Five

Allura sighed heavily. She always knew that one day she would have to marry - but not like this. She had always envisioned her wedding to be like a fairy tale. She guessed that all girls dreamed that their wedding would be as such. Her mother weeping with joy as her father walked herdown the aisle. The entire kingdom there witnessing and watching. Then the celebration afterwards and then she and her new husband would go off on their honeymoon. There was always a romantic aura about it. Even after her parents died there was always that royal wedding hovering in the back of her mind. It was not uppermost for she had to think of other things such as defending her planet, but it was always there. It did not help when Coran and Nanny would always remind her of her duty to marry - to provide an heir. Everytime she went off in Blue Lion to fight, she knew that their hearts were in their throats, wondering if she would ever return. And then after Lotor started to pursue her, the pressure to marry was even greater, especially in the last few years. Nanny had kept telling her that she was no longer a young girl - as if twenty-two was so great an age! Coran had even hinted that if she desired, she could marry Keith! He could be made a knight and thereby became eligible to marry into the Royal family. But she had ignored Coran's hints. She loved Keith dearly and at one time, had romantic feelings towards him. She had also felt that he had them for her. But they had worked too closely as a team and they would have jeoparized the intrigrity of the Votron Force if they had pursued the relationship. Then when the Force disbanded and Keith went to another command, the opportunity was lost. Allura didn't feel she had the right to call him back simply because she wanted him there.With Keith, duty would always come first. She did not resent that. She understood it very well, for she always had to keep that in mind, being a ruler of a planet that needed her. And then there was always Lotor. He had pursued relentlessly. There were times when his plans to destroy Voltron had nearly killed her. Then he would turn around and try to trap her into marrying him again. She did not know what she had done to incite his passions - or did she? Did he sense her attraction to him even when she vehemently denied it - even to herself? She had always told herself that a union with him was impossible, for he was cruel, ruthless - the total opposite of she. He frightened her with his passion. Perhaps it frightened her because she had always been protected from such things and taught restraint in her own upbringing. Lotor had no such restraint. And now, what was he? He had carried his hate and rage at Voltron throughout the long three years after the Fleet defeat.
She had visited him in secret when he was recooperating in the Alliance prison hospital. He did not know she was there. She had held his hand - his real hand in hers and sorrowed for his loss. He had been swathed in bandages and she could only see the one side of his face. To her he looked like a small boy who was hurt and needed to be comforted. She remembered that a part of her rejoiced that he was alive. Perhaps he would change his ways and see that the ways of his father had only given him grief.But he had not changed. His hate for Voltron and his love for her only grew. He was convinced that she belonged to him. And now?
She looked down at herself. She was arrayed in virgin white - Zarkon's idea of a joke, she thought. Now Lotor was awaiting his death at his father's orders, the entire Alliance was under Zarkon's control, and she was getting married to the self same man. She was still in shock over everything. It all happened so fast. Everything blown away and all because of the plottings of one man.
She was thankful her father was not here to see this. This was the last thing he would have ever wanted for her.She closed her eyes as the slave attending her made some final touches to her hair. Allura really didn't care how she looked. Nothing could make her feel good about this. She couldn't let people suffer because of her. If she could spare them all one bit of pain by doing this, shewould - even though her heart quailed at the thought of her father's honored name being linked with his. Already she felt like a prostitute - for he used her like one. Perhaps that was his intent. If it was, then it was working, even though she would never let him know that. She shivered at the thought of being with him again. He assured her of this. In fact, he had promised that he would give her something to release her passions to where she could deny him nothing. The thought of her actually responding in kind to his touch made her ill. To resist was one thing, but to accept and crave was another.
A few moments later she was escorted in. As if it were a horrible parody of her wedding fantasy, she saw instead of a handsome groom, Zarkon. Instead of the priests of her world, there was Hagar, sullen and angry. The nearest thing to her father was Coran, and he stood in mute silence, as did Lotor beside him. She felt as if she were stepping into her grave. No..that wasn't so. For at least if she were dying, she would know no pain or suffering. In this, she would suffer as would the ones who loved her. She saw Zarkon's gloating smile and remembered how he had forced words of love from her this very morning. He seemed to take great pleasure in hearing such things from her lips, even if he had to force it from her - which he did. She was led to stand beside him and smiled a hideous smile at her.

He said, "Ah, my beauteous bride is here! Shall we begin, my dear?" She only glared at him and he said, "You best not consider backing out, my dear - " He barked at one of his guards and gestured at Coran. "Break one of his bones! I care not which!"

Allura yelled, "No!" Zarkon restrained her. The guard went over to Coran, who was getting over the effects of the stun, took his arm and twisted it brutally. Allura heard the sickening snap of bone as Coran groaned in pain. Lotor stood by mute and watched. He knew in his heart that he wouldn't had hesitated to do the same, but it shamed him a little to think that he could do that very same thing - he who prided himself on being different than his father.Zarkon gripped her arm and barked at Hagar. "Let us begin this!" Hagar nodded and without another word, began the ceremony.

Let The Fun Begin - Six
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