Hell Hath No Fury
Disclaimer: I do not own Voltron or any of its characters nor any of its alternate universe personas. So sad, I could become fond of a Lotor with green eyes…
Part 5 of the Chivalry story arc: 1. Chivalry; 2. Lion House Restored (& 2A. LHR – Allura's POV); 3. Doomed Quest; 4. Alternate Choices; and 5. Hell Hath No Fury. While some of the stories can be read as stand alone, this one must be read AFTER Alternate Choices for it to make sense.
**And to right a HUGE mistake... I have been totally forgetting to put in my thanks to Dawn who Beta read for me this entire story arc! For some reason, when I did my 'copy/paste' of the intro from another chapter in AC, I somehow lost the thank you to Dawn. Apologies! I couldn't have done it without you Dawn!**
Rating/Setting: Rating is T, bordering M. Setting is DotU in flavor.
Well, my readers, we have finally reached the current end of my Chivalry story arc. Yes, there is room for more stories, but this ends here for the moment. :-) Unless the story is a one-shot, I have a serious problem bringing complete closure to any of my stories. I always like to leave the story arcs open for another story. So there may be another story down the line. I began writing Chivalry back in May 2014; by the time July rolled around, I had finished Chivalry and LHR. I had also mentally mapped out DQ and AC by that time. It was a busy time of writing and getting the stories to mesh together. Thank you for taking the time to read and I hope you enjoyed the stories.
Chapter Eighteen
Four hours later and the trio from Arus were ready to depart. The medics aboard the cruiser had looked over Keith and Allura and given them a clean bill of health. Allura just had a few stitches and that was it. Both of them had been advised to rest once they returned to their universe. It was a plan of action they intended to follow.
Once they were cleared by the medics, they had gone to a conference room and there, Keith went over the information he had garnered during his stay with Allura Alt. Using data pads and star charts, Keith had given them an overview of the Alliance fleet deployment and the security measures of the fortress on Ormond. Orla and Hunk had been quite pleased with the data that Keith provided.
After the military information had been given out, the topics turned more personal. Allura looked across the table to Orla and Hunk. The command staff of the star cruiser had exited moments before and now she felt she could ask the questions she needed to ask. "Orla, what will you do with Allura's body?" When Orla didn't hesitate, Allura realized she had planned for this and for some reason, it reassured her.
"I'm taking her back to Altea to be buried in the royal crypt next to her mother. She was my niece and I can do no less." It was a statement, and it neither required nor asked for Allura or Keith's approval.
Allura and Keith merely nodded at the seer. Both were pleased that access to the queen's body would be limited. After all, Haggar was still out there.
Keith reached over to take Allura's hand and hold it on the table top. "And Jaden?"
"It will be as Lotor and Merla told you. He will be raised in their care and will rule Arus if he so chooses once he has reached his majority."
The husband and wife stood, and Lance moved to stand on Allura's other side. Allura spoke for all of them as she said, "Then we leave Jaden and Altea in your hands. Take care of them both."
Orla and Hunk stood; Orla's smile was large and genuine as she spoke. "I thank you for what you both have done and for leaving Jaden with us. We will take care of him and raise him in a way that would make you proud. Seeing the two of you, I can see the promise of what he can be. As for Altea, we will fight to make it a place of joy and peace."
"Thank you, Orla." Keith's said with a small smile. "I hope you don't take this the wrong way, but I hope that we don't meet again."
Inclining her head in acknowledgement, the seer responded. "No offense taken." Then with a more serious expression and tone, she added, "I once told you not to be rash. You told me that it wasn't your nature. Use clear judgment in your decisions."
Keith knew that she was talking about her vision. Nodding, he said, "I will."
Allura squeezed Keith's hand and then reached to take Lance's. The amulet was around her neck and so Allura brought the hand that was holding Keith's up and used it to press the stone. Just as with the portal to the mirror-verse, the transition was instantaneous. And once again, they were on the ground.
"Ow." Lance was once again holding his head. "That wasn't any easier the second time around."
There was muttered agreement as the trio stood and looked around. The amulet had deposited them in the throne room. They were all a little nervous as Allura walked over to the com unit. Pressing the necessary buttons, Allura tentatively said, "Coran?"
The response was quick. "Your Majesty! You're back!"
A huge grin spread across Allura's face as she responded. "Yes. We all are. ALL of us, Coran."
"That is truly wonderful news, Allura. Please go to MedBay and I'll meet you there."
"Of course. We'll see you there." She turned to see both Keith and Lance frowning. "What's wrong? You know he won't be satisfied until he knows we're all fine and Dr. Gorma has confirmed it."
"I know." Lance still looked irritable. "I just wanted to see Naveena first."
"Ah." Allura said before she walked back to the com unit. Calling Naveena, she asked the pilot to meet them at MedBay. "There. Now there's no reason for you to frown."
There was still grumbling, but Allura didn't listen. Taking Keith's hand she led the way out of the chamber.
A short while later…
"So they're fine, Doctor?" Coran was still badgering the doctor even though he had already said this about ten times.
Chuckling, Dr. Gorma patiently responded, "Yes, they are REALLY fine. The injuries have been properly treated and I see no reason that they won't heal perfectly. I do believe that they all need rest and I ask that you postpone any debriefing until they have had a chance to sleep."
Coran ran a hand through his tousled hair. "That will be difficult as the castle is abuzz with news of their return. The team and Gretchen are waiting just outside. But maybe after you have greeted them, you can go to your chambers and get the rest that Dr. Gorma suggests."
"Don't worry, Coran. I'll help you run interference." Naveena was at Lance's side with their fingers intertwined.
"Yes, that will be a big help, Lt. Flynn." Coran seemed to take heart that he would have assistance. Moving to the door, he ushered the rest of the team and Nanny into the room.
An hour later…
After a brief description of their trip and a round of hugs and handshakes, the universe hoppers were finally in their respective rooms.
Naveena had told Keith and Allura that she would make sure that Lance made it to bed. Lance had merely winked at them as he left with Naveena.
Now Keith and Allura were in their royal chambers. Having showered and changed, they now lay in each other's arms in the bed. Allura broke from the embrace and propped herself up on one arm so she could look Keith in the eye.
"Do you want to talk about it now or later?"
Keith reached over and tucked an errant curl behind her ear. "Do you want to talk about it now or later? I am fine with either."
Allura didn't hesitate. "Now." She needed to be assured that he was okay.
Knowing the source of her urgency, he said, "We didn't have sex. She kissed me a few times, but that was it and I didn't respond to any of it." He still felt a twinge of guilt at the kiss he had given Allura Alt during his quest in the mirror-verse.
Allura waved a hand in the air, "I'm certainly not concerned about you kissing her. I KNOW you Keith Kogane and I know you wouldn't 'cheat' on me with my homicidal doppelganger. I'm worried about you."
Taking the hand she had waved in the air, he brought it to his lips and kissed her fingers. "She had Haggar torture me for a day to punish me for my traitorous behavior. Then she had me brought to her room where she treated my wounds and also used them to cause me further pain." He took a moment to look at Allura's fingers and kissed them once more. His voice was quieter as he continued, "She made me sleep in her bed and I always had to change in her room, but…"
Allura waited a moment but when Keith didn't continued, she prompted, "But what?"
"But she never touched me in a sexual way until the night you contacted her."
He felt Allura's hand tense as he held it. "She had told me that she planned to have me that night unless you called. When it was time for bed and you hadn't called, she gave me the injection." Keith looked away but kept her hand in his. "I don't remember much except kissing her and picking her up. The next morning she told me that you had called. She said that while her promise to you had meant nothing, she wanted me to know that when she promised something, good or bad, that she would follow through. She also said she wanted me to remember it."
"I'm sorry I didn't contact her sooner. If only I had-"
Keith turned his eyes back to her quickly. "No, Allura! I don't want you to feel guilty for what she did. Nothing that happened was our fault. If you had done anything differently, you might have jeopardized the mission." He saw her nod her head but knew she wasn't convinced. How could he fault her for feeling guilt when he himself still felt it? "The rest of our time was spent with military and tactical things. I can tell you the details of that, but you've already heard a lot of it from the debriefing that I gave the Resistance."
"No, that's okay. I can wait to read the report on that. I just wanted… I just had to know…" Allura started to ramble and then she stopped and looked him in the eye. "Are you really okay?"
Returning her gaze, he said confidently, "I. Am. Fine."
The Queen of Arus let out a sigh and laid her head on her husband's chest. She didn't say anything. She didn't need words. Holding him in her arms was enough.
Keith stroked the golden head that lay on his chest. It was over.
Allura felt his hand stroking her hair and then it got slower and slower. Soon she knew he was asleep. The quests were over. The threat from Allura Alt was over. However, the vision from the seer of Altea stuck with her. Keith once again battling Lotor. Keith and his chivalrous streak – she loved it and she hated it. Many thought chivalry was dead, but she knew it lived in the heart of her husband and was displayed in his actions.
Thoughts of Doom and quests had no place with her right now. She would take her happiness and hold it close. They would deal with Lotor together when the time came. Laying her head back on her husband's chest she drifted off to sleep with thoughts of a little boy with hair like midnight and eyes of brilliant blue.