Chapter Text
[ L A N C E ]
“All I’m saying is that all we need is a good night out on the town.” You were saying, one hand on your hip and the other gesturing in the air. “You know, land on some planet, hit up a few clubs, hit up a few ladies. I’m telling you, a night out is exactly what we all need to loosen up a little.”
“And how will we even know if a planet has a civilization that’s developed clubs?” Hunk asked. “We might land and just find a bunch of, I don’t know, three horned frog people.”
You held up a finger. “I-“ You had no argument. Your finger wilted and your face dropped as you considered his argument. “Point taken.” Your eyes narrowed slightly in thought, lips pursing together. One arm went across your waist as your other elbow rested on top of it, fingers idly tapping your chin. “Alright, new plan-“
“Personally, and I’m just, throwing this out there, I think all we need is a nice, quiet night in. Maybe with some dessert, you know I picked up that weird, sweet sugary plant spice from that last planet we were on. And then we can all gather around the holo projector and watch some classic Altean movies. Doesn’t that sound fun? I think that sounds fun. Nice, quiet, team bonding.”
“Yeaaaaah,” You said slowly, drawing out the word to make your skepticism clear. “I was kinda hoping for something that didn’t involve getting all cozy with our fellow paladins.”
Hunk glanced over his shoulder. “Why? What’s wrong with our fellow paladins?”
You crossed your arms over your chest. “Nothing! It’s just…” You looked away, scrunching up your nose and frowning. “I think our problem is that we’ve been spending way too much time together. I mean, sometimes I just need a little breathing room without— without people getting all up in my face, you know?”
Hunk leveled a look at you, tilting his head to the side slightly. “You’re talking about Keith, aren’t you?”
“What? No! Pffff,” You waved your hand, as if batting away the idea. “Keith doesn’t bother me. It’s not like he’s just… always… there, with his stupid mullet and his stupid voice and his stupid face. Trying to make me look like an idiot and trying to one up me. Well guess what, Keith, I’m onto you. I can see through your game. You’re just trying to get me all confused and frustrated so you can call me an idiot! Well the only idiot here is you, so get out of my face!” You stopped when you realized that Hunk was staring. He raised one eyebrow. You also realized that you had stopped walking, and your voice had slowly risen in volume and pitch. You cleared your throat, straightening and letting your hands drop to your sides. You hadn’t noticed them rising, fingers curled and palms up, in your frustration. One hand on your hip, you looked down. “Anyway, I think I just need some time away from certain parts of Voltron. Capeesh?"
Hunk sighed and continued walking. You fell into step beside him. You weren’t really sure where you were going. Hunk had just said he wanted to show you something. “I thought you guys were finally getting along.”
“We were.” You said softly, turning away so he couldn’t see your face. Your eyes dropped to the ground.
“Then what happened?”
“I don’t know!” You nearly shouted in exasperation, throwing your arms helplessly into the air. Your hands landed on your head and ran your fingers through your hair. “It was fine and we were bonding or whatever. The right side of Voltron was totes in sync, being a team and all that. And now every time I look at his stupid face I just get so mad and I just want to-“ You cut yourself off, suddenly at a loss for words. You didn’t know what you wanted to do to Keith, but the frustration you felt whenever he was around was enough to drive you insane. You wanted to strangle him, but somehow that just didn’t seem like enough. The thought of him conjured up his face in your mind’s eye, smirking at you. You wanted to punch him right in his smug mouth. You felt your cheeks warm, and you dragged your fingers down your face, groaning. Your arms fell, hanging limp at your sides. “I don’t know, man, but he pisses me off.”
“I was afraid you’d say something like that.”
You glanced up at him, one eyebrow raised in suspicion. “Why?”
“It’s gonna make this harder for you.” He said, taking a turn and heading through the doors into the training deck. He held up his hands, pointer fingers raised toward the ceiling. “I just want to state, on the record, that this wasn’t my idea.”
Your eyes narrowed. “What’re you up to, Hunk?” You looked up as you stepped into the training deck. Your face immediately dropped, and you froze mid step. You felt your eyes widen in surprise before your brows furrowed in a sudden outburst of anger that went beyond your control. “Oh great, what’s he doing here?” You said loudly, throwing out a hand to gesture to Keith.
His arms were crossed over his chest, and his eyes narrowed slightly at your outburst. “Nice to see you, too.”
His tone was full of dry sarcasm and grated on your nerves. You weren’t sure why or when his voice started irritating you, but it never failed to make your blood boil. Not to mention the guilt that started to chew it’s way into your chest. He hadn’t done anything. He was literally just standing there. And yet the sight of him had been enough to spur you into an outburst. An outburst that had sounded a lot more accusatory and a lot more angry than you wanted it to. All he had done was be Keith. Yet, for some reason, being Keith was enough.
You cross your arms over your chest, pressing your lips into a tight frown. Seeing him, especially without any warning, immediately sparked frustration and a whole mess of emotions that just formed a mass ameba of anger. Then you were frustrated at yourself for feeling this way. Which only made it worse.
Things had been going great. He was still your rival. Duh, Keith would always be your rival. You didn’t think that would ever change. But you had been together as members of team Voltron long enough for you to get over the hate part of your rivalry. He had stopped annoying you on sight. Your insults lightened into teasing. The two of you actually made a good team. You looked forward to being with him. You liked how you could make him smile those rare smiles. Your insides fluttered when he teased you. The sight of him made your ears burn…
And then everything had suddenly changed, and he was back to frustrating you. The tension between you was thick enough to be cut with a knife, and you frequently had to resist the urge to just wrap your hands around his throat and shake him.
You hated it, and you wanted to stop feeling this way, but it wouldn’t go away, no matter how much you tried.
“What are you even doing here?” You asked, lifting your chin.
“Shiro asked me to meet him here.” He said flatly.
“Shiro? Where is he?” You looked around, but the deck was empty, save for the three of you.
Keith’s shoulders lifted and fell. “Not here yet obviously. What are you doing here?” He asked, one eyebrow raising, disappearing into his hair.
You felt a muscle in your jaw twitch. One of these days, you were going to shave that mullet. One hand on your hip, your other hand gestured over your shoulder with a thumb. “Hunk brought us here.” It occurred to you that you had no idea why you were there. “Hey, Hunk, what are we even doing- Hey!” You turned to look, but Hunk wasn’t where you had left him. You whirled around to find him inching his way back toward the door. “Where do you think you’re going?!”
Hunk jumped when you spun around, eyes widening a fraction. He muttered a quick. “Oh no,” Before spinning on his heel and darting toward the door, falling forward as the momentum of his upper body caught up with his legs.
You stared after him, blinking in surprise. By the time you recovered enough to sprint after him, it was too late. The doors to the training deck had slid closed, and you heard the lock activate. The touchpad next to the door glowed red. You skidded to a stop, half slamming into the door. “Hey!” You shouted, banging your fists on the door. “Hunk, what the quiznak? Open the door!”
“No!” Hunk’s voice was muffled through the door. “I’m sorry, Lance, but this is for your own good!”
“WHAT is for my own good?” You nearly shout, stepping away from the door.
“Not just you, but both of you.” Allure’s voice came across the speakers in the training deck, and you immediately looked up. You could see several figures standing in the control booth positioned high up on the far wall of the room.
“Allura?” Keith was also looking up at the booth. His arms fell to his sides as he turned. His eyes narrowed, frowning. “What’s going on?” He demanded, his own irritation showing in his voice.
“Think of this as a training exercise.” Shiro’s voice.
“Actually, it’s more like an intervention. Surprise.” Pidge.
“Shiro? Pidge?!” You raised your voice, stomping back towards the center of the room. You stopped when you were standing beside Keith, staring up at the control booth. Through the glass, you could definitely make out several shapes. “Are you all up there?!”
“Technically, no.” Coran spoke up. “Hunk isn’t here. He was down there with you- Oh, scratch that. Yes, we’re all up here.”
“What kind of training is this?” Keith asked, his bayard in his hand. How the hell did he even get that thing out so fast? He had already shifted his weight, spreading his legs and bending his knees to lower his weight. His bayard was held out at his side, and his other arm went up defensively. He wasn’t wearing his armor, but he looked ready for battle.
God, he was just so fucking… perfect, wasn’t he? Such a fucking show off.
The last thing you wanted to do was to fight Keith. Actually, scratch that. It was only the last thing if bayards were involved. Then all Keith had to do was get close to you and your laser gun would be useless and Keith would win. But if it was hand to hand combat… okay, so Keith would still probably kick your ass, but maybe then you could get out some of this pent up frustration. Your hair was standing on end just from being near him.
Then again, you doubted they’d trap you both in here just to pummel each other. They probably wanted you to fight together. You pulled out your own bayard, holding up up. “And what’s with this ambush tactic? Can’t you just like, I dunno, ask? Like, ‘hey Lance, come to the training deck for training,’ and I’d be like, ‘yeah, of course, buddy, go team Voltron,’” You gesture to Keith with your free hand. “You wouldn’t even have to ask Keith. He practically lives here cause this is all he does.” Your voice made it clear what you thought about that. Seriously, you weren’t sure you had ever seen the guy chill.
Keith gritted his teeth, his head turning sharply to glare at you. “At least I do train.”
You rounded on him, bayard forgotten in your hand. “What’s that supposed to mean?!”
“It means you need to start being serious about your training!”
“I am serious!” You threw your hands in the air. “I’m so Sirius that I might as well die and fall through the archway! Open up, veil, here I come!”
Keith’s face completely blanked, all his anger and frustration draining as he blinked. “What?”
“Ooooh, too soon, man.” Hunk’s voice came over the speaker.
“Did you seriously just make a Harry Potter reference?” It sounded like Pidge and Hunk were sharing the mic.
Without taking your eyes off of Keith, you point up at the booth. “Stay outta this, Pidge.”
Keith sighed, head dropping as one hand went to pinch the bridge of his nose. His other arm went slack at his side. He had lost his battle stance from moments ago. “See? This is what I mean! You can’t take anything seriously.” He gestured toward the booth, standing straight again. “Everyone else has been working really hard training and gathering information. Have you done anything useful?”
“I’ve-“ You paused, mouth snapping shut with a frown. He… had a point. Ouch, way to hit a nerve. You huffed and stood up straight, crossing your arms over your chest. “I’ve helped Coran clean around the castle!”
“It’s true!” Coran spoke up. “He’s even earned a couple cleaning stripes!”
“See?” You tilted your head, smirking. “Do you have any cleaning stripes, Keith?”
He crossed his arms over his chest, mirroring your stance and ignoring your defense. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you training unless it was a group exercise.”
You felt your smirk widen, one eyebrow rising. “What’s the matter, Keith? Miss me? Wanna spend more time with me? A little one-on-one action?” You weren’t sure why you had decided to go along that path of goading, but you had. Keith’s eye twitched, his lips pursing into a frown. And then you saw something you never thought you’d see: Keith was blushing. It was just a slight tinge to his cheeks, but it was so out of place that you noticed it immediately. You had to convince yourself that it was, indeed, a blush, and not a trick of the light.
You had hit something there, and you felt your smirk falter. Holy shit, Keith was blushing.
“Paladins,” Allura’s voice cut through the speakers, stopping whatever Keith had been planning to say. If he had been about to say anything. Both of you looked up at the booth. “I am sorry we had to resort to this, but we decided that the element of surprise was the best tactic. This is, as Pidge said, an intervention.”
“An intervention for what?” You demanded.
“For the two of you. Lately you haven’t been… getting along.”
You snorted, rolling your eyes. “What else is new?”
“Your constant fighting has become a liability to the team.” Shiro’s sounded stern and disappointed. You flinched.
“Last time we formed Voltron, we nearly destabilized because of you two.” Pidge’s voice.
“What if that happened in a fight?” Hunk cut in. There was some rustling, and you got the distinct feeling that they were fighting over the mic. “Do you know how useful a robot is with one leg and one arm? Pidge, tell them how useful a one legged, one armed robot is.”
“It’s not.“
“See? It’s not, guys! It’s just not! What am I gonna do? Hop at them?”
“The point is,” It sounded like Pidge wrestled the mic from Hunk. “The tension between you guys is thick enough to choke on, and we need you to work it out if we want to be able to sync up and form Voltron.”
“We don’t know what’s happened between you two, but you need to work it out.” Shiro’s words sounded final. You felt your shoulder’s slump, both from guilt and from dread.
“Even the paladins of old had trouble communicating and expressing themselves. Misunderstandings often occurred and grudges were formed, but they always managed to work out their differences and put them aside for the greater good. You are part of a team, and more than that, you are friends. Whatever has come between you, we want to help you get through it.”
“By what? Locking us in the training deck together?” Keith asked, leaning his weight to one hip. You had both put your bayards away.
“In essence, yes.”
“What do you expect us to do, fight each other?” Keith sounded sarcastic, but you stiffened anyway, glancing at him sideways.
“Well, that wasn’t part of our plan,” Shiro said, and reluctantly added, “But we considered that it might be a possibility. Whatever helps you two get over this.”
“Are you kidding me?” You shouted, throwing your hands out to gesture to Keith. “You’re locking me in here with a mad man and giving him permission to kill me?”
“Unless he wants to be apart of a one legged hopping robot, I trust Keith to have some restraint.” He could hear a little amusement in Shiro’s voice.
You glared up at the booth, arms falling to your sides. “Gee, thanks. I feel so much better.”
“Let me get this straight.” Keith put one hand on his hip, his other hand gesturing as he spoke. “Your plan was to lure us both here, then lock us in here in the hopes that Lance will magically grow up? You realize he’s like, twelve, right?”
You snorted again, casting him a scowling glare. Maybe if you glared hard enough, you could set that stupid hair on fire. “Yeah, on a scale of one to ten, maybe.”
He sighed, gesturing to you. “See what I mean?”
“Hey! This isn’t my fault!”
“That’s the plan, yes.” Allura said.
“And how long do you plan on leaving us in here?” Keith ignored your outburst, which only served to irritate you more.
“Until you’ve both come to a resolution, however long that might be.” She sounded proud of this plan. “I call it, Operation: Tough Love.”
“I wanted to call it Operation: Time-Out!” Coran piped up.
“I suggested Operation: Fire and Ice.” Shiro added.
“Operation: Blood or Bonding! Only time will tell.” Pidge announced.
“My vote was for Operation: Two Rights Are Making a Wrong.” Hunk snorted a small laugh. “Get it? Cause like, you guys are the right side of Voltron? And that saying, two wrongs don’t make a-“
“We get it, Hunk.” You said flatly.
“Nevertheless! We’ll be leaving now.” Allura announced. “We’ll come back to check on you.”
“Wait!” You shout, taking a step forward. “You’re just going to leave us here?”
“Unless you want us to listen to the conversation?”
Your face fell. She had a point. You didn’t want to be left alone with Keith, but having the rest of them all walking you through a heart to heart with Keith sounded agonizingly painful. Not to mention embarrassing. He grabbed at straws. “What if we get hungry? Or what if I have to pee?”
“Then you better start talking.” Shiro said. Man, they had no sympathy. It was beginning to dawn on you that you weren’t getting out of this. You were going to be stuck in here with Keith and forced to talk about your feelings or whatever. The thought made your stomach churn, and your heart sped up in response. “We’re leaving.”
“Good luck, guys.” Hunk said. “I’ll keep your food goo warm.”
“Try not to kill each other.” Pidge added.
“We’re counting on you,” Allura said. “Remember, you’re both paladins of Voltron. Nothing can come between you. You belong together.”
“Oh, and before we forget.” Coran spoke up, sounding eager. “Here’s the best part of our plan! This was my idea!” Without warning, a wall appeared just inches in front of your face. You yelped and jumped back, careful not to touch it. There were walls and corridors all around you. Keith had jumped, too, and was looking around with just as much surprise as you felt. Then, as suddenly as the walls appeared, they disappeared. “Invisible maze! Have fun, you two!”
You felt like screaming.