Just as she had suspected, Keith listened to Shiro. Allura supposed she should be annoyed-Keith respecting the wishes of the guy he'd just met recently over his own sister-but at least he was finally convinced to stay underwater.

She couldn't say that she was satisfied though.

Keith was sulking more than usual, which wasn't surprising, but she hated to see it. The fact that Keith needed to keep his relationship secret from her, the fact that he felt she was the one holding him back from happiness...it stung. And it didn't help that he was right, in a way. But, it wasn't her fault! He could have just gone out to see a nice merman, she wouldn't have minded that!

But what worried her more was that Keith didn't seem to be bouncing back. Of course she expected him to be upset, but eventually he had to move on. It had already been weeks since he'd split with Shiro, but all he'd been doing since then was sulking in his room, wanting nothing than to just lay in his bed and only come out reluctantly to eat or some other absolute necessity. It was such a jarring shift from how Keith usually was that Allura couldn't help but be alarmed. She wasn't being impatient, was she?

Allura sighed as she got up from her desk, stretching herself out and deciding to go for a swim around the palace. She let her mind wander for a few minutes, which was soothing, until she passed by Keith's room. She paused, wondering if she should go check on him. With a sigh, Allura slowly reached out to turn the handle and peeked inside.

As predicted, Keith was lay he in bed, facing away from her. The only movement was the idle floating of his tailfins, and Keith running his fingers along the chain sitting around his neck. If he heard her coming in, he didn't react.

"Keith," Allura began carefully. "Don't you think you should get out a little, get some exercise?"

"No thanks." Keith muttered quietly.

"A-Alright, well, maybe get something to eat? You're probably hungry after that tiny dinner you had yesterday."

"No, I'm fine."

Allura's heart sunk. She leaned away from the door and wrung her hands together worriedly. "Keith, I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I never wanted to make you unhappy."

"It's okay, Allura," Keith replied hoarsely. "I'm not blaming you."

Allura gulped, but had nothing left that she could say to him. "I...I'll send Coran to come check on you later." Then she swam away, leaving him lying there.

"I'm worried about him, Coran," Allura said as she paced around the room. "He hasn't left his room in weeks, this isn't like him."

Coran was floating loyally in the corner of the room, watching her swim around. "Well, milady, he is grieving," the man replied. "He just needs more time and support, that's all."

"Ugh, I hate this," Allura muttered. "He was so happy, Coran, I've never seen him so excited to see someone before. He finally had a-a friend, something he could look forward to every day." She sunk down into her chair and rested a cheek on her hand. "I wish I didn't have to take that from him."

"Yes, it is sad," Coran agreed. "If only he could change into a human at will, then there would be no danger."

Allura nodded, and continued to sit there quietly.

But, something about Coran's wishful thinking rung a bell. It sounded impossible, but she felt like she'd read that before, somewhere. Slowly, Allura sat up straighter, before swimming out of her hair and toward the door.

Coran looked up curiously and began to follow. "Where are you going, Allura?"

"The the castle library," Allura replied. "I think...there might be a solution to this."

Lance pulled into the dock, and and started tying his boat down, like he always did at the end of the day. He'd gotten a decent amount of fish today, now it was time to deliver some of it to the palace and the rest to the market.

Things had been a little tense between him and Pidge ever since the merman/poacher incident, so visits to the palace were always quick. Today, however, Pidge and Hunk were both waiting for him at the door, Pidge was crossing her arms as she stared him down.

Lance raised an eyebrow at them. "Here's the delivery," he said, placing it into Hunk's arms. "I'm...gonna go back now."

"Wait, Lance," Hunk called out. "Come back, man, you've been acting weird for ages."

Lance turned around and heaved a sigh. "Look, you guys, I'm sorry, okay?" He said to them. "I've been feeling really bad about what happened. It's all my fault that I blabbed."

Pidge's face softened.

"And I just, I dunno," Lance shrugged. "I know you guys blame me, Prince Shiro probably doesn't want to see me. I'm not going to force my presence on anyone."

"Oh, cut the moody crap, Lance." Pidge snapped. "Of course we still want you around. You're going to make your market delivery and then come back here to have lunch with us. No questions asked." With that, she turned on her heel and marched back inside.

Hunk blinked. "Well. You heard the lady. Hurry back, okay?"

"Uh," Lance stammered. "Okay." He said goodbye to Hunk and then turned to make his way toward the marketplace. On the way, he thought back to what Pidge had said, and a soft smile slowly crossed his face.

"We can change you."

Keith stared at the book in his hands, dumbfounded. He looked up at Allura, then back at the book. "M-Malfun's Magic can do this?" he manage to ask.

"Yes." Allura responded. "It is a choice that you can make. I strongly advise against it, but..." she paused, taking a breath. "If it will make you happy, Keith, I can do this for you."

Malfun's Magic can turn merfolk into humans. Malfun's. Magic. Can turn merfolk into humans. How long had Allura known about this? Why hadn't he known about this?

Keith flipped through the old book, skimming through its history. Malfun's magic, used in experiments after the war. Trying to establish communication with humans on the surface. Only a few of the later experiments worked before the whole operation was shut down. Only a monarch could re establish it and use the magic again. Only they were allowed to know this.

Keith was shaking. "I-can I see the chamber?"

Allura glanced at Coran, but then nodded, and the three of them promptly left the Palace to go find the chamber. Keith could see it in the distance, dark and looming.

"Keith," Coran began as he swam next to them. "You have to understand. If you go through with this, it will be permanent. You'll never be able to come back. You'll be in a whole new world, with a whole new body."

Keith didn't respond. Allura led them both toward the dark chamber, and they pushed the huge stone door aside. It was even darker on the inside, until they reached the end of the hall and found the abandoned experimental room, w huge hole in the ceiling to let in the light.

"You would have to sit inside that giant sphere over there," Allura explained, pointing as she spoke. "According to the book, the monarch is to place their hands on the orb and focus, while reciting the spell. Then, you will change, and float to the surface...if all goes well." She turned to Keith nervously. "Keith...are you sure you want this."

Keith looked around the chamber and thought over her words, heart pounding. He took a deep breath and turned to them. "Allura, Coran..." he spoke softly. "You guys are my family. You've given me everything, and I couldn't be more grateful." He paused. "But, you know better than anyone that there's nothing for me here. I'm not a prince, and nobody wants to treat me like one. I'm resented by basically everyone except you." He gulped. "This...this is my chance to start over, with someone I love. Please don't take this the wrong way, but...I've got nothing to lose. I want to do this."

"If the experiment fails, Keith, I don't know what might happen," Allura warned him. "Best case, you'll never be able to swim again. Worst case..." she didn't finish.

Keith took a deep breath. "Allura. Please. We have to try."

Allura glanced at Coran, then back at Keith, then finally nodded slowly. "Alright. If that's what you want. Get in the orb."

Keith did as she said, slipping tentatively into the bubble. The swishing of the waves immediately quieted in his ears, and he tensed. His heart was pounding, as he didn't know what exactly would happen, but he'd made his decision. Whatever happened, it was all on him.

Coran was saying something to Allura that Keith's couldn't hear, comfortingly placing a hand on her shoulder. Keith turned to face them, nodding to indicate that he was ready.

Allura carefully studied the open pages in front of her, making sure she had everything right. Then, she slowly swam over to the orb and pressed her palace against it. Everything in Keith's vision started glowing blue, and he closed his eyes in anticipation.

At first, it was nothing. Just a dull vibrating in his tail, then a slight ache. Then Keith gasped as he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his tail, travelling upward to his waist as if it was splitting him in half. Keith cursed under his breath and tried not to scream. He'd chosen this, he'd chosen this. Allura couldn't stop now.

He held on for a few more minutes, the pain threatening to knock him out, when it all stopped. Keith fell backward into the small puddle of water at the bottom, breathing heavily. The orb had gone completely solid, draining out most of the water so that he could breathe. He couldn't feel anything below his waist, and the rest of his body throbbed. Vaguely, through the walls, he could see Allura faint into Coran's arms.

He wasn't sure if it had worked, and he didn't have the energy to check. The orb rocked slightly, making him queasy, and then started floating upward through the hole in the ceiling. They were going up to the surface.

Keith took a few deep breaths and, while they slowly travelled upward, claimed himself down. The pain was fading away, and he could feel pins and needles in his...legs?

Keith pushed himself into a sitting position, and finally looked over his new form. His red tail was gone, replaced instead with a couple of twigs covered in pale, dry skin. He blinked slowly, reaching down to feel that they were actually there. He couldn't believe that these things were actually attached to him. He tried bending his knees and wiggling his toes a little. It worked. It actually worked. Keith turned his face toward the outside, to see Coran accompanying him up, supporting a weakened Allura with his arm. Both of them wore excited smiles.

Keith smiled right back, forgetting his earlier pain and instead looking up toward the approaching surface. I'm coming, Shiro.

Shiro had more or less been living day to day since Keith's departure. He's switched his daily walks to the beach for walks in the garden instead, and, while he wasn't as sad as before, there was still a heaviness to the way he did everything these days. It didn't matter, though. He could handle being a bit lonely if it meant Keith was safe.

His friends were a nice comfort as well. They'd all been supportive, even if Lance was being a little too apologetic and distant. He enjoyed eating lunch with them, and listening to them talk about whatever was on their minds.

Right now, Pidge was seated at the table, looking impatient for Lance to show up, while Hunk and Matt were discussing something in the corner. Shiro said nothing, amused at Pidge's odd but obvious attachment to Lance that was currently on display, and just continued eating away at his lunch.

After a few minutes, there was a knock on the door and Matt went to open. Lance walked in a couple steps, looking pale, then paused.

Pidge stood up in her seat immediately. "What took you so long? I've been waiting forever!"

Lance opened his mouth, then closed it, looking like a fish, then opened again. "Um...I was freaked out by something. A giant...ball just popped out of the ocean."

Everyone was quiet. Shiro raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"A giant sphere. An orb. I didn't touch it or see what was in it, I just saw it come up out of the water and float toward the beach."

Something inside of Shiro twisted with worry, and he stood up. "Let' go check it out."

"Wait, by ourselves?" Hunk asked. "What about lunch?"

"I need to know what's going on out there. Matt, come with me."

Matt quickly fell into step behind Shiro, and the rest of the teenagers tagged along. Shiro pushed open the palace doors and strode down the familiar path to the beach. He could see what Lance was talking about soon enough. A giant orb, heading slowly over to the beach, and they would be there to meet it.

It hadn't seemed like anyone else had been alerted about this giant orb just yet. Motioning for Matt to follow, Shiro stepped into the water, not at all caring if he got wet. The others followed. Matt reached out and stopped the floating orb in its place, standing in front of Shiro.

The orb was all fogged up on the inside, and something was definitely inside of it. When the orb stopped, whatever was inside started shuffling around. A hand pressed itself to the edge, wiping the fog away...

Shiro almost fainted.

Keith's face stared out at them from inside, smiling instantly when he saw Shiro. There was something different about the way he was moving, but Shiro was too busy wondering what the heck was going on, or if he was dreaming.

Lance and Pidge were yelling something in the back, but he didn't hear. His mouth was currently hanging open as he shakily reached out to touch the sphere, slightly annoyed that he couldn't touch Keith's face.

"Ahem," Allura's sharp voice spoke, pulling Shiro out of his reverie. She and her red-headed servants brought their heads barely above water, just enough to speak. "If you don't mind, that orb is going to be open soon, and we'd like to get him to shore."

Shiro found his voice at last. "What's going on...?"

"Keith decided he wants to stay with you," Allura said rushedly. "So we pulled a few strings. Let's get to the shore and you'll see for yourself.

Shiro and Matt glanced at each other and Shiro nodded. "Okay." They all stepped out of the way and allowed the orb to continue its path, walking alongside it. Keith was waving excitedly at Shiro the whole time, and Shiro couldn't help but smile at him.

The bubble began to dissolve as it got closer to shore, and Shiro reached inside to grab Keith before he fell too far into the water. Right way, he realized why Keith had been moving so awkwardly before.

"He's human!" Pidge squeaked.

"He's naked!" Lance cried in horror. Matt quickly slapped his hands over Pidge's eyes, making her yell.

Shiro, still speechless, looked Keith up and down, blushing only a little before looking back up at his smiling face. "Y-you're not a merman anymore."

"Surprise," Keith replied, pulling closer to Shiro. "Allura did a little magic on me. It's permanent."

"Wh-seriously? Keith, are you sure about this?"

"Shiro, I've never been more sure of anything in my life," Keith said. "And it's not like I can go back now anyway."

"Ok, hold on!" Lance squeaked. "This is all very touching but we can't go on like this-the guy is fucking naked! Hunk, give me your apron, for God's sake."

Shiro snorted as Lance splashed over with his own jacket and Hunk's apron, throwing them at Keith to use as a makeshift loincloth. He laughed joyfully, unable to fully believe that this was happening but not complaining in the slightest. Putting an arm around Keith, he slowly helped him stand up, steadying him as he stumbled.

"Crap," Keith whispered. "I don't know how to use these darn things."

Shiro chuckled. "Don't worry, you'll get used to walking soon enough. Come on, let's get you back to my palace and get you cleaned up."

Pidge immediately fell into step next to Keith and began bombarding him with questions. "Hi! Remember me? I was on the fishing boat you destroyed! I'm so glad to meet you for real, I have so many questions! What's your underwater kingdom like? How did you change yourself into a human? How do merfolk reproduce? How can you breathe in both air and water? How-"

"Pidge," Shiro cut her off. "Relax, you'll have plenty of time to talk to him later."

"Oh man, you really are skinny," Hunk mused. "Are you okay with eating fish? We've still got a ton of it left over, you look hungry."

"Uh," Keith blinked, blindsided by all the sudden attention. "Yeah, I'm fine with that."

"Hey," Lance piped up next. "You know, you owe me a new boat."

"Sorry."

They continued hounding him, but he didn't answer, instead digging his toes in the sand and looking back at the ocean. "Sh-Shiro, wait." He said, stopping the other in his tracks. "I...I haven't said goodbye to Allura and Coran."

Shiro's eyes widened, and he turned to start guiding Keith back to the sea. The two merfolk in question were still there, seemingly watching them walk away. Shiro's friends watched in awe as Keith detached himself from Shiro and managed to stumble his way over to them.

Allura had obvious tears in her eyes but wasn't letting them fall. Keith, on the other hand, got choked up right away. "Allura, Coran, I...can't begin to thank you enough. For everything."

Allura sniffed. "N-no need for that, Keith, you know I'd do anything for you."

"Just be sure to take care of yourself, alright?" Coran said softly. "I'm going to miss you, lad."

"I'll miss you too," He pulled them both into a hug, taking a deep breath to keep from getting too emotional.

When he pulled away, Shiro was there to steady him again. Allura turned to him with a stern look. "Now you take care of him, alright?" She snapped. "If you don't, I'll sic the wrath of the entire ocean on you, got it?"

"Yes, ma'am," Shiro responded with a slight bow.

Allura seemed appeased, and slowly, Shiro and his friends carried Keith away, toward the palace where they'd begin their new life together. Coran placed a gentle hand on Allura's shoulder, and they both disappeared underwater to go home.

Shiro had handed Keith over to the palace servants to get cleaned up, and now he was pacing around impatiently, waiting for his boyfriend to return. Hopefully they weren't giving him too hard of a time. How would Keith react to the human world? What if he hated it here and only stayed for Shiro?

No, he shouldn't worry. He and Keith would be happy together, he'd make sure Keith had everything he could ever want or need. Keith deserved it.

Soon, the door to the next room opened and out stumbled Keith, supported by one of the lady servants, hair brushed and styled and wearing a bright red suit. Shiro's heart skipped a beat. Keith was still gorgeous.

Keith managed to take a couple steps and grabbed hold of Shiro's hands with a smile. "Hi," he said breathlessly. "How do I look?"

"Amazing," Shiro replied sincerely. He turned to the lady servant. "Thanks, Colleen, I'll take it from here." He nodded at her as she left, and then turned back to Keith. "I...still can't believe you're actually here."

"Me neither," said Keith. "The air's so dry in the palace."

Shiro chuckled and pulled Keith into a hug. "Does it bother you?"

"I think I can deal with it."

Shiro kissed the top of Keith's head affectionately, and held him for just a moment. "Come here, let me show you something."

He led Keith to a window on the opposite side of the room, overlooking the marketplace. "Look at this."

Keith's eyes widened as he stepped closer to the glass. "Oh wow. Is this your kingdom?"

"Part of it," Shiro smiled proudly. "Maybe tomorrow I can take you on a tour, walk you through the market, get whatever you want. You're going to love it here, Keith, I know it."

Keith stared at the landscape a little bit longer. Then he turned to look up at Shiro, eyes fond and smile soft. "I already do."

-Fin-

Hey everyone! Thank you so much for reading this story, I really appreciate it. Any comments and feedback would make me very happy, and if you enjoyed the fic, be sure to go read my high school Sheith AU, Crush Course.

Thanks again! 3