The moonlight cast tall shadows against the buildings as Keith and Lance made their way stealthily down the deserted street. The only sounds were their careful breaths and the occasional whistle of a breeze.
"You ready for this, Red?" Lance whispered, even though no one was around. In the Empire, even the walls had ears.
"You know it, Blue," Keith responded curtly without bothering to turn around and face Lance. "You?"
Lance answered with a firm hand on his partner's shoulder. He could feel the adrenaline coursing through his body in anticipation.
"We get the plans and we get out. Simple," Keith recapped, more for himself than for his partner.
Allura, leader of the Rebel Alliance, had entrusted them on this mission to acquire the Galra Empire's top secret plans for moving a massive shipment of prototype weaponry. If the Rebels could intercept it, they would finally have the strength to be able to bring their fight out into the open. Former-rival-street-thieves-turned-partners (because they made a surprisingly good team) Red and Blue were Allura's go-to for in-and-out stealth missions like this, and they had yet to disappoint.
Exchanging a 'let's do this' look, the two crept up on either side of the first-floor window on the side of the building. Lance drew his gun and nodded at Keith who hoisted himself up to the sill, eased the window open, and slipped inside.
Keeping watch outside, Lance smiled to himself when he heard the dull sounds of bodies thudding to the ground inside.
A minute passed. Then two, then five. Lance approximated they had about a minute before someone came to check on the guards in this room. He rapped his brief one minute warning signal on the windowpane. Almost immediately, Keith climbed back out, landing softly into a crouch by Lance's feet.
"You got it?"
Keith confirmed with a nod. "Come on." He tugged briefly on the front of Lance's jacket as he started to sprint back the way they had come.
"No wait, this way." Lance pulled Keith back by his sleeve. "Follow me."
And Keith did, without hesitation.
Lance led them further up ahead, beyond the Galra outpost building and into an alley that was nearly pitch dark. Only now did Keith turn toward Lance. Lance didn't need to be able to see Keith's face to know he was raising his eyebrows in silent question.
"A drone," Lance explained.
As if on cue, they heard an ominous electronic beeping on the street they had just turned in from. Keith shoved Lance against the wall and clamped a hand against his mouth. He buried his own head in the space between Lance's neck and shoulder, making them as invisible as possible and muffling the sounds of their labored breathing.
The beeping receded, and Keith released Lance. "Drone," Keith agreed.
"We can't stay here," Lance pointed out. He walked carefully out of the alley, Keith close behind him. The coast was clear, and Lance dashed into the next side street. The two slunk in the shadows, as they made their way back to base. Keith's hand was clenched in his pocket around the itinerary he'd just stolen; and Lance fingered the gun tucked in his waistband. They encountered no one on the streets this late past curfew, though every so often they ducked to avoid the patrolling drones.
Once they made it out of the main city and back into Rebel territory, Lance threw a smirk Keith's way. "Nice work."
The corners of Keith's tired eyes crinkled when he smiled back. "We're a good team, Blue."