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Lance shuffled after Lotor down the hallway before calling out cheerfully, stilling the Drule in his tracks.
"Hey, wait up!"
The silver-haired man turned to face the sound behind him, drawing himself to his full height as he stared down his nose at the taller of the Voltron Force Team Members warily.
"What." His voice was curt and clipped, no measure taken to mask his skepticism or camouflage his guard.
"Hey, hey," Lance gestured with his hands airly in front of him. "Easy man, I just wanted to see what you were up to."
A thin eyebrow arched slowly as the pilot came to a stop before him, a comfortable distance still between their bodies.
"The Princess stated-"
"Hey, I know, I'm not like, saying you can't." Lance cocked his head to the side, watching the narrowing of golden eyes on him. "Not at all - I just want to know what you're up to."
A heavy, suspicious silence hovered between them.
"Why."
Lance only shrugged in response before returning his palms back to his pocket.
"Curiosity. Is that so terrible?"
"What would your commander think of that?"
"Keith?" He huffed in response. "Keith needs to loosen up. Who cares what he thinks. I'm curious what a Drule does when they aren't conquering stuff. Or, you know, trying to blow up Voltron," he added with a cheeky grin.
Lotor continued to study the human before him. When he didn't give any indication of acquiescence, Lance's smile melted into a puppy-dog pout, eliciting a low growl of frustration from the warlord. Without a word, he turned and began walking down the hallway in the direction he had been going.
Lance stared after him for a moment before breaking into a jog to catch up. Despite his relaxed manner, his sharp, combat-hewn eye did not miss the way the Crown Prince's ear twitched at his approach, likely listening for the draw of steel or the click of a pistol. When no such sound echoed, the man did not bother to turn around.
"So where are we going?" Lance fell into an easy - albeit brisk - pace beside him as he worked to match the taller man's stride.
The faintest twitch flashed across Lotor's lips as he contemplated the question.
"We?"
Narrow, dangerous eyes slid down to peer at the pilot, the vaguest hint of amusement emanating from him at the doggedness of his former enemy.
Lance hesitated briefly, a fault in his stride at the incredulity in the prince's tone. Lotor paid him no mind, continuing his swift pace down the corridor as the space explorer fell behind.
"Shouldn't you be with Merla, or something?"
Lotor's voice echoed down the empty hallway, the slightest tint of derision lacing his words. How the gods below them had allowed the bizarre circumstance to bloom up - he would never understand. A political realignment - with the Voltron Force accepting his alliance, King Zarkon had scaled back his assault. With Queen Merla and her empire displaying a curious interest in the specific Space Explorer beside him, the old tyrant had stopped completely.
The Galaxy Alliance was uneasily following suit, likely unsure what to do until they understood how the politics would shake out from the strange jumble they found themselves in.
And Allura - never before had she been so open and welcoming to him. Perhaps yet he might one day gain her favor and her hand. She spoke with him as if he were a man, not a beast, paid him compliments instead of insults.
"Eh, she's off doing something with Allura."
That caught the Drule's attention as he stilled in his tracks, one foot extended out in front.
As Lance came up beside him, a cocky grin on his face as he linked his thumbs through his belt loops, he couldn't help but ask as he read the blank expression on his face.
"We're going to go find them now, aren't we?"
Serpentine irises slid to Lance in response.
"I'll take that as a yes."
Lotor's arms crossed regally over his chest as he remained irritatingly silent.
"So, we going in Red Lion or your bat thing?"
Lotor's stoic expression broke in surprise at the suggestion.
"What?"
"C'mon," he teased. "You know you wanna fly in Red... she handles real smooth but packs some power. After all, she's the keeper of the Blazing Sword."
For the first time, Lotor gave in to his growing curiosity and he nodded once.
"You'd do that?"
"Sure, after all, you keep looking like I'm going to do something shady."
"Exactly - you have no reason to trust me, and yet... you offer the inside of your lion?" Lotor's eyes narrowed once more.
"Of course I got a reason to trust you," he replied offhandedly, grinning at the disbelief on his face.
"And what would that be?"
"Because Princess said so." Lance scowled in irritation as if it were the most obvious conclusion. "Besides, you're not so bad when we're not fighting. C'mon, let's go see if we can find what the girls are up to. We'll go in Red."
Without waiting for an answer, Lance spun on heel and began marching down the hall toward the Command Center, whistling cheerfully to himself.
He didn't need to check if Lotor had decided to follow him or not - he knew he would.
"You're proud of yourself, aren't you?"
Lotor stared at the back of the blue-helmeted pilot as he hummed happily.
"I knew you wouldn't pass up an opportunity to see Princess," Lance teased, glancing across his dash to tap a button. "And that up there, that's where the megathrusters light up once they're aligned."
The expanse of space stretched out around them, Lotor reclining in a secondary chair behind the first, amused at the turn of events that he found himself inside a lion.
"That woman was... ...quite fierce," the prince murmured after a while, reflecting on how the two had managed to gather the information regarding Allura's plans.
"Hah," Lance laughed nervously, pausing to rub the back of his helmet with his hand in a manner indicative of an old injury. "....Nanny's... something else," he hedged.
"I didn't think she would actually tell you."
"It was a longshot - and, ah, sorry about asking you to stay out of the room. I could swing the story of just wanting to check on Princess and make sure she's okay - you... not so much. She's super protective of her."
"I gathered," he replied dryly.
“And… not… quite as open to trusting you as the rest of us.”
“I’m aware.”
Lotor’s tone soured at the reminder of the hysteria that erupted in the Castle after their unified victory against Zarkon; the last, cracking blow in Lotor’s defection.
His brow furrowed. There was no going back. Planet Doom would never be his home again, not until he seized the throne. Even then, an arduous amount of work would await him to realign the Empire under his control with the brand of a traitor looming over his head.
A rough growl rumbled from his throat as he reflected on his decisions. Merla had played the most influential role; she had somehow painted a picture of how ‘goodness’ could feel good and was the ‘right’ thing to do.
While he couldn’t bring himself to articulate just precisely what ‘good’ and ‘right’ meant - he couldn’t argue the uplifting wonderment inspired in him when Allura had glanced his way and actually smiled.
Regret for his decision was furthest from his mind.
"But we got the information, so! That's what counts. Off to the Azure Quadrant!" Lance’s cheer interrupted his train of thought, causing the Drule to startle slightly.
“What’s in the Azure Quadrant?”
“There’s a massive network of boutiques, salons and day spas - pretty much anything a girl would want to get away from it all. It’s basically an Intergalactic Resort.”
Silence settled over the prince as he tried to parse the strange image the pilot painted for him.
Red Lion touched down on a docking station after being cleared to land, and as the bay doors closed and the hangar sealed, Lance powered down the beast and removed the key.
The side hatch to the cockpit opened and after setting his helmet in his seat, he dropped down deftly to the floor and stretched his back.
As Lotor lept from the modest height and landed effortlessly, he glanced around.
Even the shuttle bay where the various ships and cruisers rested were dusted in ornate decor with shimmering lights glittering overhead.
Lance inclined his head toward the entrance and began leading the two toward the bustling hub of glamor, glitter and glitz.
“Why in all that’s evil would Merla agree to come to a place like this ?”
Lotor’s nose wrinkled slightly at the obvious wealth of the place, garnished in a way that was little wonder why Allura would find it attractive, but with her vultures and skulls, Lotor couldn’t fathom what would ever lure the Queen of Darkness into such sunlight.
Lance paused and tossed Lotor a curious look, a smile quirking at his lips.
“From what Nanny said, it was Merla’s idea.”
“ What? ”
“What? She didn’t elaborate, and I didn’t ask.”
“How can that be?”
“My guess?” Lance tossed a look over his shoulder at the startled prince as he stepped though golden double doors into a vast parlor. “She’s taken an odd protective stance over the princess. Might have something to do with that.”
It occurred to the Drule that he couldn’t think of a soul - save perhaps his own father - who didn’t feel some pulse of protectiveness over the feisty warrior in pink - not that she often needed it; the woman had proven time and time again that she could hold her own.
Lotor snapped from his thoughts as Lance paused in front of him, his eyes skimming down all the elaborate corridors, all branching from the vibrant entry. Crowds of people milled about, hailing from all planets in all quadrants, including the occasional, rare assortment of another Drule.
Lotor stepped up beside Lance as the latter scratched his head.
“Now where?”
Lance blinked and glanced up to the warlord beside him. After a second, he shrugged.
“I’ve no idea. Nanny just said they were doing a spa day. I have no idea what girls do for that.”
“What? Then how are-”
“It’s called exploring,” Lance cut him off with a smirk. “Let’s start here,” he advised with more seriousness, leading the way to a glowing directory, detailing the layout of the mall.
“A lazon weapons emporium?”
Lotor’s brow raised in surprise as he skimmed the list of names.
“I don’t think the princess is there,” the blue pilot hedged.
“I should conquer this place,” he murmured.
“And do you think that would make Allura happy?”
The blood stilled in his veins as he considered the space explorer’s words seriously. His lips tightened in frustration, and while a low groan rumbling from his chest, he didn’t answer him.
He didn’t need to.
“Let’s try this way first,” Lance suggested, breaking the silence.
Lotor hesitated a moment before following, looking about with a growing sense of fascination inside.
“This really was a wonderful idea,” Allura murmured, more to herself than her companion. ‘Wonderful’ didn’t even begin to describe the decadence she felt. If her more mischievous friend hadn’t been so silver-tongued, she would’ve downright felt guilt.
The princess lay stretched out on her stomach gracefully on a plush, padded table, a modest sheet draped over her hips and legs as a master-class masseuse hovered over her, gently working out the strains in her muscles.
“Like I told you - if you work too hard you won’t be able to work at all,” Merla muttered through a moan as her own therapist dug into a particularly unruly knot in her shoulder, her own body mirroring Allura’s stance on a twin table nearby.
“It feels… a bit scandalous,” the princess admitted, her face turned away from Merla’s body to hide the blush on her cheeks.
“We could always call for the male attendants,” the Drulish queen teased her. While Merla had initially been interested in a more masculine hand on her skin, Allura’s ashen reaction to the idea of being undressed in any capacity in such company, even professionally, had brought her great amusement.
“Stars, no!”
A deep laugh reverberated from the woman as she teased the princess’s propriety.
“You and your decorum,” Merla murmured, a grin teasing across her blue lips as they stretched in amusement, her eyes glittering as she watched the cascade of sunlight pooling off Allura’s table as she refused to meet her gaze.
The two therapists working were silent, simply focused on the task at hand in the dimly-lit, warm room. Relaxing, ambient light from glowing orange stones cast a tranquil, safe atmosphere, and Allura couldn’t help but exhale into the comfort.
Merla had been right, as much as the proud princess might begrudge it; she was tired. The warrior woman had read her lines of tension and distress as if she had been an open book. Her studies had slackened and her training had taken a slight downturn. Even her sleeping had become lighter and more irritable.
Despite being on friendly terms with the castle and her planet for less than a week, it had taken the keen woman less than two days to notice the pains the princess carried; though it had taken a good deal longer to actually convince Allura that she wasn’t simply ‘fine.’
Safely cradled against the gently-heated table as expert palms worked the tension from her back, Allura could feel the utter ache in her bones. And, as much as she might hate to admit it, it did feel good to allow herself a small pampering.
A smile curled at her lips and Allura tilted her head to the side, glancing shyly over to Merla. She couldn’t fathom what precisely had changed in the fearsome queen, but Allura found herself practically handed an alliance with the Queen of Darkness’s own empire as well as a strange friendship with a tempermental Crown Prince.
She had to admit - it had certainly checked Zarkon’s aggression against her, and for that, she could only be grateful. Her people at last had room to breathe.
Allura’s eyes skimmed over the resting form of the warlady, enchanted by the way the amber light played off her light azure skin, nearly glittering in the darkness as her back rose and fell with her relaxed breaths.
“He loves you, you know.”
Merla’s murmur still reached Allura’s ears even though it first passed through the pillow she had curled beneath her head.
Allura’s breath hitched and she only blinked.
When she didn’t respond, Merla turned her head to meet Allura’s eyes, and there was no hint of a joke or deception in the ocher depths. Allura stared back in confusion.
“Lotor,” Merla clarified.
The queen’s eyes narrowed at the chuff that rolled through the princess’s body, made more evident by the bareness of her skin, as she turned her head away.
“Are you implying that I’m lying to you?”
“No,” Allura answered, an exhale leaving her chest. “I just don’t think you understand all he’s done.”
“And I’m inclined to believe the same of you.”
“You weren’t there. Do you want me to recount how many times he’s attacked my planet?” She huffed in exasperation, stilling her therapists hands briefly. She resumed as Allura relaxed back into the table, deftly returning to drawing the tension from her back.
Silence hung heavy in the room, and just as Allura thought the subject was over, Merla spoke again, her voice taut and strained, as if pained by something.
“Do you recall the Cosmotron?”
“Please relax your shoulders, Princess,” the masseuse attending the Arusian whispered; the only words spoken by either of the staff.
Allura released a deep, controlled exhale through her nose as she recounted the very vivid memory.
“Yes,” she replied stiffly. “It’s… not something I could easily forget.”
Merla’s eyes narrowed and her jaw tightened, the princess still refusing to make eye contact with her - not that she could blame her. The entire point of the machine had been to cause extraordinary pain before eliminating its victim entirely.
“What do you remember, exactly?”
“Everything,” came the defensive, muffled reply.
Allura’s healer had stilled entirely, casting a strained look Merla’s way.
“Your Highness, you’re disturbing her. ...Her spine is as rigid as steel.”
“I’m not sorry,” she retorted, her irritation lacing her words quietly. “She needs to know this. It’s important.”
Allura grunted in response, tilting her head back Merla’s direction, fire in her eyes.
“Do you enjoy making me remember what was one of the most physically painful things I’ve ever endured?”
“No,” she replied simply, undaunted by the fire in the young woman’s eyes. “I just know that you don’t remember everything , and that is a problem for me.”
Allura’s brow furrowed, her fire quieting marginally.
“Problem for you? And what makes you think I don’t remember it? It’s quite vivid in my mind.”
“Is that so, Princess?” The use of her formal title made Allura flinch slightly; her massage therapist had all but given up until the conversation was concluded.
“Do you then remember that the reason you’re here is because Prince Lotor nearly put his sword through my throat?”
Allura’s eyes popped wide in shock, all traces of defensive hostility vanishing in a single second, along with the air from her lungs.
“W… what?”
Merla continued, propping herself up on her forearms to look more intently at the shocked Arusian, her pink locks nearly glowing in the warm light, full, heavy waves pooling over her shoulders, free for once from her tight braid.
“He refused to let me have you - he nearly killed me over it and carried you from my grasp. That idiot committed about three war crimes that day,” she muttered the last line as an afterthought, though there was a lace of amusement in her voice. “All that, for you.”
Her eyes flickered back to the horrified expression on Allura’s face.
Merla scowled.
“Oh come now, you can’t be that surprised. The man has been proclaiming his love for you for how long now? He certainly hasn’t shut up about it since I’ve known him.”
Allura wearily allowed her tense body to sink back into the table, her chin tucking into her arms,the first sliver of guilt falling over her. She hummed softly, at a loss for words.
“What? No rebuttal?” Merla tutted playfully as Allura went uncharacteristically quiet, and as her mind mulled over the new information, she barely registered that her massage therapist had returned to her work.
“Why did I not wake up as his prisoner, in that case? He’s made no secret of that fact.”
“He left to deal with my guards so you’d have a clear, safe path. It was… irritating to say the least. But… I understand now why he did it.”
“I’m… I’m not so certain that I do,” Allura hedged, a strange, gentle temperament settling over her.
“Perhaps you should ask him sometime.”
The princess exhaled again.
Silence once more settled between them, only the hum of the low, relaxing music playing in the background echoed, punctuated occasionally by the staccato trickle of a waterfall.
When Allura had no response, Merla let the topic drop, the two royals drifting back into a state of relaxation as the spa-keepers continued their work.
Lance squinted through the window that was littered with far too many announcements of galas and performances coming up.
The annoyed warlord hummed irritably behind him, his arms folded across his chest in regality.
“We’re wasting time,” he muttered.
Lance paused and looked over his shoulder.
“Look, if you want to go weapons shopping, that’s fine, I’m going to try and find the girls.”
After several hours of roaming the luxurious halls in search of the royals, the feisty pilot had developed a sense of camaraderie with his former enemy; even so far as to feel comfortable turning his back to him as he peered back through the window.
“ Shop? ”
“Yeah, yeah, I know, ‘take what you want’ and all,” Lance muttered, undeterred. He had found amusement, however, that despite the fact Lotor had played the indifferent annoyance card, a few things in the passing boutique windows had seemed to catch his eye; including a solid gold skull clasp used for fixing capes in place, as well as a handcrafted steel blade.
“We’ve been traipsing about for hours , and there’s still no sign of-”
“Found them.”
Lotor’s sentence caught in his throat as he glanced to the arrogant pilot.
“Getting their nails done. ...Or something,” he added in confusion. “Well, I’m gonna go say hi, you can stay out here if you want.”
Lance shoved his palms into his jacket pockets before casually strolling down the wall and through the automatic door.
“Nails… done?”
The Drule Prince stared after him in surprise before quickly following suit. The door barely slid closed behind him before he skidded to a halt.
“ Allura! ”
Wide, wild blue eyes shot up at the familiar voice calling her name, her jaw dropping open at the sight of him.
“Prince Lotor!”
She sat like a queen upon a throne, her arms propped on either plush armrest as a technician applied paint to her fingernails. Her body was wrapped in shimmering pink and violet gossamer fabric, shifting hues in the light. It was a small, strapless dress that barely courted her mid-thigh, leaving… legs.
Dainty bare feet were propped upon a pedestal, the deep pink on her toes shimmering, matching the color being applied to her hands. Her hair had been piled professionally atop her head, cascades of curls falling down her shoulders from the semi-updo.
Wide eyes met wider eyes, a soft tint of a blush stinging her cheeks as he continued to stare.
“What, ah, what are you doing here?”
“I…”
“Nanny wanted us to check on you,” Lance piped up from where his hip was leaning against the side of Merla’s chair. While she, too, had acquired a change in outfit during their excursions, it contained a significantly larger amount of black. And leather. The biker pants wrapped her hips decadently, and the strappy black top hung loosely around her curves.
When Allura tore her eyes from the prince and glanced over to him, she noticed Merla staring at him with a knowing expression.
“Nanny sent you?”
Lance hesitated briefly.
“More or less,” he hedged cheekily.
She shifted uncomfortably, the heat of the Drule’s stare lingering on her skin. Merla had talked her into the rather immodest garment at the time, but she quickly felt quite naked as he studied her.
“You have a new dress,” he mustered after a bit.
“We wanted to try some of the local fashion,” Merla called lazily. “I have a new outfit too, but I don’t suppose you noticed.”
Golden eyes flickered briefly from Allura to Merla before returning to her. A quiet silence settled in the room, the only sound was the relaxing waterfall in the background and the soft brush strokes of paint on her nails.
After a moment of hesitation, Allura released the question burning in her chest, unable to hold it back, surprising everyone in the room including herself.
“Do you… like it?”
“By all that’s evil, it’s magnificent,” he nearly choked out, earning him an eyeroll from both Merla and Lance, though he missed both. Allura’s cheeks darkened and she delicately pulled her hands from the artist at her side, pausing to blow lightly on the fresh paint.
Bare toes touched down on the ground silently and she hesitantly pressed up into a standing position, eyeing him carefully.
“Did you really come all the way out here to check on me?”
“Yup - all Lotor’s idea to volunteer when Nanny started asking,” Lance called from where he was watching the touch-ups to Merla’s black polish.
“That’s very kind of you,” Allura murmured, a faint smile on her lips. “I’m sorry she troubled you so.”
A heavy, slightly awkward silence settled over the parlor when Lotor couldn’t find his voice right away. Lance’s quick eyes darted between them and after a subtle fistbump with Merla, he peeled away from her side and approached the warlord.
“Well, unless you intend to stay and get your nails painted, we better let the girls get back to their spa day, we did what we came here to do.”
Lotor finally pulled his eyes from the blushing, barefoot Arusian to blink at the pilot. Without resistance, he allowed Lance to clap him on the shoulder and steer him back to the door.
“That went well,” he murmured quietly to the stunned Drule.
“It was nice seeing you,” Allura called hesitantly after him, nearly causing him to stumble.
Merla rolled her eyes, a smirk lacing her lips at the men left the glittery spa, her feline eyes sliding to watch as Allura settled back into her chair so the technician could add the top coat to her hands.
She marked the faint blush on her cheeks and the nearly hidden, secret smile on her lips.
“That was interesting, wasn’t it?”
Allura blinked and glanced over to her before allowing her head to recline against the plush chair.
“I didn’t expect that.”
“It seems a day of rest and relaxation was good for you, after all,” she observed.
“And illuminating,” Allura added cheerfully. “Almost like meditation.”
“And have you come to any new conclusions from this… meditation?”
The princess allowed her eyes to drape closed and the smile to break across her lips openly.
“Yes, I’d say so,” she admitted.
“Excellent.”