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autisticlancemcclain · 1 year

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“Ooooooh, that looks interesting!”

Keith groans, as loudly and dramatically as he can. He tries to emulate Shiro every time he was finally forced to actually do his job and mark student papers after weeks of procrastinating.

(He’s pretty successful, if he does say so himself.)

“Please,” he begs the red paladin, yanking on his sleeve to dissuade him from turning into the store. It does nothing.

“C’mon,” Lance says, ignoring his agony. “One last store, okay?”

“You’re a dirty liar. You said that two hours ago.”

Lance reaches back blindly to pat Keith patronizingly on the head, missing by a mile and smacking him on the face instead. Keith has to bat his hands away. “There, there. You once tried to fight a ten thousand year old zombie dictator with your bare hands. You will survive.”

“Fistfighting Zarkon wasn’t nearly this painful,” Keith grumbles, but lets Lance pull him into the store, anyway.

God, he’s fucking whipped. He’s embarrassed of himself. Truly.

He dutifully takes the basket Lance hands him (on top of his twelve other shopping bags, full to the brim, Keith might add) and holds it out whenever Lance gasps excitedly and swipes something off a shelf or a hangar.

“Allura would look great in this skirt!”

“Wouldn’t Pidge look adorable with this hair bow?”

“Oh, Hunk has been looking for this!”

“Gasp!” (He actually says the word gasp, out loud, with his mouth.) “Hair chalk! Maybe Shiro will let me dye his floof!”

“You’re ridiculous,” Keith tells him. He sounds so fond that a random passer-by raises an amused eyebrow at him, which makes Keith want to melt into the floor. “Like an irritating wind-up toy.”

There. That should cover his tracks.

Lance pauses for a moment, turning to face Keith and squinting at him. For a brief, foolish moment, Keith feels something like hope — maybe this horrible torture will come to an end!

“Didn’t you collect wind-up toys when you were a kid?” he questions, head tilted. “You had like four boxes of them in your shack. I stole a little stegosaurus.”

Keith opens his mouth, then shuts it again. His ears burn.

“First of all, you have a kleptomania problem,” he points out, instead of stop knowing so much about me and let me live in peace. “Second of all, you are a snoop and I hate you.”

Lance snorts. “Yeah, yeah.”

Keith is about to say something else, something scathing, something to make him the clear winner of this dumbass, not-real argument, but then Lance absentmindedly links his arm through Keith’s and pulls him close as he strolls down an aisle full of puzzles and games.

Keith’s throat goes dry. Lance smells faintly of something floral, sweet.

Briefly, he squeezes his eyes shut and prays for strength. It will do nothing, because the universe likes to put Keith in horrible situations and laugh at him, but he tries anyway.

They walk in mostly silence for a the next little while, interrupted only by Lance’s quiet humming and occasional points of interest. He’s agonizingly slow to walk through the store — Keith is sure at this point that he’s doing it on purpose, no one likes shopping for this long, he’s definitely punishing Keith for drinking the last of the red juice packs — but perks up excitedly when he sees an aisle lined with jars on one side, and various tubes and pallets on the other.

“Look! Look look look! They have a skincare and makeup section!”

Keith turns his head to the sky. “Why do you despise me,” he mutters to it.

He is never getting out of this goddamn store.

“Come on, you drama queen,” Lance says, dragging him towards the first shelf of various products. “Shiro and Pidge keep stealing all my products because they are horrible people who don’t know how to ask for things. I need to replenish. Come help!”

He yanks Keith forward. Yelping, Keith stumbles after him. “I’m coming, you goober, yeesh! Ease up a bit.”

Smirking, Lance ignores him. He reaches for a shiny pink pot, unscrewing the lid and taking a sniff. He makes a face. “Blegh. Here.”

Keith indulgently smells it and almost gags. “That smells the way final exams feel.”

He trails after Lance for the next fifteen minutes, smelling weirdo products and laughing himself to tears at Lance’s various reactions. He has the pleasure of making Lance laugh, too, with all his creative descriptions; making his brown eyes light up and his bright smile making Keith’s heart do dangerous things.

He’s so fucked. He’s so fucked!

“Oh, hey, I have an idea. Close your eyes.”

It doesn’t even occur to Keith not to listen. That’s the embarrassing part. Lance tells him to close his eyes and immediately his world goes dark.

He feels something approach his face.

“Smell this,” Lance says.

Keith grimaces. “Can we be done with the nasty smells?”

“This one isn’t nasty, promise. It’s lip gloss. Guess the flavour.”

Keith hesitantly leans forward and inhales. To his surprise, the scent is pleasant, familiar.

“Mint?”

“That one was too easy,” Lance says. “Keep your eyes closed, smell this one.”

Less wary now, Keith does. This one is even better than before.

“Oh, oranges!”

Lance grumbles to himself. Keith hears rustling, like Lance is digging through something, and then a sharp intake of breath.

Keith peeks an eye open. “Everything okay?”

“Close your eyes again,” Lance orders. Keith does, hesitantly, noting that Lance’s expression is very particular, in a way he can’t place.

“Guess this one,” he says quietly.

Keith does. He frowns, tiling his head in confusion.

“D’you give up?”

Lance sounds closer. Much closer, actually. Keith’s breaths get heavier.

“No.”

Lance says nothing for a moment, and Keith is tempted to open his eyes. He feels Lance get closer, feels the heat of his breath on his cheeks. He’s still for a moment, and Keith’s heart pounds as he breathes rapidly, strangely familiar scent of the lipgloss getting closer and closer.

“…You want a hint?”

Keith nods rapidly. The smell gets even stronger, and then something warm and sticky presses against his lips.

Lance is kissing him.

He pulls back as quickly as he leaned in, but not far. The scent of the lip gloss is still cloying, intermingling with the scent of Lance, sweet and fruity.

“I don’t think I’ve ever tasted it before,” Keith rasps. He cracks open his eyes, barely, and finds them level with Lance’s nose, close to those shiny lips.

Lance hums. “It’s sweet pear.”

“Oh.” That makes sense. “It’s nice.”

Lance leans in again, and Keith does too, like a magnet drawn to Lance’s polarity. “Wanna taste again?”

As if Keith would ever say no to that.

———

based on this post

#this is so dorky teehee #vld #voltron #keith #keith kogane #lance #lance mcclain #klance #getting together #red paladin lance #black paladin keith #whipped keith #truly down bad #pining keith #my writing #fic #fic fragment #longpost #brown-eyed lance

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danceylancey · 1 year

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Lance isn’t Human. He’s not entirely sure what he is, but he knows he isn’t from Earth even if that’s all he remembers. He was found by a family with more heart than common sense, who took in a child lost in the woods with a bracelet stuck on his little wrist. He was told he was four when he was found, covered in dirt and grime with a mesh covering for clothes. When he was ten he’d go back to that forest and look for clues and have his whole life flipped upside over when he found a space ship. It was invisible at first, but after his bracelet that seemingly grew along side him had a beeping noise, it became visible. There was close to nothing in the ship, a lot of oddly shaped bones and even odder weapons, but nothing more. No food, clothes or life. He would eventually find a console panel and over the next few years would learn the odd langue shown on it as best he could, mainly through trail and error and his trusty bracelet. When he was fourteen he found two parts of the bracelet would turn and when angled a certain way to ale a pattern on the grey metal, his whole body changed. It was like he was camouflaged to the point his biology changed and what he saw afterwards gave him his first ever panic attack. It was an odd sensation for the unnaturally brave boy, but after seeing the monster he turned into he didn’t know how else to react. He moved the bracelet back, having to make a whole new pattern in order to do so. When Lance goes to space he’s so excited to finally be able to ask questions and finally, finally, tell someone about what he is. But when a scanner to his room reads his biology and promptly freaks out, Coran finds him and he’s forced to show the odd man what he is. Lance was expecting disgust or confusion, not the pure terror that flashed across the other man’s face. It quickly vanished when Lance asked if he knew what he was, probably making the man calmer to know he wasn’t raised as a monster he just looked like one. Advised to keep hidden what he is for the time being, Coran explains what he is. A race of hunters, perfect and cruel and more terrifying than the Galra could ever hope to be. The Galre kill for their empire, Lances kind kills for the thrill of the hunt and fight. The Alteans lived in fear of them, just like every other planet species. The Apex Race, he calls them. Lance starts to change his bracelet around in private training and in scenarios where he’s on his own and needs help to survive. When Hunk is shot in the stomachs and Pidge and Kieth are cornered at a cliff face, he knows he alone can’t do anything, certainly not Shiro whose going against six big brutes on his own. Lance changes to his true form and rips apart the Galra around them, grateful he took the mask Coran showed him his kind used, so he wouldn’t have to look at them properly. While everyone else look on in shock, Allura was frozen in fear and praying to gods they didn’t know. When all the foes are dead, Lance looks up at them all and crouches down with his bloodied up in surrender. His voice is crackly and makes their skin crawl as he says it’s him and changes his bracelet back. Allura starts crying as the others look on in hurt-shock at their friends secret revealed, eventually the princess running away back to the Castle. Lance and Coran explain what he is and the team learn about the horrors of the Yautja.

#lance mcclain #lance centric #langst #vld au #voltron #yautja #predator

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justmultifandom · 8 months

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Kidge headcanon n. 15

I was listening to "Can you feel the love tonight" by The lion King when I thought that this can be a perfect Kidge song. I mean... I heard literally Lance, Hunk, Keith and Pidge during listening to this beautiful song!

So... Imagine this during the second or tird anniversary of the end of the war, when the team in on new Altea for the usual celebration. During that year, every Galra told Keith to be their leader, even begging him. So he didn't know what to do.

He was sitting in front of Allura statue thinking and praying that she could help her with a sign or something when he heard some steps. It was Pidge, worried for him. She sat next to him and they two started talking. She wanted him to be the new Garla ruler since he was a good leader during their time with Voltron. She even talked about how much she cared about him and how much she wanted the best for him.

At the same time, Lance was watching them from the New castle's balcony. He knew what was happening right now, and also knew that everything will change if Keith will really become the new Galra ruler and if they will admit their feeling for each other. Hunk slowly joined him since he saw him all alone while both Shiro and Coran were sleeping. And then the music started playing...

[Lance:] I can see what's happening [Hunk:] I can't - what? [Lance:] And they don't have a clue! [Hunk:] Who's they? [Lance:] They'll fall in love, and here's the bottom line Our trio's down to two [Hunk:] Oh, I get it

[Lance:] The sweet caress of twilight There's magic everywhere [Hunk:] It's everywhere. [Lance:] And with all this romantic atmosphere Disaster's in the air!

[Keith & Pidge:] Can you feel the love tonight? The peace the evening brings The world, for once, in perfect harmony With all its living things

[Keith:] So many things to tell her But how to make her see The truth about my past? Impossible! She'd turn away from me

[Pidge:] He's holding back, he's hiding But what, I can't decide Why won't he be the king I know he is The king I see inside?

[Keith & Pidge:] Can you feel the love tonight? The peace the evening brings The world, for once, in perfect harmony With all its living things

Can you feel the love tonight? You needn't look too far Stealing through the night's uncertainties Love is where they are

[Lance:] And if he falls in love tonight It can be assumed [Hunk:] His carefree days with us are history [Lance & Hunk:] In short, our pal is doomed!

#voltron legendary defender #keith voltron #voltron pidge #kidge #keith x pidge #keidge #lance mcclain #allura #hunk vld #the lion king #can you feel the love tonight?#i will die with this #i love them #i love that song #💚❤️

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messy-voltron · 3 years

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Hcs for some little moments that made the paladins realize how much they love their s/o and want to live with them for the rest of their lives? (they go like, "OMG... I'm so in love with them...") you know, some cute moments xD

OMG this make me so soft!! Alright let’s get it lads (also thank you for your submission!)

I do swear a little bit in this one just as a warning

Shiro

Let’s be real folks Shiro is a very simple home body, but it’s hard to open himself to someone else to share that home with

So it’s no surprise that he realizes his love at home, you curled up in his bed, safe in his arms in the early morning where the world is still asleep

The soldier himself hardly gets sleep, and he tries not to do it too much, but he can’t help himself and watch you when his mind is too restless and oh my stars you just look so peaceful curled up in his arms

The love rises to crescendo in his heart, hits him like a train, and leaves him painless and warm because he loves you so much he never imagined love could be like this yet it fits so perfectly Shiro loves you So. Much.

He won’t say it yet. He shows it in his home later

In the way he remembers how you like your tea or coffee, making sure you’re favorite mug is within reach, remembering which blankets and hoodies you like and what movies you like to watch on what days

It’s no surprise when he tells you of this love, much later, in the safety that is this home and he can’t wait to share it with you side by side for the rest of his life

Keith

To start off I would like to add in my own personal headcanon: Keith is not good at parties

Sure he can be civil, he has to attend a lot of them because being a paladin of voltron also kinda makes you a nice little star at a political event and you gotta keep up formalities if you want them to know you’re on their side and you’re willing to protect yadda yadda

And so Keith goes to them, but there just gets a point where there’s so many people he doesn’t know, so man people who want to talk to him, it’s just so overwhelming

He tries to hide it as best he can, not wanting to make a scene, but he just can’t help it

As his s/o, you notice. He knows you notice. Keith doesn’t want to get in the way of you having a good time, but you stay right by his side. Giving him space when he needs it, asking coded questions to see if he needs to leave, offering support when he wants it. You do it without question because it’s so clear that you care

It’s so hard for Keith to open up to people and ask for help, but it’s in a moment like this that it really smacks him in the face of how much he appreciates you and how it’s so obvious you love him the same way

He catches himself. Love. He thought love. But as he looks at you in your formal attire, giving him a gentle reassuring smile, how beautiful you look in the evening lights, he can’t help but feel how right that word fits with you. He truly is in love with you and you best bet that he will never leave you

Lance

Since this man is so dramatic, it only seems right that his declaration of love would also have a bit of theatrics to it

To set the scene: you and Lance were set out on a small rescue mission to scope out a distress signal on a nearby planet. Coran assured you two that it was a small planet inhabited by some very friendly aliens so it shouldn’t be a big deal. It became a big deal real fast. You guys were very much not informed that that planet had been taken over by the Galra and sensing that Voltron as near, set this up to be a trap to catch at least one of the lions to use as bait

Wasting no time, you and Lance have to fight your way through Galra troops to safely get back to his lion but god there’s just so many of them they’re coming in from left to right oh god why did you have to be the one to get caught in the cross fire-

The two of you manage to find a safe clearing and just as he’s about to catch his breath, you grab him suddenly and pull him to the ground as your blaster goes off. Once he gets together his bearings, you’re on top of him with a galra droid now blown to bits and you have the most badass look on your face

He doesn’t mean to say I love you, it just sorta tumbles out of his mouth. Maybe it’s the adrenaline, maybe it’s because you look really nice, but regardless he has felt this way for a while, he just never thought he’d be saying it like this

Because it’s true there’s no one else in this entire galaxy he wants by his side through thick and thin he knows you have his back and he just thinks he’s the luckiest person in the world

You, however, have a shit eating grin on your face and in a classic Han Solo style, just tell him, “I know,” which translates to I love you too and you and Lance will be able to be mushy and lovey once your lives aren’t at stake

Hunk

Hunk is a very lovable person to begin with, he loves people platonically so hard and so fast, so when he realizes his romantic love for you, he almost stumbles into it on accident

It’s classic; you’re tasting a recipe he’s been working on and he’s so nervous to hear your opinion on what you have to say. He watches every movement, every facial feature just praying that you like this

And you do. You give him praise where he excelled, gave a pointer or two on where he struggled, but ended it with a smile and a thank you for sharing because you know how much cooking means to him

And it makes him so happy that you care and understand him and that’s why he loves you and-

He has to stop himself. He brushes it aside, continues on with the evening, but when you two part he can’t help himself but to think about those events over and over again because maybe he was just getting in over his head sure he cares about you but love? Is it too soon? Is he being too emotional?

In the end Hunk comes to the conclusion he’s known since the beginning. He does love you, he wants you in his life for as long as you’ll have him, and he admits this to you the next day as gracefully as he can

For the record, it wasn’t that graceful, but that’s what makes him so perfect

Pidge

Pidges would be perfectly mundane where it’s so simple yet it just fits perfectly into their heart

The two of you are just...talking. That’s it. You guys are spitballing ideas and future projects and being reminded of old memories that make you smile

These conversations go on late into the night, both of you equally admitting that it’s getting late and it’s time to turn in to bed, but then one of you says something and it gets delayed by at least 15 minutes

Pidge has never been the most social person, it often makes them more stressed out than anything, but they can’t help but notice the way their heart settles so calmly and full of love when they’re with you

They won’t admit it yet, but they know they’re in love with you this kid is such a simp but it’ll take them a while before they actually say it (that and you might have to say it first but that’s just cause Pidge is so nervous)

#voltron #Voltron imagines #voltron x reader #Voltron paladins x reader #shiro x reader #keith kogane x reader #lance mcclain x reader #hunk garrett x you #hunk garret x reader #pidge gunderson x reader #takashi shirogane x reader #Pidge x reader #sorry theirs was so short!! I thought it would be nice to have it short and sweet

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kosmo-mckogane · 3 years

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Okay but hear me out, klance au where they still go to space and all that but this time kl were pen pals as kids 😭😭😭 extra points if they don’t realize until they’re way into the whole voltron thing

yoo this is such a good concept...

maybe keith wasn't too into the idea at the time, when every child at his new foster home was assigned a penpal. maybe he thought it was a waste of time. maybe he thought it was a joke that someone as closed off and disagreeable as himself got partnered with a penpal who was just so annoyingly sunny, who wrote all his letters in glittery blue gel ink and added little funny doodles in the corners, whose stories were long and detailed and never sounded dull.

but, maybe, keith was also drawn in by the boy's energy, by the stories he told. maybe he was reluctant to dim that happy, optimistic attitude. and so, he wrote back, every time. and maybe, just maybe, he begins to grow fond of his penpal.

and that's why, when keith leaves that home, he keeps writing letters. well, for a few foster homes, at least. but through all the moving around, especially once he meets shiro, it becomes kind of hard for him to keep track, and eventually, he loses touch with him. his penpal doesn't have keith's new address, and keith doesn't even know if his penpal's address is the same anymore.

he still thinks about him sometimes, though. and keith doesn't know it, but his penpal - lance - still thinks of him, too. he keeps all his letters in a shoe box on a shelf, and every so often he'll read over them and think, what happened? where did you go?

and when voltron happens, when they're in space together, there are a few moments where it almost clicks. like when they see each other’s handwriting for the first time - maybe while making the voltron paladin handbook - and they both get this vague deja vu. but they brush it off, bc they’ve probably seen each other’s handwriting at some point at the garrison, right?

but then, one day keith, lance, hunk, and pidge are in the lounge, and lance and hunk are reminiscing about their lives back on earth, with pidge chipping in every so often as she tinkers with her computer and Keith mostly just listening.

and at some point, hunk says, "oh, hey lance, remember that one guy you used to write love letters to all the time?"

at first, keith doesn't think much of it, just rolling his eyes with a scoff as lance protests, "uh, excuse me, they weren't love letters, we were penpals! that's like a whole different thing >:("

but - penpals - that sparks keith's memory. as hunk and pidge continue to tease lance, keith finds himself remembering his own penpal that he'd had as a kid. he remembers sparkly blue ink, messy little doodles and obviously exaggerated stories. how his friend would talk and talk about his family, his interests, and his life, but how he'd never push too hard for many details on Keith's own life, offering a welcome escape from some of the annoying stuff keith had to deal with in foster homes.

keith wonders where he is now, and how he's doing. he hopes he's okay.

"what was his name?" pidge's voice brings keith back to the conversation. "your boyfriend, i mean."

"for the last time, he was not my boyfriend!" lance cries, spreading his arms dramatically, pidge and hunk only snickering in response. "and, actually, i never knew his real name. i always just called him space cadet."

and keith's stomach drops.

"what?"

keith hadn't meant to blurt that out so loudly or so suddenly - in all honesty he didn't mean to speak at all - but now all eyes are on him.

"uh." lance raises an eyebrow. "i said i called him space cadet? you know, like a nickname? to use instead of his real name? i'm actually really good at coming up with those! you know, i was the one who gave hunk here his nickname ..."

keith lets the conversation drift from himself again, keeping his expression carefully blank.

"oh, right," he mutters, praying that his tone sounds as careless as he hopes. he glances away, folding his arms and leaning back on the couch, feigning disinterest.

he sees hunk tilt his head in confusion, but then pidge butts in to make fun of lance for giving his penpal such a dorky nickname, and keith's blunder is soon forgotten.

okay, keith tries to reason with himself, just because lance happened to give his penpal the same nickname as keith's penpal gave him, doesn't mean they're the same person. it could just be a weird coincidence.

but the more keith hears lance talk about his penpal, the more apparent it becomes that it is not, in fact a coincidence, and that lance is, in fact, keith's old penpal.

queue keith having a gay panic for 34234 years wondering how to tell lance that his self proclaimed rival and his beloved childhood penpal are actually the same person

#ask #klance #goddd i'm sorry for all this you didn't ask but #take this really sloppy fic outline that i wrote 2 minutes ago it's all i have to offer #stop giving me good fic ideas guys i'm gonna be buried in wips at this point

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actress4him · 3 years

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Bonus Whumptober Content Part 2

Original Whumptober fic here

Bonus Content Part 1 here

Find it all on AO3 here

Thanks for all of the support on the last chapter! I appreciate each and every one of the likes and reblogs and follows I’ve gotten.

Tagging @outtacommission again because Keith would not have been resurrected from the dead without his bribery.

Here is chapter 3 of this fic... see you next week for the conclusion!

Fandom: Voltron: Legendary Defender

Warnings: referenced amputation, blood mention, referenced broken bones, self-esteem issues, suicide ideation, death mention, nightmares, abandonment issues

When he woke again, he was lying back down on the pillow, staring up at the blank white ceiling. For one, blissful moment, he didn’t remember the events leading up to him passing out again. But it all came crashing down on him an instant later, taking his breath away.

My leg.

My leg, my leg.

My arm, my face, my leg.

“Keith?” Shiro’s voice was quiet, tentative. Not like him. “Are you awake?”

He wanted to roll over on his side and ignore him. Close his eyes, maybe go back to sleep, pretend that the world and this nightmare didn’t exist for a little while longer. The only reason he refrained was because he wasn’t sure if his stupid, wrecked body could actually manage it.

“What did you do to me?” It was only a whisper, and as slurred as it was, he wouldn’t have been surprised if it was impossible to understand.

Shiro’s breath hitched audibly. If Keith had been looking at his face, he was sure he wouldn’t like the anguished expression that he would see there. But at that moment, he didn’t have the capacity to care.

“Do you want me to...explain...how it...happened?”

No. Yes. He didn’t know. He needed to know why him losing a leg had been the best option, but at the same time he wasn’t sure if he could handle hearing about it. In the end, he just lifted one shoulder - the one that actually listened and responded right away - in a shrug.

Shiro shifted in his seat, leaning forward so just the tip of his white bangs were in Keith’s periphery. “I already told you that you...died. On that planet. So when we got back to the Castle, you dying again was a distinct possibility. We...it’s like Fallenta said. We had to get you into a pod, even though your...your left arm was broken, and your knees, especially, were a mess from where the console landed on them.”

He paused, rubbing his palms together. “We didn’t know what would happen. I was scared to death that some of those breaks wouldn’t be able to be fixed after the pod. I mean, we were headed to Tellima, but…” His head dropped. “We had no choice. That hole in your stomach...you were dying.”

Keith could almost imagine it - the frantic atmosphere in the infirmary, the blood everywhere, the desperate conversations escalating into shouts as they debated on what to do. He had no doubt that he really had been dying, that they had made the choice they thought was best. He just wasn’t sure if he agreed with that choice.

“When you came out of the pod, once the stomach wound was healed enough for you to be stable, Fallenta started working on re-breaking the bones so that they could be set correctly. It was...awful.” The shudder was obvious in his voice. “I’m glad she was able to do it, of course, but I’m also glad that you were unconscious the whole time. Your arm was relatively easy. Your left knee...it took her hours. It was in so many tiny little pieces. And your right…”

Automatically Keith flinched at the reminder of what was no longer there. Of the scarred, chopped off stump that lay just underneath the blanket, and the way his leg just...ended. He could see the void where the rest of it should have been even now, if he were to look down. He was purposely avoiding it.

Shiro heaved a huge sigh. “Unfortunately, your right knee was shattered in a way that had been blocking the circulation in your lower leg the whole time. The tissue down there was...dead.” He paused again. “Keith, I’ve...trust me, I’ve gone ‘round and ‘round in my head ever since we...trying to figure out if there was something I could have done differently. And...I don’t think there was. We did what we had to do to save your life. I’m just...I’m sorry that we couldn’t save your leg, too.”

His leg was gone.

Would he ever be able to walk again? Could they find a prosthetic for him like Shiro had, that worked as well as the real thing? Even if they did, how long would it take him to get used to walking on it? Just walking, not even counting anything like running, jumping, fighting.

Fighting was what he did. It was the one and only thing besides flying that he was good at. He was crap with a gun, he couldn’t sit up in a sniper’s nest like Lance. He needed to be able to move. If he couldn’t, even just for the time that it took to learn how with a new leg and an arm that only half worked...

They’d replace him. What good was a paladin who was crippled? Who couldn’t pull his weight? As soon as Red woke up and found out what happened to him she would realize that he was useless now. And the Princess, the rest of the team...they already knew it. They were probably already looking for a new Red Paladin. How long would it be until they dropped him off on Earth, or on some Coalition planet? Probably as soon as he was healed enough. They didn’t have time to keep taking care of an invalid, they had a universe to save.

They did. Not him. Not anymore.

“Should’ve left me there.”

There was dead silence for a moment.

“What?”

Keith tipped his head back further into the pillow, eyes roving over the featureless ceiling as if he’d see something new. “I tol’ you not to come. I tol’ you to leave me there. You didn’t listen.”

“And now you’re alive.”

“Yeah, but why?”

“Keith…”

His hands fisted in the blanket, jaw clenched in sudden fury. “Don’t ‘Keith’ me. Why, Shiro? Why am I alive? What is the point? You know what all this means.”

It meant he’d be alone. And he couldn’t...he couldn’t do alone. Not again. Not when he found a group of people that he actually cared about for the first time in so long. Not when he was just finally getting used to always having people around, always having someone to talk to or distract him from the thoughts that tried to consume him. Not when he barely survived it the first time.

He’d rather be dead than alone.

Shiro sucked in a deep breath through his nose. “That life is gonna be hard for a while? That you’re gonna have to work harder than ever to get back to where you were? Yeah, Keith, I do know. I know more than anyone else.”

Oh.

Shiro must think he was so incredibly self-centered.

He was self-centered.

He should have thought about how acting like losing a leg was worse than dying would seem to the man who had lost an arm and kept going. But instead he was all caught up in how he was going to lose everything he had grown to love and rely on. Acting like the self-absorbed brat that everyone at the Garrison except Shiro had accused him of being.

“That means I also know how hard it is to accept,” Shiro was saying. “It’s going to take time to adjust. But you will, I promise, and I’ll be here to help you every step of the way.”

Yeah, right. Keith didn’t know if he was lying to make him feel better, or if he just hadn’t yet realized or accepted that Allura and the rest of the team wouldn’t want to keep him around.

“Just...please, Keith. Please don’t say that we should have let you die. You don’t know…” His voice caught. “I’ve spent these last weeks hoping, praying that you would live. Scared out of my mind every moment of every day that you wouldn’t.”

Keith finally forced himself to turn his head toward his brother and saw him brush the back of his wrist across his eyes. Just that movement was enough to make his heart drop to his stomach. Shiro didn’t cry. At least not where anyone could see him.

Slowly, he slid his hand out across the bed, palm up. A peace offering. It took only a moment for Shiro to take it, squeezing it so hard he thought a few more bones might break.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. And he was. Not for thinking it, but for saying it. He didn’t want to cause any more pain for any of his friends.

That’s why when it was time for him to go, he’d do it quietly. No fuss. Don’t let them see your fear or your pain - he had learned that long, long ago. He was good at it.

Shiro gave him a shaky smile. “It’ll be alright, Keith. I promise.”

Swallowing down the words that sprang to his tongue, he gave a nod. “Okay.”

The next morning Keith woke up to an empty room. In a way, it was a relief. They obviously didn’t see the need to watch over him and baby him twenty-four-seven anymore. But he was, for all intents and purposes, stuck. With no leg, he couldn’t just get up and leave the room whenever he wanted, head to the training room like he normally would in the morning. There’d be no training for him for a long time.

Of course there was breakfast to think about, too, and he wasn’t sure whether to expect someone to bring it to him, or to bring him to it. Either way, he hated it. He had always hated being treated like he was helpless, and now it was even worse because he actually was helpless.

He went ahead and made up his mind, though. No matter what their plan was, he had no desire to be carried through the Castle to the dining room where everyone would give him those looks of pity. Poor Keith. Can’t even walk by himself. It’s just too bad he can’t stay.

He was in the midst of pushing himself up off the pillows, trying to get his right side to cooperate long enough to get in an upright position he could balance in and trying to ignore the strange lightness of his leg, when the door opened and Pidge slipped in.

“Hey,” she said softly. Padding over, she perched carefully on the edge of the chair that first Hunk, then Shiro had occupied.

Tucking his left leg up close to him - the knee creaking in protest at being used for the first time since healing - Keith cleared his throat. “Hi.”

Silence fell, but it had never been awkward between the two. The introverted arms of Voltron. Pidge just gazed at him for a long moment, her eyes saying all the things he knew she would never actually be able to say with words. “It’s good to see you awake. I was really worried about you.”

On the outside, she merely shoved her glasses back up into the bridge of her nose and sniffed. “You better not quiznakin’ ever do that again.”

Keith’s lips turned up at the corners for the first time since waking the day before. “Alright.”

Besides Shiro, he thought he would miss Pidge the most of all. They got each other more than anyone else.

“So.” Straightening up, she whipped a tablet out of her hoodie pocket. “We’ve been working on a leg for you. The Tellimites have crazy good medical technology, so obviously we’re using their notes, but I’ve also been talking back and forth with the Olkari, because they’re, of course, crazy good with biological connections, and we’ve come up with a design that should communicate really well with your body and, essentially, work like the real thing.”

She launched into a detailed scientific explanation of how every inch of it worked, tapping and flicking through various diagrams that just looked like a plain prosthetic leg to him. He didn’t understand but a few words here and there, but he let her talk. This was one of her passions, and it was nice to let her be able to ramble about it for once without having to worry about being rushed. The way her face lit up was worth every second.

“So...what do you think?” Suddenly she sounded uncertain as she blinked up at him. “We definitely want your input on it. I mean, I suggested putting in a rocket booster, but Hunk pointed out that it would be difficult to control with only one. Lance wanted to add lasers that shot out anytime you stomped your foot, but that seemed pretty dangerous for like, running and stuff, so…”

It almost sounded like they expected him to still be fighting with this thing. Well, maybe he would. Eventually. After all, he wouldn’t feel right about just ignoring the existence of the war when the people he cared about were still out there fighting it, so he’d do his best to get back into shape. Maybe he could convince them to find a Coalition planet for him that had soldiers he could fight with someday.

It wouldn’t be the same as fighting with this team, his...his friends. But at least he wouldn’t be completely useless.

He met Pidge’s eyes and realized she was still waiting on an answer from him. Part of him wanted to keep his words to a minimum, not wanting her to hear his new speech impediment, but he swallowed his pride. “It, uh...whatever you guys come up with I’m sure will be great.” He actually hadn’t even been sure whether to expect them to work on it themselves, or put it off on the Tellimites or some other able species. It made sense, though, that Pidge and Hunk would want to jump on this opportunity to design something they had never gotten to do before. He forced a small smile. “But...yeah, let’s hold off on weaponizing it.”

Smirking, Pidge turned off the tablet and stuck it back in her pocket. “Alright, if you insist. Lance is gonna be super disappointed, though.”

“I’m sure.” He could hear the whining and complaining about how boring and unimaginative he was now.

“So, I was supposed to ask you about breakfast…?”

Keith stared down at his hands. “Oh. Yeah. I don’...think I’m really ready to...try to move around yet, so…”

He was such a bad liar. But Pidge either didn’t notice or was being nice and pretending not to, merely nodding and standing.

“Okay. I’ll tell Shiro, he’ll probably bring you a plate down here.”

“Thanks, Pidge.”

She turned back from the doorway and smiled softly at him. “No problem.”

The nightmares came that night.

And the next. And the next.

Snippets of things he didn’t remember during the day, and wouldn’t remember again when he woke. Alarms blaring. Lights flashing. A horrifying crunching sound, then crippling pain and a bitter taste in the back of his throat.

And then...nothing. No one came. No one heard him calling. He stayed there, alone and bleeding in the dark, until the pain became too much and he slipped away.

He woke with tears streaming down his cheeks and a scream on his lips that didn’t quite make it out into the still air of the infirmary, not knowing what he was even crying about other than the nauseating loneliness that weighed him down, pinning him to the bed.

Forcing his right hand to be the one to clumsily scrub away the tears - because it was going to work, dang it - he gritted his teeth and pushed against the weight to flop over onto his side.

Get over it. Get over it, get used to it, stop being such a baby. You’ve always known that this wouldn’t last. It’s a miracle they’ve stuck around for as long as they have. If you try to hang onto them they’ll just end up hating you before they leave.

He got away with hiding in the infirmary for two days before Fallenta declared him well enough to be up and about, and Shiro and Allura showed up with the Altean version of crutches. They escorted him slowly down the halls of the Castle to the dining room, chatting amiably the whole way. Keith assumed it was meant to either distract him from his plight, or to keep themselves from staring and pitying.

“Hey, look who finally decided to join us!” Lance announced loudly as soon as he hobbled into the room. “It’s about time you were out of bed, Mullet-head.”

“What Lance means,” Hunk sighed, “is that it’s good to see you up, Keith.”

“That it is, Number Four!” Coran rushed to pull out his usual seat, and his smile was so bright Keith couldn’t even be mad about the special treatment. “You had us all worried for a while there, for sure!”

Swallowing, Keith fiddled with his spork, unsure whether he was supposed to respond. “Um...yeah. Sorry.”

“You don’t have to apologize, Keith.” Shiro smiled at him softly, knowingly. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”

He just barely kept another ‘sorry’ from escaping. Instead he nodded, picked up his spork with his left hand, and changed the subject. “So, uh...wha’s been going on lately?”

That was all it took for everyone to launch into tales of short missions in the Lions, repairs on Red, and alliances with Tellima. Keith barely remembered to keep eating his goo as he watched all of the animated faces and gesturing hands with a small smile on his face. It was good to be back among his teammates. They were so unlike him in so many ways, it was no wonder that he had never really fit in with them. But he cared about them anyway. They might not feel the same way about him, but he was so glad that they had become a part of his life.

And now they wouldn’t be anymore. Scowling down into his bowl where no one would notice, he poked at the green goo. How did I let myself get so attached? Before Shiro, it had been many, many years since he had let himself care about anyone this much. He should have known better by then. Letting himself come to consider any person or place home was just setting himself up for heartbreak.

As much as he loved spending this last bit of time with them, he almost wished they would stop acting so natural, as if they weren’t getting ready to kick him out any day now. No one mentioned a search for a new paladin. No one said whether they were headed to Earth, or some other planet.

He wasn’t going to be able to stand the suspense for many more days. They needed to just get it over with.

Later that night, after waking from another nightmare back in his own room, Keith stared at the bare walls, so lifeless compared to the other paladin’s rooms. Maybe I was always prepared for this moment, after all. Or maybe he had just been kicked out and left behind so many times that the ability to settle in was impossible for him no matter where he went.

Struggling to sit up, he groped for the crutches and pulled himself to his feet. He wasn’t going to get back to sleep anytime soon, and no one had expressly forbidden him from venturing out on his own - not that it would have stopped him even if they had.

It took far too long to make it down the four hallways between his room and Red’s hangar. Walking with crutches used a whole new set of muscles that he wasn’t used to accessing, and trying to force his right side to carry that much weight was exhausting. He had to stop and lean against the wall, panting for breath, several times along the way.

But he made it, eventually. He paused once more outside the door, debating whether or not he was actually ready to see the damage done to Red, before he sucked it up and punched the scanner.

He wasn’t ready.

The great mechanical beast was lying on her side, a position that somehow managed to make her look vulnerable despite her hulking size. Her legs were splayed awkwardly as if she had just been dropped there. She probably had.

The worst part, though, was that her face was nearly unrecognizable. What had once been her muzzle was completely smashed in, there were spiderweb cracks across one of her dull grey eyes, and the other was missing altogether.

Actually, he took that back. The worst part was the cold and the silence.

No purr in his head to greet him. No eyes lighting up in recognition of her Paladin. No warmth filling up his chest and spreading out to his fingers and toes. With Red, there was always some kind of heat. Now, though, a shiver shook his body.

Clenching his jaw, Keith forced himself a few steps closer, until he could reach out, balancing precariously, and lay a hand against her warped, dented nose. It was cold, too.

Suddenly tears sprang to his eyes for the first time since his panic attack a couple of days before. “‘m sorry, Red.” He stroked his hand over the metal, feeling all of the bumps that shouldn’t have been there. “I’m sorry this happened to you. You didn’t deserve it. You...you’ve always protected me, and…”

Tipping his head back, he took in the mess of a cockpit again, and this time he saw flashes of his nightmare. Something sharp pinning him to the chair. Blood dripping onto the floor.

One tear escaped, sliding rapidly down to his chin. “I don’t even know how I survived this. But if either of us deserved to survive, it’s you. Please, Red...if you can hear me at all...please don’t give up. I know I...I can’t fly you anymore, but…”

It hit him then, the brutal truth of that statement. He’d never fly her again. He might never fly anything again. He’d known it ever since finding out what had happened to him, but now it stabbed him through the heart, how much he was going to miss this semi-sentient alien ship.

Before he knew it, he was falling none-too-gracefully to the floor, one hand planted in front of him while the other remained on her snout, crutches clattering loudly to the side. The tears came in earnest, then. “Red...Red I lost my leg. I...I can’t fight anymore, I can’t fly…I’m useless.”

He’d told her that before. That time, though, she had reassured him that no, he was her Paladin, he was a defender of the universe, not useless. Never useless.

But now there was no one to reassure him. Even if she had been able, Red would know the truth. He wasn’t her Paladin anymore, he wasn’t a defender of the universe. He was useless.

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raziroo · 3 years

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Chapter Four | I Take A Liking To Lilac All Of A Sudden

Pairing: Lotor x Reader (There you go)

Genre: Angst? I don't knowww

Warnings: Mentions of cancer, mild swearing

Word Count: 1,676

Author’s Note: This is kind of a filler? I can't write long shit in one sitting, so. It's important to reader and lotor's relationship, tho.

‘Good luck. Come back alive, all of you, alright?’ I asked, my eyes roving over the three people standing before me – Matt, Pidge, and Shiro. ‘It’s, like, one of the simplest things you could do. You give Lotor, you get Mr. Holt. Simple. Very simple and easily doable. Right?’ My gaze dragged over all of them once more as I picked at my nails nervously. As much as I was aware of the fact that this trade wasn’t simple and easily doable, I knew that I would legitimately have a nervous breakdown if I didn’t spew lies through my teeth.

Shiro smiled at me lightly. ‘Of course. I’ll make sure nothing goes wrong. You guys take care too.’

‘If, however, anything happens,’ Allura chided, ‘the other lions will arrive as soon as possible.’

‘Yeah,’ Pidge said with a wry smirk, ‘so try not to pass out.’

‘Okay,’ I nodded my head rapidly, ‘yeah, okay, I – I can do that.’

‘Good. Well, we’ll get going then,’ Shiro announced, and turned around, the others following him.

Hopefully, all would go well.

. . . . .

You know what? Everything actually went relatively well. Yes, my hunch turned out to be correct and Zarkon chose to go through with the ‘I was lying all along! Bwahahaha!’ route and ended up getting himself killed at the hands of his son, but overall, I’d say it was a win-win, seeing that we got Pidge’s father back (thank God, who knows what havoc she’d wreak if we ended up not getting Sam back) and the evil maniacal tyrant who’d been ruling over the universe for ten thousand years died.

The one downside was that now there needed to be a new Emperor, because following Zarkon’s death, not only the Galra empire, but simultaneously the entire universe had gone into a state of chaos too. There was no doubt that underlings and generals would try to take over smaller parts of the empire, and once that happened, Voltron being able to do anything would be a stretch.

And, according to Lotor, a ceremony to crown the new emperor, the Kral Zera, would now be taking place. Once he said that, he really didn’t need to say more – it was obvious what his implications were. A new emperor was to be crowned, and if Voltron was to achieve peace, Lotor would have to go and secure the throne. It was a sensible thought to be had, no problem. The thing was, to reach the Kral Zera, which was taking place in two days, in itself was a decision to be taken with utmost thought. The Paladins just didn’t have enough time to decide.

On the one hand, Shiro and Lotor were adamant that the latter be crowned emperor; the other Paladins, however, were justifiably hesitant. I had been standing there listening to them going back and forth, not saying a word myself, like always.

To be honest, I just wanted to go sleep. For some reason, I’d been feeling overly anxious these past few days. White was still not responding to me, I was having regular dreams about the day I woke up here. It was always that one day, that first conversation I had with Shiro. It was as if my subconsciousness too wanted me to reach out to Shiro because there was clearly something weird going on with him.

My suspicions only solidified when I heard Shiro’s voice boom through the room. My head snapped up. Lance with a look of shock and the slightest bit of fear on his face, Shiro’s visage twisted with uncharacteristic anger.

‘Shiro. I think you should just relax a little.’ The man turned to me, brows pinched.

‘I am relaxed -’

‘No, I really think you aren’t… so, like… take it easy, yeah?’ I asked, jumping my eyebrows, arms still folded in front of me, maintaining a calm yet defensive posture. I could feel the entire room’s gazes on me. After all, I almost never spoke in such discussions, or any discussions, really, and indirectly opposing Shiro, of all people, was way too brave a thing for me to do.

Shiro looked at me with slight disbelief, a glint in his eye challenging me to speak up. ‘You want me to take it easy? Take it easy? The fate of the universe depends on this, taking it easy is really not an option right now. I’ve put my foot down – as the Leader of Voltron, I’ve taken this decision. You aren’t someone befitted to oppose me.’

Ok, wow. Everyone shared the same opinion apparently, as now the silence seemed piercing. Clicking my tongue, I tilted my head. ‘Well, maybe not as a Paladin, which I’m not, or a member of the coalition. But as a friend, Shiro, you’ve been acting strange. Everyone realises this. You realise this. … Maybe, I don’t know… maybe all this reflecting on you’ve been doing, maybe the role of leader is taking a toll on you? I, heh,’ I chuckle, ‘I really am not sure. But you’re not relaxed, and you’re not acting yourself.’

‘Could you please not tell me how to be a Paladin?’

‘While you all waste time squabbling, sinister forces are conspiring to fill the Galra power void. If I don’t return to claim the throne, there’s no telling who will.’

Does being royalty instantly make you a hundred times more dramatic? Sinister forces? Deadass?

I walked out.

. . . . .

Shiro went behind our back.

Yeah.

Acting like a complete bitch, he took Lotor to the Kral Zera, where, for your information, he could’ve been blown up. By Keith.

I wanted to deck Shiro. Instead, I visited White. I had hopes she’d respond to me, since I’d been brave and spoken my mind. I prayed on all the Gods and Deities above that my expectations became reality.

Yeah, they didn’t. She didn’t budge. The whole entire two goddamned hours I sat in front of White, she ignored me. Frustrated, I ended up punching her, resulting in bleeding knuckles. Lotor saw that, by the way. He seemed to always be keeping an eye on White, regardless of me being there or not, which I admit is a little strange, but I wasn’t judging. These aliens seemed to worship the Lions.

Lotor also invited us to the Galra headquarters, and lord oh my lord, was it fancy. Allura had gone off to do research with Lotor (I’d been about to make a joke about what “research” those two were really about to do, if you catch my drift, but then I saw Lance looking at the pair glumly, and thought better of it. I’d lightly punched Lance on the shoulder, and raised my eyebrows so as to say ‘They’re gorgeous aliens who could give Bella Hadid and Harry Styles a run for their money, it can’t be helped.’ He laughed.) I accompanied Hunk, Lance and Pidge in their shenanigans for a while, but ended up wandering around the place.

Space was beautiful. Even through a window, I wanted to just stare at it for as long as I could, enjoying a show more realistic than ever before. It was really similar to all the Marvel movies I’d watched; I felt a weird sense of pride at that realization. I remembered how I’d cried at the end of Infinity War, my friends clinging to me and bawling as well; how loud I’d squealed at an absolutely steamy piece of Kakashi fanart Cory had drawn; how happy I’d been when Sasha, my neighbour and childhood friend, had come out victorious after battling cancer for years.

I hadn’t realized when the tears had started slipping down my cheeks. I wiped at them, but they wouldn’t go. Sniffling and wiping so furiously my skin would get burned when I heard footsteps, I turned to see Lotor approaching me.

‘Hey -’ shit, my voice was so thick. Clearing my throat obnoxiously loud, I greeted him again. ‘Hey, uh… what… how’s yours and Allura’s research going?’

‘The research has been going quite smoothly.’

‘Hmm. Nice.’

Lotor was staring – no, correction - scrutinising me. I could feel it, his intense as hell eyes burning into the side of my face. I wasn’t going to give up, though. I stared at the window with as much concentration as he me.

He was the first to speak up. Ha.

‘You’re not of the Paladins.’

‘Really? I didn’t know, thanks,’ I still wasn’t looking at him.

‘Deepest apologies if I offended you -’

‘You didn’t, it’s okay.’

‘…’

‘…If you wish to answer, why do you appear… distant, compared to the other Paladins? You say they are your friends, but there’s such scarce interaction… you seem acquaintances at best.’

‘… They are my friends. I like to think so, because, well… because I don’t have anyone to go back home to.’

‘Oh. My apologies, I didn’t mean to pry.’

‘You didn’t pry, chill. It’s not that my family’s dead or anything, it’s just that… no, well, my family is dead, but… like, they’ve been dead for around three hundred or so years…?’ I turned to Lotor, brows furrowed. He looked less confused than me.

‘Sorry, no, that’s – that’s shit explanation, um… you could say… I… I’ve lived past my time. I’m alive when I’m not supposed to be.’

I didn’t explicitly mention, as you can see, that I was a time traveller, because I wasn’t really one with that fact yet. I’d accepted it, yes, but that didn’t mean I was comfortable with it. It was still a foreign truth, something I didn’t take great joy in talking or thinking about.

When I turned to Lotor, I felt like he’d understood what he needed to already.

It was bizarre. A lilac alien was the last person I would expect to understand me so easily, but it was what it was.

#vld #voltron legendary defender #lotor #lotor x reader #shiro #takashi shirogane #hunk garrett #lance mcclain #pidge gunderson #katie holt #keith kogane #galra #allura #coran #honerva #haggar #altea

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quintessenceofdust73 · 3 years

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Julance 2021 Prompt: Home/Family. Lance invites Pidge to spend time with him and his family in Cuba in this romantic Plance fic. 💚💙 In this excerpt, Pidge and Lance’s parents have a very important conversation which leads to a beautiful bonding moment between Pidge and Lance’s mother. Pidge realizes that Lance’s mother understands him better than anyone else, even Lance himself.

She heard Mr. and Mrs. McClain’s voices from the screened porch where Maria kept her pet birds.

“Katie? We are having our coffee out here. Why don’t you join us, dear?”

When Pidge stepped onto the porch with her pastry and mug, she was greeted by a chorus of chirps and whistles from the parakeets. The African Grey parrot greeted her with the cry of “Hey, pretty lady!”

“Did Lance teach him to say that?” Pidge asked with a giggle. Lance’s parents laughed.

“No, I did,” Lance’s father admitted. “I taught Wingman to talk when little Lancito was just learning to talk himself. I think he may have learned how to flirt from the bird, which may be why he is so bad at it.”

Maria and Pidge chuckled. “Now I know where Lance gets his sense of humor,” Pidge observed, and they laughed again.

“Well if my boy is a shameless ladies’ man, that is my fault. If he is a gentleman, that is all Maria’s doing.”

“He takes after both of you, then,” Pidge replied. Pop Pop thought this was very funny.

“More Maria than me,” he argued. “He is a good boy. We are glad he found a nice girl like you, Katie.”

“You are the answer to a mother’s prayer, my dear,” said Maria kindly.

Pidge blushed. “Thank you.” She smiled at both of Lance’s parents. “And thank you for welcoming me into your home. I have had the time of my life these last few days. It will be difficult to return to life at the Garrison after spending time in such a beautiful place.”

“We were so proud when our boy made it into your escuela de astronautas,” Pop Pop said. “When he went missing it was very difficult for us, especially Maria.” He squeezed his wife’s shoulders.

“I wept every day and prayed every night for his safe return. I prayed for his friend Hunk and you as well, though we did not know each other then. We knew that Hunk Garrett was his best friend since they started at the academia together. Lance wrote to us about what a bright and kind young man he is.”

Pidge nodded in agreement. “Hunk really is a terrific guy.”

“We learned about you from the television,” Pop Pop continued. “We knew of the disappearance of Shirogane, your father, and your brother from the news.”

“An investigation revealed that there was no such person as the boy Pidge Gunderson who disappeared along with our son and his friend,” Maria continued. “When we found out about the conspiracy theories—“

“They said Commander Holt had a little daughter as brilliant as he is. They said she hacked into the government’s computers to find out what happened to her missing father and brother,” her husband added. “They said she cut her hair and disguised herself as a boy and went to space to find them. At first I thought this little girl must be mad, or a genius, or she must love her father and brother so much that she would risk her life to attempt what is not possible. As it turned out, you are all three!”

Pidge laughed. “No argument there.”

“You gave us hope, Katie,” Maria said tearfully. “If your family was still alive, then maybe our son and his friend might be alive a well.”

“Veronica did some investigating of her own,” Mr. McClain continued. “She might have been facing a court martial if they ever found out how many of the rules she broke while trying to find out what happened to her baby brother. She told us what she could, and what she learned helped us to believe that our son might be coming home one day.”

“One of the happiest days of our lives is when the Paladins returned to Earth and we saw our son alive and well.” Maria was crying silently as she spoke. “And we saw for ourselves that the rumors were true about you and your wonderful family. We are honored to have you as a guest in our home.”

“It would be an even greater honor to have you as a member of our family,” said Pop Pop.

Crying happy tears, Pidge got up from her chair and hugged them both.

“Brave girl,” said Wingman. “Smart girl.”

The blue parakeet wolf whistled.

“Pretty lady,” Wingman agreed.

“I think I had best wake our heathen son,” said Pop Pop with a sniffle. “If Marco doesn’t want to go to church, then he can get up and make himself useful around here.”

Pidge knew that this was just an excuse for Lance’s father to leave. He was embarrassed to have cried in front of the women. Maria hugged Pidge again.

“I broke the code before the new year,” Pidge confessed.

Maria smiled, “I told everyone you would.”

“Clever girl,” agreed Wingman.

“It didn’t take long for Lance to figure out what I did. We aren’t very good at keeping secrets from each other.”

“But you are letting him have his fun for twelve days, aren’t you?”

The cockatiel heard “twelve days” and began to whistle the familiar Christmas carol.

“Of course. We agreed that even though I know what he plans to do, I don’t know how he plans to do it. The waiting...the anticipation makes it even more exciting, like when little children count down the days until they get to open their Christmas presents.”

“My Lance cannot keep secrets from his mother either,” Maria said with a gentle smile. “I know that you are the right girl for my son. I know because he has waited so long for you.”

“It’s been a year since we started dating—“ Pidge began.

“Far longer than a year, my dear. He has loved you for many years.”

“Oh, no, he loved Allura before—“

“A school boy’s crush. She is beautiful and brave and kind and as magical as any fairy tale princess. He was under her spell, but that was not love.”

Pidge shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

“Did you know that they were practically forced to go on a date together by their friends? Lance later confessed to me that he didn’t even want to go out with her because he knew even then that he had developed feelings for you. He said it felt like betrayal. The guilt he felt afterwards drove him into a deep depression. He knew he had acted foolishly and almost lost you because of it.”

Pidge’s lips parted and her jaw fell open in surprise. She shook her head. No.

Maria continued, “He was attracted to Allura’s beauty but it was with the raging hormones of a teenage boy who has read too many fantasy stories. He always liked to imagine himself the honorable knight in shining armor who would slay the dragon and marry the princess. That is why he asked her to marry him on the first date. He is a good boy, my Lancito. He knows that sex is a sacred thing between husband and wife. He was trying to honor your princess while satisfying his lust for her.”

Pidge continued to listen in open-mouthed shock.

“I know your princess had her heart broken by that horrible man, Lotor. My son’s kindness to her was a great comfort to her, but she did not love him as more than a friend or as a brother. That is why she let him go, not to break his heart, but to set him free.”

Pidge’s cheeks were tear-streaked as she sat in stunned silence.

“From the moment he returned to us, my son told us of his adventures and of his friends. He admires Shirogane’s leadership and Coran’s kindness. He speaks highly of Keith’s skill as a warrior and as a pilot, and you already know that Hunk is as dear as a brother to him. “

Pidge nodded, still unable to speak, then pressed her lips together.

“He spoke more of you than any other Paladin. He told me of your great courage and determination. He told me of your love of your family and your loyalty to your friends. He told me of your sense of humor and your love of so many of the things that he also enjoys. Most of all he spoke of your intelligence, your sweetness, and your innocence. It took him years to work up the courage to ask you to go on a proper date, and when he finally made you his, he treated you respectfully, didn’t he?”

Read more here...

https://archiveofourown.org/works/28003866/chapters/68599143

#julance #julance2021 #lance mcclain #vld lance #pidge #katie holt #plance #flirtyrobot

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musicanddancingthroughlife · 4 years

Text

Werewolf Stalkers - Shklance

Depression is a bitch yo. Um. So school started again. I have never felt so overwhelmed in my life, so that’s been a blast. But hey! Stories!

Okay, I’m absolutely hoping to do more with this story in the future, but here’s the first little bit.. I’m still working on other projects, too, but I’m taking a few creative writing classes too so I’m having to balance a lot of fanfics with original pieces. But still, if there’s any you guys think I should focus on right now, hit me up! I’d love some direction and actual goals here haha.

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

So here’s the deal. Lance is pretty sure he’s being stalked by a werewolf.

Two werewolves?

Possible. That or it’s one werewolf with multiple personalities, one that’s fairly polite and understanding - considering it’s a large dog in the habit of stalking him almost daily - and one that’s much more demanding of his time, which is just rude. Even worse is that the mutt (mutts?) won’t ever let Lance’s friends see them, so now everyone thinks he’s crazy. Actually, a lot of them have stopped hanging out with him because he’s gotten to be a lot more paranoid than he was, but you really couldn’t blame him for that!!!

Werewolves!!! Like. What about that isn’t crazy??? Why wouldn’t he be paranoid, he’s actually BEING STALKED BY THE SUPERNATURAL!

Anyway, the lack of friends is probably why he was now in this situation.

Although, if Hunk or Pidge were still around, they would say it was mainly due to his own stupidity, but Lance was choosing to ignore that.

Hmmm.

Okay, back to the situation at hand. Lance was sick of it. He was sick of being stalked. He was sick of having no friends and therefore left even more vulnerable to the stupid animals that were following him around all day. Just last week, Lance had exited his apartment complex to find there was a dead deer lying at the front of the property. There was a crowd of people, and officials were already clearing away the mess, so there was no way that Lance could truly prove it was a werewolf, let alone his stalker werewolves. But he knew he saw a furry tail disappearing around the corner, as soon as Lance had seen the mess on the lawn.

And just a couple days ago, Lance had totally been chatting it up with some cute girls, until they had been scared away by a very large dog. Again, that might’ve been a coincidence, but there were too many coincidences to be… coincidence! Ugh, whatever, he didn’t care if Hunk or Pidge thought he was stupid… Okay, so he did. But this was more important! So here he was, lying around in the middle of the woods by himself, waiting for the stupid wolves to approach him again. (And he was pretty sure that there were two. One was definitely bolder and more annoying than the other.)

The night was cold, leaving Lance shivering in the grass of the clearing he had found a few weeks back while hiking. Right around the first time those wolves started following, now that he thinks about it. Damn it, was this a meeting ground for them? Is this where they did all their hunting? Did they somehow know Lance was going to come back, and now they were going to hunt him down and eat him? Fuck, this was a bad idea, he just knew it…

A twig snapped somewhere behind him, and Lance snapped upright. He twisted around so he could see behind himself, but of course, there was nothing. Because now he was living in a goddamn horror movie. Yeah, this was definitely a bad idea. Lance stood and slowly pulled out his phone so he could use the flashlight, hoping for a little more light for the trek back to his car. The light flashed on, and Lance was startled to see that the very clear and distinct wolf sitting in front of him.

“FUCK!” Lance shouted, and scrambled away, yelping again as his foot got caught on something. A sharp pain shot up his ankle and leg, and Lance landed on his ass. Hard. “Shit,” he whimpered, and then he flopped himself flat on his back. Because really, there was no point. If he was gonna get eaten, there was nothing he could do about it now. Even if his ankle wasn’t badly injured, no way he could outrun a wolf. Or the second, smaller wolf that was now whining in Lance’s ear and nuzzling at him. Probably trying to find a clear way to tear out his throat, God.

He squeezed his eyes shut, praying that they would make it quick, he really didn’t want to be stuck there all night dealing with the agony of death, thanks. Except…

They weren’t doing anything? Well, besides the same basic nuzzling. That second wolf was nudging at his face, soft whines and rumbles alternating in Lance’s ear. The first was down at Lance’s feet, licking gently at his throbbing ankle. God, he almost didn’t want to do it, but…

“What are you two doing?” Lance breathed. The wolf at his head huffed, and Lance flinched, but the first wolf took up the low rumbles, and fuck that was nice. The second quickly rejoined. Lance eased his hand up, slowly leaning to touch the smaller wolf. Amazingly, this was allowed. The wolf even lolled his tongue out a little, those rumbles growing louder. Lance laid like that a little longer before he attempted to leverage himself into sitting up again. This jolted his ankle further, causing Lance to cry out. The bigger wolf whined and then carefully levelled himself into a position where he was bracing the injured limb, allowing Lance to move without also moving his leg. The other wolf snaked around to his back, helping to push him forward, until he was able to sit up and they could pile themselves on top of him.

And that’s how Lance found himself sitting there, his ankle still screaming at him if he even tries to move, and two huge wolves crawling all over him. Because apparently this was his life now.

Stupid werewolf stalkers.

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langstforthesoul · 3 years

Text

Langst

Lonely By: Benny Blanco and Justin Bieber

*When the War finally ends and most of Team Voltron has gone their separate ways… Lance stayed back with his family for a few years, going through the rough healing process that he knows everyone else is also facing. He mainly stayed out on the beach, taking in the salty sea air and watching the waves come forth and leave with the growing tide. He missed the team, he missed his friends, he missed… Well he missed Keith too… But he would never admit this out loud, deciding to plaster on a smile and wait for the meet up they have every year at Allura’s statue. They’ll talk about all they’ve been doing, Pidge inventing something new, Hunk and Shiro dealing with Diplomatic missions, Coran helping with New Altea, and Keith.. Keith’s been helping with relief missions along with the Blade, helping planets with supplies and medicine. But what has Lance been doing? Hiding away on his farm claiming that someone has to take care of the wrecked Agriculture.. But really, he’s just a coward who is too scared to step back on a ship.. he does miss it though, the feeling of flying through the air with blue or red, side by side with his friends and long time crush…*

Lance: *walking along the shoreline, he waits to go back to the house that he and his family have been living in getting lost in his own Thoughts. His mind raced on what he would say at the Team get together and just what’s been happening since the war ended* Everybody knows my name… *he looks at the ocean blue, his eyes filled with a longing that no one could explain but himself* But somethin’ ‘bout it still feels strange. *He absentmindedly rubs the marks that will forever remain on his cheeks* Like lookin’ in a mirror, tryna steady yourself and seein’ somebody else…. *his mind flashes to when he had to say goodbye to Allura, the heartbreaking feeling that crashed through the whole team when they realized she was gone. Back to when they all first got on the castle ship and met the Last surviving alteans and suddenly became the ‘saviors’ of the universe.* And everything is not the same now, It feels like our lives have changed. Maybe when I’m older, it’ll all calm down? *he runs a frustrated hand through his hair* But it’s killen’ me now…

*Fast forward to the day before the team get together, Lance stands in his room with a bag packed and ready to go. He knew he’d have to leave soon, get on a ship and fly to New Altea to see his friends and hear about their adventures, or atleast pretend like he’s listening. He knows that he wants to join, feels the jolt of excitement from wanting to ask, to say he’s ready to go back and help… He’s been hyping himself up, but he knows he’ll chicken out, always overthinking and being paranoid and insecure…*

Lance: *he walks to the bathroom to check his appearance once more, fixing his hair for the millionth time* What if you had it all, but nobody to call? *he sighs and leans against the sink, staring down at the porcelain bowl like its the most precious thing in the world* Maybe then, they’d know me… *he loses himself in thought once more, not remembering he was on a schedule* ‘Cause I’ve had everything, but they’re never listening. And that’s just fuckin’ lonely..

Lance’s mom: Leandro! Vamos! You’re going to miss your flight! *She walks up the creaky steps to the bathroom only to see her son lost in thought, staring down at the sink still and sighed* Mijo, it’s time to go… *she spoke softly to not startle him*

Lance: *looks up slowly and smiles at his Mamá* Ok ok, let me grab my stuff and I’ll be out of your hair for the next couple of days. *he joked lightly, walking past her to grab his duffle and went back to peck her on the cheek* I’ll see you when I get back Mamá..

Lance’s Mom: *She pulled her youngest son into a tight hug* Are you going to tell them this time?

Lance: *he tenses up but tries to Laugh it off* Tell them what? What are you talking about?

Lance’s Mom: *She pulls away from the hug and gave him a knowing look* That you want to go back up there, and that you want to help Keith with his missions.

Lance: *He stared at his Mother, shocked that she knew anything about that* How-

Lance’s Mom: I’m your Mamá, and I know my children like the back of my hand. Don’t chicken out this year, Mijo. You’ve been moping around this farm for far too long.

Lance: *He gave a soft smile and pulled his mother back into a tight hug* Are you sure it’s Ok?

Lance’s Mom: Of course! Now, you better hurry before you miss the flight to New Altea. And tell everyone that the McClain family says hi for us.

Lance: *He released the other and quickly pecks her cheek* Gracias Mamá! And I will! *he runs down the stairs, hearing his mother let out a soft laugh as he goes. He runs out the door and to his old beat up jeep (Yes I’m giving Lance a blue Jeep don’t judge me-) and quickly drives to the Garrison*

Lance’s Mom: *She watches her son from the second story window drive off, sadly smiling and praying* I can tell he’s so lonely….

Lance’s Dad: *He finally walks up behind his wife and holds her in his arms* Lonely…

*Lance leaves earth, watching his home planet leave from his view as he felt a mixture of anxiety and excitement pump through him. But as the time passed he felt himself drown in his own thoughts again, questions like ‘What if they don’t need me?’ Or ‘What if Keith doesn’t want me to come..?’*

Lance: *he was by himself in the seating area, no one around to bug him as he drowned in his thoughts* Everybody knows my past now, Like my house was always made of glass… *he stares at the stars as they pass Kerberos* And maybe that's the price you pay for peace and fame at an early age. *he felt memories cloud his mind, thinking back to when clone shiro yelled at him and how he walked out, holding back his tears as he went.* And everybody saw me sick.. *flashes to when everyone pushed him aside and basically ignored him* And it felt like no one gave a shit… *More memories flood through his mind as they grow closer to New Altea. Back to when he would get berated and criticized for every little thing he did* They criticized the things I did as an Idiot kid… *he lets out a shaky sigh while pulling his knees to his chest, trying to shake the feelings of loneliness* What if I had it all, but nobody to call? *he felt the tears beginning to sting his eyes* Maybe then, they’ll know me… *He sat up properly as they entered the planet's atmosphere* Cause I’ve had everything, but no one’s listening. *he wipes his eyes and plasters on his best ‘I’m ok’ smile* And that’s just fucking lonely. *He grabs his bag and begins walking out* I’m so lonely… *steps off the ship and breathes in the crisp air* Lonely…

*When the former blue paladin steps off the ship, he’s talked by two figures, one small and one giant. He knew who was hugging him which made him burst into laughter. Hunk and Pidge both hugged him tight, not letting go until they’re approached by Shiro who pulls Lance into his own tight hug. The older man said his ‘Hello’s’ and the other two were talking about how they missed the Cuban which made his heart swell with a familiar warmth. But what took his breath away was the sight of Keith, the half-galaran stood tall with a very familiar smirk plastered on his face as he strode forward to wrap Lance up in his arms*

Keith: *he held onto Lance longer than the others, nuzzling his face in the crook of the others neck* Hey Sharpshooter..

Lance: *he flushed pink and wrapped his arms around Keith’s neck, breathing in his scent* Hey Samurai-

Pidge: *they Jokingly gags* Alright lovebirds that’s enough!

Hunk: *he elbows Pidge and chuckles* Hey, cut them some slack Pidge. They haven’t seen each other for a few months.

Lance: *he tries to give a quick remark but is stopped but Keith placing a kiss on his neck* Keith, b-buddy?

Keith: *he hums softly in acknowledgement that he’s listening but doesn’t loosen his grip around Lance*

Lance: *he sighs and gives in, letting out a soft laugh and feels a warm smile cross his face* Later, we need to talk..

Keith: *he hums again and loosens his grip some* Ok..

Lance’s Thoughts: I guess I didn’t have anything to worry about..

#spotify #how do i tag #lance mcclain #send help #langst #vld #vld lance #voltron #hunk garret #vld pidge #vld keith #vld shiro #klance #keith kogane #takashi shirogane #pidge holt #pidge using they/them #voltron angst

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dammitadolfnomorecake · 3 years

Text

Once Bitten, Twice Stupid prt 185

185

Having Hunk pick him up, Keith knew things could go terribly wrong. He didn’t like loud noises or crowds at the best of times, and now he was going shopping with guaranteed exposure to both. Leaving Lance a note, he told himself he was being stupid for worrying. This wasn’t his first trip into Garrison, but it was his first trip into Garrison since his accident.

Hunk was happy to help. He didn’t question Keith wearing glasses, or why the headphones covering his ears weren’t playing music. Trying to make him feel at easy, his friend chatted about how things had been at garage, with the parts they’d been waiting on finally coming in. Hunk’s dad had been pretty worried about him, Keith didn’t know he’d made so much of an impression.

Garrison seemed so different now. Maybe because it was blurry, but it also carried a different feel about it. The drive seemed shorter too, less bumpy, though Lance needed to get in touch with the shire about fixing the dip in his driveway. Hunk hitting it a little too hard and making them both lurch. Parking in front of the general store, Keith’s anxiety skyrocketed at the task ahead of him.

“Uh, Keith. Are you okay? If it’s too much, I don’t mind going in”

Glancing to his hands, his nails were a little longer than they should be. Hunk had every right to be concerned

“I’m kind of... freaking out now where here”

Honesty seemed to be the theme of the day

“Man, we can totally take it as slowly as you need”

Was he doing the right thing? Coming here without Lance, he hoped to surprise him in a good way

“I know... Hunk, can I ask you something?”

“Sure thing, man. You can ask me anything”

“Is Lance going to be mad?”

Hunk hummed

“Not the way you think. I think he’ll be shocked he wasn’t here, but I don’t think he’ll be mad. Unless you do something super bad”

Like wolfed out in the middle of the store? He hated the paranoia that he would

“I... um... had a talk with Coran. About this ego thing. He said it’d help to do nice things with Lance... and... um... I guess I’m worried about that. I don’t know how to tell him that I want to do this for him, and that it’ll help my ego, without upsetting him”

“Dude, you’ve always been doing nice things for Lance”

“But I feel like this is using him to calm myself down”

“That’s one way to look at it. The other way to look at is that you both deserve something nice. You guys don’t exactly have a normal life. Not that there’s anything wrong with it, but you know...”

His ego was pleased to hear that he and Lance deserved niceness. Keith still felt guilty

“I don’t want him to think I’m using him”

“Maybe you could tell him? He’d understand”

Lance kept being so understanding that it had to weigh so heavily on his shoulders. The vampire his carer, his stability, and growing their twins. The burden seemed more than unfair

“He’s been too understanding as it is. I just... don’t like feeling like there’s two mes in here. I don’t like the idea of doing something that I know he’ll love, but doing it because it also benefits me”

Hunk patted Keith’s knee

“Bud, you really should tell him. But for now, if you’re going to wolf out, can you please aim for Miss Lee in the bakery department? She’s committed crimes against humanity with her croissants. You could use them for a hammer”

“Sounds about as good as what I’d make...”

“I’ll give you a crash course this afternoon, Bud. It’ll all be okay”

The feeling of this being a horrible mistake grew with Keith’s first breath in the store. He should have worn a mask. Everything was... smelly. The lights seemed way too bright, and his stomach rumbled at the scent of meat department. Not that they really had departments, they just had staff that hovered in certain areas. Retail could only suck as a job. People sucked. His opinion there hadn’t changed much when it came to strangers. Grabbing a trolley, Hunk came to his side

“You okay? We totally don’t have to do this if you aren’t up to it”

Overwhelmed, Keith growled

“What kind of a mate would I be if I can’t provide for my partner?”

Hunk ignoring his growl, staying by his side

“Alright then, we’re going to ignore what happened. Do you have a list?”

Lists were for normal people, they were winging it from here on out

“Not really. I want to get things Lance likes”

Hunk cuffed a hand on his shoulder, gesturing ahead to the rows in front of them as if it was some kind of wonderland

“That I can help you. Just let your best buddy guide you”

Hunk guiding him was an experience. Keith had a hard time keeping his control. The local rumour mill was in overdrive. Lots of busybodies whispering about how since he’d come to town Lance had been seen less and less. Whispers of concern about what kind of person he was hurt. A few had some very unkind things to say about the kind of relationship he was in with Lance. Keith ready to blow a fuse. They knew nothing about him or Lance. Not the true versions of themselves or their relationship. Lance would doing everything he used to be doing if he hadn’t gotten his boyfriend pregnant. He knew his boyfriend missed breakfasts at Sal’s, and normality of running his household as he had. They had no right to be spreading baseless rumours. Unexpectedly, Shiro came to mind. “Patience yields focus”. If he was patient for a little while longer he could focus once they got home.

Shopping the way Lance had driven into him and Shiro, Keith shopped in bulk. Gradually a plan came to mind, but he was going to seriously need Hunk’s help to pull it off. The first meal he’d mostly cooked alone for the both of them was pizza. He’d made a mess of things, yet Lance still complimented him in his own way

“Hunk, I’ve... um... got an idea”

Hunk placed back the bag of onions he’d been staring at

“Shoot away”

“Can you show me how to make pizza from scratch?”

“Pizza? I thought you wanted to spoil Lance?”

Hunk made it sound awful, yet Lance loved cheesy things... He have to save that and use that... cheesy pizza for a cheesy vampire

“I... um... it was one of the first things we made together”

Had this been a cartoon, Hunk would have had love hearts in his eyes

“Oh, bro! I’ve totally got you. We’ll make him the best pizza ever!”

Hunk loved love as much as Lance. He knew he could count on him, but Keith wasn’t sure his own efforts would be up to scratch

“I’m not sure that’s possible”

Hunk snorted at him, picking up another bag of onions to start scrutinising

“Pfft. You’re getting the Hunk crash course. Nothing will go wrong”

As Keith watched the way Hunk stared at the onions, he realised he hadn’t asked the man a very important question

“Hunk, are you okay?”

The bag of onions went back, Hunk picking up another one. Keith wasn’t seeing whatever Hunk was seeing, but he didn’t know the signs or symptoms of a bad onion like Hunk did

“Hmm?”

“I don’t seem to remember a lot of that day... but... I haven’t asked you how you’re going. With... all of this. It’s a lot for anyone”

“You and Lance...”

Keith shook his head. This wasn’t about him and Lance. Hunk and Pidge were humans... he’d been human, but he had a whole other set of skills and years of experience

“That’s not what I’m asking. I know you came to visit me... you and Pidge. I’m sorry I didn’t wake up”

Hunk shifted his weight, free hand coming up to scratch the back of his neck

“Dude, you were in a coma... you have an excuse”

That wasn’t it. He’d failed this hard. A blush in his cheeks as his ego grew annoyed at him

“It’s because of you and Pidge that Shiro escaped and Lance got help. You guys really helped. I know it’s not the same as a fighting a demon, but, um... What I’m trying to say is, it’s okay to not be okay. If you feel like you were useless, you weren’t. Watching on the sidelines is hard. We really would have been screwed without you guys”

Placing the bag of onions in the shopping trolley, Hunk let out a long sigh

“It was rough buddy. Lance tried really har to be okay when we came to visit. But he wasn’t. Then Shiro and Lance weren’t talking. We didn’t want to pick sides, and Lance told us not to, but he was crushed. We felt useless. The two of you were prepared to face a demon. We couldn’t do anything like that”

He’d known it. Being unable to act fucking sucked, but he and Lance couldn’t techno-babble like Hunk and Pidge could. They’d have only hindered things

“You don’t have to. And I don’t want you to. You’re important to me. Both you guys”

“None of got it. You were like... fine. Then next thing you’re in surgery and won’t wake up. We thought we’d lose you forever, Bud”

“Do you hate what I’ve become?”

Hunk shook his head, his eyes watery. Hunk really was sunshine in their lives

“No. No, you’re still you. A bit different but a lot the same. Shiro was really torn up. His arm was a mess, Curtis was in and out of it, but he lost it at the thought of you not waking. He blamed himself. He didn’t exactly help things either. I got it out of Allura, but she says that he said he’d take care of Lance. Like in your place if you didn’t wake up. Not boyfriend’s, but you know, like financially. Lance was pissed”

“If there’s one thing Lance hates, it’s being treated like a damsel in distress”

“We were really worried for him. We didn’t know he didn’t know about your condition and they kicked us out because we upset him”

“He cares too much”

Hunk huffed at him

“Dude, we all care too much. We’re family. You’re our family. And like... we didn’t know what to do if you didn’t wake up. He lost Mami... and I know it’s selfish but I prayed you’d wake up so we wouldn’t lose him too”

Lance would be broken if anything happened to any of them

“It’s not selfish. I would have been wishing for the same thing. He loves you guys. I didn’t get it. How he could love and trust. But he just has a way about him. The people he likes, he really likes. He was probably a nightmare to deal with”

“Man, you have no idea. Pidge upset him by saying she was on his side. We couldn’t even... We let him down”

“Hunk, I’m sure that’s not true”

“He came out to tell us you’d woken up... and he... we were so upset that we didn’t move to comfort him. Allura did what we couldn’t”

You never knew how you were going to react to grief or bad news. Hunk and Pidge weren’t used to it. They hadn’t seen what he had, and Allura had

“She is like a sister to him. Thank you for being there for him”

Never shy of a hug, Hunk wrapped his arms around him, lifting Keith off the ground then setting him back down

“Sorry, man! Was that too much?”

A little. Definitely when people were already talking about him...

“Nah. You sure you got the right bag of onions?”

Hunk took a moment, before looking to the bag

“Oh, yeah. Gotta be careful not to get the ones with a rotten onion”

“How can you tell?”

“If they’re brown, or grey, and squashy, they don’t want to come home with you”

But the onions had skin and the skin was brown?

“Onions are brown?”

“My man, for the sake of our friendship, I’m going to pretend you didn’t just say that”

Keith wrinkled his nose at the bag

“It’s not my fault I don’t know the difference. They smell...”

Hunk didn’t miss a beat

“Yep. They smell delicious with a little bit of olive oil and garlic in a pan”

With three wolves to consider, the shopping trolley ended up overfilled. Matt and Rieva getting minimal treats due to the ongoing saga of the rice. Hunk had helped him find the “self care” part of the isle, Keith grabbing two of each face mask, which sounded more impressive if you didn’t take into account the fact there was only three types to choose from. Hunk also pointed out Lance’s preferred wax for doing his eyebrows, and the hand cream Lance found worked best. With the amount of mating his body wanted to do, Keith stocked up on lube and condoms, then wet wipes for afterwards. After all, Lance didn’t like being crusty. The large half-Samoan a godsend, especially when Keith got caught staring at the meat blood in the bottom of a tray of mince. The blood would probably be worse for Lance than the bags he drank.

Keith hadn’t realised he probably looked weird examining the tray. Yet it wasn’t simply the blood issue that had him staring. He wanted to bury his face in the mince and eat raw, which totally grossed him out. Hunk pulling the tray away from him, giving him such a concerned look that Keith couldn’t not tell him that Coran wanted Lance drinking fresh blood. A little grossed out, but with a truck load of courage, Hunk volunteered his own blood. Lance had drunk his blood before. It’d solve more than one issue... His ego instantly hated the idea. If Lance was to feed off of everyone, it should be him. He was his mate. So turning Hunk down felt both right and wrong at the same time. He hated these conflicted feelings.

Things were going well until they finally reached the queue for the checkout. Having a stranger bump into him, his fingernails turned to claws as he barely kept from body slamming the person down. Realising how close he’d come, Keith was filled with horror. A scratch or a bite and he’d have turned them. Too much rage and he would have mauled them. Who would have stopped him? Hunk? Hunk would be the first casualty after the altercation. His loving ways would have made him blind... or maybe he would have tried to save the victim’s life as Keith tore both of them to shreds... He’d tried so hard to keep his temper. He’d chewed up the inside of his mouth to keep his rage from escaping. The humming of the fluorescent lights above left an unscratchable itch beneath his skin. Fumbling his phone and his wallet out his hoodie, he shoved them both into Hunk’s hands, fleeing before his friend could question if he was okay or not.

Carried by momentum, and the need to be somewhere so many people weren’t, Keith nearly managed to get himself hit as he stepped off the pavement in front of a car that was parking. Darting past them, he didn’t want to be in town in more. He wanted Lance. Too scared of himself to care about the consequences of leaving Hunk behind. He’d been stupid to come to town. To think he would blend in. To think that he had some semblance of control over his ego. Before he knew it, he’d cut through the park in the centre of town, his rushing turning to running. Everyone left him. No one would want to stay with him. Not when he couldn’t control himself.

Lance had spent the better half an hour driving around Garrison in the search for his boyfriend, before he finally found Keith. He’d woken when he’d heard Hunk pull up, the slamming of the passenger door startling out of his sleep. Listening to Keith and Hunk making plans to go shopping, Lance worried for Keith, yet knew if Keith wanted to go he shouldn’t stick his nose in.

Wracking his brains, Lance didn’t know the route Keith too when he’d gone with Matt and Rieva. If Keith was avoiding people, then he wouldn’t be headed to Platt. If anything had gotten too much, he’d want to go where no one went, yet somewhere he knew enough to get home from. Looping through Garrison, Lance hit up all the places they’d visited in their past, each crossed off the list as he cursed himself for his stupidity. People. No people. Hunk had been panicked when he’d called, apologising over and over, Lance sending him to the house to wait with the promise Hunk would call if Keith showed up. Then he remembered. The cemetery. No one was there. And if Keith was feeling down, it was logical, to him at least, he’d go somewhere they’d made good memories to overthink things.

Parking at the front of the cemetery, Keith was sitting sadly on the closest bench. Having to slide out his bronco as he tried to suck his stomach in, it really wasn’t made for a heavily pregnant man to be driving around

“Keith?”

Snapping his head up, tears were running down Keith’s face. In his hands were the pair of glasses Lance had lent him, smashed beyond repair. Going to stand, Keith slumped back down as he let out a sob. Lance’s heart breaking at the sight. He should have just gotten up and stuck his nose in.

Waddling to his boyfriend, Keith looked away, Lance sitting down next to him. No matter how much his little anger loaf was angsting, he wasn’t about to leave Keith to his misery. His boyfriend had terrified him by taking off. He’d been scared to begin with, when Keith hadn’t taken off. He was good at that... but then, so was Lance

“Hey, you”

“What do you want?”

“Me? Oh, just thought I’d come hang out with the other stiffs when I saw this super handsome guy sitting here”

Keith snorted wetly at him. His whole body curling in. Whatever Keith was thinking, he’d well and truly overthought it

“Babe, want to tell me what happened?”

“Why? You already know”

Biting down a sigh, Lance wrapped his arm around Keith, pulling him against him

“Ego or overstimulation?”

Bitterly Keith muttered

“I’m a fucking monster”

“It was your first shopping trip”

“It’s not that! It’s everything! You don’t get it!”

Hurling the broken pair of glasses away, they hit the side of the Bronco. A pretty good throw as far as Lance was concerned

“Then tell me. Hunk said a stranger bumped into you and you freaked out. I’ve spent the last half hour trying to find you”

“You should have left me lost. I’m such a fuck up that it’s not even funny”

This time Lance did sigh

“You are not a fuck up. I know you’re angry right now, but I’m here because I want to be. Tell me what happened?”

Keith huffed as he shoved him off. Getting to his feet, his boyfriend threw his hands up

“What didn’t fucking happen?! I fucked you! I didn’t want to stop fucking you! Coran said that my ego wants to please you! I’m supposed to do nice things for you! I don’t know how to do nice things! Everything feels like I’m fucking using you! I tried to go shopping with Hunk and everyone was rude as fuck! Some fucking arsehole bumped into me and I wanted to tear his fucking throat out! Why don’t you leave me already?! Everyone one else does! What makes you so fucking special?!”

All of it came out as yelled word vomit, Keith trying to get every thought out at once so they were all halted when it came to explanation. How did he untangle this? Keith was mad they had sex? Okay. He could work this out. Keith was feeling what he felt whenever his damn heat hit, or symptoms decided to creep up like the unwanted bastards they were. Keith didn’t like his ego... He knew that. As for people in his personal space, he wasn’t immune to it

“Keith, come sit down”

“Why should I? I wanted to hurt that guy and I don’t even know them!”

Lance looked at “Keith’s Scary Face”. Fangs, yellowing eyes... still handsome and the man he loved. He’d definitely drawn the short straw when it came to scary faces

“You don’t think I haven’t the same? That I welcome people in my space? Someone gets close to you and I want to hurt them. Someone bumps into me and my ego instantly sees them a threat. The fact you didn’t turn, that’s a good sign. It was your first time and you’re not going to get everything perfect on the first try”

“What if I’d lost it? What if hurt Hunk?! You don’t...”

Not this shit again. No. Nope. Noooo. He’d had enough of hearing it. Keith was freaking the fuck out... like he’d never seen Lance freak the fuck out over the same kind of things... His anger loaf needed to be smacked

“I couldn’t possibly get it, could I? I’m well aware. You’ve been repeatedly telling me. The fact you haven’t run off must mean you’re willing to talk, at least with me. Hunk’s at home. You’re making more sense than you think you are, and there’s no one else going to come find us here. Now sit down and start from the start”

Keith scowled at him before sighing heavily and throwing himself back down next to Lance. Taking Keith’s hand in his, he interlaced their fingers so Keith couldn’t go escaping again, his boyfriend shaking his head as he looked to his feet

“I think I’m going crazy”

“Tell me what happened?”

“You. You happened. I felt like I used you yesterday and last night because I was horny and couldn’t calm down. When I rang Coran, he wasn’t much help. He said it’s my ego and it’s probably trying to make it up to you for not spending the moon with you. I know I like doing nice things for you, but he said if I did it’d also help with my ego and I felt like I was using you all over again. I don’t want to do nice things because my ego tells me to. I want to do nice things because I love you”

Lance’s ego damn near swooned. Keith was so sincere in his worry

“Is that why you went to town with Hunk?”

“Coran mentioned that grooming was a thing we could do and I have no idea how to make a face mask or what to do. So I thought I’d get a few things and do some shopping, but it was horrible. Everyone kept whispering about us. The lights were too bright... and there were so many smells”

“Oh, babe. Hey, you can’t help being overwhelmed”

“But... I... I really wanted to do this. And do this right. Hunk helped me out picking things out. Then when that guy bumped into me...”

Lance pulled Keith firmly against him as his boyfriend shook with a fresh wave of tears

“You got scared because of the sudden burst of anger...”

“I don’t know what I was thinking... I’m a monster. I wanted to...”

“Babe. No. Hey. You are not a monster. That was your ego. You couldn’t help it. You should be proud you tried. It took Mami months to coax me into coming places with her. It’s not easy. You see too much. You hear too much. Things smell way too much”

“But you...”

Kissing Keith’s hair, he couldn’t fix this for is boyfriend. He wished like heck he could

“I’ve been a vampire for a very long time. Scents, people, lights, they all still get to me. Especially being pregnant. The paranoia of people staring. People judging. It sucks. It really really sucks. But you know what, they don’t know me. They aren’t my friends so I’m not going to worry about them”

“I hate this. I don’t want to pick fights...”

“I know. Small towns are horrendous when it comes to rumours. And I know you hate what they say as much as I do, but we can work on things to help you get used to everything again”

“We shouldn’t have to. If I’d never had this brain bleed... you wouldn’t have to babysit me”

“Is it still babysitting the person when you love them? Babe, how many times have you told me it’s okay when my heats play up? How many times have we had sex where I’m sorry for forcing my messed up body on you? Every single time you tell me it’s okay. It’s okay that you’re feeling them too. It’s okay to want me. I don’t hate you and I don’t feel used because this is something we’re working through together. Think about all the inappropriate times and places it’s happened. You stood up for me and defended me. You protected me when I couldn’t look after myself. You pushed yourself out of your comfort zone to be with me. Both our egos have issues. You’re not using me. I want to do nice things with you. I want to do things that make you and your ego feel good too. I know you love me and respect me”

Keith raised his head

“You’ve been so tired lately. I felt like I pushed you too much”

If anything Lance was sleeping more because of his pregnancy, not stressing over Keith because he’d been doing that for months now

“I’m tired because I have to get up and pee like 10 times a night. These two seem to think my bladder is their personal trampoline”

“Coran says you need fresh blood... I don’t know if I can give you my blood or if it’s going to hurt the twins”

With how much blood had passed between them, and the biting and the scratching, if anything bad was going to happen to the twins it probably would have happened all ready

“We’ll work something out. You’re taking so much on. Trying to be perfect with everything the first time around. Life doesn’t work like that. I know you’ve been comparing yourself to Matt. Thinking you must be weak because he’s calm, but think about when we first met? Think about how we had to fight to settle both our egos. I’ve been thinking about this just now and I think I’ve worked something out. Coran said to do things to help your ego settle. Matt and Rieva do things too. Rieva takes pride in her appearance and she loves her books. Matt is a tech genius and a tinkerer. That’s probably what they do to soothe theirs. They play on your strengths”

Keith’s head dropped

“What if I don’t have any strengths?”

“You do. You’re kind. You help people. You save lives. But I know you’re not working right now, so maybe you can concentrate on the strength of our feelings for each other? On our family? Vampires don’t take mates, but I already knew I wanted to be with you forever before this. Plus... it’s... kind of nice that you want me, even when I look like this. You make me feel so loved. I just wish you’d see that it’s a two way street. I adore you. You’ve seen me lose it to my ego when you’ve been hurt or threatened. Egos aren’t tameable over night. I know you don’t like taking it slow, but I’ll be right beside you”

“What if I can never go shopping again?”

“You didn’t love it that much in the first place, babe. Never is a strong word. Next time I’ll be with you”

“You can’t always be with me”

“No. But baby steps, babe. I love you. I’m proud to be your boyfriend. That hasn’t changed. This set back, doesn’t change anything. You told me time and time again that I’m not a monster. If you really were a monster, you wouldn’t feel as bad as you do”

Keith chuckled at him

“Have I ever told you how annoying it is that your right most of the time?”

Lance kissed Keith’s hair again. His anger loaf was so sweet

“Yep. You really worry too much. Yes, I’m exhausted, but I’m nervous and terrified too. Every day is a day closer to giving to birth. I’m so scared about being a bad dad, but I know I have the best partner in the world to help me through it. We’ve got time. Let’s not rush it”

“I scared Hunk”

“Maybe, but when we explain and talk things out, he’ll understand. He’s not going to stop being your friend because you’re going through a rough time”

“I got freaked thinking I’d hurt him”

Lance remembered that feeling. He’d never consciously physically harm their friends, yet he could remember every single time he’d scared them

“Tell him that. You helped me be more honest with him and Pidge. You refused to let me give up hope that we’d be friends again after Pidge found out my true nature. You’re my rock. I would love to do things with you. And I love the things we do. I don’t think you know, but I love snuggling into you when we’re watching a movie. We don’t have to be talking. Just having you alive and beside me, it makes me really stupidly happy. You make me happy”

Keith finally moved to hug him properly, raising his head his boyfriend pressed a kiss to his lips. Lance would happily take every single kiss from Keith until they were old and wrinkled... if he got old and wrinkled...

“You make me happy too. I’m sorry about the accident...”

“It was freak thing”

“I feel like I should known the lingering headache wasn’t a good thing”

“You didn’t know. I’ve replayed that over and over in my head. How one incident could nearly take you away. All I can come up with is that you’re not as thick headed as you like people to think”

“At least it’s... um... confirmed I have a brain”

“You have a very nice brain. And a very nice rest of you”

Tentatively, Keith joked back

“You’re not too bad for a corpse”

“And you’re not too bad for a dog”

Keith huffed, ego ruffled

“I’m a wolf”

The more Keith said, the more comfortable he’d be. Lance prepared to start googling good werewolf jokes for the future, but for now he was happy Keith was smiling

“And a very charming one at that. You’re quite beautiful as a wolf in a scary kind of way”

“What do I look like?”

“You’re big and black... and clumsy. You’re a bit like Kosmo, your paws are massive, but you’re still very soft”

“Coran said I came to find when I’d turned”

“You did. You sat outside and cried and cried. You were so clumsy that I thought you were hurt”

“I couldn’t have been that bed”

“Think of Kosmo when he had his thermometer up his butt. He was all stiff legged and looked like he’d never recover”

Keith groaned

“I can’t even be a manly werewolf”

“Nope. Still, you got there. I’ll have to take a photo next time... maybe I can try grooming you too?”

Keith rolled his eyes

“I’m not a dog, babe”

“Excuse you. I’ll have you know I’m an excellent groomer. We can put a bow in your hair... I wonder if they make onesies for wolves...”

Keith frowned with a pout. Lance stealing a kiss. If the Blades didn’t want their agents teased they should have thought about that before assigning them all onesies to wear. The realisation hit him, a giggle escaping. Arching an eyebrow at him, Keith didn’t seem amused

“What?”

“Kolivan. Babe, all these years... Kolivan has been running around in a onesie!”

Personally Lance found it hilarious. Stoic, somewhat scary, straight-laced Kolivan... in a onesie. Covering his mouth, Lance’s giggle turned to laughter. Keith tried to resist the urge, but obviously now the thought was in his head and he couldn’t get it out

“That’s terrible! Babe... noooo”

“It’s still true! Oh my god... I wonder if they know?”

“It’s not a onesie, it’s a suit”

Kolivan in a onesie that looked like a suit... Lance shook with laughter... shit, now he needed to pee. Fanning his face, he tried to suck down a breath

“Time out! Time out... oh god... I have to pee”

“You did it to yourself”

“I know. Okay, I’m sorry, but unless you want me to pee right here, we’re going home”

“You could pee on the side of the road?”

“And I could pee on your foot. You can drive. My car hates me”

“What did it do?”

“It’s too much like effort to get behind the steering wheel... I don’t need something else trying to make me pee”

“So I shouldn’t tell you I wanted to make pizza for dinner? A cheesy pizza for a cheesy vampire”

That was sweet rather than funny. Keith was very sweet to him.

#once bitten twice stupid #oncebittentwicestupid #ashratherose #pregnant lance #mpreg #werewolf keith #vampire lance #klance #laith

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stardust-and-blades · 4 years

Text

Coma

klance drabble 2 from insta: Keith is in a coma from a mission gone wrong and the team is not sure he will make it

pairing: Keith/Lance fandom: Voltron: Legendary Defender

---------

Keith cannot fully remember what happened on the mission. All he can recall in the moments of waking up is him setting up a bomb, getting trapped in said room until Pidge hacked the system, and a flash of light as he neared an escape ship.

He isn’t sure how long he has been out. All he is sure of is when he did come to, his head was wrapped up, cradled by a soft pillow. A blanket is draped over him, scratchy but somewhat warm. There is a quiet beeping in the background, no doubt registering the easy pace of his heartbeat.

He felt like he slept a thousand years. His body is stiff from its stance, his spine aching to move into a different position. Keith tried to move his legs, but the most he can move is his feet. His shoulders even feel like he was strapped to blocks of lead.

Except when his vision merged two into one, he registers he is not alone.

Shiro is on a chair pulled up on the left side of Keith’s bed. His chin is resting against his knuckles, a forgotten book falling off his lap and his white hair in his face.

Hunk is on the opposite side, he too asleep with Pidge on his lap. Pidge’s glasses are slipping off, drool leaking onto his jeans.

And Lance. Dear Lance has Keith’s hand in a death grip, afraid if he lets go keith will too. Becoming an anchor for Keith’s titanic spirit.

He does not know where his mother and Allura are. Keith guesses she stepped away for a second, her blade jacket on a nearby chair. Maybe Allura is checking on his vitals with the doctors since he just woke up.

A little slow from the drugs, he weakly squeezes Lance’s hand.

His voice is raspy when he speaks, a desert without an oasis.

“Lance?”

It has been months since Lance has seen Keith awake. Since they talked, the two giggling underneath the sheets of their shared bed. Since they travelled to a far off planet for a date, lance trading keith that he wasn’t as fast as he used to be now that Lance had Red.

Since the mission the group went on. One that left the team scared shitless as they watched from their lions the enemy ship go up in raging flames. Lance had flown down to the wreckage as soon as it was clear, his heart a hammer in his chest as he flung Red around in a frantic search.

It did not help his fear when he saw the escape pod empty, and for a moment—a black hole of a second—he believed they were too late.

But Red hummed in his head of assurance, her thrum guiding him to floating red armor scratched and bent, but Keith breathing.

But while Keith’s body survived, they weren’t sure his head did. His helmet was extremely damaged, enclaves scattered about and the glass near to shattering. Allura said he was lucky. The doctors skeptical. But the team remained hopeful. Even as days turned to weeks. Weeks into a month, when sure enough six months had gone by since the incident.

The day prior the doctors said there was a 70% chance he would never wake up. They said it was their call to pull the plug or not, slightly intimidated by the death glare Krolia gave them.

Lance is glad they held onto their hope despite the odds, for he almost burst into tears as he met soft violet jewels, Keith looking like hell but nevertheless, alright.

“Holy shit,” he exclaims, rising from his place and immediately checking his body, warm palms cupping his cheeks and combing through his hair. “You’re awake! Oh my god, Keith you’re awake!”

“I know.” Keith rasps, amused. He leans into Lance’s touch, recalling the last time they were like this, Keith was being kissed upon his brow and promising he’d be back in barely an hour.

Keith kisses the inside of Lance’s palm, closing his eyes. Bathing in the attention. But he couldn’t keep them closed for long, for Lance quietly asks him to not go back to sleep.

“Please don’t go back to sleep,” he says, his lids burning. “Please stay a little longer. It has been...it’s been rough.”

Keith stares at him, noting the lines under his eyes. The dark circles. His chapped lips, and how his beautiful glow dimmed into a meek semblance.

Lance isn’t okay, no matter the masks he puts up.

Keith pulls him in, wrapping his arms around his thin frame. Lance nuzzles underneath Keith’s chin, listening to the sweet beat of his heart. It is music to his ears. A symphony compared to the nightmare silence he had been dealing with.

To the day they brought him in, mangled, worn, and as white as death’s bones.

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

“Keith!” Lance dove for Keith as Red opened her mouth. He activated his jetpack, pushing himself to snatch the collar of Keith’s armor.

“Hang on, love. You’re going to be okay.” Lance settled Keith’s limp body gently. He moved his hair away from his eyes, silently hoping those dark lashes would flutter open and tell him the blood sticking to his curls was “just a scratch”.

But when Lance got him to a medical cruiser, all was not sound.

“The impact caused severe trauma to his brain. It has swelled to a significant rate and, at the moment, has affected his brain stem.” The doctor stated, overlooking the medical papers as the group digested the information in the waiting area.

“You say he was in an explosion?”

“Yes. He was meant to be in an escape pod when the bomb detonated.” Pidge explained, hugging herself and avoiding eye contact. “But he was trapped. I had to get him out. I thought he...I thought...”

The doctor switched from technical to sympathy, alert of her distress. “The swelling may go down and he could wake up. There is a chance when he hit it, the helmet took most of the brunt.”

“But?” Lance asked quietly.

The doctor sighed. “But there is also a chance that his reticular activating system—the part of him that alerts and wakes him up—may be too damaged.” He paused. “The fluid is pushing up against his skull. It may even be bleeding. At this rate, there is no telling he will awaken.”

“What do you mean no telling?” Lance snapped. “You’re intergalactic doctors. Don’t you have a way of fixing this?”

“The mind is a sensitive organ. No matter the species, tampering it can be deadly.”

Lance veered to Allura. “Is there anything you can do?” Lance begged. “Anything? You healed me once. Can you heal him too?”

“I...I can try.” Allura said, hesitant. “But Lance...please be prepared in case...in case I can’t. With you, it was your body. With Keith, it’s more fragile.”

When Allura went in and came out, Lance sat down and put his head in his hands. There was nothing to do but wait.

And as time went by, Lance practically became a resident of the hospital Keith was transferred to. He was closely monitored, but every time they would finish tests, every time a doctor would come out of the room, the update remained the same.

Each time Lance would nod, walk in with a book in hand, some flowers, and sit there holding Keith’s hand. He would set up Keith’s favorite flowers in a case, aware he promised some on their next date. He would read to him, hoping if he could give anything, he could give keith an adventure only he can hear, and an escape for Lance.

Yet even as months went by, pages of the books would be spotted with tears. The group would come in every week, but not nearly as much as Lance and Krolia.

Occasionally, if Lance was really struggling, the doctors would give him family status and let him stay the night alongside Krolia. He would always be found on the same side, holding onto Keith’s hand and conked out hunched over the mattress.

Upon awakening, he’d pray to the Gods before he opened his eyes for the hand to be gone and the sleeping beauty alert and dressed, waiting to give Lance a soft smile.

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

On the morning Keith woke up, the doctors suggested pulling the plug.

Lance nearly lost his mind.

“The hell we are giving up on him!” Lance yelled, baring his teeth and shoving his body in front of the doctors as if they were the many galra soldiers they fought. “He still has a chance to pull through.”

The doctor lowered his voice, quietly talking to Lance and the nurse raised her eyebrows, used to Lance’s calm demeanor.

“We understand. But with all the monitoring we have done, he shows no signs of getting better.”

“You said his swelling went down.”

“It did. And that’s good. But with how big the blast was, it...isn’t enough. His scans have been the same for the past six months.”

“He is literally still breathing!”

The doctor bowed his head. “That may be, but while his body lives, his brain could very well be...gone. The probability of him waking up has decreased.” He looked up to krolia, who stood behind Lance, brushing her fingers through her son’s hair.

“You’re his mother, correct?”

“Yes.” She said, keeping her gaze on the sleeping boy.

“It is ultimately up to you on what you believe is best for your son. Whether to keep him here and hope, or...” he glanced at the heart monitor. “To let him go.”

“Krolia, come on. He’s your kid—the one who throws himself in front of danger to protect others. The one who got you out of the bad situation you two were in when you met. The same one who gave you a chance and fought nearly every blade member to prove himself. you know he’s a fighter. You can’t give up on him!”

Krolia said nothing.

“Krolia, please. He can do it. I feel it in my gut. Please.”

She waited a few ticks before answering. When she took in a breath and opened her mouth, he waited for the guillotine to fall or the pardon to be announced.

She was not able to spend the most time with her son. It wasn’t so long ago they reunited. For Krolia to take in she was meeting a fierce man, not the vulnerable baby boy she held in her arms. He had grown up. And she missed it all.

Missed his tiny snores as he slept in his crib while her and his father laid nearby. Missed his first walk, where he waddled to a waiting father coaxing for him to make it. Missed his first words, the earth word “papa” easily coming out of his mouth rather than the sweet sound of him calling for Krolia.

Missed his first day at school. Missed his first birthday. Missed his laughs and smiles. Missed the first time he road a vehicle, even if it was stolen from the garrison. Missed his first fight, his first friend, missed his everything.

Krolia missed so much of his life, and just when she was about to gain a taste of what she was absent from, it was ripped away from her grasp.

Many times she had let go and let the universe make the decisions for her. Allowed obstacles to form. For bridges to burn. For paths to diverge.

But this time she would not stand for it. Would not relinquish her right as a mother. To abandon her beloved boy again, not to the destiny of a paladin, and certainly not to the end card of a fallen warrior.

He was her son. He, like her, would fight tooth and nail to be alive.

The world may give up on him. But Krolia would not.

“Lance is right,” she said, standing. “Regardless of the situation, regardless of the results, my son is not dead. He lives, both mind and body. It may be a percentage, but it is not zero. You will not unplug my son. Not unless he breathes his last breath and the monitor goes straight.”

Lance almost cried from those words.

Almost.

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

“I’m not going anywhere.” Keith says, petting Lance from the top of his head down to his back. “My head hurts, but I’m here. Don’t worry.”

“Please stop being so reckless, it’s bad for my health.” Lance half jokes.

“I was only out for, what, a couple weeks?” He looks around, seemingly searching for a calendar. “How...how long have I been out?”

When Lance tells him, Keith is left speechless. A gaping fish out of water. And each detail Lance went into, the hold on keith tightens. If he wasn’t so scared of losing Keith, he could’ve crushed his ribs.

“Wait, so if I was brain dead according to the doctors, how am I awake?”

Lance shrugs. “I don’t know. One moment you’re almost gone, the next you’re waking me up. I thought I was dreaming.”

“It’s...a miracle. I don’t usually believe in...miracles.” Keith absently began toy with the bandage around him, feeling for anything that could have caused him to defy the odds.

“Maybe it was true loves kiss.”

Keith gave Lance a questioning look, to which he answered back with a mumble.

“What?” Keith doesn’t hear him. Lance is stubborn in answering, prompting Keith to poke his side. “What is it? I just woke up from a coma, no secrets.”

“It’s cheesy.”

“Name one moment Pidge didn’t say we were cheesy.”

Lance purses his lips. “Point taken.”

“So?”

Lance dramatically sighs, burying his face in Keith’s neck. “I used to kiss your forehead before I left. You know, like when we got up in the morning.”

Keith can recall those moments as clear as day, and he melts. And he can also recall, though it is covered in muddy waters and an echoing train station, a hint of someone talking as he dreamed away.

He had no concept of time. No idea he was comatose, stuck in a state between life and death.

He thought he was already awake. Believed based on the vivid sense of crisp hot wind caressing his cheeks, the sweat on his brow, and the overwhelming clutter of his father’s shack. Moments where his mother care by, his friends visited, and he road around on his motorcycle with Lance behind him.

He had no memory of the accident. Of being a paladin, for all that mattered was the days mirroring reality. When you dream, you forget you are in a dream. Convinced you are well. Normal. At peace.

But there were times when he was doing these normal things he heard a voice in the distance. His dream would become background noise. The faces of those he loved blurred and froze, a computer frozen due to an error.

He would close his eyes and listen. Take in the far away voice speaking tales of adventure and woe. Keith would wonder how such a phenomenon could happen. How the disembodied stories sounded so much like his Lance when he was right beside him.

It defied all logic. But he couldn’t help but disregard it, for who spoke to him was sad. He would be slow in his speech; a veil covering the truth with beauty to hide pain. And when the stories ended—when his dreaming began to resume and he fell once again to his injury—something soft kissed his cheek.

His forehead.

His nose.

His lips.

It wasn’t all at once. The kisses would be different, depending on the day. Some days keith went without them, not being aware of their absence until it happened again.

Afterwards there would always be a strange sensation in the back of his mind. Like he had forgotten something. Like he had a mission to complete, even if he wasn’t sure what that mission was.

He had to go home.

But...he was home.

Wasn’t he?

It wasn’t until his surroundings began to fade away did he fight.

Before he was lingering. Convinced the lie before him was reality rather than fantasy.

But then he stopped hearing his friends. Their faces became distorted, their features morphing into blobs than the stark angles and shapes ingrained in his memory. Their conversations became jumbled, a scratch in a CD that kept playing the same verse or skipping three songs all together.

His home lost pieces of its defining features. The bookshelves melted away. The pictures on his walls shattered. The ground beneath his feet no longer was solid, holes popping up from corner to corner.

He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t understand what was happening.

Until he heard two very distinct voices.

Two very important people.

“My son, it is time to wake up. Wake up, my boy. I want to create more memories with you.”

“Keith, please wake up. We promised to see each other again. So I can tell you I love you.”

I love you.

For that, he snapped out of his state of oblivion. His world was crumbling away. What he knew became dust. But as it did, he forced himself to fight the sensation for him to close his eyes. He clawed his way through the ruins of his dreams, refusing to be sucked in my death.

He refused to die.

Somehow—he didn’t know how—he grasped a white ledge. It glowed, beckoning for keith to approach it. To touch it.

The tips of his fingers barely grazed it when he was thrown back into his body, his consciousness gradually returning.

He was numb all over.

But at least he could touch and talk to his Lance. The real Lance.

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

Krolia had been searching all of earth—the entire galaxy—for a way to heal her son. She, a member of the Blade who faced numerous ruthless enemies and an entire space war, was breaking down from the stress.

If she could choose what battle to face, she would rather fight a thousand galra enemies than the potential loss of her child. She would rather feel the cut of a sword or spark of an energy orb than the mental waterfall of suffering from the potential of the hospital bed being empty.

She was determined. In said determination, she enlisted Allura’s help, knowing if anyone could harbor ancient knowledge, it is her.

They just had to find the right planet.

Or the right ripple in space.

“Do you really believe Oriande has the correct plant?”

Allura had her arms crossed, looking straight ahead. But while her posture was tense, her words were strong. “Positive. I don’t want to give false hope, but I know in my heart they have the answer. I’m sure of it.”

“You’ll be on your own. I can’t get in there.”

“I’ve done it once. I can do it again.”

“And if they deny you?”

“They won’t. Even if they did, I would break down their door.” She sealed on her mask, her glowing marks locked away. “Open the hatch, Krolia. I will be back soon.”

Krolia pressed the buttons, watching Allura carefully exit. Before the door closed, Allura gave her a reassuring smile.

“Don’t worry, Krolia. You and your son aren’t alone anymore. I promise to bring him back to you.”

Krolia liked this Altean.

It felt like a millennia before Allura returned. Krolia feared something had happened to the kind woman with pink marks, afraid she would have to deliver a morose message to her father figure.

But just as she was about to push the button to let her out and risk Oriande herself, the door flew open on its own to reveal an unscathed Allura.

An allura with a light pink flower in hand, it’s petals decorated with sunshine orbs and it’s pollen a deep magenta. It’s roots were carefully removed from its home, no sign of wear and tear. Allura’s hands and face was covered in dirt, but smiled through the grime.

“It took some looking, but I found it. There was three left.”

“You have my thanks, princess.” Krolia bowed. “I am in your debt.”

Allura, no longer considering herself a princess, settled a hand on Krolia’s shoulder.

“There is no need for that with me. I am Keith’s friend, and a diplomat. I am not your superior, Krolia.”

She was right. She wasn’t her superior. But she was someone who was helping her son come back to her. To prevent him from entering the land of the dead. Allura does not understand how deep krolia’s appreciation lies.

They arrived back at the hospital later in the day, Pidge’s new technology in tracking, speed, and performance proving to be her best work. They made their way into the room, the group completely conked out by Keith’s bedside. Allura had to sneak her way past Lance, his body taking up most room on his side and making it difficult for Allura to navigate.

Krolia watched out for the doctors, ready to fight them in case they tried stopping her and Allura from their plans.

Allura held the plant in one hand and touched the top of Keith’s head with the other, closing her eyes as she murmured in her altean tongue. Both her and the plant radiated a blue essence, it’s soft hue coursing from her to the unconscious boy. It was almost like a lullaby.

A sound someone could sleep through.

A voice so welcoming, animals and species alike would sit down and listen until their eyes grew heavy.

By the time Allura finished, the plant lost its glow. It’s color sapped dry. The remnant of it ever being alive was the single petal falling from the bulb of the flower.

When Krolia and Allura return to check on his progress, she nearly collapsed in relief to see her son’s violet eyes brimming with life.

“Hey, mom.” He croaked, his throat raspy from being unused.

She smiled. “Welcome back, son.”

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

The rest of Keith’s friends are ecstatic he is no longer in a coma, spending most of the day catching up and giving keith many hugs. By nightfall, they left for home, saying they will visit him the next day when the doctors discharge him.

“Why can’t they let you out now?” Lance asks, the last to be asked to leave. “Your vitals are normal. Can’t you come home?”

“They have to make sure I am 100% okay. They don’t want me going home and then something bad happen.” Keith explains, squeezing Lance’s hand. “Go home and rest.”

Lance looks down at their hands, basking over it no longer being limp and unresponsive.

“Maybe I can convince the nurse to let me stay. Be like, an alarm of sorts.”

“Lance, when was the last time you’ve slept in a bed? Did your skin care routine? Bathe?”

Lance upturns his nose. “Are you saying I STINK?”

Keith chuckles. “No, I’m saying you look just as bad as me.”

“Unlike you, who has been sleeping for months. It’s amazing I didn’t have to slay a dragon and fight through treacherous thorns for you.”

“And you won’t have to.” He motions with his chin. “Go. Sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Lance doesn’t move. His grasp on keith only tightens.

“Lance.”

“Do you need to pee?”

“What?”

“You haven’t gone in awhile. Or eaten. Do you need me to get you food?”

“I—no I’m fine. I ate when you did.”

“Only five bites!” Lance says.

Keith lets out a breath, leaning his head against the pillow and leveling Lance with a soft but worried look.

“I haven’t eaten real food in awhile, it’s going to take time for my system to go back to how it used to. Just like with walking. I promise, I’m okay.”

“You made a promise last time too.” Lance whispers. Yes, Keith remembers the moments before the mission. His chest compresses from it; pained he broke his word.

“What is this really about, Lance?” Keith asks. Lance turns his head away, avoiding eye contact. But Keith reaches out, brushing a thumb against the apples of his cheeks. It is warm. Kind. Not a ghost lingering for too long when Lance couldn’t sleep for a week. Lance thought he would never feel this again.

“Talk to me.”

“It’s nothing...”

“You know, when you’re sad or upset, I noticed your jaw becomes more apparent. A crease develops on your brow, and you force a smile,” Keith comments, causing Lance to bite his lip. “You’re doing that now.”

“I guess that’s why you’re in the Blade. You’re annoyingly observant.”

“It’s a gift.”

Lance gives a small smile, kissing Keith’s palm.

“If I start talking, I won’t be able to stop.”

Keith stares at him. Debating what he should do. Should say. Hating to see him suffer, wondering if all going through Lance’s mind is nightmares and illusions. Dark “what if’s” that would keep him up at night, defying Keith’s desire for him to slumber soundly.

He guesses it wouldn’t hurt for him to ask the nurses to let him stay. He is part of his family.

Keith moves over to the side, patting the space.

“Okay. Talk as much as you want. We have all the time in the world.”

Keith thought he wasn’t going to fall asleep since he had been in a coma for so long.

Him and Lance dozed off in each other’s arms.

#shania writes #klance #keith kogane #lance mcclain #krolia #allura #VLD #voltron #drabble: coma

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quintessenceofdust73 · 4 years

Text

This is from my current WIP:

Lance yawned as the words GAME OVER flashed across the screen. He set down the controller and rubbed his eyes.

“Pidge, it’s your turn,” he said softly. She didn’t answer.

She had been propped up on one elbow to watch him play while reclining on the right side of his narrow bed. When he turned to look at her, he saw that she was now sound asleep, drooling slightly into one of his pillows.

Lance smiled to himself as he turned off the Mercury Gameflux II and put the controllers away. She looked so peaceful he didn’t want to disturb her, and he assumed she was comfortable enough in what she was wearing: form-fitting black leggings and a soft, well worn and much beloved Galaxy Garrison T-shirt that he had outgrown.

Lance shed his jeans, hoping she wouldn’t wake up while he slipped on a pair of pajama pants. For a moment he considered sleeping on the couch, but he knew he was too tall to lie down comfortably there. He also prayed that Hunk was asleep in the next room and wouldn’t ask awkward questions in the morning. There was little chance of that though. Ever since they rented this little Garrison apartment together, Lance hadn’t had any girls over, and of course if he ever did, his nosy roommate would have to know all the details.

He sighed. Loverboy Lance’s reputation was mostly courtesy of the Voltron Show’s propaganda, and both Hunk and Pidge knew it.

There was a particularly good reason for his voluntary celibacy that was unknown to his two closest friends though. It was the one thing he was almost too terrified to admit to himself, and as that frightening thought raced through his sleep-deprived mind, he stared at the living reason for his chastity.

She had left her glasses in his nightstand and her sneakers next to his bed. Her thick, tawny hair was in disarray, and her soft lips were slightly parted as she slumbered.

Lance swallowed. She looked so beautiful in the soft light of his bedroom that he regretted dimming the illuminators.

He held his breath as he carefully sat down on the left side of the bed. There was a moment of panic as the weight of his body shifting about caused the mattress to creak ever so slightly. Thankfully, Pidge didn’t stir. He slipped under the blanket and then made sure she was covered as well. For a long moment he just stared up at the ceiling, listening to the sound of her breathing until his eyelids felt heavy...

😴

💦🌱

So who wants to read more?

@numbah34 I’m tagging you so that you can see the revisions I’ve made. I am looking forward to seeing your artwork for this. 😊💙💚

#plance #pidge #katie holt #lance mcclain #flirtyrobot

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chibi-pix · 4 years

Text

VLD AU - Two Worlds

We’ve seen Pidge and Lance meet in art form, but I decided to finally write it. So! Taking place after Dark Water, in the “keep reading” below, I present to you this 2,250+ word ficlet!

There are no extra illustrations for it, but feel free to check out the first drawing (linked above) that started this AU from me.

Lance heard the others getting up; they were going to leave the room. He then moved to leave, walking off as they left the room. “Oh, Lance.” Shiro’s voice caught his attention. “Good… afternoon?”

“Almost.” Lance chuckled a bit, confirming that it was nearly the afternoon. “Glad to see you feeling better and on your feet.” Surprisingly not wanting to stick around to chat, he walked off, the mental hamster on the wheel going haywire as he thought about Shiro’s explanation to Ulaz. As he walked off, he hardly registered Shiro pointing out that he didn’t stick around long.

Something was out there. And while Lance refused to acknowledge that he was into the lifestyle of cryptid hunting like a certain mullet sporting teen he considered a friend (but constantly denied being very close to; no one understood why, only that Lance was being Lance), he did have a sense of adventure and a thirst for understanding. He lived his life wanting to know and understand more, because understanding made things less frightening and could sometimes lead you on the greatest adventures; it was a never ending cycle that he did love as much as he loved swimming.

Having listened to Shiro and Ulaz talk, Lance knew something had to be in the ocean, something mysterious. From Shiro’s crash to the pilot and his plane both being found on the shore, it was truly a mystery. He had to know for himself. He had to find out what was out there.

As long as it didn’t get to him first and actually be a threat with Shiro’s survival as a fluke.

Lance left for the docks where he kept his boat. While often he would borrow his uncle’s larger boats, with permission of course, his smaller Guardian of the Sea was perfect for little stints on the ocean. And honestly, no one would be surprised if he took off with it; it was damn near impossible to keep him on land when he loved the ocean so much.

He didn’t know where he was going; the team was still working out where Shiro most likely went down at, so they didn’t have the coordinates yet. Well, no matter, he would still go out and search. Lance got far enough out, he couldn’t even see the main island that AARC was established on. Nodding, he activated his anchor and got his diving gear on.

“Okay, everything’s up and running, time to dive.” Lance nodded and went to the back of his boat. He looked down at the water. Somewhere down there, something mysterious lived. There had to be something, right? After all, how did Shiro and his plane come back up the way they did? The damage to the ship, the severance of Shiro’s arm. Nodding, he secured his mask and put his goggles on. Then, with perfect grace, he dove down into the depths.

Lance was what the others liked to call a water baby. Save for very few moments in his life, one mainly being a horror game disguised as a survival game that he played and loved, he had never been afraid of the water, the ocean included. The ocean was so vast, so mysterious, it was strange that people knew more about space, stars, and other planets than they did their own, watery home. It was amazing! And honestly, Lance often dreamed of discovering some of the greatest mysteries the ocean kept hidden for generations. Millennia even.

Lance kept diving, even to where light found it harder and harder to reach. The only real thing helping him see were the small lights on his breathing mask, filtering out breathable oxygen from the water so he didn’t have to carry around a limited oxygen tank. Okay, Shiro described it as a human-like face… and giant… right? He thought. I mean, logically, and even he said it himself, he could have been hallucinating. But… something that big can’t really hide… can it?

But indeed, something that big really could find a way to hide. As Lance was looking around, something was watching him, managing to keep hidden despite not hiding behind anything. Large, wide eyes kept an eye on the small surface dweller, nearly unblinking as they stared curiously. This one swam around, the scent of curiosity coming off of it rather than the scent of fear that the other felt.

This creature slowly drifted up closer to Lance, the human none the wiser to the others’ presence. At least until large, webbed hands came up over him, cupping around him.

Lance was scared. Holy quiznak! He thought, looking around wildly. He started to breathe heavy, hyperventilating in his mask. Okay, Lance, gotta slow your breathing so you don’t screw yourself over. Remember what Hunk would tell you. Deep breath in, name your favourite constellation, slow breath in, name your favourite planet. In, Canis Major, out, Neptune. He nodded as he worked on his breathing, not even realizing was practically hugging himself, his fingers firmly pressed against his arms, until he loosened up. In… out… in… out… He nodded, thankful he could get his breathing under control. Okay, memo to self, tell Hunk I overcame an attack of anxiety because of his helpful tips. Yup.

Lance settled down in what he had guessed to be hands. Large hands that he swore he could sit in the palm of one alone very well. That was frightening. He didn’t know what this thing was planning. He then looked, seeing the hands part some and a giant eye peer in.

Holy quiznaking crow… he thought, his own eyes widening. That’s… that’s definitely big… Then the hands parted more. Sitting on the hands, Lance tried to brace himself as he looked at the creature. That was definitely a humanoid face, but most certainly was not a human. The creature he stared at was staring back. Curious? Evaluating him? Considering him for food? Then the creature tilted their head to the side as a small smile crept onto their face, sharp teeth showing themselves.

Um… what? Lance thought. He then tilted his head to the side, mirroring the being that held him. The creature’s grin grew more, but didn’t seem menacing. It almost seemed… happy? Childish even? Especially as they tilted their head in the other direction. Chuckling, Lance did the same.

The creature made a trilling noise of sorts, the sound almost being melodic. They then moved their hands, using one to gently nudge Lance fully onto the other. With the free hand, they gently poked him, trying to touch his mask.

No, please don’t mess with that. Lance put his hand up to stop the creature, surprised when they did stop. I need it to breathe. He then looked to see the being. Gills. Not only on either side of their neck, but also on their sides, just where, had this been a human, the ribs would be. He moved to look them over more. A mermaid? A giant mermaid? He thought. He then nodded.

Lance pointed to the gills on the mermaid’s neck. He then pointed to his own neck and shook his head; he motioned to the mask. Maybe she, that is a she, right? Anyway, maybe she’ll understand I don’t have gills and this mask helps me breathe down here.

The mermaid made a pleased sound and nodded. Did she actually understand? She then brought her face in close enough, looking Lance over. At first Lance went tense, mentally praying to who or whatever he could think of that this thing wouldn’t eat him. But she didn’t. She examined him closely, even using her free hand to gently touch his side, abdomen, arms, and legs.

Wait… she’s trying to understand me. Lance thought. That’s gotta be it! I wonder if she was the one who Shiro saw… maybe I can ask… but how? Wait! His arm! He then pointed to his right arm before shaking his head. Then the surface. Please, please connect the dots.

The mermaid tilted her head to the side before bouncing Lance up a bit and off her hand. She then swam off, going deeper. Lance was confused. Was it something he… sort of said? Before long, she returned, something of decent size and made of metal in her hands.

The plane’s wing! That’s from Shiro’s plane! He thought, seeing it, swimming to the mermaid’s hand. He then looked up to her and nodded. You were the one who saved him! Man… I wish I could talk to her… maybe… maybe I can talk more? Up top? He then motioned upward to the water’s surface. The mermaid looked up before looking to him again. He motioned to himself and then her, then back up. The mermaid blinked slowly before dropping the wing. Oh, Lance guessed he wasn’t getting that back. Oh well.

Then the mermaid cupped her hands over him again. He felt movement and before he knew it, he was up on the surface, sitting in the mermaid’s hand. He looked to see her looking around to be sure of things before she rose her head. Lance nodded and removed his mask. “Thank you.” The mermaid spoke, but her words weren’t understood. “Um… I don’t understand...” Figures this would happen.

“Oh… sorry, wrong language.”

Holy crow! Perfect English!? Lance was shocked. Okay, okay… let’s… let’s get to know her! “Um… I’m Lance. And… thank you… you were the one who rescued Shiro when his plane went down, right?”

“Plane?” the mermaid asked. “Oh, his sky-ship.” She nodded. “Oh, right, I’m called Pidge.”

Pidge. Cute name. Lance smiled. “And yeah, the sky-ship, we call them planes. The pilot was Shiro. Him being alive… we’re all thankful.”

“He couldn’t breathe. I’ve never seen a surface dweller that close… but… if I decided to look him over more, he would have died...” Pidge admitted. “But then you showed up. You could breathe.”

“Only because of my mask.” Lance held it up. “Without it, I’d drown.” He then grinned. “Wow… this is… this is real. I’m talking to a real live mermaid. Sure, you’re a lot bigger than I thought from stories, but… holy crow...” Pidge then ducked down, her finned ears twitching. Wait… she’s nervous now? He thought.

“Wait, wait, don’t get scared.” he said. “You’ve… never met our kind, huh?”

“I only heard stories...” Pidge mumbled. “The others would be unhappy to find I’ve met with one face to face...”

Stories. Something told Lance that those stories did not paint humans in a good light. Well, human history was not always filled with kindness, especially to the oceans. Thankfully in recent decades, humans did more to help.

“I won’t tell others about you.” Lance said. “I mean, I’d probably swear Keith and Hunk to secrecy...”

“Hunk? Keith?” Pidge lifted her head up again.

“My best friends. Maybe… maybe one day you can meet them; they’re really nice.” Lance said. “But… I won’t tell them until you’re ready to meet them. If you ever want to.” He offered a bright smile. “If you’d like, we can meet up again, talk more.”

“We can… meet again?” Pidge smiled. “I’ve not met a surface dweller… there’s so much I want to learn.”

Lance nodded. “We can definitely meet again.” He then looked around, spotting his boat some meters away. “Um, my boat’s there. Don’t worry, no one’s on it. Can we go there?” Pidge looked. She then moved over to the boat, putting her hand near it so he could step out onto it. “Thanks!” Pidge responded with a happy chirping noise. “Hey, Pidge, you saved Shiro when he went down… by chance, do you know what may have caused his plane to crash?” I mean, it could’ve been a malfunction in the tech or something… but… maybe she saw something, too?

“No, all I know is one day I was hunting… the next thing I know this thing comes down and hits my tail, breaking part of its body off when it hit me.” Pidge explain. That must have been the wing breaking off when it hit her tail. Strong tail. That or the wing was damaged already from the initial crash that the impact just finished the job; that made more sense. “I went to check it, noticing a small creature inside. The scent was that of fear.”

“Understandable; most would be afraid when in a situation of drowning.” Lance admitted. “Even I’d be terrified… and I love the water.”

“You fear drowning… but you go deep down?” Pidge sounded confused.

“Humans are weird like that.” Lance shrugged. He then checked where the sun was. He hadn’t been gone too long, so he could stay longer. He then sat down on his boat, situating himself to watch Pidge more. “Well, I’ve got time before I have to return home. How about we find more to talk about?”

Pidge smiled brightly, her teeth, those very sharp teeth, showing. Oh man, they were a little frightening. But… she was kind. She could have eaten Shiro… eaten him even, but she didn’t. Pidge may have been big, her teeth intimidating… but Lance had a feeling she was very kind and as equally curious as he was. If not more.

“I’d like that.” Pidge declared. “Hmm… I didn’t get much time to examine the one you call Shiro… but are all humans your size?”

Lance smiled before answering. He liked this. Talking to a mermaid? Befriending one?! Yup, he was happy. Sure, he couldn’t… wouldn’t go announcing this to the world, but the situation made him happy.

I hope you guys enjoyed this one. Getting some insight to Lance and Pidge meeting, thoughts, I hope it was good. Well! Until the next installment! Sadly these aren’t in order, but maybe one day I’ll go through and come up with the timeline. No idea. *shrugs* Well! Until next time!

#Pidge #Pidge Gunderson #Katie Holt #Lance #mer!pidge #mer pidge #giant mermaid #giant mermaid pidge #mermaid!pidge #mermaid pidge #giant mermaid au #mermaid au #VLD #Voltron legendary defender #alternate universe #ficlet

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thespacenico · 5 years

Text

“i’m sure if you’re sure”

。·:*:·ﾟ★。·:*:·ﾟ☆

The only explanation for how Keith and Lance found themselves in their current situation, is that the universe really has it out for them.

More specifically, they’re parked on a foreign planet, with no means of outside communication, in a room with a ticking bomb that in two doboshes is going to explode and wipe out half of the planet’s population, Lance and Keith included.

Also, they have absolutely no idea what they’re doing.

“It just had to be us,” Lance grumbles, crouched down beside Keith and jabbing at the schematics displayed by his gauntlet. “We just had to be the ones who got stuck on a planet awaiting impending doom--and of course it had to be a bomb, and of course we had to be the ones who got stuck with it instead of someone like Hunk or Pidge, or even Coran--”

“Lance,” Keith interrupts, jaw clenched as he hunches over the jumbled mess of strange wires and devices, each one looking even more alien than the last as his eyes sweep over them. “Stop complaining about impending doom and help me figure out how to stop said impending doom.”

“I don’t know what you want me to tell you!” Lance cries, shoving the display into his face. “None of this makes any sense!”

Keith scowls, shoving his arm away. “Then make it make sense!”

“That doesn’t even make any sense!”

“Lance,” Keith groans exasperatedly. Another tick goes by. Keith hates ticks, now that he thinks about it. They’re literally just a slow-motion version of seconds and he really doesn’t appreciate them right now when they’re making him feel like he’s moving in slow-motion.

“Well--Keith, I’m trying, okay?” Keith looks up when Lance’s voice wavers a little, startled by the sudden lapse in his usual confident, self-assured veneer. His expression is pinched, eyes darting nervously around the visual display. “This isn’t my thing, I don’t--I have no idea what I’m doing here.”

Keith doesn’t like the way he keeps saying I. As if any part of this scenario is his fault, and his fault only. It’s not like either of them had been expecting to have their lives so directly threatened today.

One hundred thirty ticks. One hundred twenty-nine.

Keith shuts his eyes and lets out a breath. “Alright, look. We’re both scared and frustrated, and--okay, so maybe we don’t have the same expertise that Hunk and Pidge do, but at least we have each other.” His heart skips a beat or two when he opens his eyes to see Lance staring at him, looking a little wide-eyed and--yeah, a little scared. He clears his throat. “We’ll figure this out.”

Lance licks his lip, inhaling deeply and giving a short nod before he exhales. “Okay. Okay, yeah. We can do this.” His gaze returns to the display, brow set with a new determination as he pinches the screen to get a better look. “I think I remember some stuff from when they offered a training session with the bomb squad at the Garrison.”

“Good,” Keith nods. “Just tell me what to do.”

One hundred eight ticks.

Lance chews on his lip as he navigates the schematics, tapping the screen to enlarge one portion. “Okay, uh--there should be a green wire connected to a black box, behind that bundle of red wires.”

Keith locates said green wire, careful not to touch anything as he searches. “Got it.”

“I think you can cut that one.”

Keith glances over at him, blade held at the ready. “You’re sure?”

Lance’s face twists into something uncertain, nose wrinkled slightly and mouth dipping into a frown. “I mean--maybe? I just--Keith, I just don’t know--”

“Lance.” Lance winces, but his eyes flick over to Keith, who levels him with the most sincere gaze he can manage. “I trust you. If you think I should cut it, I’ll cut it. Just say the word.”

One hundred ticks.

Something flickers briefly across Lance’s face, followed by the set of his jaw and one more look over the schematics. He takes a deep breath. “Do it.”

He watches apprehensively as Keith delicately positions the tip of his blade against the specified wire, lips pressed together in concentration. And then, before he can talk himself out of it, he squeezes his eyes shut and cuts it.

Snap.

A single tick goes by. And a second. Nothing happens.

They both let out an enormous breath of relief. Keith hadn’t even noticed Lance’s fingers clamped around his bicep until he’s let go, dropping his head into his hand. “Oh my god,” he breathes. “Can we please never do that again.”

“Next wire,” Keith replies, shifting his weight to sit back on his feet.

Lance groans, but he obediently lifts his head and swipes his fingers back across the display to plan their next step.

It becomes a sort of process, then. Identify a wire, cut the wire, hold their breath while they wait for a tick or two and pray to whatever intergalactic being is out there that they aren’t about to be blown into pieces. Keith’s muscles ache with unreleased tension, and every few ticks he has to reach up to wipe beads of sweat from his forehead. The pressure is suffocating.

“Okay.” Lance is glaring at his screen, one finger hovering over the portion he’s just enlarged. “Okay, I think--it’s just down to these two wires right here.”

Seventy-one ticks.

Keith shuffles over to make room for Lance as he peeks into the fray, comparing Keith’s mess of wires with the schematics. He makes a small noise of frustration, tapping again at the screen. “Which one?” Keith presses.

“I guess--” Lance hesitates. Sixty-seven ticks.

“Lance,” Keith urges again, and Lance runs a hand through his hair.

“Okay, I--that black one right there,” he says, closing out his display and pointing cautiously. “But--god, Keith, if I’m wrong--”

“Trust your instincts,” Keith interrupts, twisting the blade in his hand restlessly. “They’re always right.”

Lance scoffs. “Are they?”

“Yes,” Keith insists, exasperated. “How do you think we got this far?”

“Luck?”

“I’m cutting the black one,” Keith announces, leaning forward to do exactly that.

“Wait!” Lance’s hand shoots back out to clutch at Keith’s arm, his fingers digging almost painfully against his armor. “Are you sure?”

Keith turns his head just enough to lock eyes with Lance, tightening his grip on the hilt of his blade. “I’m sure if you’re sure.”

Lance’s eyes are blue, and searching, and for a moment Keith lets himself be distracted by the way the shades of color seem to shift and morph in the light, until they come together into something certain. Lance bites his lip and nods, once. “I’m sure.”

Sixty-one ticks.

Keith cuts the wire without a second thought.

Lance’s breath hitches and Keith feels every muscle in his body go taut, both of them waiting, waiting, waiting--

Nothing.

They relax.

The timer that’s stopped at exactly sixty ticks flickers, and blinks, and goes blank--and flashes back to life to start counting down from twenty ticks.

“Keith!” Lance shrieks, at the same moment that Keith lets out a string of swear words. “Look what you did!”

“Me?” Keith snaps. “You’re the one who told me to cut it!”

“You told me to trust my instincts!”

“Because I thought they’d be right!”

“Oh my god!” Lance barks out a laugh that sounds borderline hysterical, shooting to his feet and stumbling back a few steps. “That’s it. We’re dead! We’re dead, the Antheans are dead, half the planet is dead--”

Keith pushes himself up to mirror Lance, discarding his blade on the floor. “We don’t have time to panic, Lance--”

“What else is there to do!” Lance cries, arms flailing.

“Lance!”

“Keith, stop,” Lance pleads, voice shrill. “Just--stop saying my name, I can’t deal with that right now--”

“What does me saying your name have to do with anything?”

Ten ticks.

“Because you--it just--it’s stressing me out!”

“That’s what’s stressing you out about this situation?” Keith asks incredulously.

“Keith,” Lance gasps, grabbing his shoulder, eyes wide.

Keith glances over his shoulder at the bomb, the same panic that’s been so evident in Lance’s voice swelling in his chest and rushing into his lungs when his eyes land on the countdown.

Five ticks.

He looks back at Lance, eyes wide, brown curls sticking to his forehead, freckles dancing across his cheeks--

Three, two--

“Lance,” he chokes out, and then takes his face in his hands and surges forward and kisses him.

It’s awkward. Their noses bump, and Lance has to latch onto Keith’s elbows to keep them both from toppling over, and Keith sort of misses his mouth and gets the corner of it instead. But hey, if Keith is going to die today… well. At least he’ll die kissing Lance.

Lance, who is suddenly--kissing back. Lance, who almost immediately parts his lips in answer, tilting his head to fix their angle and moving his jaw in a way that makes Keith’s knees weak. Lance, whose hand is clinging to his shoulder and fingers tangling in his hair to cradle the back of his head and press him closer, closer, closer--Keith’s breath stutters, and Lance sighs into his mouth, and Keith is starting to wonder why the hell it took them this long when they both seem to remember that, hypothetically, neither of them should still be standing right now.

Their movements slow, and at last they break apart but they don’t let go of each other. Lance’s eyes remain closed for another beat, lips pink and swollen, before they open once more and Keith’s heart almost stops at the sight of them. The room is suddenly unbearably quiet, and still, as Keith tries to ground himself.

“It--” his breath catches. He swallows, cheeks burning. “It didn’t go off.”

“Guess not,” Lance responds, voice husky, eyes never leaving Keith’s.

They’re silent, for a moment that seems to stretch out into an eternity in the mere inches of space between them. Keith can’t stand it. He grips the collar of Lance’s armor and tries to breathe.

“Lance,” he whispers, and Lance sighs again and Keith’s heart trips when he drags him back in for another kiss, this one even more searing and desperate than the last like they can’t possibly get close enough to satisfy the aching relief at the fact that they’re both still alive, and here, and together.

The bomb might not have gone off, but Keith can’t help but feel like something did. Because the bomb didn’t go off, but Keith is burning, burningburningburning and hot all over like he’s going up in flames and yet all he wants to bring himself closer to the source of them. He’s sure his heart must still be beating and his muscles probably still ache but all he can feel--all he wants to feel--is Lance.

Lance reciprocates the sentiment, hands cupping the sides of his face and sliding his fingers through his hair, each of them chasing the other every time one of them involuntarily pulls back because their bodies are trying to remind them to breathe.

And when Lance sighs Keith’s name, Keith swears his knees would have completely given out if Lance hadn’t already been there to steady him, because it’s all so overwhelmingly--everything is so--Lance is so overwhelming and Keith is dizzy with relief, and the adrenaline pumping through his veins and the need to be as close as he can.

At some point it becomes less desperate and more careful, each kiss growing softer, movements gentler. Their lips brush together, and Lance’s lashes flutter against his cheek and it sends shivers down Keith’s spine. And instead of chasing, they’re following, until they’ve slowed once more and what’s left is a slow, lingering kiss that Keith does his absolute best to memorize.

They pull apart. They still cling to one another, faces only an inch apart as they stare at one another. Keith realizes, belatedly, just how fast his heart is beating. Lance’s brow creases.

“How the quiznak are we gonna explain this to the team,” he mutters, and the way he says it is so genuinely concerned and out of place that Keith can’t stop the small laugh that bubbles out of his chest.

“I wasn’t thinking that far ahead.”

“Clearly.”

They’re both smiling now, high off the feeling of being alive and together and suddenly Keith has never been so pleased with the outcome of a near-death experience.

Lance blinks, and then clears his throat and drops his hands to Keith’s arms. “We should--we need to get back to our Lions and try to contact the team. And, you know, assure Mr. King of Anthea Dude of his planet’s safety and all that stuff.”

“Oh.” Keith blinks back. He drops his hands to his sides and stumbles back half a step out of Lance’s grasp. “Yeah, that--we should probably do that.”

Lance waits as he bends down to retrieve his blade, sheathing it and pausing to take one last look at the bomb they’d evidently successfully defused before they both start toward the exit. “Also,” Lance starts, and Keith glances over at him. “We’re definitely talking about--that, later.”

Keith feels his face flush and he quickly looks away. “Noted,” he manages.

“Good,” Lance huffs. And then, as if doing it before he can lose his nerve, he grabs Keith’s hand and twists their fingers together, holding on tightly as Keith bites his lip to suppress a smile. “Now let’s get out of here.”

#long post #my writing #klance #hdfhdfskdksfkfsdjfdsjk #voltron #vld #keith #lance

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