Allura watched Keith sleep. They had stayed up until early the next morning and he had taught her every single card game that he knew. He had been very good about keeping her awake and the others had come to relieve him in different times during the night, but he sent them away, saying that he could stay awake for a little while longer. When they had run out of games to play, he gave in to his exhaustion. He did tell her to wake him in half an hour, but she had no intention of doing that. He'd been asleep for two hours now and she'd been working on some paperwork that she'd put off for too long.

His breathing was even and his face was serene, probably as peaceful as it could possibly get. She took a sip of the coffee she held in her hands, the caffeine racing through her body and keeping her eyes open, though her body was tired. Keith had his share of coffee as well, but years of drinking it had made him immune to its affects. She put the cup on the night table, moving carefully as to not wake him. There was a cot set up next to her bed for him, but he had fallen asleep with his head at her side within reach as he sat in a chair. She hesitated waking him up now, but he would ache in the morning if she allowed him to stay that way.

The Princess reached out and tapped his head lightly, trying to wake him. He stirred, but didn't wake up. Instead, his brow furrowed and he began to twitch. She leaned forward to see his face clearly and saw that it was deeply troubled. His eyes moved rapidly underneath his closed lids. He was dreaming and it wasn't a good dream. His breath came out in short gasps and Allura shook his shoulder hard to wake him.

"No, Sven," he muttered as he woke.

Keith lifted his head and saw Allura looking at him worriedly. He grimaced when he realized that she knew that he had a nightmare. Her hand was still on his shoulder as he rose and he ran a hand through his hair uneasily.

"Keith," she said, shaking her head. "You have to let him go."

"I can't anymore than you can let go of your father."

Allura's hand dropped and her eyes seemed to fade.

"I haven't let him go, but I don't cling on to him like you are. Maybe it's because I was younger and I had all these things thrown at me right after. I didn't have time to mourn him properly. I didn't have time to think about how much I missed him and how much I needed him. It's not that I forgot about him completely, but by the time I was able to catch my breath, time had healed my pain. Now, I can only feel regret that he's gone when he's needed the most."

"Sven was one of the first boys to befriend me at the Academy," Keith said quietly. "I'll never forget that first day, when I moved into my dorm room. My roommate was something of a bully and he would take my things. I didn't do anything about it because...because I was never a violent kid and there was no way I could get my stuff back without a fight. Sven couldn't stand the way the bully picked on me so he practiced his moves on the kid."

A small smile teased his mouth.

"Sven was getting beat up pretty badly," he continued. "And I couldn't stand watching him get beaten to a pulp so I jumped in. Then the bully's friends jumped in. We were all injured by the time the campus police came in to break it up. We were all sent to the nurse's office, then the dean's. We had detention and no off-campus trips for six months after that. But we became friends in detention. We even met a smart-mouthed skinny kid who was a regular there. Him, Sven, and I were inseparable after that."

Keith laughed at the memories and Allura smiled.

"I wish I had stories as light as those," she said wistfully. "I didn't have much contact with kids my age, even when my father was alive. I was a Princess and I had lessons to learn and people to meet. I didn't have the time for it."

The sparkle in Keith's eyes faded and he leaned back in his chair.

"In some ways, you're lucky."

"No," she said. "The pain you feel is worth it because you knew him. Believe me."

Keith rubbed his eyes. "I know. I just haven't lost anyone under me before. This is my first command and I don't know..."

"I know," she said. "By Riaru, I know exactly what you mean. Try being a twelve year old girl giving orders to someone twice your age and three times your size."

"We have a lot of things in common, don't we?" he observed.

She smiled slightly. "I guess us good leaders are made from the same mold."

"I guess so."

They lapsed into silence. The doors slid open then, revealing Lance at the doorway. He looked from one to the other, hesitant to enter.

"Hi, Lance," Allura greeted. "Shouldn't you be in bed now?"

"I can't sleep," he mumbled. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry."

"For what? Other than being the bane of my existence, of course."

"Seriously, Princess," he said. "I'm really sorry."

Keith stood. "What's this about, Lance? What did you do?"

"You should know. You were there," was the sharp reply.

"For dropping me in the lake, you mean?" Allura said. "You shouldn't be sorry at all, Lance. You heard what Pidge said about the water cushioning my fall."

"I still feel guilty, though," he said. "For all we know, I probably caused more damage to you even though the Lion was better off."

"Well, we don't know, so don't even think about it," she said dismissively. "I'm ok."

"I wanted some inner peace. I had to say it because it had to be said," he said, and he looked at Keith. "You should give it a try, Keith."

The commander was surprised at the sudden change in topic. Lance and Allura turned their eyes to him.

"What are you talking about?" he asked.

"Find some inner peace," Allura said, understanding. "Go to Sven and say what you have to say."

"I hate to break it to you guys, but he's dead. I can't say anything to him."

"Not to his physical body, maybe," Lance said.

"You spend hours in the garden staring at his plaque," Allura murmured. "You don't move, you don't speak. Why don't you give it a try one of these days."

"How do you know what I do?" he asked, frowning.

She gave him a look. "I have to know where any of you are at anytime in case we need you."

Keith stood. "I'm going to deal with this my own way," he said stiffly.

"Keith..." Lance began.

"We're just trying to help you," Allura finished.

He looked from one to the other, a muscle in his cheek twitching.

"I'm still getting my job done," he said. "Let me do what I have to with this. I don't need your help. Can you stay with her, Lance?"

"I can stay awake by myself," Allura spat. "Just go do what you have to."

"I'll stay with you anyway," Lance said, taking Keith's seat. "Did Keith teach you how to play poker?"

Keith stood in the doorway. Lance began dealing the cards and Allura watched him. He felt an inkling of something and wished he'd hadn't been so brusque. Allura looked up, her expression noticeably cooler.

"Well?" she prompted.

He turned his back and walked out. She stared at the spot where he stood for a while until Lance nudged her out of her stupor to show her that her cards were ready to be played.

"He needs to do this," Lance said to her.

She nodded. She knew that, but it didn't stop her from feeling bad that they had kicked him out of her room. She stared at her cards.

Keith was on his way to bed, their arguments going round and round in his head. Unbidden, his feet turned towards the garden. He went to the bench and sat down, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees as he stared at Sven's plaque. He sighed heavily.

"Hi," he began hesitantly. "I feel strange doing this, but...I have so many things I want to say to you."

He began to speak, haltingly at first, then as if Sven was really sitting in front of him, listening. He didn't know how long he had been talking, but the first rays of sunlight began to peek over the horizon when he finally finished. Keith rubbed his face only to find that his cheeks were wet, but the weight that he'd been carrying was lifted from his shoulders. Lance and Allura were right. Not that he would ever admit it.

He went back into the castle to begin Lion practice.

Light years away, a form that had been lying still for too long began to move. Dark eyes opened and found themselves staring at a ceiling that couldn't be recognized.

Where am I?

The Legend will continue...