Lotor leaned back in the comfortable seat across from Allura. The princess was fiddling with the many controls on the metal disc. The Altean letters hovered and shook with every careful attempt. Luckily, nothing had made the message disappear, yet.

The two now sat alone in Allura's private study. Shiro had left to assemble the other Paladins. Coran had left to attend to maintenance of the Castle. He claimed that Allura and Lotor could manage to crack the mystery together.

"You are, after all, the mystical ones," Coran had said, twisting his moustache and striding out.

Presently, Lotor mused what the Altean man had meant by that. That one had always been the most difficult to decipher… Whatever he had meant, Lotor was glad to be alone with the princess once again. Though they had been attempting to fix the damned communicator for over an hour, he relished the company. Not to mention that being free to let loose… somewhat… was tempting.

Don't push it.

The voice was tugging hard again. It was a constant buzz in the back of his head, starting up as soon as Shiro had given him that hard look before leaving the room. It didn't matter, Lotor told himself. The chase for knowledge was too much. He pushed the thought of Shiro's overbearing (and his father's constant ghost) away.

Instead, he decided to take advantage of the situation. He followed intuition and let his hands move on their own accord.

When his hand settled over hers, her cerulean gaze snapped up to meet his, making his mouth dry.

It was still surreal that he could do this. That any time he could dare to touch her, and she would not recoil. It made his head swim. A weightless feeling filled his chest and it almost made him lightheaded. His clumsy words made his cheeks burn, but he felt like it was right… it was supposed to sound comforting… "You can figure it out after a break?"

Nope. Failure. Failure.

Allura giggled, slipping her hand away from his. Unexpectedly, she leaned across the table and her hand moved up to tuck a stray lock of his hair behind his ear.

He tried disparately not to look like a forest creature caught in the beams of oncoming traffic. When the quick contact passed, he felt like one who had been woken from the dead. Mind racing, he found something else to say. Loving the way, she laughed again. "Breaks are nice," he urged.

Sirens were blaring deep in his head, reprimanding him. Painful memory threatened to return to him, but another feeling was winning. It burned down his spine like electricity. He loved it.

She smiled. "Breaks are nice," she agreed. Her face lit up and she stood, loving the blush spreading across Lotor's purple cheeks. Seeing him this happy, she would have never imagined caring for this man. She never imagined being able to melt the son of Zarkon by sitting next to him. She grinned taking the lead in the conversation for his sake. "What do you think it says?"

Lotor was still taking in her smell, her warmth pressed against his side. He swallowed. "I don't know. I hope it is not something completely worthless," he amended.

She snorted. "Well, I should hope not," she said. That thought had crossed her mind. Another thought popped into her head. "You said that you have done extensive studies on Alteans, can you speak it?"

A dark flame lit in his mind, but he forcefully extinguished it. He focused on the beautiful lilt in her voice, envisioning the princess speaking her native tongue. The distraction was powerful. So, he divulged his secret. Speaking in that language which he had been forbidden to utter, "Yes, I can princess."

Her face lit up and she twisted beside him to look at his face. "You can!" She exclaimed in the same language.

Lotor grinned, no longer supressing the happiness swelling his spirit. He chuckled. That feeling of breaking all the rules came over him again. "I learned long ago. It is a beautiful language when appreciated for what it is," he rambled. Damn, he loved that radiant look in her crystal eyes. He cautiously draped his arm around her shoulders.

She leaned against him, slipping an arm over his stomach. A look of bliss was blossoming on her face, making her marks glow a more vivid pink. "You speak it so well," she praised.

"Thank you." That phrase was growing on him especially since it seemed to make her smile.

"Did you teach yourself?" It sounded like a silly question, but she was curious.

Lotor nodded. "I did."

"Amazing," she sighed and leaned further onto him. She was almost glowing from the feel of his touch. His strong arm over her shoulder was taking her over the edge. They sat together in contented silence for almost a full dobash.

She finally broke the silence. "I haven't been able to speak it with anyone for so long." A forlorn tone stained the moment. "Besides Coran of course," she added fondly.

The change of tone shook him from his relaxation. Unsure about what to say, and desperate to turn the conversation he blurted, "You have me now."

Something about saying those four words in that language felt like the ultimate betrayal. He shook the sensation away as best as he could, but it rocked his core. Suddenly, all the voices roared to life. His pulse quickened and this time it was not from Allura's touch. A dark hole ripped open in his chest, filling quickly with onrushing anxiety.

Allura sensed the sudden change in his behaviour. She regretted saying that. His body tensed and even the aura surrounding him became grey.

She took it as her moment. He might not believe her, but courage told her to try. "And you have me." She took his hand firmly and met his stubborn, gold eyes. They were growing cold and distant. "I…" her words were faltering. She had no clue what to say to the man warring a fight she could not perceive. She called on the memory of her father to help her.

"I am here for you. I care about you. I mean that. I think we can bridge the fissure our fathers made." She chose her words carefully. "I believe we can, together, and I will help you however I can, Lotor." She stared deep into his eyes meaning so much more than what the words stated alone.

The longest silence passed between them. Lotor ached to say yes, to run into her arms and feel safe. So many broken pieces fought within his soul. Memories and engrained instincts battled. If he could, he would have cried like he had so long ago. He wanted… needed solace. Fear's shadowed face reared, cratering his soul and weighing down on his spirit. This is a fling. She doesn't mean that. When has anyone ever meant what they said? Never.

He slammed the doors down. Now was not the time to be getting into such discussions. Where had the light-hearted play from earlier gone? He forced a smile onto his face, retreating from the powerful feelings. Again, locking himself back into his mental prison.

"Thank you, princess," he said impassively, switching back to the universal language. "I am of like mind." His eyes flicked back to the holographic enigma they had been working on before this 'break'. "Maybe we can grow closer to that end after interpreting this message."

She unfolded from his side, leaving an empty void where warmth had been. "Yes, you are right," she tried not to sound disappointed. At least the offer was out now. She turned her face away to hide the shimmering tears in her sapphire eyes.