Allura sat on her bed, brushing out her long and uncooperative hair. Apparently after a long and stressful day of being pulled back, it didn't like to separate and insisted on tangling together. She was used to it by now, but that didn't make the job any easier. While she struggled to tame the mass of white locks, she thought about her father, and what he would say if he were still here. She knew he would probably tell her there was no way she could have predicted the emotions and actions of her paladins as they tore her team apart. Hopefully Keith wouldn't still be upset upon his awakening and things could just go back to normal. Or as normal as they could be, given the circumstances.

Now that she had time to process everything, she was pretty sure that Lance had intentions of becoming a couple with Keith, and she was unsure if she should allow that. Keith clearly displayed a tendency to make rash decisions when in distress and Lance seemed prone to outbursts of anger. That didn't sound like a very good combination. Still, she thought they may work well for each other, if Keith decides to forgive him. For…..something. The details were fuzzy. To be honest, she hadn't paid much attention to Lance. At the time, she was more focused on how utterly distraught the black paladin seemed to be. Allura knew she should have been disappointed at his behavior, but she found it….difficult.

She heard a light knock on her door. "Come in!"

Coran slipped through her doorway and sauntered over to her bed, his quirky demeanor not having faltered through the roller coaster that had been today. She smiled at his entrance; he was so different from her father, but he reminded her of him all the same. She knew there was a reason why her father had instructed Coran to join her in the sleeping pods. The king had trusted Coran above anyone else. She knew the older man missed her father as much as she did.

Coran said nothing as he reached her, instead patting the mice that were seated on her bedside table. Allura continued to brush her hair, watching the childlike man.

"Are those two still at the pods?"

Coran shook his head. "I told Lance he would only add wrinkles to his skin by staying up worrying all night. Usually that works, but even that failed to phase him. So I used a little bit of force and eventually he went unwillingly to bed."

She almost laughed at how easily she could picture that in her mind. "And Shiro?"

"I got him to leave too, though I think he went towards the training deck."

Allura gave her hair one final brush before making a show of yawning and declaring she was going to bed. "Hopefully Keith will be awake tomorrow. We've got to get these earthlings straightened out before Zarkon decides to ambush us."

Coran nodded and began to take his leave. "I'm sure he'd wait until we were ready." He grinned at her before slipping out the door. "Goodnight, princess."

"Goodnight."

But she wasn't going to bed.

Allura had been waiting for a moment like this for what seemed like an eternity. She knew this was definitely not an appropriate time, but she felt she may explode if she waited a single tick longer. She felt a little guilty for telling Coran she was going to sleep, but she knew he wouldn't allow his head to touch a pillow if she was still awake. Something her father probably told him to do of course. But Coran wasn't like her father.

Shiro, on the other hand, had a bit more in common with the king.

She supposed she was destined to fall for the strong leader type, but she never imagined her prince charming would come with so much baggage. Still, she couldn't deny that the image of a forceful and angry Shiro made her heart race to speeds that threatened to make her faint. And even though it was horrible to say, she felt a little tinge of joy when it was revealed that Shiro and Keith hadn't worked out. Her jealousy had subsided, but her passion had only grown. And that was why she had presently removed her pajamas and donned an outfit that would have made her father turn over in his grave. Racy was the only word she could think to describe it. Well, the only word without negative implications.

She looked herself over in the mirror. The outfit showed more skin than anything she had ever worn, and anything not on display was accentuated enough that it might as well have been. She pulled on a light silk robe to cover herself as she bid her mice goodbye and snuck out the door. She quickly tiptoed down the hall, hoping with all her might no one would suddenly emerge from a doorway in front of her and discover how unorthodox she was being. Reaching the entrance to the training deck, she pressed her ear to the door. Hearing the sounds of metal on metal, she took a deep breath before stepping in.

Shiro had just knocked the gladiator to the ground with his galra tech arm when he turned to face her. He was shirtless, his chest glistening with sweat. It dripped from his hair and down his face, making her heart skip and stutter. He removed a towel that had been draped over his muscular shoulders and wiped the perspiration from his face. It wasn't until he looked up again that their eyes met. Even from across the room, his gaze hit her like a tractor beam, pulling her in and making her knees go weak. Their eyes didn't stay locked for long, as Shiro quickly realized that the princess he'd come to know was nowhere to be found.

The black paladin was as awestruck as the princess, his eyes sheepishly drifting lower to inspect what Allura had kept hidden under her dress and suit of armor. He traced over the curves of her beautifully dark skin and felt his breath catch in his throat. Neither one spoke, both of them feeling too nervous to break the heavy silence that filled the air. Realizing she was still standing in the doorway, Allura stepped forward. Even as the doors closed behind her, she was powerless to stop herself from continuing her stride towards the glistening man of muscle and metal in the center of the room. His sweat towel long since discarded on the floor, he stood up straight, ready to receive her. She stopped in front of him, trying to figure out if he was shaking or if she was. It was more than likely both of them.

"...princess?" Despite the shakiness of his voice, it still held the intimate husk she so longed to hear.

"Yes?" Shiro, on the other hand, had never heard her voice sound so soft.

He gave no response, instead leaning slowly towards her. She watched his eyes begin to close as he came in for a soft kiss, and she decided she wasn't going to wait around anymore. Her father always told her: If you want something, reach out and take it.

She practically lunged at the black paladin, taking him by surprise and knocking him off his feet. He found himself with his back on the cold floor and she found herself sprawled out on top of him. That didn't stop their kiss, however, and Allura was pleased to realize it felt every bit as good as she imagined. They both allowed their hands to wander as they continued to become familiar with each others lips. Allura could feel his growing arousal, and internally scolded herself for how excited it made her.

Let's just say the training deck provided both of them with plenty of experience that night.

As soon as breakfast was finished, Coran announced that Keith would most likely emerge within the next few hours. It went without saying that everyone gathered around the pod immediately after throwing their dishes haphazardly in a pile (Coran knew it would be him that took care of them later). While Shiro was still nervous that Keith wouldn't want anything to do with him, he received reassurances from everyone that Keith would understand. It wasn't until Allura placed a comforting arm on his shoulder that he seemed to calm down, though. Lance found that very suspicious.

The blue paladin had moved past staring longingly at Keith's sleeping form. Last night, he'd rehearsed a dozen times what he was going to say when the red paladin finally woke up. Now he was just getting impatient. Keith would make him wait and feel bad as long as he could. Not even conscious and he's still being a pain. Just wake up already so Shiro can stop moping around and I can tell you that I'm sorry and that I want you to be my boyfriend. Lance tried to ignore the fact that he never thought he'd say that sentence in his life.

Finally, the pod opened up and Keith stumbled out, looking disheveled and gorgeous at the same time. Coran and Hunk helped him steady himself and gave him a few moments to collect his thoughts before anyone spoke to him. He looked us all over for a moment, and I didn't miss the way he quickly darted his eyes away from mine. Rude. Avoiding both Shiro and I for the moment, he instead settled his gaze on Allura.

"I owe you an extreme apology. What I did was inexcusable and could have seriously damaged the fate of the universe. I was putting myself before everything else and I swear to you it won't happen-"

Allura would hear none of it. "You don't owe me an apology. What you can do for me is listen to what these two blockheads have to say for themselves." This prompted a chuckle from Hunk, an eye roll from Pidge, and Lance to shuffle his feet uncomfortably. Keith gave no response and simply crossed his arms expectantly. Lance was thankful that Shiro went first.

"There isn't anything that I can say to you that can make up for what I've done. I know this is no excuse, but I was out of my mind. I have tried to keep that part of me hidden, but I let myself get carried away. I cared about you so much; I thought we'd be better together. But I forced it on you. And I started to feel things I hadn't in awhile. I should have known better. I wanted us to be closer, but it only drove us apart. I was so scared of losing you that I got angry and pushed you even farther. I'm sorry, Keith. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me."

Looking up from the ground, Lance discovered that both Shiro and Keith had begun to tear up somewhere in that speech. Shiro crossed the room for a hug, and Keith hastily accepted him.

"I'll always care about you, Shiro. No matter what, you'll never lose me. You're like a brother to me."

The emotions became a little too much for both Coran and Hunk, and everyone soon found themselves in a massive group hug. Lance was irritated that he was on the outside, but soon found himself crushed by Hunk's emotional embrace. As quickly as they'd come, Lance witnessed everyone clear out of the room. He was left alone with Keith, and he had to admit he was a little hurt that Keith hadn't even acknowledged him yet. He supposed he had himself to blame for that. Clearing his throat did nothing to attract the red paladin's attention, and Lance realized he wasn't going to make this easy. He decided he better get right to it.

"I'm sorry about yelling at you, you know, before." Ok...rehearsed speech is falling apart quick.

"It's alright. I shouldn't have expected you to just pretend like nothing happened." Keith still wasn't looking at him, his voice empty and sad.

Lance knew he was going to lose his nerve to say anything else if he didn't act now. He stepped closer to Keith and didn't miss how he nearly pulled away when he reached for his hands. Lance didn't say anything at first, forcing Keith to finally face him. He couldn't tell what was happening behind those eyes.

"Look, Keith. I'll admit, I'm still not totally sure how to take this. But it doesn't matter. I don't care what anyone says or how it looks. I want to be with you. If you don't want to be with me, I'll understand. But if you do, we can go as slow as you want to. I don't want to push anything on you. I just want to be with you. So….whaddya say? We can just start with this if you want." Lance held up their intertwined hands. Such a simple show of affection, but good enough that he would take this and only this for the rest of his life if it meant Keith would say yes.

Keith shook his head, and Lance almost felt his heart plummet until the red paladin spoke.

"We don't have to go that slow." And with that, Lance was pulled into their second kiss. They both found themselves laughing through it, but it was still the most passionate thing either one had ever felt. Lance inwardly sighed with relief.

This was totally worth a punch in the face.

Well, that's the nail in the coffin on this story. Even though my updates were unreliable and character portrayals wavering as we went along, I hope you still enjoyed it. Things kinda became difficult with this when I began to distance myself from the show and its fandom. There was a lot of negativity that I really didn't want to associate with, and it made being motivated to finish this difficult. Regardless, thank you all for reading and supporting this story. Best wishes to all of you :)