What Hurts the Most, Rascal Flatts.

...y'all. This month. Damn.

I hope this chapter finds you in a good place. I hope you're safe, and healthy, and that everyone you love is as well. If you're not doing well, I am sending you so much love. Please take care of yourselves during this time, and take care of those around you as well. There's so much going on, but we have each other, and I refuse to lose our humanity.

During the month of April, I'm going to try and post a fluffy one shot every single day. Various fandoms, because I don't have the inspiration for only one, but Voltron will definitely be included in that. You can probably also expect Arrowverse one-shots, Trollhunters, Stranger Things, etc. If there's a fandom of mine and a prompt you've been looking at, let me know (Please nothing crazy, okay? Just a short prompt and a fandom, I'm not taking full story ideas at this time). Might even get back into Phineas and Ferb for a bit. Who knows?

Love you all, stay safe. If you're scared and struggling, my PMs are open.


Castellan Place. June 9th, 2016. 4:06 pm.


Coran dropped the keys on the kitchen counter with a heavy sigh, his mustache bristling at the wind from his lips. Hunk clapped him on the shoulder, smiling. "You did good."

Keith, sitting at the table with his hands wrapped around a mug of tea, managed a faint smile. "You guys change the plates?"

"And the van," Coran said with a nod. His hands were pressed to the counter. "I…I reached out to some people. That I knew. They helped quite a bit. So did Hunk, of course."

Hunk's smile was sheepish, but his eyes twinkled. "If you ever need muscle, come find me. Or Shiro, I guess, but I'm also here…I'm going to go check up on Matt."

He waved at Keith and left the room, door swinging completely shut before Coran moved. He sat down next to Keith, heavy, like his body was being pushed down by the universe. For a couple of minutes, they sat in silence, listening to the clock on the wall tick.

"When you called this morning, from the school," Coran started, slow. Methodical.

Shit. That had only been that morning? Keith reached back, dug into his jacket pocket. Pulled out the letters he'd stashed there. Lance had the rings and the drive. He let go of his mug, flipped Allura's letter aside and handed Coran his in silence. "This was in the box. Among other things."

Coran set it down without opening it, took Allura's and set it on top. His jaw was rigid. "When you called from the school, you told me…your necklace."

Confused, Keith reached into his shirt and pulled out Thace's dog tag. "Yeah?"

"May I?"

Still baffled, Keith tugged the chain over his head and handed it over to Coran, who took it and ran weather-worn fingers gently over the symbol on the front. His lips were pressed in a thin line. His hands trembled. Something in Keith reeled in understanding. "You didn't know Thace was dead."

Coran shook his head.

"Was he your contact? At the base?"

A nod.

Keith hesitated. "You guys were friends, then."

"You daft boy," Coran said fondly, finally glancing up at him. There were tears in his eyes.

Keith's lips parted and his heart sank. "Oh. Oh, my god, I'm sorry, Coran. I'm…I'm so sorry."

The tremble in Coran's lower lip was just barely noticeable. "You were there, I assume. When it happened."

Keith flinched, looking down at the table. It came back in vivid clarity – the blood on his jeans, the body in his arms, Sal, wrapping him tight and bundling him out. The way Hunk looked at him afterwards, like he was about to break. Maybe he still was. "Y-Yeah," he said, and his voice cracked. "Yeah, I was."

Coran's hand was soft despite it's callouses, settling on the side of his neck and rubbing the skin under the ear. "I'm sorry," he echoed back, sincere. He tried to hand the dog tag back, but Keith reached up, curled his hand around it.

"Keep it," he murmured. "I'm done using it, and I…you deserve it more than I ever could."

Coran pulled the tag to his chest like it was a precious jewel, studied Keith. "You're going to tell them," he said, nodding to the living room. It wasn't a question, wasn't even a statement, really, was more just a thought. But Keith still nodded.

"Not tonight," he amended, glancing at the door and lowering his voice, despite the fact that no one was there. "I…I want to give Pidge and Matt the night. Before I…"

Coran's hand tightened on Keith's neck, but in a fatherly way. Slid to grip his shoulder, more comforting. "Whatever happens tomorrow," he said, firm. "Whatever happens with the group, with Pidge, or Allura, I will stand by you. As will Shiro and Lance. I'm positive of that. You will always be welcome with me. I understand what you've had to go through, my boy. Thace went through it all too. And you should never…at your age, you should have never had to do what you've done."

Something like relief lifted in Keith's throat, accompanied by tears and a choked out whimper. "Thank you," he croaked.

Coran pulled him into a hug, the dog tag in his hand pressed between them and his other hand cupping the back of Keith's head. Keith curled his fingers into Coran's jacket and pressed his nose to his shoulder. "Thank you," he whispered again, tears blurring his vision.

"Of course, my boy. Thank you. For telling me the truth."

Keith snorted, wet. "Thank you for figuring out the truth."


Castellan Place. June 9th, 2016. 8:36 pm.


Keith's phone went off in the middle of The Martian, scaring everyone half to death. They'd put it on at Pidge's insistence that her brother catch up on the best movies since he'd been captured. She was now nestled in the crook of his arm, head on his shoulder. "Who is it?"

Keith fumbled the phone out of his pocket and relaxed a little. "My mom. Probably just wondering where I am. Keep going with the movie, I've seen it already."

He stood up, stepping over Shiro and crossing out of the living room and onto the front porch. The wind blew his hair around his shoulders and he wrapped an arm around his torso as he answered the phone. "Mom. What's up?"

"Kogane."

He shut his eyes. Breathed through his teeth. "Zarkon. Sir. Is my mother-?"

"She's right here. I had a feeling you would answer for her but, funny enough, didn't think you would do the same for me. Your time is up, Kogane."

His gut flipped. "Excuse me?"

"I don't pretend to think that Voltron didn't know our plan with Mr. Holt today. They're too intelligent not to figure it out, the weasels. But you did nothing to hinder them. Nothing to stop them from ruining the tracking, changing what information we had. Don't think I'm a fool, Kogane. I know you're with them. At their hideout. Interesting, that you didn't think to come home."

Keith bit back a witty retort about the word 'home.' Lifted his head to look at the sky, littered with stars. Sometimes, he wished he was stuck in space instead of here. Anything but here. "I couldn't just leave, sir, that'd be suspicious. Especially to Matt. He doesn't trust me."

"And why is that? As far as I'm aware, he's never met you."

Keith frowned, furrowed his eyebrows. "Sir…I'm the one who killed his father."

A long pause, like Zarkon was reevaluating what he remembered. "Ah. Yes. And how, exactly, are you managing to keep him quiet? That seems like crucial information the others might want to know. Unless, of course, they already know. And you're double crossing me, Kogane."

"No sir," Keith said, trying to keep his voice firm. "I threatened to kill his sister and mother if he said a word. He took me seriously."

"Hmm. Very well. But tonight."

His stomach sank further. "Sir?"

"Everything. Tonight. If you do not, I start with your pretty little mother here. Move on to Sanchez's adorable family, his little niece and nephew. Holt's mother and precious puppy. Garrett's pathetic girlfriend. Understood?"

Keith was trembling with rage. "Understood, sir."

"Everything, Kogane. Location, work, vehicles. I want to know how deep they sleep and what side of the goddamn couch they prefer. If I'm not satisfied, it's your mother's head. And then yours. Midnight."

The other line clicked, and Keith was left holding a silent phone and the weight of the world.


Castellan Place. June 9th. 11:35 pm.


"I know."

Keith startled and turned to find Pidge behind him on the stairs, her glasses lit eerily in the moonlight drifting through the patio doors. "Pidge? What are you doing up so late, I thought you were asleep?"

Pidge shrugged, glanced back up the steps. "Couldn't sleep. I'm usually up this late anyway."

Her words played back in his head and Keith frowned at her, confused. "What do you know?"

Pidge took a shaky breath and clutched the railing. "I know you're Galra," she whispered, staring at the floor. Keith stepped back, feeling like he'd been slapped across the face. She continued. "I know you're betraying them, for us. I know you've done some really bad things. I know you've lost people you loved."

She looked up. Her eyes were bright. Her lips were shaking. "I know you killed my father," and her voice cracked right along with Keith's heart.

"Did Matt-?"

"No," Pidge whispered. Her hand was white on the stairs. "He didn't tell me you did it. He didn't have to. You've been avoiding me for a week. The way Matt looked at you all night was murderous. When I asked about Dad, he lied. Said he hadn't seen him in a while. I know my brother. I know when he's lying."

She stepped down the stairs and Keith stumbled back. He was crying, he realized. Tears streaming down his cheeks and chest aching. God, had it only been a week since Sam died? It felt like a lifetime. "But I knew before that," she whispered, her voice heavy. "I knew the moment I met you, when Hunk introduced us."

His head reeled. "You-?"

"God, I'm not an idiot, Keith," Pidge choked out. She was crying now too. "I've been tracking the Galra for years, I knew Hunk was working at a front. I knew that everyone there had to be Galra, including you. Don't know why you'd hire an outsider."

Keith answered without thinking. "To keep up appearances. To the public." He paused, reassessing. "You knew? All…all that time, you knew? Why did you let me in, w-why w-would you ever trust me?"

Her lips quivered. "Because I like you. Because Lance looks at you when you're not looking like you hung the goddamn moon in the sky. Because Hunk raved about what an awesome boss you were, and there was no way someone genuinely evil would ever be like that. I knew the moment I met you that you were Galra, Keith."

His breath hitched as she moved closer, and he stepped back again, panic in his chest.

"I also knew after about ten minutes of knowing you that there was no way you were actually on their side."

Keith's back hit the wall of the hallway and he trembled. "Pidge, I'm…I'm so…"

All he could taste was salt. His throat ached, and his tears were slipping down his skin and into his shirt collar. "I'm so sorry," he whimpered. "I'm so sorry, I – he has my mom, and I…I can't lose her, he already stole my father from me, he t-took Th-Thace from m-me, if I d-don't…"

He shut his eyes, took a deep breath. Couldn't let it out. It hung in his chest, heavy and hard and pointy. His mouth tasted like copper. "If I don't go in tonight, he kills my mom. He kills Lance's family, your family, Shay. I c-can't. I'm sorry."

Pidge's hands settled on his cheeks, shaking, freezing, gentle. Keith forced his eyes open and looked down at her. The ache in her eyes, the pinch in her brows. "It's okay," she whispered. Her voice was full of tears. "I c-can't…I can't forgive you for my father," she said, and he knew that was coming. "I can't. But I can understand, Keith. Don't get me wrong, I hate you right now."

He nodded again, pressed his lips together. His hands shook at his sides. Pidge's nose was running. "But also…you're like a brother to me. And I am not losing another fucking brother."

The hug was crushing, all encompassing, her face pressed into his chest and her arms digging into his lower back. Keith let out a sob and dropped to his knees, clinging to her shaking frame like it was life support. He kept whispering into her ear, apologies, fruitless, useless, but kept saying them nonetheless.

She didn't pull back for nearly a minute, after which she slapped him across the face. He gritted his teeth at the stinging, but given that he deserved much worse, he didn't argue. "What's this about information?" Pidge asked.

Keith lifted his duffle from the floor as he stood. "He needs it all. By tonight. Or it's my mom and all your families on the line. I'm not losing anyone else, and I'm not letting anyone lose anyone else, just for Voltron."

Pidge stared at him. "You don't know what he's planning, do you?"

He shook his head. "No. I know it's happening around the campaigns on Tuesday. He must think Voltron is way more of a threat now, because he didn't want most of this a week ago. He was okay with just…updates."

Pidge frowned. "Whatever he's planning is big, then. Is he backing a candidate?"

Keith hesitated. "Doubtful. None of the three of them are associated with the Galra, as far as I know. But I…I can't stay. I have to be there by midnight, or my mom…my mom…"

He looked at the door. "She's all I have left, Pidge," he whispered. "I can't lose her."

Pidge took a deep breath. "You won't. I'm getting the others. You're not going in alone."

Keith shook his head. "You can't. The guards he has, the amount of people at the base? There's no way everyone would make it out of there."

"You need backup," Pidge snapped. "I am not letting you go in without backup."

His lips pressed into a thin line. "Fine. Get a set of comms. You're not coming in with me, but I'll use the comms system so you can hear what's going on."

"I'm getting the others, too. They deserve to know."

"Shiro, Coran, and Lance do," Keith murmured, looking away.

From the way Pidge hesitated, it was clear she hadn't figured that one out. "They…they know? Did they know about…?"

"Yeah."

Her lips tightened, but she didn't stay anything. "Okay. Well…well Allura and Hunk deserve to know. We'll wake them up, and…and we can help, Keith. Let us help."

Keith nodded after a moment. "Okay. Go get the comms."

Pidge bolted up the stairs for her room, grabbing a set of comms and her laptop off her bed. She popped her head into Shiro's room on the way back down. He was still up, reading a book in bed. He looked up at her when she entered, startled at the tears all over her face. "Pidge? Are you okay?"

"Can you wake everyone up?" she asked, trying not to let anger show in her expression. "Keith needs our help."

Shiro's gaze shifted from relaxed to surprised to hard. "Yeah. Yeah, of course. Give me two minutes."

She nodded and raced back down the stairs, taking the last two in a jump.

Somehow, she wasn't surprised to find that Keith was already gone.