The Getaway
A whole week.
Not an hour. Not a day.
A week felt like an eternity to Allura.
The team needed a break and they were headed to Earth anyway. The time off would do them all some good.
Hunk planned visit his hometown. Lance and Pidge were picking up Colleen to take her to meet his family in Cuba. Shiro and Coran wanted to stay near the castle so they were content spending time poolside, although Keith swore that Shiro would find work to do after the first twenty-four hours.
Nanny decided to spend the time getting reacquainted with Red, though, and Allura reluctantly agreed. She couldn't help the niggling feeling that her place as a paladin was coming to an end.
Does he know?
Granted the vacation was off to a bad start. Keith was spending the day in one-on-one meetings with all the other team members. She only could guess what they were discussing since she was not asked to attend.
"You already know what we're going to talk about. We discussed it last night."
Keith had tried to allay her worries that morning, sensing her annoyance at being excluded, even if attending them were just for appearances. She didn't like the idea of their "meetings" being dismissed as pillow talk.
So she waited patiently, bags packed, for him to keep his promise of an unforgettable vacation.
It was late morning by the time he finished.
As she watched him load the suitcases in the jump-ship, she couldn't help getting a sense of Déjà vu. The hours they spent alone together, when she started to acknowledge how she really felt about the young paladin. This time, hopefully, they won't have to rush back to the castle.
"There's no booster fuel in this one, right?" she asked as he approached her.
He laughed as he bent over and swiftly hooked his elbow under her knees, swooping her up into his arms like she fell into them long ago. The sparkle in his eye told her he too was remembering that fateful night.
"No, Princess." he smiled, leaning to kiss her lightly on the brow.
He helped hoist her into the cockpit before climbing in himself. After getting herself situated she found herself looking wistfully at him and realized how far they had come from that midnight getaway.
I should say something.
No, not now. There was time for that later, she just wanted to enjoy their time together. The Alliance was growing and Lotor was making little headway since taking over command of the Galra forces. That said, chances were that they may not have another opportunity to be, well, normal, for a long time.
Things were going to change soon, they all could sense it. This time Allura was especially worried, though. This time was different.
"Where to first, Allura?"
The question brought her back to the present. It took her a moment to collect her thoughts. So many places had looked intriguing that she'd never really nailed down which ones she wanted to see.
"Oh, ah, right. I'd like to see the giant cat first, I guess."
"The Sphinx?"
"Yes, the one your mother talked about."
She wasn't sure what she expected. Granted when Nanny told the story she neglected to tell how it was made. But the lack of color, of detail, was a bit of a shock. Earth was much younger than Altea, that she knew. However, she didn't understand just how different their civilizations were ten-thousand years ago.
Keith was in awe though. She could see it in his features, full of a mixture of amazement and pride. It made sense; despite his ancestry he was still mostly human, raised on a planet inhabited solely by humans.
Her heart felt a bit lighter watching him. He had seen so much through the viewpoint of her history for so long, now it was time for her to see things from his.
Next choice was his, the Taj Mahal. After that she requested The Great Wall of China. Each place they visited gave her more and more insight to her paladins and she reveled in the knowledge.
Four days had already come and gone. Allura was grateful that the Garrison was now international and provided them shelter each night, however uninspiring it may have been. She was enjoying herself but longed for a nice, soft bed to sleep in.
Keith may have had the same thoughts. She could see him shifting uncomfortably in his seat at breakfast, his back cracking with each stretch.
"Tonight, we're staying at a hotel, Princess."
She was relieved to hear him say it. He'd been on the phone for an hour with Headquarters and she imagined they'd pulled some strings for him.
Paris was a beautiful city. She could understand why people loved it so much. They decided to spend more than a day there, visiting the Louvre, Versailles, and Notre Dame Cathedral. The second night they ended their evening at the top of the Eiffel Tower.
Looking out over the lights of the city made her almost forget everything. If they could defeat Zarkon, she would have no objections to them spending their lifetimes in a place like this.
It's been a wonderful getaway, and it's almost over. I need to tell him.
The wind blew a chill over her exposed shoulders. Keith must have noticed because he circled his arm around them, drawing her into his warmth.
"You're cold, we should go."
The next day they flew back to the Garrison. None of the other paladins were back yet, all of them due the following afternoon. As expected, Shiro was in the middle of a group of cadets talking about the Kerberos mission and how he ended up on the other side of the universe with a bunch of students just like them.
The youngsters looked at him in awe, then over to where Keith and Allura where standing in the doorway they'd just entered. After being introduced to the cadets they answered questions before class was dismissed.
"I'd have laughed my ass off if anyone had ever told me you'd be a Captain one day."
Commander Iverson was walking into the room as the students were leaving. His tone was serious but his half-grin indicated he was joking. Keith responded the best way he knew how, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall. He'd always done that before but now it was different. Now he exuded confidence. His shoulders stayed squared and his back straight, a quirk of his lip and raised eyebrow to complete the look.
"Did you get it?" was his only response.
"Yup. 'Round back, all fixed up and ready to go."
"Thank you, sir."
Allura followed him to the rear of the building which looked to be a graveyard for old ships. Keith led her to something that was covered in a tarp, too small to be a ship she surmised.
"Hello, beautiful." he spoke as he lifted the cover off a shiny red…thing.
"Princess, wanna go for a ride?"
He was not doing a very decent job of holding in his excitement, and Allura felt like she had to say yes despite her reservations. Although he had excellent skills as a pilot it just didn't look, well, safe.
"Is this the contraption Lance and Hunk said you tried to kill them with?"
"Hey, I was trying to make a getaway and they all hopped on and slowed me down. If I hadn't gone over the cliff we'd be in lockup and you'd be short five pilots."
Allura rolled her eyes but she knew he was right.
"Fine, but take it slow this time. We've got nowhere to be tonight."
She climbed on behind him and slid her arms around his waist. She could feel his heart pounding as they took off towards the desert, and that combined with the feeling of his muscles tensing under her chest made her regret telling him to take his time.
Her arms tightened around him as her nails started to dig into his sides. She playfully bit at the junction of his neck and shoulder, urging him to speed up.
He got the message.
She had no idea how fast they were going now, and she really didn't care. As the child of royalty such a thing would have never been allowed, but she relished the feel of the wind in her hair as they zoomed over the sand.
They reached a small building right as the sun began to set. Keith swung his legs around to face her and she marveled at how beautiful his eyes were in this light. However, the ride had gotten other ideas in their heads and soon they were tangled in each other's arms, lips drawn together like magnets.
She could check making love in a desert under a purple sky off her "to do" list now.
The next morning, she woke up in the sleeping bag by herself. Keith was not in the room with her either.
Since it was getting dark when they'd arrived, and since he still had one more thing to show her, they'd decided to stay overnight in the small shack. She still couldn't believe he had lived there for a year, all alone. As tough as Keith could be it did make her sad to think what his life must have been like with no friends or family to keep him company.
Now she really understood his behavior when they first met.
Behind her the door creaked open and Keith poked his head in.
"Hungry?"
He'd cooked breakfast for her, but since they'd not really brought any food with them she decided to forgo asking exactly what it was she was eating.
After they were done he asked her to walk with him towards some raised structures that looked like mountains, but to her eye were not natural.
Upon entering one of the caves she was immediately drawn to carvings on the walls. She drew a short breath when she realized just what they were.
"This is where Blue Lion slept?" she inquired.
"Yeah. I found the caves with the markings earlier, but they didn't react until Lance showed up."
Allura absently touched one of the carvings and it lit up meekly under her hand.
"Hmm. I figured once we took Blue these would have gone dormant. I guess they're responding to your energy."
"They brought you to me, didn't they?" Allura mused, thanking the stars that he'd allowed himself to be drawn to this place. To be drawn to her.
She turned to face him, noticing a slight flushing of his cheeks as he shoved his right hand in his jacket pocket. When he brought it back out it revealed a beautiful box.
He stepped cautiously toward her, as if, somehow, he feared the floor might once again collapse beneath his feet. Allura couldn't help but glance at the box, curious as to when he could have purchased something without her noticing.
It wasn't until he reached out to place the box into her hands that she noticed it.
The writing was Altean.
"What…"
"Open it."
She lifted the lid of the box revealing the most beautiful ear cuff she'd ever seen. It was crafted from silver and gold delicately laced together in swirling patterns that bloomed at the top into a lovely pink sapphire flower at the top.
"A Juniberry." she sighed as she lightly brushed her finger over the gemstones. Tears began to prick at her eyes.
But how did he-
"Do you like it?"
"Keith, it's- it's perfect. But, do you know what this means?"
His face grew a bit redder but when his eyes met hers she knew he did.
"Who told you?"
"I asked Coran. I'd seen a lot of women on New Altea wearing something like this and was curious."
"So, he's okay? With this?"
Keith smiled tentatively. She could tell he was concerned with her response.
"Yeah. I mean, I know this falls more in line with Earth traditions, and you being a Princess and all maybe that's not what you wanted. It's okay if you aren't comfortable with it. It's just that, well, I'm ready."
Allura felt that her heart stopped for a tick, wondering if this was his true intention.
"Humans, at least where I grew up, usually it's a diamond on a ring. Truthfully, I thought that wasn't practical and this would be more, um, visible. In case anyone was curious."
At this point she was having trouble keeping a straight face. She was torn between letting him ramble on adorably and tackling him to the floor.
Coran is going to pay for this.
"Allura? Say something, please!"
"Keith, there's been something I've been meaning to talk to you about. But, maybe- well, here."
She reached into her bag and pulled out a clasp. It was gold with a blue marking that symbolized the Royal House of Altea.
"I was trying to figure when to offer this to you. It seems now is an appropriate time."
Her eyes followed his face, looking for a spark of recognition. On closer inspection of the insignia his eyes grew wider, his hand that had almost touched it suddenly recoiling.
"This was your father's, wasn't it?"
"It was. And now it's going to be yours."