Serenity looked in the full-length mirror in her room in the Castle of Lions. Allura had tied up all of her long teal hair into what was supposedly a hairstyle meant for a princess. Then the castle had dressed her in what was evidently a traditional Taizenithian royalty gown. The deep purple color matched the markings beneath her eyes. Her straps were thin over her shoulders, and a slit ran up from the floor to just above her right knee.

Serenity lightly rubbed her hands over the large stubs on her head. She would feel a lot more like a princess if she had her horns back. Hopefully, the people on her planet would still accept her without them.

She slowly came out of the room to see Shiro waiting for her.

His eyes brightened and he gave her a warm smile. "You look beautiful."

Serenity smiled back at him. "Thank you."

"Are you nervous?"

She paused before softly answering, "…Yes. What if they hate me? I have no idea how to rule or what to do. I don't know how to be a princess."

"You are kind and smart, and that's all that truly matters. Everything else, you can learn. I have no doubt you will be an excellent princess."

Serenity smiled again, his gentle voice slowly easing her anxious thoughts.

Shiro held his arm out and Serenity placed her hand on his elbow. Together, they walked to the hangar where the other Paladins, Allura, and Coran waited for them.

When Serenity entered the room, Shiro released her arm and they all bowed to her, acknowledging her as the long-lost princess finally returning to her home planet.

Serenity had to fight back tears at their kindness towards her that she knew she didn't deserve. The last thing she wanted was to make her first appearance on her planet with an ink-stained face.

The hatch opened and a walkway descended onto the ground, allowing Serenity to see her planet and all of the people who had gathered to greet her.

With a deep breath, Serenity stepped forward onto the walkway and slowly made her way down to Taizenith for the first time since she was a child.

The entire crowd was silent at her arrival, and Serenity worried that they didn't believe she was really their princess or thought she looked hideous because of her missing horns.

A man at the front of the throng with auburn hair and especially elegant horns slowly stepped forward. "Serenity?" he said softly. "Is that really you?"

"Yes," she answered shyly. "Who are you?"

The man approached her and gently put his hands to her temples.

"What are you doing?"

Familiar images flashed into her mind. She groaned in pain and leaned against the man in front of her for support. As his power flowed into her and helped remind her of her life before her abduction, she grew stronger and more confident.

Everyone watched in amazement as the stubs on Serenity's head began to grow and grow until two magnificent black horns stood completely restored.

The man took his hands away from her head and Serenity looked at him with wide eyes.

"Saros?"

Saros put his hand to her face. "Sister."

Serenity tightly wrapped her hands around the brother she had forgotten, reunited with her family at last.

"Shiro, come with me."

"Princess, this is a banquet in your honor," Shiro chuckled. "We can't just leave."

"'Princess' sounds wrong coming from you, so please continue to just call me Serenity. And we won't be gone long."

She took his hand and led him down the corridors in her castle away from the large ballroom where the banquet was being held. They soon ended up in what appeared to be a workshop of some kind.

"Here, sit down."

Shiro politely sat on a metal stool next to a worktable.

"There will never be anything that could properly express my gratitude for everything you've done for me. But I hope this will be a start."

Using her abilities, Serenity let her right hand glow a soft shade of blue and heated up a strange metal and wood instrument resting on the table.

"Can I see your arm?"

Shiro slowly put his metal arm up onto the table.

"Do you feel anything?"

His face grew expressionless as he quietly answered, "Not really."

Serenity used the tool to draw a small symbol into the metal that he'd never seen before. The design somewhat reminded him a bit of when she used her abilities to make two tendrils out of her hands and gracefully moved them around.

"As I recently remembered thanks to my brother restoring my horns and my memories, this is our royal seal. Which means that this now belongs to Taizenith…not the Galra."

Shiro's felt his heart clench. He knew after having his arm replaced that it would never really feel like his own again. He knew that it gave him an advantage as the leader of Voltron and that he would be a better leader with it than without it, but it didn't change how much he despised this foreign part of him.

But after so long of having to look at his arm and think of all the horrible things he'd endured at the Galra's hands, now he could look at it and remember everything good and kind about Taizenith and Serenity. The material was the same, but that one little symbol drawn on changed its meaning.

"Thank you."

Early in the morning, the whole of the planet stood outside the Castle of Lions to see Voltron off.

"You all have given me my home, my family, my life back," Serenity smiled as the Paladins, Allura, and Coran stood in a line near the castle's entranceway. "I will forever be grateful to you, and I hope that this will show you how much you all mean to me."

Five members of the castle staff along with Saros stepped forward with various objects in their hands.

"Taizenithians are frequent traders with other planets, so we have quite the unique collection, as my brother was kind enough to show me last night. With his permission, I have selected gifts for each of you."

Serenity stepped over to the first staff member and took his object then walked over to Hunk. "Hunk, this is a Taizenithian dish that you seemed quite fond of last night if the four servings of it were anything to go by."

Hunk's face reddened. "I thought no one noticed."

Serenity laughed kindly. "We considered it very high praise. So take some with you. I've also included the recipe so you know how to make more. I'm sure Allura and Coran will help you find the ingredients you need."

Hunk bowed his head. "Thank you, Princess Serenity."

Serenity took the next object and stood in front of Keith. "Keith, this is a new training simulator for you to use. It will help you in all areas such as strength, balance, endurance, and agility. It's also extremely difficult, or so I've been told, but I have no doubt you will arise to the challenge."

"Thanks."

"Pidge, this is a Galran robot that was left behind in the invasion many deca-phoebs ago. It's broken now, but if anyone can fix it up, I know you can. It would be nice to see that something meant for such harm is now being used to help Voltron."

Pidge started to curtsey then changed her mind. It felt too weird. "Thank you, Princess."

"Lance, I heard that one of the things you miss the most about your planet is the rain. Throw this up in the air in a secluded space, like where you keep Kaltenecker, and for a short period of time, you will experience a rainstorm."

Lance could feel himself welling up with emotion, but he forced it back because the last thing he needed was to give Keith a reason to tease him. "Thank you."

"Here's a few sugar cubes for Kaltenecker too."

Lance laughed which thankfully kept his tears at bay. "She'll love them. Thanks."

"Allura and Coran, I'm so sorry about Altea. There is nothing I can say or do to ease the pain of such tremendous loss, but hopefully, this will help you remember it."

The two Alteans gasped softly when they were handed two juniberry flowers. Allura had thought she would never see them again after she had had to destroy the corrupted simulation in the castle. With just one sniff, she remembered every good thing about her planet and her father.

"Thank you so much, Princess," Allura said as she curtseyed.

"This means more to us than you know," Coran added as he bowed.

Serenity took one last object and stood in front of Shiro. "You have done so much for me, Shiro. Even though I made things very difficult for you, you always tried so hard to make sure I felt safe and cared for. You showed me what it truly meant to have a family and came to my rescue when I had given up. Thank you so much for saving me in the Galra ship." She handed him a small bottle. "This is a sleeping drought. It will ensure that you do not have any dreams while you sleep."

Shiro could dare to believe that was true. Could he really finally have a full night's sleep that wasn't riddled with nightmares? He had not been able to sleep through the night since the day he'd been abducted by the Galra. And now it might finally all be over. He might finally get some rest.

"Thank you, Serenity."

Serenity reached up and lightly kissed him on the cheek. "You're welcome."

The Paladins, Allura, and Coran looked at their gifts, beyond touched at the thoughtfulness that had gone into them.

Serenity stepped back again. "All of you are always welcome at Taizenith any time. And if any of you ever need assistance in your fight against Zarkon and the Galra, you will have all of our full support."

Lance raised his hand. "Can I get a kiss too?"

Keith elbowed him in the gut.

Serenity smiled broadly and went up to him before giving him a quick peck on the cheek.

Lance turned several shades of red and looked unsteady on his feet. He didn't think she was actually going to do it.

Serenity laughed and stepped back again. "Thank you, Voltron. I hope we meet again one day."

All of them bowed again to her.

"Good-bye, Princess," Shiro smiled. "Until next time."

Serenity watched with a bittersweet heart as the Paladins, Allura, and Coran boarded the Castle of Lions and prepared to leave.

Her palm began to glow bright blue and she raised her hand up to release a tendril of energy into the sky.

Saros lit up his right hand and did the same with his own tendril of blue energy.

The rest of the citizens of Taizenith raised up their tendrils of purple energy.

Shiro smiled as he watched the brilliant lights and colors send them off.

All in a day's work for the members of Voltron.

Thanks for reading! :)