Usually when they did mind melt with the crew, the images were immediate. Lance closed his eyes and he was immediately shown various options of his fellow Paladin's memories. He could choose who to see and could generally move freely. If someone was blocking a memory from the group or from him, there would be a wall there and no way to break it down. Coran explained before that the others could potentially break it down together by force, but it was not recommended. The mindmelt experience was generally calm and easy.

But when are things ever easy with Keith?

Lance experienced a blackness for what felt like years. He felt as if he was wandering around aimlessly with no goal and no idea what to do. He tried talking, seeing if Keith, or anybody, was out there. He yelled into the void for hours, but he suspected only minutes passed by. He walked and walked and walked and walked until he felt his legs give out. He collapsed onto whatever floor was in this space. As soon as his butt hit, there was a deep rumbling. He felt it and heard it at the same time. Pieces breaking away into another darkness, this time with a hint of light. The floor gave out and Lance was free falling. He felt his shirt whipping in the wind as his eyes adjusted to the minimal light there was. He could see a location, a focal point miles below him. For a second he freaked out; the feeling of falling made him think he was going to die but then he reminded himself he was in Keith's mind. Or, at least, trying to get there.

His body hit the bottom; Lance found himself swimming. He could breathe, thankfully. Not that he needed to, necessarily. Lance figured he would wait for something to happen. He knew he was not in control here. He would move when whatever force was controlling the environment wanted him to move. He could kind of see underneath the water. It was a deep red color, the consistency of water. As if he was in the ocean and a red light was casted across the entirety of the water. An echoey voice called out to him, something inaudible from below the water's surface. Lance swam up. He heard multiple breathy sounds, eventually hearing his name.

"Lance!" A scared male voice cried out. Lance would recognize that voice anywhere. It was Keith.

"Keith! I'm in water! I don't know what you can do but-" Lance called back but the voice cut him off.

"Lance!" It said again, this time more frightened. Lance hoped Keith could hear him.

"Keith, I'm here. Everything is going to be okay, I promise."

Something grabbed his ankle sharply, yanked him beneath the water. Lance almost tried kicking whatever had him but restrained himself. He was pulled down, down, down. His back and butt hit a surface. Then the hand let go and Lance felt as if he was on a water slide. One that was heading straight down. Lance felt air on his face again. He was falling. Again.

This time when he landed, it was on a hard surface. It didn't hurt, thankfully. It was also in a room. He was in a bathroom, a rather small one. Lance rubbed his eyes and stood up in the bathtub that also doubled as a shower. The furniture looked lived-in, but not damaged. The bathroom was definitely used recently. A knock at a door outside of the bathroom stole Lance's attention. He got out of the bath and exited the bathroom.

He recognized the place immediately; it was Keith's home in the desert. He had gone there when they first found Shiro and the blue lion. At the door was a young boy with a mullet that Lance would recognize anywhere. Someone knocked at the door again.

"Who is it?" Young Keith called. Lance at this angle could see Keith had a kitchen knife in his hand, placed perfectly behind him.

"Hello, we got a report that there is a child in this house. It's social services, may we come in?"

Keith put away the knife and opened the door. Three people in fancy clothes entered. Two of them looked around the small living space while the other addressed Keith. The woman crouched down so that she was Keith's height.

"Hi there. I'm Mrs. Dale. What's your name?" She said softly. Keith crossed his arms.

Lance estimated Keith was between 9 and 11 years old. His eye contact kept with Mrs. Dale's in a way that no preteen should be.

"Keith." He huffed.

One of the other agents came over to the bathroom. They seemed to not be able to see Lance, thankfully.

"It's clear. There's no one else here." The lady going through Lance called. Lance shivered.

"Tell me, Keith, does anyone live here?"

"I do." Keith deadpanned. His eyes seemed to glint in amusement when Mrs Dale exhaled in annoyance.

"Anyone else? A brother, sister, parent, cousin?"

"No." Keith removed his eye contact, now interested in the ceiling rather than the two agents examining his living space and the one asking questions. Mrs. Dale wrote something down on her clipboard before continuing.

"Keith, I would like you to come with me and my friends here and we can sort something out. You can't live here alone by yourself, you see. Something bad could happen to you."

Lance wanted to know how THAT encounter turned out, however he was not shown the rest of it. His surroundings blurred and shifted colors. They snapped back, this time Lance in a new location.

He was inside a car, Mrs Dale and a police officer riding in the front, Lance and Young Keith riding in the back. Lance had two suitcases and two boxes inside of him.

"Keith, I think you are going to like it here. We have three children being fostered. How exciting!" Mrs Dale said from her place in the driver's seat. Keith huffed, a single tear rolling down his cheek. Lance noticed a metal bracelet on Keith's skinny little wrist.

The house they came to was gigantic. They arrived in a suburban neighborhood that had big yards and a playground in the subdivision. There was a couple on the front porch waiting nervously. They were a white couple, both dressed to show off their socioeconomic status. Keith had one look at them and muttered a curse word.

While Mrs. Dale exited the car first, walking up to meet the couple enthusiastically, the police officer turning to look at Keith.

"Listen. You cause any trouble for this family, and you will be sent away to a worse home with parents who technically are allowed to foster children, but not by much. You understand me, boy?"

The police officer was trying to look intimidating with his eye contact but Lance could tell he was intimidated by Keith as the young boy stared him in the eyes and said nothing. Mrs. Dale opened the door gently, as if any noise would cause Keith to run off.

"Mr and Mrs Winters, this is Keith," she cheerfully introduced. Keith hesitated before getting out of the car.

"Hi Keith," Mrs Winters said slowly. She looked Keith up and down; Keith did not respond. Mrs Winters' gaze faltered and looked at Mrs Dale. "Does he speak English, or…?"

Keith smirked as Mrs Dale looked astonished at Mrs Winters comment. She recovered quickly, plastering on her smile.

"Yes, he just seems to be a bit shy."

"Dude!" Lance exclaimed, knowing that they couldn't hear him, "Keith is RIGHT THERE?!"

Mr Winters stepped forward to be beside Keith, clapped a hand on Keith's shoulder, and chuckled a big belly chuckle. No one besides Lance seemed to notice the way Keith flinched and recoiled, the touch unexpected.

"Don't worry Keith. You are a part of our family now. We'll have tons of time to warm up to each other. How about you and I grab your things," he looked at his wife, "while Mrs. Winters gets the other children. I can show you your room!"

Lance saw that the prolonged contact was affecting Keith in a way that surprised him; Keith was leaning into the contact. Mr Winters let him go after a long pause and Keith looked confused with himself. They unloaded his things and entered the house.

The other children were at school so Mrs. Winters left to pick them up. Mr Winters showed Keith he would be sharing with the other boy in the house. The room was decently big, enough for two children to have their own space.

Lance watched Keith, dark and brooding from a young age, who had lost his father, lived alone for who knows how long, adjust to the family. Dinner was the hardest. Keith was not used to being fed and often got sick from overeating. He overheard the Winters talking about him sometimes. They were worried mostly, wondering if Keith was okay. They discussed with Keith the possibility of attending school with the other kids. Keith mostly kept to himself and the kids seemed scared of him.

Keith's first lash out in the house ended up also being his last. The kid he shared a room with, Kirkland, made a comment to Keith about how much of a freak he was because he hadn't been to school yet. Apparently the other foster children were able to enter after a week, while Keith had stayed with them for a month. Mr Winters was just coming up to fetch the two boys for supper and Lance watched this old man pry Young Keith off of Kirkland and hold him down while the eldest daughter, Elisa, came and helped Kirkland remove himself. Keith was out of that house within the next few days. Kirkland had a broken nose and split lip after Keith was removed from him.

Lance watched Keith be bumped around a few houses. Keith was ignored and left to his own devices in certain households. The fourth household was where the mindscape slowed down so Lance could be a part of it. Keith entered a household with two other children, a brother and sister. This family seemed nice at the beginning, Keith had learned that if he wanted out, all he had to do was get aggressive and most families would kick him out. Defiance was his best weapon. This house changed that.

Keith was about 11, Lance guessed. This family were the Rogersons, the mother Heidi, father Ronald, and the kids, both biological, Emily and Keaton. Emily was about 15 and Keaton was 12. The family was very white too. Wearing sweater vests and slacks, except for Heidi who was dressed in scrubs. They were decently well off. Each child had their own room. The house was three stories. Heidi explained that they were in the middle of changing their basement for guests, so their guest room upstairs could be converted for Keith. The cop from his first move had told Keith this was the last straw before sending him to an orphanage or juvie, depending on what happens. The Rogerson family was pleasant at the beginning. Keaton and Emily were shy, and Keith was forced to go to school by the second day. Keaton showed Keith around the school and took him to class.

Keith (and Lance) learned that Heidi had taken a few days off work to help get Keith settled. Keith was given the support he needed the first week, mostly from Heidi. She looked up schools in the area when Keith expressed an interest in going to a school to become a pilot or fighter, or to work in law enforcement. She found a few schools and they sent in an application a few months later to be registered in the new school year. She always made time to listen to Keith's problems and somehow was able to get him to talk. She gave attention to the other children too. Keith felt like he didn't want to disappoint her.

She wasn't the one Keith had to worry about.

Heidi had to go to a conference to represent the hospital she worked at and learn some nursing things Keith didn't really understand. Unfortunately, this happened to also be the first week Keith got in a fight. It wasn't even his fault. He was minding his own business, eating his lunch with Keaton and his friends (because Keaton actually wanted Keith to hang out with him), when one of the other students came up to the group. This boy, twice the size of Keaton and Keith, started calling one of the other guy's in the group horrible names. Homophobic names, derogatory, and downright insulting. Keith stood up and told him to back off. He wasn't exactly vocal in the friend group, so they all went silent. Watching the scene play out. Keith informed the kid exactly what he would do. The bigger boy took Keaton's friend by the arm and yanked him from the table.

The first teacher to intervene pried Keith off of the kid, the second went to stop the bleeding on the bigger kid. Broken nose, tooth knocked out.

Ron was not pleased. They sent Keith home and he stood and listened to Ron yell. It was the same speech other foster parents had given him. You'll be sent away, you can't hit people, you have to work on your anger management. It was when Ron grabbed Keith's arm that he started paying attention; it caught him off guard.

Lance watched, helplessly, as Ron dragged Keith up into the bathroom upstairs. Pushed him against the wall. Took off Keith's shirt. Keith was too frozen, too shocked, to do anything. Lance knew the feeling. Ron punched him, repeatedly. All placed where Keith would cover up with clothes. Ron left him in the bathroom, crumpled up, shirtless. As he left, he told Keith that next time it would be worse.

The next day, a call was made to the house before the kids went to school. Keith was suspended. Keaton and Emily both gave Keith a knowing look. One that Keaton had given Keith after Keith's shower when he saw the bruise on his shoulder as they passed by in the hall.

Keith didn't expect them to do anything or protect them. They were kids too, just like Keith. They probably had endured this for longer, likely for years. They were afraid of their father. Keith, and Lance, did wonder if Heidi knew. Was Heidi a victim too?

Ron stripped Keith down to his underwear this time. Keith struggled against him but Ron threatened Keith with punishing Keaton and Emily if he didn't accept his punishment. That made Keith obey, and Ron was satisfied he found a way to manipulate Keith into submission.

Ron had decided, after Keith went back to school, to beat him almost daily. And to surprise him. He would come in the night sometimes, after Heidi was asleep, gag Keith so he couldn't scream, and beat him. A few times, during Heidi's night shifts, Ron grabbed Keaton or Emily and beat them for something Keith did. That's when Keith started behaving in school. And when Keith started staying up late.

Keith had all of his belongings with him and he swore that one day, he would use that weird knife on Ron. If he ever got worse, if that was possible.

Keith's last night in the household was wild. It was approximately 6 months after the first time Keith got suspended. Keith had just stayed up late to listen for Ron coming, or to be aware if he was going into Keaton or Emily's room. Heidi had left for work a few hours prior, around 1AM Friday night. Everyone else had gone to bed. The way the house was set up, Keith was able to hear Keaton if he was making any noise, as his room was across from Keith's. Emily's room was to the right of Keith's, a bathroom between them. The walls were thin though; Emily had brought one of her "friends" over before and were making it VERY clear that they weren't just friends. Keith could hear them from his room. He could also hear Ron's footsteps coming up the stairs. Emily had gotten detention for inappropriate public displays of affection at school.

Keith heard him enter the room and her protests. Her protests turned into confused questions, then more alarming protests. Her voice was muffled.

Something about it didn't feel right for Keith. He tiptoed over to the door of Emily's room and peeked a head inside of her room. The door was open.

Keith, blinded by rage, didn't realize he had smacked Ron over the head until a shard of glass embedded itself in his arm. Didn't realize that Ron was bleeding until the door opened wider, shedding light in. Didn't realize Emily's pajama top was on the floor until Ron threw it at Keith. Emily screamed - who wouldn't? - which alerted Keaton.

Keith tried backing out of the room, hand grabbing the garment on his face. Lance watched as Ron beat the shit out of Keith, not giving a fuck about his bleeding head.

"YOU BASTARD!" Punch "YOU WORTHLESS PIECE OF SHIT!" Kick "YOU'RE GONNA DIE!"

Keith's memory went fuzzy for Lance, seeing the scene play out distorted. Ron threw Keith out of the room and into the wall. Keaton was in the hall, videoing on his phone (a blurry rectangle in his hand). Next the surrounding went black.

Keith was in the hospital for a few days. Keaton and Emily had called the cops after Keith passed out. Heidi was livid; she was the one who had to look after Keith in the hospital, as she was working in the emergency room. Ron was arrested. The kids had to all give statements, Keith's being done when they made sure he was healthy enough to.

The next week, the admissions advisor for the Galaxy Garrison came to the hospital to inform Keith he was accepted, as long as he was deemed healthy enough. Keith was not permanently injured, they mostly kept him in hospital due to the concussion he received from Ron smacking his head against the wall. Keith recovered well from the physical, but not from the mental.

Keith, that night, was alone in his hospital room. This was the second night he was not on drugs, just kept for observation. Keith laid in bed, in the dark, and wept softly to himself while he tried to sleep.

"So… now you know" a familiar voice came behind Ghost Lance. Lance turned around and, there in the doorway, was Keith as Lance knew him now. His face was rigid and unmoving. Keith was looking at his younger self, staring for a minute. Lance didn't know what to say.

"Do you…." Lance said after a long pause "remember this at all?"

Keith sighed, heavily. His eyes closed and he crossed his arms.

"I remember the house. I remember the situation and that it happened. I didn't remember each individual-" his voice hiked up and it was a minute before he spoke again. "I guess I repressed the memories because they were too painful."

Lance wanted to reach out and give Keith a hug but he reminded himself that they were not actually together. Were they able to touch each other in this form? Since he and Keith were both in the same form, maybe they could? Lance looked for a sign from Keith that he wanted to be comforted physically. The other man was not focused on Lance. Once his eyes opened, his gaze was cast at his younger self, frozen in time and memory as the two older boys were talking. Keith's face was hard, as if repressing something. His shoulders were hunched.

Suddenly the scene changed. The space around them blurred; it startled Keith. Lance found out that he could touch Keith in this form, because Keith lunged towards Lance out of fear of what was happening. They held onto each other as if their lives depended on it. The area settled in a building Lance was unfamiliar with. He wasn't sure where they were; they were in a hallway of sorts, with a few rooms along the way. The walls were a steely grey and undecorated. Out of one of the rooms came a police officer and then Lance realized that they were in a police headquarters. Still holding onto Keith, he asked if Keith knew where or what this was. Keith just nodded and pushed away from Lance. The Blue Paladin understood; he watched as a police officer escorted Young Keith out of a room, unfortunately at the same time that one was bringing Ronald to these rooms. He started shouting at Keith and, if he wasn't in handcuffs, would probably have hurt Young Keith.

Lance saw the effect this had on his Keith immediately. Keith flinched when Ronald started yelling at his former self, slowly going into a defensive position on the floor. It broke Lance's heart. The scene paused with Ronald trying to yell down the hallway at Young Keith, half of his body inside the room and half out. Young Keith being shielded from Ron by the police officer with him. Lance stared long and hard at the disgusting human being in front of them.

"If you don't mind me asking, is he the reason why you have such a negative reaction to touch?" Lance asked, turning his attention back to Keith. Keith was hugging his knees, looking up at Ronald with an anger Lance could understand. It was one only felt towards someone who has violated you. Emotionally or physically.

"I was… uncomfortable with touch before this. But I think this is why I can react so extremely."

"That's understandable." Lance continued to look at Keith. They were silent for a while, trapped in this frozen scene for what felt like hours. Lance had eventually sidled next to Keith, resting his head on his shoulders. The scene shifted again.

He saw Keith enter the Galaxy Garrison after Ronald's trial. He watched as Keith's workers from the government met him at the Garrison, telling him how proud of him they were and that they couldn't wait to see him succeed. Lance noticed how Mrs. Dale kept looking over Keith, as if examining him for wounds or bruises. They probably knew about the trial and everything that happened. He watched as Shiro, with his black hair and both arms, embraced Keith. Shiro had read Keith's file. He was the designated person for Keith to go to when he was upset, or needed to talk. Unless Keith bonded with any of the other staff.

The first night this happened, Keith was in his bedroom in the Garrison. He had a rough day and his roommate was not in the room. Keith was trying to get to sleep in his bunk. The roommate crept into the room, not wanting to disturb Keith. Unfortunately, it reminded Keith of when Ronald used to creep in, and he started hyperventilating.

Lance could only see the physical reactions of Young Keith, but his Keith was also starting to hyperventilate. Lance grabbed Keith's hand and squeezed, hoping that it would ground him. Despite being in non-physical form.

Young Keith's roommate - Lance could NOT remember this dude's name - tried talking to Keith but he was freaked out by this reaction. Keith stumbled out of bed and ran to the one place he was told was safe; Shiro's apartment. He leaned against the wall for support as Young Keith made his way down the hall. The adrenaline inside of him was obviously kicking in, the Fight/Flight/Freeze response favoring one particular option.

Shiro let Keith in, grounded him, and made him some tea. Shiro's roommate, who Lance knew was Adam, came out of their shared bedroom in his boxers and groggily asked what was going on. Adam, upon recognizing Keith and realizing the situation, went to grab something. Shiro sat on the couch with Keith and reminded him over and over that he was safe, he was at the Garrison, that he was currently in Shiro's apartment. Adam reemerged with a blanket, draped it around Keith's shoulders.

"Shiro's like a big brother to me." older Keith said. He was still curled up with his legs to his chest. "He can help me most of the time, but lately I feel that Shiro doesn't know how."

Keith explained that Shiro only really knew about the nightmares and thought that the insomnia thing was rare. That Keith was having episodes, rather than it being a consistent problem.

After this scene that played out, the area around them went dark. Keith reached out and grabbed Lance's hand, both unable to really see the other.

"Lance?" Keith's voice was small and scared.

"I think it means the session is over. We should be waking up soon." Lance said. This was how he usually exited the mind melts. His mind would go dark, the memories of everyone else fading to black. He would open his eyes and then see his fellow Paladins.

But that didn't happen this time.

The floor opened up. Lance felt Keith grab onto him as the pair started freefalling, Keith yelling out curse words and clinging onto Lance for dear life. Lance rubbed Keith's back in an attempt to sooth him. They fell and free falled and clung to each other. When they hit water, they were forced to let go of each other. Immediately the water started spiraling, as if it was being sucked into a whirlpool. Lance slammed against another body, not by his own volition. It was Keith. They held onto each other as they descended down into the whirlpool and onto a slide. Then they were deposited into a dimly lit area, where Lance could barely make out Keith's body. There wasn't any water here and, despite being literally under water, his clothes were dry. Keith clambered over to be next to Lance. His clothes seemed to be dry as well.

"This isn't how it usually goes." Lance remarked. "That's how I entered your mind. Didn't enjoy it the first time, and it didn't really get better."

"What's over there?" Keith asked. Lance realized that while he had been talking and focusing on Keith, a door had appeared about 20 feet away. They both got up and approached the door. It was standing alone, seeming to be just a door. Keith could go on one side and Lance on the other. There was something written in another language on the "front" door. Keith went to open it but it seemed to be locked. Lance decided to try; when he did, it was able to open. A light shined bright from the inside.

"Maybe this is our way out?" Lance guessed.

Keith grabbed his hand and they went through the door together.

The music was loud and blaring, just as Lance remembered. Looking down at his body, he was in those clothes again. He felt as if he had swallowed a rock and the rock sat at the bottom of his stomach, wanting to go farther but blocking the way for anything else to leave. He was at the snack table, chatting up some of the aliens.

They were not in the Castle. They were still in the mind melt. Except instead of Keith's memories, they were now in Lance's. And it was the night of the party on Onyx. And Keith was nowhere to be seen.