Disclaimer: WEP still owns Voltron... even in the alternate universe.

Beta: Thanks again Dawn!

This is the fourth installment in my "Chivalry arc. 1. Chivalry, 2. Lion House Restored (2A. LHR - Allura's POV), 3. Doomed Quest, and 4. Alternate Choices.

Rating/Setting: Rating is T. Still DotU flavor AU.

Chapter Fifteen

Allura couldn't believe it. It was only the afternoon after Keith's return, and they were married. Things had been a whirlwind; Keith gave them only a brief report before he was swept away by Dr. Gorma for treatment. The rest of the time had been spent preparing for the wedding service that she and Keith had just experienced.

Smiling at her husband, she thought it was incredible that he had thought of this. Both his attire and her dress were of the style from King Olen's time. Both of them wore some of the articles of clothing that they had brought back from that quest. In addition, Keith had his sword strapped to his back and was using the ornate cane that King Olen had gifted him.

Keith looked at his bride with fierce pride and joy. She was beautiful, and she was finally his. He couldn't wait for her to see his final surprise. Lance had taken him out that morning to make sure that everything was to his liking, and he was more than pleased at what his friend had accomplished in just over a month.

The time for them to depart was almost at hand, and he had one other person he needed to speak to. Whispering in Allura's ear, she nodded as he moved away. Keith found Gretchen manning the punch bowl.

Gretchen was determined that Lance would not spike her famous punch with liquor, and the only way to be sure was to station herself at this spot. The silly girl that had been pouring punch for the few guests would be easily persuaded by the charismatic lieutenant. Gretchen dismissed her, and she took over the task herself. Her eyes were scanning the crowd trying to spot Lance, when she saw Keith making his way towards her. The fierceness left her gaze as she looked at the man who had saved Allura from Lotor and saved Arus from itself. The challenges had been hard on him, and while they had not learned all the particulars of this past mission, she had seen a shadowed look in his eyes as he had briefly described an alternate Arus. But that look was gone now as he came toward her.

Stopping in front of Nanny, he carefully leaned his cane against the punch table so that he could take both of her hands in his. Then he leaned over to kiss her cheek. "Thank you, Gretchen. Thank you for everything."

Giving him a slightly cheeky smile, she said, "Well, this isn't the big grand wedding that I wanted, but it was fitting. I'll get my grand festivity in a month for the public ceremony and your coronation." Her smiled grew as he grimaced. If he didn't like the title of Lord Kogane, he was really going to dislike his royal highness, Prince Keith, even more.

Keith looked around at the room. Everything was perfect. "This was wonderful, Gretchen, but that's not all I'm thanking you for. Thank you for all that you did to help me prepare for the quests. Without you, I don't know if I could have done them."

"Pishaw." Nanny said. "You are THE ONE, Keith Kogane. It was meant to be. You and Princess Allura were meant to be."

Keith smiled. "Thank you, Gretchen. I guess the question is, once you have your 'grand festivity,' what are you going to occupy your time with?" Keith was caught off-guard when Nanny winked at him.

"I'm going to redecorate the royal nursery," she said slyly. Pleased with the flush that colored his cheeks, she lightly tapped him on the arm and said, "It's time for the newlyweds to leave."

Unsure of what to say, he only nodded and turned to look over the crowd. He spotted Allura and Lance talking. Perfect. Once he made his way over to them, he saw that Allura was blushing. No doubt Lance had said something laced with sexual innuendo. "I'm not even going to ask what Lance was talking to you about."

Allura gave Keith a smile of gratitude. Lance had indeed been giving some very naughty suggestions about positions to use when someone had a broken leg. She knew that he was trying to embarrass her and be helpful at the same time, but she really thought she and Keith would be able to figure all that out on their own. "Is it time to leave?" She was intensely curious as to where they were going. She had only found out after the ceremony that Coran, Nanny, and the team knew that Keith was taking her somewhere for what Terrans called a honeymoon.

"Yes. I think it's time to go before Lance and Gretchen embarrass us both to death." Keith laughed as Lance frowned. He didn't like being paired with Nanny. Giving Coran a signal, he led Allura toward the main castle entrance.

Allura looked up at her husband. "We're not taking a Lion or a speeder?"

"Not where we're going."

He was being secretive. Obviously, he wanted to surprise her. As they exited the castle into the afternoon sunlight, she saw their two horses from the first quest. She looked at him in surprise. "We're taking the horses?" There was a note of excitement in her voice.

Keith smiled broadly as the small crowd gathered around them. Lifting her hand to his lips, he said, "Indeed, my lady." The warmth in his eyes and the heat of his lips made her breath catch in her throat as she thought about what they would be doing later. Walking her to her horse, he helped her mount the sidesaddle. Because of her formal dress, she would not be able to ride astride as she had in Altea. He smiled as he looked up at the vision she made. Her ivory gown covered with beadwork contrasted against the dark bay horse with the white blaze and stockings.

Finally breaking away from her, he moved to the jet black stallion whose only coloring was a large white star on his left flank. Putting the cane through a loop at the back of the saddle, he gritted his teeth knowing that getting on the horse would be painful. However, nothing was going to stop him from getting on the horse and riding with her to their destination. Once in the saddle, he drew a deep breath. It had actually been a little easier than he had thought it would be… or perhaps it was that injection that Dr. Gorma had given him. No matter, he would be fine now.

With a final wave to their friends, Keith looked to Allura and smiled. "Ready to go, Eleanor?"

Allura's grin matched Keith's as she lightly kicked her mount. Laughing, she called back to him, "More than ready, Akira!"

"Yah!" Keith said as he spurred his mount to follow. He was still grinning as he wondered where she was heading.

Allura pulled her horse to standstill at the end of the bridge. Although she'd love to arrive first at wherever they were going, she didn't actually know the destination.

Laughing as he stopped beside her, he jokingly asked, "Where were you going?"

"Just to the end of the bridge, husband." Her eyes danced with mischief as she looked at him.

Keith winked at her and said, "We're going somewhere you'll recognize. Think about it. Think about our wedding." He looked at her carefully.

Allura closed her eyes as she thought. We are wearing Altean dress. We rode out on the horses they brought from the past. And finally, as she opened her eyes, she realized he had called her Eleanor for a reason. Her voice was an excited whisper, "We're going to Lion Hall."

"In a way. It of course, no longer exists, but a small abandoned house sat on the property. I had Gretchen purchase it for me using my funds. I thought that it only fitting that it should belong to me as the Lord of Lion House." Keith had to reach out and grab her reins so she didn't bolt off. He laughed as he said, "It's a pretty simple place, but Gretchen and Lance worked on it while I was away. I think you'll like it."

Allura rattled off questions to Keith for the hour that they walked their horses to the location that used to be on the site of Lion Hall. As they entered the clearing, Allura fell silent at the quaint two-story cottage that stood before her. "I love it, Keith."

Keith only laughed as he grabbed her bridle and turned her horse. Allura couldn't speak as she looked across the expanse at the Castle of Lions gleaming in the evening sun. They sat quietly looking at the scene until Keith moved their horses towards the cottage.

"Hello?" Keith called out.

Allura looked around as a young man approached from behind the cottage.

"Welcome, Princess Allura and Lord Kogane," the young man called.

"Allura, this is Malcom. He will be putting the horses away for us and then he'll be heading back to his village."

Blushing slightly, Allura said, "I am pleased to meet you, Malcom. Thank you for taking care of the horses."

"It's my pleasure, Princess. I'll be coming by once in the mornings and once in the evening during your stay to see to the horses."

Still blushing, she replied, "Thank you."

Keith dismounted, retrieved his cane and handed off his reins. Then he moved to assist Allura and gave her reins to Malcom as well. With a nod to Malcom, he walked with Allura to the cottage door.

After opening the door, Keith just stood there.

"What's wrong, Keith?"

He let out a sigh. "It's an Earth custom that the groom carries his bride over the threshold after the marriage. I'm afraid that we'd both end up on the floor and hurt if I tried that."

Smiling at him, Allura said, "Perhaps we can come back here for a second honeymoon after our public wedding?"

"I think that is an excellent idea, wife." Keith said with a smile and then stepped back so she could enter.

Allura turned around in a big circle after she entered. "It's beautiful, Keith!" The floor plan was modern with an open loft above that had a beautiful wooden staircase. The kitchen and sitting area were all open on the bottom floor.

"I wish I could take credit for it, but all I did was choose the floor plan. Lance and Gretchen did the rest with help from Hunk and Pidge." Pointing toward the back, he said, "There's a half bath and laundry room back there, and upstairs there is just the master bedroom with a large bath."

Turning so that she could wrap her arms around Keith, she whispered, "I think it's time I saw the bedroom."

Keith leaned down and claimed her lips for a passionate kiss. He wanted nothing more than to pick her up in his arms and carry her up the stairs. However, his leg wouldn't allow for that yet. Groaning as he broke the kiss, he said, "Let's go up."

However, they were delayed as they had to stop for kisses and the removal of various clothing items along the way. By the time they reached the top of the stairs, Keith was only left in his pants and Allura in the ivory sheath that went under the formal gown and her undergarments. The ivory sheath was left in a pool at the top of the steps as Allura backed towards the bed with Keith kissing her.

When Allura's legs hit the edge of the bed, she sat down and pushed herself back on the bed. Keith watched as she lay back, propping herself up on her elbows. He could hardly breathe; she looked so incredible lying there in nothing but her lingerie. Undoing his pants but leaving them on, he placed a knee on the bed between her feet and then leaned over, putting a hand on either side of her legs. Then with the grace of a big cat, he slowly crawled up the bed towards her.

Allura's breathing was rapid. Her eyes were locked with Keith's as he sensually made his way up the bed. Did he know how incredibly sexy he was? A smile formed on her lips as she lifted an arm to wrap around his neck and pull his lips to hers. Oh, yes. He knew exactly what he was doing.

Lowering his body gently onto hers, he let his lips trail fire along her jaw and down her neck as his fingers traced the edge of her bra. He felt her breath catch in her throat as her fingers tangled in his thick hair. As his fingers moved to her back and found the clasp, he heard her moan his name.

His touch was exquisite torture. Her skin that had never known a man's touch leapt to sudden awareness as the man she loved taught her what it was to truly become one…

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was dark outside now, and Allura stood at an upstairs window in a silk robe looking out toward the Castle of Lions. It was the same view they had had from their room at Lion Hall. Keith truly did know how to make things magical. Hearing a noise, she saw Keith exit the bath with just a towel wrapped around his waist and the splints that he had to put on his injured leg now that the wedding was over. Dr. Gorma had okayed removing the cast but with the stipulation that Keith's boot had to be modified so that it held extra support for the wedding. When in bed, he didn't have to wear the splints, but if he was walking, he had to. Looking at him, she still found him sexy and her thoughts turned back toward the bed.

Keith saw her at the window, and then watched as she looked over his body. He knew where her thoughts were going, and to be honest, his were going there are as well. He looked at the cleavage and the long length of leg that were exposed by the robe and walked toward her. When he reached her, she turned so that his arms wrapped around her, and she leaned back into him. Together they gazed through the window at the castle.

"What happened in the alternate universe, Keith? You said that most of us were there, but we were different." She moved so that she faced him, but stayed in the circle of his arms. She felt them tighten, and she saw him look out the window behind her, not meeting her eyes.

Keith closed his eyes. He really didn't want to talk about the alternate universe tonight… his wedding night. "Can we talk about this another time, Allura?"

She noticed his voice didn't contain anger, but a tired resignation. She pulled out of his arms and led him to the bed where they both sat on the edge, the mattress dipping slightly beneath their combined weight. He still didn't meet her eyes. "We can wait if you like… or you can tell me now just what a bitch I was."

Startled, he looked at her face.

Reading the truth in his eyes, she said, "It's not hard to deduce that things weren't… pleasant. I therefore figure either you fell in love with the other Allura, or… you hated her." She waited, but he didn't speak. "The way you kiss me and touch me assures me know that you didn't fall for the other Allura, which only leaves one option. I was the Queen from your vision. The one that had you brought to her even though you were injured. I was the one in the bed who had the key to Black Lion."

Keith reached up and ran a finger along her jawline. "You are NOT her. Orla told me that things were very different and that I would have to put my preconceived ideas about people to the back of my mind. They are not us. They were people with different life experiences."

"But…" Allura prompted.

Keith looked down at their intertwined fingers. "She wasn't you, and I never once considered her to be." He was picking up speed as he rushed to get the words out. It seemed like saying them slowly only made it worse. "But I was in a situation where the only way I could think to end the quest and return to you meant that I had to-" Keith broke off his sentence.

Allura's blue eyes snapped to Keith's downcast face as she pulled away suddenly. "Did you have sex with her?" Allura was blunt in her question seeing that Keith was only torturing himself in getting the words out.

Keith's eyes were wide as he turned to face her, and his hand went to cup her face as he emphatically said, "No! No! Not that she didn't try, but…" He paused and took a deep breath. "….I did kiss her."

Allura never broke eye contact with Keith as she reached up to take his hand in hers. "Kissing her was a part of escaping?"

"Yes." It came out as no more than a whisper.

Knowing that Keith would never willingly betray her with anyone, she asked the only question she could to relieve his tension. "If I was captured by Lotor, and I kissed him because it was part of my escape, would you hate me?"

Dark chocolate eyes searched brilliant blue ones. "Never. It wouldn't mean anything."

"Did the kiss you shared with the other Allura mean anything?"

"Besides the guilt I felt at doing it? No." He disengaged his hand from hers and reached to caress her face once more.

"Then let it go, Keith." Reaching up to take the hand that was caressing her face, she stated, "In this other universe, I hurt you. I tried to kill you."

"Yes and no." Keith looked away. "Yes, you hurt me in some ways, but you didn't try to kill me." He looked back at his wife and realized that she would learn the full truth sometime. He had just hoped it wouldn't have been tonight. "I'll tell you everything about what happened with the other Allura if you want. I would rather not talk anymore about her on our wedding night. However, if you need to hear it all tonight, I'll tell you."

Allura saw the reluctance in his eyes. She wanted to know, but not at the cost of tainting what had been a perfect day so far. "No, not tonight. I've heard enough; I won't let her taint this day. Just as I promised you after the Right of Challenge, you're all mine now. Forget her for tonight." Leaning over, she let her fingers trail down his bare chest. "Let me help you forget her." As her lips touched his shoulder, her eyes sparkled with passion as she looked up at him.

Drawing in a deep calming breath, he said, "She's already forgotten." Leaning over, he tilted her face up to his and claimed her lips again. Tomorrow would be soon enough to explain the details of what had happened. He was free from the other universe. He was free from the prophecy. The spirits of Arus held no more claim over him as the One. Tonight was theirs and the future was theirs to determine.

To be continued in Hell Hath No Fury...