Hello! Ever since I watched Season 6 of Voltron I thought that it had so much potential to work with. But after watching Season 7 I found that the potential I had originally seen had been squashed. So this story is how I hoped Season 7 had gone. I hope my story is something you guys can find enjoyable ( ^ ~ ^ )
Lance's POV
I watched as Keith slid his arm under Shiro's back and began to lift him off the ground. Without a thought, my body moved to help him and lifted the other side of Shiro's back. Together we supported Shiro's unconscious body and dragged it over to the black lion. Tears were still slipping down my face as we walked but it didn't really bother me that everyone else could see. Sure I've always tried to keep everything together but this time I'll let myself show a bit of sadness. The rest of the team watched us in utter silence. Not that I could blame them. After all what had just occurred seemed impossible. Shiro's consciousness transferred out of the black lion into his cloned body? It's like something out of a fairy tale has just happened right in front of our eyes.
Keith and I entered the black lion and the rest of the group quickly followed behind us after quickly regaining some composure. We set Shiro onto a table in the lion's cockpit and everyone's worried eyes all settled on one person. Allura. She looked equally as worried but I could tell once she realized everyone was counting on her to explain Shiro's condition, she became more confident as if to fill the role she had been given.
She stood a bit taller as she spoke, "Shiro will be fine as long as the body doesn't reject his consciousness. Right now Shiro and the clone's memories are fusing together. That puts a strain on his body so right now what he needs is proper rest." I found myself nodding as she spoke, but that didn't remove the guilt or pain that still resided in my chest.
"We should take turns with who stays with him", Hunk says, looking at Keith out of the corner of his eye.
"I'll take first shift then", Keith immediately replies. His hand still remained on the table Shiro resided on and something told me he'd remain there for a long time.
"No surprise there", Hunk mutters under his breath which causes Pidge to crack a grin. I'm surprised she could manage a smile in this situation but Pidge had always been strong with her emotions. She understood that sometimes there was simply nothing you could do but get over it. In my heart I knew that too, but this situation was different. It was something I could've prevented. Something I had the power to stop but yet I didn't. I was too slow to catch on to what Shiro was trying to tell me back in the astral plane. Pain spread across my chest again and my mind quickly tried to find something else to focus on. Allura popped into my head but that whole situation was just as painful.
"Then we'll leave you to it", Allura told Keith. I glanced over at Keith. Every fiber of his being screamed of not being okay. His position was slouched over, his face looked paler than usual and the circles under his eyes were dark. He was probably exhausted from having to pilot the Altean ship here and then immediately jump into battle. To make matters worse, he'll now have to take first shift of watching Shiro and that will only lead to him worrying and dragging his emotional state down further than it already was.
I walked over to him which made him stand up straighter and his eyes met mine. I reached my hand up and placed it on his shoulder. His eyes lacked the usual spark they usually had but not that I could blame them. Keith had been through hell and back.
"Just make sure you don't wear yourself out", my voice said softly, "We'll all need you in tip-top shape when Shiro wakes up." I pat his shoulder twice and walked past him, only removing my hand after I passed him. Once reaching the door, I turned my head and cocked it in the direction of the door, signaling for the rest of the group to follow. Everyone exited the room, leaving Keith, Krolia and Kosmo to remain by the brother Keith cared for so much's side.
We all exited the black lion, the nerves still remaining even though I'd left the room. I found myself pacing back in forth, lost in thought. I tried to think of anything that would distract me. But everything that my mind drifted off to, only lead to more pain. Allura didn't understand the extent of my feelings towards her and anytime I try to express myself, Hunk and Pidge take it as some sort of a joke. Hunk was the best friend I'd ever had but lately we haven't even talked much. He's found a kindred soul in Pidge and I don't blame him for spending time with her. I just wish we could hang out more. Man war time is hard. Maybe once we're done with this war and go back to Earth we can connect again. But I guess that's only if we get to go back to Earth. Man I missed Veronica and Luis and Marco. I'd already missed a year of being in their life. I don't want to miss any more.
"Lance could you stop pacing?", Hunk asked sounding a bit stressed, "You're making me more nervous and you know how I get when I'm nervous. And I was already nervous to begin with." I stopped pacing and nodded at him. Romelle also was glaring at me. It seemed she was on the same page as Hunk. I didn't want to make anyone else's experience worse than it already was. Both of their faces softened when I stopped pacing.
Cutting through the tense air like a blade, Allura spoke, "So when can we begin our voyage to Earth?"
"Once we're sure Shiro's condition is stable enough", Coran answered, "That'll probably take no longer than a day or two." A sigh escaped Allura's mouth and she sat on the ground next to Romelle. I could tell she wanted to do something other than sit around. Allura is the type to take everything on by herself and I could tell she felt responsible for Shiro's condition since she was the one who transferred his consciousness into the clone but she wasn't the one to feel responsible. I was.
"For the love of….", Romelle huffed, "Lance quite that horrible tapping!" I snapped out of thought and frowned even further. I didn't even realize I had been tapping my foot the whole time. No wonder they were getting irritated.
"Sorry", I admit, "I just don't know how to handle this." Everyone's faces softened at the words that just seemed to slip out of my mouth.
"Well I'm going to go do a maintenance check of all the lions", Pidge announced, "Better to keep our minds and hands busy than sit here and ponder." She began to walk off towards the green lion and Hunk followed shortly behind her. Anything that needed fixing, the two of them now did together. It was something they were both passionate with and to them it was also something they could bond over.
"The crystal we received from the Castle of Lions could be of some use", Coran spoke, "I'd like to test its qualities and see if it will still be able to being a source of power." I watched as he walked off in the direction of the red and blue lions, pulling the crystal out of his pocket. Then my head swung over to face Allura and Romelle who were in turn, looking at me.
"So what are you guys going to do?" Allura asked. Romelle stood up and brushed off her pants with her hands.
"Since I haven't been off the Altean colony my whole life, I figure it'd be nice to explore a bit", Romelle answered, her eyes twinkling as she spoke. Allura's lips curved upwards into a smile.
"I guess I'll join you then", Allura said, then turning to Lance, "Are you coming with us or do you have something else to do?" I smiled but shook my head, "Nah I've got some things to do here. You two have your Altean girl time." I appreciated that Allura was trying to include me in their little adventure but honestly I really think the two of them needed some time to themselves. They were both Altean but both lived in dramatically different times. The two of them walked off in the complete opposite direction than the lions.
"Just don't get lost!", standing up as I shouted to them. They both swung their heads back at me and stuck out their tongues in response. I smiled as they walked off, already looking deep in conversation.
"Only one man left", I muttered under my breath. I stood there alone, trying to think of something I could do to help. Eventually I came to the conclusion that there was nothing for me to do except wait. So I climbed back into the black lion and remained in the main area outside the cockpit. Kosmo seemed to hear me come in from the cockpit because he immediately teleported in front of me as soon as I sat down.
"Hey there buddy", I said softly. He nuzzled my hand with his head and I reached with both of my hands up to scratch his ears. Kosmo closed his eyes and leaned into my left hand, seeming to like that side more than the other. I continued to pet him as I waited and Kosmo didn't seem to mind keeping me company. It was a good way to keep my mind off of my problems and soon I found words escape my mouth I never thought I'd articulate out loud.
Keith's POV
I pulled up a chair next to Shiro's bedside and wrapped my hand around his. It was incredibly cold, which only made me worry more. I looked up at my mother to find her gaze was already on me.
"You know you need rest too", she spoke, "That kid before was right, you need to take it easy." I looked away from her.
"I'm fine. All that matters right now is Shiro." The truth is that if my nerves weren't so bad my body would've already crashed at this point. I was beyond exhausted.
"So you're not going to listen to him?", Krolia continues, "He looked pretty worried about you." An odd feeling panged my chest as she spoke. Kosmo nuzzled his head against my arm, letting it rest on top of his head. I scratched the top of his head in response.
"Look Lance wouldn't worry about me and even if he did there's no need for him to feel that way."
"Even after all this time, you still feel like he doesn't care about you?"
"Why would he? We're not even friends", the words seemed to slip out of my mouth and every single one left me feeling worse and worse. Deep down I meant none of it. In fact I thought we had grown a lot closer and I'd even consider us good friends. But that doesn't mean he feels the same way.
"I think if he heard you say that about him, he'd be pretty hurt", Krolia says, "I thought you'd begun to get the idea in your head that you mean more to others than you think."
"I have!", I throw my gaze back at her, "Just not with…"
"Lance?", She finishes for me. I nod.
"For some reason just the thought that he might hate me terrifies me." She smiles softly at me, walking towards me. She places a hand on top of my head and shakes her head.
"You'll probably understand your feelings pretty soon", she mutters, barely audible. I stare at her in confusion, when Kosmo suddenly transports away. I get up and look out the window of the door leading out to the main room of the lion. Lance is sitting on a bench and Kosmo is sitting my his side. I see Lance pet Kosmo and Kosmo seems to be enjoying himself. A smile creeps up on my face and soon enough I find myself watching the two of them interact. My hands find the door handle and I slowly open the door. But it was barely open a sliver when I heard him speak. Immediately, I take my hands away from the door. I peek through the window again and see that he hasn't noticed.
"I know this is kinda weird since you can't talk back but I guess that's a good thing. I can express myself and you can't tell anyone about it", Lance spoke. I hesitate. Is this something I should be hearing? Lance rarely speaks about his emotional state and the only time he did was when he admitted to feeling like he should be left out of Voltron. Krolia appears at my side and gives me a questioning look. I place one finger over my lips, signaling for her to be quiet. I didn't want to eavesdrop but I was too worried to just leave him.
"You don't know this but I really care about Allura." A pang shoots through my chest that nearly takes all the wind out of me. "She's so brave, compassionate, caring and can take care of herself. Allura has had my heart ever since I met her and those feelings only have gotten stronger." Everything that spilled out of Lance's mouth I had already known but I didn't realize how much he truly cared for her. I could tell just by looking at his face.
"But the thing is she doesn't know. I've tried telling her but she always writes it off as a joke and just another pick-up line. I can tell she doesn't care for me the same way. It's pretty obvious by the looks she gives me. They're filled with pity and sadness. I just can't stand it anymore. I know she had a terrible experience with Lotor and him being a psycho killer and all but I can't help but hope she comes to like me back. So what do you think? Is it time to give up on her?" Lance pats Kosmo on the head again and the dog whines in return. Give up. That thought crept its way into my mind. Give up. I wanted Lance to give up on Allura. My hand pushed on my forehead as I began to develop a headache. I quietly shut the door and walked over to Shiro's bedside. My head was pounding with every breath I took.
"Hey are you alright?" Krolia asks.
"Yeah just a bit of a headache."
"That's not what I meant. Are you alright emotionally?" I take a deep breath and think.
"Actually I'm not alright."
"You must care for Lance a lot."
"I care for paladin a lot. They're all important people to me."
"But Lance is different to you", she pushed, "Right?" I look at her, I could feel my temper rising. Everything was getting jumbled in my head. I get up from the chair once again and open the door leading into the main room.
"I need some time to think and gather my thoughts", I turn my head to speak to her. She nods, "I'll stay with Shiro. Go on." In the moment I had nearly forgotten about Shiro. How could I forget about Shiro. I turned, confused whether I should leave his side, when Krolia motions for me to go. I take that as my decision and turn to go.
"And get some rest while you're at it."
Thank you guys for reading! If you guys want me to re-do certain episodes (like the Family Feud episode for instance) or take certain scenes and 'fix' them in my story then I'll certainly work them into the plot. The next chapter will be posted probably tomorrow so look forward to it!