Days passed before the girl woke up. Coran became worried and brought Slav in to check on her. Slav, though he is extremely annoying, is highly intelligent. His main practice was on machines, but he agreed to help.

"She brutally attacked a soldier, and took a blast for someone she doesn't even know?" Allura was still processing all the paladins told her.

"Yeah," replied Shiro, who was turning the purple crystal in his hands. It found its way back to her but Slav refused to help with it floating around, rambling something about destruction and other realities. "It made me think twice about bringing her here, but even though she shoved Pidge away, she apologized for it. It was like something hit the "off" switch on her vengeance. I recognized her from the plains, so I had to keep my promise. Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on her."

She let out a sigh. "You better. From here on out she is your responsibility. If anything goes wrong, I will have no choice but to hold you accountable."

"Of course, princess," he muttered, praying that nothing went wrong. The only thing worse than Zarkon was Allura's rage. She will not hesitate to let him have it if he screws up.

Hunk gently nudged Shiro's arm. "So, if she wakes up, I figured we can start with a friendly gesture." He took the gem out of Shiro's hand and attaches it to a black leather strap. "Since the chain broke, and she's had this for a long time, I figured it would be a step to fix it for her and return it. She'd have to happy about that, right?"

Shiro couldn't help but smile. "Yeah, I think she will be. You're a good person, Hunk." He patted the big man on the back, leading to the sweetest smile from him in return.

A shrill sound snapped everyone's heads to the door. Screams echoed the hallway and in an instant everyone was on their feet, heading for the door.

The door slid open to reveal Slav hiding in a corner, while Coran was trying to calm the girl down.

"Where am I? Who are you? What are you going to do to me?" The girl screamed, trying to free herself from the shackles that planted her to the table.

Coran was nervous, but kept his voice soft. "It's all right. You're safe. My name is Coran, I'm Altean. We rescued you from the Galra ship."

Shiro nudged Hunk forward, ushering him to give her the necklace. "U-um, m-miss?" He took a careful step forward but froze as her eyes snapped to him. "I-I-I b-brought this f-for you. The chain b-broke, but I f-fixed it..." He kept his eyes down as he held out the gem.

Her grey eyes locked onto it, and she relaxed. "How did you...I gave that to a man named-" her eyes shifted to the Black Paladin. "Shiro."

"How are you feeling," he asked as he approached her.

A sweet smile spread across her face at his concern. "I'm better now."

"Awe, how cute! You two are just perfect for each other," Lance interrupted, which got the girl to raise her head.

"And you are..."

He brought out his signature grin. "The name's Lance."

The girl chuckled. "Such a charmer. Unfortunately, you're a little too young for me."

"I kind of figured, but eh, might as well give it a try. Now Shiro can take a few lessons from me." He posed while the others groaned and rolled their eyes. The girl just laughed.

"Lance, stop it," Shiro demanded. "You can ignore him, he flirts a lot."

She just continued to laugh. "I like him, he's funny."

Lance looked shocked. "Wait, someone actually thinks I'm funny? And it's not in a mean way? Yes!" He pumped his first into the air.

"Oh, great! Now we're never going to get him to stop," Keith groaned, leaning against the far wall. He wasn't looking at the girl, instead his eyes found interest in the floor.

Shiro cleared his throat. "Keith, do you have anything to say?"

Keith shot him a glare, but after losing a mental argument, he walked over. "Thanks for being stupid enough to jump in front of that blast." And without another word, he walked off.

"Keith!"

"It's okay, Shiro," said the girl. "He doesn't seem like the kind to trust easily, I understand that."

"He'll come around," Shiro stated before looking at her hands. "Coran, can we lose the restraints?"

Coran turned, quickly remembering she was still shackled down. "Right!" He pulled out a device and pressed a few buttons. The shackles sprung open and the girl sat up, rubbing her wrists.

"Thank you."

"No problem, miss..."

Her eyes met the Altean's. "Oh, right! I'm sorry. I'm Rae. Nice to meet you!" She held out her hand.

He took it without hesitation. "Nice to meet you, Rae! I'm Coran, as you already know, and over here is Princess Allura. Her father is the one who preserved Voltron and now we fight the Galra Empire to save the galaxy!"

She chuckled. "Yes, I'm well aware of Voltron. The Galra talked a lot about it. Zarkon still continues to find ways to destroy it and all of you. With that aside, it is an honor to meet the Princess of Altea." She stood up and bowed to the princess, then turned to the paladins. "And it is a great honor to meet the members of Voltron." She bowed again. "You are all extremely brave to face the Galra Empire. I have seen firsthand what they do to planets and people. It's sickening."

"How long were you there?" Pidge's question caused Rae's expression to darken.

"They captured me when I was twelve. I was on Earth, playing with my little brother when they came. Luckily, they didn't find him then, but as for me, I wasn't so lucky. They put me in fights, but I came out of those barely breathing. They took numerous samples and put me though many tests. I learned to be strong, but it was hard. So hard that I wanted to just break then and cry and scream, but if I would've done that, they would have killed my family."

Shiro placed his hand on her shoulder. "Well, now you're with us. We'll take care of you. Maybe even help you get back home."

Sadness filled her eyes as she looked at him. "I can't go home."

He felt pity for her; however, he didn't know where to start. "How about we show you your room? You can relax, get cleaned up, eat, and we'll talk later, okay? Hunk will escort you."

Hunk stiffened up at the mention of his name. He tried to hide it from Rae. "Thank you," she spoke softly before walking off with Hunk.

"You're going to like it here," Hunk encouraged, trying to lighten the quiet mood. "We usually all get along, and the training may be tough, but it's worth it. Oh, and the rooms are very cozy. Not to mention, there's an Altean pool, which I have no idea how it works, but we have it! Also, I'd like to point out that I am an incredible cook, so prepare for you're tastebuds to go for a ride. Is there anything you like specifically? Any favorite food? Or maybe you're a vegetarian, that's cool too! I can work around that, surely. Am I talking too much? I think I'm talking too much."

"I don't mind the talking," she said with a giggle. "You and the others are the friendliest people I've met in over a year. Even Keith is friendly compared to others I've met."

"Yeah, sorry about him," Hunk apologized. "He's actually a really cool dude once you get to know him. He's just going through a lot right now."

She nodded. "I understand."

"Well, here's your room!" He pointed to the door with a number eight hanging beside it. After a few incidents of one of the guys accidentally entering Pidge's room, Hunk thought it would be a good idea to number the rooms so it was less confusing. "Oh, and here!" He handed her the necklace

"Thank you for all of this." She clutched the necklace close to her and opened the door. "By the way, I'll eat anything you cook. I'm not picky when it comes to food."

"Oh, good. So, the shower is automatic, adjusts to what you need, and there are clothes in the drawers under your bed. I'll have someone come get you once dinner is ready." He rushed off to start the meal.

Rae entered her new room and set the necklace on the nightstand. Hunk was right, this place is cozy, she thought to herself. She figured dinner would take a while, so she slipped off the prison rags that she'd worn the last eight years and decided to clean up. The shower worked wonders getting the grime and dirt off of her body without hurting her, and she could actually run her fingers through her hair without getting stuck in the tangles. She tried to cut it twice before, but the soldiers who watched her made sure she never had anything to cut it with out of fear she'd use the object against them. Now, she didn't dare. It was too beautiful.

Looking in the mirror, she didn't recognize herself. The only time she saw her reflection was when it was through the visors of her guards. Then, she looked like a hood rat. Now, she passed as normal.

After combing through her hair and drying it, she took a closer look at the scar on her cheekbone. It came from a knife being thrown at her in the arena. It looked about as deep as the scar across Shiro's nose. That led to the other alteration. Her hair. What used to be just jet black was now streaked with snow-white hair. Although it didn't look bad, she didn't like it. Unfortunately, there was no hair dye in space. But at least she wasn't the only one. Shiro's frosted tips were a surprise, as she didn't see it or the scar in the astral plains, but with the bionic arm, she wasn't surprised. White was always the mark of Haggar's experiments.

Taking one last look in the mirror, she shifted over to the drawers to find something to wear. Thankfully, Alteans knew about breast support. She picked up what she hoped was a bra and put it on, amazed as it altered itself to fit her. She continued to dig around until she found a change of underwear, a pair of purple pants that made her legs look amazing, and a black shirt that tied around the neck and revealed half her back. Maybe it was too much, but she liked it. Remembering that everyone wore shoes on board, she found a pair of black boots to complete the look.

Just as she was putting on her necklace, she heard a knock at the door. She walked to the door, noticing it opened automatically, and saw Shiro standing there. He had to look down to see her, and once he did his eyes widened. She looked like the angel he met in the astral plains. "Wow, you look nice."

Blushing at his compliment, she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Thanks."

"Dinner's ready," he stated, and that made her stomach growl. When was the last time she ate? She couldn't remember.

"Great! I'm starving." She motioned for him to lead the way and followed, trying to quiet her food-deprived stomach.

Shiro opened the dining hall door, which led an array of delicious scents to her nostrils. She breathed it in, positive she was smelling the food of kings. Her mouth was watering and it took all of her energy not to pounce on the food and rip into it. Instead, she took her seat, waited for Hunk to give the okay, then carefully started placing a little bit of everything on her plate. She wanted to try it all, but she had to keep in mind her manners. Being held prisoners made her lose a lot of things, but manners wasn't one of them. Gently picking up her knife and fork, she cut into the food and carefully took her first bite.

Hunk was right. Her tastebuds were on such a ride, they nearly danced on her tongue. She took another bite and felt the sensation all over again. Looking over at the others, she observed Lance and Keith's lack of manners. Oh, how she wanted to join in on the barbaric action, but she resisted. She must remain ladylike while at dinner. It was in battle that she was allowed to drop the fanciness.

While she ate, the others casually engaged in conversation with each other. Hunk was praised for his delicacies, Pidge (what a strange name) talked about modifications to a certain device she was working on, Keith was asked about some of his new training styles, and Lance was casually throwing out pick-up lines to Allura, which made the rest groan in disapproval. Rae suddenly felt awkward and decided to keep eating quietly so she didn't interrupt with her own input. It's not like they would care what she'd say, she wasn't one of them.

Pidge was the first to notice her hiding behind her raven-colored hair. "So, Rae, how do you like your room? We made sure no one could accidentally stumble in on it."

Rae was surprised. The small child was actually talking to her. "Oh...it's lovely," she answered shyly. "Very comfortable."

Hunk, who sat next to her, asked "do you like the food?"

Again, she was surprised. "Yes, very much! I...I haven't had a meal this good in forever...haven't had a meal in awhile..." She caught her words and shot a nervous laugh to try and cover it up, but they all showed concern.

Thankfully, Lance changed the subject. "I really like your name, is there a story behind it?"

"Oh, yes," she replied. "My father said it was from the myths of the Titans. Rhea was the wife to Cronus, the one who devoured his children. But see, Rhea, although she was a Titaness, she wasn't cruel. She hid her son, Zeus, away from his father, and later, Zeus conquered him. To shorten the story, he basically thought of me as a protector. That or he lied to me and just made up a story to sound cool. Rae was also my great-grandma's middle name, which is why it's spelled differently from the Titan."

"Or she could've been middle-named after the Titan and then it passed down to you, so it's both," Pidge countered while wiping off her glasses.

"Who knows? Personally, I stick to the myth. It's cooler and more accurate. I'd do anything to protect the ones I care for." The Paladins watched as she zoned out, not sure what she was thinking about.

"So you were named after a fake figure, big whoop." Keith stabbed at his food and stuffed it in his mouth.

Rae, for the first time, glared at the paladin. "Okay, I get that you have trust issues, being half Galra and all, but can you not sound so hateful?"

Everyone froze. "How did you know I was Galra?" Keith's voice became stern, almost like a growl.

"One, you're temper, and two, you have the Blade of Marmora symbol on your dagger, and only a Galra can have a weapon like that."

"That's it!" Keith stood up abruptly, driving his knife into the table. "I don't trust you because you tried to torture that soldier. I don't trust you because you act so calmly around stuff you should be freaking out over. And I especially don't trust you because of that information right there!" He pulled the dagger out of the table and left.

Shiro excused himself from the table and ran after him. "What is your problem?"

Keith stopped and turned. "I think she's hiding something. That soldier said that we didn't know what we were unleashing. They don't say that about every little prisoner, Shiro! I have a feeling she's going to turn on us and hand us over to Zarkon."

"Keith, that's-"

"Shiro, how easy was it to find her? Yeah, we were cloaked, but did you notice that not one Galra passed us before we found her? At least one of them could've been walking down that hallway, but no, it was empty. And that crystal? She might've stolen it from a prisoner and found a way to get it to lead you to her. And now we've brought her into the castle! All the lions are here and she could easily contact the Galra to get them!"

Shiro raised his finger to his chin, thinking over all the events. "If she is a spy for Zarkon, we'll know. We're keeping an eye on her, remember?"

Keith crossed his arms over his chest. "I still don't like this. She's got everyone fooled. Hunk thinks she's the sweetest thing, Pidge has already planned the questions for her about the crystal and even thinks of asking about Matt, Allura and Coran even like her! And Lance won't stop flirting with her!" Shiro could've sworn he saw Keith pout as he made that last remark. "And then there's you. Every little smile and laugh and seemingly kind tone has you hooked! You think she's so sweet and innocent. I'm starting to think Lance is right and you like her."

"That's not true!" Shiro said a little too loud. "I'm just trying to make her feel comfortable here. The more comfortable she is, the chances of her attacking us decrease. And besides, I have feeling for someone else..." He wanted to smack himself for saying that aloud.

"You mean Allura?" Keith smirked, elbowing his friend in the arm. "So, bringing Rae on board was you trying to be Prince Charming? Trying to show the princess that you're a kind, sweet man? How adorable." He threw his head back in laughter while Shiro glared at him, trying to hide the blush on his face.

"Shut up. Like you're one to talk. Don't think I didn't notice all those excessive moves you did in training to impress a certain someone." Shiro grinned at how the tables turned, with Keith's face the color of a ripe tomato.

"I wasn't trying to impress anyone!" Keith protested, but Shiro could see right through it. "Fine, I'll be nicer to the girl, just don't bring that up ever again."

Shiro wanted to tell him it was nothing to be ashamed of. Of course, everyone had guesses of it being possible. Hunk confirmed that Lance was bi a few months after they all met, after Shiro caught him flirting with an alien who turned out to be male. Lance didn't deny it either, he just requested that it be kept on the down low, meaning a secret from Keith. Poor guy thought Keith would make fun of him for it. If they only knew, Shiro thought.

The dining hall door opened, snapping Shiro back to the present. Rae was walking out, a smile on her face until she thought she was out of sight. Keith and Shiro followed her and that's when he noticed the sadness setting in. "They're all so nice," she said aloud to herself. "That's going to change once they see the truth. But maybe...no, no that's impossible. Allura won't like it, so the others won't either...but Keith is like me...except he hates me...ugh, I need to tell them...but it can wait a little bit, I guess..." She pouted as she walking into her room, the door sealing shut behind her, cutting off her rambling.

Keith gave him that "I told you so" look. "See? She's keeping secrets. And what does she mean "like me". We're not alike."

"Maybe she means she's a half-breed, too. Do you think she could be half Galra?" Shiro was spitballing, thinking how it would be the only logical explanation.

"Are you crazy?" Keith hissed. "Why would the Galra capture their own kind? That would just prove my theory even more! She's a spy, she has to be."

Shiro still didn't believe it, but Keith wasn't going to let it go. "Okay, then next mission she goes with you. You can see for yourself if she's working for the enemy or not. But if you're wrong, these superstitions have to stop."

"Deal."

Shiro shook his head as he walked off. Keith was never one to trust easily but surely if he met someone who understood him and could answer his questions, he should be at least a little excited. Maybe pairing those two up for a mission would be good. He hoped and prayed he wasn't wrong.

A/N: So Chapter four wasn't too exciting, but it gives a little bit of insight of Rae and how she sees things. Now, to shed a little light, I'm assuming Shiro's age to be 20/21, since I believe pilots should be at least that age to do something like the Kerberos mission, and Rae is 20. This will be useful in future chapters but I figured I might as well share now. Now if you're all wondering how Rae will do in a mission, or if Keith's theory is correct, the answers will arrive soon. Until then. Vrepit sa!