The History

"Allura, are you okay? You look tense." Romelle had a look of genuine concern, having watched her friend pace the dining hall frantically.

Of course she wasn't okay, how could she be? The man she loves just found his long-lost mother. Before he even contacted her on the ship to tell her she knew something was going on, she felt the sudden change in his energy. It was like nothing she'd ever experienced with him and it scared her a bit. She hated herself for not going with him, for not being there for him.

The Garrison had his mother imprisoned on the base. The Princess knew they couldn't just leave her there but was a bit uneasy about having her in the castle as well. After all she had stolen the scaultrite from Keith at gunpoint, could she really be trusted? And how did she end up on Planet Doom in the first place?

"Romelle, we need to finish preparations for the arrival of the Commander and Keith's mother. We want to make a good impression if we're to form an alliance with Planet Earth."

Romelle nodded and smiled, moving about swiftly to make sure the room was perfect. She knew about diplomacy and all the trappings that went along with it. Even her father had used it in his attempts to bring other planets under the Galra Empire's control.

Coran radioed to let them know the ship carrying Keith, Commander Iverson, and the prisoner had just arrived. Pidge, Hunk and Lance were staying on base for a while to assist the scientists trying to reverse engineer Galra technology. That put her mind at ease, the fewer the voices at the table the better.

The dining hall was finally presentable. Allura was rushing to put a large floral arrangement on the table when her toe met the chair leg with a loud cracking noise.

"Oh quiznak!"

"Now is that any way for a proper Princess to speak?"

Allura instinctively slapped her hand over her mouth, straightening herself from the previously hunched position she'd taken due to the pain in her foot.

That voice. I know that voice.

She looked up at the woman who spoke those words. "Nanny?"

Unbelievable! The same kind eyes she remembered from her childhood were staring back at her. Her Nanny was the pilot of the Red Lion. She was Keith's mother. How was this even possible?

Coran entered the room and, upon seeing the Princess' current state realized what he'd long wondered was true.

"So, it really is you. I thought you were lost to us forever." He embraced the long-lost paladin, tears brimming in his eyes.

"Would someone care to explain what's going on here?" Keith looked even more agitated than he'd been when they spoke earlier.

Allura wondered how Coran had kept this information from her and demanded answers. Her advisor bowed his head and answered her questions in an uncharacteristically quiet manner. When the Princess was a young child her father, King Alfor, was the pilot of the Red Lion. When the war began, he stepped down and needed a replacement. Nanny, whom he trusted implicitly, had an aptitude for flying and trained to become the next Red Paladin. To protect his daughter, however, he demanded that no one tell her what became of her beloved caregiver.

Coran, being the ever-faithful servant, carried out the orders precisely. When news came that perhaps she was alive he'd been hesitant to speak up in case the stories were not true. He couldn't bear giving Allura or Keith any more false hope. So, he'd kept her identity hidden away, waiting for a day like today.

The Princess was having trouble processing all of this, and from the looks of it Keith was even more troubled.

"So, you were there for someone after all? I could've been so lucky."

The pain in his mother's eyes spoke for her. Allura moved to Keith's side and placed her arm around his shoulder, but he reflexively stepped away and excused himself from the room. She knew that this pain was deeper than abandonment. His mother had raised a child, just not him. Her heart broke for him, yet she feared this may push him away as well.

Still, there was business to attend to and running after her lover would not see it completed. So, exasperated with the situation, Allura took a deep breath and began discussions with Commander Iverson. He began to make it clear that giving up his alien abductee to the Alteans was going to come with a price. The Garrison was trying to replicate Galra technology but was having some trouble. His scientists needed certain technical specifications to get the ball rolling. In turn, once they had a sizable fleet with well-trained pilots, they would join the fight against Zarkon.

The Princess felt these were acceptable terms but wished she had her Captain to help deliberate the decision. Coran, however, seemed agreeable with the pact and suggested the sooner they move forward the better. Once all parties had signed and shaken on the treaty, Allura went to find Keith to ask him to return the Commander and retrieve the three remaining paladins. She found him in his room which was odd since he spent so little time there these days.

"Keith, are you okay? Have you been crying?" Her right hand reached to lift his chin upwards while the left brushed the hair from his face. He didn't have to answer her question, it was obvious he had.

"Allura, I'm sorry about earlier. It's just so much to take in all at once. Did you work things out with Iverson?"

Her nod affirmed this had happened, which in turn brought a slight change to his visage. He placed his hands on her hips and pulled her down into his lap, bringing his lips to meet hers. His kiss was more of an apology than anything else, not that she minded at all. It was nice knowing he didn't resent her for her past with his mother.

After a moment of holding her there he broke into a grin. "So, now I can find out just how rotten a child you were. This could be fun."

Allura stood curtly, harrumphing at his remark. She walked briskly towards the door and informed him that she would escort the Commander back to the Garrison and he could either sulk in his room or go talk to his mother.

Arriving at the base they were greeted by Lance and Hunk. Pidge followed shortly after, looking a bit dejected. Matt had decided to stay on Earth, partly to help build the ships and partly to be with their mother. The Green Paladin had hoped he'd join them but was happy that her mom would not be alone any more.

On the flight back she did tell the Princess about how the Galra prisoner had managed to escape and take Matt with her. Whispers of a Paladin of Voltron permeated the hallways and he managed to sneak a peek into the room where he was being held. The prisoner was not conscious and had medical devices connected to him. Druids were also in the room and flashes of purple energy emanated from the doorway.

In turn Allura told the team members how Keith's mother was also her former governess. Hunk's jaw dropped and Pidge blinked with surprise. Lance, of course, had something inappropriate to say about it and got the usual eye-roll reaction from the others.

They returned to the castle-ship to find Keith talking to his mother, presumably catching each other up on the last two decades of their lives. As much as she hated to interrupt their reunion, she knew that Shiro's rescue had to be planned as soon as possible.

Nanny told them how she originally had planned to rescue Shiro, knowing that he was part of the new Voltron crew. She let herself be captured to get inside the prison but found out once she was there that the human was in a deep coma. He was also being zapped by Haggar's witches constantly, which meant they were trying to get to him on another plane of existence where his mind was hidden away. This would have made it impossible for her to rescue him but she then met Matt and realized he, too, had ties to the Black Paladin and possibly to Voltron. Once they had commandeered the transport ship she knew that Earth was where they needed to go.

Nanny looked at Allura. "Your magic has awoken, you and I can open a portal to release Shiro's mind. But someone is going to have to go in and find him there to get him to wake up."

The Princess looked to her lover. She knew it would have to be him.

Lance, Hunk and Pidge all waited in their lions for the wormhole jump. The Olkari were sending a battle cruiser and Bandor was to meet them there in his ship. Slav had configured a human teleportation device as an emergency escape route, but could not guarantee a 100% chance of survival should they need to use it. In this reality, that is.

Once everyone was in position they prepared to open the portal. Romelle agreed to observe should any of them need help. No one knew what Keith might encounter and Allura was concerned he could get trapped in there as well.

She gave him a quick kiss, which did not go unnoticed.

"So, my son and my Princess?"

The couple giggled then smiled sheepishly at her, blushing slightly at the unintended reveal.

"Ah, well, Nanny…"

"You can tell me all about it later my dear, for now let's save your friend."