Chapter Text
"Anyone there?"
Lance straightened in surprise at the voice, hitting his head on the underside of the control panel as he rushed into a sitting position. He couldn't quite reach the comms from his place on the floor, and he didn't want to struggle in getting up again.
"Sir- I mean Matt!" Lance corrected himself hastily, waving over his friend. "Matt, get in here!" A mildly puffed Matt stepped into the cockpit, just as the comms crackled to life again.
"Hello? Does anybody hear me?"
Matt looked down to Lance, who tilted his head to the side in a 'go on' motion. He raised an eyebrow, aware of the malfunctioning communicator.
"I think I've fixed it," Lance said, pulling himself out from under the console. "Just try."
"Okay then," Matt shrugged, obviously still sceptical about it. "who is it?"
"Keith," Lance mumbled, fiddling around with the tools beside him. "Besides Shiro, he's the only paladin I hadn't heard yet. How -how far are we from where you found me?"
"About two systems... why?"
"Nothing." he didn't quite meet Matt's eyes. Matt understood regardless, flipping the switch to open the communications channel.
"Keith, can you hear us?" Matt asked, suddenly formal. "This is the Blue lion, do you copy?"
No reply. Matt leaned against the console, tapping his fingers lightly in a quiet rhythm. "Keith, can you hear us?" he repeated after a brief pause.
"Keith, come in!"
"Allura!" The comms filled with Keith's sigh of relief. "It's good to hear you! Have you found anyone else yet?"
"Not yet, but we have coordinates for Hunk and Pidge."
"What about Shiro?" Keith asked after a second of silence. "I thought the wormhole would've shot us out close to each other, but I'm not picking up his signal."
"I'm sorry, Keith. We've got nothing. Maybe his lion was damaged."
"... I've got visuals on the castle. I'm coming in."
Matt flicked the communicator off entirely, shutting out any more transmissions. Lance gave a weak smile, looking down at his hands again.
A warm hand rested on Lance's shoulder and he turned, the same sad smile reflected on Matt's face.
"Come on kid, back to work."
Dinner was always a very loud affair at the resistance base. It was Lance's favourite part of the day, when nearly everyone was able to come together and just relax. During dinner, missions were forgotten and people let loose. It was a mass of species, all speaking a mix of their own languages and basic.
The first dinner Lance was able to actually attend (being restricted by Matt for the first few days as he learnt the ropes) was chaotic, but that didn't off-put him. In fact, it made him feel nostalgic, missing home. A full table in a bright-lit setting was calming for him, no matter how much was going on around him.
He was particularly fond of the alien with reflective head... bobble... things. It kind of looked like the alien was wearing a disco ball as a hat, and Lance loved it.
And the disco ball alien- Lance couldn't pronounce their name, so he called them Vi- made the best jokes. Some didn't translate very well, but that didn't bother him.
Another favourite was the blue unicorn-ish medic, Kelaan. She was kind, if a little stern. Lance would never say it out loud, but he found her presence comforting, like his own mother. Kelaan had a tendency to give him treats whenever they passed each other in the hallways, a hush and wink of her owlish eyes as she pushed them into his hands.
Lance often found himself just sitting and listening to the conversations around the table. There was no need for him to fill the silence here. Silence barely existed in the ship. Even while working in the hangar, the comms blasted upbeat music to work to (on Matt's insistence. Nobody complained, they seemed to enjoy it as well.)
"So, Lance..."
Lance turned to face Muxis, the strong-built guy that sat next to him.
When he had first entered the ship, Matt gave him a quick run-down on things to be careful around and who to avoid. What Matt had failed to warn him about was the Galra.
He had flipped out, shouting both warnings and swears as he fumbled for his bayard before remembering that Matt had told him to leave it in Blue. No weapons on the ship unless authorised. Muxis just laughed, clapping Lance over the shoulder and explained that he had defected the empire. He was the one that stole the ship somehow, right out from underneath his superior's noses. The resistance held him in high regard, and he was one of the friendliest faces on the crew.
"What's your speciality?" Muxis asked. He looked over Lance for a moment, as if trying to work out his talent.
Lance paused in the middle of moving food about his plate. He'd never really thought about it. Keith was the fastest, the best pilot. Shiro was their leader. Hunk was the armour, the tough one who protected everyone else. Pidge was the techie, hacking the enemies' devices and data. Allura commanded them all, the driving force behind Voltron; and Coran was the all-around handyman. He didn't fit in with the rest of them. It was like a puzzle with one piece that didn't quite match. What was Lance's speciality?
"Well," he started, picking at his food again. He didn't look up at Muxis, in fear of the guy looking into his soul. "I suppose... I like shooting? My father used to take me out to the range when I was younger. I'd shoot at cans and things until the sun went down. He called me 'sharpshooter', but I don't think I was that good..."
Muxis roared with laughter, clapping him on the back. Lance nearly face-planted in his dinner at the roughness of guesture, but he enjoyed it all the same, giving him a smile. It had been a while since he had felt this sort of affection.
"Let's head out to the range next rotation," Muxis grinned. His fangs glimmered in the light, and Lance decided that no matter how friendly he was, he'd always be slightly scared of the guy. "You, me- and of course Matty over there."
Matt huffed and flipped the guy off, causing the other aliens to laugh at his expense.
The shooting range was actually huge.
It was in a shallow cave, close enough to the ship if they needed to get there in an emergency, but far enough away that the sound wouldn't reach there. The walls were covered in targets, even more strung up between them. There was a multitude of wooden boards, each with a classic red and white target on them. Each board was in the silhouette of an alien species, Lance being only able to identify a handful of them clearly.
Stalactites hung from the cave roof, though most of them had been shot down by now. Lance noticed a couple of target-painted drones flitting around and hiding behind them.
All in all, it was the best shooting range that Lance had ever been on, and he couldn't wait to get started.
Muxis was impressed with how well Lance got into the swing of things. He stood back, letting him have full freedom of the entire range. Lance was slightly miffed that he couldn't stand, restricting his movements, but that didn't affect his determination. If anything, it steadied his hand more, improving his aim.
"I think you've hit everything twice over, kid." Matt said after a hush fell over the range, the last shot's echoes fading out. Muxis was still standing by the edge, gun slung over his shoulder. His fangs were showing again.
"Let him have his fun, Matty," Muxis chuckled. Matt huffed at the nickname, but made no other movement. "He needs to let off some steam, being cooped up in the ship for days on end."
"Yeah!" Lance agreed, letting his bayard revert back into its dormant form. "Muxis, can we come back tomorrow?"
"I don't see why not," he shrugged, pulling his gun off his shoulder to hold it normally. "And please, call me Mux. Everyone does."
"Don't encourage him." Matt groaned. "His lion's still not up to working order. That's our priority."
"Please, sir?" Lance whined, turning to Matt. He didn't bother correcting himself, only grinning at his own tone of voice. "May I have some more?"
Matt tried not to smile, Lance could tell. But it burst over his face, followed by some weak laughter. "Lance, please," he said between laughs. "are the only references you ever make ancient?"
Muxis just stood there, slightly confused by the exchange. "Am I... uh... missing something?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. The pose really didn't suit his form, causing Lance to grin wider.
"Nope, nothing." he said, having to tear his eyes away from the big guy so he didn't break out laughing.
"Just a human thing.' Matt added, reaching up to pat Muxis' shoulder. He only reached partway up his arm, awkwardly standing on his toes to reach the last couple of inches.
"Soooooooo Mux? Can I come tomorrow?"
"We'll see." Muxis replied, starting to walk over and grab the rest of the gear they brought with them. "If Matty lightens up a little, I'm sure we can come without him next time, too."
"I'm not letting Lance out of my sight until he's healed."
"Then I guess you're coming to the range next rotation." Muxis hauled the gear onto his shoulder, starting to lead the way back to the ship. Without pausing in his movements, he bent down and scooped up Matt in his other arm.
"Wh- hey, Muxis!" Matt yelped, voice hiking up a pitch or two. "Mux! Put me down!"
Lance did nothing to help, cackling loudly as he started up his hover chair to follow.
It was starting to feel like another family.