Lance was the first one awake, sandwiched between Hunk and Pidge in the most contorted way possible. The blankets were spread over them even though Lance had no recollection of having a blanket when he'd passed out.

He tried to imagine Keith putting blankets over them when they were already asleep and couldn't. He literally could not come up with the image in his mind and decided to let all implications slide. If there was anything Lance was good at, it was not thinking too hard about things.

He slipped out from under Pidge and was carful to not fall on top of Hunk. With his many years of practice with his siblings he was able to make his way to the other side of the small house without making a sound.

The room they had put Shiro in was empty, as was the room Keith had disappeared into the night before.

Lance winced as Hunk snorted in his sleep.

"Its rude to sneak around other people houses," Pidge muttered as he sat up and yawned. Lance laughed.

"Yeah, but hijacking someones ride is totally ok."

"Eh," he shrugged, "should we wake Hunk up?"

"let him dream just a little longer," Lance said, "he's the kind that doesn't handle reality very well."

"So now what?"

That really was the million dollar question. Lance scratched his head. Everything the night before was reactionary and didn't require much thought, now, however, was a different story.

"We're probably expelled, yeah?" Lance said, sick to his stomach at the thought of it.

"More than likely," Pidge sighed.

"then let's just wait and see what happens from here on. Keith and Mr. Shirogone aren't around right now. Let's just wait it out and take it one step at a time."

"Wow," Pidge replied, "look at you actually having a logical idea."

"Stuff it," Lance snapped and walked into the kitchen area, "Let's see if he actually lives here or if we can add trespassing to our list of crimes."

"Its rude to use someones kitchen without asking," Pidge protested.

"Its rude to leave your guests unattended in the early hours of the morning with out food," Lance retorted looking into the fridge, "he hadn't gone shopping in almost a week."

"How do you know that?"

"The lettus is still good, but is just starting to turn brown," Lance said tossing her the bag, "he's got the makings for omelets in here and that's something I can make pretty easily. Hunk will be more amiable if he wakes up to food."

"You don't know if he has plans for that food later!"

"then he should be here, shouldn't he?" Lance asked cheerfully pulling eggs and cheese out of the fridge, "the good thing is we can mark trespassing off the list."

()

"I see you've made yourselves at home," Keith said as he and Shiro walked in. Hunk was on his second omelet and Pidge was picking at his first one.

"I made three more," Lance said taking a bite of his, "They're in the oven. Didn't know where you were or anything."

"Thanks," Shiro said, "You go ahead and eat, Keith, I'm still not very hungry."

"You have to eat a little," Keith insisted and then frowned at the coffee table they were sitting around, "is that they rest of my hot sauce?"

Lance took a bigger bite, "mmmmmmm~"

()

There was silence in the house as Hunk and Pidge worked on the gigger counter. An awkward silence seemed to build between Keith and Shiro as Lance opened his eyes and observed them from across the room. He had clamed the couch and was trying to catch a few more z's before they went hiking all over a desert canyon.

But the silence, only broken by hunks and Pidges occasional exchanges and tinkerings, were loud and obnoxious.

"So," Lance finally sat up, knowing he wouldn't be able to sleep now, "how did you two meet?"

Keith scowled and Shiro grinned.

"He stole my car," Shiro said and Keith protested, "you were what, eight? I thought if he could drive my car like that he should be in a cockpit."

"Joy riding at eight?" Lance grinned as well, "and here I thought I was hard core stealing my uncles knife set to practice juggling with."

"It wasn't joy riding," Keith snapped, "I was just pissed."

"…hence the term 'joy riding'," Pidge broke in, "you're pissed so you act out to make yourself feel better."

Keith clicked his tongue and sat back in his chair. He was totally done with the conversation.

"How long is this going to take?" he asked Hunk instead, doing everything he could to turn the focuse to someone else.

"Don't know," Hunk muttered, "You don't happen to have spare parts I can take a look at, do you? Like a work shop or a garage?"

"Yeah, this way," Keith stood and Pidge and Hunk followed him out of the room. With just Shiro and Lance in the room, Lance realized he was every bit as awkward as everyone else.

"So…you don't like Keith very much." It was a statement, not a question.

"I wasn't the one who started it," Lance said lying back down and closing his eyes, "I tried to be friends and he shot me down. I'm not going to force anyone to talk to me if they don't want to."

Shiro sighed a little, but that was it.

Lance was almost asleep when Hunk came bursting in.

"You would not BELIEVE the shop he has out back!" Hunk beamed holding out his arm full of junk bits, "it's a dream come true!"

"Glad you met your prince charming," Lance yawned.

As he and Pidge began working on the counter again, another silence, the worst yet, reigned. It was so off putting that even Hunk, engrossed as he was in his new toy, was becoming uncomfortable.

"Hey, Lance," Hunk said, in an effort to quell the tension, "why don't you finish that story you were telling me a few months ago? You remember when I was sick?"

Lance grimaced, "I don't wanna."

"But I wanna know if they found that star thingy!"

Lance rolled his eyes. He'd thought Hunk hadn't remembered the story since he'd had a fever and he had never asked him about it after words.

"Fine," Lance sighed, "but I'm not starting over and everyone will hold their questions till the end, got it?"

"Yup," Hunk cheerfully answered for everyone.

"So the Shepherd started his quest for the blue fallen star.

He traveled all over the island and even the lands past the south and east sea. For three years he traveled and searched for any sign or mention of a blue star.

And for three years, he did not find it.

It took the man another year and a half to get back home to his little hamlet. Knowing he was going back in failure, he stopped and asked ever healer, monk, and gypsy for their wisdom in how to help his wife.

Taking home a large back filled with potions and charms and blessed objects, his heart still felt heavy for being unable to give his wife the one thing she'd ever asked of him. She was a selfless woman, and her one desire was the one thing that he could not give her.

His home in sight at last, his emotions broke and he wept. Setting his pack down he fell to the forest floor and sobbed. He couldn't bare to see his wife in the state she was in, knowing she would get worse if he arrived with anything less than what he'd promised her.

He stayed until dusk fell. A chill wind made colder due to the tears that soaked his face and shirt. Gazing up at the first visible star he shouted at it. Angerly demanding it fall. Wondering why it should say seated in the heavens while his wife suffered for want of it. Had she not been through enough? Had he not been though trial after trial on his journey? Had ne not proven himself worthy of just one star among the many that dotted the sky each night? Surly the heavens would not miss one star. Just one to make a good woman smile again. To help her eat again. To have her look at him again.

And in the growing darkness there came a small giggle-"

"I'm going to stop you right there," Hunk snapped as he dropped the pliers, "I don't do spooky stories, Lance, I can't!"

"Its not a ghost," Lance said and smiled, "just listen."

"what kind of story is this anyway?" Keith asked, an odd expression on his face.

"Its an old Irish tale," Lance said not explaining anything else, "now no more questions.

The shepherd wiped his eyes and stared into the darkness. A small shape emerged from the trees, no more than four feet tall. It looked to be a young boy, but the skin was fairer than any he'd ever seen, and in the fading light, the boys hair seemed to be on fire. His eyes were a kaleidoscope of color and his ears, poked out of ether side and came to a prominent point.

It was a fey.

The man crossed himself multiple times as the boy watched, curious.

"I'm sorry," the boy replied making the shepherd jump, "I should not have laughed. You are obviously in distress. It was silly to hear you want the stars to come from the heavens, and I laughed."

The shepherd froze and his mind began to work. He had looked everywhere…except the other world. In the fey world, could there be the star he searched for? Perhaps this boy could take him to Tatania? He was sure he would be a poor price, but he would willingly give up himself, body and soul, if his wife could have what she wanted.

"I would like to speak to your queen," the shepherd said, breathless, "I have a boon. My wife is ill and can only be made whole with a blue star that fell from the heavens years ago. Is it possible that you know of such a star?"

The boys widened in shock.

"How do you…no, that's impossible. You humans do not live that long."

"Please," the sheperd begged, "I will do anything."

The boy shifted slightly and glanced down at the pack.

"What's in there?" the boy asked. The shepherd gladly turned the pack over and dumped everything on the ground. By now it was dark and with a sigh a blue light suddenly lit up the entire area. The man was startled as he looked at the source of the light, a round object in the boys hand.

The fey poked around the contents of the shepherds back, muttering to himself. Finally the boy scooped up all the objects.

"I will take these," he said and from around his neck unclasped a metal chain, "and here is your blue star."

The chain held a brilliantly blue gem. It was shaped like a four pointed star and felt warm to the touch. Not the kind of warmth where someone elses heat lingered on an object, but one where the heat came from the object itself.

Then the light winked out, and darkness enveloped him. He didn't hear the fey leave, but knew the boy was gone for good."

"That's convenient," Pidge said rolling her eyes, "did you just make this up?"

"nope," Lance shrugged, "its an actual story."

"So was his wife better after he gave it to her?" Hunk asked and then swore as the wires started to spark at him.

"She was," Lance nodded, "she even had another child she named, Hope. And she raised the child with the necklace around the childs neck her whole life. She believed the star kept demons and sickness away."

"You know this story how?" Keith asked and Lance shrugged. He didn't have to answer that. Lance settled back into a solid silence. He'd finished the story so he was done. After almost an hour Hunk spoke up again.

"Do you have anoth-"

"No," Lance snapped.

()

The cave carvings were much more intricate than Keith had let on back at the house. The trio and Shiro examined each of them closely.

"I can't make any sense of them," Keith sighed, "I've searched history books, and talked to some of my connections on the nearby reservation. The only thing they would tell me was that no one dared to come in here. It was a long time fear or something. They weren't very clear, but only said that no one was 'allowed' to enter the caves here."

"Don't you just love superstition?" Lance sang as he entered further into the cave, "makes life so much more interesting~"

"The cave is blocked off," Keith called after him, "seems there was a cave in a long time ago."

"Ugh," Lance turned to head back out, "we are not digging through that."

"Afraid it will mess up your manicure?" Pidge asked, smirking.

"Har har."

"maybe we can find a different way in," shiro suggested, "These caves honey comb all over this canyon; we're bound to find it some other way using Hunks gigger counter."

"Lions aren't really common in this part of the world," Hunk said, "maybe it's a different cat?"

"I'm pretty sure it's a lion," Keith scowled, not liking his conclusion being questioned.

"I'm with Hunk," Pidge said, "Its not likely that it's a lion."

"As much as I hate to agree with Mullet," Lance said sticking out his tongue and shuddering, "the cave drawings really do look like a lion. I mean, look."

He brushed off the dirt on the wall to see the carving better. Blue light filled the cave as every drawing lit up.

"What-"

When the cave floor gave out beneath them, Lance was sure he'd felt something break.

()

Lance hadn't thought very hard when he'd knocked on the blue barrier, nor did he really think twice about running into the robot and sit in the pilots seat. He wasn't sure why he wasn't as cautious as the others, but he couldn't even make himself afraid. Everything seemed a lot more familiar than he gave much thought to.

And again, once he got off the ground, everyone around his screaming and clutching at him, he couldn't feel anything but totally calm and natural.

This was fun.

Even when he attacked the ship, ideas came to his mind at the lion purred in his ear. Adrenalin making him slightly dizzy with a natural high.

This was so much fun!

Then he saw the gate, and the lion purred once again in his ear. The lion wanted to go home. It wanted to be where it was supposed to be.

It wanted to take Lance with it.