Chapter 2
Unable to locate Pidge, Coran hastened to escort the rest of his young charges to the kitchen, where he quickly served out portions of green goo. The boys all eyed their plates with expressions of confusion, at least until Hunk picked up his spoon and tried a bit.
"Well," he said after swallowing. "It's not great, but it's okay." That was enough for Lance to try his, followed by Keith, and eventually by Shiro. Allura, of course, had dived right in with her own serving, but none of the paladins were quite willing to trust an alien's tastes, apparently.
Just as the princess was finishing and Coran was hastily debating what to do next, several squeaks sounded from the countertop.
"Mice!" Allura squealed with delight. Lance, who'd been standing next to her, jumped almost a full foot in the air at the unexpected noise, spilling his plate in the process. Coran simply sighed, grabbing a vacuum brush to get the mess up while the children all crowded around the newcomers.
"These are Altean mice," Allura informed the boys. "They are highly intelligent, and keep other pests from getting into the castle."
"Heh, and these four are psychically bound to the princess as well!" Coran added, standing once more. "At least, they're supposed to be..."
The young paladins all oohed, before Hunk asked if the mice knew any tricks. In answer, Allura looked at the little quartet with an intense expression, getting all of them to study her in return. Then the tiniest mouse jumped up, used its largest companion's head as a springboard, and flipped twice before landing on the princess' shoulder.
"Cool!" All three boys cheered, and even Shiro looked impressed.
The rest of the mice found new perches on the other children, happily squeaking as they inspected the smaller paladins. Coran leaned back against the counter, watching with a content expression, until someone spoke just behind his ear.
"What're they doin'?" He jumped, spinning about in shock. Behind the cover of the ventilation shaft, wide amber eyes were watching him, framed by thick bundles of brown hair.
"Oh my stars- Miss Holt!" Coran admonished, reaching up to remove the grate and attracting everyone's attention as he did so. "Where in Altea's name have you been?!"
The tiny child didn't resist as he plucked from the vent. She remained where he set her on the floor, as well, simply sticking her thumb in her mouth and watching everyone as they watched her.
Shiro snapped his fingers and grinned. "Now I remember! Katie! That's your name, right? Katie Holt?"
She nodded, removing her thumb for a brief moment. "My mommy calls me Pidge."
"Ah," Coran's moustache twitched. "Evidently you'd have answered to that after all. Well! Now all the paladins are once again reunited. Pidge, are you hungry?"
One fed four year old later, and Coran had the entire lot settle themselves in the recreation hall, or 'living room' as the humans usually referred to it. Shiro took a seat at one end of the couch, with Keith tucked in beside him and Pidge on his lap. Allura took the other end, while Lance and Hunk settled themselves in the space in-between.
"Now that we're all assembled," Coran smiled, taking the opposite chair. "I get to bust out the old storytelling skill set! Let me see, where to start... Ah-ha. Once upon a time, there was a brave king by the name of Alfor, who ruled the beautiful planet Altea. His people were known for their peaceful ways and incredible technology, and they spread a great deal of goodwill through the universe."
"You're Alt-een, right?" Lance whispered to Allura. She nodded, before shushing him with a smile.
"Unfortunately, there was another great power in the universe, that of the Galra Empire, led by a terrible being called Zarkon. He was jealous of Altea, and wanted to claim their greatest technological feat for himself: the Voltron Lions."
As one, the children all sucked in a breath.
"These lions were more than robots, though - they had personalities, spirits of their own, and when working together with their pilots, the paladins, they were the most fearsome beasts ever to roam the stars. That wasn't their greatest power, though: the five lions could transform and combine together, uniting to form Voltron, the universe's mightiest warrior, and the only thing capable of stopping the Galra Empire.
"Because of this, Zarkon attacked Altea," Coran had to steel himself to ignore Allura's startled gasp. "King Alfor was losing, and knew it. So, he had the lions scattered and hidden, as well as his daughter and closest friend. Many years later, an encounter between the Galra and a small planet by the name of Earth led to five new paladins finding the lions, and bringing them together once more."
"You mean us?" Shiro asked skeptically.
"Indeed. The mighty leader Shiro, who was accepted by the Black Lion and became leader of the Voltron team. His steadfast right hand Keith, who tamed the temperamental Red Lion, and little Pidge, who joined the Green Lion and began learning all she could of Altean technology. Also, Lance, who bonded to the Blue Lion and became Voltron's most vocal paladin, as well as Hunk, who found the Yellow Lion and took his place as the team's firmest support." Coran finished up with a pleased expression.
"...I don't remember doing that." Keith stated.
"Ah, that's because in our most recent battle, pirates caught you all with a blast of G'nee'an energy, which can be unpredictable at the best of times. Because of this, you all reverted to a younger age and lost your memories of the previous ten years."
"Well, then, how do we get back to how we were?" Allura was the one to ask, a pensive expression on her face.
Coran opened his mouth to answer her, but stalled. "Ah. Hm. I'm not sure, actually. Without access to the resources I used to, there might not be a way to reverse the effects."
"...So, can we go play now?" Lance asked.
"Mm, yes, I suppose so-" he scrambled to finish as both Hunk and Lance lept to their feet, ready to run off. "-but you have to stay together! Don't break anything! And come back here when you're done!"
"You don't have much experience with kids, do you?" Shiro asked with a smirk, pushing Keith off the couch so he could run after the other boys.
"Of course I do," Coran replied, indignant. "Just with well-behaved ones, such as Princess Al- Allura?"
He'd just noticed the girl sitting very still on the couch, staring down at her folded hands.
"Coran... What happened to my father after he hid us and the lions?"
The man swallowed. "That- that was- I'm afraid he didn't live much past that, Allura. He's gone." He winced as tears welled up in the girl's eyes.
Pidge, who'd been watching from Shiro's lap, took that as her permission to crawl down the length of the couch and wrap her arms around the princess. "Don' cry, 'lura. It'll be okay." Choking on a sob, Allura hugged the child back, burying her face in the mass of fluffy brown hair. Shiro shifted awkwardly, stuck in the same conundrum as Coran of having absolutely no idea what to do.
The three boys chose that moment to race back into the room, coming to a screeching halt as they registered the state Allura was in. Hunk went up and hugged her legs, while Lance clambered up onto the couch's arm to put his arms around both girls. Keith dithered for a moment before following their example, hopping back onto the couch as well in order to pat Allura's shoulder. He then shot a glare at Shiro, who went ahead and shifted down the length of the furniture so as to carefully place an arm around the princess too.
Distantly, Coran recognized that even de-aged as they were, the paladins of Voltron were still working as a team.
