A/N: Clearly, I suck at summaries. But anyway, this is my first Voltron fic. Poor Keith! He's my favourite and I tend to make my favourites suffer. I hope the characters aren't too OOC but feel free to let me know if they are.
In this story, a child Keith is accidentally transported to the castle of lions and does not want to leave when they figure out how to send him back. There's no slash in this or any of my other stories. Just platonic love. I hope you enjoy the story.
"Don't send me back. Please don't.", tearful pleas ran through the castle of lions. They came from a little boy, about 7 years old. The child was adorable, small for his age and pale with black locks falling over his beautiful, violet, gem-like eyes. He looked up at the seven people standing in front of him with a half defiant, half desperate look in his eyes. There was a long, painful silence. Various emotions were felt in the air: confusion, concern, sadness, panic, but one emotion stood out from the rest. Understanding. And it came from the one person from whom it was least expected.
One of the members of the odd group stepped forward. Another boy, older, with the same black hair and crystal-like eyes as the child. He looked down at his younger self with a well hidden but deep-rooted sorrow, the kind of pain that only comes with an unpleasant experience.
"You know what it's like. Why would you want me to go back to that ?", the whisper came from the scared child.
"I... I don't... But kid... there isn't... isn't any other way... I'm sorry... I'm so sorry."
The older one's voice was cracking now, eyes shining with the start of tears, tears that hadn't come in years. He growled inwardly, forcing them back into his tear ducts, back into the chest of emotions he never let himself feel anymore. Coming back, he noticed that the boy was now glaring at him, fury and fear both clear on his face.
"I hate you! How could you send me back there?! I'm not going back! I'm not! I won't go there again! You're supposed to be me! You should get it! Don't send me back... p-please... I thought y-you understood..."
By the end, the kid was sobbing, his face wet with tears and his voice barely audible. He didn't cry like a child though, there were no loud wails or cries, just sharp inhales and violent trembling. Any sound that escaped him was quiet and short. He was clearly used to suffering alone, in silence.
Shiro's hands clenched as he recalled exactly why the boy cried the way he did. Why he thought he could not let himself be heard. It was because no one came anymore. When they did, it was to berate and shut up, to hurt even what wasn't hurt yet.
Lance wanted to pick up the little boy and cuddle him, to tell him everything was okay and that they'd protect him. But that was a lie, wasn't it ? He knew it, and the child definitely knew it. This wasn't one of his nieces or nephews to whom he could easily make that promise to. And that made him feel helpless and upset.
Pidge wasn't comfortable with tears or children so she stood awkwardly in the back, itching to do something but not knowing what. Hunk was already crying, his empathy taking over him. He couldn't fix this now and he couldn't bear the thought of sending this poor child back to a place he was clearly terrified of.
Keith, standing ahead of the others, stood still for a long, long time. Still no one interrupted the delicate, little interaction. It was something the red paladin had to face alone and they knew it. Taking a deep breath to get the old, unwanted emotions under control again, he stepped forward, slowly crouching down in front of the young boy.
He was still crying, his hands covering his face. Slowly, carefully, he pulled the boy's hands away from his face, holding the much smaller hands gently in his own. For a while, he just looked down at the small, pale hands in his, the hands that were once his.
He wondered if his father once held them as gently as his son did now. His father, the man who had lived for him, who had possibly died for him, who had loved and adored him more than anything in the universe, what would he feel knowing what had happened to his beloved little boy after he was gone ? He'd be turning in his grave, he'd be heartbroken. The older Keith knew, even though his younger self didn't yet, that the fact that his father had loved him so very much was the reason he had survived this long. His father's love gave him strength, a purpose even years after his death, and that kept him going. Of course, that didn't stop him from becoming a suspicious, untrusting loner with anger issues. But it gave him the will to live and he was sure as hell going to remind this child of that.
He looked up from their joined hands to meet 7 year old Keith's eyes. They looked older than a 7 year old's eyes should but not even close to how jaded he would eventually become. That was something the older Keith was acutely aware of and that knowledge made what he was about to do to this still innocent child even more painful.
"Keith.", his voice was soft, quiet, so unlike himself that his friends, apart from Shiro looked at him with some surprise.
"I understand kid. I'm you. Of course I understand."
"Then why...?"
"Because it's life. We didn't get the best deal out of it. But we need to make the best of what we got." A heavy pause and then, "If for nothing else... then at least for dad." His voice cracked painfully on the last word and it echoed painfully clear around the room. The child's voice shook as more tears cascaded down his cheeks.
"I-I miss h-him. He acted s-silly all the time, a-and he gave me too many k-kisses a-and hugs... But I just want him back! I won't ever c-complain again i-if I get him back! If I could come h-here, you can g-go back right? We can go back and get d-daddy and then I can stay with daddy again and I won't have to go b-back there where no one l-loves me! D-daddy loved me!"
The older one bit his lip hard, his face twisting with unfathomable grief that he never let himself voice anymore. He struggled to keep his composure and he wasn't the only one in the room fighting that losing battle.
"I know... I know you don't want to go back... But we can't get dad back buddy. We... We can't. I wish we could... but we can't. I want it as much as you. But you need to go back home kid. To your time. It'll get better. I promise."
"That's n-not home. It's not home c-cos... cos d-daddy isn't there a-anymore. He's not. I don't wanna go b-back to where m-my daddy isn't waiting for me."
Another long silence, only broken by sniffles and whimpers.
The teenager railed himself and taking a deep breath, he spoke, "Listen to me Keith. One day... One day... someone will come for you. He'll come and he'll take you away from all the people who hurt you. They can't hurt you anymore. And you'll be happy. I promise. It might feel like a long time, but remember dad loves you... he always did and this person does too."
"Who? And why doesn't h-he come now?"
"Because he doesn't know what's happening... and right now he's a child too. But he'll come when he knows. You'll know when you meet him. He'll take care of you."
"But it hurts s-so much. I don't want to g-go. You can't g-get daddy back. So can't you keep me h-here? Please... l-let me stay."
"I wish I could. More than anything I wish I could. But you need to live your life. I know it's hard...but all that pain... it makes you who you are. And one day you'll realise, that they can't break you. That you're stronger now than they'll ever be their entire lives."
"And one day I'll be a pilot and I can go to space like you ?"
"Yes... just like me."
"I'm scared..."
Then Keith let go of the small hands in his, instead reaching for the boy's shoulders and pulling him into a hug.
"I know. I'm scared too."
The child sniffled against his shoulder, fresh tears falling onto the red fabric of the worn jacket. The teenager held on tighter, pulling the boy closer to his chest as tiny arms snaked around his neck and clutched at his clothes desperately.
"...You.. your hugs are just like d-daddy's."
A stunned silence.
"... Oh."
More tears.
"Dont l-let go... please."
"I... I won't."
The little boy cried himself out, soon falling asleep in the arms of his older self. Keith felt his child self go limp in his arms and shifted, taking all his weight, making sure not to wake up the kid. He stood up slowly, still holding the 7 year old.
"Allura, can you open the portal now?"
"Why now?, Lance asked, his eyes suspiciously red. "If he wakes up in his world after this..."
"Allura and Coran said he won't remember any of this.", came the quiet reply.
"But everything you told him... He won't remember... what's the point ?"
"He might remember subconsciously... I mean... I survived, didn't I? He clearly took my advice."
A small, sad smile.
"He'll be ok. It's better this way. At least he doesn't have to go through anymore pain saying goodbye. Allura ?"
The portal opened with a bright blue glow and the teen made to step through when a hand landed on his shoulder. Looking up, his eyes met Shiro's.
"I'll come with you."
Keith nodded, silently grateful. The two walked thought the portal. There a was flash of light and then they were standing in a familiar room. A room, Keith remembered that he hated with all his heart. This is hell, he remembered thinking at age 8 till he was taken away by social services. Reluctantly, he moved towards the bed and laid the boy down. He whined at the movement, causing both paladins to freeze, but quickly settled down without waking up. Picking up the blanket lying on the floor, he covered his younger self up, staring at the boy with a confusing mixture of emotions in his face. Then he stood abruptly, turning away from the sleeping form on the bed before looking at his older friend.
"Can we go now?"
Shiro nodded. He turned to give the sleeping child one last look and by then Keith had already stepped back through the portal to the castle of lions. Now that Keith wasn't there, the black paladin knelt back by the bed and placed his hand gently on the soft, black hair.
"Be strong little Keith. You'll be ok."
He placed a gentle kiss on the child's forehead before standing up. Then he heard feet stomping up the stairs and he knew that already didn't like this person. As much as he wanted to, he couldn't interfere with the past and he knew it. So he tore himself away from the child's bedside, ignoring the protective instincts flaring up inside him and walked through the portal which vanished behind him.
And when the owner of the house angrily stomped into the room and began screaming at the terrified child, neither she nor the little boy knew that there had been two intruders in the room just seconds before.
_
When Shiro arrived back at the castle, he saw Keith standing away from the others, near the glass view screen. The others turned around at his entrance and shot him a pleading look. Obviously, they didn't know how to deal with this. Looking at the younger boy, he saw him desperately trying to act nonchalant, but having known him for years, he could see right through the act.
Moving towards him, he said nothing, instead simply wrapping an arm around his slim shoulders. They stood there for a long time and Shiro was beginning to think that Keith wouldn't speak at all but then the boy sighed, looking down at the ground.
"Keith ?", he prompted softly, keenly aware that the others were still there, straining to listen. Keith didn't seem to notice or care.
"Shiro... what did I do Shiro ?"
"What ? What do you mean ? You didn't do anything."
He was completely confused at the red paladin's question and it was clear in his face. He felt more than saw similar looks of confusion cross the others' faces as well. Keith looked up at him, tears starting to spill, the teen crying for the first time since the news of the failed Kerberos mission. Startled, Shiro instinctively wrapped him up in a hug and the boy pressed his face against his collarbone. Soon, three other paladins, an alien princess and her advisor were all there as well, squeezing the distraught boy in their midst in a comforting embrace.
"Keith ?", Hunk asked hesitantly, on the verge of tears himself, "What's wrong buddy ? Please don't cry."
"I left him there... I left him in that hellhole.! I took him back to hell after he got away from there. What have I done ? I put him back there. I just left him there."
No one said anything as their teammate continued to cry. Saying something like 'It all worked out.' or 'It's okay.' seemed trivial and ineffective and would definitely not make Keith feel better. So they just held him while he cried and while the little boy in him cried, letting him know that they wouldn't leave. That night, no one returned to their rooms.
_In the past, three years later_
A teenager, 18 years old, burst into what looked like a child's room, running towards the closet and throwing it open. Behind him, he could hear authorities dragging a loudly protesting couple out of the house and handcuffing them but he didn't care, his eyes on the small child curled in the floor of the closet.
He gasped, kneeling down and gently picking up the 10 year old. The boy was hurt quite badly, dried blood covering the side of his face, bruises standing stark on his pale skin and his wrist hanging limply. The teen walked down the stairs slowly, trying not to jostle the injured child slumped against his chest.
A scared, tired whimper came from the little boy in his arms and the older one startled slightly before looking down at the boy, giving him a gentle squeeze and planting a loving kiss on his unruly mop of hair.
"It's okay kiddo. It's alright. I'm here now. I'll take care of you. It's okay. I won't let them hurt you anymore."
The boy started to cry then, fear and relief finally causing him to break.
"I h-had a dream. He told me you'd come a-and it would be okay. You c-came... Y-you came... Shiro..."
Confused about this dream but not asking, Shiro smiled reassuringly at the younger.
"Of course I came Keith. I'll always come for you."
A/N: Thank you for reading! Do drop me a review and tell me what you think!