Kuron
Your eyes traced the desert land with awe, looking out the window of the Black lion's eyes. The sky high above the hole you were in was bright, and the sun was shining down on the cheering rock people below you. You and the paladins of Voltron just landed on the Planet/thing Balmera to do some...paladin stuff, you weren't too sure. The chapter kinda just put you here. It probably had something to do with Altean politics. We left off trying to figure out what to do with them. Maybe this was one of the planets on that list Coran had.
As you watched the people cheering, you noted with a smile that Hunk was running towards one special Balmeran. The rock girl opened her arms and embraced Hunk, practically swallowing him in her arms. Shay was easily six feet something tall. You couldn't tell from here, and the Voltron heights aren't on the internet so you'll go with that.
That's cheating! Some of you think. Others didn't care all that much.
You turn around and make your way to the door, deciding to catch up with Keith and the were already outside; What were you doing in here? The door opens and you're only a few steps into the hallway before something catches your attention in the corner of your eye. Pure white hair and a thickly muscled torso.
Shiro is sitting with his back to you, black-clothed back hunched over and arm pulled out in front of him. Boxes surrounded the room around him, probably filled with gadgets and clothes. A white blanket lay across his lap.
You walked closer and knocked on the metal door frame. Shiro looked back at you, black eyes wide but tired, eyebrows raised in surprise.
"Oh, hey Raider." He smiled.
Raider? Oh yeah! That's our name..haha..
You smile back. "Hey, just woke up?"
"Yeah," he looked down at himself. "Hold on, let me get dressed." He began to stand up and you took a few steps back and let the door automatically close. It took a few minutes before Shiro called you back in. You walked in and saw that he had set up a few boxes in a row in the middle of the room. His bedding was folded up in a corner.
Shiro sat on one of the boxes and patted the one beside him with the only hand he had left. He was fully clothed in his usual outfit. "You wanted to talk?"
"Yeah," you mumbled and sat beside him. You clasped your glowing hands together and put them on your lap. "Are you feeling alright?" Lifting your gaze up from your lap, you see him raise his white eyebrows at you. "I mean, you look tired. All the time." You add. "And I- I'm not completely sure what happened, but I know that it's been really messing with you."
"Thank you, but it's nothing for you to worry about," Shiro assured in a gentle voice. "I'll be fine."
"But you're not fine now, that's the problem. It's been weeks!" You frowned. "Keith told me," -No he didn't- "about Honerva, and Sendak, and about the Galra emperor's position. Now that Loti, Loto- whoever is dead, someone has to take over, right?"
Shiro sighed, closing his eyes and looking down at his feet, elbow on his knee. It's like he didn't even notice he only had one arm. Or maybe he's just used to it. "I didn't realize you knew so much."
"That's what happens when you're quiet and listen to everything," you laugh awkwardly, glancing around the room. It's a cargo hold, you realise.
"Raiden," he paused.
"Reader." You shake your head. "I mean, Raider."
"Raider," he corrects, giving you a apologetic look before setting his chin on top of the palm of his hand. "This body...isn't mine."
You feigned surprise. "Well whose is it?"
He laughed stiffly. "That's the thing, it was made by Haggar."
You try not to laugh as you exclaim, "Haggar's your mother?"
Be more serious! Some of you thought as you analyzed the situation. Shiro is feeling vulnerable right now and trying to open up to you, give it a break! But some of you couldn't help it. A good amount of the readers are awkward and use humor to cope with serious topics. Anxiety ruled over a good part of half of your lives, and for those who it didn't- they were lucky.
Maybe having asked in the first place was a bad idea. You already knew this stuff anyway.
To your surprise, though, Shiro laughs. "I sure hope not! Then I'd be related to the golden Prince."
"You mean Lotion?"
"His name's Lotor," Shiro deep charming laugh warmed your heart. He smiled as he continued to tell you his story. You already knew all about it, but you liked to hear him talk. Josh Keaton's got a voice, man! You remembered to nod pointedly and gasp at all the good parts, as if it was your first time hearing about it.
"And that's about it," he finished, squaring his shoulders and peering over at you. You nodded and raised your arms.
"Need a hug?" You asked.
Over the course of his explanation Shiro's smile had faded away minutely, but at the sound of your request his face brightened up just enough to make you feel good about yourself. You weren't very into hugs. Or you were. Who knew? You felt just a bit uncomfortable asking, but maybe that was anxiety. Or maybe it was from sharing the same mind with however many other people.
You're entire torso was enveloped in his large arm. For some reason you were smaller than him? It felt very weird but also very comfy. You imagined him to be very warm.
"You good?" You asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine." He pulled away. "Thanks-" and then he froze. Like, his body stilled completely. His eyes were wide and his lips parted, like he was shocked. You called his name and he didn't answer.
You were about to put a hand on his shoulder when he shivered harshly and slumped over, alarming you for a slight second. What was happening? Should you call someone? His head was down between his shoulders, lax, and seconds passed before he slowly lifted up, eyes fluttering open as if he'd just been asleep. His eyes looked..
Oh fuck/fudge nipples.
Kuron sat up, eyebrows furrowed up and mouth in a awkward frown, like he felt just as uncomfortable as you. "Uh..hi…"
"You're, uh," you point at him, feeling the breath leave you for a second. "You're him, aren't you? Kuron?"
"Is that what I'm called now?" He shuffled back, not meeting your eyes. He looked down at his armless shoulder, frowning. He looked like the same old Shiro, but way more...awkward? Tense?
"So it is you," you mumbled. "Um, you're not gonna, like, attack me are you?"
Shiro- no, Kuron laughed bitterly, hand on the edge of his box and head turned down to the floor, yet his body stayed facing you. "that wasn't- no, that was me. I'm not Shiro," he laughed again, brittle and broken. "I'm..not...him." he breathed. He sounded like he was trying to convince himself.
"Um," you've got to stop saying um, "Are you ok?"
"Honestly?" He looked at you with one eye after running his hand down his face. His elbow was on his knee, making him hunch. He moved his hands a lot. "No. My whole life is a lie. It's not even my life."
You were too busy thinking of what to say to actually say anything. You find it very annoying to have so many people in one head.
"I don't know who I am, anymore. I'm not even supposed to exist! Haggar created me and Keith tried to save me but-" he stopped. "No, Keith tried to save Shiro. But still...I..I only got sent to the back of his head. I can see through Shiro's eyes like a movie screen but sometimes all there is is static."
He sighed with resignation. "I'm not going to attack you, Raider. I don't want to be that person. When Haggar controlled me, it was like being in the body of someone else, like I was drowning- I," he stuttered. "I could barely hear anything. She had full control over me and I could only watch from a distance. I tried to fight, I tried! But, in the end…" and he stopped there. He couldn't continue. Looking at him now, eyes tired instead of deadly, stature slumped and defeated, you knew instantly that what happened wasn't his fault. Honerva did this. For three seasons, Kuron had tried his best to be the Shiro he wanted to be and he succeeded for the most part. This was just as traumatizing for him as it was for Shiro.
"I'm sorry…" he whispered, and you weren't sure if he was talking to you or about the paladins, but it was the last straw either way
"What happened wasn't your fault. It was Honerva's." You placed your hand on his shoulder.
"I hurt Keith and the others," he murmured. "Even managed to hurt myself. Or who I used to be. Who I tried to be?"
"You were the best Shiro an Shiro could be," You assured with a nod, furrowing your eyebrows and thinning your lips.
Kuron looked at you. His eyebrows furrowed and sharp black eyes glistening."You're not scared of me?"
"You're actually a big buff baby and I love you."
He laughs quietly as he looks back at the floor, a small pained smile crosses his face. He laughs just like Shiro: small, short, with a hint of underlying torment. "Thanks."
Ok..ok. This is happening. Kuron's alive, and he isn't trying to kill you. Good. This is good.
Until he goes haywire again.
Shut up.
Kuron, well, he was a nice character to have when he wasn't yelling at Lance or trying to kill Keith. But then again, you just learned that wasn't him. It was Haggar. You knew that already, but you weren't sure if it was all fake or not. If he was acting, and Haggar always had his mind. The whole fandom was suspicious of him even before we found out what was actually going on. Shiro died.
"Do you...do you know who I am?" You ask.
"Kind of. I have on and off memories of what's been happening these past few weeks."
"Gotcha," you shoot a finger gun at him and then awkwardly put you hands in your lap. "Um, you're gonna be ok. You and Shiro are going to be ok. These things usually figure themselves out. The paladins won't hurt either of you, especially if you're not, you know, gonna try to kill them or hijack a lion or something."
He's silent.
"And I won't let anything happen to you." That's when he looks up. "I can't do much, but...I'll do what I can."
He looks at you with wonder, and then his face softens into a nice smile, one much like first season Shiro's, and hugs you. "Thank you."
You hug him back, albeit awkwardly. "You're welcome."
You still can't feel anything.
"Is, uh, is Shiro gonna come back? Anytime soon?" You ask as he pulls back. "Maybe we should keep this little conversation between us until we can find out a way to help you."
A knock on the door startles you away from each other. "Shiro? Reed? You in there?"
It's Lance.
Kuron jumps, then looks at you, mildly alarmed. "Oh, Raider, sorry, I spaced out for a minute."
He's Shiro again. Huh.
"The Balmeran's are wondering where you are!" Lance said from behind the door.
"We should continue this conversation later," He stands up and lends a hand to you. You grab onto his only arm and stand up. "but thank you, really."
You blinked furiously, mind focusing on where you are and what's happening. You're in a conference room, or what looks like one, in a cave somewhere you guessed was deep in the underground maze of the Balmera. Stone surrounded you, some of them glowing a pale green, lighting the room and creating a peaceful atmosphere. In the middle of the room was a long conference table, with who you guessed were the leaders of the Balmeran tribes, and of course the paladins of Voltron.
Even with the lights on, it was still very dim in the cave, but it was relaxing, and the slight panic you felt whenever you blinked quickly sauntered away. You were standing against the wall with other Balmerans along with Krolia and Shay. The ceiling wasn't too high but good enough that the Balmeran's heads weren't touching it.
They're discussing Altean matters. Allura and Coran have the most information on the subject so they're the ones who have most of the responsibilities at these conferences. You're all still looking for a place to set the Alteans but luckily It looks like the conference is coming to a close soon.
"Yeah, sitting a group of a thousand plus Alteans on a living rock didn't seem like a good idea when it was first suggested either." Lance comments.
"Lance," Allura hushed him.
"What?" He shrugged with his arms crossed, jutting out his lower lip and furrowing his eyebrows. "I'm just saying."
"We would be honored to give the lost Alteans our home. If only it were possible." The possible leader of the Balmerans said with regret.
"I understand." Allura says, standing up from her seat. Everyone at the table rose as the two shook hands.
The meeting came to an end and you followed the team out of the cave and into the tunnels.
"They do know what Alteans are, right? It's like they've been living under a rock this whole time." Lance commented from in front of you, hands clasped behind his head as he walked.
You laugh. "Good job."
"I try my best," he grins and shoots you with his finger guns.
You blinked and find yourself in the door frame of a well lit, definitely not underground room. Hunk is moving around, gathering things- pots, pans. It's a kitchen. You're in a kitchen.
You take your first steps in as Hunk moves around the room.
"Oh, hey Reed. What's up?" He asks, focusing on gathering seasonings from the cupboards, or what you guessed were seasonings.
"You cooking for us?" You asked, examining the large oval-shaped table in the middle of the room with ingredients and cooking utensils strewed all over it.
"Yep, the Balmerans are going to feast tonight!" He huffs, shaking some orange stuff into a large bubbling pan on one of the stoves on the counter.
"Alone? Need any help?" You ask, despite some of you not knowing how to boil water. You felt awkward just standing there doing nothing, and you didn't have any idea why you ended up here with Hunk, but it was written into the fic for some reason, right?
"Yeah, can you get the green and black salt shaker in that cabinet over there?" He pointed to the left side of the room across the table from him.
Hesitantly, you followed his directions to which different meats and edible plants he needed. After awhile, silence fell between you two, with Hunk's humming and the pop of food boiling being the only sound in the room.
"So, who is she?" You ask, smiling to yourself as you got out the ingredients.
"Hm?"
"The girl from earlier? The one that's making you extremely happy right now?" You glanced back at him.
"Oh, you saw that?" He runs a hand through his thick brown hair, looking sheepish.
"Depends, do you wanna tell me about her?"
Hunk's switch between having the most lovestruck face on earth to being the coolest, nonchalant teenager was so quick you almost missed it. "Eh, it's nothing. I barely know her."
"It didn't look like that to me," you smirk.
Something in the pot boils louder and he returns his attention to the dish.
"No one cooks a feast, personally, by themselves, for someone they "barely know"." You say after he doesn't reply. "Come on..I won't make fun of you for it."
He looks back at you, bottom lip jutted out, inspecting you. After a few seconds pass he sighs. "So her name's Shay-"
You rush to find a chair and sit down with your hands in your lap, eyes and smile wide as he relayed to you his past with the Balmeran. You already know the story, but you had no problem hearing it again.
He has a faint blush on his cheeks as he talks about her, grinning at all the good parts, frowning at all the Galra parts, you know, back when they were bad. And then he lets you help him cook. You add stuff as he tells you: plants that look like meat that you'd never eat, things that were spices that you'd never guess were spices. Hunk was completely unfazed by it, but you were thinking about skipping this meal. Not like you could taste it anyway.
"So how does it smell?" Hunk and you loom over the pot, wafting the scent up both your nostrils.
You took a sniff but couldn't smell anything. You smile up at him and nod.
The next day your on bi boh bi's planet again. You think it's like a home base for these guys now. The paladins are even able to go outside without being mauled, but then again, the little noodle-like creatures are too small to really do anything. You blink yourself awake and find yourself sitting at a table outside with Lance.
You look around, taking in your surroundings. Bi boh bi's are walking around, completely ignoring you two. You're in a plaza, outside a building that kind of reminded you of a fast food restaurant. There are tables all around the outside of the restaurant, Bi boh bi's talking and doing their own thing. The sky is clear, and you don't see any of the other paladins.
"Hey. Reed." Lance gets your attention, furrowing his eyebrows and pouting while pointing something that resembles a fry at you.
"Huh?" You look at him. He's wearing his normal clothing.
"You listening?"
"Yeah," you perk up. You're starting to get used to this time-travelling thing. "Just, uh, taking in all of..this." You move your hand in whatever direction, gesturing to the world as a whole.
"Right? It's like we're in a video game."
"Someone had to be very creative to come up with this," you laugh.
"Yeah, it's like a ramen shop came to life."
"Let's not make fun of people." You say, smiling.
"I'm not!" He said, stretching his arms out in front of him. "I'm just saying, I'm not averse to eating one of them. You know how long it's been since I've had real noodles?"
"What are fake noodles?"
"Dude, you don't wanna know."
A part of you does, but instead of pursuing it further you just nod. "Anyway, uh," you pointedly look around. "What are we doing here?"
"Do you think Allura likes me?"
You blink. "What?"
"It's just that, after all that's happened, I thought we'd been getting close, ya know?" Lance twisted his wrist, eating the "fry" and then grabbing another one. "But then Lotor came along with his old wizard hair and took advantage of her-" he keeps going and a part of you starts to zone out.
"Mhm." You hum. Listen to him! I wanna know what he's saying!- nah this is boring, get on with the story. -Pay attention! It'll get better, maybe...
"And I've been trying to get her attention for a while and-"
"You are amazing and worth it and everyone loves you."
He laughs somewhat bitterly. "Yeah, not everyone…"
"I think- and I'm a newbie so I don't know much- but from the time I've spent with you guys, I can tell that you all care very much for each other. And- hold on, how old is Allura?"
He pauses. "Uh…" His eyes glance toward the bright blue sky, squinting at the waves of light. It looked like a Earth sky. You wondered if he still misses it there. "Maybe a million years old- but we're in space and I'm almost legal!"
You begin to say something, then stop, then with fake surprise- "A million?" You exclaim incredulously.
"Oh, yeah, they're like-" he stops. "It's a long story, I'll tell you later. But she's probably not that older than me if you take into account what exactly happened."
"O...kay..?" You nod, feigning confusion. "Well as I was about to say, Allura seems like she cares for all of you, including you, a lot."
"I don't mean that like, I mean-"
"I know what you mean, babe, but she seems more like a mother figure than a love interest."
"A what?" His voice gets high and he gives a disapproving look. "How'd you get that?"
"She treats you all like children. Just the other day she had to shush you at the Balmeran meeting-"
He slumps in his chair, crossing his arms and pouting. "I'm not a kid."
You look at him in silence for a few seconds, until he realizes what he's doing and sits up in his chair, setting his chin in the palm of his hand as he grabbed another fry.
"Anyway," you continue. "If you like Allura, you like Allura. And I'm not saying she doesn't like you back cause I don't know-" well now that season 7 is out I- "but I think she just likes you as a friend."
He took a sip of his drink, made a face, then set the cup back down.
"What do you like about her?" You ask, trying to change the tense atmosphere a bit.
Shallura's my shit, some of you think.
Not after season 7 it isn't.
I always liked Allurance-
Klance for the win, though?
Allurance is the minority, omg.
Klance was foreshadowed like heck though!
I thought Allurance was cute but I didn't think it'd actually happen.
Anyone else here ships Plance?
I don't ship any of these ships, some of you laugh in your head.
"Are you kidding me? She's the whole package!" Lance starts off, invigorated. Gosh, how many gushing boys are you gonna listen to in this chapter? "She's smart, she's pretty, she's got a heart of Balmeran Crystals-"
And he goes on and on.
"And what about you? You got anyone waiting for you back home? Seen any aliens you like?" He smirks, raising a cocky eyebrow.
You smirk back. "Well there is this one pretty boy sitting in front of me."
He throws his head back in laughter. You shoot him finger guns, taking his example from earlier, and he raises his hand for a high five. You receive it.
"Haha! That- that was good." He points at you, still laughing a bit. "We should probably get going. The others must be starving by now. " Lance grabs some bags on the table you didn't even notice were there, to-go boxes, you notice, and gets up. You stand with him.
As you reach the port where the rest of the paladins are staying, you look around. It's something of a hotel, lights pour out of many windows, the front doors are clear and large, but they're Bii Boh's and you wonder why they need that much space for a door. Maybe it was made for the paladins.
Hunk and Allura turn to you guys as you enter the door. Coran and Shiro are on the couch behind them.
"Finally, you got the food! Been long enough, I'm starving." Hunk comes up and takes the bags from Lance.
"Where's Pidge?" Lance glanced around.
"Room."
"Still?" Lance makes a mildly annoyed sound. "Hey Reed, will you take this to Pidge?" He hands out the last to-go box to you.
"Uh, sure.." You take it and head towards the hallway, then stop. "Uh," you turn back to him. "Where is it?"
And then you're there. Oh, thank God I can't get lost and embarrass myself.
You knock on the door and wait for a come in. A who is it? and a Read- Reed! later, your opening the door to a cluster of mess typical of the youngest paladin.
Pidge is sitting in the middle of all the mess, you have no idea what it is, though. A bunch of tech that doesn't exist in real life, aside from some mini generators and something like a kindle plugged up to something like a charger and wires strewn around the room.
"Yo!"
"I have food!" You say and step over everything to hand it to the green paladin. "Whatcha workin' on?"
"It's a ¿^^°¥^]·$*."
You raise your eyebrows, rereading the line above again. "A what?"
"A ¿^^°¥^]·$*." Pidge says again, then smiles up at you. "It's ok if you don't get it. Not everyone is well versed in thermodynamics."
Is that what that was? The author's gotta be bullshitting/crapping again.
"I'm making a new program for the green lion." They/she say(s), opening the to-go box and eating whatever slop was inside with a fork you didn't know came with the box.
"What does it do?"
Pidge looks up at you with mischievous honey brown eyes. "You'll see."
"Aww," you pout, sitting down. "And I was so interested in learning about thermodynamics..!"
"Well you're welcome to watch me, if you want. Maybe I could teach you a few things." And then a pause. "Um..Raider? How was Earth?"
You raise your eyebrows. "Um.. I don't-.."
"Oh yeah, right," Pidge puts on a sad smile and laughs sorely. "You have amnesia.."
"Yeah, sorry…"
"No, no, it's my fault for asking." They/she get(s) back to work on the device, but stops again, eyes dazed and shoulders slumped. "It's just…"
"You've been gone for so long?"
"Yeah.."
You put your hand on their/her shoulder. It takes a moment for Pidge to look at you.
"Hey, it's gonna be ok. I'm not exactly sure what's happening on Earth right now, but I don't think you should worry. It doesn't help anything, and I know you guys are working hard out here to keep it safe there." One more paladin to add to the list. Gotta catch them all.
"My dad-" Pidge starts, takes a deep breath. "I don't know if my dad has reached Earth yet."
"What's going on with your dad?"
Pidge takes the time to explain the alien kidnapping and the years in prison he suffered with Matt and Shiro and everything. All the stuff you already know.
"I've gone longer without him, it's only been a month or so, but still-"
"You miss him, that's normal." You console. Pidge has their/her head on your shoulder now and you awkwardly wrap your arm around them/her.
"Sometimes all of this seems so unreal."
"You're telling me."
"Do you remember anything before you met us?"
You think for a moment. What should be alright to tell? How your family completely ignores the fact that your LGBT? That you felt like all your friends just put up with you so they don't hurt your feelings? That no one really likes you? That the economy is so messed up that by the time you graduate high school or college or start a job or just get out in life that what's already happened is irreversible and It's on you and your generation to try to fix it?
Or that you can't remember any of this happening to you, because it never did, but you watched as it has happened to your friends or your family and all you can do is watch as the world and its chaos unfurls around you?
And then how you started watching Voltron, and it made you forget all that for a little while?
"A mystical being," you start, "with lions for hands and feet...comes to the galaxy's rescue and saves the day."
Someone knocks on the door. You freeze.
It opens automatically to reveal Shiro. "Vakala just called. They found a habitable planet."
Pidge gasped, head raising from your shoulders. "So that means-"
"Yeah," Shiro smiled warmly. "We're getting them home."
"...Va-who-ha?" You ask.