Much like Keith had stood and stared outside Lance's door the day before, Allura now stared at Romelle's closed door. The guards she'd had posted kept on throwing her strange looks, wondering what she was doing just standing there, but she ignored them. She had raised her hand several times to ring the chime, but each time, it fell to her side as something she couldn't recognize kept tying her stomach into knots and choking her. She had finally decided to tell her cousin about her condition, but something kept on holding her back. She was more apprehensive of facing Romelle than she was about telling her the news.

At that moment, the doors slid open and a pair of dark blue eyes looked back at her, freezing over immediately as they recognized Allura. The Arusian Princess didn't avert her own eyes, despite her desire to do so, but looked back at Romelle, her chin held high.

"May I have a word with you?" Allura asked.

"Is it terribly important?" Romelle asked, raising a delicate eyebrow.

"Yes, it is."

Romelle turned her back on Allura and stepped back into the room. The other woman took it as a sign to enter. She stepped into Romelle's quarters and sat down at the nearest armchair. Romelle sat across from her. She didn't move, she didn't even blink. She merely looked at Allura and waited for what she wanted to say.

"Doctor Gorma ran some tests on a blood sample he took from you," Allura began. "You're pregnant."

Romelle paled. Her fingers tightened on the chair's arm, her nails digging into the soft fabric. Her eyes widened imperceptibly, and she pressed her lips tightly together. She looked at Allura disbelievingly. Her mouth worked, but no sound came out. Her thoughts were going a million miles a minute in her head and it felt like the walls were closing in on her.

Then she took a deep, shuddering breath and her eyes began to spill over with tears.

"NO!...Nooooo..." she wailed, burying her face in her hands. "Why did it have to happen? I thought...I thought...." She took a deep shuddering breath and whispered, "I thought I was free."

Allura stood slowly and went to her cousin's side. She put a gentle hand on her back and knelt. Romelle, hungering for a human touch and any kind of sympathy, threw her arms around Allura before she could think it through and sobbed into her shoulder.

"I'm sorry," Allura whispered. "I'm so sorry, Romelle."

"It was bad enough that he...that he took me," Romelle said, her voice hollow and pained. "But not this...Allura, I can't have this baby. I won't."

Allura stroked her cousin's hair, for the first time feeling a link between them. "You don't have to have it," she said. "It's your choice."

"I can't...I can't..." she repeated over and over.

Allura made comforting noises, not knowing anything else to say. She could only guess at what Romelle had gone through and could only imagine being touched by the revolting Prince of Doom. As she held her cousin, her resolve to keep her distance melted away and as Romelle's tears soaked her flightsuit, she began to wonder if Romelle was a danger to them as she had first thought. The tears seemed real to her, and anyone who did not react to them with deep sympathy was not human. Despite popular belief, Allura was human and she began to feel her own eyes smart as Romelle sobbed.

Romelle could not think of anything else but the child growing inside her. She gave no thought to it being a part of her. She only thought of it as something to remind her of her days on Doom and the way Lotor destroyed her innocence. It was his child. She had no part in creating it and wanted no part in its life whatsoever. The darker part of her mind wanted to tear it out of herself and send it to Lotor in a neatly wrapped package. She clutched at Allura's clothes as her sobs quieted and she forced herself to calm down.

The Polluxian princess straightened and looked at Allura. She brushed the tears from her eyes and cleared her throat, becoming the same Romelle that had answered the door. Allura stood awkwardly and looked back at her.

"Thank you," Romelle said hoarsely. "I appreciate you telling me yourself."

"You're welcome. If you need anything, please don't hesitate to ask."

Romelle nodded and Allura took her leave. She was about to step through the opened doors when Romelle spoke again.

"I do need something," she said. "I would like to see Sven."

Allura turned her head and nodded slightly.

"Thank you...Allura."

Romelle offered a small smile and Allura returned it with one of her own before she disappeared from Romelle's view as the doors closed. Outside, Allura dispatched one of the guards to get Sven.

Keith perched on the edge of the couch's arm. Allura opened her eyes. She had been sitting in the rec room for nearly an hour trying to recover from her emotional interlude with Romelle. She felt more exhausted now than she ever had. He had searched her out after the guard had come looking for Sven. As promised, he kept a close eye on him and he was surprised when the guard said that Allura had ordered him to fetch Sven for Romelle. He had been distracted during his search with one of the Arusian generals asking about a few nit-picky details and after some fast talking, finally got away long enough to find the Princess.

"So you finally told Romelle," he said. "What did she have to say?"

"Not much," was the short reply.

"And you let Sven visit too," he said with a smile. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"I thought that they were the potential enemy..."

"I'm not heartless," she retorted. "I'm starting to rethink her being on Doom's side. I'm not completely convinced," she added quickly as he raised an eyebrow, "But I am beginning to wonder. Perhaps she is just a good actress, I don't know, but I can't rebuild the kingdom my ancestors ruled over if I give in to all my fears. I have to trust sometime, I suppose." She sat up. "Who better to trust than my own blood, whether or not she would have been considered an enemy in another lifetime."

Keith nodded thoughtfully. "You know, I think that's the smartest thing I've heard come out of your mouth."

"Thanks," she said wryly.

"You're welcome."

She stood and stretched, her long arms reaching high above her blonde head. He eyed her lithe form appreciatively. She caught his look and glared, though two red points appeared on her cheeks. He looked away quickly, struggling not to blush. She tugged uncomfortably at her flightsuit, but a little flame flickered inside her as she thought of the look she saw in his eyes. It was something she'd never seen before and she wondered about it.

"Have you set up the secured line yet?" she asked curtly, moving to the door.

He walked next to her. "Hunk just finished. If we have it in Castle Control, too many routines will be disrupted, so we had to set up monitors in the Conference Room instead. All you have to do is set up the date and time."

She flicked on her communicator. "Coran, send out an Alliance-wide call on Keith's secured frequency. I want a conference in an hour's time with all the leaders. Tell them it's a Priority One meeting."

"Yes, Your Highness."

She turned to Keith. "I want you there with me," she said. "Since you're a GG officer and you disapprove of their keeping silent, you will be the one they're really going to listen to."

"I have yet to meet a person who doesn't listen to you, Princess."

She smiled without humor. "People hear me, Keith. Listening is a whole other story."

"We'll see, Allura..."

He was interrupted by the beeping of his communicator.

"Sir, Green Lion and Squadron Chios just entered Arusian airspace with the passenger ship," said a young voice.

"Thank you, Jeniar," Keith said. "Have them land in docking bay eight." He looked at Allura with a question in his eyes and she nodded. "The Princess and I will meet them there."

"Yes, sir."

They made their way to the docking bay.