"Helloooooo! Earth to Mullethead!"

Keith winced at the nickname, realizing Lance always used it when his ego was threatened. And if there was ever a time, now was it. They'd just wormholed away from the alternate reality Voltron team, including their Keith who was married to their Allura.

"Lance, if you're not asking about the mission I'm going to personally open another rift just to shove you in it!"

The gasps from the others made Keith shrink in on himself. He willed himself invisible but couldn't seem to make it happen. Still, he knew that he'd probably need to be kinder to the other paladin considering the bombshell that was just dropped on them. The blue paladin had long had a crush on the princess, after all.

Turning to face Lance fully, he realized how right he'd been. "You want to do that anyway," Lance snapped back as he clenched his fists angrily, "so you can have Allura to yourself!"

"Well I imagine you have as much of a chance with her as their Lance did," Keith retorted, his nostrils flaring as he spoke. With that he stormed off the bridge, headed to anywhere he could clear his head for a bit.

Eventually he found himself on the observation deck. Seeing the swirl of the distant galaxies always calmed his mind, reminding him of his relative insignificance despite his enormous burden. Then he remembered a conversation they'd had some time ago.

We're all connected.

He'd long marvelled at the fact that everything in the universe was connected, but it had never occurred to him that the link extended to other realities. Yet there it had always been, right in front of him. Even before they revealed themselves he'd been aware of their presence.

When they had entered the space rift he'd spotted something in the distance. The others didn't seem to notice it, but a brief glimmer of light drew his attention from Lotor's ship for a moment. It was then he felt it. Something that felt like deja vu, but more ominous.

That's why he'd convinced the others to trust the strangers that appeared suddenly. It was why he allowed them to save Lotor's life. And it was, even now, the reason he was questioning everything that had happened to him recently.

Well, recently was a relative term.

Finding his mother had been his dream from the moment he started with the Blades. Any anger he felt towards Kolivan for keeping quiet about Krolia's whereabouts had dissipated over the two years they'd been stranded on the space whale. He'd learned so much about her, about his past, and even about his future. Or what little of it he'd actually seen.

Now he understood. Bits of him fighting Shiro, of Voltron's fight with Lotor, even the Altean colony, had peppered his visions. Nonetheless most of the future visions, if that's what they could even be called, were distorted like a freshly painted portrait left out in the rain. Colors bled into each other and pooled at his feet, leaving a blank canvas behind.

Until the moment he met the other Keith, the other him, he'd taken it as a sign that his own life would be cut short soon. Most nights he fell asleep cursing having ever left the dry desert of Arizona. Most mornings he awoke thinking about the reason he was glad he had.

Allura.

If she was the one destined to die then why could he not see his own future? Maybe it was in flux, only one of an infinite number of possibilities. And maybe he himself was the catalyst that could change it. Whatever the reason, he was most definitely thankful to not have seen the person he cared for the most disappear from his life forever.

Granted he thought she might have before. He may have been with the Blade of Marmora but he kept tabs on the team. Coran, Lance, Pidge, and especially Hunk, all kept him in the loop about the goings-on in the castle. None of them were completely comfortable with Lotor's presence yet they went along with the Princess' wishes.

When he returned with Romelle from the colony his plan was to get Lotor away from the others, permanently if possible. What he didn't expect was how deep the Galra leader's relationship with Allura had grown.

Keith's stomach knotted up even tighter as he recalled the scene of them kissing in the hangar. Without thinking he furiously punched the window, his knuckles cracking as they made contact with the glass. Pain shot through his hand into his arm, and he instantly regretted his impulsivity.

It was that same anger that got him into trouble constantly as a student, and set him on a path moving away from Allura as a paladin. He had his reasons for doing it, not all of them the right ones, but it was never because he wanted to be away from her. On the contrary, he missed her every day they were apart.

He'd been so excited on the trip back from the Altean colony. Sure, he knew they had to confront Lotor about the atrocities that he'd committed, and he knew the team as a whole had grown to trust the Galra Prince more. But Keith's concerns were overwhelmed by his need to protect Allura.

Then, after he'd taken off to save Shiro from yet another cruel imprisonment and likely torture at the hands of the Galra, he caught a glimpse of Allura being comforted by Lance. In fact, the argument he'd had with the blue paladin stemmed from more than Lance's jealousy. For Keith there was an equal amount of urgency when it came to winning her attention. Who knew what might have transpired between them during the time he'd been with the Blades?

This wasn't the time to think about personal relationships, however. The fate of the universe hung in the balance, demanding the bulk of his attention. Since the team would have to divide into smaller groups, Keith knew it made more sense to go back to the colony and send Allura with someone else to Oriande. He also knew that Lance was likely going to draw that straw.

Over and over he ran data through the system, looking for a way to safely get both groups to their location. First he paired Allura with Lance. Then with the rest of the team. The hard part was what to do when they got close to the white hole. Allura was the only one capable of reaching Oriande, that much he knew from their previous experience. He was the only untested option, and chances were just as slim of him reaching it. Still, he knew that some chance was better than no chance.

Now the hard part would be to convince the others. Granted he could just chalk it up to what the older Keith had mentioned and leave it at that. Would Allura accept it though? Or would she still doubt his loyalty to the team? To her?

Slav always spoke about different realities, and chances were this was the one-in-a-million reality where he and the Princess weren't a couple. It would be a lie to say that his heart didn't jump when the other version of himself mentioned his wife and kids. Things Keith never hoped to have for himself, yet he had yearned for it since he'd met his Allura.

No. Not his. Not yet, at least.

Shaking his head he went back to the screen, which was now somewhat blurred. Wiping his eyes on the back of his sleeve he realized he'd been crying. He looked around quickly for a tissue to finish the job when a handkerchief appeared over his shoulder. He accepted it sheepishly when he realized the hand holding it was a woman's.

"Keith, we need to talk," she offered hesitantly, "but it seems like now isn't a good time."

After using the cloth to clean himself up a bit he turned to face Allura, offering a terse smile in gratitude. Her body language was unlike he'd expected: usually her features would soften and her shoulders relax when she tried to comfort him, but now her frame was tense as if she needed comfort from him instead. The fact that she couldn't look him in the eye made the knot in his stomach even tighter.

She's trying to let me down easy.

A loud thud stopped the Princess in her tracks as she walked past the observation deck. Peering in she saw Keith, his hand raised as he studied the back of it. Allura was concerned at the angry bruise that crept over his knuckles. In front of him was the tell-tale smear on the window that told her he'd taken his frustration out on the thick glass.

On top of that he was crying for what seemed to be no apparent reason. Not that Allura didn't feel like breaking down at any moment after everything that had happened, especially after learning about Lotor's betrayal. She had fallen for his lies; his false praise made her trust him.

No, it made her love him.

She had been a fool, playing right into his arms. The kiss they'd shared played in her mind, a painful reminder of her foolish behavior. After all, she was willing to consider marrying that monster. In her bleakest moments he'd been the one who was there for her, offering solace as the war wore on endlessly.

Bitterness welled up inside her heart as Allura realized that loneliness was at the center of their relationship. Lotor was basically an orphan, just like her. He'd lost people he cared for, just like her. And, just like her, he'd attempted to fill that void with someone who could help him achieve his goals.

Quiznak.

Somewhere, somehow, Allura knew she was using him. She had an inkling that he was using her. Neither mattered at the time. It seemed that everyone wanted something from her, but no one was giving anything back.

Keith wasn't even around. He'd taken off first chance he got, leaving the team without a leader. Leaving her without a confidant.

She wanted to repay the favor. She wanted to walk away, pretending she'd not seen his moment of weakness. She wanted him to feel the helplessness, the yearning for companionship that once haunted her.

Yet her heart wouldn't allow it. A spark of empathy, a twinge of guilt, sent her feet moving swiftly towards him. Instinctively her arms moved to wrap around him, checked only by her low simmering resentment. Her fingers slipped into the pocket of her suit to extract a handkerchief. Quietly she offered it to him as she contemplated running away the moment he accepted it.

"What did he say to you?"

The words escaped her lips without forethought. She wasn't sure if it was curiosity or concern, but chances are what was said had upset him to the point of tears. Did he know what future they'd escaped after all? Or was it something else?

Keith's response barely registered with her, his voice just above a whisper. "It's nothing that concerns you. Just forget about it already."

Anger now boiled to the surface. He was no longer the leader of the team, and this was her ship How dare he keep a secret from her? Did he not understand that his long absence meant?

"Do you honestly think," she began, her words oozing from her like venom, "that you have any right to waltz in here and tell me what to do?"

The paladin winced as if he'd actually felt pain, his mouth seemingly chewing words he could neither swallor nor spit out. Instead he tucked his chin to his chest in defeat, his footsteps beating a hasty retreat from the room.

Allura felt a pang of regret. After all, Keith had raced back to tell her about the Altean colony, as well as Lotor's cruel treatment of the survivors of his father's war. His insistence on joining the Blades had paid off in those discoveries. That and he had found his mother.

The Princess had neither thanked him nor congratulated him. She'd simply repaid him with harsh thoughts and an empty gesture. It began to occur to her that she'd taken her frustration with the other version of Keith out on this version instead.

The other Keith was obviously the team leader, and likely assumed in this reality the roles were the same. It made sense that he'd communicate directly to his counterpart, whom he likely trusted the most. Still, a few questions from him would have lead him to the knowledge that Shiro was the black paladin, and had earned the right to be involved in the conversation.

Better yet, she should have heard the news directly. After all she was the Princess of Altea. His Allura was the Queen of her people it seemed, the ruler of her planet. Surely he didn't leave his own wife out of important decisions, right?

Wait, his wife?

That thought froze her instantly. In all the chaos she'd barely registered that fact that in another reality the other her was married to the other Keith. They had children together. And he was willing to risk everything to protect them from the mess the team had created in this reality.

Just like her Keith.

Nothing had ever been said about his brush with death when the team was in danger. No discussion was held to remind him that self-sacrifice wasn't acceptable, that he was desperately needed. She'd only given Lotor credit for saving the team, even though for him it was as easy as pressing a button.

Now was the time to set things right. Quickly she chased after Keith, following his presumed path to his former sleeping quarters. Her mind buzzed with scenario after scenario of how she would make amends for her transgressions.

Rounding the corner she spotted her target, standing stiffly near the corner where two corridors intersected. His face was pale, his eyes wide. At first she feared he was still shocked by her demeanor earlier. However a brief flash of light pierced through his armor before disappearing with a buzz.

Keith dropped to his knees as he mouthed the words "I'm sorry." Behind him loomed a towering figure, cloaked in darkness yet the outline felt familiar. A sinister laugh chilled her to the core as the villain emerged from the shadows.

His face was familiar yet foreign, as if he'd aged poorly overnight. Scars pinched his skin in jagged patterns across his cheek and chin, the likely result of a well-worn blade. From under a winged helmet fell matted white locks that draped over scuffed black epaulets.

Lotor.

Allura couldn't stop the shaking that wracked her body. The Lotor she knew was horribly disfigured in their battle, needing days- if not weeks- to recover. No, the monster before her was someone else. Something else.

The sinister look in his gaze sent the message his sneering lips would not. He was there for her. His eyes possessed her very being, her soul chained by his salacious stare.

Lotor's right boot raised to rest on Keith's sagging left shoulder, a lazy shove sending the young paladin face first onto the unforgiving ground. Allura held her breath, willing Keith to move. When he didn't the aggressor chuckled haughtily as he kicked the lifeless body.

"No matter what reality I go to," whined the cowardly man, "this pathetic weakling always gets in my way."