"I specifically told her it was too dangerous!" Alfor yelled as he paced the floor in front of now two occupied beds, "Why is it that children are drawn to the things their parents tell them are too dangerous!?" Lance sat between the beds, rubbing the sides of his head. Lotor was ever so slightly sliding down the wall, his head nodding occasionally from his extreme exhaustion.
"PArenting 101: dOn't tell a kid to not dO something, cause thEn they'll think of nOthing but what they're NOT supposed to do." Lotor---whose eyes were barely open---mumbled, his voice cracking occasionally. Zarkon rolled his eyes.
"You aren't a parent though."
"YEah I know. I'm totally nOt a parent."
"That's what I said-"
"Yeesss. I'm nooOtt." Zarkon just stared at him with a bewildered look.
"...you need sleep." Lotor pointed a wobbly finger at him.
"And yoU need to shave off that bEard!" Zarkon raised a brow.
"Are you drunk?" Lotor crossed his arms.
"I am nOt drunk!"
"You're drunk."
"I am not quiznaking drUnk!!"
"Can you tell the time?" He pointed to the clock. Lotor nodded overdramatically, turning to the clock, pointing another wobbly finger.
"I am not quiznaking drunk." Zarkon's hand flew to his forehead.
"Okay. You're going to bed." He held Lotor by the arms and escorted him out.
"Hey! I am the prEsident! I shall be trEAted with respEct! Respect spElt with a 'K!'" Lotor kept blabbing on random nonsense as Zarkon led him to his room. Lance shook his head, closing his eyes. Alfor pursed his lips in concern for Lotor.
"Is he..?"
"He'll be fine." Lance said, "He just needs some sleep." Coran came into the room, looking confused.
"King Alfor, I thought I'd like to let you know, our...special drinks, have gone missing." Alfor and Lance groaned, both smacking their foreheads in sync.
~
"King Alfor..." Doctor Cancer said to him, but keeping his eyes on Allura, "I think something is wrong." Alfor frowned, making his way over. Lance sat in the corner, asleep, with his knees pulled to his chest.
"What is it now?"
"Well I-" Cancer tapped his lip in thought, "I don't know...I've never seen anything like this before." He then looked at Keith confusedly. Alfor rubbed his eyes.
"Please, Cancer, just get to it. I'm extremely tired, and I would desperately like to get this whole thing resolved. I've had enough suspense for one---however many days this has been going on."
"Whatever your daughter did; Prince Keith's health has improved immensely." Alfor stared at him.
"That's a bad thing?"
"That isn't the bad thing. While Keith is getting better, Allura is....well, she's declining." Alfor looked down at his unconscious daughter.
"...isn't Allura just using up her energy to heal Keith?" Cancer slowly shook his head.
"I don't think so. It almost looks more like---she's taking Keith's place; trading her health for his." Alfor's eyes grew wider.
"So Allura's going to end up in a coma?!" Cancer looked away solemnly.
"King Alfor...I looked further into Keith's condition. I'm afraid to say, he-" Cancer pinched the bridge of his nose before continuing, "he wasn't ever going to wake up." Alfor frowned worryingly.
"So...he---you mean..."
"I mean...Keith was going to die. It was inevitable. Or that is, until your daughter did what she did. Allura is saving his life as we speak, but in the process damning herself." Alfor covered his mouth, his head shaking slowly.
"I can't lose her again."
"I'm sorry, there is nothing I can do."
"No, there has to be something!" Lance woke up from Alfor's yelling, "Give her some medicine, put her in a pod, something!"
"Alfor-"
"If my daughter dies, this is on you!" Cancer raises his hands defensively.
"Please, sire-"
"Dad?" Lance rubbed his eyes, "What's going on?" Alfor looked at Lance, hoping he hadn't heard what just happened. He glanced at Cancer before walking over to his son.
"Nothing, Lance. Maybe you should go to bed." Lance mumbled something inaudible---Alfor guessed it was an okay or something along those lines---then Alfor picked him up and carried him to his own room.
~~~
"I'd like to say this now: if I said anything weird last night, I hadn't slept, I was tired, and I am sorry." Lotor said before sitting down at the dining table. Lance smiled smugly, knowing what had actually happened last night.
"You were drunk, Lotor, it's okay." Lotor scoffed.
"I was not drunk."
"Coran's special drinks were missing."
"So?"
"So, no one touches them but Coran."
"And you think that's enough to accuse me of theft?" Zarkon rolled his eyes.
"You said you were the president." He mumbled.
"You talked to a clock as well." Lance added, snickering. Lotor shrunk in his seat.
"Why am I being attacked?!" Alfor watched the three interact with a sad smile. Zarkon took notice of his silence.
"Is something wrong, Alfor?"
"Hm?" He then shook his head, "Oh, no. Thank you for the concern, though." Lance's lips parted, contemplating whether or not he should bring up the other event from last night. All he remembered was the shouting.
"Dad?" He asked hesitantly.
"Yes?" Lance decided to mess with his fork, keeping his eyes fixed on the silver, "Lance, what's wrong?"
"..um, h-how's Allura?" Alfor froze, staring at Lance. "Just---last night, I woke up and heard you shouting." Alfor licked his dry lips and looked away at the same time Lance turned to face him, "Is she okay?"
"Lawrence.." Lance's chest tightened at the sound of his full name, "Your sister did something very stupid. Don't get me wrong; it was an extremely selfless and brave thing of her to do but, very stupid. She was---oh, Lance." He narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Was?" Alfor covered his face, "Dad, what's going on?"
"Allura saved Keith's life," Lotor froze with wide eyes, "by replacing it with her own." Lance stood up, his chair screeching across the floor.
"W-what are yo-" He saw a tear roll down Alfor's cheek, "...Dad?" Lance swallowed the lump that formed in his throat.
"I'm sorry, Lawrence."
"Sh-she's dying?" Alfor nodded, and Lance's vision began to blur. His lip quivered and he fell to his knees. Lotor then got up and knelt down beside him, then looked at Alfor as he placed a hand on Lance's back. Zarkon was already by Alfor's side, pulling him into a hug.
~
I think I'm beginning to wake up.
Good, because I'm getting pretty tired over here.
Har har, but when this whole thing is over, things can go back to the way they were, right?
..even better than before.
Oh, right. Without the whole, tryna kill me and stuff.
Right.
I don't really know how to thank you for bringing me back.
Keep Lance happy for me.
Well, that shouldn't be too hard, you're a good person now, so we can all be happier. I can't think of anything else you could do to hurt him.
I can---think of something.
What?
Keith, when you wake up, I need you to tell Lance and Father...I-I love them very much.
Why do I---need to...wouldn't you just be able tell them?
No, I won't be able to.
I don't understand. When we wake up, you can-
I'm not waking up, Keith.
But then you---wait..you....you're going to die...
You were going to die.
What?! No I wasn't...I'm just, unconscious right now. It's only been a few days since I've been out.
...
Allura?
Keith...it's been three months.
......three months??
Yes.
How has it-
Lance misses you a lot.
...ye-yeah, I really miss him, too.
You need to get back to him. To Lotor. To your father.
But if I do, you won't be able to. You're giving up your own life to save mine.
You did the same for me though, and I didn't even deserve it. You do deserve this.
Allura-
Keith, I need to just say it before it's too late. I'm sorry. For everything. I never got to really know you, I didn't let myself know you. I was too afraid you would betray us. But you wouldn't ever do that; you're so amazing, and selfless, and you make Lance so happy. You really do, and I realize I would do anything to make my brother happy. I just wish I didn't realize that this late. But you are what makes him happy, and I almost took you away. You aren't a monster, Keith. You never were.
Finally, after three months, Keith began to see light.
It's time for me to go.
Allura!
My debt is repaid.
~
It was silent. Keith woke up to a peaceful room. He slowly sat up with a faint groan. Looking around the room, he saw Allura lying next to him. "Allura.." he slid out of bed, but fell to the ground. After being in bed for three months, he was very weak. He clenched his teeth together and dragged himself over to her bed, "Allura!" He pulled himself up so he could sit back on his ankles. He grabbed her arm and shook it, trying to wake her up, "No!" His shoulders shook as his breath hitched. He reached down and held her hand; it was ice cold. Keith let his head fall down onto the bed, crying into the sheets.