Disclaimer: I do not own Voltron or Voltron: Defender of the Universe.
"Oh, I'm sure I could do better than you, Mullet," he teased, casually slinging the barrel of his rifle over his shoulder. Dark blue eyes glittered with amusement as the black-haired teen gave a very mullish- if feline- hiss at him. Though he had to admit that it was the first reaction that Lance had provoked Keith into having since Shiro had gone missing.
"Stop fooling around, Lance," the other teenager's dark purple eyes flashed dangerously at his yearmate, causing the other to frown slightly at his reaction. At least it was something. That was relieving. What wasn't was that Allura wanted to drag them into a meeting to discuss the Black Lion's current status with its missing Paladin. Lance couldn't help but fidget slightly as the Red Paladin strode forward to overtake his companion, deactivating his bayard as he moved toward their bathroom to clean up.
"Yeah, yeah," Lance muttered under his breath, maneuvering his gun to his hands and affectionately running his fingers across the stock. It was one of the emblems that marked him as the Blue Paladin, a title that the teenager wore with pride. Deactivating his own bayard, he focused on sending it to his armor through the bond he shared with Blue.
As he did so, a quiet purring sensation went through his mind, enveloping it and leaving the sensation of him being embraced by something cool and metallic. Something he had come to associate the Blue Lion with. A small smile on his face, he ran his fingers briefly through his hair, combing it until it lay smooth. He really did love his Lion, taking time out of his days to go down to the hangar- even if it was so flipping long- to go hang out with her. Pun intended.
Ranting, talking, even just flat out wailing at the top of his lungs to some Spanish song worked miracles for him as a stress reliever. Blue's quiet presence and the occasional cool brush of amusement or concern gave the opinion that they were getting closer than ever. Sometimes she even lay down with him! Though with her immense size, it wasn't all that surprising that he barely reached the top of her paw.
So he would climb on top and just lay there, sometimes not even speaking and just… feeling. Lance was barely paying attention as he walked towards what he privately referred to as the Holodeck, his steps quiet as he passed through the open doors. Now he had to focus. Allura was waiting for him and the others. Keith, of course, was already here. So was Hunk. Pidge was presumably somewhere behind him, scampering along like the little gremlin she was.
His lips twitched briefly at the thought as he approached the three, greeting them cheerfully and coming to a stop beside Hunk. Allura, who was flicking through something on one of the screens, looked up to see who entered and for a moment they made eye contact. He flushed slightly and looked away, fiddling with the hem of his sleeve and trying to avoid the memory that came to the forefront of his mind. Lance would never live that first meeting with her down.
"Ah, we're all here," Allura said softly, her jewel-like eyes sweeping across the group as Pidge came through the doors with one of her little gadgets. She was as pretty as usual, although she was dressed in a white and gray suit not too dissimilar to the Paladins, with bright pink accents in place of their own accents. Beneath one arm was a helmet identical to the ones they wore when out in their Lions. Lance had to frown slightly at this get-up, his eyes sweeping across her dark skin and taking in the bun that Allura had pulled her hair up in.
Why was she dressed for combat, or dare he say it, ready to go flying?
"Why are we here, Allura?" Keith queried, his voice sounding both irritated and tired. Lance risked a glance at him, taking in the other's shadowy bags under his eyes and the pale pallor of his skin. Poor guy was really taking Shiro's disappearance hard, going out in his Lion every day and sending out tracking waves to attempt to find him.
"We're looking for a new Black Paladin," the Princess said quietly, flicking her gaze towards where she stood to pilot the castle. Coran was standing there with a holo-tablet in hand, muttering to himself.
"Excuse me?" Pidge interrupted angrily, pushing her glasses up her nose and glaring up at the Princess with all the ferocity of an angry mother cat. "Shiro is our Black Paladin! We can't just replace him!"
Allura pursed her lips, looking uncomfortable. "We need one of us to pilot the Black Lion. We don't have anyone else to match her comfortably, and our energies would have to resonate with her. So one of us must do it." It felt like someone had slipped ice into his bloodstream, as Lance went still and stared at the young woman in front of the group.
No. That meant- that meant that at least one person would have to have their bonds separated from their Lions. Lance absolutely refused to risk his bond with Blue.
"I'm sorry to interrupt," he said quietly, his tone frosty as he stared down the clearly nervous princess, "does this mean that one of us will have our bond with our Lion severed? Because if so, I absolutely refuse to risk my bond with my Lion."
At this question, it became apparent that all four of them were staring firmly at the Princess, who was looking at the ceiling and clearly desperately trying to not look them in the eyes. After a few minutes of absolute silence (and Coran's Stare of Disapproval™), her voice pierced the icy silence.
"Yes, Lance. That would mean separating you from your Lion." she pursed her lips and moved her gaze to the wall. Then something seemed to spark in her. "But! You would be able to bond with your new Lion!"
"Absolutely not." Hunk's voice was low and agitated. "Our Lions chose us and you're trying to get at least one of us to bond with another! Like Lance, I'm not risking my bond with Yellow. We are perfectly happy together."
Something hot and heavy coiled in Lance's gut, swirling about agitatedly and practically trying to pull him apart. He was not happy with the way that Allura was dangling the Black Lion as if she was a prize that could be pulled from a claw machine. Black was Shiro's, and that was that. Allura knew that.
"Well, all of us has to go through it," the young woman jutted out her chin stubbornly, still refusing to look at the Paladins. "And I'm going to go through it as well so it's not just about you guys."
What. Lance stared at Allura openly, waiting for Coran to leap away from the device and shout 'SURPRISE! It's just a prank!' However, the sheer resoluteness emanating from the Princess was just as surprising as it was unwelcome. Sure, she may lead the group from the outside and teach them, but this pushy young lady? Ab-so-lutely not.
"Black is Shiro's Lion, Allura." Lance however, could be just as stubborn as she was- if not more.
"We need to have five Paladins, Lance," Allura's words were chiding, as if she was talking to a child. This only made Lance more infuriated. "Shiro isn't here now, and the universe needs Voltron if it wants to survive. He may or may not be dead, so what choice do we have?"
At her last words, Lance's eyes shot towards Keith. The teenager was staring stonily at the wall across from them, not even bothering to join in the argument. However, the Cuban teen knew all too well that deep inside that wall of stone there was an anger boiling as hot as a blue giant star.
"I'm not sacrificing my bond with Blue," Lance hissed to Allura after a few moments, turning towards the doors as if to go to the hangar to well and truly rant.
"We're doing this now." Allura's voice was both soft and steely, with an edge of sympathy. "Who knows? Maybe you won't have to switch Lions."
Lance merely glared at her, his rage simmering just beneath the surface. Blue's presence wrapped around his mind like a cool balm, her soothing purr rumbling through his mind and giving him a sense of security. No, he wouldn't lose his bond with Blue. It would be just fine, he thought to himself. It'll be just fine.
[exes and the oh-oh-ohs they want me/like gho-oh-osts they haunt me]
There was something wrong.
Lance could feel it coiling around his abdomen like the snake it was, sinking its fangs into his stomach and making it gurgle with a poison of its own making. After Allura's little speech and practically pushing them all into the public hangar, she had started them all off by going into the Black Lion first. It felt like he was going to pull a Hunk with how uneasy and anxious he felt. Lance really didn't want to be separated from Blue.
As Allura stepped out, the snake coiled tighter and seemed to develop fangs of ice. The soothing rumble of his Lion in the back of his mind helped some, but it only produced even more fear as he clung tightly onto the strong ties between he and his Lion. The fear of losing her was right up there with the destruction of Earth.
When his foot came in contact with the Black Lion's metal tongue, Lance was all prepared to bolt out of there and hide in Blue for a week. He was pretty sure he had at least a month's worth of emergency rations on her for this kind of thing. Oh, blankets, too. He had about five of them in the cockpit alone. Picking at his nails nervously, he hesitated at the entrance to Black's own cockpit.
It was almost spooky with how empty Black seemed. It was almost like the Lion was devoid of her own spirit. Was it possible for one of the Lions to get depressed? Based on his own experience with interacting with Blue, they were highly intelligent sentient machines. Altea's machinery was definitely a unique thing on its own.
"I'm sorry for your loss, Black," he whispered, an echo of pain to his voice as he placed a palm to the wall of her flight deck. "We're all hurting right now. You're not alone." A slightly bitter smile flitted across his face as he looked across the darkened interior, gaze settling on the empty seat. A flash of guilt ran through him so strong that Lance had to physically take a step back. "I can't do this," he muttered as he pressed his palms against his face, roughly pulling them down until they were clasped over his nose and mouth.
Lance quickly made his way out of the Lion, stomach roiling and coiling until it felt like he was going to puke from the amount of anxiety he was feeling. It was so strong that he was practically stumbling out of Black's mouth, his face pale as he looked around for something to substitute as a trash can. Blue's presence curled around his mind, her concern like a mother-hen as he knelt in a corner and pressed his hand over his mouth. The other curled around his stomach, his calves trembling as he desperately tried to blank his mind and suppress the urge to violently heave onto the ground.
Trying to find a new Paladin for the Black Lion was turning out to be a nightmare. He didn't want to be in another Lion, he was perfectly content with Blue! Why was Allura trying so damn hard to get one of them to be someone they were not?
"-nce. Lance!" Allura's piercing tones cut through his thought processes, her voice both irritated and concerned as she practically stomped over to him. "You need to sit in the chair, not just stand there."
The Cuban boy turned wild eyes onto the Princess, looking a little more than slightly green as he glared at her. "Well excuse me for not wanting to be separated from Blue!" he snapped at her. "Are you that desperate for someone to take over the Black Lion that you want to strip us of the bond we currently have? I dare you to forcefully separate Blue and I. I dare you. I know that I'm right in our strong bond, because I'm ready as I'll ever be."
Lance was righteously furious as he stood up to give her a mocking bow, a grin on his face that looked slightly manic. "Any moment now, your highness." He practically purred, half-lidded dark blue eyes pinned on Allura's slightly stunned expression. He was sure that no one had rounded on her like this before with this kind of audacity.
"Stand down, Paladin," Coran said softly, if sternly. Lance shifted his gaze to the red-haired man, grin widening and his eyes glinting with the same piercing shade of cobalt that matched the Blue Lion's metal coat.
The teenager was hyper aware of the openly shocked looks the others were giving him, though he narrowed his eyes slightly at the absence of one person that he knew didn't want to be in the Black Lion. He stumbled backwards in surprise as the Lion's eyes lit up a blazing yellow, a rumble of warning escaping her as her head turned towards him.
"Blue is mine," he whispered, a possessive hint to his voice as he eyed everyone in the room. "And I am hers."
Allura eyed him warily, before turning to the others and giving them all a rather cheerful grin. "Well, we found the new Black Paladin, but that means we need a new Red Paladin." she turned her enthusiastic face back towards Lance. "Would you like to go in first, Lance?" She might have innocently poised this question, but he merely sneered and steeled his resolve.
"If only to get this over with," he snarled at her, turning around angrily and stomping into the Red Lion with absolutely no intention of sitting in the chair.
"I've never seen him this angry," Lance heard Hunk tell the others with a note of confusion in his voice. The Paladin snorted at this statement, leaning against the wall in the flight deck and absently patting the metal wall.
"I'm not mad at you, Red," he murmured placatingly. "I'm mad at Allura. She knows that you guys choose your Paladins and it takes a hell of a long time to build up an extremely strong bond with their Lion. She knows, Red. Yet she's still willing to separate us." He paused in his words, crossing his arms and frowning slightly. "What are her motives? I'm the bad guy in her eyes because I refuse to agree with her on this? That's fine. It's no fault of mine."
He narrowed his eyes, entirely unwilling to go sit in the chair that he knew was rightfully Keith's. Balling his hands into fists, he closed his eyes tightly and stood there for a few minutes, completely ignoring the chair and trying to focus his rapidly increasing anger into a low simmering stream.
"Lance."
Said teenager jerked slightly at the words, cracking open a single eye to stare at the low voice that belonged to Keith. The other teenager looked exhausted and completely cried out, his red-rimmed eyes just staring a hole into Lance's head. Keith thinned his mouth as he shifted his gaze to eye the chair.
"Just-" the half-Galra let out a large sigh, rubbing his face with his hand. "Sit in the chair."
Lance stoutly refused to move from his position, jutting his jaw out and stubbornly staring into Keith's purple eyes. The other's eyes seemed to glow in the slight darkness as they just stared at each other.
"Please," Keith croaked out. "Allura's waiting."
"Let her stew, Mullet," Lance murmured, half-closing an eye and grinning lopsidedly. "She's just mad 'cos I'm not listening to her."
The black-haired teenager ground down on his teeth loudly, shutting his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose. "Lance, just sit. Or I'll make you."
"Absolutely not. You know how important our bonds are, and you just threw yours out the window to bond with the Black Lion." Lance loudly said as he stepped forward, eyes narrowing as he practically spat the words at Keith. His last words seemed to trigger something more than anger in the other teen and Keith's hands balled into fists until his knuckles whitened with blood-loss.
"Sit," he hissed out, before shoving the Cuban teenager in the side and causing him to stumble in surprise. Flailing slightly, Lance found himself falling into the seat with wide, surprised eyes. As he made contact with the hard seat, something within the depths of his mind forcefully brought the bond he had with Blue to the forefront of his mind.
He stared unseeingly at the deep red walls of the cockpit, panicking and trying to shove back at the force that was starting to splinter his and Blue's bond.
"No," he whispered aloud, hands flying up to cover his ears and his vision blurring with tears. The force splintered the bond further, causing pain to erupt along both ends as it bent the bond even further. He couldn't lose Blue, he just couldn't! He was weeping, tears streaming down his face as the immense force practically pushed all its weight on the link between he and Blue.
"NOOO!" The loud screech of denial that escaped him was full of absolute fury and grief. A tidal wave of fury pushed through him as he shoved back against the mental intruder with all his might. And with a sudden snap! The bond completely shattered between he and Blue. The tears streaming down his face were an onslaught of renewed mental agony as he tried to pick up the pieces that shielded the link between he and Blue.
Lance managed to salvage only a few pieces from when the bond was broken and bury them deep in his subconscious, trying to mentally pull at the new (and weak) link that bonded him to Red. It was warm, burning against his mind and battering against the broken shields that protected his mind from outside forces.
With an inarticulate screech of absolute fury, the teenager plunged his hand into his pocket and withdrew his bayard, drawing in on its shape and practically diving through the entrance of the Red Lion. Blue eyes were lit up with a storm that swirled with the inner essence that was pure him, his brown hair ruffled from where he had drawn his fingers through it. Both of his hands were wrapped around the hilt of an absolutely massive two-handed double-bladed sword, a shimmering dark steel that seemed to be writhing with cold blue shadows.
His wild eyes flicked past the clearly startled and slightly afraid Yellow and Green Paladins, searching for the woman that had forced him into this. They widened in pure outrage as Allura stepped out of the Blue Lion's giant metal maw looking extremely satisfied with herself.
"NO!" the screech that ripped from him was absolutely feral and completely justified in his wrath as he swung the blade menacingly in front of him. "SHE'S MINE!"
The absolutely startled expression at his appearance had him let loose a hysterical laugh edged with mania as he approached her. This… this spoiled brat of a princess took what was his! She stole his precious bond, she stole the mother that he had found in Blue! His hysterical laugh was bordering on near insanity as he slowly approached her, the feral light in his navy eyes glinting brighter.
"You stole what is mine from me. You stole what is hers from Blue." he whispered menacingly once his laughter came to a grinding halt, tightening his grip on the hilt.
"Wait!" For a moment all Lance could see was the bright orange hair that belonged to Allura's advisor. He could see every freckle and flaw on the man's face as they stared into each other's faces. The other's expression was weary, full of sadness, anger, pity, worry, and something else that Lance couldn't quite fathom at this moment.
Right now, he was just too angry to even try to calm himself.
"She broke the bond," he whispered to Coran, his wrathful anger slowly melting as the red-head crouched in front of Allura, his hands outstretched in a calming gesture. He could never be angry at the Advisor, not when he didn't do anything. Lance could never be angry with Hunk, nor with Pidge. Allura… and Keith… those two were the ones that interfered with the link! They were the ones who broke it, knowing that Lance was the one who was the closest with a Lion!
His anger was rocketing back up to even greater heights, as he switched his attention from Allura over to Keith. The other had a weary acceptance lined into his otherwise blank face, drawing a sneer from Lance as his grip flexed around the handle of his sword.
"Lance," Coran croaked out desperately, making the teenager turn his malevolent stare on to the former soldier with a considering look. "I know. I know it hurts. They were the ones who wronged you and Blue."
From behind the man, Allura shot her most trusted companion a wide-eyed and extremely hurt look. Lance lifted up the heavy steel sword, eyes sparking again in fury as he noticed the movement.
"No one move." Coran hissed in the silence that enveloped the room, raw and cold. It was an echo of Lance's anger, desperation, and grief that had sent him storming to Allura in the first place. "Lance, please."
Blue eyes snapped back to Coran, softening slightly at the red-head but every now and then shooting a furious glare over at Keith or Allura. He was no longer advancing, especially considering people that weren't involved were in between him and them. His eyes lingered thoughtfully on Coran as his hands loosened around the grip, focusing on it dissipating.
"Lions, put up your particle barriers," Allura murmured from behind Coran, one of her hands pausing above his left shoulder. Lance's eyes widened as she spoke, panic flitting across them as he gave the Blue Lion a desperate look. It was too late for him as he began to step forward before all of the Lions began to shimmer and the spherical shield began to form.
"No," Lance whimpered, his breathing picking up and his eyes wildly flitting around to the other Lions. They, too, were raising their barriers as if to shield themselves. Keith, from behind the shield of the Black Lion, was only staring at him with a blank look. The other two were in front of Keith, but Allura and Coran were outside of the Blue Lion's shield.
The cold look that came from the Princess and the slight scoff that emanated her were the only things that he saw before the woman walked off towards the flight deck in the main hall. Coran was just observing him with that incredibly sad look, that understanding one that had Lance feel like he got punched in the gut. This wasn't right! Why was Allura being so weird? Why had she forced him into the Red Lion? Why had Keith pushed him into the chair? His vision blurred with tears as he faced the Blue Lion, his chest heaving as he crashed to the floor on his knees. The utterly empty feeling that ran through his chest was like someone had took the other half of his soul and threw it in the garbage.
"Bluuuuue," he keened, his vision blurring even more as he tried to keep the sticky liquid from making tracks. "No, no no I caaaan't!" All the anger that had been in him earlier had completely melted to a grief that was quickly overwhelming him. He kneeled on the ground in front of the Blue Lion's shield, hands gripping tightly into his hair as he just sat there and screamed. "Blue, please! Please please please!"
Lance was openly weeping, his shoulders shaking as he placed his hands on the barrier. "Please, Blue let me in! Please please please! I can't do this nononono I can't do this!" His voice was shaking as he curled his fingers against the barrier, tears making multiple tracks across his face as he leaned into the protective barrier. His breath hitched, body quivering as he tried to press his hands into the shield even more.
"Bluuuue, oh stars nooo," Lance couldn't even see anymore as he practically banged into the barrier. "No puedo, no puedo," he practically keened, desperately trying to make his way into the shield to get to his beloved. "Come on beautiful, please!" He sobbed wetly, rubbing at his chest and trying to ignore how his mind hurt after that painful invasion. "I need you! I need you, I need you! Please Blue, just let me in! I thought we were inseparable, why would you let her do this?"
"Please, please, please!" His pleas for her to open up were going unanswered as he practically bawled into the ground, curling his arms around himself as if an attempt to protect himself from more heartbreak. He really did need Blue. Often, he felt as if he was purposely being left out of the loop of important stuff. He didn't even know if the team needed him anymore.
Lance wasn't sure how long he was there, just bawling into the cold floor and trying to mentally reach for the link that usually reassured him was there. Whether it was minutes, hours, or even days, he just sat there in his grief. There were multiple times where he thought it would be better off to just fade away like this, but something in him told him that there was someone who wouldn't let that happen to him.
As his tears and loud, hiccupping cries subsided to mere shivers and sniffles Lance barely noticed the warmth that slowly filled his mind and a soft purr rumbling through it. It rolled through his mental barriers, picking up the pieces and carefully crafting them back to the way they were. As if nothing happened and the hole wasn't there. To the warmth and quiet purr that rumbled through his mind, the teenager fell asleep in the position he was in: a ball curled up in the corner of the room and his arms wound tightly around his stomach.
He never noticed the pale arms clad in black pick him up and head towards the Red Lion. Nor the fingers that gently wiped away the tear tracks on his face and the gentle kiss to his forehead.
"Keep him safe, Red," the man murmured as he tucked Lance into the cot, drawing the blanket up to his chin. "I put his rations in the storage here, packed up all of his stuff and put it in your storage, and his blankets are here in the cockpit. Take care of him, will you? Bring him somewhere safe, somewhere where you can't be take from you."
Keith smiled up at the Red Lion as he exited, earning purr through his mind in acknowledgement. "What Allura did was cruel," he whispered to the Lion, gently rubbing his fingers across the Lion's paw. "I'll save my home and family, but that's as far as I'll get with Allura. Coran can come with me."
The Red Lion's systems gently rumbled to life, with the purple-eyed half-Galra looking after her with some wistfulness. "He didn't deserve that. All he wanted was to not be separated from Blue. Take care of him Red, and be a good kitty." he whispered as the Lion took off into the skies- not to be seen for a long, long time.
A/N: The other night, I had a dream of Lance basically bawling his face off and going nuts because the Blue Lion switched to Allura. Something that I greatly dislike. I was reading a fanfic the other day where Lance allied himself with the Galra and that intrigued me. If you're interested in seeing this become something more, PM me or even better, write a review.
EDIT: Okay so I just remembered that you can't force a bond with the Lions. What I headcanon about Voltron is that even though the bond cannot be forced, if you have a connection with more than one Lion and the other rejects you, making contact with the Lion will replace that bond.
Read, rate and review 3
-Kite