Road Trip

To any of my Hardy Boys' fans, I am working on my next story! This one just isn't it! ;-)

A fun little story I wrote for the Voltron Gift Exchange for December. The prompt was to write about members of the Force taking a road trip. Actually, I can't remember the exact wording now, but that's close. ;-) Hope you enjoy it. It is a one shot.

As always, I don't own any of the characters. Rating is T. Setting is my fav: DotU.

"Did you see it, Coran!? Did you see!?" Allura was practically skipping in delight as she rushed into Castle Control.

Lance looked up from his monitor and noted the sudden drooping of Coran's head and the sigh that was easy to hear.

"See what, my dear?" he asked calmly as he opened his eyes and kept them trained on the screen in front of him.

Lance began to smile and leaned back in his chair and watched the scene play out before him.

Allura began clapping. "Palanga is reopening their scenic and cultural wonders' locations and exhibits!"

Lance's smile faded a little. He enjoyed a beautiful vista and sunset as much as the next person but he wasn't usually this excited over them. "And what's so special about them, Princess?"

Allura spun and turned her beaming smile upon him. "They are a glorious memory from my childhood!" Her exuberance dimmed a little. "The city of Palanga was known far and wide for its beauty and – "

"Ability to sucker unsuspecting tourists into paying hard-earned money for nonsense," Coran finished with a frown on his face.

Lance chuckled as Allura turned back quickly to her royal advisor.

"Coran! How can you say such things?"

"On Earth they're known as 'tourist traps,'" Lance said with a smile.

Coran considered the phrase and added, "Appropriate terminology."

Folding her arms over her chest, Allura said, "They're beautiful and interesting."

Lance had to strain to hear Coran's response. "To an eight year old girl."

Sensing that there could be some fun had here, Lance casually said, "Perhaps you'd like to take the Force to visit some of these places, Princess."

"Yes, that is a wonderful idea, Lance," Allura said with a smile and then turned a less than happy gaze at Coran. "Some people seem to understand that taking in the local beauty and culture is worthwhile." With a slight upward tilt of her head, Allura walked quickly from the room.

Coran sighed.

Lance laughed and said, "How bad can it be, Coran? Obviously it can't be that bad. Allura loves it."

This time Coran laughed. "I'll see if you still feel that way after visiting the Kaleidoscopic Caves, the House of Unsettled Stomachs, and the Two-Headed Gnarfang."

Lance's smile dropped. "That's the wonderful stuff she wants to show to us?" he asked incredulously. "Sounds like a carnival freak show." He shook his head. "Is there is anything that we'll actually like?"

"Well, the views from the Lovers' Demise are lovely at sunset," Coran said after only a moment's pause.

"What it sounds like is that Arusians need to work on their naming of things."

Coran chuckled again, "I think you will find the names most appropriate Lance." The men returned to their work and then Coran added, "Make sure you take something with you to ward off nausea."

Lance stopped his typing and stared at the royal advisor. However, Coran didn't look his way but continued on with his scans of Arusian space.

It can't be that bad, can it? Lance asked himself and finally decided that he might have made a bad decision in telling Allura to take the Force. However, a small smile stole over his face. It might be interesting to see Keith around those kind of attractions. He went back to his work.

Keith looked at Allura's hair blowing in the wind as their land speeder rushed over the Arusian plain and then gave a quick glance behind to see the second speeder keeping pace. He knew that it was Lance's maneuvering that had him in the speeder with Allura. Well, that and he would have insisted anyway as he felt responsible for her safety. But that didn't mean that one of the others couldn't have ridden with them. Instead, the other three Force members all politely said they'd like to ride together. Suspicious.

Coran had warned him about the kitsch of the places they were going to visit and he had prepared himself accordingly after checking into the Castle databanks about the sites. He smiled slightly. If Lance thought he was going to pull one over on him, then he'd have to do something better than this.

"Oh, Keith! This brings back so many fond childhood memories," Allura's voice brought him back to the moment.

"Did the king and queen enjoy visiting Palanga?" he asked politely. Coran had already told him that Alfor and Eleanor had only gone with Allura once to the sites. Other times, Nanny had accompanied the young princess. Keith had thought Nanny would beat his door down when she learned about the trip but instead he had had to seek her out and she had told him unequivocally that she would not be attending. He had been unable to pry the reason why from her but Coran had said she had become violently ill after her last trip and swore she would never set foot in the House of Unsettled Stomachs again. Keith smiled to himself.

"Um, well, they came once." Allura turned to look at the scenery passing by. "Royal duties kept them busy."

"I'm sure," Keith said with the smile on his face. Hopefully all of his Terran and Arusian precautions would keep him from succumbing to the miseries that sometimes accompanied visitors to the sites.

"There!" Allura said excitedly. "That's our first stop!"

Keith didn't need her direction as he knew where they were going and he wondered if there would be any surprises at the first stop. It was actually the tamest of the tourist sites they would visit. But then, it was often the simple things that could cause problems….

The Amazing Two-Headed Gnarfang

"This is the one I really want to see!" Pidge exclaimed as he jumped from the speeder. "You know we had Gnarfangs on Balto. Amazing creatures. The blue and white fur with the single horn. It really was like the Terran fabled unicorn except bigger."

Keith listened to Pidge recite all the information again about the Gnarfangs on Balto. The youngest Force member and Allura had spent at least two hours talking about the similar characteristics of Gnarfangs on the two planets. Lance had fallen asleep and Hunk had just ignored them. When Keith had asked Coran about the Gnarfang, he said that the one that Allura had seen had been a true Gnarfang with two heads but he would have been surprised if had was still alive after all these years.

The proprietor beamed with pleasure at having the princess and the Voltron Force at his establishment. There were a number of people visiting the city and people were coming and going with no problem but Keith scanned the crowd to make sure that things were as Coran had said they would be. As usual the royal advisor was correct. He felt a hand slap him on the back.

"Ready to see the sights?" Lance asked as he stepped up beside Keith.

Keith let his arms fall to his sides as he stepped forward away from his second in command. "If it makes the princess smile and there's no danger involved, I'm all for it."

"If Coran is to be believed, how dangerous can an old gnarfang be?"

Keith shook his head. "I hate it when you say things like that."

"What?" asked Lance.

Keith just shook his head and moved up to stand behind the princess who was trying to pay their way into the building.

The proprietor was shaking his head vigorously no. "I will not accept your money, Princess. It is my honor and the honor of all those of Palanga to give you and the Force our gratitude. This is but a small token."

"Well, if you insist," Allura said as she slowly pulled the bills back toward her.

"I do indeed. And you will find that the other owners will as well."

Allura sighed, "Thank you, Carstan."

The man bowed slightly at the waist and gestured them inside.

Keith moved in front of the princess and let his hand fall to the blaster strapped on his thigh. While Coran had vouched for the security of the area and the fact there were no sightings of Drules anywhere in the area, he still felt the need to be cautious. It was his nature after all. His eyes worked to adjust to the dim lighting inside and his heartbeat increased as he felt Allura take his arm.

"It's darker inside than I remember," she whispered as they moved down the dim corridor.

"Carstan said that the gnarfang is not feeling well and may not be very active," Pidge said with a voice that indicated he was saddened by that information.

"I can't believe they feed the thing a whole cow every day," Hunk said they neared the entrance.

Lance was bringing up the rear and said, "What did you eat, Hunk?" as he fanned the air in front of his face.

"It's not Hunk or what he ate," Keith called back. "It's coming from the room with the gnarfang."

Allura had pulled out a dainty handkerchief that nanny had given her and was holding it to her nose. "I don't remember it smelling this way as a child." She clung tighter to Keith's arm as they entered the room.

The gnarfang was sitting propped up against the far wall. Its blue furry belly was marred with a brownish substance that gave some indication of what the reeking smell was. One blue and white head was leaning against the wall while the other was on its chest. Keith was trying to determine if the heads looked more like a giraffe or deer when a rumble sounded and the beast let out a large amount of gas.

Keith didn't have to urge anyone out as the group ran for the front of the building and fresh air. It felt to him as if they were trying to outrun an explosion and as he considered it, they kinda were.

As the group ran into the fresh Arusian air and gasped, Carstan came up to them. "Is there a problem? What's wrong?"

"The problem is it smells like shi-" Lance began to explain when Allura stepped in front.

"The gnarfang was just not feeling well. We felt it best to leave as quickly as possible," she said with a weak smile. "Does he get out much? Into the fresh air, I mean?"

"Usually he spends just a few hours in the morning and a few hours in the afternoon in the exhibit. But while he's been sick, he's been inside more. The local animal control officer checks on us once a week."

Allura nodded and then put the handkerchief to her nose. "And the… smell doesn't bother you?"

"Smell?" Carstan asked truly puzzled.

Lance snickered and Allura continued. "Yes. There was a strong odor…."

"Ahhhh. Yes. The sickness causes it but gnarfangs have never been pleasant smelling beasts. I take a local remedy to dull my sense of smell each morning. I don't notice at all."

"It might be good to offer that to your visitors," Hunk grumbled in a voice just loud enough for Keith to hear.

"Well, thank you, Carstan. It was a… pleasant visit," Allura said as the group moved away from the building where the smell continued to waft from.

"Come back anytime."

"Not in this lifetime," Lance said quietly with a laugh as the group walked away.

"Don't judge the exhibits on this one alone. You'll see. You'll love them." Allura said with a brighter smile as they moved back toward the speeders.

"Well, the rest have to be better than that," Hunk said as they climbed into the speeders. His face was still slightly green.

The House of Unsettled Stomachs

The house ended up looking more like an abandoned barn. While the exterior was showing extreme need of maintenance, the interior didn't look damaged. It was so intact that Keith asked the proprietor about it.

The woman, whose name was Nannette, leaned in closer and whispered to him. "It's part of the secret of the exhibit, but since you're the Voltron Commander I think our secret is safe with you."

She winked which unsettled him a little as her hand had slipped from his shoulder and was wandering lower and lower on his back. However, he wanted to learn this secret and if her hand strayed too far then he'd just step away. "What is the secret?"

"The exterior of the house is a shell that sits over the interior cube. The exterior is completely independent of the interior except for a couple of stabilizing beams at the top."

"Ah," Keith said as he looked around and took a step away from her wandering hand. "It makes sense now."

"There's another secret," Nannette said as she stepped forward with her hand reaching lower.

"Um, I'm good with that one," Keith said quickly. "I need to catch up with Princess."

Laughter trailed after him as he quickly reached the group who were chattering away.

"Each room has a different theme," Allura was saying. "Something to startled or disorient."

"Well, that doesn't sound too bad," Hunk said carefully.

"Be careful what—Ayyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!" Lance screamed as the floor dropped five feet once all of them had entered. The sudden drop had sent him and Hunk to their knees while the others had managed to stay on their feet.

"Like I said," Lance continued. "Be careful what you say." He stood and looked at the knee of his jeans that was now torn. "And I just bought these," he muttered.

"Well… that was startling," Allura said with a hand to her chest. The exit to the room was across from them on the now lower level. "Shall we see what's next?" She looked around and so no one making a move to the door. She sighed and said, "I'll go first."

Keith smiled. He would be right behind her but if she wanted to be startled and disoriented, he was going to give her first dibs.

Almost thirty minutes later, they exited the building. Ten feet out, Hunk threw up. "I'm going to sit the next one out he said. "My stomach is still feeling unsettled."

In fact, they were all feeling a little unsettled. The tilted floors. The spinning tubes with spiral designs they had to walk through… all left them a little unsettled, even Keith with his attempts to thwart the maladies by taking medicine beforehand.

Keith could hear Pidge whispering behind him.

"If we ever get Lotor we should bring him here. He'd divulge all the Drule secrets if had to go through this."

Hunk whispered back to him. "And you're not done yet."

"You've got a good excuse to sit out. I don't want to hurt Allura's feelings," Pidge said.

Keith smiled as he moved up to where Lance was walking with the princess. He had a great team. No doubt about it.

The Kaleidoscopic Caves

Twenty minutes later three decidedly green space explorers made their way out of the Kaleidoscopic Caves. Lance threw the special glasses to the counter as he passed. Keith had just left his in the cavern not wanting to see the myriad of colors again. His mind went back to the club near the academy that had a disco ball and sometimes used black lights. It had nothing on this place.

"Come on, Lance," Keith said to the still grumbling Red Lion pilot. "We need to get Pidge out into the fresh air."

Allura was right behind them saying over and over again how sorry she was. There had been no earth visitors in the past and Baltans had been in the caves with no problems.

"Pidge, you can open your eyes now," Keith said calmly as they moved into the sunlight outside the cave entrance.

"If it's all the same to you, I'd rather not," Pidge said as he pressed his eyes tightly closed behind his glasses. "I think things may still be spinning and blinking if I open them and then I know that I'll throw up."

"Well, let's get you a seat right over here on this bench," Lance said quickly pulling both Pidge and Keith with him to the seat. "There," Lance said as Pidge sat carefully on the bench and leaned his head back.

Allura was wringing her hands and the proprietor, Veena Na, came quickly to their sides. "Disorientation? Nausea? Vomiting? Incontinence?"

"Whoa! Whoa! Lady," Lance butted in. "Are you saying that all these things happen?" There was a worried tone in his voice. "Because I'm telling you that after that visit with the gnarfang I've had about all I can stand with incontinence for the day."

Veena Na looked at each of the visiting party. "You've seen the gnarfang today? Did you also go into the House of Unsettled Stomachs?"

"Indeed we did," Keith said as he involuntarily put his hand on his stomach.

"Ahhhhh."

Lance put a hand to his head indicating a headache was there or coming on which wasn't going to make his disposition any sunnier. "It sounds like that means something. Care to tell us?"

"The House of Unsettled Stomachs and the Kaleidoscopic Caves should never be visited on the same day." Her head nodded vigorously.

"Why didn't you mention that?" Allura asked as she looked at her teammates who were decidedly not feeling well. "And why do I not seem affected?"

Veena Na pointed back toward the cave entrance. The warning is on the poster. She watched as Lance stalked in that direction. "I assumed you knew of the risks."

"It's in the fine print!" Lance yelled as he returned.

Veena Na was looking concerned. Having the Force and Princess feeling ill after a visit wouldn't do much for promoting more visitors. "I'll have it posted much larger and I'll have the attendants ask each visitor before selling a ticket in the future." She looked to the princess.

"I think that would be very helpful, Veena Na. Now, can you tell me why I was unaffected?"

"People born in this province are not as susceptible as those from other provinces or planets. Before Zarkon's attacks we only had a few off-worlders visit from the Denubian. We didn't know how the caves would affect Terrans." She gave an apologetic glance to Pidge.

"I'm not Terran. I'm Baltan." Pidge still had his eyes shut.

"Ohhhhh!" Veena Na said. "That explains it! Baltans from the southern hemisphere have no tolerance for the lights for some reason. Are you—"

"Yep. Southern hemisphere." Pidge just sighed. "Add that to your sign would you."

"Indeed. Immediately."

"Along with any other races you know have problems," Keith added and then looked to Pidge. "Do you think you can move without throwing up?"

Pidge nodded carefully and cracked one eye open. "If we go slowly."

Lance and Keith stood on either side while Allura assured the proprietress that they would recommend the caves to the castle staff.

But not any visiting Earth generals or dignitaries, he thought to himself.

When they arrived back at the speeder where they left Hunk, they explained what happened.

"Man, this is some road trip," Hunk said as he rubbed his stomach.

Keith saw Allura downcast expression and said, "Why don't the three of you go back to the castle. Allura and I will visit the last attraction and then join you there." Keith looked to Lance and raised a brow. "Unless you'd like to join us and then drive them back?"

"I'm starting to feel gassy," Hunk moaned as leaned back in the speeder.

Lance's face became slightly panicked. "No. No. Let me get them back as quickly as possible. You two go enjoy the last attraction." He hurried over to the speeder and hopped in. "Tell me all about it later." He glanced back to Hunk. "Hang on big guy. I'll have you to the castle in no time."

Keith didn't even get a chance to say anything else before the speeder carrying the three pilots was gone. He turned to Allura. "Shall we go?" With a simple, quiet nod she moved to the speeder and got in.

The Lovers' Demise

Keith and Allura stood atop Mount Bo and looked out over the canyon with a large waterfall. With the sun setting off to the right, shadows fell across the canyon bathing it in dark hues of shadow contrasted with the warm tones of the sunlight on the reddish colored canyon walls. The rumbling of the powerful waterfall reached even to them.

"It's beautiful," Keith said as he gazed on the scene and realized how peaceful it was. He heard a sniff and turned to Allura.

"I'm afraid this is nothing like I planned," Allura said sadly.

"Well, we'll certainly remember it," Keith said lightly and then grimaced as Allura teared up. "Hey, I'm sorry." He put a hand lightly on her arm and was surprised when she moved in to hug him, laying her head on his chest.

"I didn't know all those bad things were going to happen."

He didn't know what to do with his hands and arms. She was the princess but she was also a young woman who was upset. He carefully wrapped his arms around her and patted her back awkwardly. "It's just upset stomachs and headaches. We get worse than that in practice sometimes and you know it."

Allura sniffed again but this time she also laughed as she moved back and crossed her arms over her chest. She gazed at the beautiful sight before her. "You're right. I guess I was just disillusioned."

He waited quietly.

She sighed. "I thought I'd get back a piece of my childhood by coming to these things. But I didn't. Nothing is as I remember." She laughed. "Well, some things are the same but I don't FEEL the same."

Keith chuckled which drew her gaze to him. "Allura that's natural. It's happened to me on earth as well. I've done things as an adult that I did as a child and they brought back fond memories. But they don't feel the same because we've experienced so much more and grown so much. Remember the fun but don't expect to feel like you did as a child. At least not completely." He smiled at her and then looked at the scene before them. They were the only ones on the scenic overlook at the moment. It was like they were the only ones on Arus. "What about this vista? What is its story?"

"Lovers' Demise," Allura said and smiled lightly. "I didn't care for it much as a child so it's interesting that it's my favorite now." She closed her eyes a moment and then said, "It's named for a prince and a commoner who fell in love. Because of their difference in status they were unable to marry. Not wanting to marry anyone but his love, the prince threw himself from the cliff after declaring to all that if he could not marry for love then he would die."

Keith moved uncomfortably. "That was an awful choice. He left the girl he loved behind to grieve for him."

Allura shook her head. "She threw herself from the cliff the next day in grief. They hoped that their sacrifice would change royal laws about marrying."

The two stood in silence for about a minute.

"The laws… they didn't change, did they?" Keith said quietly, his eyes on the waterfall in the distance. The shadows grew deeper as they stood.

"No. They didn't."

They stood awhile longer. He felt the pull of his attraction to her as well as the gulf between their stations. The attraction had always been unspoken while Nanny's displeasure at the commoners consorting with the heir to the throne was quite loud.

"I think it's time to head back," Keith said softly.

Allura looked at the scene and then nodded and turned. She stopped as she moved back along the path and gazed at the overlook and smiled.

Keith looked back at the overlook and then back to the princess. "What is it?"

Her eyes twinkled as if she knew something he didn't. "I don't plan on being bound by those laws any longer."

Keith frowned. "You don't?"

"No," she said as she raised her chin. "I don't."

Keith smiled back. "It's a fight I hope you win, Princess." He wasn't thinking of himself as he said it. After some of Coran and Nanny's behavior toward the princess, he was glad to see that she wasn't going to let them bully her.

Her gaze lingered on him as she said, "I think the reward will be worth it." She turned and walked away.

He stared after her for a moment not sure if he was reading things into her words. He moved to follow her and smiled to himself. Just like Allura, Lovers' Demise was his favorite attraction as well. "Wait up, Princess," he called as he jogged after her. He found himself looking forward to the ride back to the castle. As far as he was concerned, this was the best road trip ever.