Fic: Christmas Surprise
Jul. 16th, 2012 09:38 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
starduchessOkay, I have signed up with fire_juggler for this year's ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
pod_together challenge, which is a collaboration of writers and podficcers (and artists) to produce new stories together, and we decided to make something in the Voltron fandom. I've written one story and a series of ficlets in that verse, but I've never posted them over here. Time to correct that.
Here's the story. Yes, it's a Christmas story. Yes, this is July. Consider it an extra present in the middle of the year. It's pretty much a gen story of friendship and was the very first fanfiction I ever wrote. Please, enjoy!
Title: Christmas Surprise
Author: starduchess
Fandom: Voltron Go-Lion
Pairing/Characters: Voltron team, Coran, Nanny, Lotor (gen)
Rating: PG
Word Count: ~8,500
Warnings: none
Summary: The Voltron team wants to celebrate Christmas but will Lotor allow them to have a merry holiday? Will there be peace on Arus? Total fluff.
Chapter 1: Preparations
"Come on, guys! I think I found it!" Pidge yelled excitedly. The male members of the Voltron team were hiking through the dense forest around the Castle of Lions in search of the perfect tree. Christmas was not normally celebrated on Arus, but after missing the one last year, the three Earth-native pilots had become very homesick. Arus had its own holidays such as a spring flower festival and a fall harvest fair, but nothing quite held the joy of hope that Christmas did. The Doom forces hadn't left much room for elation, but a quiet, simple observance would fit the mood well.
The other members converged on Pidge's location. Most of the trees were very tall whose canopy left little sunlight for smaller trees to grow, and none of the scrubby underbrush would work either. Green Lion's pilot, however, found a clearing where a few older trees had fallen and new pines were growing up in their places.
"This one's a little short," said Hunk about the first sapling that was only a few centimeters taller than Pidge.
"The one next to it is too large," said Keith. "We'd never get it through the Lion tube."
"This one should work, though." Pidge pointed to the third tree a little apart from the others. It was a good height and full foliage.
"Yeah, that should do nicely." Keith said. The others nodded their approval.
The next hour was spent cutting down the tree and carrying it on their shoulders back to Green Lion's launch site. Once there, they debated taking it into the castle now or leaving it in the glen until the late shift. Since Coran was monitoring in the control room at the moment, they decided to leave it for nightfall, not wanting to receive another lecture on proper tube useage. They were out on a false pretense of "handgun target practice over rough terrain" as it were. At least no one asked any questions when they came back smelling of rotten dung and spicy wood tap.
***
Setting up the tree in their pilot's lounge with a bucket of water and some old red cloth Lance found in a back storage closet, the four contemplated the rest of the decorations.
Keith presented his thoughts to the group. "We're going to need lights and some ornaments along with a Nativity underneath. I know of a local stationery owner whom I could persuade to make us some colored wrapping paper if we want to exchange gifts."
"Lights will be easy," Pidge replied. "I'll need more wire, though. Oooh, there's a good glass blower in town that might help us create the ornaments and maybe a star."
"Hmmm. That leaves me with the crèche. Looks like I'll have to find a toy shop for the figurines." Lance winked gleefully at the others.
"Nothing garish, Lance."
"Don't forget the feast and hot chocolate!" cried Hunk with enthusiasm. "I'll convince Nanny to cook us a banquet."
"That all sounds fine. While we're in the village getting supplies, we can shop for gifts too."
"Thinking about getting something for your little lady? She'd look great in a little Santa negligee." Lance teased Keith.
Hsssss. Keith's blood pressure shot up. Dammit, Lance always knew how to rile him up. "No," he said through gritted teeth. "Actually, I was wondering if we all wanted to pitch in together to get her something nice." Maybe Coran and Nanny too, just to be safe.
The youngest pilot came out of technical musings in his head to second that thought. "That would be really sweet." Pidge paused for a second in more thought. "I found an old pocket watch in the ruins outside Keldar last month that I wanted to fix up."
"Yeah, that'll make a great gift for the princess." Lance said sarcastically, rolling his eyes at Pidge's suggestion.
"No, dummy, that can be for Coran. Keith, why don't you find Allura something she would like. But, are we going to get Nanny anything?" He unknowingly mimicked Keith's earlier sentiment.
"Well, I spend more time with her in the kitchen than everybody else, so I'll come up with something." Hunk was always generous with his time.
"Okay, I think that's settled. Let's get some sleep, team, and come back to this tomorrow night with any leads from in town."
Everyone left excited about their activities for the morrow.
***
"Yes, and what colors would you like?" The stationer, who was a small, thin, older gentleman with a balding head but sharp piercing eyes, was deep in a vision of fibers and parchment, dyes and materials. His dry hands sketched out patterns and measurements on a notepad.
"Traditionally, it would be green and red, the fancier ones with gold accents, but also blue and white with silver. Easiest would be a single color; images of trees or snowflakes would be wonderful. Do you have any ribbons or bows we could dress it up with? We can't afford to spend a lot, though."
"Hmmm. Well, single color would be cheapest, although striped would also be simple to do. For repeating patterns I would need to make a stamp first; the more elaborate, the more expensive, of course. Did you bring any examples?"
"No, there aren't any here on Arus and it would be too late to order anything from Earth or other neighboring star systems." Keith attempted to describe the designs while the shop owner drew. "Yeah, those would do."
"Another option would be text in a fine script or block letters. What phrases would be appropriate?"
"Oh, 'Merry Christmas' and 'Joy, Love, Peace' or 'Peace on Earth', or maybe that should say 'Peace on Arus'. Also 'Season's Greetings' and 'Happy Holidays', but I prefer the first three."
The shop keeper scribbled some more. "As for ribbons, we have some plain string and a gauzy white for binding up letters. If there was something more elaborate you want, I suggest the clothier's shop two doors down. Their trim pieces are quite nice."
"Okay, can you give me a quote, and how long would it take?" Keith asked.
The stationer gave him several price options. "The simpler ones would be ready by afternoon two days hence. The more complex ones might take 5 days to a week."
That was a problem. Christmas was only four days away.
"So, I guess we'll go with some plain red and green and at least two sets of striped. Oh, give me one set of block letters too." He wanted something special for the princess' gift.
"Very well, sir. I'll see you in a couple of days."
"Thank you," said Keith humbly. He felt good coming out of the stationer's shop. That had gone better than he'd hoped. The paper would be very nice quality, a little subdued compared to the wrapping paper he'd seen on earth, but refined. He headed two doors over.
Leaving the clothier's store with several yards of embroidered trim as well as a dashing Fedora-style hat for Lance, the commander ran into Pidge. "How are things coming?"
"Oh, great! I picked up lots of wire and the glass blower was intrigued enough by the idea that he may give us a discount! He's going to work on a few now, and after lunch I will stop by again to proof them. Would you like to eat lunch with me, Captain, and then come see the stars?"
"Sure, I'm famished. I've got half my gifts bought already and the holiday paper set. Not sure about Princess Allura's gift. There are lots of options but most of them are lavish and too impersonal."
"Keep going; you'll hit upon just the thing, I know it! And whatever it is, we'll all pitch in."
"Thanks."
"By the way, I couldn't believe Nanny's over-reaction this morning to the tree, calling us barbaric heathens just for cutting down a little sapling. Heck, they have a few odd customs here that I cringe at, like the pig intestines hung over barn doors for luck. Eew!"
"Don't insult their culture," Keith reprimanded his subordinate. "We all have weird quirks and superstitions. Remember the time when you freaked out at the black alley cat who crossed your path, and the natives had no idea what was wrong with you? Keep that in mind while you're here."
"Sorry, Captain."
"As for the tree itself, at least she calmed down and gave us leave to keep it. So, let's not dwell on that anymore."
"Okay."
After lunch, Pidge led the way back to the glass blower's stall. "Oh, hi, young fella, back so soon? I've got a few things to show ya'." The artisan pulled out several small wrapped objects and unfolded them onto the examining desk. A few round globes with different tops and bottoms were presented first. Pidge really liked the elongated teardrops, while Keith stuck with the normal round spheres. Next came the stars and snowflakes. The five-pointed stars were wonderfully made with prism-inducing edges. The snowflakes, however, came out much more muddled. "I admit those are not my best. They would take much more time to perfect."
"That's all right," the young Voltron pilot stated. "We'll just go with the others. Thanks! When will they be finished?"
"By the mornin' of the third day hence."
"I guess we'll be decorating the tree Christmas Eve, then." Keith mentioned.
"Guess so, Captain."
As the two soldiers turned to leave the shop, Keith's eye fell on the star again. An idea formed in his mind. Yes, that would be fantastic. "Why don't you run along now? I've got something else to look into. See you back at the castle?"
"Yeah. Cool."
Keith did a 180 and headed back to the merchant boutiques.
***
Chapter 2: Surprise!
Things were uneventful for the next few days. Everyone finished their shopping and were able to wrap gifs with the beautiful paper Keith picked out. Hunk and Pidge spent a lot of time in the garage working on lights and Nanny's and Coran's presents. Lance even did a little bit of woodworking to build the stable for the crèche scene. The Voltron commander was proud of his team. This was going to be a good holiday at this home-away-from-home. He just wished the peace that was promised would come to this scarred planet.
Christmas Eve Morning dawned with anticipation.
Breakfast was attended with more cheer than had been shown by everyone in the last six months. It even spilled out onto Coran and Nanny. Princess Allura was happy for the change although she was completely lost as to how it came about. The tree had been up for almost a week with no other activity than Nanny's first outburst of horror at such desecration. She looked like she wanted to ask something, but Coran took a moment to remind her of the diplomatic affairs awaiting her today, and the question left her.
The morning was spent in Lion practice and the meal afterward was as usual except that Her Highness didn't join them today. She was busy hosting a luncheon for the visiting dignitaries. Keith thought about the party for tonight and hoped that they could convince her to join them. Actually, that wouldn't be hard for she enjoyed spending leisurely time with her teammates any chance she got. No, it would be convincing Nanny to let the young monarch to stay up past her bedtime, as if Allura was still ten years old.
Sighing with empathy for the princess' plight, Keith turned to the task of making Christmas cookies.
Dinner that night was even more festive. Twinkles of excitement lit up the Voltron team's eyes. Coran was mildly concerned about the jovial mood at the table; there was a war going on, after all, and the soldiers needed to be on guard at all times. Keith gave him a reassuring nod. Nanny was enjoying herself, much to everyone's relief especially when they began listing off the activities for tonight, until Lance finally asked, "So, Princess, would you join us tonight for a rockin' good time?"
Nanny burst out before Allura even had time to process the inquiry. "Heaven's, no! According to your own testimony, this evening's frivolity will be quite inappropriate behavior for Her Highness. You pilots" [Insert 'heathen scoundrels' here, Lance thought.] "can go and have your Terran holiday but don't expect Arusian royalty to partake of such non-sense."
The Voltron team felt deeply insulted, and frankly, so did Allura. "Nanny, you have no right to insult them. They have given up everything to come and protect this planet, and the least we can do is help ease their homesickness. This holiday sounds mostly relaxing and peaceful, and we could use more cheer around this gloomy old castle. Besides, it would be an opportunity for me to learn about other people's cultures and customs, which is necessary if I am to make diplomatic ties to other worlds. The misunderstanding that happened today with the Haldoff delegation is proof of this. I was afraid we'd lost another ally due to my ignorance of their treaty methods. Thankfully, they were forgiving, but I don't wish to repeat the experience."
"Learning about other cultures is indeed useful knowledge to a monarch." Was Coran actually agreeing with her?
"Thank you, Coran."
"Rubbish, this isn't about other cultures; it's just a party," chided Nanny.
"Yes, and these are just my friends who have been risking their lives for you. In my esteem, they've earned a small celebration, and I intend to join them." The Princess of Arus' voice rose to a firm declaration, indignation flooding tension through her limbs.
Nanny fell stunned. She wasn't used to the princess asserting herself on anything outside of flying her Blue Lion.
"Way to go, Princess," Lance said soto voce.
"Yeah, let's go celebrate!"
***
As they all neared the recreation lounge, several ran off to other parts of the corridor.
"Where are they all going?" Allura asked.
"They went to go get the rest of the decorations." Keith explained, leading her into the lounge. He motioned for her to get comfortable on the sofa while he inspected the tree to make sure it had enough water.
The rest of the team returned moments later with their packages. Hunk placed his box on the floor and turned to the control panel built into the east wall. "I put this together for us yesterday." A few strokes of the keys and suddenly an intriguing yet sweet melody consisting of piano and violins sprang from the speakers, then a rich baritone singing:
Chestnuts roasting on an open fire
Jack Frost nipping at your nose
Yule-tide carols being sung by a choir
And folks dressed up like Eskimos…
Pidge looked up and grinned. "Good choice!"
"There's lots more coming." Hunk went back to his large box where the youngest member had started pulling out lots of wires with tiny bulbs everywhere. The two pilots unraveled the strands and began placing them on the tree, starting at the top and spiraling down.
Keith and Lance were unpacking the various glass ornaments. "Wow, these turned out great." Lance handed one to Allura for her inspection. The tear-dropped shape was immaculately formed, with a small red ribbon attached through a hole in the top. She looked at the others that were being placed on the branches.
"These are amazing. Where ever did you find them?"
"We asked the local glass blower to make them," Pidge replied simply.
Out of the corner of his eye, Keith was watching the princess' reaction and was pleased with the awe he saw there.
Once that was finished, Lance handed three medium boxes to his teammates while he hauled up the last big one. Inside was a three-walled wooden structure about a foot and a half tall which Lance placed under the tree. He also carefully unwrapped what looked to be a miniature feeding trough and placed it inside the wooden house.
What in the world? thought Allura. Her brough furrowed in perplexion.
The others had removed from their boxes several cloth dolls: one man in a tan tunic holding a staff, one woman dressed in blue and white, one infant, and one … horse? No, donkey. They positioned the figures in the house with the baby placed on the trough. Allura was even more confused.
Just about that time, Nanny came in with plates of cookies the team had made earlier and mugs of hot chocolate. "Here are the food items you requested, although it would be wise of you, Your Highness, not to eat any of the cookies. There's plenty of sugar in this chocolate."
Allura rolled her eyes and accepted the piping hot mug of liquid. The others followed suit, enjoying both cookies and libation.
"Thanks," said Hunk. "I guess it's time to put the star on top and then light her up!"
Pidge opened the last box and took out a large glass star attached to a glass cone. "Here, Commander, you should have the honor."
"Thanks, Pidge." He brought a chair over to the tree, took the star from his youngest teammate and climbed the chair. He carefully placed the cone over the single straight branch at the top of the tree, making sure it wouldn't fall over after removing his hands. It looked beautiful up there, but he knew in a minute it would be dazzling. He got back down and moved the chair away. "All right, Hunk, let's see her. Lance will you kill the overheads?"
"Sure." Lance waited until Hunk had the ends of the strands near the power outlet before turning off the main lights. It was dark in the room for a few seconds, then little firelights erupted all over the tree. The bulbs illuminated the various branches—-the glow radiating into the room—-but what was truly breathtaking was all the glass. The ornaments reflected light in even more directions, bouncing little slivers everywhere. They seemed to burn with their own inner fire, especially the star on top. Some even acted as prisms, throwing small chunks of rainbow on nearby neighbors.
Everyone stood stunned. "Upon my word…," breathed Nanny. Allura almost dropped her drink; she was overwhelmed by the brilliance. Then, the next song came on and it was a perfect match.
Oh, Christmas Tree, Oh, Christmas Tree,
How steadfast are your branches.
Oh, Christmas Tree, Oh, Christmas Tree,
How steadfast are your branches.
Your boughs are green in summer's clime
And through the snows of wintertime.
Oh, Christmas Tree, Oh, Christmas Tree,
How steadfast are your branches.
The small group all hummed along to the tune, sipping on their hot cocoa and admiring the vision before them.
"So, what is the story behind Christmas? What are you celebrating?" asked the monarch.
"Lance, you're good at story-telling," Keith said. "Would you relate the tale?"
"Sure thing, Captain. It all began a long time ago back on Earth. The Romans had control of two whole continents, enslaving the native peoples including a Jewish community in Isreal. Two prophets, Isaiah and Jeremiah, foretold of a coming savior who would free the people. Many years still passed. Finally, an angel from God was sent down to a girl named Mary and told her that she was to become pregnant with the Messiah, the savior. Mary was willing but unsure of these events since she was not yet married. The angel said 'Do not worry. The spirit of the Lord will come upon you and the child shall be the Son of God.' She accepted her role. Her betrothed, a carpenter named Joseph, was also unsure but an angel told him the same thing, and trusting in God, he married the girl. Later, the Roman king called for all the people to be counted and taxed, so Mary and Joseph moved to another town called Bethlehem. There were so many people in the city that no one had room for them, but one inn keeper took pity on them and let them stay in his stable. Mary gave birth to little Jesus and used the manger as his crib.
"That same night, shepherds were in the field watching their sheep when an angel appeared to them and said 'Fear not. I bring you tidings of great joy! For born this day in the City of David is a savior, which is Christ the Lord. And you will find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manager.' Suddenly the sky was full of heavenly angels singing and praising God. The shepherds were amazed and traveled into the city to find out if this was true.
"A star had appeared up above in the heavens, signaling the child's birth. Wise men from distant lands saw this new star, packed up their belongings and came looking for the babe. They also brought gifts for this new-born king: gold, frankincense and myrrh. So, tonight we celebrate the birth of the Christ child and the light and hope that He brought to the world."
"What an odd story," mused Allura. "That a savior would have such a lowly birth; although, now that I think about it, one or two of our own heroes came from such humble beginnings." Not to mention the ones right here in this room. "And, I guess a baby in a feeding trough isn't so much different than my sleeping down in the caves in hiding."
"Well, keep in mind, Princess, that not all of us believe in the Jesus story. As an atheist, I don't believe in a god much less that he had a mortal son born of a virgin who later rose from the dead. It's all a bit preposterous." This was from Pidge. "The big problem I have with it is that this god supposedly made everything good: the land, the people, the animals. But, then the people broke his rule and he had to punish them for it. If they were created good, why did they sin? If god was as omnipotent as they say, he would have known this was going to happen, so why did he let it in the first place? It's all too far fetched for me."
"So, why are you celebrating?"
"Oh, I like the lights and the music and the gifts. But, regardless of the whole god thing, I do like the message that's in the holiday season: peace, joy, hope."
"Hmmm. We could use some of that here."
All at once, alarms started shrieking, and Coran's voice sounded from castle control. "We've got incoming ships. Looks like the Drule, again."
"Dammit!" yelled Lance. "Not on Christmas Eve!"
Keith responded, "Evil never sleeps, Lance. To the Lions!"
Everyone raced back to their rooms to quickly change and then onto their ships.
***
"Okay, Commander, I'm picking up two mother transport ships, three smaller command vessels and a dozen fighters coming in from the northeast."
"Roger that, Coran. All right team, we need to take out those fighters first before they damage any property. After that, Red and Yellow Lions, I want you to help me with those command ships. Blue and Green, go for the transports. Attack Formation C."
"Roger," they all responded. Five metal lions sped across the landscape, each emerging from its customary hiding place, to converge on the coordinates from castle control. The oncoming enemy looked ordinary enough, but all were aware that could be a false assumption.
"Pidge, give me a technical readout."
"Nothing we haven't seen before. No new weapons upgrades, no new energy signatures. Two transports could be carrying another dozen fighters. I'm picking up enough life readings for four squads of ground troops on the transports. The command ships have light crews of only a dozen people each. No sign of a robeast yet."
"Don't worry. It'll show," Lance interjected.
"Well, let's finish this quickly so they don't get a chance to launch it." Hunk said.
They all voiced agreement. Keith, Lance, and Hunk formed a front triangle and headed into the pack. Pidge and Allura were set to a larger revolving circle behind them to watch their flanks and fire upon outlying aircraft. The front group took out the first four fighters with ion lasers. The fifth one got through but was quickly incinerated by a missile from Pidge. Fighters six and seven managed to fire upon Yellow Lion before being dispatched.
"Hunk, are you all right?"
"Yeah, just minor surface scratches."
The next three fighters were much more evasive and got through both lines of defense.
"They'll be coming around from the back. Break formation. Blue, Green and Red Lions, open up your arsenals on those three while Hunk and I deal with the last two."
"Got it." Blue, Green, and Red Lions pivoted around to shoot at their pursuers. Pidge got the first one dead on, but Allura's shot went wide. Lance's laser fire grazed the third ship, damaging its port side. Both remaining fighters fired on the lions with direct hits. Blue Lion only took surface marks whereas Green Lion had more damage.
"Right thruster's down 15%. Re-routing power to compensate," declared Pidge.
Allura fired her proton missiles and managed to blow up one remaining ship. Pidge banked left to avoid the next round of fire, while simultaneously releasing a volley of depth charges. The other ship didn't have time to avoid the bombs and exploded.
"Great," Keith said over the com. "We got the last two. Now break off to …."
"Commander, launch of six more fighters from transport one."
"Okay, back into formation."
Just as they engaged the next set, another signal went off. "Captain, detected launch of robeast coffin." Pidge seemed a little more tense than usual.
"Let's finish these ships first. It will take a minute for the robeast to grow."
Lance piped in. "Shouldn't we be forming Voltron now?"
"No, we don't always need to, and I want to get these fighters off our backs first."
Four of the six ships had been destroyed by the time the robeast grew and made itself known to them. It was the strangest one they had seen yet: large hairy green skin and fur, two large bloodshot eyes, the most crooked awful yellow teeth and long claws. What really set it apart though was the hat on top of its head: red coned-shaped floppy with white trim.
Four male voices in unison yelled, "The GRINCH?"
***
Chapter 3: The Grinch
"Uh, what's a grinch?" Allura pondered.
"It's a children's story about a green monster who tries to destroy Christmas." Hunk's reply was horror stricken.
"I can't believe that bastard Lotor even knew about the story," Lance said.
Suddenly, a vision emerged on their com displays. An elegant, stately blue face with high cheekbones, long pointed nose and elongated ears wearing a pristine tailored suit in black and white and sporting a black top hat greeted the pilots with a small grin. "Good evening, Voltron Force! Some of my spies back on Terra have reported a curious phenomenon that happens this time every year, and thus I have done extensive research into your holiday. I, too, would like to join in the festivities, so I brought you a present. Happy Holidays! In the spirit of giving and gift-exchange, I would be delighted to accept Princess Allura as my largesse. Otherwise, I'm afraid your cities will turn to coal by morning. A bit of a 'Ba Humbug' attitude, don't you think?" It dawned on Lance and Keith that Lotor's clothes were styled in the late 18th century Victorian era.
"What, two story references?! Give it a rest already. You could have saved one for next year."
Keith rubbed his temples in annoyance. "Unfortunately, we only have the ghost of King Alfor, and even then I don't think images of past and future Christmases will be enough to change his mind. Sorry, Lotor, this is one gift we'll be returning unopened."
Lotor's face soured. "I grow weary of this continued defiance, Voltron Commander. I'll be sending you to the prisons soon enough." With that, he cut the link.
"All right, team, let's take out this thing. Lance finish off the last fighter. The rest of you, come with me."
Four lions leapt at the robeast. The Grinch lashed at Green Lion who deftly dodged and landed strikes on the robeast's arm. Hunk got in a good bite to the stomach, while Keith and Allura fired their guns at its head but those just bounced off the hat. The attack enraged the creature. It sent streams of shiny, silver metal at Yellow and Blue Lions.
"It's trying to trap us in tinsel," Hunk stated while his lion ripped the strands apart.
More metal was sent Black Lion's way. Keith opened up its mouth and poured fire on the incoming attack. The tinsel went up in a puff of smoke like incense. "Okay, fire works on the tinsel. Lance, we're going to need your help." Red Lion's specialty came from the volcanic fire around its resting place.
"I'm done with that last fighter. Sorry you guys missed the dogfight; it was good. On my way."
In the meantime, Blue and Green Lions had been busy firing missiles at the monster to no avail. "Its skin is impenetrable with normal gunfire or physical attacks. I'm not reading any structural damage at all," informed Pidge.
The robeast took out rotating saw blades and began lunging at the lions. Most avoided the blows but Yellow Lion took a glancing strike.
"Ow!"
"Hunk, are you okay?"
"Yeah, just shaken a little and dented."
"We'll fix you back up," said Pidge. "Nice of you to join us, Red."
In response, Lance sent fire arrows the Grinch's way, but those only managed to singe its fur. "No luck there either."
Enraged further by this latest attack, the robeast sent more tinsel out in all directions. Black Lion burned through the lines in front of him. Yellow , Red, and Green Lions slashed through theirs. Blue Lion, getting caught in the densest section of the web, was not so lucky.
"Princess! Lance, try to get her out. Hunk and Pidge, see if we can get anything past its eyes or mouth."
"Roger!"
Lance flew over to the princess and started tearing off metal strips.
Pidge jumped on the monster's head and tried clawing into the eyeballs. The creature's high-pitched scream pierced the air, pain shooting through everyone's head. Pidge clamped his hands over his ears.
Hunk and Keith tried sending missiles into the robeast's mouth, but its teeth chomped down on them, seemingly enjoying the taste.
"Team, this isn't having any effect. Pull back and form Voltron. Lance, distract it with a fire torch," Keith ordered.
Everyone did as instructed. The commander initiated the sequence to begin Voltron formation. "Activate interlocks." All the members pressed respective buttons on their control panels. "Dynotherms connected." Practiced hands flew over the controls while dark brown eyes watched the read-out. "Infracells up." Energy climbed as power cells warmed and sparks crackled in the cockpit. "Megathrusters are go." Full startup sequence completed.
"Go Voltron Force!"
Five lions soared into the sky, colored bands radiating behind them. Lightening flashed all around, protecting the robots from harm. As Keith yelled out the formation, the lions transmuted and connected. The result was the fabled warrior, Voltron, defender of justice, mighty and proud.
"All right, let's end this quickly. Form Blazing Sword!"
Red and Green Lions, now Right and Left Arms, touched in front of Voltron's body. Massive energy waves glimmered in between the hands as they parted and hardened into a huge blade. As Voltron lifted it for a downwards strike, the lions roared their approval.
As the blade came swinging down, the Grinch took off its red hat. It whipped the cap towards the sword, catching it in mid-strike, and twirled around the shaft like a chain. The two fighters strained against each other until the robeast kicked Voltron in the chest, yanking the blade out of Lance's hand. The mighty warrior went hurling backwards into the countryside as the sword disintegrated.
"Dammit, this doesn't look good," Lance said.
"This doesn't FEEL good," moaned Pidge.
While lying on his back in the dirt, staring at the Grinch as it put its hat back on, Hunk got an idea. He started pacing through menus on his console until he found just what he was looking for, then piped it into the external feed.
Cheery music started sounding from Yellow Lion and a deep voice commenced singing:
Fah who foraze, dah who doraze,
Welcome, Christmas, come this way.
Fah who foraze, dah who doraze,
Welcome, Christmas, Christmas Day!
"Hunk, are you sure you're feeling alright?" Keith asked.
The Grinch, who had started forward to press the attack, paused in uncertainty. It tilted its head to listen.
Pidge spoke up, "Hey, maybe he's on to something." He also began playing the music and singing along.
"You both have gone batty!" Lance stated incredulously.
At the combined voices, the monster began shaking its head trying to dispel the noise.
"It may be crazy, Lance, but I think it's working." Keith too entered the chorus.
Soon all five members were singing the tune loudly over the landscape. Stars twinkled above in time to the rhythm. The wind even danced around them. By now the robeast had grabbed his ears and was screaming in agony. Within a few minutes, pressure had built up internally so that it exploded outward in a huge gooey mess.
"Well, I'll be a monkey's uncle," Lance mused. "Looks like the heart grew two sizes too big. I thought that only worked in the movie."
"We still have two transports and those command ships to deal with," the ever-practical commander stated. But, upon inspection, the Drule ships were nowhere to be found. "Coran, can you locate those ships?"
"Yes, Captain, they left the planet's atmosphere moments ago, after the music began."
"I guess it was too much holiday cheer for Lotor," quipped Lance.
"Time to call it a night, team." The group enthusiastically agreed, disbanded and returned to the castle.
***
Upon returning to castle control, Coran congratulated the team. "I have no idea what actually happened out there, but I'm glad you found and exploited the robeast's weakness."
"Thanks go entirely to Hunk," said Keith seriously.
Hunk looked sheepish. "Oh, it was nothing. We all saw earlier that its skin was impenetrable from the outside, so we needed to hit it from the inside. I then noticed that its screech sent disruptions through all of us. I figured to turn its tactic back on itself."
"Well, however it was accomplished, good work, Voltron Force."
They all smiled tiredly and headed out of the control room.
"What are we going to do now?" Pidge was perky and wide-awake. Youth.
"Feel free to sit in the lounge listening to Christmas carols. The hot cocoa will be very cold by now, but if you dare, you can go wake Nanny to make you some more. Personally, it's late; we've all had a lot of stress lately, and we all got roughed up a bit out there. We need some good sleep to be fully functional again. Besides, Santa can't come if your eyes are still open." Keith's eyes sparkled at that last sentence.
"Who's Santa? Why is he coming?" Allura felt this was another Christmas riddle.
"Oh, he's a big guy in a red suit who comes secretly at night to deliver toys to all the good little girls and boys!" Pidge answered excitedly.
"Well, I guess that leaves you out, uh, squirt?" teased Lance.
"Hey!"
Allura giggled. Lance never stopped.
"The kids leave milk and cookies out for Santa, so I better go see to that. Wouldn't want to disappointment the old man." Hunk waved to his friends and headed back to the kitchen.
The others acknowledged their tiredness so they called it a night.
Keith walked the princess back to her rooms. "Your Highness, wake up early tomorrow and meet us all in the lounge again. That way you'll see the other half of Christmas." Keith tried to maintain his calm formality but couldn't help it as a little nervousness entered his stance. He hoped she would agree.
"Oh, of course, Keith. I would love to continue with your celebration." Allura gazed at her commander with appreciation. "Thank you, and Lance and the rest, for inviting me. Its seems like a wonderful holiday; although I'm not sure what part this Grinch character plays in it."
Keith smiled and chuckled silently. "If you knew the rest of the story, it would make a lot more sense. Maybe I'll read it to you tomorrow."
"That sounds perfect. Good night, Captain."
"Good night, Princess."
***
Chapter 4: Revelations
Keith actually took a little bit longer this morning, waiting until he knew the rest of the team would be assembled in the rec room. He had a secret wish to wear a Santa Claus costume and hand out the gifts. He thought it ironic that his normal flight suit was the perfect shade of red. All he needed was the hat, but after the fight last night, he was glad he didn't have one. Wouldn't want the crew to start shooting at him, would he?
Before reaching the room, he could already hear the carols playing over the speakers and the discussions of his friends. They appeared to be in a good mood, and he could see Allura, decked out in a formal deep green dress which sparkled, was already with them. With that dress and my jumpsuit, we'll make quite the festive pair. He smiled a little at that. Upon entering Keith let out a deep "Ho Ho Ho! Merry Christmas!"
The team laughed and cheered. "About time you showed up! We want to open presents." Cheerfully they greeted one another with hugs and rounds of "Good morning! Merry Christmas!"
Keith inhaled the most delicious scent of fresh-baked, plump cinnamon rolls and spiced apple cider. Nanny had on a smile while handing him a roll on a plate along with knife and fork (no fingers here) and a drink. Keith took them with a heartfelt "Thank you," plucked down on the sofa and proceeded to eat the sticky bun the old-fashioned way.
Nanny rolled her eyes and shook her head. Those boys will never learn.
"Come on, Captain. We don't have time for you to finish eating," wailed Pidge.
"Don't let me stop you. Go ahead and distribute the gifts."
As Lance and Pidge began to give out the wrapped boxes, the princess turned to her commander. "All these red and green presents weren't here last night. What's the meaning of this? Is this the other half to which you referred?"
Taking a swallow of cider to clear his throat, Keith replied, "Yes, it is. It's customary to exchange gifts with family and friends to show how much you care about each other. For younger children, the belief in Santa Claus is carried on by the parents leaving presents under the tree while the kids are asleep Christmas Eve. Another version is to donate gifts to needy children whose family can't afford to buy anything. If we do this again next year, I would like to set up a Santa drive."
"To give out presents to the children of Arus?"
"Yes."
"What a wonderful idea! That would bring a lot of joy to the people. I would be honored to help with that."
Hunk had overheard that last bit. "That IS a great idea. I have some thoughts on simple gifts we can put together. Count me in."
"That goes for us, too," Lance said when he handed Keith a package.
The young monarch sat shocked. It continually amazed her how these young soldiers from other worlds could so easily care about her planet and her people. Their courage and tenacity pushed her to keep going everyday, even when she felt like giving up, but their selflessness actually encouraged her to be the best ruler she could be. They didn't let her down, so she had no excuse to let her people down. They had become the backbone by which she stood.
She was broken out of her thoughts when she heard Nanny exclaim, "Oh, my, what's this?" Allura turned to her left to see Hunk place a heavy large box on the side table in front of her governess.
"It's a gift for you," Hunk stated simply.
Nanny looked confusedly around the room. All the other members had paused and were watching them. Her eyes fell on her charge who gave her a pleasing nod.
"Go on, open it, Nanny."
Nanny hesitantly began unwrapping it. Once all the paper was off, she timidly opened the lid and peered in. Her eyes grew wide and she froze in place.
Seeing that she wasn't moving, Hunk gingerly placed his hands inside the box and hauled out a mechanical contraption in the shape of a bulbous bracket with a large metal bowl on the bottom branch and a lattice-shaped paddle suspended from the top branch. He pushed the box aside and carefully set the apparatus down again. "I saw how much baking you do in the kitchen, so I refurbished this old mixer I brought with me from Earth."
Nanny was completely taken aback by the thoughtfulness of the gift. "I don't know what to say. Thank you." She thought they all hated her because they clashed so much on the princess' etiquette and social duties. She was just doing her job so that the people of Arus could be proud of their monarchy and their heritage. She felt the Terrans would never understand that and, thus, despised her for it. Nanny never expected this. Maybe the boys weren't so bad, after all.
The silence was interrupted by Pidge tearing through one of his presents. "Awesome! A new data display! Thanks, Hunk!"
The rest of the team began opening their boxes, and thanking each giver in return.
Halfway through these events, Coran walked into the lounge. "You wanted to see me, Commander? I left one of my senior staff watching castle control for a minute."
"Yes, I did. Lance, would you hand Coran his present, please?"
"Certainly."
Coran too was stunned by the small green box that was given to him.
"Merry Christmas, Coran. Go ahead and open it."
Coran looked to the princess who nodded approval and ripped into the box. He took out a palm-sized brass disk attached to a foot of chain. As he held it up for closer inspection, he could hear it ticking and see the face arms moving slowly in their circular pattern. "This is an ancient Arusian artifact! Where ever did you find it?"
Pidge spoke up, "It was in one of the mecha digs around Keldar. We fixed it up for you so it would run properly, but it may still need slight adjustments. Just bring it by any time."
"Thank you, Voltron Force. It means a lot to me to have part of Arus' glorious past restored. This is indeed a treasure." Coran put the pocket watch in his slacks, then poured himself a glass of cider and left.
Allura sat watching as the team finished opening their gifts. There was so much glee in the air that it transformed the space and everyone in it. Was this what Christmas was all about?
Suddenly, Keith got up from the sofa and walked to the tree which had remained lit all night. He knelt down and pulled out a small box hidden from view. Standing, he moved back over to where the princess sat in her comfortable wing chair. Nervously, he handed the gift to Allura and said, "Here, this one is for you. We hope you like it."
Allura accepted the box and examined it. The paper was of the finest quality, smooth but with subtle changes in the pulp, slightly off-white. Calligraphy in red and green ink scrawled across the page, saying, "Joy, Love, Peace." Satiny red ribbon ran horizontally and vertically around the box ending in a simple bow. It was elegant. Not wanting to ruin the wrapping, she pulled the bow apart and gently eased the paper off intact. The box itself was unadorned but opened to reveal a green velvet pillow on which lay the most stunning necklace she had ever seen. She lifted it up on her slim, delicate fingers so it could catch the light. It was a single strand of alternating pearls and clear crystals with two small elongated pendants spaced on either side of a larger star pendant in the middle. The crystal star was the exact same shape as the ones hanging on the Christmas tree.
Wow, Keith outdid himself on this one. Way to go, Captain, thought Lance.
Everyone else responded with "oohs" and "ahhs."
Happiness as she hadn't experienced since her parents were alive overcame Allura. Her heart tightened in her chest and unshed tears wetted her azure eyes. "Thank you all so much. It's beautiful. It must have cost a fortune!"
"We did have to delve into our savings a bit, but Galaxy Garrison pays us well enough, and we don't normally have the need to spend any of it here. The jeweler actually wanted to give it to me for free when he was told that it was to be a gift for his princess, but I insisted on paying him a fair price."
Allura beckoned Nanny to help her put it on. It looked even more lovely on her than it had in the box and matched wonderfully with her holiday dress. "I honestly don't know what to say. You being here helping keep my people free is all I could have wished for. This is beyond that. And, I don't have anything to give you in return."
"Don't think anything of it, Princess," said Lance before Keith could comment. "You're a valued member of the team and our friend. We just wanted you to have something nice for once. You ARE a princess, after all." Lance winked at her.
Allura chuckled in embarrassment but was very grateful for his playful attitude. Realization dawned on her as she looked at the faces of her comrades. Their friendship was the best gift of all and the joy and love embodied there was the true meaning of Christmas.
--
fire_juggler for this year's pod_together challenge, which is a collaboration of writers and podficcers (and artists) to produce new stories together, and we decided to make something in the Voltron fandom. I've written one story and a series of ficlets in that verse, but I've never posted them over here. Time to correct that. Here's the story. Yes, it's a Christmas story. Yes, this is July. Consider it an extra present in the middle of the year. It's pretty much a gen story of friendship and was the very first fanfiction I ever wrote. Please, enjoy!
Title: Christmas Surprise
Author: starduchess
Fandom: Voltron Go-Lion
Pairing/Characters: Voltron team, Coran, Nanny, Lotor (gen)
Rating: PG
Word Count: ~8,500
Warnings: none
Summary: The Voltron team wants to celebrate Christmas but will Lotor allow them to have a merry holiday? Will there be peace on Arus? Total fluff.
Chapter 1: Preparations
"Come on, guys! I think I found it!" Pidge yelled excitedly. The male members of the Voltron team were hiking through the dense forest around the Castle of Lions in search of the perfect tree. Christmas was not normally celebrated on Arus, but after missing the one last year, the three Earth-native pilots had become very homesick. Arus had its own holidays such as a spring flower festival and a fall harvest fair, but nothing quite held the joy of hope that Christmas did. The Doom forces hadn't left much room for elation, but a quiet, simple observance would fit the mood well.
The other members converged on Pidge's location. Most of the trees were very tall whose canopy left little sunlight for smaller trees to grow, and none of the scrubby underbrush would work either. Green Lion's pilot, however, found a clearing where a few older trees had fallen and new pines were growing up in their places.
"This one's a little short," said Hunk about the first sapling that was only a few centimeters taller than Pidge.
"The one next to it is too large," said Keith. "We'd never get it through the Lion tube."
"This one should work, though." Pidge pointed to the third tree a little apart from the others. It was a good height and full foliage.
"Yeah, that should do nicely." Keith said. The others nodded their approval.
The next hour was spent cutting down the tree and carrying it on their shoulders back to Green Lion's launch site. Once there, they debated taking it into the castle now or leaving it in the glen until the late shift. Since Coran was monitoring in the control room at the moment, they decided to leave it for nightfall, not wanting to receive another lecture on proper tube useage. They were out on a false pretense of "handgun target practice over rough terrain" as it were. At least no one asked any questions when they came back smelling of rotten dung and spicy wood tap.
***
Setting up the tree in their pilot's lounge with a bucket of water and some old red cloth Lance found in a back storage closet, the four contemplated the rest of the decorations.
Keith presented his thoughts to the group. "We're going to need lights and some ornaments along with a Nativity underneath. I know of a local stationery owner whom I could persuade to make us some colored wrapping paper if we want to exchange gifts."
"Lights will be easy," Pidge replied. "I'll need more wire, though. Oooh, there's a good glass blower in town that might help us create the ornaments and maybe a star."
"Hmmm. That leaves me with the crèche. Looks like I'll have to find a toy shop for the figurines." Lance winked gleefully at the others.
"Nothing garish, Lance."
"Don't forget the feast and hot chocolate!" cried Hunk with enthusiasm. "I'll convince Nanny to cook us a banquet."
"That all sounds fine. While we're in the village getting supplies, we can shop for gifts too."
"Thinking about getting something for your little lady? She'd look great in a little Santa negligee." Lance teased Keith.
Hsssss. Keith's blood pressure shot up. Dammit, Lance always knew how to rile him up. "No," he said through gritted teeth. "Actually, I was wondering if we all wanted to pitch in together to get her something nice." Maybe Coran and Nanny too, just to be safe.
The youngest pilot came out of technical musings in his head to second that thought. "That would be really sweet." Pidge paused for a second in more thought. "I found an old pocket watch in the ruins outside Keldar last month that I wanted to fix up."
"Yeah, that'll make a great gift for the princess." Lance said sarcastically, rolling his eyes at Pidge's suggestion.
"No, dummy, that can be for Coran. Keith, why don't you find Allura something she would like. But, are we going to get Nanny anything?" He unknowingly mimicked Keith's earlier sentiment.
"Well, I spend more time with her in the kitchen than everybody else, so I'll come up with something." Hunk was always generous with his time.
"Okay, I think that's settled. Let's get some sleep, team, and come back to this tomorrow night with any leads from in town."
Everyone left excited about their activities for the morrow.
***
"Yes, and what colors would you like?" The stationer, who was a small, thin, older gentleman with a balding head but sharp piercing eyes, was deep in a vision of fibers and parchment, dyes and materials. His dry hands sketched out patterns and measurements on a notepad.
"Traditionally, it would be green and red, the fancier ones with gold accents, but also blue and white with silver. Easiest would be a single color; images of trees or snowflakes would be wonderful. Do you have any ribbons or bows we could dress it up with? We can't afford to spend a lot, though."
"Hmmm. Well, single color would be cheapest, although striped would also be simple to do. For repeating patterns I would need to make a stamp first; the more elaborate, the more expensive, of course. Did you bring any examples?"
"No, there aren't any here on Arus and it would be too late to order anything from Earth or other neighboring star systems." Keith attempted to describe the designs while the shop owner drew. "Yeah, those would do."
"Another option would be text in a fine script or block letters. What phrases would be appropriate?"
"Oh, 'Merry Christmas' and 'Joy, Love, Peace' or 'Peace on Earth', or maybe that should say 'Peace on Arus'. Also 'Season's Greetings' and 'Happy Holidays', but I prefer the first three."
The shop keeper scribbled some more. "As for ribbons, we have some plain string and a gauzy white for binding up letters. If there was something more elaborate you want, I suggest the clothier's shop two doors down. Their trim pieces are quite nice."
"Okay, can you give me a quote, and how long would it take?" Keith asked.
The stationer gave him several price options. "The simpler ones would be ready by afternoon two days hence. The more complex ones might take 5 days to a week."
That was a problem. Christmas was only four days away.
"So, I guess we'll go with some plain red and green and at least two sets of striped. Oh, give me one set of block letters too." He wanted something special for the princess' gift.
"Very well, sir. I'll see you in a couple of days."
"Thank you," said Keith humbly. He felt good coming out of the stationer's shop. That had gone better than he'd hoped. The paper would be very nice quality, a little subdued compared to the wrapping paper he'd seen on earth, but refined. He headed two doors over.
Leaving the clothier's store with several yards of embroidered trim as well as a dashing Fedora-style hat for Lance, the commander ran into Pidge. "How are things coming?"
"Oh, great! I picked up lots of wire and the glass blower was intrigued enough by the idea that he may give us a discount! He's going to work on a few now, and after lunch I will stop by again to proof them. Would you like to eat lunch with me, Captain, and then come see the stars?"
"Sure, I'm famished. I've got half my gifts bought already and the holiday paper set. Not sure about Princess Allura's gift. There are lots of options but most of them are lavish and too impersonal."
"Keep going; you'll hit upon just the thing, I know it! And whatever it is, we'll all pitch in."
"Thanks."
"By the way, I couldn't believe Nanny's over-reaction this morning to the tree, calling us barbaric heathens just for cutting down a little sapling. Heck, they have a few odd customs here that I cringe at, like the pig intestines hung over barn doors for luck. Eew!"
"Don't insult their culture," Keith reprimanded his subordinate. "We all have weird quirks and superstitions. Remember the time when you freaked out at the black alley cat who crossed your path, and the natives had no idea what was wrong with you? Keep that in mind while you're here."
"Sorry, Captain."
"As for the tree itself, at least she calmed down and gave us leave to keep it. So, let's not dwell on that anymore."
"Okay."
After lunch, Pidge led the way back to the glass blower's stall. "Oh, hi, young fella, back so soon? I've got a few things to show ya'." The artisan pulled out several small wrapped objects and unfolded them onto the examining desk. A few round globes with different tops and bottoms were presented first. Pidge really liked the elongated teardrops, while Keith stuck with the normal round spheres. Next came the stars and snowflakes. The five-pointed stars were wonderfully made with prism-inducing edges. The snowflakes, however, came out much more muddled. "I admit those are not my best. They would take much more time to perfect."
"That's all right," the young Voltron pilot stated. "We'll just go with the others. Thanks! When will they be finished?"
"By the mornin' of the third day hence."
"I guess we'll be decorating the tree Christmas Eve, then." Keith mentioned.
"Guess so, Captain."
As the two soldiers turned to leave the shop, Keith's eye fell on the star again. An idea formed in his mind. Yes, that would be fantastic. "Why don't you run along now? I've got something else to look into. See you back at the castle?"
"Yeah. Cool."
Keith did a 180 and headed back to the merchant boutiques.
***
Chapter 2: Surprise!
Things were uneventful for the next few days. Everyone finished their shopping and were able to wrap gifs with the beautiful paper Keith picked out. Hunk and Pidge spent a lot of time in the garage working on lights and Nanny's and Coran's presents. Lance even did a little bit of woodworking to build the stable for the crèche scene. The Voltron commander was proud of his team. This was going to be a good holiday at this home-away-from-home. He just wished the peace that was promised would come to this scarred planet.
Christmas Eve Morning dawned with anticipation.
Breakfast was attended with more cheer than had been shown by everyone in the last six months. It even spilled out onto Coran and Nanny. Princess Allura was happy for the change although she was completely lost as to how it came about. The tree had been up for almost a week with no other activity than Nanny's first outburst of horror at such desecration. She looked like she wanted to ask something, but Coran took a moment to remind her of the diplomatic affairs awaiting her today, and the question left her.
The morning was spent in Lion practice and the meal afterward was as usual except that Her Highness didn't join them today. She was busy hosting a luncheon for the visiting dignitaries. Keith thought about the party for tonight and hoped that they could convince her to join them. Actually, that wouldn't be hard for she enjoyed spending leisurely time with her teammates any chance she got. No, it would be convincing Nanny to let the young monarch to stay up past her bedtime, as if Allura was still ten years old.
Sighing with empathy for the princess' plight, Keith turned to the task of making Christmas cookies.
Dinner that night was even more festive. Twinkles of excitement lit up the Voltron team's eyes. Coran was mildly concerned about the jovial mood at the table; there was a war going on, after all, and the soldiers needed to be on guard at all times. Keith gave him a reassuring nod. Nanny was enjoying herself, much to everyone's relief especially when they began listing off the activities for tonight, until Lance finally asked, "So, Princess, would you join us tonight for a rockin' good time?"
Nanny burst out before Allura even had time to process the inquiry. "Heaven's, no! According to your own testimony, this evening's frivolity will be quite inappropriate behavior for Her Highness. You pilots" [Insert 'heathen scoundrels' here, Lance thought.] "can go and have your Terran holiday but don't expect Arusian royalty to partake of such non-sense."
The Voltron team felt deeply insulted, and frankly, so did Allura. "Nanny, you have no right to insult them. They have given up everything to come and protect this planet, and the least we can do is help ease their homesickness. This holiday sounds mostly relaxing and peaceful, and we could use more cheer around this gloomy old castle. Besides, it would be an opportunity for me to learn about other people's cultures and customs, which is necessary if I am to make diplomatic ties to other worlds. The misunderstanding that happened today with the Haldoff delegation is proof of this. I was afraid we'd lost another ally due to my ignorance of their treaty methods. Thankfully, they were forgiving, but I don't wish to repeat the experience."
"Learning about other cultures is indeed useful knowledge to a monarch." Was Coran actually agreeing with her?
"Thank you, Coran."
"Rubbish, this isn't about other cultures; it's just a party," chided Nanny.
"Yes, and these are just my friends who have been risking their lives for you. In my esteem, they've earned a small celebration, and I intend to join them." The Princess of Arus' voice rose to a firm declaration, indignation flooding tension through her limbs.
Nanny fell stunned. She wasn't used to the princess asserting herself on anything outside of flying her Blue Lion.
"Way to go, Princess," Lance said soto voce.
"Yeah, let's go celebrate!"
***
As they all neared the recreation lounge, several ran off to other parts of the corridor.
"Where are they all going?" Allura asked.
"They went to go get the rest of the decorations." Keith explained, leading her into the lounge. He motioned for her to get comfortable on the sofa while he inspected the tree to make sure it had enough water.
The rest of the team returned moments later with their packages. Hunk placed his box on the floor and turned to the control panel built into the east wall. "I put this together for us yesterday." A few strokes of the keys and suddenly an intriguing yet sweet melody consisting of piano and violins sprang from the speakers, then a rich baritone singing:
Chestnuts roasting on an open fire
Jack Frost nipping at your nose
Yule-tide carols being sung by a choir
And folks dressed up like Eskimos…
Pidge looked up and grinned. "Good choice!"
"There's lots more coming." Hunk went back to his large box where the youngest member had started pulling out lots of wires with tiny bulbs everywhere. The two pilots unraveled the strands and began placing them on the tree, starting at the top and spiraling down.
Keith and Lance were unpacking the various glass ornaments. "Wow, these turned out great." Lance handed one to Allura for her inspection. The tear-dropped shape was immaculately formed, with a small red ribbon attached through a hole in the top. She looked at the others that were being placed on the branches.
"These are amazing. Where ever did you find them?"
"We asked the local glass blower to make them," Pidge replied simply.
Out of the corner of his eye, Keith was watching the princess' reaction and was pleased with the awe he saw there.
Once that was finished, Lance handed three medium boxes to his teammates while he hauled up the last big one. Inside was a three-walled wooden structure about a foot and a half tall which Lance placed under the tree. He also carefully unwrapped what looked to be a miniature feeding trough and placed it inside the wooden house.
What in the world? thought Allura. Her brough furrowed in perplexion.
The others had removed from their boxes several cloth dolls: one man in a tan tunic holding a staff, one woman dressed in blue and white, one infant, and one … horse? No, donkey. They positioned the figures in the house with the baby placed on the trough. Allura was even more confused.
Just about that time, Nanny came in with plates of cookies the team had made earlier and mugs of hot chocolate. "Here are the food items you requested, although it would be wise of you, Your Highness, not to eat any of the cookies. There's plenty of sugar in this chocolate."
Allura rolled her eyes and accepted the piping hot mug of liquid. The others followed suit, enjoying both cookies and libation.
"Thanks," said Hunk. "I guess it's time to put the star on top and then light her up!"
Pidge opened the last box and took out a large glass star attached to a glass cone. "Here, Commander, you should have the honor."
"Thanks, Pidge." He brought a chair over to the tree, took the star from his youngest teammate and climbed the chair. He carefully placed the cone over the single straight branch at the top of the tree, making sure it wouldn't fall over after removing his hands. It looked beautiful up there, but he knew in a minute it would be dazzling. He got back down and moved the chair away. "All right, Hunk, let's see her. Lance will you kill the overheads?"
"Sure." Lance waited until Hunk had the ends of the strands near the power outlet before turning off the main lights. It was dark in the room for a few seconds, then little firelights erupted all over the tree. The bulbs illuminated the various branches—-the glow radiating into the room—-but what was truly breathtaking was all the glass. The ornaments reflected light in even more directions, bouncing little slivers everywhere. They seemed to burn with their own inner fire, especially the star on top. Some even acted as prisms, throwing small chunks of rainbow on nearby neighbors.
Everyone stood stunned. "Upon my word…," breathed Nanny. Allura almost dropped her drink; she was overwhelmed by the brilliance. Then, the next song came on and it was a perfect match.
Oh, Christmas Tree, Oh, Christmas Tree,
How steadfast are your branches.
Oh, Christmas Tree, Oh, Christmas Tree,
How steadfast are your branches.
Your boughs are green in summer's clime
And through the snows of wintertime.
Oh, Christmas Tree, Oh, Christmas Tree,
How steadfast are your branches.
The small group all hummed along to the tune, sipping on their hot cocoa and admiring the vision before them.
"So, what is the story behind Christmas? What are you celebrating?" asked the monarch.
"Lance, you're good at story-telling," Keith said. "Would you relate the tale?"
"Sure thing, Captain. It all began a long time ago back on Earth. The Romans had control of two whole continents, enslaving the native peoples including a Jewish community in Isreal. Two prophets, Isaiah and Jeremiah, foretold of a coming savior who would free the people. Many years still passed. Finally, an angel from God was sent down to a girl named Mary and told her that she was to become pregnant with the Messiah, the savior. Mary was willing but unsure of these events since she was not yet married. The angel said 'Do not worry. The spirit of the Lord will come upon you and the child shall be the Son of God.' She accepted her role. Her betrothed, a carpenter named Joseph, was also unsure but an angel told him the same thing, and trusting in God, he married the girl. Later, the Roman king called for all the people to be counted and taxed, so Mary and Joseph moved to another town called Bethlehem. There were so many people in the city that no one had room for them, but one inn keeper took pity on them and let them stay in his stable. Mary gave birth to little Jesus and used the manger as his crib.
"That same night, shepherds were in the field watching their sheep when an angel appeared to them and said 'Fear not. I bring you tidings of great joy! For born this day in the City of David is a savior, which is Christ the Lord. And you will find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manager.' Suddenly the sky was full of heavenly angels singing and praising God. The shepherds were amazed and traveled into the city to find out if this was true.
"A star had appeared up above in the heavens, signaling the child's birth. Wise men from distant lands saw this new star, packed up their belongings and came looking for the babe. They also brought gifts for this new-born king: gold, frankincense and myrrh. So, tonight we celebrate the birth of the Christ child and the light and hope that He brought to the world."
"What an odd story," mused Allura. "That a savior would have such a lowly birth; although, now that I think about it, one or two of our own heroes came from such humble beginnings." Not to mention the ones right here in this room. "And, I guess a baby in a feeding trough isn't so much different than my sleeping down in the caves in hiding."
"Well, keep in mind, Princess, that not all of us believe in the Jesus story. As an atheist, I don't believe in a god much less that he had a mortal son born of a virgin who later rose from the dead. It's all a bit preposterous." This was from Pidge. "The big problem I have with it is that this god supposedly made everything good: the land, the people, the animals. But, then the people broke his rule and he had to punish them for it. If they were created good, why did they sin? If god was as omnipotent as they say, he would have known this was going to happen, so why did he let it in the first place? It's all too far fetched for me."
"So, why are you celebrating?"
"Oh, I like the lights and the music and the gifts. But, regardless of the whole god thing, I do like the message that's in the holiday season: peace, joy, hope."
"Hmmm. We could use some of that here."
All at once, alarms started shrieking, and Coran's voice sounded from castle control. "We've got incoming ships. Looks like the Drule, again."
"Dammit!" yelled Lance. "Not on Christmas Eve!"
Keith responded, "Evil never sleeps, Lance. To the Lions!"
Everyone raced back to their rooms to quickly change and then onto their ships.
***
"Okay, Commander, I'm picking up two mother transport ships, three smaller command vessels and a dozen fighters coming in from the northeast."
"Roger that, Coran. All right team, we need to take out those fighters first before they damage any property. After that, Red and Yellow Lions, I want you to help me with those command ships. Blue and Green, go for the transports. Attack Formation C."
"Roger," they all responded. Five metal lions sped across the landscape, each emerging from its customary hiding place, to converge on the coordinates from castle control. The oncoming enemy looked ordinary enough, but all were aware that could be a false assumption.
"Pidge, give me a technical readout."
"Nothing we haven't seen before. No new weapons upgrades, no new energy signatures. Two transports could be carrying another dozen fighters. I'm picking up enough life readings for four squads of ground troops on the transports. The command ships have light crews of only a dozen people each. No sign of a robeast yet."
"Don't worry. It'll show," Lance interjected.
"Well, let's finish this quickly so they don't get a chance to launch it." Hunk said.
They all voiced agreement. Keith, Lance, and Hunk formed a front triangle and headed into the pack. Pidge and Allura were set to a larger revolving circle behind them to watch their flanks and fire upon outlying aircraft. The front group took out the first four fighters with ion lasers. The fifth one got through but was quickly incinerated by a missile from Pidge. Fighters six and seven managed to fire upon Yellow Lion before being dispatched.
"Hunk, are you all right?"
"Yeah, just minor surface scratches."
The next three fighters were much more evasive and got through both lines of defense.
"They'll be coming around from the back. Break formation. Blue, Green and Red Lions, open up your arsenals on those three while Hunk and I deal with the last two."
"Got it." Blue, Green, and Red Lions pivoted around to shoot at their pursuers. Pidge got the first one dead on, but Allura's shot went wide. Lance's laser fire grazed the third ship, damaging its port side. Both remaining fighters fired on the lions with direct hits. Blue Lion only took surface marks whereas Green Lion had more damage.
"Right thruster's down 15%. Re-routing power to compensate," declared Pidge.
Allura fired her proton missiles and managed to blow up one remaining ship. Pidge banked left to avoid the next round of fire, while simultaneously releasing a volley of depth charges. The other ship didn't have time to avoid the bombs and exploded.
"Great," Keith said over the com. "We got the last two. Now break off to …."
"Commander, launch of six more fighters from transport one."
"Okay, back into formation."
Just as they engaged the next set, another signal went off. "Captain, detected launch of robeast coffin." Pidge seemed a little more tense than usual.
"Let's finish these ships first. It will take a minute for the robeast to grow."
Lance piped in. "Shouldn't we be forming Voltron now?"
"No, we don't always need to, and I want to get these fighters off our backs first."
Four of the six ships had been destroyed by the time the robeast grew and made itself known to them. It was the strangest one they had seen yet: large hairy green skin and fur, two large bloodshot eyes, the most crooked awful yellow teeth and long claws. What really set it apart though was the hat on top of its head: red coned-shaped floppy with white trim.
Four male voices in unison yelled, "The GRINCH?"
***
Chapter 3: The Grinch
"Uh, what's a grinch?" Allura pondered.
"It's a children's story about a green monster who tries to destroy Christmas." Hunk's reply was horror stricken.
"I can't believe that bastard Lotor even knew about the story," Lance said.
Suddenly, a vision emerged on their com displays. An elegant, stately blue face with high cheekbones, long pointed nose and elongated ears wearing a pristine tailored suit in black and white and sporting a black top hat greeted the pilots with a small grin. "Good evening, Voltron Force! Some of my spies back on Terra have reported a curious phenomenon that happens this time every year, and thus I have done extensive research into your holiday. I, too, would like to join in the festivities, so I brought you a present. Happy Holidays! In the spirit of giving and gift-exchange, I would be delighted to accept Princess Allura as my largesse. Otherwise, I'm afraid your cities will turn to coal by morning. A bit of a 'Ba Humbug' attitude, don't you think?" It dawned on Lance and Keith that Lotor's clothes were styled in the late 18th century Victorian era.
"What, two story references?! Give it a rest already. You could have saved one for next year."
Keith rubbed his temples in annoyance. "Unfortunately, we only have the ghost of King Alfor, and even then I don't think images of past and future Christmases will be enough to change his mind. Sorry, Lotor, this is one gift we'll be returning unopened."
Lotor's face soured. "I grow weary of this continued defiance, Voltron Commander. I'll be sending you to the prisons soon enough." With that, he cut the link.
"All right, team, let's take out this thing. Lance finish off the last fighter. The rest of you, come with me."
Four lions leapt at the robeast. The Grinch lashed at Green Lion who deftly dodged and landed strikes on the robeast's arm. Hunk got in a good bite to the stomach, while Keith and Allura fired their guns at its head but those just bounced off the hat. The attack enraged the creature. It sent streams of shiny, silver metal at Yellow and Blue Lions.
"It's trying to trap us in tinsel," Hunk stated while his lion ripped the strands apart.
More metal was sent Black Lion's way. Keith opened up its mouth and poured fire on the incoming attack. The tinsel went up in a puff of smoke like incense. "Okay, fire works on the tinsel. Lance, we're going to need your help." Red Lion's specialty came from the volcanic fire around its resting place.
"I'm done with that last fighter. Sorry you guys missed the dogfight; it was good. On my way."
In the meantime, Blue and Green Lions had been busy firing missiles at the monster to no avail. "Its skin is impenetrable with normal gunfire or physical attacks. I'm not reading any structural damage at all," informed Pidge.
The robeast took out rotating saw blades and began lunging at the lions. Most avoided the blows but Yellow Lion took a glancing strike.
"Ow!"
"Hunk, are you okay?"
"Yeah, just shaken a little and dented."
"We'll fix you back up," said Pidge. "Nice of you to join us, Red."
In response, Lance sent fire arrows the Grinch's way, but those only managed to singe its fur. "No luck there either."
Enraged further by this latest attack, the robeast sent more tinsel out in all directions. Black Lion burned through the lines in front of him. Yellow , Red, and Green Lions slashed through theirs. Blue Lion, getting caught in the densest section of the web, was not so lucky.
"Princess! Lance, try to get her out. Hunk and Pidge, see if we can get anything past its eyes or mouth."
"Roger!"
Lance flew over to the princess and started tearing off metal strips.
Pidge jumped on the monster's head and tried clawing into the eyeballs. The creature's high-pitched scream pierced the air, pain shooting through everyone's head. Pidge clamped his hands over his ears.
Hunk and Keith tried sending missiles into the robeast's mouth, but its teeth chomped down on them, seemingly enjoying the taste.
"Team, this isn't having any effect. Pull back and form Voltron. Lance, distract it with a fire torch," Keith ordered.
Everyone did as instructed. The commander initiated the sequence to begin Voltron formation. "Activate interlocks." All the members pressed respective buttons on their control panels. "Dynotherms connected." Practiced hands flew over the controls while dark brown eyes watched the read-out. "Infracells up." Energy climbed as power cells warmed and sparks crackled in the cockpit. "Megathrusters are go." Full startup sequence completed.
"Go Voltron Force!"
Five lions soared into the sky, colored bands radiating behind them. Lightening flashed all around, protecting the robots from harm. As Keith yelled out the formation, the lions transmuted and connected. The result was the fabled warrior, Voltron, defender of justice, mighty and proud.
"All right, let's end this quickly. Form Blazing Sword!"
Red and Green Lions, now Right and Left Arms, touched in front of Voltron's body. Massive energy waves glimmered in between the hands as they parted and hardened into a huge blade. As Voltron lifted it for a downwards strike, the lions roared their approval.
As the blade came swinging down, the Grinch took off its red hat. It whipped the cap towards the sword, catching it in mid-strike, and twirled around the shaft like a chain. The two fighters strained against each other until the robeast kicked Voltron in the chest, yanking the blade out of Lance's hand. The mighty warrior went hurling backwards into the countryside as the sword disintegrated.
"Dammit, this doesn't look good," Lance said.
"This doesn't FEEL good," moaned Pidge.
While lying on his back in the dirt, staring at the Grinch as it put its hat back on, Hunk got an idea. He started pacing through menus on his console until he found just what he was looking for, then piped it into the external feed.
Cheery music started sounding from Yellow Lion and a deep voice commenced singing:
Fah who foraze, dah who doraze,
Welcome, Christmas, come this way.
Fah who foraze, dah who doraze,
Welcome, Christmas, Christmas Day!
"Hunk, are you sure you're feeling alright?" Keith asked.
The Grinch, who had started forward to press the attack, paused in uncertainty. It tilted its head to listen.
Pidge spoke up, "Hey, maybe he's on to something." He also began playing the music and singing along.
"You both have gone batty!" Lance stated incredulously.
At the combined voices, the monster began shaking its head trying to dispel the noise.
"It may be crazy, Lance, but I think it's working." Keith too entered the chorus.
Soon all five members were singing the tune loudly over the landscape. Stars twinkled above in time to the rhythm. The wind even danced around them. By now the robeast had grabbed his ears and was screaming in agony. Within a few minutes, pressure had built up internally so that it exploded outward in a huge gooey mess.
"Well, I'll be a monkey's uncle," Lance mused. "Looks like the heart grew two sizes too big. I thought that only worked in the movie."
"We still have two transports and those command ships to deal with," the ever-practical commander stated. But, upon inspection, the Drule ships were nowhere to be found. "Coran, can you locate those ships?"
"Yes, Captain, they left the planet's atmosphere moments ago, after the music began."
"I guess it was too much holiday cheer for Lotor," quipped Lance.
"Time to call it a night, team." The group enthusiastically agreed, disbanded and returned to the castle.
***
Upon returning to castle control, Coran congratulated the team. "I have no idea what actually happened out there, but I'm glad you found and exploited the robeast's weakness."
"Thanks go entirely to Hunk," said Keith seriously.
Hunk looked sheepish. "Oh, it was nothing. We all saw earlier that its skin was impenetrable from the outside, so we needed to hit it from the inside. I then noticed that its screech sent disruptions through all of us. I figured to turn its tactic back on itself."
"Well, however it was accomplished, good work, Voltron Force."
They all smiled tiredly and headed out of the control room.
"What are we going to do now?" Pidge was perky and wide-awake. Youth.
"Feel free to sit in the lounge listening to Christmas carols. The hot cocoa will be very cold by now, but if you dare, you can go wake Nanny to make you some more. Personally, it's late; we've all had a lot of stress lately, and we all got roughed up a bit out there. We need some good sleep to be fully functional again. Besides, Santa can't come if your eyes are still open." Keith's eyes sparkled at that last sentence.
"Who's Santa? Why is he coming?" Allura felt this was another Christmas riddle.
"Oh, he's a big guy in a red suit who comes secretly at night to deliver toys to all the good little girls and boys!" Pidge answered excitedly.
"Well, I guess that leaves you out, uh, squirt?" teased Lance.
"Hey!"
Allura giggled. Lance never stopped.
"The kids leave milk and cookies out for Santa, so I better go see to that. Wouldn't want to disappointment the old man." Hunk waved to his friends and headed back to the kitchen.
The others acknowledged their tiredness so they called it a night.
Keith walked the princess back to her rooms. "Your Highness, wake up early tomorrow and meet us all in the lounge again. That way you'll see the other half of Christmas." Keith tried to maintain his calm formality but couldn't help it as a little nervousness entered his stance. He hoped she would agree.
"Oh, of course, Keith. I would love to continue with your celebration." Allura gazed at her commander with appreciation. "Thank you, and Lance and the rest, for inviting me. Its seems like a wonderful holiday; although I'm not sure what part this Grinch character plays in it."
Keith smiled and chuckled silently. "If you knew the rest of the story, it would make a lot more sense. Maybe I'll read it to you tomorrow."
"That sounds perfect. Good night, Captain."
"Good night, Princess."
***
Chapter 4: Revelations
Keith actually took a little bit longer this morning, waiting until he knew the rest of the team would be assembled in the rec room. He had a secret wish to wear a Santa Claus costume and hand out the gifts. He thought it ironic that his normal flight suit was the perfect shade of red. All he needed was the hat, but after the fight last night, he was glad he didn't have one. Wouldn't want the crew to start shooting at him, would he?
Before reaching the room, he could already hear the carols playing over the speakers and the discussions of his friends. They appeared to be in a good mood, and he could see Allura, decked out in a formal deep green dress which sparkled, was already with them. With that dress and my jumpsuit, we'll make quite the festive pair. He smiled a little at that. Upon entering Keith let out a deep "Ho Ho Ho! Merry Christmas!"
The team laughed and cheered. "About time you showed up! We want to open presents." Cheerfully they greeted one another with hugs and rounds of "Good morning! Merry Christmas!"
Keith inhaled the most delicious scent of fresh-baked, plump cinnamon rolls and spiced apple cider. Nanny had on a smile while handing him a roll on a plate along with knife and fork (no fingers here) and a drink. Keith took them with a heartfelt "Thank you," plucked down on the sofa and proceeded to eat the sticky bun the old-fashioned way.
Nanny rolled her eyes and shook her head. Those boys will never learn.
"Come on, Captain. We don't have time for you to finish eating," wailed Pidge.
"Don't let me stop you. Go ahead and distribute the gifts."
As Lance and Pidge began to give out the wrapped boxes, the princess turned to her commander. "All these red and green presents weren't here last night. What's the meaning of this? Is this the other half to which you referred?"
Taking a swallow of cider to clear his throat, Keith replied, "Yes, it is. It's customary to exchange gifts with family and friends to show how much you care about each other. For younger children, the belief in Santa Claus is carried on by the parents leaving presents under the tree while the kids are asleep Christmas Eve. Another version is to donate gifts to needy children whose family can't afford to buy anything. If we do this again next year, I would like to set up a Santa drive."
"To give out presents to the children of Arus?"
"Yes."
"What a wonderful idea! That would bring a lot of joy to the people. I would be honored to help with that."
Hunk had overheard that last bit. "That IS a great idea. I have some thoughts on simple gifts we can put together. Count me in."
"That goes for us, too," Lance said when he handed Keith a package.
The young monarch sat shocked. It continually amazed her how these young soldiers from other worlds could so easily care about her planet and her people. Their courage and tenacity pushed her to keep going everyday, even when she felt like giving up, but their selflessness actually encouraged her to be the best ruler she could be. They didn't let her down, so she had no excuse to let her people down. They had become the backbone by which she stood.
She was broken out of her thoughts when she heard Nanny exclaim, "Oh, my, what's this?" Allura turned to her left to see Hunk place a heavy large box on the side table in front of her governess.
"It's a gift for you," Hunk stated simply.
Nanny looked confusedly around the room. All the other members had paused and were watching them. Her eyes fell on her charge who gave her a pleasing nod.
"Go on, open it, Nanny."
Nanny hesitantly began unwrapping it. Once all the paper was off, she timidly opened the lid and peered in. Her eyes grew wide and she froze in place.
Seeing that she wasn't moving, Hunk gingerly placed his hands inside the box and hauled out a mechanical contraption in the shape of a bulbous bracket with a large metal bowl on the bottom branch and a lattice-shaped paddle suspended from the top branch. He pushed the box aside and carefully set the apparatus down again. "I saw how much baking you do in the kitchen, so I refurbished this old mixer I brought with me from Earth."
Nanny was completely taken aback by the thoughtfulness of the gift. "I don't know what to say. Thank you." She thought they all hated her because they clashed so much on the princess' etiquette and social duties. She was just doing her job so that the people of Arus could be proud of their monarchy and their heritage. She felt the Terrans would never understand that and, thus, despised her for it. Nanny never expected this. Maybe the boys weren't so bad, after all.
The silence was interrupted by Pidge tearing through one of his presents. "Awesome! A new data display! Thanks, Hunk!"
The rest of the team began opening their boxes, and thanking each giver in return.
Halfway through these events, Coran walked into the lounge. "You wanted to see me, Commander? I left one of my senior staff watching castle control for a minute."
"Yes, I did. Lance, would you hand Coran his present, please?"
"Certainly."
Coran too was stunned by the small green box that was given to him.
"Merry Christmas, Coran. Go ahead and open it."
Coran looked to the princess who nodded approval and ripped into the box. He took out a palm-sized brass disk attached to a foot of chain. As he held it up for closer inspection, he could hear it ticking and see the face arms moving slowly in their circular pattern. "This is an ancient Arusian artifact! Where ever did you find it?"
Pidge spoke up, "It was in one of the mecha digs around Keldar. We fixed it up for you so it would run properly, but it may still need slight adjustments. Just bring it by any time."
"Thank you, Voltron Force. It means a lot to me to have part of Arus' glorious past restored. This is indeed a treasure." Coran put the pocket watch in his slacks, then poured himself a glass of cider and left.
Allura sat watching as the team finished opening their gifts. There was so much glee in the air that it transformed the space and everyone in it. Was this what Christmas was all about?
Suddenly, Keith got up from the sofa and walked to the tree which had remained lit all night. He knelt down and pulled out a small box hidden from view. Standing, he moved back over to where the princess sat in her comfortable wing chair. Nervously, he handed the gift to Allura and said, "Here, this one is for you. We hope you like it."
Allura accepted the box and examined it. The paper was of the finest quality, smooth but with subtle changes in the pulp, slightly off-white. Calligraphy in red and green ink scrawled across the page, saying, "Joy, Love, Peace." Satiny red ribbon ran horizontally and vertically around the box ending in a simple bow. It was elegant. Not wanting to ruin the wrapping, she pulled the bow apart and gently eased the paper off intact. The box itself was unadorned but opened to reveal a green velvet pillow on which lay the most stunning necklace she had ever seen. She lifted it up on her slim, delicate fingers so it could catch the light. It was a single strand of alternating pearls and clear crystals with two small elongated pendants spaced on either side of a larger star pendant in the middle. The crystal star was the exact same shape as the ones hanging on the Christmas tree.
Wow, Keith outdid himself on this one. Way to go, Captain, thought Lance.
Everyone else responded with "oohs" and "ahhs."
Happiness as she hadn't experienced since her parents were alive overcame Allura. Her heart tightened in her chest and unshed tears wetted her azure eyes. "Thank you all so much. It's beautiful. It must have cost a fortune!"
"We did have to delve into our savings a bit, but Galaxy Garrison pays us well enough, and we don't normally have the need to spend any of it here. The jeweler actually wanted to give it to me for free when he was told that it was to be a gift for his princess, but I insisted on paying him a fair price."
Allura beckoned Nanny to help her put it on. It looked even more lovely on her than it had in the box and matched wonderfully with her holiday dress. "I honestly don't know what to say. You being here helping keep my people free is all I could have wished for. This is beyond that. And, I don't have anything to give you in return."
"Don't think anything of it, Princess," said Lance before Keith could comment. "You're a valued member of the team and our friend. We just wanted you to have something nice for once. You ARE a princess, after all." Lance winked at her.
Allura chuckled in embarrassment but was very grateful for his playful attitude. Realization dawned on her as she looked at the faces of her comrades. Their friendship was the best gift of all and the joy and love embodied there was the true meaning of Christmas.
--