Disclaimer: I don't own Voltron, that's Dreamworks and Netflix. So glad people are liking the story so much! Now here it comes! The start of the big emotional stuff!
~Hunk Makes A Choice~
From there, Lance taught the larger boy a couple basic kicks and arm strokes. "The more you practice, the better you'll be. So don't give up, okay?"
After a while, Hunk started getting chilled. So the pair climbed out to warm up by the side of the pool. As Hunk wrapped himself in his "Lion King" towel, his worried gaze drifted over to other kids sitting along the edge.
Once again, his new friend seemed to sense Hunk's unease and placed a supportive arm around him. "I can introduce you if yah want," Lance offered with a relaxed shrug. "Most of them are alright. Nick, the 'King of Jerks' is just a bad influence on them."
"Oh, okay..." Hunk hesitantly agreed. Honestly, he'd rather sit off alone with Lance than try and befriend those people. In the past, Hunk had put his trust in the wrong kids and paid the price. His supposed 'friends' took advantage of Hunk's kind and compassionate nature, made fun of him behind his back, and left him with nothing but heartache. Which left him skittish when trying to make new ones now.
Though, oddly enough, he felt none of his usual apprehension when speaking to Lance. Weird... They had only met an hour ago. But somehow, the small, lithe boy had already slipped his way through all of Hunk's defenses straight into the core of his squishy heart.
"It'll be cool. You'll see," his friend said reassuringly. Lance used his supportive arm around Hunk to help guide him towards the group. Effortlessly, the wild-haired boy greeted the other children and eagerly introduced Hunk. They seemed nice enough, now that Nick wasn't around to encourage cruel behavior.
After a while, Hunk was beginning to get a little overwhelmed by all the attention. Normally, he preferred to slink away and hide, rather than stand right in the middle of the spotlight. Less chance of being torn apart and scrutinized that way.
Picking up on Hunk's restlessness, Lance quickly made a reasonable excuse. With incredible ease, the talkative boy extracted them both from the intimidating group. Lance could be quite persuasive when he wanted to be. Hunk would have to remember that in the future.
The pair wondered off towards the pool's edge and sat down side by side. Freely, their feet dangled in the cool water and began talking about their favorite things. Hunk released a sigh of relief, grateful that Lance hadn't question his behavior any further. He was still wary about explaining his reasons to the shorter boy. Hunk didn't want the perceptions of others affect how Lance saw him.
So when Lance casually asked what his favorite TV show was, Hunk blurted out the first one that came to mind, "Uh... Space Patrol?" The talkative boy's eyes lit up in excitement. Apparently, this had been the absolute best thing to say. Lance's mouth was already off and running, with exaggerated gestures flinging from his hands. His natural energy was utterly contagious as they started talking about space exploration and science.
Turns out, that Hunk's new school was totally the same one as Lance's! Even better, they were the same age as well! How awesome was that? For the first time ever, the prospects Hunk's academic social life appeared bright.
Practically gushing with happiness, Lance then told Hunk all about his dream to became a fighter pilot in Galaxy Garrison and lead science expeditions to the stars.
"Wow, that's super cool..." he answered in awe, Lance must be really brave to want to do something like that. The thought of traveling into the dark, mysterious unknown filled Hunk with terror. Holding down his lunch during a car ride was difficult enough. He shuddered to think what space travel would be like on his delicate stomach. Probably hurl right on top of the control panels, and get kicked out the cockpit.
But luckily, Hunk found Garrison tech to be utterly fascinating. So he decide to focus on that instead. Inadvertently, the larger boy switched into 'nerd mode,' going on about complex algorithms and design components that were light years ahead of most kids their age. If the glazed look in Lance's eyes was any indication, Hunk was starting to lose him with all the techno-babble.
"Uh oh," hethought, feverishly trying to think of a way out. "Too much, too soon. Abort tech talk, ABORT!"
"So yeah, anyway!"Hunk's voice cracked, changing the subject. "You must work really hard at school, if you want to get into a program like that!"
An embarrassed blush burned across Lance's face. "Uh, yeah, sure. T-Totally, I'm in a lot of advanced classes..."
Ouch, now a whole new set of warning bells were going off in Hunk's head. Just where did all the other boy's self-confidence suddenly go?
Hunk's mouth frowned in concern. "Lance? You okay, buddy?"
"O-Of course!" He tried brushing off with his usual ease, but the slight tremor in his voice held the truth.
"I just-" Lance abruptly cut off and glanced away. As if unable to continue meeting Hunk's eyes.
With a heavy sigh, the boy then began to explain, "I mean- I study a lot. But, sometimes my grades don't always reflect the amount of work I put in. No matter how hard I try, I usually come up short. Getting a B+ or A- instead of that stupidly elusive A."
After admitting this, the brunet's entire demeanor took a dramatic shift. Slowly, his back started to droop, as if the rolling tide has swept his all boundless energy away. He looked so tiny and fragile in that moment, that it nearly broke Hunk's gigantic heart.
Yeah, nope! He instantly decided, Lance wasn't supposed to look like that. Not, ever! And being the warm, cuddly person he was, Hunk could not sit idly by and allow this to continue. Throwing caution to the wind, the larger boy spread his arms wide and engulfed Lance in the tightest hold he could muster.
"Eep!" the smaller boy squeaked in surprise. His body froze within Hunk's embrace; stiff and cold, like a block of pure ice.
"Don't talk like that!" he scolded Lance. "Being in an advanced course is super tough, man. I'm in a ton of them, too. You're smart dude, I can tell. A-And if you need help studying, I can totally help you!"
"I- you... Really? Y-You mean that?" he stammered into Hunk's chest. A tremor traveled through his tiny form, as Hunk held him closer. "Of course, you taught me how to swim after all. Only right that I pay you back."
Lance took in a sharp, watery breath. "I- Thanks so much, Hunk. That's nice of you..." Gradually, the tension in his small form began melt away. As if the warm, loving support Hunk had offered freed him from the frozen state. Boneless, Lance relaxed in Hunk's embrace, placing his head gently against his chest. A great smile stretched across Hunk's face, as he felt Lance's skinny arms inch out from underneath him and return the hug as best he could.
He had done the right thing. Hunk was so relieved.
Unfortunately, these happy feelings did not last long. Because at that very moment, good old "Nick" decided to step back into the picture.
"Well, well, don't you two losers make quite the pair," he snidely commented. Complete with upturned nose of contempt. "Looks like you finally found someone to put up with your endless chatter."
Hunk and Lance released one another. As one, they stood up and frowned back at the blond.
A wicked smirk stretched across Lance's face. "Go take a long walk off a short pier, Nick."
"Ha!" the boy laughed mockingly as a couple of his friends gathered behind. "What kind of response was that, 'Pantsless Wonder?'"
The other to boys circled menacingly around Lance, cutting him off from Hunk. As a group, Nick and his friends slowly advanced, forcing Lance to inch back closer towards the edge of the pool.
Hunk sent his friend a fearful glance. Panic drastically welled up with in him. Lance was clearly in trouble, but the larger boy had absolutely no clue what to do!
"Honestly, I'm not sure why you even try," Nick lamented with a mournful shake of his head. "All you do is go on and on about how great you'll be once you get into Galaxy Garrison. But deep down, you know the truth..."
Lance fought down a nervous gulp as his heels brushed up against the edge of the pool.
"Nick, cut it out!" cried Sally, sitting with a couple of the other children off to the side. "Just let them be."
But the blond bully paid her no heed. "You're a loser," he insisted, punctuating the final word with a shove to Lance's side. Luckily, the smaller boy kept his footing. Otherwise, he'd have ended up in the pool.
The fact that he hadn't, enraged Nick. Violently, he pulled his arms back to push Lance with everything he had. "And that's all you'll ever be!"
Then several things happened at once: Hunk tried to reach out and grab Lance in time, as Nick thrust his entire body forward. Putting all his power and weight into the action. While Lance... pivoted back on his right heal, spinning elegantly out of harms way like a hinged door. His grin of triumph practically screaming, Gotta yah!
"YAAHHH!" Nick squawked in surprise. Frantic arms pinwheeling in an attempt to halt his forward momentum. But ultimately, the blond failed. Tumbling face first into the frigid pool with a mighty-
*SPLASH!*
Everyone's mouths hung open in shock, and then burst into hysterical fits of laughter.
"Have a nice trip, Nick!" Lance mocked, hopping away from the pool's edge over to Hunk's side. "See you next fall!"
The entire group of children roared in response, including Nick's lackeys.
"Oooo! Good one, Lance!" Hunk praised, walking forward to give his shoulders a friendly shake.
Warmly, Lance smiled up at him. "Thanks, man!" He puffed his chest out pride. "It was pretty awesome, huh?"
"Total-"
"GAAHHH! YOU!" Nick roared as he came sputtering back to the surface. "ARE DEAD MCCLAIN!"
The blond then set his rage filled sights onto his lackeys. "Why are you idiots just standing there? GET THEM!" he commanded as both Lance and Hunk shared a mutual look of fear.
"Run!" they said as one and turned to make a speedy retreat.
When the smaller boy started to lag behind, Hunk grabbed Lance's arm and yanked him forward. Lance did his best to keep up, but suddenly, his right ankle gave out and he tripped. Face planting straight into the dirt.
"Oh my gosh!" Hunk frantically gasped, kneeling at Lance's side. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah," he replied with a sharp hiss of pain. "Think I twisted my ankle though."
"Oh, no," Hunk fretted, worriedly glancing between the prone boy and the jerks pursuing them. Luckily, Sally and some of the other kids had tried to slow them down.
It was then that Hunk came to a starling decision. The young boy didn't know it at the time. But it was one that would forever change the course of his life.
Whatever the consequences; Hunk would not, and could not, leave his friend to stand against those bullies alone. A resolve the likes of which he had never known, strengthen within his heart. Hunk bent down and offered Lance his back. "Climb on! I'll carry you!"
"But Hunk-" the boy protested, concern dancing in his stormy blue eyes. Hunk could tell what he was going to say, They'll hurt you. Please, just go!
Determined, the larger boy simply stared Lance down. "I am not leaving you. So either climb on or we face them together; your choice."
A choke caught in the back Lance's throat, as he shakily crawled onto Hunk. Scrawny arms loosely wrapped around the larger boy's neck.
"O-Okay, but j-just this once," he complied, whispering into Hunk's ear. "Keep going straight until you see a large tree. Then make a right. I know a place we can hide."
With a sharp grunt and nod, Hunk secured Lance against him and took off running.
To Be Continued...
Author's Notes: Seen a few fics with Hunk giving Lance piggyback rides. Really liked that idea and wanted to give it an origin. Hope you liked it! LOL!
Overall, the entire story when broken up is looking to be 7 chapters long. Hope everyone likes the rest! The next chapter should be pretty long again. So expect it Wednesday or Thursday.
And now, next time! We get a chapter from Lance perspective so we can see more of Hunk's shining qualities and also get a bit more context into the root of Lance's insecurities: "My Rock in the Storm."
A lot of people seem to be liking my headcanon comments so here's a few more:
Black or purple quintessence, symbolizes control. Which we already kinda know. Red is for instinct and emotion. And green, intelligence and creativity. But what I find interesting is that color wise, both red and blue make purple. Pretty much saying that given enough time both Keith and Lance can become like Shiro.
As for the *season 2 trailer spoilers* bit... where Shiro says that he wants Keith to lead Voltron.
I think it's going to go like this:
At the 2nd season's end, Shiro is going to dive deep into the Black Lion's core to try and figure out how to release her from Zarkon's control. While he's gone, Keith takes over as Shiro requested, but quickly finds that he's not the right choice for the job. At least, not yet. We'll probably get a short joke in the season 3 opener with Keith trying to pilot Black, Lance fighting to get Red to listen, and Allura trying to make nice with Blue. This will utterly fail, but be a funny throwback joke to the original series. In the end, Allura will pilot Black. But Keith will hand over being team leader to Lance. And then both Lance and Keith will start to learn from one another, and gain what the other lacks. When Space Dad returns, he finds that his kids have all grown up, and now he must rediscover what his place is within the group, to achieve balance again.
Hope you all have fun with that! LOL!
Please remember to read, fav, and review! Help feed the fan fic muse!
