Chapter Text
The boy was safe. Lance had gotten him home, only once having to draw back from a passing torch. He’d left the extra food on the creaky doorstep as the child had burst inside, greeted by exclamations of surprise and relief. Lance didn’t stick around, smiling gently to himself as he faded back into the shadows.
That excursion to round up the wanted posters had run a lot longer than he had anticipated, and he couldn’t hold back the yawn that cracked across his face. He stretched his arms lazily, padding through the dark streets until the forest was in view once more. He laughed as he wove through the swaying aspens, remembering the first night he had met Keith and how the other boy had gotten them so hopelessly lost. Luckily, he had a far better sense of direction than mullet for brains. He made a mental note to call Keith that at some point, certain it would make the other boy’s face screw up like he’d just eaten a lemon.
His good mood faded as he drew close to camp. Something was wrong. There was shouting, the sound of rushing footsteps. Lance cursed, his steady pace picking up as he dashed towards the commotion. A sudden wind whipped around him, and there was only one thing that could be.
The shouts became clear before the trees revealed the scene that lay ahead. “If she was lying, why would she have come back to camp?” Hunk’s voice called out. There was an edge to it. Desperate.
“Then where is he?” That was Keith. And it was just about the angriest he had ever sounded.
“I told you!” Allura’s voice, frustrated. “He’ll be along shortly!”
“And how soon is that?” That was- Pidge? Lance could barely recognize her voice with how it was shaking, rage barely contained beneath the surface. “Because last I checked he’s been missing for a while now!”
There was the clang of metal. The wind ripped the leaves from nearby trees, raining down in a hail of dusky gold. It was followed by a dull thud.
Finally, finally Lance cleared the trees, skidding into the clearing where they had set up camp. Allura stood facing the other three, her teeth bared, breeze whipping her hair all around her. Hunk was the furthest back, wringing his hands. Lance was relieved to notice that the earth remained still under their feet. Pidge’s ax was buried in the ground suspiciously close to where Allura stood. There were skid marks, leading to where she was slumped against a tree. Even as Lance watched she pulled herself up, slightly dazed but eyes still sparking in the darkness. And Keith-
Keith was in motion before Lance had even cleared the tree line. His dagger was raised, his teeth set in a snarl, eyes focused solely on the target before him. Lance could see the barest hint of purple start to flush across his skin, starting at the tips of his ears and spreading outwards.
Without another moment’s hesitation, Lance charged him. He could just barely see the other boy’s head start to turn as Keith detected movement to his side. Then they collided. The two rolled over and over on the ground, kicking up fallen leaves behind them. They slid to a stop, Lance landing on top, but the movement didn’t cease, Keith’s arm whipping up. Moonlight glinted off metal. Blazing golden eyes met his own, a flash of fangs, then Lance squeezed his eyes shut, holding his hands up to shield his face as he yelled out, “Wait!”
Everything was still. Slowly, Lance peered down. He met the same yellow eyes, but they’d gone wide now, staring up at Lance in shock, in relief, in horror. The dagger point had paused just a breadth before his hand, the blade pricking the flesh. The arm holding it fell uselessly to the side, the weapon clattering away. That fiery gold faded, softening to stormy violet, the slight purple flush of his skin disappearing before it could really spread.
“Lance,” Keith choked out.
It was then that Lance became intimately aware of how he was sitting on top of Keith, thighs on either side of the other boy’s waist. He winced, cheeks heating up, just starting to scramble back when Keith sat up suddenly. This deposited Lance firmly in his lap, but the other boy didn’t even seem to notice, his hands reaching out to land on either side of Lance’s face. They were so close Lance could count every one of Keith’s eyelashes, every pinprick of starlight in the violet irises. He swallowed thickly.
“Are you hurt?” Keith breathed, frantic. “Did I- Did she-?”
“She?” Lance quirked a brow, his embarrassment momentarily forgotten. He glanced at Allura over his shoulder. She was watching them, expression confused but wary, still braced as though ready for an attack.
“What-?” Lance began, turning back and having to pause as he was pulled into that violet sea once more. He shook himself. “What’s going on?”
Lance was here. Right in front of Keith, whole, in one piece, and here. Those sea blue eyes were alive with confusion, his brows creased together. But all that mattered was that he was here. Safe. Keith shut his eyes, leaning his forehead into Lance’s and letting out a long, slow breath. His hands shook where they cradled Lance’s face. He felt a warm palm press against his own. Steady.
He opened his eyes, swallowed by that soothing blue. The confusion had now melted into concern. When Lance next spoke, his breath settled across Keith’s skin like a breeze chasing off summer’s burning touch. “What’s wrong?”
Then, suddenly, Lance was gone, replaced by a blurry streak of gray. There was an ‘oof!’, and Keith whipped his head around, relieved to see it was just Pidge. She’d tackled the other boy to the ground, arms wrapped around him.
“Where were you?” She exclaimed. Her voice shook.
Hunk came up to them then. “We looked all over for you, bud,” he said, smiling down at the pair in clear relief.
Lance continued to shoot a puzzled glance between Romelle and the others, patting Pidge comfortingly on the back as he pulled himself into a sitting position. She still hadn’t let go.
“I, uh-” Lance glanced uncertainly at Romelle again. Something sank in the pit of Keith’s stomach. He had been so relieved to see Lance, back and safe, that he hadn't stopped to consider what that meant. He and Romelle really must have snuck off together.
“I went into town to-” Lance gestured vaguely, another uncertain glance towards Romelle. “To look for work! There were a lot of posters,” he emphasized that last word, looking meaningfully at the three around him. “I thought I better check all of them. Carefully. And take them! So that we could pick a good job before we leave the area.”
Keith glanced at the others and saw that Hunk and Pidge had picked up on it, too. The wanted posters.
Keith looked to the side, catching sight of Romelle where they’d left her. She had relaxed her stance, but was still staring at the four of them with a perplexed frown. His brows knit together, that sinking weight in the pit of his stomach only increasing. If Lance had snuck out to rip down the posters, why had Romelle come with him? Especially since Lance was still being so cagey about the posters. He clearly hadn’t told her about his and Hunk’s bounties.
He opened his mouth, but the words didn’t come out. It snapped shut again, his jaw clenching as he glared down at the empty hands in his lap. His thumb swiped across the knuckles. Back and forth.
“If you just wanted to check out the posters, what was Romelle doing?”
Keith let out a breath, grateful Pidge had put it into words.
“And why are you both filthy?” Hunk added.
Lance winced, wrinkling his nose as he stared down at his ash-covered clothes. Pidge sat back, wiping some of the soot she’d gotten on herself back onto Lance. He let out an indignant squawk, and Keith had to fight hard to bite back his smile.
“I saw him rise and I followed him.”
They all looked up. Romelle had taken a step towards them, although she was still keeping her distance. Her gaze flitted between Keith and Pidge in particular, watching them carefully.
“I was curious what he was doing so late at night. Then we ran into an-” Romelle paused here, her face wrinkling in distaste, “-incident that we couldn’t walk away from.”
“What incident?” Keith asked. Hope was unfurling in his chest, slow and careful. Maybe it really wasn’t what it looked like.
Romelle shot him a wary look, but continued to speak. “A guard, arresting a child.”
“The kid was starving and had stolen some food for his family,” Lance chimed in. “We had to climb down a chimney to rescue him. Which is how my perfect fur is ruined!” He stuck his lip out in a pout.
“It’ll wash off,” Pidge shrugged, flicking more ash onto him.
“Hey!” Lance exclaimed. She tried to dodge back, a wicked grin on her face, but Lance caught her in a headlock. Pidge shrieked as he rubbed ash in her hair. The string of profanities she let out was enough to make even Keith shocked. Lance just cackled, and Hunk stared down at the two fondly, although he stepped carefully out of range.
Pidge finally managed to squirm her way to freedom, giving Lance a shove as she grumbled, “You’ll regret that, McClain.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Lance waved dismissively. “What I want to know is why were you guys all attacking each other when I got back? Can’t survive for two minutes without me before you’re at each other’s throats?”
“It was more like two hours,” Hunk said, deadpan.
“We thought-” Pidge trailed off, another uncertain glance at Romelle.
The woman frowned before speaking up. “Well clearly you all thought I had done something to him. What I don’t get is why?”
Surprisingly, Lance is the one that answered her. “I think we’re all just a little on edge,” he said, getting to his feet. He reached a hand down to pull Pidge up, then offered one to Keith, a soft smile on his face. Keith took it, not giving a damn about the soot that pressed into his skin. Lance’s hand lingered in his for just a moment before pulling away.
“We’ve had a good few bandit encounters recently. Plus we’re trapped in a kingdom that just went through a hostile takeover and we can’t leave with the borders shut down.”
Romelle winced. The movement was so slight that Keith almost didn’t catch it.
“It’s just-” Lance continued, rubbing the back of his neck. “I think we’re all a little paranoid.”
“Yeah,” Pidge nodded, looking sheepish. “We kind of jumped to conclusions. Sorry.”
There was a pause. Everyone seemed to be looking at him. Keith grit his teeth, glaring at the ground. He hardly felt the need to apologize for trying to keep Lance safe. But then something cracked inside him. Like it or not, Lance cared about this Romelle person. They might not have snuck off together tonight, but they certainly must have bonded over their rescue mission. Plus Lance had protected Romelle, almost getting stabbed in the process before Keith could register just who had tackled him to the ground. He couldn’t expect to stay Lance’s friend while continuing to be hostile to their newest group member. Besides, he had to admit, Romelle hadn’t even done anything to warrant that hostility. It wasn’t fair of him.
So Keith looked up, his gaze firm as they locked on a pair of blue eyes so different from the ones he’d spent the past few months memorizing. “I’m sorry,” he said, voice sincere. “I shouldn’t have attacked you without knowing what was going on. It was wrong.”
Romelle met his gaze. There was a flicker of doubt, but then it solidified. “It’s alright,” she replied. “I can see you all care very much for each other.” Her tone changed here, something jagged beneath the surface. But just like everything else about her, every slight expression, every flicker in her eyes, it was gone in a heartbeat. “It is important to keep your loved ones close.”
“And I’ll keep in mind that if I ever go anywhere, you all might kill each other before I get back,” Lance piped up.
“A warning would be good next time,” Hunk said, tone serious.
Lance winced. “Yeah, I’m sorry buddy.” He turned to look at Pidge and Keith. “I’m sorry, all of you.”
“Pull anything like that again and I’ll chop your legs off with my ax,” Pidge grumbled. “Then you really can’t get away.”
“It’s always the small ones that are so violent,” Lance remarked, yelping as Pidge punched him in the shoulder.
He turned to Keith then, expression softening. He was just opening his mouth to speak, and Keith felt himself leaning in, drawn towards him.
“Lance?” Romelle’s voice cut through the moment. Keith flinched, turning to see she was standing just behind him. “Can we talk?”
“Uh, yeah,sure,” Lance answered, shooting Keith an apologetic look before following her across the clearing.
Keith watched them go, crossing his arms.
“Glad to see your other half again?”
Keith turned, face bursting into a deep blush as he was met with a snarky grin and a pair of mischievous eyes. “He’s not-!” Keith trailed off, gaze landing back on where Romelle and Lance were whispering to each other, standing close. That feeling was back. The sinking. His arms dropped, eyes falling defeatedly. His thumb swiped across his knuckles, the repetitive motion grounding him.
He turned to catch a pair of worried gazes, but he had something else to say to them. “You were right earlier,” Keith spoke up. “I was being a total jackass, acting like I was the only one worried about Lance. I need to remember that when I lose my temper like that,” he paused here, voice growing small, “people can get hurt.”
“That’s what the training is for,” Hunk replied, a gentle smile on his face. “It’s going to be a long road. But I know you can do it. I think we’ve all seen just how determined you can be.” There was teasing lilt to his voice, and Keith felt his cheeks flush once more.
“I’m sorry I hit you,” Pidge added. “I lost my temper myself there.”
Keith shrugged, shooting her a small smile. “I kind of deserved it.”
Just then Lance sauntered back over, a bright grin lighting up his face. “You’ll be pleased to know, Pidgeon, that I am being a gentleman and letting you and Romelle wash up in the stream first.”
“My hero,” Pidge deadpanned.
“You can thank me later,” Lance said airily, making shooing motions at her. Pidge flipped him off, but seemed only too happy to go scrub the soot away.
Lance slung a lazy arm around Keith, shooting him a smirk. “You and I are just gonna have to wait our turn, mullet. Sorry for the whole tackling you thing, but you looked like you could use a good dust bath.”
Keith raised his eyebrows at him, trying and failing to hide his smirk. “My hero,” he replied, parroting Pidge. For some reason Lance’s eyes widened. He coughed before quickly glancing over to Hunk. “Care to join us, big guy?” He held out his other arm teasingly, waggling the sooty fingers.
Hunk was the only one left who was ash free. In response he took a step back, holding up his hands. “I love you, buddy, but I think I’ll pass on a freezing cold midnight bath.” He turned toward his bedroll, waving at the two over his shoulder. “While you freeze your butts off, I’ll be warm and cozy over here. Goodnight!”
“You can’t play hard to get forever!” Lance crowed after him. He turned to Keith then, pulling him closer with the arm still draped around his shoulders, “Just you and me then, tall, dark, and mysterious.”
Keith snorted. “You’re literally taller than me.”
“And don’t you forget it,” Lance replied, shooting him a finger gun with his free hand. His expression changed then, suddenly becoming meeker. He paused, chewing on his lip as he seemed to try and find the right words. Keith waited patiently, his gaze steady on the other boy’s face. Finally, Lance took a breath. “Hey, this might be kind of a weird thing to say, but, um- thanks.”
Keith looked at him in surprise, waiting for him to elaborate.
“I know that with Romelle-” Lance trailed off, rubbing the back of his neck. Keith tensed, tilting his head so that his bangs would hide the furrow of his brows. “I just-” Lance continued. “It means a lot. That you cared so much you were gonna throw hands because you thought she’d kidnapped me or something. But she helped me save that kid today. I think she’s a good person. So it’s okay if-” he trailed off again. “It just means a lot. So thank you.”
Keith looked away. Romelle. Always Romelle, ever since she’d shown up. It was something he was just going to have to get used to. He let out a breath of his own, saying softly, honestly, “I’d never let anything happen to you.”
There was a pause. Suddenly a pair of lips pressed to his cheek. Keith froze. They were only there a moment, but the place where they had touched left a lingering fire, searing under his skin, spreading throughout his body. He could hardly breath, the air flowing unsteadily into his lungs as his eyes stared straight ahead.
“You got a little ash there,” Lance chuckled, voice low in Keith’s ear. A thumb swiped across the spot he’d just kissed, and Keith’s skin was like pins and needles under the touch.
All at once, Keith could move again. He caught Lance’s hand before it could retreat, pressing it more firmly to his cheek. He turned to face the other boy, eyes slipping shut as he deflated, the tension draining from his body. “Thank god you’re okay,” he murmured into the cool night air.
He heard a sharp intake of breath across from him, but he kept his eyes shut, savoring the feeling of Lance’ skin against his, warm and alive. Lance was safe. All that mattered was that he was safe. After a moment he felt pressure against his forehead and realized Lance had pressed his own forehead to it. He felt the other boy’s breath fan across his face. They stood there, safe and together. Whole.
A snore rose up from across the clearing and the boys’ eyes snapped open, holding each other’s gaze for a moment before Lance took a step back. Keith wanted to chase him, wanted to hold on, but he let him go. No matter what he wished, Lance wasn’t his to cling to.
“We should-” Lance paused, a soft smile spreading across his face as his eyes flitted between each of Keith’s own. “We should start a fire. Hunk had a point about the water being freezing this time of night.”
Keith nodded, returning a gentle smile of his own. He followed after Lance when the other boy turned, staying close beside him. In a moment of weakness he reached out, his hand pausing just before his fingers could graze the other boy’s. Then he drew his arm back. No, he couldn’t be selfish. Lance wasn’t his. But as he watched Lance, gathering wood, arranging the tinder, smiling softly at Keith as he asked him to light the fire, Keith couldn’t help but wish he was. Slowly, Keith held out his hand. Palm up. Empty.
“You can do it,” Lance murmured. Reassuring. Soft.
Keith shut his eyes. He thought of that moment. Lance’s scent. His touch, smooth skin beneath his palms, lips pressed against his cheek. He opened his eyes to gentle blue, a color he’d never before thought could be warm, and yet it was. He took that moment, channeling it through himself, growing and growing, until a small flame sprung to life in his outstretched hand. Warm.