Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Lance: 

Keith: 

Shiro: 

Pidge:

Hunk: 

Chapter Text

The target strutted down the hall below their group, unaware that he was being watched from above. His black cape flowing behind him, creating a temporary barrier between him and the three nobles that trailed in his wake. They were dressed in fancy, black and red robes and were adorned with silver jewelry that sparkled in the hall's chandelier light and the small amount of moonlight than managed to peak through the windows. The group was being trailed by a servant, silently keeping her distance and keeping to the walls as she followed whoever she was tasked to. She was also dressing in black and red, but the fabric is clearly thinner than the others. The only other people in the hall were soldiers, posted in various positions, their black and red armor glowed with the Galra Signia that had been designed in the middle of their chest plate. All of the people below had varying shades of dark purple fur and glowing yellow eyes. The noble and servant also had the Galra Signia embroidered over their hearts on their clothing. Like they were branded. Like the Kingdom wanted to remind its people who they belonged to. The only person not supporting the Galra Signia on their chest, was the leading figure, he was also the only person not wearing red. Instead, he was dressed in black and a blueish purple. His thick cloths sharpened his body figure but not bothering to cover his muscled arms. His arms were covered in silver bands, chains, and rings. His head held an equally sharp, silver crown.

“My Lord, please...” one of the figures pleaded as she tried to keep up with his fast walk.

“Your highness,” another one tried, “we really do need you to...”

He was interrupted by the third, “Sire, you must..”

This last attempt finally seemed to Prince’s attention, as he quickly spun to face them without warning. The nobles froze in their tracks, fearing their superior's attention. His face was scrunched in ager; his cloak only managing to turn part way as it settled on the carpeted floor. “Flor the last time,” he spoke to the three figures, who cowered under his glare, “I will attend to it tomorrow. Now, leave me.”

Not waiting for their response, he turned once again and continued on his original path. But there was no need for him to wait. Clearly, the nobles didn't want any more of their superiors' anger. The only response they gave was to bow their head and thump their arm over their heart (and Signia). The only person to follow was the servant, she smirked as she skirted around the nobles, seeing the outrage on their faces from being ignored. Clear to her, they weren't used to being ignored or even dismissed.

Above the Galrans, the three figures followed the path of their target as he continued down the hall. They were crouching on wooden beams that were placed there to support the ceiling and to hold up the chandeliers. As quietly as they could, they turned away from the pouting nobles and quietly following the Prince and silent servant. He continued to walk down the hall in silence only stopping when he reached tall, ornate double doors. On each side of the doors, a guard stood at attention, staring at the opposite wall. Standing like statures, the guards only came to life to open the door. Before the target could enter his quarters, the servant behind him quickly drew closer to him.

“My Lord,” she began, bowing as he turned once again, “would you like me to draw you a bath, or perhaps you would like me to deliver supper, or..."

Before she could continue, he interrupted her, “No need, Sabil, I will be fine. You are dismissed for the night.” Unlike when he spoke to the noble, his voice was soft, no longer angry.

“Of course, My Lord. Thank you, My Lord.” As he entered and the guards began to close the doors behind him, the servant bowed, only straightening up when the doors were fully shut. As she turned to stroll back where she had come, a lock sounded; making it clear that he didn't want to be disturbed.

“Pidge,” the tallest of the figures whispered into his black helmet, careful to not be heard by the guards, “we’re clear. The Prince in his room, where’s the vent?”

A second of silence passed, then a voice came through all of their coms, “It’s to your right, three rooms over.” She finished.

Without a word, the three hidden figures nodded and followed their directions. Crouching, they moved on the beams to the indicated vent. They had to move carefully, lest their armor clink and make some kind of noise and alert the guards below. The tallest figure led the group, followed by two others. All three were dressed in Altean-styled armor with black under suit. Thier armor's main color was normally white but had been turned black with stealth mode. The only thing differentiating the groups' armor, other than their own body size, were the patches of color that were placed on their shoulders, hands, legs, and helmet. The leading figure's highlighting color was usually black but had turned purple in the stealth mode. The second figure's highlights were colored yellow, and the figure bringing up the rear had highlights of blue. He was the only that had a weapon drawn and was holding his gun in both hands as he expertly balanced on the beams.

The group reached the designated vent, and the leading figure used his cyborg arm to melt the screws and pull the vent off its frame. By the time they had removed the vent and made their way into the Prince’s room, he had already bathed and changed out of his robes. Thankfully for them, his room had the same beams as the hall outside and they were able to hide themselves. The Prince was now dressed in blueish-purple, fluffy sweatpants and a black t-shirt; a towel had been draped over his black hair to dry his head and the light layer of fluff that covered his body. Compared with the previous outfit and demeaner, the Prince seemed almost soft and fluffy. He also didn't seem as tall or big as before. Perhaps there was a lot more layers to the clothes than they had thought before. His fur was also not the usual dark purple. Instead, it was a light lilac color and looked very soft and fluffy; a striking contrast to his black hair that poofed in every direction. He seemed so unlike all the other Galrans the group had seen that day.

Below them, the Prince yawned as stretched his arms over his head. It must had been a stressful day, because he groaned at the relief and held the pose for a few seconds. Signing, the Prince released the pose, yawned, and headed towards his bed. The bed was grand and big enough for at least three people to comfort sleep without toughing each other. Despite having a servant, his bed was messy; it was piled high with pillows and blankets that formed a kind of nest. Unfortunately, the Prince never made it to the comfort of his bed. As planned before, the group simultaneously dropped down, forming a triangle around him. The Prince could only react in surprise before he was knocked unconscious from behind by the one who was leading.

“Well, that was easier than expected.” The one in yellow said, louder than he meant to.

“Hunk,” the one in blue scolded as he shushed his friend and teammate, “don’t jinx us.”

“We’ll be fine, your highness.” The one in black whispered back, consoling the one in blue.

“Shiro, how many times do I have to tell you to call me Lance. There’s no need for formalities.” He retorted as he knelt down to cuff and gag the Prince. They didn’t want his escape or call for help from the guards outside.

Sighing, Shiro spoke into in helmet’s com, “Pidge, we got the Prince. We’re on our way back.”

“Copy.” They said through the helmet’s static, “Waiting for your arrival.”

Sneaking out of the Galran Castle was a lot harder than sneaking in, especially with Hunk carrying the unconscious body of the Prince on his shoulder. Eventually, they were able to make their way outside, unseen and unheard. The Green Lion was hidden by its’ cloaking device and sitting on the surprisingly sturdy roof. The Lion was only visible to the other Paladins, it's outline was drawn out in blue on the visor of their helmet. As they neared it, Pidge lowered her Lion into a crouching position so the others could enter through its mouth. Lance immediately went to the cockpit to join Pidge, while Shiro stayed with Hunk to make sure the Prince was secure. Hunk carefully placed their hostage in a chair in the belly of the lion, making sure to fully secure him so he wouldn’t move around in the flight. Still unconscious, his head lulled around as he was put into place. Finally secured, Hunk and Shiro joined Lance and Pidge.

“All good.” Hunk said as they joined them and grabbed onto a handle that hung from the ceiling to keep other passengers in place as they flew.

“All right, let's go.” Pidge said, starting up her Lion and taking off. It only took seconds to clear the planet and head towards Altea.

Lance was glad to get off Galra. Everything from the foliage to the buildings were dull and dark colors. It was depressing and would have been difficult to see if Pidge hadn't added night vision into their visor. He almost understood why Zarkon would want to invade other planets, especially Altea. Lance loved his planet. It was bright and would sparking in the daylight. He would do anything to save his planet and people. Even it that included kidnapping the enemy Prince.

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“He’s smaller than I thought he would be,” the Princess of Altea (and Lance’s older sister) spoke as she observed the Prince, “and he’s a lot lighter than any other Galran I’ve seen.”

They were in the Altean prison, viewing the Prince through a protective shield, it's control panel on their side of the wall. The Prince was still unconscious, Shiro had hit him harder than he had intended. When they had arrive, Shiro and Pidge had immediate put their captive in a cell as Lance and Hunk went to alert the King and Princess of their arrival and successful mission. The King had had other duties, so Allura and the royal adviser had been the only ones to come down. Shiro had lad their captive on the cot in the cell, keeping his hands cuffed behind his back but taking off the gag.

“Yeah,” Lance mused, tilting his head, “we thought so too. He looks a lot more like a kitten than any monstrous Galra.” He and Pidge had changed out of their armor before joining the team. When they first got there, they had relieved Shiro and Hunk so they could also change out of their armor.

“Are you sure this is really the Prince?” Allura asked.

“Pretty sure, Princess.” Shiro responded.

Sitting on the floor Pidge said, “He was using the Prince’s room.” Not even look up from her computer.

Before they could speculate any more, a groan came from the sleeping figure inside the cell. Slowly, their captive was gaining consciousness.

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Keith’s head hurt. The pain was mainly coming from the base of his skull, but nevertheless, his whole head throbbed as he tried to remember what had happened. He tried to move, but something was preventing him from moving his arms. Groaning again, Keith cracked open his eyes. It was bright. Too bright. The entirety of the Galra Castle was made and painted with dark stones and colors. But, around him, almost everything was white. The wall in front of him, though, was made of a see-through, glowing, blue shield. His head throbbed even more as memories started coming back to him. He had been kidnapped. Keith fully opened his eyes has he struggled to sit up, finding it difficult to do so with his hands cuffed behind his back.

“Ah, finally.” A voice mocked, “Sleeping beauty awakes.”

‘Oh, yeah,’ he thought as the rest came back to him. He had been taken by the enemy, the Paladins of Voltron. People, Keith hoped, who might be able to help him.

Chapter Text

It was difficult to sit up when one’s hand are cuffed behind their back. Keith groaned, trying his best to sit up when his head pounded and wrists and shoulders were sore. He was able to get a little more relief when he was fully sitting, slowly rolling his shoulders to work out the kinks.

He was now able to fully view the people in front on him. Well, almost fully, there was a shield wall between him and the others. Keith recognized them, of course he did, he had spent hours viewing their grainy pictures in meetings his father forced him to attend. They were always dressed him white Altean armor, each with their own color.

Now, they were dressed in more casual clothes, except for two. The Alteans. But more specifically, the Altean Princess and Prince. They were dressed in cloths fitting royalty, their brown skin accessorized with golden jewelry, and a thin, golden crown adorned their white hair.

The others were more simple. There was a Balmeran, an Olkari was sitting on the floor, a wooden computer, then there was the big, muscled man. He looked Altean, but his right arm was replaced with Galra tech. Keith definitely recognized it as Galra. He didn’t know how this Altean had been given a Galra prosthesis.

He stayed sitting on the tiny cot, just staring and observing the others. Clearly, they expected him to say something; maybe to cry or beg for his release. But he wouldn’t, his father trained him for this scenario.

The group grew unnerved by the Prince’s silence. Hunk began looking around, waiting for someone to do something. Allura decided to lead, and stepped forward. Clearing her throat, she said, “Prince Akira of the Galra Empire, I am Princess Allura of Altea. You are now our prisoner.”

Hunk thought she sounded commanding and intimidating, but all the Prince did was smirk and give a small and quiet chuckle. “I know.” He said simply. Again, sending the group into stunned silence.

“Seriously!” Lance yelled, throwing his hands up in the air in exasperation.

“Lance.” Allura scolded.

“No!” Lance continued, “What the quiznack! We just kidnapped you, and all you say is ‘I know’.”

Keith chuckled again; this Altean was pretty, but especially so when angry. “I let you.”

“What?” This time Hunk asked.

“I let you kidnap me.”

“Bullshit.” Lance said, calling his bluff.

“Lance.” Allura scolded him again. Royals don’t cuss.

Standing up, Keith strutted towards the barrier. “I knew you were on those beams and that you used the vents to sneak into my room.” He eyed Hunk, guessing that it was probably him who made all those noises. Balmerans weren’t exactly a quiet people. He stretched his neck, hearing a crack, then continued on. “You’re the Paladins of Voltron, the ones who are fighting against my father. I know we’re on Altea, probably in the castle dungeons. I’m exactly where I want to be.”

To demonstrate his point, Keith pulled his hand out from behind him, showing off the unlocked cuffed. The group gasped lunging backward, Lance summoned his bayard, Shiro activated his arm, Allura activated her staff, and Hunk pulling back Pidge who hadn’t looked up from her computer even once

“Oh, don’t worry,” Keith said, throwing the cuffs down at the floor of the shield. “I have no intention of breaking out.”

After a few moments, they relaxed but didn’t put away their weapons. Shiro did deactivate his arm so it didn’t over heat. He stepped forward, and Keith guessed he was the leader of Voltron, “What did you mean?”

Keith hummed questioningly, but gave no response.

Shiro rephrased, “Why would you let us kidnap you? Why would you want to be here?”

Keith thought a bit before responding. “I have spent my life in a fight against you Alteans and the others rebels. But I have never met any of you.” Keith was now studying Lance, “I thought I should.”

“Why?” Lance asked, “So you can learn our secrets and take us down for your father?”

“No.”

“Then why?” Shiro asked.

Keith only smiled, then turned to sit back down on his cot. He made it clear he was done talking. Lance huffed, he wanted to continue interrogating the Prince but Allura grabbed his arm to get his attention.

“Fine, stay in here for the rest of your life.” She turned and headed back down the hall, the others following in her wake.

———————————————

Lance threw his hands up again, “Quiznack.”

“Lance, stop cursing.”

“Oh come on, he was being a total ass.“

“I agree with Lance. It kind of was a mess.” Hunk said. He was currently watching Pidge, making sure they didn’t run into anything as they were still on their lab top.

“We should report to the King, he’ll probably know what that was about.” Shiro said.

The others agreed and walked down the many halls and up many stairs till they came to the King’s study. They almost rand into Corran, who quickly righted himself from his surprise.

“Ah, Princess, Prince.” He bowed, then greeted the others, “And my dear Paladins, I was just coming to look for you. I assume we meet for the same reason?” He asked.

“Probably.” Lance said.

“We were successful.” Allura said simply. She didn’t want to say more, this current mission of theirs was meant to be kept a secret as long as possible. Of course it wouldn’t be kept that way forever, Zarkon would surly notice him mission son soon.

“Then right this way.” He said, bowing again and opening the door for them.

As they filed in, the King stood and came around his desk as he opened his arms to his children. “Allura. Lance”

“Father.” They both greeted, happy to come forward and receive their hug. “Paladins.” He said nodding to the others, “How did it go.” King Alfor asked, still keeping one arm on each of his children.

“We got him.” Lance said.

“But?” Alfor asked.

“But the interrogation didn’t go well.” Shiro supplied.

Alfor sighed, stepping back to lean against his desk. They explained what happened and what the Prince had said. Pidge ended it by saying, “I was recording the entire time. He didn’t lie.”

The King nodded, processing the information. “Well, that’s to be expected.”

“What do you mean, Father? He hasn’t acted like any other the other Glaras we’ve captured. Considering his parentage, he should have been worse, but he was almost tame.”

“Allura calm. I will explain.” Sighing, the King continued, “He is acting more like his mother than his Father. When you were little, you might remember the time of peace before us and the Galra empire.”

Allura nodded, vaguely remembering. “Lance, you were too young. But we were in peace that Zarkon, himself, fell in love and married an Altean.” The group gasped. “She was an Altean scientist, worked on quintessence in other species. She had been visiting Altea when there was an accident.” The King hesitated, remembering the awful memories. “We alerted Zarkon and had our best healers working on her, but she didn’t make it. She was also pregnant at the time. I had to make the decision of whether to extract the child before it was ready or let it die with her.” The group stayed silent in sorrow. “I thought it would best to do all we could to help the baby live.”

“I remember now.” Allura whispered, “He was so small. Smaller than any baby should have been. I didn’t think he would have made it.”

King Alfor nodded, “Yes, the whole thing was tragic. By the time Zarkon arrived, his wife was dead and his son was barely alive. He was angry, of course, he had every right to be. But he took his anger out on us. He claimed that we had murdered his wife and kidnapped his son. After returning to Galra with his son, he declared war on Altea and any planet that backed us.”

The group stood in silence, absorbing the information. It was tragic. Lance wondered if the Prince knew of the truth, or if Zarkon had twisted the story. Apparently, the King wondered that very same thing.

“Depending on what the Prince said, it seems he may be questioning what he has been told. We can use this.” They nodded, “Lance, I want you to befriend him.”

“Me?” Lance managed to squeak out.

“Yes. You might be able to get more answers out of him if he’s comfortable with you. Find out why he really wanted to be here.”

Sulking, Lance nodded. He dreaded the thought, but if his father believed in him he needed to at least try.

Chapter Text

Lance had decided to stop by the kitchens before revisiting the Prince in the dungeons, and had found Hunk and Pidge there. When Hunk first escaped to Altea, he had been given a job in the Kitchens. He was very good and he and Lance had become very good friends. Pidge, on the other hand, was apart of an Olkari ambassadorial group; here family came to Altea to help aid in the war and Pidge had been put with the technicians. She had seen, over the cameras, Hunk and Lance goofing off. After covering for them when Lance had accidentally knocked over a priceless vase (they had said that the cameras were down), she had joined the duo.

Hunk still liked cooking, even though he had jumped the ranks to Paladin. He had given Lance a big platter full of meats, cheeses, fresh fruits, and Hunk’s famous dinner rolls. He had also made sure to put a protective cover over it so Lance couldn’t spill anything.

On his way to the dungeons, Lance would smile and wave at the servants. He prided himself in not being a snotty prince, but one that his people could trust. And even though Allura came off as strict when one first met her, she just as equally cared for her people. Lance knew she would make a great Queen one day.

As Lance entered the dungeons, he scanned his hand, ensuring that he was who he said he was and had proper clearance level. When he found the cell the Prince was in, he expected to find him sulking on the cot, covered in the thin blanket that was provided. What he did find made his draw drop.

On the cot, was a pile of fluffy blankets and thick pillows. They were all colored in various shades of purple, with some blues in there as well. The only part of the Prince he could see, was his messy hair and fluffy ears.

Outraged, and also confused, Lance banged his hand on the shield wall to get his attention. Stretching his arms out of his makeshift nest, the Prince raised his head to see Lance scowling at him.

“Oh,” Keith said, sitting up but keeping some blankets around him, “hello.”

“Hello?” Lance practically screamed, then gestured at Keith’s nest, “What is this? Where did you get these from?”

Keith shrugg, “Found them.”

Lance waved his free arm in exasperation, “Found them? Where?”

“Around.” Keith liked making this Altean flustered.

Lance glowered at Keith, “Liar. How did you steal them? Did you ask one of the guards?”

Keith shook his head, and Lance was about to continue yelling at him but remember he was here to make friends with the Prince. Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Lance changed topics, “Fine, whatever.” Another breath, “If I come in there, will you attack me?”

Keith paused, confused at Lance’s change in behavior and subject. Then he shook his head again, he was curious to see what Lance would do.

Instead of shutting down the shield wall, Lance closed his eyes and concentrated on his connection with the quintessence, and simply walked through the wall. Keith gasped, sitting up straighter, his full attention now on Lance.

Lance heard Keith gasp and opened his eyes, expecting the Prince to be attacking him, instead he found him starring intently at him. His vibrant purple eyes were wide with the usual wonder he was used to when people saw his manipulation of quintessence. “What?” Lance asked defensively.

“H-how did you do that?” Keith asked, shuddering.

“Do what?”

“Go through the shield. You didn’t deactivate it.”

“Oh, that.” Lance said, turning back to look at the shield then back at the Prince, “Yeah, that’s an ability Alteans have. Well, not all Alteans, usually only us royals and some who are very skilled.”

“But what is it?”

“Quintessence.” Lance said simply, tapping the glowing blue marks on his cheeks, “We can manipulate quintessence.”

Keith only stared, wanting to get closer but scared to. Thankfully, Lance decided to break to silence. “Well, Akira; can I call you Akira?” Before Keith could continue, Lance beat him to it, “Well, Akira, I thought I would bring you some food, and here I am.” Lance gave a “Tada” as he took off the cover to reveal the food underneath. In response, Keith’s stomach growled.

Lance chuckled, handing the tray to ‘Akira’ before pushing aside some blankets so he could sit on the cot. He didn’t really know what to say, only sat as Keith tentatively sniffed at the food before digging in. Lance swung his legs, trying to come up with a way to befriend the Galra next to him.

“So, Akira. Can I call you Akira?” he began, “Anyways, you said before that you wanted to wanted to be here. Can I ask why?”

Keith paused in his eating, swallowing what what left in his mouth. He didn’t trust this Prince, he didn’t trust anyone. But he thought that if he was to get the information he wanted, they would need to start somewhere. “My mother was Altean.” He began and Lance nodded, having just been told, “My father refuses to speak of her. Of any Altean really, unless it is how to kill them. I just,” He paused, embarrassed to go on.

“You wanted to know more about her.” Lance finished. Keith nodded. Lance continued, “I can understand that. Everyone should know more about their history. Our history helps us to understand more about ourselves.” Keith nodded again, glad that Lance understood and that he clearly wasn’t upset about his. Zarkon had always been upset when Keith had tried to talk to him about it.

Lance wanted to continue, he wanted to explain Altea’s history. How they came to be, their cultures, beliefs, and traditions. But before he could, there was a flash of blue light and something heavy fell on top of him. It knocked him off the cot and onto the floor. He yelled out in surprise and pain. As he turned around, the thing that had hit him jumped off the bed and onto him. It growled, showing its sharp teeth. Lance gasped as he starred into its glowing yellow’s eyes.

“Cosmo, no!” Keith had showed, jumping off the bed and trying to pull the blue wolf off of Lance. But it was no use. The wolf would not move. That’s when Lance recognized it. He was staining into the eyes of an Inter-Dimensional Wolf. He didn’t dare move, knowing of its powers and intelligence.

Lance had grown up hearing of the legends and myths of the Inter-Dimensional Wolves. They had unimaginable powers and intelligence to rival their own. The legends had said that if one came across on, it would look into their soul. It could see if someone was true of heart, or corrupted. Lance had always imagined himself finding one and befriending it. It would see that Lance was true of heart, and give him incredible powers. But the legends had also said they were extinct. Now, he was finally face to face, but it didn’t seem that it would go in his favor.

Keith had gone silence as Lance had. He seemed to be waiting for the wolf to make a move. Apparently he also knew of the legends. “Don’t move.” He whispered to Lance, “Cosmo.” He tried again.

The dog only huffed in response, lowering his head to Lance to sniff him. Then, as soon as he had come, the wolf jumped off Lance. Apparently, it had deemed Lance worthy to live. It trotted over to Keith, wagging its tale as he stuck out his hand to scratch behind the wolf’s ears.

Lance sat up, still stunned. “Where did you find it?”

“Cosmo?” Keith clarified, “He’s my friend.”

“Clearly.” Lance said, standing up, “Their supposed to be extinct.”

“Yeah. I rescued him. One of my father’s commanders had found him. He wanted to kill Cosmo and wear his pelt. I heard of it and rescued him before he did anything. He wasn’t very happy. Still isn’t I think.”

“You said his name is Cosmo?” Lance asked as he and Keith sat on the cot. Lance reached out his hand and the wolf let him let him. Lance marveled at his soft fur.

Keith nodded, giggling, “It was the best name I could think of. He usually goes where he wants but will come when I call, or when he gets hungry.”

They spent a few minutes in silence, petting Cosmo. Then an idea popped into his head. It was crazy but he thought it might just work. “Will you give a sec.” Lance didn’t give Keith a second to respond be launching himself off the cot and out of the cell. He only ran a few steps down the hall, not wanting Keith to overhear if his plan didn’t work. Lance pulled his communicator from his belt and contacted his father. It only took a few rings for him to pick up and project his father in a hologram. And not only his father, but also Allura and Shiro.

Lance quickly explained his idea to them, trying to read their faces for any hopeful signs. It didn’t look good so far.

“I don’t son, do you really trust him that much not to do anything bad.”

“I didn’t at first, but dad,” Lance could barely keep his excitement in, “he has befriended an Inter-Dimensional Wolf.”

“What!” Allura asked. She had also grown up on the same stories as him. “Are you sure?”

“Positive. It teleported right on top of me.”

“And, you passed?” Allura didn’t know if there was a proper name for when the wolf would judge a person’s soul.

“Clearly.” Lance scoffed.

“I thought they were supposed to be extinct?” Shiro asked.

“I thought so too, Akira said he had saved him and that it listens to him.”

Before Shiro or Allura could ask more about the wolf, the King interrupted them. “Akira. Your on first name basis?”

Lance nodded, “It will work. I think we can trust him. Plus, he can introduce you to Cosmo.”

“Cosmo?”

“That’s the wolf’s name.”

They nodded, then waited for Alfor to either approve or disallow Lance’s plan. “Fine, you can do it. As long as he wears the cuffs.”

Lance jumped up and down, “Thanks dad. Love ya.” He ended the call before they responded, running back to Akira’s cell. Keith starred at him as he entered, his head was tilted to the side, ears alert and questioning Lance. Lance was disappointed to see Cosmo had left, but no matter.

Stooping down, Lance picked up the cuffs that Keith had dropped, and fiddled with its quintessence as he spoke. “My father has approved my idea. I am allowed to give you a tour of the castle.”

Keith’s eyes lit up excited, then suspicion as they flitted back down to the cuffs Lance was holding. “What’s the catch?”

“You’ll have to wear these.” He finally succeeded in disconnecting them, “But don’t worry, they won’t have to be separated. They’re just here to make sure we can find and detain you if we need to.”

Keith nodded in agreement. His ears flicked in excitement as he stood up and held out his hand.

“You ready Akira?” Lance said as he fitted them on Keith’s wrists. They looked like oversized bracelets.

“Keith.”

“What?”

“My father calls me Akira. My friends call me Keith.”

“Oh.” Lance said. Aki- no Keith was pretty up close. “Well then,” he said holding out his arm for Keith to grab, “will you join me for a tour?”

Keith looped his arm around Lance’s, “I’d be delighted.”

Chapter Text

The Altean Castle was beautiful. Built with white marble and accented with blues and golds. It was bright from the tall windows and light streaming through. It was nothing like Keith had ever seen, and was so much different from his own home. But not just the castle, the people were startlingly different too. Lance especially. The Altean prince’s eyes lit up with excitement and pride as he toured Keith around his castle. He showed Keith everything, from his father’s throne room to the servant’s kitchen. As they walked and talked, they passed people in the hallways. Servants mostly, but some nobles as well. They were weary of Keith’s presence; his purple skin made him stand out too easily like a crack on the perfect marble floors. But as soon as they saw their prince, their eyes lit up. Lance greeted them all, most by name, as if they were equals to him. Keith saw that Lance didn’t seem to care about status. He was so unlike Keith’s father. He was friendly and actually cared for his subjects. Something Keith had never seen. It all took his breath away, and he never wanted to leave Lance’s side.

But no matter how bright the castle was, Lance glowed brighter. Keith found it hard to concentrate on the toure when Lance was so dasling. Lance of course was oblivious to Keith’s staring, when he was distracting himself with being a good host.

The only person to actually notice Keith’s adoration for Lance was Pidge, who had been watching through the security cameras. They had been informed of Lance’s plan to befriend the enemy prince, so of course, they spent their time watching the two through the castle security. And all they saw was an enthusiastic Lance and star struck Keith.

The tour took up the entire day, and Lance invited Keith to join him for dinner which Keith hesitantly accepted. He didn’t know when the Altean King’s graciousness would run out and they would turn on him. As usual Alfor, Allura, and Lance ate together. It was something their father insisted on, to keep the feeling of family. Today, they were joined by Akira, who reintroduced himself as Keith, and the rest of the Paladins. They all formally introduced themselves to Keith even though he already knew who they were. Dinner was quiet and uncomfortable, though Lance did his best to lighten the mood by talking and joking. He didn’t talk about anything important, just talked, though eventually he ran out of things to say. Thankful Pidge was able to fill in.

“So, Keith, how did you like the caste?”

Keith paused, his fork halfway to his mouth, “Interesting. Um, Lance is a very good tour guide.”

“Aw thanks.”

“Must be different,” Hunk began, “Your castle was so dark and cold.” The others froze, the whole situation was uncomfortable, but Hunk didn’t have to go reminding them all that Keith was technically a kidnapped hostage.

But unexpectedly, Keith laughed. “Yeah. My father hates the light. I guess he likes to make the rest of us just as sad and depressed as he is.”

This brought out cackling from Pidge who tried to hide it behind her hands, the overs gave small laughter. They even got a few snorts from Allura as she, too, tried to hide it behind her hands.

Alfor’s laughter was a deep chuckling, “Yes. I remember he was always squinting when he visited. He would always be tripping because he refused to open his eyes further.”
At that Keith laughed, he never imagined his father could even trip.

Unfortunately, the table lapped in silence again. Keith thought it was time to stop beating around the bush and just ask what they had all been thinking.

“So what now?”

“What do you mean?” Lance asked.

“What are you going to do with me? I don’t imagine it was your plan to let me wander throughout your castle. You had a plan to use me against my father, didn’t you?”

There was a stretch of uncomfortable silence as no one wanted to admit anything, so Alfor decided he would. “Yes, we did. We had planned to surrender in exchange for you.”

Keith signed, keeping his eyes on what was left of his dinner, “It won’t work. I’m sorry.”

“What do you mean it won’t work?” Shiro asked.

“My father doesn’t care enough about me. He would never end the war just for my safety. He’d most likely send a group of soldiers to try and free me.”

“Why wouldn’t your father care for you?” Hunk asked, “Like, I get that he’s Zarkon and everything, but you're his son.”

All Keith could do was shrug, “He values winning more. Always has.”

Underneath the table, Lance grabbed his hand and squeezed, giving Keith an encouraging smile.

“Great,” Pidge said, throwing their hands up in the air, “So that whole trip was pointless.”

“It wasn’t pointless,” Lance argued, “We got Keith.” Keith tried to hide his blush behind the hand that Lance wasn’t holding.

“Keith,” Alfor said, bringing Keith out from behind his hand, “I assume from your tone, that you aren’t very loyal to your father. Is there anything that you know of that might be able to defeat your father?”

Keith hesitated. From birth, his father had imprinted that he was not to disobey him. That it was Zarkon who kept the Galran Kingdom alive and thriving and that no one else would be able to do it. Keith had believed him. Until recently. When he had sneaked out of the castle to see his people for himself. The real people of Galra, not the snooty aristocats that were fat and pampered inside the castle. Keith was horrified with what he found. Most people were poor and starving, if not fighting in the army for his father. All of Galra’s resources were being used for the Zarkon’s armies, there was barely anything left for the people that were left behind. It seemed like most people would enlist just to receive a decent meal every night. Keith hated it, and he was powerless to change anything. At least, he was powerless under his father’s thumb. But in Altea, here he at least had a chance.

“He’s terrified of Voltron. He knows that the fully formed Voltron will be able to defeat him. He’s been doing everything in his power to prevent you from finding the last Paladin.”

The Alteans and Paladins sat in silence pondering Keith’s info. “What do you mean he’s been preventing us from finding the Red Paladin?” Allura asked.

Keith shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m only invited to a few of the war meetings.”

There was more silence till Shiro broke it, “Even if we defeat Zarkon, we still have the same problem.” Everyone grumbled around the table.

“What problem?” Keith asked.

“Well,” Lance began, “even if we defeat your father, there's no guarantee that the war will end. He has a plethora of commanders who would gladly take over the armies.”

More grumbles. Now, Keith was determined. “King Alfor,” Keith said in his most commanding voice, “If you defeat my father, I will be named king. If you defeat him, I promise to end the war. I’ll sign whatever alliances you want me to and will pull the armies out of every planet Zarkon has put them on.” Everyone was stunned, to say the least. They never expected that they would find an ally in the prince that they kidnapped. Everyone except Alfor. There was pride in his eyes. Standing up the King of Altea said, “Agreed. We will find the Red Paladin and end your Father’s reign. And in return, you will rule and bring peace to the galaxy.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Keith was settling himself into his bed. Now that he was officially an ally of the Altean Kingdom, he was given a guest room instead of being made to return to a cell. Some servants had brought all of the pillows and blankets that Kosmo brought him, from his old cell to his new room. He had carefully set up a nest after bathing and dressing himself in soft sleepwear. He was also happy that the guest room he was given was in the same hall as Lance’s bedroom. Keith blushed at the thought of sneaking down the hall to Lance’s room. Or Lance coming to him and joining him in his nest. He didn’t want to admit he had maybe made his nest slightly bigger than he normally did. He argued, with himself, that the extra room was for Kosmo, if he ever decided to come.

There was a soft knock-on Keith's door and, he didn’t want to admit it, but he almost threw himself out of his nest to open the door. His heart fluttered as he opened it to the vibrant blue eyes that he had been staring at all day.

“Lance.” Keith breathed out.

“Hay.” Lance said, eyeing Keith up and down. Lance was also wearing pj’s, but unlike Keith’s black clothes Lances were blue.

“Hi.” Keith responded.

“Hi.” Lance mimicked, then fell into silence.

“Did you need something?” Keith prompted.

“Oh yeah,” Lance startled, “I just wanted to say, um, thanks, I guess. For agreeing to help us.”

“Of course. I mean it’s not like I had any choice.”

Lance’s face fell, “What do you mean?”

Keith gasped, grabbing Lance’s arm, “Oh, I didn’t mean you gave me no choice. It’s just that, well, my people have also been suffering from this war. The only people who aren’t poor and starving are the aristocrats inside the castle or the soldiers. People join the army just so they can have a full belly every night. And most of the time, they don’t even come back.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.”

“It’s ok, I mean I didn’t either till a few months ago. And I had to sneak out in order to see it. Zarkons not only hurting your people, but his own as well.”

Lance hummed, and grabbed Keith hand from his arm to hold it in his own. “I hope that, after all this is done. You and I can continue to see each other.”

“Yeah, me too.”

“Great. Good night.”

“You too. Sleep well.”

Before Lance left, he took Keith’s other hand, so he was holding both and brought them to his mouth, placing a soft kiss on Keith’s knuckles. Then, blushing, he turned and left to go back to his room. That night, Keith could barely sleep, he felt warm and dizzy as he tossed and turned, thinking only of Lance.