Author's Note: My friend PinkyStarflower suggested that I describe the royal nursery on Pollux, and I think that was a darn good idea. Thanks, Pinky!
As always, I thank everybody who's still reading and following along, and I own only my characters.
To Cha - Thanks for your message. I'm glad you like the story and the characters, and I'm really glad you're still following along.
To Craze - I like the ideas! I think I may work a couple of them into this chapter and the next. Thanks for reading!
To FroofyB - I'm always glad to have a longtime SLY follower onboard! Allura is one tough chick, and she's only going to get tougher once she meets the crew from the Academy. And don't worry about her relationship with Crankypants, he's going to learn something very interesting about his girlfriend down the road...
To Sally On - Oh dear, there is so much that's going to happen with Keith, Morgan, Jeff and Allura under one roof. I don't know if the castle is big enough. And be prepared to see more of Sven's battle axe.
To Emie Mac - Hi, Love! I'm glad you're still reading & enjoying. Yes, there is going to be some very, uh, spirited interaction involving one navigator, one Amigo and one Captain Crankypants. In fact, look for it to start in this chapter, it's gonna be a doozy...
Title Song: "Wild Ones" by Flo Rida ft. Sia (so this song is my guilty pleasure...just so everyone knows, this was my song before it got overplayed on the radio!)
The nursery on Pollux was one of the best rooms in the castle, probably even better than Romelle's or Bandor's royal quarters. It was also one of the largest rooms in the castle, able to accommodate living quarters for three nursemaids in addition to the children - Erik for now, and who knew what would happen in the future? There were now two royal married couples in the castle.
Romelle looked around the cheerful room, done up in creams and various shades of yellow, watching her son sleep. It was a pleasant place, a little sanctuary adjacent to her bedroom that she had insisted upon while she was pregnant. Though it had only been a little over a year since the nursery had been decorated, it seemed like a lifetime ago. So many things had changed in that time that the princess could hardly wrap her head around it.
The late-day sunlight filtered in through the large picture windows, causing her to believe she should wake Erik and feed him so that he would sleep through the night. Some days, she questioned her ability to parent. It didn't matter if Sven loved her or not, the reason she was still so angry with him was because he took her son away from her. Yes, in her head, she knew the reasons why - he would be killed, the baby might be killed - and they were certainly valid, but irrationally, she still couldn't forgive him for it.
As she watched Erik and contemplated the idea of waking him, one of the nursemaids walked in and curtsied in front of her. She recognized the girl as Rosalie, the youngest nursemaid. "Yes, Rosalie?"
"Your highness," the girl answered, "the prince of Tyvel has come to say good-bye."
What? Erimar's leaving? No! Choking on the lump of anxiety rising in her throat, Romelle nodded curtly. "Let him in."
Rosalie looked back at her curiously. "You would allow him in the nursery, your highness?"
"Yes, of course. Let him in."
She nodded. "As you wish, my lady." She rose and went to the door, where she let the prince into the nursery. Once Erimar stood before Romelle, she gave another quick curtsy and exited the room to let them have privacy. Though Romelle doubted that she'd left the vicinity entirely and was probably eavesdropping. Blast those nursemaids.
The auburn-haired prince inclined his head toward the seated princess. "Romy, I've come to say good-bye. I've had a wonderful time here on Pollux, and I enjoyed your brother's wedding tremendously, as I have the company of your entire family."
She nodded. "I'm glad. But I don't want you to leave yet."
He furrowed his eyebrows. "What?"
She stood up and closed the distance between them, taking his hand in hers. "Erim, please don't leave yet. My husband has gone off to help the Voltron Force, and I would like very much for you to stay here and keep me company in his absence."
"Romy, I am not going to replace your husband."
"No, you are not," she agreed. "But I would like your company while he is gone."
He looked amused. "My company, specifically? Surely, my dear, you can find someone whose company is more suitable than mine."
She narrowed her eyes at him. "Who, then? Queen Clarissa of Exxus? The woman whose bed you were in last night?"
Surprisingly, he laughed. "Romy, are you kidding me?" he shrieked, unable to keep a straight face. "Rizz is the most insufferable wench I have ever met in my entire life." His expression calmed, and he looked sad for a moment. "Rizz was promised to my brother Erkhon. The two of them were supposed to be married a few years after Zarkon attacked. Obviously, that never happened - he was killed in battle, and she was kidnapped, raped by Lotor, and rendered unable to marry on a broad spectrum of levels." He looked sorry for the queen.
Romelle's mouth dropped open. "Oh, my goodness. That would explain everything. I am so, so sorry, Erim."
"Me too."
Without thinking or even realizing what she was doing, she moved over to him and wrapped her arms around him. "My brother Avok was killed by Zarkon. He was turned into a robeast and was defeated by Voltron. Then Zarkon's ship blasted my father, and he was killed as well." Her eyes filled with tears as she turned her head towards her son's crib. "Don't you think it kills me to know that my son will never know my father and my older brother?"
Erimar stroked her hair, trying to calm her. "Romy...I'll stay."
The cadets welcomed the Voltron Force back to the Castle of Lions. They weren't expecting to welcome the Albegas crew as well.
"So who's Christiane?" Larmina asked her aunt in a whisper. "Did Keith tell you?"
Allura glared back at her. She was angry, but not with the cadet. "She's his sister."
Larmina's mouth dropped open so wide, she was surprised her jaw didn't hit the floor. "His sister? How did you find out that little nugget of information?"
"Oh, his ex-girlfriend told us."
Even Daniel and Vince heard that line. They looked at each other and shrugged. "How is his old girlfriend around?" Daniel asked.
"Oh...she's with the Albegas crew. And don't ask me what she looks like. She wouldn't turn on the visual. So I have no idea what she looks like." Allura trembled with both anger and fear. She was so angry with Keith for a multitude of his wrongdoings, and so afraid that he would leave her for his old girlfriend. It didn't matter that this Morgan was married. People left their spouses all the time, and it wouldn't be a problem for Keith to leave her. After all, she was only a girlfriend.
"Allura? Are you okay?" Pidge asked, placing a hand on her forearm.
The princess nodded. "Yes, thank you, Pidge. I'm okay. But I think we need to meet this Albegas team and see what we're dealing with here."
"They landed in front of the castle, Princess," Hunk informed her. "I told Aidan to leave the mecha there, 'cuz there's nowhere else for them to land. They should be in the main hall of the castle by now."
"So why are we still in Castle Control? Let's move to the main hall and greet them properly."
Accompanied by Coran and the cadets, the Voltron Force made their way down to the main hall of the castle, where their guests stood waiting for them. Having been informed by Keith of their arrival, the castle staff had allowed them entry, and the four of them stood in wait.
It was easy to pick out Aidan. With his sapphire eyes, long blond ponytail with matching facial hair, and black-and-white uniform, he was difficult to miss. Taye, with his cocoa-colored skin, shaved head, and black goatee, was recognizable in his red-and-white uniform. Lance had no problem identifying David with his mop of unruly brown hair, grey eyes, smooth-shaven face and blue-and-white uniform.
And then there was Morgan.
Breaking away from his team, Keith picked up the pace and trotted towards the woman with the violet eyes and black shoulder-length bob. Feeling like he was about to cry again, he choked back a sob before murmuring, "Oh, Morgan."
"No. Keith, don't do this. You're gonna make me cry, too."
Allura and her teammates watched in horror as Keith wrapped his arms around her and buried his face in her shoulder. It was as though he could not stand up and needed her to support his weight. Sighing, she kissed the side of his face and stroked the back of his head soothingly. "Shh, Akira-chan. It's all right."
Akira-chan? What is this Akira-chan? Allura wondered with alarm.
Morgan used the sleeve of her blue-and-white uniform to wipe away the stray tear that ran down Keith's face. "Don't worry, Love," she told him. "I promise you, we're gonna get her back."
Next to her, Aidan made some wretched fake-vomit noise, and Lance laughed so hard he nearly fell over.
"Sorry, guys," Hunk apologized for the both of them. "We're just waiting for the fighting to start again. 'Cuz, you know, you two were good for that. Really, really good for that."
Pidge snorted with laughter behind him.
Morgan rolled her eyes as she broke away from her old boyfriend. "Thanks a lot, Tsuyo. I'm glad that instead of remembering how much Keith and I loved each other, you remember how much we fought instead."
Aidan broke out into hysterical laughter.
"Shut UP, Dalloway!"
Hiding his face in his hands, Aidan shot out, "Yeah, about that 'great love' business...hey McClain, how many times did poor Jeff have to sleep on the floor of your room because Keith always wanted to be alone whenever he and Morgan broke up?"
Now both teams were in hysterics. Keith and Morgan, of course, failed to see the humor in it.
"Dude!" Lance laughed. "Jeff used to sleep on my beanbag chair like it was his second bed or something. I always wondered what the heck happened to that thing."
David let out snort of laughter. "What, that beat-up red beanbag chair? Don't you know that thing's in Jeff's quarters on the Explorer?"
"I knew it!" Lance shrieked. "I am going to steal that thing back, then beat the crud outta him when he gets here. Provided, of course, that Captain Crankypants here doesn't beat him first for closin' the deal with his sister."
Aidan winced. "Ooh, harsh."
As the teams laughed again, Allura studied Morgan. They looked nothing alike, except maybe for the fact that their uniform colors were blue. Moving over to Keith, she wrapped her arm around his waist and looked up at him. "Keith, you haven't introduced me to your friends yet."
Keith looked back down at her. "Oh, of course. Albegas, this is Princess Allura of Planet Arus. Allura, this is Aidan Dalloway, Taye Benton, David Rackens, and Morgan Feld - I mean, Rackens." He flushed slightly as he corrected himself. Allura noticed.
"It's a pleasure to meet you all," Allura greeted them properly, shaking their hands. Her handshake lingered on Morgan, and Keith's former and current lovers sized each other up. Morgan, being married, didn't feel threatened by the princess. Allura, already knowing that she would have to measure up to the ex-girlfriend, did.
"I'm sensing a catfight in the near future," Lance hissed to Hunk and Pidge.
"Ooh, are we taking bets?" Hunk asked. Pidge laughed to himself and shook his head.
Once Allura broke away from Morgan and returned to Keith's side, Aidan raised an eyebrow. "Hey McClain, since we're here for the night and all, what have you got to drink in this place? I mean, after we plot a course for Crydor and figure out tomorrow's plan of action, of course."
Lance smirked back at him. "Bombay Sapphire."
"Uh-oh. And the Vehicle Team is coming here, too? I sense an encore to the Lemon Drop Incident. When Lance's room is a-rockin', don't come a-knockin'."
It was nearly forty-five minutes later when Commander Hawkins hailed the castle from the Explorer. Allura, for once, was excited to meet someone. She knew that her friend Len had married the commander, and was curious to know the man who had beaten Sven out for the Space Marshal's heart.
"You can land the Explorer in Lake Arus," Allura instructed the commander over the intercom, "and I will send out a Voltron Force member to escort you back to the castle."
"Yes, thank you," he responded. "But could you also send David Rackens? I'll need his help with Jeff. The captain is a little bit...out of sorts at the moment."
Confused, she replied, "All right. I'll send David and a Voltron Force member out now."
Well, that was certainly interesting. She thought about it - who could she send out to escort the crew from the Explorer? Lance didn't get along with David, and Keith? Keith would probably murder Jeff. As she shut off the transmission, Allura contacted Hunk on her VoltCom. "Oh, Hunk?"
"Yeah, Princess?"
"Could you please take Daniel and David Rackens to Lake Arus? The Explorer is docking there, and I'll need the three of you to escort the team back to the castle. And the commander specifically requested David to help him with Jeff, whatever that means."
"Sure. I'll grab 'em now." Hunk looked up from his VoltCom and turned his head towards Daniel. "Hey Danny Boy, the princess has requested our help in getting the other Voltron Force back to the castle. And David, apparently Commander Hawkins requested for you to come along."
Aidan rolled his eyes but said nothing.
Keith felt much calmer now that Morgan was there with him. He found himself inextricably drawn to her, much the way he always had at Academy. He knew that she was married, and he knew that he was going to get an earful from Allura tonight, but he didn't care; he felt better surrounded by people who knew him and his sister.
Then there was Jeff...oh, he was going to kill his old roommate. When he'd originally told Jeff about Christiane, when he'd originally asked him to keep an eye on her while he was on Arus, he did not mean that Jeff should fall in love with her. Though he supposed that it was better that Jeff was actually in love with her, instead of just casually closing the deal with her.
Morgan, as always, somehow knew what he was thinking, and squeezed his hand reassuringly. "Keith, you need to see the two of them together," she informed him gently. "Jeff really does love her. They were friends for a long time, and then he escorted her to Len's induction ceremony, and then they got really serious, really quick."
Aidan stood up quickly and stared at the doorway. "They're here," he announced ominously. "Oh, Aki."
Slowly, the Vehicle Team filtered into the main hall, each with a concerned look on his or her face. Finally, with Hunk and Daniel leading the way and clearing a path, Commander Hawkins and David helped carry Jeff's inebriated body into the main hall.
"Oh my God! Amigo!" Morgan screeched, rushing over to his side. "Jon, what happened to him?"
"Apparently, there was a stash of Ciroc in his quarters," the commander answered grimly as Morgan took her friend's face in her hands. "I don't need to tell you what happened after the team headed back to the Explorer without Christiane."
She sighed. "Oh, Jeffrey."
"Morganza," Jeff looked up at her, slurring his words slightly, "I'm just regular drunk. Not stupid hungover drunk. I'll be okay tomorrow, I promise."
David exchanged a glance with his wife. "You'll need to help plan Christiane's rescue tomorrow. I'll stay with Jeff for a while. Ginger will help me."
She nodded. "All right. Princess Allura, could we have your assistance, please?"
Allura didn't want to help the woman with the violet eyes, but she did anyway. "You must need a room for him."
"Yes, please."
Internally rolling her eyes, Allura touched Jeff's arm. This was Keith's Academy roommate? "Captain Aki? I'm Princess Allura, and you're going to go with my niece Larmina. She's going to help you to a bedroom."
"Thanks. Sounds good," Jeff slurred in reply.
Larmina shot her aunt a dubious look, but said nothing. On the bright side, though, it was a good opportunity to get to know Lenora's husband a little better. "All right, you three," she announced, "come with me, and we'll find the captain a room."
"I'll join you in Castle Control as soon as I'm done," Commander Hawkins told Morgan. "Cliff! You're going to Castle Control in Jeff's place."
Cliff saluted. "Yes, Sir."
As the commander, David, Ginger and Jeff followed Larmina, Allura led Keith, Aidan, Cliff, Morgan, Chip and Pidge to Castle Control. She hated the fact that Morgan had to go with them, but out of the three teams, she was the only navigator. If only Sven had been there; he could have substituted for this woman.
"Let's bring Crydor up on the screen," Pidge suggested. "Morgan, if we can come up with Crydor's coordinates and approximate sunrise, how soon can you come up with a pathway?"
She snorted. "Under twenty minutes."
Once they'd gotten Jeff into bed, and David and Ginger had set up next to him to make sure he didn't go into acute liver failure, Larmina escorted Commander Hawkins to Castle Control. She cleared her throat. "So, uh...you're married to the Space Marshal, right?"
He nodded. "That's correct."
"I saw your wedding photos. She sent them to me."
He raised his eyebrows with a discreet smile on his lips. "So how do you know my lovely wife?"
"I met her when she came to Arus for the week. We bonded. And we did yoga together. I miss her all the time. She just got me, you know what I mean?"
"So you must be her Mina."
Larmina nodded proudly. "That's me."
Hawkins gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "Well, I'm glad to finally meet the young lady she calls her other half. She's told me about you, cadet. Bragged about you, even. She said that you remind her of herself when she was your age."
The cadet beamed. "Could you tell me anything about her?"
He laughed. "I can tell you lots about her. Though I'm afraid I can't tell you anything about her Academy days. She is ten years younger than me, after all. I was already serving on the Explorer, and had been for five years, when she started at the Space Academy." He winked. "We'll go meet your aunt in Castle Control, and when we're done, I'll tell you whatever you'd like to know."
She smiled happily. Larmina felt safe with the commander, and she imagined that Len would, too. In fact, she couldn't see any reason why the Space Marshal would have chosen Sven over the commander. Why choose a dark, brooding Norwegian when she could have the pleasant, handsome, well-spoken commander?
She smiled to herself at the thought.
It was a good thing that Larmina felt safe and protected with Hawkins, because the air was thick with hostility once they reached Castle Control.
Morgan sat at the computer, forging the best pathway from the Castle of Lions to Crydor. She was flanked by Chip and Pidge, who were running Crydor's solar system and weather patterns alongside the navigation unit. The three of them acted as a fine-tuned machine, practically shutting out the rest of their friends and teammates in the room. Except for the fact that Keith was standing over Morgan's shoulder, narrowing his eyes at the flight pattern.
"I don't understand why you want to sneak around the north side of the planet, Morgan."
She sighed. "Because," she explained matter-of-factly, "the sun rises on the north side of the planet. It's not like Earth, Keith, where the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. If we want to take advantage of all of the available sunlight, we've gotta start on the north side and work our way around."
"Hmm." Keith crossed his arms. "I'll bite. What time do you have us getting to Crydor?"
"It'll take forty-two minutes at top speed for the mecha to get to Crydor, longer for the Explorer. The sun will rise on Crydor at approximately 10:47 Arus time. If we leave here by 1000 hours, we'll make it with minutes before sunrise."
"Good." Keith nodded bitterly. "That way Jeff'll be recovered from his binge drinking and can help us rescue his girlfriend."
"And the fight begins," Aidan muttered quietly to Cliff. "I knew it wouldn't take long." They both took a step backwards towards the commander, and the twins stood up from their chairs and backed away from Morgan.
The navigator whipped around in her chair and glared at Keith, anger radiating out of her violet eyes. "Leave him out of it, Kogane," she shot at the Voltron Force commander. "He does love her, and he's obviously devastated about this whole situation."
"Don't cover for him, Feld," Keith retorted darkly. "And I don't appreciate the fact that he's been seeing my sister behind my back."
Hawkins opened his mouth to defend Jeff, but Cliff stopped him. "Don't get in the middle, Sir. Just back away quietly like the rest of us."
"Dude, I so did not miss this," Aidan added.
"Seeing your sister behind your back." Morgan mulled over the words for a moment. "Funny, she's been more like my sister than yours for the last few years, and I don't seem to have a problem with it. Why do you?"
"The gloves are off!" Pidge announced. He tugged at Aidan's sleeve. "We'd better get out of here."
"No kidding," Chip agreed.
"I'll go with that," Cliff nodded in assent. "Mate. Commander. We've got a game plan for tomorrow morning. I say we head back to the main hall for the evening and let these two kill each other. Princess Allura? I don't suggest sticking around. This will get ugly."
Allura looked confused, but as she glanced back at Keith and Morgan, both with rage painted on their faces, she decided to just trust the Australian pilot and do what he suggested. Taking Larmina's arm, she muttered, "You heard the man. Let's leave these two alone."
The rest of the team left Castle Control, leaving behind only the captain of the Voltron Force and the navigator for Albegas to hash it out.
Jeff was snoring, which was decidedly better than the alternative of throwing his guts up. David was reclining in a chair next to his bed, and Ginger had been sitting cross-legged at the foot of his bed for the entire time they'd been in the guest room. "You think he's okay, Dave?" she asked tenderly, smoothing his unruly hair.
"Yeah, he'll live." He smirked. "I just don't know how in seven hells he'll feel tomorrow."
Briefly, Ginger felt bad about how her relationship had ended with Jeff. He was just a rebound after graduation; he was never anyone she was serious about, and they had joked about it many times throughout their charge on the Explorer. But Jeff had never loved her, not really. And certainly, Jeff had never loved anyone the way he loved Christiane Kogane.
"I was thinking the same thing." She stretched her arms overhead. "I think I'll go back down to the main hall, Dave. See if I can find the rest of the crew."
He nodded. "I'll be here."
Ginger exited Jeff's room and stepped out into the hallway, trying to remember how to get back to where she'd come from. The castle was large, and she wasn't used to standing on solid ground, anyway. She was much more used to the familiar layout and feel of a starship.
"Are you looking for the rest of your team, or are you looking for me?"
Startled, she froze in the hallway. She felt the smile creeping onto her lips, and she felt her body thaw as she recognized the voice. "Cadet McClain."
"Cadet Ellington." Lance came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. "I've missed you, Lemon Drop."
"I could say the same to you, Lemon Drop." She turned around and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I have half a mind to beat you senseless. You have ruined every relationship with every other man I've been with since you left."
He looked hurt. "You've been with other men?"
"Oh, don't act like you haven't been with any other women."
The hurt look didn't fade away. "Nobody ever measured up to you, though, Gin."
"Well, that's not very Lance McClain-like."
He smirked. "No. And neither is this." He tilted his head down towards hers to kiss her.
The shock of it burst through Ginger's skull. She withdrew at first, but after gazing up at his hazel eyes and beautiful lips, she realized just how much she had missed him. She kissed him back, more eagerly this time, and figured that her team could live without her for the night.