Please note: This story takes place after 'Shiro Returns', but is technically a stand-alone. The only reason I mention it is because Matt is in this story, and I wanted Matt to be there while the REAL Shiro was also there. . . Which, sadly, hasn't actually happened yet. Can't wait to see when it does . . .! :)

The five paladins landed their lions and then, still full of adrenaline from their most recent battle, rushed to the bridge. Matt jumped up when they entered, a huge smile crossing his face.

"That was the coolest thing ever!" he exclaimed, flinging his arms up. "Pidge, you never told me that forming Voltron required you to enter another dimension!"

She grinned back, removing her helmet. "How does it look from the outside?"

"Sweet. I took some scans while you did it. Want to see?"

Pidge actually barrelled past Lance as she charged to her brother's work station. "You recorded a visual on a three-dimensional object entering the fourth dimension? Why didn't I ever think of that?"

"Because I'm a lot more briliant than you."

"NOT," she replied, elbowing him. The two science geeks bent their heads to Matt's holographic display.

Shiro watched them for a moment, then turned to look at the others. Allura, her face determined, was piloting the castle through a wormhole. Coran stood behind her, trying very hard to suppress a yawn – not surprising, really. The orange-haired Altean had been working at top speed lately, what with caring for the paladins (who, according to him, needed cryopods far too often), helping Allura, and keeping the Castle of Lions operational, all while keeping tabs on the Galra 'patrols' that had been harrassing them this past week.

Hunk edged over to Matt and Pidge and stared over their shoulders. "Oh, wow, cool. That's an actual rendition of interphasing dimensions?"

Shiro raised his eyebrows a little and glanced at his two remaining team members. Keith stood with his arms folded, looking utterly bored, and Lance –

– Somehow, Lance was looking even more bored. His usually expressive eyebrows were drawn together in a nearly straight line, and his eyes were almost shut. Shiro caught his gaze, and Lance mouthed, "Interphasing dimensions . . .?"

Shiro shrugged.

The end of the wormhole opened up before them, and the Castle of Lions emerged in empty space. Distant stars shone in every direction, and a gleaming spiral galaxy stretched halfway across their front viewport, but there were no planets in sight, nor any single-star systems.

"Where are we?" he asked.

Allura turned from her station, her hair much less sleek than usual. "I've brought us to an uninhabited sector. These constant attacks by the Galra have been making us far too inefficient. It's high time we regrouped."

Lance snapped to attention. "Wait, are you saying –"

"That we get time off! Yes!" Coran interrupted, positively beaming.

Allura sighed. "Coran, we have a great deal of work to complete around the ship. Half our weapons-defense systems are out, and I've been having trouble with navigational and tracking systems."

"Yeah," Matt piped in. "Hey, how long do you think we can stay here? I've been wanting to do a complete rehauling of your long-range scanners. They're really outclassed by current Galran technology."

Coran bristled, and Shiro stepped forward before he could speak. "Princess, I know you're eager to get back to the fight, but everyone could really use some time off. We haven't had a day go by without fighting some sort of battle for weeks."

She pressed her lips together and sighed, but nodded. "You're right, Shiro. I suppose the Galra won't come up with anything new in a few quintents."

Lance stared from Shiro to Allura and back. "Wait, you're agreeing? She's agreeing?"
She rolled her eyes, just a little, and turned to Coran. "It would be best to power down all non-essential systems for the primary diagnostics."

"Indeed, Princess." The advisor seemed to be struggling to keep his usual upbeat personality at its normal level of 'energetic'. "But – ah, if its not too terribly urgent, perhaps it could wait a few vargas?"

"I – I don't see why not."

The yellow mouse flopped onto its back in an exaggerated display of relief, and the other three joined him. Allura gazed chillingly down to where they relaxed against her consol, but none of them moved.

"All right, team," said Shiro, heading off the bridge. "Get some rest."

Lance snapped into a salute. "Yes, sir!"

"I'm serious," Shiro said. He stopped short, as though something had suddenly occurred to him, and turned back, folding his arms. "Oh, and by the way."

Pidge gulped. "Uh-oh."

Matt pretended not to have heard him, but continued typing away rapidly until Shiro marched over to him and cleared his screen with a quick swipe. Matt turned around as though surprised to be interrupted. "Hi, Shiro."

Shiro gave him a level 'nice try' look and continued. "In case we don't get to stay here as long as planned, everyone is under orders to rest. Pidge, Hunk, Matt, no tinkering with computers or machinery. Coran'll need your help soon enough."

Pidge nodded. "Okay."

He raised an eyebrow. "Okay? That's it? No argument or anything?"

She shrugged eloquently. "We won't be able to anyway with all the systems powered down. Come on, Matt, let's go hang out in the lounge. There's something I've been wanting to plan out."

She grabbed his hand, and the taller Holt sibling allowed himself to be dragged out of the room by a rapidly chattering Pidge. Shiro turned to Keith, but the red paladin gave him a sideways smirk before he could speak. "Yeah, no training deck. Wouldn't be able to anyway."

"So!" said Lance, grinning widely and planting his hands on his waist. "What's on the schedule for fun?"

Wednesday update. :)