Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

King Alfor sat upon his throne in the Castle of the Lions beaming at his daughter, Allura, who sat to his right on a slightly lower but equally grand throne.  Lance had admired Allura’s seemingly effortless beauty and grace since the day he had arrived to work as a guard in the castle. Upon seeing Allura for the Lance’s second thought was to wonder if all Alteans were this elegant or if it was just Allura’s royal upbringing.  Lance’s first thought was something along the lines of Holy shit she's gorgeous. Today the princess was looking especially gorgeous, wearing a huge grin, blue and pink eyes shining.

King Alfor surveyed the assembled nobles all clad in expensive fabric of bright, solid colors and gold, chattering excitedly about the latest gossip and whatever else it was that caught their fancy. Alfor seemed to find the crowd satisfactory and called for silence.
“Now that we all seem to have arrived, I shall waste no time in telling you why I've gathered you all here.”

What Alfor said was not entirely true; he had not gathered all of them there. Lance along with with several other people positioned around the perimeter of the room were simply palace guards who had been lucky enough to be assigned to this particular room on this particular day and will be the ones who carry the news to whomever hadn't heard it by the end of shift. Lance glanced and the ticker on the wall, realizing he still had about an hour left.  The king insisted on using Altean time keeping in his castle and, well, no one was foolish enough to argue with the king on this even if it made foreign ambassadors feel a bit off when they were visiting.

Lance noticed his friends Hunk and Pidge among the audience. He found this odd because most of the others were influential Lords and Ladies who either lived in or were visiting the capital and found a surprise summons at their homes from the king himself.  However, Hunk and Pidge were mere alchemist apprentices who had no business among such blue bloods.  In fact, it was odd that Lance himself had gotten assigned such a prime shift location.  He was a new guard and although he hadn't had any major fuck-ups yet, he was usually posted outside or the castle or to patrol the servants’ halls, not a place so heavy with nobility as the great hall. Most of the other guards here were at least 10 years older than he.
Iverson must have finally noticed my skill, Lance thought before turning his attention back to looking for any suspicious activity.

“Today I have a joyous announcement,” King Alfor stated, pausing for dramatic effect, “My daughter, Princess Allura, is engaged to be married.”
There was a gasp from someone who Lance suspected to be Hunk, and the excited chatter once again buzzed through the air, charged with excitement.  Lance looked in his friends’ direction to see tiny Pidge trying to hold Hunk back by the collar of his tunic. Lance assumed Hunk was trying to run up and congratulate the princess with a hug, and Pidge was trying to stop the big guy from at best embarrassment at worst, getting tackled by Allura’s personal bodyguards.  Lance wished Pidge luck; it truly was a feat to stop Hunk from hugging one of his friends.

Alfor allowed this chaos for a few moments before once again reining his guests into a reluctant silence.

“I'm sure you have all guessed that my daughter’s fiancé is Takashi Shirogane, Head of the Royal Guard of Kerberos.”

The room now filled with mutterings of “I knew it,” and “Oh they look so lovely together,” and other such things before falling obediently back into silence.  Allura and Shiro’s relationship had been a common gossip topic for about a year so no one was surprised.
“Captain Shirogane will be arriving here in Juniberry City shortly, along with the Royal Family of Kerberos.  A feast will be held in the dining hall upon their arrival, until then feel free to socialize.”

The crowd tensed with shock.  Not just Shiro but the whole Kerberos Royal family?  Coming today? Tonight’s feast was in their honor? Why such short notice?

Only three people in the room seemed unaffected by the announcement: King Alfor whose expression was neutral, Princess Allura who still beamed with excitement and some amusement at the crowd’s reaction, and Coran, the Royal Advisor who stood to Alfor’s left, stroking his orange mustache looking more obviously entertained than the other two Alteans.

Allura spoke with her father who smiled and made a dismissive hand gesture.  She got up and strode straight to Hunk and Pidge, the former finally able to give Allura a firm hug.  They broke apart and Allura gestured in Lance’s direction and led the group over to him.

“Congrats Princess,” said Lance breaking into a grin, “I guess I'll have to stop flirting with you now! What a shame.”

“You should probably just stop hitting on people all together, Lance,” said Allura with false disapproval, “it would due all sentient beings a huge favor.”

“Yeah,” chimed in Pidge, “one of these days you're going to hit some foreign ruler with a terrible pick up line and start a war.”

“Hey, my pick-up lines aren't that bad, back me up Hunk!”

“I don't know dude, I think they have have a point.”

“Wow, some friends you are,” Lance huffed, “maybe I'll just have to steal your fiancé in revenge.”

“Good luck with that,” teased Allura, “I'm the heir to a whole kingdom, you're pick-up lines can't be more appealing than that."

“Plus,” Pidge added, “Allura’s way hotter than you.”

“Pidge!” cried Lance as Allura and Hunk broke into laughter, “I can't believe this, what did I ever do to you people to deserve this?”

“Yeah, guys let's lay off Lance,” said Hunk, “today's about Allura!”

“You're right Hunk,” agreed Lance, “seriously congratulations, Shiro sounds great from what you've told us about him.”

“Yeah, why didn't you tell us sooner?!” exclaim Pidge, “we're your friends!”

“I'm sorry everyone, I tried to convince father to let me tell you but you know how cautious he is, so we compromised and I got you three invited to the feast.”

Lance did know.  The war with the Galra had ended fifteen years ago, but King Alfor seemed to be always on guard since.  Lance wasn’t sure if it was because of losing his wife in the war or if he was just always like that.  Either way, the guy took matters of security very seriously, so hiding the movements of his ally’s royal family until the last moment was totally something he would do.

“Three?” asked Lance, “I'm invited too?”

“Of course, Lance, you're my friend.”

“You know what just for that, I forgive all your earlier cruelty.”

“Excellent, now I can spend the whole dinner rubbing my gorgeous soon-to-be-husband in your face.”

“My, my Allura, I didn't know you were into that.”

Allura put her hands on her hips; her expression was disapproving but her eyes continued to shine. Lance was glad to see her having a good day.  “Don't you have guarding to do?  If you keep slacking off like this I'll have you fired,” she scolded.
“You should have yourself fired, Princess, you're the one distracting me.”

“I'm not going to fire myself!  I'm clearly the best person for the job, and, if you'll excuse me, I need to go do my job.”

“Good luck,” muttered Pidge.  Allura’s job at the moment was to socialize with the nobles. Although this was by far one of her easiest jobs, Pidge was not what one would call a people person so to her it seemed like torture.
“See you at the feast?” asked Hunk.

“Of course,” replied Allura, “I'd hate to miss an opportunity to brag to you guys.”

Allura started to walk away but then called over her shoulder, “Lance, after your shift is over, change into something nice! I'll make sure the guards let you in!”

“Will do, Princess!”

For the remainder of Lance’s shift he did his job in silence as Allura socialized with the nobles, still cranky from surprise, and Hunk and Pidge talked about some alchemy stuff he didn't understand.  They seemed to have stumbled upon a great idea because Pidge started talking really fast and Hunk started scribbling on a scrap of parchment and showing his work to Pidge.  After a while, they high-fived, Pidge having to jump to reach Hunk’s hand.

At last, Lance felt a tap on his shoulder and was relieved from duty by an older guard he didn't recognize.  He returned to his apartment in the city and changed into a fine cerulean tunic and pants with gold trim.  The evening air was warm and Lance closed his eyes to enjoy the feeling of a summer breeze before it was gone for another year.

Lance ended up enjoying the fleeting season for a little too long because he bumped into something. He opened his eyes to see a horse and scowling rider in front of him.

“Hey watch where you're going!” snapped the stranger.

“You watch where you're going!” retorted Lance.  The stranger, whose scowl deepened at this remarked, jumped off his chestnut Morgan horse to come face to face with Lance.  Lance noted with satisfaction that the stranger was a bit shorter than he.  His black hair was cut into some ridiculous style with bangs in the front and reaching his shoulders in the back.  Lance thinks it was called a mullet but he'd never seen one in person.  The stranger's face was handsome, probably much more so when not contorted by his expression; Lance  would have hit on him under more favorable circumstances (not that he would have admitted it to the rude bastard).

“I should watch where I'm going? You're the one who walked into a horse! How did you not notice it?  It's not even dark yet!”

Before Lance could fire back, a new voice interrupted him.

“Keith?  Who are you talking to?”

Lance looked over his shoulder to see a man astride a tall, black horse which he recognized as an Oldenburg.  He wore a rumpled but high quality traveling cloak suggesting he’d been riding for a few days.  Lance’s gaze traveled past his broad shoulders up to his handsome face; a scar ran horizontally across his nose, his eyes were dark but had a certain gentleness to them, his hair was mostly black and short except for a white tuft that fell over his forehead.  He seemed familiar, but Lance wasn’t sure why.
“Uh…” was all Keith had to say.  Lance realized he didn’t know who he was talking to, and he guessed this Keith didn’t want to tell his companion that he had almost picked a fight with a total stranger.

“The name’s Lance,” he offered, and then realization hit him, “and you’re Shiro!”

“Do I know you?”

“No, but we both know Allura.  She must have mentioned me; I’m very important to her.”

“Lance, I remember now,” Shiro said with a slight smile, “I seem to recall Allura describing you in one of her letters as ‘incredibly full of himself  and too flirtatious for his own good’.”   

“Oh,” said Lance, suddenly feeling down.  Was this all his friends thought of him? That he was nothing but obnoxious?  “That’s just her way of saying how great I am,” Lance joked, trying to expel the unpleasant, icy feeling in his stomach.
Shiro seemed to see right through Lance’s cheerful front because his expression softened.

“She thinks you’re wonderful.  She also called you a ‘brave man and a loyal friend’.  Allura’s incredibly grateful to have you.”

Lance blushed, the ice in his stomach replaced with a warm blaze.  It wasn’t for any romantic reason, he was simply overwhelmed with emotion.  Shiro had just met him and already seemed to know him as well as his other friends, not to mention that Allura was speaking so highly of him to her fiancé.

“Now, Keith,” Shiro continued, face serious, “why were you trying to pick a fight with one of Princess Allura’s trusted friends?”

Keith, having lost none of his fighting spirit, childishly accused, pointing at Lance, “He started it!”

“What?!” cried Lance, confusing mix of emotions replaced by surprise and irritation, “You’re one who started shouting at me in the street! I was just walking around minding my own business!”

“And you’re the one--”

“Keith,” interrupted Shiro sternly, “you aren’t in Kerberos right now, you have to be more respectful.”

Keith looked down and huffed.  Lance wasn’t sure but he almost seemed a little… ashamed at disappointing Shiro.

Shiro sighed.  “Well I suppose if you’re standing here picking fights that means you didn’t find anything while scouting ahead.  I’ll report back to the king, you and Lance go ahead and inform the stable workers we’re here.”

“What do you mean me and Lance?!”

“I mean,” Shiro explained with a level, uncompromising gaze, “you are going to let Lance onto your horse and he will guide you to the stable and hopefully you’ll learn a little about diplomacy. This is a direct order, now go.”  With that, Shiro turned his horse around and headed back the way he came.  Before he got too far he called over his shoulder, “It was very nice to meet you, Lance.”

“Uhh, yeah, right back at you, Shiro,” replied to Shiro’s back.

Both boys stared at Shiro’s abrupt departure, watching his fleeting form for a few moments.  Then Lance heard Keith hoist himself into the saddle.

“Well, hurry up and get on,” grumbled Keith, hand outstretched.

Lance hesitated.  He didn’t really want to be alone for too long with this volatile stranger, but did he have a choice?  He supposed he didn’t.

“Just get on the horse.”

Lance took Keith’s gloved hand, put his foot in the stirrup, and mounted the horse, ready to return to his friends and tell them what happened.
--
“What are you doing?” demanded Keith.  The action in question was Lance reaching around Keith and grabbing the saddle horn.  Seemed perfectly innocuous to him, but this Keith seemed to have established a reputation for having a short fuse, if Shiro was any indication.

“Uh, trying not to fall off the horse?”

“Well you're getting in my way.”

“Quiznak, you're cranky,” commented Lance, figuring Keith didn't know the Altean word, “but if you insist, I'll move my hands.”

Lance removed his hands from the saddle and wrapped them around Keith’s waist.  They were already very close on the saddle, it only being meant for one person, but Lance suspected this contact would irritate Keith further.  Or make it seem like he was flirting.  Maybe he was flirting. But just a little bit.

“Are you always like this?” asked Keith, sounding tired.  Lance thought that he probably was; it was a few days’ ride from Heracles, the capital of Kerberos, to Juniberry City.  Not that that was going to make Lance let up.

“Is your hair always this greasy?” Lance asked instead of answering.

Keith took one hand off the reigns to touch his hair, nearly smacking Lance in the face as the speedy horse hurdled through the slowly darkening back alleys.

“It's not that bad.”

“‘Not that bad’”, Lance scoffed, “you could probably squeeze it all out into a lamp and burn it for light.  There's enough of it to last your whole stay!”

“Well sorry that I'm not some rich pretty-boy noble that can spend all day lazing around and worrying about the state of my hair.”

He doesn't know I'm just a guard here, Lance thought, but he didn't really feel like correcting Keith’s assumption.

“Aww you think I'm pretty,” Lance teased, getting a snort from Keith, “and I'm just saying, Allura’s court has no place for subpar hair care.  When you see the princess’ glorious white mane you'll understand.”

“I didn't realize hairstyles were such an Important part of Arusian culture.”

Lance wasn't sure if Keith was joking or not but they had finally reached the front gate and were easily let in since the gatekeeper recognized Lance.

“Good luck,” she said with a small smile.

“Thanks, Lydia, I'm gonna need it,” replied Lance as they started off into the courtyard.

The Castle of the Lions was always an incredible sight.    It was huge and gleaming white like it was carved from thick, snowy ice. It got its name from the enormous marble lion statues that guarded each of the five entrances.  Lance had always favored the blue-veined statue of the south-west entrance but now he was faced with the black veined northern lion.  Regardless of preference, Lance was always awed by the lions.  They seemed to radiate some kind of life-aura, but instead of being afraid Lance had always found it comforting.

Lance spotted a couple of familiar figures on the front steps and waved enthusiastically at them.  

“The stable’s right over there,” informed Lance, gesturing to the road that forked off to the right.  Lance put his foot in the stirrup and started to dismount, but apparently Keith had the same idea causing them both to lose their balance.  As they fell, Lance instinctively grabbed Keith and pulled him on top of himself, taking the brunt of the impact on his back.  

“I see you’ve made a new friend,” commented Coran, brightly.

“Yeah, it's too bad you had to sacrifice yourself before you could introduce us.”

Lance opened his eyes to see the Royal Adviser and Pidge standing over him.  Lance groaned and pointed to the lump on top of him.

“Coran, Pidge, this is Keith.”

“Hi,” said Keith, tentatively.

“Okay great, now we all know each other, now do you mind getting off of me, buddy?”

“Since when are we ‘buddies’?”

“Keith,” scolded Pidge, “the man just died for you, I think that qualifies you two for friendship,” then with a shit-eating grin, “among other things.”

“Other...oh.”  Keith sat up and looked at Lance who, for some reason unknown to all including himself, decided it was a good idea to wink and did just that.  Keith quickly stood up and started brushing himself off; Lance followed suit.
“Lance, you're alive!” cried Pidge, throwing her arms around him.

“Lance,” cried Coran, joining the hug, “we’re so happy to see you again!  We thought we’d lost you!”

“Well, I thought about how dull all of your lives would be without me and I couldn't bear to leave you to that.”  Lance patted Coran’s back as the royal advisor pretended to sob with joy and Pidge tried not to giggle.

“I hate to interrupt…whatever this is,” said Keith, “but the Royal Family is almost here and I was sent ahead to inform you guys.”

“Oh yes of course,” replied Coran, disentangling himself,  “I'll run in and tell the princess.  Lance, Pidge you stay here I'll send her out to greet our guests.”  And with that, Coran bustled inside.
“By the way, why were you guys outside?”

“Too many people in there,” replied Pidge, “I just needed some air.  Coran saw me leaving and got worried, you know how he is.”

Lance did.  Coran, though often seeming lost in nostalgia, paid close attention to the people around him, making sure they were all happy and comfortable as he could get them.

“Hunk’s still inside doing damage control with Allura,” added  Pidge, guessing Lance’s next question, “I told him I'd be fine outside on my own.”

Lance nodded and they sat on the front steps in companionable silence for a while.  Keith must have left while they were talking, but he appeared again and sat on the same step as them, not too close, but not too far.  They sat, watching as people went past and the sun sunk lower and the warm breeze stirred the green leaves of the bushes and trees in the courtyard and carried the sweet scent of the flowers transferred here from the distant continent of Altea.

“Hello, everyone” greeted Allura’s voice from behind them.  All three turned around to see the stunning princess followed by Coran and a few of her omnipresent guards.

“Keith, isn't it?” she asked, as the one in question knelt.  “Oh I like him, he knows how to show respect, unlike some people.”  She looked accusingly at Lance, Pidge, and Coran in turn.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Princess,” said Coran.

“Yeah, we’re nothing but respectful to you at all times, you big jerk,” teased Pidge.

“Besides,” added Lance, “he's only doing it because Shiro told him to!”

“Wait, Lance have you already seen Shiro?” inquired Allura.

“Yeah I saw him when I met Keith.”

“Damn, I wanted to be there in person to see your jaw drop when you saw him for the first time.”

“Did you see the Royal family, too?” asked Pidge.  She seemed excited, probably because she was originally from Kerberos and only came to Arus to study alchemy.

“No but it looks like I will soon.”

The gates had opened; the Royals and their company had arrived.

Chapter Text

“Welcome, honored guests,” Allura announced to the small group of royalty and guards, “a welcome feast will be held for you in an hour’s time.  You’ll be led to your room, and someone will be sent to fetch you when it’s time to eat, so don’t stray too far!”
Lance, Pidge, and Keith all stood a ways back from the princess, sure what to do with themselves and trying not to be noticed.  Pidge was looking more and more antsy by the moment, playing with hem of her tunic and looking straight at the ground which was odd because Pidge usually wasn’t one to be fazed by status.  In fact, she had nearly gotten in several fights with nobles who had looked down their noses at her for being a “lowly apprentice”.  Who knows what would have happened if Lance or Hunk hadn’t been there to pull her out of the situation and carry her out of the room kicking and screaming.

“Thank you for your hospitality, Princess Allura,” said the King of Kerberos, taking her hand and grinning in a friendly, avuncular way, “And congratulations once again on your engagement.  You know, Shiro is like family to me; I’m so glad you two can make each other happy.”

Allura smiled warmly, “And thank you for your blessing.  Now, you should get to your room; you’ve had a long journey you should rest.”

“A nap does sound wonderful right about now, come on, let’s all head to our rooms,” said the King to his family, putting a hand on his wife’s and son’s backs and herding them into the castle after Coran.  Just before they entered completely, Prince Matt turned and smiled in Lance, Pidge, and Keith’s direction.   They all smiled and waved awkwardly waved back causing the king to break into another grin as he disappeared inside.

“Wow, he is nothing like Alfor,” commented Lance, “for a minute I thought he was gonna give Allura a big hug and start knitting her a sweater or something.”

“Yeah, he’s like that,” said Keith, “on the way here whenever we would eat dinner he would ask if everyone had finished peas before we continued on. It’s like we were all his kids.”

“Wow that’s adorable.”

“He’s a good king though,” said Pidge, “he’s wise and kind and caring and--”

“Oh, no doubt,” interrupted Lance, “from what I know about Kerberos it’s a great kingdom.  He’s just… not what I expected,” a pause, “wait, what was his name again?”

“Sam,” supplied Pidge, “Sam Holt.”

She looked almost wistful when she said it, but before Lance could try to tease her, Keith asked  “What kind of noble doesn’t know his biggest ally’s King’s name?”

“Noble?  Who, Lance?”  Pidge snorted, returning back to normal, “who gave you that idea?”

“Uh, he did?”

“Lance, are you trying to impress this poor naïve boy?” mused Pidge.

“No!  He just assumed and I didn’t bother to correct him.”

“Trust me,” Pidge informed Keith, pushing up her glassing, “Lance is no noble.  Unless you count him being a royal pain-in-the-ass.  Don’t let him seduce you with his lies.”

“Who are you trying to seduce now, Lance?” came Allura’s voice from the side.  The princess stood hand-in-hand with her fiance, both wearing matching amused expressions.

“No one! Pidge is just trying to ruin my good name!”

“He was trying to seduce Keith.”

“Pidge,” cried both Lance and Keith, evoking laughter from the remaining three.

“Well, I need you to lead Shiro and Keith to their rooms,” she ordered. “Shiro smells like horse and I won’t be able to bear sitting next to him for an extended period of time.  I might end up breaking off the engagement!”

“I love you too, honey,” said Shiro with a smile and a kiss on the cheek.

“Ugh, yes we’ll have to fix that smell immediately,” she sighed theatrically, “it may already be too late.”

Shiro laughed and moved away from the princess.  Allura told Lance which rooms they were staying in (both of which had en suite bathtubs), bid her love a brief farewell, and fake gagged behind his back at Pidge who tried to suppress her giggles.
“See you soon,” were Allura’s final words before heading back to the party.

“Not soon enough,” replied Shiro to Allura’s back, unsure if she could actually hear him.  “Lead the way, Lance.”

“Sure thing, Captain.  Pidge, you coming?” he called as they headed inside.

“Yeah,” she she cried back jumping into action, “I should probably know where Shiro’s room is so I can run maintenance on his arm.”

“You guys know each other?!”  Lance glanced over at Keith who, to his relief, looked just as surprised.  

“Lance, I’m pretty sure you’re the only one who doesn’t know Shiro.  And you really should let me check that arm, Shiro, I haven’t looked at it in, what?  Nearly a year?  You’ve been taking care of it right?  Because I will not be happy if it’s all scuffed up.”
Lance, who was walking backwards as not to miss anything, watched as Shiro removed his gloves and shrugged off his riding jacket to reveal one normal (if above averagely muscular) human arm and one synthetic one pure black in color in some parts, steely in others.

Lance wasn’t completely surprised to see this; Allura had mentioned the prosthetic once or twice, but Lance was impressed with the quality of the arm.  Pidge started examining the surface surface carefully.  She leaned in close, squinted, and started repeatedly bending it at the elbow.  Seeming to find this satisfactory, she straightened his arm out to the side and examined it from below.

“Hmm,” she muttered, deep in concentration.  Shiro was desperately trying to suppress an amused smile, Lance and Keith watched with fascination.  Lance always found what he dubbed Pidge’s “alchemy mode” incredible to watch; the sheer undivided concentration was astounding.

“Are you sure you should be doing that while we’re walking?” asked Keith, baffled at the display.

“You’re right,” she conceded bringing Shiro’s arm back down and inspecting the individual fingers, “Lance I’m gonna need you to pick me up.”
“Can I ask why, exactly?”

“Because this man,” Pidge explained, gesturing up and down with her arms in Shiro’s direction, “is ridiculously tall and I can’t properly check his shoulder when it’s all the way up there.”

“Can’t you just wait--”

“Just pick me up, damn it!”

This outburst, paired with the image of the tiny girl with her hands balled into fists at her side, eyes squinched shut was just too much for Shiro who started laughing in earnest and was soon joined by Keith as Lance relented. He crouched, wrapped his arms around her hips, and raised her to Shiro’s shoulder level.

She pushed up his sleeve and examined the scarred area where flesh meets metal.

“Hey, quit shaking,” she ordered as she poked Shiro’s arm, “and hold me stiller.”  The second demand (along with a small kick) was aimed at Lance who tried to oblige.  No need to make Pidge any grumpier.

“Sorry,” wheezed Shiro wiping a tear away with his left hand and trying to remain still enough for Pidge’s liking She poked around for a bit longer but didn’t seem to find anything objectionable.

“You can put me down now, Lance.  I’m done.”

“Gladly,” he replied and promptly dropped her.  She landed (roughly) on her feet which was lucky for her, not so much for Lance.  She whirled on the wrong-doer with fury in her eyes and an aura of death about her.

“Wrong move, buddy,” Pidge growled.

“What? You said to put you down!  I was just following your command,” he spoke innocently but his lips were curled in an impish smile.  Shiro and Keith seemed not to be able to contain themselves yet again and let out raucous laughter.

“Listen here you mother--”

“What’s all the ruckus out here?”

Pidge’s outburst was cut short by King Sam himself whose head was poking out of his doorway.  They had finally arrived at Shiro’s room which, naturally, was very close to the man he had to protect.  Shiro bit his lip and Keith covered his mouth with his hands in an attempt at some level of professionalism.

“Don’t worry about it, Your Majesty,” assured Lance, “I’m a trained palace guard; I can handle one angry little gremlin.”  He grabbed Pidge’s arm and twisted it behind her back, too gently for it to hurt her, but not so loosely that she could easily escape.  “See? Nothing to worry about, go back to resting and enjoy your stay.”  Lance gave the king a dazzling smile; he sure as hell didn’t want Allura pissed at him for ruining Kerberian-Arusian relations or something like that.

Sam frowned.  “I don’t like the way you’re grabbing her.  Let her go.”

“It’s fine, uh, Your Majesty,” Pidge squeaked, “He’s my friend, he’s not hurting me.”  She yanked her arm out of Lance’s hold and waved it in the air in front of her, demonstrating.  “See?  It’s all fine.”

“Friend, eh?  What’s your name, son?”

“Lance, Your Majesty.”

King Sam murmured something Lance couldn’t hear, smiling softly and then beamed wider and spoke so Lance could hear him.

“Well, Lance Your Majesty, I’m Sam.  It’s very nice to meet you.  Oh, and thank you for protecting me from gremlins.”

Lance’s “Sure, no problem,” was partially covered up by an embarrassed groan from Pidge as Sam withdrew into his bedroom and shut the door.

Lance looked over to see Shiro with one arm on the wall, shaking with silent laughter and Keith not far away, clutching his stomach doing the same.  He let them sort themselves ot for a minute, chuckling a bit himself.  Pidge just sat down on the floor and stared off into space, shocked.

“Well, Shiro,” he said after the man seemed to calm himself, “your room’s right there, next to the King’s.  There’s a little door connecting them and everything in case you need to run in there super fast to beat someone up or something.”
“Thanks, Lance.  I’ll see you at the feast.”  And with a nod and a wave he was gone, leaving only Lance, a still-laughing Keith, and a stunned Pidge.

“Come on, Keith, buddy, your room’s a little up the hall.”

Keith held up a finger, but Lance was starting to get a tad impatient.  As much as he loved meeting new people, he also wanted to get back to the party and tell Hunk all about what happened before the feast started.  Lance put his arm around Keith’s shoulder and guided him down the corridor.

“Come on, show’s over.  We have a feast to attend and you are in serious need of some soap and a hot bath.  In fact i’m not even going to make that second part optional.”

Lance flagged down a passing servant and requested some buckets of hot water be brought up to Keith’s room.  The servant bustled off and the pair arrived at Keith’s door.
“Well, here we are, hopefully after a nap and a hair wash you’ll be less grumpy.

“Shut up,” Keith tried to grumble but it was hard to do so after laughing for so long, “at least I didn’t put an innocent girl in a headlock in front of the King.”  Keith crossed his arms making Lance aware of just how close they were.

“One, it was not a headlock, and two, Pidge is no innocent.  She’s an evil mastermind; don’t let her tiny appearance fool you!”  He looked back to see if Pidge had heard him call her tiny, but thankfully she had disappeared from her spot on the floor.

“Sure, whatever makes you feel better.”

“What would make me feel better is you losing the ten pounds of grease from your hair.  And maybe adjusting your attitude a bit.  After all, Shiro said you’re supposed to be nice to me.”

Keith snorted and Lance clapped him on the back.

“See you soon,” Lance chirped and sauntered away.  Maybe this Keith guy could provide a bit of entertainment, and at least Lance now knew he had a sense of humor.  He maybe his way back to the Great Hall, a spring in his step, looking forward to the exciting time ahead.

Chapter Text

Keith groaned.  It was the the third thing he did after he entered his room.  The first thing he had done was sit down on his new bed and the second was to bury his face in his hands.

Lance was a guard.  A palace guard.  Not some shitty, spoiled noble like Keith had first thought.  

I guess he doesn’t really need to be a noble to be shitty, Keith thought, after all, he did nothing but insult my hair the whole time.

Keith removed his gloves and ran a hand through his hair.  Okay, maybe it was that bad.  Keith thought back to their first meeting and realized how he must have seemed to Lance to be an angry, greasy mess with his stained and rumpled traveling clothes and tired eyes.  And then there was Lance himself.  Tall and tan with blue eyes brought out beautifully by his matching cerulean finery.  Lance seemed to pay careful attention to his appearance; even Keith, who never paid much attention to fashion or grooming beyond what was absolutely necessary, notice how… good Lance looked.

Keith groaned again.  He couldn’t be thinking like this; he was on a job.  He was protecting the king.  He was not here to… to flirt with some good-looking guard from the Castle of the Lions.  Not that any flirting had occurred.  Some of the things Lance were a bit suggestive but, no. He said he wasn’t interested.  He said he wasn’t trying to seduce Keith.  

Keith flopped down all the way so he was laying on the bed, hands still covering his face.

Did he want to be seduced by Lance?  He didn’t think so, he had just met him after all, but--

Keith’s thoughts were cut off by a knock at the door.  He hoped it was Shiro on the other side.  Keith hadn’t gotten a lot of crushes in his life; he moved around too much when he was younger and was too focussed on training when he finally settled in Heracles.  But Shiro would always listen to him no matter how silly or trivial the issue was.  He opened the door, sill deciding whether to voice his emotions but realized the decision wasn’t necessary.

“May we come in?”

Two servants stood outside in the hall, each carrying large buckets of steaming-hot water.  He thought about refusing them as some indirect way to spite Lance and the emotional turmoil he caused Keith by simply existing but realized that would be unfair to the servants.  One of them, a young woman probably around Pidge’s age and size, looked like she could barely manage carrying the buckets all the way from wherever they came much less hauling them back as well.  Keith stepped aside and allowed the servants to enter and bustle over to the to the bathroom, pour in their buckets and run turn on the tap letting cool water mix with the hot to completely fill up the tub.

Keith dismissed the servants took his bath, reveling in the comfort the warm water brought to his sore muscles.  He may have even scrubbed his hair a bit more thoroughly than usual.  He told himself it was because the soap here was so nice.  Back in Kerberos he’d always used lye, yellowish in color with no strong scent; it got the job done but it was nothing fancy.  However, alchemy is way more popular and advanced in Arus, thanks to the introduction of Altean techniques brought over by Alfor and his Royal Advisor.  Obviously, the knowledge of two people made Arusian society nowhere near the level of Altea itself, but it was still leaps and bounds above most other societies on this side of the ocean.

Keith exited the bath smelling of roses thanks to the translucent pink soap bar that came with the room.  He pulled on some of the finery Shiro made him bring along, nothing too fancy just a pair of black trousers, a black dress shirt, and his least scuffed pair of boots.  He also pulled on his favorite jacket, a red leather one that was cropped above the waist.  He had no idea idea if it was in fashion or not but frankly he didn’t care.

He considered going to Shiro’s room to talk but instead opted to collapse on his bed and pass out.
--
Keith awoke to a knock on his door and leapt out of bed.

“Sir?” came a young, feminine voice, “You should head down to the feast now.  I’ll guide you there.”

Keith opened the door blearily, somewhat regretting his nap, and was faced with a vaguely familiar girl.  

“Do I know you?”  Gods, he really did need a good night’s rest.

“Yes you saw me an hour ago.  I brought your ungrateful-- er I mean carried your hot water up for you.”

Now he remembered. The short servant from before. She had blonde hair and tan skin with freckles across her nose, and, from what Keith could gather, an attitude.

“Right.  Let’s go.”

Keith took a step and ran into the girl’s outstretched arm.

“Nope.  I am not letting you go down there and face the glorious Princess Allura with hair like that.  Sit down and let me fix it”

“You’re going to cut my hair?!”

“No, you dense walnut, I’m going to brush it now hurry up and sit.”

Keith stood his so the girl stomped past him and started looking through his bag.  Keith felt his mouth open in shock but before he could start yelling at her she was done.

“Ah-ha, here it is,” she cried brandishing Keith’s comb, “Come on hurry up, we haven’t got all day.”  She gestured to the chair and Keith sighed.  What was it about Arusians and hair care?

Keith plopped down on the chair and crossed his arms, allowing the short girl to wrestle his hair into being presentable.

“Why the quiznak do you even have long hair if you don’t even brush it?” she asked as she pulled the comb through a few last times.

“I brush it… sometimes.”

“Yeah and you sleep with it wet and tangled.  Well, this is going to have to be good enough. You’re at least no longer a disgrace; I can send you off to be in Allura’s presence with only a little shame.”

“Is that a… compliment?”

“No, it’s me saying you should be glad Allura’s getting married or I’d be trying a lot harder to get her attention.”  The girl sighed and Keith looked up to see a dreamy expression on her face.   After a few seconds of this, Keith cleared his throat and the girl shook her head, snapping out of her fantasy.

“Hmm?  Oh yeah let’s go we have uh,” she looked over at the strange Altean clock on the wall, “well if I’m reading this thing correctly we’ve got one minute to get to the Great Hall,  Better get your ass moving.”

She dragged Keith up by the arm and sprinted out the door.  Keith sprinted after her after a moment of confused hesitation before sprinting after her.  For how short she was, she sure could run fast although Keith kept up easily.  They rampaged through the halls, each one bumping into more than a few people and Keith may have could someone to drop a crate they were carrying.

The girl slowed as they reached the doors to the Great Hall.

“Okay, I might have lied,” she confessed, panting a bit, “we actually had more like five minutes but I didn’t want you to lag behind.”

Keith simply snorted.

“What?  You were passed out fully clothed when I got there how was I supposed to know whether you could keep up?” she asked, and then simply exclaimed, “Oh shit!” with a horrified look, “I gotta go, see ya, Keith!”  and then she ran off in a different direction from where they’d come.

Keith stood dumbfounded for a moment before finally going inside to the actual feast.  He wasn’t the last one there, thankfully, but he was cutting it pretty close.  He noticed there were neat pieces of parchment with the guests’ names on them written in elegant calligraphy at each of the seats and searched for his own name.  He got closer to the the head of the table, passing opulently dressed humans mixed in with a few small creatures with goat horns and a vaguely humanoid form.  

There were only a few empty seats left and he knew that all but one of them were reserved for the royalty.  The one remaining was six seats down from the head.  Keith started toward the seat but stopped dead when he noticed who was in the fifth seat.  Lance.  Of course.  He was talking animatedly with a big guy Keith didn’t know.  The big guy had dark skin, somewhat long hair tied back with a yellow headband, and a smile on his face as he listened to Lance talk.  They both laughed and the big guy noticed Keith standing there.  He said something that made Lance turn around.  Lance’s eyes were bright and excited and it was so gods-damn adorable that Keith’s breath caught.

Lance beckoned Keith over and pointed to the gray, high-backed chair next to him.  Keith managed to walk over and sit next to him, reminding himself to remain professional.

“Keith!  Buddy, we were just betting on whether or not you’d make it in time!”

“Yeah, and you lost so pay up!”

“What?! No!  We hadn’t actually bet yet, it doesn’t count!”

“No, no, we totally bet you said, and I quote ‘I bet ya five silver that Keith’s gonna be late” and I was all like ‘okay sounds good’.  How is that not a bet?”

“We didn’t shake on it.”

“Don’t make me get Coran involved!”

“Fine, fine,” Lance conceded, pulling a handful of coins out of his pocket, “but only because I’m so impressed that Lily actually got him here so quickly.”  He hand the coins off to Hunk who pocketed them with a grin.

“Wait is that her name?  Lily?” asked Keith, realizing he had never asked for the servant girl’s name, “Short, blonde, good runner?”

“That’s the one!” confirmed Lance, “She’s also always late.”

“Almost always,” said the big guy, jingling his pockets, “by the way, I’m Hunk.  Nice to meet you Keith!”

“Yeah, likewise,” said Keith to Hunk, and then to Lance, “wait how did you know who brought me here?”

Lance flashed a smile, “I asked around, made sure she would be the one to fetch you.”

“You wanted me to be late?” Keith asked, voice high with outrage.

“No, no of course not,” insisted Lance, “well, maybe a little.  You did assault me in the street,” Keith snorted but Lance ignored it and continued, “but that’s not the reason I used my great influence to have Lily sent to your room.  That was for love.”  Lance winked and Keith’s heart stopped.  What did he mean by that?  They had just met!

“Are you trying to set Lily and Lydia up again somehow?” asked Hunk.

Oh, thought Keith, of course he wasn’t talking about me.  Good.

“Yeah, of course,” cried Lance, “they both like each other! They've told me!”

“Okay,” said Keith, “but that doesn’t explain why you tried to make me late.”

“That’s because I wasn’t trying to make you late, you grump, I was trying to make Lily late for hanging out with Lydia.”

“What, dude that’s so mean!” exclaimed Hunk, “I thought you wanted them together!”

“I do!  I just also happen to know that Lydia thinks it’s cute when Lily shows up late and flustered.”

Keith sighed heavily; even when this guy was being an asshole he thought of his friends.And he had so many, too; friends that is.  It seemed like everyone in the castle was friends with Lance.  Keith barely  knew half the Royal guards’ names in Kerberos, much less random servants.  But he wanted to know Lance.  He wasn’t sure why, maybe it was just basic attraction or maybe Lance just did that to everybody.

Professional, he reminded himself, I have to remain professional.  I’m not here to be making friends or anything else.

Lance gasped suddenly.

“Your hair!”

“Uh, what about it?”

“You washed it!”  

“Oh man,” said Hunk, “did you use that fancy Altean style soap?  That stuff’s the best!  It make you feel so clean and it smells so freaking good and there are so many scents!  It’s incredible!”

“I need to remember this moment let me touch your hair.”

“What?!”

Lance’s hand shot out and was blocked by Keith grabbing his wrist.  Lance tried again with his left hand but Keith stopped him again.  Lance looked at him with a smirk and one eyebrow raised; Kith hoped he wasn’t blushing.

“What are you two idiots doing?”

They both looked over to see Pidge had finally arrived and was looking annoyed.

“Keith won’t let me touch his hair,” Lance whined.

“Why the hell would he?!”

“Because he is supposed to be diplomatic and since I am the one who suggested he wash his hair I should get to touch it.”

“You’re not gonna let this go, are you?”

“Nope.”

Pidge sighed, “Sorry Keith,” she apologized and then, quick as lightning, plucked a hair off Keith’s head.

“Ow!” cried Keith, eliciting a snicker from Lance.

Pidge whacked the back of Lance’s head and told Keith he could let go of Lance.  Keith did and Lance whined and rubbed the back of his head.

“Here,” she said holding out the hair she had plucked, “now you can touch it.”  Lance took it with a confused expression.  “Now the royals will be arriving in a matter of seconds, please try not to ruin Allura’s feast with your idiocy.”

Lance saluted and Pidge took her seat to the left of Hunk, muttering under her breath.  Lance examined the hair in his hand for a few seconds, waving it around a bit, and then smirked.  He leaned in close so that Keith could feel his breath on his face.  Keith thought about leaning away but was frozen.

“I win,” he whispered, before pulling back and wiggling the hair at Keith who let out a breath.  Being professional with Lance was going to be very, very difficult.

The doors suddenly opened accompanied by the sound of a horn.  The Kerberian Royal Family entered on the left and Coran and Alfor on the right.  They filed in and took their seats in the wordless room.  Finally, it was time for Shiro and Allura to enter.  They walked at a dignified pace, but Keith knew Shiro well enough to tell that he couldn’t wait to get to the end of the table and he suspected Allura felt the same way.

They joined hands when they met and they both looked absolutely stunning.  Allura in an elegant blue, pink and gold gown, hair flowing down her back like a pure white waterfall, stark against her dark skin, eyes sparkling; Shiro wore a simple black suit with silver embroidery, looking just as excited as Allura.

Keith looked on overcome with joy and pride.  Shiro, his best friend, the closest thing he had to a family, had found someone that makes him this happy.  Keith felt a grin spread across his face as he watched Shiro standing up there with the woman he loved.
“I’m sure we’re all hungry so I’ll be brief,” said Allura, rich voice ringing throughout the Great Hall, “I hope this relationship can be the foundation of an even stronger relationship with our Kerberian allies, and I would like to thank everyone for their support.  Now, let the feast commence!”

Just then the door burst open and a guard staggered in.

“We can’t--we can’t stop her!” was all he managed to choke out before collapsing to the floor, unconscious.

Chapter Text

Allura watched as one guards from the perimeter ran to his fallen comrade and several of the guards in attendance, including Lance and Keith, jump up and draw their weapons which were only the 10-inch steel daggers that guards were always permitted to have.  Allura quickly noted that Keith’s was a bit different from the standard before turning her attention back to the injured man.  

He had what looked like claw marks raked diagonally across his back, but instead of being a gory red they glowed an unnatural purple.  Allura had seen this purple before.  She had seen it once before a long time ago when she was a mere child.  A wave of panic washed over her, strong and wild.  “It can’t be,” she whispered, desperately trying to clamp down her emotions.  She looked a her father who must have been thinking the same thing because he had gone sickly pale.  He rose and and addressed the crowd.

“Everybody leave now.  Evacuate through that door,” he gestured to the door behind Allura, and then addressed a guard standing by it, “you, lead them to safety.”

Most of the nobles didn’t have to be told twice and bolted toward the door, leaving the guard who was supposed to lead them to follow frantically after.  The only ones remaining were both royal families, some assorted guards, Coran, Pidge, and Hunk.

“Come on Pidge we have to go,” urged Hunk, tugging on his friend’s arm.  

“I’m not going until you all go,” she said, firmly, “I’m not going to abandon you guys.  I’m not going to abandon my family.”

Pidge that’s real sweet,” said Lance without taking his eyes off the door, “but you aren’t armed.  Whatever that things is just tore through a bunch of trained guards how are you gonna be able to help us.”

Pidge said nothing, but look defiantly at King Sam.

“Katie, please go,” said Matt.  Pidge turned her attention to her brother, expression an odd mixture of fear and stubbornness.

“You first, Matt.”

“You should all go,” said Alfor, “I will handle this.”

“Father, you can’t defeat her on your own.”  Allura felt tears spring to her but blinked them back.  She was strong; she was not going to lose it in a time of crisis.  “You trained me to defend myself for my entire life!  I can help you!”

“Everyone go now!” roared Alfor, “This is not up for negotiation! Leave or you will die!”

Allura turned to Shiro, hoping to plead with him but stopped when she saw him.  His sword was drawn, his face was pale and sweaty, eyes wide.  He knew who was coming, Allura realized.  They had to leave.  To save everyone in that room, she’d have to trust that her father could protect them and make it out alive.

“Shiro, you’re in charge of the remaining guards in this room.  Get everyone out of here, my father will handle this.”

Shiro looked hesitant for a moment, but nodded.  He called orders out for the remaining guards to surround the Holts, Hunk, Coran, and Allura.

“Thank you for listening, Sam.  Goodbye Coran, Allura, I will see you soon.”

“Good luck, Your Majesty.”

“I believe in you father.”

“Everyone, let’s move out,” commanded Shiro with a beckon.  The group advanced on the door, all weapons drawn, all eyes alert, all bodies tense as Shiro opened it.  Shiro tensed tighter than Allura thought possible, grip tightening on his sword.  Allura didn’t need to see who was in the doorway, but she peered around Shiro’s shoulder anyway.  Her worst fears were confirmed; Haggar was right in front of them.

Shiro’s breathing sped up and sweat started dripping down his face in earnest.  Allura could not bear to watch the man she loved in such distress, yet still trying to defend her and the others.  She bolted around him and increased her size slightly, completely blocking the witch from his view with her own body.

Allura drew her knife, wishing she had brought a full sword to the feast.  She lunged at Haggar, aiming to wound the witch badly but got blasted with one of Haggar’s energy spells.  Allura flew backwards, crashing into Shiro, knocking both of them to the floor.
“Weak fools,” rasped Haggar.  Suddenly there were a dozen Haggars, spinning around the ring of guards.

“Us, weak?” cried Allura, staggering back up, knife still in hand.  She knew there was only one real Haggar, but she had lost track in the confusion of her fall.  “That spell barely did any damage!  Your quintessence is the weak one, even an Altean child could see that.”  

At least, weaker than it was 15 years ago, thought Allura.  

Suddenly one of the Haggars lunged toward the ring of guards, heading for Allura with a rough cry.  The two guards in that area bunched close together to block an attack that would never come.  Allura’s eyes widened as a second Haggar followed only a moment after the first, lunging for the slight gap created just seconds before.  The two guards on either side realized this too late.  They tried to close it, but got knocked aside and crashed to the ground in opposite directions.

Allura lunged once again, refusing to let Haggar take her, but, shockingly, the witch reached past her.

“Find me if you want him back, princess,” hissed Haggar as Allura swept the knife upward, still trying to stab her opponent.  But she was gone.  Allura looked around frantically.  All the Haggars were gone.  She dreaded seeing Shiro gone, but he was there, still on the floor.  He was now sitting up, still drawn, pale, and wild-eyed, still gripping his sword.

Allura stooped to his level and placed a hand on his back.  She used her other hand to gently point Shiro’s face in the direction of hers.

“It’s okay, my love,” she murmured, “She’s gone now.  You are safe.”

Shiro stared at her a moment before slowly nodding.  He dropped his sword and Allura drew him into a hug.

“Shh, you are safe here.  You are always safe with me.”  Allura helped Shiro up, still shape-shifted to be taller than he.  “Father, I’m going to take Shiro to his quarters.”

No response came.

“Father?” Allura called again.  She spotted Alfor slumped on the floor a few feet from where he was at the beginning of the fight.  Coran rushed over to his king’s side and started to examine him.

“Don’t worry, everyone, he’s still breathing!”

Allura let out a relieved sigh.  “I have to take Shiro to his room, Coran, send someone to bring a medic.”

“No, Allura.  Stay here, attend to your father.”

“But you--”

“I’ll be fine.  Keith can take me back to my room.  Right, Keith?”

“Uh, yeah, I guess?”

Shiro sighed, “maybe we should have Lance lead…”  he turned his attention back to his fiancee, “In any case, I’ll be fine. Promise.”

Allura nodded.  She wanted to stay by his side but she also didn’t want to press the matter so soon after the stressful experience.  Allura kissed Shiro on the forehead and shrunk down to her normal size.

“See you soon,” he said and headed toward Keith, who was helping Lance up.  Allura hadn’t realized it in the chaos, but it seemed that Keith and Lance were the two guards who’d been knocked aside by Haggar.  They seemed fine as they departed, Lance leading the way back to Shiro’s room, Shiro’s hand on Keith’s shoulder, still shaken but recovering.  Allura turned her attention back to her father, hurrying over to him and taking Coran’s place by his side as he ran to get a doctor.  Allura wrapped her hand around her father’s and allowed some of her quintessence to bleed into him.  If there were no physical injuries then this might help him recover a bit.  It seemed to work because Alfor opened his eyes.

“Allura?”  The King lifted his head slightly to get a better look at her.

“Yes, father?”

“Thank the gods you are safe,” he sighed, resting his head on the ground again, “is everyone else safe as well?”

Before Allura could respond, Pidge did.

“No.  That, that whatever she was took my brother!” she screamed.

Allura’s head whipped around. There She saw the King comforting a weeping Queen, while tears fell from his own eyes.  Hunk had his hand on Pidge’s shoulder; whether he was comforting her, holding her back, or both was unclear.

“Who was she?!” Pidge cried again, “why did she take Matt?!”

Alfor, who now sat up, explained, “That was the witch, Haggar.  She was a power asset of Zarkon years ago.  We thought… I thought she was dead, along with the rest of the powerful Galra.  I have no idea why she would take Matt.”

“I do,” declared Allura, “she wants me.  She told me to find her.  Matt’s an incentive.  I don’t know why she grabbed Matt in particular but he’s probably still alive.  I promise I will get him back.”

“You better! It’s your fault he’s gone!”

“My fault?!”

“Pidge,” scolded Hunk, now wearing a slight frown, eyebrows furrowed, “That’s not fair to Allura.  It was that creepy witch lady who took him.”

“Yeah, because she wanted Allura!  Why didn’t she just take Allura?!”

Allura gasped, hurt.  

“Wait no, Allura I didn’t mean it like that,” amended Pidge, realizing her error too late.

“No, of course not,” muttered Allura, not looking at the other girl.

Before more could be said, Coran returned with the doctor and several other medics to check on the wounded.  The room fell into an uneasy silence as the doctor looked over King Alfor, eventually declaring that there was nothing physically wrong with him besides a few minor bumps and he should rest until his quintessence recovered.  Miraculously, no one had been killed in the assault, but there were some serious injuries among the guards.

Allura was the only one who remained in the dining hall.  All others had returned to their rooms, still frightened and exhausted from the assault.  Allura sat at the head of the table, where she had given her speech just minutes ago.  Where she was supposed to be laughing and eating right now with the love of her life.  She felt a tear and covered her face as she choked out a sob. How had it all gone so wrong so quickly?  Allura took a shaky breath and settled herself.  She was going to set things right, even if she had to kill Haggar herself.  She would fix this and no one was going to stop her.  Allua stood up and left the room; she had work to do.