A/N- SEE THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I TRY TO WRITE SOMETHING AND I HAVEN'T SLEPT IN DAYS
Small. Malnourished. Exhausted. Alone. Scared. The poor thing was lucky to be alive. It was Pidge who found him hiding in the ventilation system of an enemy ship. She had just finished clearing the area of hostiles with Hunk when she had faintly heard heavy breathing coming from the vent behind her head.
When she pulled off the metal grate and looked inside, she was surprised to find a fragile-looking Galra child huddled in a tight ball. Hunk, being the caring guy that he was, had immediately stepped up to the vent, trying to coax the fuzzy purple creature out as Pidge called the others. Everyone seemed stumped until Lotor joined the call and gave his insight.
"Galra females aren't allowed to have children whilst serving in the military. It was likely that someone broke that rule and has been keeping this child hidden for some time. However they might have been separated in this last battle and for all we know the mother could be deceased," the prince supposed through the radio.
"Aww, that's so sad!" came Lance's voice through everyone's headsets.
"Well, we can't just leave him here," Pidge pointed out.
After several minutes of bickering and trying to decide what they were to do with the juvenile Galran, the team agreed that they would bring him onto their ship and nurse him back to health before finding a peaceful planet to take him to. Lotor didn't want anything to do with the whole affair at first, but it was Allura who convinced him that they needed his knowledge on the Galra race in order to properly take care of him.
After the child had eventually been coaxed out of the vent, Hunk took him to the castle in the yellow lion, which seemed to put him at ease a little bit. He never said anything, just sniffled softly and avoided eye contact. Eventually he fell asleep under Hunk's dashboard, reduced to tired mumbling.
The moment they arrived at the ship and the small Galran woke, however, things turned from pleasant to downright dreadful. Frightened by several unfamiliar alien species surrounding him and talking in loud voices on the ship's main deck, the little purple boy wiggled free of the yellow paladin's gentle hold and took off down a random corridor. Though he was tired and weak, adrenaline allowed him to slip past the team's grasp and disappear into the depths of the castle.
Each paladin, along with Coran and Lotor, searched high and low for the scared alien, but the castle was so huge that locating him proved a difficult task. Finally, after several vargas of scouring the ship, Shiro heard a sharp intake of breath coming from Lance's room. The black paladin entered the room quietly, and at first was unsure where the source of the sound was. Then, with sudden realization, he bent over and looked under Lance's neatly-made bed.
There, with his knees tucked under his chin and a long purple tail clutched in his arms as if he were holding a stuffed toy, was the little Galran boy, sobbing uncontrollably in fear that Shiro might do something to him. The paladin quickly backed away, sitting down on the floor in silence for a moment. When the sobs ceased and the tiny purple alien realized that the man in front of him meant him no harm, Shiro spoke.
"My name's Shiro. What's yours?" he asked, voice barely above a whisper. A few ticks with no reply.
"Iva," came a small squeak from under the bed, almost too quiet to hear. Another beat of absolute silence.
"Can I come under there?" Shiro asked lightly. Iva wiped away a tear and nodded slowly. With a soft smile, the black paladin rolled onto his stomach and pulled himself under the bed, making sure not to get too close.
Neither of them spoke. Shiro made the decision not to say a word until Iva decided he wanted to talk. However, that moment never came. After a very short time, the exhausted child had fallen asleep again, curling close to Shiro's torso for warmth. With a soft chuckle, the paladin took Iva in his arms, and eventually he, too, fell asleep under Lance's bed.
Sure, the rest of the team would likely be worried, but Shiro decided he would face that when the moment came. For now, this child needed emotional support and physical contact, and the black paladin wanted to at least give him that.