The door to Allura's bedchamber opened without the sound of a knock.

Nanny puffed in, her face flushed.  She was livid.

"What's this I hear about you smartmouthing Koran!"  the nurse demanded, placing her hands on her hips in a gesture that Allura was all too familiar with.

The Princess of Arus girded herself for battle.  "He was treating me like a child!"

"No doubt because you were behaving like one," Nanny countered testily. "Have I taught you nothing?  Don't you know to respect your elders?"

"Yes, Nanny, but I find that hard when they won't respect me!"  Allura shot back huffily.

"And what does that mean?"   Nanny folded her arms across her chest and gave Allura a steely stare.

Allura sighed.  "Koran's gone crazy, Nanny. Every time I so much as look at Keith, Koran appears out of nowhere and pulls me away, claiming some lame excuse to talk to me. But I think what he wants to do is get me away from Keith!" She raised her voice in frustration. "The way Koran behaves, you'd think my life were in danger!"

Nanny threw up her hands. "So we are back to this subject again!  Koran was trying to protect you, Princess.  He does not want to see you get hurt."

"Keith would never hurt me!"

Knowing she could not counter that one, Nanny tried another, familiar tactic.  "He is not your equal!"

Allura looked up sharply, passionately. "He may not be my equal by birth, but in all other ways it is I who fall short!"

"He is only a pilot--"

"A pilot," Allura interrupted, her face flushed, "who flew half a million light years away from his home planet to defend a world that is not his own, to combat an insane monster and his diabolical son, and to risk his life for an unimportant little planet in the Azure Quadrant! And he made that decision over five thousand light years away, Nanny, before he met any of us. How can you say he's 'just a pilot!'"

Nanny stared at her.  "You're losing track of the point, Your Highness.  It is true that Keith has done more service than we can ever repay him for, but that is not the issue at hand.  You are a royal princess--"

"I am so sick of hearing that!"  Allura cried.  "You and Koran sound like a broken record-- your excuse for everything is my lineage!  What if I tell you that I don't care?"
 
Nanny's hands flew to her mouth.  "You can't mean that!"  she cried.  "Those words disgrace your honored father, King Alfor!"
 
"No, they do not," Allura disagreed, in a quieter tone.  "Father always urged me to follow my heart.  My heart is with the Voltron Force, Nanny."

"Princess, you don't realize what you are saying--"

"Yes, I do,"  the Princess replied firmly.  "Don't you want me to be happy, Nanny?  I won't be happy marrying some prince from another planet.  I won't be happy leaving Arus.  I want to stay here, and fly the blue lion.  Why can't you understand that?"  She took her nurse's hand.

Nanny looked sad.  "You have great heart, Your Majesty.  I just hate to see it wasted over a silly infatuation--"

"It's not a silly infatuation!"  Allura flared again.  "I love him!"

The minute the words left her mouth she clapped her hand to her lips in consternation.

Nanny drew her breath in sharply.  "Do you mean that?"

Allura thought about it.  Her eyes widened with surprise.  "Yes, Nanny," she said, just as awed as her nurse, "I do."

Nanny's handkerchief appeared in her hand and she dabbed at her forehead.  "Then it is already too late," she whispered, more to herself than to Allura.

"What do you mean, Nanny?"

The nurse did not reply.  She simply turned on her heel.  Before she left, Allura heard her mutter under her breath,  "I must speak to Minister Koran."

"Nanny!"  Allura cried.  "Wait, please!"  But the older woman was gone.  Oh, dear,  the Princess thought despairingly.  What have I done?