do you think Lance starts playing Monsters and Mana early with Pidge in the identity crisis AU. I mean, I think we can determine that in canon Hunk and Pidge have probably been playing it for awhile before that episode, we just don't know for how long.

Pidge hears about it from Coran, and recognizes it as sounding so much like D&D (which is also weird, but eh. so's everything in space.). She makes an offhand mention to Lance, who seems... interested?

Oh right. He's got personality traits from her.

Pidge ends up playing a dwarf wizard. Lance ends up playing a beast person warrior. They play maybe once or twice together before Shiro catches wind of it and decides that this could be a great team-building exercise, since they're kind of... all over the place lately. Mandatory session of Monsters and Mana. For team-building, you know.

Shiro still ends up playing a human paladin named Takashi Shirogane. And still dies immediately. Allura also plays the same character as she does in canon, and is eager to play. Hunk's also... vaguely interested? He's felt a little distant from everyone since. yanno. He ends up playing a human ranger.

Keith is resistant to the idea at first, but if Shiro's the one asking him to play... he guesses he can put up with it for awhile. He ends up playing a half-elf rogue and is definitely having more fun with it than he'll ever admit.

Impromptu Movie Date

Well I’ve given up on an actual writing schedule, but I do plan on adding my fics to my ao3 account this week or next (we’ll see if that happens), and hopefully writing some more fics, though I might be taking a break from Voltron fics for a bit, cause my brain is screaming MCU rn, so that’s my current life. In other news, I have none. *shrug* I’ve mostly been dealing with work and my husband, but registration is coming up soon, so that’s a party! Also, I’m reading a lot so yay for books! Lol and I’m working on original stories and ideas, so that’s another reason why my fanfics are so late in coming.

About the story: This is random and unconnected to anything else I’ve written cause I was bored at work and feeling guilty cause it’s been weeks since I’ve posted anything, so I wrote this literally while taking calls (it was hard and you’re welcome). Enjoy my baby fluff piece.  Also, I have not seen Sonic, but it feels like one that Keith would begrudgingly watch because Lance is dying to, and Shiro is along for the ride like the happy little star boy he is.

--------------------------------------

"Hey, Shiro, isn't that Lance?" As usual, Lance's name was like magic -- or kryptonite -- to Shiro, and he found himself almost helplessly drawn to the direction Keith had nodded at. Sure enough, Lance in all his splendor was sitting on one of the theater's benches, looking downcast and miserable. Shiro's breathing made a sad stutter at the sight.

"What do you think happened?" he muttered.

"Well, he told Hunk and Pidge that he and Lotor were gonna come see this movie. He seemed really excited. Maybe he was ditched again?"

Shiro glanced around. "I don't see him here anywhere... Well, we can at least go say hi, offer to wait with him." When Keith didn't respond, Shiro shot him a look, but turns out Keith was already closing the distance between them and Lance.

The closer Keith got to Lance, the more his heart clenched. Lance's eyes were red-rimmed, tear-stained, pained and hopeless-looking. It was not a good look for the normally cheerful and sunshiney boy. In his mind, Keith declared that whoever was responsible for this was gonna die. Then he got close enough to hear Lance's sniffles clearly, and his brain went into overdrive, because really, Lance would be a good enough distraction for Shiro while Keith snuck away to murder, and Shiro was really the only other one that Keith would entrust to watch their precious cinnamon roll, so really it was a win-win-win.

"Hey, what're you guys doing here?" Damn this stupid drama kid, able to build walls and put on masks so quickly despite his obvious pain and sadness.

"Keith noticed you here and so we came over to say hi real fast," Shiro's smile was brighter than the sun itself, and even Lance was unable to remain sad in the face of it.

"Weren't you gonna go see that movie? Sonic, right? You seemed super excited about it, doesn't it start soon?" Keith determinedly refused to look over at Shiro, focusing instead on Lance, who was beginning to droop again.

"Well... I mean, I was, but... The guy who was gonna come with me hasn't showed yet. I thought I'd wait a little longer for him." With his head down, Lance didn't notice the sad, knowing looks Shiro and Keith exchanged at that.

"Well," Shiro started, "Keith actually dragged me out here to see a movie. In fact, which one was it again, Keith?" Keith instantly turned bright red as Lance twisted around to see him better, mumbling something incoherent under his breath. It was worth it, though, as Lance's laughter rang. "What was that, Keithy-boy?"

"I said it was Sonic, okay? Geez, can we stop humiliating me and go watch the movie instead? C'mon, popcorn's on Shiro." He stood and only realized he had offered Lance his hand when Lance grabbed it tightly and allowed himself to be pulled along. "I mean, are you sure you don't mind me crashing your date?"

"Honestly, this helps a ton. We can put you in the middle and it saves me from having to listen to Keith destroying the plot lines, and Keith won't have to listen to me making sarcastic comments and actually enjoying the movie!"

Lance stared at Shiro for a moment before bursting into laughter again. "Well, if you're that sure it's okay..."

Keith groaned. "Oh my god, it's fine, come on come on come, let's gooooo!" he whined, tugging on Lance's arm and glaring hard at Shiro as he went, and evidently that's all it took to break Lance, because he just giggled and looped his arm around Keith's so their hold on each other was more secure, and moved with Keith towards the entrance, waving his free hand behind him for Shiro to grab, which he did happily.

"All right, I guess!" Lance announced to them, and both Shiro and Keith were pleased to see that Lance was looking much more like his normal self. "To the movie we go!"

Quid Pro Quo

Summary: While everyone's healing after their first fight against Haggar's super powered Mech, Coran brings up the perfect way for them to relax and pass the time: a fun game of Monsters & Mana! While Shiro argues the value of (once again) playing a paladin, Keith goes for a more unexpected role.

Also posted on Archive of our Own - under the username Kishirokitsune

-

Quid Pro Quo

Quid pro quo - a favor or advantage granted or expected in return for something.

The aftermath of their battle against the Komar Mech found the paladins of Voltron in a rough state. While the lions protected them from harm to the best of their ability, there were still injuries and each of them had spent two long weeks confined to their beds in the med-bay so they would have proper time to heal from their ordeal. And even after that, they were released under the condition that they take it easy for another week.

After being active for so long, it was hard for any of them to patiently sit around and do nothing, especially when there was so much that needed done.

It was Coran who came up with a solution to their boredom.

He rounded up everyone and giddily took them down to the common room, where he had commandeered a round table for their use. There was a hand-drawn, gridded map spread across the surface, a handful of dice, and a set of five familiar figures.

“You save the game pieces?” Lance asked, sounding delighted. He swooped in and picked up the model of Pike, cradling it in his hands.

Allura smiled as she stepped up next to him, reaching for Valayun. “This is brilliant, Coran! But are you sure you have time for this? You and Shiro are perfectly able to go out and help with reconstruction.”

“Sam said that if he sees me working for the next twenty-four hours he's going to tie me down and make sure I get some rest,” Shiro said. “This sounds like the better choice.”

Pidge snorted in amusement, but didn't comment on it. She looked delighted to hold her figure of Meklavar once again.

Only Hunk looked a little concern, though it was quickly revealed that it wasn't over the game itself. “But Keith didn't play with us last time and he doesn't have a model.”

Coran twirled his mustache, a twinkle in his blue eyes. “Don't you worry about that, my young friend! I found a machine here that prints models in 3D and have already made new ones for our adventure today. They will all be revealed when the time is right. Now sit! And we shall resume our journey through the magical realm of Aurita!”

It didn't take them too long to get settled in around the table. Coran chose a spot at the top of the map, with Keith and Shiro to his left and right. Pidge was on the other side of Keith, followed by Hunk, then Lance, and finally Allura, bringing the circle back to Shiro. Each of them picked up a game pad and found their character, reviewing theirs stats and refreshing their memory of how the game worked.

“Before we begin, does anyone want to create a new character?” Coran asked, looking pointedly at Shiro.

Shiro crossed his arms over his chest. “I'm happy playing as Gyro. I don't see what I'd want to change characters.”

The other paladins – minus Keith – groaned in exasperation.

Coran hummed as he booted up his game pad. “I thought you might want a backup in case anything...unfortunate should happen?”

There was a moment of silence in which Keith looked up from his game pad to raise an eyebrow. When no one chose to elaborate on that, he went back to creating his own character, wondering what he'd gotten himself into.

“Coran, is something going to happen to Gyro?” Shiro asked.

“Only the dice know,” Coran replied mysteriously.

Shiro sighed as he selected the character creation screen. “I don't understand what you have against me playing as a paladin. I like being a paladin.”

“Can we make a rule that he can't make another one?” Lance asked.

“Now, now, far be it for me to stymie Shiro's creativity. If he wants to rewrite his backstory so that there is a third brother, then that's up to him,” Coran said. “Let's see... we've had Shiro and Gyro. What shall be the third brother's name? Hiro?”

“I hate all of you except for Keith,” Shiro said, prodding at his screen.

Coran gave them all a few more minutes while he searched for the storyline he wanted to use. It was bound to be a fun one, especially after his talk with Keith the day before. He had been sure that the others would be interested in another quest, but Keith hadn't been part of the original game and he wanted to include the current Black Paladin in their fun.

As it turned out, Keith had an interesting idea, and Coran had the perfect plot to go along with it.

He glanced up, smiling softly as he watched Allura lean over to Lance to ask him about something. Hunk appeared to be mumbling spells under his breath and then checking his game pad to make sure he got them right. Keith had his pad turned so Pidge couldn't sneak a peak at what he was doing, no matter how hard she tried.

It warmed Coran's heart to see them all having fun after everything they had been through.

He cleared his throat to get their attention and begin the game. “Tales of your miraculous defeat of the mighty and powerful wizard known as Dakin have spread far and wide across Aurita. Townspeople rejoice wherever you go and you no longer want for food and drink. Today we begin in the wilds of the Mysterious Forest, on a quest for a king of a distant land. It appears his daughter, Princess Mora, has been kidnapped and it is up to you all to save her!”

“A princess?” Lance's eyes lit up.

Hunk groaned. “Oh no... Coran, does it have to be a princess?”

“Yeah, can't we rescue a handsome prince instead? It doesn't always have to be a damsel in distress,” Pidge complained.

“But rescuing a princess is a staple of all classic stories! C'mon, guys, don't take this from me!” Lance begged.

Allura rolled her eyes.

Coran looked at them peevishly for interrupting his storytelling. “Are you going to let me continue, or would you like to run this campaign on your own?”

No one spoke again.

“As I was saying...”

-

If not for the haunting sounds of wildlife, the Mysterious Forest would be a beautiful place to explore. Trees towered overhead, their branches reaching out to cast shade over the ground, while still allowing in enough light for the underbrush to thrive. A single main path, comprised of dirt compacted under heavy travel, wound through the forest.

A sheer mountainside rose to the right of the path. It looked as though the rock had been carved away some time ago, though by what, no one knew.

Valayun led the way down the path, her bow knocked in preparation for trouble. She had heard tales of bandits and thieves who lurked within the woods and knew it was best to be ready to anything. Her blue eyes wearily scanned the underbrush, watching out for any movement.

Behind her was Pike and Block, who quietly talked to pass the time. Pike was particularly excited about their current quest to find a kidnapped princess, and was disappointed that no one else seemed to share his enthusiasm.

Meklavar traveled behind them, her ax at the ready. Her stonesense screamed that something wasn't right, and she was easily the jumpiest of the party.

Bringing up the rear was Gyro, who looked around with a sense of wide-eyed wonder at the beauty of the wilderness around them. He was particularly taken with the brightly colored flora and the pleasant smells they emitted. He felt like nothing could possibly go wrong. After all, the weather was pleasant and their quest had only just begun!

What could possibly go wrong?

-

“Shiro, roll for perception,” Coran instructed.

Shiro frowned. “I thought I already did that.”

“You did. Now I need you to roll a second time,” Coran said.

Everyone leaned forward to watch Shiro roll the die, eager to see what it would stop on. There was a collective groan when it tipped over one final time to end on “two”.

“Tough luck, Shiro,” Keith said sympathetically.

Coran's delight was obvious to everyone and he toned down his cackle to a snicker, hiding his face behind his game pad. “Suddenly, there is a loud crashing sound from the cliffside! Something has knocked into the precariously perched boulders up at the top, jarring them loose. They fall, picking up speed as they go, and while they make a great deal of noise, Gyro is too busy admiring the flowers to pay attention. Will anyone warn our poor paladin of the danger he faces?”

“How do you not hear a landslide?” Pidge asked with a shake of her head. “Nevermind. I'm the closest to him, so I shout out to try and warn him.”

“Shiro, another roll, if you will?”

Shiro sighed and rolled again, not at all surprised to see another roll number. Even the dice gods were working against him. “Am I dead?”

“Oh, I'm afraid so. You hear Meklavar's warning, but aren't able to move in time and are crushed by a landslide,” Coran rattles off as though commenting on the weather.

Shiro gave the Altean a petulant look as he sent over the data for his new character without being asked.

Keith watched the exchange with a furrowed brow. “Should I make a second character now, or...”

“You don't need to. Shiro just has really bad luck,” Pidge reassured him.

Coran took a moment to scan through the new data before jumping back in. “Our heroes take a few hours to mourn their fallen friend and construct a small monument in his honor.”

-

The loss of Gyro the Paladin dampened even Pike's spirits. The four heroes continued on their way, searching for the entrance to the caves where it was rumored that Princess Mora was being held.

“Does anyone else think it's weird that we haven't seen any bandits yet? You'd think they would at least have traps laid for us,” Meklavar said.

“Are you trying to jinx us?” Pike demanded. His eyes scanned the foliage critically, as though he expected something to immediately jump out and attack them.

Valayun uneasily slowed, closing the distance between her and Pike by a few paces. “Maybe we've gone the wrong way?”

“Can't be. This is the only path,” Block said. “Unless they didn't take the path?”

Meklavar shook her head. “No, you're right. They must have taken the path, especially since they have a captive with them. We would be able to see if they went another way, wouldn't we? There would be broken branches and stuff.”

They looked to Valayun in the hope that she had some skill in tracking, but she was just as confused as the rest of them.

The four of them stopped walking as a debate broke out over whether they should keep going or if it was best to go back and look for tracks. Pike and Valayun were for staying on the path, while Block and Meklavar wanted to go back.

And that was when things went from bad, to worse.

A howl pierced the air just before a massive wolf sprang out of the underbrush, taking all of them off guard. It used its advantage to pin Meklavar to the ground and opened its mouth to reveal a row of sharp, white teeth.

Meklavar closed her eyes, praying that someone would save her, or else that death would be swift and painless.

-

Pidge laughed as Kosmo licked across her cheek before he lowered his paws and padded over to the do the same to Keith.

“It's nice to see you too,” Keith said with a chuckle. He patted the cosmic wolf on the head, and once Kosmo was satisfied with the attention he received, he crawled under the table to take a nap near his favorite people.

“A new encounter has begun and it's time to figure out attacking order! Everyone, go ahead and roll your dice,” Coran instructed. “And just for fun... Shiro and Keith, the two of you can roll as well.”

Shiro trepidatiously reached for his die.

-

The sparkling light of Block's magic formed a barrier between Meklavar and certain death, which gave Valayun the opportunity to lay into the beast with her arrows. It reared back, releasing Meklavar from its grasp, and that was when Pike rushed in to pull her to safety.

“Are you alright?” Block shouted as he began charging up his next spell.

“I'm okay!” Meklavar quickly called back. She took a moment to reorient herself and then unhooked her ax so she could jump into the fight.

Arrows flew and spells were slung. A gleaming ax swung against the side of the beast. Pike's sharp blades danced as he flitted about.

None of it appeared to do more than anger the wolf.

“Should we run?” Block asked.

“Do you really think we can outrun that?” Pike asked in disbelief.

Block ducked behind a tree for a little extra cover. “Maybe if Valayun summons one of her magical steeds and I enchant my staff to fly, we might stand a chance at getting away.”

“And what would that solve?” Meklavar demanded. “We run and leave the princess with those bandits? Even if we get away, we still need to come back this way and there's no guarantee that this creature will be gone.”

“Meklavar is right. We have to deal with this now,” Valayun agreed.

Pike loudly shrieked as he barely dodged a swipe from one massive paw. His voice went high as he asked: “Does anyone have a plan for that?!”

Meklavar thought for a moment. “Maybe if we all attack it at once and hit it from different angles. That might confuse it enough that it won't know who to go after.”

“It's worth a try,” Valayun said. She selected a summoning arrow and fired it into the air. A moment later, a flying horse swooped down and allowed Valayun onto their back. She took to the skies to distract the beast, giving her allies enough time to get into place.

And then their assault began anew.

The beast snarled in rage. Just as they had hoped, it didn't know who to go after first. It turned to look at each of them, but each time it tried to attack, someone would hit it from another angle.

A horn trumpeted.

From within the forest, a man with dark hair came riding in on a magnificent black steed. He lifted his sword high and joined the battle.

The beast didn't last long after that, and as it lay dying on the forest floor, the adventurers approached the newcomer. One-by-one, they introduced themselves, until all that was left was for the stranger to speak his name.

“I am but a simple ranger, traveling with my fearless companion,” he said, fondly patting his horse's neck. “My name is Paladin.”

-

In that moment, anyone in or near the common room was treated to the sound of the Paladins of Voltron losing their minds over a single sentence, while Shiro sat back and looked very pleased with himself. Coran was laughing so hard that he was crying.

Once Coran calmed enough that he could speak clearly, he wiped away his tears and coaxed them back into playing their game.

With the addition of Shiro's ranger, they discovered that they had missed a second path and it was only thanks to his tracking skill that they were able to find it. The new path was a shortcut, leading directly to the caves, while the main path would have eventually branched out, with one trail leading up to the top of the mountain and the other leading out of the forest. Coran was the only one disappointed that they no longer needed to fight their way down through the mountain.

They charged ahead into the caves with their spirits renewed, and Lance happily showed off that Pike held torches in his inventory, after buying them during his and Shiro's mini-session with Coran.

“So is Keith actually playing, or is he just here to watch?” Lance asked as he rolled to dismantle a trap that Hunk nearly triggered.

“I've been playing!” Keith protested. “You've seen me roll!”

“Oh yeah? Then where's your character?” Lance challenged with the air of someone who knew they had already won.

Coran stepped in before things could escalate to shouting. “Keith and I discussed his role before we began, and I have sent him messages to determine where he currently is and what he's doing. Be patient; he'll join you soon.”

“I didn't know these things could send messages,” Pidge said, looking at her game pad with renewed interest.

“My bandmates and I always used them to enrich our experience with the game. Not only can it be used to send messages between the Lore Master and one of the players, players can also send group messages. Depending on the race you've picked, you can choose to send messages in that language, and it will only translate for anyone who has knowledge of that language,” Coran said. “Though it's more like gibberish than an actual language. Now, where were we? Ah, yes...”

-

The team of eager adventurers continued on their way, dismantling traps and using their wide range of skills to avoid trouble. They only got lost once and that was when they encountered a small party of bandits, who kept dropping their weapons and were incompetent in general.

Pike pilfered anything useful before they moved on.

“This is way less interesting than Dakin's lair,” Meklavar said, sounding disappointed. “Where's all of the treasure? The interesting weaponry?”

“Well that's why they kidnapped the princess, isn't it? They're holding her for ransom so that then they'll have treasures,” Block suggested.

“I don't know why you keep saying things like that when you know it's just going to bring us more trouble.” Pike directed his words to Meklavar, who ignored him. “Besides, just because you haven't found anything, doesn't mean there's nothing here.” He grinned and jingled his coin purse in front of her face.

Paladin frowned at the blatant theivery that was being flaunted in front of him. There was no point in saying anything. Pike had only laughed the first time he scolded him for it.

“Meklavar, can you read anything with your stonesense?” Valayun asked.

Meklavar placed her hand on the wall and frowned. “There is... something. I can feel it more strongly now. I think there's another dwarf here!”

“That's good, right?” Valayun asked.

Meklavar shrugged. “Not if they're one of the bandits. Then we might be in trouble, since they'll be able to tell we're coming.”

“I don't like this,” Block said nervously.

“All we can do is keep moving forward. If we stop to worry about what could be, we'll be here all day,” Paladin said. He took the lead down the hall, not waiting for anyone to respond, and the others hurried to fall in line behind him.

They all kept their weapons drawn. There was every chance that they were walking deeper into an ambush and none of them wanted to be caught unaware.

Every now and then, Meklavar reached out to touch the stone walls, trying to get a feel for what was going on. Just before a turn, she hissed out “wait!”

Paladin brought up his sword in time to block a strike from another blade. The clang of steel-on-steel rang out in the tunnel, impossibly loud. Paladin grit his teeth and bore down, refusing to let the assailant take an inch.

“Who are you? What are you doing in this place?” demanded the stranger.

“We're here to beat you and rescue the princess!” Pike exclaimed from the back of their line.

The stranger frowned. “They kidnapped someone else as well?”

Paladin let up a little, puzzled by that statement. “What do you mean 'someone else'? We only know about Princess Mora.”

There was something very strange going on, but no one could feel that more than Meklavar. Her stonesense sang, but not in a way that indicated danger. “Paladin, I don't think he's one of the bandits.”

The stranger rolled his eyes. “Do I look like a bandit to you?”

Behind Meklavar, the others made sounds of protest - “Of course he does!” - but Paladin evidently agreed with Meklavar and slowly lowered his sword. He kept it at the ready, just in case.

Valayun refused to lower her arrow and kept it trained on the stranger. “Who are you? How do we know you're someone we can trust?”

“Because I believe I'm the one you were sent to rescue,” he told them. “My name is Mizerik, son of Princess Mora.”

-

“Nope.” Lance shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest. “No way.”

Pidge appeared utterly delighted by the twist. She turned to Keith with a grin and raised her hand, palm facing him. He looked puzzle for a moment and then held up his hand the same way.

“High five?” Pidge asked.

Understanding dawned on Keith's face and he gently clapped his hand to hers. “What are we doing this for?”

“Because we're dwarf pals! This is going to be so much fun!” Pidge said. She picked up her gamepad and began to intently type something.

“You two planned this?” Allura asked, looking to Coran.

He beamed at her. “Keith had the idea after I explained a bit about how the game works. It's all part of an even bigger story I have in mind. I figured that since you all could use something to do, I could do a bigger campaign than the last time. This is only the beginning!”

“I think we'll be able to find time for that,” Shiro said, sounding amused.

“Still worried that my dad might make good on his threat?” Pidge asked.

“You think he won't?”

Pidge wasn't going to argue with him on that.

Coran let them talk for a moment while he took a drink of water. They'd been going for a while and could probably wrap things up soon, or at least take a break before heading into the next part of the campaign.

He scrolled through his chosen story and decided that he'd wait to see what they wanted to do about the remaining bandits first. There wasn't any treasure to find, but the odds were that they would press on until they found something interesting, and he had a misleading side-plot involving a mysterious key if they really wanted to go that route. He almost hoped Keith would convince them that it was unnecessary, but the thought of getting to send them on a wild floklop chase was highly amusing.

It was all dependent on whether or not they took Keith's deal. There was something his character was after, and in exchange for helping him, he would grant a favor.

What was it the humans said again?

Quid pro quo?

Voltron: Next Generation

Dangerous Clashes: III

Word Count: 3245

AN: A little longer chapter today since its my birthday. Thanks!

Whether it was smart or dumb, the guards delivered the armor to Kova's makeshift cell. She spent a few minutes looking it over, then started working. The bodysuit was like a second skin, completely different than the street clothes she wore before.

The tech on the suit was older than anything she had ever seen, but that was the privilege of attending the intergalactic hub on Earth. We mean the Garrison if you're lost.

She was attempting to use a paperclip as a pair of pliers on the location tracker when the door reopened. Ezrid, or Vhix, stood in the doorframe. Kova spared him a glance before returning to her work. 

"Are you not going to say anything?" Vhix asked, crossing his arms behind his back. 

"Should I?" Kova glanced at him again, noting the scowl that crossed his face. 

"You should be grateful for everything we've given you." He hissed. "Most prisoners rot in the cells below, never seeing their home planets again."

"Ooh, how scary." Kova mocked him. "I should be grateful for being put in a janitor's closet. That's rich."

"What are you doing to the suit?" Vhix asked, noticing her position. He was about to cross the boundary. He was about to trigger the explosion before she was ready. 

"NO!" She yelled. "Stay away from me!" Vhix stepped back, shocked at being yelled at. "I don't want you anywhere near me!" Vhix found his voice, fixing his dark blue cape.

"Aren't you overreacting, Kyla?" He smiled, talking in the tone you would talk to most children with. She stood up from her place on the floor to at least be eye-level with him. 

"I'm not the one our parents chased across the galaxy." She cocked her head. "Am I overreacting?" Vhix had no words. He only looked on with wide eyes. Almost like he didn't know what her parents had done. Without another word the door closed, leaving Kova alone once again. 

She had to finish the suit.

Right. Now. 

——————

"Cake, cover me!" Caleb yelled over the intercoms. 

"You got it!" Cake yelled back, moving his controls. The Coeus had taken another hit. This time, there was a small platoon of ships striking. The Red and Yellow Lions were deployed, against Shiro's orders. The Lions were taking heavy hits, but at least there was no attention at the Coeus. 

The Red Lion was zipping past the cruisers, all their shots missing. The Red Lion was fighting its pilot, but Caleb was having none of it. The Yellow Lion, as the densest lion material-wise, was ramming into the cruisers head-on. 

Liz and Kenny were readying the Coeus for defense, while Allie cowered in a corner. She would have to come out eventually, but for now, she was staying put. 

The Yellow Lion zoomed past the cruisers, either ramming itself through them or leaving them alone for later pickings. 

A communication link request was sent to the Coeus, which Liz immediately refused without looking at it. She glanced at Allie, who was covering her pointy ears with her hands, hoping to silence the gunfire. 

"Can you guys stop playing and knock them out already?" Liz yelled over the intercom to the boys, who weren't quick to respond. The Red Lion was drawing fire towards the enemy ships while Cake used their distraction and fear to ram them down. In the end, all but one of the ships were destroyed. 

Seeing the last cruiser fly away, the Red and Yellow lions released a deafening roar and returned to the Coeus. The Coeus had activated their particle barrier and it would be up for the next few hours until it deactivated itself. 

"Now that that's taken care of," Caleb said. The screen on the bridge appeared, showing the paladins inside their respective lions. "What's next?" 

"We're going to have to double-check every point we travel to if we're going to make another jump."

"Ugh, seriously?" Cake complained. "That will take way longer than whatever we were doing before!" 

"Well, its the only thing we've got right now." Liz was at the head of the bridge, Kova's place, typing away. Kova's console, as it turned out, was the only console with complete access to all files and consoles onboard. 

"Griffin's right," Caleb spoke, leading the Red Lion to fly underneath the Coeus. "If we want to avoid another encounter like that, we're going to have to be more careful."

"But that will take ages!" Cake groaned, rolling his eyes. 

"It's better than not doing anything," Caleb said. 

"Right, 'cause we're still looking for Kova while trying to keep the Coeus intact." Neither Liz nor Caleb were amused by Cake's comment. "Easy enough."

"Speaking of Kova, Griffin, how are we doing?" 

"The tracking is still activated, and it shows we're about one full jump away from reaching her." Liz looked away from the camera and console for a minute, staring at something off-screen. She turned back with a sigh. "I have to take care of something now, but all systems are stable and shield will deactivate in a few hours. Until then, just hang on tight." The connection between the Coeus and the Red and Yellow Paladins was cut, and Cake and Caleb were now left alone with only each other to talk to. 

Where do we even begin with these two? Cake and Caleb were on different teams since they started as cadets at the Garrison. Kova and Caleb had similar leadership tactics, but they weren't on the same level. Caleb was maybe a few months behind Kova's level of understanding. At nine years old, she repaired a major issue on the Achlys. An issue the top engineers couldn't figure out. Kova was the only thing Caleb and Cake had in common. Beyond that, there was nothing. Cake was half-Balmeran. Caleb was completely human. Cake was raised by his biological parents. Caleb was adopted by the Shiroganes at three years old. Cake lived on Earth after ten years old. Caleb hadn't even been to space. 

"This might seem like a weird question, and you don't have to answer," Cake began. Caleb raised an eyebrow. "But didn't Keith have a dog?"

"I, uh, don't know, actually," Caleb said. "Dad and Uncle Lance used to stories, but I don't know if they ever mentioned pets."

"Really? I could've sworn my dad mentioned a dog."

"Huh." Caleb sat back in his chair. If there was a dog, why wasn't it ever mentioned again? "Maybe we could ask Keith about it."

"Maybe." Cake agreed. "Hey, uh, where are you?" 

"Under." /Please say it/, Caleb thought. Kova always switched her words and Cyrus copied her. No one did it. 

"Under /where/?" Caleb erupted in laughter, while Cake looked around confused. /Then/ he realized the joke. 

"Ha ha, okay, very funny, Caleb." Cake said sarcastically. 

Onboard the Coeus, Keith and Shiro were sequestered away in Shiro's office. While Caleb and Cake disobeyed orders, Shiro was getting Keith up to speed on everything they had been doing. 

"The Fire of Purification was terminated as a threat years ago." Shiro had activated a holoscreen, showing the progression board the team had been working on. They were at the beginning of the current threats when Keith spoke. "I killed Sendak!" 

"I know." Shiro took a seat across the desk from Keith. "It seems that some of their former members resurfaced with a vengeance, and began recruiting."

"The Fire of Purification wanted to wipe out every species in the universe if it meant conserving the Galra." 

"And that mission changed with the times." Shiro leaned forward, resting his arms on the table. "The Fire we're fighting today was led by a half-Galra and is currently being led by a different one."

"The one that might've taken your daughter." Shiro's eyes widened a little, shock written on his face. As quickly as it came, it left. 

"Yes. Her status is the reason for the bounty on her head."

"She's half-Galra?"

"Yes, but that's not the only thing." Shiro turned off the holoscreen progression and removed it from his desk. Taking out the tablet Kova had given him when they began this crazy journey, Shiro logged into the Garrison's database. "The students have given her the nickname 'Jax'." Shiro turned the tablet to show Keith the screen. A picture of Kova was on it. Her eyes were like steel, and her features were cut from stone. Her uniform jacket was crisp, and her hair was pulled away from her face in a bun. That was all that could be seen. Shiro turned the screen away from Keith and swiped to view the next picture. It was Kova's log. Her entire school history was there for the men to see. 

"Why do they call her that?" 

"Her teachers would call her a jack of all trades, then it became Jack. To be fair, most instructors thought she was a boy when they heard about her capabilities. Eventually, the student body would call Jack, then Jax. It stuck."

"Teachers? Instructors? Like, she had multiple people teaching her?" Keith was astounded. Even he didn't require that much instruction, and he was considered the best pilot of his generation. 

"Programming, engineering, piloting, was offered private instruction with Commander Holt but declined, and still had time to spend with Lance and our family. Before we left Earth, she was being scouted as an instructor by other schools." 

"With someone like that," Keith began. 

"She could win wars if she stood on the front lines." Shiro finished Keith's sentence. "Caleb is capable of it, too, but he isn't as hyper detailed as Kova." 

"So the Fire wants your daughter, Kova, on their side?"

"More than anything." Keith sat back in his chair, staring into the void. Shiro turned off and put away the tablet while Keith contemplated everything. 

"What are we waiting for, then?" Keith said, standing from his chair. A hand rested on his hip with an iconic smile on his face. "Let's get her back." 

—————

"C'mon, c'mon!" Kova muttered under her breath. "Change color, you stupid light!" She stood on the dirty mattress in the furthest corner of the room. The garbage bag that held her street clothes was propped against the wall closest to the emergency toilet. The dark gray armor fit Kova almost perfectly, but if she wasn't careful, there could be an opening. Her hair was tied in a braided bun at the back of her head, her helmet screen open. She was trying to change the color of the insignia on her chest plate, but for whatever reason, it didn't. The top of the insignia was blue and the bottom was the original purple.

The sewer was emptying, and her window of opportunity was going with it. Let's all say it now: NO ONE CARES ABOUT THE COLOR OF YOUR STUPID LIGHT!

Heavy footsteps rang through the room. The metal grate was horrible like that. The steps became heavier, the metal groaned louder, and Kova's heart raced faster as they approached her room. 

"Screw this!" She finally exclaimed, throwing the paperclip aside, grabbed her plastic bag, and stood at the mouth of the gaping hole. The footsteps had stopped just outside her door. Indistinguishable words were being exchanged between the guards and the newcomer, but Kova wouldn't be around to see it. First went the bag, making a disgusting brown splash on the sewer walls. It was carried only a few feet from the weak current before coming to a standstill. Activating her helmet screen to completely cover her face, Kova took a deep breath. 

May Allura give her strength. 

She jumped feet first into the hole. The brown, maybe green liquid splashed under her feet, but there was no time to consider what it could or couldn't be. As soon as her boots made contact with the bottom of the pipe, Kova ran, grabbing the plastic bag on the way. 

In her now empty room, the door opened to reveal the maniac himself with his second-in-command in tow. 

"Where is she?" Yorak asked, staring at the empty room.

"Let me see," Vhix said, pushing past Yorak into the room. His step into the room triggered the boxes of yeast the guards had brought Kova to fall into the buckets of peroxide and dish soap at their feet. As the yeast fell into the buckets, the white foam quickly overfilled the buckets, spilling onto the floor. The metal grate didn't allow the foam to stay very long, but the results were worth it. Vhix was quickly overwhelmed by the foam, slipping on the metal grate. Yorak was fuming, his expression dark. He turned his stone-cold eyes to the guard at his right. The guard, for what it's worth, was rusting their armor at the glare. 

"Search the ship," Yorak growled, whipping his head to meet the stare of the second guard. "If she isn't found, it's your lives." Vhix had somehow stood and walked away from the foam. Thankfully for him, yeast doesn't stain. The guards ran down the hallways like their lives depended on it, because they did. 

"I told you we should have kept her in a prison cell," Vhix muttered, trailing foam. Yorak sighed, staring at the mess Kova had caused. 

"If we did, she would've discovered our plans before she was ready." Yorak stalked away from the room, heading for the bridge. Vhix strode after him, still trailing foam. 

"She isn't going to switch sides so easily." Vhix shook his shoulders, then aggressively shook his cape. "She's been taught to be a paragon of power."

"As am I." Yorak turned to meet Vhix's eyes. Vhix was one of few to meet the stone-cold gaze of the Emperor and not shake in fear. The others were either dead or changed. 

Down below, Kova ran, drifted, and jumped over pipes, large lumps of something, and tight corners. She simply followed the current. Kova's sloshed steps grew faster as voices grew louder overhead. The desire to live was starting to become her. Out of some misfortune, there was no exit to the sewer. At least, no exit she could use. The water escape through a small vent at the bottom of a wall. 

Kova looked up at the metal grate, searching for a means of escape. Another hole was torn into the metal grate directly above the sewer. Another emergency toilet. Tossing her bag through the hole, Kova jumped to grab hold of the edge. The sharp, torn metal pierced her skin through the bodysuit, but it did not break. 

She was in yet another janitor's closet, but it was worth it. If the map on the wall is correct, she's about ten feet from the closest exit.

Activating the helmet's shade, Kova walked straight for the doors that led to her freedom. The door opened up, four armed soldiers running past her without a glance in her direction. Quick as can be, she slipped through the doors. 

The room was a loading bay, stocked with wooden crates and small cruisers. If she could hotwire one, it would make her escape all the better. 

"Hey! You!" A voice yelled from above Kova's head. It didn't sound like either Yorak or Vhix, so at least she was safe. "What are you doing here? This ward is restricted to—" Kova turned to face the man yelling at her. He noticed the blue on Kova's insignia. The light is pretty hard to miss. The man yelling at her stared at the faceless armored soldier with surprise, then anger. "Hey! I found the runaway!" 

With a salute, Kova booked it to the doors. The man, completely caught off-guard, panicked, climbed the railing, and jumped to the floor twenty feet below. He didn't chase after her. At least, not immediately. 

Three armor-clad soldiers marched in, holding their weapons up. Kova had made it to the wall on the other, the door that should lead outside. One of the soldiers had fired on her, hitting the door three feet from Kova's head. She ignored it, searching for the control switch. It required a password to open it. Another blast was fired, only inches from her face. 

Kova turned to see the firing squad. They wouldn't kill her. Of course, they wouldn't. That's a death wish waiting to happen. Yorak and Vhix still want her alive. 

One of the soldiers aimed at the wall next to Kova, hoping to ricochet a blast to knock her out without completely damaging her. The soldier's stance wavered, the gun along with it. Kova held her hands up in surrender, but the soldiers made no moves to apprehend her. Not until they were sure they wouldn't be attacked. The soldier's finger was prepared to pull the trigger. It wouldn't take much, just a little push. 

The entire ship took a blow, and everyone took a fall. Kova held onto the frame of the door closest to the control panel. She connected her armpiece to the control panel, uploaded her code, and the door opened. As the oxygen was being sucked into the nothingness of space, some of the lighter boxes were being thrown out as well. Kova hoped it was food so they could slow down their pursuit. As the suction pulled everything, Kova braced herself and threw herself out into the nothingness. 

Curled into a small ball, she spun until she wasn't sure which way was up and down. Is there even an up and down in space? Kova had been pulled so far away from the ship, she could see what had caused the blast. 

The Coeus had come to the rescue, firing heavy blasts to the side of the enemy ship. A particle barrier had been activated, glowing orange. Two figures were dancing in front of the barrier. It took Kova a tick to realize they weren't just any figures. It was the Lions. 

Red sped past the entire length of the enemy ship, firing on the windows of their bridge. Yellow was clawing the side Red had left unscathed. Escape pods began to leave the ship, and Red noticed. It took after them, preparing to fire again when a small blast hit their snout. Red turned its head to look for the culprit. 

Kova fired again. She was so glad the arm piece had a laser, or she would have been a goner. 

Red was hit again between the eyes. Forgetting its original prey, it flew towards the source of the blasts. 

As Red got closer, Kova hung onto her bag for dear life. She was floating into nothingness. She didn't want to be like Keith! Lost for ten years until the new generation of Voltron came to find her. They haven't even formed Voltron!

Red stopped before Kova, staring at her figure. What was wrong? Didn't he recognize her? Then she remembered she still had the shade on. Deactivating it, she stared at Red again. Red opened its mouth, and Kova floated into it. The depressurization left Kova lying on the bottom of Red's mouth staring at the top of it. Eventually, she stood and joined Caleb in the pilot seat. He was updating the Coeus on the mission. 

Kova placed a hand on his shoulder, to which Caleb lay his own over it. They shared a look, and Caleb turned Red around to return to the Coeus. Kova slept in Red's cockpit until the barrier deactivated a few hours later. 

Feels Like I’m Drowning

Read on Ao3

Word Count: 2,491

Summary:  As the Blue Paladin, the guardian spirit of water, Lance found it kind of ironic that he was drowning.

*****

This was hiding in my google docs from a LONG time ago, like years. Just a good old-fashioned Voltron whump fic! I'm not sure if I'll write Voltron fics outside of my Spider-Man AU, so this might be it for me. Regardless, I hope you guys enjoy! 

*****

The mission had started off simple enough: scout the new planet, negotiate an alliance with the natives, yada yada yada.

Naturally, the Galra had already been there, and had taken control of the natives' resources, so it was up to team Voltron to fix everything. As the team's sharpshooter, Lance had hung back, taking out Galra that were about to attack the others. A few of them had snuck up on him, and Lance had been overpowered.

Of course it's me that gets captured, I'm always getting myself into these kinds of situations where everyone else has to save my sorry ass.

They'd taken his helmet off—no communications—and dragged him to the top of a cliff. Lance could see a lake at the bottom. Across it were the lions. He could see his teammates in front of them, weapons at the ready even though they were too far away to do any good. Negotiations began to take place, rather, the Galra began shouting at the Paladins. Nothing much, just the general "We have your Paladin, surrender the lions or else, we're better than you, blah blah blah..." He even threw Lance's helmet down into the lake. Lance couldn't give less of a shit. He just wanted out of these cuffs.

Then, Shiro shouted something back, probably something brave and heroic. Lance couldn't really hear over his heart beating in his ears. The Galran commander growled, and then Lance was hauled up by his hair.

"Geez, going straight for the hai- ARGH!” The commander slapped him. There was more shouting from the commander, and from Shiro, and then Lance was being dragged to the edge of the cliff.

"Hey, c'mon guys, why can't we talk this over, I-I mean, for real..." Lance lost his voice as he gazed down at the lake. His toes were at the edge of the cliff, the rest of his body hovering precariously above it. The only thing keeping him from dropping was the grip the Galran commander had on his cuffs.

"Obey my orders, or else the blue one dies!"

Please just do what he's asking, don't say anything stupid-

"LET HIM GO!" Shiro sounded beyond furious.

"Poor choice of words," the commander muttered, just loud enough that Lance could hear.

Lance locked eyes with Shiro before he dropped.

He couldn't stop the scream that ripped out of his throat. As he fell, he heard his teammates shouting, and a lion roaring.

Blue, he thought before he hit the water.

Any breath Lance had left was knocked out of him by the force of his body hitting the surface of the water. Naturally, he tried to suck in more air, but only got more water in his lungs as a result. His lungs would try to cough out the water, but he would only take in more. Lance tried in vain to kick to the surface, but he couldn't tell which way was up anymore.

His vision was going dark around the edges. His kicks were getting weaker. His lungs burned. Lance halfheartedly tugged at the cuffs around his wrists before falling still. Ironic , he thought. The guardian spirit of water dies by drowning.

Lance couldn't stop his eyes sliding shut.

******

As soon as Lance fell, Shiro and Keith dove into the water. Pidge would've too, if Hunk hadn't been holding her back. It took all of Hunk's willpower to not let her go and jump in as well, but someone had to stay with the lions.

"Pidge, Pidge, calm down, please, they're gonna get him, he'll be okay." Hunk held onto her until she stopped struggling.

"But, Lance, he's-" Pidge cut herself off, gazing at the lake with a horrified expression. Hunk felt the familiar twist of anxiety in his gut. "He'll be okay," he said, unsure if he was reassuring Pidge or himself.

******

Keith could hear his heartbeat in his ears. He was swimming as quickly as possible, but he knew there was no way he and Shiro could get to the other side of the lake in time. If only they had a jet ski, or—

"JETPACKS!" Keith shouted. He activated his booster pack, and shot through the water. Shiro didn't say anything, but he too activated his booster pack.

Keith squinted through the murky water. The screen on his helmet helped him a little, and soon it picked up on something blue and white. "Lance?" he asked. He swam over, finding Lance's helmet. "Oh god."

"Is he...?"

"No, Shiro, it's just...his helmet." Keith couldn't remember the last time he'd sounded so broken. Maybe when his dad died.

"I've got him!" Shiro shouted.

Keith broke for the surface immediately. He spotted Shiro about twenty feet away, supporting an unconscious Lance with one arm, the other treading water. Keith shot over to him.

"Keith I need you to propel us to land. Can you do that?" Shiro sounded worried, which didn't go unnoticed by Keith. He nodded, grabbed Shiro by the shoulders, and activated his booster pack, sending them straight to shore.

Shiro dragged Lance onto land. He turned him onto his chest, and Keith used his bayard to cut through the cuffs. It was only then that Keith realized Lance's chest wasn't moving.

"Oh my god, Shiro, he's not breathing."

Shiro turned Lance onto his back and began compressions. He breathed into Lance's mouth twice, then resumed compressions.

"C'mon, Lance. Breathe for me."

Another two breaths.

"Dammit Lance, breathe!"

Keith sunk to his knees.

Two more breaths.

More compressions.

"Please...just breathe for me," Shiro whispered.

He kept up compressions, and was about to give up when Lance's eyes snapped open. Keith, relieved, let out a short laugh. Shiro had a small smile on his face

Their relief was short-lived, as Lance began coughing up water. Shiro turned him on his side. "'Atta boy, Lance. Get it all out," he said as he rubbed Lance's back.

Keith was horrified at the amount of water coming out of his friend.

When the water finally subsided, Lance rolled onto his back, gulping in precious air. All three of them sat there for a minute, panting.

"How're you feeling, Lance? Anything hurting?" Shiro placed a hand on Lance's shoulder.

"Lungs...ribs...bad..." Lance said between shallow breaths.

"Yeah, I know. The ribs were probably my fault, sorry."

"S'kay...Keith...why're...cryin?"

Keith wiped at his eyes, surprised to find tears. "I was worried about you, you idiot. I thought you were dead!" He sniffled, and avoided eye contact with Lance.

Lance frowned. "M'sorry."

"No, you have nothing to be sorry for." Keith grabbed one of his hands. "We should've covered you better in the first place."

"M'sorry..."

Keith bit back an impatient remark. "It's okay, Lance. You didn't do anything wrong." He gathered the courage to look Lance in the eye again, and was surprised to see blue eyes swimming in tears. "Lance? Are you okay?"

Lance gave a weak sniff. "That was scary."

"I know, buddy. I'm sorry you had to go through that. We're going to get you to the castle now. Coran and Allura are setting up a pod for you." Shiro moved to pick up Lance. "I'm going to lift you up now. This might hurt your ribs, so I'm sorry in advance."

Shiro slid his arms under Lance's knees and upper back, and pulled him into his lap. He froze when Lance whimpered in pain. "I know, I'm sorry." He stood up slowly, grimacing every time Lance cried out.

The walk back to the lions was torturous for the three of them. Every step Shiro took jostled Lance's ribs, and soon he had tears streaming down his face. Every choked sob that came from him made Shiro hold him a little tighter. Shiro wished they could go at a faster pace, but he didn't want to risk hurting Lance more. Keith had stopped crying, but he could feel a lump in his throat every time Lance made a pained sound.

Meeting up with Pidge and Hunk didn't help. Both of them looked incredibly worried, and seeing Lance didn't seem to help. Shiro instructed them to get in their lions and head back to the castle, he would take care of Lance.

Keith tried in vain to clear his throat, but he could still feel the lump. "I'll make sure Blue heads back." Shiro nodded. Keith didn't realize he still had Lance's helmet in his hand until he reached Red's cockpit.

Shiro made his way into his lion. He laid Lance down as gently as he could on the floor of the cockpit. "I'm sorry there's not much else I can do for you. I'll take it slow." Lance murmured his assent and closed his eyes. Shiro was worried that he was going to pass out, but he figured that even if he did, he'd be fine until they got to the castle.

Lift-off was rough; the vibrations in the cockpit made Lance whimper. Shiro's eyebrows creased with concern, but he kept focusing on getting into the air, back to the castle. He saw Red fly past him. Blue wasn't too far behind.

Lance groaned from the back of the cockpit. The black lion's flight had smoothed out, but he was still clearly in pain.

"We're almost there, buddy. Just hang in there," Shiro said.

They couldn't get to the castle soon enough. Once he landed, Shiro scooped up Lance and walked as quickly as he dared towards the med bay. He didn't like the way Lance's eyes were glazed over with pain. The other paladins flanked him, asking both him and Lance questions.

"How is he?" Pidge had tears in her eyes.

"You okay, Lance?" Hunk's eyes were teary as well.

"Don't worry, we're almost done." Keith tentatively patted Lance's knee in what he hoped was a comforting manner.

Somewhere in all the hustle and bustle, Lance had begun to cry again. "Hurts," he would choke out. He was completely out of it from the pain and exhaustion of his ordeal. Occasionally, an "M'sorry," would slip out, which made everyone's heart clench.

"Oh my." Allura strode over to Lance, a solemn look on her features. "We need to get him in the healing pod immediately."

Coran helped Shiro wrestle Lance into the pod. He kept reaching for Shiro and crying "Don't leave me" in the most pitiful voice any of them had heard.

"Just a few vargas, Lance. Then you'll be fit to fight a Flexlat." Coran's voice held none of its usual enthusiasm.

The glass slid up over Lance, and the room was silent, for the most part. Pidge, Hunk, and Keith were all sniffling. Shiro slid to the floor in front of Lance's pod, holding his head in his hands. Allura knelt next to him.

"Are you alright?"

Shiro shook his head. "He looked right at me as he fell. I haven't seen anyone so scared since..." He sighed. The last person who'd looked at him like that had been Matt.

Allura bit her lip, deep in thought. She stood, squared her shoulders, and turned to the rest of the paladins. "I know you're all worried about Lance, but this ordeal has been taxing on you as well. You need your strength. Go clean up and rest for a few vargas." Her voice was gentle, but firm. "Lance wouldn't want you to neglect yourselves for his sake. Besides, Coran and I will stay right here."

Keith, Hunk, and Pidge all shuffled out reluctantly. Shiro remained seated.

"Go, Shiro. You need rest as well."

He nodded, and finally stood up. "Call us if he wakes up. I need to talk to him."

*****

Lance didn't come out of the pod until early the next morning. Everyone else in the castle had woken up early enough that they were present; none of them had been able to sleep well.

The glass of Lance's pod shimmered away, and Lance stumbled out. Hunk caught him.

"Hey, Lance."

"Hunk, I-" Lance cut himself off, clearing his throat. "I-" There were tears swimming in his eyes.

"You're safe now. We got you." Hunk pulled Lance in for a hug, and both began to break down. Lance was sobbing, his face pressed into Hunk's shoulder. Hunk rubbed his back soothingly, his own tears decorating his cheeks.

Pidge, who was teary-eyed as well, tugged on Lance's shirt to pry him away from Hunk. Lance had to lean down to hug her. Eventually, they transitioned to kneeling on the floor, still hugging.

Keith crouched next to the pair and wrapped an arm around Lance's shoulders. "I'm glad you're alright," he said with a smile.

Lance returned the smile and pulled Keith in for a real hug. Keith froze for a moment before hugging him back.

Lance stood up, wiping his eyes. His tears were all but gone. "Thanks, guys."

Allura and Coran beamed at him. "I knew he'd be fine, you're tougher than you look!" Coran said as he patted Lance on the back.

Shiro placed his hand on Lance's shoulder. "You had us worried there. I'm glad you pulled through."

Lance stared at the ground, a guilty look on his face. "Yeah, sorry about all that." He glanced up and saw Shiro's confused expression. "Well, I-I mean for getting caught in the first place, and for freaking you guys out." Lance went back to staring at the ground. "I'm sorry."

"Lance, what happened yesterday wasn't your fault, no matter how you look at it." Shiro took a breath. "You didn't do anything wrong."

"If anything, we should've covered you better in your hideout," Keith chimed in.

"I should've been stronger," Lance said quietly. "If I'd held them off, none of this would've happened."

"Lance, you can't blame yourself for what happened," Hunk interjected. "Don't do that to yourself."

"Yeah, well, haven't you noticed that it's always me who screws everything up? I'm always the one who's getting into trouble."

Pidge huffed. "Please, name one time-"

"The time when Nyma chained me to a tree. Or maybe the time I took the warden's Yupper because I thought it was Slav. Remember that?" Lance could feel new tears forming in his eyes. "I wasn't even that close to dying and I still managed to make you all freak out!"

"That's because we care about you, you idiot!"

"Keith, not helping." Shiro grabbed both of Lance's shoulders and forced him to look at him. "It's not your fault, Lance."

"Shiro, I should've been stronger. I'm the one who got myself into that mess-"

"It's not your fault."

"I should've fought them off-"

"It's not your fault."

"I should've-"

"It's not your fault."

“I-” Lance choked out a sob. Shiro pulled him into a hug, which set off the waterworks completely.

The rest of the team joined in on the hug, not moving as Lance cried. He wasn't okay, not right now, but that was okay.

He would be.

(Hey anon! Love the prompt but I have adapted it to make it a Lance’s Birthday fic!! Hbd to the my fav blue boy!! <33 Here’s a shitty langst fic lmaoo)

When the entire fate of the universe rests upon your shoulders it’s very hard to think of anything else.

There is just too much at stake and as much as Lance has dreamt of being a hero, it requires focus, attention. There is simply no time for anything extra and unnecessary.

But he’s human, of all the Paladins of voltron he is by far the Everyman, he isn’t larger than life in any sense. He allows himself some small extra thing, to keep himself sane. Lance keeps track of the days that goes by. He keeps a calendar, he knows each day, each month. He knows how long they’ve been here.

He knows when it’s his siblings’ birthdays. He knows when Veronica’s turned 21, or when his cousin is having her quinceañera. When those days come he takes a moment to himself to remember, and if he does exist, pray to God to keep said family member safe and happy on their special day.

As Lance checks off his calendar he’s made for himself he realises the days inches further towards his own birthday and it doesn’t really seem to matter. There are things more important than that. He only loved his birthday because of his family, and he did consider of doing something small with his new, surrogate family, but he decided against it. The Voltron team were doing a rather taxing, long mission that had sapped energy out of all of them and he didn’t want to bother anyone. Days of rest were scarce, but valuable. He didn’t dare ruin that. He had decided to keep quiet.

Lance had felt pretty off that whole day. It started off as just a little bit of a sore throat, and he felt a little bit more tired than usual, but everybody was exhausted so he figured it wasn’t anything too serious. He went on with the rest of the day as normal, fighting alien ships and whatnot, and by the end of it Lance felt so incredibly heavy like he could sink down his seat and collapse on the floor. He could barely find the strength to keep himself upright.

He feels so incredibly fatigued, and it seeps through his bones. His throat is horribly sore and his nose is in a constant state of itchiness and he can’t go by five minutes without having to stifle a cough or sneeze. He feels dizzy too, his mind detached from his reality and he doesn’t quite feel he is there. He doesn’t even have the energy to make quips or yell out his usual silly battle cries.

“Great job, team,” Shiro praises as the lions tread back towards the Castle.

“Once we get home, grab a meal, and straight off to bed, we need as much rest as we possibly can. Tomorrow’s another day. We need to be as prepared and equipped for it as possible,” He explains.

“Roger that, Shiro,” Keith nods, his lion following suit.

Lance feels his nose start to burn, his breath catches and he turns himself away from the microphone as to avoid essentially sneezing right into his teammates’ ears. The sneezes are ticklish, quiet, but harsh in a sickly kind of manner.

“Bless you!” Hunk chirps.

He flushes a little at the failure of his plan, but keeps himself composed and clears his throat, sniffling, “Thanks.”

“You okay, Lance?” Keith questions, concern lacing his words.

“M'fine, just something in the air I guess.”

Keith shifts uncomfortably as his lion mounts onto the castle, fully expecting some quip as a response, and possibly a jab at him too, but when it doesn’t come it leaves a strange feeling in his stomach.

[***

Once the Paladins are out of their armour they all beeline towards the common room where everyone flops down onto the couches and groans in exhaustion.

Lance revels in the soft pillowy cushions that is the couch, offering ease to his aching, heavy body. However he is suddenly attacked by a headache, pulsating throughout his head ravaging everything in sight. He hisses in pain, scrunching up his face to brace it, a hand shooting up to try and ease it.

He knows he can’t just leave this thing alone. He’s passed the denial phase, he’s sick and he knows it, and there is zero use in leaving it untreated because there’s no room for slacking or underperforming, not when the universe is at stake.

“Does anyone know if there’s any medicine around here?” He asks hoarsely.

No one replies; and Lance is sure that nobody means anything malicious by it, and as he looks around his thoughts are confirmed because everyone is heaving and panting in exhaustion, too wrapped up in their own exhaustion that they didn’t quite hear him, and if they did they had no energy to reply to him.

Lance bites his tongue then, he doesn’t need to bother anyone. Some sleep was probably enough.

Shiro enters the room then, and as his eyes lay upon the wrecked and fatigued Paladins he can’t help a fond smile, “Alright everybody. We’ve got quite a day, tomorrow. Head off to bed for the night, get some rest and we’ll see you all tomorrow.”

Pidge and Keith nod, hauling their bodies off the couch and dragging themselves towards their bedroom.

“Come on, Lance, get up!” Pidge snaps, gesturing towards the boy who still hadn’t gotten off the couch, still heaving in exhaustion.

“Sorry–just super tired,” He mumbles.

“We all are,” She sighs and gets on her way.

Eventually Lance finds some strength to push himself off the comforts of the couch. He’s sloppy and as he lifts himself off the couch his knees buckle and he’s almost hitting the ground, but his hand quickly grips onto something and holds himself steady. He can’t quite walk in a straight line as the world seems to be spinning around like he’s on some carousel. He drags himself towards his bedroom, exiting the common room.

Hunk is still sitting on the couch, looking rather thoughtful.

“C'mon, Hunk, off to bed.” Shiro chuckles fondly. Hunk smiles softly.

“Uh, actually, Shiro..could I talk to you, for a sec?”

The moment Lance is by himself in the comforts of his own room he completely lets himself go. He lets himself shiver, lets his legs tremble and he lets himself cough, cough so harshly that it’s bending him over and the sheer force of it is just so much he needs to sit down onto his bed, anchor himself onto the edge and bend double. He feels dreadful in every sense of the word.

He rolls underneath his covers to try and rid himself of the cold waves that is making him shiver. But the covers are too warm and he’s being eroded away by hot waves rushing up and down his blood stream. He’s either too hot or too cold and he’s so uncomfortable he can’t help the pathetic whimper that escapes his lips. His skin feels dry; and he has no energy to do his usual skin routine and it sours his mood further. It’s dumb, but something as small as some small self pampering helps Lance unwind and relax.

He shifts and rolls over in discomfort, unable to locate a position that offers some sense of comfort. He’s so tired but he can’t sleep and it’s the worst feeling in the world, he feels so desperate and out of control. He opens his heavy eyes to see his calendar, picking up the pen and crossing off this day and he realises what day tomorrow is.

Lance feels so dumb and so selfish when he feels a pang of sadness as he laments his birthday. How can he be so self indulgent when the survival of the universe hangs in the balance? He’s human, and he desperately wants a day with his family, a day where he can feel alright. But instead here’s here, sick and miserable.

The burning in his head ravages on and spreads towards his nose and he inhales deeply as the tickle spreads like wildfire. He pushes his face into his pillow and lets out two harsh, powerful sneezes, extremely unlike him, they’re never usually this loud, and they make him feel miserable. He lets out a whimper, and in his feverish haze he can sense his loving sister smile softly at him and hear her bless him in that sugary sweet voice of hers.

He can feel his brother’s warm hands massage his shoulders to comfort him, patting him on the back, trying to make him feel better. He can smell his mother’s soup, warm and comforting, heating his soul. He feels so safe, so warm, so loved.

Then he breaks out of his trance, abruptly, rudely, and the cold reality comes seeping back in.

Lance bites back his sob, the sadness and loneliness beginning to spread around his body until it swallows him whole. He count help his tears and sobs as they rush out of the floodgates. He clasps his hand around his mouth to try and stifle the pathetic whimpers as he violently convulses as he cries, his heart longing for his family again, feeling so empty and incomplete.

Lance craves stability again. He craves familiarity because each day that goes on, something changes. He doesn’t deal too well with change, he loves family, the idea of a home he knows he will return to at the end of the day. He likes knowing he belongs.

He coughs harshly, rattling at his chest and he knows his fever is high but he doesn’t have enough energy to ask for help. He wishes someone would just save him, but he knows it doesn’t work like that.

Lance cannot return to his family, but he escapes to a place where he can, in his dreams. As he closes his eyes, still sobbing, he begs whatever higher power out there to take his mind and send him to them, even just for a little while, just to see them again. And when it comes he lets it cover him like a blanket.

“Lance, sweetheart?” His mother calls softly, “Can you wake up, now, please?”

Lance groans, the light hitting his face and causing him to scrunch up his nose, nodding. Eyes still closed, he rubs at his face as he forces himself upright onto his bed. The moment he opens his eyes he jumps in alarm.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY LANCE!” His entire family yells, bright, warm grins on their faces.

He has no clue how they all managed to fit in to his adequately sized room, but they have. Everyone is here. All his cousins and nieces and siblings and grandparents. All here, and he can feel their love radiating off of them and it warms him to his very core. Initially he feels shock, surprise and his heart races for a few moments but immediately it is replaced by pure joy, his heart touched by the gesture. Tears prick at his eyes and his smile is shaky.

“God, you guys..you didn’t..have to–” Lance manages to say, but it’s hard for him to find words because it’s like he’s on cloud nine. His heart is glowing and he can’t help but hold it, as if trying to contain the magic brewing within him, like he could explode with the euphoria he feels right now.

“Open your presents tío!” His niece shrieks excitedly, grabbing at a sack and emptying its contents onto Lance’s bed.

“Oh god! There are so many!” Lance gasps. His family isn’t wealthy; and the presents he has before him is sparse as compared to a regular person’s amount, but to Lance, it’s a plethora. The fact his family had so little, and were willing to give him so much, forces the brewing tears to spill onto his cheeks.

Veronica laughs and leans in to kiss his cheek affectionately, “Of course, we love you.”

She wipes away his tears, her voice fond, “Now stop crying, you baby.”

Lance chuckles shakily at that. And the next while consists of him opening presents, discovering a new jacket, a sweater his abuela handmade for him, some arts and crafts projects his nieces and nephews made him, a new Star Wars video game, new swimming togs, face creams courtesy of Veronica..and so forth. Until there is one present left; shiny and sparkling, wrapped with so much love and care Lance is instantly drawn to it, like there is some sort of magnetic force drawing them to each other.

Lance senses some tension in the room, and his fingers clumsily untangle the bow that holds the packaging together. He feels their gazes burning holes into him, and he’s nervous.

He slowly, and cautiously unfolds the paper and when his eyes lock upon the sight before him his blood runs cold and his heart freezes.

He can feel his breathing pick up and his hands are shaking violently, he cannot believe his eyes. And he tears come back again, harder this time.

Before him is a Garrison Uniform, neatly folded and squeaky clean, ready to be worn.

“Díos mio..” Lance breathes.

“I..I..I got in?” He chokes.

His mother’s face is completely engulfed by a sunny smile, and she’s began to cry too.

“Sí, hijo, you got in! You did it!” She exclaims joyfully.

“Oh my god, I..I did it!” Lance cries out happily, and immediately his entire family jumps up screaming in joy, charging in for a huge family hug. Lance feels like his suffocating, but he’s never felt so happy in his life.

“You’re going to be among the stars, one day, my boy. Make us proud..”

A gentle shake on the shoulder returns Lance to his harsh reality, and his miserable symptoms kick in almost instantaneously. He becomes aware of his painful, dreadful headache and his feverish body, and he can’t help his violent shivers.

“Lance, buddy, wake up,” Keith says softly.

Lance gets up slowly, his world spinning violently that it makes him feel a little nauseous. He needs to hold on to the frame of his bed to steady his vision, and he looks over to his alarm clock and gasps. He was meant to be awake almost two hours ago!

Keith glances at Lance’s pale face, with dark undereyes and a saturated flushing on his cheeks and nose, “Oh, Lance..”

“Quiznack, I overslept! I’m so sorry–the mission–” Lance kicks the covers off, trying to scramble away but his face scrunches up and he erupts into a ticklish fit of sneezes, each sneeze desperate and sickly sounding. He isn’t able to cover the first few, but manages to cover the incoming ones with the crook of his arm.

“Bless you,” Keith offers but Lance doesn’t stop, he’s still going–until one particularly loud sneeze causes him to bang his face against his elbow. Keith grimaces in sympathy, passing him a tissue for him to continue his fit in, until it eventually subsides.

Once Lance finishes, his eyes are watery and he can’t breathe through his nose, but he still forces himself off the bed and the world tilts and his knees buckle and he’s freefalling, but Keith’s strong arm catches him and hurls him back towards his bed.

Keith’s eyes look sad, “Hey, buddy, maybe it’s better if you stay in bed today..”

“No! I need to go on the–” He coughs, “the mission! We can’t..form voltron otherwise! I can’t..be a burden on this team..”

Lance begins to haul himself out of his bedroom and towards the bridge, much to Keith’s protests. His head pounds and his body feels like it weighs tonnes but he forces himself towards the bridge.

When he makes it he feels like he’s spent years trudging through the desert suffocating beneath the hot Saharan sun.

“I’m sorry I’m late, I didn’t mean to, let’s start the missi–” Lance starts to hack, coughing his lungs out, bent double with the sheer force. He feels horribly light and faint.

“Oh, Lance, buddy..” Hunk whispers softly, his voice dripping with sympathy.

“I can do it, I swear, please let me do it, we gotta..” Lance trails off, looking up to see their concerned faces, worry etched onto each of their features. But once his teary eyes focus he’s able to see beyond them; the bridge beautifully decorated with a “Happy Birthday, Lance!” banner, there’s some smudged black paint in the corner, and there’s some alien craft that is meant to resemble balloons, and a cake.

Lance feels so warm.

And it’s not just because of his fever.

“Happy birthday, pal,” Hunk smiles sweetly.

His eyes water, “Y..you guys..”

“Happy birthday, Lance..uh..and I’m sorry about the smudge, that was..kind of my fault,” Shiro admits bashfully.

“No..i..it’s perfect,” He whispers.

“..And we didn’t have time to get you a proper present, but we found these little gems and we hope this is a little something until we get something better,” Pidge explains as she places a bracelet into his hands; the brace is silver and there are seven little gems, five gems with the same colour of their lions, and one pink one for Allura, and an orange one for Coran.

Lance’s lip begins to wobble, joy warming his heart and he feels like he’s glowing, twinkling and sparkling.

“And I made you some garlic knots..I tried my hardest to replicate some Cuban spices but you can only get so close with alien ingredients,” Hunk offers, gesturing towards a large plate.

Lance’s face crumples and he begins to sob, incredibly moved, his heavy soul feeling much lighter, a new light igniting within him bringing warmth to the coldness that had started to spread throughout him.

Keith puts an arm around him and lets him cry into his shoulder, “Shh..hey, pal, why are you crying?”

“I’m just..so happy. I don’t deserve you guys..I..made a promise to my mother that I’d make her proud, and I feel so dumb for being tired when there are important missions to do..and yet you guys are still..so nice to me,” He sobs.

“Lance, you’re sick. That’s okay. You can take a rest. And look, I don’t know your mother–but we’re all very proud of you. I’m very proud of you. So I’m so sure she would feel the same,” Keith reassures, a little bit awkward, but just as caring as he brushes his hand through Lance’s hair.

One by one everyone on the team joins in the hug, and each time Lance feels a little bit more while. A little less alone. He can finally feel at home; it’s not quite what he’s grown to know, but maybe it’s just as good. It will do.

“We love you, Lance, all of us,” Hunk whispers lovingly.

And Lance feels it.

He’ll uphold his promise to his mother. He does lives with the stars, these friends who shine just as bright as the stars, and somehow, he’s one of them. Shining just as bright, with their love.

He belongs right here.

Pining For A Prince | Part 2

Pairing: Keith x Lance

Warnings: some swearing and mentions of drinking/sex

A/N:  We must thank god for strangers who can’t keep their mouths shut for they may be the key to ending the pining of my two favourite idiots. Also I’ve not been to American Disney in forever so I’m working off very limited knowledge of how stuff works there but I’ve googled and like the tunnels and stuff under the parks are a real thing, they just might not be exactly as I’ve made them but like who cares? Let me know what you think!

Word Count: 2793

*

At the happiest place on Earth a new day brought with it a very tired and grumpy-looking group of 18-24 year-olds and one surprisingly chipper 20-year-old attempting to carry a frankly outrageous number of caffeinated drinks. That 20-year-old was of course Lance because apparently he was the only one who had anything close to a healthy sleep schedule.

“Morning everyone!” He greeted as he entered their favourite lounge area under the park.

“He brought coffee! Thank god, I think I might die without it!” Allura was the closest to being awake of them all and called out the second she saw him. Immediately he was charged by all his friends as they scrambled to get their caffeine fix.

“Alright guys, let me put these down and then you animals can kill each other for your coffee.” They backed off and gave him room to get to one of the tables but were back at it before he even had a chance to grab his own drink.

“Lance, sweetie, you are an angel. Thank you!” Allura pressed kiss to his cheek as she passed with Romelle who grinned and gave him a thumbs up.

“Thanks doofus!” that was Pidge who was clearly so tired she hadn't noticed her costume wasn't on right and the sight made him chuckle a bit before a warm hand clapping him on the shoulder drew his focus. He turned his head and was met with a sleepy smile from Keith. It was probably the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen in his life and he felt his cheeks flush as it brought to mind a very vivid image of what it would be like to wake up to that every morning.

“Thanks man. And thanks for ordering it the way I like, Shiro always refuses to.” Another surprising thing Lance had learned about Keith was that instead of the expected bitter black coffee, he liked the most sickeningly sweet stuff Lance had ever tasted. It was honestly disgusting and he didn't understand how Keith could drink it like that but with his odd coffee taste, who was he to judge?

“No biggie, I know what you're all like without it.”

“I'd argue that we're a delight without the caffeine but I was about ready to kill someone just for a sip when you turned up.” The statement came from Nadia and knowing her as Lance did, he absolutely believed it.

“Looks like I got here just in time. You guys enjoy, I've gotta get changed.”

“Oh shit, me too!” Apparently Keith had only just realised he was still in his own sweatpants and t-shirt rather than his costume.

“You're  hopeless in the morning. C'mon dude, let's go. You too Matt, you've forgotten your tights.” Lance grabbed their hands and tugged them into the changing rooms, not thinking about the fact that he was about to see Keith in a state of semi-undress that his body likely couldn't actually handle.

It took him longer it should have to get in costume, his eyes frequently being drawn to to Keith. It wasn't his fault. Keith was really, really hot. It's not like he hadn't known that before but suddenly being confronted with the reality of Keith's abs- Lance's brain short-circuited.

“Hey Matt, come help me with this would you? Shiro normally does it for me.”

“Sorry, I've got coffee to drink and a little sister to annoy.” Matt, who had until then been doing absolutely nothing, flashed them both a cheeky grin and grabbed his untouched coffee before rushing towards the door. “I'm sure Lance would be happy to help though!” And then he was gone. Bastard.

“You mind?” Keith seemed unconcerned with Matt's sudden, odd behaviour and oblivious to Lance's internal struggle between wanting to be close to him and wanting to run away at the thought.

“...Uh, yeah okay.” He shrugged in what he hoped was a nonchalant manner and made quick work of sorting out the last of Keith's costume. He might have lingered, hands smoothing down some of the fabric for longer than was necessary, but he would deny it happened if Keith decided to call him out on it.

“Thanks.” Keith’s voice was unexpectedly quiet and strained and Lance flicked his eyes up in surprise, not having noticed just quite how close their faces were, breath mingling in the small gap between their lips. Lance was too startled to move away or in fact do anything but stare. He’d never been quite this close to Keith before and was caught in the violet of his eyes, even more beautiful up close, he could get lost in those eyes for days.

After a few more moments had passed and Lance had still failed to move or react in any way but staring in awe, Keith’s cheeks developed an adorable blush that he knew was going to be stuck in his mind all day. Keith cleared his throat and that finally broke his trance. He stepped back quickly, feeling his own cheeks heating up and praying that the older boy wouldn’t notice.

“Uh, yeah...no problem dude.” He flashed him a quick smile before hurrying to finish dressing himself, needing to not be alone with Keith any longer. Footsteps passed close behind him as Keith made his way to the door and Lance tried not to look at him, still feeling awkward. He breathed a sigh of relief when the door finally shut and closed his eyes, leaning against the wall. Images of Keith’s soft smile, his cute blush, his beautiful eyes flashed before him and he groaned, scrubbing at his eyes to try and get rid of them. They wouldn’t go.

“Fuck,” he breathed out. It was going to be a tough day.

It only got worse a couple of hours later. A little after the park opened they were all still lingering near the castle meeting guests and taking photos. Normally by then many of them would have left, Lance and Allura off to New Orleans Square, Pidge to Pixie Hollow, the princesses to Fantasyland, Matt pretty much wherever he pleased, but they’d all got caught up by the sheer number of guests wanting to meet them today.

A cute little girl in a purple dress and mouse ears came up to him, eyes wide with the wonder he saw countless times a day.

“You’re prince Naveen.”

“I am little one, what can I do for you?”

“I wanted to tell you that you’re really pretty.”

“Why thank you, you’re very pretty too.” The little girl blushed and giggled at the compliment.

“But don’t you think Tiana is the most beautiful?” Her gaze strayed to where Allura was entertaining a family with 4 young children and Lance followed it. He knew what the girl meant, Allura was stunning. Movement behind her caught his eye as he watched and he flicked his focus to it, spotting Keith leading a girl of about 11 in a little dance, both of them smiling brightly. God it was adorable.

“You’re right, Tiana is very beautiful. You want to know a secret though?”

“Yes!” The girl’s smile widened further and she wiggled about in excitement.

“I think Prince Eric is really pretty too.” He whispered it to her and she giggled again before whispering back.

“Can I tell you a secret too?” He nodded. “I think he’s pretty too.” Lance grinned.

“I think you should tell him that. Just don’t tell him what I said. Pinky promise?” He held out his little finger and she wrapped her own around it.

“Pinky promise.”

“You know, I think Princess Tiana would like to meet you, we should go see her now, it looks like she’s free.” The little girl glanced over and sure enough the family previously occupying Allura were just getting ready to head off. Lance took her hand and walked the few feet between them and Allura.

“Princess, I’ve got someone for you to meet. She thinks you’re really pretty.” The little girl blushed but smiled anyway. They spent another minute or so talking with her and allowed her parents to take some photos before they each gave her a quick hug and she skipped away in the direction of Ezor and Keith. He looked over at said boy and felt his stomach flip. He really shouldn’t have mentioned thinking he was pretty but his mind had been occupied with him and it had slipped out. It was okay though, it’s not like Keith would find out.

“Stop staring, you’re being obvious.” Allura whispered, smirking when he turned back to her. The crowd had thinned significantly and they were finally able to head off to New Orleans Square, walking slowly arm in arm.

“Maybe I will, but only if you stop looking at Romelle every 30 seconds. You’re the one that’s being obvious.” He smirked right back. Two could play at this game.

“I really don’t like it when you’re right.” She let it drop after that and they continued walking, stopping every now and then to talk to a few park guests, neither noticing their crushes gazing after them.

A gentle tug on his costume brought Keith’s attention away from his conversation with Ezor and down to a giggling little girl with mischief in her eyes.

“Hey kiddo, you need something?”

“I need to tell you something but it’s a secret so you can’t tell anyone else.”

“I promise I won’t say a word.” He crouched down and allowed her to lean in and whisper in his ear.

“Prince Naveen thinks your pretty.” Well that wasn’t what he expected at all. He felt his cheeks heat up slightly and he leaned back to look at her questioningly.

“Did he tell you that?” She nodded vigorously.

“Yep, do you think he’s pretty too?” His eyes flicked involuntarily over to Lance who was walking away with Allura and he felt a dopey, in-love smile spread across his face.

“I think he’s very pretty. You can’t tell anyone though.”

“I promise.” He didn't believe that at all, assuming she'd probably made a similar promise to Lance, but seeing as she'd already talked to him he felt his secret was probably safe. She didn't say anything more and ran off back to her parents leaving a very mentally whiplashed Keith in her wake.

He spent most of the next hour completely unable to focus. Sure he managed do his job well, pretending was second nature by now, but his mind was racing a million miles an hour. What had Lance meant by calling him pretty? Was the child being totally honest? Did this mean Lance might like him as well? Or was he reading too much into the compliment? He didn't want to get his hopes up though and wasn't sure what he'd even do if Lance did like him back, there was no way he'd ever be able to actually ask him on a date himself, even being certain of his feelings.

He groaned as he entered his usual break lounge, why did having feelings have to be so difficult? James, looking very nice in his Flynn Rider get-up, Romelle, Nyma, and Adam all looked up as he entered, the four of them calling out half-hearted greetings from where they relaxed, recovering from the heat as best they could before having to brave it again.

“Hey guys.” He grabbed some water and flopped into a seat beside Adam, making no further attempt at conversation as he continued thinking about what Lance had apparently said.

“Something on your mind?” Adam was looking at him quizzically, he'd learned to read Keith pretty well over the years they'd known each other.

“Nothing to worry about,” he lied, faking a reassuring smile that he knew Adam would see right through anyway. Luckily for him, or unlucky as the case may be, a new voice interrupted.

“So, Romelle, tomorrow: Allura, me, Nadia, James, Hunk and Shay, beach barbecue and drinks? You in?” Of course it was Lance, the one person he couldn't be around right now. “Oh, hey Keith!”

“Hey Lance,” he said it so quietly he wasn't sure the other boy even heard and shrunk in on himself at Lance's gaze on him. Lance studied him for a moment longer confused by the awkward response but shrugged it off quickly. A knowing glance between the two boys and smirk from Adam made Keith want to curl up and die.

“Romelle?” Thankfully Lance turned his attention back to the girl.

“I'd love to come, I'll need a ride though and if you're all drinking…” she trailed off. Romelle lived too far from their favourite, virtually unknown, little beach to walk.

“You could stay with Allura for a couple of days, she said she doesn't mind.” Keith could hear the plotting tone in Lance's voice. At least someone was likely to get their happily ever after soon.

“Sounds great.” Romelle was definitely blushing and Keith was with everyone else in hoping this might finally get the two girls together. “Keith should come too though. You've got the day off right?” And now everyone was looking at him expectantly, Romelle with a wicked smile. Maybe Keith wasn't as invested in her happiness as he thought.

“Uh- is there any point if I can't drink with you guys?” Keith lived as far away as Romelle and he'd never been thankful for that until now. It may just be his ticket out of a day of Lance-induced torture.

“You could stay with me if you want?” Did Lance really have to be such a considerate friend all the time? Really? Keith couldn't deny that the chance to be alone with Lance, spend the night with him, would normally have been a gift but today it seemed more like a curse. Of course now he had no good reason not to go. It would be weird not to accept the offer.

“Alright then, you're sure you don't mind?”

“Yeah it's no problem dude, everyone's still on for dinner at Hunk's tonight yeah? V can catch a ride home with Axca, Shiro can take your car, and I’ll give you a ride if that's okay? Like no offense, but I do not trust your driving.” Keith contemplated arguing in defence of his driving but ultimately just nodded his agreement to the plan. Apparently one night at Lance's was becoming two and this was really not going to be good for his heart. “Awesome. I'll see you guys later then.” He waved and left the lounge allowing Keith to relax again at last. For about five seconds. Adam leaned over and whispered to him.

“I know I'm not technically the big brother but I'm doing this on Shiro's behalf.” Keith didn't like where this was going. Anything done on behalf of Shiro was not a good thing in his books. “Have fun on your date and remember to use protection. We don't want little Keith and Lance hybrids running around just yet.” Keith so nearly smacked him for that.

“How is it that you of all people have such a poor understanding of how biology and gay sex work?” He glared. “And it's not a date.” He added as an afterthought. He kind of wished it was though.

“Sure it's not.” He couldn't be bothered to argue anymore and instead opted for rolling his eyes and shoving Adam away, sinking further into his seat and spacing out again. Lance, once again was at the forefront of his mind and he spent a long time trying in vain to figure out what on earth he had meant when he'd said he was pretty. He continued drawing blanks and had only succeeded in giving himself a headache by the time Ezor shook him back to reality.

“Come on, break time is over, we've got kids to entertain.”

“Right,” he said, still a bit dazed, “coming.” He was about to say goodbye to the others when he realised they'd all already left. If he hadn't been so preoccupied with Lance thoughts he might have realised that obviously they wouldn't still be there, his break had started later after all. However, unfortunately Lance, whether present or not, had an uncanny ability to completely scramble his thoughts and throw out any sort of logic he might have.

Sighing, Keith scrubbed a hand over his face and went to a mirror to check his appearance, touching up his costume makeup a little and smoothing his hair back in place. He followed Ezor back through the tunnels and out into the park, desperately trying to push the last lingering wisp of Lance from his mind but it clung on stubbornly, not unlike Lance himself. It was going to be a long day.

I changed it to Keith and Shiro because I really, really don’t care about other Paladins, no offense :p

---

"Wait a tick, is that Phantasmagica III?" Keith grabbed Kolivan's elbow to stop them walking away.

The four of them--Keith, Shiro, Krolia, and Kolivan--were having a nice afternoon stroll at the summer bazaar by the Garrison housing. Keith brought his mom and stepdad Kolivan along because she wanted to finally explore the home planet of her son and they wanted to see Earth culture beyond its military.

So, summer bazaar it was.

"Ohh man, you're right. This one's a classic", Shiro picked up the old box carefully. "I remember beating this game when I was like. Fifteen or something."

"I beat it it when I was six", Keith stuck his tongue to Shiro.

"Keith, this game is PG-13..." Shiro sighed.

"Is this some kind of Earth video game or something?" Kolivan took the box from Shiro’s hand and flipping it over. "I don’t see any tutorial. How do you play it?"

Krolia groaned. "Please... No more video games."

"Wait, you play video games?!" Keith's eyes widened in surprise.

"Some younger recruits would bring them to the base, while some would code them on their own", Krolia said, throwing accusing look to Kolivan. "Kolivan always insisted to try them all, in case they contained dangerous Imperial propaganda. And they would beat all of those games in a quintant or two, much to the recruits' dismay."

"It was a good exercise in problem-solving and reflex training", Kolivan reasoned, their ears fluffed up in embarrassment.

Keith laughed. "Oh man, you're so gonna love this. C'mon, Shiro. You still have the good ol' GameVexor in your dorm, right? We need to introduce them to Earth's most classic."

Shiro looked like he was beginning to regret this.

October writting challenge

I’m going to be participating on the October Writting challenge from today on, the fics will be posted at the same time here on Tumblr and on Ao3. I chose to do this because i want to try and learn to write shorter chapters, and try to get out of my comfort zone and improvise. 

I also added the bonus that i would write the short stories with the first idea that came to mind, no matter how stupid it was, as a sort of challenge to myself. You’ll notice that when you read the first story lmao.

So, that said, the promt list i’ll be following can be found here, done by @horrificmemes ,and i leave you the first prompt down here. Enjoy! And do leave a comment if you feel like it :D

OCTOBER WRITTING CHALLENGE

DAY 1: REVENGE (TASTES SWEET)

Lance narrowed his eyes as he looked in the fridge, roaming over the expanse of the shelves as he looked for the thing. You know? The thing he'd been saving for weeks for when he had a bad day™ , the thing that he was craving right now, but was nowhere in sight.

Maybe it was behind the mayonnaise? Nope, not there.

Uhh...maybe he put it under the bowl of oranges? Nah, not there either. It wasn't on the veggie drawer, neither on the egg shelf or covered by the huge lettuce on the top corner. He knew for a fact that he'd stored it safely and carefully on their fridge, awaiting the day he'd need it, so for it to have suddenly disappeared it could only mean one thing...

"Keith, babe, did you eat a small chocolate cake that was on the fridge?" It was swiss chocolate sponge cake with a creamy mousse-like filling and topped with a coffee glaze. In other words, heaven on earth. It had costed him fifteen bucks, bought from one of the best patisseries in town, and he'd been really excited to taste it, so he was a teensy bit pissed right now.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Keith raise a brow from the sofa, humming softly before answering him. "No, i didn't. I don't remember anything like that on our fridge, are you sure you didn't eat it already?" He gasped dramatically, turning around with a hand above his heart, feigning hurt -which wasn't difficult because he was exhausted and now disappointed- as he rose his finger to point at Keith.

"How can you say that!? I would know if i ate something so delicious. I left it on the top right, like, three days ago, i was waiting for a hellish day like today to eat it so i would feel better, and now it's gone." He pouted, crossing his arms as his boyfriend looked at him with an amused expression, which, rude.

"Sorry Lance, but i really don't know what happened to it, maybe we threw it out without noticing? There was a lot of trash and spoiled food that we had to take care of  two days ago, right? Maybe we didn't see it?" It was a possibility. They discovered, as soon as they began living together, that they were horrible at managing their food.

Sometimes they bought too much and it ended up spoiled, or they forgot it was there and didn't eat it, passing the due date and having to ponder if it was still fit for human consumption when they finally found it. (It wasn't.)

Other times, they bought ingredients to make dinner themselves, but would miscalculate the amount, and the veggies and fruit would go bad, leaving a stench that wasn't at all pleasant and a whole lot of mold no one wanted to clean but had to. And then there were the times when they bought too little, and ate so much junk food the leftovers piled inside the fridge and became a mishmash of burger and fries that looked to have gained sentience.

Which was what happened two days ago. So maybe the cake had been caught in the crossfire and ended in the trashcan. The mere thought just made him want to weep.

It had looked so good, with such a shiny glaze, and the sponge cake seemed really fluffy too....Ugh, he cursed his back luck.

"I'm sorry about your cake, Lance. Wanna tell me about your day?" Keith laid down on the couch and opened his arms, and he immediately threw himself at him, knowing his boyfriend wouldn't even flinch, since he was ripped, and also a personal trainer at the local gym.

He took a second to feel Keith's arms around him, the warmth of his body and the smell of his shampoo, the dips and creases of his chest and the toned muscles that cradled him and made him feel safe. " Ugh, it's been the worst. So, i was just going around doing my thing, you know? Putting things on shelves like normal, when this douche of a dude comes out of nowhere and begins harassing me-" He babbled and seethed and didn't stop speaking for a long, long while.

But Keith never interrupted unless it was to ask a question in concern or add his own input about the absolutely annoying and unbelievable people in Lance's line of work.

Retail.

By the time he finished his tale, he was breathing hard, hands clenched on Keith's sweater as he struggled not to cry. He hated his job, and the people there -except Hunk, Hunk was an angel sent by god to keep him sane- but he didn't have a choice until he saved enough money to pay for the damages done to his car in a small accident a few months ago.

And then he still had to pay for his degree after, he owed a lot of money still.

Working in retail was actually just a temporary job, he was waiting to finally work on what he really loved, the career he had worked hard for and studied to get a degree on.

Teaching.

He wanted to teach children, he'd always been good with them, and it had been his dream since he could remember, he'd drained himself dry to achieve that dream, and it was about to become a reality.

He had a place already, a small school managed by Mrs.Allura, who had told him that when Coran -one of the oldest teachers there- retired, Lance would take his place and finally make his title of teacher official. But until then, he had to keep paying bills and repairs and what not, so what had he done? Look for a temporary job to keep them afloat while he got his dream job.

And it was killing him.

Thank god it was only another month.

He didn't think he'd been able to take much more of that.

"You know you could always leave that job, right? I don't mind paying for things until Allura finally employs you, she's a friend- well, more like a sister, really- and we know she won't go back on her word." He knew, of course he knew. Keith's brother, Shiro, and his husband, Adam, were friends with Allura since high school, and that, by default, made Keith her friend, and therefore Lance, too.

But Lance was stubborn and headstrong, and damned prideful while he was at it too. He felt like a leech if he wasn't contributing to keeping their household afloat, it always made him feel guilty and inadequate, like he wasn't enough for Keith, like he deserved better.

"Hey, c'mon now, stop thinking so much. It was only a suggestion, you don't have to do it if you don't want to. I only want you to be happy." Lance only grumbled in response, burrowing his head on the crook of Keith's neck, curling up like a child and not caring at all that he sounded whiny.

"A chocolate cake would've made me happy..." He whispered, and felt Keith sigh as he ran his fingers through his hair, his other hand rubbing circles on his back and making him sleepy.

"I think it's time to go sleep, Lance. You have an early shift tomorrow, don't you?" He groaned and refused to get up, but his boyfriend already knew about his bad habits and picked him up effortlessly, walking to their bed and laying him down softly before dropping a chaste kiss to his lips, then leaving to brush his teeth.

Lance, meanwhile, giggled like a love-struck teenager, rolled around like a burrito, and stopped right at the edge with his arms dangling over the side of the mattress, head tilted to the left as his eyes bore on the trashcan right by Keith's desk.

He focused intently and thought he saw red, and as he narrowed his eyes and squinted, he could read the word ' Olkar-' . He gasped and got up, running to dig into the trashcan, taking out the purple-red envelope that said 'Okarion Patisserie', the exact same one that he'd bought that chocolate cake from.

So Keith had lied to him. He had eaten his cake. Wow, talk about honesty.

He wasn't even mad anymore, just...kind of sad? Disappointed maybe? It wasn't a big deal, not anymore since Keith had soothed his worries and listened to his ranting, which made him feel better. Keith's affectionate touches, comforting words and his silent support always did that to him.

But that had been a really nice cake.

A bit of revenge was in order.

McClain style.

--

The next day, as Keith left for work, Lance -who still had a few hours before he himself had to go- went out to buy some pie, the apple one that he knew his boyfriend liked so much. And just because he was already there, he took some things their fridge was missing, humming a little tune all the way, thinking about how many photos he was gonna snap that same evening.

It was going to be hilarious.

He got home and dumped the things on their respective places, and, because he was so thorough with his pranks, he took the bottle of chilly sauce out of the bag, opened the apple pie, and spilled a few drops on the filling before closing it again, then put the envelope back together like nothing had happened.

And just to be sure it worked, he left a sweet note telling Keith it was for him, even signing it with a kiss and a few hearts.

Feeling lighter and with a smirk blooming on his face, Lance left for work, giddy and eager for his shift to end so he could laugh at Keith, and then berate him for lying and ask for kisses in compensation....

As soon as his lips weren't on fire anymore, of course.

--

Six hours later, and Lance was ready to call it a day. He quickly dressed himself and said good-bye to Hunk -who left with his girlfriend- running towards the bus stop so he was sure he didn't miss it, glancing longingly at the store on the far end of the street, the one that was now closed because of repairs and wouldn't open until a few months down the line.

'Adios, my sweet cake, it's sad that i never got to taste you.' He bemoaned, brushing away an invisible tear just as the bus arrived, going to take him home to where his boyfriend would probably be screaming to the high heavens, his mouth on fire with no way to make it stop, since he couldn't drink milk.

'Just cold water for you, mister liar.' He chuckled to himself, knowing for a fact that Keith could take spicy without trouble, but it would still annoy him to no end, leaving him grumbling and pouting until Lance smoothed out his frown with a few kisses here and there.

Ah, he couldn't wait.

--

As soon as he got home and caught sight of Keith, slumped on the floor cradling his stomach while he groaned, he reassessed his previous thought; he could definitely wait.

He threw his bag unceremoniously to the floor, closing the door with his foot and running towards his boyfriend, cradling his sweaty face in his hands as he worriedly asked him what was wrong.

"I dunno....i think it's- ugh- someting i ate." Lance brushed his bangs away and tried to feel for a fever, but found nothing, and he seemed coherent and alert, just in pain, which was a relief.

"Babe, what did you eat? Did it smell bad? Was it past its due date-?" keith shook his head, pushing his hands harder against his stomach, one of them going to cover his mouth as he coughed a little. Lance was beginning to panic.

"No- just...that apple pie -Lance froze- you bought for me, did you check the label for dairy?" Lance nodded fervently, relieved, he always checked the labels on everything, it was second nature to him now. Keith was lactose intolerant, and it always made him feel like shit when he accidentally ate some, nothing that wouldn't go away the next day but- not pretty, he didn't like it when Keith suffered.

"Yeah, it didn't have any so ..." He held Keith's arms and led him to the couch.

"Ugh, my mouth burns.......i- is that...normal?" Lance stopped short, the gears inside his brain turning as he caught up to one small tiny detail; the chilly sauce. He wanted to laugh to himself, saying it was impossible, that it made no sense a chilly sauce would have lactose or anything but- but he had to check, had to make sure. "Wait here just a sec." He fled through their house and opened the drawer in the kitchen, taking out the bottle and reading the too small letters-

'Allergens notice: Contains milk.' And there it was, Lance's mistake. He was always so careful, so thorough, but he'd been too excited to exact a petty revenge on his boyfriend, and now he felt like shit because of him, with an added burn to boot. He threw the bottle inside the bin, and ran all the way to the lounge, crouching before Keith, ready to fess up.

"I'm sorry- i didn't meant to- i didn't check and- you know i always check-" Keith put a hand on his mouth, effectively shutting him up.

"Slowly, Lance, i can't understand a word you're -ugh- saying." He took a deep breath, gulping down the nausea rising in his throat, looking up into Keith's pained face and tearing up when he noticed just how pale and sick he looked.

"I- i found the wrapping of- of the cake i bought in our room and- and i was so mad because i wanted it so much but- but i was angrier at the fact that you lied to me so- so i...i wanted to get back at you." Keith groaned and doubled over, and Lance nearly fell in his haste to hold him in between his arms, rubbing his back in what he hoped were comforting motions.

"So- so you-what? Gave me milk as- as revenge?" Horrified that Keith would think he would ever do something like that to him on purpose, the tears that had been gathering in the corners of his eyes finally fell, a small steady stream down his cheeks.

"Wh- no! I would never-!" His breath hitched, and he struggled to talk through his hiccups. "I bought t-the pie you love so much a-and put some chilly s-sauce inside as a- a prank." He sniffed, trying to be silent, hoping that Keith would continue looking away. He hated crying, but he hated even more when someone saw him do it, it made him feel...weak.

"I just w-wanted a little p-payback but i f-forgot to check the label o-of the sauce....I-I'm sorry Keith..." His boyfriend finally looked up, his bout of nausea -or maybe cramps- seemingly over. He let out a sigh of relief, but his calm expression faded rapidly as he looked up at Lance, and then his face turned pained, eyes wide and slightly panicked.

"Hey, hey, c'mon  it's fine, don't cry. You know i won't die from this. It'll suck, yeah, but by tomorrow night i will be right as rain." Keith opened his arms in invitation and, although he felt guilty and undeserving of affection right now, his body knew what he wanted before his mind catched up to his thoughts, and he was throwing himself at his boyfriend, curling with him on the couch as he sniffed pathetically.

"I'm so sorry...you know i would never do this to you on purpose....i hate it when you are hurt." He felt the steady rise and fall of the other's chest, the warmth of his arms around his body, holding him tight, their legs curling together as Keith sought closeness, cuddling being something that made him feel better when he was sick.

"I know, i'm sorry too. I didn't mean it, i know you would never do something like that, and i'm...sorry about your cake, too. I was half asleep that day after classes, finished too late and was about to faint with both hunger and exhaustion. I just...opened the fridge and ate the first thing i got my hands on...i didn't even notice it was your cake until i had already finished." Lance shook his head, muttering that he didn't care about that as much as the fact that he'd lied to him about it, and, even then, he wasn't that mad about it.

He loved Keith, he wasn't about to have a fight for something as silly as food, it just so happened that that day had been a very bad one for him, and his only solace had been that small piece of heaven he had stored for emergencies.

"S'okay, was silly anyways, i was just really ticked off that day, it wasn't your fault. We share everything, i've eaten things that were yours too, sometimes, and you've never berated me for it." Keith hummed in acknowledgment, the vibrations calming his nerves and making him relax bit by bit until he was sure he was going to fall asleep right then and there.

He always said that the most comfortable place in the whole world was between Keith's arms.

He still stood by that.

"Yeah, well, i'm working on what i like, and i don't get stressed as much as you do. I know how bad your job can get, and how you're doing your best until Allura hires you officially, so i don't mind indulging you sometimes, as long as you don't make a habit out of it." He chuckled, rubbing his forehead against Keith's chest, inhaling the scent of his soap and feeling the beating of his heart, like a lullaby soothing him to sleep.

"I don't know what i did to deserve you." He said, cuddling closer against Keith.

"You were pretty persistent, that's what." He pretended to be offended, then sighed in content when Keith nuzzled against the crook of his neck, his breath ghosting over his ear and sending a shiver down his spine. "Lance..." The whisper of his name made warmth travel down the length of his body, and a shaky suspire left him before he could help it, his hands running over the expanse of Keith's back as the other leaned closer and then-

"You're going to want to move, i have to go to the bathroom like- now." Lance somersaulted over the side of the couch, watching with grief as Keith ran towards the bathroom, where he would most likely spend the rest of the night. He crawled over to the door with a pillow and a blanket, and curled into a ball as he waited for his boyfriend to come out, even if he had to wait till morning with him.

This had been his fault, after all, so he would take care of him and make sure Keith had all he needed and was as comfortable as possible until he felt better.

It was the least he could do.

--

By the time Keith stopped feeling indisposed, the sun had begun to rise, and Lance had stayed awake every minute, giving him water and medicine and supplements, blankets and soft touches and whatever he needed so he would get better.

It had been a long night, but the one who'd most suffered had been Keith, so he had no right to complain. He just carried his tired boyfriend to their bed, tucked him in like a blanket burrito, and gave him cuddles till he fell asleep, smiling softly when the crease of his brow finally disappeared and his expression smoothed out into a calm, relaxed one.

Soft breaths left Keith's lips, and, thinking he was knocked out, Lance began talking to himself, something that always helped him calm down. "I'm really sorry about this...i'm such an idiot, i shouldn't have gotten so worked up over a stupid cake or hidden it like a child...i should have just told you.." At his side, Keith turned around and nuzzled his face on Lance's chest, discarding the blankets in favour of curling against him, legs intertwined, his dark hair tickling his chin and neck.

He felt like crying again.

"I'm so stupid, you always share everything with me, i shouldn't have gotten so upset. Ugh, i feel like the worst boyfriend ever..." A faint chuckle made him freeze, and his chest shook from Keith's small laughs, his arms tightening their grip just as he leaned away, looking into his purple eyes, sleepy and half-lidded but still awake.

"Stop beating yourself over it, Lance, it was just a joke. You know i like your jokes, one of the main reasons i began dating you was because they always blew up in your face or came back to bite you in the ass, it was funny." He pretended to be outraged, his hands pushing Keith away without any real force behind the motions.

"How dare you? I thought you dated me because of my extremely good looks and astounding intelligence?" Keith raised a brow, and looked him up and down without any kind of shame whatsoever.

"Well, you definitely have the looks... -Lance lit up- ...of an idiot." He gasped, screeching like a madman.

"Okay, first of all, rude. And second of all-" His tirade was stopped by warm lips being pressed to his, and he couldn't help but melt against Keith as he hugged him close and kissed him sweetly, fiercely and full of fire like he always did. They broke away after a while, and Lance could feel his face burning, noticing that his boyfriend's cheeks were tinted a soft red that probably rivaled his, both of them breathing hard.

"Well...that's one way of shutting me up. If you wanted to kiss me so much, you only had to ask, babe." He tried to smirk, but it probably came all soft and sappy and love-sick like, an expression he had no idea how it looked like, but that Pidge -Keith's partner at the gym- always said he made when he looked at his boyfriend.

Keith smiled, dimples on the corners of his lips. "And there's the Lance i know. Stop thinking so much about it, i'm not mad, and i know you didn't do it with malice, it was just a joke gone wrong. Forget about it, and go look in the fridge, okay?" Confused, but not willing to contradict his tired boyfriend, Lance got up and walked to their fridge, opening the door and coming face to face with-

A cake.

And not just any cake, but the exact same one he'd bought.

"Keith- what-?" He left the kitchen and ran towards their bedroom, watching Keith's features soften as he crushed the pillow between his arms.

" I felt really bad about eating your cake, you know? I asked Shiro if i could get out of work a bit early, and ran to the store to buy you another. I knew the place was always packed, and that i probably wouldn't be able to get any but- they were closing that day, and i really wanted to replace the one i ate." Lance sat on the edge of the bed, running his fingers through Keith's hair, listening to him sigh and snuggle, comfortable.

"So i waited in line for two hours to buy it." Lance stopped all movement, ready for the earth to open up and swallow him whole. God, he just wasn't a bad boyfriend, he had ascended to the worst boyfriend ever, he had no redemption now. "I just...wanted to see you smile, and if a cake was what you needed to feel happy, then i didn't mind. I hate it when you're stressed." Aaand Lance was gone, dead, deceased, he didn't deserve that cake, didn't deserve to even look at it, he was trash, the worst of the worst- what did he even do-

"I still don't know what i did to deserve you." Keith hummed and looked at him, opening his arms with what he now knew -after so much time together- was an invitation to cuddle and kiss and hug, share caresses with one another until they succumbed to asleep.

"Don't be silly, you're you, and that's more than enough for me." Lance slowly crawled on the bed and wiggled around until he was between Keith's arms, enjoying the way he held him, tight without being suffocating, tender but firm.

"You're too good to me." He whispered.

"Just the right amount." Keith answered, cradling Lance closer and humming a song under his breath, a long forgotten lullaby that his mother used to sing for him. Between that and the sound of his heartbeat, Lance was out within seconds, feeling his stress and guilt ebb away, being replaced by joy and delight instead.

The next morning, when they both woke, he ate the small cake that Keith had bought, all the while with his boyfriend smiling tenderly at him from the counter.

It tasted sweet.

But Keith was sweeter.

And he would chose him over dessert anytime.

Wrote a fic where Lance and Shiro talk about stuff, like Keith and Adam and clones.

Pairings are Adashi and pre-relationship Klance. Hope y'all enjoy, it's my first time writing for any fandom, ever.

It's not long before the team touches down on the closest passive planet to rest, exhausted. Moreso, Shiro had awakened earlier on, and while Black’s passengers had the chance to speak with him, the others were eager to interact, as well. The somewhat minimal reassurance that both Keith and Shiro gave (and wow, Lance thinks, we finally actually have both black paladins in one place after so long) didn't do much to slow down the team's excitement. After all, he'd been out for quite a few days.

Likewise, his return to the land of the living only served to make their campside “dinner” (if you could call it that) that much more lively.

Hunk and Pidge excitedly ramble, filling Shiro in on (almost) everything that he missed. However, there's not much that he truly missed, and his admittance of having the clone’s memories mixed in with his own dampens the mood slightly, but does not extinguish it.

Allura sits next to Romelle and Coran, discussing home: Altea and the colonies. Of course, home for Romelle was something much different than that which was home for Allura and Coran. Lance can't bring himself to stare at the three of them for long, to watch their sad smiles and hands clenched together, and when Allura’s bright but tired eyes flicker over to him for a short moment, he inhales sharply and looks away.

Keith was happy to rest between his brother and Lance, his mother and the cosmic wolf (he really did bring a wolf home, didn't he?) not too far behind him. Lance finds himself a little wary at their lack of participation in the campfire's circle, but he can't say that he doesn't understand. Keith, Allura, and Shiro-- contentment, concern, and guilt, respectively-- keep him tethered to the log of this collapsed tree with a complicated galaxial name, but there's high chance that he would have spent this time with Red, had it been any different.

As it is, now, though, Lance is fine with subtly pressing against Keith's arm and muttering-- read: bickering-- back and forth with him for old times sake, because even if Keith has matured and has larger muscles, he's still an impulsive, competitive dork.

For once, he feels less like a sore thumb.

--

After a while, Shiro goes to retire to Black a little early, citing weariness. Before he can stop himself, Lance blurts, “Let me walk you there!”

“To...my lion?” Shiro raises an eyebrow. Lance flushes, ignoring the rest of the team’s perplexed and skeptical faces (Pidge actually titters at him) before laughing awkwardly, “Yeah! Yeah, to your lion, uh, cause I'm sure that mullet man, here, wants to talk more with everyone, and I-- I wanted to run something by you!”

Keith's nose scrunches up, slightly, and his eyebrows furrow, but he does nod at the two of them; they both know that Keith had missed the team just as much as they'd missed him, and if Lance was giving him a chance with to catch up, then he'd take it. Lance thinks that it's a show of how far their relationship has come, because if it had been the first few hours in space, or even before Keith left for the Blades, he didn't think that Keith would have trusted him to go with Shiro, especially a Shiro that's fresh from the dead.

They walk slowly to Black, her presence large and proud, yet, in some paradoxical manner, subtle.

Shiro seems to be waiting patiently for Lance to speak, but all alone with the man that he idolized-- his hero-- Lance doesn't quite know how to start.

So he does what he does best: he adapts, and he makes small talk.

“So.”

Really small talk.

The former black paladin chuckles a little at him, and his face heats up, mind blank of ideas. That all-encompassing rolling feeling in his chest, the one that had kept him tethered to that log, earlier, comes back full force. Guilt. Lance's legs stop. It doesn't take long for Shiro's to halt, as well.

“I'm really sorry, Shiro.”

“You're…” Shiro looked a little taken aback, “What are you sorry for? You didn't-- is this about...the clone?”

Lance stopped himself from wincing, “I just-- yanno-- I wish that I could have helped. You-- you called for me, and I didn't hear you, and everything got worse, and you're back, but you could have been gone, like, for good, and-- and trust me when I say that dying isn't fun, it doesn't feel like anything, and--”

“Lance.” Hands on his shoulders. Lance inhaled his next breath, selfishly, “Lance, I need you to calm down. We’ll talk about how you know what dying is like, later, but...you didn't know that...he...was a clone.”

And anyway.

Takashi Shirogane’s eyes are a warm brown, normally, but in the dark of the night, away from the campfire, they are a sturdy, earthy black. And speaking of Black, she rumbles from beside the two of them, a calming quake that reverberates between the two paladins. Lance exhales slowly as Shiro maneuvers the two of them to sit on her large paw.

“Here's what I do know, Lance. You were compassionate, even when he yelled at you and belittled you. You trained hard, from what I've heard, and even when you had your doubts, you never let them truly cloud your judgement. That last one--”

Shiro takes a deep breath, himself; a grave expression crosses his face. “That last one might not have seemed like a good thing, but I have a feeling that if anyone figured out the true nature of...of him, what he was, then the destruction caused might have been even greater than it already is.”

And that shakes Lance so much that he doesn't quite know how to respond to that.

The rest of the team still laugh and talk next to the campfire. Its heat doesn't really reach them, not out here, and Black is out of earshot. Although, seeing as Keith is eyeing the two of them, she's not entirely out of eyesight. Then again, Kogane has weird Galra night vision, now. Maybe he's the only one that can truly see them.

Without preamble, and without acknowledging what Shiro had just said, Lance blurts out, “I might have a crush on your little brother, dude.”

Silence.

Then Shiro lets out a quick, booming laugh that tapers off into something softer, quieter. Lance huffs in embarrassment and looks away, feeling sour, mocked, all of a sudden.

“I'm not,” Shiro chuckles, wiping a tear from his eye, “I'm not laughing at you, sorry. I just...thought of something. There's nothing funny about realizing something like that, and it's amazing that you've figured it out.”

“I…what? You're fine with it?”

“Did you think that I was going to boot you off of the team for ogling my brother, or something?”

“Or something,” Lance admits, tone still disbelieving. “I mean, I just told you that I like guys-- not that I don't like girls, anymore, I just--”

“There's nothing wrong with that, kiddo. If there was, we'd both be in trouble.”

What.

“What?”

Shiro blinks, realizing what he just said before a shadow of melancholy overcomes his facial features, “Yeah, I...I was engaged before I left to Kerberos.”

“En-engaged?!” Lance's jaw drops. “To who? Why did I never know?” Which totally doesn't make you sound like a creep, Lance, c'mon.

“I was out and proud, but that doesn't mean that it was blatantly obvious. Adam was my flight partner for...for a long time.” He puffed out a warm laugh, “And then he was my boyfriend. And then my fiancé. He has the most amazing, deep laugh. He’s funny, and he's kind, and he’s supported me through almost everything, but he also wasn't one to take my bullshit. I was really looking forward to spending what was left of my life with him.”

“What was...left?”

Shiro doesn’t acknowledge the question. He leans forward, sighing, “He thinks that I'm dead. I don't know what to think about that. The last thing that he said to me-- the last thing that we said to each other-- it wasn't...well, he’s probably feeling a lot of regret, right now. I feel tons of it.”

Lance says nothing, feeling an ache in his chest that isn't really his to have.

“When we get back to Earth, you should find him, again. Make up for lost time,” He says, softly.

Shiro sends a kind smile his way, eyes crinkling before something mischievous begins to sparkle within them.

“So. Keith, huh?"

Lance splutters and groans in embarrassment.

So I signed up for the klance exchange a while back and got @tiredpidgeon ! You asked for some hurt/comfort and that’s what I went for. I really hope you like it!

(Fic under the cut, 2′700 words)

that’s good to know

It had been a close call. Way too close, if you were to ask Keith.

He felt sweaty and tired, and he was guessing the rest of the team was only able to speak so loudly because of the adrenaline of having survived the battle.

"That surely was a tough mission." Allura commented with a smile in her face. She still tried to keep her good political posture but Keith could see that her back was slightly hunched, and there were small transparent drops of liquid travelling down her forehead. So Alteans sweat too.

The door to the Bridge opened and they were met by Shiro and Coran, looking at them with a mix of relief and pride.

"You all did very well out there." Shiro said in his fatherly sounding tone, looking at each of them individually. As soon as their eyes met, Keith looked away, staring at some corner in the room instead.

He couldn't agree less with Shiro; they had been sloppy. The mission could have went way better and been finished a lot quicker. If only I was able to lead them better.

"Hell yeah! We were awesome!" Hunk suddenly shouted, making Keith flinch and look back up.

If anyone was truly only standing thanks to adrenaline, it was Hunk. His speech was louder and faster than usual, which is what normally happened when he was panicking before a mission.

Hunk kept speaking, frantically moving his hands at the same time. "I really didn't think we would make it for a moment there but look at us! We turned the tables on them and- oh man, Shiro- you should have been there! You should have seen it!" He paused for a single second, changing his tone to be slightly more serious. "No seriously man, you really should have been there. You are still our best fighter, it really would have made our life a lot easier."

Shiro smiled sheepishly. "I will make sure to go along on one of the lions if it ever looks like we are going to face such danger."

Pidge smirked proudly. "Either way, I agree with Hunk's previous statement that we, were indeed, awesome" She pushed her glasses up with a single finger, that devious smile made Keith fear her sometimes. "I think I set a new record time at transcribing galra documents."

Returning to his previous excitement, Hunk mirrored Pidge's smirk. "And you actually managed to knock one of them out while doing it!" Then Hunk turned to Allura. "-And Allura! You keep getting better and better at using your whip thingy, that move you did like- shoosh and slash." He said while swinging his arms around, trying to somewhat imitate somewhat Allura moves, which made the others in the room laugh. "And then there was Lance! The way he got between Keith and that sniper and dodged the bullet and then fired! Buddy you were-"Hunk turned around to speak to Lance directly only to realize that Lance wasn't there. He dropped his hands and frowned. "Wait, where is Lance?"

The room went silent as everyone shared similar confused looks between them.

Keith was aware that he was the only one that knew the answer. Kind of.

 While everyone had been chatting on their way to the Bridge, Keith had been deep in his thoughts about the mission. How he could have done a better job, how someone could have gotten seriously hurt, how it would have been his fault...

Briefly interrupting these thoughts, he noticed Lance acting weird. He had been following behind everyone else, in odd silence, and from the corner of his field of vision, Keith saw him parting ways without saying a thing. If it was a normal day he would have called Lance out but after their last conversation he didn't feel like he had the right to question Lance actions.

The memory of Lance offering to leave Voltron replayed on his head. It hurt to remember it, and it hurt more to think his words didn't help at all.

 Keith stepped forward and spoke up. "I will go find Lance. You should all go rest and we can go over the mission later."

He didn't wait for a confirmation or a reply as he started making his way out of the Bridge, only briefly catching Shiro saying "Let's do what Keith said-" the doors closed, cutting Shiro off.

As he walked through the halls, keeping an eye out for Lance, Keith wondered what he could even say to Lance once he found him. Good job out there? Thank you for saving me? See how much we need you on the team, we would have failed without you? He shook his head, nothing sounded right, nothing sounded honest enough. Please don't do that again, for a moment I thought the bullet had hit you and I am scared of losing you. You mean more to me than you can imagine.. I think I love-

Keith stopped in his tracks, staring at the ground.

He blinked once and then  blinked twice.

There was something on the ground.

Small dark red spots of-

Blood.

Keith started running.

---

Lance felt like a mess with a mix of failure.

Everyone else had turned out just fine, sure they all had suffered a few scratches here and there, but that was nothing compared to Lance. Lance, who actually managed to get himself shot. What a joke.

Thinking twice, maybe Keith wouldn't have turned out fine if it wasn't for Lance, but he still believed that Keith would have found a way to reflect the bullet with this sword or some cool junk like that. He is Keith after all.

Not that Lance regretted putting himself in the way. Not in the slightest, he would do it all over again if necessary considering it meant making sure that Keith would be safe. However, he still felt pathetic.

Currently half limping down the halls, with his right hand at his left side, as a poor excuse clogging up the wound. It wasn't too deep in his opinion, just losing a bit of blood is all, which he should probably stop from flowing as soon as he can.

Frustrated at the weight of his armor, Lance stopped only briefly to slip out of the top of his armor, leaving it abandoned in the hallway.

Someone will probably complain about that later, for giving them more work, unless... they notice the bloody handprint on the white metal, and then... they would instead complain for not telling them he was injured.

He made a mental note to come retrieve the armor piece before anyone found it.

And so step by step, trying to not trip on himself,  with a hand against the wall for support, he kept on walking, while thinking  over his options for where he should go.

The wound wasn't too deep, so he could probably just go to his room, grab some cloth and stop the bleeding properly, however he wouldn't be fully healed and someone could notice eventually. Meanwhile, if he went to the pods he could put his trust on Altean technology, but  someone was bound to find out that he used the pods, most likely Coran.

Either way it didn't seem like it would be easy to keep it a secret. He groaned in frustration.

Before he could make a decision, someone shouted his name, echoing on the hallway, stopped him in his tracks. "Lance!"

Lance froze, swearing internally. He clenched harder at his side, hoping somehow that it would fix the wound, but instead it just made him hiss in pain. Giving up, he turned around, crossing his arms, trying to play it cool and hide his wound.

It was then he realized who had called for him. "Oh." He hadn't expected Keith of all people to be the one trying finding him. "Hey man, what's up? Is this about the mission?"

"I- you are hurt." Keith said, gasping for air, his expression was painted in worry.

He considering his available moves, how he could get out of this without revealing more than he wanted. "Psch, no I'm not. We were all incredible and owned that fight."

"Lance I saw the blood."

"What blood? Are you sure that wasn't just red goo?" Lance blatantly lied and Keith wasn't buying it in the slightest. His frown only deepened at his words, Lance tried to joke around. "Hey c'mon, stop with that face, you will get wrinkles you know? And you have your pretty face going on, it would be a shame to ruin it."

"Pretty? Wha- wait no that's-, " Lance smirked as he saw Keith cheeks darken slightly, unfortunately however, his expression didn't change at all. "Lance you are injured you have to go to a pod!"

Lance sighed in defeat and shrugged. "It's really not that big of an injury, just a scratch."

"You should have said something."

"I don't want to be bothering all of you with my problems more than necessary."

"Lance you-! You- aren't bothering anyone, we care about you-" Keith paused, biting his lip. "I care about you and... and if this is somehow about you being the weakest, then you are wrong."

"What?" Lance laughed. "You honestly think I'm not the weakest Keith?" He asked amused with a raised eyebrow. "Name a single person on this team that is weaker than me. Coran doesn't count by the way."

"I- there is no one, we are all a team, there isn't weaker or stronger."

Lance felt anger twirling inside him, he knew that Keith was only trying to help, he knew he shouldn't be angry, but he couldn't help it. "Don't lie to me Keith." Lance snarled. "Not you of all people."

"I'm not lying!" Keith replied on a tone that matched his own.

Lance really didn't want to argue over this. Not with Keith, who he unfortunately had a hopeless crush on, that he knew it would never work out. He still didn't want Keith to know how pathetic he really was.

But he was too tired to keep up his facade.

He breathed in and out slowly. "Then tell me, Keith. Why I'm the only one who got hurt." His voice was trembling as he felt the sting of tears forming at the corner of his eyes. Keith didn't say a word. "I am weaker than all of you, Keith. You said things would work themselves out but I still think I should just leave, Shiro should be a paladin, not me." He stared at the ground, tightening his arms around himself, as if giving a hug to himself. "This team would be better off without me."

Lance waited for Keith to reply, to agree with him and leave possibly. When he heard nothing, he looked up to find Keith staring at him, sadness evident in his face, it was a weird look on Keith; and when he spoke, Lance was taken by surprise at how soft his words were. "Now that's a lie" He was only loud enough for Lance to be able to hear. "We would never be better off without you, you are important to this team lance." He smiled. "Our sharpshooter, right? You literally just saved my life."

"You could have dodged that."

"I had my back turned to the sniper, I had no way of knowing. Also you got hurt not because you are weak but because you are a self sacrificing idiot." Lance couldn't find it in himself to disagree with that. "This is my fault, I wasn't clear enough last time we spoke, I don't know how to talk to people."

Lance stopped breathing then, as he felt Keith's gloved hand against his cheek. He didn't try to pull away and Keith kept going.

"I don't know how to talk to people but I am being as honest as I can be when I say that team Voltron wouldn't exist without you."

Lance smiled weakly. "Who are you and what did you do with Keith?" Lance tried to joke, though there were still tears coming from his eyes.

Keith rolled his eyes slightly, laughing softly and Lance fell in love with the sound. "Don't be a jerk, I'm trying."

"I'm not special Keith, I really am not. All I did was learn how to shoot and practiced it a little harder on that than the rest of you... That's the thing, I had to learn, but the rest of you all had natural talent. You are all so... special... And it's been like this my whole life you know? My siblings were older and better than me, on the Garrison I only got in because you flunked out, and now I'm just a poor excuse of a pilot for red.  I can't pilot her like you... I can't be you."

"Lance you are way better than me, your shooting skills are honestly worth a lot more than we give them credit for,  you can actually talk to the others, you put the team above yourself and look out for everyone, even me... You believe in me to do a job that not even I think I can do."

Lance smiled softly. "Because it's the truth, you can do it. I know you can, all you need is- nh-" Suddenly a sharp pain cut him off, he instinctively hunched forward, slipping away from Keith's hold.

He felt Keith grabbing onto his shoulder. "Lance, we really should be getting you to a pod."

"Okay yeah, I guess this wasn't the best moment for a heartfelt chat." His vision was becoming hazzy, and he felt like he was drowning, it was almost peaceful.

He let himself be guided by Keith and everything else became a blur.

---

After putting Lance inside a pod and making sure that everything was working properly, Keith sat down besides his pod.

He thought over their conversation, wondering if he had done any mistakes. He hated how hard it was for him to express himself better around people.

Lance had believed in him more than anyone else when the Black Lion chose him, and he had been there for Keith. Everyone in his life who had been close to him had left him alone at some point or another. His mom, his dad... Shiro.

He didn't want Lance to be like the rest of them.

 When Lance woke up after a few minutes, he stumbled out of the pod, only managing to not fall on the ground by holding onto the pod.

Keith observed silently as Lance looked around the room, stopping when their eyes met. "Hey... uh." Lance rubbed his eyes, obviously still dazed. "Did you... wait the whole time I was on the pod?"

"Yes."

"Did the others find out about uh... me?

"No, I also went to get your armor." He pointed at the said piece in a corner, with his own next to it."

"Oh, thank you..." An awkward silence set in the room. "This is kind of awkward now."

Keith slowly got up, faced Lance, and then placed his arms firmly around Lance, hugging him.

"And it keeps getting more awkward alright."

"I don’t know my way around words like you do, so I don't know what is the right thing to say, and I don't know if what I said earlier helped in any way but I need you to know that you are important. I can't pretend like I know what the rest of the team thinks but you are important to me at least." He stopped briefly. "Please don't think about leaving."

Keith was nervous in the silence that followed, anxiously waiting for a reply. Slowly he got his answer, as Lance raised his arms and put them around Keith, returning the hug, Keith relaxed.

He could feel Lance shivering under hands, and then he heard the sniffs, realizing that Lance was crying.

They stayed like that for a while. Keith didn't know how long, could have been second, could have been half an hour.

"Thank you Keith..."Lance sniffed again. "Sorry for ruining your suit."

"I don't care that much about it."

Lance went silent and Keith had no idea what could be going through his mind, but something told him that there was something he wanted to say.

Eventually, Lance did speak again, his tone raspy and quiet, almost too soft to ear. "If I told you I love you, would you start hating me?"

Keith only took one second to think before replying. "I doubt it, considering I love you too."

Lance chuckled and Keith smiled at the sound. "Well, that's good to know."

Marks of the Soul (Chapter 3)

Summary: AU. Everyone has a mark somewhere on their body which corresponds to the moment they realize they’re in love with their soulmate, commonly referred to as a Soulmark or just a Mark. Even in space, so very far from home, the Paladins find themselves dwelling on their own Soulmarks and what their unusual forms might mean for them.

Pairings: Keith/Pidge, Lance/Allura, Hunk/Shay, and Shiro/Matt

Chapter 1 - Previous - Masterpost

Also posted on AO3 and fanfiction.net

Chapter 3

Shiro ran through the darkness, his chest tight as he struggled to breathe. Ahead of him was the outline of a figure, always on the verge of fading from sight. He couldn't think of their name, but he knew who they were.

“Please, wait!” he tried to yell, but his voice came out as nothing more than a whisper. He tried again and there was no sound. His body felt as though it was moving in slow motion; as if there was some unseen force holding him still.

The figure vanished into inky darkness as Shiro reached out to them. And then his vision went black.

“MATT!” he screamed as he woke, jolting up out of bed, his right arm still outstretched. He sucked in gulps of air as he dropped his arm, struggling to get it together.

It wasn't the first time he'd been awoken by a nightmare, nor was it the worst. It wasn't even the first time he found himself crying out for Matt. Most of his nightmares seemed to revolve around his friend more than they did Commander Holt, maybe in part because of Pidge's resemblance to her brother.

Shiro's heart slowly calmed and he laid back down to try and get back to sleep, but after several minutes of tossing and turning, trying to will himself to stop moving around, he gave up. It didn't matter that it was three vargas earlier than he normally started his day. It was clear that sleep wouldn't come easily to him that night. With that knowledge, he rolled out of bed and got straight into his morning exercises.

The routine helped him settle. The familiarity of the movements gave him time to relax and clear his head, letting his body do all of the work.

He had to believe that Matt was alive, wherever he was. His nightmares were just that – nightmares. They weren't real.

Except for when they were, whispered the fearful part of his subconscious.

His time in the cryo pod had unlocked buried memories, so what was to say that his dreams since then didn't also have some basis in reality? Maybe he'd repressed more than he wanted to admit, unable to handles the horrors of what he'd witnessed. Maybe Sendak was right. He really was broken. His dreams were his mind's way of trying to tell him the truth.

“No!” Shiro growled to himself, the idea so abhorrent that he couldn't bring himself to consider it any longer. His arms strained as he pushed himself up and held the position. “Matt's alive. I know he is.”

He was strong. Just like Pidge. And they would find him.

Shiro lowered himself to the floor and then rolled over onto his back, giving his arms a moment to rest. He needed something more productive to do than working himself into exhaustion. Maybe Coran was awake and needed help with something.

Pidge felt time slow to a crawl when she first noticed it. All of her excitement over getting to view the technology used to create the space pocket was sucked from her body in a single swoop.

There was no mistaking the symbol emblazoned on the pommel of Ulaz's sword.

It was the same as the one she bore on her chest.

She wanted to ask. Needed to. But she couldn't find the breath to do so and before she could snap herself out of the daze she found herself in, Keith was asking about it instead.

And then they were under attack.

Shiro ordered them back to the Castle and into their Lions and all five paladins set out to square off against a new, powerful enemy.

Pidge's heart sank when they saw Ulaz take off in his ship, fleeing from the fight, but she couldn't dwell on her lost opportunity for answers. And besides, Ulaz was likely headed to the Blade of Marmora headquarters, which was where they would be going once they found out how Zarkon was tracking them. They would meet again.

For the moment, she had to focus on the battle.

In the end, not even Voltron was strong enough to defeat the Robeast on his own.

Ulaz returned, his tone determined as he flew straight at Haggar's monstrous creation, and Pidge realized all at once what he intended on doing.

“Wait!” she screamed, wrenching away her connection to Voltron, forcing them all to separate back to individual Lions with yells of shock.

“Pidge, what are you doing?!” Keith demanded.

“Ulaz, you can set the activation for the space pocket on a timer, I saw it! Do that and then eject from your ship. I'm coming to get you!” Pidge said, ignoring hr friends as she directed her Lion toward Ulaz as fast as she could.

All she could think was that they couldn't lose Ulaz. He had the answers to so many questions – and not just her own.

“Pidge, come back! You'll never clear the blast in time!” Keith tried to reach her.

Pidge closed her eyes, urging her Lion to move faster. “I have to try,” she murmured.

The Green Lion let out a roar as Ulaz ejected from her ship and she caught him in her jaws before spinning and blasting away from the Robeast as it began to crumple in on itself.

“C'mon, Green,” Pidge murmured.

Keith was right. They couldn't get far enough away in time.

The blast rocked through Green, sending her flipping through space, power knocked down to her reserves. Pidge's stomach tried its best to rebel as she held on, struggling to keep herself from knocking into anything in the cockpit.

“...idge! Pidge!” Shiro's voice was the first to come through as her Lion collided with something and came to an abrupt stop. “Can you hear me? Are you okay? Did you get Ulaz?”

She groaned in response, praying she wouldn't throw up the moment she opened her mouth. “I'm... I'm okay. I'll need some help getting back to the Castle though. My Lion has completely powered down on me. And Ulaz...”

As if on cue, the door behind her slid open and Ulaz stepped into the cockpit. He clutched tenderly at his side, but looked well otherwise. Pidge let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. “Ulaz is okay too. I've got him. He may need a healing pod.”

“I'll make sure one is prepared,” Shiro promised, before moving on to direct the rest of the team. “Lance, Hunk, help Pidge back. Keith, go ahead of us and let Coran and Allura know what's happening.”

Pidge felt her Lion begin to move as she was lifted up by the Blue and Yellow Lions' and towed towards the Castle. Their continued silence spoke volumes about how they felt about her little stunt.

“Thank you, Paladin,” Ulaz spoke up after a few minutes.

“Not going to tell me how 'foolish' I am for risking my life?” Pidge asked, honestly expecting that to be the next thing he'd say. It was what she was about to hear from everyone else at the Castle of Lions – and it was a lecture she knew she deserved. It was a foolish, rash decision.

Ulaz came to a stop next to her, looking pained even as he took it slow. “I could, but I sense you already understand that. I will leave that up to Shiro and the princess. Besides, I cannot help but feel grateful. If not for you, I would not still be here. If my Mate were here, he would thank you as well.”

“Mate? Like a soulmate?”

“Precisely that. Humans have a similar concept, correct? You call them Soulmarks?” Ulaz asked.

Pidge shrugged. “Kind of. Soulmarks are just how we know when we've fallen in love with our soulmate. Or, well... it's more complicated than that,” she tried to explain.

Ulaz nodded in understanding.

So, Galra had soulmates, just like humans. Pidge didn't find that reassuring. If her Mark meant she was destined to fall for someone in the Blade of Marmora, like she was beginning to assume, that meant her soulmate was a Galra.

The thought was... unsettling.

The Blue and Yellow Lions' carefully deposited her in her hangar and then flew off to their own. Even as Green's power flickered back to life, helped along by the energy the Castle put off, the comms remained silent.

The thought of remaining in her Lion was a tempting one, but Ulaz's laborious breathing had her getting up the moment Green lowered her head to let them leave. His health was more important than trying to avoid getting yelled at.

She would get him to a healing pod and then face the team.

Keith waited alone for Ulaz to be healed. He stood near the pod, fighting the impulse to take out his dagger and stare at the symbol on the pommel. The symbol that was identical to the one on Ulaz's blade. The symbol which signified a member of the Blade of Marmora.

There was so much he wanted to ask. So much he was afraid to ask – to finally learn the answers to after so many years of searching. It would change everything.

His thoughts strayed to Pidge and her surprising determination to keep Ulaz from dying. He had questions for her as well. Or rather, one big question.

Why?

What was the reason she decided to disconnect from Voltron like that? He'd felt her brief spark of fear right before then, but why was she afraid of losing Ulaz? Why did she take such a risk? Was it because he possibly knew where her father and brother were taken?

He felt like there was a giant chunk of puzzle pieces missing, preventing him from seeing the whole picture.

Keith sighed as he found himself turning his blade over in his hands. The hilt and pommel were carefully wrapped up to prevent anyone from seeing the symbol there, but part of him knew Ulaz would know what it was either way.

The pod doors hissed open and Keith braced himself, unable to bring himself to do anything else. For a moment, there was only silence.

“I was not aware we had a member as young as you are,” Ulaz spoke, his voice lethargic as he fought off the remnants of the aftereffects of the healing pod.

“I'm not. I... I've had it for as long as I can remember,” Keith said, staring down at the blade in his hands. He heard footsteps approach and looked up, seized by the sudden desperation to know. “How did this get all the way to Earth? Please, I have to know!”

Ulaz held out one hand, his expression as unreadable as ever. “May I?”

Keith reluctantly handed it over and watched as Ulaz carefully undid the wrappings to reveal the glowing symbol of the Blade of Marmora. He looked it over for what felt like a lifetime before handing it back.

“You bear a great resemblance to your mother, Krolia. That blade you carry once belonged to her.”

“My mother,” Keith repeated, feeling faint.

His mother was an alien.

It was something he'd began to suspect shortly after their arrival at Arus and the Castle of Lions, but to hear it stated so matter-of-factly...

“Do you know where she is? Is she alive?” Keith asked.

“I am unsure. My leader would know, but it is not information he will freely give. It will take time for him to trust you with such knowledge,” Ulaz warned.

“I'll do whatever I have to do,” Keith said without hesitance.

Ulaz gazed at him for a moment and then nodded. “Very well. Once we discover how Zarkon is tracking this ship, I will take you to our headquarters.”

Everything was a mess and yet, somehow, still going according to plan. Keith had a moment of panic when he almost couldn't talk Thace into leaving with him, but luckily the undercover Marmora agent listened the moment Ulaz's name came up. They escaped together, with just enough time to avoid getting hit by the explosion they intentionally caused.

Before Keith could start to worry about being stuck floating in space, the Red Lion swooped in and collected him and Thace, whisking them away in time to form Voltron and follow Zarkon's main ship through the massive wormhole.

He honestly thought it would be smooth sailing from there.

Zarkon's fleet was down. His ship rendered powerless.

They had Voltron, the most powerful weapon in the universe. Nothing could compare to that.

Except, perhaps, the excruciating pain of having quintessence drained by use of magic. Or watching that same magic strike the Castle of Lions with enough force to break completely through the particle barrier and strip it of all power, leaving it to drift, lifeless.

Or worse than that, believing the battle to be won, only to return to the Castle and find Shiro missing from the Black Lion after delivering the final blow to Zarkon.

Keith's hands shook as he picked up the black bayard. He held onto it tightly; the only thing remaining of Shiro.

NEXT

Silver Lining: Chapter 3

"So..." Lance broke the silence over the radios, curling into Kaltenecker's warm body.

"Go to sleep, Lance." Pidge groaned from her own lion. Matt was asleep in the corner of the cockpit, while she slumped in her chair.

Lance quieted down for the fifth time that night. The other paladins tried to close their eyes and sleep, hoping to at least get something out of their delay. Unfortunately, it was futile. Shiro could only stare at the dark ceiling of his former lion, trying to sort his thoughts. Krolia had retreated to one of the storage areas in the lion to sleep, while Keith sat upright, completely awake, in his pilot's seat. The other lions had a similar situation. The world was was quiet except for the soft breathing of sleeping people.

"Are you guys also having trouble sleeping?"

"Lance!" The paladins whisper-screamed in unison.

A few more seconds of silence before another voice breaks it.

"Yeah... I can't sleep either." Hunk says quietly, trying to be more considerate than Lance.

"You guys wanna do something?" Lance asks in response.

"What exactly do you propose? We're in completely different ships." Pidge points out as she spread her legs out onto the armrest of her seat.

"Okay, now you've got me up. What's happening?" Allura yawns.

Shiro listens in on their sleepy exchange, Keith doesn't do much more than lazily gaze into the dark screen of his lion.

Lance sits up straight, pounding his fist into his palm in thought, "20 questions!"

"Oh, god, no," Keith groans, "That's going to take forever to finish."

"Well, hello, Leader Keith," Lance teases the black paladin. "Will you be joining us?"

"Make it five questions and I'll play along."

"Deal."

"Who's even awake?" Pidge asks, yawning. "Say your name or something, I'm too tired to figure out voices."

"Allura."

"Hunk."

"The most gorgeous and bes-"

"Keith," He paused and looked back at Shiro, "You playing Shiro?"

"Yeah, sure." He answered, a bit loud considering there were sleeping people around him.

"First question! Everyone answers, least favorite thing about space?" Lance starts off, cheerfully perking up and waiting for answers.

"The food goo,"Hunk answer quickly, if not a bit sheepishly.

"Unreliable internet."

"But Pidge, the lions and castle both have internet connection and web access."

"Yeah, but not every quadrant or planet has a steady connection..."

Allura rolled her eyes, "I don't like how only Coran, and now Romelle, are the only alteans."

There was a shocked silence.

"You okay, Allura?" Lance asked tentatively.

"I'm fine."

"Moving on... I don't like that it all looks the same."

Pidge was quick to respond to Lance's answer. "But every star system is different. New constellations, planets, gas and rock formations. Color burst and asteroid fields, Lance space is constatly changing. It does not all look the same."

"Fine, be all scientific about it," He crossed his arms, "Just saying..."

"I hate that there's a war going on." Keith stated bluntly. The paladins were silent for another moment , realizing the point in awe.

"Yeah... I have to go with Keith on this one." Shiro said, finally contributing.

The paladins nodded along in silent agreement.

Hunk gave the next question, "Favorite alien we've met?"

"If you guys don't say me..." Allura growled.

"Aside from Allura and Coran and Romelle, who are obviously our favorites." Hunk was quick to right his mistake. "Mine's Shay."

"My mom, Krolia."

"That was a no-brainer," Pidge pondered their own choice, "Rover."

"Rover's not an alien, Pidge." Lance argued, "And he's not even worki-"

"Lance..." Shiro warned, like the true dad he was, "Lay off."

"Fine. I liked the mermaids, they were fun."

"Fun?" Pidge inquired.

"Fuck off, Pidge."

"I quite like all of you, and to me you guys count as aliens." Allura said, voice quiet, as if to remind Pidge and Lance that their loud voices were going to wake up their companions.

"Aww, thanks Allura," Lance's voice was a suave, flirting tone, though it was good natured.

Allura groaned, "I already regret saying that."

"What about you, Shiro?"

"There's too many to choose."

"That's not an answer!" Lance exclaimed, "You have to pick."

"The majority of aliens I've met have been trying to kill me, and the remaining were either chosen by you guys already, or were annoying." Shiro paused, "So there."

"Whatever." He grumbled. "Favorite out of all of the ones awake, like who do like best?" Lance continued, his voice peaking with arrogance, obviously fishing for a compliment.

No one raced to answer.

"That's like asking a parent to choose their favorite kid." Shiro stated simply, "You can't ask that and get an answer."

"Spoken like a true father." Pidge said in exaggerated wisdom.

"Do you really think of us as your kids?" Hunk awwed, "We're like a big space family."

"I wouldn't say that... I'm not a father..."

"C'mon, you're like that most father figure-y person we know." Hunk continued, his voice a joking tone. "We've said this before."

Keith turned around in his chair to look at Shiro, "You kind of are."

Shiro gave a wholehearted dad laugh, "I'm not that much older than you guys."

"Denial is the first stage." Allura joined in, "Soon you'll be joining Coran in the elderly person club."

"What about Krolia?" He asked, "Doesn't she count for anything?"

"Psh," Pidge scoffed, "Have you seen Krolia? She's too hot to be a mom, she could be like seventeen and I wouldn't be surprised- no offense Keith."

A faint blush of embarrassment crosses Keith's face, barely visible in the darkness. "Do a different question, please."

"Hunk's my favorite," Pidge ignores Keith, "He make us food, that bumpps him ahead of all ofthe rest of you."

"What are you humans excited, or nervous about going back to Earth?" Allura answered Keith wishes and asked a new question. It was met with a stony silence.

The paladins thought.

Shiro's mind buzzed with surfacing emotions and memories that had been knotting his stomach for this entire journey. he hadn't been on Earth for nearly two years, not including the day he had returned for. It scared him to think of what could've changed, and what change was yet to come. When he returned- when all of them returned -no longer would they be students at the Garrison. No longer would they be normal people. The paladins had traveled deeper in space than any other human. The paladins brought news of war and pain that Earth would otherwise be oblivious to. But what about Adam?

Shiro sucked in a s harp breath at the idea of seeing him again. Anxiety and excitement.  Their fighting before he had left was petty, not something they normally did. And just the prospect of being able to see him again made Shiro's heart swell. But fear tugged at him. Because what if Adam had moved on and really not waited for him? What if when Adam saw him again, Shiro would be a different person, one that Adam decided he no longer loved? What if they were too late and the Galra had already come and destroy Ear-

Lance spoke, interrupting Shiro's panicked thoughts. "I want to see my family again. My mom, and dad, and siblings, cousins, and- and all of them." Shiro noticed how Lance's voice broke slightly, dragged down by homesickness.

"My mom," Pidge said quickly, "She lost all of us, and I just want to give her a hug."

Another silence, one where the radio simply buzzed with static. It allowed Shiro to try and collect his thoughts.

"I can't wait to eat my parents' cooking again. And to feel the sun, even if it's the flaming desert sun." Hunk's tone was warm and forced , like he was keeping himself thinking about all of it in a good light. Like it was the future instead of the past.

And they waited. Shiro looked at Keith, who faced him now, though Keith only stared at the floor. Shiro could tell that Keith was thinking about his dad. He knew the boy well enough to recognize the pained glint in his eyes. Mournful and reflecting. As if Keith could only think of how horrible it was that his dad was gone. As if that was the only thing he could think about. Shiro could also see that Keith could only think about his dad when he thought about Earth. That Keith thought that he had nothing else to look forward to besides seeing his dad's grave again.

Shiro answered before Keith, hoping to give him a chance to think about something besides the negative. "My fiance, and the garrison."

A pause before Lance yelled, "You have a fiance, and you never told us!!"

"I mean, it's not like it was a secret..." Pidge pointed out. "Keith and I knew, plus Hunk sort of caught on."

"Sorry, what's a fiance exactly?" Allura asked.

"Like a stage between being married, you know what human marriage is right, and just being romantic partners. It's kind of unnecessary to call it something different."

"Why am I the only one to never pick up on these things?" Lance complained, a bit too loudly.

"Lance, it's not that big a deal..." Shiro said awkwardly.

"I didn't notice that Pidge was a girl, I didn't notice that Keith  had tried to be not a jerk, I didn't notice when Hunk's cookies were burning, and now this. How oblivious am I?"

"Pretty oblivious," Hunk answered the rhetorical question lightly.

"What about you Keith?" Allura moved the conversation along.

"Oh, uh..." He looked surprised, not quite expecting to be noticed. "I want to see my knife collection again."

"Why am I even surprised?" Lance groaned.

{First}

[Last] <<~~>> [Next]

_____

Cross published on Wattpad

Cuban Hibiscus (2)

So uh... Yeah. Here’s more??? 

He was so screwed. What was he supposed to do now? Just.. die? He couldn't tell Keith. No, that'd be unfair to his heart and most likely speed up this disease, Keith would never say yes or anything of the like. But this thing would continue to grow and fester in him till it did kill him... He could always ask Coran if the pods could remove the seeds, but then.. then he would forget Keith and all that he represented in Lance's mind. He'd have to live with a stranger with holes in his memory that he could never fill. He had heard the stories, he knew what it was like to wake up and not remember. A man in his village suffered through the surgery and recovery, he lived never knowing one person in their town. A town where everyone knew everyone, and he didn't know Ms. Clara anymore. The man said it felt as if someone had ripped out a part of his life, leaving a giant hole in it's wake. He was scared of the solution. He was scared of rejection more. So Lance would probably end up dying from this. No big deal right? They'd find someone to take his place. Probably Allura, but.... Lance knows it wouldn't be the same. It just wouldn't be the same without any of them here, he never expected to kick the bucket so soon however. Hell he was only 17, but he supposed he had lived long enough. Taken out by a disease many people feared on the daily and others lived with for years. He wasn't so lucky, to have those years others had, usually it takes a long time for anything to sprout, but in Lance's case he was so close to Keith constantly that it grew much more rapidly. Even now he knew that the pain he felt wouldn't be as bad as later on. Yet... Lance accepted his own death. Even this early on. He had a good month left in him, he knew he could last till the end of the month. The question is how much of his own movement would be restricted. But for now, he watched as mouths moved in conversation, Keith saying some snarky remark and making everyone laugh, those dark almost purple eyes that Lance loved immediately looking to Shiro for approval. For so many things that Lance could give him instead... Standing up silently Lance slipped from them all and headed back to his room when he felt the all too familiar tickle in his throat. No one stopped him. He doesn't remember much of the following weeks. He was too tired emotionally and physically now. Roots taking hold in his lungs, filling gaps where he was supposed to produce oxygen making is harder to breathe. The team hadn't really noticed his absence. Taking more as Lance being lazy, than something being wrong with him. Lance doesn't remember a time in his life when he slept so much, other than when he was still a baby. His mama said he used to sleep so much that she worried he would never wake up sometimes. But he always did, and he would smile to his mother with bright baby blue eyes that turned into the crystal clear blue that they were now. Lance didn't smile as much anymore. It just took too much energy to appear like he was okay when he was alone, so he simply didn't try anymore. His mouth settling in a constant downward motion of blankness, and eyes dulling slowly from lack of nutrition, exercise and too much sleep. Eating was a task now, he had to almost focus on breathing and so when he couldn't breathe because he was eating, he had to focus on making sure he didn't stop his air flow and thus choke or even worse, swallow an start coughing. Coughing became his nemesis because almost every time he did cough it resulted in more bloody petals that he had to shove in his almost full pillow case. They were training currently. Keith set up to spar against Lance who just didn't feel the energy to try today. It already took up a great deal of energy to continue to appear normal to his friends and teammates, so when he was called up he dragged his feet towards the mat trying to feign laziness yet again. "Do I have to Shiro?? We all know this is just an excuse for Shiro to kick my ass!" He whined. "Language, and no it isn't. If you just put in some effort for once Lance you could hold against and maybe even win against Keith." Shiro sighed shaking his head as he watched the paladin put up a weak stance at best. Lance groaning for comical effect as he got ready to dodge and defend against the other boy. Keith rolled his eyes at Lance, and like always lunged first. Lance stepping out the way easily and behind Keith, not even bothering with trying to retaliate with his own strike or something alike it. And that's how the sparring went. Keith getting more and more frustrated as he missed Lance every time he tried to strike and getting confused when Lance didn't bother hitting back. Eventually Keith just stopped all together, huffing for breathe as he tired himself out and looked to Shiro. "This isn't a fight! It's Lance being too dumb to hit back and making me run around!" "Not my fault you can't hit me." Lance replied easily as he lowered his stance seeing as their sparring had stopped. Shiro holding up a hand to shut them up. "Keith, nothing says he has to fight back, but Lance you're taking this as a chore than fighting. What is going on with this new attitude?" Shiro asked as Lance shrugged. "I just don't see a point if I'm just going to lose anyway. We all know Keith can overpower me easily, so I might as well just tire him out and annoy him." Lance stated honestly for once, Keith growling as Shiro raised a brow before sighing and pinching the bridge of his nose. "Both of you go shower. Pidge, you're agility course is up next." Shiro called dismissing both of them as Lance looked to Keith who stalked out the room. Nice one Lance, you made your crush mad at you. Again. He must really hate you by this point, his mind told himself. Lance sighing as he kicked the ground before heading after Keith to apologize for being an ass. "Keith! Wait up!" Lance called looking down the hallway only to be surprised and shoved against the wall by the person he was trying to get. "Whoa-!" "What is your deal?!" Keith demanded to know. "I don't know what you mean-" "You know what I mean Lance! Why the hell have you been intentionally acting like this? To what? Get more attention on yourself?" Keith hissed glaring at the taller angrily. Lance's chest throbbed in pain. "No I'm not! I'm just... I'm tired okay man? That's all." Keith scoffed at the answer. "Yeah right. When all you've been doing recently is sleeping? Try and make up a better excuse, cause next time we spar I'm going to get you." He stated shoving Lance out of his hold before stalking down the hallway. "Keith! Look I'm sorry!" Lance called following after him as it eased the pain that was throbbing into his chest. "I just don't feel like myself you know? Maybe I just need a change of routine or something-" He rambled trying to stop the smaller, who hissed out a sentence shortly before going into his room and shutting the door. "Then find it you idiot." Lance was left alone in the hallway, sighing as he stared at the empty door. The pain in his chest came back in full swing, and worse than before making Lance start coughing harshly as he hurried to his room a hall away. In total 6 petals came out of his lungs, more than ever before, along with the stamen of the flower, each one covered in blood instead of just splattered like normal. Yet Lance still dried them off and put them into the pillow case. The poor thing was bulging almost, filled with the dried off and slightly decaying flower petals. He hadn't noticed before but steadily they had become more and more of a bright red color, the pigment increasing from when it was a pale pink. His throat stung from the effort of coughing so hard, Blue rumbling up in his mind, calling Lance to come to her. "Okay girl.... just... lemme rest." Lance mumbled out in response laying down momentarily to catch his breathe and calm himself. Blood dribbled down his chin slightly as he wiped it away with a towel staining the once white surface. Over time it had naturally faded slightly, but as of recently it had become a dirty and rusty red color. After waiting for a few minutes, enough for him to realize that the tightness in his lungs wasn't going back down, Lance stood up, hid all evidence of the disease, and headed for Blue's Hangar. He didn't see anyone on his journey over to her, luckily, so the trip was taken at a slightly slower and gloomier pace since he didn't have to act okay. When he opened the door to Blue's hangar he was met with a happy purr in his mind, the sound rumbling through his chest and easing at the pain gently. It felt like when he would get bad coughing fits when he was sick years ago, and his mother would rub his chest soothingly to get him to calm down after a fit. Granted then it was from an aliment that wasn't as deadly as this, but it felt all the same in his mind and body. Settling himself on her large paw Lance laid down smiling as he filled the rumbling air with speech. "Miss me that much girl..?" He asked My paladin you are fading from me...  Lance let out a small noise before answering. "I know... But I can't exactly do anything about it..." You can seek treatment, help, even love from the angry one...  "I can't do that to him Blue... You know it's more complicated than that..." I do not understand human feelings and why it must be this complicated. Red can feel it too, you are fading from them all just as you are fading from me.  Lance looked down at his lap, running a hand through his hair as he let out a shaky breath. "I know Blue... I'm dying." He mumbled looking up as the alarm sounded above them. "Shit.... C'mon Blue lets go!" Lance called up as he went to put on his suit and then climbed into Blue who laid her head down for him to get in. "What's going on?" He asked into the communicators as everyone got into their own respective lion and Lance was hit with a wave of emotions from the beasts. Yellow was worried, Green wondering what was happening to him, Red just worried in her own mother way, and Black was stoic as ever, trying to hide his own worry from his paladin. "Galra nearby, they're targeting a neighboring planet!" Shiro informed him before replying with a bit of sass, "You would've known if you had been with us instead of sleeping Lance." "Okay, that stung a little, not gonna lie. But I wasn't sleeping! I was talking to Blue." Lance huffed putting up his walls again and pretending. Keith scoffed from his own lion as they all flew out the castle doors. "Talk to your lion on your own time! Right now you should have been with us so you would know about the attack." "Okay first off mullet, I was ready at the same time you were, and second... uh... your mullet is stupid!" Lance retorted back not really having a good insult this time, so he just played dumb instead. Everyone groaned in response to his horrible comeback Allura chiming in to them all. "Paladins focus! Galra ships are fast approaching on the planet and we can't afford to sit and bicker." She reminded them all with the authoritative voice she usually had. That was something else with Allura, Lance thought, the way she tried to act her actual age, but mentally was about the same age as them, if not younger. It kinda bothered Lance really, but instead of actually voicing his frustrations he just flirted and joked around with her instead. He didn't mean to make her more upset or angry, he was just trying to get her to see that she was still a kid like them, she could still joke around. Her whole proper princess act didn't have to stay up always. But, Lance supposed it was just another lost point. His lion zoomed towards the action, Lance pulling back on the throttle as soon as he saw the Galra's attention turn towards them and not the planet anymore. Keith, like always, dived head first into the danger making Lance's heart flutter alive with worry for the other. Shiro calling out for Keith to keep an eye on his six, as he and Hunk worked on getting the ion cannon disabled. Normally this was about the time that the general realized he was fighting against Voltron, and thus unleashed his 'ultimate weapon of doom' as Lance liked to call it, though today seemed to be different. Instead of actually fighting back they seemed to withdraw slightly. Pidge questioning their tactic before they were suddenly surrounding the Green lion. "Guys!?" They called before a barrage of blast came at the lion, Lance shoving forward so he could cover Pidge's smaller lion.  "Guys they're going after Pidge!!!" He called putting up the lions barrier to protect Pidge's heavily damaged lion. Blue roared in their bond, and Lance could tell she was trying to get her fallen brother up and working. "Guys?!" Lance called hearing no response from them. "Damnit, Blue they knocked out the com's didn't they?" He asked only to get no reply from the already busy lion.  Lance saw the other lions heading towards them only to be blocked by the bulk of the Galran ship, and Lance knew then they were on their own. Working quickly he put Blue as close to Green as he possibly could, before suiting up to go the short space hop to Pidge's lion. Blue rumbled at him to stay in place, but he ignored her, having to much worry for Pidge's safety at the moment. Heading out a hatch on his lion's side, he hopped over to Green, crawling through the blasts and into the cabin of the lion where he was sucked in and back to an oxygen zone. Putting his helmet up he ran to check on Pidge who was knocked unconscious at her instrument panel. "Pidge? Pidge c'mon wake up!" He called pulling them back further into the cabin. Removing their helmet which was crackling with static, he saw the side of her head was bleeding and immediately started to work on getting the first aid kit and helping his fallen teammate.  Pulling out the kit, he laid her down on the floor of the cockpit, before assessing the damage down. From what he could tell they only had a cut on their arm and back from the blasts, which as far as he considered was better than anything else that could've happened. Blotching at the wound on Pidge's head, he applied gauze around the side of her head, looking up to thankfully see Blue automatically started to shoot down some of the fighters that were still blasting at Green. "Thanks girl..." He mumbled knowing she would feel it in their bond. After bandaging Pidge's arm as well, he took control of Green helping to maneuver him out of danger. The lion accepted his control seeing as his paladin was unconscious, and so Lance quickly adjusted to the smaller more flexible lion. Blue was built to take a hit and give a hit, Yellow to give a harder hit. Black was made to do it all in style, and Red to be fast and dangerous. Though the controls were all the same to Lance, after having been training in Blue for so long, and he maneuvered the lion towards the castle ducking them into the proper hangar. Once he was sure Pidge was alright for the moment, and just needed to wake up to be okay, Lance headed back out into the fight with Blue this time. Green tucked away and around their paladin to protect them. The battle was slowly heading into their favor, though Lance could finally hear the others thanks to Blue rebooting the system while he was helping Pidge. "-nce! Can you hear us?" Shiro called.  "Back in Shiro. Pidge was knocked out so I got them to safety." He explained expecting to get chewed out and surprised when he was met with a praise instead.  "Good work then. We'll check on them as soon as we get this battle over with. Hunk and I got the ion cannons defense's down if you can just get a good shot in-" "Couldn't have asked a better person for it Shiro!" Lance chimed in grinning slightly as he was able to show off his sharpshooting skills for once. Lining up the shot quickly, a blast from Blue sent the entire cannon off the ship and to float away slowly in the vastness that is space. "Got it! Let's go ham guys!" He cheered on as Keith headed closer and started to tear the ship apart.  "Didn't need to hear anymore!" He joked for once making Lance laugh smile brightly. His chest pain eased up as he watched and helped destroy the ship and blast out any escape pods. It was harsh, to be shooting down escape pods like he was, but this was war after all. And they weren't taking prisoners.  Clean up proved to be more tedious than actually getting the ship destroyed, as they had to relocate all the ships parts to head to the systems sun so it wouldn't crash onto any planet. They only really worried about the large pieces, considering the smaller ones would just burn up upon entering any atmosphere. So with a mouth full of metal scraps, Blue headed yet again to the star of the system, burning Lance's retina yet again. The only good thing about it, is the mission seemed to have put Keith into a better mood since he was conversing with Lance like the fight didn't happen earlier that day.  "But basically I just felt this pulse in our bond, it was like Red was almost purring or something at me." Keith explained happy to say his progress in bonding with his lion had come further. Lance smiling as he thought about how he could feel the pride coming off of Red at his paladin.  "That sounds awesome Keith! Maybe you'll even be able to like talk to Red like I can do with Blue soon!" He commented.  "You can't talk to the lions Lance, you're just crazy."  "You can too!" Lance defended himself with a whine. "You just aren't on my level yet." He huffed out as Keith snorted and gave a short laugh. His heart swelling with pride at the fact that he was the one to cause that laughter, even if it was at his own expense.  "Keep telling yourself that Lance." Shiro finally chimed in as they finished their load, heading back towards the castle where Hunk was watching over Pidge in the a pod. They only needed a hour or two to fix up their small wounds, but it still gave reason to worry about them to Hunk, so he stayed behind. Keith laughed more at Shiro's comment, making Lance pout further in his seat.  "You'll see. I'm not insane!" Lance huffed out as he landed and went off the communicators. "They'll know one day. Right Blue?" He asked up to her and received a loving purr that rumbled through his chest in response. Smiling Lance tiredly headed for his room and for his bathroom specifically. He needed one after a day like it had been. He found Keith and Shiro talking however, Shiro looking flustered slightly as Keith spoke to him. Lance pausing slightly to try and listen in... he couldn't make out the words, though when Keith finally headed out towards his own room, he had a wide smile on his face and a look of pure love on his face. The rumbling seemed to do little now as the pain in his chest came back in full swing and he coughed slightly. The small coughs however turned into full blown hacking as Lance ran to his room, shutting the door and heaving to get the petals out of his throat. Jealousy was a bitch, Lance thought.  But it was also killing him in a way.  

Part 1

Your asthmatic Lance fic was AMAZING and you're one of my fav voltron writers! Would you maybe be interested in writing something where the rest of the paladins leave to do a mission except for Pidge, who is at the castle to keep the defenses up, and Lance, who's protecting her (who was also left at the castle because he's got a cold). But Lance's cold turns into a really bad respiratory infection, complete with a fever-migraine, and he tries to hide it because he's protecting Pidge??

(YOOOOO THIS IS SO GOOD. WHAT AN A+ PROMPT. Also so sorry took so long! And I made this way more dramatic than I think u asked for lol! Also warning for self loathing thoughts and depression!)

Every so often Lance would have an off day.

Days where he didn’t feel right. Where he’d feel like he didn’t belong, feel lost. He’d feel worthless, and insecure. Days where he’d question his place in the universe, and every answer he’d come to terrified him. There were days he’d feel so small and minuscule, so insignificant. Days where he just felt..blue.

Sometimes they wouldn’t come for months, and sometimes they would happen every week. Sometimes they lasted a day, and the next morning he’d be his bright, bubbly self, but sometimes they lasted weeks and he’d be stuck in that dark place trapped for what seemed to be an eternity.

But for the past while, they’d come a lot more frequently and he’d have them for longer. They’d happen so often that it became easier and easier for Lance to conceal them.

He wasn’t quite sure why they happened, but he had a hunch. Lance wasn’t completely sure, but he theorised it might have been the pressure of having the entire universe’s fate in his hands. Or maybe the fact that the universe was a lot bigger than he expected, and that he felt so small in retrospect. Or maybe even simpler; being constantly surrounded by people better than him, stronger than him, more talented than him.

He wasn’t sure, but he’d felt down for quite a while now.

Lance’s friends were supportive, of course, they were the best friends in the entire world and he genuinely did not deserve them. But they made him feel so small. To no fault of their own; it’s just that everyone had their thing, and they were all damn good at their thing. And Lance was just your average joe. He just wished he could be more.

So Lance tried. He really did. He’d spent all his free time training, trying to be faster, stronger, more precise with his shoots. He’d try without rest. Until he was exhausted, drained of all energy. Until his bones were weak and fatigue seeped into his being. He would never stop until he was good enough.

But eventually his body went against him in a desperate plea to save itself, and forced him to stop when he had caught a cold that did not go unnoticed amongst his teammates.

It all started with a briefing.

It was a briefing that Lance was pretty excited for, because it gave him an opportunity and try to be good enough, to be of merit this time. Lance wanted to be good enough, and he wanted to prove that he could, although he wasn’t quite sure. This mission was important to Lance.

But then he started to cough a little into his sleeve, trying to stifle the sound against the thick fabric, which worked for the most part. He went undetected by then. But by the time Shiro had gone on to explain Lance’s role in the mission, causing attention to gravitate towards him, Lance could quite hold back the harsh, ticklish sneezes that escaped him in a rapid flurry.

“Holy Kaltenecker! I had no idea where that came from!” Lance giggled, trying to cover up his slip up, but his tone was empty.

Keith’s eyebrows furrowed in concern, “Lance..”

“Oh! I think I got it! Keith just smells!” Lance teased, his voice awfully strained and croaky, giving him enough time to finish his sentence and then sending him off into a fit of coughs that had him doubling over into his now surely germ infested jacket sleeve.

Keith normally would’ve fought back defensively, but he was too concerned to even think about doing that. His frown only deepened.

Hunk frowned, “I don’t think that’s it, buddy..”

Lance scoffed playfully, trying to keep up his cheerful facade with his shining, but empty grin, “Oh c'mon Hunk, I’m fine! I’m ready fight some baddies! I’m gonna kick their asses!”

“Hm,” Shiro commented, worry etching onto his face, “Maybe..we can leave the ass kicking for another day, Lance.”

Lance blinked, “What?! No, Shiro, we can’t be postponing missions! The people need us–”

Shiro smiled softly, a little sadly, and approached Lance gently, placing two hands on his shoulders in a reassuring manner, “I know Lance, you’re right. But what I mean is..maybe you should take a day off, okay? Stay here.”

Lance’s eyes widened, bewildered, his voice cracking from the shock, “W-what?! N-no, Shiro–”

Shiro shushed him by placing the back of his hand against Lance’s forehead, sighing at the result, “Yup..that’s no good. You’ve got a light fever going on there, buddy..and we don’t want you getting any worse, okay?”

Lance froze, a lump forming in his throat  as his blood turned cold. His hands shook a little as his breath began to pick up slightly, an impending sense of doom looming over him, weighing down on his shoulders. He couldn’t quite stop the sense of uselessness pounding at his heart and the icy feeling of blue that spread across his veins.

“Sh-Shiro, wait, i’m fine, honestly! I-i can do this!” Lance tried desperately, his voice quivering a little and he felt so pathetic for being this desperate. But Lance needed to prove himself. To alleviate this feeling of nothingness. So he can feel something, be something.

Shiro smiled fondly, “Lance, I admire your determination and it’s great. Truthfully. And as great as you are as a teammate, as your friends..we need you to rest. We can hold ship for now, and maybe not forever, so we might as well get you in fighting condition as soon as possible.”

“I’m..just not doing enough for you guys,” Lance whispered tiredly.

“What? Yes you are, Lance. You’re being too hard on yourself,” Hunk reassured.

Shiro looked over to Pidge, “Pidge, we’ll need you inside the Castle and scan the ships and give us intel, okay? Lance, you can stay here and protect her just in case, and with Coran off doing his mission the Castle needs protection.”

Lance didn’t budge, unable to shake the feeling. He felt very down all of the sudden, a huge weight suddenly weighing down on him and he just felt so tired. Like all the lights had just gone out.

“See? You are doing something,” Shiro said gently, and while he meant this with the utmost kindness it made him feel so small.

Lance felt so tired, and to everyone’s surprise he was quiet.

He accepted this in quiet, choosing to battle his thoughts all by himself. Lance left shortly after in the guise of getting rest. But that night in his room his body was doing everything but rest. His mind certainly wasn’t, in this state of racing with itself in a tremendously fast pace as all these belittling thoughts invaded and warred with himself until he was drowning in it.

Then late at night he would train and try to drown out the noises in his head. Just so they could stop for at least a little while.

Lance could barely get out of bed the next day.

He felt so heavy. Every inch of him seemed to be weighed down by some inconceivable force, and it was awful. He tried to open his eyes but they would only droop closed. His bones felt incredibly weak and unable to support his feeble body. His head felt heavy with a raging fever and a splitting headache

Most of all, his chest felt so heavy and congested that as he exhaled little wheezes sounded out.

Every inch of him was begging him to go back to sleep, and as much as Lance’s heart fought to stand up, his body had had enough and was screaming at him to rest. So his body won, sending him back into sleep.

Lance woke up a bit later to an awkward rhythm of rapping on his shoulders, a little cautious even.

“Um..Lance? Do you think you can wake up?” Keith said softly, also awkwardly.

Lance woke up groggily, groaning as he became aware of the splitting headache brutally invading his brain. A hand shot up to his forehead as he attempted to soothe the aching body part.

“Lance?!” Keith gasped worriedly.

“Fine,” Lance choked, waving him off as he clenched his teeth together and tried to vigorously massage the pain in his head. Just as he opened his mouth to try and get Keith off his back, a croaky, strangled cough escaped his threat which escalated into a violent fit that had him doubled over.

Keith leaned forwards and immediately began to hit his back to help Lance out, and eventually the fit began to subside leaving Lance completely breathless and gasping for air and Keith shaking from shock.

“Lance you don’t have to–” Keith tried again, worried out of his mind.

“I’m fine! I’m barely doing enough as it is so I’ll be just fine!” Lance snapped, irritable from his splitting headache and the overwhelming heat that appeared to be pouring off of him.

Keith’s eyes widened, then softened a little, “Lance. What are you talking about? You’re allowed to take it easy. We’ve all taken sick days. I had one last month, and I didn’t even go out of bed!”

“Because you actually provide something to the team!” Lance shot back harshly, more towards himself than at Keith. A few fevered tears sprung to his eyes which he hastily wiped away with his jacket sleeve.

“Lance..” Keith said emptily, completely stunned.

Lance huffed and shook his head, wrapping his jacket closer to himself as his body shook with fever, “Its my fever. Lets go.”

Lance made his way out of the door and disappeared out of Keith’s sight before Keith could even move leaving him at a loss on what to do.

After a quick quick rerun of the plan, the Paladins were pretty much ready to start their mission. The briefing went relatively okay. Lance still definitely felt like shit and his wheezy breaths were definitely not going unnoticed, but he had managed to stay upright and kept the coughing and sneezing to a minimum.

But he couldn’t quite shake the feeling of Keith staring at him the whole time.

“I’m ready to protect Princess Pidge from the evil men!” Lance cheered, trying to attempt and recreate his usual brightness and energy but couldn’t quite nail it. It was empty and lifeless.

The fact that he couldn’t feel it made him feel worse than he already felt. Lance was genuinely very excited and happy with the job he had to fulfill. It had always been a dream to keep people safe, and it made him feel so blue that he couldn’t quite feel that spark.

“Awh, Quiznack, are you guys really leaving my fate to Sir Rudolph over here?” Pidge teased, smirking as she lightly batted Lance’s arm.

“Sir Rudolph?! Well–” Lance protested before a sudden tickle flared causing his nose to twitch. He inhaled sharply and pitched forward into his elbow to sneeze two high pitched, ticklish sneezes.

Once Lance recovered he couldn’t quite help the giggles that came pouring out of him, shortly followed by his friends. Everything was fine, until a sudden wave of nausea and hot and cold hit him violently and causing him to tip over.

Just as he felt the lightness of falling a strong arm caught him, the grip firm and holding him taut.

He looked up to see Shiro’s kind, caring eyes, “Hey bud, you should probably sit down, okay?”

Lance nodded weakly as he sat down on a chair next to where Pidge was sitting.

Hunk frowned worriedly, “Are you going to be okay, Lance?”

“I’ll be fine, now get off and kick some ass,” Lance grinned.

With a few chuckles shared the crew set off and left for their missions. But not before Keith looked at him with a gaze so worried and so so sad. Lance couldn’t even keep his gaze, and broke away, looking anywhere but his eyes.

Lance could only sigh.

Pidge tutted softly as everyone exited the castle and left just the two of them. There was some sort of mischief in her eyes that Lance didn’t quite understand.

Lance blinked, “What?”

Pidge chuckled and a smirk played on her lips.

“Are you just sick or also lovesick?” She teased fondly.

Lance blushed furiously, his voice coming out as a strangled croak, “What?!”

Just as the strangled word ripped out of his already sore throats, something triggered yet another fit of coughing that had his entire body racked and convulsing with the harsh and congested coughs that pierced daggers into his heavy, congested chest.

As Lance continued to cough he began to choke on heavy phlegm caught in his throat, making a horrendous noise as he did. Lance gasped for air, heaving and gasping until Pidge was at his side and slapping his back until his chest felt clear again.

Lance gasped for air, breathing heavily to get his breathing back to a somewhat steady rhythm.

Pidge smiled sympathetically, running her hand up and down his back soothingly, “You really are lovesick.”

Lance managed a breathy chuckle, and couldn’t help the weak smile spreading across his face. There was something about Pidge that made his heart feel a little lighter.

“Sure, whatever you say Mario,” Lance said, rolling his eyes.

“Is this because I’m Ital–?! Oh for gods sake, Lance..” Pidge sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose.

Lance giggled before his nose began to itch. He pawed at it uselessly, trying to subside the itch a little but to no avail, his nose began to twitch desperately and he snapped forward into the crook of his arm with three heavy, harsh but ticklish and sickly sounding sneezes that sounded awfully chesty and painful. Lance quickly mopped up the remnants of his explosion with tissues he stuffed into his jacket pockets.

“I can’t believe I’m giving you a compliment, but you have a cute sneeze,” Pidge giggled.

Lance scoffed, “Me?! Cute?! No no no Pidge, I’m but the mighty and macho–”

He bobbed into the tissue with a delicately soft sneeze.

Pidge stifled her laughter, but couldn’t keep it in and burst into full blown laughter that made her sore at the sides and gasping for breath.

“Very funny,” Lance said, trying to sound unamused but his heart saying differently.

“Jesus, Lance,” Pidge gasped through laughter.

“Ugh, I keep sneezing because you smell awful!” Lance shot back playfully, crossing his arms and beginning to crawl up into his chair, hugging his knees in attempt to get warm.

“That’s rich coming from the guy who makes up god awful nicknames,” Pidge smirked.

Lance grinned drowsily, feeling an overwhelming sense of fatigue washing over him as he felt the fever surely taking over him. He shivered violently and felt this overwhelming sense of exhaustion seep into his bones.

“This is coming from the girl who got into trouble for smuggling in a freaking squirrel into our Maths class at the Garrison,” Lance scoffed fondly, eyes glazing over as he reminisced the memory.

“Oh shut up, Lance! You loved Sandy Cheeks! You stayed up all night building her her own little house, even while it rained!” Pidge laughed.

Lance chuckled at that, his face heating up intensely as his fever started to spike and the fatigue and sickly feeling spread further across him and intensifying. He felt horrible.

“Yeah, I remember that, I was so sick afterwards..” Lance said fondly, wrapping his arms around himself to try and lessen the extent of his violent shivering.

His head started to pound vigorously, the focus of this massive quake of a headache deep within the depths of his brain and unreachable, the destructive tremors sending waves of pain throughout him. Lance rubbed aggressively at his aching head, and when it gave him no relief he only plopped his head down into his knees and clutched it.

He could hear Pidge shifting, and suddenly a soft blanket was being draped over his shaking frame. The warmth it gave him was something he needed desperately and felt oh so good against his cold cold body. Lance pulled the soft fabric closer against his body and basked in its warmth.

Pidge frowned, reaching over to feel his cheek, “Hm. Not good at all.”

“You don’t feel well, do you?” Pidge said softly.

Lance shook his head, clutching at his aching head and letting out a whimpering sound. He felt so sick and so miserable and so sad at the same time. He felt so useless that he could barely even do anything.

“Hey, buddy, you know everyone would understand if you wanna just rest in your room, right? You know we all love you and hate seeing you like this? You don’t have to do this, bud,” Pidge said soothingly, leaning down and softly rubbing circles into Lance’s knees.

“No, then I’m not enough,” Lance whimpered croakily, bursting into yet another fit of coughs that he barely managed to cover with the crook of his arm. The coughs racked his entire body and ripped out of his throats and it was like his chest was being shot repeatedly.

Pidge looked shock, at a loss on what to say, “Lance–what? What are you talking about?”

“I–”

Then there was the loud siren.

Lance had felt blue and now all he could see was red.

The whole castle was this alarming shade of red and it flooded everything in his sight.

Lance could feel his heart racing and his blood turn cold, as senses overwhelmed his system, watching as Galra soldiers somehow made their way into the Castle.

Pidge sat there frozen, terror lighting her eyes from the pure shock of it all and looking at her Lance all of a sudden received a surge of energy telling him to protect, because this girl was so much better than him and she could not get hurt. He was determined.

Something in him clicked, this fire inside of him igniting and suddenly he was on his feet and sprinting towards his suit and donned it as quickly as he possibly could. He couldn’t feel anything but the desire to fight. Keep people safe, even if it was at his own expensed.

Then they came.

The fleet were charging, and Lance pulled his bayard out and fought with as much passion as his heart contained. And for the people he loved, there was a lot.

His heart was ablaze as he shot at them, pushing aside all pain in his head and the fever raging in him. They all faded because all his heart and soul was set on was keeping the ones he loved safe. Lance took every single of of them down, fury bright and burning.

But as Lance turned, sweat pouring down his face and drenching his hair he saw one of them about to attack Pidge, who was desperately trying to send off something to the other Paladins, and the moment the soldier laid a hand on her Lance charged.

Lance ran towards him so much fury burning in him and so much adrenaline and he attacked, throwing  himself into this heavy battle that drained the life out of him. His heart beat so fast, adrenaline pumping through his veins and blood boiling. But no one would hurt the people he loved.

In one fell swoop and one heavy hit to the head Lance was thrown across the room, far away. His heart ached as Pidge shrieked as the soldier neared her.

Everything was fading in and out and his vision blurred, his hearing fading but Lance felt this magnetic connection to his bayard and as his fingers touched the strong material he positioned it towards the shooter, and with one precise shot the soldier dropped. Pidge was safe.

That was all that mattered. It was enough.

Lance managed a weak smile. ‘Sharpshooter,’ he thought to himself proudly.

Pidge gasped and ran across to him, eyes darting wildly in panic, tears threatening to fall from her eyes, “Lance! What the hell! What have you done?! Lance stay with me! This was so stupid! Why did you do this?!”

“The team needs you,” Lance chuckled as everything turned to darkness.

And then there was light.

Too much.

But then everything was okay again when he saw familiar faces smiling at him. So kindly. It made him feel a little less blue.

Then the glass door separating them from him slid away, and the moment he was in reach he was being attacked warm hugs.

Lance let them in, and the world felt a little brighter just then.

“You did amazing, Lance..” Hunk said softly.

“I was so worried..” Pidge whispered.

“I’m so proud of you,” Shiro said.

Keith was at loss for words, speechless, as if not quite sure if Lance was really there. And if he was, afraid he’d slip away and disappear forever. But he held him tight so he wouldn’t float away.

“I love you guys,” Lance whispered.

“Right back at ya,” Hunk giggled.

A sudden wave of dizziness hit him, “A-actually, guys, kinda dizzy..I think I need to lie down..”

Shiro smiled softly, “Of course buddy..Keith? Will you go with him?”

Keith nodded silently and draped an arm around Lance for support. But he was silent the way back to his room.

But it was like Lance could physically hear Keith thinking. Very deeply. He was deep in thought and clearly worried, by the looks of that crease in his forehead and the furrowed eyebrows. There was this tension that was clearly there, and Lance didn’t know how to confront.

Once they were alone Keith was the one to confront.

“Pidge told me about what you’d been saying.”

Lance tensed, “Keith..it was my fever.”

“Fevers bring out the deepest thoughts, the truth, Lance. Not made up fantasies,” Keith pressed.

Lance let out a shaky breath, “and what, then? What’s the problem, Keith?”

“My problem is-!!” Keith yelled, before letting out a shaky exhale and falling against Lance’s bed with a heavy sigh.

“My problem is I had no clue.”

“What?”

“That you felt like this. That you felt this alone.”

Words failed. Lance fought back tears, clenching his teeth, but then his face crumpled and he couldn’t help the tears that fell from his eyes.

“I-I..”

“I can’t believe you feel like this. Like..like you’re not enough when you’ve been nothing but enough, and beyond that! I can’t believe!”

“I can’t believe what?”

“That you don’t see what I see!” Keith yelled.

Lance scoffed, “What do you see?”

“I see..I..”

Keith paused, looking into Lance’s eyes and he tried to find him an answer but words could never describe what he saw. It wouldn’t be enough. It could never be enough because Lance could never be summarised in a few words, sentences or novels.

And Keith was never good with words.

Keith could only act.

So he did, and he pulled Lance in for a kiss and when their worlds collided it was like everything made sense and this was the only way it was meant to be.

And to Lance all the blue fades and all he can see is red.

Shklance movie date

Summary:Basically just a fluffy one-shot movie date for these three! 

Shiro chuckled quietly while Lance sat on Shiro's bed kicking his legs and tapping his feet simultaneously. Shiro pulled a black and white T-shirt on over his head. "So what're you saying?"

"I'm just saying that we should watch more action movies! Yeah, I totally get that you're into the sappier crap- er, stuff, and I can get behind that, but sometimes a guy just wants to watch a movie about manly stuff." 

"Manly stuff?" Shirk asked coyly. "Are you saying that you're less of a man for watching 50 First Dates last week!"

"Shirooo," Lance whined. "You know that's not what I'm saying, and besides, Keith already gave me a speech about how I shouldn't call them chick flicks because none of us are chicks and we all still watch them. And then Pidge walked in and I got a lecture on giving up toxic masculinity." He stood and casually floofed Shiro's hair a bit. "I'm just saying that I could use some more explosions, you know?"

Shiro wrapped his arms loosely around Lance's waist. "I know what you're saying, babe." Shiro leaned his forehead down against Lance's and smiled at Lance's small pout. "I think you'll be pretty content with tonight's pick, though." 

Lance perked up slightly at that. "Yeah? What it is?" 

Shiro straightened up and grabbed his blanket from the bed and started folding it. "Keith told me not to say." He made sure to keep his head down to hide his mischievous smile. 

Lance whined quietly. "Why am I never allowed to do anything for movie night?" 

Shiro shrugged and held a hand out towards Lance. "We just like getting to spoil you every week. It helps us relax." 

Lance took Shiro's and and then walked leaning up against his arm. Shiro had offered Lance his human hand. Lance hadn't protested because Shiro was in a good mood, so it probably wasn't an overly conscious choice. 

The pair walked to the kitchen and Lance knocked on the door. It slid open and Keith poked his head out. "Lance, come in and help me carry. Shiro, can you go put the movie in so it's a surprise?" Shiro nodded and walked off, while Lance turned to glare at Keith. 

"That's just rude and you know it." 

Keith smirked and kissed the corner of Lance's mouth. "I know you like to cheat at surprises, so I'm allowed to be a little rude." 

Lance rolled his eyes but didn't protest. "So what am I carrying?"

Keith silently handed him a large bowl of buttered, extra-salt popcorn, then turned around to grab a bag of "chocolates". It was some kind of weird alien bean, but it was surprisingly similar to Earth's cocoa beans, so Team Voltron had bought four crates of the beans and spent an entire weekend  making them into chocolates. Pidge had gone totally overboard once they got the recipe right, synthesizing aluminum wrappers and individually wrapping up all the chopped squares Keith made after the chocolate had cooled. 

"Man, do you remember how hard it was to not just, shove your whole face in the vat? And both hands? My brain knew it was hot and still just kept repeating 'touch it touch it touch it' the entire time," Lance laughed. 

Keith knew exactly what he was talking about and started laughing with him. "I almost had to leave the room, I stood right over the pan and it looked so smooth and thick. The only reason I didn't was because I could feel the heat coming off the pot from a foot away." He shook his head and some hair fell into his eyes. 

Lance set down the popcorn and grabbed one of the Kitchen Hairties. Another Pidge thing. "If your hair can be pulled up, it should be. I refuse to eat your hair, any of your hair." Hunk had been the one to suggest having a place to grab a hairtie, though, and he had been the one to put a little smiley face sticker onto the drawer, to make sure that people knew where they should be and where they should go. 

Lance tapped a stool with his foot and Keith scoffed slightly but sat down. Lance ran his fingers through Keith's hair and gently pulled it into a baby ponytail, to get it out of his eyes. Keith leaned into Lance's hands and let out a soft breath. "Thanks, baby." 

Lance smiled at the endearment. "No problem, Keithy boy." Keith groaned like he was in pain but he was smiling, so Lance knew everything was good. "So are we gonna go watch a movie or what?"

Keith snorted and opened the door for Lance, who quickly grabbed the popcorn from the counter, hugging the bowl to his chest. 

Lance kicked Keith's shoes as they walked and Keith jogged so he was a few steps ahead. "Hey! I can't run with the popcorn!" Lance protested. 

"That's the whole point, Lance." Oh. Savage. 

Lance sighed dramatically and took loud, stomping steps to make sure Keith could hear him back here, so far away from his love. "I'm not falling for it, Lance," Keith said. Lance sighed again, even more dramatically. 

Keith started quietly clicking his tongue and Lance did as soon as he heard Keith. Echoing one another , they click click clicked their way through the halls to a small room with a display screen that Hunk and Pidge rewired to hook up to their coms. 

Shiro was sitting on the couch with his blanket on his lap. He had pressed play as soon as Keith walked in, so Lance hadn't even gotta to see the menu. "Oh come on, guys!" 

Shiro chuckled and held his hands out for the popcorn but Lance sat on his lap and leaned into the strong arms. Keith sat down next to them, but left a small pace between Shiro's leg and his own- Lance liked to be able to cuddle both of them during movie night. 

Lance took an overflowing handful of popcorn and shoved the whole thing into his mouth. "So what movie is it again?"

Keith shook his head and took one of Lance's hands into his. Shiro pressed a kiss into the side of Lance's neck as the skinny brown man leaned into him. Keith said, "We're really not going to fall for that."

Lance sighed and gracefully slid over in between his boyfriends, squeezing Keith's hand and leaning his head onto Shiro's bicep. "Ffiiinee."

Keith took a chocolate out of the bag and skillfully unwrapped it with one hand. "You're gonna love it, babe, I swear." 

Lance smiled to himself, but the lights were dimmed, so he hoped no one would notice. He stole an unwrapped chocolate from Keith and popped it into his mouth. "I sure hope so becau-"

Shirk shushed him, nudging Lance's side with his metal hand. "I can't hear if you keep talking..." 

Lance pretended to pout but Keith pushed a piece of popcorn to his lips, so he turned and settled a bit to watch whatever movie his lovers had chosen for him. 

~//~

"Oh my gosh, that actually was a really great movie, it had like, hot characters and explosions and a good plot and woah. Woaahh. Keithy, baby, you picked that?" 

Keith rolled his eyes, but wore a proud smile. "Yeah. It's called Knight and Day. Knight like Shiro is our knight in shining armor, not like I am a child of the night." 

Lance pressed a kiss onto Keith's lips and traced his fingers over Keith's cheek. "God, that's stimmy, do it again," Keith whispered, closing his eyes. Lance giggled and drew his fingers, light as a feather, over Keith's cheek.

Shiro wrapped an arm around Lance's waist and hoisted him up. "C'mon. Time for bed, guys."

Keith rubbed his eyes and yawned at the word 'bed'. Lance curled his legs up so Shiro couldn't put him down. "Carry me, please, my strong and beautiful boyfriend?"

"Hey!" Keith said, still laying sprawled on the couch. "If he's strong and beautiful what does that make me?"

Lance looked down at him seriously. "You're my brave and beautiful boyfriend. You're still strong, though, and Shiro is still brave, no worries." 

Shiro slung Lance over his shoulder at this point and reached his hands out for Keith, to help him up. The two clasped hands and Keith braced his feet on the floor and Shiro effortlessly tugged Keith onto his feet. "Thanks, love."

"No problem, sweetie." Shiro wrapped his left arm around Lance's thighs and held his other arm out for Keith to walk under. Keith quickly stepped over into Shiro's side, sighing happily at the weighed feeling on his shoulders.

By the time they stepped into Shiro's room, Lance was snoring softly and Keith couldn't keep his eyes open. 

Shiro laid Lance on the bed and he and Keith managed to take the sleeping paladin's shoes and jeans off, and somehow wrangled him into a pair of Shiro's sweatpants. Keith kicked his shoes off, but kept his jeans on. Shiro changed into a pair of sweats himself and laid down next to Lance, half lifting the smaller man so Keith wouldn't have to lay directly on top of Shiro. 

Keith climbed onto the skinny bunk and draped his upper body on Shiro's, one leg between the black paladin's thighs and the other dangling off the side of the bed, where monsters could easily eat it, Lance would tell him. 

"I think he liked the movie," Shiro whispered, gently and slowly pulling Keith's ponytail out so he could run his finger's through the red paladin's hair. 

Keith grunted his agreement and muttered and I love you before starting to snore himself. 

Shiro hummed to himself and to them as he slowly and imperceptibly drifted off to sleep. 'Movie night went well,' was his last thought before sleep closed the curtain on the day.