"Pidge?" Lance asked tentatively, his warm chocolate eyes focused on her tear-streaked face.

Hunk, Lance, Allura, and Coran met Shiro and Pidge in the room filled with couches; a living room, of sorts. But not all in the room had the desire to live.

"You okay?"

She merely nodded. Her voyage across the vast expanse of space and her new revelation had drained her physically and emotionally. Shiro was the only thing keeping her upright.

"It's been a long trip for you; how about you get some rest?"

Again, she nodded.

Shiro guided her to her room, where she practically fell onto her bed, clutching her soft comforter. Shiro sat on her bed, patting her legs twice.

"If there's anything you want to talk about, we'll be here for you."

His comforting words were the last things she heard as she descended into a dreamless sleep.

Unfortunately, she didn't stay asleep. Oddly, she felt… out of place; like she was still in her dream, even though she knew she was not asleep. Her body didn't feel like hers. Used to her erratic circadian cycle of sleep, she decided to don her usual comfort clothing. Staring at herself in the mirror, she was finally able to get a good look at herself since… well, she wasn't sure. Her hair was cowlicked to the right side of her face, and her eyes were red-rimmed. Grabbing a hairbrush, she combed her hair. As for her eyes, she splashed water onto her face, hoping to wake herself up further. Upon drying her face and placing the golden-rimmed glasses on her face, she looked back at her reflection. She felt like she was supposed to be remembering something, but she couldn't. Oh well. It probably wasn't important.

She meandered through the hallways. For some reason, she didn't know why everything felt so… distant. It was peaceful and calming in it's own way, but…. Finding herself in her lion's hanger - is that my lion? - she huddled up in one of her favorite hiding places; a small nesting area ten feet above the ground, held together by metal beams. She was about to climb up when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Turning around, she found Hunk. Who was Hunk again?

"Hey, what are you doing up so early?"

"I-I…" my disembodied voice trailed off. For some reason, my hands didn't feel like my own. My mouth wouldn't work.

"Pidge?"

Who is Pidge? Is that me?

"Pidge, are you okay? Can you move? Like, at all?"

I didn't respond. I wanted to, but… I couldn't. Something nagged at my brain. What was I forgetting?

"Hold on, I'm going to go get Shiro. Don't go anywhere."

It's not like I can I wanted to reply. I just stared at the grey wall in front of me. In it's own way, it was comforting.

A couple of dobashes later - had it really been that long? It felt more like a few ticks - Shiro entered the hangar, Hunk following suit.

"Pidge?"

I stared at the man in front of me. Did I know him?

"Pidge, can you say anything? Can you move?"

I continued my vigil of silence.

Why can't I move?

Shiro sighed. He seemed to know what was wrong.

"You're Katie Holt, also known as Pidge Gunderson. You pilot the green lion. I'm Shiro, and this is Hunk. We're your friends. Yesterday, you searched for your brother…."

Suddenly, reality crashed in.

I couldn't get enough air into my lungs.

Matt is dead.

I could feel my heart racing.

"Pidge, calm down, it's okay," Shiro consoled, catching me as my legs gave out from under me. Kneeling on the ground, hunched over, I couldn't stop thinking about him. Hunk joined Shiro and I on the ground, giving me a hug. I remember Matt's hugs. They were bone crushing, but they were worth it. Droplets of water leaked from my eyes and landed on the cool, metal floor. My vision blurred. I could hear my wheezing as my lungs desperately sucked in air.

Shiro backed off.

"Katie, I'm gonna need you to take some deep breaths, okay? You're having a panic attack."

Katie.

"Katie!"

My head snapped up. I was staring into Shiro's concerned, fatherly eyes.

"Deep breaths, Katie, deep breaths."

I attempted to synchronize my breathing with his. It was painful. I wasn't getting enough oxygen. When my breathing was stabilized, Hunk helped me up. My face was beet red with embarrassment.

"Better?" Shiro asked.

"Y-yeah." I stuttered, still trying to gather my bearings.

"How about I make pancakes for breakfast," Hunk suggested, not wanting her to retreat to her room.

"Well, some variation, but I've found a recipe that kind of tastes like them, but with more of a honey taste and the texture of scrambled eggs."

I gave him a small smile.

Shiro smiled, happy to see that I was better.

The pancakes ended up being better than expected, with Kaltenecker's milk and Shiro somehow getting half of the dough on his clothes. Allura and Coran woke up to the sweet smell of our "pancakes", and ate the rest. Lance woke up late, per usual, so we made a second batch. There were no complaints, of course.

Maybe there is something to live for.

Hello! I hope you enjoyed the second chapter! I decided to keep the ending of this chapter relatively fluffy before I get into the really dark stuff. How much more dark can it possibly get, you ask?! I smile.

Not all questions are meant to be answered, dearie.

To bigtimedreamer101, Gavtron1, and purplebeltpanda13: Thank you for your reviews!

Please continue to follow, favorite, and review this story!

Until next time,

Serafina Aster