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klanced · 1 year ago

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katie your lawyer au tags have me on my knees I never thought guys in suits doing stuff would seem interesting but wow…wow. your mind

Thank u Anon this AU is incredibly indulgent for me.......... ok time 4 more world-building.

I think @heynhay's original idea of Keith & Lance working together at the same firm is best. For both plot reasons but also for my own morale LOL

So everyone works at a fairly large private firm that splits its practice and has some of its associates doing profit-driven law (i.e. corporate or finance) which subsidizes the public interest/service work that the other associates do.

The firm is like "Altea & Daibazaal LLP" or something. Yes I am implying that the firm was started by Alfor and Zarkon. Yes I am implying that Allura and Lotor are nepo babies.

I know I originally said that Keith and Lance were law school rivals but I've changed my mind... (RIP to the law school rivalry dynamics

Instead I'm making it so that Keith and Lance are the same age but Lance has been practicing longer because he went straight into law school after college. Whereas Keith started working after college and got like a Master's degree in Social Work or something before deciding on law school at 26. (I just think Keith is the kind of person who goes to law school later in life.)

Okay onto the specific Klance dynamics... Keith and Lance are both pushing 30 and are also literally lawyers so they are professional and serious about their work... But there is wiggle room for them to still be rivals :p

Lance and Keith are both junior associates at the firm. Lance has seniority because he's been at the firm longer but he's still a year or so away from formally becoming a senior associate.

Lance really, REALLY wants to make partner and he sees Keith as his biggest threat/rival because Keith is Shiro's little brother, and Shiro recently made partner at the firm, so Lance thinks Keith might be a nepo hire. Also some of the senior associates recently left the firm so now Lance is stuck showing Keith the ropes and he's lowkey super bitter about it.

Basically TLDR Lance starts off Not Liking Keith at all for various real or imagined reasons and begins a work rivalry with him. Keith doesn't actually GAF about making partner because he's only planning on working at the firm for a few years to help pay off his student loans, but Lance doesn't know that. However, Keith is a naturally very competitive person, and he also likes having Lance's attention, so Keith immediately goes all in on the rivalry.

Lance, internally: "This Fucking Guy."

Keith, internally: "I am so good at flirting."

The first few months are rough between them. However both are also incredibly productive in their work.

The romcom part of the AU kicks in once the two of them have to start working together on a huge high stakes civil case and they're both like wow.... *twirls hair* he's so competent.............. <3

Anyway misc. things:

TBH I have no idea what kind of law Keith and Lance might private practice... I'm also really torn on what Shiro, Allura, and Hunk would practice hdjsksdhedf

Pidge is hired on a fellowship for either environmental law or data security/privacy law.

Coran does employment law.

Keith went into law school planning on going into public interest/not-for-profit legal aid and swore he would never, ever do corporate law but then he saw his student loans and was like. Hm. Okay maybe some Biglaw is okay. And that's how he ended up at the firm.

Keith:

#lawyer au #voltron #klance #keith #lance #otp: we are a good team #ask #anonymous #katiecanons #the thing is is that like. i want to write them as public interest lawyers soooo bad because that's what i plan on doing.#but the reality is that public interest work is incredibly stressful and depressing and time-consuming #and i genuinely cannot imagine klance having the time/energy to start a relationship if they were both doing civil legal aid #like ngl. i am feeling very discouraged after my first month of law school. i feel very disillusioned by the whole process and the field.#hopefully it's just because i'm stressed and burned out right now and things will become more manageable soon #anyway sorry for not elaborating more on the plot of the au but i have SO much reading left to do

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kaakelymaakely · 17 days ago

Text

do i wanna know

KLANCE FANFIC CHAPTER 2

Monster Hunter! Keith AU

1 WEEK BEFORE

Keith fiddles with the cord of his microphone, twirling it around on his index finger. He gently tugs on the wire as he eyes where it’s connected to the laptop. On the computer screen, the timer blinks back at him– he’s going over his usual time limit. His fans probably won’t mind a longer episode– in fact it’s something they request quite often– but they’re definitely going to mind another story with a dead-end.

He glances out his office window, where the sun has already set. Oregon was a beautiful place, just not for him. Thankfully, his lease would be up soon, so he can go wherever the road takes him next. The only reason he was even in this state was because he was chasing his most recent lead: an apparent ‘Dream Demon’ haunting a group of 12-year-olds.

Which, honestly, really should’ve been his first hint that this ‘demon’ did not exist.

But Keith was starting to get desperate for any content– desperate to prove the existence of literally any monster. So he listened to the kids, pursed his lips and pretended to take them seriously, and rented an apartment in Oregon. He had spent the entire month interviewing, researching, and documenting anything he could find. Only to come up empty handed.

He was practically pulling out his hair when he discovered that this ‘Dream Demon’ was actually a result of these kids watching an R-rated movie, and suffering through nightmares. He had to grit his teeth and force a smile while he explained to their parents how they shouldn’t let their kids pick movies unsupervised. At least they seemed apologetic, and even gave him some hard cash as a compensation for his troubles. He had spent the rest of his time in Oregon trying to twist the tale to at least seem interesting for his listeners. That way they could focus on the fun story, and not the fact Keith failed to find something supernatural. Like always.

At the reminder, he sighed deeply. “Alright, that’s going to do it for this episode. Remember not to believe everything you hear, unless it’s from me. Tune in next month for a particularly interesting episode.” He’s lying straight through his teeth– he has not a single clue what the next episode is going to entail. He has no hot-tips, no leads, no hints, nothing. He’s already scoured the internet for something , only to come up empty-handed. The only cases he can find are ones he’s already chased, or ones that are so blatantly fake.

He clicks off the recording and sinks into his uncomfortable office chair, dragging his hands down the expanse of his face. Keith fights the urge to bang his head into the wooden table until he can’t remember his name and, more importantly, his podcast. Times like this were when he wished he had become something more practical, like a pilot.

He tilts his head back and groans, the sound muffled by the palms of his hands. He waits a few seconds, allowing himself to bask in his stress, before doing what he does best– pushing it deep inside until he can’t feel it anymore. That stress and frustration can be an issue for tomorrow. Tonight, he’ll kick back and relax.

Instead of sparking up a cigarette like his hand twitches to do, he staggers his way into his tiny kitchen, careful not to slip in his socks. He scratches at the waistband of his pajama pants as he bends at the waist, shuffling through his barely-working freezer. Keith peels back a bag of frozen hashbrowns until he can see the tub of ice cream. He pulls it out, and closes the ice chest by knocking it with his hip.

By the time he makes it out of the kitchen, he’s already shoving a heaping spoonful of mint chocolate chip into his mouth before he even reaches the couch. Keith plops himself down, taking another bite, and starts flipping through TV channels until he lands on HGTV.

He’s mindlessly spooning half-melted ice cream into his mouth, commenting on Chip and Joanne’s choice of a color scheme, when he gets the notification. He bites down on the spoon at the sudden buzz. It takes him a second to realize the noise came from his phone, as no one ever texts him. It bothers him less than it should– he just doesn’t have anyone to message.

It probably has to do with work, which instantly sours his mood. He closes the lid to the tub of ice cream and rests his spoon on top, putting it off to the side as he reaches for his phone. Keith curses under his breath as he opens the notification.

It leads him to his podcast’s twitter, a platform he’s never really active on… not that he’s really active on any social media. He really only uses it when it's a necessity, like when his fans are feeding him supernatural rumors.

It takes him a second to navigate to the inbox, but when he does, he’s greeted with an intriguing message.

‘If you're finally looking for something real, check out Altea. Small town, deep woods, and something out there that no one’s been able to explain. Animals disappear. People see things. This isn’t some hoax. Look into it.’

Altea, huh? Keith sat up straighter, rereading the message. Altea… he knew the name. A quiet little town, barely a blip on the map. Not exactly the kind of place that usually made waves, but the wording of the tip sent a thrill through him. ‘Animals disappear.’ and more importantly, ‘People see things.’That sounds right up his alley.

Pulling his laptop back over, he typed in the town’s name. Headlines popped up, most of them old, buried under news about budget meetings and county fairs. But then he found it—rumors stretching back years. Unexplained sightings. Reports from locals that never made it to mainstream media. No concrete answers. No real explanations.

Keith smiles. Guess he’ll be making a little trip.

–

PRESENT DAY

Keith used his dullest kitchen knife to slice the pie into 8 pieces. As the knife breached through the crust, he could finally make out the filling– apple. He smiles to himself.

He plates two of the slices, and brings them back out into the living room, where Lance was openly snooping around, not even tring to hide it. He was shuffling through the coffee table’s drawers when Keith placed his plate in front of him. Lance blinked before a wolfish grin split his face in two. He grabbed his fork with a tight fist and immediately went to work, scarfing down the pie as if he’d never eaten before in his life.

Keith watched, both weirdly amused and disgusted. As for his own slice, he slightly poked at it, watching it wobble back and forth. As much as he’s a fein for sweets– something he loathes to admit, as he does not have weaknesses— he just doesn’t have the stomach for it. He chalks the fuzzy feeling in his abdomen up to simple adrenaline, a result of the possibility to get closer to cracking the case.

Lance is quick to finish his pie slice, even going as far as to hold the plate perpendicular to his face, and licking it clean. Keith awkwardly clears his throat, causing Lance to pause and open his eyes to cast a sidelong glance at him, before finishing one more swipe of his tongue. Keith adverts his eyes, poking his pie once more before putting it off to the side. Keith intertwines his fingers together and rests them on his lap, back to business.

"What does the monster look like?"

Lance swallows, twirling his fork around his fingers. He hums, tapping the fork’s handle against his chin. The movement is the perfection of casual, but Keith sees it for what it is; He wouldn’t be a very good researcher if he couldn’t see through people’s bullshit.

Lance is hesitating.

"Let me see…" Lance drawls, dragging out the words like he’s deep in thought. Then, he smirks. "Short, violet eyes, and a bad mullet."

Keith exhales through his nose, unimpressed. His fingers curl into a fist against his thigh as he fixes Lance with a deadpan stare. "Okay, haha. Real funny. I’m being serious."

Lance grins, clearly proud of himself. He tosses the fork back onto his plate. Keith honestly preferred when he was stuffing pie down his throat—at least then he was quiet.

"I don’t believe that," Keith says flatly.

Lance sighs, dragging a hand through his hair before letting his head fall back against the dusty old couch. The fabric lets out a soft thwump beneath him. He stretches his arms over the backrest, staring at the ceiling like Keith is exhausting him. "Seriously, man. I haven’t seen a monster around here. Trust me, I’d know if there was one."

Keith frowns. He’s trying to force his voice to stay calm and steady, but he’s honestly about to grab Lance by the collar and shake the answers out of him. "Then why have other people claimed to have seen it?"

Lance shrugs, too quick, too dismissive. His eyes flick toward the window, lingering just a second too long. "I dunno. Maybe they’re just bored. Or making stuff up for attention."

Why won’t he look at him?

His gaze narrows. "Lance."

Lance groans dramatically, rubbing a hand over his face. "Keith."

"Fine. You ‘haven’t seen a monster.’" Keith makes air quotes. "You said you'd answer my questions."

Lance shifts in his seat, shoulders drawing up like he’s trying to make himself smaller. His voice is defensive. "I’m trying, dude. It’s just hard when I’ve never seen it!"

His eyes darted to the left. Barely a second. A flicker of movement.

Keith catches it.

"You’re a bad liar."

Lance scoffs, dropping his hand from his face. "I think I’m pretty good."

"Lance. What have you seen? Even if it’s just claw marks. Even if it was just a figure. Give me something. "

Lance exhales, his gaze dropping to his plate. Anywhere but Keith.

"…Nothing worth talking about. Let alone putting in your podcast."

"Not up to you." Keith gestures between them, his voice steady. "I invited you in. I’m eating pie with you. Just give me something. Give me the truth."

Lance’s jaw tightens. His knee bounces, restless energy bleeding through his movements. For a moment, Keith thinks he’s going to get up and leave. But then—

"Truth?" Lance lets out a humorless laugh. He shakes his head, but it’s not playful this time. It’s hollow. "If you knew what was out there, you wouldn’t be so eager to dig it up."

Keith studies him closely. His pulse picks up.

"That sounds a lot like someone who's seen a monster before."

Lance finally levels Keith with a look.

"Yeah," he mutters. "Maybe it does."

Silence settles between them. The only sound is the faint ticking of the old clock above the kitchen sink. Then, almost too quiet to hear—

"It had a lot of fur. Like, a lot. And it was pretty big."

Keith straightens, scrambling to reach for his laptop. He quickly types out what Lance had said, even if his voice recorder was picking everything up. "Where did you see it?"

Lance hesitates, then lifts a hand and points out the window. Keith follows his fingers towards his backyard– the woods.

Keith nods, already typing notes in record time. His heartbeat thuds in his ears. "How close did you get? Did it try to attack you?"

"No!" Lance blurts, then winces. He softens his tone. "I mean—no. It wasn’t hostile, it was friendly. Just looked at me and left."

Keith raises an eyebrow. "Friendly?"

Lance backtracks immediately. "Like—it wasn’t dangerous. It’s never attacked anyone in town. It’s just… living. Same as us."

Keith watches him carefully. "Is that why you didn’t want to tell me?"

His jaw works like he’s chewing over his words, picking them apart before spitting them out. Finally, he exhales through his nose, voice low. "I don’t want some internet weirdo listening to your podcast and coming here to hunt it down. He doesn’t deserve that."

He…?

Keith says nothing.

Lance exhales sharply, shoving his plate away like the sight of it irritates him. "We’re done here."

Keith blinks. "But you never finished—"

"We’re done."

Lance pushes to his feet, enough force to send the couch slightly scraping against the wooden floor. He heads for the door, steps brisk, shoulders tense. His hand hesitates on the doorknob, just for a second. Then, in a softer voice—

"Enjoy the pie, Keith."

The door swings shut behind him.

Keith winces. Did he take it too far? He has a habit of pushing too much. This isn’t the first time he’s made someone upset while interviewing them, and it certainly won’t be the last. In fact, minus Lance storming out, he’s gotten what he asked for. He should be happy.

Staring at his untouched pie, he doesn’t know why he’s not.

–

Keith used his teeth to pick at his thumb’s hangnail, simultaneously tapping his pencil against his notepad, which was filled to the brim with his writing. He’s still mulling over what Lance had said earlier that day. As soon as he had left, and Keith had gotten over his moody brooding, he practically leapt to grab his notebook and write it all down. Even though he had his laptop and voice record documenting the whole exchange, sometimes it was better for his brain to write it by hand.

‘It had a lot of fur. Like, a lot. And it was pretty big.’

As much as Keith loathed to admit it, that could easily be the description of an animal. Even though Altea’s woods aren’t known for its bears, it’s still a high possibility that that’s what Lance had seen. But he had trust that Lance could tell what a bear looked like, and decided that it was not that. And if it were a bear, why would he be so hesitant and reluctant to share? He even openly admitted to wanting to protect it all the same, in case his listeners wanted to spear it down. Or ‘him,’ as Lance had labelled it.

Lance was a good guy.

Keith shakes his head, ridding him of the unwelcome thought. Focus on the monster. Focus on your dwindling career. And do not focus on some… random villager.

Keith tapped his pencil against the page once more, before bringing it up to now tap against his forehead. He reread what he had written– everything Lance had said about that monster, and what his next steps should do. He reread and reread and reread until his eyes strained.

1) Explore the woods himself

He was a bit partial to this idea. Dangerous, but not a bad idea. It’s something he has experience in– searching ‘scary places’ for clues and hints. He usually always turns up empty-handed though, which puts him into a soured mood every single time. If he was going to go though, it’d be best to do it tomorrow, as he was losing daylight. It’s not the smartest idea to be out there late at night yet, just in case there really was a dangerous monster. Or friendly– as Lance had described. He’ll save the late-night expedition for the end of the month, when he has all the information he needs.

2) Go interview more people

His least favorite option. It requires going into town and having to strike up conversations with people, something that Keith is not good at. He’d really like to put that off for as long as possible. Lance was just an anomaly, and even then looked at how that turned out: Lance upset with him, and Keith strangely feeling guilty. But still… if he was going to travel into the forest tomorrow, he’d need to stock up on water and supplies. Maybe he doesn’t need to interrogate people today, but it’s a smart idea to head into town.

3) Track down Lance and apologize

No.

Keith exhales through his nose, shoving his pencil behind his ear. Well, that settles it. Looks like he’s making a visit to the village.

–

Keith is used to being on the receiving end of weird looks. Why wouldn’t he be? He’s a strange man, entering small towns where everyone knows each other, only to interview them all on their towns’ scary ghost stories. And then he leaves. That’s how it’s always been, and that’s how it’ll always be. But of course he’d be the talk of the town.

What he’s not used to is receiving kind smiles and greeting waves. When he stepped foot into the heart of the village, only to discover their strangely positive reactions? Safe to say, it made him stop dead in his tracks. He glared back, and they’d advert their eyes in response. It made him feel shitty, but at least he had them off his back for now. It’ll definitely bite him in the ass when he comes to ask them questions, but that’s a future Keith problem.

Eventually, he stumbles upon the town’s market by complete accident. He squints over the crumbled list in his hand, the one reciting everything he needs, before stalking inside. The bell chimes from above, signalling his entrance, and he winces. The last thing he needs is people noticing him any more.

Looking around, there’s not many people shopping; It’s scarce enough to where he doesn’t need to worry about engaging in social interactions, which is exactly what he wanted.

He goes about the store, grabbing what he needs for his trip. Things like a flashlight with extra batteries, a first aid kit, protein bars, and other necessities. He’s halfway through grabbing a collection of paracord, when he feels a hand on his shoulder. Keith does NOT shriek. He stands and spins around, preparing to deck the lights out of whoever is about to attack him. He stops himself when he just sees a harmless man twirling his mustache, his eyes crinkled with a smile.

“Hello there, my good chap!” the man bursts out with enough volume to make Keith wince. “Or, as the kids would say, my ‘skibidi rizz!’”

Keith awkwardly looks away with a grimace. “I… don’t think you’re using that right.”

The man waves him off dismissively. “I definitely am. But anyways! I just wanted to welcome you into town!”

“Oh. uh. Thanks…?” He’s trying really, really, really hard to play nice. Maybe he could get something out of this interaction, like another clue about this monster.

“So!” the man clasps his hands together. “What can I do you for? Need help with your groceries?”

Keith looks to his list, before looking back to the man. He hadn’t written it down, assuming that this small market wouldn’t have anything like it. But maybe they’d have a motion sensor? The first thought would be a bear trap, but Keith really doesn’t want to hurt any any creature– animal or monster.

“Well,” Keith squints, trying to read his–... “Wait. Where's your name tag?”

“What? Oh, no!” The man laughs as if Keith told a particularly funny joke. “I don’t work here, silly!”

“Ah,” Keith grimaces, but forces a tense smile. “Right… silly me for assuming…”

“It happens to the best of us! Except me, of course. I am, as the youngins would say, “level 10 gyatt!’”

Keith resists the urge to groan, instead pinching the bridge of his nose. “Well, if you excuse me, I need to–”

The man snatches the list straight from Keith’s hands.

“Hey!” Keith growls.

“Ah, looking for some monster hunting gear, are we? Well unfortunately,”The man balls up the paper list and chucks it over his shoulder, wiping his hands clean of it. “they don’t sell any of that here!”

Keith bristles, preparing to rip this man a new one. Who goes about welcoming someone one second, only to toss out their belongings the next? Where the hell does this man get off? Keith opens his mouth to throw all niceties to the wind and shred this guy into pieces, before pausing. “How did you know?”

“That you were monster hunting? Let’s say a little birdie paid me a visit! Right young man, that one is.”

“Lance?” Of course he would.

“Right-o! Darn, you’re good.”

Keith rolls his eyes. “Just let me continue shopping, and I’ll be out of your mustache.”

“Didn’t you hear me? I just said they don’t sell your gear here!”

“I have almost all of those items in my cart right now. I just needed to grab the paracord.”

The man deflates.

Keith continues, “why would you lie? Unless," Keith thinks back to Lance. “...you were protecting the monster, just like lance. Why?”

The man sputters. “Protecting— protecting? The monster? What! You’re crazy! I was just going to say that– I know someone who would give you much better gear! They’d craft it up themself!”

Keith raises an eyebrow, and the man continues. “Seriously! I could take them to you right now! Free of charge!”

Well… admittedly, free gear sounds pretty nice. If it doesn’t work, it’s not like he wasted any money. He can always just come back and buy whatever he needs, just like he originally planned. Not to mention, this would be the perfect opportunity to call out this man on his lie and get answers– he was obviously trying to protect this monster too, no matter what he said afterwards to distract Keith.

“Okay,” Keith finally relents. “Take me to your friend, uh. Who are you?”

With a flourish of his mustache, the man beams. “Coran.”

#voltron #voltron fanfic #klance fanfiction #fanfiction #klance #keith x lance #keith kogane #lance mcclain #voltron coran #originally posted on ao3

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