Zarkon glared down at his son and his witch. The pair stood below him, faces expectantly awaiting his judgment. They had told him of their plan and though he thought it a good one, he had doubts about whether or not they were capable of succeeding. After they had lost half of Arus to Voltron, he nearly had Lotor killed, but the Prince had convinced his father that he would get all of Arus back. Zarkon could not recall what Lotor had said, but the father in him and the last bit of compassion he had left convinced him to let the spoiled brat live for a little while longer.

So, Lotor and Hagar presented their plan. It was simple, but that wasn't what the Voltron Force and Princess Allura were expecting, so it may just work. It was brilliant in its simplicity. Zarkon had to admit that Lotor's feeble brain might be of use when it came to mediocre plans. It was unexpected and Zarkon's more complicated plans were foiled in the past. There may actually be a market for Lotor after all. Not that he would ever tell him that.

"If you fail me..." he started.

"We know, Father," Lotor said. "We won't fail you. We will get this done. If we don't, you can have my head."

"How confident," Zarkon sneered. "You're that sure about this?"

"They have a mutual overblown sense of duty," Hagar said. "I've seen it in my crystal ball."

"Your crystal ball is about as clear as mud," Zarkon said dismissively. "This better work because it will be both your heads, not just his."

Hagar bowed and if a movement could be considered sarcastic, hers certainly was.

"As you say, Majesty."

She disappeared and retreated to her laboratory. She waved her hand and an image appeared. She cackled as she saw their target, a tall, broad-shouldered young man. He looked strong and she knew he was important to the Voltron Force. They couldn't be a team without him. Which was why they were going to get rid of him. They were going to take them out, one by one. After all, they were brash, young fools. They would not stay under guard if one of them was attacked. They would seek the attacker out and that was when Hagar was going to swoop in and destroy them.

Dinner was uneventful. For once, there was no boisterous laughter or chit-chat. Allura was absent. She was lucky enough to get some sleep. Coran was finishing some paperwork, so it was just the team there. They were all too exhausted to talk, even the gregarious Lance. He picked at his food listlessly, his eyes half-closed. Hunk was the only one showing any life as he shoveled his food into his mouth, but he could do that in his sleep. Keith was blinking rapidly as he tried to keep his eyes opened. He still had a shift to do, but it had been a very long day. His limbs felt like weights. Next to him, Sven was resting his head on a fist, his mouth hanging open. He swayed slightly and they all just waited for him to land face first in his dinner. Pidge was busy feeding the mice his bread, his head resting on the table as he hummed lazily.

"We need a day off," Lance said. "I know it sounds selfish, but we can't go on like this."

"I agree," Keith said, rubbing his eyes.

"Really?" Pidge asked in disbelief, raising his head.

"Yes. No one is any good half-asleep. Look at Sven. Completely useless."

Sven didn't even twitch at the sound of his name. He was too far gone. Lance nudged him lightly and still got no response. Annoyed that someone was getting rest while he wasn't, he pushed Sven's raised arm, causing his head to fall forward and into his salad. He woke up with a start and his head shot up. A tomato was stuck against his forehead.

"That's a look I would support," Hunk remarked.

"Va--"

"I didn't know salads made good pillows, buddy," Lance said with a laugh.

"Dey do ven you hafen't seen your own pillow in days."

"Oh, and whose pillow have you been seeing lately?" Pidge asked slyly.

Sven only yawned in response to Pidge's question. It was no secret that the Arusian women swooned when they saw Sven. Keith as well, but he paid no attention to them. However, Sven paid enough attention for both of them. He had always been something of a ladies man during their Academy days. Hunk and Pidge were shy around them, but Lance was comfortable. Sometimes too comfortable. So comfortable that he was already blacklisted by single Arusian females. The only difference between him and Sven was that, they liked Sven.

"He wasn't looking at the pillows, Kid," Lance said in a stage whisper.

Sven threw his balled up napkin at Lance.

"I'm sure you know a lot about dat," he mocked.

Lance made a face at him. "More than you ever could."

Keith leaned back in his chair as the testosterone level in the room rose and ran a hand through his hair. It had grown too much since he had arrived on Arus. He had only had one cut since then and now it flew around his head like it had a life of its own. He didn't know it could get like that. He couldn't remember it being this long either. His parents were very good about bringing him to the barber and he continued the practice until now. The others had allowed their own hair cuts to grow out, but they seemed to be enjoying the freedom. For a man like Keith, it was a nightmare. Hunk caught the look he had on his face and grinned.

"Should we ask GG to send Mac?" he asked.

"The barber? I don't think they'd give him up."

Allura walked into the dining room then, stifling a yawn.

"Speaking of hair..." Lance muttered.

The Princess touched her hair self-consciously. It was tied back in a loose bun, but tendrils had escaped to frame her oval shaped face. For once, it was clean, but it was out of control as she had just taken a nap. She only shrugged.

"No time," she said. "So, Boys, anything new?"

"Do I have to remind you that all of us, save Pidge, are older than you are?" Keith said with a small smile.

She looked at him archly. "That doesn't make you any less a boy," she pointed out.

"Makes you wonder why we call you Princess then," Lance threw in.

"Ha-ha," she said sarcastically. "Can you be serious for just a little while? I'm going to make an announcement."

He leaned back in his chair and put his feet up on the table, his hands folded behind his head.

"Well, why didn't you say so?"

"Because you won't..."

"Princess," Keith prompted. "Your announcement."

She nodded. "Right." She clenched her fists tightly. "We have received word that Lotor wants to meet in Voltronia to talk of a peace treaty in a week's time."

"Are you serious?" Lance scoffed.

"Very. We are not one to refuse peace," she said, her voice tight. "So we have requested he come in an unarmed vessel with no guards. He cannot have any weapons on his person and we will keep him heavily guarded at all times. We are allowed to have guards present during the treaty and we are going to take advantage of that."

"So he's coming?" Keith said.

"Yes."

"Dis iz not a goot idea," Sven said.

"No kidding," Lance agreed. "We can't let him through our defenses, Princess."

She closed her eyes, suddenly looking weary again.

"I know, but my people are tired of fighting. If I refuse Lotor, they are going to rise up against me."

"Do you know that for sure?" Keith asked.

"Yes," she said stiffly. "They said so."

"Even the soldiers? Don't they know of Lotor and that he's untrustworthy?" Lance asked, surprised.

She sat down in her seat. "Especially them," she replied. "They want this war finished. They want to go back to their families. I tried to talk to them, but they want this. I have no choice but to give it to them and we have no choice but to allow Lotor in."

Keith stood. "Then we have to act fast. We need teams of men patrolling Voltronia tonight. Sven, I want you to lead them first. I'll have a schedule up in an hour. Right now, I want you to go see who is on duty tonight and gather about ten men."

Sven stood and went out the door.

"What about the rest of us?" Hunk asked.

"I want you and Pidge to finish the perimeter shield," Keith replied. "Will you be able to finish it by the time Lotor gets here?"

Pidge thought silently for a moment.

"We'll give it a try," he said.

"I want it done by the time Lotor gets here," Keith rephrased.

"You got it, Skipper," Hunk said.

They left the room and Lance was left to stare at the two leaders.

"I feel left out."

"You're going to Castle Control and you're going to take my shift."

"Alright, but I'm not happy about it."

They watched him go.

"Are we going to be able to stop him?" Allura asked.

"If we don't, we're going to die trying."

There was more truth in his words than either of them wanted to admit.