"You and Prince Lotor.

In a room together.

Alone. For the first time, (by your own choice)."

...

"So," He erupts a grumble, clearing his throat. Across the room on a whole other couch, he sits politely, his hands folded neatly. "Let us begin."

"I understand that you've come to help the team, but you can't deny that your past is inexcusable." You say, jumping right into it. You've had a bottle of suppressed rant capped on this man for so long, too long, and you're just about ready to pop the cork right on his face.

"Correct." He says. Well.. at least he admitted it. Short-handedly, yes. It's becoming more and more apparent that you're being expected to do most of the talking here, and that's not really going to fly with your half of the room.

"Do you have anything to say?" You ask, folding your arms in tighter, sitting up taller. He looks confused, as if a teacher accused him for a telling his hopeful friend that Santa Claus didn't exist.

"Well, I already gave my apology in the docking bay, so I'm finding it rather hard to find something exactly appropriate to say. At the moment, that is." He adds.

"You don't think I have any questions? You don't feel like elaborating on that apology even a little bit?" You say, more of a suggestion than a list of ideas. He smirks playfully.

"Y/n, what if I have questions as well?"

"Then feel free to ask while I'm willing to answer." You reply. He leans a bit back, in thought. Good questions are floating all around in his head, it's just about picking only one and at the right time.

"How much of the spell period do you.. remember?" He asks. Should he know that you remember anything? Should he be aware that you probably didn't even see the worst of his odd set of sins?

"We've recovered everything up until the dinner where I met your parents. Other than that, I've yet to remember." Lotor nods. The look on his face shows shame, and the tints offer the idea of slight embarrassment. "Did.. did it not go so well?"

"No, no it didn't." He sighs, looking awkwardly to the left. You look there, and there's nothing special but the end of a couch and a wall. "You see, my mother has been missing for many pheobs, so the only family I have left is the Emperor. Though, I do not consider him family any longer."

You nod, leaning forward in interest. "The only person who cared to show up that night was the witch. She was never even offered an invitation, but my father insisted that she go since he would be too busy with this work in the control room. As always." The last two words end the sentence with a mumble.

"And how did I react?"

Lotor frowns, yet he has more lingering interest in his eyes than he did at first. "The spell worked, didn't it? You were perfect. But. . . you weren't Y/n.

"You see, throughout the entire time span of the spell, you weren't.. yourself. Before the process, I took note of your polite forwardness, intellect and talents. Afterward, it was just.." He motions his hands, as if it will help him conjure up an idea. "as if a light had gone out. All of that was washed away, and you were bland. Clingy. Unmotivated. Craving my attention at all times, like a pet who can't be left alone. Your {eye color} tones washed away by a gold that looked promising, yet only from a distance. You were.. blank."

"Oh." You say. That's not something you want to hear about yourself, whether it was your fault or not.

"As for how you reacted to most things, events like the dinner were basically to introduce you to people. You refused to dance with anyone else, to leave my side or talk to anyone privately, save for the people of my old planet. Those weren't bad memories at all, though." He smiles softly, looking into his lap. "I never went once after the spell when you didn't visit it with me. Every time you'd bring me something new, something simple, like a flower crown or a new food to try."

He looks so.. happy, lost in the memories of what used to be and still is your worst nightmare. "Now that's something I wish I could have back. Zarkon attacked that planet until nothing but ash and crude rock remained. We barely got off of it in time."

"Wow." You say sadly. "That had to have been only a month or so ago, right? Then you were banished?" He nods. "I'm."

"It is not your fault."

Silence looms overhead, passing through particles and moods.

"So, this Keith fellow. He really has always been your ideal choice for a mate?" Lotor asks, and though you can't deny it, you can flush over.

"Not mate, necessarily. Like I said, humans have feelings that develop and diminish, and if they like you back then you date. If you date long enough without breaking up, then you get married. Then marriage is until death, unless you divorce, and you can date lots of different people." You say. "Keith has been my 'crush' for a year and a half, maybe more. He's the first person I've ever dated."

"You crush people that you're interested in?" Lotor asks, making you giggle at the innocent mistake.

"No, no.." You cackle. "It's a term for someone you're interested in."

"So how long until you get married then?" He asks another, and you fluster even deeper, spasming abruptly upon hearing his words. This boy and his legitimate, understandable questionings.

"A long time. We started dating like, yesterday. Some couples wait years- err, phoebs." Another nod from him, with a hand on his chin.

"Keith has found luck where I've tried to force it. Admirable. I owe him a great amount of respect." Lotor decides. You smile. This is going a whole lot better than you would have ever expected.

"So about that man you were in that cell with originally; he is here as well, yes?"

"Shiro? Yeah. He basically raised Keith. His parents both died when he was really little, and Shiro was always there at the Galaxy Garrison when he needed him." You explain. Lotor nods. That's, apparently, how he shows that he's understood your discussion.

"What is the Galaxy Garrison?"

"It's the flight school we all went to."

And from there, for another three hours you talked about anything and everything. You told him about the Garrison, Lance, Pidge, Hunk and Coran, what you knew about the Castle and it's perks. He told stories of growing up as a Galra, including his nanny and the strict rules he lived by. Can you imagine doing four hours of straight exercise, eating, learning for three, then four more hours of training before bed? You can't. It sounds like the definition of Y/n's hellish death.

The soon-to-be-familiar rumble of lions entering hangars shakes the castle, so you two continue your active, jazzed conversations as you make your way to the bay. The Paladins slowly make their ways out of the color-coded doorways, obviously tired from whatever they had just fought. And well, whatever it was, it drained them of their lively essence speedy quick.

"Y/n, did you see thaaat?" Lance yawns mid-word, catching your attention. "Your boyfriend cut the entire head off of a giant space octopus, then it grew another one! We had to go through, like, ten heads before it finally died. We're all so tired."

"I'll make sure Keith gets to sleep." You assure him. Eventually, you do see your boyfriend drag out of the red-lit door he was assigned, stretching out his arms after what seemed like some extreme piloting. "You okay?"

"Just tired." He grumbles, hugging you from behind, using your neck's juncture with your shoulder as a momentary pillow. Then, from behind your shoulder, he sees a very entertained-looking Lotor. "What's his deal?"

"We talked things out. His deal is being very sorry and wanting us to be happy together." You explain, and the Prince nods along, agreeing as so.

"Wanna go nap? In my room?" Keith asks, and you nod.

"Goodbye Lotor." You smile.

"Goodbye." He replies, a satisfactory smile on his face as well.

Once you and Keith reach an empty hallway, he asks you as you walk; "What was that?"

You blink. "What was what?" He stares back at you, bothered.

"What was with you and Lotor being all buddy-buddy all of the sudden?"

"It's nothing, Keith, we just talked. He has a lot of respect for you-"

"Sure he does." Keith grits, letting his room door drift open like titanium curtains. "I'm sure he has a lot of respect for the person dating the girl he mind-controlled into loving him."

"You're cranky when you're tired." You remind him. He shrugs while shucking off his Paladin armor. A black bodysuit lies underneath, then his black shirt and pants, of which he removed the shirt.

"Could be. Or it could be that he's a monster." He says with targeted sarcasm.

"Keith! He is not a monster!"

Keith flares now. This would be the first time you've seen someone aggressively crawl into bedsheets. "What makes him not? Oh, did he not become your boyfriend without any sane human consent? Did he not claim you as a mate just because he wanted to, which is really f——— creepy, by the way?"

"Please watch the language, Keith. You fought a hard fight and you need to sleep before you piss off someone you don't want pissed at you." Yeah, you gave him a little sarcasm. You don't need him giving you crap for giving other people second chances. Keith's just never really needed a second chance before, so he can't understand why you should give them to other people.

You stand in the center of the room, arms folded, bothered. He looks at you from this bed. "Are you coming?" He asks.

"Do I dare?" You mock back. He scoffs, rolling over so his angered look meets yours perfectly.

"Aren't we just supposed to kiss and make up? Why are you being so complicated, it doesn't have to be complicated!" He raises his voice.

You keep your temper. "We can make up when you apologize for bashing someone innocent behind their back."

"He's not innocent, Y/n." Keith snarls.

"Well at least he knows how to say sorry!" You bark back. Keith shuts up. He's never been yelled at by you before. The journal thing? That was a lecture. This? He doesn't know if he can take it, much less any more.

"Have a good nap, Keith." You sigh.

"Y/n, don't leave."

"Or what? You'll call me a monster behind my back? Break my nose? Read my diary?" You ask, turning your head from the doorframe. His face softens, before turning in and lying it into his pillow.

You walk into the empty lounge, grabbing a pillow and screaming into it. You needed to do that at some point, sooner rather than later.

A hand touches your shoulder. You look up around it, following the arm up to Lotor's face. "Are you alright? You're crying."

You touch your upper cheek. He's right. It's wet, you didn't even notice. "Keith's just grumpy when he's tired. We fought a little bit." You admit, sitting down more comfortably. Lotor offers his arms out, like a hug without reaching in.

"..What?"

"Would you like an embrace? They are a sign of human comfort, yes?" He asks. You nod, accepting the gesture.

Maybe your claim about things going right before wasn't as accurate as you'd hoped.