Author's note: First time writing about Voltron! Loving the show so much. Creative criticism or just any type of review is deeply appreciated! However, please don't forget the most important thing you guys have to do! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do NOT own Voltron, any of the characters, nor the cover image of this story. What I own is only my Oc.
Oracle.
Prologue.
The sound of absolute silence which covers her small space of vicinity is unsurprisingly welcoming and familiar. Its soft whispers of eerie calmness surround her petite and sensitive ears. Their harsh words of nothingness lure her away from sudden reality.
It's terrifying her how easily they manipulate her sense of safety.
They pull her further back.
And further.
And further back.
Until all that she hears is the horrifying sound of the broken cassette tape of her memories and nightmares.
The fact that this transition brings comfort to her, terrifies her even more.
It is the soft touch of a hand against her skin and the sudden contrasting sound of meek squeaking that finally brings her back to reality. There are a few tears that threaten to fall from her tired, silver-colored eyes. However, when she sees the familiar outline of the being before her and the tiny colorful mice to the side, the girl manages to compose a small smile.
It had taken them 20 dobashes to find her.
"What took you guys so long?"
Her voice is almost broken.
...
Over the course of the few human days she had been aboard the Castle of Lions, the young altean newcomer concluded that breakfasts were the most uneventful time of the day on the enormous spacecraft. Breakfasts were uncharacteristically calm. One would guess that mornings on board the ship of the universe's defenders that had gone face to face with one of Zarkon's trusted commanders and had saved a giant, living planet from being completely obliterated just the day before, would be booming with energy and readiness for battle. However, this was not the case. The dining area was void of any human presence and the only occupants of the space were two alteans, one sipping on her cup quietly and the other one preparing the needed food.
Whatever the reason for the paladins still not showing up, most presumable the reason of them still being sound asleep, didn't matter the slightest. Especially not after Coran's booming voice over the communication link remaining them to get up.
The awake altean girl swore that she heard someone shout a loud "Shut up, Coran!" somewhere amongst the ship's corridors. However, she couldn't decipher which one of the paladins that voice belonged to.
"Young miss, your non-sleeping routine is getting quite unhealthy. Would you like me to give you some sleeping syrup from a white-haired Drii? Ah! I've got just the dish to boost you ener-"
"Coran, please! I feel just fine, there's no need to worry. I've rested enough when you found me-"
"What's a Drii?" interrupted a new, intrigued voice right from behind them. Alas, it was one of the paladins. Pidge stood in front of them, dressed in her casual wear which was visibly wrinkled. She must have fallen asleep in her working area. She did quick work to dust and straighten out the wrinkles on her shirt.
"Ah! The Drii! Marvelous creatures! They've got eyes sharper than a Galran Teerhound and reflexes five times faster than a Earthly Slender Mongoose! It's skin is as petite as a-"
However, the young paladin only tilted her in confusion, seeing as Coran hadn't really explained anything. She turned to look at the other altean as she picked up her share of breakfast and sat down on the table.
"The Drii were a very dominant animal species on Altea, widely known for their intelligence and speed. Their saliva is rich with vitamins and factors that produce sleep hormones. A small extraction is enough to put you to sleep for several days," the girl explained while Pidge slowly nodded her head in understanding, slightly disgusted at the explanation.
"It's kinda gross you used their saliva for sleep," she stated.
"I believe you humans also use chemicals in order to produce more sleeping hormones," added Coran after he finished dealing with the pain of being interrupted yet again.
"Well, you got me there," said Pidge as she continued slowly eating her bowl of whatever Coran had prepared, which not even the altean girl could say exactly what it was.
"Oh, Coran, I'm interested to know how you even have knowledge of my sleeping routine?"
"Ah! Your fellow companion has mentioned to me that you have been either wondering the castle, sitting in the main control room, or playing that "hide or freak" game Lance had told you about with the mice," he answered in all honesty.
"Actually, it's "hide and seek"," said Pidge.
"I've grown fond of that game...," quietly murmured the other girl as she quickly scanned the place to find her "companion".
That witch.
"Good morning," said another new, but a deeper and more contrasting voice than Pidge's from before. Another paladin walked in the dining area, also dressed in his casual wear. He looked clean and fresh, yet the fatigue in his eyes was vivid. He hadn't been able to get any sleep, most probably.
"Ah! Shiro! You're just in time. Eat it while it's still hot. I made a new recipe," excitedly said Coran as he lay the bowl of brightly green-coloured slime. The older boy was slightly taken aback both from the terrifying odor and display of the morning breakfast. However, he stifled whatever dissatisfaction he had, and wordlessly sat down next to Pidge, slowly nudging her arm when her head threatened to fall from tiredness right into the bowl.
"I think it's delicious," stated the other altean as she finally sat down as well to eat her own share of slimy porridge.
Corn beamed with pride.
Pidge almost choked.
Shiro took that without a grain of salt and put a piece of the porridge in his mouth. His only reaction was silent shivering.
"Morning, guys," came a long yawn. In walked another paladin, fully dressed, yet his tousled hair and tired expression gave out the fact that he had just woken up.
"Good morning," answered the newcomer amongst them.
"Let me guess, green, "healthy" altean porridge made out of God knows what recipe Coran created," asked the boy.
"Spot on," answered Pidge.
"Great! I'm hungry," he said and sat down.
"Hey," immediately followed another voice. There came the red paladin, dressed in his casual outfit but the small bits of sweat against his forehead and shallow breathing made him look as if he had just ended with a sparing practice. Which he most certainly had.
"Sit down, Keith, sit down. I've made a new recipe! So far everyone claims it's great, I'm curious to what you think!"
"Oh," was he realized in what terrible situation he had gotten himself into. He knew it was better idea to continue training. As the full bowl was placed before him, his eye twitched painfully. He glanced at the people surrounding him.
Pidge was almost done. He couldn't read her expression since her eyes were clouded from the calculated shimmer from her glasses.
Shiro ate in silence.
Hunk munched on is food quite lazily, as opposed to how normally he would eat.
The altean girl ate happily.
Oh no. He knew what this meant.
"Ghughd mornhging," came a stupidly and lazily uttered greeting. There he stood. In all of his pajama lion glory. The last paladin.
"I'm afraid you've missed the state in which the porridge is most delicious, young paladin. No matter! It will be just as good," excitedly said Coran as he nudged the last paladin to sit down and put an extra large bowl in front of him.
Lance's mind was still in a sleep-stasis, so the sudden strong odor made his face turn green, stomach turn over and eyes twitch.
"Shit."
...
Since she finished with her breakfast, the young newcomer offered to bring breakfast to the resting pilot of the ship. With the sound of a start of an argument and quiet chuckling, the altean left the dinning room and slowly walked through the corridors of the spaceship.
Suddenly, a small, white-feathered robin bird came flying towards her and happily put its feet on her shoulder.
"I'm not talking to you," the girl said curtly while the white bird titled its head to the side, to show its bafflement.
The girl suddenly stopped walking as she reached the front of a door, but before she made the motion of walking towards it, she turned her head to look the small animal in the eyes.
"You're a snitch. You tattled on me! We made an agreement, Sol!" she exclaimed and raised an eyebrow when the robin started tweeting loudly. At every few tweets, it would flap its wing as to prove its point.
"You know that's not true," the girl answered the bird but after a few moments she broke out of her serious stance and closed her eyes as she muttered a soft sigh. She just couldn't be mad at her companion.
"I know you worry about me, Sol. But I'm going to get better, I promise you," she said but the small bird remained silent and for a while, it did not turn her head to look at her altean companion.
"Sol, look at me."
The robin slowly lifted its head. There was a moment of silence between the two of them. There was nothing but a slight and beautiful essence of pure energy that coursed between altean and small robin. It stayed like that until the girl broke down into a smile and the small robin rubbed its head against her cheek.
They both understood.
The girl offered one firm knock on the door before she let herself in. The room was comfortably large but small enough to feel the warmth and sense of security. In the nestle of big bed sheets and soft pillows, rested another altean girl, prominently different from the other one. Indulged in the warmth of her pillows , her fellow mice guards slept away along with her.
The visitor slowly approached the bed and put the tray of breakfast on the bedside table. Then, she carefully kneeled next to bed and put a gentle hand on the sleeping girl's shoulder.
"Princess, you have to eat something," she said.
There was a soft shudder from the sleeping altean and she childishly tried to cover herself with her blankets, blocking away the clearly unwanted visitor.
"I'm feel as if every ounce of energy has been take away from me. A few more hours and I promise I will be fully energized, " she almost whined. The visitor smiled.
"Allura, only a few bites and then you can rest as long as you wish," she bargained.
The tired princess stood still for a moment, but then reasonably complied with her request. With little effort she uncovered herself from within the blankets and sat in her bed. There were a few drops of sweat on her face, symbolizing that her body was fighting off a rise in body temperature. She looked tired and worn, but it was completely understandable as to why she was in such a state.
After all, you don't resurrect almost dead planets everyday.
The visitor put the tray of food in the princess's lap.
"It's a little spicy, but I think that you will enjoy it," said the visitor and she slowly stood up from her kneeling position and prepared to leave. There was a soft murmur of her name as she reached the door that caused her to turn her attention back to the princess.
"Do you and Sol wish to keep me company?" she had asked with a polite smile.
"Of course," the girl answered and the small bird that remained on her shoulder tweeted merrily in agreement.
...
The approaching thunder of voices and laughter confused the newcomer as she carried the tray of a now, empty bowl in her hands, her companion flapping her wings in the same confusion at the sudden rush of noise.
Yet, however loud the voices were, they were laced with nothing but playfulness and good-intention. Some over voiced the others and the flash of positive energy surrounded the vicinity.
As the girl reached to enter the hall, the sudden cry of her name made her stand absolutely still and not move the slightest. She felt her companion flap her wings and fly away from her shoulder as a quick reflex that was bound to happen.
Splash.
Something very sticky and wet hit her flat on her face. At first it hurt, but that hurt quickly faded away as she opened her eyes to see the assaulter at hand. She first quickly took notice of Keith, trying to stifle a smirk and kneeled down on the floor in front of her as if trying to avoid a hit.
Oh.
Then she raised her eyes to meet a certain shocked leader who was at fault. She would've never guessed it had been him.
"I'm so sorry, I was trying to hit-"
"Keith, what are you doing!? You should've blocked the hit, you moron!" yelled Lance from behind a messy Hunk who was holding a chair as a shield.
"I didn't know she was going to be there!" yelled Keith from his position on the floor.
Hunk, Pidge and Coran all burst out laughing at the scene before them. The girl remained silent with a unreadable expression. The leader did not expect to witness what was to come from the girl.
She used her magic energy to bomb all of them with the same slimy porridge they were drenched in. It was utter destruction and most obvious defeat for the voltron team as they kept being attacked by slime.
They all took shelter behind the flipped table.
"TALI! USING MAGIC IS CHEATING!" yelled Lance but the said girl only burst out laughing.
"Guys! Watch out!" yelled out Pidge but it was all too late. Sol had found the perfect position in the air to bombard them with her own share of , they were unstoppable.
"Guys, if we want to defeat them, we have to work together!" yelled out space dad.
"RIGHT!" they all agreed in frightening optimism which made even Tali herself shocked.
"Sol, let's show them what we're made of!" and the altean sorceress prepared her next reign of porridge.
It was on.
...
"If you hadn't gut me in the damn stomach, I wouldn't have missed my shot!" yelled Lance.
"That's because you kept getting in my way!" yelled back Keith.
"Guys, it doesn't matter if we didn't win. We worked as a team," calmly stated Hunk as he dried himself off of the slime.
"LIKE HELL IT DOESN'T!" both blue and red paladin yelled to which Hunk just sighed and mentally gave up on further explaining the importance of team development over momentary glory.
"You both sucked," said Pidge with no drop of hesitation.
"And what did you do?" retorted Lance "You couldn't even shot a bird!"
"Excuse you, but it's physically impossible to hit a bird that fast while trying not to get bombarded with slime at every angle!"
"Guys, let's focus on-" Hunk tried to reason once more.
Shiro could only smile and shake his head at the growing commotion within his team members. At least this was a both a good teamwork building exercise and a reflex training exercise.
"It's always my porridge...," whined Coran.
Tali found herself grinning.
Perhaps her presumption was incorrect. Breakfasts, as she concluded during her short stay, were not uneventful. Humans were confusing and so was the outcome of their actions.
But, having known silence so long, if she was given a choice to choose short-timed laughter over everlasting silence, Tali wouldn't know which one to choose anymore.
Note: A dobash = roughly one minute ( might be shorter)
(Tali is pronounced Ta-leeh) Thank you guys so much for reading!~