Coran pulled Lotor into the kitchen.

"What happened between you and Elrine last night?"

Lotor looked at him, keeping his poker face. He hated to have to pull out the old lying skills, but he had to. "Nothing. After what you asked of me, I refused to go with Elrine. Now, she did end up drinking a lot, so I escorted her to bed. That was the extent of it."

Coran stared at him. Lotor refused to crack under the pressure. He had learned from a young age lying was the only way to keep out of trouble.

"Right. Well, as long as you're sure."

"I am sure." Lotor replied. "Now, am I free to rejoin the rest of the group?"

"Yes, Lotor. You are."

***

There was a scream from the living room. Kassy was in the kitchen, texting Jasper, and she got up, running in to find Shiro on top of the couch.

"What?! What happened?!"

"S-s-s-spider!" Shiro hyperventilated, pointing a shaky finger at a spider on the ground.

Kassy turned. "Huh? Oh!" she got on her knees, scooping it into her hands. "Poor little guy's probably terrified... let's put him outside."

"The spider's terrified?!" Shiro asked as Kassy went outside with it.

"All gone. What's the matter with you?"

"I'll have you know I have severe arachnophobia." Shiro crossed his arms, shakily taking a seat again.

"Yeah, sweetheart, I could have gathered that. Are you okay?"

He took a breath. "Yes. Thanks for getting rid of it."

She rubbed his shoulder. "You fight massive alien creatures but a spider is where you draw the line."

"They have so many legs! It's disgusting!"

"That's not their fault! Just because you have less limbs than what's expected doesn't mean you can take it out on our little fuzzy friends."

"Don't even get me started on their fuzz." Shiro shuddered, and Kassy pulled him into a hug. He rested his face in her chest.

"I know, baby, it's okay." she kissed his head.

Lance walked in at that point. "Hey, Kassy- woah." He stared at Shiro, his head in Kassy's chest as she soothingly rubbed his back.

Shiro looked up. "Oh, hey Lance."

"Shiro, what are you...?" he snorted. "Aww, cuddles with mommy?"

"If you don't tell anyone I'll uber a McDonalds to you."

"Deal. Anyway, Kassy, Ronnie wants to know if she can get Selena a day early this week, she got some time off."

"Oh, yeah, she can. Tell her she has a bit of an ear infection but we have the medicine she needs."

"Got it." Lance waved, and went to leave. "See you, Kassy, bye Babygirl."

Kassy laughed. "Silly."

***

"Hey." Elrine smiled, finding Lotor in Rora's kitchen again.

"What are you doing here? You should be at home, does your father know you're out?"

She nodded. "Yes. I left my bag." she smiled, looking up at him. "And I just wanted to see you again. What did he ask you about this morning?"

"Asking what happened between us. I told him it was nothing, and I simply escorted you to bed."

She smiled. "Left out the part where you stayed?"

He nodded, kissing her gently. "You're so beautiful. I adore every inch of you."

"You're alright yourself." she murmured back, her hands on the back of his neck. She leaned in again, deepening the kiss.

"Please, Elrine, my being aches for you." he whispered. "Every inch of me screams your name."

"I know." she whispered back, pushing herself up to his chest. His hands went from her ribs, to her waist, to her hips. He gave a gentle, quiet moan into her mouth.

"Tell me what you want." he whispered.

"I want you."

"That's my good girl." he murmured.

"Come on, guys, right in my kitchen?" Rora entered, searching for snacks. The two pulled away from each other, their faces flushed. No mistaking what they'd been doing. "Go on. Stop being horny and get to know each other."

The two left, sitting in Rora's garden. A squirrel climbed a nearby tree.

"A mouse!" Elrine pointed.

"That's actually a squirrel. It's an Earth animal, it's a bit like a mouse but they have big bushy tails and hide nuts underground."

Elrine beamed at him. "You're so clever."

"I read a lot." Lotor replied. "The few times I ever spoke to my father as a child, he told me I should only ever read as part of my studies, as it wasn't very manly.  I should be training instead. So I stopped for a long time. But recently I decided to do it more, and I read every night. It really helps me relax."

"That's wonderful." Elrine said. "My father never let me play outside. I was a Princess, so should act as such." she sighed. "To be fair to the man, he would play these long, drawn out pretend games with me in the Castle. I was always a gardener, and he would be a flower, and he would grow, then I would pick him, then I'd plant the seed again and it would start all over until mother saw him and started shouting."

"Your mother?"

"Yes." she replied. "She never shouted at me. But all the time, screaming at my father. He looked so sad every time."

"That's terrible. I'm sorry." his voice was soft.

She shrugged. "It was a marriage of convenience. For him. Altea was accepting of gay men, but not of royal advisors going for the king. King Alfor, my uncle, introduced him to his sister in law so they could remain close. My mother wanted a real connection, she was addicted to attention, and when he couldn't provide..."

"My parents were completely deadbeat." he murmured. "I didn't even know who my mother was, my father constantly berated and belittled me if he did talk to me. I ended up lying a lot. It made me... manipulative. And cruel. All I wanted was for my father to look at me and be happy I was his son. It never happened."

Elrine frowned, and took his hand, squeezing it. "I'm sorry about that."

He shook his head. "It's not your fault, my darling. I'm hoping to enter a better phase of my life."

"I hope you know that I'll always be proud of you. Because you're making a change. You're choosing good. I know some people cannot forgive you, but... I'll always have your back."

Lotor smiled then, touched. "Thank you, Elrine."

He intertwined their fingers, and kissed her again.