Taking A Chance

Apology

Keith was thankful Krolia wasn't there when they returned to the dining room, and that no-one else said anything about what happened.
The only tense time came when Allura entered the room and stood at the end of the table.
‘I know I'm the last person any of you want to see right now,' she began, ‘and that's my fault. I have acted shamefully. I don't have any excuses for my behaviour, but I regret everything I've done to you, Keith, and the rift I have caused between all of us.’ She wrung her hands as she spoke. ‘I don't expect to be forgiven because that would be too much to hope for, I do however, want to earn back all your friendships.’ She turned and left the room again.
Everyone was silent as they watched Keith expectantly.
‘Um...so that happened,' Lance said.
‘Da,’ Molly said when Keith stopped feeding her.
The others around the table laughed.
‘You've got your priorities right,’ Keith said, grinning.
When breakfast was finished Keith and Lance took Molly back to their room and put her on the floor with a variety of toys to keep her entertained.
‘Um...so…about Allura,’ said Lance. ‘How do you feel about the apology?’
Keith frowned. ‘I don't know,’ he admitted. ‘Part of me wants to hate her, but another part of me understands why she was so upset.'
‘She shot you,' growled Lance, ‘she made you cut yourself.’
‘She didn't make me do that,' muttered Keith, ‘I fell back into old...bad habits.’
‘Because of her,’ Lance said.
Keith went and joined Lance on the bed.
‘She lost everything to the Galra, her home, her family, and her way of life,’ said Keith, ‘she was woken up by strangers to find everything gone, destroyed by a Galran her father had called friend.’ Keith sighed. ‘Then she finds out the man she'd slept with was part GaIran, I can understand how that affected her. Hell, I hated myself when I found out the truth.' Keith unconsciously rubbed at his wrists. Lance frowned at the action.
‘Keith, did you hurt yourself when you found out?’ asked Lance.
Standing, Keith rubbed his hand on his thighs. ‘Shiro found me that night and put me in a pod. I was out before anyone woke up.'
Lance went over to him. ‘I want you to promise me, you'll talk to me if you ever feel the need to do it again.'
Keith nodded. ‘I'll try to.’
Lance knew that was as good a promise as he was likely to get.
There was a knock at the door and Lance huffed as we went and opened it to find Krolia standing there.
She pushed past Lance and entered the room.
Keith rolled his eyes. ‘What do you want?'
‘I'm returning to the Blade,’ she said.
‘Okay,' Keith said.
‘Is this how it is to be between us now?’ she asked. ‘You being angry with me because I did what I was ordered to do? That you didn't get the perfect life you wanted? In war we have to do things we don't like, but to be a good soldier, you need to be able to follow orders without question.’
‘Even in war, there is right and wrong,’ said Keith. ‘It was wrong to conceive children for the purpose of forming an army, only to throw them away when they didn't meet you specifications on what a good soldier should look like, I proved you wrong there.’
‘If you embrace your Galra side you would go a lot further,’ she said. ‘It's your human emotions that let you down.’
‘Well, then I guess the Blade won't miss me and my human emotions will they,’ Keith said.
‘You're turning your back on them?' she asked, shocked.
‘If that's how you want to put it,’ said Keith. ‘I have family responsabilities now, I don't want to put my life in danger unnecessarily.’
‘Did he put you up to this? she asked, pointing at Lance.
‘I'm capable of making my own decisions,’ said Keith. ‘I'm not the lost kid who came looking for answers any more. I've found out everything I wanted to know, and it shouldn't surprise you I would choose Lance and Molly over you, with my human emotions.'
Krolia didn't know what to say to that, but she knew she had made a huge error in judgement where it came to her son. She assumed he was a fighter like herself, that he would never leave the Blade because of the thrill he got from covert operations. How could she have been so wrong?
Kolivan was not going to be pleased with her.