Chapter Text
"Mistreatment"
Keith snuggled against Ulaz, purring as Thace had his face buried in the longer strands of his hair. Antok had his tail wrapped around Keith's waist, and Keith was laying on top of Kolivan. Each Blade was gathered around their kit as they fell asleep.
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"You ungrateful brat!"
The Blades (and Keith) found themselves in a new location. The voice and accompanying smack caused Keith to wince and shrink against Thace, who wrapped his arms around his kit.
They looked in the direction of the voice and saw a smaller and younger version of their kit on the ground, holding his cheek and trying not to cry.
"You are worthless!"
Antok roared, but the man berating the tiny version of their kit didn't even flinch. Ulaz knelt down next to the kit and reached out to touch him to provide comfort but found out that he couldn't touch him.
"What is this?" Kolivan asked.
"This is my past. One of the foster homes I was in," Keith answered, still being held by Thace.
"What are foster homes?"
"People accept children who don't have a family or don't have an acceptable living situation into their home. They receive money every month to cover the expenses for those children. Some people are nice and are genuine in wanting to help kids; others," Keith swept his arm in the direction of the man and his younger self, "not so much."
"Kit, which type of foster kit were you?" Ulaz asked.
"My mom left when I was a baby, and my Dad died several deca-phoebes later."
"How much later?" Thace asked.
"I was six-deca-phoebes-old."
"When was this?" Ulaz asked, nodding at the scene before them.
"This was the last home I was in."
"That wasn't the question, kit," Antok stated.
Keith gulped. "I was ten."
The response from the Blades was what he expected. Even though their responses came at the same time and created a cacophony, Keith could easily pick out who did what. Funnily enough, Kolivan yowled. It was a sound that he made when a member of his pack was hurt (emotionally or physically), and Keith had only heard it a couple of times before.
Antok was whining. It was not a sound he usually heard from the largest Blade in his pack. He figured it was because he figured out what he hadn't said, which was that he hadn't had a family until he got into the Garrison.
Ulaz kept looking from Keith to his younger self and back, a low keening sound coming from him. Keith hoped he hadn't thought about the abuse he had suffered at the hands of his foster parents.
Thace was shaking, and at first, Keith thought he wasn't making a noise, but he heard a soft whimper that could only be coming from Thace as Keith's left ear was pressed against the violet furred Blade's chest.
Deep down, Keith knew his pack would react strongly to the revelation of his past, but he didn't think they would react like that. Somehow, he knew there would be more to see, so he had to calm them down somehow. He let his instincts take over, and he let out a trill, a kit noise that never failed to attract the attention of any nearby Galra.
The result was instantaneous. The four Blades quieted down and crowded around their kit. "I'm right here, guys. I'm okay."
Of all the reactions the Blades could've had, Keith didn't think they would pick him up. His feet dangled in the air as they took turns nosing his hair, reassuring themselves that he was, in fact, okay. They were so engrossed in nosing his hair that they missed the scene changing.
When they looked up, they could tell it was a different house. The Blades looked around to see if they could find the younger version of their kit in this house.
"Where are you, kit?" Ulaz asked.
Keith looked around and sighed, recognizing the house. "This was my first foster home. They honestly did try, but the trauma of seeing my Dad die in the fire was still too recent. I am probably in the room they let me stay in."
Keith walked up the stairs, leading his pack to his first foster room. Just as he remembered, his six-deca-phoebe-old self was sitting in the bay window, staring out at the neighborhood but not really seeing it.
"Keith! Keith! Come here!"
The younger kit didn't even twitch. A woman entered the room, sighing when she saw Keith sitting in the window. She backed out into the hall and spoke in hushed tones with a man, but their voices carried into the room.
"He's in the window again."
"It's been three weeks. He should be coming out of his shell."
"I haven't heard him speak at all."
"We've tried out best, but this isn't working out. Let's call his social worker and see if there's a better family for him."
A tear sliding down Keith's little face told the pack that the silent kit had heard the exchange.
The scene change again, but this wasn't a house. Keith flinched as he recognized it as the group home he stayed at until Shiro had recruited him for the Garrison. They weren't standing in the main foyer for long before there was a pounding on the door. One of the matrons hurried to the door and opened it, revealing a couple of police officers, one of whom had a hold of the back of pre-teen Keith's hoodie.
"Ma'am, is this one of your kids?"
"Oh! Yes, he is. I was just about to call you guys to report him missing."
The policeman pushed Keith into the building and stage whispered to the matron. "I wouldn't blame you if you hadn't. This kid's probably going to end up in juvie. No reason to waste money of the likes of him."
Keith turned away from the scene, burying his face in Antok's abdomen. The large Blade scooped up his kit, whose nose ended up tucked against his neck, near his scent glands. "They're all wrong, kit. You are not worthless. You are worthy of everything and more."
"I know that now."
The scene faded, but no other scene appeared. Ulaz looked around at his pack mates. "I think we all need to wake up to end this."
"I think that would be a very good idea," Kolivan stated. "You wake up first, Ulaz. Then, wake the rest of us."
The pale doctor nodded and, after a couple of ticks, disappeared from view. One by one, the rest of the pack disappeared, starting with Keith. The five pack members found themselves in the familial nest in the same position they had fallen asleep in.
Thace looked at Keith, noting the kit was still tired. "Go back to sleep, kit, but we will talk about this when you wake back up."
"We will take the next quintant off. I will send out a message that we are not to be disturbed unless it is a dire emergency," Kolivan said.
Keith nodded and let his eyes slide closed. He knew he was going to need the energy to put up with the questions his pack was sure to ask him, which wasn't something he was looking forward to.
Fin