Several things are bound to happen when one discovers that he is some kind of half-alien-half-human hybrid; especially if the alien part is provided by the most feared and hated race in the entire Universe-the Galra.
One of said things is being second-guessed by your friends for a certain amount of time, before everything slowly sets back into a somewhat normal pace. The second is feeling out of sorts in your own body, questioning the reality you live in and wishing on whatever star that things could go back to how they were before; because you most definitely shouldn't feel like crawling out of your skin half the time someone so much as lays a hand on your shoulder. Keith can vouch for that one.
Don't get him wrong, the half-galra has been through a lot more than your average teen, though he never wanted to disappear on the spot quite as much as he wanted to do it lately. You see, even if Keith had moments when he loathed other people's touch, the Red Paladin never expected for Lance to be the only exception to the rule. And most definitely he did NOT expect the sudden, fiery urges to mount the exact same Cuban Boy each time he so much as existed in the same room as him.
Nope! It was not happening! Keith probably caught some kind of weird space disease that was eating away at his brain, because he certainly DID NOT find Lance attractive! No, sir! Or that is what he liked to tell his traitorous body whenever he found himself heating up because of Lance's ocean-like smell. It was stupid, but at the same time Keith couldn't restrain the part of him that wanted to feel their scents mixed together as one.
Also, Lance wasn't helping Keith's case at all. Take for example that one time when he strode confidently into the training room while Keith was using it (as per usual), wearing that sinful black under-suit they usually wore under the paladin uniform.
The Cuban claimed that he also wanted to train and that "you Mullet should stop hogging the place for yourself". Then, he made his way across the room, still in Keith's line of sight, and started stretching, his movements slow. The half-galra could swear that Lance was doing it on purpose, bending down to touch the tips of his feet with his fingers, back facing towards him; that or Keith was starting to imagine things. Either way, the entire time after that, the Red Paladin had lost his composure, completely distracted by the other sweaty teen shooting bot after bot.
Did he mention that he lately seemed to like Lance's smell a lot? Well, scratch that because in that moment the Cuban smelled divine to Keith, and he wanted nothing more than to drown in that oceanic fragrance. To say that the half-galra took more than one blow from the training bots that day would be an understatement.
Lance wasn't doing well on his part either. Ever since they found out about Keith's linage things started to get considerably weirder. The usually broody Red Paladin became more jumpy in regards to human contact, even with Shiro, flinching at every touch received from the others…except from him. That was a much unexpected development, and Lance would have filed it under the impression that he was imagining things, if it weren't for the little Gremlin pointing out the fact that Keith almost melted whenever the Cuban so much as breathed in his direction.
To top it all, there was this smoky and spicy kind of scent drifting off Keith's body each time they sat next to each other. It was getting increasingly freaky because Lance was finding it even harder than normal to keep at bay the urge to make Keith his own; now with the alluring fragrance tempting him with every breath of air.
You see, even with their bantering, the Cuban still couldn't deny his attraction to the Mullet, though he did stubbornly label it as 'only a fleeting crush'. But he wasn't stupid, and did not delude himself by thinking that there was even the slightest of possibilities that Keith might feel the same. That is why, even with Pidge pointing it out, and with the obvious signals from the teen himself, Lance decided to blame Keith's recent behavior on some kind of weird space flu.
Neither him, nor the Red Paladin were right, but they weren't completely wrong either, for soon they would find out that it had something to do with aliens, yet it was no illness. It couldn't have been something more ordinary; at least for one half of Keith's species.
It had been after a particularly easy mission and the Paladins took to relaxing in their rooms, Keith included. He was feeling highly alert, his senses going haywire, but he paid them no attention, thinking it was due to some leftover adrenaline from the fight. The half-galra was more preoccupied with trying to justify his urge to growl at whomever (except for Lance) tried to touch him earlier that day. He had been particularly snappy with almost everyone, and the dull ache in his muscles along with the rapidly forming headache was no help in improving his temper. So, Keith took it upon himself to skip training that day and just opt for some well-deserved rest after the mission was over.
The Red Paladin was immersed in a deep sleep when it started to happen. Somewhere around the middle of the night (or the simulated night) Keith was awoken with a startle to his body being hit by an immense wave of pain. He let out a strangled shout without meaning to, praying that no one was awake enough to hear him. The last thing that Keith wanted was to disturb the rare occasion to rest for the other team members. The teen gritted his teeth as another wave of pain pulsed through his bones. His skin seemed too tight, everything burning like lava. He felt them, more than saw them, his teeth. They were becoming sharper, his ears longer, fluffier. And even if it was dark in the room, his vision was sharpening, making it easier for him to see.
What. The. Actual. Fuck?
As the final wave of pain faded away from Keith's body, a new kind of heat gathered in his belly, scorching hot and leaving the teen yearning to be touched. Confused, but mostly frustrated, the half-galra tore his shirt off in a futile attempt to cool down. He prepared to do the same with his pants, when the door to his room hissed open and the teen was hit by the overwhelming smell of ocean and Lance, and crap Keith was almost salivating; he was fucked!
A sudden yell, that's what awoke Lance. He was a surprisingly light sleeper, and being in space under the constant threat of hostile aliens just seemed to add on to that. The Cuban waited a couple of seconds, listening for other sounds. He couldn't have imagined the shout because he was able to recognize that voice from million others; it was Keith's.
"Come on Lance, get your ass up and go see what's wrong," The teen muttered to himself as he arose from his bed.
After another minute or so of pacing his room, Lance finally stepped out into the hallway, checking if the others were awake, before making his way towards Keith's room. He stood in front of the door for probably 5 minutes, listening for movement from inside and trying to come up with something to say to the other teen. However, whatever words Lance had prepared beforehand died on his lips once the door slid open, the scent and sight from inside leaving him speechless and gaping like a fish out of water.
There, standing in the middle of his bed was Keith; it had to be Keith because he had that stupid mullet. But if it weren't for that, Lance would have had a hard time recognizing him. His eyes were glinting, same as a cat's, and his ears were long and fluffy, Galra-like. The Cuban would have been spooked, had it not been for the fact that his attention was thoroughly caught by the lack of a shirt on the other teen. Also, if Lance squinted hard enough, he could also notice the way Keith's pants were hanging dangerously low on his hips; as if he was in the process of taking them down.
Lance's rather improper train of thoughts was suddenly interrupted by a noise, suspiciously similar to a whine, leaving Keith's lips, before he clamped them shut. Gulping, the Blue Paladin mustered his courage and stepped into the room, door sliding shut behind him. Against his better judgment, he slowly made his way towards the bed, where a certain half-galra was backing away until his back hit the wall.
"Hi there Mullet, are you ok? I heard you screaming and came to see what's wrong," Lance spoke softly, as if to a wounded animal; though, he supposed, Keith didn't look far from one in that moment.
"Get the fuck out Lance, now!" The half-galra growled out, his voice strained and breathy. He was panting, Lance noticed, and he looked off, galra features aside.
"Slow down buddy, you don't seem well. I just want to help you. Tell me what to do," The Cuban supplied, standing in front of the bed and reaching a hand towards the teen, only to quickly retract it a second later when it was met with the swipe of clawed fingers. He cradled the arm to his chest, observing the red scratches adorning his skin. A flash of fear must have gone through Lance's eyes, because soon Keith let out a distressed sound, his ears drooping in regret.
The Blue Paladin steeled his resolve, pasting a reassuring smile on his face and taking a seat on the bed, while the other teen seemed to be torn between scooting further away and leaning forward to take a better look at the wound he'd caused.
"Look, Keith, I don't know what's going on but you gotta talk to me. I can't figure it all out on my own without you speaking to me about it Mullet."
"I-I don't know. I just woke up in pain, and then this happened," Keith started slowly, gesturing to his whole body. "It was like my body was on fire, and I just wanted it to stop Lance. I wanted the pain to stop. It did, but now I look just like them. Fuck! It wasn't enough that I had Galra blood in my veins, now I also look like them! What are the others going to believe?! They are going to hate me! I wouldn't blame them," He started rambling, finding it harder and harder to breathe; he was panicking.
A pair of warm hands attached themselves to Keith's shoulders and he flinched instinctively, before relaxing immediately once he gazed in two pools of deep blue.
"Breathe Mullet, breathe," Lance instructed slowly, motioning for the half-galra to match his rhythm of inhales and exhales. "No one is going to hate you. And besides, the ears look kind of good on you. You'll be just like our personal grumpy alien-cat," He snickered good-naturedly, hands rubbing circles on the other teen's shoulders.
It was working, and soon Keith found himself relaxing, even scooting closer to the Cuban in an attempt to chase after the warmth of his hands. He groaned internally. What was wrong with him? Don't misunderstand, he always found Lance's encouraging words to be rather reassuring in dire situations, but he never clung to them like a lifeline such as he was doing in that moment. And why did he smell so fucking alluring, like Ocean and calmness and home?
Keith's thoughts were interrupted when one of the hands that were previously on his shoulder touched his left ear, rubbing and scratching at it softly. A purring sound made his way out of his throat and Lance snatched the hand back as if something had burned it. Oh no! Why did he do that? It was beyond embarrassing, and now Lance was clearly mortified or disgusted, or both.
On his side, the Cuban was trying really hard not to spontaneously combust right then and there from Keith's cuteness. He purred, he freaking purred when Lance touched him, and it was the most precious sound the Blue Paladin had ever heard in his whole life. But something wasn't right, because the half-galra was inching away, folding into himself as if trying to disappear, and Lance stupidly realized that his reaction was misinterpreted by the other teen.
"No can do, Mullet. You won't get away from me, not after behaving like a cute oversized cat. So stop reading too much into it, I was just taken aback, that's all," Lance scolded, taking hold of Keith's arm.
One of the galra-like ears that were previously drooped in shame gave a twitch of annoyance.
"I'm not a cat, and definitely not a cute one. This is serious, Lance. You can't just barge in, make your jokes and think that everything is fixed. And this," Keith let out a shuddering breath, "this cannot be fixed," He finished in a defeated tone, slumping in Lance's grip. He was feeling excessively tired, but somehow at peace. His previous heated desires fading into just a spark, like a fire being put out by the cool water, and he came to the realization that it was the Cuban's doing; not his doing per se, but his simple presence was easing Keith's suffering.
Lance, noticing the half-galra's exhaustion, let out a sigh.
"I got you, Mullet. You're no cat, but what you obviously are, is tired. Now how about you get some shut eye, and we'll deal with all this in the morning," The Cuban suggested, already making a move to get up and return to his own room, when he was tugged back down.
"Don't!" Keith chocked out in a panicked voice that was so unlike him, it instantly made Lance freeze on the spot. "Stay here, at least until I fall asleep. I know it's stupid, and believe me when I say that I myself am frustrated by this more than you are, but something is wrong. I don't know why, right now, the simple prospect of you leaving terrifies me," God, he was rambling! He also couldn't seem to stop, trying desperately to make the Cuban stay. "You can leave as soon as I fall asleep and pretend like it never even happened in the first place."
Keith's breathing was becoming short and irregular, and he refused to so much as look at the other teen, much less make eye contact with him. Something was definitely wrong, Lance decided; his behavior far off from the usual broody Mullet he came to know.
"Easy buddy, I'll stay. So breathe, Mullet. I won't leave for as long as you want me to. Just let me go grab that chair and I'll be right back."
"You don't have to. Sit on the bed," Was out of Keith's mouth before he could even try stopping himself. Heat started to crawl up his face, to the tips of his ears, and the Red Paladin thanked the Universe for it being dark in the room.
Lance spluttered out a squeaky 'Okay', before awkwardly laying down on the empty side of the bed, almost close enough to be touching the other teen. The Cuban sat there, staring at the ceiling through the darkness, trying to process what was happening. He was in the same bed as his (self-proclaimed small) crush, namely Keith, who was going through some kind of Galra puberty phase that consisted of him becoming an oversized alien cat. What could he say, just another day in the Paladin life?
A warm body draping himself across Lance's chest brought him out of his reverie, and the blood shot straight to his face when Keith's nose nuzzled in the juncture between his neck and shoulder. The half-galra let out an appreciative hum, inhaling deeply and clinging to Lance further.
"Smells so good," Was what he said, drowsily, before purring contently and slipping into a deep sleep; effectively and obliviously making Lance self-circuit.