#the holt monitor and then the echo will help a lot

[pastafossa]

I got my stress test and had the holt monitor put on today! The good news is my weird heart issues don't seem to be triggered solely by physical exertion (heart was still weird and was dizzy on sitting/standing up just like in previous tests, but my heart didn't get MORE weird when my heart rate increased). Which makes sense since half the time I'll literally just be laying in bed falling asleep or sitting at my PC when I feel it go through a little episode, so it's clearly happening ALL the time and not just when moving around. So that rules a few things out! Now I've got the heart monitor on, and I'll wear it for 5 days (meaning it can consistently catch what's going on) and I have to keep a little diary of what I'm doing whenever I have symptoms. It's progress!

[izlaria]

Someone you like (part 4)

This is the fourth chapter of my “Someone you like” inspired fic. It’s also available on AO3 in case you prefer that platform. Please hit me up to talk about Plance!

Summary: In the days following their arrival on Earth, Pidge finds that conflicting feelings don't just disappear because there are more people around. On the contrary, with the approach of the final battle, they seem to get worse.

FYI, we’re still on Pidge pining hour.

18 and 16 years old

Life was not easy when you were a soldier fighting against an evil, intergalactic empire, but Pidge had found a sort of balance to it all. Now that they were back on Earth and she knew her family was relatively safe, much of the sorrow she’d carried had dissolved into hopefulness.

Much, but not all.

Pidge leaned her head against the wall, hugging the papers to her chest. Being on the Garrison made it easier for her to ignore her erratic heartbeats, because she could just avoid Lance most of the time, but it also sent her into overdrive when she accidentally met him in the hallways. She could usually depend on her mother to be there – Pidge was grounded, after all –, but there were times when not even Colleen could protect her.

She wanted to talk to Lance, of course. He was one of her best friends and no crush could ever change that, but it took a lot out of Pidge to hear him drone on about Allura and all the places he wanted to show her on Earth.

Maybe her evasiveness wasn’t the most mature of Pidge’s choices, but she was tired and lovesick and feeling neglected. She would have to be excused a little pettiness.

“Do you want to tell me why I just saw you ignore Lance?” Matt raised his brows at her, an expression that Pidge herself often mimicked and that was especially irritating to be the target of. He was standing off to the side of her station, gloves still on.

Pidge pushed away from the wall, feeling flustered. She hadn’t realized her brother had witnessed the scene.

“Did I ignore Lance?” Pidge opted to feign innocence. “I was so lost in thought I didn’t really see him there. Or you.” This last bit she said with a touch of hostility.

Matt crossed his arms and hummed, sounding disbelieving. “You always were the worst liar out of the two of us, Pidge.”

She shouldered past Matt with a glare. There was a lot of work to do until the Atlas was completed and the last thing she needed were distractions like her feelings for Lance or a fight with her brother.

“When did you land on Earth, anyway?” Pidge put the papers down on her table and moved to one of the computer screens, where she’d left a new code running. It was an improved version of her and Matt’s previous software for predicting Galra presence. “I could use your eyes on this.”

Matt stood at her back, looking over her shoulder at the lines that lit up the computer.

“This is interesting…” He squinted down at Pidge. “Don’t think for a second that a new challenge will make me forget what I just saw.”

She took advantage of Matt’s positioning to elbow him in the gut.

Truthfully, Pidge knew her brother wouldn’t tease her too much about her circumstances. Matt was caring and even protective when it came to her well-being, so he would never rat her out to Lance or any of the others, even if he disagreed with her actions.

Despite that, she struggled with being vulnerable around him.

Pidge didn’t want to think about it, but the years they’d spent apart had certainly affected their relationship. Before going to space, Matt was more than her brother, he had been her closest friend. But now she had Hunk, Lance, and even Keith and Allura. If she needed guidance, Coran and Shiro were only a call away.

She would always be close to Matt, but he was no longer the only person whose company she valued.

“We should finish this up before mom comes around,” Pidge said, trying to refocus. “She comes to collect me at the end of the day.” She rolled her eyes.

“That still going on?” Matt chuckled as he pulled a chair over to her station. He scanned the reports she had just brought in.

“I can’t even go out to eat with the team. We’ve had to meet in the cafeteria, of all places.”

“I’m just glad the cooking staff changed since I was a student.” Matt wrinkled his nose. “That was just nasty.”

“Except for the burgers.” And here Pidge smiled, suddenly reminded of all the times Hunk and Lance had dragged her to lunch and how they always ended up making a mess of their table.

“On Mondays, that’s right!” Matt glanced at her and Pidge couldn’t quite read the look in his eyes. “Until when are you grounded, anyway?”

“Let’s see, I was fifteen when I was whisked into space, so…” She pretended to do the calculations. “Until my twenty-first birthday, unless dad intervenes.”

Matt snorted. “Good luck with that. He doesn’t really have any weight with mom right now. She’s still upset about the whole being-pronounced-dead thing.”

Pidge groaned, burying her face into her hands. “I’ll be going to war in a month, but I still have no freedom here.” She raised her eyes to look at him. “Can’t you talk to mom?”

“And risk my newfound position as the favorite? You’re on your own, kiddo.” He continued to stare down at the papers for a moment, before turning to face her properly. “You know why she’s doing this, right? You spent three years MIA. We thought you were dead.” He exhaled forcefully. “I thought you were dead.”

Pidge didn’t really know how to respond. Since her arrival on Earth, she’d had versions of this conversation with several people, but her brother had always stood back and given her a little space. He probably knew better than most how overwhelming such a welcome could be. “I am sorry, Matt.”

He gave her a tight-lipped smile. “Turnaround is fair play, I guess.”

“Stop.” Pidge put a hand on his arm. She worked her jaw, trying to figure out what to say. “I never wanted you to find out how that felt.”

Matt nodded once, swallowing hard. Pidge could tell that he was putting his emotions back in check.

“I’m proud of what you’ve done, Katie. Mom might act like you’re still a kid, but I was out there before you came along.” It reminded Pidge that, though he hadn’t been present for her battles, Matt had seen his own share of horrors. “Voltron turned the tide, in no small part because of you.”

“Thank you.” She tried to blink away the tears. Matt smiled and brought his hands up to cup her face.

“My little sister is a badass, so I don’t want to see you hiding behind corners because of some stupid boy.” When she tried to protest, he just squished her cheeks. “Who does not deserve you, by the way.”

Pidge couldn’t help but laugh. She could always count on Matt to make her smile through her tears.

“I thought you liked Lance,” she said once Matt had let go of her face. He grimaced.

“He’s eighteen and a flirt.” Her brother didn’t even try to go back to work, he merely kicked his legs up onto a workbench and crossed his arms. “I would feel better about Keith, even.”

“You say that because Shiro would be just as bad of a protective older brother as you.” She pushed at his chair, making Matt almost lose his balance.

“You would never be alone unchaperoned, it would be great,” he confirmed, still pulling himself back into position.

“You realize that I’m technically nineteen?” She aimed a sharp look at him.

“You realize you look twelve?” Matt shot back, looking unbearably satisfied with himself. This time Pidge had no mercy for him; she sent his chair rolling down the aisle and Matt with it.

“Honestly, you have nothing to worry about.” She wrapped an arm around her middle. “Lance is so enamored with Allura that I could yell in his ear that I like him and the goofball would think I meant it platonically.”

Matt wheeled himself back to her. “Then he’s a fool.”

“You’re just saying that,” Pidge scoffed. “You were just as bad as him when meeting Allura.”

“Look, Allura is beautiful, that’s true, but it doesn’t diminish your qualities.” He put a hand on her shoulder, leaning in close so that their voices didn’t echo in the empty laboratory. “You are funny and witty and smarter than anyone in this damn complex. Don’t you dare compare yourself to Allura.”

Pidge dragged her chair until she was resting against Matt’s shoulder.

“It’s sort of inevitable. She’s the one he likes and I have to accept it.” She looked at the computer, where lines of code kept appearing and disappearing. “It’s just hard to be near him. I feel like I’ll do something and everyone will… know.”

“You spent almost a year pretending to be someone else, I think your acting skills are a little better than that.”

“Didn’t you criticize my lying just a few minutes ago?” she deadpanned.

“Well…” Matt gave her a cheeky grin. “I’ve known you your entire life, so I’m a Katie Holt expert.”

“Of course,” she drawled out, rolling her eyes.

Pidge felt her brother put an arm over her shoulder, squeezing her to his side.

“You’re perfect, okay?” he murmured into her hair. “Don’t ever let anyone convince you otherwise.”

She closed her eyes and let herself fall into his embrace. It was something she had missed, even now that the team was back on Earth. Everything had changed since the Kerberos mission and, while a lot of it was good, Pidge couldn’t deny that she wished Matt would stay with them more often.

“Okay.” Her voice trembled, but Matt didn’t mention it, choosing to tighten his hold on her.

“Knock, knock! Anyone in here?” As soon as the voice sounded, Pidge scrambled to hide her face. She got up and pretended to check a different monitor, turning her back to the door. She heard Lance approach their station. “Oh, hey, guys!” Then, seeming to notice the mood of the room. “Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, man.” Matt was the first to recover. Pidge felt him move, probably trying to keep Lance from getting any closer. “We were just discussing some Holt secret coding.” She almost snickered at this, despite the heartbeat that still hammered in her ears. It was the sort of thing that only a non-techie would believe.

“And I thought us McClains were bad with our ropa vieja recipe.” She chanced a look over her shoulder to catch Lance’s smile. He was always at his brightest when talking about his family.

“You needed something, Lance?” Matt was being a bit more brusque than normal, but his expression was thankfully still amenable. Pidge would have hit him if he just started being a jerk to Lance.

“Not really,” the other boy responded. He looked around Matt to smile at Pidge. “I was just hoping to catch up with Pidge before your mother comes around.” He shuddered. “Let me tell you, that’s a scary lady. She could almost beat mami with that I’m-not-mad-just-disappointed face.”

“You tell me?” Matt sighed. “That’s one thing I don’t look forward to when touching down at the Garrison.”

“You wanted to talk to me?” Pidge interrupted before they could keep going. Putting two of the friendliest people she knew in the same room was only a good idea if she had the patience for a long conversation. Which she didn’t.

“Ah, are you done ignoring me, Pidgeon?” Lance cocked his hip to one side, looking too sure of himself for his own good.

“I’m working, Lance, something you should be doing as well.” She pretended to fix her glasses, if only to have something to do.

The boy waved a dismissive hand at her. “I’m done for the day and I know for a fact that you’re just working on pet projects until Colleen comes to get you.” When he tried to lean down towards her, Matt moved to stand between them. Lance hesitated, before letting the strange behavior go. “Matt can keep your mom busy if she shows up, right?”

It was difficult to say no to Lance. He was jovial and charming, in particular when he wasn’t actually trying to impress anyone.

“Can you, Matt?” Pidge found herself asking. Her brother frowned at her with uncertainty.

“If that’s what you want, Pidge,” he yielded, when she didn’t back down.

“Let’s go before you get me in trouble, McClain.” Pidge gave a long-suffering sigh and moved past the two boys, who were saying their goodbyes.

Lance caught up to her at the door, opening it with an exaggerated bow.

She walked briskly down the hallway, but Lance had the advantage of his height. For every two, quick steps Pidge took, he only had to take one long stride.

“In a rush to get away?” There was laughter in his voice.

“You’ve seen how mom gets,” she replied, peaking around corners as they moved. “If she doesn’t know where I am for more than five minutes, she seems to think I’ll jump into a ship and disappear for another four years.”

“As if I had it any better.” He gestured to a hallway Pidge knew led to the analytics department. “I’m just lucky Veronica is the only one in my family with clearance to come into the Garrison.”

Pidge snorted. “I should sic my mom on you and Hunk, to make things even.”

Though she’d spent so much of their time on Earth making up excuses not to see Lance, the conversation between them flowed naturally. He had an easy-going energy that calmed Pidge’s more tense nature. While they were in the castle-ship, he had been able to soothe the worst of her worries, until Pidge could actually have fun, despite the fears that troubled her mind.

She didn’t know what would have become of her in this war, if Lance hadn’t been there.

“On the subject of your family…” Lance sent her an anxious look. “Is everything really alright with your brother?”

Pidge could tell he was actually worried, which sent a wave of affection and pain through her chest. She struggled to keep her expression blank.

“We were just talking about the war.” She allowed apprehension to seep into her tone. “I know he has a role to perform out there, but I wish he could stay longer.”

Lance twisted his mouth to the side, an unhappy expression he often adopted when trying to look empathetic. “What has Matt said about it?”

“He misses home, but he can’t really ignore what’s going on with the rebel forces.” Pidge rubbed at her temple. “If we are actually able to end the war, then things might be different, but for now…” she trailed off.

Communications from all around the universe told them Voltron wasn’t the only force preparing for battle. There were a lot of moving parts to consider, especially with the still unknown variable of whose influence had been affecting the Altean colony.

“I know what you mean. After this is all over, I think I’ll take a long vacation to just enjoy good, old Earth.”

This surprised Pidge, startling her from her previous line of thought.

“What, is the Tailor going to retire?” She knocked Lance lightly on the arm, trying for a playful mood.

“No,” he objected. He bent at the waist to look her in the eye and winked. “You know I can’t deny the rest of the universe the beauty of my presence.”

Pidge pushed his face away. It was easy to pretend to be annoyed at Lance when he insisted on acting like this. He was most dangerous when he was genuine. “Be real, man.”

“I am!” He laughed as he stood upright. “It’s just… We’ve been off-planet for so long, I kinda want some time to spend with my family, maybe travel around. I’ve only ever been to Cuba and the US, can you believe it? I’ve seen more of space than of my own planet.”

“Yeah, me too.” Pidge frowned. She hadn’t thought about the situation in these terms before. “I’ve been to Italy and England, but that’s it.”

“We should come up with a plan, get the others in on it.” Lance shot her a smile.

They had walked all the way to the MFE taxiway and Pidge focused her attention on the aircraft that Ryan Kinkade maneuvered across from them. She didn’t want to think of Lance’s warmth so close to her, nor of the future he described.

It didn’t matter how long she avoided him, Lance always found a way back into her life and into her heart. This awareness was painful, when Pidge knew he would never look at her as more than a best friend or a younger sister.

She felt something hit her cheek and looked up at the sky. Dark clouds gathered over them and soon there was another drop.

“Oh, it’s raining,” Pidge commented offhandedly. By her side, Lance let out a laugh. He sounded so joyful that she couldn’t stop herself from staring.

Lance had opened his arms and raised his face to the rain. It reminded her of something he had said months ago, about the aspects of Earth he missed while in space. She was once again struck by how attracted she was to Lance: his cheerfulness, his stupid humor, the curve of his Adam’s apple and the way his uniform clung to him in the rain.

“I really missed this!” he exclaimed mid-laugh.

Pidge stood still, admiring his delight even as her hands closed to fists at her sides. “Yeah,” she breathed out, “me too.”

--

After they left the mall, there was still some time for Allura to kill before her date and it was decided that she, Romelle and Pidge would stop to grab something to eat. Rizavi and Ina had previous plans, but they encouraged the girls to have some fun together, leaving unsaid that it might be their last chance to do so.

“I cannot emphasize how thankful I am, Pidge.” Allura reached across the table to grab her hand. She and Romelle had insisted on going into a coffeeshop that had recently reopened; the design was minimalist but cozy, a step-up from anything else they’d seen outside downtown.

“And I’ve said it a hundred times already, princess, I don’t mind.” Pidge let her hand go slack in Allura’s, trying not to snap at her friend. While she appreciated the gratitude, the constant touching was starting to grate on her nerves.

“You do mind,” Allura contested, with the kind of serious but diplomatic tone she used when arguing with Garrison officers. “I could see your hesitance when the vendor first offered the trade. None would have denied your right to keep the item.”

Allura pulled back into herself as she spoke. It was strange to see her uncomfortable, since the princess usually kept either a tranquil or a powerful front in the face of adversity. Free from her touch, Pidge suddenly felt bad for not responding more fervently to Allura’s efforts towards a closer bond. In the castle-ship, she had pretended they were simply too different and, on Earth, too busy.

The truth was much less dignified: Allura had seemed like an unapproachable ideal, made solid only to remind Pidge of all that she could not be. She was prim and beautiful and feminine. Once upon a time, before the complexities of her multiple identities, Katie had aspired to this image, to some degree.

“You’re more important to me than a video game.” Pidge tried to be casual with the way she said this, but the knowing glint that shone in Allura’s eyes told her it was unsuccessful. “I’ll have plenty of time to find it again after the war is over.”

“Perhaps you could teach me these games once we are back.” Allura smiled at her, the picture of earnestness. “I was always curious about the time you and the other paladins dedicated to them.”

“It can be pretty frustrating,” Pidge warned, thinking of the hours she’d wasted with Hunk and Lance just to get past some particularly difficult levels.

“I have noticed that you scream a lot while playing,” the other commented thoughtfully, “but that appears to be part of the bonding experience.”

“You can say that again.” She scoffed.

“Why would I say it again?” Allura tilted her head to the side in confusion and Pidge had to disguise her laughter.

“I’m just agreeing with you.” She sometimes forgot that the Alteans weren’t completely used to Earth culture. In the Castle of Lions, the paladins were the ones to adhere to new patterns. Now, Allura and Coran had to slowly learn their customs, like with this date.

“I suppose we did have something similar in Altea,” Allura mused. “Activities like the maze we had in the Castle were quite popular among the youth.” She leaned over the table to speak in a lower voice. “The element of danger was a point of interest, though I couldn’t quite comprehend why.”

“That’s a lie and you know it!” Pidge pointed accusingly at Allura. “You’re almost as bad as Keith with throwing yourself into dangerous situations.”

“Am not!” It was always funny to rile her up like this. Allura was so calm and collected that getting her to sound immature was a reward in itself. The other shook her head and settled back into her seat, straightening her posture. “Oh, I know what you are doing.”

Pidge continued to grin at her. “What am I doing?”

The princess narrowed her eyes at Pidge, but her mouth struggled with a smile. “You and Lance have such a way of getting me to lose my cool.” She tapped a rhythm on the table. “I must admit it is endearing.”

There it was again, the shock of warmth and sadness that had troubled Pidge the entire day. She loved Allura and was even happy for her, but her heart was conflicted by the news of her new-found interest in Lance.

It just seemed so sudden, Pidge hadn’t had the opportunity to prepare herself. Or maybe those two had grown closer in the Garrison, while she tried her best not to see them, and this was simply the outcome of her bad choices.

Pidge was saved from responding by the arrival of Romelle, her arms full of napkins.

“What a bargain!” She proclaimed as the packages fell from her hands and bounced across the tabletop. “They have agreed to serve us their best delicacies in trade of Pidge’s autographs, a video of her endorsement and an appearance once every phoeb for the next five moons!” The blonde beamed down at them. “On that regard, what is an endorsement?”

Allura and Pidge shared a dismayed look over the piles of napkins.

“Surely they do not expect Pidge to autograph all of these.” Allura gave Romelle an hesitant smile, as if her politeness could change the answer they all knew was coming.

Romelle blinked at them. “The cook assured me it was an amazing deal.”

Pidge pinched the bridge of her nose, calling on any patience she could muster. She had nothing against Romelle and the Altean was nice and cheerful most of the time, but her naivete when dealing with human conventions never failed to amaze.

“Oh dear,” Allura fretted. “I should go deal with that.”

“Think you can convince them to give us food without getting me stuck here for the near future?” Pidge teased, to disguise her vexation.

Her friend slid off the booth. “I have reasoned with beings from several galaxies, I cannot fathom a Terran entrepreneur will be more stubborn than certain members of the coalition.” Allura straightened her spine and clasped her hands over her stomach, looking every bit the princess she was. The determination in her expression made Pidge smile.

“I can autograph one pile of napkins and I agree to do a video endorsement, but I’m not changing back into costume.” She turned to look at Romelle, who seemed to be accompanying the conversation with good-humored confusion. There was something almost sly about the look in her eyes. “I’m going into space tomorrow, how was I supposed to come back? Besides, I’m grounded. If mom found out we were finished shopping, she’d already be here to drag me home.”

“I might have been swayed by the delicious smells wafting from the kitchen,” the other admitted in a manner that could pass for sheepish. She eyed the napkins, before picking up a package. “I suppose these are a little excessive.”

Allura sighed. “I will be right back.”

They watched the princess move towards the front of the coffeeshop, where the human owner was talking to another set of customers. Romelle sat down where Allura had previously been.

“Alone at last.” She clapped her hands together and faced Pidge with a seriousness that contrasted with her usual vibrancy.

Pidge narrowed her eyes at Romelle. “I knew you were plotting something.”

The blonde shrugged. “I wanted to talk to you privately and I didn’t think we would get the chance in the Garrison.” She glanced back to where Allura stood waiting for the other customers to leave. “The owner was a darling, but he was a tremendous flirt, so Allura won’t be here any time soon.”

“Do I even have to sign anything?” Pidge rested her chin on her hand.

“He wants a picture with you and the princess and an autograph to hang on the wall, but that’s it.” Romelle winked at her.

“So what do you want?” Pidge tapped a finger against her cheek. She didn’t mean to sound so suspicious, but the girl’s orchestrations made the situation feel a little like a trap.

“To thank you.” The emotion in her voice sounded almost like pity. “For your sacrifice today.”

Pidge groaned. “I already told Allura that the video game wasn’t that much of a loss.”

“I am not talking about the game.” There was a moment of silence, during which Pidge kept very still. “I saw your reaction when we told you about the date. It was only then that I realized: you like pointy chin.”

“What makes you think that?” She raised a brow at Romelle, doing her best to appear natural.

“It makes sense.” Romelle looked up at the sparse decorations that adorned the coffeeshop, her expression pensive. “He’s the one you spend the most time with, after Hunk. I didn’t think you were interested in romance, given your almost complete lack of sentimentality,” and here she made a face at Pidge, “but I suppose we’re all dealing with high emotions right now.”

Pidge didn’t know how to reply. So far, Matt was the only one who had realized her crush on Lance and he’d been thankfully quiet since. The whole day left her feeling off-center, especially with what Romelle now wanted her to confess. Pidge didn’t want to talk about her feelings. She wanted to take her bayard and carve the jealousy and affection and misery right out of her chest.

Romelle took her silence as a sign to go on. “Look, I know we are not close, but you can talk to me.” The expression on her face was so eager that Pidge didn’t immediately protest. “You are… not kind. Not always, at least, but genuine.” Romelle hurried through her words. “Which is more than can be said about others I’ve met since arriving on Earth. And I can see how much you care for Allura, though you hide it beneath your sarcasm and reluctance.”

“Has anyone on Earth given you trouble?” Pidge chose to focus on the subject that was easier to approach. Romelle clearly knew what she was doing, because the blonde gave her a very annoyed look. “The team and I have tried to shield you from the politics of having non-humans around, but it’s not always possible.”

“I grew up worshipping a man who turned out to be harvesting quintessence from the bodies of my family and friends,” Romelle stated coolly. “I can handle the Terrans.”

“Well, this thing has to go both ways.” Pidge leaned back against the booth to gesture forcefully in the other’s direction. “If you want me to talk to you, then you need to talk to me.”

Romelle seemed to consider this, her eyes narrowed. “Fair enough.” She glanced quickly over her shoulder, then leaned forward. “I know we both want what’s best for Allura, but I hope you will be happy, too.”

Her eagerness brought a small smile to Pidge’s lips, even as her chest constricted with the acknowledgement of her feelings.

There were many things in the universe that she valued more than romance: her family, her intellect and ability to continue learning, and now her friends. Pidge would do anything to keep them safe and content, regardless of how she felt about Lance. She would eventually get over him, of this Pidge was sure.

She loved Lance, but she loved herself more.

“I don’t need a boy to be happy, Romelle. I just want this war to be over.”

The blonde nodded at her response. “You have already done so much for me by going against Lotor.” She sighed. “You will always have my loyalty for that.”

Pidge took a moment to study her. Romelle could be energetic and joyful, but she had also suffered more loss than Pidge could really comprehend. She had never believed Matt and her father were dead, even on the early days of the Garrison’s declaration. Hope had moved her forward, but Romelle hadn’t had that privilege.

“Have I ever told you how I became a paladin?” she asked, much to Romelle’s surprise.

“I don’t believe so, no.” The other furrowed her brows in puzzlement. “Are you changing the subject again?”

“I was just thinking that we have more in common than you know.” Pidge lowered her eyes to the tabletop, tracing a series of scratches with the tip of her fingers. “You have met my brother Matt, haven’t you?”

Allura approached as she said this, a tray of food balanced on her hand. “Oh, has Romelle heard of your search for Matt?”

Pidge stood up to help Allura place the coffee without spilling it and grinned at her friend’s enthusiasm. “I was just about to tell her.”

The princess sat down next to Romelle and put her hands to her chest in a show of sympathy. “It is a lovely story, please go on.”

With a laugh, she did.

[maple-writes]

WHG: 13 Heist Part Two

tagging @concealeddarkness13 @onmywaytobe @nightskywriter and @ratracechronicler (let me know if you’d like to change anything!)

(Also: Heads up for swearing in this one)

The party was a lot. People everywhere, music playing loud, more food and drinks than he’d ever seen in one place… It was almost too much to take in. How Rat and Absolon were able to immediately jump into their roles as party-goers, he had no idea, and couldn’t help but be just a little jealous. Soon enough though, he started to loosen up. It had been almost eight years since he’d lived in the capitol, speaking and acting like anyone else on this rooftop, but with a little effort he managed the right mannerisms and intonations. Well, besides the swearing and general prickliness whenever someone said something he didn’t like. Which given the crowd, was quite often.

Those bold enough to ask him to dance anyway though seemed to find it charming. Before long he’d had a handful of invitations to return home for the night and a small collection of phone numbers in his pocket.

He didn’t notice Rat come up to him until she clasped him on the shoulder with a sneaky grin. “I could make some very persistent telemarketers very happy with those.”

Skyler dropped the slips of paper into her hand. “Knock yourself out.”

She pocketed the numbers and disappeared back into the crowd, plucking something shiny from someone’s purse as she went.

The sun had all but set now, lights shining bright on the rooftop and drowning out any hint of stars. Skyler swallowed. It probably wouldn’t be long now. Absolon had spread the word the Indigo placed the tracker, and Jaden looked to be almost done with Skylar’s shock device. Skyler picked up what looked like some kind of overly fancy lemon tart from one of the tables and looked back out at the crowd.

Best bet to land the hovercraft would probably be square in the middle of the dance floor. The string lights didn’t look nearly strong enough to cause much trouble. He took a bite of the tart and squinted up at the darkening sky. Other hovercrafts circled, no doubt monitoring from above. He swallowed. He hadn’t expected so many of them up there, and he didn’t know how fast any one of them might have been, or if any of them carried anything that could down their own hovercraft.

Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Clovis approaching. Neither looked at each other as he stopped beside him and snagged four chocolate covered strawberries.

“Jaden hacked the dog and he’s almost done with Skylar.” Clovis spoke in a whisper.

Skyler pretended to ignore him as he went for another lemon tart. “I want to land in the middle of the dance floor.”

“I’ll let Margot and Logan know.”

He left, passing by the two of them on his way to continue chatting with a group of older ladies on the dance floor, delivering the strawberries to each of them with a friendly smile. Skyler watched for a moment before his eyes wandered to Indigo. She stood up near Snow’s table, laughing with someone he didn’t recognize. Funny. Part of him didn’t realize that she actually knew how to laugh, but he didn’t linger on the thought long. It as probably about time he started to track down Holt anyway.

A shout caught his attention, and Skyler quickly realized he wouldn’t have to look very hard. Holt stood with his hand clenched in a fist as a well dressed man fell to the floor. In seconds, Clovis and Absolon were by his side, ganging up on him for what Holt told them he said about Skylar.

Skyler clenched his teeth in anger, but as much as he also wanted to join in beating the shit out of that asshole, they had to go. He tapped him on the shoulder and turned towards the door. “Lets go.”

He nodded, and the two of them slipped into the stairwell. It wasn’t as fancy as the elevator, but chances were lower anyone would notice their escape, especially not with the full on brawl breaking out on the roof. Their footsteps echoed as they hurried down the stairs, neither daring to speak a word until they’d rushed to where the hovercraft was waiting for them. Just as promised, the door was unlocked and the place was theirs.

Skyler’s heart raced as he led Holt towards their craft and directed them to help slide the door open. He hoped he didn’t notice how much he trembled as he hopped up into the ship, electing not to waste time lowering the ramp.

He turned back to help haul Holt inside before starting to make his way to the front. “We just have to get this craft up in the air and crash that party.”

Holt worked on shutting the door them. “Are you okay? Are you nervous?”

So he had noticed. Skyler paused, and let out a nervous laugh. “I’m the one everyone’s counting on for our escape. It’s hard not to be nervous.” Considering all the ways he alone could get them all killed if he messed anything up. “I’m sorry.”

He decided now wasn’t the best time to reveal he’d never actually pulled off a maneuver as complicated as this one was all on his own and that he was about to break almost every flight rule Volt had ever taught him to follow.

“It makes sense. It’s fine to be nervous.” Holt sounded so sure, and Skyler  couldn’t help but be comforted at least a little bit. Until a booming voice from the mansion came muffled through the walls of the hovercraft. “We probably should get going, though.”

He nodded and slipped into the cockpit. Yesterday he’d gone and adjusted everything for his height, since it turned out that the average capitol pilot was noticeable taller. He took a deep breath and started flipping switches and adjusting settings to power up the hovercraft, muttering the checklist under his breath as he went. It hummed to life, lights glowing on the control panel and flickering on along the outside of the ship. Skyler turned those ones off. Any other day Volt would have had his head for that, but she didn’t have to know he’d flown a hovercraft with no lights at night.

Skyler double checked the system, took a deep breath, threw on the radio headset and brought the hovercraft up and out. It responded wonderfully.

The path was clear as they shot up to the roof of the mansion. Margot and Logan had cleared a spot just big enough to land. Perfect. Ignoring the shaking in his arms, he pushed the control wheel down, dialed back the power in the engines and set it down only a little harder than he would have liked.

Dead ahead through the windshield, a video of Snow put together to make him out to be a fool played, and the president in question couldn’t do much but glare as Skylar and the rest of them ran towards the open door of the hovercraft.

The mutt bounded towards him at the head table, and Skyler could see Indigo duck her head just in time for it to leap, clearing her back and slamming fangs-first into President Snow. He crumpled and his staff rushing to his side as soon as Absolon called the dog back. Indigo barely hid her laughter, twisting around in her chair to face the hovercraft. She met his eyes through the windshield with an expression that almost looked like pride.

“Clear!”

Someone called out from the back and Skyler wasted no time ramping up the thrust to the engines and sending the hovercraft shooting up, scattering anything not bolted down to the rooftop in it’s wake.

“Unknown Hovercraft, land immediately.”

He turned around and pressed the button to respond. “This is Unknown Hovercraft. Go fuck yourself.”

Volt would not have been happy with that radio call.

“Unknown Hovercraft I repeat: land immediately or you will be shot down.”

So those other crafts were weaponized after all. “This is Unknown Hovercraft. I repeat: go fuck yourself.”

He gripped the controls and pushed, sending the hovercraft into a drop, plummeting between buildings and stopping a just short of the roads below before flying forwards, darting down any street wide enough to accommodate them as he put distance between their hovercraft and the president’s mansion. This low to the ground it wasn’t likely they’d show up on radar, and with all exterior lights off they could hide between the buildings like a bird through the trees.

Skyler swallowed. If he managed not to crash straight into a building anyway. He probably should have told everyone in the back to put on seat belts or hold on until they got out of the city, but they’d probably figured that out by now.

Every muscle in his body tensed as he ducked through unfamiliar streets. Ground warnings blared through the cockpit, the warning light flashing only half as quickly as his heartbeat. If it weren’t for the threat of being found he would have slowed down, but they couldn’t get caught or it was all over. Every time a dark shape moved above them in the corner of his eye he darted into another street, more than once coming painfully close to clipping glass windows, close enough to see people staring at the hovercraft with disbelief. His arms shook and his knuckles went white the further out they went, buildings getting lower and lower further form the city center, forcing the craft nearer and nearer to the ground.

He dropped to just barely a metre between the roads and the bottom of the hovercraft. Houses and streetlights flew by on either side of the cockpit window, almost eye level with citizens rushing out of his way in shock. More warnings and more cautions joined the constant scream of the ground warning. Skyler could only imagine what the rest of them in the back must be thinking.

Hopefully they weren’t looking out the windows.

If he didn’t crash before they got out of the capitol Volt was going to kill him herself if she found out he’d flown so low, weaving in and out of increasingly narrow streets. But they were close now, closer with every second to the edge of the city with only the mountains between them and freedom.

What if that’s where they were waiting for them? Right along that mountain ridge. Skyler dared a quick glance up at the dark slopes. He’d be vulnerable, climbing to go over them, easy to see. Easy to shoot down without worrying about carnage landing on any important part of the city.

He veered down a bigger street until it met the train tracks. He pointed the craft towards the tunnel through the mountains and sped along the straight path towards the mouth. The train left for Robin’s district only yesterday. It wouldn’t be back to the capitol for at least a couple days.

Skyler guided the hovercraft straight into the middle of the tunnel. Everything went dark besides the glow of the instrument panel. He didn’t dare look away from the indicators. The tunnel was long, it was narrow, but it was perfectly straight. If he could keep it level, keep it from even the smallest roll left or right, they’d be out in the longest few seconds of his life.

The hovercraft shot out of the tunnel and he immediately pulled into a sharp climb. As soon as he was high enough, he accelerated as fast is it would go. The engines roared to life with the sudden increase in power before settling into an efficient hum. Trees and terrain turned to a blur as the lights grew weaker and weaker behind them.

Slowly, Skyler leaned back in his seat. Tension eased from his shoulders, and his grip on the control column relaxed. No sign of pursuit. No warnings or beeping from the control panel. No threats through the radio.

Stars started to show in the night sky, no longer smothered by the capitol’s lights. They swam in Skyler’s vision as tears welled up in his eyes, sliding hot down his cheeks. He rubbed his face with the cuff of his sleeve. The capitol, the hunger games, everything was behind them now. It didn’t feel real.

But the cheers in the hovercraft behind him were 100% real. So were the jeers towards the capitol and tired laughter. Finally out of danger, Skyler reached for the PA mic and turned it on.

“Is everyone here?” Hopefully they were because he was reluctant to turn around and go back. Probably should have asked that before they left the roof. Oops.

Absolon responded, shouted through the cabin. “Yes, everyone’s here. Thanks”

Skyler grinned. “Glad everyone got on! I was worried I would leave someone behind, but when I heard the doors close, I took off.” He laughed, probably too close to the audio receiver as he held it to his face. “Good job on a successful heist, everyone!

It sounded like Skylar said something in protest, but it quickly broke down to tears. In the back he could hear the others doing their best to comfort them, sharing stories, until they started to sound a little less upset.

“So,” he leaned into the receiver again. “when can I come back there and slap Skylar?”

They laughed, and Skyler smiled. The all of them must have moved a little closer to the flight deck, and he could hear what they were saying better now.

“…what about all of our families?”

This time he just twisted around in his seat and raised his voice instead of going for the intercom. “I’m going to be heading to everyone’s places to get family and friends.” He glanced back through the windshield. All clear. “I just need to stop and get Volt first, since she’ll help me pilot the hovercraft.” By the time they got into the districts he would be well in need of a relief pilot.

The others kept talking, but Skyler slowly tuned them out as he turned back around. This was the closest he’d really been alone since the arena. He glanced down at the map display. Still a decent ways to go to district 8. He yawned, for the first time realizing just how tired he was after all that. After barely sleeping in the capitol, sleeping even less in the arena, getting through the party and completing the most stressful flight of his life. He wouldn’t blame the others for taking the chance to get some rest before they landed, but he would have to wait until Volt could take over.

Skyler stretched his legs out as far as they would go without bumping the controls. Maybe he’d ask Absolon to sit with him later to keep him awake, since it didn’t look like he’d be able to sleep for at least a couple weeks anyway.

[bitchinlyras]

hi!! jake/amy + 44? btw i'm a huge fan of your writing!

ahhh thank you! now this is an idea i’ve had for a while and this prompt is perfect for it.

44. “If you die, I’m gonna kill you.” set during florida. what if amy hadn’t gotten to jake and jimmy figgis in time??

Amy hears the gunshots as she’s running for him, gun in hand, and it’s as if her blood both boils and freezes as she desperately pushes down the unburdened thoughts of what the gunshots could mean.

She stops at the corner of the building, her gun poised, and peeks round the corner, and her breath gets caught in her throat.

Someone. Someone on the ground.

Jake. Jake lying on the ground. No one else to be seen.

She rushes over to him, falling to her knees. He’s been shot just below his collar bone; the bullet has gone all the way through and blood is pooling out fast, his eyes rolling back in his head.

“Jake,” she sobs, hand over mouth. She quickly takes off her own vest and shirt, and presses her shirt to the bullet wound, to stem the bleeding. She carefully lifts his head up, and wraps the shirt around so it presses against the exit wound too. She lets him down gently, and presses against the wound with her hand.

Her chest heaving as she tries to suppress her sobs, she fumbles with her phone, dialling 911. Not far off she hears a crash and a screech of tyres followed by some shouting.

“911 what’s your emergency?” Comes the operator’s voice.

“Uh, a police officer’s been shot, just below his collar bone. It’s gone all the way through so he’s bleeding out fast.” Amy says so quickly that her words tumble over one another. 

“When did this happen?”

“Less than two minutes ago.” She can feel her heart beating in her chest so fast it feels as if it’ll explode.

“And where are you?”

“Coral Palms, The Fun Zone.” Jake’s blood has soaked her shirt, and she can feel his warm blood on her hands. She squeezes her eyes shut and pretends this isn’t happening. She wills it to stop happening.

“We’re sending an ambulance and dispatch out right now. Do you know if the person who shot him has been disarmed?”

“No, I, I don’t know,” Amy stammers, “can you come quick he’s gonna bleed out.” She can’t keep the panic out of her voice.

“We’ll be with you within three minutes, ma’am, okay? Just keep pressure on the wounds.”

“I am, I am,” Amy tells her, her voice strained.

There’s a pause. “I’m going to hang up now ma’am, is that okay?”

“Uhh, I guess,” she says unsurely. “I mean there’s nothing else you can do.”

“I’m sorry, ma’am, just stay calm and keep that pressure on until help arrives.”

“Thanks,” Amy murmurs and the woman hangs up, the dial tone beeping rudely.

“C’mon, Jake, just hold on,” she whispers, pressing both hands to the wound, “just two more minutes.”

“Amy?!” It’s Rosa running towards her. “What happened?” She asks, crouching down next to Amy.

“I don’t, I don’t know, I just… he was just like this.”

“Have you called-”

“Yeah, they’re on their way.”

Suddenly Gina comes running from the parking lot. “We got him! We got Figgis!” She’s shouting, and before Amy knows what she’s doing, before she can process the scream Gina lets out at the sight of Jake, she’s telling Rosa to put pressure on Jake’s wound and she’s running, gun in hand, the wind cool against her bare arms. 

Holt has Figgis handcuffed against a wrecked car, sirens echo in the distance, blue and red lights coupling them.

“Figgis,” Amy spits, her blood hot and every inch of her on fire. Holt jumps out of the way and she shoves Figgis against the car, pressing her gun to his neck. Holt protests, but it’s as of he’s far away, and she shake’s off his attempts to pull her away.

Figgis smiles, a wry laugh escaping his lips. “How’s your boy?” He teases.

She pushes the barrel of the gun further into him. “If he dies,” she whispers, her face inches from Figgis, “I’m gonna fucking kill you.”

“I’d like to see you try,” he snarls.

She turns the safety off, digging extra hard into his neck. “Don’t you fucking test me.”

Next thing she knows arms are grabbing her and voices are yelling. They pull her away from him but not before she has the chance to kick Figgis in the balls.

It takes her a moment to realise she’s surrounded by cop cars and ambulances, and people rushing in all directions. Rosa is leading her somewhere and saying words that Amy’s not processing.

“This is Jake’s ambulance,” Rosa says as they reach one of the far ambulances, “we’ll meet you at the hospital, okay?”

She leaves Amy standing cluelessly in front of the ambulance. “Are you Jake Peralta’s wife?” The paramedic asks her.

“I, uh, I’m his… Yeah, I am,” Amy stutters, grabbing the arm offered out to help pull her up into the back of the ambulance.

The doors are pulled shut and they drive off quickly. Jake is lying on the stretcher, connected up to a heart monitor beeping too slow for comfort. The paramedic in the back is holding pressure to the front of the wound and constantly yelling different pieces if medical jargen that Amy doesn’t understand to the driver.

She looks at Jake and feels it all rushing up inside her. The six months of longing, loving, missing, the sudden possibility that Jake, her Jake, was going to die here and now. She reaches out for his hand and squeezes it, letting herself cry.

“If you die,” she tells him, “I’m gonna kill you.”

—-

At the hospital they rush him to surgery, telling a shocked Amy what they’ll be doing who takes in none of it. She’s left alone in the waiting room, feeling cold in only her bloodied singlet. She shivers and wraps her arms around herself, letting out a howl of pain.

The rest of the Nine-Nine arrive not long after, all of them simultaneously embracing Amy and bombarding her with questions she has no ability to answer.

“What condition did they say he was in?” Asks Charles, who looks as of he’s been crying more than Amy.

“Umm, critical, he lost a lot of blood,” Amy replies, on the brink of bursting into tears again.

“Did they say he’d be okay?” Terry asks her.

“I don’t, uhh, I don’t, I dunno know,” her voice breaks and she has to bite her bottom lip and shut her eyes to stop herself from crying.

She feels a hand on her back, guiding her away from the others. She opens her eyes to see Rosa, and once again she lets her lead her away, because anything is easier than thinking right now.

Rosa takes her to a gift shop where she purchases a large t-shirt that says ‘GET BEARY WELL’ with a picture of a teddy bear with a crutcher and a bandage across its face. Then they head to a (thankfully empty) bathroom.

“Let’s get you cleaned up,” Rosa says, pulling the singlet over Amy’s head and chucking it in the bin. Amy spots herself in the mirror, and it takes her a moment to process that her reflection is indeed her. She has blood everywhere. Jake’s blood. There’s a bit on her face and in her hair, some on her stomach where it had gone through her singlet, a little on her pants; her hands and forearms are covered in it - some of it isn’t even dry, just clinging on in sticky clumps.

Rosa washes her quickly and practically, using warm water and paper towel. She wipes down Amy’s face first, then her stomach, and lastly her red arms and hands. 

Amy just stands there motionless, letting Rosa work around her, surprised at her gentleness, wondering what sounds Jake’s heart monitor might be making right now.

Rosa finally pulls the beary t-shirt over Amy’s head. “You okay?” She asks her, and Amy has never heard so much kindness and vulnerability in Rosa’s voice.

Amy looks down at her feet. “I don’t know what I’m going to do, Rosa,” she looks up and meets Rosa’s dark eyes, “I don’t know what I’m going to do if he dies.” 

“He’s not going to die,” Rosa tries to keep her voice steady and firm, but it wavers at the end, and she wills herself to remain strong for Amy, who is crumbling in front of her.

“You don’t know that,” Amy’s face crumples, and tears run down her freshly cleaned face. “I’ve never seen so much blood,” she whispers; she thinks of her shirt, of the complete dark red his blood had turned it. “I didn’t even kiss him tonight, or tell him I love him. It’s been six months and I haven’t.”

For the first time in her life Amy finds herself being hugged by Rosa, and she feels herself completely breakdown in that moment, ragged sobs echoing the bathroom as she cries into Rosa’s dark hair.

Amy’s not sure how long Rosa holds her like that while she cries. “We better go back out there before we miss any news,” Rosa finally says, letting go of Amy.

Amy nods, and they had back out.

—-

It’s been over two hours of waiting when they finally hear Jake’s name being called.

They all rush over to the doctor. “Are you Jake Peralta’s wife?” The doctor asks her.

“I’m his partner, yeah,” Amy replies, “is he okay?”

“Yes,” the doctor confirms, and a sigh of relief echoes throughout the entire squad - with both Charles and Amy letting out more of a sob of relief.

“The operation was success,” the doctor continues, “he lost a lot of blood, and we had to do a massive transfusion as well as stop some internal bleeding in the chest, but we are confident he will make a full recovery, though it may be a while before he has full use of his left shoulder.”

“Can we go see him?!” Charles asks desperately.

“He is in the ICU, and he’s still asleep, so we only allow immediate family to go in.” The doctor nods at Amy.  

“I’ll let you guys know when he’s awake,” she says, turning to the squad, “thank you… for everything.”

“We’ll be here,” Holt tells her, nodding reassuringly.

The doctor leads her to Jake’s room. 

He’s alone and asleep, an oxygen mask on his face and a heart monitor beeping comfortingly next to his IV.

Amy walks over to him, delicately tracing his face with her fingers; with trembling lips she presses a kiss to his forehead. “I love you,” she murmurs, tears dangling from her eyelashes. She closes her eyes and presses her forehead to his, breathing in time with his heart monitor. 

She moves the chair in the corner right next to his bed, and curls up in it, clutching his hand so tight and entwining their fingers.

She watches his chest rise and fall and listens to the sound of the heart monitor. She’s so tired, but everything that’s happened in the past twenty four hours rushes through her mind, and she’s not sure she’d be able to fall asleep even if she tried.

She almost proves that statement wrong twenty minutes later, as her eyelids begin to feel heavy, and they flutter shut, right at the moment that she feels Jake squeeze her hand weakly.

Her eyes snap open. “Jake?!” She exclaims, sitting up excitedly.

His eyes flutter open. “Ames?” Jake slurs, his voiced muffled even more by the oxygen mask.

Her face breaks into a smile, tears back in her eyes. “Oh, I missed you so much, Jake. I’m so glad you’re okay. I let the others know you’re awake.” She quickly pulls out her phone and texts Rosa.

“Figgis?” He mumbles.

“We got him. Well, Holt and Gina did.” Amy tells him, her voice racing. “It’s all over Jake, you can come home.”

He shuts his eyes again, and squeezes Amy’s hand reassuringly. “Home.” Jake murmurs, smiling weakly underneath his oxygen mask; happiness blossoming inside his chest.

that was a bit longer than intended and i havent checked it for typos or anything so i hope it’s okay!

[starryeyed-char]

Close Call ~PART 4 (final)

Read these first!!!!!! Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Catch this fic on AO3

It’s about Lance and Keith getting captured and separated, with an injured Lance. For a better summary go to the first part… I’m lazy.

Finally! The last part!

…pssst @dogsahoy @voltronpaella @taylor-tut I can now stop sliding these across the table- this is the end!

I wanted to try doing something with multiple parts to celebrate VLD’s anniversary (the first part went up on the 10th)… and I can’t believe how well received this was! Thanks so much to everyone who’s given me such kind feedback!! I’ve got lots of plans for future writing, so hopefully you can look forward to that and not be too sad that this is over now? I hope you like the way I ended it… enjoy!!

Lance tumbled out of the healing pod like he did so many other things; without warning. The others were sat around the room when suddenly the walls of the pod disappeared, and the blue paladin fell forward. He would’ve face-planted into the floor of the infirmary if Hunk hadn’t been there to catch him.

He looked around in confusion for a moment while his eyes adjusted to the bright lights, and met the gaze of his best friend.

“Hey, Hunk,” he smiled, voice raspy and uneven. “Miss me?”

Hunk sighed with relief, giving Lance a shaky grin of his own. “You know I did,” he admitted. “Don’t you dare scare me like that again. I was worried sick!”

Lance laughed, and let himself be wrapped up in one of Hunk’s signature, bone-crushing hugs. “Sorry,” he shrugged. “Guess I should be more careful. So, what’d I miss?” He looked around at the others with an expectant smile on his face, but it wavered quickly. The rest of the team all looked worse for the wear themselves.

Pidge’s eyes were red-rimmed and puffy, while Shiro looked even more worn down than usual. Allura and Coran both stood off to the side, with strained expressions of relief. Keith was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, stoic and silent as usual, but Lance could see the bags under his eyes. In short, they all looked exhausted.

“Um… you guys?” Lance asked uncertainly, voice catching. “Why all the grim looks? What’s wrong?”

Allura and Shiro exchanged a nervous look. “How much do you remember?” asked the princess.

“I remember…” Lance trailed off, eyes scanning the room for the person he’d missed. His gaze caught on Matt, who was standing in his periphery, in front of another pod. A wave of relief washed over him. “Matt. Sorry I missed the Holt sibling reunion, but it’s good to see you’re okay, dude.”

Matt gave Lance his own small smile, though he looked tired, too. “Right back at you.”

Lance turned back to Allura. “I remember being in the cell with Matt, and… not much else, if I’m honest,” he confessed. “Why? How long was I out for?”

“Not long, all things considered” Coran assured him. “About two weeks.”

“Two weeks?!” Lance practically shrieked. “Last time I was only in the pod for… what? A day or two, right?”

“Well,” Pidge piped up, adjusting her glasses. “Your injuries were pretty severe. You needed a lot of time to heal.” She cleared her throat, averting her eyes. “We were all pretty worried.”

“You’re lucky my blood’s O-negative,” Hunk muttered under his breath.

“Oh,” Lance said softly, momentarily at a loss for words. His grin returned quickly, though. “But I’m fine now! We can get back to business as usual. I bet I have a lot of training to catch up on, right, Allura?”

Despite his efforts to return things to normal, the team just exchanged looks full of thinly veiled concern. Lance couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something they weren’t telling him.

“We’re glad you’re feeling better Lance,” Shiro finally spoke. “But I think it’s best we get food in your system, first. Then you should probably rest.”

Lance laughed, trying to hide his discomfort. “Yeah, right. I just spent two weeks getting a ton of rest, and that green space goop? Disgusting. I think I might take Blue for a spin,” Lance declared, stretching his arms over his head. The others said nothing, just glanced anywhere but at him. “Jeez, what’s with all the moping? This must’ve been a pretty close call, huh?”

There was a beat of heavy silence.

“You were dead.”

Lance turned to face Keith in shock. The red paladin stood with his arms at his sides, fists clenched and shaking. Lance fidgeted under his glare. “Wh-what?”

“You died,” Keith repeated. “Your heart stopped beating.”

Shiro started towards him. “Keith, let’s just—”

“No!” Keith’s loud voice echoed in the empty infirmary. “I’m not going to just go back to pretending everything’s normal. I— I won’t! Nothing is normal! I… he could’ve…” Keith trailed off, looking at Lance. The mask of a smile on his face had given way to surprise, and hurt.

“Never mind,” Keith growled, whirling around. He stormed out of the room, and Lance watched him go.

Keith paced around his room, completely lost in thought.

He’d always been a man of action. Hopeless at voicing his thoughts, he tried to convey what he felt through doing. And most of the time, it blew up in his face. Sometimes literally.

Keith also prided himself on his ability to hide emotions. He had a habit of burying his feelings deep down inside himself, and not addressing them until he was ready to deal with them.

When he’d seen Lance bleeding out on the floor of that cell… he’d only allowed himself one second of panic. One second to be absolutely terrified, and then it was as if his body had been switched onto autopilot.

He’d picked Lance up off the floor, and began sprinting towards the red lion. He was vaguely aware of Hunk’s sobbing as he helped Matt up, saying to Keith that he’d get them both to the yellow lion. The yellow paladin always wore his emotions on his sleeve, for everybody to see. His cries echoed in the ears of the entire team, even as he said they should prep a pod.

Keith did his best to numb everything he felt, resolving to be upset later. To cry when Lance was safe. There was no time to waste. He flew back to the castle as fast as possible, and got Lance into the medbay before he could even fully process the situation. He watched as Allura used some complex Altean device, attempting to restart Lance’s pulse, and he helped get Lance into the pod after the heart-rate monitor finally started beeping again.

They all stood around the pod, and it was when Allura announced that Lance was going to live that Keith allowed himself to break down.

He collapsed onto the floor in front of the pod, sobbing. Lance would be okay. He’d live. And yet Keith couldn’t stop thinking of everything that could’ve gone differently. What he could’ve done to prevent Lance from getting injured in the first place. Or if he’d been even a minute later in finding him…

These were the thoughts that plagued his mind as he walked back and forth in his small room, and had stuck with him for the past two weeks. Keith couldn’t sleep, could barely eat. The image of Lance surrounded by a pool of his own blood, motionless and seeming devoid of life, refused to leave Keith’s head. He just kept… seeing it. Even though he knew Lance was okay, probably sleeping in his own room right now, Keith couldn’t help thinking what if he wasn’t.

Keith couldn’t help remembering that moment after putting Lance in the pod, when he realized that he was covered in the blue paladin’s blood.

He shook his head to clear it, resolving to go to the training deck. It wouldn’t get rid of the problem, but it would be a welcome distraction. He opened the door, only to reel back in surprise.

Lance stood before him, a fist raised and poised to knock. His eyes widened when he saw Keith, and immediately took several steps backwards into the hall. “Uh… hi,” he said, with a small wave.

Keith crossed his arms, instantly guarded. “What do you want, Lance?”

Lance flinched at the words, casting his gaze towards the floor. “I… came here to apologize. To you.”

Keith raised an eyebrow.

“You know… for messing up the mission,” he continued. “My actions got both of us captured, and I wanted to tell you that I’m sorry. I know you’re super mad at me, and I already told Shiro he shouldn’t send us on missions together anymore. The Galra wouldn’t have caught either of us if I’d just been paying attention. I should've—”

“Shut up.”

Lance winced, rubbing the back of his neck, then continued. “Look, it’s fine if you don’t want to speak to me, like, ever again. I just needed you to know that I know I really messed up, and that I’m really sor—”

“I said, shut up,” Keith repeated. “Stop talking.”

Lance clamped his mouth shut in surprise. Keith tried to ignore the hurt written across his face.

“You think…” Keith mentally cursed himself, unable to find the right words. “You think that I’m mad at you because we got captured?”

Lance shuffled from foot to foot awkwardly. “I… yeah?”

Keith pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers. “Are you serious? You think I’m mad at you for ‘messing up the mission?'”

Lance sighed, looking mildly irritated. “Isn’t that what I just said?”

“I’m mad because you almost died, you idiot!” Keith practically shouted. “You nearly got yourself killed!”

“Oh,” was all Lance seemed capable of saying. “Right. That. Uh, sorry.”

“Stop apologizing!”

Lance stared back at Keith in shocked silence. Keith huffed.

“Look, I’m just… you saved my life, back there. You got hurt because you were too busy keeping me safe. You’re always keeping the rest of us safe, and putting yourself in danger because of it!” Keith ran a hand through his hair, looking away. “And it scares the hell out of me. You could’ve really died, Lance! You almost did! And it would’ve… it would’ve been all my fault.”

Keith looked back up, only to find Lance still staring at him, floored. He abruptly went back to looking at his feet.

“I also came here to thank you,” Lance said softly. “The others told me what you did. Without you, I wouldn’t have made it. You’ve saved me countless times, too, Keith.You know that, don’t you?”

Keith let out a short laugh, and Lance’s eyes brightened at the sound. “Guess we’re both too reckless for our own good, huh?”

“True,” Lance agreed, with a grin. “But it’s part of what makes us such a good team.”

Keith was once again reminded of how much he preferred actions to words, because he had absolutely no idea how to respond to that.

So instead, he just kissed Lance.

It was slightly awkward, or at least until Lance took control, which he did almost immediately, after the initial shock wore off. Keith had also accidentally pushed Lance up against the wall in the process, but he didn’t seem to mind. The immediate reaction from Lance made Keith think that he’d probably been waiting for this for ages. Then again, they both had.

“Jesus,” Lance muttered, once they’d broken apart, short of breath. “I should die more often.”

“If you do,” Keith threatened. “I’ll kill you myself.”

“I’d like to see you try,” Lance laughed. “You know you’d miss me too much.”

Keith seemed to ponder this for a second. “Yeah,” he admitted. “Yeah, I would.” And the two of them were kissing again.

The End

[thetimeladyswan]

If The Sky Comes Falling Down

Title: If The Sky Comes Falling Down

Summary: He needed to know – he needed to find his brother. The Saviour who could break the curse that enveloped the town. The one who could prove that Keith’s memories of him were real. Once Upon a Time AU.

Rating: T

Read it here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12392777/1/If-The-Sky-Comes-Falling-Down

                      http://archiveofourown.org/works/9914768

one.

Shiro could not remember what his life was before sixteen years of age. He had been found, wandering with no memory. He had retained a name – Shiro – whether it was his first or last he did not know, but he knew it was his. His age had been the only other nugget of information he had remembered; his birthday had become the day he was found.

 He had ended up in the foster system – his parents nowhere to be found. He had emerged fairly well-rounded, found a job and an apartment, continued his life.

 A life that was normal, despite the void where the memories of the first fifteen years of his life should have been.

 two.

Keith’s life was anything but normal. Cursed to be separated from his family, to live his days not quite knowing if his memories were real or dreams of an existence better than the one he currently lead.

 He needed to know – he needed to find his brother. The Saviour who could break the curse that enveloped the town. The one who could prove that Keith’s memories of him were real.

 three.

The town was odd – that was all Shiro could say about it. Keith was silent, as he had been for most of the journey, hunched against the window. He offered no commentary on his hometown, merely staring at the familiar (to him, not to Shiro) buildings as they passed by.

 “Okay,” said Shiro, breaking the silence. “Where do your parents live?”

 “Our parents,” Keith began, still gazing out the window, “aren’t together. They haven’t even met here, and they don’t know who I am. It’s a part of the curse.”

 Shiro frowned, trying to meet his apparent brother’s eye. “So where do you live?”

 He shrugged. “Wherever I can.”

 “You’re homeless?”

 Keith sighed, finally twisting around in his seat to face him. “The curse, it’s supposed to make us miserable. Taking us away from our families, check one. Making us forget our past lives, check two.”

 “You remember.”

 His mouth curled into a thoughtful expression. “It doesn’t work on me the same was as everyone else. My theory is that some of your Saviour magic worked on me too.”

 “How long have you been cursed?” asked Shiro next.

 “Nine years, I think. I’m seventeen now. You’re … twenty-five.”

 He blinked. “How do you know that?”

 “I’m your brother.”

 “I suppose you are. Okay, where can we stay the night?”

 Keith brightened at the use of ‘we’. “Take a left at the top of the street …”

 .

 Across town, in a hospital bed, a woman who had spent the last nine years in a coma opened her eyes.

 four.

When Shiro awoke the next morning, the bed and breakfast room he had rented to share with Keith showed no sign of his roommate. Resolved to the worst case scenario, he dressed quickly, wondering just how difficult it would be to find Keith in a town this small, even if it was unfamiliar to him.

 He was collecting the keys to the room and his car when the door opened.

 “You’re awake,” said Keith, shutting the door before he continued. “I thought you’d still be asleep when I got back. I go to the hospital every morning to check on a friend of mine, Allura.”

 The way he paused made Shiro uneasy, as though he were supposed to remember who Allura was.

 “She’s awake,” he finished eventually. “She’s been in a coma for as long as the curse, I think it’s a good sign.”

 “The curse can be broken that easily?” asked Shiro, frowning.

 Keith shook his head empathically. “No, it’s gonna take more than you being here. But this is a start. Do you want to go for breakfast? There’s a diner downstairs.”

 five.

She could not remember her name, nor anything else about herself. Allura, the boy who had visited her that morning had called her. It settled somewhere under her skin. Perhaps it was her name.

 But how could the boy know?

 She asked the nurses. “The boy who visited me this morning, Keith, did I know him?”

 “He never talked to us. Comes to visit you every day, though.”

 If that was the case, she could ask him tomorrow.

 “Eleanor, thank god! I thought I’d never see you again.” A man burst into the room, immediately restrained by hospital orderlies. The nurse addressed him.

 “Sir, this patient is an amnesiac, if you would please—”

 “Eleanor,” he said again, “you don’t remember me?”

 Eleanor, was that her name? Or was Allura? She could not remember.

 “I don’t know who you are,” she said. I don’t know who I am.

 six.

Keith provided a running commentary over breakfast, telling Shiro about the people who came into the diner – who they were, what the curse had done to them.

 “That’s Pidge – Katie under the curse. We were friends before the curse was cast.”

 Shiro listened without complaint, though Keith was sure that the info-dump was likely grating on his brother’s nerves.

 “Are you okay?”

 “It’s just—” he gestured in an encompassing circle with a fork. “This is a lot to take in. A few hours ago I didn’t have a family. Now I’ve got to break a curse? I don’t even know how.”

 “I’m sorry,” said Keith, voice soft as he tried to think of the best thing to say. “I’m going to help you as much as I can. It’s okay that you don’t know how to break the curse. We’ll figure it out.”

 Shiro nodded. “Thanks, Keith.”

 seven.

Keith left for school after breakfast, giving Shiro his number and making it clear that he had no problems with ditching if he was needed. Shiro, who was surprised that Keith even attended school given that he had nowhere to call home, insisted that he go.

 He decided that he would use the time alone to familiarise himself with the town. Breaking the curse was not going to be a quick task, if there was even a curse to break. He would likely have to stay in Storybrooke for a while.

 It was a quaint town, much smaller than any Shiro had ever visited. People went about their business, some pausing to look at him when they realised he was not one of their own townspeople. On a street corner, he met the Sheriff.

 “You’re new,” said the man, with an easy smile.

 “Is it a crime to visit the town?” he replied, earning a laugh.

 “No, no, not at all. Sam Holt, nice to meet you.”

 They shook hands. “Shiro, I’m Keith’s brother. I’m going to be here for a while.”

 “Keith …” Sheriff Holt paused as he seemed to remember who Shiro was talking about. “It’s good that he has family. He’s a good kid.”

 Shiro nodded, bidding the sheriff goodbye and continuing on his way.

 The layout of the town was fairly simple, and Shiro was confident that he could find his way around it. He sent a text to his brother, asking what time he would finish school at. They had things to discuss; if Shiro was going to stick around for a while, he’d need a job, and they’d need somewhere to live. Staying at Sal’s B&B forever was not an option.

 eight.

In her dreams, she knew who she was; a princess, a warrior.

 Her father told her to run, to get to safety, and she had no choice but to obey him. She heard the sing of metal on metal as she made her escape, the grunts and cries of battle, and she forced herself not to turn her head.

 The younger prince ran to her, trying to tell her everything that had happened, his words emerging a jumbled mess. His parents were trying to hold off the witch so that his brother could escape, the curse was approaching on the horizon, he was scared.

 She tried to console the prince, but eventually left him to rush to where she heard commotion echoing down the halls.

 The elder prince was still there, risking his life when he should have been long gone. She called to him.

 “Takashi, go!”

 After looking between her and his frantically nodding parents, he did.

 “Where are you sending him?” asked the witch menacingly. She stretched out a hand and the princess found herself trapped by magic, unable to move.

 “Somewhere you can’t find him,” said the queen, voice strong though she trembled. “It’s over, Haggar. Your curse will be broken. We will defeat you and Zarkon.”

 A menacing smile. “We’ll see about that.”

 She disappeared, reappearing before the princess. Still paralysed, she could do nothing as the witch plunged a blade into her stomach.

 She fell, like a puppet with its strings cut, and …

 Awoke in her hospital bed.

 Once she had slowed her breathing, and the heart monitor at her bedside sounded less like it would explode, she felt her stomach. There was a scar there, consistent with the injury she had sustained in her dream. She knew it was a dream; there were no witches in the real world, and she was not a princess.

 A knock on the door startled her. She looked up to see Keith, the boy who had visited her yesterday – everyday, according to the nurse she had talked to.

 “Hey, Allura. Did I wake you?”

 She shook her head. “No, come in.”

 He did, settling into the chair by her bed. “How are you feeling?”

 “All right, I think,” she replied truthfully. “I don’t remember anything.”

 “I think that’s normal.”

“Keith? Why do you call me Allura? Did you know me before this happened?”

 It took him a moment to reply. “No, I didn’t. You never had any visitors here, so I started to come in to see you. No one knew your name, so I called you Allura. I can stop?”

 “No … it feels right. Like it belongs to me.”

 Keith smiled.

 nine.

Knowing this time that Keith would pay a visit to the hospital before breakfast, Shiro was unworried when he woke to find the other bed empty.

 He ordered breakfast for himself and Keith (hoping that his brother would be all right with the same thing he’d had the morning before) and asked the waitress, a girl called Shay, where he could buy a newspaper.

 “Here, you can have this one,” she smiled, passing him one from the edge of the counter. “We’re finished with it.”

 “Thank you,” he replied, unfurling the Storybrooke Daily Mirror as the waitress moved onto her next customer. He found the listings for work and apartments, scanning both.

 “Looking for jobs?” asked Keith in greeting, sliding onto a stool beside Shiro. He looked cheerful.

 “Can’t use up all my savings. Got any recommendations?”

 “You could try the Sheriff’s Station,” Keith suggested, “Samuel Holt was our—” he paused as Shay delivered their food, “our master-at-arms. He’s Pidge’s dad. Not here, I don’t think they’ve ever even met.”

 “I met him yesterday,” said Shiro, thoughtful as he took a sip of his coffee. Keith dumped an obscene amount of sugar into his before he did the same. “He seemed like a good person.”

 He nodded. “So, you could try that. Or – what did you do in New York?”

 “Whatever work I could pick up.”

 “Or you could do whatever work you can pick up.”

 “I’ll check out the Sheriff’s Station,” said Shiro, laying down the newspaper in favour of his breakfast.H

 ten.

Sheriff Holt turned out to be more than happy to hire him at the station, so much so that Shiro was suspicious. He explained, however, that he was good at reading people and had known almost instantly that Shiro was trustworthy. Shiro wasn’t exactly sure what to make of that.

 He declined the offer of a Deputy uniform, knowing that it would make him stand out even more than he did as the stranger in town.

 When he clipped the Deputy badge to his jacket, the ground shook with tremors. He looked worryingly at Sam, but the Sheriff grinned.

 “Ready for your first day on the job?”

 .

 Arriving on the scene, they discovered that one of the mining tunnels that ran underneath the town had collapsed.

 “Who is this?” asked the mayor, a woman by the name of Helena, who Shiro had not met. She was clearly suspicious of him.

 “My name is Shiro,” he replied, smiling as genuinely as he dared. “I’m Keith’s brother, and the new Deputy.”

 “Deputy?” she repeated, turning to Sam.

 “It’s in my budget,” he defended.

 “Indeed. Well, Deputy, why don’t you make yourself useful by helping calm down the crowds?”

 She turned to face the townspeople, clearly intent on giving a speech, but was cut off by a woman rushing towards the collapsed mine entrance, yelling intelligibly.

 “Katie! Please, my daughter is down there!”

 Katie? Shiro was sure he had heard that name somewhere before … Pidge, Keith’s friend.

 If she was Pidge’s real mother, and not a family connection made by the curse, she didn’t recognise Sam. Shiro understood now, more than he had by merely listening to Keith’s stories, what the curse had done.

 “You have to help her!” she implored the Sheriff, who may have been her husband in another life.

 So it was that Shiro ended up being hoisted down an air shaft, torch in hand, calling for Katie.

 He found her stowing rock samples away in her backpack. She was a scientist, she explained, and had not expected the tunnel to collapse.

 “All that matters is that you’re safe,” he told her, relieved to have found her unharmed. “Your mother is worried about you.”

 Katie sighed at this. “She always does. But I’m fine.”

 “Still, I’d be more careful in the future if I were you.”

 After checking the security of the harness, Shiro switched on his walkie talkie. “Sheriff? I’ve found her.”

 There was some static, and then a reply. “Are you ready to come back up?”

 Katie took this as her cue to approach him. When she was in position, he gave an answer. “Ready now.”

 The ascent was a little bumpy, but otherwise uneventful. Katie took the opportunity to quiz him.

 “Who are you, anyway?”

 Shiro laughed. “You let a stranger rescue you?”

 “You're trustworthy, I could tell,” she replied matter-of-factly. A trait she shared with her father, apparently. “But that doesn’t answer my question.”

 “Name’s Shiro, I’m new in town. I just started at the Sheriff’s Station; you’re my first rescue.”

 She seemed unimpressed by his attempt at humour. “What brought you here? We don’t see new people very often.”

 “My brother, Keith, he’s from here. He came to find me.”

 Katie pursed her lips. “The homeless kid?”

 “Not for much longer, if I have anything to do with it.”

 eleven.

The news that she would be released from the hospital was not a surprise, but yet Allura did not know what she would do outside of these walls. The town, it's people were strangers to her. Her only friend was a teenage boy.

 She had been told her history by her so-called fiancé, Liam.  After his initial outburst, he had returned and explained himself. Her name was Eleanor, she had been eighteen when they had gotten engaged, young but sure of their love. After argument, however, she had left for a walk in the woods to clear her head, and had somehow ended up in a coma. He had thought she’d moved, and never connected the Jane Doe in the hospital with her. She had never been identified.

 Keith visited her that morning, as he did every morning. They walked around the outdoor gardens together, and Allura told him the news that she would be discharged later that day.

 “Do you have a place to stay?” he asked.

 She bit her lip. “Yes, I do actually. With my … fiancé. I don’t remember him, but I’m willing to give it a shot. Maybe it’ll jog my memory.”

 Liam still called her Eleanor, which she had decided against accepting as her name, but it was clear that he cared about her. She would make a go of things, for the sake of the Eleanor that was.

 “I hope it works out for you,” he smiled, but it was obviously forced.

 “We can still have our meet ups,” she said, in an effort to cheer him up. “How about at Sal's? I heard they do a mean breakfast.”

 “Sounds good,” he smiled.

 .

 After the mine collapse and the subsequent casualties, Allura’s bed was needed by the hospital more than ever. So, she packed up her meagre belongings and left the relative safety of the hospital.

 twelve.

His conversation with Allura weighed on him over the following days. The curse was not above giving people different families and relationships, if that was what would make them miserable. When it came to Allura, however, Keith was sure that the plan had been for her to remain in a coma. She’d only woken up due to Shiro’s arrival.

 Keith needed to find out who Liam was. Allura had only had one fiancé – Shiro. This engagement was a fabrication of the curse, something that furthered Haggar or Zarkon’s goals.

 The mayor’s office was easy to break into. Finding what he was looking for, not so much. Haggar – or Mayor Helena, as she was known in Storybrooke – did not keep a handy chart of real- to cursed-names.

 He searched instead for records of meetings and dealings the mayor had had over the course of the curse. Lots with Mr. Z, of course – Haggar and Zarkon had always worked together. Finally, he came across the name he was looking for: Liam Zimbel. Reading about the meetings he’d had with Haggar, Keith realised who it was.

 “Lotor,” he said aloud.

 Just as he had made his discovery, he was bathed in light.

 thirteen.

It was a slow evening at the station. Shiro was on his fifth cup of coffee of the day, looking over case files when the phone rang, signalling the first interesting thing to have happened since lunch.

 “Sheriff’s Station,” Sam answered. “Madam Mayor, what seems to be the problem? … I understand … I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

 When he hung up the phone, he was grinning. Shiro raised an eyebrow.

 “Your little brother finds himself on the wrong side of the law,” the Sheriff explained. “Would you like to handle it or sit here and look disappointed?”

 Shiro laughed. “I’ll stay here.”

 He returned with Keith in tow (thankfully not cuffed) not long after. Keith sighed as Shiro, arms folded, nodded towards a chair.

 “Why did you break into the mayor’s office?” asked Sam.

 “You broke into the mayor’s office?”

 “She’s keeping things from us,” said Keith. “Secret meetings, under the table deals.”

 “That’s politics, kid. It’s not nice, but it’s nothing we can arrest the mayor for. Now, she’s going to want some evidence of punishment. Shiro, I’ll leave that up to you.”

 With a smile to the two of them, Sam retreated to his office.

 Shiro raised an eyebrow at his brother. “What were you thinking?”

 “Allura has a fiancé. She shouldn’t, unless it serves some purpose to Haggar and Zarkon.”

 “It can’t the just a part of the curse?”

 “No.” He shook his head. “They’d want her to be miserable.”

 “Right. So, for your sentence.” His brother raised an eyebrow at the choice of word. “Community service? No, I have just the thing for you.”

 He retrieved the keys from his desk, unlocking one of the holding cells.

 “Seriously?” asked Keith.

 “Seriously. In you go.”

 Begrudgingly, Keith stood from the chair he had been sitting on and entered the cell. Shiro locked it behind him.

 “Wait, you’re leaving me in here?”

 “Time to think about what you’ve done,” said Shiro with a grin. “Plus, I’ll get a much better night’s sleep.”

 fourteen.

Shiro was gracious enough to release Keith before breakfast. He was met with a scowl, and ruffled his brother’s hair in retaliation.

 “Have you learned your lesson?” Shiro joked.

 “Don’t try to help you break the curse? Yeah.”

 After a shower, change of clothes and the promise of breakfast, Keith appeared to feel much better. His mood only improved when he and Shiro entered the diner.

 “Allura!” he said, approaching a blonde woman at the counter.

 “Keith!” she beamed, accepting his hug. She glanced over his shoulder. “And you must be Shiro?”

 “That’s me,” Shiro smiled, offering a hand to her. “Nice to meet you.”

 They shook hands, and Shiro felt a shock of electricity. Allura had probably picked up some static from Keith’s jacket. She seemed not to notice, but something shifted in her eyes, a slight frown creasing her brow.

 “How have you been?” asked Keith, and she turned back to him, shaking her head slightly.

 fifteen.

Allura continued to meet with Keith (and occasionally Shiro) for breakfast at Sal’s over the following weeks, dodging any and all questions about her fiancé. Keith was suspicious, she knew, but he never pushed the issue.

 None of her memories had returned to her, and nothing about Liam made her feel as though she had fallen in love with him as a teenager. Perhaps it had been madness, and they’d been too young to know better.

 She knew now; she had to leave. She could stay at Sal’s B&B until she found somewhere to live.

 Liam did not take well to the news. “Eleanor—”

 “My name is Allura, now,” she told him. “Maybe it wasn’t always, and maybe I loved you, once, but I think I deserve the chance to start over. Maybe this happened to me for a reason. A clean slate.”

 .

 The door to the pawn shop swung open with an almighty ring of the bell. Its proprietor, known only as Mr. Z to the townspeople, was unperturbed, and continued to polish the brass ornament formed a part of his display.

 “Father,” said Liam, knocking his first on the countertop to further illustrate his impatience.

 “What is it, Lotor?”

 “You promised that under the curse Princess Allura would be mine.”

 “I did,” replied Mr. Z, laying down the rag he had been polishing with. “And then Haggar stabbed her so that she would sleep. Her little way of denying you what you want.”

 “She’s awake now, and still she is not mine.”

 “There is nothing I can do to change that, my dear son. It is the Saviour’s doing.”

 “We need to do something about him.”

 Mr. Z smiled. “I couldn’t agree more.”

 sixteen.

“Looking for a place?”

 Shiro looked up at the familiar voice to find Allura smiling at him. She sat across from him in the diner booth.

 “Yeah,” he answered. “Keith and I can’t stay here forever.”

 She nodded. “A B&B isn’t a great long-term arrangement.”

 He remembered Keith telling him that Allura had left her fiancé. “You’re in the market for a place too, aren’t you?”

 “Yes,” she sighed, though she smiled at Shay when the waitress arrived with the coffee she must have ordered, thanking her. “Not so much luck so far. Wait—” her eyes lit up. “Why don’t we look for somewhere together, you me and Keith? It’d be a lot easier to find one apartment than two, and the rent would be less … towering.”

 Shiro considered her words. She and Keith were firm friends, and Shiro couldn’t foresee any problems with living with her. It was a good idea.

 “As long as Keith doesn’t have any issues with it, sounds like a plan.”

 Allura beamed.

 seventeen.

They found a two-bedroom loft apartment in the centre of town. Shiro and Keith were by then accustomed to sharing a room, so continuing to do so wasn’t an issue. It was a step up from staying in the bed and breakfast, in any rate. Keith was delighted with the change, but Shiro had the distinct feeling that he was hiding something.

 “There’s something you should know,” said Keith, finally, as he and Shiro unpacked the boxes that had arrived from Shiro’s old apartment. “You and Allura knew each other, back home. You were … betrothed to each other.”

 Shiro gripped the mug he'd taken out of its box a little tighter than was strictly necessary. “We were engaged?”

 “Betrothed,” Keith corrected. “It’s not like you proposed to her. It was set up between our parents and hers. It’s the way things are back home.”

 “And we were okay with it?”

 Keith shrugged. “I think so. You were friends, at least. If you did have feelings for her, you weren’t going to tell your kid brother. I just thought you might want to know, now that we're living with her.”

 “Yeah, it’s – good to know. Thanks.”

 eighteen.

There was something about having a place to live – a place that did not scream 'temporary' as the B&B and the places he had been able to find shelter had – that settled him. It made him more hopeful, even confident that Shiro could break the curse. He allowed himself to imagine seeing his parents again, his friends.

 All he could see at that present moment was a boy blocking his way.

 It was no one Keith had known at home, but he thought he had seen the boy somewhere in Storybrooke before. Around his own age, and arrogant, if Keith’s instinct was anything to go by.

 He grinned at Keith’s scowl. “Lance McClain, a pleasure.”

 “Keith Kogane. Wish I could say the same. If you’d excuse me …”

 “The Deputy’s baby brother, right?” asked Lance, infuriating grin still in place. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”

 “That’s nice,” replied Keith, deadpan. “Now—”

 “If I’d excuse you? No problem.” He made an over exaggerated sweeping bow, stepping aside to let Keith pass.

 He felt a profound relief that he hadn’t known Lance before the curse.

 nineteen.

“Sam?” asked Shiro, tossing his keys onto his desk. It was rare that he had to open the Sheriff’s Station, and he hadn’t heard from his boss since the previous day.

 There was no sign of him at the station. Shiro frowned, trying his cell again. It went straight to voicemail, this time. It must have gone dead.

 Shiro considered his options. If Sam was missing, he was now Acting Sheriff, and it was his responsibility to find him.

 Checking the files found him a landline and home address. Sam Holt lived alone in Storybrooke, cut off from his previous family by the curse. He knew that Katie lived with her mother, and Matt lived alone, and none of them had any inkling of the connection they shared. That was par for the course, but it would be much easier if Shiro had someone to question.

 The landline rang out, Shiro hanging up before he was asked to leave a message. His next move was visiting the house. He debated whether to lock up the station or not for a moment, before deciding that the townspeople might panic if they saw the station locked up and learned that the Sheriff was missing.

 The front door of the house swung open when he touched it, and the place was empty. There were minor signs of a struggle. A kitchen chair was overturned, a glass smashed.

 Sam was gone, that much was clear. And it seemed as though he had been abducted.

 .

 He called a meeting at the town hall, with some help from Keith as to what the protocol was.

 “Sam Holt has disappeared,” he announced to the gathered crowd, allowing time for the gasps and murmurs of disbelief. “As his Deputy, I accept the responsibility of Acting Sheriff and promise to do anything I can to bring him home safely. If anyone has any information, please contact the Sheriff’s Station. Thank you.”

 Keith looked despondent when Shiro approached him. He looked up at him. “This isn’t good.”

 “No,” Shiro sighed. “It’s not.”

 twenty.

It was at the edge of sleep that memories flooded his mind – a jumble, not many of them tangible, but all of them real. He knew which one to share.

 “Keith?” he asked into the darkness of the room he shared with his brother.

 “Yeah?” came the sleepy reply.

 “I remember when you were born.”

 There was a sharp intake of breath, but no reply, leaving him room to continue.

 “There were celebrations everywhere, the people were delighted to have another prince. Mom and Dad were so happy. They were always happy; I guess that’s what true love is.”

 “If you’re remembering stuff,” said Keith, slowly, “it means that the curse is weakening. And I think I know how to break it.”

 “How?”

 “True love’s kiss,” he answered, a smile in his voice, clearly thinking of their parents. “It can break any curse.”

 “So, we need to get Mom and Dad together? How are we going to do that?”

 “Sleep now, plan later.”

 Shiro couldn’t argue with that, and settled back into sleep. In his dreams, he remembered further. Keith’s birth had been the first time he’d met Allura – she and her father had come to congratulate them. Perhaps that had been when their betrothal had been arranged. He could not know, unless he remembered more.

 He hoped he did.

 twenty-one.

Living with Keith and Shiro had calmed Allura, slightly. The overwhelming feeling of not knowing who she was had abated; she knew enough. She was Allura, she worked at the animal shelter (where she had taken a particular shine to a trio of mice and was considering adopting them). She was Shiro and Keith’s housemate, their friend.

 She was always the first to wake in their apartment. The first to shuffle into the kitchen and the one who prodded their coffee machine into submission. It was calming to sit at the kitchen island with her coffee, a slice of peace before the other two got up.

 Keith was the first of the brothers to rise, usually. He poured himself a cup of coffee from the pot Allura had brewed, thanking her with a yawn. Three spoons of sugar later, it was drinkable to him. He joined her at the island, sipping at his sweetened drink.

 By the time Allura had finished her coffee, Shiro had completed their trio. He brought with him conversation – Allura and Keith were happy to sit in silence, but Shiro liked to talk with them.

 They decided, then, whether they would make breakfast or go to Sal’s. It was a healthy mix of both, by Allura’s estimation. Wherever they ate, once they had finished they trickled away in reverse the order they had arrived. Shiro first, to the Sheriff’s Station; then Keith, to school; lastly Allura, to the shelter.

 Her boss, Coran, was a little on the eccentric side, but she got along well with him. They both cared about the animals they were looking after, which was the most important thing.

 Lunch was usually shared with someone; whether that was Keith, Shiro or Coran varied from day to day. Dinner was always with the brothers, and they spent the evening together watching television or talking.

 She was content with her new life.

 twenty-two.

There had been no break-throughs on the Sam Holt case. People had come forward to share the last time they had seen him, but none of the information had been useful to Shiro.

 That was until he received a phone call telling him that Sam had been spotted in the woods on the night of his disappearance. He set off on a wilderness search, leaving a note on his desk for Keith or Allura came to invite him to lunch.

 He found the Sheriff’s badge along a path in the forest, and felt more confidence in his search. He came across a man standing on the crest of a hill. He smiled at Shiro.

 “Lovely view, isn’t it? I think some people forget the beauty of their own town, always wanting to travel. I don’t think we’ve been introduced. My name is Mr. Z. You must be Shiro, of course. Our new Deputy.”

 “Acting Sheriff until we can find Sam Holt,” he corrected, trying not to let his uneasiness show on his face. This was Zarkon; the mastermind of the curse, according to Keith.

 “Of course. What a shame that he disappeared like that.”

 Shiro, whose uneasiness had morphed into fear, turned to leave, and was met by three men, blocking his way.

 “What is going—?” he began to ask, but had fallen to the ground before he could finish the question.

 twenty-three.

“Shiro?” asked Keith, as he entered the Sheriff’s Station. His after-lunch class had been cancelled, leaving him the freedom to share a long lunch at Sal’s with his brother … if he could find him.

 “Shiro?” he tried again, looking around. He found a note on the desk; Gone to follow a tip in the woods, will probably miss lunch. He picked up his phone to call his brother, before realising that Shiro had left his cell on the desk along with the note.

 He went to Allura for lunch instead, telling her about what he’d seen at the station.

 “Maybe he found something about the Sheriff,” she suggested. “We should go and see after we eat.”

 They did so, only to find the station just as deserted as it had been earlier.

 Allura bit her lip. “I’ll go and see if there’s any sign of him in the forest. You should go back to school.”

 Ignoring the instinct that told him to protest; to insist Allura let him accompany him. “Okay, text me when you find him.”

 .

 “I made some coffee,” mumbled Allura, offering him a mug. He took it, whispering his gratitude. He didn’t think she had heard it, but she nodded as though she had. She sat on the sofa beside him, tugging gently on the blanket – a request to share.

 He granted it, pulling the blanket over so that Allura could cover her feet with it.

 They did not speak, merely sitting there in silent solidarity. They were both worried about Shiro, and they knew there was no point in speaking reassurances. “I’m sure he’ll turn up” and “he’ll be fine” would fall flat.

 They were just … there for each other.

 twenty-four.

He and Lance had fallen into some form of a friendship, but the sight of him still made Keith sigh.

 “Hey, Mullet,” Lance grinned, using the infuriating nickname he had given him on their second meeting.

 “I don’t have time for this right now, I’m busy.”

 “Looking for your brother?” asked Lance, lips curling into a smile when he realised it was true. “Being Sheriff is a dangerous occupation, huh?”

 “It’s in the job description.”

 “Hmm,” Lance looked thoughtful. “Do you want some help?”

 “Help?” Keith frowned.

 “Yeah, what sort of clues are you looking for?”

 “I don’t know,” he admitted with a sigh. “I just want to do something, so I don’t feel useless.”

 Lance nodded. “I get it. I’ll help you, come on.”

 Still bewildered, Keith had no choice but to follow him.

 twenty-five.

He was at school when he received the call. Knowing that it had to be about his brother, he ducked out of the class with a mumbled apology.

 “Hello?”

 “Keith Kogane?” asked the voice on the other end.

 “Yes, speaking.”

 “Your brother has been found. He’s in the hospital, in a stable condition.”

 “I’ll be there as soon as I can,” said Keith, hanging up. His heart hammered in his chest. Shiro’s disappearance had been no accident, he knew, and he wondered what had facilitated his return. Had he been imbued with a cursed identity? Tortured?

 School forgotten, he set off for the hospital, calling Allura on the way. He was Shiro’s emergency contact, but they had no reason to get in touch with her.

 “Keith,” she answered, sounding confused. “Shouldn’t you be at school?”

 “They found Shiro, he’s in the hospital. I’m on my way there now.”

 There was a clatter. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

 .

 There was a doctor present in Shiro’s room when he burst into it.

 “What happened?” Keith asked her.

 “He was found in the woods by a jogger, unconscious. He’s in a coma, but his condition is stable.”

 “Do you know what caused it?”

 “We’re still running tests,” said the doctor, her voice soft and soothing. She had evidently had a lot of practice delivering bad news about her patients. “I’ll let you know as soon as we know anything.”

 “Thank you,” murmured Keith, trying to ignore the rising panic. He was sure he knew what had happened to Shiro. He had heard the tales as a child, after all; the poisoned apple his mother had bitten into to save his father from certain death, the sleeping curse, the true love’s kiss that had awoken her from it.

 It seemed that Shiro had been cursed in the same way as his mother once had.

 twenty-six.

Allura rested a hand on Keith’s shoulder when she arrived at the hospital. He looked back at her, and she smiled reassuringly.

 “He’ll be all right, Keith.”

 He frowned, focusing on his brother’s form. He was more and more convinced that Shiro could not be helped by medicine.

 “Can we talk?”

 He led her to a supply closet where they could talk without anyone overhearing.

 “I know this might sound crazy, but I need you to kiss Shiro.”

 Allura was silent for several seconds. “What? He’s in a coma. You can’t just kiss someone without their consent like that.”

 “It doesn’t have to be on the lips,” Keith pleaded. “Allura, do you trust me?”

 “I—” she looked conflicted.

 “Please, just try it.”

 “Keith.” She spoke his name softly, as though trying to calm a wounded animal. “You’re worried about your brother; you’re not thinking straight. I think you should go home and get some sleep. Shiro’s in good hands here, I promise. The doctors will do everything they can for him.”

 He sighed in defeat. This was not the way the curse would be broken. “You’re – you’re right, Allura. I’ll see you at home.”

 zero.

He knew what he had to do, even as the fear that it would not work threatened to crush him.

 Zarkon had tried to eliminate the Saviour, but Keith would not let that happen.

 He bent down, pressing a light kiss to his brother’s head, praying that it would work.

 Noise returned to the heart monitor – the most wonderful sound he had ever heard, and Keith’s entire body collapsed with relief, falling into the chair by Shiro’s bedside. He opened his eyes.

 “Keith,” he murmured, voice scratchy. “I – I remember.”

 “The curse,” the doctor said, her voice carrying from the doorway. “It’s broken.”

 + one.

Pidge (as everyone had thankfully returned to calling them, once the memories had returned), found their brother quite easily. He was among the group that had spilled onto main street, searching for families, friends, loved ones.

 Takashi – Shiro, he hadn’t been Takashi in a long time – was at the centre of attention, begrudgingly accepting the thanks from the townspeople, saying, “it wasn’t me, it was—”, turning to look for his own brother, and finding that he had disappeared.

 Pidge could talk to Shiro later; they had plenty of time. For now, they wanted the comfort of their brother’s arms, the delusion that everything was all right, for a moment.

 “We need to find dad.”

 + two.

Keith had never respected peace so much as the moments of quiet he was able to find at Granny’s. Everyone who had been in the diner had left, joining the throngs of people gathering in the streets, reuniting with each other. It was easy to pour himself a cup of coffee and to sit in one of the hastily vacated booths.

 The bell jingled to signal that someone else had entered the diner. Keith did not turn around, hoping that it was a stranger, or if it was someone that he knew, that they would respect his evident desire to be alone.

 “Shiro says it was you who broke the curse.”

 Keith repressed a sigh – it was Lance, who fit neither of the criteria. “It depends on how you look at it.”

 The other boy approached the booth, standing by the table rather than sitting down. He looked more uneasy than Keith had ever seen him.

 “Thank you,” he said, blue eyes earnest. “I have a family – if I can find them, and I thought I didn’t. And that’s because of you – or Shiro, whatever.”

 “Why aren’t you looking for your family?” asked Keith, curious. As someone who had lost them during the curse, it stood to reason that Lance would be searching for them. Instead, he was here with Keith.

 “I wanted to apologise, too. For how I acted during the curse. I was a jerk. Maybe we can start over?”

 Keith looked at him, taking him in, and becoming more and more sure about the thought that had burst into his head weeks ago. “Yeah, we can start over. Would you like to go on a date with me?”

 Lance blinked, struck dumb for a moment. Keith bit back a laugh as he waited for a reply. “Um, sure. I mean, yes, I’d love to go on a date with you. Are you sure you want to go on a date with me?”

 Keith reached out, tugging the other boy down to his level. “Lance, I’m sure.”

 And he kissed him. Lance flailed for a second before relaxing against Keith’s lips, kissing him back.

 They smiled at each other for a moment after they broke apart, faces still close to each other.

 The bell rang again, and the peace was disturbed, but, somehow, Keith couldn’t find it in himself to mind.

 fin.

[avidbeader]

Voltron fanfic: “Scattered” Chapter 8

Season 2 AU. No ships, K+ to T rating. Begin at the beginning here. 

Darzi practically danced with rage as the monitors’ rhythm slowed noticeably.

 “Not again! Did you give him the adrenaline yet? Add more!”

 Perkins looked at the monitors, evaluating the information they provided. He then took a long look at the youth on the gurney. Bruises were already starting to form on his face, making the wound from a previous split lip even darker. Perkins reached over and opened one of the boy’s eyes. The eye, an unusual dark violet color, was badly bloodshot from the strain of fighting for air.

 “Do you realize how close you came to killing him?”

“All I did was stop him from making noise! Wake him now! Add more adrenaline!”

 Perkins took another look around, this time focusing on his colleague sprawled on the floor, unconscious from a drugged cup of coffee. “I haven’t started the amotrazephine yet.”

 “What? But his vitals slowed, just like before!”

 Perkins shook his head. “That reaction didn’t happen until the second dose, according to the report I read. There’s something else going on here, like he’s found a way to withdraw physically and mentally from the situation. I’ve read about catatonia, but I’ve never witnessed a case personally and I’ve never heard of anyone being able to control it like this.”

 “Well, then, use the adrenaline first! Or another stimulant! Or get the defibrillator and run some volts through him!”

 Perkins moved to stand between Darzi and the boy. “Sir, you are out of control. I understand that you want answers, but you are overstepping a line here.”

 “Now you listen here—”

 “No, you listen.” Perkins used his height advantage to advance and tower over the older man. “I will summon backup from security guards who aren’t in your squad and press for a tribunal in which I will testify unless you back off now.”

 Darzi opened his mouth to respond but was interrupted by the floor trembling under his feet. A growl thundered, echoing through the entire building. Perkins swallowed uneasily, but held his ground. “Seems like someone agrees with me. Now, you get those two guards of yours to carry Desai to her quarters. I am going to do a full blood workup and cellular scan for Mr. Kogane, which should have been done in the first place. I will stay with him until he returns. You will stay the hell away from him and I will share any information I am able to obtain.”

 “But—”

 “Lieutenant General, you are being handed the perfect bad-cop-good-cop opportunity here, not to mention the chance to hide how close you came to murdering a defenseless civilian. I suggest you use them.”

 Darzi gulped and backed out of the room.

 Once he was alone, Perkins pulled out his personal mobile and sent a quick text: YOUR SUSPICIONS CORRECT. SUBJECT NEARLY LOST. PROBLEM HEADED OFF FOR NOW.

 <> <> <> <> <>

 On approach to the far side of the planet, Hunk racked his brain furiously for ideas. Shiro and Keith were the best combat strategists of the team. Pidge was the tech-head and Lance just tried whatever came into his head, which worked more often than it should. Hunk was the nuts-and-bolts guy, the one who could build it. Everything he knew from flight combat training at the Garrison involved teams working together. And right now he was very much alone.

 He felt a growl in his head.

 Okay, not alone, exactly. But severely lacking in the support personnel department.

 That earned him a purr that was almost a chuckle.

 The display showed one warship near the southern pole of New Metrea, as Hunk sometimes called it in his head, while the other two were much farther north. After a brief debate, he decided to spend his coin of surprise on the two ships together. If he were very lucky, he might be able to disable the ion cannon on one of the ships with his first strike. And it was much better if any immediate reinforcements consisted of one ship rather than two.

 We have got to get those cloaking devices of Pidge’s on the rest of the Lions.

 Agreed.

 As they cleared the horizon, Hunk brought up the Lion’s jaw blades and put on as much speed as possible. The Galra clearly were not expecting any problems and their weapons did not start firing until he was well within visual range. Flying straight and true, they went for the ion cannon of the near ship, scoring into its side up the entire length.

 The ion cannon exploded behind them. Hunk whooped and banked, trying for the same strategy on the other ship. But someone on that ship had quicker reflexes and the Yellow Lion bounced off a particle barrier.

 “Have I ever mentioned how much I hate quiznaking FORCE FIELDS?” Hunk’s voice rose in frustration.

 Both warships had launched fighters and now Hunk had to concentrate on staying out of the way and letting as few energy bolts hit him as possible. He tried to imitate some of the evasive tactics he had seen Shiro and Keith use, but the Yellow Lion was just too slow for some of the pinpoint maneuvers. After a lot of shoving fighters into each other, he found some success in flying between the warships, causing havoc when the attacks started taking each other out in ‘friendly fire’. The close quarters made it easier to drive fighters into the hull of a warship and the numbers started going down steadily.

 Beware! The other ship is on the way!

 He was distracted just enough as he tried to think of a way to compensate for the new aggression that he slowed momentum. And those damnably clever Galra took the opportunity and moved closer to one another, catching Yellow and pinning him between them. Hunk felt the Lion shudder as they closed in.

 “NO! Come on, work loose!” Hunk pulled the steering poles, trying to break the pincer hold, but the only response was an ominous groaning of metal. He opened the communications screen.

 “Hunk to Voltron Team, I need help! Galra attack at my location!”

 “We read you, Hunk! On our way!” Shiro’s voice was the most beautiful thing Hunk had ever heard.

 He braced himself in the cockpit as more metal creaked. “Come on, come on, come on, we can do this! I won’t let you die this way!”

 As he spoke, he felt a flood of warm, yellow-gold energy surge through him and something seemed to break through a barrier he hadn’t known existed. A new strength filled him and he pushed with that strength.

 And the Yellow Lion braced inside a new layer of heavy armor, massive claws slashing at the warships holding him in place.

 “Oh, hell yes!”

 <> <> <> <> <>

 He was safe here. Here there were no attacks, no questions, no probing. Here only held himself and his Other. She surrounded him with soft warmth, soothing and comforting him.

 I have you, my Paladin. I can protect you for a little while. But you need to let me help you.

 There was a reason…what was it? His Other could indeed protect his physical body as well as his true self, but there was a reason. She protected him, but he also protected her. What was he protecting her from?

 I can be careful, Paladin.

 That was it. Fear that if she caused unnecessary casualties that she would be captured and possibly destroyed. He had to prevent that.

 I have to protect you, too.

 The enemy was afraid. Fear was a poor basis for making a rational decision. She had pointed that out herself. It made her unhappy that he was using her words against her, but she conceded the point.

 Go back, my Paladin. I think you are safe for the moment.

 He trusted her. He trusted her more than any entity in the universe. But he still asked, because it was his nature to ask: Are you sure?

 Yes. You are safe for the moment, my cub.

 <> <> <> <> <>

 Allura stepped between the steering poles of the Castle-ship and began entering the coordinates for Arus. Part of her was almost giddy in anticipation of reuniting Pidge with her family. Another part of her was already planning arguments to leave the Holts there while they retrieved Hunk and Keith. Pidge’s father was a master organizer and would be able to begin the process of either assisting former slaves home or helping them settle with the Arusians. Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted as a communication screen popped up, showing a frantic Hunk.

 “Hunk to Voltron Team, I need help! Galra attack at my location!”

 “We read you, Hunk! On our way!” Shiro shot to his feet and moved to his elevator. “Lance, tell Dr. Holt to pass the word for everyone to stay in place and get to your Lion!”

 “Copy!”

 Allura quickly switched gears and focused her willpower on the Yellow Lion. Coordinates sprang up on the screen and her fingers dashed over the controls before moving to the steering poles. “Ready for wormhole!”

 Coran set his controls. “Go!”

 The Castle-ship dove through the ring into the inky purple void.

 <> <> <> <> <>

 The warships had sprung apart enough with the appearance of the Yellow Lion’s super-armor that they were free again. Hunk guided the front paws gleefully, the new enormous claws positively shredding the hull of the nearer ship.

 “Oh, let’s see what these can do to a force field!” They shot over to the ion cannon and swiped. A gratifying series of cracks appeared. Hunk shifted the controls and tried driving the outstretched claws into the field. The web of cracks widened and Hunk backed up and fired his lasers at the weak spot.

 The force field popped like a soap bubble.

 “Yeah! That was so much easier! Let’s slice and dice this cannon!”

 The Lion’s claws penetrated and ripped, tearing the cannon loose from its base, and Hunk whooped with triumph.

 PALADIN!

 The blast from the newly-arrived third ion cannon sent him spinning out of control.

 <> <> <> <> <>

 The second they exited the wormhole, Allura brought the particle barrier up. Two Lions shot out of their hangars and made straight for the cluster of Galra ships.

 “Hunk, where are you?”

 “SSSHHHIIIIIRRRRROOOOOOOO!!!”

 “There he is! He just crashed into the bridge of the near ship!”

 “Good job, Lance! Let’s see if we can run those two ships together. Princess, can you keep the third ship busy for just a few minutes?”

 “On it!”

 “Hunk, do you copy? We’re going to try and ram the two ships together! Can you maneuver?”

 “Yeah…yeah, we’re okay!”

 “Whoa, Hunk! What happened to your Lion? It’s like, mecha-zoided!”

 Hunk steered the Yellow Lion over toward Lance’s side. “It’s great, isn’t it? It just kind of happened when I needed it most.”

 “Okay, you two! Push!”

 With Black on one side and Blue and Yellow on the other, they gripped edges of the ship hulls with their teeth and fired thrusters. Slowly, the two ships ground together and explosions erupted all over them. As a particularly large firecloud erupted over the propulsion system of one ship and leapt to the other, Shiro disengaged.

 “That’s got those taken care of. Let’s get the third!”

 The three Lions flew to where the Castle-ship was in a standoff, slowly losing the protection of the particle barrier with repeated blasts from the Galra ion cannon. The strikes from the Castle-ship had done some damage, but not landed a crippling blow.

“Jawblades, everyone! Start with weapons systems and engines!”

 It was a matter of minutes to disable the final ship. As Hunk relaxed, the heavy armor on the Yellow Lion winked out of existence and he patted the handles of his steering columns. “You really came through. Thanks.”

 <> <> <> <> <>

 Back at the village, Pidge settled into the partially rebuilt hut that the Arusians had assigned her. She pulled off her helmet and outer layer of armor, debating whether she could borrow the Arusians’ bathhouse before going to sleep and possibly find some spare clothing and try to clean her under-armor. Someone had left a plate of snacks for her and she was touched to see that whoever it was had paid attention and assembled her favorite examples of Arusian cuisine.

 She began pulling out some of the equipment she would need to start the Galra glove project. She set her repaired power source out and dug around for a solar cell she had spotted before. She jury-rigged a connection and quickly verified that the setup was compatible. Now she would be able to keep the Galra power source charged as she worked on other things. She pulled out a disembodied sentry hand and began dismantling it.

 In her concentration, Pidge completely missed that there were voices coming from her helmet on the other side of the room. She felt a nudge in her head. “Huh? What is it, girl? Is something happening?”

 She retrieved her helmet and put it on. She blinked in surprise at hearing Shiro direct Lance and Hunk in mopping up some stray fighters. “Wait, what happened?”

 Allura replied, “Hunk ran into some Galra warships and we had to go help him. Is everything all right with you?”

 “Yeah, no problems at all.”

 “Good. I think we’re going to have to arrange for these refugees to go elsewhere. We have to assume someone reported their presence.”

 “It’s okay. I’ve got plenty here to keep me busy.” And the longer you take to get here is more time I can use to go through the prisoner database.

 “Thank you, Pidge. Allura out.”

 Pidge removed the helmet and frowned. Surely there was a better way to maintain communication between them than wearing the helmets all the time? Allura used those earrings of hers, but Pidge expected at least one of the boys would object to that.

 Maybe an earpiece analog? But if it’s something we wear all the time, we’d have to find a way to make it detect when we have our helmets on so we don’t get double audio when we wear them. Maybe a wrist mount would be better.

 She felt the Green Lion’s curiosity at the idea and smiled, mentally shuffling her project list.

 <> <> <> <> <>

 Keith returned to himself and as was now habit, kept his eyes closed and body still while he listened and assessed. He was still immobilized. The room was quiet, but at least one person was shuffling around. While he waited, he heard glass clinking against metal and the sound of fingers on a keyboard.

 Someone approached and Keith couldn’t prevent himself from flinching when they made contact with his arm. A hand touched his forehead, smoothing his hair back.

 “Easy, son. Everything’s okay for the moment. Just putting this bandage in place. Drew a bit of blood to run an analysis, make sure there aren’t any nasty alien bugs hiding in there.”

 Keith held rigid and still. He opened his eyes to see the medtech that had entered with Darzi and recoiled from him again. The man leaned over, examining his face.

 “I’ll get something for your eyes and that mark on your mouth. Can’t really do anything for the bruising, but it’ll fade in a few days. My name’s Perkins, by the way. I’ll be keeping an eye on you for a while.”

Next chapter