and took a deep breath before waltzing in. He immediately spotted Nanny instructing a few of the maids on what seemed to be the proper coordination of table linens. The older matron turned to face him and eyed him skeptically. "Did you forget what I told you this morning?"

"Well, Nanny, I actually wanted to talk with you, to apologize for my bad behavior." Lance pasted his most charming expression on his face.

"It is getting late and I have to finish overseeing the preparations for dinner. It will have to wait until the morning." Her tone was short and irritable. It was no secret that there was no love lost between the two of them.

Gauging her mood, the young man decided that maybe it would be a good idea to wait until the morning. "Okay, ma'am, when would be a good time to talk with you tomorrow?"

She was a little caught off guard by his consideration. "I will make sure to see you first thing in the morning, right after breakfast."

"Thank you," he said beating a hasty retreat from the kitchen. ~'Maybe you can catch more flies with honey...'~

Nanny simply stared at the disappearing leather clad back in and wondered what the rogue was up to now.

:)

:)

Dinner was quite uneventful that night. After the dishes were cleared away, the five members of the Voltron Force headed off to the rec room to relax. Hunk, Pidge and Lance sat down to a game of cards, Allura settled into a comfortable chair with a book and Keith stretched out on the couch with a book of his own.

It wasn't long before the Princess caught herself yawning. She stood up and smiled at her friends. "Well, I'm going to bed. Good night everyone."

"Good night," was the chorus of replies.

Once she left the room, Keith waited about five minutes before he hurried to the door and checked to make sure she was really gone. The Princess was nowhere to be seen and so he turned back to the group.

"Well, have you talked to Nanny and Coran?"

"I talked to Coran, who thought it would be a fine idea to give a party in the Princess's honor. Nanny said she was too busy to talk to me tonight, but would make time in the morning." Lance replied without even looking up. If he had, he would have seen the shocked expressions on all his friends' faces.

"And you didn't give her a hard time about it?" Hunk asked incredulously.

"Nope," he said as he finally looked up at his friends.

"You always were a charmer when you wanted something." Keith's voice held an amused chuckle.

"There's no point in arguing with that woman." Lance scowled. "That's probably where the Princess gets it from. I've never met such hard-headed people!"

Hunk, Pidge and Keith all exchanged bemused looks before erupting into laughter.

"What?" Lance demanded.

"Look who's talking," Pidge teased.

:)

:)

Just before Hunk popped the last bite of his breakfast into his mouth (he was almost always the last to finish a meal), he looked over at Nanny and grinned.

"I think this is the best breakfast I've ever had."

The governess regarded him for a moment, a slight smile on her lips. "As you do every morning, Hunk." Her words were a bit sharp but an underlying tone of good humor laced her voice. She rose from her place at the table and started to clear away the dishes and leftover food. As she began placing things onto a nearby cart, she looked pointedly at Lance.

"You, young man, may help me with these."

The room was filled with a sudden, deafening silence as everyone braced themselves for the argument they were sure would ensue. But, to the group's surprise, Lance simply got up and began to help. Even more shocking was when Nanny headed out of the dinning room with the cart, the usually belligerent pilot offered his assistance.

As the unlikely duo disappeared from the room everyone else looked around the table, their faces etched with shock. After a moment, Hunk and Pidge glanced at one another and shrugged. Keith broke into a grin but quietly coughed and covered his mouth in an attempt to hide his mirth. Which left Princess Allura sitting at the head of the table, mouth hanging open. She blushed a deep hue at her ill manners, finally recovering from her initial surprise.

"Do you know what that was all about, Keith?" She couldn't help but feel suspicious.

"Umm, what was what about, Princess?" The Captain responded as innocently as possible.

"That. Lance. I don't think I've ever seen him just do anything Nanny asked without an argument, or a direct order." She eyed her friend for a moment. Years of politics had taught her to spot inconsistencies a mile away; she had no doubt that something was going on here. And she was determined to find out what.

"Well, you know Lance. Maybe he just wants to keep everyone on their toes." Keith stood and started toward the door. "Well, Princess, have a good day. I have to get to work on some..."

She never did hear the rest of what he was saying because as quickly as he could, he disappeared from view.

Allura sat regarding the door for a few minutes, as if somehow it would offer up the answers to the many questions she had right about now. Something strange was going on here, there was no doubt about it. She nodded to herself, her decision to get to the bottom of this mystery had been made.