#rygnirath

[the-kittens-of-vol-tron]

Enchanted

Chapter 1. Prev Chapter

AO3!

Chapter 4: Who Do You Love? 

Summary: Keith deals with new emotions 

A/N: I used a fantasy language generator for Altean! I'm just trying it out, idk if I should keep it!

Word Count: 6034

-----

Keith’s POV 

Love. The word circled around Keith's mind like a tune stuck in his head. Galran’s weren't scared of the word. But it was hardly said, or hardly written. Yet, he came to find out that Alteans say it...a lot. Even for things that weren't romantic. They were lax with the word.

They loved flowers. They loved cooking or music. They loved this. They loved that. But neither of the books Lance read to him explained what love was.  

What did it feel like when you were in love? How did you know if the person you loved, loved you back? How do you express love? 

Lance had been Keith's guard for six months now. Six months of walking together, creating a routine, Lance reading to him, and meetings. Six months of knowing Lance properly. 

Being around him ached in his core but being away from him stung. Keith didn't know what to make of it. He found it hard to breathe when Lance wasn't around. 

They had gotten closer over the last half a year. Lance had taught more about Altean lifestyles and culture. What Coran was like in his younger days. He was told about Princess Allura and the two other knights, Romelle and Adam. 

Keith opened up to his knight as well. He made it known what he liked and disliked. The things he wanted to try and the places he wanted to go. Without having to be on a political mission. He began to discuss the life he would want if he didn’t have to take over the empire. 

The life he would never have.

“Oh, boys! Just the people I was looking for!” Kolivan clasped his hands as he made his way over to them. Shiro follows beside him, holding a piece of paper and a small box. 

Lance bowed at the empire, sending Shiro a small nod. “Is everything okay?” Keith asked from where he was kneeling. Feeling a new flower that was planted the day before. 

“Yes, but we just received word of an invitation!” 

Keith sighed, “another party?” He stood.

“Yes, on Altea! King Alfor is hosting it. Along with Blaytz of Planet Nalquod, Gyrgan of Planet Rygnirath, and Trigel of the Dalterion Belt.”

Keith looked at his dad with disbelief, Shiro handing him a copy of the invitation. “The original alliance invited us to a party?” He grabbed the paper, his eyes scanning the words. 

His father grinned, “yes. This is good progress, Keith. The final push in the right direction.” 

“So it’s on Altea?” 

“Correct, which leads me to my next order of business. Knight McClain!” He said enthusiastically. 

“Uh Sir!” Lance said, a bit caught off guard. 

Kolivan motioned at Shiro who stepped forward, holding the box out to Lance. The emperor urged him to open the box and Lance did, slowly. “I know you wear the Altean royal symbols and colors but given your residence here and longevity. I hope you feel comfortable wearing these as well.” 

Lance stared into the box, his face unreadable. 

“Galran’s general wear these on the left side. I’m not sure of Altean culture or which side your medals and symbols must be worn. I hope we can make it work.” 

Lance reached into the box, his fingers shaking slightly. “Sir…Are you sure about this?” He pulled out the Galran insignia, purple chains hanging off it. Just like what Lance wore the first time Keith saw him at the dance. But with the Altean symbol and light blue chains. These were attached to the shoulder cuffs to hang off down the wearer's arms. 

“Positive young knight. If you’re okay with it, I think you could help be the bridge between the Galrans and Altman's. Yes, the alliance is signed and holding strong but we still stay in our own area. You could show that we are breaking down our walls some. Embracing each other.” 

Lance gave a tense nod, placing the chain back into the box; grabbing it from Shiro. “Thank you, sir, I will wear it with honor.” He bowed deeply, holding the box tightly to his chest. 

Kolivan smiled at him, looking toward his son. “We leave for Altea in the morning. I will call for servants to pack for you. Knight McClain, do you need any help packing?” 

Lance shook his head no. 

Keith’s dad clasped his hands together again, “splendid. I look forward to tomorrow!” He turned and left, Shiro following at his side. 

Keith glanced at Lance, whose attention was back on the box. “Are you excited? To go back to Altea?” 

“Um…yeah. It’ll be nice,” he met Keith's eyes. “But I’m still going to be guarding you. I have a sworn duty.” 

Keith turned around, moving to the next plant; praying Lance didn’t see the blush that formed over his skin. “I’m sure I’ll be okay if you take a moment to chat with your friends.” 

“Yeah…but they have their own work to do anyways. Guarding their own people.” 

“Who do they guard again?” Keith began walking, Lance following behind. 

“Coran guards King Alfor, Adam guard’s the queen, and Romelle guards Allura. And I guard you.” 

“I’m still confused why there are only four knights.” Keith paused by the sunflowers, touching the petals gently. 

Lance remained silent, his eyes a bit glazed over. 

“Lance?” 

He blinked, turning some so Keith couldn’t see his face. “There would have been five but he was killed about fourteen years ago.” He took a shaky breath. “We used to have more. At least that’s what Coran told me. But they were…” he trailed off. 

Keith frowned, his mind auto-filling what Lance neglected to say. “We killed them.” 

Lance didn’t reply, and his body didn’t move. 

Keith found his hand wrapped around the head of the sunflower he was admiring only a moment ago. He squeezed the flower in his hand, crushing it under his strength. “It seems that’s all we’re good for.” He opened his hand, and the flower fell to the ground; destroyed. “Destroying and killing.” 

“That’s not true, your highness!” Lance borderline screamed at him, his marks glowing intently. 

Keith stared at him, dumbfounded. No one had ever raised their voice at him. No one ever dared. 

“You can’t blame yourself for what your grandfather did. Zarkon…he doesn’t represent the Galrans anymore. Your father does, your mother does, and you do. Even if you don’t like it. The Galran have created alliances with planets that were fighting each other long before Zarkon's first move. You’re pushing to heal the universe, not destroy it. Galran is not a synonym for being bad or evil.” Lance took a deep breath. 

“Becoming an Altean Knight takes more work than people are willing to put in. More sacrifice than people are prepared to give. It’s not anyone's fault that most people end up becoming guards or military personnel rather than knights.” He froze, the sudden realization of his outburst hitting him hard. 

He kneeled to the ground, something he hadn’t done in the entire six months he had worked under Keith. “Forgive me, I spoke out of turn.” 

Keith couldn’t speak, he couldn’t move. Lance’s words replayed in his mind, causing emotions he didn’t know he could feel. He didn’t even know how to identify them. “Stand.” 

Lance did, keeping his head low, the box left on the ground. 

Keith scanned him a couple of times; he had never seen him lose his composure. But now? His shoulder’s moved up and down as he breathed, his chest rising and falling quickly. His marks still glowing. 

“Look at me.” 

Lance didn’t move. 

He never ignored an order from Keith. 

Keith moved forward, stopping right in front of his knight. “Lance.” He flinched slightly, causing Keith's chest to tighten. He took a deep breath; he wasn’t someone he ever wanted to scare. “Can you look at me…please?” 

Lance turned his head some, his eyes still closed. 

Keith moved his hands slowly, gently touching Lance’s face again. The second time he purposely touched him. Maybe he was imagining this, maybe he wanted so badly to think that Lance had actual feelings for him. But, it seemed as though Lance leaned into his touch ever so slightly. “I’m not mad at you. I appreciate the words you said.” 

His knight gave a half-hearted nod, his marks dulling some. 

“Can you open your eyes?” 

He did, achingly slow. The calm blue Keith had grown to love tinted red. A storm that shouldn’t exist. “Thank you, Lance.” Wait, love? 

He mumbled something in Altean but Keith knew that it wasn’t anything negative towards him. Maybe it was a thank you? Another apology? He felt an overwhelming urge to pull Lance in for a hug but before he could begin the internal battle some voice appeared to the left. 

He quickly dropped his hands, stepping back as Lance grabbed the box that was discarded. Just the gardeners. “Let’s head to the library. I want to read.” Keith began walking before Lance could respond, his body on fire. 

---

He found himself wide awake, staring at what would be his ceiling if the room wasn’t blanked in darkness. Lance had left him for the night over two hours ago but no matter how hard Keith tried, sleep stayed right out of his grasp. Taunting him. 

He loved Lance. 

At least he thinks he does. Everything was confusing. He liked Lance, but jumping to love? Shouldn’t that take time? A kiss or two? It had only been six months. It had been six months. Could you fall in love with someone after that amount of time? 

He sighed, pushing himself into a sitting position. Despite being a four-letter word it sat heavy on him. Weighing him down like the cover of a book. Trapping him, forcing him to think about it. 

He found himself pacing, trying to calm his mind. But he was never taught about falling in love, he never read stories about navigating love; only when it’s reciprocated. He found himself in the library, holding the first Altean book Lance had read to him. 

He flipped through the pages, growing frustrated at the unknown language. He wasn’t sure what he was looking for. Maybe a section Lance skipped or glossed over. A ‘what to do when you realize you're in love with someone that you didn't even realize you had a crush on until that moment in time.’ He doubted he would find anything that specific but something along those lines would be helpful. 

“Keith? Why are you awake?” Shiro entered the space, his voice a whisper. 

“Couldn’t sleep,” he kept flipping through the book, a small frown on his face. 

Shiro sat in the chair across from him. Lance’s seat. “What book are you reading?” 

Keith hummed, “I don’t know. It’s in Altean. Lance read it to me.” 

“Lance…read you a book?” 

“Yeah, he had some sent over a couple of months back. Altean’s have a lot of romance novels.” 

“Oh.”

Silence fell between them, the only sound was Keith flipping through the book. “What are you hoping to find?” Shiro asked cautiously. 

Keith closed the book abruptly, “have you ever been in love?”

Shiro looked at Keith like he had three heads, “that’s…what?” 

Keith closed his eyes, letting his head fall back on the chair. “Have you ever been in love?” 

“Of course I have. I love my parents and I have brotherly love for you-”

Keith lifted his hand, silencing the other man. “Have you ever felt romantic love?” 

Shiro stared at the ground, “...no. I don’t think I have. Why are you asking?” 

Keith lowered his hand and rubbed his eyes. He was tired. 

“Keith?” 

“Hmm?” 

“Do you…do you love someone?” 

He didn’t reply, his hand resting over his lips, his chest tightening into a painful twist.

“It’s Lance isn’t it?” 

Keith released a small chuckle, “is it that obvious?” 

“Not the love part but it’s very obvious that you have some sort of affection towards him. Krolia said you fell asleep on him during movie night. And you’ve bent so many rules and broken traditions for him. It’s clear he’s just as important to you as you are to him.” 

“You think I’m important to him? I’m just his mission.” He spat out the words, he knew Lance wouldn't love him even if he could. 

“Maybe so…I’m not sure if all the Altean knights watch their people as he watches you.” 

Keith scoffed, “and how does he watch me exactly?” 

It took a moment for Shiro to respond, but he eventually did. “Like you’re the only person in the room.” 

“Can you even love someone you haven’t been with? I’ve only touched him a couple of times, we haven’t kissed or anything. It’s like…I didn’t realize I liked him until today when I released I loved him.” 

“I don’t know. It can’t be impossible if that’s how you’re feeling.” 

Keith inhaled a shaky breath, this conversation was not going how he wanted it to. He wanted Shiro to say that he had been in love before and tell him how to get over it. Tell him how to ease this tension in his core. “I’m sure all the knights act like that. He’s just doing his job.” 

Shiro leaned forward, placing his hand on Keith’s knee; a comforting gesture. “I don’t know what this feeling is like. I can’t even begin to fathom how you’re feeling but,” he gave a gentle squeeze. “I’m here if you need to talk.” 

“Okay.” 

---

“Are you okay Lance? You look like you’re going to puke?” Krolia questioned, moving a bit closer to look at him better. 

“I’m fine, your highness, just…nervous?” Lance did his best to lean back some, pressing himself against the back of his seat. 

“Nervous about what, Knight McClain? We’re going to Altea after all!” Kolivan asked, setting the stack of papers he was reading on his lap. 

Lance swallowed, his eyes looking anywhere but at the Galrans in the room. “Just…I haven't seen the royal family or the other knights in half a year. I don’t know what has changed.” 

“Things have changed but I wouldn’t worry about that. Just enjoy being home for the next day.” Krolia flashed him a toothy grin, sitting back in her own chair. 

“Yes, empress.” Lance lowered his head some. Shiro bumped Keith’s foot, sending him a sympathetic smile. Keith sent him a minuscule nod, his eyes falling on his knight. 

They hadn’t spoken since his moment yesterday. Past a couple of words here and there, the usual bubbly self Lance put on display when it was just the two of them was gone. It bothered him. Somber expressions didn’t look good on Lance. 

They landed on Altea about half an hour later, Lance standing behind Keith as the doors opened. He could feel the anxiety rolling off him but what did he have to be anxious about? 

Keith stepped off the ship, squinting a bright light from the sun. Suns? He looked up enough to see three glowing orbs in the sky. 

“Welcome to Altea!” King Alfor stepped forward, a grin on his face. His wife and daughter stood next to him, Coran standing behind him. 

“It is a beautiful planet,” Kolivan extended his hand, which King Alfor grasped and immediately yanked the other king into a hug. 

“This day is monumental! I cannot wait to have everyone together. We are making history, Kolivan.” He patted his back once before releasing his hold on the other man. He pulled Krolia into a hug as well, and she was immediately grasped by his wife. 

Keith prayed to any god that they would skip him. They thankfully did. 

“Lance! Come here!” King Alfor waved the knight over who looked to Keith for permission. 

Keith nodded and Lance stepped forward; quickly being embraced by his king. 

“It is so good to see you. Now Coran can stop moaning about how much he misses you.” King Alfor broke the embrace, keeping Lance at an arm's length away. “Have things been good? You haven’t damaged your sword, correct?” 

“No sir, I haven't had to use it at all.” 

“Well let me see. I need to make sure you’ve been taking care of one of Altea’s prized possessions.” 

Keith’s ears perked up at the statement. He had never seen Lance’s sword before, he never unsheathed it around him. And was it really that important that the king himself wanted to check the quality? He glanced at his family, interest on their faces as well. 

Lance stepped back some, swiftly pulling the sword from its holder, a crisp schwing sound filling the air. King Alfor leaned forward, his hand remaining still in front of him. “Marvelous. Coran!” 

The older knight stepped forward. 

“Do the quality check please.” 

“Yes sir.” 

Lance turned his body some so he was facing the senior knight. Coran dipped his head slightly, as Lance held the sword up. The blade and handle sitting on his open palms. Coran grabbed the sword, holding it up in the air and then swinging it to the ground. He twisted his wrist, mostly testing the weight, and lifted the sword up to his face. His gloved hand slid along the dull side of the blade. He looked at his glove, moving his fingers together, and dropped the sword; Which Lance caught as soon as it left his hands. He quickly put it back in its holder. 

Keith stared at the metal the entire time. The sword was a silver color with blue running down the blade almost like lighting. It was stunning. Lance didn’t move a muscle the entire time, was he even breathing? 

Nobody spoke. Not on the Galran side of the Altean side. Instead, they all watched in silence, knowing, even if they were never told, the importance of what was happening. 

“Well done my boy.” Coran smiled before he pulled Lance in for his own hug, holding him tighter than the king did. 

“I told you, love, in no time Lance will surpass your knight.” The Altean queen giggled to her husband who released a loud laugh. 

“Now, my apologies for the unprompted ceremony you all just witnessed,” he turned his attention toward his guest. “These swords hold significant power for Alteans. With Lance being gone so long, we need to make sure he was fulfilling the task that comes with bearing it.” 

“Nevertheless,” he collapsed his hands together, “let’s get this show on the road. If the young prince does not plan on intending this meeting Lance can escort him to your rooms. And anyway the prince would like to explore.” 

Keith looked at his parents, he wasn’t aware there would be a meeting right as they stepped off the ship. 

“My son will not be joining the meeting. I put his care in his knight’s hand.” 

Alfor smiled, “then follow me!” 

---

“What are these called again?” Keith kneeled down, his fingers touching the soft petals of the purple flower. 

“Juniberry. They’re only found on Altea.” Lance remained standing, his gaze on the flower Keith was touching. “Do you like them?” 

“Yes. They’re beautiful.” 

Lance kneeled down next to him, his arm only an inch from Keith’s. “I wanted to say sorry for being quiet yesterday and today. I was dealing with-” 

“No need to explain. It’s okay.” Keith pulled his hand back, resting it on his knee. “Your sword is beautiful. I’ve never seen it before today.” 

Lance’s mark began to glow softly, “thank you. I thankfully haven’t had to pull it out around you. You’ve been pretty safe and easy to guard.” 

Keith rolled his eyes, a blush forming over his face. “Shut up.” He leaned over some, bumping his shoulder against his knight’s, keeping it pressed there. Lance reached forward some, plucking a flower out of the ground. He held it between his thumb and pointer finger, letting it spin as he moved his fingers. 

Keith leaned back more so he was sitting, watching Lance. 

He kept reaching for more flowers, moving his hands rapidly, his body hiding whatever he was doing. “There!” He turned around, holding up a flower crown. “For you, my good sir.” He bowed his head as he held out the crown. 

Keith laughed, “you made me a flower crown?” 

“Yes.” 

“A king does not put on his own crown.” Keith wasn’t sure why he said that and he felt himself panicking as Lance looked at him. 

But Lance leaned forward, gently placing the object on his head. “There you go. You are officially the king of the Juniberry flowers.” 

Keith lifted his hand, gently touching the flowers. He suddenly had a strong desire to lean forward and kiss Lance, so he ended up chewing on his inner cheek. 

They sat like that for a bit before Lance stood, showing Keith more of the garden; the crown still on his head. 

“These are called ‘Virginia Creepers,’ they’re from Earth.” Lance stopped in front of a wall that split the garden. Green vines with a leafy top attached to the wall. 

“They just grow like that?” 

“Yes, and Earth had more as well. This is the only one we could get to grow on Altea.” Lance’s body stiffened slightly. The next thing Keith knew was that Lance’s right hand was wrapped around his back, his left hand covering his mouth. Lance stepped forward some. Keith tripped over his feet but the other boy prevented him from falling. 

He heard something hit the wall with a loud thunk. His eyes widened some, what was that? 

Lance shook his head, stepping back some and drooping his hands when he knew Keith was stable on his feet again. “Guys, that’s not funny!” He shouted out toward the area opposite of the wall. 

Keith looked at the wall, a knife lodged in it, right where Lance was standing. 

“I told you it wouldn’t be funny!” A girl’s voice cut through the air, annoyance dripping off it.

“Blah blah, come on,” a man's voice responded. 

He looked at Lance whose jaw was tense as he continued to look at where the voices came from. Eventually, two people walked into their field of vision; wearing the same style of armor Lance always did. It was a guy and a girl. 

The girl was shorter than the guy, her long blonde hair tied in a braid that rested on her shoulder. The marks under her eyes were a soft teal color. Her skin was fair and despite her smaller build, she walked with the same confidence that Lance and Coran displayed. 

The man next to her was taller, his skin tan and his eyes a grayish color. A color Keith had never seen on an Altean before. His marks were a soft green. His hair was brown, cut short. Mimicking Lance’s hairstyle. He also wore glasses and his lips were turned into a smirk as he made his way over toward them. 

A sheathed sword hung at their hips. Swaying slightly as they walked. “What you two did was not funny,” Lance growled the words slightly and Keith flinched. Lance had never spoken like that. 

“It was just a joke Lanceyyyyy,” the girl said, borderline skipping towards him; freezing in the palace when she saw Keith. “Oh…oh no.” 

“What did you say El?” The man’s eyes also fell on Keith. He sucked in a quick breath, “shit.” 

The knights shared a look before they bowed at Keith, clearly understanding who he was. “Forgive us majesty, we didn’t see you when we threw the knife. We were trying to see if Lance had gone soft, not try to assassinate you.” The man spoke clearly, his voice sounding a bit tense. 

The girl nodded slightly, “yes forgive us.” 

Lance stared at the two, his body tense and Keith cleared his throat. “Uh…you can stand.” 

The knights did, their eyes shifting to Lance who still hasn't eased up at all. 

“Well….are you going to introduce us or…?” The man spoke, another easy smile on his lips. 

Lance mumbled something under his breath before clearing his throat. “Prince, this is Adam and Romelle. Knights to the Queen of Altea and Princess Allura. Who they should be with right now.” He grumbled the last sentence out. 

Both the knights chuckled. “We were dismissed. They’re just in a meeting and they have Coran which is all of us times ten.” Romelle spoke, a bit too happy for the tense atmosphere Lance was radiating. 

“Are you going to be at the party, Lance?” Adam asked. 

Lance dropped his shoulders slightly, “I go where the Prince goes.” 

“You know Nyma will be there,” Romelle wiggled her eyebrows. 

Keith felt an uncomfortable feeling bloom in his chest. Jealousy? Who the hell was Nyma? He had never heard that name before. 

Lance’s expression didn’t change, maybe he looked more annoyed? Any change that did occur was subtle. “Okay…but as I said. I will go where the Prince goes.” 

The two knight’s shared a look, their eyes shifted from each other to Lance, to Keith, and then back to each other. A smile forming on their faces. “Skai cru vaih noiese Nyma. Skai noiese zoic lailakuene cru vaih skai?” They said in unison, their voices lifting some. 

Keith had no idea the words that were been shared. He really needed to learn Altean. But he recognized one word; one name. Nyma. 

He looked at Lance, his marks glowing brightening and his face was scrunched up slightly. Clearly flustered. 

“Poienem soth skai oipie!” 

They both giggled in response and Lance crossed his arms, boring a hole in the ground with his eyes. His marks still glowing. 

Adam and Romelle laughed, holding each other up as their chest moved up and down. The sound echoed around them. 

His chest only got tighter, his mind cycling on the name. He had never heard about this person before. They obviously had a history with Lance, enough that the knights had to bring up that they would be at the party. His stomach turned more. Lance liked someone else, didn’t he? 

He had never asked about Lance’s love life or who was waiting for him on Altea. He didn’t think he would have any obstacles past Lance being his guard and him being a prince. But another person? Someone who had more history with him? Keith felt tears burn behind his eyes. He needed to be alone for a bit. 

“Lance, I want to go to my room.” 

Lance looked at him, he looked relieved in a sense. Keith figured he was imagining it. “Follow me, your highness.” 

“See you at the party!!!” Romelle waved at them as they walked away. 

Keith was a fool to think he had a chance. 

---

He ran his hands through his hair, taking a couple of deep breaths. After a bath, and some very strong-smelling soaps he felt a tiny bit better. Lance had left to get ready for the dance himself but assured him he would be back before he was out of the bath. 

He took his time getting ready, dragging every piece of fabric onto his body. He didn’t mind his formal wear, he thought it did make him attractive but right now it felt heavy. He didn’t want to be flirted with, he didn’t want to pretend to be engaged with people, he just wanted to lay down and cry. He had never felt like this before. 

He stepped out of the bathroom, tucking his blade into its holder that sat on his lower back. Lance was standing on the porch, pacing back and forth some. He opened the sliding door, Lance turning to look at him. 

“Prince.” 

“You look nice.” He moved to stand by him, placing his hands on the balcony. 

“All I did was add the chains and metals,” Lance said, rubbing the back of his neck in awkwardness. 

Keith glanced at him, his chest tightening more. Blue decorated the right side of his armor, naturally blending with the silver color. He wore the same chains and medals as he did all those months ago. The left side was decorated with the pieces his father gifted him. The purple symbol looked a bit off on the silver metal. Not ugly, but it was odd to see an Altean bearing the Galran mark. 

He had a dark blue half cape attached to his right shoulder blade. There wasn’t a scratch or mark anywhere on him. He was a knight in shiny armor. Literally. “Are you sure you want to attend the party?” 

Keith nodded. 

“We can head down when you say the word. That goes for leaving the party as well. If you want to dip after five minutes just say the word, your highness.” 

Keith dipped his head some, “okay.” 

Lance had hooked his arm around his, saying it was tradition for the knights to properly escort their person to the event. Keith didn’t object. They arrived at the party a bit after it started, a couple of hushed voices moved around them as Keith stepped into the room. Yet, he couldn’t tell if they were directed at him or Lance. Lance grinned at everyone they passed, staying true to his word and sticking to Keith’s side. 

“So I guess Alteans and Galrans are serious about this alliance. Look at Knight McClain’s armor.” Someone whispered as they made their way through the room. 

“Knight McClain? You’re serious? I didn’t think he would be here.” A girl gushed in response. 

Keith silently applauded his father, that was a good move on his end. They finally made their way over to where his parents were. Standing off to the side as they chatted with all the other royal attendees. 

“Nice to meet you. Well, properly this time.” Allura stepped in front of him, a soft smile on her face. 

He took note of Romelle standing behind her, wearing the same Altean symbols as Lance. Romelle looked more serious this time, her hands at her side, her eyes scanning the crowd. “The pleasure is all mine,” he grabbed Allura’s hand and pressed a chaste kiss to it. He stood, meeting her knight's eyes briefly. She looked uncomfortable, her eyes going back to the crowd. 

Keith and Allura exchanged small talk for a bit. Mostly about their respective cultures but they bonded a bit over their annoyance with these parties and literature. 

Lance stepped around him as they spoke, speaking softly to Romelle in Altean. Both of them kept their eyes on the crowd. 

“Everyone! If I could have your attention!” King Alfor’s voice boomed over the room. Once the room was silent we raised his glass. “I hope you know that this night is about peace, love, and alliance. We are here to make sure another war doesn’t tear us apart again!” 

The crowd cheered and Keith joined in on the clapping, his parents smiling. 

“Now, for a special event, I present to you the best singer Altea has to offer. Nyma!” King Alfor moved to sit back down in his chair, the crowd cheering louder. 

A young woman stepped onto the stage that was off to the side, everyone's eyes on her. She was pretty, Keith couldn’t deny that. Her face was a cream color that blended into a soft yellow. Her eyes were purple and she was tall. She wore a two-piece outfit, a pure white cropped top, and a floor-length skirt. The gems that decorated it glimmered under the lights. 

She bowed at the royalty that was present, her eyes traveling to Keith. Or at least he thought until he heard Romelle giggle as she elbowed Lance. That’s who she was looking at. 

A soft melody began to play from somewhere in the room and she began to sing. She was singing in Altean, or maybe another language. Keith wasn’t sure. Her voice filled the air, a pleasant sound. She wasn’t a bad singer, Keith could see why everyone was excited about her. 

But he found himself unable to feel joy during her performance. Only annoyance. He hated how pretty she was, she was stunning. He wasn’t sure how well she knew Lance but Lance would be stupid to not like her back. He lost the game he didn’t know he was playing. 

After her fifth song, she bowed, letting the room fill with cheers. Everyone went back to talking, and laughing with each other as more drinks were passed around. Keith grabbed his fifth drink of the night, ignoring how his vision began to swim slightly. He needed to leave. 

He lifted his hand to signal his knight over, dropping it as he saw Nyma make her way toward him. “Prince, it is an honor to meet you. And perform for you.” She curtsies in her dress, sending him a warm smile. 

He tried to match her attitude, tried to seem thrilled she chose him to talk to. He knew he was failing. “Nyma was it? Your performance was spectacular.” 

She blushed, “thank you.” Her eyes drifted behind him, to Lance. “Do you mind if I say hello to your knight? I haven't seen him in a long time.” 

He reluctantly shook his head yes, he had no rational reason to deny her that. He quickly finished his drink. 

She grinned and moved past him, “Lance!” 

He smiled at her, “Nyma.” 

She wrapped her arms around him, his own arms quickly reciprocating. She was whispering something in his ear, his marks glowing with every word she said. 

Keith couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t move either. 

He nodded, mumbling his own words back before pulling away some. Her hand patted his chest, her fingerings lingering on the decoration that he had placed there. She laughed at something Lance mumbled and leaned up. Kissing his cheek. 

Keith’s stomach lurched. 

He found himself fumbling through the crowd, his eyes falling on Shiro. 

“Keith? Are you okay?” His voice was laced with worry, and he reached forward to catch him. 

“I need to go. I can’t be with him right now.” He whispered the words in Galran, praying his parents didn’t hear him. 

Shiro nodded, “can you stand on your own? At least till we’re out of the ballroom?” 

Keith nodded, forcing his legs to support his weight. Was his outfit always this suffocating? 

“Is everything alright?” Lance’s voice appeared behind him, a bit frantic. 

“He’s fine. Enjoy the party Lance, I’ll take him back to the room.” Shiro replied, a fake smile on his face. 

“I can come with him-” 

“Stay here,” Keith growled out, the words sounding rougher in his native tongue. He turned his body, squaring his shoulders. Regretting looking at Lance as soon as his eyes fell on him. 

He looked crushed. Like a kid who was told they couldn’t sleep over at their friend's house. 

Keith wanted to pull him in for a hug. Apologize for his outburst but he couldn't. Not right now. “I’ll see you in the morning. Come on Shiro.” 

He made his way towards the exit, Shiro following right behind. “Did he follow?” He asked as they reached an empty hallway. His advisor moved to help support his body.  

“No…he didn’t even look back.” 

Those words were a knife in Keith’s chest.  He really wasn’t anything more than a mission to Lance. Someone he was ordered to protect. They made it back to his room for the night, Shiro locking the door. 

Keith stumbled to his bed, trying his best to remove his outfit. The buttons kept snagging and he felt more and more frustrated at every small thing getting in his way. “DAMN IT!” 

Shiro kneeled in front of him, “take a deep breath. Let me help.” He quickly undid Keith’s jacket, helping him slide it off his shoulders. He untied his boots and removed the holder for his blade. Leaving Keith in his underclothes. 

A drop of water fell on his hand. Then another. And another. He lifted his hands to wipe his eyes, when was the last time he cried? 

Shiro frowned at him, unsure of how to help as Keith hiccupped. More tears falling.

He was a fool. 

-----

Poor baby :(

Thank you for reading <3333

#enchanted #chapter 4 #klance #langst #kangst #klangst #prince keith and knight lance au #galran keith #altean lance #long post #posted on ao3 #my writing #no beta

[chibi-pix]

What started as just drawing Pidge looking like Trigel/Trigel’s species now became drawing the paladins as their predecessors’ species. Good Ra! This was a lot to work with but I feel so proud and really enjoy the outcome. I don’t know yet if this will become yet another AU or not, but who knows. At least I have them drawn and I love them! To no surprise, Pidge is my favourite of the group.

But it doesn’t just stop with the designs! I had to draw a comic to follow!

Good throw, Shiro!  Mama would like to remind us that it’s not right to toss the dwarves (she doesn’t know about canon Pidge’s Monsters and Mana character), but it’s too funny to pass up. As for the “Still alive!” and “It’s still early.”, I got that from The Croods; I love that banter. 

Also! While me drawing heights is inconsistent, especially in comic doodles, I do have this!

Well! I hope you all enjoyed! 

#Pidge #Pidge Gunderson #Katie Holt #Keith #Lance #Hunk #Shiro #takashi shirogane #galra shiro #dalterion belt #rygnirath #nalquad #altean keith #dalterion belt pidge #rygnirath hunk #nalquad lance #alternate universe #au #VLD #Voltron legendary defender #yeet the smol one

[arkadraws-moved]

fall/winter fashion: gyrgan

[ zarkon ] - [ alfor ] - [ trigel ] - [ blaytz ]

—

[ko-fi] ✨ [commission info]

#gyrgan #rygnirath #yellow paladin #OG paladins #arkadraws #vlddraws #( queue. ) #portfolio

[saelrum]

So, i've tried to re-design main characters as former Paladins' species for VLD AU

#voltron #voltron legendary defender #vld #voltron pidge #katie holt #voltron lance #voltron keith #voltron hunk #rygnirath!Hunk #nalquod!Lance #dalterion!Pidge #galra!keith #AU #alternative universe

[mistbornhero]

For anon who asked for “gifs of the old paladins”

#voltron #original voltron #emperor zarkon #zarkon #king alfor #gyrgan #trigel #Blaytz #gyrgan from rygnirath #trigel of the dalterion belt #Blaytz from Nalquod #vld #vld gifs #voltron spoilers #voltron season 3 #my gifs #mist voltron

[willowedpaladin]

META. THE THRONE

Rather than being a birthright, the Garithian leader is essentially elected by the people and serves for the rest of their life.

A pool of about 20 children are chosen once the current leader nears the end of their life, who are raised in mostly normal conditions, but trained to be proper leaders once the time comes. When the current leader passes away, the candidates compete publicly for a quarter of a cycle (about a year) until the time comes for one of them to be chosen by the public.

The biggest traits Garithians look for in their leader is fighting prowess and diplomacy. Sparring and battling is a key component of Garithian culture, but they prefer to prevent wars and serious conflicts. For them, fighting is in good nature and a way to bond with others, so fighting to kill is not very welcome.

Gyrgan was chosen out of his group to lead Rygnirath, and the other candidates were given various positions in the government according to skill. Typically, there arises some drama from those who came close to the throne but lost and the one who was elected. Gyrgan had decent relationships with most of the other candidates except one, Igoran, who was given a spot as a general in the army. 

Igoran and a small group of his supporters made an attempt to assassinate Gyrgan, but were unsuccessful. Much to Gyrgans disagreement, Igoran was sentenced to death while his accomplices were given hefty sentences.

Gyrgan does not have complete control over the government, as there are several splits to prevent a total dictatorship. He mainly precedes over foreign and diplomatic affairs, and handling issues within the community.

#⤷ META. #(( rygnirath is a pretty small planet so ruling is probably easier for him than it is for like #zarkon or alfor ))

[more-lance-in-earrings]

Season 3 Episode 7, “The Legend Begins”

[1/7]

[2/7] [3/7] [4/7] [5/7] [6/7] [7/7]

#vld #voltron legendary defender #king alfor #emperor zarkon #trigel of the dalterion belt #vld trigel #blaytz from nalquod #vld blaytz #gyrgan from rygnirath #vld gyrgan #coran smythe #queen melenor #Queen Melenor #season 3 #edits #my edits #my post #s3e7 #s3e7 the legend begins #the legend begins #spoilers #vld season 3 spoilers #queen of altea #pro shaladin #canon queen of altea

[lyxanislive]

PLANS AND PERMITS!

a totally not fake marriage shallura au on AO3 or under the cut if you prefer!

If Shiro wants to work on the Citadel after graduation he's going to have to apply for a work Visa. Luckily his best friend and roommate Allura comes up with the best/worst plan that will solve all their problems. Marriage.

(In Memory of Socks)

Allura groaned as she slumped through the door, making Shiro glance up from his desk to smile at his exhausted roommate. She dropped her bag and flumped onto her single bed on the other side of the room without even removing her shoes.

"How'd the paper go?" Shiro asked brightly.

Allura mumbled into her pillow, shaking her head.

"That bad, huh?"

She lifted herself up and started to take her boots off. "Well it's done, it's submitted. All I can do is pray the old crone takes pity on me and gives me a passing grade. Or gets too sick to grade me and gives the whole class passing marks."

"Allura, I'm sure it's fine. You're better than you think you are." Shiro smirked. "Besides, you followed my essay writing tips - so obviously you'll do great."

"Ha Ha." She faked a laugh, curling up into a seated position, leaned against the wall. Shiro’s desk was covered in paperwork, which wasn't out of the ordinary, except she thought his last final was today. "What are you working on?"

"Oh. Just a visa." Shiro turned back briefly to glance down at his own work. "Thought I'd try to get it in before next semester starts."

"A visa?" She repeated the unfamiliar word. Shiro had a lot of slang and colloquialisms that she often questioned, and Shiro always patiently explained them. This was no different as he spun around in his chair and began what she liked to call 'Professor Mode'. He had once explained that he instructed cadets on flying simulations on his home planet, and she liked to imagine the tone and demeanour change was just a call back to that.

"A visa is like a permit. I have a visa that permits me to be here on the Citadel taking classes for the three and a half decaphebes it'll take me to complete my courses. But once I'm done, I'll only have a grace period of a pheob to sort out everything before it becomes illegal for me to stay here and I have to return to Earth." He gestured as he talked, keeping her captivated in what probably would have been a boring lecture had he not been the one to give it. "So I am applying for an extension on the assumption that I will have skills that will be valuable to the Citadel once I graduate. I have to send it in early because these things take a lot of time, so if I send in now, by the end of next semester it may be processed and if I'm lucky, I may be able to stay here."

Allura wrinkled her nose, it made sense; but on the other hand, it really didn't. She had travelled all over the galaxy and never had to worry about permits or going back to her home planet. Maybe Earth was like that, but if they were strict, why send him up in the first place?

"Why don't I have a permit?"

Professor Shiro didn't disappoint, pulling out a data pad and expanding it so he could show her the screen.

"You, Allura, are not only a princess who none of this applies to, but also an Altean. Altea is one of the core members of the coalition. Along with Dibazall, Olkarion, Puig, the Dalteron Belt, Nalquod, Rygnirath, and for some reason I'll never understand, Tahjeer. These core members by birthright have access to coalition planets and the Citadel. No permits needed. However Earth is a 'coalition protected planet' - we are granted protection by Voltron, and get a few other perks but we have no voice on the coalition council. And so here I am, applying to the coalition to ask that they don't kick me back to my own planet so fast that a teledov would seem like a leisurely stroll."

"I could put in a good word for you!" Allura suggested. She had connections in the counsel already, not just as princess but as one of the top students in her Galactic Diplomacy class. Someone she knew would probably know the right person to regale stories of Shiro's academic successes and could help in whatever approval he would need.

"That's not how it works." He gave a gentle smile as he shook his head. "Everyone gets their fair shot, and the only advantages are if some employer on the Citadel puts an application through for me, or If I married a core race."

"Marriage?"

"Union. Sorry. So imagine it like this." He started drawing on the tablet three stick people, one with pointed ears and lines on its face, a short one with swirly horns, and then one surprisingly featureless. "If a human joins an Arusian, both of which are Voltron protected, they have priority if trying to get permission to live on either Arus or Earth. But if they both move to the Citadel they get no bonuses, they're in line with everyone else. But if a human was in union with an Altean, that human would get priority applying to any of the core planets or Citadel." He was drawing lines and circles as he spoke, making the words have visual representation. "Of course it doesn't guarantee you'll be allowed in, there's still checks and interviews, but they're not in the business of splitting up families."

Allura hummed, considering. "But you're a top student, an ace pilot, with a great personality, there's nothing they could find disagreeable about you!" She listed off the bare minimum of Shiro's good qualities. The hundreds of others, she would secretly keep to herself.

"I'm from a backwater planet with no real unique skills." He shrugged, putting his tablet back on his desk. He stretched his arms up and she heard a few bones pop. "I'm headed to Ulaz's tonight for drinks - you wanna join?" He grinned at her, she scoffed in response.

"And drink copious amounts of Vyet in a tiny apartment, while your weird human biology just avoids the wretched hangover the rest of us will have? No thank you. I'm going to stay in, relax with some of that Bishish Tee Vees, and not think about class."

"Still can't believe I got you hooked on weird British shows." Shiro chucked, he selected a new shirt to wear, and Allura acted as if she didn't ogle him as he changed. "Okay. If you need anything though just message me, okay? Even if it's just a translation." She nodded in response as he gave his goodbyes and left for the night.

Allura took advantage of the privacy of an empty dorm room to dance around to her favourite songs while folding some of her laundry and clean up her side. Shiro's side was almost always immaculate, and she would feel bad when her mess spread, but without a word Shiro would tidy her side a bit. Once done, She snuck down to the store to buy a bit of her favourite junk food, and maybe just one of Shiro's favourites as a reward and returned to the solitude of her room.

She placed the candy for Shiro on his desk, pausing as she spotted the permit paperwork. She couldn't read his native language, but the format looked tedious. He had barely filled in any of it, but a quick glance to his trash can told her this wasn't his first attempt. She sighed, wishing she could ease some of his stress. He deserved to stay on the Citadel after he graduated, she knew how talented he was and it made her stomach hurt just thinking about him having to go back to Earth.

She flumped back onto her bed, pulling out her communicator, and just for fun, sending Shiro a little icon of weblum in a hat. Just something to let him know she was thinking of him. She didn't have to wait long for a reply in the form of an icon of Voltron doing a ridiculous pose based off an old joke, with the word 'NICE!' on it.

Her stomach flopped slightly. They'd been pretty much best friends since she met him at the office on the 2nd day of classes two Decaphebes ago. She closed her eyes, trying her best to remember.

~ She saw an almost Altean in a panic, pleading with the assistant behind the office desk. And like her father she never learned to just keep to herself when there was a problem. So she walked up, and without introducing herself she inserted herself into the conversation.

"Is everything okay?" She asked.

The man sighed, a bunch of papers in his hand, a tablet open and face up on the counter. "I'm all registered, and have my doctor's note - but "

"But I'm sorry Shirogane, there is no more spots available. You'll have to stay in the overflow hostel until a dorm room is open. You should have been here yesterday so your room wasn't reassigned." The assistant tapped away at their own screen.

"I told you, I have all the doctor's info. I was in a cryorepenisher on an experimental basis." The one called Shirogane hung his head.

Allura had a dorm to herself. She was a princess and that came with certain privileges. There was still two beds, two desks, two of everything. But she was alone. What kind of princess leaves people in need? If you are given good fortune by either the Ancients or your own merit then you should share that fortune with others.

"Room Delta 67 Naris. There's a free space, put him there." Allura said sharply, grabbing the assistants attention, who nodded and typed away.

"What do you mean?" Shirogane started, but the assistant interrupted.

"Are you sure Princess Allura Dia Altea?"

"Yes." Allura smiled to Shirogane. "Pleasure to meet you! I'm your new roommate."

-

And here they were, about to enter their final semester still as roommates. She paused. When she was done with her classes she intended to stay and work under someone in the coalition council until she could ascend to the throne and either be on the council, or follow in her father's footsteps and be on the frontlines of Voltron operations. The thought of not having Shiro as her roommate hit her. They worked well together. They took care of each other. It was nice to always have someone in your corner. If the permit allowed him to stay on the Citadel, they would maybe continue being roommates. Continue to assist each other in their hectic young adult life. But what if he couldn't stay? What if some idiot wrapped up in red tape only saw the human and not the individual. What if they denied Shiro based on what he was and not who he was.

Her communicator pinged and without even reading who it was from opened the attached image.

'Miss me yet?' was scrawled over purple abs in a low lit room. She hissed and tossed her phone towards Shiro's bed. Lotor. Great. This again.

She was a little sick of having to play nice with him for 'Diplomacy Sake' while he vainly attempted to court her. She wasn't interested. They had one semi-decent date once in her first semester. Now despite her attempts to avoid him, even going as far as to claim Shiro was her boyfriend, he was constantly contacting her.

Nope. She was not having this today.

She crawled over to Shiro's bed, pulling his old laptop out from under his bed, entirely neglecting her phone. She was going to sit on her bed, watch bishish tee vees, eat yummy snacks and not think about anything.

But about two episode into some sort of food making show, a few nagging thoughts wouldn't leave her alone. One - Lotor's continued courtship Two - Shiro's permit And Three - how she could solve both.

She closed the laptop and bit her lip, there was an uncomfortable simple solution.

Her and Shiro in union.

It was almost childish to think simply being joined would make everyone live happily ever after, but in this case she couldn't deny it. Shiro would get a permit, and Lotor would have to stop his advances without some sort of diplomatic incident.

But would she want to join Shiro? Of course. He was smart, funny, dependable, charming, kind, and if it wasn't for his ears she would gladly tote him as the most attractive individual in the galaxy. She could live with the ears. He was her best friend - and what was a union if not roommates but more intimate.

She blushed. Hand holding? Kissing? More? She could handle doing that with Shiro. If he asked she would right now. But that was another issue. He had never asked. He'd never shown interest in her outside of their friendship.

She pouted, it was a good solution but in the end they would have to be joined. A union that was supposed to be for all time.

But splits happened. Sometimes the one you joined wasn't your true match. Sometimes there were 3 or more joined in the union. It wasn't a "be all, end all'' thing.

PERFECT!

There was nothing wrong with two friends joining in union to assist each other in their needs, then simply breaking the union at a later time when it was no longer required!

Join in union with your best friend, break up as friends! There would be no mess or fuss if they went into the union knowing the eventual outcome. There had been unions in the royal line based on less!

She snuggled back under the blankets to enjoy more of her Bishish Tee Vees with happy little thoughts of her and Shiro together, until eventually deep in the night, sleep claimed her.

-

She woke up to the smell of Torasll, the incredibly popular energy inducing drink that was hard to get and harder to resist. Her eyes cracked open slightly, seeing a big cup on her nightstand with sharp lines written on it in the shape that she had come to understand was her name in Human. She yawned, stretched and sat upright to greedily take the cup of Torasll. It was still warm, and it's rich flavor filled her mouth which she happily hummed, ignoring the soft burn.

Shiro had turned from his desk at the sound of her and was smiling gently. He must have been up extremely early to get in line to get them this. If you weren't at the cafeteria when it opened before the 5th Varga of the first quint, you were unlikely to get a little cup of paradise.

"Thank you, Shiro." She said, after finally bringing the cup away from her face. It was still warm, she didn't dare look at the time.

"No problem Allura, I - uh - I charged your communicator for you. It was on my bed." He trailed off on the last part, sheepishly looking down.

She blinked at him, confused, until he passed it back to her, the last message from Lotor clear on the screen. Several unread messages from him were in her alerts. She placed it face down beside her, and a single thought went through her mind. 'They could both solve their problems.'

Instead of voicing this, she instead took another sip from her Torasll and asked.

"Shiro, would you like to join me for brunch?"

He nodded and his smile lit up his face. "With you? Of course, anytime."

---

"Since I skipped workout to get us Torasll anyway, why not have a cheat day." Shiro typed on the screen before passing it to Allura. A delicious pastry covered in fruits and syrups, with sides of more sweet pastries - far from Shiro's usual pallet. Allura hummed to herself before picking her own meal, a comfort food from Altea. Shiro watched over her as she selected and hit the send order button.

"Uh oh." He smirked. "Wanna talk about it?"

"What do you mean?" She was genuinely confused, but Shiro just kept grinning.

"You ordered Jellica & Erio Moss." He pointed to the screen, showing her selection and the wait time for delivery to their table. "When you have something on your mind you sit there and eat the Jellica in one shot in these little nibbles. It reminds me of an animal called rabbits from Earth. Just the tiniest little bites. It's pretty adorable."

Allura blushed, turning her face away from Shiro. It was that moment she realised how much he paid attention to her. He had been such an integral part of her life and before she could talk herself out of it, she started to speak.

"Shiro, what do you plan to do if you stay on the Citadel?"

He hummed, considering her for a moment, as if he was trying to figure out where her questions were going to lead. He eventually relented.

"A pilot for someone hopefully. Probably just grunt work for one of the distribution centres. They're most likely to take some backwater alien with a decent piloting record." A glass of some sort of juice was placed in front of Shiro, while a large whipped drink covered in pink sprinkles was given to Allura. He raised his eyebrows as he took a sip of his own, and that was all the comment she needed to playfully huff at him. "If I'm lucky, I can maybe score a job with the coalition. They're always looking for reliable pilots to do odd jobs, or take dignitaries to planets."

She slowly sipped on her drink that was more like a dessert than a drink. She knew he loved exploring. He loved learning about other planets, about other people, about other cultures. She leaned on her palm, staring at him. She was plotting - well more imagining - a future - or more like a life with Shiro.

"What if GAC wasn't a need. What would you do if you could do whatever you wanted?"

"I uh - hmm If money wasn't a thing?" Their food was brought next, before Shiro could answer, the server gently placing the food between them. After settling and taking the first few bite of their meal, a comfortable silence fell between them. Allura wasn’t in a rush for Shiro’s answer, and she knew Shiro wouldn’t forget. They ate, just enjoying each other's presence as they had done many times before. Shiro suddenly laughed, grinning at Allura . “You’re doing it now.” he pointed to her face.

Allura has a stick of jellica in her hands, slowly nibbling away at it. Shiro grinned, raising his eyebrows and she frowned at him. “Just like a rabbit.” She put the jellica down and huffed.

“I am not an earth Animal.” She protested.

“I know, it’s just cute.” He took another bite, ignoring the blush that consumed her face. “So this thing you’re thinking about. Does it have something to do with what I would do if I didn’t need to worry about GAC?” She nodded. “Wanna enlighten me? It can’t be any worse than that idea to get Lotor banished just so he would stop hitting on you.”

Allura used a spork to push the moss around her plate. “You first.” she mumbled. “I need to know your answer first.”

Shiro chuckled, leaning his head back for a moment to think. “Anything I want, huh. Well, I’d pilot for a start. Travel wherever. I guess I would want to take others with me - like taking underprivileged kids to places they'd never seen. Education events and the like - I wouldn’t mind learning as much as I can.” He shrugged. “It’s a weird question, but I’d make myself useful.”

“Hmm” she hummed thoughtfully, as she absentmindedly picked up the jellica to nibble on it again. The cogs in her mind whirling. For his part, Shiro waited patiently for her to think, smiling at her every time he caught her eye.

“Shiro.” Allura finally pushed her plate to the side, leaning on her elbows. Once his attention was fully on her she grinned wildly. Her mind made up. A plan already formed.

“Shiro, let's join in union.”

Shiro’s face blossomed red, his jaw falling slack. “Ah-al-Allura.” He sputtered. She blinked at him, innocently. “Thats - “ He looked around nervously for a moment. “That’s an Altean wedding. With you!” He looked down at his hands as they fidgeted for a moment.

Her face fell, perhaps this was a silly idea after all. They were friends, for Ancient’s sake - and here she was acting like his feelings didn’t matter. Of course Shiro wouldn’t want a union, even if there were benefits for him because hearts didn’t work like that. She tried to pretend it didn’t hurt, but she knew it showed on her face. Shiro glanced up at her shyly, only for his eyes to widen as he frantically reached across the table for her hands. She knew her eyes were watering but she forced a smile. Shiro gripped her hands in his, rubbing his thumbs over her knuckles.

“Hey. Lura. I -’ He gulped and started again. “It’s just - Like we,” He shook his head. “Can we talk about this, somewhere more private?”

“Of course.” Her voice had gone into her diplomatic pitch, as she pulled her hands from his. Shiro tried to grab her back, but she was already getting out of her seat.

“Allura - “ He started, following after her. “It’s not that I don’t want to.” She stopped her stride, glancing over her shoulder at him. “I just - “ his words were failing him. “Just - I couldn’t - you’re so -” he gave a huff of a laugh. “Why me?”

She turned, reaching her hand out to him, and Shiro gladly took it.

“Let’s go home and talk, Shiro.”

He nodded, giving her hand a soft squeeze and let her lead him out of the restaurant.

—

Allura wasn’t a fan of these so called ‘Pro/Con Lists’ but Shiro had insisted. If this was a real thing, if this was an option, he wanted to be sure he had thought of every outcome. He wanted to set up his hopes and fears and have Allura talk him through each one. He paced up and down the pathway between their sides of the room, frantically writing on his tablet. His words flashed in their native language for a couple of ticks, before translating into Altean on her tablet. Allura frowned as his con list continued to grow while the pro list still only had three items.

“Are you done?” she asked, tilting her head.

“Almost.” he muttered back.

She patted on the bed beside her, a gesture to get him to join her. He wrote a few more things before relenting and scooching up onto the bed beside her. Their shoulders touched as she leaned into him, the tablet on her lap. Shiro sighed, holding his tablet out in front of them.

“I think this is the majority. Or at least the biggest ones. There’s probably more.”

Allura looked over their shared list, as his words had translated over.

“Shall we go through it together?” She offered.

“Yeah. We can.”

She selected the pros list first, already feeling a blush as she read the first line.

-Being married to Allura

“Well it seems we’ll both be happy with the choice at least.” Her face heated up, and Shiro gave her a gentle nudge.

“You said it best, Lura. We’re already roommates - the new aspect would be, you know… the dating part."

Allura nodded. "Do you want to date me Shiro?"

He looked away quickly, tapping his fingers on his tablet and trying to look anywhere but at her. "Won't deny I thought about it. But you know. I have half the campus as competition." His head thumped against the wall. "Marriage wasn't necessarily in my mind but -" He took one hand off his tablet and placed it on hers, finally looking back into her eyes. "I think it would be nice to take you out, maybe even kiss."

She leaned forward quickly, pressing her lips to the corner of his mouth for just a tick before pulling away. His face quickly changed colour, but he grins at her in an odd sense of wonder. He starts to lean in to actually kiss her, when she stops him with a finger to his lips.

"Okay, we'll explore that in a bit. We aren't even done with the first list."

"You're right." Shiro leans back. "Let's go."

-Extending my Visa

"Obviously, no comment there." Shiro shrugged and moved onto the next one.

-Save Allura from Lotor

"Save me?" She giggled.

"Should I have written 'protect?'"

"Hmm. Maybe. Also you forgot the other way this helps me." She started typing on her tablet into the list. "I cannot serve on a coalition or Altean counsel until I have ascended, which normally wouldn't happen until my father passed the crown onto me. However! Marriage would circumvent that, and I could move into a role as soon as I graduate." She finished brightly.

"Really?" Shiro cocked his head and Allura nodded, finishing her note.

"It's a rule put in place in case of royal siblings, rarely used but still incredibly valid."

"Wow. Okay. Bonus."

"Now, onto your so-called 'con' list." She frowned, opening the second part of the document.

"I assure you, they're all very valid." She rolled her eyes at his remark but continued anyway.

-King Alfor

"What!?!?" She snapped, her eyes wide.

"He's the king of Altea, Allura! Not to mention he can use the red lion to blast me out of existence!"

"Voltron is a symbol of Peace!"

"And also the greatest weapon the galaxy has ever known, Allura. You are his only daughter and I have met enough Dads to know how this goes!"

"Enlighten me then." She crossed her arms.

"Okay, well I MAY have only dated a son but still. Adam's dad was super protective! He hated me for having the audacity to even breathe near his son! And do you really think secretly speed marrying me is going to make your Dad like me?"

"I -" Allura started but did not finish. She knew her dad was a tad protective, especially since they lost her mother. But she didn't even consider her father not liking Shiro even being an issue. She defiantly crossed it off the list. "I know he'll like you."

"Not very convincing." Shiro muttered, writing it back onto the list. Allura huffed.

"Moving On!"

-I don't have GAC

"You never have GAC…"

"Allura! I'd need to support us, and weddings and families cost money. Not to mention royal weddings are probably WAY more expensive! I can't just be some little - sugar baby!" He winned.

She tsked.

"The rest of the universe is not as economically focused as humans. You needn't fret about finances or services. Your goal, as a spouse of an Altean royal would be to be a servant to the coalition however you see fit." He groaned, but she did not stop. "Even something as simple as taking underprivileged children to the blue moons of York to watch the bone fall is considered a service. I truly think you're putting too much pressure on yourself."

"Maybe! I mean Allura you're a freaking space princess and I'm a pilot from dirt! How is this, in any way, proper?" He almost wailed.

"Because I care for you." She smiled.

He let out a huff, trying to smile back.

"Lets just keep going."

          -Being King? of Altea? Altean royalty as a human? ???

The annoyance that Allura had been feeling melted away, placing her hand onto Shiro's leg.

"May I tell you a story?" She asked gently. Shiro nodded, so Allura continued. "My great grandmother was a Brighton. A beautiful species with large wings and glowing purple eyes. As Queen Consort, she set up the most incredible art gallery. Bringing in artists from across the galaxy to display their works and sell them. It is in the west capital, and to this day many travel to see every new exhibit." Shiro was blinking at her in confusion, so Allura sighed. "I'm saying their have been non Altean royalty before. The whole reason I am a pure Altean is because Queen Fala and Royal Regent Aquillis adopted my great great grandfather."

"I never knew that."

"You'll have to learn if you're to be Prince Regent." She leaned her head on his shoulder as she crossed off the entry.

"Do you think I'm even worthy?" His voice was just above a whisper. She snuggled into him more.

"You're kind. You're selfless. You're strong, but not intimidating. I think Altea would be incredibly lucky to have someone like you." She listened to his shaky breath out. "I would be incredibly lucky to have someone like you."

"Allura." She pushed the tablet from his hand, the several other points disregarded.

"We're both a long way from ruling. But I think it'll be better if we learn together."

Shiro pressed his lips to her head.

"Yeah."

A moment passed, still and gentle. Allura was positive she was making the right choice.

"Let's forget this list for now, Shiro. Perhaps we should practice kissing - my soon to be partner." She batted her eyelashes in what she hoped was seductive. Shiro laughed, moving on the bed so he could face her.

"On earth you would say Fiancé." He gave her nose a gentle boop before moving in closer, his lips just above hers.

"Fiancé." She repeated before closing the kiss. It was soft and gentle, and Shiro had to fight the urge to deepen it too suddenly.

When she pulled back he grinned at her.

"I think we need more practice kissing."

"Was it that bad?" She frowned, a slight blush creeping on her cheeks.

"It was great, perfect maybe. But I want to practice kissing you for the rest of my life."

She quickly leaned back into him, wrapping her arms around his neck to pull them together to kiss again. Deeper this time, more open, more explorative.

And so they practiced. And practiced. And practiced all into the night.

#shallura #shallura fan fic #TOTALLY NOT FAKE MARRIAGE AU #i miss you socks #so this one is for you #shiro x allura

[goryghostieguts]

Ok so like Gyrgan is a big dude too probably bigger than Hunk so why does the suit still not fit him like do him and Gyrgan both get stuck in the suit ALFOR WHY DID YOU DO THIS TO THE BIG BOYS Also how do Gyrgan, Blaytz and Trigel get their little ear parts in the helmet do they have to smoosh them to fit in their helmets? Guts asks the important questions

#voltron #voltron legendary defender #voltron season 3 #voltron spoilers #shut it guts #I NEED TO KNOW #hunk garrett #voltron hunk #gyrgan #voltron Gyrgan #Gyrgan of Rygnirath #trigel #voltron trigel #Lady Trigel of the Dalterion Belt #blaytz #voltron blaytz #Blaytz of Nalquod

[the-coranic]

Rewrite: The original Paladins, Melenor & Allura’s backstories

I can’t remember if Allura or Coran ever mention Melenor, so I wanted to give her more importance to them. I like to think that she was the original pilot of the Castleship, but what if she was also an alchemist and had a part in building the lions?

I’ve also been thinking about how the original paladins came together, and I like the idea that they weren’t all the central leaders of their planets, at least at the time. Alfor was a royal knight who maybe was appointed to Melenor before falling in love with her, and eventually married into the Altean royal family (I’m just imagining Zelink in space tbh. I am a sucker for this and I will have it no other way), Trigel is a representative of her planet within a senate that collectively governs the Dalterion Belt, Blaytz is either the son or younger brother of the king of Nalquod, and Gyrgan is the son of the chief/elder of Rygnirath.

I still need to flesh out the capabilities of alchemy, quintessence, and Altean culture and history, but if I’m gonna stick with the concept of there being sacred ancient Alteans, what if the royal family were direct descendants of them, and as a result, they had exceptional alchemical capabilities compared to the general population, given the proper training?

Melenor was an esteemed alchemist, and personally trained Allura for a few years, while Alfor was focused on training her in combat. However, Allura never got to finish her alchemy training, due to her mother's untimely death, some time before Lotor was born. Studying became too painful for her, so she put it off until it was too late, and a lot of archived information was lost in destruction of Altea. Allura is a talented alchemist, but there’s a lot she doesn’t know that could come in handy throughout the story, which is a big source of her frustration and self-esteem issues, as well as the main temptation for her to trust Lotor.

Back before the start of the war, I wanted to make Zarkon obviously more caring and less enabling towards Honerva while she’s falling ill due to overexposure from quintessence, and instead of a random seizure, she has complications in the late stages of pregnancy and it becomes an emergency. Doctors try their hardest to save her and Lotor. Lotor is born frail and sickly, and Honerva dies in the process. Zarkon’s grief is what pushes him over the edge, and he becomes obsessed with bringing her back through quintessence.

Alfor tries to provide support, empathise and reason with him, having also been widowed before then, but Zarkon won’t listen to him. His efforts are successful, but he and Honerva are husks of their former selves. Zarkon has lost some sense of who he was, and doesn’t even remember who this woman at his side really is, but knows she’s useful to him. He does remember that Lotor was the reason his beloved wife died, explaining his bitter treatment of him. "Haggar” has absolutely no sense of who she, Zarkon or Lotor is. All she knows is that Zarkon is the emperor, and brought her back from the brink of death, so she swears her undying loyalty to him.

#voltron #voltron legendary defender #vld #fanfiction #fix it fic #alternate universe #au #redesign #rewrite #story planning #rambling

[chibi-pix]

Yes, the top scene is a redraw of Lance’s attempt at flying Blue. The bottom is Pidge realizing she accidentally electrocuted everyone. Oops. Dalterion Pidge conducts electricity and she shocks for various reasons. Happiness. Sadness. Anger. And definitely fear. 

Anyway! Enjoy this comedy and fun of the species AU. 

#species au #rygnirath hunk #Nalquad Lance #dalterion belt pidge #dalterion pidge #galra shiro #altean keith #Keith #Lance #Pidge #Pidge Gunderson #Hunk #VLD #Voltron legendary defender #alternate universe #pidge is a shocky baby #shiro is in pain but he is used to it #he recalls pidge shocking her as a baby very well #shiro and lance would feel it the most #shiro because of his arm #lance because he's a watery baby

[timberwolf-wwe-marvel]

Sudden Color (Zarkon x Male OC)

The world around Zarkon was always gray, just dull gray.  He questioned it, even when he became Emperor, he never questioned.  However, one day Alfor informed him of a distant planet far from Altea.  “I believe we should investigate Zarkon, this planet could prove beneficial.”  That was all Alfor said before Zarkon agreed, he received wore prior before.

“We are approaching the planet now,” Coran says, he then scans the planet for signs of life.  The planet itself is beautiful, large amounts of land and water, the sky is light purple, with dark blues and bright pinks.  “King Alfor, I’m detecting civilization within a thick patch of woods, it could be dangerous.”  “Have the castle ready to jump just in case Coran.”  “Yes, Sir.”

30 minutes prior

Daniel Romanova, a light brown lycanthrope with green war paint, is the General of his Alphas’ Royal Guard.  He can’t see the color of his fur, nor the flora and fauna around him.  His armor matches his war paint, dark green armor with intricate brown markings.  “General Romanova, his majesty requires your presence.”  A messenger says, bowing to the General, he pauses his sparring session with a comrade.

Within the palace, Daniel dwarfs the servants within the halls, heading toward the throne room.  The doors open, revealing dark green carpet on the rose quartz floor.  Stopping a few meters from the stairs, the lycanthrope kneels, bowing his head.  “You summoned me, Sire.”  A statement, bold considering his position within the chaste system.  

Before the Alpha can speak his words, a loud roar is heard within the palace.  “What was that?”  The Alpha speaks in a rough tone, Daniel is gone from the room before he can respond.  Skidding to a halt, he draws his sword, at the ready, he waits.  The dust slowly settles, it reveals five ginormous robot cats.  

“The Catdoras?”  A new enlist inquires, “No, these are far more advanced from what we have, and why bother with a ship when they can easily discuss peace with us?”  Daniel rhetorically questions, no one around has an answer, the closest robot, a black one with red wings on top, leans forward.  A lone figure steps out, wearing black and white armor, the other robots follow.  The two on the left are red and yellow, two on the right are green and blue.

All five figures step forward, raising his sword, the General give an order.  “Remove your helmets, then state your names and where you come from.”  The order is understood, the one in red armor starts, “My name is King Alfor, I come from Altea, and these are my friends,” the others remove their helmets.  “My name is Gyrgan, my home planet is Rygnirath.”  One by one, they all remove their helmets, finally the tallest removes theirs.

“My name is Emperor Zarkon, ruler of the Galra Empire on Daibazaal.”  Daniel felt a headache rising, so he cases his sword, “I am General Daniel Romanova, the former Alphas’ son, welcome to Alacore.”  He says, stepping forward, holding out his hand, Zarkon grips his hand.  A pounding throb flows through his skull, Daniel gives his hand a firm shake.  “Please General, it’s an honor to meet you.”

2 vargas later

Well into the night, the lycanthropes of Alacore and Paladins of Voltron discuss religions, history, and culture.  Daniels’ headache has yet to cease it assault on his brain, he rubs his temples with his thumbs.  Opening his eyes, he drops his glass, it shatters.  All eyes turn to his location, “General,” two medics run over, “General, talk to us.”

“I met them.” He whispers, the medics’ ears flatten, “May you repeat that?”  “I met them, my soulmate.”  Daniel snaps, the medics’ blink in shock, then smile,  “Congratulations, you found them.”  “No, I met them, I didn’t find them, and if I did find them I would’ve marked them as mine by now.”

Daniel snaps, Zarkon watches from afar, he has noticed the color change to.  “I’m stepping out,” Alfor watches as his friend steps out of the dining hall, concern within his eyes.  Once Daniel escapes from his soldiers grasps, literally, he exits the dining hall, walking around the temple.

Entering the courtyard, he looks toward the moon, the bright white of her doesn’t blind him compared to her brother, the sun.  His eyes widen as a beam of moonlight fowls through the clouds, landing upon Zarkon.  He steps forward, earning the Galran emperors attention, both stare at each other.  “I’ve been told stories of mates begin guided toward their other half by the moonlight, and look where you stand,” Zarkon looks beautiful with the moons grace shining upon him, Daniel holds out his hand.  

“May I have this dance,” Zarkon, cautiously, accepts the offer.  Both begin to turn within the beam of moonlight, Daniel pulls Zarkon close, who is up to the lycanthropes chest.  “I am glad to have found you, it’s almost as if I’ve known you for eons,” Zarkon says, Daniel spins them around.  “I have a request, my people must know I’ve found you, so please, return to Daibazaal with me.”  That was the fastest yes Daniel has said in his life.                                    

#Zarkon #King Alfor #voltron #oc #my post a second part

[quixotic-quetzalcoatl]

So I transcribed a short excerpt from S3, E7 where Coran explains the beginning of Voltron.

“In the beginning the paladins were just five leaders, who despite coming from cultures that were vastly divergent, and in some cases had been warring for generations, managed to look past their differences in an effort to protect their common interests.

“What was initially a formal agreement to work alongside each other soon blossomed into a true friendship. A warrior’s bond was forged, and together they worked together to rid their system of those who would do it harm.

“The original paladins were Zarkon from planet Daibazaal, King Alfor from Altea, Gyrgan from Rygnirath, Trigel of the Dalterion belt, and Blaytz from Nalquod.”

Holy shit guys. Holy shit. Thanks @memevember for the prompt.

#preVoltron Altea #holy shit #genocide? #colonizing? #oppression?

[kcwcommentary]

VLD3x07 – “The Legend Begins”

3x07 – “The Legend Begins”

This is another really long critique. I have so many problems with this episode. The biggest problem is that this episode expects me to have sympathy for unsympathetic characters.

Haggar, citing the Empire needing him, touches Zarkon on sides of his head and a series of images flash. Haggar recoils at the image of a smiling Altean woman.

Team Voltron is trying to figure out where Lotor might be and what his plan is. Pidge poses the question: “Why was Voltron made out of the same material as that comet? What’s so special about it?” I can’t believe they wrote Pidge to ask that question about the “comet” since she already knows the answer: It can punch holes from one reality through to another. Allura says that Alfor found another “comet” like this one, and Coran specifies that it was Alfor and Zarkon who found it back before Voltron was made. Allura’s and Coran’s statements coming after Pidge’s comment is odd. Their comment makes it sound like it’s a revelation that Voltron was made out of the first “comet” that Alfor found, but Pidge literally just said that it’s made out of the same material.

Coran begins to tell them some history. The original Paladins were first leaders of their respective species/cultures. Cultures that “in some cases had been warring for generations,” he says while an image of Blaytz fighting some Galra sentries is shown. Are we to understand from this that the Galra had been at war with Blaytz’s people? That sounds significant and should be clarified and explained.

The five original Paladins made some “formal agreement” to protect their common interests. If they had been at war with one another, what common interests would they have that would cause them to go from war to cooperation? That’s significant and should be clarified and explained. They developed a “true friendship” from working “together […] to rid their system of those who would do it harm.” Their system? As in solar system? All five species evolved and existed within the same solar system? That is incredibly unlikely.

There’s a shot of Daibazaal, still looking like not a planet. On the surface, they’re having a relatively exclusive meal together. Coran goes over the roster. Zarkon from Daibazaal. Alfor from Altea. Gyrgan from Rygnirath (I really like his visual design, though his character is little different than an alien version of Hunk). Trigel of the Dalterion Belt. And Blaytz from Nalquod. The latter three don’t have much of a presence and are more to fill the roster than to be actual characters, especially Trigel.

Blaytz’s reaction to the server bringing him something to drink has been interpreted by a lot of people as Blaytz flirting with him. I guess it counts. It’s rather blink and you’ll miss it. I expect more for queer inclusion in stories. Zarkon displays his strict preference for hierarchal social structure, telling Blaytz, “You know that fraternizing with the servant class is not permitted. It erodes discipline.” So, Zarkon has always been severe, prejudiced, and cruel. One, Blaytz is not Galra, so even if it is uncouth for a high ranking Galra to talk to someone in “the servant class,” that does not apply to Blaytz. Two, this reaffirms what we’ve seen of Zarkon already in this show: that he stands aloof from those he leads because he thinks he’s superior to them. This is one point of contention between him and Lotor.

While at dinner, the “comet” crashes into the surface of Daibazaal. In the amount of time it takes Zarkon to evacuate the area near the crater, Alfor has set up a lab, started studying the “comet,” and already knows that it’s made of a material that can pass between realities. The show tries to handwave the fact that such a scientific determination would take more time for study than the timeframe Zarkon’s evacuation comment would allow. Alfor says they found a yellow, glowing area underneath where the “comet” had crashed. Just because the area’s there doesn’t mean that the “comet” caused it to happen. But this his hardly the only jump in logic characters are written to make in this episode.

This brings up an issue I have with this “comet” being able to pass from one reality to another: How? I don’t ask that wanting an actual science reason, but I ask what, in-story, causes it to transit from one reality to another? Why has it stopped in this reality? Some change has to occur to make the “comet” transit from one reality to another, otherwise it would be constantly transiting and would not be stable enough for them to do anything but watch it disappear into a rift. Yet they made Voltron out of it. This seems like more of the show’s magic system having never been properly defined.

Zarkon freaks out over a cat (Kova, the same cat Narti uses to see). Zarkon then meets Honerva, to whom Kova belongs. Alfor describes Honvera as the best alchemist from Altea. Alfor asked Honerva to come to Daibazaal to lead the investigation. With Altea and Daibazaal in the same solar system, I guess it isn’t unreasonable that given the timeframe of Zarkon’s evacuation comment that Honerva could have come from one planet to another.

Honerva expresses excitement about studying the “comet.” Zarkon is socially awkward around her, which is clearly to be interpreted as he’s attracted to her. Given Zarkon’s opinions on Galra superiority, it’s odd that he would be attracted to her, but whatever. She remained on Daibazaal studying the rift, while Alfor studied the “comet” on Altea. Coran’s narration says that this study took years.

Alfor introduces Zarkon to baby Allura, and Zarkon gives her a Galra helmet. Also, Zarkon has married Honerva. Alfor goes to thank Honerva for the gift, which she dismisses as nothing more than a “customary gesture.” In later seasons, the show claims that Honerva loses her maternal capacity due to excessive exposure to quintessence from within the rift. But here, where she could demonstrate the necessary warmth of personality needed for maternal capacity by commenting affectionately about baby Allura, she does not. This to me says that Honerva was never a motherly type of person, nothing was taken from her despite the show’s later retcon.

She’s been running an experiment on quintessence, one drop powering some machine for a year. Quintessence has been shown to be some kind of glowing energy until it’s somehow processed into liquid, so I guess they’ve developed a refining process in order for Alfor to refer to it as a “drop?” This would have been the perfect episode to explain what quintessence is.. We’ve been previously told that quintessence is supposedly life energy, but then how is there so much quintessence in the rift? Again, it’s supposed to be life energy, but then how is it poisonous? What kind of statement is this show making by saying that life energy can poison you into becoming maniacal and cruel?

Alfor says that “the ships I’m creating for us work on the same principle.” What principle is that? He hasn’t stated any kind of principle, he’s only said that quintessence is a potent energy source. That’s a terribly written transition. “The ore from the comet practically engineers itself,” he also says. That’s not how engineering works. The material might be easy to work with, but that’s not the same thing as the ore creating design schematics on its own. I don’t think the writers of this show know what engineering is.

Zarkon instantly thinks about “endlessly powerful ships for the Galra Empire.” So, Altea and Galra are in the same solar system, but the Galra have an Empire already. Are we to assume that this Empire is currently just isolated on Daibazaal? If they’re already an Empire, I’m kind of surprised they haven’t already tried to conquer Altea. Maybe they’re supposed to be two of the warring factions mentioned at the beginning of the episode? Again, that sounds significant and should be clarified and explained. Regardless, Zarkon here reveals that he is very much a war-minded person. The later idea that he turns cruel because of excessive exposure to quintessence from within the rift doesn’t work for me because he’s being shown to think the same before as he does after.

Alfor observes some glowing purple blob floating in a forcefield. Honerva explains that she “sent some signals into the neighboring reality and this creature answered the call. Nothing from our universe has been able to survive the passage through the rift. But somehow, he arrived unharmed.” She seems fascinated by the creature, even holding out a hand to the forcefield like she wishes she could touch the blob. Alfor comments, “I thought we discussed this. We must exercise caution. We have no idea what is out there.”

And here we have another demonstration of Honerva’s normal, unaffected personality well before she became poisoned by quintessence and turned into Haggar. “The ancients thought that lightning was shot from the bows of the gods until science proved otherwise. We must always push into dangerous territory in pursuit of knowledge.” Honerva is not some person whose warmth was taken from her. She is a driven person who has the same insatiable desire for power that Zarkon has. She views the tool of science as how she can acquire that power. She does not care about the consequences of her behavior. She does not care if anyone gets hurt in the process.

The blob screeches and more of the blob creatures erupt from the rift. Alfor and Honerva put a spherical forcefield around the area to contain the blobs.

“Alfor’s project will save us,” Honerva says. I have a lot of complaints about Voltron Legendary Defender, but there are some things I really like. Scientific illiteracies aside, I think the animation is really nice. I love the music. And usually, I think the voice acting is really good. But what in the world is with Honerva’s voice?

Alfor introduces the five original Paladins to the Lions. “I made them from the quintessence-infused ore of the comet, which provides them with an endless supply of power,” Alfor says. How is metal able to be infused with life energy? Also, this show has shown the Lions losing power many times, so clearly, they do not have an endless supply of power.

“In testing my ship, I started to feel some sort of psychic link. […] The ship wasn’t just reading my mind, it was communicating with me. They seem to be evolving,” Alfor says. The Lions’ minds literally come out of nowhere. There’s no explanation to why the ships are sentient. Alfor created these ships. He had to design and build them. They should have no capabilities that he did not design. So where do the Lions’ consciousnesses come from? The show never thinks it’s necessary to answer that. For Alfor to take them from raw materials to ships with consciousnesses, it’s not acceptable for him to not be able to explain that. That’s not how engineering works.

Zarkon’s concerned about his people being harmed by “dark creatures from another realm.” Well Zarkon, it’s your wife’s fault.

“You do not pick the beast. The beast will choose you,” Alfor says. How convenient that the beasts all choose the five members of this group and that they all happen to be here together.

This is comparatively a minor problem, but the character designs of the species of the Paladins bothers me specifically when it comes to their Paladin armors’ helmets. Their helmets are not designed for their respective head-shapes. How the impossibility of stuffing all the stuff hanging off their respective heads into helmets shaped for a human head-shape didn’t register to the artists doing the character design, I don’t know. It’s like they didn’t bother to think through the realities of the head-shapes and the helmets. Not thinking things through is kind of standard for this show’s production though.

“Perhaps you should lead the formation, Alfor. You have a greater understanding of the vessels than anyone,” Zarkon says. I’m surprised he’d be willing to let someone else be the leader. Alfor, however, has not impressed me with his understanding of the vessels. Their having an unexplained consciousness that he didn’t give them and him having no idea where it came from does not sound like understanding. “I’m a better alchemist than military leader, Zarkon. I’ll stick with being your right hand.” It’s interesting that Alfor specifies the leadership as specifically military. There are a lot of different kinds of leadership, and leadership is not inherently militaristic. But Alfor, by his comment, wants Voltron to be a military group, not diplomatic, not humanitarian.

The rift creatures break free and form into a giant single body. Zarkon leads them into battle against it. Red psychically tells Alfor that they have to fly in a formation, and they turn into Voltron. Alfor designed and built the Lions, but he didn’t design them to be able to turn into Voltron. This is not how engineering works.

“Am I a leg?” Gyrgan says.

They continue to fight. Red reveals to Alfor the slot for the bayard. So, the ability to use bayards to create weapons and additional abilities is also something that Alfor did not design the Lions to be able to do.

Having the Lions be some advanced technology they just happened to have found out in space somewhere, rather than something Alfor built while having no idea what he was building, would have at least not been absurd. Or if Alfor had been influenced by some alien consciousness into building the Lions, that would have worked too.

Voltron forms sword and they stab the body of the collective rift creatures, and it explodes. It doesn’t really make any sense why that would happen, but it does.

Alfor says they need to find a way to seal the rift. Honerva reacts, yelling, “Seal the rift? Why?” Again, she’s a person who does not care about the consequences of her actions; that’s very much antithetical to being a motherly person. Despite having freaked out about the danger to his people a few scenes ago, Zarkon now doesn’t care about the risk. Citing the power of the Lions, Zarkon is eager to continue looking to turn the rift into more power.

“I’ll decide what’s enough on my planet!” Zarkon yells at Alfor. Zarkon is already a megalomaniacal dictator, no quintessence poisoning required.

Coran narrates, “Honerva continued her experiments on the rift. Despite their differences, Zarkon and Alfor, along with the other Paladins, established a new era of peace and prosperity.” Some of the blame for what has happened has to go to Alfor then. If he could have had that conversation with Honerva and Zarkon and still go along with them, then he is complicit. Also, I don’t like the writing of this narration. The way Coran goes without transition from Honerva continued her proven dangerous experiments to everyone got along and everything was great is so significantly dissonant. The juxtaposition of the two scenes also results in tonal whiplash. We literally just saw Zarkon yell about his hunger for power, and then we’re told everything was great.

Time passes. Daibazaal has been experiencing earthquakes that Alfor says are indicating the planet is fracturing. Zarkon again screams at Alfor, “I can’t stop Honerva’s work now. She’s discovering more every day.” Alfor indicates that it’s been quite some time since he last talked with Honerva, and literally the first thing out of her mouth is, “I hope you haven’t come to try to shut down my work. There’s more hidden knowledge and power in this tiny fissure than you can possibly understand.” Still, as from the beginning, they’re both power-mad.

Kova is still alive, despite significant age, due to Honerva treating him with quintessence. “Quintessence is so much more than you can understand,” Honerva says. That’s in part because the writers of this show never actually define the parameters of quintessence, so it becomes whatever they want it to be in any given moment.

Alfor tells her that she’s gone too far, and she reacts strongly, “You’ve always been a coward. You wish to close off our gateway to enlightenment. We should be expanding it.” Zarkon wants to use Voltron to enlarge the opening to the rift.

“It’s madness. This prolonged exposure to quintessence has poisoned your minds,” Alfor says. Again, if quintessence is life energy, then how does it poison? Maybe Alfor is supposed to be irrational right now and desperately looking for an excuse for their behavior, but Zarkon and Honerva’s behavior is not coming out of nowhere. The qualities of personality that are resulting in this behavior are their natural qualities that they have demonstrated from the beginning of this episode. The only time that the personalities they’re showing right now weren’t the same as how they’ve been depicted in the rest of the episode was when Zarkon was freaked out by the cat and when Zarkon was nervous out of being attracted to Honerva.

Alfor walks way. Zarkon yells, “I lead the Paladins. I command you.” He’s always been a dictator. The Galra form of governance has always been an empire, after all. It’s not like Zarkon accidentally or tragically slipped into becoming emperor.

Honerva passes out. I literally do not care. If a character is going to faint in a story, that change in state of consciousness should produce an emotional response for the reader/viewer. The story has created literally zero sympathy for Honerva, so I don’t care about her wellbeing. Her character was not written to make us care about her. It seems more that the writers assumed that we automatically would care about her without them having to write her in a way to get us to care.

“Quintessence is life,” Honerva rambles while in bed. If the show had left quintessence as just some energy and not tried to say that it’s life, maybe it wouldn’t bother me so much. But as I’ve said so many times: How would life energy cause something like this to happen to a person?

“Alfor tried to warn me, but I would not listen,” Zarkon says. He asks the Paladins to help him close the rift. It’s obvious that he’s deceiving them.

“Honerva told me the only way to close the rift is to use the power of the quintessence. We must make the opening bigger first to gather the power,” Zarkon tells them as they stand in Voltron over the rift. No one finds his statement suspicious. He is literally saying the exact same thing he did that made Alfor walk out on him before. Make the rift bigger. More quintessence. Alfor goes right along with it this time, telling them how to make the rift bigger. This isn’t just Alfor trusting a friend who was deceiving him. Zarkon’s not really deceiving Alfor at this point. What Alfor previously said no to doing, he’s now going to do.

Somehow, Voltron goes from stabbing the ground to floating in endless light. They’re in the rift now. Zarkon has left the Black Lion and he’s holding Honerva. It’s not really a form of betrayal at this point. Maybe there’s a bit of Zarkon’s behavior that’s love for Honerva, but it seems far more likely given how he’s talked this whole episode that Zarkon’s more interested in what power he can gain from Honerva’s research of quintessence.

The rift creatures come swarming toward them, engulfing them. Honerva and Zarkon scream. Zarkon’s eyes glow purple. Voltron grabs Honerva and Zarkon and they fire their thrusters to leave (I don’t know how they know what direction to go to get out since everything looks the same regardless of which direction you look).

Coran narrates, “Zarkon’s attempt to save Honerva was in vain. They both succumbed to overexposure to quintessence. The Paladins had been deceived by Zarkon. They had unwittingly enlarged the rift, which further destabilized planet Daibazaal.” Are you kidding me? They were deceived? They were unwitting? Alfor, Gyrgan, Trigel, and Blaytz must be terrible leaders to have been incapable of understanding that when Zarkon told them to enlarge the rift that that would mean that they would be enlarging the rift. And Alfor is especially bad since he had already said no to the idea of enlarging the rift.

Coran says that Alfor evacuated Daibazaal. How? Alfor is not a member of the Galra government, literally what power does he have to order a planetary evacuation? Alfor also blew up Daibazaal. Again, he’s not a member of the Galra government. How would any of them let him make the decisions for them? This is not realistic.

Alfor then holds a huge funeral for Zarkon and Honerva. Surprise (of course it’s no surprise whatsoever), they’re not dead. Do the writers honestly think it’s dramatic to pretend they were dead? Why wouldn’t the Galra conduct the funeral? Why is this episode acting like Zarkon is the only Galra in the universe? Despite the funeral Alfor conducts, Zarkon and Honerva’s bodies are on a Galra ship. They come to and have glowing eyes.

Zarkon starts a transmission, “My fellow Galra. King Alfor of Altea has destroyed our planet.” Considering all the Galra evacuated Daibazaal and let him blow up the planet, they already know that. If they don’t know, then Alfor would have been acting without the Galra government’s permission. Are we to think that Alfor hid his destroying the planet from all the Galra except for the one who told Zarkon?

This is one of the multitudinous problems with the writing of this episode. These major events of the evacuation and destruction of Daibazaal are glossed over with very little thought. No thought was paid to what the governmental structure of the Galra Empire is like. The writers exclusively invested the entirety of the government in Zarkon because it’s cheap, easy writing. Realistically, even if they are an empire, there are still contingency plans for a continuity of governance should something happen to Zarkon. Even with Zarkon as the emperor, there are other people who would be responsible for various functions of the government.

Coran continues to narrate, “Zarkon had become pure evil.” How do the writers expect me to think of Zarkon and Honerva/Haggar as anything other than boring, cartoonish villains when they write phrases like “pure evil” to describe them? Coran says Zarkon was “obsessed only with quintessence.” So then, nothing has changed for him. Out of wanting to open a new rift, Zarkon needed Voltron, and went to war to try to get it. “The Galra immediately responded to their leader and attacked.” But they were completely non-present in decision making about their own world before then and somehow oblivious to what was going on?

“The peaceful planets of our system were not prepared, but soon they had all fallen except for Altea.” So, all the planets had poorly run militaries? And there were multiple planets that were inhabited, and they couldn’t unite against one culture who no longer had the stability of a home base? Alfor separated and sent the Lions away. Zarkon killed Alfor then blew up Altea. The Galra, who had been evacuated from their planet and no longer had a home base still had the capacity to blow up a planet? It’s so hard to believe any of this.

Back to now. Pidge says, “So that’s Lotor’s plan: Cross into other universes and get the purest quintessence possible.” Slightly too far there, Pidge: They didn’t get quintessence from another universe, they got it from the rift. Also, that is a major assumption. Just because the story of the creation of Voltron was all about quintessence doesn’t mean that that’s what Lotor is trying to get. He could actually be trying to get something or someone from another universe, not from the rift. Or he could just want a weapon to match Voltron. This show writes characters to take major leaps in logic to arrive at conclusions mostly just because those are the conclusions that the writers are writing toward, not because it makes sense for a character to make such conclusions.

Back to Haggar. “Husband, how could I have forgotten?” Mostly because the writers just decided to make you forget because they thought it would be interesting or dramatic or something. The episode ends with Zarkon opening his eyes.

For an episode that is supposed to explain and advance understanding of the antagonists’ motivations, I don’t end this with any new perspective on these characters beyond knowing that their personalities have always been that of power-mad dictators. It’s just that now the narrative wants to absolve them of their behavior by saying everything they’ve done for the past 10,000 years is because of quintessence poisoning. I guess the episode thought it was creating sympathy for the antagonists, but I don’t sympathize with them whatsoever.

#voltron legendary defender #voltron #vld #voltron criticism #vld criticism #voltron critical #vld critical #vld season 3 #vld 3x07 #commentary

[purplerubyred]

A Different Take on Galran Variety

The Galra’s history with other species is utterly fascinating to me. They are incredibly diverse, while actively deny their connections to other groups in the galaxy. Observing how they are drawn throughout the series leads me to believe that this was the creators’ intention.

Anytime the past is shown, only this style of Galra is drawn (Space Mall & Legend Begins are two most notable). The people protected by Bogh’s shield station are of this type as well. Features such as markings, hair, eyebrows, skin color and crest/facial extrusions vary. But everyone has butterfly-shaped ears, long faces, yellow eyes and red pupils. Prior to Daibazaal’s destruction, they occupied all areas of society: King, soldiers, servants, aristocrats, and scientists. There are no furry or manta ray types to be seen, which pushed me to question my thoughts on genetic variety being caused by Daibazaal’s climate. Are we to believe that they had no place in Zarkon’s court prior to the planet’s destruction? Or could it be that the furry and manta ray type are mixed Galra?

Get ready for a lengthy read!

In modern times, if looks alone could entitle one to full Galra status, these folks would make the cut.

But they aren’t the only ones. 

So, what changed during the 10,000 years that there is suddenly a shift in who stands in power? Any time a foot soldier/corporal is shown without a helmet, they are always of the original Galra design. If purity was really so important, why do they make up most of the lower ranks? With a few exceptions, those in the highest positions look mixed with cultures that formed peace treaties with Daibazaal. 

Voltron’s original era of peace lasted hundreds of years. During that time, Zarkon’s marriage to Honerva may have given his people permission to intermingle with inhabitants of neighboring planets. Going by the vast variety of descendants, they wasted little time doing so. Having to take refuge on other planets after the loss of Daibazaal most likely added to this practice.

The Nalquodian manta ray trait can be seen in different variations, even on Sendak, Thace and Throk. They’re just covered. If Sendak really is one of the purest Galra, then he’s most likely covered in the same hair as the Archivist and General “Sideburns”. 

Traits from the Dalterion Belt and Rygnirath. Krolia and Acxa may have received their looks from Trigel’s people. Claw Guy has traits from both. Ladnok and Prorok cross between Rygnirath and Nalquod.

So if most of Zarkon’s Commanders and Generals are potentially half/quarter/eighth non-Galra, why all the persecution? It’s hard to tell the difference between some like Krolia and Acxa, but the Galra have made a clear distinction. There’s even a pirate who looks like Sendak’s little brother. In Season 7, Sendak’s projection makes an interesting statement: 

“I am proud to say I was born with unquestionable Galra lineage.” 

There may have been a cut-off point just after Zarkon’s return where he decreed that the Galra would no longer mingle with other cultures. Anyone born before this may have been given a pass and their validity is based only on family records. Further intermingling would be in direct defiance to their Emperor’s orders. If this is true, then those 10,000 years had to take a toll on the mental stability of not only the newer mixed-Galra, but also the old ones. Denying huge chunks of yourself is painful and jarring. It causes you to be spiteful of others living their truth(whether forced or not). Living in the Empire requires a whole lot of cognitive dissonance. This could be one of the breaking points for those who joined the Blade of Marmora.

This is all very fascinating because while discovering my own, mixed family history, I found very real guidelines similar to this in various groups across our planet. It doesn’t matter how you look and sometimes what’s in your genetic testing. If there are no records or you don’t have enough proof, then you are not granted the right to be one of them.

tl:dr: It’s highly likely that most Galra are of mixed ancestry and are in intense denial of that fact.

#galra #voltron meta #vld meta #daibazaal #half galra #zarkon #sendak

[ganymedesclock]

Upon watching s7, in the first episode i beleive Coran says that they are in the Dalterian Belt, Trigel's homeplace. Could one assume Zarkon only went for Altea and its solar system but not the other paladins planets?

The planet with the Yalmors is in the Dalterion Belt. That said, I wouldn’t take it as evidence Trigel’s home planet wasn’t destroyed- remember, the planet we see appears wholly uninhabited, with no artificial structures.

I’ve been taking it that Rygnirath and the Dalterion Belt are likely both devastated because in our many, many modern crowd shots in many locations we don’t see anybody who looks like Gyrgan or Trigel. That’s a pretty damning implication they were destroyed like the Alteans were- and seemingly just, not every planet in the Dalterion Belt was destroyed. Which makes sense- Zarkon would have targeted the population centers. The planet we see appears to be all wilderness.

(If anything, I’d say it’s pretty worrying that despite having evidently landed right on the Dalterion Belt, Coran never once proposes seeking help from Trigel’s people or even looking for civilization)

Nalquod may well have followed that same fate, unless Nalquod is Luxia’s planet, which might be the case given similarities between Blaytz and the merfolk we see in Luxia’s realm- we never see the merfolk out of water, nor Blaytz in water, so it’s possible the merfolk are able to develop legs, since they claim to have once lived on the surface.

#voltron legendary defender #vld #season 7 #Anonymous