A/n: Hello everyone! I'm back with the 4th story of this VLD OC series, Scarlett and the Blades! As the title and description implies, there will be a new character introduced into the story. And we're moving into season 2 now finally. I'm so excited!
For those of you who are new here, feel free to check out my first 3 stories in this series: Rise of Voltron, Turmoil Begins, and Fights and Flights. Mari's profile is also on my profile page, in case you're ever interested in getting to know her a bit better. I also post drawings for this series on my tumblr pufftheninja if you'd like to see my artwork of OC and canon characters.
But without further ado, here's Scarlett and the Blades! (Am I the only one that thinks this title sounds like a band name?)
**Shoutout to Ishval and megane-chan for leaving reviews last time! Thank you so flipping much! I love hearing from ya!
megane-chan: I know right! xD Hunk's such a good boy. Scarlett and the Blades really stuck with with me when I was brainstorming title ideas lol. I thought it sounded so catchy, so I'm glad you like it :D
**I do not own Voltron: Legendary Defender!
Bone-chilling, heart-stopping, tear-jerking nightmares were something that hadn't seriously afflicted Mari since she was a little girl. When she was younger, she would always skitter into Shiro's room at the dead of night with watery eyes after having bad dreams about snakes biting her or monsters clawing at her. She'd jump into his bed without any warning, roughly jolting him awake and knocking the air out of him as she landed on him. Then she'd burrow under the covers and curl up next to him for warmth and protection. And Shiro, being the patient and kind older brother that he was, would let her stay with him for the rest of the night, rubbing her back gently and sometimes singing softly to help her fall back to sleep.
Thinking back on it, she hadn't done that since she was six. After Shiro's accident, she had stopped seeking him out for comfort after she had a nightmare. Instead, she would just go to her parent's room and sneak under the covers of her dad's side of the bed.
But now, years later, Mari found herself standing hesitantly in the doorway of her brother's room on the Castle of Lions, her dark hair a mess and a pillow hugged tightly to her chest. She had screamed herself awake just minutes ago, violently shaking herself out of a nightmare in which Shiro hadn't saved her and she was still stuck on that table in Haggar's lab. The witch had been hovering over her, using her as a human pincushion and plunging long and thin needles deep into the flesh of her arms and torso. Then one of her lackeys had appeared with a wicked-looking power saw that had a jagged glowing blade. He activated it and the sharp knives emitted a terrifyingly loud screech as they whirled dangerously over her thigh. In one swift downward movement, he thrust it into her leg, mauling the fabric of her space suit and easily cutting deep into her flesh like it was made of butter. That's when she had jolted awake in a cold sweat, her breath coming out in ragged gasps and the ghost sensations of the needles lingering in her body.
Mari had sat there in her bed for a while to calm her nerves and regain her composure, but the emptiness of her room was unsettling. In the silence she could hear the faint whispers of Haggar's cruel laughter echoing off the walls, and for a moment she swore she had seen a pair of familiar glowing golden eyes peering out at her from the darkest corner of the room. Without a second thought, she had grabbed her pillow and leaped out of bed, making a break for the door and escaping into the brightly lit hallways. She had instinctively sprinted for Shiro's bedroom, nearly punching the panel next to his door to open it, only to realize that the room was empty.
Squinting through the darkness for any sign of Shiro, Mari took a cautious step inside. His bed was neatly made with his pajamas folded on top of the covers, and his Black Lion slippers sat nicely at the foot of the bed. But other than that, the room was completely devoid of life.
That's right, he's still in the cryo-pod, she recalled, and she let out a disappointed sigh. Shiro wouldn't be awake until morning. And the Castle of Lions was still in sleep mode, so everyone else was bound to be dead to the world by now…meaning she had to make it through the remaining hours until dawn by herself.
A cool breeze from the halls washed over her, making the hairs on her neck rise. She nervously peeked out the door and glanced up and down the vacant corridors for anything that could have caused the movement of air, and she vaguely wonder what the chances were that the ten thousand year old ship was haunted. Maybe the Castle was just naturally drafty, but heck, if aliens existed, then maybe ghosts did too. A shiver ran down her spine and Mari quickly shook that thought from her head.
Quiznak…She really didn't want to be alone right now. Who would be the least irritated with her for disturbing them in the dead of night?
All the boys were immediately out. The idea of her sleeping in any of their rooms with them sounded so awkward and uncomfortable. Besides, Lance needed his "beauty rest" and Hunk was too heavy of a sleeper to wake up with just a light knock to his door. Keith was an early riser, but Mari imagined that even he'd be grouchy if he was woken up at this hour. Plus she felt like he'd decline her request anyways. And Coran?…No. Just…no.
Allura and Pidge were her only options left. But Allura had seemed miffed with her after their dinner discussion about the possibility of there being good Galra in the empire, so it probably wasn't the best idea for her to go crawling back to the princess because of torture nightmares. Pidge on the other hand wasn't a heavy sleeper and she stayed up to ungodly hours of the night. Mari wouldn't be surprised if she was still awake right now, in fact.
So, Pidge it was.
Shuffling down the halls as quietly as she could, Mari stopped in front of the Green Paladin's door and knocked twice. She was met with silence though, and for a moment she wondered if Pidge was actually asleep for once or if she was just holed up in the Green Lion's hangar again. But the door opened with a soft swish within the next tick, and she was greeted by a sleepy Pidge.
"Oh…Mari," she spoke through a yawn. She wore her pajamas yet her glasses still rested on the bridge of her nose. "I was just about to hit the sack. What are you doin' up?"
"U-Um…" Mari shuffled from foot to foot, suddenly feeling sheepish. "I-I just had a nightmare. And I know it wasn't real and it's stupid to be scared of it, but I really don't want to be alone in my room right now. And Takashi is still in the healing pod and I don't think I can ask any of the oth—"
Pidge instantly interrupted her rambling, grabbing her by the wrist and pulling her inside without a word. Her room was an absolute mess compared to Shiro's crisp and empty dorm. There were miscellaneous Altean tools and tech sitting on the floor, dirty clothes were sprawled about, empty water pouches sat along the edge of the bed, and there were these weird trash figures propped against the wall that looked oddly familiar. Stepping over some of the junk, Mari approached them.
"Is—Is that us?" she stammered, gesturing to the garbage sculptures. Her eyes widened as they landed on one in particular. It had bolts for eyes and long uneven strips of black debris layered over a rounded hunk of dented metal. Two stubby pipe-like arms stuck out of the material used for the upper torso and they were positioned upward in a celebratory fashion. "Is that me?" she asked pointing to it.
Pidge nodded proudly at them, her eyes twinkling. "Heh heh, yup!"
"Why did you make us into trash people?" Mari laughed incredulously and Pidge grinned.
"I was bored on that junk nebula," she shrugged, beginning to giggle a bit.
"Why did you take them with you though?"
"They're kinda like a home for those little guys."
As if on cue, four little puffball-like creatures—one yellow, blue, green, and pink—peeked over the shoulders of Trash Lance and Trash Shiro, each of them staring at Mari curiously. They had big round and innocent eyes and the mustache-looking markings below them glowed as they chirped in greeting.
"So these are the friends you made while you were lost in space," Mari mused, recalling Pidge's story from dinner. The small aliens hovered closer to her, the green one even nuzzling her cheek. It was so soft and warm and very friendly. "Awww…They're adorable!"
"I know right?" Pidge gushed as the fluffy yellow one sat on top of her head. She pat it's back lovingly before it moved to perch on top of Trash Keith's head, munching hungrily on his mullet.
Expertly picking her way over the mess on the floor, Pidge made it to her bed and began to clear the mattress of her backpack and laptops, carefully placing them on the dresser. Meanwhile, Mari took in the gently glowing string of lights and the many papers Pidge had hung on the wall next to her bed. Some were postcards of the beach, others photographs of her family. But a lot of them were sheets and sheets of coded messages as well as blueprints and notes on Voltron, the Green Lion, and other alien tech. Several large star maps were taped above these, with small X's, O's, and check marks drawn over multiple areas in red marker.
Pidge had been keeping track of the places they had visited and the star systems they had traveled through. She'd been staying up late each night examining Galra data and tapping into enemy transmissions. She was working nearly nonstop to find her family: Matt and Commander Holt.
Once everything had been cleared off, leaving only pillows and blankets on top of the mattress, Pidge gingerly placed her glasses next to her computers on the dresser before flicking the overhead lights off. She hopped into bed and sprawled out on her back, the small party lights casting a soft yellow glow over her. She pat the open space next to her for Mari to join, and she hesitantly laid down next to the younger girl, still hugging her pillow to her chest.
"It's weird seeing you without your glasses on," she commented as Pidge yanked the blankets over them.
"What, do I look bad without them?" the Green Paladin snorted as she burrowed under the covers and poked her head out to peer at Mari with a raised eyebrow.
"No, just different, that's all."
Pidge hummed in thought. "A good kind of different, or a bad kind?"
"The good kind," Mari smiled and Pidge chuckled.
"To be honest, I don't even need them," she admitted, her tone turning sad. "They were Matt's. The Garrison fixed his eyesight and he gave them to me before he left for Kerberos…I like to wear them cuz they're a piece of him, you know?"
Mari whispered a melancholy "yeah" in understanding and Pidge turned on her side to snuggle closer to the older girl.
"Whenever I had nightmares, Matt would always let me sleep with him," she murmured fondly, and a snigger escaped her lips as she added, "I'd end up kicking him out of his bed too. He'd always wake up on the floor."
"Is that a heads-up that I might end up on the floor by morning?" Mari inquired and Pidge gave her a wry smirk.
"Maybe."
A huff of laughter escaped her lips. "Takashi used to do the same thing," she said, smiling at the memories. "Letting me in his bed when I had a nightmare, I mean. …I haven't done that in years though."
Pidge hummed in response before going quiet for a long while. For a moment, Mari thought she had fallen asleep until she suddenly sniffled, her voice cracking as she barely uttered, "I really miss him, Mari."
Her heart hurt at the sound of Pidge's stifled sobs. Pidge was always so sassy, so tough and stubborn. It was strange seeing her so vulnerable like this, shaking and desperately brushing away the tears in her eyes, and Mari didn't like it one bit. She released her hold on her pillow and wrapped her arms around the smallest paladin, hugging her close.
"You'll find them, Pidge. Both Matt and your dad," she promised her earnestly. "You've been working so hard for this, there's no way you won't. You just have to keep trying."
Pidge took a shaky breath. "I know," she croaked, the tears already subsiding as she pushed away the negative thoughts and emotions. "I won't give up on them. I just…really want to find them already. The information we got from Sendak's memories didn't have anything about prisoners or labor camp locations, and that Galra base had nothing useful. I have no leads on where my dad or Matt could be. Ugh, I feel like I'm at a stupid impasse!"
She rubbed her eyes tiredly in frustration and Mari soothingly rubbed her back. "I know it's slow going, but I'm positive you'll find something soon. You just gotta be patient," she murmured reassuringly. "Patience yields focus. And being focused produces results."
"Heh," Pidge chortled dryly, her eyes bright as a small grin tugged at the corners of her mouth. "You sound just like your brother."
Mari made an offended sound in the back of her throat and released Pidge of their hug. "I do not!" she insisted as she felt her cheeks grow warm. "Besides, that was something our dad taught us, so if anything I sound like him."
Beaming widely now, Pidge flipped onto her back again. "If you say so," she drawled playfully and Mari rolled her eyes. "You know, I think you'd make a good older sister."
"You think so?" Mari wondered, genuinely surprised by the comment, and the Green Paladin nodded. "Huh. I never even thought about that."
"You never asked your parents for a little brother or sister?"
"I don't think so, no."
"Shiro was all you needed then, hm?"
"Maybe. That's probably along the lines of what younger me was thinking."
"Huh. Well, I guess it doesn't really matter, cuz you've got a little sister now anyways."
Mari raised an eyebrow at Pidge in confusion. "And who would that be?"
"It's me, stupid!" she chided, snatching up Mari's pillow and whumping her in the face with it. But Mari was too taken aback to be mad at her, and she blinked at Pidge in shock.
"I—I'm like a sister to you?" she inquired, her words faltering.
"Of course," Pidge mumbled, looking sheepish all of a sudden. "We're all like a family now."
Mari felt her face flush again. She'd never had a sister before, the closest girls in her life up until now having only been Jia and Maggie. And her relationship with Pidge had started off so poorly, what with her slapping and yelling at the younger girl back on Arus. She thought for sure they'd end up hating each other. Of course they had made up and they were getting along well now, but since then Mari had always been careful around Pidge, sometimes unsure of what to say or do when she was around her in fear of hitting a nerve. So hearing Pidge admit that she saw Mari as a sister just tickled the older girl pink, and she let out an inaudible sigh of relief.
"We're sisters," she found herself agreeing, a faint smile spreading across her face. "So if we're all like a family and the two of us are sisters, what does that make the others then?"
Pidge's eyes sparkled with glee as she replied matter-of-factly, "Well, Shiro's like the dad of our group. Allura's like our cool alien mom and Coran's our weird space uncle. And Hunk, Keith, and Lance are our brothers. Hunk gives good hugs and he's an amazing chef and engineer, Keith's standoffish but he's secretly really caring, and Lance is the sweet and protective jokester of the family."
"Pfft! You've given this so much thought," Mari couldn't help but laugh. "How would you describe us as the sisters then?"
"Mari's the oldest sister and she gets irritated easily," Pidge began slowly. "She's suffered through a lot of painful things and she hides how she's really feeling sometimes because she's afraid of burdening others."
Ouch. Deep down, Mari knew that was the absolute truth, but it hurt like hell hearing someone else say it out loud. As sharp as she was, it was no wonder that Pidge had seen right through her.
"BUT," Pidge was quick to add, noticing the way Mari had winced in shame. "She never lets that get her down for long. She's a kickass fighter and she always bounces back from things that knock her down or scare her…including nightmares. And Pidge is the younger sister who will always be willing to help Mari whenever she needs someone."
Pidge was looking at her through wide and honest eyes that shone in the pale yellow lighting. She was smiling innocently, and it made Mari's heart swell and a lump formed in her throat. Pidge hadn't protested in the slightest when she came to her door asking to stay the rest of the night. She had willingly invited her in and had immediately opened up to her, helping Mari to relax and forget her fears before gently reassuring her. Pidge was bold and clever, but most importantly, she was exceptionally kind to her friends and family.
Blinking back the tears in her eyes, Mari smiled at her gratefully and she took a shaky breath. "Thank you, Pidge," she whispered.
"Pidge is also the smartest of the bunch," the Green Paladin instantly added and Mari rolled her eyes, grinning nonetheless. "And the most tech savvy. And the most inventive. And she—"
"—is the greatest, she is a goddess, we'd be lost without her," Mari intervened with a light laugh and Pidge chuckled.
"I mean, you probably would be," she shrugged in all honesty and Mari ruffled her hair. Pidge hummed contentedly and she curled up closer to her again, her head just barely poking out of the covers. She let out a loud yawn that proved to be infectious as Mari involuntarily yawned as well. They were both comfortable and content cuddled up next to each other under the warm blanket, and they let themselves gradually begin to drift off to sleep.
"G'night, Mari," Pidge slurred just as her eyes slipped shut and her breathing steadily evened out as she dozed.
"Goodnight, Pidge," Mari mumbled before she was pulled into a peaceful, nightmare-free slumber.
A/n: I posted a picture of Trash Mari on my tumblr if you'd like to see what it looks like lol.
**I do shoutouts now, so please feel free to leave a comment/review down below if you'd like to be mentioned in the next chapter! They are much appreciated & encourage me to keep writing this fic :D
**Feel free to check out my tumblr too, which is pufftheninja.