Reward Trip

by qiavance

After their original trip to Dradin was cancelled, Lance finally takes the love of his life on her Reward Trip. He's a man on a romantic mission and he won't stop until he gets that answer he wants to hear. Set in the Voltron Force continuity at the end of the series.

8. Chapter 8

Reward Trip

Chapter 8: Memories

Disclaimer: I don't own the Voltron Force-I just happen to like Voltron a lot. Diana's my original character while Lance, Manset, and the rest of Voltron Force belong to WEP and whoever they license Voltron to. I promise I'm super broke and just like to write stories for enjoyment.

Lance and Diana woke up the next morning in a very cheerful mood. The mood continued as Lance and Diana did their full morning routine together (including a very steamy shower). When Diana asked Lance about their plans for the day, Lance smiled and stated that the day's theme was focusing on some of their firsts as a couple. Diana's smile brightened when Lance pulled up to Dradin's Aviation and Aerospace Museum. Lance shared with Diana that the museum represented the first time they met years ago on the tarmac in Cape Canaveral. They spent two hours at the museum and enjoyed an encompassing tour of the museum's exhibits. Their tour guide was Jaina—the Head Docent for the museum. When the tour was over, Jaina allowed them access to the new holographic stimulation of a large Alliance ship used to house Space Explorers on long missions. During their time in the stimulation, Lance pointed out that he did spend a summer on a similar ship while attending the Academy. When the stimulation was over, Lance and Diana thanked Jaina and the staff for the wonderful time spent in the building.

Diana expressed how much she enjoyed the museum as they walked to the SUV. "Lance, I enjoyed our time at the Aviation and Aerospace Museum," Diana continued. "And as much as I love you, I would never be able to handle a long deployment with you on an Explorer ship."

"I beg to differ. Just as you're the better navigator between the two of us, I'm better at command than you are." Lance remarked as he opened the SUV door for Diana.

"That's because you have more experience than I do in commanding," Diana remarked. "All of my crew would have made it back home if it wasn't for that blindside attack."

"Which I kept telling you was about to happen," Lance said as he closed the SUV door for Diana. He walked around the SUV and got in the vehicle. "Someone wanted to be stubborn."

"I wasn't stubborn—I was fully confident," Diana said before sticking her tongue out at Lance.

"Whatever helps you sleep with me at night," Lance remarked as he carefully backed out of the parking spot. Diana stuck her tongue out at Lance again as he made a quick right turn to leave the museum's parking lot. "And if you keep sticking that tongue out at me, I'll pull over and French Kiss you to death."

"I'd like to see you try," Diana remarked. Lance laughed for a few moments as he drove down a couple of streets. From his peripheral vision, he noticed that Diana was thinking about his threat. At the next light, Diana finally stuck her tongue out at him again. Lance growled seconds later as he turned into the parking lot of a convenience store. Before Diana could respond, Lance quickly unbuckled their seatbelts and started kissing Diana gently. Seconds later, Diana allowed Lance access to her mouth. Lance took advantage and finally started using his tongue. The lingering kiss continued for another couple of minutes before they finally broke-up the kiss.

"I see that it wasn't an empty threat," Diana smirked as she savored the taste of Lance's lips and tongue.

"Nope. You took me there," Lance remarked with a contented smile. They buckled their seatbelts up as Lance drove out of the parking lot and made a right turn into the next street he was looking for.

"So…what's the next stop?" Diana asked.

"Well…after meeting up at Cape Canaveral, it wasn't too long before we went on dates," Lance answered.

"We didn't go on dates until months later," Diana pointed out.

"Not officially, anyway. If I remember correctly, that first week I was your willing escort to several activities." Lance rebutted as he took a couple of quick turns to continue their trip to the next destination. It didn't take Lance too much longer to pull into the next part of their day.

"A dance studio?" Diana asked Lance as they pulled up to the dance studio. "Are you trying to tell me something?" Diana joked.

"Well…now that you mention it—I'm still the better dancer." Lance joked back.

"Whatever. We're evenly matched on the dancefloor," Diana replied, rolling her eyes. "We know just about every popular dance out there. We also know all the ballroom dances out there, too."

"All but one," Lance stated before getting out of the SUV. He walked to the other side of the vehicle and opened the door for Diana.

"Thanks," Diana said as she stepped out. "I don't know what dance you're talking about."

"It's a rare one called the Callback," Lance replied. "It hasn't been introduced in Alliance balls and Military galas, yet—but I'm sure that once we dance it at the next big function, everybody is going to want to learn it."

"You just made that up. Just say that this stop recalls our first unofficial dates during that Celebration Week."

Lance laughed for a moment. "Your cleverness is just one of the things I love the most about you, Diana," He opened the studio door for Diana. "But, I'm telling the truth about the dance. It's supposed to be a bit challenging."

"And I'm guessing it's one of the reasons why it hasn't been introduced at balls and such yet," Diana remarked as she stepped inside the studio. Lance closed the door behind them and smiled as their dance instructor walked up to greet them.

"Welcome to Fanciful Feet Studios!" The instructor said with a smile. "I'm Rhapsody, your instructor for the day. You must be Lance and Diana?"

"Yes, I'm Diana. Pleased to meet you," Diana answered as she shook the instructor's hand.

"Wonderful! You have great posture—and I heard you're an excellent dancer!"

"Thank you," Diana responded. "Dancing is one of my favorite hobbies. I've been a member of dance companies or dance teams from early Elementary to my College years."

"Yes, Lance told me. I also seen a few clips of your ballroom dances. I can't wait to see your take on The Callback," Rhapsody stated before focusing on Lance for a few minutes. "And you're Lance. It's not every day I get to teach an Alliance hero…much less a Voltron pilot."

"And it's not every day I get to take lessons from a person who's an expert in an obscure ballroom dance," Lance replied as he shook Rhapsody's hand.

"Hopefully, it won't be so obscure soon," Rhapsody shared. "I'm hoping that there'll be an inaugural ball soon for the new Presidential administration in the Alliance."

"Once the military side of the Alliance has been settled, we'll probably have another big celebration," Lance answered. Rhapsody nodded her head, before guiding the couple to their practice space upstairs.

"Before we get to the steps of the Callback, I want to share a little history of the dance while you two stretch," Rhapsody introduced as Lance and Diana started a stretch routine. "The Callback's origin boils down to two cultures that merged when they settled into a colony where the Middle and Far universe meet." Diana silently gasped when she heard where the dance originated. "After the new culture emerged, the Callback was the first dance performed by both newly engaged and newly married couples. It's also said that the Callback's steps are said to mimic not only the dancers' shared memories—but also translate how deep love runs through the dancing couple for the crowd." Rhapsody continued. "I was taught this dance by my parents who spent a few months on the colony before it was ultimately destroyed by enemy forces," Rhapsody finished the origin story as Lance and Diana finished stretching. "Are you ready to take on the dance?"

"I was born ready," Lance said with a smile as he extended his hand toward Diana.

"I'm always ready," Diana answered as she took Lance's hand and stood up from the floor.

"That's great. I'm going to teach you the steps first, Diana. Then I'm going to teach Lance the steps. Finally, you're going to do the steps together." Rhapsody stated as she took Diana's hands and led her to the middle of the dance floor. "Follow my lead."

"Sure," Diana answered as Rhapsody counted off the steps.

"We're going to start at arm's length and then gradually move into a close embrace," Rhapsody stated as she took Diana's arm and stretched it in front of her. "Kind of like how a relationship starts, right?" Diana nodded. "Then, you're going to twirl left, then right, then back at arm's length." Diana followed the directions, as Rhapsody kept her arm straight. "After the twirls, you're going to face me again. Perfect! Step closer.. ," Rhapsody continued. "Then slightly push me away, twirl to the left, twirl to the right," Rhapsody's dance instructions continued. Diana followed each instruction and tried to keep up with the different steps. Alternatively, she was either close to Rhapsody or at arm's length. Finally, the dance ended with Rhapsody holding Diana in a deep dip. "And that's the steps."

"It's a lot of steps to follow, but I think I can get it," Diana said. "It's challenging, but I love it because it does mimic my relationship with Lance."

"That's great. If you want, you can practice the steps as I work with Lance for a few moments," Rhapsody told Diana as she extended her arm to Lance. "All right, Lance—it's your turn. Hopefully, you paid attention while I was teaching Diana the steps."

"I'm always paying attention when Diana's on the floor," Lance said with a smile.

"We'll see," Rhapsody said as Lance stretched his arm to Rhapsody's arm. "Just like I told Diana, we're going to start at arm's length and then gradually guide me closer to you. Then, I'm going to twirl around you to the left, then right—you'll be supporting me through the twirls before guiding me to face you again. I'll gently push you away." Rhapsody stated as Lance followed the directions perfectly. "Good, now support me again through my twirls," The instructions continued. "Good, good. Copy my movements…two…three. Pull me close, copy movements…two…three. Good. Repeat the last two sets," Rhapsody continued to direct Lance through his steps. The lesson brought back a memory of his parents dancing the same steps during a community party. Lance followed through the steps but also sneaked a few glances as Diana worked to copy Rhapsody's steps. "Very good, Lance," Rhapsody stated when the dance was over. "Do you two want a break before going through the first sequence of steps together?"

"No. I'm ready to try this together," Diana stated with a smile.

"Same here," Lance answered with a smile of his own as he pulled Diana slightly to him.

"Excellent. I'm going to repeat the steps as you two move. Starting with the count—4,5,6,1,2,3. 4,5,6,1,2,3—and go." Rhapsody counted off. Lance and Diana started the initial steps. A few moments later, Rhapsody had them repeat the steps. Lance and Diana repeated the steps perfectly before getting into the next set of steps. The process repeated itself through the rest of the steps before Rhapsody had them take a quick break. After the break was over, Rhapsody had them practice the steps in full a few times. About an hour later when the lesson was over, Lance and Diana were confident they could perform the dance to a crowd.

"Thank you, Rhapsody for teaching us the Callback," Diana said after sharing a hug with the dance instructor. "I promise that I'll be practicing the dance whenever I can. It's a really beautiful dance—and with the music, it's even more beautiful."

"It's been a pleasure, Diana," Rhapsody stated. "I enjoyed teaching two great students."

"But I'm the better dancer, right?" Lance asked as he hugged Rhapsody. Rhapsody laughed as Diana rolled her eyes at Lance.

"It's hard to say which one of you is the better dancer—but there's a special kind of magic when the two of you are dancing together." Rhapsody answered as she guided Lance and Diana outside her studio. "Right now, I need to take a break and prepare for my Beginner's Dance class."

"Once again, thank you for teaching us!" Diana and Lance said as they left the studio.

"I don't know about you…but I'm hungry," Lance said as they were making their way back to the SUV. "That dancing lesson burned the rest of our breakfast away."

"At least I know I'm not the only one," Diana said with a smile. "Let's get a good recovery meal in our stomachs and go from there."

"I couldn't agree more," Lance said as he drove the SUV out of the parking lot and onto one of the main streets in Dradin. "And I know just the place for that meal. In fact, our next stop highlights another of our firsts."

"Well…the ballroom dancing covered our first unofficial dates. So, we're focusing on our first official date now. So that would mean that we're going to an amusement center or arcade next."

"You got it. We're going to Amuse Me," Lance answered as he changed lanes. "Manset gave us a quick tour of Amuse Me during our ill-fated team trip. Hunk, Pidge, and Allura still contend that Keith and I lost out on a good meal. But we'll see…" Diana giggled as Lance took a quick turn into Amuse Me's parking lot. After helping Diana out of the SUV, Lance guided Diana into the entrance where they were greeted by an employee.

With a smile, the employee guided Lance and Diana to a table in the eating area. The employee was going to give Lance and Diana a menu but was stopped when Lance and Diana shared that they already knew what they wanted to order. Lance ordered Dr. Pepper and the Surf N Turf plate while Diana ordered Baked Trout and a side of Greek salad with lemonade for the drink. It was the same meal they had on their first official date to Fun Station in Cape Canaveral. After enjoying their meal, Lance and Diana eagerly made their way to the bowling lanes.

"I guess you're eager to get your loss out of the way, today?" Lance quipped to Diana as they settled into their assigned bowling lane. Diana looked up from tying her bowling shoes.

"What makes you think that you're going to win today? I'm sure I've improved my game by now," Diana responded.

"Not enough to beat me, though," Lance said as he finished inputting their names into the scorekeeper.

"You're on," Diana said with a determination to win the game on her face. She took the blue bowling ball she chose from the rack and turned to the bowling lane. "You can do this, Diana. You can do this. The ball won't hit the gutter this time.." She mentally encouraged herself. Diana turned to glance at Lance with a smile first, then turned around and followed Lance's suggestion from that first date to bowl her first attempt.

Diana held her breath as the bowling ball continued down the lane and knocked down 9 pins. Diana turned around and smiled at Lance as to say "See, I told you I've improved." Diana then grabbed the purple bowling ball and bowled the ball to get the spare for her first frame.

"Great job! It's nice to know that my advice works," Lance responded, giving Diana a quick kiss on her cheek. "Now, watch me knock down the first strike of the day." Lance grabbed a red bowling ball and quickly bowled a strike. Diana razzed Lance before starting her next turn. A few moments later Diana managed to bowl her first strike of the game. Lance whistled at Diana before playfully smacking her behind. "I'm impressed—you got your first strike of the game early."

"I'm just getting started…" Diana responded with a wink.

"I can't wait to see more," Lance responded as he took the first red bowling ball. He gave Diana a wink before bowling a second strike. "Including later tonight."

"What's happening tonight?" Diana asked as she got ready for her next turn.

"It's a surprise," Lance answered cryptically. "Just know that our last night in Dradin is going to be memorable."

"So you say…" Diana smirked before bowling another strike. When Diana was close enough, Lance pulled her close to him.

"I say very much," Lance responded in her ear. "It's going to be your favorite memory for a long time."

"You're trying to distract me," Diana said breathlessly.

"Is it working?" Lance smirked before giving Diana a lingering kiss. When the kiss ended, Diana smiled before answering.

"Maybe. I'm starting to think that maybe I'm distracting you more."

"You're my favorite distraction, Diana. Always," Lance responded as he let her go and went to bowl his next strike. The game continued with flirty conversations in between strikes until the final frame. Diana managed to bowl two strikes. On her final turn, Diana just knew she was going to finish with a strike but was dismayed when she let go of the ball too early and watched as the ball eventually made it to the gutter in the end. "Darn. I really wanted that last strike."

Lance pulled Diana to him again. "You weren't kidding when you said you improved a lot. Whoever gave you bowling lessons did a great job." Diana giggled before playfully swatting his arm.

"Stop being so vain," Diana said before taking her seat again to take off the rented bowling shoes. Lance gave Diana a devastating grin before finishing the game with three straight strikes to bowl a perfect game. "And of course, you'll bowl a perfect game."

"Because of the combination of my skills and my beautiful good luck charm," Lance answered as he sat down to change his shoes. "Also, I told you that I was going to win again." Diana razzed Lance as he changed into his sneakers. With a smile, Lance took their bowling balls while Diana went to return their rented shoes at the bowling desk.

"The next stop is the arcade, right?" Diana asked.

"Of course," Lance responded with a smile. "You'll have a fighting chance to beat me there."

Diana laughed as they loaded their arcade cards with money for the wide range of games in front of them. The first part of their time in the arcade was spent playing a variety of music games. Lance and Diana managed several ties with the dancing games. Lance won more of the vocal games, while Diana won more of the instrumental games. Diana grumbled how it wasn't fair that the games always marked Lance as the better singer—and that he had to be a bard/singer in his previous lives. Lance laughed in return as he guided them to the section where all the shooting games were. After several rounds of the shooting games, Diana was ready for a few rounds of the axe-throwing game. Lance lost several rounds before stating that he swore Diana was a Viking in her past life. Diana laughed and said that she was simply better at Physics than he was.

"Yeah, whatever. Let's take this to the GoKart track," Lance said with a smile. "Our record is even for the moment. I plan to break that tie today."

"You wish," Diana said. "I won the last five races."

"Wishes do come true," Lance replied with a bright smile. "Just look at our relationship! It was my biggest wish and it came true." Diana sighed happily at Lance's statement as they made it to the GoKart Track. The GoKart track was a Galaxy 1 track scaled down for GoKarts.

"I'm so ready for this track. It's a scaled version of a G1 track, too! I'm so going to win this round," Diana boasted as she chose her car for the race.

"You can try, Love, you can try," Lance answered Diana's boast as he chose his car for the race. Minutes later, Lance and Diana were finished with their practice laps and were situated in the middle of the grid for the race. There were four drivers in front of them and four more drivers behind them. As soon as the light turned green the karts quickly took off to a tight and quick start. After this first turn, Lance and Diana managed to move up a couple of places, just behind the leading two drivers. It took them until the start of the second lap before they could overtake the other drivers for the lead. Lance and Diana laughed for a few moments before returning their focus on winning the race. Every so often during the second and beginning of the third lap, Lance and Diana would alternate who held down first place. In the middle of the final lap, Diana was just about to overtake Lance for the lead again when the driver behind her bumped roughly into her car. It was just on Diana's skill alone that she managed to get her go-kart to go forward after a few seconds spent in a small spin. After growling at the offending driver, Diana rushed to take the last possible chance to overtake Lance again. Just as she was level with his bumper, Lance managed to speed up just enough to cross the finish line first. Diana was shocked as she pulled her second-place car next to Lance.

Still, in slight shock, Diana managed to meet up with Lance and give him a chaste kiss on his cheek. "You won."

"I know," Lance said softly before responding with a chaste kiss on Diana's lip. "I was looking forward to a finish-line duel with you, too. I blame the other driver."

"At least I was able to get back in the race quickly," Diana pointed out. "So…anything else you want to do here?"

"Nope. Let's get to the next stop," Lance said with a smile as he guided them out of the amusement center's doors. The short walk to the SUV was pretty quiet until Diana spoke again.

"I still can't believe that you managed to beat me at the GoKart track," Diana said as they made their way back to the SUV.

"If it makes you feel better, I can't believe how much your bowling game has improved," Lance replied with a smile. "Whoever gave you those bowling lessons did a great job. You were closer to beating me this time."

Diana laughed in response. "Stupid bowling balls. I swear they just won't let me be great." Lance laughed along with Diana as she got into the passenger seat. When Lance entered the SUV from the driver's side, Diana spoke again. "So…where are we headed to now?"

"Think about the first time we made up…" Lance said as he took a left turn from the parking lot. "The first major one."

"Ok…" Diana answered waiting for another hint. "Was it planned?"

"Not originally…but it happened anyway," Lance answered as he made another turn on the way to the karaoke bar that Manset pointed out was similar to the one that everyone stood them up at in Florida. Lance did a double-take when he first saw the pictures of the bar and asked Manset about it. Unfortunately, it took a lot of collateral damage from the fight with the Drule Mafia.

"I remember it now. I still think that everyone plotted to get us back together," Diana said with a smile. "We had to be some pretty miserable company then."

Lance laughed. "I still think they were calling us all kinds of miserable nicknames behind our backs then, too." Diana laughed in response.

"So that means we're about to pull up to a karaoke bar," Diana deduced as Lance took a couple of quick turns.

"Exactly…And here we are," Lance said with a smile as he pulled into the parking lot.

"Lance! This looks exactly like the Yodeling KuroNeko!"

"I know. Manset sent me the old pictures—but he failed to mention that the bar was restored to look exactly like the KuroNeko," Lance said as he parked the SUV at the last available parking spot. He got out of the SUV and helped Diana step out of the vehicle. "That sly alien!"

"I'm getting a feeling that this joint is owned by the original owner of our Yodeling KuroNeko or is related to them somehow. The only difference on the outside is that it's simply the KuroNeko here," Diana pointed out.

"I'll have to agree," Lance said with a smile as Diana took Lance's offered arm and walked into the bar with Lance. Lance smiled brighter when Diana's eyes lit up to see that the interior was also made identical to the bar in Florida.

As they were taking in the identical scene before them, a hostess walked up and greeted the couple. "Hello, welcome to the KuroNeko! Commander Lance, Marchioness Diana—it's an honor to see you here! Let's get you settled into a semi-private booth. According to our shared records with the bar on Earth, you two prefer a booth close to the karaoke stage, right?"

"That's right," Lance said shaking his head in amazement.

"And y'all are still our favorite couple!" The hostess said as she guided them to their booth. "My older sister used to tell me stories about y'all. My boss also just happens to be a sibling to the original Yodeling KuroNeko's owner."

"Called it!" Diana said with a smile as she sat in the booth. Lance followed by sitting next to her.

"I'll be right back with your usual drinks," The hostess said with a smile and left to get their drinks. Diana and Lance took in the identical scene around them and remarked how much it reminded them of Cape Canaveral. The hostess returned with their drinks. She also gave them a plate of buffalo wings for free. Diana and Lance thanked the hostess before sharing their thoughts about the bar again. With a smile, Diana took to the stage and gave Lance a wink before the opening bars of "I Feel for You" by Chaka Khan hit Lance's ears. The crowd in the bar cheered as Diana danced before taking on the first part of the lyrics. Lance smiled and got the crowd clapping along as Diana continued to match the notes perfectly. The crowd continued to be awed by Diana's performance as she danced during the breaks and made the song hers as the crowd cheered to match the song. When she was finished, Diana raised her hand and pointed to Lance for him to respond to her quiet challenge.

Lance smiled in return and took the stage as Diana left it. After giving Diana a large grin, Lance chose to take on Luther Vandross's "Never Too Much". Diana cheered as Lance matched the notes perfectly while focusing sorely on Diana as he moved around the small stage. The crowd roared when Lance told Diana it was her turn to sing a song. Diana smiled as she mouthed that she loved him before "2 Become 1" hit his ears. The crowd cheered at hearing the old Spice Girls song. Similar to Lance's performance earlier, Diana focused only on Lance while occasionally closing her eyes as if she was intimately pleased. Throughout the song, there was the occasional whistling from the crowd. Diana smiled as she finished the song.

When Lance took to the stage to sing his next song, he pulled Diana close to him. "So, that's how we're playing the game this time, Love?"

Diana giggled before answering him. "Maybe, maybe not," Diana walked off the stage as she laughed at Lance's reaction to her words as he quickly went through the catalog to pick his next song. Diana smiled when she heard the beginning of "Who Wants to Live Forever" by Queen. Diana and the crowd were amazed as Lance perfectly handled Freddie Mercury's voice. Diana was moving her hand in a fanning motion to show how much she loved Lance's performance. Occasionally there were cheers from the ladies in the crowd and approval sounds from the men. The bar erupted in cheers as Lance and Diana weaved their performances seamlessly to the crowd's appreciation.

Diana fanned herself on stage as she decided to sing her last song. "As much as I love singing on stage, this is going to be my last song." With a smoldering smile at Lance, Diana took the microphone and closed her eyes briefly as the crowd reacted to the opening bars of "I Believe In You and Me" by Whitney Houston. Diana opened her eyes as she sang the first words. Lance was swaying to the song while giving Diana a smoldering smile of his own. By the end of the song, the crowd erupted in loud applause as Diana hit each note perfectly again. Lance helped Diana off the stage before kissing her hand softly. The next thing Lance did was smile at the crowd before choosing "All My Life" by K-Ci & JoJo. The room was filled with "aahs" and "oohs" as the string introduction hit everyone's ear. When Lance finished the song, the crowd was cheering while asking for an encore. Lance helped Diana to the stage.

"Do you feel like doing an encore performance?" Lance whispered to Diana in her ear.

Diana blushed slightly as she tried to control her normal reaction to Lance speaking directly to her ear. "Lance…" Diana managed to say after a few moments.

"I think this crowd needs that song from Dirty Dancing," Lance said softly.

"Sounds good to me. The Time of My Life it is, then." Diana responded as she reached to the speaker and picked out "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" by Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes. It wasn't too long before the crowd "oohed" as Lance and Diana started the duet. Lance and Diana made the song theirs by dancing and singing to the crowd together. Before the musical interlude, Diana got off the stage with a small microphone and danced in sync with Lance before running and jumping into Lance's arms before the song ended. The crowd's applause was deafening as Lance and Diana left the stage together. They paid their tab and thanked the hostess for serving them.

"So…where are we going next?" Diana asked after they were settled into the SUV again. "I'm loving all the callbacks to some of my favorite memories with you."

"Well…" Lance drawled as he slowly pulled out of their parking spot. "The next spot is a small, private chapel. It's on the outskirts of the dome. It'll give us a great chance to reflect on something hard we experienced." Lance made a right turn at the next traffic light before speaking again. "This callback strengthened our bond just after you finally moved in with me."

"That was a hard time for the both of us," Diana responded, as she thought back to what memory Lance was calling back to this time. Lance took a few more turns before finally arriving at the chapel. Diana was impressed at how simple the chapel looked from the outside. In contrast to nearly every other attraction and point of interest in the dome, the chapel was surrounded by a graveyard with several trees. When Lance turned off the SUV, he gave Diana a chaste kiss on her cheek before getting out of the SUV. Seconds later, Lance helped Diana out of the vehicle and guided her inside the chapel.

They were greeted by an older chaplain from Ariel. After giving Lance and Diana the history of the chapel, she guided them to the sanctuary. There was a short aisle with several pews on either side. The end of the aisle featured two long prayer benches on either side and an altar full of candles. After giving Diana and Lance encouraging words, the chaplain left them alone reminding them to make sure to stop by her office before they left. Lance and Diana promised they would before turning back to the sanctuary. Lance and Diana walked to the last pew and sat down together.

"Diana, I brought us here because the day we opened up about grief is one of the most important memories we share. Do you remember when Hunk dragged us to the chapel at the Alliance Headquarters and stated that we needed to talk about grief and how it affected us individually?"

"Yes. Hunk pointed out that you needed to tell me about what happened to your parents and siblings at the small settlement along the Middle and Far Universe boundary lines. Hunk then pointed out that I needed to allow myself to openly grieve my mother's death—even if I don't show it to nobody else but you," Diana said with a bittersweet smile. "I was going through so many changes then—changing jobs, moving in with you, graduation, losing Mom."

"That's right," Lance answered with a bittersweet smile of his own. "I thought that this would be the perfect time to briefly revisit that moment—and honor our families with a prayer. What do you think?"

"I think that's a great idea, Lance," Diana answered. Lance nodded before he stood up again. He reached for Diana and guided her to where the candles stood on the altar. Lance lit a match and used it to light a candle. After that, he used the candle to light up another 3 candles before handing it to Diana. Diana smiled and lit 2 candles—one for each parent. Lance took Diana's hand and they kneeled at the prayer bench and spent a few minutes praying for their families. When they were done praying, they took another look at the candles before leaving the chapel. When Diana yawned, Lance said it was time to return to the hotel for a quick nap. Diana sheepishly smiled and stated that she still had energy to burn—before another yawn came out. Lance laughed and said it was ok for her to take naps on vacation. Diana stuck her tongue out at him for a few moments as Lance started to drive them back to the hotel suites.

A couple of hours later, Diana woke up from her nap with a smile and stretched out her hand to feel for Lance on the bed. She sighed for a moment as her hand felt nothing but soft rose petals and a fragrant piece of paper. Diana opened her eyes to see rose petals scattered all around the room. Taking the piece of paper, Diana quickly read the note Lance left for her. Lance instructed her to follow the rose petal paths to him, starting from the bed to the bathroom.

Diana walked into the bathroom and smiled to see rose petals and a bubble-covered bath. Diana quickly got out of her outfit from earlier and tossed it to the far corner. She then gently stepped into the deep, soaking bathtub and slowly reclined to allow time for the rose petals to work on her skin. Minutes later, Diana grabbed the face towel and the soap from the basket that was sitting next to the bathtub. She was pleasantly surprised at the soft rose scent that came from the soap. Diana closed her eyes in satisfaction from her bath before stepping out of the tub and drying her body with the oversized towel. She then followed the bath of rose petals to the vanity and sat in the chair. She then quickly slathered the rose-scented lotion over her body before using the rose body mist. With a smile, she followed the path into the closet and reached for her outfit for the night.

When Diana unzipped the garment bag, she was extremely surprised. "I can't believe that Lance was able to find this dress! I thought I'd never see it again in my life." She was even more surprised to find replicas of the things she wore when she first met Lance on that tarmac in Cape Canaveral—the blue high-heeled shoes, the small pearl necklace, and even a slightly sexier version of the underwear she wore that day. With a smile, Diana quickly changed into the outfit and took a glance at the mirror, and smiled at how the dress fit as if it was that day years ago. Diana promised herself that she was going to personally thank Serge for making her favorite dress come back to life.

Once she was finished dressing, Diana followed the path to the living room. The path stopped at the small couch in the middle of the room with a small note and a remote control on the coffee table. Diana sat down on the couch and read Lance's instructions regarding the TV in the room. With a laugh, she grabbed the remote and started the video. Lance smiled into the camera and thanked Diana for going along with his plan so far tonight. Lance also stated that he was probably taking care of a couple of minor details for their dinner tonight—but he wanted her to enjoy this video he managed to put together before she took her next steps. Diana laughed in response as the video faded before Larmina filled the screen.

"So…" Larmina started. "For some reason, Lance asked me how I felt about the relationship between the two of us. As if he didn't ask this question several times before." Larmina shrugged her shoulders in the video as Diana chuckled. "And…for some reason, he wanted me to share how I felt about your relationship from the moment you two sat down to tell me and my thoughts now. Again…it's not like I didn't already share it—but whatever." Larmina paused before smiling. "So day one…I love it that you and Lance finally agreed to start your committed relationship—even though I'm pretty sure the relationship was started months ago when you two made the last trip to Arus together." Larmina paused again, with a smile. "And here's the present day," Larmina smiled. "I love how you and Lance are still committed to each other after all these years. Lance is my favorite—I mean to say that Lance is like an uncle to me. Hopefully, y'all will take the next step soon." Larmina finished her thoughts before the camera faded into black.

The next moment in the video featured Bernice and Deborah. "Since we're focusing on day one…we told you so!" Diana laughed along with the women on the screen. "Seriously, since we found out that you and Lance finally started a serious relationship, we were overjoyed. Also—it was about time." They laughed again. Deborah and Bernice stated that the relationship Lance and Diana had was their absolute favorite—outside of their personal relationships. "Also…there's a little girl on Cetrac that wants dibs on any flower girl roles available in the future—royal or otherwise." Diana laughed again as the video faded before featuring Ethel's face. Ethel smiled and shared her thoughts about Diana and Lance. She also wished that their relationship would continue to be strong. Cheryl and Alex came up next and shared their thoughts. The video followed the same format as all members of Voltron shared their opinions ending with Keith and Allura. Lance returned to the screen with a smile and announced that she was free to follow the rose-petal path again.

Diana stood up from the couch and followed the rose petals to their private terrace. The path stopped at the small patio couch. With a smile, Diana sat on the couch and grabbed the small rose bouquet. She brought it up to her nose and enjoyed the soft floral scent. It was then that Lance stood in front of the couch with a smile. He was dressed in a slim, black jacket with a white shirt underneath. Lance was also wearing a pair of black slacks with matching dress shoes.

"Good evening, Diana. Are you ready for dinner?" Lance asked extending his hand to Diana.

"I'm always ready for dinner with you," Diana answered as she took his hand, taking the bouquet with her. "Aren't we ultra-romantic tonight?"

"I wanted to make sure that our last night in Dradin was memorable," Lance answered before giving Diana a lingering kiss on the lips. "And now, dinner awaits us on the roof." He pulled Diana closer to him before guiding her up the private stairs to the roof. Diana gasped in surprise to see rose petals scattered everywhere—with a path of white petals leading to their table. Several candelabras scattered across the roof provided a soft and intimate glow. In addition to the scattered rose petals, there were several large vases of roses in various places, providing an even more intimate setting in the usually open area. A quartet of violin and violotta players huddled in the corner, serenading them with classical love songs as Lance continued to their table.

Once at the table, Lance gently pulled a chair out for Diana. With a smile and a kiss on his cheek, Diana took the chair before Lance gently moved the chair as close to the table as possible. Diana placed the small bouquet of roses on the table next to her as Lance took his seat across from her. One of the hotel's kitchen staff then rolled a small cart of food to the table. With a soft smile, the staff member placed a dish in front of Diana before uncovering her meal for tonight—poached salmon filet with hollandaise sauce and asparagus. Diana's glass was also filled with Albarino wine. Diana thanked the staff member as they turned around to serve Lance the same meal. A few moments later, the staff member left the roof while the string quartet continued to serenade Lance and Diana with more love songs. Once they finished the meal, the quartet left the roof and Lance walked away from the table to turn on a small stereo.

The intro to the first song they danced to five years ago filled the air and Lance took Diana's hand. "Would you do the pleasure of dancing with me?" Lance asked Diana.

"Yes, I would love to dance with you," Diana answered as she took Lance's hand, and they moved closer to the stereo that was surrounded by several vases of roses. Lance's hands moved to Diana's waist as Diana's hands rested on Lance's shoulders. After the song ended, they moved their heads to share a kiss. When the kiss was over, their song came on and they danced even closer to each other. "I love you," Diana whispered in Lance's ear just before the solo started in the middle of the song.

"I love you, too," Lance answered before moving back a couple of steps. It was finally time for him to propose to Diana. Lance turned to the stereo and lowered the volume before speaking more to Diana.

"Lance?" Diana simply asked before Lance started to speak.

"When I first met you on the tarmac over 6 years ago, I fell in love with you at first sight. When you introduced yourself to us, I couldn't help but feel the invitation behind your smile and knew that I had to have you in my life. We went through some of the highest highs and some of the lowest lows during that first week—but I knew that there was nobody else I wanted by my side but you. I did everything I could to keep you in my life and was ultimately rewarded when you agreed to be my woman. I love every moment together with you—whether we were the happiest couple in the galaxy or during an extended lover's quarrel. Although the past year or so has been our most challenging year —it's also been the year that brought us even closer. Right now, I just have one question to ask you," Lance paused as he took another step back before pulling out the ring box and getting on one knee. "Lady of My Life, Diana Suzanne Smythe-Williams, will you marry me?" Lance opened the ring box and Diana was immediately speechless.

"Lance…" Diana gasped as she processed the scene before her. She was on the rooftop of Manset's Leisuredrome with Lance surrounded by candlelight and roses. Lance was currently on bended knee, doing the one thing she seriously wanted him to do for months-propose to her. Not only that, but he was holding the one ring she spent the last few months searching for. None of her dreams about being engaged prepared her for this overwhelming moment of happiness. Not only was Diana speechless, but Lance's proposal also managed to take her breath away. As she finished processing the moment and the fact that Lance finally popped the question, she could see that Lance was starting to get anxious. Diana also noticed that Lance was probably about to speak again. "Yes," Diana answered breathlessly. "Yes. Yes, I'll marry you, Lance Charles McClain."

Lance smiled as he stood up and took Diana's hand. He gently slid the Alexandrite ring with its ruby and sapphire circled band on Diana's finger. Once he settled the ring, Lance quickly took Diana's head and gave her a lingering kiss as the stereo was turned up again as their song ended. Another favorite song played on the radio as Lance pulled Diana closer and the kiss continued. When both the song and the kiss ended, their bodies were pressed together and their breaths mingled.

"You said yes," Lance said with a smile. "And it didn't take 35 minutes." Diana chuckled. "I was starting to get anxious though."

"Lance, you had me speechless," Diana answered. "And you had the ring. The one ring. I needed the moment to sink in." It was Lance's turn to chuckle before sharing another lingering kiss with Diana. When the kiss finished, Diana took a step back while catching her breath. "We need to tell everyone the good news!" Lance swept Diana into his arms. "Lance!"

"Before that, we need to celebrate the moment together first…in the bedroom, of course," Lance said, wiggling his eyebrows. Diana laughed as Lance stopped by the table so Diana could pick up the bouquet of roses. With another kiss, Lance took them down the terrace steps and gracefully managed to get them to their bedroom. Once Lance closed the door, the rest of the evening happened in a constant blur of hands, kisses, moans, laughter, and sighs. As dawn approached, Lance and Diana were whispering into each other's ears.

"I still can't believe that it was you who had the ring this whole time!" Diana exclaimed. "No wonder you were always taking up for the big wig." They shared a laugh.

"I guess you'll be apologizing to me for the rest of your life, then?" Lance asked.

"In your dreams. I'm not apologizing for nothing—you hid this from me for months." Diana responded.

"I haven't forgotten some of the names you called me over the ring. Some of them were quite harsh and it was hard to bite my tongue. I managed…but I'm going to need ongoing restitution." Lance paused. "Not to mention that I had help from the jeweler herself. How many times did Ethel talk bad about my cover?" Diana playfully smacked Lance's shoulder.

"I knew I should have followed my intuition about the ring—deep inside my heart knew that Ethel wouldn't allow some big wig to take my ring like that. I can't wait to call her!" Diana yawned. "Wow! It's almost 7 – and we haven't slept a wink yet!"

"I guess we're going to have a late check-out this time," Lance answered as he reached for the phone and Diana yawned again. The front desk clerk answered and Lanced asked for a late check-out "We may not check-out until this afternoon, probably around 2 or 2:30."

"We'll take care of it, Commander McClain. Take your time."

"Thanks, I plan to," Lance answered yawning. He hung up the phone and embraced Diana tightly as he heard her soft snores. It wasn't too much longer before his eyes were closed in sleep.