Lance and Javier brought Shiro into the closest house and settled him down on one of the chairs in the living room. He winced as some of his ribs were jostled and closed his eyes for a few moments, trying to regain his breath.
Hot air puffed into his face, and Shiro's brows furrowed in confusion and he opened his eyes.
A young face and bright blue eyes stared back at him, centimeters from his own face. Shiro yelped a little in surprise, and the little boy withdrew quickly. He didn't go far though.
"Qué pasó a tú pelo?" he asked, reaching out to touch Shiro's white hair. The meaning was clear enough, and Shiro blushed uncomfortably, even though he smiled at how cute the boy was. He hadn't had time to give his new hair much thought, and it hadn't occurred to him how it would look to others.
"I... ahhh..."
"Nico!" a plaintive voice cut them off. A slightly older boy, Shiro guessed he was somewhere around seven, pushed between Shiro and the little boy, "Don't bother him! He's a guest!"
"It's alright," Shiro raised his hand placatingly, "I don't mind."
Nico looked around the taller boy and smiled widely at Shiro.
"I- I like!" he exclaimed, pointing again and bouncing up and down happily.
"You do?" Shiro grinned, touched. "Well, thanks."
Nico giggled and ran off, leaving Shiro smiling after him.
The older boy sighed. He seemed older than he actually was. he reminded Shiro strongly of one of his garrison professors- serious, studious, and a neat.
His mature attitude was more endearing than intimidating, though, with three of his his baby teeth missing.
"I'm sorry, that's my cousin. He's still little," the boy offered as explanation, extending his hand the way his uncles had. "I'm Emilio."
"I'm Shiro," the former paladin replied, reaching out with his left hand and pausing awkwardly. Emilio tactfully switched hands and shook with his left.
"We're going to get food in a minute," he continued, gesturing to the large table where most of the older adults- abuelos and abuelas- were sitting, "I'm going to bring yours so you can sit."
"I can-"
"Lance said don't let you," the boy shook his head seriously, "So you wait here and I'll bring it."
"Ahh, okay," Shrio finally relented, turning pink again, "umm, thanks."
Emilio gave him a toothy (toothless?) smile and ran off.
As more people filed into the house, Shiro noticed that the older people were seated at the large table, while men closer to his own age started filling up the chairs in the living room. All the movement and noise should have been overwhelming, but this was different than anything during his time in Galra prison. Instead of fear, there was laughter and teasing; the lights were yellow and warm, not purple and harsh; , instead of violence and the isolating need to survive, were hugs and hair ruffles and cheek pinches. This was grounding. Shiro could handle this.
Lance joined the men too, laughing and talking. Shiro caught his eye once, and nodded to let Lance know he was okay. The red paladin smiled with relief and turned back to his cousins. Shiro was content to just sit back and observe- he didn't have the energy to talk at the moment.
"Here you go!" Emilio was back with two plates full of food, and he handed one to Shiro. Shiro nodded his thanks, a little overwhelmed at the amount of food Emilion thought he would want. He awkwardly used his left hand and a fork to start with the rice.
"Can you understand them?" Emilio asked. He had settled himself down on the right armrest of Shiro's chair, listening studiously to the men's conversation as he ate, nodding sagely every now and then.
"Not really," Shiro admitted.
"That's fine." the boy reassured him, "I know Spanish and English very good, so I can tell you!"
Shiro smiled and nodded.
And so the meal passed, with the men talking and Emilio occasionally explaining a joke. Shiro mostly picked at his food, not feeling very hungry. Still, this was nice, and Shiro felt included thanks to Emilio.
"Ah?!" a shrill voice shrieked in his ear, and Emilio fell off the armrest in surprise. Lance's mother was suddenly in front of him, gesturing furiously at his still full plate and shouting at him.
"She thinks you don't like it," Emilio whispered helpfully, watching her rant. "She says 'how can I make you fat again if you don't eat?'"
Shiro's eyes widened in horror and he shook his head.
"No! No ma'am, that's not-"
"¡Mamá!" Lance yelped, jumping up and placing himself between Shiro and his mother, "¡Mamá, alta! Por favor-"
He placed his hands on her shoulders and quietly explained. As Lance went on, her eyes softened and she glanced around Lance to Shiro, who was watching them wide-eyed. Finally she nodded, satisfied, and stepped towards Shiro a completely changed person.
"Está bien, chico," she smiled sweetly, reaching out and patting his cheek, "Come que puedes."
"It's alright- eat what you can." Emilio whispered in his ear.
"Th-thank you, ma'am." Shiro nodded. She patted his shoulder affectionately and walked off.
"Crisis averted, Shiro," Lance grinned sympathetically and gave him a thumbs up, "But you'd better start getting better, because she won't take excuses about not eating for long."
"I'll do my best," Shiro agreed, relieved.
He looked up when he heard chairs being pushed back from tables. The men around him were standing and stretching too. Some of the younger children took up the chant of ´Musica! Musica!´ and the older girls giggled and ran out of the house.
¨What´s happening?¨ Shiro asked.
"They are going to start dancing and singing," Emilio replied, not making any move to join them.
"Aren't you going to dance? Don't miss out just because of me."
"Well," the boy squirmed on the armrest, "I'm not very good at dancing. Or singing. Not like my brothers."
"I won't make you go," Shiro said gently, "But it might be fun even if you're not good at it." he smiled, "yeah?"
Emilio considered this seriously. After a minute he nodded.
"Okay, I'll try it."
"Have fun!" Shiro called after him as he hopped down and followed the kids out the door. Lance appeared at his side a moment later.
"Are you doing alright?" he asked anxiously, "Sorry about the misunderstanding earlier-"
"It's alright Lance," Shiro assured him, "I just felt bad that she thought I didn't like her food."
"Oh, Emilio translated for you?" Lance laughed, "Yeah, I think she's okay now. She just wanted to take care of you. Wants to- don't think you've gotten out of it, Shiro. You're one of us now."
"I'm honored," Shiro smiled, closing his eyes again.
"Hey, do you want to go to bed now, or are you up for some music? They'll understand if you're tired."
"I want to see some of it at least, " Shiro shook his head, sitting up a little, "I'll be fine for a little longer."
Lance nodded and pulled him up carefully. They slowly made their way out the door and into the inner courtyard.
