I woke up the next morning with a throbbing ache on my right shoulder as my alarm began to ring. I quickly turned it off and turned back to find the source of the pain came from Pidge using my shoulder as a pillow. Her back was against my right side, and she coddled my Galran arm like a teddy bear. The pillow she had brought was on the ground next to me.
I smiled at her unruly behavior, and attempted to ease myself out from under her arm so as not to disturb her. However, Pidge has an iron death grip, and she clutched my hand so tightly that my arm throbbed numbly. I tried untangling her fingers, but got nowhere. I ended up having to tickle her with the pillow she dropped until she loosened her grip, and the second I tugged my arm away her hands shot out and snatched the pillow out from my fingers.
Quiznak, Pidge. If my arm wasn't already gone, your squeezing would've taken it off. I thought, massaging my elbow. But the sight of her hugging that pillow for dear life make me smile again despite myself.
I generally got up earlier then anyone else, so I didn't want to bother her rest. After showering quickly and changing into my battle armor, I began going through my exercise routine. One hundred sit-ups, one hundred push ups, one hundred arm curls. Lance once asked me why I worked out so much, and I had replied that I simply wanted to be stronger. Which was part of the truth, but it was also out of fear. Ever since I was captured by Galrans, I decided to be strong, so then I wouldn't lose to them ever again. So I wouldn't lose hold of anyone, ever again.
I was in the middle of my fifty-seventh push up when a loud yawn alerted me to Pidge's awakening. I froze and glanced over at the bed to see her sitting up, rubbing her eyes and squinting.
"Mornin' kiddo." I say, trying to be as casual as possible. I wasn't sure if she would remember the events of last night, and I didn't want that to be an obstacle between us if we were to be a team, though part of me wished that she did remember.
Her only reply was a muffled "Mhnngh." as she crawled out of bed and padded over to the door, still squinting and dragging that pillow behind her. I can't help but feel a twinge of disappointment as she stumbles away, which is completely irrational. She's tired and sleepy, so it's only natural that she doesn't want to talk, right? But still, that sting of being ignored...
I watch her open the door and shuffle out slowly. She turned around to shut the door again, and as she did so, she mumbled "Thanks...Matt."
I barely notice the swoosh of the door shutting or how my arms were burning from holding my weight up for the past minute. I was consumed, almost entirely, by the event that had just taken place.
She called me...Matt?
A sense of amusement and pleasure swept through me, accompanied by a sense of sadness. It was only logical that Pidge would've slept with her brother during rough times; my little brother Ringo had done the same for me too. I was happy that she thought of me as something more then just a teammate or friend, but a strange displeasure settled in the pit of my stomach. I almost wanted to be more then a brother.
Don't be greedy, Shiro. She was probably too sleepy to know what she was saying anyway, it's not like she meant it.
I grunted and continued my workout, barely noticing the burning in my shoulders.
During breakfast I kept a close eye on Pidge in particular.
It was an average morning for the rest of the crew; Hunk was trying to talk to Pidge about to anyone who would listen, Keith and Lance were fighting (again, over stars know what) and Pidge had her laptop out as usual, taking bites in between sessions of keyboard mashing.
All in all, a perfectly normal start to the day. And everything was the same as if what had happened last night never occurred. A small sigh escapes me and I put down my spoon.
I shouldn't ponder over this. It's such a little thing, and it's taking over my head. I can't be a leader like this!
Consumed by thoughts of confusion, anger, and bitterness, I hardly notice the the voice talking to me until it shouted in my ear.
"HELLO, SHIRO!" Coran yelled, bristly mustache tickling my face, what with him standing right next to me. I jumped and fell out of my chair.
"Smooth." I heard Lance snicker, which was replied with by a elbow nudge from Pidge.
"What is it, Coran?" I asked, annoyed and embarrassed. My ear was ringing, and my left arm stung from breaking my fall.
"For a Paladin, you are as deaf as a Womportle in a volcanic hibernation. Allura wants all the Paladins on the bridge; we're gonna make our next move against Zarkon."
These words shock me; we had never attempted to launch a direct attack at Zarkon or his empire, and the most we did was freeing planets. I look over at the rest of the team, and they all bear similarly surprised looks.
This doesn't go unnoticed by Coran. He gives a sort of amused snort at our faces, and says "Don't just stand there, hup-hup! The princess is waiting!"
In a few minutes, we find ourselves on the bridge, having been hustled and shepherded there by Coran.
"Ah, Paladins. You're here." Allura said brightly, already in battle armor. She turned around from a large, three-dimensional, holographic model of a Zarkon fleet. "Me and Coran have been up for hours, and I think we have an idea for our next tactical advancement against the Galra."
"You know, you can just say 'our next move'" Pidge muttered, which prompted a snicker from Hunk and Lance. Allura noticed and glared pointedly.
"No time for your insulting remarks, small one. Especially now, as this fleet could hold your brother and-"
She was cut off suddenly by Pidge, who had leapt forward and was hanging off Allura's neck.
"What!? How did you know!? Why didn't you say so!?" Pidge spat, as she was wrestled away by an alarmed Coran. The Princess looked downright stunned at the sudden outburst, as was all of us. Small, sweet, Pidge had never done anything like this to anyone.
"I-I don't know." admitted a worried Allura, to a very murderous Paladin. "But the information from your last Galra hack has lead us to this ship. It's a holding ship, meant for carrying the prisoners they don't know what to do with."
"How come you got that information before I did? You're no hacker." Pidge snarled back. My chest stung slightly; seeing her act so cold and harsh wasn't right. This isn't Pidge.
"Because I helped her." I had to step in, and Pidge's look of fury melted away into surprise. "After you showed the translated plans to Allura, she asked my to decipher certain phrases because of my time there. I recognized some of the references and here we are." I paused, hesitating, before I continued on. "Pidge, you're a valuable member of this team. But the team includes Allura and Coran, and we wouldn't be complete without them. It is unacceptable that you act in this way toward your friend and comrade, so apologize."
Guilt pokes at me as I see her bow her head in shame, ears going red as cherries. "M'sorry." She mumbles. "I shouldn't have yelled."
"It's all right. I would've acted the same way, if I knew there was a chance that my father was still alive." Allura says gently, a somber smile on her face. But the smile is wiped away quickly by a serious scowl. "Paladins, go put on your armor. Then meet me here; we're going to strike a blow to the Galrans that they won't recover from."
