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Chapter Text

"Keith's Fight"

Acxa usually didn't spend time around the three Paladins referred to as the Garrison Trio, but that quintant, she found herself in their company. She mostly ignored the conversation that flowed around her until she heard her twin's name.

"I can't believe Keith actually fought Zarkon," Lance mentioned.

"What are you talking about? When did Keith do that?" Acxa asked.

"When was that again? Um, maybe a few phoebes before we met Ulaz," Hunk replied.

"Did Keith not mention that?" Pidge inquired.

"No, he didn't, but I'm going to ask him about it." Acxa stood up and returned to her pack's nest room. She saw the rest of her pack there. Thace was in Ulaz's arms, getting groomed. Antok was unbraiding his mate's white strands, while his tail rubbed up and down Regris's back, causing the oldest kit to purr. Keith was tucked under their mother's chin, purring as she carded her claws through the longer strands of his hair.

When she entered the nest, she immediately cuddled up against her mother and twin. When she didn't start purring, Krolia eyed her daughter. "What's the matter, daughter?"

Acxa managed to catch her brother's eye and asked, "Why didn't you tell us you fought Zarkon?"

All activity in the nest stopped, and everyone turned to look at the youngest kit, who froze. "Who told you about that?"

"Lance mentioned it."

Keith grumbled something under his breath. Even with their exceptional hearing, the Blades couldn't hear what he said.

Krolia nudged Keith's head with her own. "Tell me it's not true, kit."

Keith sighed. "It's true."

"What?! When was this?!" Thace exclaimed.

"You should know. You were there. It's when we attacked central to rescue Allura."

"I didn't realize it was you, kit."

"Tell us what happened, kit."

"Well, at first, I didn't even know it was Zarkon. Coran had to tell me." Keith smiled slightly. "I still remember my words as wrong as they were. 'This is my chance to put an end to the Galra Empire! I have to take it!' Even as I fought, Coran continuously warned me to not engage and get out of there, but I muted the comms after four warnings.

"I didn't realize it until a bit later but Zarkon was using the Black Bayard. However, I managed to unlock Red's Plasma Cannon, which gave me an edge. I managed to get off two shots before Zarkon said something that struck me as strange and bothered me for a long time. I had nightmares where I was among Empire soldiers, dressed like them, suggesting that I was one of them." 

"What was his line, kit?" Kolivan asked.

"'You fight like a Galra soldier, but not for long.'" Keith shuddered slightly before continuing, "Zarkon knocked Red down, but Shiro managed to save me just in time.

"I realize how foolish it was to fight Zarkon one-on-one, even if I was in Red, which I was."

Krolia tightened her grip on her kit as the realization sank in that if the fight had gone deadly wrong, she wouldn't have gotten to reunite with her youngest. That thought filled her with dread. Keith was initially okay with his mom holding him tight until it was obvious that she wasn't letting up the pressure at all. In fact, it was getting a little hard to breath. "Mom!"

Even that didn't attract her attention. Keith started panicking a bit, whining loudly in distress. Kolivan tried to pry Krolia's hands off the youngest kit, but before he got too far, Krolia realized someone was trying to loosen her grip on the kit, so she hissed at whoever it was who dared.

Kolivan scowled and growled at her, breaking her out of her reverie. She locked eyes with her pack leader and whimpered in apology. However, Keith was still getting squeezed, so he whined again. This time, Krolia let go, but Keith didn't leave her lap. "I'm sorry, my kit. I didn't mean to hurt you."

"It didn't really hurt, but it was starting to get hard to breathe."

"What had you so distressed, sister?" Ulaz asked.

"I realized that if Keith's fight with Zarkon had gone deadly wrong that none of us would have gotten to meet him. I wouldn't have gotten to reunite with him. I wouldn't have realized that he died." A tear slid down Krolia's cheek.

Keith nudged Krolia with his head. When she looked at him, he licked the tears off her cheeks. "It's all right, Mom. I'm okay."

Krolia pulled her youngest kit close, and he tucked himself under her chin again. Krolia nosed Keith's hair. "Just don't do anything like that again, kit. I don't know what we would do if you were no longer around."

Keith purred to her and whispered back, "I don't want to know."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Wormhole Trouble"

It was a quiet night while Allura navigated through a wormhole when there were several screams and a couple of yells. The Blades recognized one of the yells as their kit. Everyone left their rooms, running into someone. Keith left his room and ran into Shiro. "'Kashi?"

Shiro was six-years-old, short, but he still had his white forelock and his Galran arm. "Keith?"

Keith was four-years-old and even shorter than Shiro. He was small and was clutching his Marmora blade (sheath and all) to his chest.

Lance had left his room and ran into Hunk, who had Pidge with him. The three Paladins stared at each other. Lance and Hunk were female, and Pidge was older. Lance looked similar to his normal looks, except it was obvious he was now a girl. His brown hair was down to the middle of his back and his chest was a decent size for his frame. Hunk had shoulder length hair, still kept back by his usual headband, and a much larger chest. Pidge looked like an older version of herself with waist length hair and the same size chest as Lance.

%%%

Everyone was gathered in the lounge. Keith and Shiro were in oversized shirts, Lance and Hunk were in their Altean nightclothes, and Pidge was wearing a pair of Lance's jeans and one of Hunk's shirts. The Blades were sitting there too; all four wearing their masks, which was strange. Since when did Thace and Ulaz wear their masks? Antok almost always did, and Kolivan wore his half the time.

The Alteans looked at the Paladins, and Allura sighed. "I was afraid something might happen one of these times."

"What? You knew something might happen, and you didn't say anything?!" Lance exclaimed.

"Lance, calm down," Shiro admonished the Blue Paladin.

"How can I calm down?! I'm a girl, and our leader is a little kid!"

"Don't yell at 'Kashi! It's not his fault!" Keith jumped in, coming to Shiro's defense.

"Stay out of this, Mini Mullet!"

"Keith, relax. Lance, I understand your anger, but it's not doing any good. We need to figure out how to fix this. Allura, any ideas?" Shiro tried defusing the situation.

"Well, that's the good news. Your conditions are only temporary. You should be back to normal in a movement at most."

"A week? I have to be a girl for a week," Lance moaned.

Tuning out Lance's moans, Keith walked over to Thace, who picked him up, acting on instinct since Keith looked like a little kit again. Thace whispered to Keith, "Are you okay, kit?"

"I think so, Daddy." Keith's eyes went wide when he realized what he said.

Thace ruffled Keith's hair. "It's alright, kit."

Keith nuzzled against Thace's neck. "Why are you wearing your mask, Daddy?"

"Don't worry about it, kit."

Allura stood up. "All right, Paladins. We need to get you proper clothes. Lance, Hunk, and Pidge follow me. Keith and Shiro, stay here for now. I don't know if we have any clothes for you two yet."

The Blue, Yellow, and Green Paladins followed the Princess out of the room, wondering what clothes she was going to give them. Shiro looked around for Keith and found him on Thace's lap. He walked over and let out a surprised squawk when he felt himself being picked up. When he was set on a lap, he looked up to see Ulaz's mask. "Ulaz?"

"I do apologize, Shiro, but my instincts see your physical age and react accordingly."

Shiro understood that. He knew the four Blades raised Keith, and their instincts were probably making them treat them as kids. He relaxed in Ulaz's arms. "It's all right, Ulaz."

Just then, from a few hallways away, a very feminine yell was heard. "You want me to wear a dress?!"

Keith giggled as he recognized Lance's tone, even though he was a girl. Coran walked over to the children. "If you'll come with me, boys, we should be able to find something to fit you better than oversized t-shirts."

Keith and Shiro looked at each other and shrugged. They slid off Thace and Ulaz, who were reluctant in letting them leave. While the two boys followed Coran, they whispered to each other. "After we get clothes, do you want to go to the training deck?"

"Of course, 'Kashi! You know I like training."

Shiro wrapped an arm around the tiny Red Paladin. They walked like that all the way to a storage closet. Coran turned to them. "I found this when I was gathering more blankets for everyone. There should be something you can wear."

He opened the closet. There were shelves upon shelves of clothes. Being as short as they were, the two boys started near the bottom of the closet. They looked at sizes, but couldn't read the tags as they were written in Altean. They ended up pulling random articles of clothing off the shelves and holding them against themselves until they found stuff that fit. Keith ended up in a red T-shirt and black denim pants. Shiro put on a royal purple long sleeve shirt and a pair of black slacks. Coran found socks and shoes similar to tennis shoes for the boys to wear. They each picked out some more clothes to wear. If they were going to be stuck like this for a week, they wanted stuff that fit and that they liked. Coran helped them carry their new clothes to their rooms. However, Shiro insisted that Keith stay with him until they changed back, and the younger Paladin didn't object. Coran didn't see a problem with it, so he simply put both of their clothes in empty drawers of Shiro's dresser. After that, Coran left Shiro's room, and as soon as they were sure the older Altean was gone, the two boys left the room and headed for the training deck.

%%%

Lance picked at the dress Allura picked out for her. It was mostly a blue color, which Lance admitted was her color, but it was a dress! Why couldn't she just wear her Paladin armor or the Altean nightclothes? When she voiced this question, Allura gave her a glare and simply handed her the garment. Lance sighed and went to put on the dress. She admitted it was pretty but didn't think it looked good on her. It was off the shoulder with small puffy sleeves and went down to her ankles with a full skirt. Of course, when Lance returned wearing the dress and her regular blue and white sneakers, Allura took offense and dug out some blue flats. Lance sighed as she sat down and switched out her shoes. When Allura approached her with jewelry, Lance flat out refused. "Allura, stop. I am a guy! The dress and shoes were enough; too much in my opinion, but I am NOT wearing jewelry."

Allura looked a little put out about that but put the jewelry away. "All right, Lance."

Lance sighed. "I wonder what Keith and Shiro are doing."

Fin

Chapter Text

"De-Aged Lotor"

The quiet time in the nest only lasted a varga before Lotor woke back up. He looked around confused for a tick before he realized who was holding him. He smiled and nuzzled Kolivan. "Dad."

"How are you feeling, kit?"

Lotor hummed. "I think I'm okay."

Kolivan bumped his nose against Lotor's temple in a Galran kiss. Lotor purred to his Dad.

A soft purr drew their attention to the dozing half-Galra next to them, nestled in Krolia's arms. Krolia was grooming his hair as his eyes were half open. Lotor scrambled over his Dad to nuzzle his brother and purr to him. Keith's eyes closed, and his purr deepened as he slipped back into sleep.

Once Keith had fallen asleep, Lotor turned to face Kolivan. "What time is it?"

"It is almost lunchtime, kit."

"Are we having lunch with the Paladins or are we eating here?" Regris asked from Antok's lap.

"We can do whichever one you want, kits," Ulaz replied.

"I'd like to eat with the Paladins," Lotor spoke up.

"You mean with the Princess," Acxa couldn't help but tease a little.

Lotor growled softly, even though he knew his youngest sister was teasing. Kolivan looked at his kit and noticed the slight blush on his cheeks but wasn't going to mention it, at least for the rest of the quintant.

"Let's go to the dining hall," Thace said.

"What about Keith?" Ezor questioned.

"He needs to wake up," Krolia stated, ceasing to to groom his hair.

Lotor grinned. "Can I wake him up?"

Kolivan scooped up his kit and gently tapped him on his nose. "Pouncing on him is not a good way to wake him up."

Lotor fake pouted but then grinned as Acxa slunk over to her twin and dug her fingers into his side. His eyes shot open, and a chirp escaped him. He immediately tackled Acxa, and they started play fighting. Lotor leapt from Kolivan's arms and joined the twins. A couple ticks later, Ezor and Regris joined as well. The Dads and Krolia let the siblings play fight with each other for a half a varga before they broke it up, which was quite easy.

"Lunchtime, kits."

The five kits sprang apart and grinned. Keith scooped up Lotor and let him cling to his back. Keith looped his arms around his brother's legs and carried him to the dining hall, where Shiro, Lance, Pidge, Allura, and Coran were seated. Hunk was still in the kitchen, finishing the meal.

Keith let Lotor slide down his back, and the little kit scrambled up to sit next to Allura, which attracted the attention of the Paladins. Keith sat down next to Lance and gently grabbed Lance's chin, forcing the Blue Paladin to look at him. "Do not mention his condition. You don't need to know how it happened; just that he will be back to normal in the morning."

Once Keith released Lance's chin, Hunk exited the kitchen and dispersed the meal he had prepared. The rest of lunch passed without much notice aside from Lotor sitting next to Allura and Keith sitting next to Lance. When lunch was over, Krolia asked the group at large, "What are you kits doing now?"

"I was going to go back to coding," Pidge mentioned.

"I was going to go to the training deck," Shiro said.

"Hey! No no, you guys. You said I could do a spa day with you!" Lance exclaimed.

Ezor and Acxa perked up, the younger of the two speaking up, "A spa day? Can we join you?"

Lance was slightly surprised at the question. "Uh, sure, I guess." Lance stood up. "Well, follow me, ladies, you too, Pidge and Shiro. You wanna come, Mullet?"

Keith slightly recoiled. "Uh, I think I'll pass."

Lance shrugged. "Suit yourself. Tell Hunk to meet us in the lounge when he's done."

Lance led Shiro, Pidge, Acxa, and Ezor out of the dining hall, leaving Allura with Keith and his family. Keith stood and offered his hand to Allura. He helped her to her feet. "Thank you, Keith."

Allura gave Keith a quick hug, causing Keith to purr and nuzzle her. When he gently bumped his nose against her temple in a typical Galran kiss (one between family members), Lotor actually growled at his brother. Keith paused and looked at his de-aged brother in surprise. "Lotor, I'm not interested in the princess. She's like a sister to me."

Allura stepped away from Keith with a parting cheek caress. She walked over to Lotor and started petting his hair like she had seen the siblings do to each other. He started purring and nuzzling the hand stroking his hair.

After a few doboshes, Allura stepped away, prompting a chirp out of the five-deca-phoebe-old kit. She paused and turned around. "I'm joining Lance and the others in the lounge. Lance had expressed an interest in braiding my hair."

"Can I come?"

Allura paused, her eyes flicking over to Krolia and Kolivan as if seeking permission. When neither Galran parent raised any concerns, she smiled and held out her hand towards him. "Let's go then."

Lotor grinned and scampered out of his seat, slipping his hand into the princess's. As they exited the dining hall, Kolivan looked over at his other kit, who was still standing at the opposite side of the table. He beckoned Keith over. "Come here, kit."

Keith walked over and found himself pulled onto his father's lap. "I have a question, kit."

"What?"

"Does Lotor like the princess?"

Keith chuckled. "He would say no, but we think he does."

"He does seem to want to constantly be in her company," Krolia remarked, looking at the closed door. She hoped nothing would happen to her kit, but then again, her daughters were there, so there probably wouldn't be a problem, but it still made her worry. She was a mom; it was her job to worry about her kits, no matter what age they were.

TBC

Chapter Text

"Kits of Marmora"

Krolia was relaxing in the familial nest with her pack. However, instead of three kits and four adults, there were seven kits. Kolivan, Antok, Thace, and Ulaz had come back from a mission that resulted in this change. They had made it back before the de-aging took effect. The moment she saw them, her maternal instincts took over, and she dragged them all into the nest and rumbled to them. She knew that they remembered everything, but they were still kits, and she was going to take care of them.

Keith's eyes fluttered open and landed on the rest of the kits. It was strange that the four Blades he considered his Dads were kits. He found it amusing that his mother went into 'Mom Mode' when she saw them. She had picked all four up and whisked them off to the nest. Keith had been coming back from visiting the Paladins at the Castle of Lions and got back just before the Blades' pod landed. Krolia had been in the hangar, awaiting his return. She had nuzzled him while the Blades landed.

The four Blades had stumbled out, concerning both mom and kit. Keith let out a chirp when his four dads regressed. His mom scooped them up and took them to the nest, with Keith on her heels. She laid them down, and Keith crawled into the nest to lay down between his siblings, purring.

Krolia rumbled to her still sleepy kit, smiling when his eyes slid closed. A whimper drew her attention to one of the de-aged Blades. She pulled Thace into her lap and groomed his headfur in an effort to soothe him, but the whimpering didn't stop completely. A sleepy chirp caught her attention as Ulaz was disturbed by his mate's whimper. Krolia scooped up the pale kit and let him cuddle his mate, which did soothe him. Krolia smiled but was startled when she felt pressure against her sides. She looked down and saw the two remaining de-aged Blades cuddling her. She rumbled to them, stroking their headfur, while the two cuddled with each other on her lap. At this point, it didn't come as a surprise to feel her three true kits curl around her, Keith nuzzling her neck. She continued rumbling to the kits, even though she didn't know how long this was going to last.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Hurt Thace"

Keith yawned and turned over, burying his face into his mom's side. Krolia's hand stroked his hair, eliciting a purr from him. It hurt her that the only time he stayed in the nest was when he got injured; otherwise, he was constantly moving, either in the training hall or on a mission.

He had just returned from a botched mission with Thace. Both had ended up injured, but Thace was hurt worse, having shielded Keith from the worst of the explosion. Thace had to stay in the med bay, but Keith was allowed to return to the nest. When Krolia heard what happened, she decided to keep her kit company.

Krolia carefully tugged her kit onto her lap and started to gently groom his hair. His eyes opened half-way, alighting on his mom. His purr was heard in his voice. "Mama."

"It's all right, kit. Rest is good for you, especially after the mission you just had."

"Is Thace back yet?"

"Not yet, kit." She chuckled. "You know Ulaz won't let Thace go without him. He'll keep him in the med bay until his shift is over."

Keith tucked his head under her chin. "I didn't mean to let him get hurt."

"It wasn't your fault, Keith. It would have been worse if you had been the one who had been hurt. A kit being hurt would have hurt the entire pack."

Keith still didn't relax, unconsciously letting out a whimper. He didn't like any member of his pack being hurt. Krolia sighed. She knew Keith wasn't going to get anymore rest until he saw Thace. She picked up her data pad and sent a message to Ulaz, informing him about the situation. She knew he would end his shift early and bring Thace with him. None of the other doctors would blame him for leaving to take care of a kit. The entire organization adored the leaders' kit and loved when he was there at headquarters.

Just then, the door opened, admitting Thace and Ulaz. Krolia nudged Keith's head insistently and hummed at him. He stubbornly refused to move his head from under her chin but raised his eyes towards the nest room door. His eyes widened, and he chirped.

Thace settled next to his pack sister and her kit, grooming the longer strands of his hair. Keith purred in relief at seeing Thace was okay and safe. Rumbling from all around him soothed him. Even though his eyes were closed, he could tell all five of his pack members were there.

Fin  

Chapter Text

"Tiny Keith"

Keith snuggled further against his Mama's chest with a small whine. He had just gotten back from a mission the previous quintant, but somehow he had gotten de-aged to two-deca-phoebes-old. He was glad that his Mama was there when he got back, especially since the change happened almost immediately when he got back. She had picked him up and whisked him away to the med bay for Ulaz to check him over. The pale doctor was understandably worried about the now tiny kit, but there was nothing wrong with him except for the fact that he was supposed to be older than he was. Krolia scooped up her kit and nuzzled him, rumbling to him to soothe him. She took him back to the nest room and dressed him in better fitting clothes and a diaper.

Krolia rumbled to her kit, soothing him. She hoisted him a little higher and put his nose against her scent gland. He got a nose full of her calming scent, allowing him to relax. He started purring to her, happy she was there, even though he was a tiny kit. His younger body reacted to her, making him slightly self-conscious. Krolia was trying her best to get him to give in to his kit instincts as it would be better for him in the long run. Even if they were able to re-age him, he would still benefit from indulging in his kit instincts.

Keith turned his head slightly as he laid it against his Mama's shoulder, his nose still full of her scent. When he was originally this age, he dreamed of sleeping in his Mama's arms and now he was, and he was going to enjoy it, even if it made it harder to ignore his kit instincts.

His eyes were half-lidded, but he still saw when the rest of his pack entered the nest room. He left his head on his Mama's shoulder but still chirped at the rest. Kolivan entered the nest and settled next to Krolia on the side closest to Keith. He reached out and stroked the tiny kit's hair, not surprised at the kit's purr. It was a sound he did back when he was big.

Just then, he felt something tickling his side. He swatted at it, but his eyes widened when it swung into his field of vision. He raised a tiny hand and batted at the thing repeatedly. Since the kit was busy batting at Antok's tail, Thace and Ulaz took this time to soothe Krolia. They knew it was rough on their pack sister, since seeing her kit this age not only reminded her that she had missed seeing him when he was originally this age but that her mate had perished as well.

Having a mate perish was a rough experience that took a toll on the survivor, but having a parent die sometimes caused such extreme distress that the kit died as well. It was fortunate that Keith took after his human side so strongly that he was spared the death that pure Galran kits were prone to. It was one reason that kits were considered precious to the Galra as a race.

The pair of Galra settled near their pack sister and doted on her. Ulaz groomed her headfur, while Thace nuzzled her. Her rumbling turned into a purr as she relaxed as well. The pack may not know why their kit was de-aged or how to fix it, but they were going to make the best of it.

Fin 

Chapter Text

"Slipping"

Keith and Krolia were in a coalition meeting, and Krolia could tell Keith was in between head spaces as he kept looking around, different things catching his eye. Even though it had been a long time since Krolia had regressed, she still recognized the signs. Keith was definitely more little than big, and if she was honest with herself, she was feeling a tiny bit little as well.

It had only been awhile since Krolia had regressed, because there were many missions to go on which didn't give her the time/chance to regress, so she knew that the next time she did she was going to be small. Soon enough, the meeting was over, and Krolia walked over to Keith and told him, "We can go."

"It over?"

"Yes. The meeting is over."

"Mama play?"

Krolia hesitated. There wasn't anything planned for the rest of the quintant. She smiled and nodded. "Sure."

They quickly made their way to Keith's room, Krolia feeling herself slip along the way. She slipped her data pad out of her pocket and sent a message to Kolivan that said 'Hi, Daddy.'

Krolia and Keith entered his room and sat down to play. The two littles didn't know how long they had been playing before Kolivan showed up. He entered the room, a smile crossing his face. Both Krolia and Keith were adorable but he had to make sure the two littles were dressed properly. He approached them, catching their attention.

"Kol Kol!"

"Daddy!"

Kolivan took note of their ages, Keith seeming a bit older than Krolia. He set about dressing Keith in a pull up and a red t-shirt and a pair of black elastic waisted pants and Krolia in a diaper and magenta sleeper.

Seeing her Daddy made Krolia slip a bit further than she meant to. Krolia raised her arms in Kolivan's direction. "Dada, up!"

Kolivan scooped her up, and she curled up on his lap, hanging onto his braid.

Keith looked over. "Mama okay?"

Kolivan petted Krolia's headfur. "She is fine, kit. She needed this as much as you did."

Keith understood that and went back to playing with his stuffed animals but quietly so Krolia could have a nap. He knew the importance of the level of noise in a room when someone was taking a nap, and he was determined to be as quiet as he could be. His Mama deserved it.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Like Mother, Like Kit"

Keith and Krolia were in one of the training halls doing a combination tai chi and sword warmups with their eyes closed. Keith had introduced it to his Mom once in the short time they had become reacquainted, and she adored the different ways the warmup tested their senses. Both of them knew they weren't supposed to be in the training hall, but neither one could stand being idle for long.

It wasn't too much longer before Thace entered the training hall. He had suspected that both mother and kit were in there. It was just after the midday meal, meaning Keith should have been resting, and Krolia was still on leave due to her just returning from her long term, undercover mission. He sighed as he with drew his data pad in order to message the rest of the pack to join him.

The moment his pack members joined him, they noticed the issue. Kolivan resisted the urge to growl, but Antok didn't resist the urge. He had been consistently pulling the kit out of the training hall, and he didn't need his efforts undermined by the actions of the kit's mom. The largest Blade locked eyes with Thace, nodding.

Antok and Thace picked up Krolia and Keith, respectively, and carted them off to the nest as neither one should have been in the training hall. Keith shifted and whined as he tried to get Thace to put him down. Thace jostled him and growled in warning. Keith quieted down and looked over at his Mom, who was thrown over Antok's shoulder. Krolia knew it was futile to fight against the largest member of her pack, so she just laid over his shoulder like a chastised kit.

Both were deposited in the nest next to each other. Thace stared at the both of them, fighting the urge to give in to them. He was silent for a few ticks, trying to figure out why and came to the conclusion that is was the cheek stripes both had. Kolivan knew Thace was having issues scolding them and stepped up to the nest himself. He frowned at the two of them. "You both shouldn't have been in the training hall."

"I know that, Kolivan, but you know I can't stand being idle for too long," Krolia stated.

"And I thought moving slow was okay," Keith added. At Kolivan's stern expression, he dropped his gaze. "And I know I'm not supposed to be in there that soon."

Krolia reached out and stroked her kit's hair. "You're okay, kit."

Keith tucked himself under his Mom's chin, whimpering slightly. She rumbled to him, pinning a glare on Kolivan for distressing her kit. Kolivan sighed and stepped into the nest, settling next to Keith. He reached out and rubbed his back. "You're okay, kit. You just need to follow our rules."

Keith stopped whimpering and a soft purr was heard, signaling that the kit had fallen asleep. Krolia smiled at her kit and laid her head on top of his, her eyes sliding closed as well. Kolivan rumbled to her. "Get some rest, Krolia. You need it just as much as your kit does."

Krolia let her eyes stay closed as she fell asleep, curled around her kit. The rest of the pack breathed a sigh of relief. Sometimes, Keith and Krolia acted so alike, it was like they were the same being.

Fin

Chapter Text

"In His Arms"

Keith was tired. He had been awake for over forty-eight hours and was just wanting to get some sleep, but he felt like he needed to train, even though the training deck had a timer set, which confused him. He didn't understand why he couldn't train to his heart's content. When they first came to the castle ship, Allura had been a task master, pushing the five of them. However, recently, Allura set a timer so that no Paladin could monopolize the training deck.

%%%

Lance was concerned about his boyfriend. He was obviously exhausted and overworked and needed to get some sleep. Lance knew that if he could get him to take a break, Keith would more than likely pass out.

"Hey, cariño."

Keith paused and turned around, a tired smile forming at the sight of his boyfriend. "Hey, Lance."

"Can you come with me for a moment?"

"Sorry, but I have training to do."

"If you come with me, I will train with you."

Keith gave Lance a confused look. "What are you planning?"

"What do you mean?"

"You dislike training."

Lance knew that Keith had a point, but he also knew that there was one weapon in his arsenal that Keith couldn't resist, puppy dog eyes. He clasped his hands in front of him, poked out his lower lip, and softened his eyes. The second Keith saw him, he knew he was a goner, adding "please" was the clincher.

Keith sighed. "All right, but just for a moment."

Lance grinned and grabbed Keith's wrist, effectively dragging his boyfriend along. "Come on!"

Keith let Lance drag him to his room. The Blue Paladin gently pushed his fellow Paladin onto the bed and sat down behind him. He wrapped his arms around him and buried his face in his hair. Lance felt Keith tense up for a second before the tension left his body, and he relaxed in his boyfriend's arms. He sighed happily and closed his eyes, enjoying the moment.

Lance knew the tick Keith fell asleep as he was purring, and his head lolled to the side. The brunette grinned. He knew his boyfriend would pass out once he stopped doing things, and it was a plus in Lance's book to be able to hold Keith during the day cycle. One of them would inevitably come to the other sometime during the night cycle, but they hadn't been able to hold each other during the day before. It was something Lance thought should change, and he was going to bring it up to Keith when he woke up, but for now, he was going to enjoy having Keith in his arms.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Never Have I 2"

It was a peaceful day on castle ship, and the Paladins decided to take an easy day. They gathered in the lounge with drinks. They were sitting on the floor with glasses filled with their drink of choice (alcohol for Shiro and Keith and non-alcoholic for the Garrison Trio) sitting on the low table in front of them.

Princess Allura was wondering where the team was when she stumbled upon them in the lounge.

"Never have I failed a class," Pidge declared. Lance grumbled under his breath, while he, Hunk, and Keith took a drink.

Shiro and Pidge stared at Keith, who, after finishing his sip, replied, "I didn't like the engineering class, and the teacher seemed to have a personal vendetta against me."

"It wasn't just you," Lance said. "I think she had a vendetta against everyone who took the class."

"Hello, Princess." Shiro looked up and noticed Allura standing just inside the door. "Come in."

Allura came closer and sat down between Keith and Hunk. "What are you doing?"

"We're playing a game called Never Have I," Pidge replied.

"How do you play?"

"Taking turns, you start with the words 'never have I' and then you say something you've never done. If you have done something someone says, you take a drink. If you haven't done it either, then you don't take a drink," Lance tried to explain.

"It sounds a little confusing," Allura admitted.

"Well, let's show you. I think it's Hunk's turn," Keith offered.

"Never have I ever ridden on a motorcycle." He paused before adding, "I'm not counting a hover bike."

Lance and Keith grinned at each other and took a drink. When he was done taking a drink, Keith poured himself another cup and added, "I was the one driving the motorcycle."

"What is a motorcycle?" Allura asked.

Lance pulled out his wallet and showed Allura a picture of himself holding onto Keith's waist as the raven-haired teen started a red two wheeled vehicle. "This is us on Keith's motorcycle."

Allura looked at the picture. "That looks interesting."

"It was nice flying through the country side with Keith," Lance agreed.

Keith blushed a little. "Enough, Lance. Shiro, take your turn."

"Never have I..." Shiro glanced at the Red Paladin. "Gotten a piercing." Keith glared at the Black Paladin and took a drink. Shiro chuckled at Keith's expression. "Sorry, Keith. It was all I could think of."

"Is it everyone's goal to get me drunk?"

"No, but it seems that you have done a lot. I mean you are on your second glass already and the rest of us are still on our first glass," Pidge pointed out.

Keith blushed again. "I..."

"What kinds of things have you done?" Allura asked.

"Of course, the riding a motorcycle, failing a class, and having a piercing, but he's also has a tattoo, knocked someone out with his fists, crashed a ship, gotten dru-" Lance was cut off by Keith placing a hand over his mouth.

"I think that's enough, Lance. You've damaged my reputation enough."

Allura giggled. "I had no idea that you were so wild, Keith."

Keith flicked his hair over his shoulder. "You have no idea, princess."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Lounging"

Shiro was in the lounge, sitting on the couch, when Keith walked in. She grinned when she saw Shiro sitting on the couch and promptly sat between his legs, leaning against his chest. His hands curled around her waist and found themselves under the bottom hem of her jacket.

Allura entered the room, noticed Keith's position, and stated, "Keith, I've noticed you tend to sit between Shiro's legs. Why is that?"

"It's my favorite place to sit and is comfortable."

Shiro grinned. "I offered one time when we started dating, and she took it as an open invitation to do whenever." Shiro kissed Keith's hair. "We both like it though."

When there wasn't any comment from Keith, Shiro looked down at his girlfriend but couldn't see her face. He looked at the princess. "Princess, did Keith fall asleep?"

Allura peered at Keith. Her eyes were closed, and her breathing looked to be slow but steady. "It appears that she has."

Shiro smiled. "That's okay. I don't mind that she has."

Allura smiled. Shiro and Keith made a cute couple. She stood up. "Well, I'll go, so I do not disturb Keith. She does so much for everyone. She should get to rest more often."

"See you later, Princess, and thank you," Shiro called out before she left. He turned his attention back to the napping raven-haired woman. Napping did sound like a good idea, since they had had a rough time repelling the Galra attacks lately. Shiro laid his head back and let his eyes drift closed. He was distantly aware of Keith shifting in his arms before he fell asleep too.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Painful"

Keith groaned in pain and squeezed his eyes shut. He panted and slowly opened his violet eyes. The infirmary greeted his eyes. He paused as he tried to remember how he got there.

He blinked as the battle came to the front of his mind. The entire team was there in their lions and were battling a robeast. They were about to combine when the robeast shot a laser directly at his lion. It was a direct hit, and he screamed. It felt like electricity was dancing across his skin.

"Keith!"

"I-I'm okay."

"No you're not!"

"It's not time for this, Lance. We need Voltron. After we get rid of the Galra, then I will get treated."

"Promise?"

"If I don't, then you can drag me there."

As the battle came back to him, his memories of making his way to the infirmary still remained elusive. He could only guess that he passed out and had been carried there. He felt another wave of pain engulf him and had to bite his lip to stop from screaming. He knew that the healing pods were down and definitely wanted Lance to come and cuddle with him.

%%%

Lance paced outside the infirmary. He couldn't believe he was being denied entrance after carrying his boyfriend there. Why was he being kept out?

"Lance?"

Lance looked up and saw, to his relief, Allura walking in his direction. "Oh, Allura! Coran is not letting me in. I know Keith, and he's going to want me in there."

"Well, let me tell Coran to let you in." Allura opened the doors and walked in. She saw Keith laying on one of the beds with, surprisingly, tears in his eyes. She approached and stroked his hair. "Keith, how are you feeling?"

"Princess? Where's Lance?"

"Coran isn't letting him in here, but I will not let you be without him."

Keith gasped in pain and nearly hissed, "Thank you, princess."

Allura nodded and approached Coran, who was across the room. "Coran."

He turned around. "Allura. What can I do for you?"

"Why are you denying one of our Paladins something he needs?"

"What are you talking about? I would never deny one of the Paladins anything they need."

"But you are doing just that when you deny Lance entrance."

"What does he have to do with Keith?"

"He is dating Keith."

"They're dating? But why does Lance need to be here?"

"It's a Galra thing. Galra need their pack and/or loved ones by their side to recover from illness and injury."

"They do," Coran confirmed.

"So in denying Lance entrance, you are hurting Keith."

Coran paled at the thought of doing harm. "Where is he?"

Allura breathed out in relief. "He's outside the door."

"Let him in please."

Allura smiled and left the infirmary. She held the door open and called out, "Lance, you can come in."

Lance rushed in and over to Keith's side. "Keith! Keith, I'm here."

Keith raised his arms and whined, tears slipping down his cheeks. "Lance."

Lance didn't waste any time and scooped up his boyfriend. He settled onto his bed and let him rest between his legs with his back against his chest. He curled his arms around Keith, his hands finding themselves resting on his upper thighs. His head rested against his shoulder, allowing him to pepper the Red Paladin's head with kisses. He nuzzled his shoulder and purred softly, glad that he was there holding him.

Lance looked up at Allura. "Princess, thank you. This means so much to Keith needs the touch, being touch starved. He always feels better when I'm with him."

"Well, I'll leave you two. Keith's already half asleep, and I don't want to disturb him."

"Thank you again, Princess. From both of us. You really have no idea how much this means to us."

"You're welcome, Lance. Get well soon, Keith." Allura rested a hand on Keith's hair briefly before she left.

Lance rested his head on top of his boyfriend's head and closed his eyes, which prevented him seeing Coran observing them. Coran wasn't entirely sure Lance holding Keith was helpful until he saw it with his own eyes. He almost couldn't believe how much Keith reacted to Lance's presence. Perhaps it was more than just a Galra thing. Maybe it was an Earthling thing as well. Either way, next time the pods were down, he was going to make sure none of the Paladins would ever go without something they needed, not in his infirmary

Fin

Chapter Text

"The Search"

Krolia was heading to the nest room, intent on cuddling her kit within an inch of his life. She missed him when he was visiting the Paladins for a movement. She entered the nest room and stopped short. It didn't look like Keith was there. She let out a questioning noise, wanting to determine if Keith was truly there or not. When she didn't get an answer, she became worried. She knew he was at headquarters, but why wasn't he in the nest?

A thought hit her, causing her to whimper. He might be in the training hall. She quickly made her way to the largest training hall, which Antok preferred the Blades to use when training with their blades. To her surprise, Keith wasn't there. Her eyes roved over the training hall, trying to see if there was any indication of her kit.

"Krolia? Is there something wrong?" Chihlae asked.

Krolia locked eyes with the bluish purple, furred, female Blade. "I am just looking for my kit."

"Ah, yes. I saw the young kit in here and sent him on his way. He was supposed to go back to your nest."

"He wasn't there."

"Maybe he went to training hall B."

"He better hope he didn't." Krolia almost growled.

Chihlae grinned, her fangs glinting. Seeing Krolia being maternal was amusing. "I wish you luck."

Krolia nodded and left the main training hall, heading for the smaller training hall. Again, to her surprise, Keith wasn't there. Instead, she saw her pack brothers, Thace and Ulaz, sparring with each other, even though it looked suspiciously like a play fight. She grinned and let out a playful growl, catching their attention.

"Krolia?" Ulaz asked.

"What's wrong, Sister?" Thace inquired.

"Where's Keith?"

"He's not in the nest?" Thace asked. "We left them in there."

"He's not there, and he's not in the main training hall either."

Thace approached Krolia and nuzzled the female. "He's here at headquarters. He's just not in any of the usual places. Perhaps you should check with Kolivan. He may know where the kit is."

Krolia licked their cheeks in thanks. "I will check in with Kolivan. You two can go back to your play fight."

"What?" Ulaz questioned.

"We weren't play fighting!" Thace insisted.

The tint on both of their cheeks betrayed them. Krolia giggled and left training hall B. She made her way to Kolivan's office but was looking around in case she saw her kit, which wasn't the case.

She sighed and pushed open the door to Kolivan's office. She stepped in and stopped short once again. There laying in the nest Kolivan kept in his office for his pack members was her kit.

Kolivan didn't even look up from the report he was reading, when the door opened. He knew it was Krolia. When Keith had come in, Kolivan could tell the kit was tired but wanted company and offered the use of the nest there in his office. The smile on Keith's face told Kolivan that Keith appreciated the offer. It hadn't taken the kit long to fall asleep, soft purrs escaping him and adding a pleasant background noise to the office.

Krolia couldn't believe her eyes. Her kit was asleep in the nest in Kolivan's office, but why was he there? As she gazed at her sleeping kit, a smile formed on her face. Regardless of why he was there instead of the familial nest, he was resting, which was the important part. She stepped over and knelt down in front of the nest and combed her fingers through Keith's longer hair as he was curled up in the nest, which made his purring get louder. Krolia rumbled to him, realizing that his instincts recognized that she was there with him.

"You can lay with him, if you'd like, Krolia," Kolivan spoke up without looking away from his data pad.

Krolia smiled softly as she did just that and nuzzled her kit's neck. She breathed in his natural scent of coffee and cinnamon, a couple of Earth scents that she had grown to love. She closed her eyes and ended up falling asleep with her face buried in Keith's longer strands, purring as well.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Quiet"

"Where is Keith?" Shiro asked.

"Keith said he was going to be on the training deck, and Lance just took off after him," Pidge answered as she tinkered with some Galra tech she got her hands on.

"I'm going to check on them if you want to come," Shiro offered.

"No thanks. I want to work on this some more."

Shiro shrugged his shoulders and made his way to the training deck. He wasn't sure what he was expecting, but Keith flipping Lance over his shoulder wasn't it. Keith flicked his hair back over his shoulder, breathing heavily, and offered his hand to Lance. "I win. You want to go again?"

Lance grasped Keith's hand and pulled him off balance. He landed on top of him. "No thanks, but this is nice."

Keith grinned and gave Lance a quick kiss before getting up. "You're incorrigible."

Lance stood up. "But you love me anyway."

"I do." It was then that Keith noticed Shiro standing just inside the door. "Shiro! How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough to be glad it was just me here."

Keith blushed. "You were so quiet. Why didn't you say something?"

"I wanted to make sure I didn't have anything to worry about." Shiro looked at Lance.

"You don't have to worry about me. I'd be too afraid to do anything Keith doesn't want me to." Lance gave a little laugh. "After all, he isn't a Paladin and a Blade for nothing."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Behaving Like Kits"

Keith and Shiro made it to the training deck with no issues. Shiro immediately took a sparring stance with Keith following suite. The two little Paladins took turns kicking and punching each other but never too hard. Shiro flipped Keith gently over his shoulder, and the tiny Red Paladin stayed on the mat, breathing heavily. Shiro held his hand out and helped Keith to his feet. "Are you all right, Keith?"

"I think so, 'Kashi."

"Maybe he should take a small break; get some water," Shiro suggested. Keith nodded, but suddenly his eyes rolled back, his body slumping forward against Shiro. Shiro grasped Keith tightly. "Keith, can you hear me? Keith!"

%%%

"Thace! Ulaz!" Shiro yelled, running into the room with an unconscious Keith in his arms. Thankfully, Keith was small for his age. Shiro wouldn't have been able to carry him otherwise. The young Black Paladin stopped short at the sight of the two Blades. They were human! Thace had black hair styled like his headfur normally was and even had a patch of black hair on his chin. Ulaz still had white hair but instead of it just being a strip down the center of his head, it covered his head. Both of their eyes were exactly like Keith's, right down to the color. Seeing their unconscious kit made them approach the two kids.

"Shiro, what happened?" Ulaz asked as Thace took Keith into his arms.

"We were sparring, and when we took a break, he collapsed." Shiro reached up and touched Keith's foot. At his height, it was the only part of Keith Shiro could reach since the younger kid was being held by Thace. "I didn't work him too hard, did I?"

The two Galra-turned-humans looked at child Shiro. It hit them how young Shiro was; how insecure he was. Ulaz scooped Shiro up into his arms. "I'm sure you were more than careful, kit."

"Kit?" Shiro asked. He had heard them call Keith that all the time, even when he was an adult.

"Right now, you are a kit. Coupled with the fact that Keith is back to being a little kit, we consider you our kit as well." Ulaz gave the small child a hug. "Stay with us at least for now."

Shiro nodded and hugged Ulaz back. "Okay."

While Ulaz dealt with Shiro, Thace examined Keith. Not for the first time, he wished he was still Galra; his enhanced senses would have made it easier to examine his kit. He buried his nose in Keith's headfur, picking up slight traces of sweat, Shiro's scent, and Keith's own scent. He continued sniffing Keith, trying to figure out what happened but couldn't smell anything out of the ordinary. He growled in frustration. His kit was unconscious, and he couldn't figure out why. He laid his head on Keith's chest; he could hear his kit's heartbeat. That at least was comforting. He lifted his head and stared at his now tiny kit. He remembered when Keith was originally this age. He and Ulaz had raised Keith with the rest of the Blade of Marmora. No one had been able to deny the little kit anything. Kolivan and Antok had been surprisingly susceptible to Keith's whims, even though Thace and Ulaz were Keith's primary caretakers. Keith had even taken to calling them Daddy (Thace) and Papa (Ulaz).

Thace was shaken out of his memories when Keith started to shift in his arms. Thace watched Keith's purple eyes open and land on him. Confusion and slight panic were evident in them. Of course Keith didn't recognize him. Ulaz stepped closer, still holding Shiro, who noticed that Keith was awake. "Keith!"

Keith looked over and saw Shiro being held by someone else he couldn't identify, but if Shiro trusted him enough to be held by him, Keith assumed everything was okay. "'Kashi, what happened?"

"You collapsed during our training, and when I couldn't wake you, I brought you to Thace and Ulaz."

Keith whipped his head around to the human holding him. He cocked his head as he stared at him. He did look a bit like Thace. Keith smiled at him and threw his little arms around Thace's neck. "Daddy."

Thace relaxed as Keith hugged him and nuzzled Keith's headfur. "Kit."

Ulaz reached out and petted the top of Keith's head. Still hugging Thace, Keith looked at the other adult and smiled even more. "Papa."

Just then, Kolivan and Antok came into the room and stopped short. They saw Thace and Ulaz without their masks on with two children. They recognized Keith without any trouble, but it took a second for them to recognize the Black Paladin, but the white forelock and Galran arm were a dead giveaway. The little group of four noticed the two newcomers.

"Kolivan, Antok, you can remove your masks. Our kits are okay with the change," Thace said.

"Kits?" Kolivan repeated. He looked over at both children. "Both of them?"

"As long as Shiro is okay with it," Ulaz replied.

Shiro nodded from his spot in Ulaz's arms. "I'm okay with that."

Keith grinned from his spot on Thace's shoulders. "That means 'Kashi's my brother!"

Thace reached up and tickled Keith's side a little, making the tiny kit giggle. "Yes. Yes, it does."

Keith ceased giggling when Thace stopped tickling him. He looked at Antok and held his arms out. Unable to deny the kit anything, Antok went over to him and plucked him from Thace's shoulders. He held him tight. Keith put his face next to Antok's mask. "Please remove your mask, 'Tok. I miss seeing your face."

"I shouldn't, kit. I don't look the same," Antok whispered.

Keith moved his head until it actually rested on the mask. "I know you look human. You're still you. Please? For me?"

"All right, kit." Antok raised a hand, and the mask disappeared, leaving Keith forehead to forehead with a human Antok. Antok looked similar to Thace but his hair was white, and his eyes were like Keith's, just a slightly lighter shade of purple. Keith smiled and hugged him tightly.

"Thank you," Keith whispered, eyes closed. He felt a hand on his head, petting his hair. He opened his eyes to see Kolivan sans mask petting him. Kolivan was still recognizable. His white hair was styled to represent his ears and ended in his usual braid that fell over one shoulder. He still had the scar across his right eye, and his eyes were actually violet as well. Keith smiled again, relaxing into the touch.

Shiro watched as Keith was being doted on by the other two Blades. It looked like it would feel good. Ulaz noticed his other kit had his eyes trained on his brother. Taking a guess at what was going through Shiro's mind, Ulaz raised a hand and started gently petting the six-year-old's short hair. Shiro relaxed against Ulaz, enjoying the treatment. Thace was next to Ulaz. He had watched both scenes and was concerned about something he noticed. He whispered into Ulaz's ear. "I've noticed both kits are behaving like actual kits. Could this end up being a problem?"

Ulaz sat down as he continued to pet Shiro, who curled up in Ulaz's lap. He whispered to Thace, who settled near his mate. "I noticed that too. I hope it doesn't end up being a problem, but if they stay deaged, we'll take care of them. The only problem with that is how it would affect their minds as well. They might remember everything, or they may revert to a child's mindset."

Their conversation was cut short when they heard a purr from their youngest kit. They looked over and saw he was still being doted on by Kolivan and Antok. He must have really missed them. Ulaz was still petting Shiro, who hadn't moved from where he had laid down in his lap. Thace looked at Shiro. His eyes were closed, and his breathing was even. "Ulaz, I think he fell asleep."

Ulaz smiled as he bent down and nuzzled Shiro's short hair. "He probably needed it."

Antok and Kolivan came over, the former carrying the still purring Keith. Keith looked very happy with his family. He looked at Thace and Ulaz and noticed that his brother was asleep.

"Why is 'Kashi asleep?" Keith asked, the purr still evident in his voice.

"He enjoyed the petting he was getting. He can't purr, but he calmed down so much he fell asleep," Thace answered.

Keith yawned cutely just then. Antok chuckled lightly. "Looks like another kit is tired."

Ulaz carefully stood up without jostling Shiro too much. Ulaz and Antok laid the kits in the humongous nest in their room. Keith cuddled up against his brother as his eyes slid closed. The four Galra-turned-humans watched their kits as they napped. Antok sat down next to Keith, while Ulaz sat down beside Shiro. Both gently petted their kits' headfur. Thace stood beside Kolivan as they watched their mates dote over the kits. "I hope this is over quickly. I don't know how much more I can take being human."

"As we all do, Thace. I did miss Keith being this little though," Kolivan admitted.

"I think he didn't realize how much he missed being around us after being accepted into the Garrison."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Fallen Soldiers 7: Father Figures"

Keith snuggled against Thace. He loved how warm Thace was with his long fur, especially since Keith lacked the fur most of the base's inhabitants had. His entire pack had no problem snuggling the only kit in their pack, but they usually had two kits to cuddle as Keith was mated to Lance, who was curled around their kit and fast asleep. However, Keith wasn't asleep.

He never said it out loud, but he considered each member of his pack a father figure, each with his own name. Thace was Daddy, Ulaz was Papa, Antok was Dad, and Kolivan was Father. He had also come to consider Sendak Da and Haxus Pa. When he thought about them, he always called them these names. He hadn't meant to ever say them out loud.

One of those times was when he awoke after a nightmare about Thace being caught during an undercover mission and executed. His eyes immediately sought out the violet furred Blade, who was blinking at him, half awake. The next tick, Thace had a lap full of slightly distressed kit, who was alternating between whimpering and calling him "Daddy." Thace had purred to his kit in order to calm him down.

In the morning, he had been worried that Thace wouldn't want Keith to call him Daddy, but Thace was overjoyed at the action. It meant that Keith was more accepting of his Galra heritage, prompting more features to show up. He already had the fluffy ears, but now his cheek stripes appeared and his hair was more violet than black.

Once he started calling Thace Daddy, Keith noticed that Ulaz, Antok, and even Kolivan were acting a little strange. They seemed slightly depressed as evident by their ears drooping slightly when Keith called Thace Daddy and them by their names. Keith realized that the three other Blades wanted him to call them a form of dad as well, so he did.

He hadn't realized that the two other Blades in his pack wanted the same closeness with him as the other four had. (Krolia was different being his biological mother.)

%%%

Sendak and Haxus had been on a mission for a few quintants, and Keith was slightly nervous. He feared they would be discovered and captured again. If they were brainwashed instead of executed, Keith wouldn't be able to fight them, since they were pack.

Fortunately, the base received communique from the duo that they were on their way back. Keith decided to meet them in the hangar, and the tick their ship landed, Keith sprinted over. He threw himself against Sendak, who easily caught the kit. "Da! You're back! You're safe!"

When he felt someone nuzzling the back of his head, Keith purred. "Pa! I'm so glad you two are back!"

The two Blades were pleased at their names, and they comforted the kit, hoping that the names weren't a slip of the tongue.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Human Blades"

"Princess, there's been another new development," Shiro stated, trying to keep a serious face as he and Keith caught sight of female Lance in a dress. Keith absolutely lost his composure and fell into the nest, giggling behind Shiro.

Lance knew Keith was giggling at her. "Stop it, Mini Mullet."

Her voice just caused Keith to giggle harder. Allura wasn't concerned about her Paladins' behavior. "Let's have everyone meet in the lounge."

"See you soon." Shiro deactivated the channel. He turned to his brother and grinned. "Let's tell Kolivan, Antok, Thace, and Ulaz that we're meeting everyone in the lounge."

Keith stopped giggling and smiled. He ran off to the next room, where the four Blades were. Keith jumped on to Antok's back. Antok reached around and grabbed Keith. He pulled him forward and held him upside down. Keith grinned and giggled at being held like that. Shiro walked in and grinned at his brother's position. He walked over to Thace and Ulaz. Ulaz picked up Shiro and nuzzled him. "Welcome back, kit."

"The princess has agreed to have everyone meet in the lounge."

"That's good." Ulaz and Shiro watched as Keith, who was no longer being held upside down, was hugging and nuzzling Kolivan. The leader was nuzzling the little kit's headfur, causing the kit to purr again.

"Keith purrs a lot, doesn't he?" Shiro asked.

"He purrs when he's happy. Being with the five of us makes him happy," Thace replied.

Shiro looked at him. "Five? But there's only four of you on the ship."

Ulaz ruffled Shiro's headfur. "He was counting you too, kit. You are important to your brother too. Now, let's go."

The Blades put on their masks and walked into the lounge with Keith and Shiro. The Blades sat down with the two kits scrambling up to sit on two of their laps. Keith sat in Antok's lap and Shiro was with Ulaz.

Allura looked at Shiro. "Shiro, you said there was another new development. What is it?"

"Yeah. It concerns the Blades," Shiro replied.

The Blades deactivated their masks, revealing their altered states to the others. Keith turned slightly and nuzzled Antok, trying to comfort him. Antok petted Keith's headfur in response, softly saying, "Kit."

"Well, this is unexpected," Allura stated as she stared at the four Galra-turned-humans. The three female Paladins stared at their allies in disbelief, but Lance's mouth dropped open at the sight of the Black and Red Paladins sitting comfortably in two of the Blades' laps, like they were really little kids.

"Shiro, are you okay?" Lance asked.

"This is still hard to get used to, but yes, I think so. Why do you ask?"

"Because you're acting like a little kid."

"Oh, I probably should have mentioned this before. The longer it takes to turn back, the more likely it is that your behavior will match your appearance," Allura added.

"What does that mean?" Keith asked, his head cocked to one side.

"It means you and Shiro will act like children, Keith, while Lance, Hunk, and Pidge will act like women."

"Won't the Blades act human?" Lance inquired.

"Their cases are different. As it's a change of race, not age or gender, a change in behavior should not occur," Allura replied.

In reaction to Allura's reply, both kits relaxed against Antok (for Keith) and Ulaz (for Shiro). Antok gripped the kit a little tighter and buried his face in the longer strands of Keith's headfur.

Thace looked at Allura. "Will their behavior adversely affect the change back?"

"No. It's simply a side effect." She bent down to whisper into his ear. "I was going to suggest that you four may want to use this time to spend some time with Keith and Shiro. However, it looks like you're doing just that."

"They sought us out, but we had noticed the change in behavior already. Both are behaving like actual kits. I'm glad it won't affect their change back," Thace whispered in return.

"You really care for them both, don't you?"

Thace looked scandalized at the comment. "Of course, we do! Keith is ours, and Shiro has accepted us as family during this time! They are our kits and will remain as such even after they change back, if Shiro so wishes!"

Hearing Thace's anger in his mini tirade, Ulaz passed Shiro over to Kolivan and made his way over to his mate. He pulled him away from the princess and out of the room. Kolivan and Antok followed, carrying the two kits. Ulaz was petting his mate's headfur and allowed him to lay his head against his shoulder. "It's okay, Thace. The princess meant no harm. She doesn't know how precious kits are to Galra as a whole."

"Perhaps someone should tell her," Antok suggested.

"I'll do it," Shiro offered. Kolivan looked at the kit he was holding.

"'Kashi, you don't even know," Keith said, laying against Antok's chest. "Let the adults handle it."

"If someone takes this kit, I will inform her," Kolivan replied. Thace removed himself from Ulaz and collected Shiro from their leader. He hadn't held the little Paladin yet and was eager to nuzzle one of their kits.

Kolivan reentered the lounge, finding a confused Altean princess sitting on one of the sofas. "May I join you?"

Allura looked up. "Oh, Kolivan. Yes, please." The leader sat down next to the princess, who started speaking again. "I don't know how I offended Thace, but it wasn't my intention."

"We know that now, Princess. He didn't understand that you didn't know how the Galra view kits. Kits are very precious to us as a race. We may look human, but we are still Galra. Keith has always been our kit, even when he was eighteen. Shiro accepted a position as our adopted kit during his time as a kit. He will have the option to remain our adopted kit or not when he changes back."

"I truly didn't know. I am glad you told me." Allura smiled. "I'm pleased the boys are with family during this time."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Careful Watch"

Kolivan was concerned about his newest and youngest Blade. He had been volunteering for as many missions as he was able to go on, which wasn't healthy for even an adult Galra. The thing was Keith wasn't an adult. He was a kit. Kolivan made the decision to take Keith to the nest the tick he got back from his mission.

%%%

Keith stifled a yawn as he piloted the ship back to headquarters. Ilun and Vrek, who were on the mission with him, noticed how tired he was. The two Blades made a decision to make sure their young teammate would rest.

Keith landed the ship in the hangar, and all three were surprised to see Kolivan waiting for them, something that wasn't normal. Ilun and Vrek hoped the leader was there to take Keith to his nest.

Kolivan waited until the ship had powered down, and the three Blades had approached him. Ilun was the one who addressed their leader. "Mission was successful, leader."

"Well done. Keith, follow me."

Keith was confused but followed Kolivan anyway. Even though it was possible that Kolivan could have been wanting to talk to him in private, Keith doubted it, and his doubt was proven correct as the leader led him into their nest. Keith settled into the nest and stifled another yawn.

Kolivan's heart broke slightly when he saw how tired his kit was. He sighed and stared at the kit. The lecture he had planned died on his tongue as his kit face planted in the mass of pillows and blankets. It was clear that Keith was more tired than anyone realized, and Kolivan decided that he would keep a closer eye on how many missions his kit went on in the future, but at that moment, he had an exhausted kit to watch over.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Pack Chat"

Krolia added Kolivan, Antok, Thace, Ulaz, Regris, Keith, and Acxa to the chat Pack.

Keith: Why?

Krolia: I told you that the rest of the pack wanted another chat with just us.

Keith: True. The chat with the Paladins, MFEs, and various Atlas crew members would have confused them.

Thace: Was it that bad?

Acxa: Not bad but it was...interesting

Keith: Mom, will you tell me what you did to Griffin?

Krolia: I'll tell you when you're older

Kolivan: You hurt someone?

Krolia: He insulted my kit, insinuating that his heritage made him bad

Ulaz: Reasonable

Regris: What did you do?

Krolia: You're not old enough either, kit

Antok: What about us?

Krolia: Just sufficed to say, he won't disrespect our kit again

Keith: That doesn't answer the question

Krolia: Stop prying, kit

Keith: I thought the motto was 'Knowledge or death'

Antok: It is

Kolivan: Krolia, tell everyone including the kits what you did to this person

Krolia: I just threatened him in person...with an example

Keith: Are you saying that you verbally threatened him and showed him what would happen if he repeated his mistake?

Krolia: Yes

Keith: So, why wouldn't you say so in the first place?

Krolia: It kept the other humans in line

Acxa: That is fair

Keith: Speaking of humans, Acxa, why didn't you say you were dating Veronica?

Kolivan: What?

Antok: What?

Thace: What?

Ulaz: What?

Regris: Who's Veronica?

Keith: Lance's oldest sister, a Garrison officer, a sharpshooter, and self-proclaimed handler for the MFEs

Acxa: She was also the first of the Atlas crew that truly got to know me

Regris: Do I need to threaten her against hurting you?

Acxa: No. She was there when you threatened Lance

Keith: Which wasn't really necessary

Regris: It's my job as your older brother figure

Keith: Be that as it may, the two McClains know how dangerous we can be

Fin

Chapter Text

"Stay With Me"

Daylight streamed through the windows of the castle ship, which was actually now weird to the Paladins since they had been in space for awhile now. However, Allura had landed the castle on a nearby, non-hostile planet in order to let Coran do some much needed repairs to the engines. It also allowed the Paladins some much needed downtime. While some (read: Shiro) used the time to train, the rest used this time to sleep in.

Lance rolled over and flung his arm over his boyfriend, but instead of it coming into contact with Keith's torso, it fell on his blankets. Lance slid his sleep mask up, eying his boyfriend who was slipping on his black t-shirt.

"Cariño, what are you doing?"

"Going to go train with Shiro."

"Stay with me," Lance almost whined.

Keith paused, looking between the bed and the door rapidly and obviously weighing his options. He smirked. "Come with me?" At Lance's appalled look, Keith laughed and pulled his shirt off again. "Just kidding, sweetheart."

He climbed back in bed and snuggled against Lance, who slid his mask back in place and muttered, "@$$hole."

Just before Keith drifted off, he managed to utter back, "You picked me."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Ransom"

"What do you mean Pidge was kidnapped, and why aren't you going after her? You came after me," Allura asked, confused as to the team's apparent apathy for their smallest team member.

"It's Pidge," Lance answered as if no more explanation was necessary.

Shiro took pity on the princess and explained, "Yes, Pidge was kidnapped, and yes, we received a ransom, but no, we aren't paying it. We are confident in her ability to escape and make it back to us before the Galra even realize she's gone."

"When do you think she'll be back?" Allura asked.

"We're not entirely sure," Shiro admitted.

"But knowing her, she'll pop out of the vents when we least expect it like when Hunk takes the peanut butter cookies out of the oven," Lance said in a loud voice as if he was announcing it to the room in general.

Just then, they heard a loud echoey, "Whooo!" from the vents.

Lance grinned. "I better go warn Hunk that Pidge is on her way to the kitchen."

Allura and Shiro watched as Lance hurried off the bridge and towards the kitchen. He was hoping to make it there before Pidge did.

"So, she made it back like you said she would," Allura stated in a slightly dazed tone.

"Yup. It wouldn't surprise me if the Galra try to attack us, thinking they still have our Green Paladin."

"Should we tell them?"

"And give them the chance to turn tail and run? Pfft, no."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Don't Move"

The Paladins were relaxing in the lounge on a rare day of peace. Pidge was typing away on her lap top and Hunk was helping her, Lance was messing around with his data pad, Shiro was reading, and Keith was doing something with a pencil and pad of paper. Shiro was bored and started to stretch.

"Don't move!"

Shiro froze and looked over at Keith, whose eyes were locked onto Shiro. "What?"

"Don't move. I was almost done with my sketch."

"You were sketching me?"

Keith blushed slightly. "It's so rare to see you so relaxed, so I figured I'd do a quick sketch as proof that you do relax."

"Is it really that rare that I relax?" Shiro asked the room.

"Definitely," Pidge replied without looking up from her lap top.

"Agreed," Hunk chimed in.

"Of course." Lance's eyes were still glued to his data pad.

Shiro was surprised. He truly thought he had taken time out of the quintant to relax. He settled back in to the position he had been in when they had entered the lounge. "All right, Keith. Sketch away."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Bleeding Out"

Lance and Shiro stood in front of the healing pod Keith was occupying. It was hard to believe that Keith was part Galra, but the proof was undeniable. If Lance hadn't wanted to believe the Leader of the Blades, Kolivan, he didn't have much choice but to believe Shiro, when the leader of the Paladins confirmed it.

Lance shook his head briefly. He didn't know what to think. His rival-crush was part Galra, always had been according to the two leaders. He had been part Galra when they met all those years ago at the Garrison, so it didn't really matter that they found out now.

%%%

Kolivan watched as the two Paladins stood in front of the healing pod containing the young Galra. It was strange that he didn't look even part Galra though. What did it mean? Why wasn't his heritage visible? Perhaps the two Paladins would have the answers he sought.

He approached the Black and Blue Paladins. He hadn't even realized that either of them noticed him until Shiro turned slightly in his direction. "Kolivan?"

Kolivan wasn't looking at Shiro or even Lance but at the healing pod containing Keith. "He wasn't supposed to get injured in the Trials. It's a test of endurance and ingenuity, designed as a way to face your fears and force you to make a choice. Knowledge or death."

"He shouldn't have had to undergo any trial, especially one with such stakes. He's barely an adult!"

"But he chose to go through them."

"He is only eighteen with his whole life ahead of him!"

Kolivan jerked his head, looking at Shiro. "Eighteen?"

"Yes. He is eighteen-years-old!"

"Years?"

"Uh, years translates to deca-phoebes. So, Keith is eighteen deca-phoebes old."

"Eighteen deca-phoebes?! He's a mere kit!" Kolivan's ears drooped. "I sent a kit through the Trials!"

"A kit?" Lance questioned. "What's that?"

"A kit is a Galran child."

"But Keith is an adult."

"On Earth, maybe, but in Galran culture, he is a very young kit. As Galra can reach hundreds of deca-phoebes old, an eighteen-deca-phoebe-old full-blooded Galra is considered a toddler. Even though Keith is only part-Galra, he would still be considered a toddler."

Just then, the pod containing Keith beeped before the semi-clear front disappeared, and Keith fell out. Kolivan was close enough to catch him. He hefted the barely conscious kit into his arms. Keith's eyes fluttered open a tiny bit but didn't register that it was Kolivan holding him. However, the sensation of being cradled by a larger being reminded Keith of being held by his Dad, causing him to snuggle closer and purr to him. The purr startled Kolivan, but he still instinctively rumbled back to the still sleepy kit. He was happy that the kit didn't bleed out from his wound he received during his Trials. It gave Kolivan the chance to get to know the kit.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Fallen Soldiers 8: Back Home"

Haxus groaned. Damn that little Galran drone and the green child. He almost had it. Wait. He had fallen down the tube in the engine room, so why wasn't he dead? He shifted and bit back a scream. His entire left side ached as though he had gone through several rounds with his commander. He panted for a couple of ticks before he lifted his head to look around. He had apparently fallen just right and had been saved from dying by his utility belt getting snagged by an open grate. He twisted around, managed to grab the grate, and unhooked his belt, leaving him hanging by just his right hand. He hoisted himself up and into the vent.

Once he was inside the vent, he closed the grate and breathed a sigh of relief. Now, he just had to find Sendak and hope the commander wasn't too angry with his failure. Surely, his commander had dealt with the interlopers and had the ship take off. Maybe they would be near central command by now. He slipped nearly silent through the vent before he came across another grate that wasn't too far from the ground and didn't have any activity nearby. He carefully unlatched the grate and slid out, closing the grate before he slipped into the shadows of the room. He took the time to look around and realized where he was. He was surrounded by ships. It was the pod bay!

He looked around and was dismayed at the Altean blue color everything was. When he and Sendak had plugged their crystal in, everything turned the traditional Galran purple color. The Paladins must have overpowered the commander and taken back control of the castle, which meant he was in enemy territory. He needed to be very careful if he was to escape with his life, but what happened to Commander Sendak? He didn't want to leave his commander at the mercy of the Paladins.

He ended up hiding in the pod bay for several quintants, never venturing out from his spot until the castle shook. They were under attack. He decided to use this as a diversion to steal a pod and leave the castle without being seen.

It took longer than he liked to admit to figure out how to operate the Altean pod; however, he didn't manage to launch it before the castle began its descent to the surface of the planet, which turned out to be Balmera X-95-Vox. He had to wait for another opportunity to come.

It was another quintant before he got his chance. He had spent the time further familiarizing himself with the pod's controls. The tick he found the opportunity to launch the pod, he took it. However, he was faced with a cryopod of sorts just floating in deep space. He turned on the scanners and was astonished to find that it was Sendak sealed in the pod. He trackered the cryopod into his ship and set the autopilot to take them away from that region of space.

He turned to face his commander and fiddled with the controls until he managed to release him from the cryopod. He almost belatedly realized that he had to catch the commander as he wasn't fully awake yet. He braced himself and caught Sendak.

Neither he nor Sendak expected to feel as if they were being cleansed. Their minds, which had been tampered with, became clear, and their memories of their life before the Empire came back to them full force. Sendak lifted his head and stared at Haxus. "Hax?"

"Sen? Do you remember?"

"I remember, my mate." Sendak pulled Haxus even closer, relishing in holding his mate in his arms again. "Let's go home."

"Back to headquarters, you mean. Will they accept us back into their ranks?"

Sendak took the pod off autopilot and put in the coordinates for the Blade of Marmora headquarters. "I fully expect them to put us through the Trials of Marmora again."

"Ugh, the Trials were such a pain to go through the first time. I do not look forward to a repeat event."

"It's either that, or we go rogue. Personally, I'd rather we go home."

"Then, let's go home, Sen."

They traveled through space, avoiding any space vessels and reacquainting themselves with each other. They approached headquarters, and when they were close enough, Sendak sent an encrypted message containing his and Haxus's personal Blade codes. They were granted landing permission and were not surprised to see an armed squadron of Blades waiting for them in the hangar. They willingly went with them and even allowed them to removed Sendak's prosthetic arm. Sendak would need a new one once they completed the Trials again.

They were slightly surprised to not be taken to Kolivan first, but it wasn't a complete surprise as Antok was the one in charge of the squadron escorting them.

"We remember being Blades. We had been brainwashed by the Empire."

"As unlikely as that could be, you must undergo the Trials of Marmora again. Only if you pass will you be re-instated," Antok growled.

"We understand," Sendak answered for both him and his mate. The Trials were everything Sendak and Haxus remembered; however, they were able to pass them, earning their places back with the other Blades.

Haxus was pacing outside the med bay, where Sendak was being outfitted with a new arm prosthetic. The doors opened, revealing Sendak standing there with his new arm, and Haxus flung himself into his mate's arms, earning a chuckle from Thace and Ulaz.

"Come. We'll show you to your quarters."

Sendak left an arm wrapped around his mate's shoulders and led him down the hall, following the other pair of mates.

"Here are your quarters. There are enough pillows and blankets to make a nest for yourselves. When you are ready, you can join everyone for the late quintant meal," Thace offered.

"As tempting as that is, I think my mate and I will just stay in our nest. It has been a rough few quintants," Sendak replied.

Thace nodded and left with Ulaz in tow. Sendak and Haxus quickly and easily made a nest with the supplied blankets and pillows. The two new Blades relaxed in their nest, glad to be back home, where they truly belonged.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Bond"

Keith was sitting on top of Black Lion's head. He had been spending more time with Black Lion, bonding with the lion one leader to another. He would normally be standing, but he actually felt Black suggest to him that he should sit down this time. He did just that. He closed his eyes, trying to reach Black's consciousness. He didn't plan on falling asleep.

%%%

Allura peeked into the lounge. The sight was a let down. It was just Lance. She thought maybe Keith would be there with his crush. She and Keith both had a crush on Lance, and she and Lance both had a crush on Keith. It was also obvious that the two men had a crush on her.

"Allura? Can I help you with something?"

Allura smiled. "I was hoping Keith was here with you. Obviously, he's not."

"May I help you look?"

"Sure."

Lance stood up and offered his arm to the princess. "Shall we, milady?"

Allura smiled and took his offered arm. "Where do you think he may be?"

"Maybe on the training deck?"

"We can check." Allura let Lance lead her to where he and Keith liked to spar with each other. Unfortunately, it was empty. Allura frowned. "Where is he?"

"Well, after the lion swap, maybe he's bonding with Black some more."

"It'll be a little difficult to check, but I don't think there'll be any issues."

Lance led Allura to the Black Lion's hangar. They approached the lion, whose particle barrier was down, but they still couldn't see the top of Black's head. Lance craned his head up. "Keith? Are you up there?"

There was no answer. "I don't want to leave unless we know if he's up there or not."

"Way ahead of you, princess." Lance jumped from the floor to Black's paw and climbed the lion until he reached the head, Allura following in his footsteps.

They stared at the prone form of their boyfriend. "Is he okay?"

Lance knelt down and felt his wrist. He rolled his eyes. "He actually fell asleep."

"He's asleep? Should we leave him here?"

"I don't know, Allura. He could potentially roll off Black and get hurt."

"But how do we get him down?"

"You could get Blue as close to Black as you can and then I can leap into her mouth with Keith in my arms."

"Or you could just keep talking."

Allura and Lance turned and looked at Keith, who had opened his eyes. "Keith!"

Keith stood up. "Is there a problem?"

"Yeah. We couldn't find you."

"Aw, were you worried about me, Lance?"

"We both were, Keith."

"I didn't mean to worry either of you. I was just bonding with Black. She's the one who suggested that I sit instead of standing like I normally do."

"Black spoke to you?" Allura asked, laying a hand on Keith's arm.

"Not words. It was more of a feeling, but yes, it came from Black."

Keith tugged Allura close and reached out to Lance, who grinned and grasped Keith's hand.

"I think your bond with Black is already stronger than before."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Spending Time Together"

Keith was laying face down in the nest, but he wasn't alone. Eldir was with him, while the rest of his pack was doing their jobs. Keith had just gotten back from visiting the Paladins and, after getting checked out by Ulaz, had been ordered to get some rest. Keith didn't feel tired, but he knew better than to argue with Ulaz, so he laid down in the familial nest, surrounding himself with the scents of his pack. He had briefly lifted his head when he heard the door open. When he saw it was Eldir, he gave a chirp and laid his head back down.

Eldir chuckled at his grandkit's reaction and settled into the nest next to him, petting his hair. "Hello to you too, kit."

Keith smiled and softly purred at the affection. He had always loved having his hair stroked. Eldir didn't have a problem keeping the kit company while the pack finished their work for that quintant. He hadn't expected to be a part of his kit's pack once he stepped down from leading the Blades. Once kits become adults, they left their parents' pack and created their own. Usually, there was no merging of packs, but since Keith had come to trust him, there was no way he could stay away, even when he visited the other Paladins. Eldir couldn't believe that the universe's only hope was in the hands of a group of kits.

A louder purr drew him from his thoughts, and he looked down at the kit, who had actually fallen asleep. Eldir couldn't help but draw him into his arms, letting him cuddle him in his sleep. The older Blade started grooming the kit's hair in order to ensure his sleep was pleasant. Even though the kit was alien in appearance, he responded just like a full blooded Galran kit with a deeper purr and a snuggle. Eldir loved every dobosh he got to spend with Keith and every dobosh he would get to spend with him in the future, because they were pack.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Not Abandoned"

Keith looked around wildly. He couldn't see anything. "Hello? Shiro? Hunk? Pidge? Allura? Coran? Lance? Can anyone hear me?"

His words were swallowed by the darkness that surrounded him. Where were the others? Did they leave him like so many others had before? Wasn't he part of the team? Did he not belong anymore because he looked more Galra than before?

He shook his head. No, he had been reassured of his place by none other than Allura herself. The princess had pulled him in close to her and stroked his hair as she told him that he was the Paladin of not only the Red Lion but the Black Lion as well and was more than deserving of his place on the team. After those kind words, he had no reason to doubt his place. If he did, then the resulting group hug took care of those. So, if they hadn't left him, where were they?

%%%

The entire team of six Paladins had camped out in the nest they kept in the lounge and were in various stages of sleep, when they heard the distinct whimper of a Galran kit in distress. All five of them were instantly wide awake and crowded around Keith, waiting for Shiro to wake him up.

Shiro gently shook Keith's shoulder. "Keith. Come on, wake up, bud."

Keith's eyes flew open, and he was panting slightly, his fangs easily seen. After a couple of doboshes, he raised his head and looked at the assembled Paladins. "Guys? You're here?"

"Yeah. We're here. Why wouldn't we be?" Shiro asked, reaching out and stroking his cheek stripes.

Keith nuzzled Shiro's hands as he relayed his nightmare. "I was alone, and it was pitch black all around. I couldn't see anything, and no one was replying to my calls."

Allura scooted closer and stroked his hair. "You don't have to worry about us never being there for you. You are one of us. That will never change."

"You are our Red Paladin," Shiro said.

"And our Black Paladin," Lance added.

Keith snuggled against Shiro and purred. His tail was wrapped around Lance, and Allura was still stroking his hair. Keith was leaning against Hunk, while Pidge was leaning against his left side. In the middle of this group made Keith feel safe and secure, not only as a Paladin but as a member of the family.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Explosion"

Multiple, differently colored explosions littered the sky as the Galaxy Garrison set off fireworks to celebrate their liberation from the Fire of Purification and in honor of their heroes. However, one of the Paladins was hiding away from the loud noises inside one of the Voltron lions.

Keith was curled up in Red Lion's pilot seat, softly whimpering. Even though he was Black's Paladin, Red still considered him her cub, and she was wanting to comfort him. He didn't like the loud noises of the fireworks, which were amplified thanks to his Galra genes becoming more dominate over the two deca-phoebes he had spent in the Quantum Abyss with Krolia.

Red purred to her primary Paladin, making sure the explosions could not be heard, but even then he was still softly whimpering. She prodded their bond, coaxing him to join her in the space where lion and Paladin could freely interact. "Come to me, cub."

She was pleased to see him following her suggestion and appearing with her. She curled around him and used her tail to guide his head to rest against her as she softly purred to him. She could feel him shaking from the knowledge of what was happening outside in the real world. "You're okay, cub. I'm here with you. You're safe."

It took some time, but Keith started to relax enough to stop shaking and start purring back to her. She started grooming his hair, further soothing him. She could just hear him whisper "thank you" to her.

"You're very welcome, my sweet cub."

Fin

Chapter Text

"The Heir"

Everyone knew the mafia was in control of the city. True, there were law enforcement officers and business owners that operated independent from the mafia, but everyone knew who was truly in charge.

There were rumors in the street of a newly ascended member of the elitist group known as The Blades of Marmora, or The Blades. He was supposedly the grandson of the current leader and his sole heir, which made him a valuable member of the group.

It also made him a target for rogues who wished to either do harm to The Blades or The Heir himself. However, these attempts ended poorly for the poor saps who crossed The Blades. Even though The Heir was well guarded (usually), he was also well trained and always had multiple weapons on his person. Once word got out about the results of the attempted kidnappings, The Heir was soon known to be the most dangerous member of The Blades.

Even knowing all of this, Lance wasn't nervous about living in such a place. He constantly walked to the convenience store near his apartment to go to work. However, for the past two weeks he had had the feeling that he was being watched, but he could never see who it was.

He shuddered as he entered the little store, smiling lightly at his fellow cashier, a boy with long brown hair that was kept back in a ponytail. "Hey, Matt."

"Hey, Lance. Still being watched by your ninja?"

"Yeah." Lance had confessed to Matt about his feeling about being watched, and Matt surmised that it was one of The Blades, whom he likened to ninjas.

"Well, here's hoping to a quiet night." Matt raised his closed bottle of water for a toast. Lance copied his motions, and each boy took a drink.

%%%

Lance was glad his shift had truly been a quiet one as he had gotten time to do some college work. He was almost done with his term paper, but he could work on it tomorrow on his day off from work. He was walking back to his apartment when he was suddenly surrounded by several, scarred, and much larger men.

"What do we have here, boys? A plaything, perhaps? He's pretty enough to be one," the largest one, who seemed to be the leader, taunted.

"Maybe he'll last long enough for all of us."

Lance knew what they were talking about, and he also knew he couldn't fight all of them and win.

"Don't you lay a finger on him," an icy voice broke in. "He belongs to me."

"Who says we can't share?" the leader asked, mockingly.

A young man in his early twenties dressed in dark blue with a matching cape stepped forward. He yanked his hood off, exposing his shoulder length black hair and striking purple eyes. "I do."

"Oh, $#!+. It's him! It's The Heir!"

"Let's go!" the leader called out, and the group took off in several different directions.

However, The Heir didn't give chase. Instead, he turned to face the brunette he just saved. He had been watching him for a couple of weeks after having seen him at a bazaar a week before that.

"Are you all right?"

"Are you going to..." Lance couldn't even bring himself to finish his question.

The Heir's eyes widened in horror. "No! Of course not! My name's Keith, heir to The Blades of Marmora, and you are safe now."

Keith extended a hand in Lance's direction in greeting, and, once Lance had grasped his hand, he truly believed the other's words.

Fin

Chapter Text

"De-Aged Lotor"

By the time Allura and Lotor made it to the lounge, Shiro, Pidge, Hunk, Acxa, Ezor, and Lance were already gathered in the large nest kept in there. Allura joined the group immediately, while Lotor settled next to her, slightly pressed up against her leg. The various bottles and containers scattered around the nest drew Lotor's attention. Lance noticed this and explained what everything was.

"Now that we're all here, we can start. We are going to do facials, manicures, and pedicures. Allura also promised that I could braid her hair."

Allura smiled. "I remember my promise, Lance."

Lance grinned even wider. The next few doboshes passed quickly as Lance helped everyone pin their hair back and apply face masks that were better than the ones Lance found on Earth because they used Altean exfoliants. While Lance was moving over to Allura's side in order to braid her hair, Ezor and Acxa picked out nail polish colors, and Ezor painted Acxa's claws a pretty violet color, and Acxa returned the favor once they were dry, painting Ezor's a light blue that matched one of her stripes.

Shiro picked up a small, rectangular, blue box. "Rejuvenating Slim? What is that?"

"I got that at the marketplace on the last planet
we liberated. The lady at the stall said it was safe for all races to use."

"How certain are you?" Lotor asked, eying the box warily. "It sounds like it might de-age whoever uses it."

"It doesn't. I've incorporated it into my night time schedule, so there are no lasting effects aside from smooth skin," Lance answered as he braided Allura's hair.

Lotor looked around the nest as Shiro was painting Pidge's fingernails green, and Hunk was painting his own toenails yellow. Lance had finished braiding Allura's hair and was now offering her a choice of polish color. She chose a shimmery silver color. It was rather boring to the five-deca-phoebe-old kit. He yawned and snuggled against Allura's leg some more as he got more comfortable. The sounds of the spa day washed over him, lulling him to sleep.

A soft purr was heard over the small talk that was going on. Acxa and Ezor immediately noticed that Lotor had fallen asleep, snuggled against Allura's leg. Acxa made her way closer and gently began grooming her de-aged brother's headfur.

Allura gently laid her right hand, which now had dry nails, on Lotor's side. She knew kits required a lot of sleep and was willing to let him sleep the quintant away. She was just glad that she was able to witness this side of the Emperor, whom she may or may not have a small crush on.

TBC

Chapter Text

"Beaten"

All was quiet in the Castle of Lions, which was slightly unnerving even though there were only seven people of the ship at any given time. Just then, the door to the training deck opened, and out walked a slightly scowling Lance and a smirking Keith.

"I almost had you!" Lance exclaimed.

"Almost doesn't count, Sharpshooter, and you know it," Keith replied. "Maybe next time."

"Who says there will be a next time?"

"Allura actually." Keith paused for a tick. "And Shiro too. They both want us to work on our teamwork."

"I don't know what they are talking about. We are a good team."

Keith's smirk turned into a frown. "Not good enough that you remember our bonding moment."

"Well, excuse me for being unconscious." Lance turned to face Keith as both had stopped walking, though neither one realized it. "You could try it again."

"And have you claim not to remember it? No thanks."

Lance brought a hand up to cup Keith's cheek. "I doubt I'd forget it this time."

Keith closed his eyes and leaned into Lance's hand with a soft purr, subconsciously taking a few steps closer. Lance leaned down and gently captured Keith's lips with his own. When they pulled back slightly, Keith opened his eyes. "Remember that?"

"Cheeky kitten." There was no heat behind Lance's words, and he went in for another kiss, which was eagerly given to him.

Fin

Chapter Text

"De-Aged Lotor"

Chapter Four

While the others were relaxing in the lounge, Regris and Keith had rested after lunch before they were allowed to be on the training deck. They were sparing...or rather, that was what is was supposed to be. However, it had quickly but expectedly devolved into a play fight.

The brothers circled each other, both daring the other to make the first move. Keith took a few rapid steps forward in an attempt to trick Regris into making the first actual move. It was a maneuver he had actually learned on Earth, so he figured his eldest brother might not realized what it was, which was the case as the eldest kit jumped to the left, thinking Keith was heading in that direction. He was slightly confused when he saw Keith was in the opposite place he thought he would be in. The smirk on Keith's face clued Regris into the fact that he had been tricked. His tail lashed against the floor in slight agitation, but truthfully, he was proud of how much his littlest brother had grown and learned during his first mission. However, that was not going to work a second time.

He quickly charged at Keith, determined to plant him into the floor. He wasn't expecting Keith to jump over him and roll out of the range of his tail. Just as Regris turned, he felt a sharp yank on his tail. He quickly turned his head but was unable to see what had happened as he was shoved into the floor and pinned quite effectively. There was no way he could get loose and claim victory over his brother.

"I concede."

With those words, the pressure on his extremities was lessened, and Keith extended a hand to help his eldest brother up. "Thanks for the fight, Reg."

"That was kind of a dirty trick, Keith. Pulling my tail."

Keith smirked. "Got you to stop, didn't it?"

"He's got a point, kit. The enemy isn't going to play fair. You have to be aware of your surroundings and never underestimate your opponent. You were too complacent in your knowledge of your brother's skills."

"Lot of good that did me. He definitely learned things on Earth." Regris tucked himself under his Dad's chin. Antok chuckled and groomed the sweat out of Regris's headfur.

"Who wants to go next?" Keith was almost bouncing on the balls of his feet. He had so much energy that he couldn't stand still.

"No, you don't, kit. It's actually time to eat dinner," Krolia answered.

"But, Mom-" Keith started.

"No buts, Keith. I know you think you have an abundance of energy, but once you stop moving and relax, you'll fall asleep," Krolia spoke knowledgeably.

Keith resisted the urge to whine but still followed his pack to the dining hall. He noticed that everyone else was there, but Lotor was napping in Allura's arms.

"Princess, what are your intentions with my kit?" Kolivan asked.

"I...would like to get closer to him, but when he's back to normal," Allura admitted.

Krolia smiled. "That would be just fine, though right now he needs to wake up so he can eat."

Allura nodded and gently caressed his forehead with her right hand. "Lotor, wake up."

A sleepy chirp left him as he opened his eyes, and his eyes focused on the others present at the table. He noticed that he was in Allura's arms. He purred to her and nuzzled her neck. Allura smiled and ran her fingers through his headfur.

Kolivan rumbled to his kit, catching his attention. "Daddy?"

"It's time to eat, kit. You can sleep after if you are still tired."

Lotor sat up in Allura's lap but didn't make a move to leave. Dinner was a quiet affair as it was obvious that Lotor was still really tired. Allura made sure he stayed awake enough to eat.

Once dinner was over, Kolivan scooped up his kit, who snuggled against his chest, tucking his head under his chin. "I'm taking our kit back to the nest. We won't be out until the morning."

Keith watched as his father figure carry his brother out of the dining hall before he turned to Allura. "How sure are you that he will be back to normal in the morning?"

Allura stood up and walked over to Keith. She stroked his hair, recognizing that he was just worried about his brother. "I am positive that he will be back to normal after the night cycle. You needn't worry."

Keith purred and gently nuzzled her hand. "Thanks. I just needed the reassurance."

%%%

Kolivan laid down in the nest with Lotor laying on his chest. He softly rumbled to his sleeping kit, who was purring in response. He had missed his kit being small enough to lay on his chest, but he knew his kit, all of his kits in fact, were key players in the liberation of the universe, and Lotor needed to be his adult self. He dipped his head down and began grooming his headfur as he waited for the rest of his pack to join them. He wasn't expecting to fall asleep before that happened.

Keith, Krolia, Thace, Ulaz, Antok, Regris, Acxa, and Ezor returned to the nest, and they were slightly surprised that Kolivan had fallen asleep with Lotor on his chest. They all entered the nest and curled around the leader and the de-aged kit.
None of them fell asleep immediately. They just nuzzled each other and purred or rumbled as they relaxed in each other's company. The adults of the pack realized that the kits were getting tired, even Keith, just as Krolia had expected. Each adult pulled a kit over to them and rumbled to them, grooming their headfur at the same time. Once the kits were asleep, the adults didn't see any reason they should stay awake and allowed themselves to sink into slumber.

%%%

It was still relatively early in the morning cycle, but something felt different to Kolivan versus when he had gone to sleep. He cracked an eye open and was met with a large amount of white headfur. He opened his other eye to get a full view of what had happened. He was met with the sight of a full grown Lotor sleeping on his chest. His kit was indeed back to normal, just as the princess had stated. As it was still early in the morning cycle, Kolivan closed his eyes, curling his arms around his full grown kit, pleased that his kit would be able to resume his role as the Emperor of the Galra Empire. A smile was on Kolivan's face as the thought crossed his mind that he might have the Altean Princess as a member of his pack, especially since it seemed entirely likely that Allura and Lotor would begin a courting ritual. However, that was a thought for later in the quintant. At that moment, he just wanted to enjoy his pack in its entirety as it was always meant to be.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Protecting A Kit"

Allura wanted to scream at the Blades, but she knew she couldn't. She just couldn't believe her ears or eyes. The mission that five Blades had been on got compromised, forcing them to do a quick escape. Each of the Blades had gotten injured to some extent, but Keith got the worst of it. The team requested to meet up with the Paladins and use their medical bay. If that had been all, Allura wouldn't have even batted an eye; however, she knew Keith was a kit and thus needed comfort when injured, but he was sitting by himself. Allura could tell he was in immense pain due to a deep gash across his chest.

"Send me your coordinates, and I will open a wormhole for you."

"You have our gratitude, Princess," Kolivan stated before closing the channel.

Allura huffed before issuing orders. "Coran, ready a pod for Keith. Paladins, we'll need a nest in the pod room for when Keith gets out. Make sure to grab something that has everyone's scent."

Coran immediately left to prepare a healing pod for Keith, but the rest of the Paladins stayed put. Allura received the coordinates and was opening a wormhole when Shiro mentioned, "Allura, we noticed that you are angry that Keith is injured, and we are too, but you seem even angrier than I am."

"Keith is part Galra and a Paladin, but he's also a Galran kit. Kits need comfort when injured, but none of the Blades were even looking at him. You can't tell me that's normal, because Thace and Ulaz were cuddled up with each other. Surely, they had enough room to include Keith in that cuddle session. I refuse to let him go without comfort. Not on my ship. Now, go make a nest. I will join you after I get the items from my room that need to be added."

%%%

Keith was used to the pain from various injuries, so he knew there was something else going on when he saw Thace and Ulaz cuddling and even Antok brushing his claws across the back of Kolivan's neck. He knew they were mates, but why didn't they even ask him if he needed anything? They had seen he was hurt, and Ulaz did determine that he wasn't going to die without immediate medical treatment, but Keith really wanted...a hug. He knew it was childish, but hugs always felt so nice. Before he left for the Blades, the Paladins and Alteans were always willing to give hugs or pats on the back, and he missed that.

He was glad when he saw Coran in the hangar but was dismayed that he was the only one there. He had hoped the other Paladins and Allura would be there to greet him. Coran immediately came up to Keith and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "Come, my boy. The others are setting up the pod room for when you come out."

"What do you mean?"

Coran led Keith to the pod room, where he saw the others setting up a comfortable nest. He couldn't help the soft purr or the smile that crept up despite being injured. Allura's head shot up at the sound of the purr. She smiled and came to Keith's other side. "Let's get you into a pod, Keith. You'll be healed up in no time and then spend some time with us in this nest."

Keith saw the almost completed nest when Allura gestured to it. It looked so comfortable that Keith almost wanted to forego the pod to lay in it, but he knew that wasn't an option. He merely nodded and allowed the Alteans to help him into a pod.

Once the semi-clear front of the pod appeared, Allura allowed a scowl to appear on her face as she faced the other Blades. "How dare you treat Keith like this?! Don't you care about him?"

"Of course we care about Keith. He is a valuable member of the organization," Thace replied.

"He is a kit!"

The four Blades paused, looking from the enraged princess to the pod containing the newest Blade and finally at each other.

"Surely you jest. He cannot be a kit. He is quite skilled in combat. True, he needs to work on his stealth abilities, but he wouldn't have passed the Trials if he was a kit," Kolivan answered.

"But that is what happened!" Allura insisted.

"What proof do you have that confirms this?" Antok questioned.

Allura pulled out her data pad and opened a video file. "About three movements ago, Shiro, Pidge, Hunk, and Lance had gone on a mission, but Keith remained on board. Coran and I had set out to look for Keith when we realized that we hadn't seen him all quintant. When we found him, he was in his room, fresh from a shower and sleeping. This is a short video that should prove what I said is true."

Allura started the video, which showed Keith laying on his bed in just a pair of pants with a towel partially draped over his hair. He was obviously asleep, but the surprising thing to the Blades was that he was unmistakably purring. That alone wasn't a surprise, but the fact that it was a high pitched purr, exactly the sound a kit would make. When Allura ended the video, she was shocked to see the Blades' ears drooped. One of them was whimpering softly, but they were standing so close together that Allura couldn't be sure which one it was.

"We didn't know. It's no excuse, but it's true," Thace stated.

Ulaz turned to Shiro. "Please, exactly how old is he?"

"He's eighteen."

That statement was met with a whine from all four Blades.

"Eighteen?"

"He's that young?!"

"He's such a young kit!"

"We've been ignoring a tiny kit and allowing him to go on missions. It is a lapse in judgement that we will rectify immediately. He will be offered a place in our pack and will be treated like a kit."

"That's not fair to Keith," Shiro stated. "He's been on his own for so long and had been fighting his whole life, so to take that from him would be a hell of a feat and completely unnecessary. Include him in your pack, but do not treat him like a child. He only needs physical affection-"

"He's a kit! Of course he needs physical affection!" Thace interrupted.

Ulaz placed a hand on his mate's shoulder to calm him. "We will take care of him, starting when he exits the pod, which will be when?"

"Since his injuries were superficial aside from the one on his chest, he should be out in a couple of vargas."

%%%

The front of the pod disappeared, and Keith felt himself falling but was unable to stop himself, so he braced himself to hit the floor. A pair of strong arms prevented his fall, and Keith instinctively snuggled against his savior. He was surprised to feel and hear a rumble in response but couldn't resist purring in reply. He also felt himself carried to the nest the Paladins had set up. Keith didn't want to open his eyes, but he had to as he couldn't figure out who had caught him.

His first thought had been Shiro but the oldest Paladin couldn't rumble. His next thought had been that it was Hunk, but once again, the Yellow Paladin couldn't rumble. He supposed that it could have been either of them talking, but it didn't really sound like words. Keith cracked an eye open and nearly let out a chirp. It was Kolivan that was holding him.

Kolivan noticed that the kit was starting to panic slightly at being held by him. He gently settled the kit into the nest but still had him tucked against his side. "It's all right, Keith. You are safe with the Paladins, the Alteans, and us."

Keith slowly opened both eyes and took in his surroundings. He was in the nest and surrounded by everyone who had been there when he had been brought in. He gave a small smile. "Hi. Wha-"

Ulaz rumbled to him. "Take it easy, kit. You're still under the effects of the healing pod. You should rest."

Keith accepted the blanket that Shiro wrapped around his shoulders but furrowed his brow at the unfamiliar term Ulaz had used. "Kit? What does that mean?"

"It's a term for a Galran child. We had not realized that you were actually a kit until the princess provided us with proof," Ulaz replied.

"I'm not a child! Wait. What proof?"

"It's a video of you purring in your sleep."

Keith blushed in embarrassment. He turned to face Allura. "Please delete that!"

"Does it cause you distress? It was not my intention, Keith." Allura looked dismayed at unintentionally distressing Keith.

"It's embarrassing." Keith ducked under the blanket that had been around his shoulders, effectively hiding his face from view.

The Paladins chuckled at Keith's actions, while Antok slid his hand under the blanket and stroked Keith's hair in a soothing manner. Keith couldn't help the purr rising in his throat at the affection. It was the same purr that had been in the video the princess had taken, further proof that Keith was indeed a kit, not that further proof had been necessary. Once the Blades were shown proof that their newest member was just a kit, they immediately adopted him into their pack. He was their kit, whether he acted like one or not, and they would protect him with their very lives.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Fearless"

Ulaz stared at the little kit, who was staring back at him from atop a tall cabinet. "Kit! Come down here this instant!"

"Okay, Papa!" Keith crouched down in preparation to jump. Ulaz's eyes widened a tick before Keith jumped. He tried to calculate where the kit would land, but he misjudged and ended up crashing to the floor of the med bay with the excited kit sitting safely on his back. "That was fun! Can I do it again?"

Ulaz muttered under his breath about having more white fur than ever before replying, "No, kit. How about we go see Thace?"

"Yeah! Let's go see Daddy!"

The med bay staff suppressed their chuckles until the head doctor was out of hearing distance. It always amused them to see him catering to his young kit's wants.

%%%

Thace could hear his kit coming before he actually laid eyes on him. He was chattering to Ulaz as the duo headed in his direction. He waited until they were close enough before he stood up, data pad in hand. He knew the communications room was boring to Keith, so he planned on doing inventory of a nearby storage room that had plenty of places for a kit to hide. Playing hide and seek was a game kits loved to play, even though it was usually used to hone the skills they would use as operatives when they  grew up.

The tick Thace saw his kit and mate, he knew he would be taking Keith even if he hadn't planned on it. 

"Daddy!"

Keith jumped from Ulaz's arms into Thace's, which weren't that far. Thace easily caught his kit and nuzzled him, even as he drew his mate into his arms for some affection. Ulaz relaxed against the violet furred Blade, glad to be in his company once again. He leaned against Thace's shoulder and whispered quietly enough that Keith couldn't hear, "Keith has been a handful this morning. I could really use some time away from him, if for no other reason than to calm my nerves."

"Well, it's good that I plan on taking him to the nearby storage room to play hide and seek, then, isn't it?" Thace said loud enough for Keith to hear.

Keith grinned brightly. "Hide and seek? Really, Daddy?"

Thace tickled the kit lightly, causing him to squirm slightly and giggle. "Really, kit."

Ulaz gently planted a kiss on his mate's lips before ruffling his kit's headfur. "Have fun, you two. I have work in the med bay to get back to."

"Bye bye, Papa!"

"I'll see you later, my mate." Thace nosed Ulaz's headfur.

"Good luck with the kit. You'll need it."

Thace watched Ulaz walk out of the communications room with a small sense of foreboding. What could Ulaz have meant by needing luck?

%%%

It wasn't too much longer before Thace knew exactly what Ulaz meant. Keith was apparently in a climbing phase, but unlike pure Galran kits who had a fear of heights, the little Galran hybrid found it thrilling to be so high up. He also found it thrilling to jump from such a height. The first time Keith jumped off the tall stacks of crates, Thace hated to admit it, but he definitely yowled, thinking his kit was going to get hurt. Fortunately, Keith didn't get hurt and was back to climbing on top of the stacks of crates.

Thace tried to get Keith interested in playing hide and seek as it was one of Keith's favorite games, but the little hybrid was more interested in climbing and jumping. However, it wasn't the safest activity to engage in in the storage room, so he had to take the kit somewhere else, and he had just the place in mind.

%%%

Kolivan wasn't expecting Thace or their kit to pay him a visit in his office that quintant. However, he wasn't adverse to spending time with the kit. "Hello, kit."

"Father!"

Kolivan smiled. The kit had just learned how to say "father," and it warmed his heart everytime he heard it. He stood up, walked closer to the duo, and held him arms out. "Come here, kit."

"Okay!" Keith jumped from his Daddy's arms into Kolivan's, startling the leader a bit.

"That was a large jump, kit. Weren't you frightened?"

"Nuh uh. It was fun!"

"Fun?"

"Uh huh. Can I get down please?"

Kolivan set down the kit, who scampered off while the leader looked at Thace for an explanation. "Apparently, Keith is in a climbing phase, but unlike full Galran kits, he isn't afraid of heights and delights in jumping from high locations."

"I see. You may leave him here. Perhaps I can get him to nap."

"Very well." Thace turned to look at his kit, who was trying to get a look at what was on Kolivan's desk. "Be good, kit. I'll see you later."

"Bye bye, Daddy!"

Thace left, and Kolivan turned to see what Keith was up to. However, in the few moments no one was looking at him, the kit had scaled the tallest bookcase in Kolivan's office and was happily sitting atop it, swinging his tiny legs back and forth.

"Kit, come down!" Kolivan realized his poor word choice when the kit grinned widely and jumped from his perch.

Kolivan would deny that he yowled when the kit jumped. He didn't know how the kit managed to land safely in the nest he kept in the corner, though he was glad that he was safe.

Just then, the door to his office opened, and Antok walked in. Antok took one look at the scene in the office and guessed that Kolivan could use some help with the kit. "Need some help, 'Van?"

"I need you to watch the kit. He's in a climbing phase, and I can't watch him and go over these reports at the same time."

Antok grinned at and approached the kit. "Do you want to come with me, kit?"

Keith grinned and scampered out of the nest and up onto Antok's back, Antok's tail coming up to secure the kit to his back. Antok left the office but not without a caress and purr directed at Kolivan, who gratefully sat back behind his desk.

Antok walked to one of the smaller training halls, which was empty. Keith wiggled slightly and clambered up to sit on Antok's shoulders. "Can we play fight?"

"Certainly."

"Yay!" Keith cheered and jumped from Antok's shoulders, but the tailed Blade actually managed to catch the kit.

"That was a bit dangerous, kit."

"I was okay, Dad. I've done it before from taller things."

"Did you get in trouble?"

"No."

"So, it falls to me to punish you." Antok gently laid the kit down on the ground and proceeded to tickle him. Keith started thrashing, squealing, and giggling. Keith's laughter rang through the base, delighting all who heard it.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Up In The Air"

The Blades were on their way to the training deck, sure their kit was training. They weren't wrong per se. Keith was on the training deck, but he wasn't training. Instead, his eyes were glued to a figure suspended from the ceiling on red silk ropes. The Blades weren't surprised to see that it was the Blue Paladin that had captured their kit's attention. They knew of his crush on his teammate but didn't know why he didn't just confess to him.

Thace opened his mouth to say something and was surprised to hear a hissing sound from their kit. "Shh. Don't say anything. It might distract him."

The Blades returned to watching the brunette swing around and flip around while suspended from the ropes. They were fairly certain that the Paladin knew they were there, but they remained quiet as their kit requested. They were quite impressed by his skills and his flexibility. They had only thought that their kit was that flexible. Maybe it was a human trait?

A soft purr drew their attention back to their kit. His eyes were glued to the brunette as he executed a graceful and impressive move of bending over backwards to grab some of the silk ropes that were dangling from his feet. The Blades were convinced that Keith didn't realize that he was purring or that was a sign that he was at ease in Lance's presence. It was a definitive sign that the kit's Galran side saw Lance as a potential mate. The Blades thought it was a good sign and hoped the two kits weren't opposed to the idea.

%%%

Lance knew that Keith was watching him again. The Red Paladin seemed to know when he was on the training deck and entered when Lance was still warming up (off the ropes). He hadn't expected the Blades to make their way there or to watch him. It didn't make him nervous to have an audience. It reminded him of home, where his family would watch him practice. It warmed it heart that his found family was the same way.

He carefully made his way down the silks, having been practicing for several vargas. Once his feet were on the floor, Keith approached him clapping as he always did. "That was amazing, Lance."

Lance blushed. "You always say that."

"Because it's true." Keith's purr was easily heard in his voice

The Blades hung back, content to watch the kits interact. They seemed like mates already, but they knew they weren't as they couldn't smell Lance on their kit. When two beings became mates, their scents joined. It was a way to tell who was taken and who wasn't.

Thace couldn't take anymore of their pining (as the Green and Yellow Paladins called it) and said something he heard the Green Paladin yell at her data pad when she was watching a holo vid. "Kiss already!"

Ulaz wrapped his hand around his mate's mouth, but it was too late. Both kits' cheeks were as red as the silks Lance had been using.

Kolivan pinched bridge of nose. Antok threw Thace over his shoulder and carried him out of training deck, calling out, "Our apologies, kits."

Keith and Lance watched as all four Blades left the training deck.

"What just happened?"

"I think Thace has been spending too much time with Pidge."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Lethargy"

Keith dragged his feet as he made his way to the nest. He didn't know why he felt drained. He hadn't done any training that would account for his lack of energy. He had tried to go about his quintant, but his lethargy had been noticed by his pack.

Antok walked beside the kit, intent on making sure he made it to the nest, though he was having a hard time not picking up the kit and carrying him to the nest room. He had offered the kit the option of being carried or walking to the nest on his own, and Keith had insisted that he could make it to the nest on his own.

Antok was hesitant to let the kit be alone, especially when they weren't entirely sure what was wrong with him. He was close with the kit and cared deeply for him. He loved when Keith snuggled against him during the night cycle. He loved it even more when Keith laid on top of him.

%%%

Keith didn't mind that Antok was walking beside him. He was very close to asking him to carry him, his pride be damned. He felt empty inside and tired with a headache growing. He finally recognized it for what it was. He was needing affection; more than just the usual hug and nuzzle. He needed to be enveloped and felt fortunate that Antok was the one who was accompanying him.

"Antok?"

"Yes, kit?"

"Can you...um, can you..." Keith couldn't bring himself to ask the question.

Antok smiled, knowing what the kit was wanting to ask, and opened his arms. "Come here, kit."

Keith smiled shyly and walked over to the large Blade. He nuzzled into Antok's chest, liking the feeling of his arms enveloping him in the love. He felt the love surrounding him and couldn't help but purr.

Antok heard Keith's purr and gave into his instincts, scooping the kit up into his arms and carrying him to the nest. They entered the nest room and settled into the nest. Keith didn't move from his place in Antok's arms. On the contrary, he snuggled in even further, purring even louder.

Antok rumbled to Keith to soothe him even further and realized that Keith was falling asleep. He wasn't going to let Keith go, allowing him to sleep on his chest, which was something he hadn't even realized that he wanted too.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Ailing Keith"

Shiro didn't know what woke him up at first. It couldn't be Adam snoring, which was a reason he couldn't get to sleep rather than something that would wake him up. So, what was it?

He twitched his right arm, glad it moved as it meant that a sleep paralysis demon wasn't perched at the end of his bed. He slowly opened one of his eyes, waiting for it to acclimate to the darkness.

However, he saw softly glowing, yellow eyes. If he hadn't registered that he knew those eyes, he would have screamed. As it was, he smiled gently and opened his other eye. "Keith? What's wrong, bud?"

He heard a sniffle and a whisper, "I'm sorry, Shiro. I didn't mean to."

"Didn't mean to what? To wake me up? Don't worry about that."

Keith shook his head. "It's not that. I-"

Shiro was concerned when he saw Keith run from the room to the adjoined bathroom. The tell tales sounds of someone throwing up into the toilet could be heard, which made Shiro wince. He didn't know exactly how Keith was going to take being taken care of, but he had come to Shiro on his own accord, so he might be expecting it. Shiro didn't know if Keith wanted him to be in the bathroom with him, but when he heard Keith whine, he knew he had to go in.

The strange thing was there were noises Keith made that weren't human. Shiro and Adam had both heard it but never acted like he wasn't human. It had been something that Keith had confided in them about. Some of his previous Foster families heard the noises and punished him for making those noises. Shiro and Adam made sure to assure Keith that it was okay with them to make those noises when he wanted to. The whine was a noise that told them that he needed help and affection.

Shiro got up from the bed and went over to Keith's side. He called out, "Keith?" to let the teen know he was coming in. He gently rubbed Keith's back. "It's okay, bud. I'm here. I've got ya."

Keith whined again but softer. Shiro scooted a little closer to him. "Do you want a hug?"

Keith looked at Shiro and gave a questioning noise. It was a noise that conveyed confusion. Shiro held his arms out. "You can come here, bud, if you want."

Keith moved slowly and leaned into Shiro's embrace. Shiro wrapped his arms around the teen and wasn't surprised to feel Keith nuzzle into his shoulder. Shiro raised a hand and stroked Keith's hair, which was something he knew that Keith found comforting.

"Let's move out of the bathroom. You can lay down in the living room, on the couch."

"Can I just stay in my nest?" The question was barely louder than a whisper.

Shiro smiled. Keith didn't sleep in a bed but in an organized pile of pillows and blankets he called a nest. It gave him comfort and made him feel safe. "Of course."

Shiro carefully shifted his hold on the teen and lifted him up off the floor. "You feeling okay, bud?"

"Yeah. For now."

Shiro exited the bathroom but paused when he saw Adam sitting up in the bed, his hair mussed from sleeping. "Takashi?"

"It's okay, Adam. Keith is sick-"

"Sick? Does he need anything? Does he want to sleep here?"

"No. He wants to go back to his nest."

"Okay. If that's what he wants. Our bed is open to you whenever you want, kiddo."

Keith chirped, making Adam smile at the noise. It was a noise that meant one of two things, either excitement or agreement; it just depended on the situation.

"Let's get you to your nest, so you can rest."

Shiro carried Keith to his room and gently laid him into the nest. When he turned to leave, he heard a whimper. That was a new noise, and as such, it made Shiro pause and turn around to face Keith. "Keith?"

"C-can you stay...for a little while?"

"Of course." Shiro sat down next to the nest, and Keith repositioned himself so he could have a hand resting on Shiro's knee. Keith closed his eyes, wanting to get some rest.

Shiro pulled out his tablet to get some work done, while Keith rested. He planned on slipping away once Keith fell asleep. However, he didn't plan on falling asleep, leaning against the nest.

%%%

Adam was waiting for Shiro to come back to bed, but after a couple of hours, he finally got up to see what was keeping his fiancée from returning. He quietly walked to Keith's room and heard a comforting noise. Keith was purring. He looked into the room and saw his fiancée and Keith both asleep. A smile appeared on his face, and he slipped back to the room he shared with Shiro, grabbing a couple of blankets before coming back to Keith's room. He draped a blanket over Shiro and settled down next to him under the other blanket. He closed his eyes and laid against Shiro's shoulder, lulled to sleep by Keith's purring.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Taking Rest"

Shiro wasn't sure what had woken him at first, but it soon became apparent that Lance was having a nightmare. He carded his fingers through his hair, soothing his brunette Omega. Once Lance was settled, Shiro shifted slightly to check on the other Omega but he wasn't there. Shiro's eyes widened slightly. He had been there when they had gone to bed. So, where was he?

Shiro gently tucked the blankets around Lance, so he wouldn't get cold while he looked for Keith. He slipped out of the nest and started looked for him. He hoped Keith wasn't on the training deck, but that was the place Shiro checked first.

However, the lights on the training deck were off, which meant that Keith wasn't there. That gave Shiro pause. SInce Keith wasn't there, the next place to check would be the lion's hangars. Shiro hurried to Black's hangar, but seeing Black's particle barrier was down spurred the Alpha to hurry to check Red's hangar. Once again, the particle barrier was down, meaning that Keith wasn't there either. Shiro stood in the entrance to Red's hangar, trying to think of where else to look.

Red Lion noticed when Shiro appeared and knew he was looking for Keith. She also knew where her Paladin was, on the bridge asleep in his Paladin seat. He needed to sleep in his nest, so she reached out to Black to talk to her Paladin.

"Black, can you tell Shiro that Keith is on the bridge? Shiro is obviously looking for him."

"Of course," Black replied. "Shiro."

Shiro jolted slightly. "Black?"

"The little one is on the bridge. He's asleep in his Paladin seat."

"Keith's on the bridge?"

"Go get him. He needs to sleep in your nest."

"Agreed. Thanks."

"You're welcome, my Paladin."

Shiro hastened to the bridge and saw that Keith was truly curled up asleep in the Red Paladin seat. Shiro smiled and gently scooped up the raven haired Omega, rumbling softly to ensure that he didn't wake.

Keith snuggled into Shiro's chest, seeking his warmth and his scent. His subconscious recognized that he was with his Alpha. Shiro carried Keith into his room, which was where the three of them slept at night, and into the nest. He laid Keith down into the nest beside Lance, who rolled over and snuggled into the other Omega. Shiro laid down on Keith's other side and draped an arm over both of his Omegas. The presence of both his Omega and their Alpha soothed Keith to the point of allowing him to purr.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Burn"

Everyone was gathered in the pod room, worn out from their battle with Lotor but glad they didn't have to sacrifice the Castle of Lions to seal the rifts. Allura's knowledge of Altean alchemy she learned on Oriande was a true blessing. Not only did she seal the rifts, but she also restored Shiro's consciousness into the clone's body. At that moment, Shiro was in a cryopod, so it gave everyone else a moment to relax or it would if Krolia didn't bring up an important topic.

"Kit, where did you get that burn?"

"Yeah, buddy. We were wondering about that ourselves, but being in a high stakes battle didn't give us a chance to ask," Lance added.

"Oh, uh, I got it when I had to fight Shiro or rather the clone of Shiro."

"How did he-" Allura trailed off. "I mean, you were wearing your helmet."

"One solid punch to the bottom of the helmet had it flying off." Keith's right hand gestured to his chin, where there was a large bruise blossoming. In fact, in the bright light of the castle, everyone could see just how beat up the Black Paladin was.

"Why don't we put you in a pod too, Number Four? You could use it," Coran suggested.

"No thanks. I will be fine after some rest," Keith refused. He didn't like the pod's coldness that seeped into his very core and stayed longer than it should.

"Are you sure, Keith? It wouldn't be for long unless you have more injuries that you aren't telling us about," Allura questioned.

"Wait wait wait. You're telling us that you fought Shiro's clone," Lance interrupted.

"Yes," Keith answered.

"But you're refusing treatment?" Lance continued.

"I'm refusing to step foot in one of the healing pod for a few bruises and a burn," Keith countered.

"But why?! That's a perfect reason to use one!" Lance cried.

"I am not setting foot in the healing pod. That's all you need to know."

"Why don't you tell us about your fight with the clone?" Krolia asked, hoping to put a stop to the fight between Lance and her kit.

"What's there to tell? I met up with him, and we fought, him knocking my helmet off in the beginning. He kept taunting me, saying things the real Shiro would never say."

"Like what?" Pidge asked.

"I remember reminding Shiro that he said he'd never give up on me to which he replied, 'And I should have abandoned you just like your parents did. They saw that you were broken. Worthless. I should have seen it, too.' I know that was a lie, because I know neither of my parents abandoned me. During our time in the Quantum Abyss, Mom and I grew close and I found out that the reason she left was to protect me and my Dad."

During Keith's explanation, Krolia scooted closer to her kit, purring softly and letting him know she was there if he wanted/needed affection. Keith purred back even softer, letting his mom know that he was okay.

Also during his explanation, Shiro's healing pod opened, and he heard the part where Keith mentioned the words the clone told him. He stumbled over to the nest, where everyone was sitting. Keith noticed Shiro and gently tugged him into the nest.

"You're not broken or worthless, Keith. You are an amazing person."

"I know that now. Welcome back, Shiro." Keith smiled and purred a little louder. "I missed you."

Shiro smiled back albeit a little tired. "I missed you too, ototo."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Trembling"

Keith was shaking so bad that he was trembling. The battle had been long and drawn out but was won in the end. Keith's adrenaline had spiked at the start of the battle and stayed sky high during it, but now, that it was over, he was on the road to crash. However, he couldn't crash at the moment, hence the trembling.

His shaking drew the attention of his brother figure and his boyfriend. Shiro and Lance noticed his trembling immediately, once they exited the lions and reconvened in the lounge. Fortunately, no one had been injured in the battle, so the Black and Blue Paladins could focus all their attention on Keith.

They were able to get him to sit in the nest they kept in there. Once they had realized how comfortable nests were, they kept one in the lounge and enough materials to make one in the pod room in order to wait for whoever ended up needing healing. Keith had been the one to teach the others how to make one.

Lance sat down next to Keith and let him snuggle into him with a soft purr, wrapping an arm around Keith's waist. Shiro had brought over a spare blanket to cover Keith and Lance with. Shiro also settled on Keith's other side and combed his fingers through Keith's hair, prompting him to purr louder.

Pidge, Hunk, Allura, and Coran could tell when Keith fell asleep, because Lance and Shiro managed to give each other a high five in congratulations of a job well done. The only thing was that with Keith asleep between Lance and Shiro, neither Paladin could leave, but that was a price they were willing to pay.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Embrace"

Keith jumped down from the Red Lion when she landed in the hangar. He barely had enough time to pull his helmet off before he was scooped up off his feet. "Keith!"

A breathless laugh escaped him. "Regris!"

He was set back on his feet, allowing him to tuck himself under his mate's chin and nuzzling him with a purr. Regris purred in return as his tail wrapped around Keith's waist.  "I've missed you, my mate."

"I know, Reg. I'm a Paladin, and without anyone else capable of piloting the Red Lion, I cannot abandon the universe to the Empire's rule."

"I'd never ask you to. I'm wanting to go back with you; to stay with you at the Castle of Lions."

Keith pulled away slightly to look at Regris in the face. "Really? You'd come back with me? Is Kolivan okay with that? To have another operative being away from a base?"

"Yes. Basically because we're mates, and it hurts to be away from each other for long." Regris pulled Keith back against his chest. "None of us want you to be in pain, when we can prevent it."

"I don't want you to be in pain either!" Keith insisted.

"Well, neither of you have to be in pain, since Regris is going back with you, but could you maybe get out of the hangar?" Thace asked from his position leaning against a doorframe that led into the hangar.

Keith blushed and buried his face into his mate's chest. Regris loosened the grip of his tail in order to pick up Keith in order to carry him to their nest. As they passed by Thace, the violet Blade ruffled Keith's hair and stroked Regris's headfur, causing both to purr louder.

Thace watched as the two young Blades made their way down the corridor towards the familial nest. They reminded him of himself and his own mate, Ulaz. Both sets of mates were clingy, though in his and Ulaz's case it was because of their time at Central and consequently their time apart. He shook his head as if to banish the dark thoughts from his mind before following them to the nest

Fin

Chapter Text

"Cultures"

Of all the conversations Coran and Allura could have walked into, one about the Paladins' heritages was not one they had thought of.

"When my siblings and I were younger, we would try to adopt every stray cat we came across," Lance mentioned.

Shiro nodded. "Cats are revered as good luck in Japan. I may not have grown up in the country, but it my parents brought it up often, so it's engrained in me."

"All cats, even black cats?" Keith asked.

"All cats," Shiro confirmed.

"What are you Paladins talking about?" Allura asked, sitting down next to Shiro.

"Hello, Allura. We were just discussing similarities and apparently, differences as well, in our cultures."

"Cultures? As in more than one?"

"Yes. Each of us have different backgrounds."

"But you're all from Earth."

"Yes. Earth had many different cultures, even in the same country."

"Which countries are you from?"

"Japan."

"Samoa."

"Cuba."

"My family originates from Italy, but we've been in America for awhile."

"Um, my dad's family is from Japan as well, but he grew up in the southwest US, and I don't know where my mom was from."

"So many cultures!" Coran exclaimed.

"Can you tell us about them?" Allura asked.

The Paladins grinned at Allura's enthusiasm. She was so excited to learn about new cultures, and they didn't have any problems telling her about them.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Apprehensive"

Keith stared at his reflection in the mirror, slightly scared of what he saw. He appeared more Galran than ever. He had fluffy, purple ears; a long, thin, purple tail; a purple stripe on each cheek; sharp fangs; and patches of purple fur covering various parts of his body. His hair was now two tone (magenta on the bottom and dark violet on the top), and his sclera was yellow instead of white.

He didn't know how he was going to hide his appearance from his team, more importantly from Allura. The princess had finally stopped treating him poorly or ignoring him, but he was sure she would revert to those behaviors now that he looked more Galran. Before it was easy to forget his mixed heritage, but now, it was plain to see.

The only way he could hide everything was to wear his full Paladin armor, helmet included. However, that would lead to more questions. He could get away with wearing the armor throughout the day but not the helmet. He cursed not having a hood on his jacket, but it wasn't like he could just steal Lance's. Besides, even if he did, it wouldn't hide his eyes or cheek stripes.

He sighed. There was no way around it. He was going to have to face the Paladins and Alteans sooner or later; he might as well get it over with. Maybe he could stay with the Blades when the Paladins and Allura reject him. He knew Coran wouldn't judge him and that the Blades would love for him to spend more time with them as the four highest ranking Blades basically adopted him.

He left his room and debated where he should go. He could go to the training deck, get in one last training session before he got rejected by almost everyone, but it might cause chaos if he was spotted training. Someone might think he was an intruder. It was better to go see them in a common place, the lounge.

Keith slowly made his way to the lounge; he could almost hear a funeral march in his head. The lounge was getting closer all too quickly and not quick enough at the same time. Keith didn't know which was worse. Soon enough and too soon at the same time, he was close enough to the door for the sensor to cause it to open.

Keith took a deep breath and walked in...to find no one there. He blinked and looked around. Where was everyone? Maybe they were on the bridge? He made his way to the bridge, only to find it empty too. That confused him. He had been sure at least someone would have been bridge. What was going on?

He pulled up the console at the Red Paladin seat and looked at the time. He then realized why no one was in the lounge or on the bridge. It was breakfast time. They would be all gathered in the dining hall, except for Hunk, who would be in the kitchen whipping up something scrumptious. At the thought of Hunk's cooking, Keith's stomach growled. He needed something to eat, but he was worried that he may not be able to keep anything down.

He still made his way to the dining hall but paused before he entered. He was still nervous about the reactions from the team, but his stomach growled again. Spurred on by his stomach, Keith entered the dining hall,

He could feel everyone's eyes on him the tick he entered the room. He couldn't bring himself to meet anyone's eyes until he heard Lance call out, "Hey! About time you woke up, Space Cat! We were starting to wonder if you were going to skip breakfast."

Keith lifted his eyes in Lance's direction in time to see him pat the seat of the chair beside him. Keith smiled slightly and took the seat Lance offered. He was still extremely tense, which was obvious to everyone.

"Keith?" Allura tried to get his attention. Keith reluctantly meet her eyes. She smiled. "I'm glad you joined us. I was hoping you weren't on the training deck again, especially without eating something."

Keith couldn't understand why no one had mentioned his new features and couldn't remain quiet about it. "Why isn't anyone weirded out by me looking like this?"

"You mean, your Galra features?" Shiro wanted clarification. Keith nodded, his ears droopy. "It doesn't bother us. We knew you before this information came to light. We don't blame you."

Keith hesitantly slid his eyes over to look at the princess, who seemed to expect it. "I don't blame you either, Keith. You are our Red Paladin, part of our family."

Hearing that caused Keith to tear up. He had been so scared of being rejected as he had been before all throughout his childhood that the idea of everyone accepting him had not crossed his mind. Lance was surprised to see Keith cry. He wrapped an arm around Keith's shoulders. "Hey, buddy, what's wrong?"

"I d-didn't think y-you would acc-cept me like this."

"Oh, Keith. We wouldn't hold this against you. Besides, you're very cute like this. Not that you weren't cute before!"

"Cute? Me?"

"Yes. You are cute."

Keith managed a smile at the comment. "You're pretty cute too."

"Ugh, not in front of my coffee, please!" Pidge spoke up from behind her laptop.

Keith's ears perked up. "You have coffee?"

A mug was almost immediately placed in front of him. "Here you go, Galra Keith."

"Thanks, Hunk." Keith knew Hunk wasn't being mean about the situation.

Hunk didn't mean to stroke Keith's headfur, but it happened, causing Keith to purr. Throughout breakfast, Keith kept purring. Once he was full, he stopped eating but continued drinking his coffee. After everyone had finished eating, Shiro looked at Keith and asked, "Do you want to spar?"

"I'd love to." Keith grinned, his tail swishing behind him.

"Don't think I'll go easy on you."

"I wouldn't want it any other way."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Pizza Toppings"

Shiro had seen many different types of arguments, from friends fighting over small things to lovers having a misunderstanding to prisoners fighting over food to a galactic overlord trying to take whatever he wanted (granted that last one was less of an argument, but to Shiro it still counted), but the last thing he expected to walk in on was the four younger Paladins arguing over...what were they arguing over?

"Cheese is obviously the best. You guys have no taste," Lance insisted.

"You're insane, Lance. Pepperoni is better," Keith countered.

"You're only partially right, Keith. Add sausage and it's better," Hunk added.

"Naw. Triple or even quadruple meat is the way to go!" Pidge argued.

"Shiro, come tell the guys I'm right!" Lance noticed Shiro standing at the door.

"What is going on?" Shiro asked as he walked further into the room.

"We're arguing over what the best pizza topping is," Pidge replied.

"That's no contest. It's obviously supreme," Shiro stated confidently.

The four younger Paladins stared at their leader in disgust, managing to chorus, "Ew."

Fin

Chapter Text

"A Little Discovery"

Lance hadn't meant to do it, but he wanted his jacket back and figured that Keith had left it in his room. He briefly looked around the room, noticing that his jacket was not out in the open. Figuring that Keith might have taken it into his nest, Lance cautiously crept closer, not wanting to disturb it more than necessary.

He didn't see his jacket, but there was a strange light blue bag that was almost tucked out of sight. Curiosity got the better of him, and he pulled the bag close and opened it up. He didn't know what he was expecting, but the contents of the bag was not it. Inside the bag was obviously a variety of little clothes. Lance automatically recognized them as such because his twin was a little. He dug through the bag a bit, noting stuff ranging from a year old to three or four years old. There were diapers and pull ups as well as pacifiers (with and without leashes), bottles, sippy cups, sleepers, onesies, and elastic waisted pants.

Lance was lost in thought as he put the bag back. Keith was obviously a little, but where were his toys or comfort items? Did he have a stuffed toy or blanket? Did he have a caregiver for when he regressed really little? He had obviously hiding this from at least him, Hunk, and Pidge as well as Allura and Coran, but did Shiro even know?

Lance decided to ask Keith in private. He figured the Red Paladin was on the training deck as usual, so he left Keith's room and made his way to the training deck. As he expected, Keith was in there finishing up a training session from the looks of it, Lance figured. He waited until Keith had finished the level before he called out, "Hey, Samurai, I need a word."

%%%

Keith sliced through the gladiator and wiped the sweat off his brow with the back of his gloved hand. He opened his mouth the call out the next level when he heard Lance's voice. "Hey, Samurai, I need a word."

Keith froze. He had been teetering between head spaces all morning and thought that training might help him prevent regressing, but now that Lance was there, Keith was finding it hard to not regress. "Yes, Lance?"

Lance looked at Keith, wondering how to bring up the fact that he knew about his regression. It was a delicate and rather personal side of Keith and he didn't want to scare him...or make him angry. "Um, I was looking for my jacket and was wondering is you were done with it."

Lance wanted to smack himself in the face. That wasn't what he meant to say. He noticed that Keith tensed up at the statement. It was then that Lance realized why Keith had borrowed his jacket. He was cuddling with it in lieu of a blanket or stuffed animal when he regressed, and he was probably in between head spaces at the moment and was wanting to cuddle with it when he went back to his room. "I was hoping to borrow it a bit longer...Lance."

Lance noted the pause before Keith said his name and wondered what he had about to say. He tentatively stepped closer to Keith, getting within arm's reach of the other teen. "You can borrow the jacket any time you want, especially since you like cuddling with it when you're regressed." Lance saw Keith tense when he said that. "It's all right, sweetie. I know you're a little. There's no shame in that. My twin is one, so if you want, I can help take care of you, unless you already have a caregiver."

Keith shook his head. "No caregiver."

Lance noticed the younger tone the other had slipped into. "Are you saying you don't have one or don't want one?"

"No have."

Lance stepped a little closer and opened his arms. "Would you like a hug, sweetie?"

Keith dove into Lance's arms and buried his face in the crook of Lance's neck. Lance rubbed the little's back soothingly and whispered, "Why don't we go back to your room and get you comfy?"

"Okay, Daddy."

Fin

Chapter Text

"In His Hair"

Lance watched as Keith tore through gladiator bot after gladiator bot and was very quickly reaching his limit. He had agreed to watch Keith train, because his boyfriend agreed to spend the rest of the day with him. However, it had been two vargas, and it didn't seem like Keith was stopping anytime soon.

Lance stood up and marched over to Keith as soon as he finished his current level. "Keith, don't do another level. You've been training for two vargas, and that's long enough."

"But, Lance-"

"No buts, Keith. If you stop, I'll wash your hair."

That caused Keith to pause. He liked feeling Lance's hands in his hair. The thought of having those hands in his hair, cleaning it, and massaging his scalp made him put away his bayard, smiling. "You win, Lance."

Lance smiled. "Let's go, cariño."

Keith let Lance lead him back to their room and into the bathroom. Keith stripped off his clothes while Lance ran the water. Once the the water was the right temperature, Keith stepped in, allowing Lance to strip and step in behind him.

The tick Lance's hands were on him, Keith practically melted under his care. There were many reasons Keith liked Lance's hands on him. A large reason was his Galra heritage, but just as important was him being touch-starved.

Lance knew Keith needed the touch. Being touch-starved was bad enough as a human, but it was twice as bad as a part-Galra. The brunette had no qualms about helping his boyfriend recover from being touch-starved, even though that was a long way off. Lance knew he was in there for the long run, and there was no place he'd rather be.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Lactose Intolerance"

Keith didn't usually skip meals nor did he refuse to eat something. He did manage to not partake in meals that had an obvious dairy component to it. Other times, he wasn't so lucky. However, he wouldn't die if he ate it, but the severe abdominal cramps were no fun either.

Even though Keith was observant about what he ate, Shiro still kept an eye out for what was being served. Usually, he didn't have to say anything, but it came as a force of habit from being at the Garrison, where it wasn't always obvious what the food contained.

However, one night at the castle, the food placed in front of the Paladins obviously had a lot of cheese in it. Keith's eyes met Shiro's, and Keith gestured to the door, letting his brother figure know he was leaving the room.

"Sorry, Allura, Coran. I just remembered-"

"I don't think so, Keith. You are not leaving without eating," Allura cut him off.

"I'm not hungry," Keith tried again.

"I don't think so, Number Four. You don't eat enough. Yes, I'm glad you don't skip meals anymore, but I refuse to let you slide back into that routine."

Keith reluctantly sat back down, realizing that neither Altean was going to let him leave. He eyed the dish again, determining if he could eat some of it without getting the cheese, but it wasn't possible. Since it was a casserole, there were multiple layers of cheese. Keith just sat there, staring at the plate in front of him and not picking up his fork.

"Really, Keith. You aren't even going to eat it? Even Pidge is eating it, and she's known to be the picky one!"

"I told you I'm not hungry."

"Coran learned to cook Earth type food so well that the other Paladins are eating it without problems," Allura pointed out.

"Keith knows that, Allura, and he did good," Hunk spoke up.

Allura sniffed, angry at Keith's apparent slight against her advisor. "Eat your dinner, Keith."

Shiro exclaimed as he stood up, "Princess, he'll die if he eats it!"

"Are you saying my food is bad?!" Coran was taken aback.

"Shiro, please sit down. I'm not going to die if I eat it, and you know that. Coran, I have no doubt that your food is excellent. However, I can't eat this dish. I am lactose intolerant."

"Lactose intolerant? What is that?" Coran asked.

"I am unable to eat dairy products like cheese." Keith gestured at the still uneaten portion sitting in front of him and stood up. "As much as I would love to eat this, I cannot."

Keith stepped away from the table and strode out of the dining hall, aware of everyone's eyes on him. He knew the others were merely surprised at the admission of something so personal. However, he couldn't help but grin at Hunk's question. "Since Keith's not going to eat it, can I have his portion?"

Fin

Chapter Text

"Tex"

Lotor was beyond mad. When he took over as emperor, he had ordered all prisons closed and all prisoners released. Every prison complied, except for one. So, Lotor went to the prison himself and shut it down, firing the guards and sentries. He opened the cells, letting the prisoners know via intercom that they were free to go. He watched as the prisoners made their way to the hangars, but one prisoner stood out among the others. Lotor's eyes widened as he recognized the species. He was human! He knew where this human should go.

%%%

At the Castle of Lions, Keith was ecstatic. His entire pack was visiting, so he had his team and his pack in one location. He was currently in the lounge with his twin sister, Regris, and most of the Paladins. Acxa and Regris liked how relaxed Keith was around the Paladins, which showed them how much he cared for them.

The adults of the pack, the Alteans, and Shiro were on the bridge, discussing their next move, when a call came in from Central Command.

"Castle of Lions, here." Coran opened the hailing frequency.

Lotor's visage appeared on the screen. Allura blushed. "Hello, Lotor."

A matching blush appeared on Lotor's face. "Hello again, Princess. May I land in the hangar?"

"You're coming for a visit?" Allura sounded hopeful.

"Yes. I also have a passenger that I believe some of you would want to meet or re-meet in some cases."

"Of course you can come by. Do you need a wormhole?"

"No thank you, Princess. We are almost to your location. I'll see you soon." The channel was closed, and the group made their way to the hangar, curious as to who Lotor's passenger could be. They watched the ship land, and then Lotor escorted out a very familiar man.

Krolia gasped and rushed over with a whine. The man's head shot up, his eyes locking onto hers. "'Lia?"

"Tex!" Krolia practically threw her arms around her mate's neck. "I thought you were dead! Keith thought you were dead! There was a grave!"

"I didn't mean to leave our boy, but I wasn't given a choice."

Sensing a story, Krolia pulled back slightly. "Do you want to see our twins?"

"Keith and Acxa are here? Together?"

Thace stepped up to the pair of mates. "All the kits are in the lounge."

"Krolia's told me about the pack. Which one are you?"

"Thace. You could consider me her brother."

"Tex Kogane. Good to meet ya." Tex held out a hand in a handshake, which Thace took but grabbing the human's forearm in the traditional Galran greeting.

"Let's go see the kits," Krolia stated, latching onto one of her mate's arms. She led him to the lounge, her pack following. The tick they entered the lounge, Krolia called out, "Kits, look who's back!"

Keith looked up, a questioning noise escaping him. "Dad?" He shrunk back slightly. "But you were dead."

"I never died, son. I had made it out of the fire but was taken by some Empire soldiers that were scouting the area for the Blue Lion. I tried to prevent them from finding it, so I told them that it had been taken off planet, so they thought I knew more than I was saying, so they took me with them."

Tex watched as his son came closer. He wasn't startled by the few Galran features he was sporting. He liked that Keith had Krolia's cheek stripes. It was a feature that Tex always liked.

Keith came close enough to to sniff his Dad. Familiar scents triggered memories Keith had tried to come to terms with in his past, but he was overwhelmed by them again. He whined and threw his ams around his Dad, who wrapped his arms around his son. "Dad!"

Acxa watched her twin interact with their father, a person she barely remembered. Keith turned his head in his twin's direction and chirped in her direction, beckoning her to come over and join him. Once she was close enough, Tex gently tugged his daughter into his arms with his son. Both Keith and Acxa nuzzled their father's neck, inhaling a scent from their childhood.

Krolia walked over to her mate and kits and wrapped her arms around her family, rumbling to them, prompting the kits to start purring. The purring drew the pack over, and they gathered around the little family, rumbling to them.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Asleep Elsewhere"

Lance rolled over in bed, wanting to snuggle against his boyfriend, but met with an empty spot. He was instantly awake. Where was Keith? Lance sat up and craned his neck in the direction of the bathroom and could tell that the light wasn't on, so that meant Keith wasn't there. He peered over the edge of the bed and noticed that the Red Lion slippers were gone, which meant that Keith had left the room.

Lance put on his robe and slid his feet into his Blue Lion slippers, intent on finding his boyfriend. He left the room he shared with Keith and headed for the most likely place where Keith could be, the training deck. Fortunately, the lights in the training deck were off, which meant that Keith wasn't there.

Lance stepped off of the training deck and paused, trying to think of where to look next. He decided to look on the bridge. He hurried to the bridge, but before he entered the bridge, he could tell Keith was there, because he heard him purring. He entered the bridge and saw Keith curled up in the Red Paladin seat, wearing his Red Paladin pajamas.

Why was Keith sleeping in the seat instead of the bed? Lance gently slid his arms under Keith's legs and across his back. He eased Keith out of the chair and into his arms. Keith nuzzled into Lance's chest as he carried him back to their room. He laid him down on the bed and removed both pairs of their slippers. He snuggled against Keith, falling back asleep easily thanks to Keith's purrs.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Delirious"

Lance paced the hangar in worry. He knew that Keith would be back soon, but it wouldn't be soon enough for Lance. He was so anxious about his boyfriend that he was almost delirious with worry.

%%%

Shiro was watching Lance pace Red Lion's hangar. He knew what it was like to worry about someone you cared about. He used to worry when Adam went on missions without him before the brunette realized that he preferred teaching the next generation rather than flying with them. He also knew what it was like to be worried about. When Adam learned about his illness, his fiancée constantly worried about him.

He saw Lance when Keith left to help the Blades on missions. He wavered between hyper alert and so distracted that he saw things that weren't there. Fortunately, Lance didn't hallucinate often, but Shiro wondered if Keith knew how much Lance worried about him.

%%%

Keith was conflicted. He knew the team worried about him when he was with the Blades, but he also needed to spend time with the Blades to discover parts of himself that he could never explain. He supposed that splitting his time was the best option at the time, until the time came where Kolivan would join him at the Castle of Lions to work together with Voltron.

Movement in the Red Lion hangar drew his attention to the present, and he recognized the pacing figure as Lance. He smiled as he carefully landed the lion. He left the lion and landed near Lance. "Hey, Lance. Have you been here for awhile?"

Lance threw his arms around Keith's neck. "I was so worried about you."

"I was okay, Lance."

"I know that, but I can't help but worry."

Keith wrapped his arms around Lance, trying to give him some comfort. "I'm here now, Lance."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Part Galra Kit"

Keith was bored. Normally, that wouldn't be a problem, because he would just go train, but he was only allowed in the training hall if Antok was there, but the large Blade was not there. He had attempted to go to the smaller training hall, but it was in use.

Keith stood just inside of the door as he watched two of his father figures spar. Keith narrowed his eyes as he continued watching them. It actually didn't look like a spar the longer he watched them. It actually looked like a play fight. Keith grinned. Sometimes, Thace and Ulaz acted like kits.

Keith decided to not interrupt them, deciding to see what Kolivan and Antok were up to. He made his way to Kolivan's office, figuring at least the leader would be there. He wasn't expecting to hear purring from inside the office. He eased the door open, not prepared to see Kolivan leaned back against Antok, whose claws were tangled in Kolivan's unbraided white strands. Kolivan's eyes were closed, and he was the one purring, while Antok was rumbling.

Not wanting to disturb either pairs of mates, Keith returned to the nest. He laid down, snuggling with several of his pack's blankets. He started laying in his spot but ended up rolling around in the nest, burrowing under the blankets.

%%%

Antok, Kolivan, Thace, and Ulaz returned to the nest and were surprised to see Keith sleeping in the nest, sprawled across their spots. The four Blades grinned at the sight. It was a typical kit move to sprawl all over the familial nest, and it warmed their hearts to see Keith act like a kit. He had come to them ignorant of his heritage, and they worked hard to reassure him of his place in their pack as well as his place in the universe as a part Galra kit.

Fin

Chapter Text

"An Empty Room"

Keith was excited to have his pack visit him in the castle. The Paladins agreed to let Keith enlarge the nest they kept in the lounge. The Alteans had never seen Keith so happy and were glad that Allura had agreed to open a wormhole for Keith's pack.

Unaware that his pack was arriving in a few moments, Keith was in his room. He hung his jacket on the wall and set about to do some stretches. He had found out that he was extremely flexible, so he added it to his routine.

%%%

Allura and Coran watched the Marmoran pod land in the hangar. They weren't surprised to see Acxa and Regris rush down the ramp first, followed closely by Krolia. Acxa looked around. "Where's Keith?"

"He's in his room right now. He didn't know you were coming this soon. I'll take you there," Coran offered. He led the group of six Galra out of the hangar and to the hallway where the Paladins' rooms were located. "I feel I should warn you that Keith's room is not typical, especially not for a kit."

"What are you saying, Coran?" Krolia asked.

"I'll let you see for yourselves. We're here." Coran knocked on the door. "Number Four, can I open the door?"

"Sure thing, Coran." Keith's voice sounded slightly strained.

The door opened, revealing Keith sitting on the floor of a barren room. He was stretching, which was strange when the Blades initially saw him doing the exercises, but when he explained that it was necessary for him before he did any rigorous activity like training. However, it wasn't Keith stretching that drew his pack's attention. It was Keith's room.

Krolia bit back a whine at the state of her youngest kit's room. He had a small nest on the bed that came in the room, his red and white jacket was hanging on a hook on the wall, and his belt and bayard were laying on the desk, but that was all. They were no trinkets or anything to show that this was Keith's room.

Keith saw his pack standing in his door, and he smiled, chirping at them. "Hi, guys."

Krolia knelt down next to her kit. "Why does your room look like this, kit?"

"This room? I don't sleep here. I come here to stretch and have a little bit of alone time. Most of my time, though, is spent in the lounge with the others."

"Could you show us the lounge, kit?" Kolivan asked.

"Sure."

Antok reached down and hauled the kit to his feet, and Keith purred to him in thanks. Pleased at hearing Keith's purr, Acxa briefly snuggled against her twin before following him to the lounge.

The sight that greeted them immediately reminded the pack of their familial nest room back at headquarters, even with the Paladins resting in the large nest. Keith chirped again and dove into the nest, snuggling against Shiro. "I see your pack found you, ototo."

"Yeah. I was just stretching, nii-san." Keith looked up at his pack, all of whom were looking around the lounge in surprise. "Come on in, guys."

Krolia stepped into the nest and curled around her kit, who purred to her, prompting the rest to join them. The Blades took the chance to curl around the Paladins, everyone ending up in a humongous cuddle pile.

%%%

Allura and Coran hadn't heard from either the Paladins or the Blades and were wondering what was going on. The two Alteans made their way to the lounge and saw everyone in a cuddle pile. Allura and Coran took several pictures of the group, smiling throughout the entire time because they heard purring from all of the Blades.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Breakfast In Bed"

Sunlight streamed in through the window and landed on the queen sized bed clothed in a variety of sheets and colors as it was covered by a nest. The lone occupant slowly opened his violet eyes. When his eyes landed on the vacant spot next to him, they widened. Where was his boyfriend? He was about to leave the bed, when he caught sight of his boyfriend standing in the doorway with a tray in his hands.

"Good morning, cariño."

"Morning, Lance. What's this?"

Lance approached with the tray and set it over Keith's lap, settling next to him. "I made you breakfast in bed."

His eyes roved over the selection of foods. There was a fruit salad and, his eyes widened again, a large stack of blueberry pancakes. He loved pancakes and fruit. "You made this for me?"

"I did have a little bit of help from Hunk. Do you like it?" Lance asked.

Keith set the tray aside and launched himself into Lance's arms. "Like it? I love it! Thank you so much!"

Lance curled his arms around his boyfriend. "You're welcome. It was the least I could do. You are the most important person in my life, and dating you is the best thing that ever happened to me."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Comin' To The Rescue"

The lions had started doing to routine patrols of whatever sector they were going through that turned into a galaxy wide patrol. It irritated the Paladins that Allura insisted that showed the inhabitants that Voltron was back and willing to come to their aid.

Lance could tell his team mates were irritated and figured some music could help their mood. He had managed to hook up his data pad to Blue Lion and patched it to play in the other lions over their comms. The song he selected was one him, Hunk, and Pidge used to sing when they were trying to lift their mood after a disastrous simulator runs.

"If you're tumbling down and your spirits fall
Help's on the way, we hear your call (your call)
On a mission, we're united as one
Friends forever, yeah," Lance started.

Shiro, Keith, Pidge, and Pidge stared at their comms incredulously. "Seriously, Lance?"

"Come on, guys! I know everyone knows this song!" Lance had pressed the pause button. "We're going on this extended patrol. The least we can do is make the most of it. Now, I'm pushing play, and you all better sing."

"Here we come
In no time, we'll be at your side
We're a team on a roller coaster ride
Each one of us knows just what to do
Never gonna stop, gonna stop
Searching for you (for you)," the five Paladins chorused.

"Baby, listen to me," Lance sang.

"Searching for you (oh for you)
We're gonna set you free
Comin' to the rescue
Get there in a hurry
Rescue," the pilots intoned.

"Baby, don't you worry," Lance broke in.

"Rescue
Is it that you seen enough?
I'll rescue you, and if I do
You gotta rescue me," the five Paladins sang.

"So if your lost, one thing is true
Never gonna stop looking for you
You're not alone, so have no doubt
We'll put our heads together, gonna figure it out," Keith picked it up.

"Oh baby, listen to me," Lance added.

"We're gonna, gonna set you free, yeah
Comin' to the rescue
Get there in a hurry
Rescue," Shiro, Keith, Lance, Pidge, and Hunk picked it up.

"Baby, don't you worry," Lance interjected.

"Rescue
This adventure's heating up
I'll rescue you, and if I do
You gotta rescue me
Rescue," the pilots finished, big grins on their faces.

To their surprise, they heard applause coming through their comms. "That was wonderful. I didn't know humans could sing well."

"Well, not all humans can, but we can, Princess," Shiro replied.

Lance grinned. "I like Keith's voice the best."

Keith blushed, thankful that they were using audio only.

"I know you're blushing, Keith!"

Keith quickly scanned his consoles and sensors before denying it. "I am not!"

There was a couple seconds of silence before Hunk commented, "You hesitated."

"...I..." Keith didn't know what to say.

"It's okay, Keith," Lance consoled. "We know you like me."

"Of course I do. You're my boyfriend," Keith replied softly.

"Now, I want to finish this patrol, so I can hold you."

"Lance! Everyone can hear you!"

"Actually, they can't. I activated a private channel, so it's just us."

"Well, that's good. I want to be done with this patrol as well. I want to be in your arms too."

"As long as we don't get attacked, we should be able to relax together."

Keith sighed. "I hope so. All these attacks are tiresome."

"Keith, are you okay?"

"Yeah."

"That's good, cariño. I worry about you."

"I know. I try not to worry you."

"I appreciate that."

There was a minute of silence before Shiro interjected. "Uh, Keith, Lance, did you realize that this wasn't a private channel?"

"What?!" Keith exclaimed.

"B-But I thought-" Lance stammered.

"It's okay, Lance. If you and Keith want to take it easy today, it'll be okay," Allura said.

"Are you sure, princess?" Keith asked.

"Yes."

Keith responded, "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Keith, and thank you for everything you and the rest of the team have done and sacrificed in the name of peace in the universe."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Carried Around"

Ever since it was discovered that Keith was a kit, the entire organization basically adopted him as their kit. He may have been part of the highest ranking Blades' pack, but he was the entire organization's kit, and as such, it was their responsibility to make sure that he was taken care of.

Keith couldn't tell you how many times he found himself thrown over a Blade's shoulder, mostly Antok's, when he started spending his time at headquarters. At first, being in the training hall wasn't frowned upon, even though it seemed like he did little else, and it was okay until his age was discovered. That was when he found himself being carried out of the training hall.

Keith didn't exactly hate being carried, especially by his pack, but did they have to throw him over their shoulders? When he asked Antok that (while laying over his shoulder), the large Blade paused in his stride and asked, "Kit, are you saying that you don't mind being carried and that you won't try to get down?"

Keith blushed. "Yeah."

Antok quickly yet securely moved Keith from his shoulder to his back, his tail pinning him in place. "Are you-"

He didn't have to continue when he heard the kit purr and whisper, "Thank you."

Antok didn't know what he was supposed to do with the kit on his back. He supposed he could go on patrol, since it wasn't time for the next training session yet. He made sure Keith was safe and did his rounds, inadvertantly lulling his kit to sleep.

Once the other pack members found out that Keith didn't mind being carried, it was the beginning of seeing Keith being carried by different members of his pack, though only Antok went on doing his duties with Keith on his back.

%%%

The other Blades loved seeing the kit being cared for, though they wished the kit was more comfortable in their presence. It wasn't that he didn't spend time with them, but they could tell that he wasn't comfortable enough to fall asleep around them.

However, when Dolsir noticed the kit was trying to hide how tired he was, he approached him. "Kit, we can tell you're tired. Will you let one of us take you to your nest?"

Keith looked up at the pale lavender Blade. He nodded and held an arm out, wanting help to get up. Dolsir knew what the kit was asking. He grasped his wrist and gently pulled him to his feet. He stumbled slightly but fortunately was caught by Dolsir, so he didn't fall. "Easy, kit." One look at his face told Dolsir that Keith may not be able to walk to his nest. "Kit, you are exhausted. May I carry you?"

Keith nodded, but it was obvious that it was more reluctant than the previous time. Dolsir knew that was the best he was going to get, so he scooped up the kit, tucking him against his chest, and made his way to the leaders' nest room.

%%%

Thace softly growled in annoyance. He wasn't that injured. It was just a small burn, so there was no need to have him confined to the nest for the remainder of the quintant. He disliked being confined, especially when there was no one around. He wanted some company; it would make the circumstances better.

A knock on the door drew his attention, and he got up to answer it, surprised to find Dolsir on the other side, holding his kit. "Dolsir?"

"The kit was tired, and he let me carry him here."

Thace gently slipped the obviously tired kit into his arms. "I would never have thought that our fiery kit would like being carried."

"I can," Keith yawned, "hear you."

Thace chuckled. "I know, kit. Let's get you into the nest. You can keep me company. Thank you, Dolsir."

"You're welcome, sir. Rest up, kit. I'll see you in the training hall later." Dolsir stroked Keith's hair before he left.

Thace carried Keith to and stepped into their nest, settling the kit next to him. Keith snuggled further into Thace's side, closing his eyes and purring. Thace chuckled. Who knew the kit actually liked being carried?

Fin

Chapter Text

"Sweatshirt"

Keith was cold. He envied his pack members with their fur. He knew they didn't have a problem cuddling him, especially Thace and Antok, the two with the thickest coats. However, it didn't help when there were things to do.

There was only one solution Keith could come up with. He could borrow Lance's jacket. The Blue Paladin found it cute when Keith wore his clothes, especially his jacket. So, he went to Lance's room, smiling when the door opened and left him face to face with his boyfriend.

"Hey, Samurai. What's up?"

"I'm cold. Can I borrow your jacket?"

Lance's smile faded. "Sorry, kitten. I'm cold too, but I can give you something else to wear."

Keith followed Lance back into his room and sat on his bed while he dug in his closet. He came out with a blue sweatshirt in his hands. "You can wear this."

Keith looked at Lance as if looking for permission. Lance smiled and shook the sweatshirt in Keith's direction, a clear indication that he should take it. Keith gingerly took it and ran his fingers over the soft material. "Thanks."

"You're welcome, Mullet."

Keith pulled it on and almost purred with how warm it felt. He walked to the door and through it when it opened. Just before it closed, he called back, "I hope you know you're not getting this back!"

The door closed just as Lance realized what Keith said. However, he didn't really mind. Keith looked cute in his clothes.

Keith buried his nose in the neckline of the sweatshirt as he walked to the lounge. He liked how it smelled like Lance, which only cemented his decision to keep it.

Fin

Chapter Text

"One Big, Messy Chat"

GreenPaladin has added Captain, BlackPaladin, RedPaladin, YellowPaladin, BluePaladin, Advisor, AdoptedSis, MomSpy, Leader, Leader2, DadSpy, Doctor, TechBuddy, TwinSis, MFE1, MFE2, MFE3, MFE4, GGGal, Adam, Curtis, and RebelTechie to the chat One Big Mess.

*GreenPaladin changed their screen name to Hacker*

Hacker: What's up, b*tches?

BlackPaladin: How did you get my pack's @s?

Hacker: You question my skills, peasant?

TechBuddy: I gave her my @ along with Mom's and Acxa's

Hacker: I did hack the other four, including Thace

BlackPaladin: You seem exceedingly proud of that

Hacker: He is the hacker of your group

DadSpy: I don't know whether to be proud or not.

RedPaladin: Pfft. I love your sn, Thace

RedPaladin: Hang on.

*RedPaladin changed their screen name to Sharpshooter*

*Sharpshooter changed BlackPaladin's screen name to Samurai*

Sharpshooter: There we go

Samurai: But Lance, isn't your third bayard form a sword, too?

Sharpshooter: Yes, but you are the dual wielding one of us

Samurai: blush

Hacker: Don't make me regret adding you two

GGGal: Why does Thace have 'Dad' in his sn?

Samurai: I have four father figures, one mother, two sisters, and four brothers.

MFE4: Who is who?

Samurai: Kolivan and Antok, who are mates, and Thace and Ulaz, who are also mates, are my father figures, Krolia is my biological mother, Acxa is my twin sister, Romelle is my adopted sister. Regris is my adopted brother. Shiro is my adopted brother, and Adam and Curtis are as well since they are married to Shiro.

RebelTechie: What?! Who was going to tell me that Shiro got married?!

Captain: Oops?

Adam: I hope that 'oops' is about forgetting to tell Matt and not about marrying us

Curtis: I'm sure that's what Shiro meant.

*Samurai changed Captain's screen name to Mr.Shirogane1*

*Samurai changed Adam's screen name to Mr.Shirogane2*

*Samurai changed Curtis's screen name to Mr.Shirogane3*

Mr.Shirogane1: Keith, why?

Samurai: Tell me I'm wrong, and also, can all the MFEs sound off?

MFE4: Kinkade

MFE3: I am Ina.

MFE2: Nadia here

MFE1: I don't take orders from Galra

YellowPaladin: *flinch*

Hacker: *flinch*

Sharpshooter: *flinch*

Mr.Shirogane1: *flinch*

Mr.Shirogane2: *flinch*

Mr.Shirogane3: *flinch*

RebelTechie: *flinch*

AdoptedSis: *flinch*

Advisor: *flinch*

BluePaladin: *flinch*

GGGal: *flinch*

Samurai: *sits back and watches*

MFE1: What?

Samurai: Dude, didn't you realize that my pack is here, and all of them are Galra and protective of me?

MFE1: They are? Why?

Hacker: Why what? Why are they here? Because I added them. Why are they protective of Keith? That's because he is considered a kit in their culture.

Samurai: Pidge!

Hacker: It's not like it's a lie

Samurai: I'm still older than the rest of the Paladins

Leader: What?

Leader2: What?

Doctor: What?

DadSpy: What?

MomSpy: Are we just going to ignore the one who was being mean to our kit?

Leader: We will deal with him in a moment, Krolia. Kit, why didn't you inform us that your team are mere kits?

Samurai: Oops?

Leader2: Are there any other kits around?

Samurai: Well, the MFEs are around my age and Shiro's only a few years older than me

Mr.Shirogane1: Lies. See my hair? I'm a silver fox

Mr.Shirogane2: And a sexy one at that

Hacker: Ew, romance

Samurai: Can the crap, Shiro. Your hair turned white when Allura yanked your consciousness out of Black and into the body of a clone that tried to kill me

MomSpy: What?!

Samurai: *flinch* Guess I forgot to mention that too

MomSpy: Kit, why would you keep that from us?

Samurai: There was no time to tell anyone between battling Lotor and losing the castle and then heading to Earth and saving Earth.

Doctor: Is that when you got that burn, kit?

Samurai: Yeah

Samurai: Can we change the subject?

DadSpy: We can, but we will come back to this conversation at a later time

MomSpy: And we'll have a full nest tonight

Sharpshooter: All right. Let's get back to the fun

*Sharpshooter has changed BluePaladin's screen name to Princess*

Princess: Thank you, Lance

*Sharpshooter has changed MFE1's screen name to A-hole*

*Sharpshooter has changed MFE2's screen name to Energetic*

*Sharpshooter has changed MFE3's screen name to Strategist*

*Sharpshooter has changed MFE4's screen names to CameraGuy*

Sharpshooter: There we go. Now, we can tell who is who

A-hole: Why is this my name?

Samurai: Are you seriously asking that question? You were a bully from the moment we met. You were awful to me once we enrolled in the Garrison

TwinSis: growl

Techbuddy: growl

GGGal: Griffin, you are to stay away from Keith unless you can be civil to him

A-hole: You don't have the authority

Mr.Shirogane1: She does, but if you don't believe that, I order you to stay away from him or anyone you can't be civil towards. I know the two teams have to work together to defend the universe, but stay away from him when you're not on duty.

Princess: Oh my. This keeps getting serious. Lance told me this was supposed to be fun

Advisor: He told me that too

Sharpshooter: It is supposed to be fun

YellowPaladin: Maybe it's because there are so many beings that don't really get along

Sharpshooter: Are you suggesting we have a smaller chat later on with just the Paladins?

YellowPaladin: And Shiro too

Sharpshooter: Hell yeah!

Samurai: Sounds good

MomSpy: Now, that that's decided. Kit, we need to talk.

Samurai: Not here. I'll come to you. Nest room?

DadSpy: We're all there

Samurai: On my way

Fin

Chapter Text

"Little Time"

Lance was keeping an eye on Keith, noticing that he was extremely busy, constantly doing things like training. He narrowed his eyes, realizing that Keith almost seemed like he was trying to keep himself busy. Lance knew that it wasn't good, and he was a good team mate and friend, intent on getting Keith to relax. However, he wasn't just Keith's friend; he was also his caregiver.

Lance knew that Keith was on his way to the training deck and was intent on waylaying him along the way. He spied the raven-haired teen a little ways ahead of him in the corridor, so he sped up his steps in order to fall into step beside him. "Hey, Keith."

Keith sent a warm smile Lance's way. "Hey, Lance. You joining me for training?"

"Me? Naw, but do you think you should be on the training deck? I mean, you've been so busy that it might be a good idea for you to relax."

"I don't know, Lance. I really want to get in a good workout before I try to relax."

"And what's your definition of a good workout?"

"A couple hours at least."

"A couple hours?" Lance's eyes widened at the admission. "I think you're too tired for a two hour training session."

"I'm okay."

"Okay. Let's try it this way." Lance could tell that Keith was in between head space, so he wrapped an arm around Keith's shoulders, preventing the slightly shorter teen from continuing his trek. "You're too tired, sweetheart. Why don't you come with Daddy, and I'll take care of you?"

Being in between head space combined with Lance being sweet made it hard for Keith to not slip into little space. He nuzzled Lance's shoulder. "Okay, Daddy."

Lance cheered on the inside as he led his little to his room. As he got out the bag of Keith's little gear, Lance couldn't help but wonder if this was part of Keith's plan, and he just needed him to step in. However, that didn't actually matter, not when he had a little that needed his attention.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Human Shield"

Shiro knew being mentor to a new cadet was a full time job, even moreso when said cadet came with a file as thick as Keith's. Of course, he had read the entire file, taking the written warnings with a grain of salt. He didn't believe that Keith was a bad kid, far from it. He had seen how he was treated by his classmates, specifically James Griffin. Keith was simply a kid who had lost both of his parents (the death of his father was extremely damaging) and had been shuffled from foster home to foster home for years until there were none left that wanted to 'deal with' the angry young teen.

Shiro refused to let the file color his interactions with Keith and made sure that Keith knew that he would never give up on him. He earned the young teen's trust and wanted him to meet his fiancée, Adam. He had just gotten permission to take the teen to his apartment that he shared with Adam; he just needed to tell Keith. Fortunately, he was supposed to meet him after classes that day.

So, Shiro was waiting outside the simulator room, leaning against the opposite wall. He smiled when he saw Keith exit the room with his head down. He pushed off the wall. "Hey, Keith. How was class?"

Keith raised his head, a small smile on his face. "Hey, Shiro. It was good. I might have broken another one of your records."

Shiro smiled and started walking down the hallway, knowing Keith would follow him. "I certainly hope so."

"Really?"

"Yes. I would love to see your name on all of those records."

Keith blushed at the idea. "So, where are we going?"

"We are going to spend the weekend at my apartment."

"Just the two of us?"

Shiro paused slightly. "Not quite. I live with my partner. His name is Adam, and we are engaged."

"Are you sure that he won't mind?"

"Not at all. He's interested in meeting the cadet I'm mentoring."

"...Okay."

Keith fell quiet and stayed that way for the entire trip to Shiro's apartment. He was nervous about meeting someone new, especially someone special to Shiro.

Shiro knew that Keith was apprehensive about meeting Adam, which was due to his stint in foster care. Sometimes it was unbelievable how much damage being in the system did to Keith. Most others couldn't see it, because all they saw was an angry, confrontational teen, but Shiro got to see the kid underneath the façade. It was one of the reasons Shiro continually promised Keith that he would never leave him.

Shiro opened his door, calling out, "Adam, we're here."

"About time, Takashi." Adam approached from the living area, where he was working. He almost couldn't see the cadet standing almost directly behind his fiancée. "So, is this Keith?"

Shiro peered over his shoulder at the shy and nervous cadet, who was basically using him as a human shield. He smiled and looked back at Adam. "Yeah. This is Keith. Keith, this is Adam."

Keith peered out from behind Shiro and gasped when he locked eyes with Adam. He took a couple of steps away from Shiro. "Professor Wright?"

"Is your last name Kogane?"

Keith nodded. "Yeah. I sit in the back of the class."

"And your work is excellent, high marks on everything."

Shiro smiled at his fiancée and his protégé interacting. He hadn't realized that Keith was in Adam's class but was glad that they were actually getting along, and he was no longer being used as a human shield. This weekend no longer seemed like a stressful time.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Laced Drink"

Keith wasn't resting. It was obvious to the team. He had dark circles under his eyes, and he didn't have much of an appetite. He had to have a headache, which was disrupting his concentration.

Shiro tried to ask Keith to rest, Lance tried to use relaxation methods to help him, Pidge offered to let Keith borrow her headphones, and Hunk made a soothing tea. However, Keith didn't accept any of these offers, but he wasn't rude about it.

Allura was at a loss at what to do about her Red Paladin's lack of sleep, but Coran had an idea. All he needed was someone to get Keith to come to dinner, which was easier said than done.

In the end, it was up to Shiro to get Keith to come to the dining hall. The eldest of the Paladins knew a surefire way to get Keith to come with him. It was a bit underhanded but effective. He sighed and knocked on Keith's door. He knew Keith was there as Allura had locked him out of the training deck. "Keith?"

The door opened, revealing a tired looking Keith. Shiro was expecting that, so he didn't make a comment on his appearance. Instead, he said, "Dinner's ready, Keith. You will come down, or I will carry you. Your choice."

Shiro hoped that Keith would be willing to come with him on his own, but he was willing to carry him if he declined. Keith sighed. He knew Shiro was serious about carrying him if he didn't agree to go with him. "All right. I'll come."

The smile on Shiro's face almost made the trek to the dining hall worth it. Keith reluctantly sat down and was slightly surprised when a smoothie type drink was placed in front of him. He glanced around and saw the others receiving one as well, even the Alteans. Keith reluctantly sipped his and found it to be a mixed berry. It was a definite mixture of the space equivalent of strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries with maybe blackberries too. Keith couldn't quite tell, but it tasted good anyway, so he drank his down.

The Paladins were having a hard time keeping the smiles off their faces when they saw Keith polishing off his smoothie. They figured that if Keith saw everyone else with a smoothie, he wouldn't think it anything was added to his, and having it a mixed berry flavor masked any unusual taste the sleeping potion may have left. They weren't sure when the potion was supposed to take effect, so they were surprised to see and hear Keith's head hit the table. Mere ticks later, a soft purr could be heard. That was when the team truly knew that Keith was out cold.

Shiro gently scooped up his second-in-command and carried him back to bed. Maybe the potion would let Keith get a full night's rest. Even if it didn't, any amount of sleep was better than none.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Dragged Away"

Keith was on the training deck again...or still. Hunk wasn't sure which one it was. He didn't know why the Red Paladin was constantly on the training deck, but he surmised that it was how he coped with being shot into space and having to be a part of an intergalactic war. However, Hunk knew that Keith had been on the training deck long enough and was probably hungry, thirsty, tired, or a combination of all three.

The Yellow Paladin was still nervous as he entered the training deck.

"Start training level thirty-four."

"End training sequence," Hunk called out before it even began.

Keith whirled around with a sharp retort on his tongue but didn't say it, because it was Hunk. "Hunk, what are you doing here?"

"You've been here too long, Keith. I know you love training as much as I love cooking or maybe even more, but..." Hunk trailed off as he caught sight of the look on Keith's face. Hunk sighed. "You're not leaving, are you?"

Keith tightened his grip on his Marmora blade. "Nope."

Hunk closed his eyes for a moment. He had hoped Keith would see reason and leave on his own, but that wasn't happening. "All right. You leave me no choice."

"Huh?"

"I'm sorry." Hunk didn't Keith much time to think before he flung the shorter but slightly older teen over his shoulder.

"Hunk! What are you doing?!"

"You need to not be on the training deck for multiple hours at a time."

"What am I supposed to do then?"

Hunk faltered slightly. Did Keith truly not know? "Um, you could hang out with us."

"Yeah right. Lance would just use it as an opportunity to torment me."

"He doesn't mean to be mean. He thinks of you as a friendly rival. He likes to tease you."

"He's teasing me? He's not being mean?"

Hunk didn't say anything as he noticed that Keith had a thoughtful look on his face as he considered this information. He let the silence reign between them for a few moments before he asked, "Do you want to join us?"

Keith gave him a tiny smile. "Only if you put me down first."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Verbal Claiming"

Keith was enjoying himself being by Lance's side. No matter what Lance was doing he was at his side. This, however, caught the unwanted attention of another Alpha, who truly wasn't supposed to be there, but since he was a prince, no one was going to kick him out. He wasn't able to get close to the Omega, because he was always by Lance's side. He was biding his time and saw his chance when Lance left Keith to get drinks but not without a kiss to his forehead right above his luxite circlet.

%%%

Keith was blushing slightly from the kiss Lance pressed to his forehead. He kept his eyes on Lance's form as he was getting the drinks, and he missed the approach of the other Alpha.

"Hello, little one."

Keith jolted slightly at the greeting. He glanced over at the other prince and was curious what he wanted.

"Hello, Lotor."

"What is a sweet smelling Omega doing by himself?"

It immediately put Keith on edge. "Lance is getting drinks for me and him."

"I can get you a drink worthy of a Galra."

"I appreciate the offer, Lotor, but I'm going to have to decline."

"That's okay. How about I show you what you should look for in an Alpha?"

Keith quickly glanced toward Lance who had gotten waylaid by a partygoer. "No thank you, Lotor. I'm going to see what is keeping Lance."

As Keith tried to pass by Lotor, the older prince grabbed onto the Omega's arm hard. It hurt, and Lotor wasn't letting go no matter how hard Keith struggled. Keith knew there was only one last recourse, and that was for him to whine.

Once he whined, he attracted not only the attention of Kolivan, Antok, Thace, and Ulaz but Lance's attention as well.

The whine told Lance everything. There was nothing about the situation that Keith liked, and that was all Lance needed to know. He quickly hurried over and put himself between Keith and the other prince, being able to push the Omega behind him.

Lance could tell his interruption was welcome, because Keith wrapped his tail around his waist and tucked his head into his neck, his fluffy ears twitching against the back of his head. "Who do you think you are grabbing onto him like that?"

"He's an Omega who needs to be shown how good he could have it as the Omega of a crown prince rather than the Omega of the second child."

"He didn't want your attention, and it isn't your job to tell him what he wants or needs. He's my Omega!"

The purr Lance heard from behind him told him that Keith approved of being verbally claimed by him. It was then that Keith's four advisors stepped up behind their prince with Kolivan stepping forward. "I suggest you run along, Prince Lotor. This is a gathering of Omegas, not Alphas."

Seeing the situation was being handled, Lance managed to turn around and wrap his arms around his Omega. "Are you okay, Keith?"

Keith tucked his head under Lance's chin. "Yes. Thanks to you."

"Do you want to go back out to the balcony?"

"No. I want to stay right here like this."

"Then, that's what you'll have."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Secret Injury"

Lance stared at the healing pod. He couldn't believe Keith had been hiding such a severe wound without so much as a grimace. At least he noticed and forced Keith to come with him to the med bay. Once there, more injuries were uncovered when they changed him into the white bodysuit that promoted healing within the healing pod.

There was a myriad of bruises ranging in color from blues, purples, and blacks to yellows, greens, and browns. There was also a collection of scars that Lance never knew were there aside from the one on his right shoulder. He received that one during The Trials of Marmora.

It was strange to see Keith so still. Sure he was quiet, but the Red Paladin was always moving, even if it was just his leg bouncing on the sofa or his Paladin seat. It went against everything Keith was for him to be still; even Lance knew that.

They may not have always gotten along, especially at the Garrison, where Lance was jealous of the attention Keith got from Shiro, who was (and still is) Lance's hero. Keith made everything at the Garrison seem like a breeze, where Lance had to study and work hard at everything, but he just ended up as a cargo pilot instead of the coveted position as a fighter pilot.

However, that was ancient history. Now, Lance and Keith were part of the same team tasked with saving the universe from a group of...well, giant, purple space cats. They also found out that not all of the space cats were evil. There was a whole group that were ceaselessly working to take down the evil empire.

Keith was actually a part of the group. Once he (and everyone else) accepted his Galra heritage, Galran features showed up. He ended up with purple cheek stripes; purple, fluffy ears; a long, thin, purple tail; and sharp fangs. Lance quite liked the way Keith looked with these new features, even though he seemed less confident, especially around Allura, but Lance couldn't quite blame him.

When they originally learned of Keith's heritage, Allura reacted extremely poorly, displaying a deep racism for not just Galra in general but for Keith specifically as well. It was true that Allura apologized, but Keith didn't really get over the poor behavior she displayed.

The pod beeping drew Lance out of his reverie in time for him to catch Keith as he fell out of the pod. Lance closed his arms around the part Galra, breathing in his unique scent that clung to him, relieved that he was back with him. He hefted him into a bridal carry and took him back to the room they had begun to share. He set Keith in the nest he had constructed before he joined him, snuggled against his back. He was going to make sure Keith knew he was there when he woke back up.

Fin

Chapter Text

"A Scarred Kit"

The Blades knew Keith had a scar from going through The Trials of Marmora, but they hadn't thought he had received other scars previously. However, when they saw him lounging in their nest without a shirt, they were dismayed at the numerous scars that littered his body. As a doctor, Ulaz was the most distressed as it told him that whoever was in charge of the kit's well-being when his was a younger kit didn't take care of him, making sure he didn't injure himself bad enough to leaving lasting marks. He hadn't meant to whine out loud, but it still happened.

The sound disturbed the kit, who roused enough to let out a questioning noise in his pack's direction. Ulaz entered the nest and gathered the kit into his arms, letting him rest on his lap as the kit was still half-asleep. "Who let you get so hurt that you got all these scars, kit?"

"Hmm? Oh." Keith yawned. "Most of these I got when I lived with the last foster family I ever had. There were not the nicest people."

Ulaz tensed up. "Are you saying that the family that was supposed to take care of you in your parents' place abused you?"

Keith nodded, snuggling further into Ulaz's embrace and not realizing he was actually telling them something he wouldn't freely admit if he was fully awake. However, now that he did say it, the Blades were going to coax answers out of him, but that could wait until after the kit's nap. At that moment, the other three members of the pack entered the nest and crowded around Ulaz and their kit. Feeling all four pack members gathered around him made Keith feel more relaxed, relaxed enough to purr.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Too Hot"

Keith was panting, which wouldn't have raised any concerns had he been on the training deck or even in the midst of a battle, but he wasn't. He was sitting in the Red Paladin seat on the bridge, attending an alliance meeting between Voltron and the Blades.

Keith wasn't feeling well. He knew that, but he also missed his pack. He was unable to visit them or vice versa, because Voltron was busy liberating planets, several of whose inhabitants seemed prejudice against all Galra. Fortunately, they didn't notice that Keith was part Galra; probably due to his human appearance. He didn't think his current condition was due to any of the battles he fought in. He just couldn't seem to cool off. It was so hot that he even took off his jacket and was in the process of tying his hair into a ponytail when he heard Thace ask, "Kit, are you okay?"

Keith finished tying his hair back and looked up at his pack. "Y-yeah. I'm okay."

"That is not convincing, kit." Antok was worried, his tail lashing behind him.

Allura turned to look at Keith. He seemed quite flushed, and his cheeks were even redder than normal. She approached him. "Keith?"

Keith glanced at the princess and couldn't suppress his whimper. "I'm sorry. It's just so hot."

"Hot? It's not any hotter than normal." Allura was perplexed.

"But then, why does it feel like the desert?" Keith whimpered again. "I'm about ready to take my shirt off!"

That comment (combined with Keith's hair in a ponytail) seemed to short circuit Lance's brain and at the same time spur Shiro into action. He leapt from his chair and hurried over to Keith's side. "C'mon, ototo. Maybe a cool shower will help."

"We'll also stop by," Ulaz added. "Maybe there's something we can do."

"Any help is appreciated," Allura mentioned.

"Just take care of our kit until we reach you."

"I always watch out for him," Shiro replied. "He's my brother in every way but blood."

Kolivan nodded. "Marmora out."

The channel closed, and Shiro accompanied Keith off the bridge and to his room. "Go take a cool shower, Keith, and I'll set out some cooler clothes."

Keith nodded, peeling off his shirt. The amount of scars that littered Keith's torso always unnerved Shiro, but he never let it show as it took a lot of trust for Keith to show even Shiro. A good majority of the scars came from Keith's time in foster care, though there were some that Keith wouldn't talk about, and Shiro suspected they were from bullies, either in school or at the group home Keith had been living at until Shiro recruited him from the Garrison.

The shower running drew Shiro from his thoughts as he set about searching Keith's room for some clothes cooler than his T-shirt and long pants. He was dismayed at the lack of clothes until he opened the bottom drawer of his dresser. There were several long shirts that seemed way too big to be Keith's. It took Shiro a few ticks too many to realize they were from the Blades, probably Thace or Ulaz judging from the size. He decided to leave one of the shirts out and pair it with a pair of shorts he found that seemed to be Keith's size.

Shiro didn't even notice the water being turned off until he heard Keith call to him. "Ni-san?"

Shiro looked up and saw Keith with one towel around his waist and another draped over his hair. Shiro smiled and approached him. "Let me help you, Keith."

"Let me get dressed first."

Shiro closed his eyes as Keith slipped on the shorts and the shirt Shiro had picked out, which happened to be one of Ulaz's. As he slipped it on, he couldn't help but purr.

When he heard the purr, Shiro couldn't help but smile. Ever since he accepted his heritage, Keith was more comfortable letting others hear him making Galran noises. Once he had slipped on the shirt, he told Shiro, "You can open your eyes now."

Shiro counted to five in his head before slowly opening his eyes to reveal Keith trying to dry his hair with the towel. Shiro smiled again and moved over to him. "Let's get your hair dry, and then I can try to braid it for you."

"Can you braid it?"

"No. That's why I said 'try.'"

Drying Keith's hair was a relatively simple task. Braiding, on the other hand, was more complicated than it seemed. Shiro was reluctant to muddle his way through it, lest he run the risk of tangling Keith's hair. Therefore he was grateful when he heard the Blades heading their way.

When the door opened, Antok actually rushed over and took over the braiding. He undid Shiro's attempt and ran his claws through his kit's hair before braiding it. Shiro shook his head. He didn't understand why it looked so easy when Antok did it, but it was so hard for him to do it.

While Antok was braiding Keith's hair, Kolivan turned to Shiro. "We discovered the reason Keith was so hot. It is quite warm on the castle ship, especially compared to headquarters."

"It doesn't feel any warmer than usual."

"I do believe I can explain that," Ulaz spoke up. "Keith's dormant Galran genes are starting to become active, so things that used to feel normal are going to be different now, including the temperature."

"Does that mean I'll develop physical Galran features?" Keith asked.

Thace looked over at his kit. "Is that something you're hoping for, kit?"

Keith dropped his gaze to his lap in slight embarrassment, hesitantly replying, "Yeah."

Antok tied off the braid and gently nuzzled Keith's neck. "I'm sure that whatever features you develop will suit you well, kit."

"I'm not so hot anymore." Keith looked up at his pack.

"We already explained what we suspected to the princess, and Coran set out to fix it immediately," Ulaz stated.

Keith relaxed against Antok with a purr. It was a relief to not be so hot anymore. In fact, he now realized that he was tired. He yawned and allowed his eyes to close. His soft purrs filled the room, alerting his pack and brother that he actually fell asleep.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Versus"

It was a quiet day at headquarters, except for the training hall. Keith was in the training hall again, but he was sparring against the only Galra he had never beaten before, Sendak.

Sendak enjoyed sparring against the prince. He never insisted that Sendak go easy against him, but he could also tell that the prince was fighting against the urge to play fight. He was still a young kit after all.

Krolia was watching her kit fight against one of the largest Galra in her employ. She knew Keith was wanting to beat all of the Galra, Blades and soldiers alike. She sincerely hoped that Keith would be able to beat Sendak that quintant as he had been training hard to do so.

He had just recently beaten Antok when the large Blade was actually trying to pin the kit. Keith had learned to use his smaller size and greater endurance to his advantage. All he had to do was not get beaten by the commander until he grew fatigued, but Keith was too impatient for that tactic.

Keith darted around the room, avoiding Sendak's claws, including his prosthetic. The commander had promised not to use his prosthetic against the prince, which was at the Empress's request. The request irritated Keith, but he couldn't get her to change her mind no matter what. She reminded him that it still counted as a win, placating and encouraging him at the same time.

Keith dove between Sendak's legs as the large Galra tried to grab him. He danced out of Sendak's reach with a grin on his face. He crouched a fair distance away from Sendak before he sprinted in his direction, jumping at the last tick. He used his momentum to launch himself at Sendak's shoulders, which knocked him off balance enough to allow Keith to take him down. When Sendak landed on the floor, Keith was sitting on him with a humongous grin on his face.

Krolia clapped from the sidelines, approaching the duo as she did. "Congratulations, kit. You have successfully taken down almost everyone here."

"Almost everyone?" Keith asked, sliding off Sendak's back. "Who's left?"

Krolia grinned. "Me." She crouched low and flexed her claws. "Come at me, kit."

Keith growled playfully and tackled his mother as Sendak got out of the way. He knew they would be play fighting as soon as the Empress stepped onto the floor. It was one reason Keith had never won against his mother; their spars always devolved into play fights, which was to be expected.

Sendak watched the two play fight as he approached his mate, who was waiting on the sidelines as well. Things at headquarters were so different between the previous reign and the current one. One major difference was that the Empress encouraged relations between mates, something that Sendak was slowly getting used to. It helped soothe his agitation. Another difference was that the Empress was easy to talk to. She was almost always available, even if you just needed a sympathetic ear.

A chirp drew his attention to his Empress and prince, whose play fight had ended with the Empress pinning her kit to the floor.

"One day, I will win against you, Mama."

Krolia nuzzled her kit. "One day you will, my kit. I believe in you."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Take Care"

Shiro found himself doing things for the other Paladins that he normally wouldn't; just little things like making sure Pidge was taking a break while she worked, making sure Hunk was resting, and making sure Lance was eating enough. He hadn't realized he was doing these things until Lance teasingly called him "Space Dad."

Everyone on the ship knew he was a caregiver, specifically Keith's caregiver, and it struck the Garrison Trio as odd that Shiro wasn't doing these things for Keith. Of course, Keith wasn't a full time little nor was he currently little.

Shiro had considered babying Keith but had figured that it wouldn't end well, but then again, it had been awhile since the Red Paladin had regressed. It couldn't hurt to try. Shiro could always pass it off as him making sure he was taking care of himself.

Shiro nodded to himself and headed in the direction of the training deck, figuring that's where he was. The telltale sounds of metal clanging against metal told Shiro he was right. He entered the training deck and supressed a sigh.

"Start training level 35!"

Shiro frowned. "End training sequence!"

Keith turned to face Shiro. "Why did you stop me, Shiro?"

"You've been here too long, sweetie." Shiro saw Keith stiffen when he called him his pet name, which was usually reserved for when he was regressed.

"I'm still big, Shiro."

"But do you want to be?" Shiro stepped closer, hoping to be able to wrap his arms around Keith.

"Y-Yes."

Shiro smiled softly and managed to wrap his arms around Keith's shoulders. "Are you sure, sweetie?"

Having Shiro's arms around him and talking to him in such a sweet tone of voice made Keith want to regress. He shook his head. "No, Daddy."

"Why don't we go to your room, and Daddy will take care of you?"

Keith purred. "Okay, Daddy."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Voltron Chat"

YellowPaladin added Mr.Shirogane1, Samurai, Sharpshooter, Hacker, Princess, Advisor, AdoptedSis, Mr.Shirogane2, Mr.Shirogane3, and RebelTechie to the chat Voltron Family.

Sharpshooter: Ooo! A chat for us?

YellowPaladin: Well, we had discussed it last time

Sharpshooter: We did :)

Sharpshooter: Also, before we go too far

*Sharpshooter has changed YellowPaladin's name to SpaceGordonRamsey*

SpaceGordonRamsey: Isn't this joke a little old, Lance?

Sharpshooter: Maybe but it's a good one

Mr.Shirogane2: Do I even want to know?

Samurai: Not really

Mr.Shirogane2: That's not reassuring coming from you, Keith

Hacker: It's an inside joke

Mr.Shirogane3: I don't think Shiro ever told me about it either

Hacker: Okay. That is actually annoying

*Hacker has changed Mr.Shirogane1's name to SpaceDad*

*Hacker has changed Mr.Shirogane2's name to EarthDad*

*Hacker has changed Mr.Shirogane3's name to EarthDad2*

Hacker: That's better

Samurai: How is it better? Curtis's name still has a number in it

Hacker: It's better than what it was

SpaceDad: Pidge, I am not a Dad

Samurai: That's not what you were insinuating during the last chat. I had to explain to my pack about that. The only ones who weren't confused were Acxa and Mom

EarthDad: That's still weird. You found your mom, and you're part Galra

Samurai: Is that a problem?

EarthDad: No but it explains so much. I wish we had known about it when we were raising you at the Garrison. It would have saved us a lot of issues

Samurai: I wasn't that bad

Space Dad: Oh really?

Samurai: What?

Space Dad: For example, I had to convince several people they were hearing things when you growled at someone who was annoying you like James, when in truth, I didn't know why you could growl

Samurai: I didn't even know I was growling, and that was just one instance

EarthDad: Do you want us to go on?

Samurai: What is this? Pick on Keith day?

RebelTechie: Every day is Pick on Keith day

Sharpshooter: Hey, be nice to my boyfriend!

RebelTechie: It is my place as the big brother to pick on the younger ones

Samurai: You're not that much older than me

RebelTechie: Your weird time jump in the Quantum Abyss doesn't count

Samurai: Of course it counts! I lived two years with my mom and my space wolf.

Princess: You mean Cosmo?

Samurai: His name isn't Cosmo

AdoptedSis: Then what is it?

Samurai: He hasn't told me yet

Sharpshooter: Uh, cariño, wolves can't talk

Samurai: I know regular wolves can't talk, but he's not a regular wolf either. He came from space, he's blue, and he can teleport. Who's to say he can't tell me his name?

SpaceGordonRamsey: You know, that's fair

Samurai: Thank you, Hunk

SpaceGordonRamsey: Until he does though, we're calling him Cosmo

Samurai: *sigh* I can't stop you guys, but at least when he does tell me, will you call him that name?

Hacker: We will

Fin

Chapter Text

"Married"

Keith was glad his light purple fur hid his blush. Lance had plastered himself against his side ever since they exited the altar room, where their wedding ceremony had taken place. The reception, which followed the ceremony, took place in the ballroom.

Lance took the opportunity after the reception to change out of his fancy, restrictive clothes. He changed into a flowy pair of blue pants and a loose, open, silver shirt. He gazed at his sapphire and amethyst ring again. It was hard to believe that he finally got married to his fiancée, who was getting changed into his own less restrictive clothing. His red, half cape came off as it was part of his guard uniform, which was okay as it allowed Lance the opportunity to run his fingers through Keith's lavender fur.

Keith changed into a loose pair of pants but left his chest bare. What was left on his person was the circlet King Alfor had bestowed upon him. It turned out to be made of luxite, which the king had gotten from his Dads (and Kolivan and Antok).

He almost couldn't believe he was married to Prince Lance, which had been set into motion by his close friend and mentor, who had suggested that Keith tell King Alfor that he was in love with Lance.

The tick they changed their clothes, Lance tucked himself against Keith again. Keith's long, thin, purple tail wrapped itself around Lance's waist, which caused Lance's blue Altean marks to glow softly. Lance raised his hand and started rubbing one of Keith's purple, fluffy ears nestled in his black hair, causing Keith to purr. He licked Lance's cheeks in appreciation, causing Lance's marks to glow brighter.

"Kitty, let's go lay down."

Keith purred louder at being called 'kitty' as he led Lance to their bed. Lance pushed Keith onto the bed before pouncing on his husband, who flipped them over, so that he was leaning over his prince. He leaned down and passionately kissed Lance, whose blue eyes closed the tick their lips met. Keith's own violet and amber eyes were closed as well.

When they kiss broke, Keith stretched up slightly to groom Lance's star kissed hair. As much as Lance liked it when Keith groomed his hair, he kept his eyes open, which gave him a good view of Keith's ring. The half Galra now sported a wedding ring of his own. It was a ruby band with three sapphires in a diagonal line set in the band.

Keith was everything to Lance, just like Lance was to Keith. He may have started out as just a guard, but he swiftly moved up. He became the prince's personal bodyguard, then his lover, then his fiancée, and now, as evident by his ring, he was his husband.

Fin

Chapter Text

"A Little Hidden"

Keith was regressed. He knew it, but he was also determined not to show his Daddy that he was. He didn't know how long he would be able to hide his little side as his Daddy was smart...and kind. Keith wasn't tiny, but he knew that he may end up that way, so he put on a pull up, because even though he would've preferred a diaper, it would have made it obvious to his Daddy as it made a distinctive sound and showed too much in his regular clothes. The pull up was enough of a risk as it could be seen if his shirt rode up. He was tempted to steal...borrow his Daddy's jacket, but...Keith cocked his head. Why couldn't he borrow his Daddy's jacket? He let him borrow it all the time, even when he wasn't little. He just had to act like he wasn't little. He could do that.

Keith left his room after making sure his shirt was pulled down enough. His belt helped keep his shirt down. He made his way to the lounge, remembering that was where his Daddy liked to spend his time. He entered the room and grinned. Daddy...Lance was sitting on the couch, wearing his jacket. Keith approached him and sat down next to him.

Lance looked up and smiled as Keith sat next to him. "Hey, Samurai. What's up?"

"Hi, Lance. Can...um...can I..." Keith trailed off, feeling even smaller. He reached out and tugged lightly on Daddy's jacket.

Lance felt the slight tug on his jacket and knew what Keith was wanting, but why couldn't he voice it? "Of course you can borrow my jacket."

Keith smiled when Daddy took off his jacket and handed it to him. He fought the urge to cuddle it and tried to put it on but was having trouble with the sleeves, so he ended up putting up the hood and hanging it off his head.

Lance watched as Keith tried and failed to put his jacket on. It seemed like Keith was either fighting his regression or was hiding it, but why would he do either? No one on the ship would look down on him for being little. He was so lost in his thoughts he almost missed Keith saying, "Thanks."

The suspected little standing up drew Lance's attention. Lance also stood up and reached out to stop Keith from leaving. His arm brushed against Keith's black t-shirt, which made it ride up, exposing the upper part of his pull up.

Keith's cheeks turned pink in embarrassment, even though he had no reason to be embarrassed. Lance was by his side in an instant. "It's all right, cariño. You're okay. Daddy's here."

Keith whimpered slightly, not able to fully pretend he wasn't little. "Daddy."

Lance scooped him up and cradled him against his chest. "You wanna go back to your room, baby?"

Keith shook his head. "Nuh-uh. Stay wif Daddy."

Lance paused for a moment. He could tell his little was going to end up tiny and was going to need a diaper instead of the pull up he was currently wearing but how could he get him dressed in better clothes (and a diaper) without him having a meltdown?

"Hey, cariño. How about we get you dressed in your Red Lion sleeper? Y'know, the one with the hood and tail?"

"Red!"

Lance smiled as he carried his tiny little to his room. He laid him down and gathered all the supplies he needed. He quickly stripped his baby out of the adult clothes and the slightly wet pull up. He slid a diaper under his little's hips and taped it closed. He slid his feet and legs into the sleeper, followed by his hands and arms. He pulled up the hood, tucking Keith's hair inside.

"Do you want Daddy's jacket, cariño?"

"Nuh-uh. Bwankie."

Lance slipped his jacket back on as he pulled out a purple blanket and a stuffed Red Lion, two of Keith's comfort items. "Here you go, baby."

Keith squealed when he saw the lion, taking both into his arms. He purred as Lance scooped him up into his arms and snuggled into his Dada's shoulder, warm and content.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Guests Of The Empire"

It was a quiet quintant at central command, when Krolia received a transmission.

A nameless lieutenant appeared on her view screen. "Empress Krolia, we were scouting System X-9-Y as ordered when we found these primitive scientists. I don't think they know anything useful."

System X-9-Y was the Galran term for the solar system that contained Earth. "Who told you to scout that system? The order did not come from me, and why did you abduct three humans?" Krolia peered at the humans behind the Galra. She sighed. "Bring them to central, and I will deal with them, and lieutenant, there will be a reprimand in your file detailing this lapse in judgement."

The lieutenant flinched at the harshness of his Empress's voice. "Yes, Empress."

It was then that the unmasked human spoke up. "Please, we come from a peaceful planet! We mean you no harm! We're unarmed!"

Krolia smiled at the human's bravery, though she could tell it wavered slightly during his second plea. "Worry not. We also mean you no harm. You are to be guests at my table, where we will discuss your return to your planet."

The view screen blinked off, and Krolia sighed again. There was a lot to do before her guests arrived. "Thace!"

The violet furred Blade, who acted like Krolia's bodyguard some times and errand boy other times, stepped into the throne room. "Yes?"

"There are some guests arriving soon."

"Guests?"

"An idiotic lieutenant was carrying old orders out and abducted three humans from system X-9-Y. I have already reprimanded him, and he is to escort the trio of humans here. Let the kitchen staff know, and find my kit."

Thace grinned. Finding Krolia's kit was one of his common "assignments." Keith had found that he was not restricted in exploring central (as long as he had someone with him) nor was he restricted to fly with the Red Lion. Thace hoped the kit wasn't out in his lion. Otherwise, it would be difficult to locate him.

On his way to the kitchens, Thace pulled out his communicator. "Keith? Kit, are you there?"

"Hey, Thace! Yeah. I'm here."

"Where are you?"

"Um, good question. Haxus, where are we?"

Thace grinned. Haxus was one of the two soldiers that Keith had taken a shine to, the other one being Haxus's mate and commander, Sendak. Sendak used to have a reputation for being ruthless and scary. He was still that way but if you messed with Keith, you now had to hope that Sendak didn't get ahold of you before Krolia did. (There may be nothing left of you otherwise). Sendak adored the prince of the empire.

"We are near the kitchens, kit." Haxus's voice came through the communicator.

"That's good. I will meet you two there. I have news from Krolia."

"Be there in a moment!" Keith called out before turning off the communicator.

Thace smiled again. Keith was always excited to hear news from his mother. It could be old, boring updates or exciting tales of liberated planets, but Keith loved hearing it all.

Thace made it to the kitchens in time for a grate to swing open and for Keith to slide out. He landed without a sound and in time for a yowl to echo through the base. Keith grinned. He had slipped away from Haxus when the Galra's back was turned.

Thace sighed and contacted the lieutenant via his communicator. "Haxus, calm down. Keith is with me."

"He is?"

Keith leaned over and spoke into Thace's communicator. "Sorry, Haxus. I was too excited to hear about the news to stay put. I used the vents to get to the kitchen."

"Maybe we should make the grates harder to come off," Haxus grumbled.

Keith chuckled and turned to Thace. "So, what's the news?"

"There are guests coming, and you and your mom are having dinner with them."

"We are? Nice!" Keith pouted. "Do I have to wear the fancy clothes?"

Thace grinned. Keith was a typical kit. He didn't like the restrictive, fancy clothes associated with his station. Keith had taken to wearing a Blade uniform Antok had made for him. He liked that he could even wear it while he piloted his lion. "No, kit. You can just wear your uniform."

"Yay. So, when are they coming?"

"Should be any time now. You should get going, kit."

Keith grinned and hurried away from the kitchens. He hoped the guests would be interesting.

%%%

The last thing Shiro expected when he left for Kerberos was to be abducted by real life aliens. He was glad Adam talked him out of taking Matt up on that bet. His heart clenched at the thought of his...he hoped Adam was still his fiancée when they got back, whenever that was.

He couldn't help looking around (just like Sam and Matt were doing) as they were escorted from the hangar to where he assumed the dining room was. They were showed which seats they could take but were told not to sit down until the empress and prince did so. Shiro stole a look at Matt and Sam, making sure his team were doing okay. Sam seemed to be taking it in stride, whereas Matt seemed to be about to vibrate into another dimension. Shiro discreetly placed a hand on Matt's arm, hoping to calm the youngest team member.

Their attention was drawn to the door where a tall purple female was entering followed by...a human! Shiro wasn't expecting to see a human this far out in space, especially in the company of these aliens. How did he come to be there? Was he abducted as well? He had so many question and hoped he would get some answers.

"Greetings. I am Empress Krolia of the Galra Empire, and this is my son, Prince Keith. We are honored to have you join us at the dinner table." Krolia and Keith took their seats, which meant the Kerberos crew could do the same. Krolia could see she supposed he was the leader had questions, probably about Keith, since he looked completely human. "I can see you have questions. Keith is my biological son, and he's half human, half Galra. My mate, Keith's father, perished a few of your Earth months after Keith was born, so I had to take him with me back to what originally was our headquarters."

"What was your mate's name?" Sam asked.

"Tex Kogane."

"Tex? I knew him, and he always spoke of a lady that was 'out of this world,'" Sam replied.

Krolia blushed slightly, which showed up as a darker purple on her cheeks. "He was a sweet man."

"Were you the only alien on Earth?"

"Matt!" Shiro hissed.

Krolia chuckled. "It is all right. I was alone when I crash landed on Earth."

"I can't believe Tex was the first to meet an being from not just another world but another galaxy, and he didn't tell me!" Sam exclaimed.

"Earth is not ready as a whole to accept the reality of other beings, and Tex knew that."

"Speaking of Earth, when are we going back?" Shiro asked.

"After dessert. I am sure you have loved ones that are anxiously awaiting your return. We will picked your ship and bring you close to Earth, so your trip back will be swift."

"Thank you, your majesty."

Krolia waved her hand. "None of that now. You can just call me Krolia. I hope that Earth will be able to join us as a space faring race soon."

Shiro, Sam, and Matt hoped for the same, but for the moment, the crew enjoyed their time in the company of not just the empress and prince but other Galra as well. They quickly learned to not judge a race on how they looked on the outside, because even though the Galra were large and mean looking, several of their members reminded the humans of cats, prompting them to think of the Galra as giant, purple, Space Cats.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Petting"

Lance shook his head as he entered his house. He knew why his workplace thought he was a werewolf, but that wasn't the reason he took the nights of the full moon off. He wasn't a werewolf, but his boyfriend was.

Keith hadn't wanted him to know that he was a werewolf, but Lance had found out by accident. He followed him one night and came face to face with a werewolf that didn't recognize him at first, but once he showed no fear, it was like Keith was finally in control. Ever since that night, Lance spent the nights of the full moon with his boyfriend.

Lance walked into the backyard that had a tall privacy fence surrounding the property; not that it mattered, the closest neighbor wasn't even in sight. Even though Keith was standing there staring up at the darkening sky, he could tell Lance was there. He could smell his boyfriend's distinct scent and hear his footsteps as he approached.

"Hey, Lance. Welcome home."

"Hey, Keith. I'm glad I made it back in time."

"Me too."

The pair watched as the moon rose, Keith's breathing quickening. He was used to the transformation at this point, but some reactions were impossible to stop, while others were instinct.

Lance watched as his boyfriend transformed into his werewolf form, howling at the moon at the end. When his violet and amber eyes turned on him, Lance didn't feel like he was in danger. On the contrary, he felt quite safe in Keith's presence.

Keith loped over to Lance and rubbed his head gently against his shoulder. Lance grinned and started stroking his fur. Ever since they had moved in together, Keith had become more affectionate, especially in his wolf form. Lance knew that people would never believe that Keith was a tame werewolf, but there he was almost begging for pets.

Even though Lance loved spending all night with his boyfriend, he was tired from working ten hours. He petted his boyfriend as long as he could before he started leaning against him. The warmth was soothing, and Lance felt his eyes close but wrenched them open. They closed again, and Lance didn't open them back up. He fell asleep, cuddled up against his boyfriend's fur.

Keith realized that Lance had fallen asleep against him. He carefully maneuvered him so he could lay down with Lance still laying against him. Lance shifted in his sleep, one of his hands burying itself in Keith's fur. He softly murmured something in his sleep that Keith's enhanced hearing just barely picked up.

"Te amo." [I love you.]

Fin

Chapter Text

"Too Tired"

Keith was pushing his food around his plate, slowly taking bites. He wasn't really hungry but knew how hard Hunk worked whipping up something edible for the Paladins, so they wouldn't have to eat Coran's cooking. The older Altean kept trying to cook for them, but whenever they heard he was trying to cook, one of the Paladins would request his help on the other side of the castle or with a difficult issue.

Keith just couldn't eat much and felt bad as he normally could eat the serving he had taken. He was so tired, even though he hadn't been on the training deck all quintant. He took another bite, hoping he wasn't drawing attention to himself.

Shiro noticed, though. It was a habit to watch Keith during the meals he showed up to. Normally, he didn't have anything to worry about, but when he noticed that he wasn't eating much, Shiro took note of how Keith looked. He looked absolutely exhausted like he had just had a lengthy session on the training deck, but Shiro knew that hadn't been possible as the training deck had been undergoing much needed maintenance.

Shiro watched as Keith took another slow bite like he was trying to force himself to eat the entire plate. The Black Paladin stood up, catching most everyone's attention.

"Shiro, is everything all right?" Allura asked.

"I'm fine, but I think someone else may not be." Shiro walked over to Keith, who had stopped eating, and placed his left hand on his shoulder. "Keith?"

Keith slowly raised his eyes to meet Shiro's before he nuzzled his brother's hand. "'Kashi."

"You can barely stay awake, ototo. Why don't you go to bed?"

Keith whined softly. "But it's too early."

Allura approached the duo, surprisingly Keith as he hadn't noticed her approach. She moved his bangs out of his eyes, the back of her hand brushing against his forehead, which felt hot. "You seem quite warm, Keith. You might want to go lie down."

"But I don't want to waste the food Hunk made."

"I can package it up and put your name on it, so no one else will eat it," Hunk offered.

Keith looked around the table, his eyes landing on Lance, and he opened his mouth with another excuse, but Lance cut him off. "No you don't, Samurai. Shiro and Allura both said you should go lie down, and you should listen to them."

Keith sighed. "All right."

Keith stood up but swayed a little, Shiro grabbing him to steady him. "Let me help you, ototo."

"Okay, ni-san." Keith nuzzled Shiro's shoulder with a half purr before he led his brother to his room.

Keith tiredly tugged off his boots and took off his jacket and belt. Shiro took the jacket and belt and hung up the jacket and set the belt on the dresser as Keith settled into his nest with a sigh. Shiro stroked his hair as Keith's eyes slid closed.

"Get some good rest, ototo." Shiro quietly left Keith's room, smiling when he heard Keith purring.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Bookstore"

"Takashi, no."

"Please, Adam. Just one."

"I said no."

Shiro gave his boyfriend puppy dog eyes. "Please!"

Adam sighed. "Fine. Just one!"

Shiro grinned. "Thank you, Adam!"

Adam watched his fiancée almost dash into the bookstore with the feeling that he had just made a colossal mistake.

Five minutes later, Matt and Keith joined Adam outside the bookstore. Keith looked around. "Where's Shiro?"

Adam jabbed his thumb in the direction of the bookstore. "Where do you think?"

Matt and Keith looked at each other before turning their gazes towards Adam. Matt said, "And you let him go in by himself?"

"Takashi's a grown adult."

"You have much more faith in him than we do."

"That's harsh, Keith. He is your mentor."

"We have the utmost faith in him as a pilot and Keith's mentor, but he is like a kid in the candy store when it comes to books."

Keith jerked his head in the direction of the bookstore. "Our case in point."

Shiro was walking out with a large bag and a humongous smile on his face.

Adam groaned when Shiro was close enough. "Takashi, I said one!"

"This is one...series."

Adam face palmed while Matt and Keith laughed.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Hand Washing"

Keith switched between tugging on his new jacket or rubbing the sleeves. He didn't like the jacket as it was quite uncomfortable, causing him to softly whine unconsciously.

%%%

Keith's pack was settling into their nest room when they heard the whine. It was a strictly Galran kit noise that was below the hearing of humans. Krolia was the one who opened the door, revealing their youngest kit dressed in a new uniform. "Kit?"

Keith stopped and looked up, his eyes looking a little bit more Galra with slitted pupils and yellow sclera. "Mama."

"Kit, what's wrong?" Krolia drew him into her arms.

"This new uniform is uncomfortable," Keith said with another whine.

Krolia led her youngest kit further into their nest room. Acxa and Regris shifted to make room for their brother and mother between them. Krolia sat down into the newly opened spot, tugging Keith down onto her lap and nuzzling him. Keith's eyes returned to normal due to his mother's nuzzles.

Acxa stroked Keith's arm, feeling the fabric. She wrinkled her nose. "I can see what you mean, though you look really good in it."

Ulaz cocked his head and considered his kit's new clothes. "Perhaps if we hand clean the jacket, it would feel better."

"Would that work?"

"It wouldn't hurt," Thace replied.

Keith stripped off his jacket, revealing his bare chest. Regris whined as he saw some new scars on his brother's chest. "Regris?"

"You have new scars."

"Most of them happened during the battle with the clone Shiro." Keith brushed his right cheek, the stripe on it discolored due to the burn left there.

"Let's get you some more comfortable clothes, kit." Antok left the nest to pull out the long, pale pink shirt Keith favored.

Keith purred at the largest Blade, taking his shirt and slipping it on. He slipped his pants off once the shirt was on. He snuggled against his mom with his siblings cuddled up against his sides, all three kits purrs filling the nest as they fell asleep.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Reunited Family"

Giggles filled the nest. Krolia was tickling her kit. The tiny kit was only a couple deca-phoebes old but looked a bit like her already. He had her cheek stripes, hair color, and iris color. He also had her father's fluffy ears and the recessive gene for a tail. He also was growing fangs. However, he also had an alien look to him as he had his father's skin coloring and sclera color. Keith's father and Krolia's mate was a human, but he had perished. At least Keith didn't seem to miss him or remember him, so the grief wouldn't stunt his growth.

Krolia had brought her kit home with her to the Blade of Marmora headquarters, to her pack. Her father, Kolivan; his mate, Antok; and her pack brothers, mates Thace and Ulaz, adored her kit the moment they were introduced. The little kit fell in love with her pack, which was good as it provided lots of opportunities for the kit to get affection, which was required for not only Galra but humans as well.

%%%

Kolivan watched his daughter tickle his grandkit, whose giggles echoed in the nest room. Even though Krolia was smiling, Kolivan knew she missed her mate terribly. She put on such a brave face for her kit, but her grief was just under the surface, which saddened him. However, he had a surprise for both mother and kit. He stepped forward, rumbling to get their attention.

Krolia stopped tickling Keith, whose ears perked up at who was at the door. "Kol Kol!"

Kolivan scooped up his grandkit and gave him a gentle hug. Keith laid his head on Kolivan's shoulder and caught sight of someone standing behind his grandfather. Keith chirped and raised his head. "Daddy?"

Krolia froze when Keith said, "Daddy?"

She stood up to take a look at who her kit saw behind Kolivan. She gasped as she recognized the human standing there. "Cal? It can't be."

"It's me, darlin'. I survived the ambush and have been trying to get to you and Keith ever since. I remembered the code you used and have been broadcasting it, hoping to attract one of ya."

"It was actually Thace who had intercepted the signal and went to investigate," Kolivan added.

"After showing him proof of me knowing you, he brought me here. I've missed you and Keith so much."

Krolia came over to Calvin and started sniffing him. The familiar, unique scent of her mate brought tears to her eyes, and she wrapped her arms around him. He was truly back.

Keith whined as he reached for his parents. Contrary to what Krolia thought, Keith did remember his father and had missed him.

Cal reached over and plucked his son from the tall Blade's arms, bringing him to rest between himself and Krolia. The little family unit was whole once more, and Krolia silently swore that nothing was going to tear them apart again.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Doting On Keith"

Keith was snuggled deep into the nest. He was purring loudly, tucked between Thace and Ulaz. The two Blades had the day off as it was the anniversary of the day they had been separated from each other during their time at central command (due to Ulaz freeing Shiro). Having their kit at headquarters was unusual during this time, but they didn't mind him being there, especially since he was starting to act like the kit he was.

He still trained too much, ate less, and played less; one thing he did was get more rest. It didn't take much convincing for Keith to take a nap either in the nest or with a pack member. Keith did prefer to sleep with someone as most kits did, which led three of the pack adults to have nests somewhere in their office. Antok didn't have a nest in any of the training halls, but it was mostly because Keith liked to sleep on his back. However, Keith did prefer to sleep snuggled against one of his pack members, especially since they were warm due to their fur.

Keith purring in his sleep caused Thace to smile. He dipped his head and started grooming his hair, his tongue sliding across his face once in awhile and causing Keith to purr even louder. Ulaz smiled at his mate's actions with their kit. The Blades adored both their kit and doting on him.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Cuddly"

Lance never imagined Keith being cuddly. However, that was what was happening. Once he and Keith had confessed their feelings for each other, Keith was constantly snuggling the Blue Paladin when they were together.

That wasn't to say that Keith never left him alone. If Lance wanted alone time, Keith always let him have it. Whenever he wanted to spend time with the half-Galra, Keith inevitably tucked himself against Lance, purring.

Lance adored Keith's Galra heritage, especially since it was more visible now. He had a few features that finally showed up, a long, thin, purple tail; sharp fangs; a purple stripe on each cheek; and fluffy, purple ears. He was also making Galran noises, most noticably the purr.

Lance knew that Keith had been worried that the team and Lance in particular would hate him when the features showed up, but fortunately, no one hated him; not even Allura. The Altean Princess had truly gotten over her hatred of all things Galra and was extremely accepting of Keith's new looks. She allowed Keith to nuzzle her in thanks, her often stroking his hair in response.

Lance wrapped his arms around the purring half-Galra snuggled against him and gently laid his head on top of his, making sure he didn't accidentally pin his ears. Keith's purr was so soothing that Lance was lulled to sleep.

Fin

Chapter Text

"A Gift"

Allura had hated all things Galra for so many deca-phoebes that she almost couldn't remember a time that she didn't, so when she learned that one of her Paladins had Galra blood in his veins, she felt like he had betrayed her. Even worse, it was her Red Paladin, the same Paladin who flew her father's lion.

It had taken her awhile to ask for Keith's forgiveness. She had to take a good, long, hard look inside herself and compared how the other Paladins treated him versus how she treated him. As it turned out, she was the one who had come up short. Keith hadn't changed in any capacity and was the same being he always had been.

He had always had Galra blood but hadn't known it. The betrayal she felt at the hands of Zarkon was still too fresh in her mind, and she had let it color her perception of every Galra, but that was in the past. She had apologized to Keith, and he had forgiven her, only asking one thing; for her to never do that again. That was the one thing Allura could promise easily and have no problem being held to her word. She had no idea that a test of her word would come from the next planet they liberated.

It was an easy thing to drive away the Galra. When the Paladins joined her in meeting the leader of the planet to seek an alliance, the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end from the stares and whispers from the natives. One of her ears twitched as she discreetly listened in on what was being said.

"Half-breed."

"Vile."

"Galra scum."

"Must be a spy."

"Should die."

That last comment made her blood boil. Keith didn't deserve any of their animosity. He defended their planet together with the rest of the team. She would withhold judgement until she  met with the leader. It might just be the native civilians who held a disdain for Galra.

However, she could tell Keith was aware of what was being said, so she shuffled closer and grasped his hand, whispering, "You are none of those things. You are my Red Paladin, my brother."

Keith smiled and softly purred, so that only he and Allura could hear him. She continued holding his hand even when they appeared in front of the leader. Allura met the leader's gaze, which she noted lingered on her and Keith's conjoined hands.

"Princess Allura, welcome to our planet. I see you brought us a gift in celebration of our alliance."

Allura was confused. She hadn't brought a gift. "To what are you referring?"

"To the half-breed you are holding onto. I admit it is a smart idea to keep ahold of the monster so it does not escape."

Allura was horrified. He thought Keith was the gift. "I'm afraid you are mistaken. This is my Red Paladin. He is no gift."

"That is no Paladin. It is an animal."

Allura was vaguely aware of Shiro, Lance, Hunk, and Pidge getting ready to defend Keith with possibly more than just words. She used her unoccupied hand to gesture for them to stand down before turning her attention to the leader. "If that is your planet's view on Galra, then we do not wish to seek an alliance with you. If you are attacked by the Empire, then we will help, but nothing more than that. Farewell."

"Princess, you would throw away this alliance for the sake of a monster."

"No. I throw it away for my brother. Paladins, follow." Allura, still holding Keith's hand, led her Paladins back to the castle. Once they were safe back in the castle, Allura tugged Keith into her arms, stroking his hair. "My apologies for putting you through that, Keith."

"It's not your fault, Princess, but are you sure you don't want an alliance with them? I mean, we could use all the help we can get."

"Not when we would have to sacrifice our morals. You are not a monster or an animal, but he was right about one thing. You are a gift, my dear Paladin."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Karaoke"

"Karaoke?"

"Yeah. We want you there, Space Cat."

"Who else is going to be there?"

"Just us Paladins...and Shiro. So, are you going to join us voluntarily or do I have to drag you there?" Pidge asked.

Keith blinked. "You are shorter than I. Can you drag me?"

"Is that the route you want to go?"

"No. Just let me tell Mom."

"No need, kit. I heard everything." Krolia appeared behind Keith and nuzzled his head. "Go have fun with your team."

Keith grinned. "And you have fun with Kolivan."

Kolivan appeared beside Krolia as if he was summoned by Keith's comment. "Don't start that again, kit."

Keith grinned wider before he joined Pidge in the corridor. The Green Paladin looked at her fellow Paladin. "What was that about?"

"Mom likes Kolivan." Keith fell into step beside Pidge. "So, where are we going?"

"Lance's family has a karaoke machine, and we set it up in an unused lounge. It sounded like a fun way to pass the time, especially since the war is finally over."

Keith smiled. "Of course Lance's family has a karaoke machine."

It didn't take long to reach the lounge where the rest of the Paladins were gathered. Lance was the one who noticed their entrance. "Hey, Keith! Glad you could make it! Now, it's a real party!"

Keith couldn't help smiling at his crush's enthusiasm. Lance could light up an entire room in his opinion. "Thanks for inviting me."

"Of course, Samurai. What kind of party would it be without our leader?"

Keith smiled as he sat down next to Lance. "So, what songs do we have?"

"Are you actually going to sing?"

"If I didn't volunteer, Shiro would make me and choose the most embarrassing song he could find."

"That sounds like he's done that before," Lance replied, pulling up a list of songs.

"It's because he has. Not with karaoke but other things I'd rather not get into." Keith replied before Shiro could say anything.

Lance chuckled. "Since this is my family's, I'll go first."

"But how will we choose who goes next?" Hunk asked.

"Since Allura doesn't want to sing, she can pick who goes first and the rest of us can pick the song," Shiro suggested.

"Sounds good."

As Lance sang "Shot In The Dark" (by Within Temptation), Shiro, Pidge, Hunk, and Allura conspired against Lance and Keith, who was mesmerized by Lance singing. The four knew of Keith's crush on Lance, who was pining for Keith. Neither knew of the other's feelings, convinced that their crush was unrequited. The three humans and one Altean planned to get Keith and Lance to confess to each other, starting with having them sing a love song together.

After Lance was done, it was Shiro's turn. He sang "Voices" (by Rev Theory). Then, Pidge sang "Throw Them Overboard" (by Abney Park), followed by Keith, who sang "Monster" (by Skillet). Hunk was next, singing "Cult of Personality" (by Living Color). The next selection was "Airship Pirates" (by Abney Park) and was sung by Shiro, Pidge, Hunk, Lance, and Keith.

After the song was done, Shiro whispered to Keith, "The next song is for you and Lance to sing together."

"Do I have to, Shiro?"

"This is a good idea, Keith. Trust me."

While Shiro was talking to Keith, Hunk and Pidge were talking to Lance.

"You said, you'd sing anything, right?" Hunk asked, referring to something Lance had said when he first brought up the idea of a karaoke night.

"Yeah. Why?"

"Then, sing the next song with Keith," Pidge answered.

Lance blushed but didn't refuse. Shiro, Hunk, and Pidge sat down, leaving Keith and Lance together with microphones in their hands. They looked at the screen that displayed the lyrics and saw that the song was "I Swear" (by All 4 One), causing both Paladins to blush as the song started.

"I swear by the moon
And the stars in the skies
And I swear like the shadow that's by your side," they started in unison.

"I see the questions in your eyes.
I know what's weighing on your mind.
You can be sure I know my part
Cause I stand beside you through the years.
You'll only cry those happy tears,
And though I make mistakes
I'll never break your heart," Keith sang.

"And I swear by the moon
And the stars in the skies," Lance joined Keith in their duet.

"I'll be there," Keith intoned.

"I swear like the shadow that's by your side," they chorused.

"I'll be there for better or worse
Till death do us part," Keith sang.

"I'll love you with every beat of my heart," they continued in unison.

"And I swear," Keith added.

"I'll give you everything I can.
I'll build your dreams with these two hands.
We'll hang some memories on the walls.
And when," Lance continued.

"And when," Keith repeated.

"Just the two of us are there
You won't have to ask if I still care
'Cause as the time turns the page
My love won't age at all
And I swear," the pair picked it up in unison.

"I swear," Keith sang.

"By the moon and the stars in the skies," Keith and Lance sang together

"I'll be there," Keith intoned.

"I'll be there," Lance repeated.

"I swear," Keith added.

"And I swear," Lance echoed.

"Like the shadow that's by your side," they sang in unison.

"I'll be there," Keith continued.

"I'll be there," Lance replied.

"For better or worse,
Till death do us part," Keith added.

"I'll love you
With every beat of my heart," Keith and Lance intoned together.

"And I swear," Keith added.

There was a music interlude, giving the two Paladins the chance to try to calm their nerves, almost forgetting that there was an audience.

"I swear," Keith started again, facing Lance at this point.

"I swear," Lance repeated, turning to face Keith as well.

"By the moon and the stars in the skies," they kept going but together.

"I'll be there," Keith added.

"I'll be there," Lance echoed.

"I swear like the shadow that's by your side," the two sang in a duet.

"I'll be there," Keith continued.

"I'll be there," Lance repeated.

"For better or worse," Keith sang.

"Better or worse," Lance echoed.

"Till death do us part," Keith intoned.

"I'll love you with," they sang in unison.

"Every single beat of my heart I swear," Keith clarified.

"I swear," Lance continued.

"I swear," Keith finished.

The song ended, but Keith and Lance stayed facing each other. Lance was still flushed but lowered the microphone still in his hand. "That was..."

"Yeah." Keith wasn't at a loss for words like Lance was. He lowered the microphone. "But it's all true. I love you, Lance."

"You do?" Lance smiled. "I love you too."

The two young adults shared a sweet kiss, completing ignoring the other four beings in the room.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Kiss At Dusk"

Lance was watching the sun set. Sunrise used to be his favorite time of day, but that was before he met his boyfriend. Normally, he wouldn't have changed his favorite time of the day for someone, but when that someone was the someone he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, he was willing to do that. He supposed it was also because his boyfriend was a vampire.

That was right. He was dating a vampire and was a human. His boyfriend knew he didn't want to be turned and made an effort to not bite him, even though he still paid attention to his neck.

As soon as the last rays of light disappeared from the sky, Lance felt a pair of lips on his. He kissed back, knowing that it was Keith. He was used to not hearing him and had gotten to know the feeling of his lips on his. Those cold lips let up the pressure, only to leave a trail of kisses down his neck. His fangs lightly grazed his skin, leaving white lines and not drawing blood. Lance bit back a moan.

He simultaneously loved and hated when Keith grazed his skin with his fangs. He always found himself close to asking Keith to bite him, not turning him just drinking from him. He had offered before, but Keith usually refused, telling him that he sometimes had a hard time stopping when he had a fresh source of blood.

He usually went to a vampire friendly blood bank to get his meals, only taking from people when there was no choice. He had a few close calls before he met Lance. Ever since he met the brunette, the close calls were getting more and more infrequent, which was something he was thankful for.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Providing Comfort"

Keith thought he was being subtle and good at not drawing attention to himself, especially when he was in between head spaces. He had learned to be very careful between being in foster care and being enrolled in the Garrison. Most people weren't accepting of littles or thought that littles couldn't accomplish anything, but that wasn't the case. Most littles weren't regressed 24/7. Keith was only regressed less than most other littles he had researched. According to his research, most littles regressed at least once a week, more if there was a lot of stress in their life. Keith, on the other hand, only regressed once a month, but he did find himself in between head spaces more often. He guessed it was because he didn't regress often, which was where he was at that moment.

He wasn't on the training deck, because he actually woke up feeling somewhat small. He put on a pull up under his clothes and, even though he wanted to stay in his room and cuddle his only stuffed toy (a purple hippo that he had had for years), he knew that if he didn't show up, someone was going to come looking for him, which had happened before, and Lance was the one who had routinely come looking for him.

Thinking of Lance made Keith smile. The caregiver was a year younger than Keith but to little Keith, the brunette was the perfect Daddy. He was kind and attentive and didn't mind Keith's Galra heritage, which showed up even when he wasn't regressed.

Being lost in his thoughts caused Keith to not realize that he arrived at the lounge, where Lance was. He was sitting on one of the couches, reading on his data pad or that's what Keith assumed he was doing. Keith couldn't help his next actions. He laid down next to Lance, his head as close to the brunette's leg without actually touching it and his eyes closed. Being close to the caregiver he wished would be his Daddy caused Keith to start purring.

%%%

Lance was well aware of Keith's entrance. He had been trying to focus on this article Shiro had suggested to him, but something in the back of his mind was telling him his attention was needed elsewhere, but he didn't know where. He was surprised to see Keith laying down next to him, but hearing the purr didn't add to his surprise. He liked when Keith's Galra heritage showed up. Lance's left hand drifted down and started stroking Keith's hair.

%%%

Keith was surprised to feel Lance stroking his hair. He purred louder and felt himself slipping a little further than he meant to. He wiggled a little closer and uttered one word amid his purr. "Daddy."

%%%

"Daddy."

Lance forced himself to not stiffen as he heard that word clearly and kept stroking his hair. He hadn't realized that his fellow Paladin was a little. He didn't mind that Keith thought of him as his Daddy. In fact, it told Lance that Keith trusted him implicitedly. He would inform Keith that he would be honored to be his Daddy, but he would have to wait until the little woke back up as he was sleeping. Lance carefully maneuvered out of his jacket and laid it over his little like a blanket, knowing his scent would be comforting to the little. Providing comfort was one of the most important tasks of a caregiver, and it was something Lance prided himself on doing well.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Desperate Kiss"

Lance was waiting none too patiently for his mate to get back from visiting his brother and his mate, both of whom were shifters. Shiro wasn't Keith's biological brother since Keith was a fire fey and Shiro was a wolf shifter. However, Keith had been orphaned when he was really young and Shiro had taken him in and raised him alongside his mate, a fellow shifter named Adam. Adam wasn't a wolf shifter like Shiro. He was an eagle shifter, which meant he was the one who taught Keith how to fly.

Lance had been taught to be wary of large birds of prey, so when he had seen one near a fellow fey, Lance flew over quickly, tackling the other fey, an action which sent the two fey tumbling into the flowers below. When Lance learned that the eagle he saw was actually a shifter, he apologized, but he also found himself drawn to the other fey. He could tell he was someone special, his mate.

%%%

Waiting for Keith was almost agonizing for the water fey, but then, he saw his mate's distinctive black and crimson colored wings. Lance let him fly into their home and land before launching himself into his arms. He wrapped his arms around Keith's neck and kissed him, his body curving into Keith's body.

Concerned that his mate might fall, Keith wrapped his wings around Lance and kissed him back just as passionately. He loved visiting Shiro and Adam, but he missed Lance. Perhaps Lance would come with him next time, but for now, he was going to enjoy being in his mate's company.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Tear-Stained"

Kolivan felt horrible. The latest mission he went on with the pack's two kits went as bad as it could have gone. Keith wasn't speaking, only making Galran kit noises, most notably whimpers and whines. The youngest kit was in distress over Regris, whom Keith thought was dead.

However, Kolivan had managed to snag Regris after the explosion, which had knocked Keith unconscious, and got both kits back to headquarters, where Ulaz set about checking over both kits. Keith wasn't hurt aside from being unconscious, so the pale doctor let Kolivan leave with him while he worked on Regris. Keith had woken up in the nest Kolivan kept in the corner of his office and had been whimpering and whining ever since.

The most disturbing thing to the leader of the Blades were the tears coursing down his kit's face, not slowing long enough to stain his skin. Kolivan sighed and set his data pad aside. "Kit, come here."

Keith slunk over to his leader's side and let out a surprised chirp when Kolivan slid him onto his lap. He started stroking Keith's hair, knowing that he would have to get the kit to stop crying before licking the tears from his face. "Come now, kit. We don't want Regris to see a teary face." Keith looked up at Kolivan in surprise. "That's right, kit. Regris isn't dead. Right now, Ulaz is working on him, repairing any damage he sustained in the explosion, but I think the best thing for you would be to rest."

Keith frowned and whispered, "But I keep seeing him dead every time I close my eyes."

Kolivan was proud of his kit to admit something he considered a weakness. "I will hold you while you nap. Perhaps you can get some rest that way."

Keith nodded and let himself enjoy the comfort coming from his pack leader. His eyes drooped closed as Kolivan rumbled to him and continued stroking his hair. Once he was sure Keith was asleep, he took a couple of moments to lick the tear tracks off his face. Satisfied with the kit's appearance, he went back to softly rumbling to him as he carried him to the nest room.

The entire base knew what had happened during the last mission their leader (and kits) went on, so when they saw Keith asleep in Kolivan's arms, they were relieved that the youngest kit was going to be okay. However, they were even more relieved when they saw Regris being carried by Antok, heading in the same direction. Both kits were going to be okay.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Confrontational"

Keith was having a good day. He was happy that his team, his pack, and Shiro and Adam were at the same place. He hadn't thought anything was going wrong until he heard the growls.

He recognized the growls as his mother's. He followed the sounds and found himself at Shiro's and Adam's apartment. He opened the door and saw an amazing sight. Adam was being restrained by Shiro, and Kolivan was holding Krolia back. Krolia was growling at Adam.

"How dare you say I don't care about my kit!"

"You don't have the right to call him your 'kit'!"

"He has always been my kit!"

"You left him!"

"Adam, that's enough! We've been through this before!" Shiro exclaimed.

"Why aren't you upset with her, Takashi? We raised Keith here at the Garrison, where she just abandoned him and his father!"

"I didn't abandoned them! I left to protect them!"

"Some protection! Keith's father died, and Keith went into foster care!"

At the mention of his father's death, Keith whimpered, drawing everyone's attention.

"Keith?"

"Kit?"

"Why are you two fighting?" Tears appeared in Keith's eyes. "You're family."

Seeing the tears in Keith's eyes caused Krolia and Adam to get loose from Shiro's and Kolivan's holds and head over towards Keith. Keith realized that they meant to hug him but didn't want them to hug him if they were still fighting. He growled in their direction, which did cause them to pause but only for a moment. They continued coming closer, causing Keith to back up. He bumped into someone behind him, and a quick look showed him it was the Paladins, specifically Hunk. Keith smiled and turned around fully to hug the Yellow Paladin. Even though he was surprised, Hunk still wrapped his arms around his team leader.

Out of his periphery, Keith could still see Krolia and Adam coming closer. He turned his head and gave a short hiss, which startled the two of them as he had never made that sound before. Even though Keith had never made that sound before, both Adam and Krolia could tell they were supposed to stay back.

"Take it easy, Space Cat." Lance came up next to Keith and Hunk. "By the way, you know you're getting a group hug, right?"

Keith gave a tiny smile and purred. "Of course." Having heard that, Lance and Pidge joined the group hug. "But does anyone know how this started?"

"I can tell you, Keith," Allura spoke up, patting the spot next to her. Keith was released from the group hug, and he took a seat next to the princess. "We were doing introductions. Well, it was myself and the Blades as Lance, Pidge, Hunk, and Shiro knew Adam. The introductions were going well until Krolia mentioned she was your mother. Adam seemed to take offense to the fact that you allowed her back into your life so easily after what he called abandonment."

"Everyone thought it was abandonment, except for my Dad and my Mom, of course. In truth, she left to protect me mostly when I was a few months old."

"How could you know that? You couldn't have remembered it," Adam argued.

Keith sighed. "I saw it. When Mom and I were in the Quantum Abyss, there were these flashes of light that showed us mostly events of the past. This was one of the first events it showed us over the course of the two years we were there."

"Two years?" Adam echoed.

"Yeah. Time passes differently in that area of space. It was two years for us but only a week to you guys. It really gave me the time I needed to reconnect with Mom. It was awkward at first, but then we talked about what happened and were shown events that healed the hurt caused by her leaving."

"So, you didn't just immediately accept her back into your life." Adam sounded like he finally understood what was going on.

"No, I didn't." Then, it hit Keith why Krolia and Adam had been so hostile to each other. They had misconceptions about each other's role in his life and perhaps thought they were being replaced. Keith chirped at the two of them, beckoning them close. Krolia immediately came over and knelt on the floor next to Keith's legs. Keith waved Adam over, and the brunette officer mimicked Krolia's position. "Both of you are important to me. So important that neither of you can be replaced. After my stint in foster care, Adam and Shiro were like a set of parents to me."

Adam snickered. "It was more like I was the parent to a sharp tongued cadet and a wild, disaster of a lieutenant."

"Touché, but the point remains. Can you two at least be civil to each other?"

Krolia smiled and hesitantly nuzzled Keith, glad when he responded with a nuzzle of his own. "Of course, kit." She turned to Adam. "I think we got off on the wrong foot as my mate would say."

"Your mate sounds like someone I would have gotten along with."

"Undoubtedly, so do you have any stories about Keith growing up?" Krolia stood up.

"Mom!"

"Of course, and I will swap them for any stories about baby Keith." Adam also got to his feet.

"Adam!"

Krolia grinned. "Deal."

Keith buried his head in his hands. He was going to regret having those two make up; he just knew it.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Loss"

Lance was waiting for his mate to show up. They had agreed on the place and time the previous day, and he was excited, so maybe he was early, but he didn't think he was that early.

He had met Keith when they were young, barely able to swim on their own. Their parents were good friends and brought their sons together for play dates. They would generally see each other every few days until one day, Keith and his parents didn't come by. Lance was worried, but there wasn't anything he could do but wait. Keith's absence broke Lance's heart, especially when it stretched into months without communication of any kind.

Then, out of the blue, Keith and his father came by. Apparently, Keith, his mother and father were attacked by a pack of orcas, and his mother was killed. She had managed to save her son and mate, but the attack traumatized the young mer. Opting to try to help his son by himself, his father kept Keith home, away from everyone. When Lance learned of what happened, he gave Keith a big hug, the force of it making the two tumble to the sea floor.

Keith's father watched, slightly apprehensive, until he heard Keith laugh. His son hadn't laughed since that fateful day, or really made much noise at all. Apparently, visiting Lance was what Keith needed to help cope with the loss of his mother.

Lance was pulled out of his reverie by someone tackling him to the sea floor. A flash of red told him it was Keith. The two mers tussled a little before Lance propelled them upwards, where they floated, hands clasped and their tails coming up to touch just above where their fins started. The wide grin on Keith's face was matched by the grin on Lance's face. It had only been a few years since Keith lost his mother, but the time he spent with Lance made the raven-haired mer happy, and Lance was dedicated to keeping his mate happy.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Fallen Asleep"

Keith had just finished without his post workout shower and had come to the lounge to relax. He didn't feel exceptionally tired, so he didn't sit in the nest, settling onto one of the couches instead. He was glad that he had gotten everything done and there was a moment of peace, so he closed his eyes to enjoy the peace and quiet. He certainly didn't intend on falling asleep.

%%%

Being sensitive to quintessence caused Keith to have bonds with all five lions, which was why all five assumed their real, furry lioness forms and gathered in the lounge.

"If he was tired, why didn't he lay down in the nest?" Blue asked.

"Let's help him then," Green suggested.

"We need to help him get comfortable," Black mentioned. She unsheathed her claws and carefully unbuckled Keith's belt, letting it fall off his waist to rest on the cushions.

Red and Blue carefully bit down on one of Keith's sleeves each, taking his jacket off, while Green and Yellow grabbed ahold of a boot each, taking them off as well. Using her tail, Black was able to maneuver Keith onto her back. She laid down and let Keith slide down to rest against her, and the other lionesses curled around him, all five purring to him and Keith responding with a purr of his own.

%%%

The rest of the Paladins (and Allura) were on their way to the lounge to relax and weren't expecting to see their lions curled around the Red Paladin.

"Blue?" Lance was confused as to what was going on.

Blue lifted her head and sent a message through her bond with him. "Keith had fallen sleep on the couch, and we made him comfortable."

"Well, that's something. Mullet fell asleep on the couch and the lions decided to help him into the nest."

"Seeing as all five came to help him shows that he is quintessence-sensitive," Allura mentioned. "And that's a rare trait to have."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Sightseeing"

Keith took a moment to take a deep breath once she was actually in the pilot's seat of Red Lion. She was brought back to reality due to the babbling of her baby whom she brought with her. She smiled and tightened her arms around Baby Akira as she started the lion. She was glad she had settled her baby in a carrier strapped to her chest as she needed both hands to pilot the lion. 

Once she launched the lion, it was like she had never left. It felt so good to fly Red again; about as good as it felt to have Red nudging against their bond. She grinned as she activated the view screen.

Instead of the landscape of Earth appearing, it was Shiro's worried face. Keith yelped. "T-Takashi!"

"Keith, what are you doing?"

"Isn't it obvious, Takashi? I'm showing Akira the world he was born on."

There was a moment of silence before Shiro replied, "You were just wanting to fly Red again."

Keith blushed. "You know me well, Takshi. She came to me, but I have missed flying her." A smile crossed her face. "And she missed me."

"As nice as that is, you should have said you were going out Red Lion. We were worried."

"Who's we?"

The camera view widened, showing Hunk, Pidge, Lance, and Allura standing behind Shiro.

"We were so worried when we couldn't find you, Keith."

"I didn't mean to worry you, princess."

"What about worrying the rest of us?" Hunk questioned.

Keith laughed, a wide grin on her face. "Aw, you guys should be used to it by now."

"Come in, koibito, or I'll come get you."

Keith's grin morphed into a sly one. "Then, come get me, 'Kashi."

Keith switched off the view screen, having it show the landscape of Earth as she had originally planned. She figured she had about five minutes before her husband would actually show up. She might as well get some sightseeing done.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Keeping Ulaz Company"

Ulaz frowned. He despised being injured on a routine mission, causing his pack to confine him to their nest. However, it did give him the chance to spend some time with his pack's kits, away from the med bay.

There was only one way he liked seeing the kits in the med bay, and that was when they assisted him. Of the two of them, Keith was the one who enjoyed helping him, while Regris more enjoyed helping Ulaz's mate in the communications room. Keith liked helping all of his fathers in their jobs, even though Kolivan tried to get Keith to rest more than allowing him to help.

However, when one of their pack members were confined to the nest, the pack member could find themselves in the company of at least one if not both of the kits. It was part of their kit instincts to comfort members of their pack.

Currently, Ulaz had one kit curled up on each side, Regris's tail loosely curled around Ulaz's right ankle. Ulaz had an arm wrapped around each of the kits' waists, keeping them close. Ulaz wasn't sure exactly when it was, but both kits had drifted off to sleep, purrs filling the nest room.

%%%

Thace was concerned about his mate. He normally didn't get injured on missions, so having him injured made him want to be there with him. However, he needed to finish his work first.

Tavel, a female, blue furred Blade with a specialty in decoding, worked in the communications room with Thace. She had been his most recent protégé before Regris and knew how to read him. She could tell he was worried about his mate. She gathered her courage and approached her mentor. "Lieutenant?"

Thace looked up from his seat at his usual terminal. "Yes, private?"

"I don't mean to be out of place by saying this, but why don't you go spend time with your mate. I can finish your work if you are concerned by that."

Thace couldn't help but smile at Tavel. He knew that most Blades were hesitant to offer suggestions to members of his pack, especially since they were the four highest ranking members of the organization, so when someone did come to him with one, he took them seriously and not just brush them off, especially when they were honestly concerned for them or one of their pack members. Normally, the suggestion would have been about one of the kits. The entire organization had basically adopted both Keith and Regris, and everyone was concerned about the kits doing too much work/training, especially Keith.

However, this time, it was about him...and Ulaz. "I appreciate your concern, Private, and I will take your suggestion."

Thace saved his work before he left his station and headed back to his pack's nest room. Before he entered the room, he could hear the dual purrs of the pack's kits. He smiled as he entered and saw his mate dozing with Keith and Regris tucked against his sides. He slipped into the nest and gently slid under his mate. He started grooming his mate's headfur and was pleased to hear Ulaz start purring as well. Purring was typically a kit noise, but sometimes an adult Galra will purr, especially in the presence of their mate and/or family. All six members of Thace's pack, including Thace himself, have been heard purring at some point, usually in the privacy of their nest room.

Fin

Chapter Text

"De-Aged Krolia"

Kolivan stroked Krolia's headfur, eliciting a purr from the young kit. He didn't know why his daughter was de-aged into a little kit, but at least it was just her. She had been on a mission with her kit as well.

According to Keith, there had been a container of strange quintessence that had exploded, but Krolia had shoved him out of the way and got covered in the substance herself. She had seemed okay as they made their way back to the ship, so Keith had jumped into the pilot's seat and took off, heading back to headquarters. Krolia panting drew his attention. He asked if she was okay, but his only answer was a whine, which wasn't a noise she usually made. It worried Keith, so he flew faster, faster than he should have, but he knew he needed help.

By the time he got back, he had exited the ship holding a small kit, who was holding onto his hair and had her nose near one of his scent glands in his neck. The tick she saw Kolivan she reached out to him. "Daddy!"

Kolivan came over and scooped up his kit, letting her hang onto his braid. He also drew Keith close and nosed his hair. "Are you okay, kit?"

"I guess. It's just weird."

"Let us go back to the nest room. I'll send for Ulaz to look both of you over there." Kolivan escorted Keith to the nest room while carrying his de-aged daughter. Both kits reclined in the nest (Krolia on Kolivan's lap), while they waited. Ulaz examined both kits and surprisingly found nothing wrong, no reason that Krolia should be a little kit.

Ulaz then messaged Thace and Antok to come back to the nest, and the two of them hurried to the nest. Thace drew Keith into his lap and started grooming his hair in order to try to soothe him. It wasn't that Krolia didn't recognize Keith, but her kit instincts told her to stay with her father. She felt bad that her kit was slightly suffering because of it, but he did understand. He curled against Thace and hoped that this wasn't permanent and would be over soon.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Litter Mates"

Lance frowned. As much as he liked spending time with his boyfriend, he was less thrilled to spend time with Acxa. The other part Galra seemed to be trying to get closer to Keith, who didn't do anything to dissuade her. He was also confused as to why his sister was standing in the sparring room next to Acxa.

"Keith! I was wondering if you were going to show up," Acxa called out.

Keith grinned and chirped before replying, "I had to find Lance."

"Let's get this started."

The four looked up to see Kolivan and Krolia standing near the wall. Krolia, who was the one who spoke, was smiling as she walked up to the two pairs of mates. She ran her claws through Keith's hair and Acxa's headfur, eliciting quick purrs out of each. It surprised the McClain siblings when she did the same to them. As expected, it was pleasant.

"Now, pair off. Lance versus Veronica and Keith versus Acxa," Krolia stated.

"Wait. What's going on?" Lance asked.

"We're sparring," Keith replied.

"What? Really?" Lance questioned.

"Keith, call it what it truly is; play fighting," Acxa corrected.

Keith blushed slightly. "She's right. It's an excuse to play fight."

"And why is it me versus my sister?" Lance was slightly jealous that Acxa got to play fight with his boyfriend.

"Because round one is litter mate versus litter mate," Kolivan answered.

"Litter mate?" Lance echoed.

"Litter mate is what Galra call their siblings," Keith clarified.

"Oh. Wait. Acxa's your sister?"

"Yes. She's my twin. Wasn't that obvious?"

"No, cariño. It wasn't."

"I thought it was." Keith caught a strange look in Lance's eyes, realizing lighting his up. "You were jealous of Acxa?"

"Of course. She was getting cosy with you! Oh man, she's your sister." Lance looked up at Acxa. "Sorry for getting jealous."

"I accept your apology. I understand that you were just being territorial about your mate. Just don't do it again." Acxa approached Lance and nuzzled his head in the way Galra showed forgiveness and softly purred.

"All right. Quit monopolizing my brother. I want to play fight with him," Veronica stated.

Acxa made her way over to Veronica and nuzzled her head. "Good luck."

Keith walked over to Lance. "You okay there, Sharpshooter?"

"Yeah. I think so."

Keith put his forehead against Lance's. "Then, kick ass, my mate."

"You too, cariño."

Keith gave Lance a peck on his lips before parting ways. Lance grinned as he squared up against his sister. He may not win against her, but he was going to enjoy himself, since he didn't have to worry about Acxa trying to steal Keith away.

Fin

Chapter Text

"A Moment of Bi Panic"

"You'd be Sendak's prisoner right now if not for Pidge," Allura stated.

"Well, you wouldn't have survived the explosion if Hunk and Coran hadn't gotten a new crystal," Pidge deflected.

"Wow. Thanks, everybody." Lance turned to Keith, who was sitting on the table. "Sounds like the mice did more than you though."

"I punched Sendak!"

"Yeah. Apparently after I emerged from a coma and shot his arm off."

"We had a bonding moment! I cradled you in my arms!"

"Nope. Don't remember. Didn't happen."

%%%

Lance moaned into his pillow. That short conversation kept playing over and over in his mind. He didn't know why he denied remembering. He clearly remembered Keith cradling him in his arms as he carried him to the med bay.

Lance knew he was bisexual and wasn't shy about flirting with both men and women. What he didn't know was why Keith had been hung up on him not remembering the bonding moment, as he termed it. Just then, a thought hit him. Could Keith be bi or even gay? If so, maybe he thought Lance was rejecting him.

That thought distressed Lance in more than one way. This supposed rejection could prevent them from forming Voltron, but also, it would hurt Keith's feelings. Neither of those were Lance's intention.

He stood up and hurried out of his room. He went over to the next room and knocked on the door. "Keith? Buddy? You in there?"

There was no answer. He half expected it as Keith was known to spend a good majority of his time on the training deck, which was where Lance was headed to next. As expected, Keith was battling the gladiator with his bayard. What surprised Lance were the tears at the corners of Keith's eyes. He didn't get much of a chance to contemplate why he was teary as the Red Paladin beat the level.

"Start training level..." Keith trailed off, seeing Lance standing there. "Lance, what are you doing here?"

"I was hoping to talk."

Keith stepped over to the sidelines, where his jacket was. He picked up a hand towel and wiped his face off, erasing the evidence of his tears as well. "About what?"

"Um, the...the..b-bonding moment." Lance was nervous about Keith's reaction.

Keith frowned. "You already told me that you don't remember it, so what's the use of bringing it up?"

"Because I do remember it."

"Then, why did you say you didn't?"

"Because I was confused as to why I would have feelings for my rival."

"Feelings?"

"Yeah. I care about you, and I don't want this to come between us."

Keith smiled slightly. "You know, I never considered you a rival."

"Yeah. I think I made that up because I hadn't realized that my feelings were romantic and not jealousy." Lance stepped closer to Keith. "So, do you want to date me?"

"Date? Where would we go?"

Lance grabbed his hand. "Come with me."

The Blue Paladin brought his potential boyfriend to the observation deck, a small room Lance had discovered when his homesickness had overwhelmed him a couple days after they had come to the castle. It showed the stars they were flying through.

"Where are we?" Keith asked in awe.

"This is what I call the observation deck. I figured you'd like this, since we both like the stars."

"It's beautiful." Keith walked over to the large window, gazing out at the sight.

Lance walked over to his side and was surprised to feel Keith leaning his head against his shoulder. Lance tentatively wrapped an arm around Keith's shoulders as they watched the stars pass by as they soared passed them.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Space Faring Chat"

RebelTechie added BlackPaladin, RedPaladin, BluePaladin, GreenPaladin, YellowPaladin, Princess, Advisor, BladeLeader, LieutenantGeneral, Lieutenant, Medic, Major, TwinSis, BigBro, JGriffin, RKinkade, NRizavi, and ILeifsdottir to the chat Space Farers.

RebelTechie: Yo! What's up, space faring folks!

RedPaladin: Matt, please

RebelTechie: Relax, Kogane. This is supposed to be a fun chat

Major: Then, why is Griffin here?

RedPaladin: That's a good question. Also, why do you and the rest of the pack have those names?

LieutenantGeneral: Those are our ranks, kit

BluePaladin: You guys need better names

RedPaladin: I got this

*RedPaladin changed BladeLeader's name to Van*

*RedPaladin changed LieutenantGeneral's name to Tok*

*Red Paladin changed Lieutenant's name to DadSpy*

*RedPaladin changed Medic's name to Laz*

*RedPaladin changed Major's name to MomSpy*

Van: Kit, why?

RedPaladin: :)

*BluePaladin changed their name to Sharpshooter*

*Sharpshooter changed RedPaladin's name to Samurai*

Samurai: Thanks, Lance

Sharpshooter: No problem, dude

Samurai: Can we get back to why Griffin is here?

BlackPaladin: You guys worked well together when you saved the Earth, so why is it a surprise that the MFEs are here?

Samurai: I have no problem with the MFEs as a whole, just their supposed leader.

MomSpy: The entire pack is behind Keith as well

BlackPaladin: I understand that Keith has a history with James, but I thought it was a school yard grudge

DadSpy: It's disturbing when kits don't get along

Laz: I appreciate that you were there for Keith, kit

BlackPaladin: Why are you calling me 'kit'?

Van: All of you Paladins are around the same age as our kit, so we consider all of you kits

JGriffin: Hahaha

Samurai: The MFEs are my age too

Tok: Is it typical Earth custom to throw kits into combat? There are thirteen kits in the throws of combat

GreenPaladin: Thirteen?

MomSpy: Yes. You five Paladins, the four MFEs, Acxa, Regris, Allura, and Matt

RebelTechie: Me?

DadSpy: Yes. You are Pidge's brother, so you are our kit as well

Sharpshooter: Can we get back to lighter topics and do more name changing?

Samurai: I agree

*Sharpshooter changed GreenPaladin's name to Hacker*

*Hacker changed YellowPaladin's name to Doublemodulationrules*

*Doublemodulationrules changed their name to CinnRoll*

CinnRoll: Pidge, that's a waste of a button press

Hacker: Blasphemy!

Sharpshooter: I have no idea what that is about

*Sharpshooter changed Princess's name to Queen*

*Sharpshooter changed Advisor's name to TheGorgeousMan*

Queen: Thank you, Lance

TheGorgeousMan: Yes, thank you, lad

Sharpshooter: You're welcome :D

*Samurai changed JGriffin's name to A-hole*

BlackPaladin: Keith

Samurai: Fine

*Samurai changed A-hole's name to AHLeader*

AHLeader: ?

Samurai: Ass Hole Leader

Sharpshooter: Lmao

*Sharpshooter changed BlackPaladin's name to SpaceDad*

SpaceDad: Lance, why?

Sharpshooter: Where's the lie?

Samurai: He's got a point, Shiro

SpaceDad: Not that I'm complaining, but it's weird seeing you two agreeing

Samurai: It's because he is my right hand man, my stability, and my impulse control and has my back.

Sharpshooter: And he has mine

Sharpshooter: And my heart

Samurai: *facepalm*

Van: What?

Tok: What?

DadSpy: What?

Laz: What?

MomSpy: What?

TwinSis: What?

BigBro: What?

AHLeader: What?

RKinkade: What?

NRizavi: What?

ILeifsdottir: It was about time

Sharpshooter: You knew?

ILeifsdottir: Of course. Didn't everyone?

Samurai: Apparently not

Queen: Coran and I knew

Sharpshooter: How?

Queen: I'm surprised the Blades didn't know. You and Keith smell like each other.

MomSpy: Kit!

Samurai: Mom, it's not like that!

Van: Then, explain

Samurai: I just like wearing Lance's jacket and cuddling with him

DadSpy: Lance, what are your intentions with our kit?

Sharpshooter: I just want to spend the rest of my life with him by my side, though right now, I'm questioning how long my life will be

Laz: We will not kill you, kit

Tok: However, throwing you out an airlock is possible

MomSpy: Only if you hurt our kit

Sharpshooter: Why am I getting death threats from the Blades? I thought you liked me :(

TwinSis: Because you are dating my twin, but you will not get them from me. I have seen the way you two act around each other and know you will treat him right

BigBro: Keith has spoken about his team to me and about Lance, specifically, at length. I can tell how much he cares for you. Besides, there's nothing more I need to add. Throwing you out an airlock would be an adequate punishment for hurting my little brother

Sharpshooter: Keith, help

Samurai: I don't control my pack, Lance, and you'll have more to contend with when the rest of the organization hears that you're courting me, which is their term for dating

Sharpshooter: The rest of the organization?

Samurai: I have unofficially been adopted by the entirety of the Blades

DadSpy: Actually, we have unofficially adopted all of the Paladins, Allura, and Matt.

MomSpy: You, kit, being biologically mine makes you automatically one of us, so the entire organization is your family

Samurai: ...

Samurai: That's a lot to take in

SpaceDad: I guess the old saying is true. It takes a village to raise a child

Fin

Chapter Text

"The Evolution of A Kiss"

Keith and Lance were the last ones to realize they had feelings for each other. It all started during a game of truth or dare. The Paladins had gathered in the lounge during a lull in the fighting and Pidge dared Lance to kiss Keith. Lance wasn't about to complain about a dare. He didn't have to move much as he was sitting next to Keith. Both Paladins turned to each other, and Lance gently kissed Keith on his lips, which were surprisingly soft. He was also surprised when Keith kissed him back. The kiss lasted longer than the others had originally thought with Lance winding his fingers into Keith's hair. A cough from Shiro reminded them that they weren't alone.

%%%

The next kiss happened right after the game ended. Keith had cornered Lance near their bedrooms. Lance had seen him stalking up to him and backed up into the wall, the slightly shorter Paladin pinning his team mate to the wall. Keith's lips were on his before he could think. This kiss was just like the first one, where Keith and Lance were so wrapped up in themselves that they forgot where they were.

Lance was the one who pulled back slightly and managed to get Keith to follow him into his room by tugging him by the arm wrapped around his waist. They were kissing the entire time as they stumbled over to Lance's bed. Lance's knees hit the edge of his bed, causing him to fall onto it. His arm wrapped around Keith's waist ensured that the part-Galra landed on top of him. They knew they weren't going to be doing much more than kissing (and cuddling), but they were glad they wouldn't be interrupted.

%%%

As Keith and Lance got more comfortable being in a relationship with each other, kisses were worked into their everyday lives. Keith would be sharpening his knife when Lance walked into the room and over to him. Without even looking up or moving too much, Keith cocked his head to the side, allowing Lance to plant a chaste kiss 'hello' on his cheek as he worked. Keith didn't have much of a chance to return the gesture, but when he spotted Lance sitting on the couch in the lounge, he took the opportunity to kiss his boyfriend on the forehead, managing to do it without blocking Lance's view of his data pad.

%%%

Once they started sharing a room, their kisses were how they started and ended their days. When Keith climbed into bed, Lance snuggled into him, and they shared a sweet kiss that usually kept nightmares from surfacing.

Whichever one of them woke up first got to be the one to initiate the 'good morning' kiss. Waking up to their boyfriend kissing them was a good way to start the day, and both Paladins wouldn't have it any other way.

Fin

Chapter Text

"He's My Husband"

As the Atlas cruised through space, Keith not only had to get used to being aboard a large ship again but also his emerging Galran features. He didn't know why his features showed up then, but he surmised it was because he was mated to Shiro.

While his features were coming in, he stayed in his and Shiro's shared quarters, only emerging once his features had come in all the way. The rest of the Paladins, Shiro, the Alteans, and most of the Garrison officers, which included Curtis, Iverson, and the MFEs (surprisingly), didn't mind his new looks. However, there were a few that took his now visible heritage poorly. One day, two of these officers cornered him.

"Look who we have here, Christian! It's the spy."

Keith looked around, but he knew the two officers were referring to him. His fluffy, purple ears slicked back. "I'm no spy. I'm the Black Paladin."

"We know that, but that doesn't mean that you're worthy of that role. You're only the Black Paladin because you stole it. What else would you expect from a Galra!" Christian sneered.

Keith sighed, his tail swishing behind him. "Are you sure you want to do this? I know Shiro."

"Of course you know of Captain Shirogane, but I doubt you know him," Harry shot back.

"Do you want me to call him?"

"Go right ahead."

As Keith put in a call to Shiro's data pad, Christian elbowed Harry with a smirk on his face. Harry knew that look. Once the call was over, they were going to drag this half-breed to the training hall and beat him up.

"Hey, Takashi."

"Hey, Keith. How's my handsome husband?"

Harry and Christian froze at Shiro's words. This was the Captain's husband? If he told Shiro what they said, they could get in trouble.

Keith smiled, showing off his fangs. "Fine. Just a couple of officers didn't realize I was your husband."

"Who are these officers?"

Keith angled the data pad to show the two behind him. "Them."

"Names?"

"Second Lieutenant Christian Davidson."

"Major Harry Starr."

"Expect a reprimand added to your file. If there's another incident, you will be demoted. Keith, I need you on the bridge."

"On my way, Takashi." Keith hung up and headed for the bridge, curious what Shiro needed. He didn't give the two officers a second glance. It didn't take him long to reach the bridge. He sidled up against Shiro. "Hey, Takashi. What did you need?"

Shiro wrapped an arm around his husband's waist. "I needed you, koibito."

Keith wrapped his tail around Shiro's waist. "I'm here, Takashi. I'm here."

Fin

Chapter Text

"He's My Mate"

Lance usually didn't have a problem with any member of the Blades, especially since most of them knew he was Keith's husband or, as they referred to him as, his mate. When Keith heard what his Blades called Lance, he started calling Lance his mate as well, which never failed to make the brunette blush.

However, some of the newer Blades didn't know Lance, so when Lance arrived at the new headquarters, intent on visiting his husband, he was stopped by a couple of Blades.

"Halt! State your name and purpose."

"Lance Kogane-McClain here to visit Keith."

"Doubtful."

"What?"

"I doubt you know Blade Leader Keith." The still masked Blade shoved Lance's shoulder, sending the former Paladin to the floor.

Lance stood up and rubbed his shoulder. "I can call him to confirm."

"Very well, but know if he denies knowing you, we will throw you out the airlock."

Lance shrugged and connected with Keith, who appeared on the screen. Lance grinned at seeing Keith's Galran features. He had his mother's cheek stripes, though one was discolored due to his scar; expressive, purple, fluffy ears; and fangs. "Hi, Keith."

"Hi yourself handsome. Why do I get the feeling this isn't a social call?"

"Are you saying I need a reason to call my husband?"

"Do you have one?"

"Aside from missing you?...Yes."

Keith saw the Blades behind Lance and took a guess at what happened. He smiled, deciding to give the Blades a shock. "I miss you too, my mate. Come see me."

Lance blushed, even though it wasn't the first time Keith had called him his mate. "All right, cariño."

The Blades standing behind Lance were shocked at hearing the leader refer to this human as his mate, simply watching him walk down the corridor. When Lance turned the corner, the two Blades immediately sent messages to their fellow newbie Blades, informing them of their leader's mate and adding a description for good measure.

%%%

Lance entered Keith's office with no more issues, nodding to the Blade standing guard outside the door. He never thought Acxa could look so intimidating. He closed the door behind him and crossed the room to Keith's desk, which was covered in data pads containing requests and reports from various Blade members.

Before Lance could say anything, Keith groaned. "I thought Kolivan was exaggerating when he said there was a mountain of paperwork involved with running the Blades."

"Have you ever known Kolivan to exaggerate?"

"No, but I could use a distraction."

Lance stepped a little closer. "I think I can provide that for you."

Keith tilted his head and captured his husband's lips in a passionate kiss before breaking off to purr to him. "I love you, Lance."

"I love you too, cariño."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Air Bending"

Coran hadn't told any of the Paladins about the powers he had discovered he possessed. He had the ability to control and manipulate air. He had developed the powers in his youth and trained for many deca-phoebes in order to control them and learn what he could do with them. Throughout the years, he learned the control that only through patience and practice could he achieve.

Even though he was an adult, he could be silly and dramatic as well as helpful. When he had gotten dressed in his clothes in order to pilot the Red Lion when Keith and Allura had left, thinking Zarkon was tracking them through them, he made wind blow so his cape would flap when he struck his (in his opinion) dramatic pose.

His latest instance of being helpful involved Pidge. The Green Paladin was the shortest one of the latest group of Paladins, but she was also the one who was doing either repairs or upgrades. Sometimes she needed help reaching something, and Coran was more than happy to help. This time he used his powers to lift the Green Paladin so she could reach the vent she needed to use. She didn't even bat an eye when she was lifted up to the grate. She threw a "thanks" over her shoulder before crawling into the vent.

Coran was a little confused. Why wouldn't Pidge question how she got up to the vent because he knew she would know that no one had lifted her up there with their hands?

He was so lost in thought that he almost ran into Keith, who was fresh from a shower. His Galran features had finally come in, and he was having trouble drying his fur. Coran saw another chance to use his powers.

%%%

Keith was softly whining as he was trying to dry his fur with a towel. Maybe he should learn about the grooming habits of the Galra.

"Need some help, my boy?"

Keith peeked out from under his towel and saw Coran standing there. "Yeah. I could."

"Well, I can help. Remove the towel." Coran waited until Keith did so. Then, he created a breeze to blow dry Keith's fur. However, it not only dried the purple fur, but it also caused it to frizz. Seeing that made Coran stifle a chuckle. "Ah, well, that's a small side effect, my boy. A gentle brushing should take care of that."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Laser Tag"

Lance was bored. He hadn't thought it was possible to be bored while wearing space laser tag equipment, but he was. It wasn't his fault though. All five Paladins had agreed to play laser tag on the training deck, but Shiro got called away by Allura.

"I'll be right back," Shiro had assured them. That was thirty vargas ago. Well, it felt like that to Lance. Truthfully, it was only fifteen doboshes, but Lance was trying to find something to do when his eyes landed on Keith.

The Red Paladin wasn't wearing the laser tag equipment. He said he would put it on when Shiro got back. It didn't bother Lance that he wasn't wearing it, and he suspected that it felt strange with his Galra features that had finally manifested. Keith was now sporting purple, fluffy ears; a long, thin, purple tail; purple cheek stripes; sharp fangs; and patches of purple fur on his arms, legs, and on the front and back of his torso.

Lance cocked his head. He had always said the Galra were giant space cats, and he had always had cats growing up. Cats were always easy to entertain for the McClain children. All it took was a laser pointer. Lance looked at the toy laser gun still in his holster, back at Keith, and then back at his gun. A grin appeared on his face as he drew his weapon. This thing was basically a large laser pointer, and he was wondering if Galra had cat instincts. He took careful aim near Keith's feet and pulled the trigger.

%%%

Shiro was still wearing his laser tag equipment when he met Allura and Coran in the hangar where Keith's pack was disembarking from their pod. They were all curious as to why Shiro was wearing that, but Ulaz was the one who asked, "Shiro, what is the purpose of these guards? They seem quite bulky."

"These aren't actual guards. These are part of a game the rest of the Paladins and I were getting ready to play," Shiro answered as he led everyone back to the training deck.

"Our kit is playing?" Antok inquired.

"Oh yes. I had introduced Keith to laser tag when he was at the Garrison."

"Laser tag?"

Shiro didn't have time to answer Thace's question as the doors to the training deck opening to reveal Keith pouncing on a red dot that disappeared as soon as he had appeared to catch it. It suddenly appeared on his arm and swiftly traveled down his body and across the floor with Keith's eyes following its movement, only for him to turn away when he heard one of his pack mates yowl in concern.

He looked up and saw all four of them looking concerned, though he could tell it was Kolivan who had yowled. The leader of the Blades (and their pack) was quite protective of him, as they all were, but Keith had only heard Kolivan make that noise.

Thace easily located the source of the laser. Surprisingly, the Blue Paladin had a laser gun in his hands and was the one responsible for aiming a laser at their kit. He growled at Lance, who immediately holstered his gun.

Keith walked over to his pack, purring to them. He wanted to soothe them and let them know he had been in no danger. Antok wrapped his tail around Keith's waist and tugged him into the middle of the group. Kolivan nosed his hair while Ulaz was checking for injuries.

"Guys, I'm okay."

"The Blue Paladin was pointing a laser at you!" Antok exclaimed.

"It's not a real laser gun. It's part of a game," Keith tried to reason.

"Then, why aren't you dressed like Shiro?" Ulaz inquired.

Keith blushed slightly. "It feels weird with my fur, but I was just waiting for Shiro to get back."

"You don't have to play if it feels weird, Keith," Shiro stated.

Keith shot him a playful look, complete with a fanged grin. "Are you worried that I'll whoop you, old timer?"

"You couldn't beat me before, and you can't now!"

"Prove it!" Keith quickly nuzzled his four pack members before dashing over to his equipment, putting it on in record time.

"Start laser tag scenario one!" Lance called out.

As the laser tag maze appeared concealing the Paladins from the Galra's and Alteans' sight, they heard Pidge yell, "Every Paladin for themselves!"

Fin

Chapter Text

"Babysitting"

Keith was excited. His personal team of Blades could tell that the tick they were done with their latest relief assignment. He had given the order to return to Daibazaal before changing his clothes. He usually stayed in his Blade Leader uniform until he returned to his living quarters, but he had another job to do right after he returned. Zethrid and Ezor were concerned that he was running himself ragged, but Acxa knew he was just watching his little brother for the night.

Krolia and Kolivan usually had someone watching their youngest kit while they attended meetings of the Galactic Coalition, and that someone was usually Keith unless he was off planet on a Blade mission. Keith adored watching his brother but had noticed that his parents didn't get much time to themselves, so he offered to watch Yorak overnight. Krolia was a little reluctant, so Keith proposed a compromise. He would watch Yorak on Daibazaal, at his living quarters, which were a few doors down from his parents.

Krolia hadn't been away from her youngest kit for an entire night before, so Kolivan planned an evening full of activities to keep her busy so she wouldn't have time to dwell on missing either of her kits.

%%%

Keith was nervous and excited at the same time. Yorak was old enough to spend time away from his parents and adored his big brother. Keith hoped he would be able to entertain Yorak for the entire night. The tick his ship landed, he was met by an enthusiastic hug.

"Keith!"

"Lance? What are you doing here?"

"Acxa told Veronica, who told me you were watching your little brother for the night, and I thought you might need some backup from someone who knows how to babysit kids."

Keith wrapped his arms around Lance and purred to him. "Thanks. I really appreciate you coming all this way."

"It wasn't just me. Veronica wanted to visit Acxa as well." Lance gestured with his head in the direction of Veronica and Acxa, who were wrapped up in each other. "Get a room!"

"Confess already!" Veronica yelled back.

"What is she talking about, Lance?" Keith pulled back slightly.

Lance blushed. "She got it into her head that I have a crush on you."

Keith smiled and put his forehead against Lance's. "We'll see what happens while we babysit my brother. Now, let's go pick him up."

Keith and Lance walked to Krolia's and Kolivan's apartment, and Keith opened the door. The tick he walked in, he was tackled by an excited four-deca-phoebe old kit. "Keith!"

"Hey, kit."

Lance laughed at Keith getting tackled to the floor, which caught Yorak's attention. "Uncle Lance!"

"You might want to get off your brother, primo gatito." [kitten cousin]

Yorak slid off Keith, and Lance extended a hand to Keith to help him up, which he accepted. Once Keith was standing, he scooped Yorak into his arms and nuzzled him, both of them purring to each other.

Krolia and Kolivan walked into the room at that moment and saw their kits together and, surprisingly, Lance standing there next to Keith.

"Lance, this is a surprise. What brings you to Daibazaal?" Krolia asked.

"I heard that Keith was going to babysit Yorak, and I thought he might need some help. I've watched my niece and nephew all the time, even before Voltron, so I wanted to offer my help."

"That was very thoughtful. I'm sure Keith appreciates your offer, kit," Kolivan stated.

Lance blushed at being called a kit. Kolivan called all of the Paladins (except for Allura and Shiro) kits. Everyone knew that was because they were near Keith's age, who was a kit in Galra culture.

Krolia stepped over to her kits, nuzzled them, and caressed their cheek stripes. Keith could tell his mom was still reluctant about being separated from her youngest kit. He purred to her. "Mama, you aren't leaving us. We are just a few doors down. You will see us again in the morning."

Yorak, hearing this exchange, looked at his mom. "Mama, don't worry. I'm gonna have fun with Keith and Uncle Lance!"

Krolia purred to her kits and bumped her nose against each of their temples in a Galran kiss (between family members). "Thank you, kits."

"Love you, Mama," they chorused.

"Come, Krolia. Let the kits go on their way," Kolivan wrapped an arm around her waist and leaned over to whisper in her ear. "Besides, we have somewhere to be."

Krolia smiled and caressed both of their cheek stripes again before Keith carried his brother to his room with Lance following him.

Keith, Lance, and Yorak entered Keith's apartment, Keith letting his brother down. "So, what are we going to do?"

%%%

Lance was amazed at how at ease Keith was with his brother. He supposed it was due to his Galran instincts. Things like this continuously showed Lance why he loved Keith. He truly loved him. It wasn't just a crush as he initially thought it was.

He couldn't help the smile that crossed his face as he, Keith, and Yorak sat down to watch a movie near bedtime. He also couldn't help wrapping his arms around Keith in his nest. Keith reclined against Lance as his brother was curled up in front of them.

When Yorak fell asleep, it gave Keith and Lance a chance to talk. However, Keith didn't give Lance the opportunity. He craned his neck to the side and made a questioning noise to attract Lance's attention. The moment Lance looked at Keith, Keith kissed him on his lips.

Lance froze but came back to himself and kissed him back. They separated, and Keith purred as he snuggled back against Lance's chest. Lance gulped as he tried to slow his pulse down, taking several deep breaths. "So, I take it that you like me too?"

"Of course I do."

"Oh good. That means I can do this." Lance gently grasped Keith's chin and captured his lips in a gentle but passionate kiss.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Safe After A Disastrous Mission"

Keith yawned and rolled over, or rather he tried to. He felt pressure against his leg. He cracked an eye and looked down. He saw Regris's tail wrapped around his leg. He sighed, remembering that Regris was saved after that disastrous mission.

Kolivan had tried to grab Keith when they realized the ship was rigged, but being a smaller Blade had its perks, and he managed to duck under Kolivan's arm and grab Regris's tail before Kolivan grabbed him. Realizing that his kit wasn't going anywhere without Regris, Kolivan scooped up both and ran as fast as he could, trying to escape the ship. They barely made it, but they were still caught in the blast, which ended up knocking both kits out.

Kolivan brought both back and had Ulaz look them over. Aside from being unconscious, the only injury was the strain on Regris's tail from being dragged. Ulaz ordered all three of them back to the nest and requested that they take the next quintant off.

Keith felt claws carding through his hair and purred in response. Kolivan rumbled to Keith, soothing him further. "Go back to sleep, kit. I'll be here when you awaken."

Keith's eyes slid closed, and he continued purring, even in his sleep. Kolivan hadn't wanted to go on the mission with both of his kits, but it was supposed to be an easy and quick mission. However, since it went awry, he was more than willing to stay in the nest with both of his kits as they were recovering. He buried his face in the longer strands of Keith's hair and relaxed., inadvertantly falling asleep.

%%%

Antok peeked in the nest room, checking on the pack kits and his mate. Three purrs filled the nest, causing Antok to grin. He took out his data pad and took a short video, sending it to Thace and Ulaz. He knew the pair of mates would enjoy not only seeing the kits resting but their leader as well.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Multiple (Animal) Forms"

Keith was excited for the rest of the Paladins to come visit. His pack found his excitement adorable. They were also looking forward to having the Paladins there as they considered them their kits as well. They were happy that Allura opened a wormhole for the Paladins to come quicker.

The moment the Paladins' feet touched the floor of the hangar, the Blades (including Keith) surrounded them, scenting and nuzzling them. Shiro managed to drag Keith closer. "I've missed you, ototo."

"I've missed you too, ni-san."

"Kits, let's go back to the nest. It is still rather early, especially for kits," Thace mentioned.

The Paladins blushed at being called 'kits' and being treated like children, even though they truly did like it. The Blades led their kits back to their nest room and gathered around them, rumbling and lulling them into a light doze until Keith started purring. Keith's purr lulled the other Paladins into a deeper sleep. The Blades couldn't wait to have all five of their kits around the base.

%%%

The rest of the Blades had gotten used to seeing the organization's kit in any of his forms (human, feline, or snake) but were confused when they saw other animals than their kit's forms. There were different snakes draped around Thace's and Ulaz's necks at different points in the quintant. Then, in training hall B, there was a large canine type animal tussling with a black bear while a pile a snakes (they didn't see the Black Mamba) was off to the side while Antok was watching them. They also saw a bird flying through the halls and perching on the top of filing cabinets in the med bay.

They were convinced that Keith were all these animals. It was quite confusing, and they were going to ask his pack if Keith could limit it to the two animals they were used to. However, the two Blades (Cheax and Adzo) couldn't find Kolivan in his office, Ulaz in the med bay, or Thace in the Communications room. They assumed they could find Antok in the training hall, but he wasn't in training hall A. However, training hall B had been announced to be closed for the quintant. Adzo was a little reluctant to entering the closed training hall, but Cheax was insistent.

The two Blades slipped into the hall and stopped short. The scene before them was strange. They saw four animals (including the kit's black Jaguar form) play fighting and Ulaz, Kolivan, and Antok watching. Thace was sitting with the Blue Paladin sitting on his lap, getting groomed. If the kit was in his black Jaguar form, who were the other animals, and when did the Paladin get there?

Ulaz noticed the two Blades enter and figured they wanted answers as to the identity of the other animals. He walked over. "Hello, Cheax, Adzo. I see you have noticed our other kits are here."

"Other kits?" Cheax questioned.

"Yes. You see one there with Thace. The others are play fighting with Keith."

"Who are the others?"

"Shiro, Hunk, and Pidge."

"The Paladins are the other animals? So, what about the Blue Paladin?"

"The Blue Paladin doesn't have a form that could fairly play with the others."

"Do all humans have alternate forms?"

"According to our kits, yes."

Adzo and Cheax exchanged a look that clearly said 'humans are frightening' as they heard the snarls and growls from the quartet playing.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Not A Normal Kit"

It wasn't often that all four of the highest ranking Blades went on a mission together, and it was even less often that it occurred when their kit was at headquarters, but since Keith was spending more time at headquarters than at the castle ship, it was bound to happen at some point. The four Blades were pleased that the entire organization was willing to watch the kit. However, as to not overwhelm Keith, they selected one Blade to watch over him while they were gone.

Luxin prided herself in being well versed in kit care and was ecstatic that she was picked as the Blade responsible for watching over the beloved kit of their leaders. She knew she and the kit would get along well. Perhaps he would barely even know the others were gone.

Keith was not happy that his pack had a dangerous mission they had to go on. He understood that it was a crucial mission that required the best, but did all of them have to go? At least, he saw them before they left. They had given him nuzzles in between preparing for the mission.

The Blades made sure to introduce Luxin to Keith before they left. Ulaz left a data pad full of special instructions that pertained to Keith, concerning his hybrid physiology, though Luxin was so confident that she didn't even look at the pad, even though she accepted it from Ulaz.

The moment the Blades left, Luxin turned to look at the kit. She knew he was only eighteen-deca-phoebes-old and shouldn't be left alone. However, he was laying in his pack's nest, seemingly asleep, but he wasn't purring, which was a little disheartening. She expected it, though, as his pack was gone. She suspected he wouldn't purr until they got back. She was going to slip out to her nest room and retrieve her non-work related data pad as it had a lot of books and games that kits liked. "I'll be right back, kit."

%%%

"I'll be right back, kit."

Keith heard the other Blade say this before she left his pack's room. He stayed put in the nest as the scents of his pack helped him not miss them as much, and he didn't feel like leaving the safety of his nest for much of anything, not even training. He knew if he followed the rules his pack had in place while they were gone, then they might ease up on the restrictions while they were there.

The rules weren't hard to follow, especially since they were only put into place to make sure Keith took care of himself. Things like not training a lot, taking several naps, and not skipping meals were the big ones. Ulaz had made a meal plan for Keith to follow as he needed certain vitamins and supplements  but couldn't eat a whole lot like normal kits did. It was a side effect of his often neglectful childhood on Earth. He was working his way up to eating more, but he still had a ways to go before he was eating the amount he ought to.

It didn't take long for Luxin to return, but Keith wasn't that interested in what she had brought back with her. At least, she wasn't invading his nest. She just sat beside it as close to Keith as she could. "Kit, would you like to read or play a game?"

Keith glanced at her when she said read. He doubted she had any books he would be interested in, but it would probably be worth a look. "I like reading."

Luxin smiled and handed over her pad. She pointed at the book app. "There's a wide selection here."

"Thanks." Keith tapped the icon with a small smile on his face. His smile faded, though, when he perused the titles of the books. Every last one of them were written in Galran. He hadn't learned much of the language, so reading a Galran book was out of the question.

Luxin grew concerned when the kit's smile faded from his face as he looked at the books. What was wrong? Did he not see a book he wanted? Perhaps he had a favorite book that she didn't have? "What's the matter, kit?"

"I...I haven't learned how to read Galran yet. Sorry." He held out the data pad, half expecting to be lectured about not learning as much as he could.

Luxin felt like smacking herself. Of course the kit couldn't read Galran. He was only a toddler after all! "How silly of me! What was I thinking?! If you'd like, I could read some to you."

Keith considered it. Even though he couldn't understand much of it, it would be nice to hear it more often. "Sure, I guess."

"Which book would you like?"

"Um, I don't know. Could you just pick one?"

It concerned Luxin slightly that the kit didn't have a favorite book, even though he claimed to like reading. She selected a book at random and began reading out loud. Even though Keith didn't understand the words, he got the feeling that the books she offered were kit books. He didn't mind and just let himself relax to the sound of her voice.

Luxin was pleased that the kit was relaxed as he listened to the story, so when the book was done, she picked another book. The afternoon passed with her reading book after book to the kit.

Soon, it was time for the evening meal. Keith dutifully followed Luxin to the mess hall, where the typical buffet style food was laid out. Keith started filling his plate with the foods Ulaz had pointed out that Keith needed to eat at every meal, even though Keith did put more vegetables on his plate than he would have dared if his pack had been there.

Luxin was concerned about the amount of food the kit had on his plate. It seemed like too little, but maybe he was going to get another helping later, so she kept her comment to herself until she saw the kit wasn't going to get a second plate. "Kit, you haven't eaten enough. Please get another serving."

Keith gestured to his now empty plate. "This was enough. I'm full."

"You can't be full." Luxin stood up and collected another plateful, setting it in front of the kit. "Your pack left me in charge of you, and you will eat this plateful."

Keith looked at the plate, doubtful that he could manage to eat the entire thing without being sick. He put a bit of a whine in his tone when he asked, "Do I have to?"

"Yes." Luxin's tone left no room for any further argument.

Keith gulped and did his best to pick his way through the second plate, praying that there wouldn't be a third. Fortunately, Luxin deemed the two plates enough and led the kit back to the nest. He gingerly laid in the nest, arms wrapped around his stomach. He hoped he wouldn't get sick, but what he didn't realize was that he was softly whimpering.

%%%

Kolivan, Antok, Thace, and Ulaz were on their way back after a successful mission and were looking forward to spending time in their nest with their kit. As they approached their nest room, they were distressed to hear their kit whimpering. Then, they heard someone scrambling (and possibly falling), and then, a noise none of them wanted to hear. It was clear that their kit had just thrown up.

All four Blades bursted into their nest room, their kit's whimpering coming from the bathroom.

"Kit?" Thace called out.

"Daddy?" Keitih asked, which was followed swiftly by more dry heaving and whimpers.

"Poor, kit. I'm going to get you a stomach soother and a pain reliever," Ulaz mentioned.

"Please, Papa."

Ulaz left, and Thace hesitantly entered the bathroom. He saw Luxin holding Keith's hair back as their kit was dry heaving into the toilet. Thace growled a warning for Luxin to stand aside.

Luxin recognized that Thace wasn't angry with her, just concerned about his kit. She let him take her place and exited the bathroom. She saw her leaders were back and apparently waiting for her explanation. "The kit and I had a relaxing day. He only gave me a small problem with the evening meal, but it was very minor. I don't know how he got sick."

"What was the problem?" Kolivan asked.

"He hadn't eaten enough at the meal, so I got him more food, and he ate it."

Ulaz had entered the nest room as she said this, and he growled. "Why would you make him eat too much? I left you a detailed report concerning what and how much he should be eating! No wonder he got sick, if you made him eat twice as much as he's used to!"

"I only gave him the amount a normal kit eats!"

"Keith's not a normal kit!"

Antok growled. "Leave! We have a kit to take care of."

Ulaz hurried into the bathroom with the medicines and knelt down next to his kit. "Here, kit. Take this first."

Ulaz held the small cup of water up to Keith's lips, and Keith tilted his head back, letting the water enter his mouth.

"Spit it out now, kit."

Keith did so. He and Ulaz did that with the medicines but swallowing them instead. The stomach soother did its job, and Keith leaned against Thace, soft whimpers still coming from his throat.

Thace gently scooped up Keith and carried him back into the nest room. He stepped into the nest and let Keith rest against him. They were surprised at the sight and smell of Keith's tears. "What's the matter, kit?"

"I'm sorry. I tried to be good. I didn't mean to eat too much. Luxin wouldn't take no for an answer."

"Shh, kit. You have nothing to be sorry for."

"She shouldn't have been treating you like a full blooded Galra kit."

"There was something she did that I liked."

"What was that, kit?"

"She read Galran books out loud all afternoon. It was relaxing."

"Is that something you would like us to do with you, kit?"

"Yeah." Keith nodded before snuggling into Thace's chest.

Thace started grooming Keith's hair, soothing him and allowing him to fall asleep. He didn't start purring until the rest of his pack gathered around him, rumbling to him and providing him comfort.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Pinned Down"

Kolivan wanted to growl. His kit was on the training deck again, and none of the Paladins were even trying to pull him off of it. It was like they didn't care that he was training for vargas on end! Either that or they didn't know. He didn't know which was worse.

The leader of the Blades made his way to the training deck and was surprised to not hear the tell-tale sounds of metal against metal. Did he miss his kit leaving? He entered the room and saw Keith sitting on the sidelines with his hair up and sipping from a water pouch, a towel draped around his shoulders.

Keith noticed Kolivan's entrance and paused his drinking long enough to chirp at him in greeting. Kolivan smiled at the sound. It was a kit noise used in a lot of different situations like in greeting a pack member, which was how Keith used it. The leader made his way over to his kit and settled next to him, grinning when Keith scooted a little closer to lean against him.

The pair enjoyed each other's company in the silence of the training deck...until Kolivan asked, "Are you done with training, kit?"

Keith knew whatever his answer was didn't matter. Kolivan had come to get him and stop him from training any longer, but he was still full of energy. Keith had drained the water pouch, so he put down and replied, "Yes, but I still want to move around."

"Well, you are a kit, so that's to be expected. Do you want to play?"

"Play?"

"Play fight."

"You mean like sparring?"

"More or less."

"None of the other Paladins want to spar with me, aside from Shiro but he's busy right now."

Kolivan frowned. The Paladins were unwittingly not letting Keith indulge in his kit instincts. That would not do. Instead of confronting the Paladins, Kolivan offered, "What about play fighting me, kit?"

Keith perked up. "You want to sp-play fight me?"

Kolivan nodded, pleased that Keith was using the Galran term for the activity. "I would be pleased to, kit."

Kolivan stood up and unbuckled his sword sheath in order to leave it on the sidelines, prompting Keith to do the same. The Red Paladin had already taken off his jacket but took off his boots and left the towel haphazardly tossed in the same direction.

He joined Kolivan in the center of the training deck. Kolivan looked over his kit, nodding as he noticed that he wasn't armed or wearing any loose clothing that could used to snatch him. "Let's begin, kit."

At those words, Keith immediately jumped back several paces and tensed for Kolivan's move. Keith's move surprised Kolivan. He expected Keith to launch an attack immediately, but he instead increased the distance between them and was waiting. Kolivan minutely shook his head. It had been awhile since he had play fought someone. He shouldn't be analyzing his kit's movements, just reacting.

Keith let out a soft questioning noise, asking if there was problem. Kolivan growled in response, but Keith could tell he wasn't angry, but what was he waiting for? In truth, Keith didn't have long to wait.

Kolivan rushed forward at a startling speed, causing Keith to back pedal a bit before the raven haired kit turned the tables and rushed at Kolivan, who tried to grab him, but Keith let his feet go out from under him, and he slid between Kolivan's legs, grabbing one of the leader's ankles in the process. The maneuver did manage to get him off his feet, but Keith wasn't done yet. He wrapped Kolivan's braid around his hand and pulled hard. Kolivan could help but yowl, but he did cut it off mid-yowl.

"Did I hurt you?" Keith was concerned about that.

"A little bit, but it is okay, kit. It was a good maneuver."

"Do we keep going?"

"Do you want to?"

"Yes please."

"Then, we will."

Keith kept his tight grip on Kolivan's braid, which wasn't the greatest idea. Kolivan grabbed higher up on his braid since it wasn't completely coiled around his kit's hand and yanked, throwing Keith off balance. The braid came unwrapped, and Keith used the movement to his advantage and rolled until he was able to pop to his feet.

He dashed at Kolivan once again, but the Blade leader was quicker. He grabbed the kit's arm and flipped him over his shoulder. However, Keith turned himself around and slowed his descent by grabbing onto Kolivan's braid again, which brought him to one knee. Keith hooked a leg around the larger Blade's neck but kept ahold of his braid. He just barely managed to bring Kolivan all the way down to the floor. He scrambled onto his back and tightened his hold on Kolivan's braid.

Kolivan couldn't really move. His arms were pinned beneath him but they were in odd positions that didn't allow him to use them to push himself up with. The kit was laying against his back with his legs pinning one of his legs down, so he didn't have the use of them either. Plus he also had quite a firm grip on his braid, which was almost completely coiled around his hand.

"Do you yield?"

"I concede this match to you, kit. You did very well. I was completely pinned down."

Keith released Kolivan's braid and got off of his back. He retreated back to the sidelines, picked up his towel, and began wiping the sweat off his brow. Kolivan stood up and walked over to his kit, who said, "That was fun. Do you think we could do it again some time?"

"You can play fight any of your pack members, kit. All you have to do is ask."

Fin

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.

%%%

"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

Chapter Text

"Gunpoint"

Getting caught was not part of Keith's plan. The toxic air was making it difficult to breathe, let alone remain conscious. He had been doing his best until Zethrid had overpowered him, which he should have expected as she wasn't suffering from the toxic air as much as he was (mostly because she hadn't been exposed as long). Now, he had a gun pointed to his head and an arm pressed against his throat, which was another hindrance to his breathing.

He saw Shiro and Acxa talking to Zethrid, but their words washed over him as his head started to spin. It was getting harder and harder to stay conscious. All of a sudden, a shot rang out and pushed Zethrid off Keith, and she lost her footing, tumbling to the lava below. However, Keith used the last of his energy to save her and pull her back up onto the cliff. He grabbed his Marmora blade and stood up. He took a step before passing out, his blade becoming a knife as he lost consciousness.

%%%

Keith groaned and cracked an eye open. He saw he was on the Atlas in the medical bay. He didn't know how much time passed, but he hoped it hadn't been too long and that they hadn't needed Voltron in the meantime. He saw that he was hooked up to a bunch of machines and that he had an IV line in. He scrunched his nose. He hated being stuck with needles, even when he was unaware of it.

He carefully turned off the machines before peeling off the sensors and withdrawing the needle in his hand. He found a bandaid and covered the insertion site. He was just glad the medical bay clothing were simple shirts and pants, so he did not worry about being seen in anything embarrassing as he made his way to his room. Before he left, he saw his blade on the table next to his bed. He grabbed it and peeked out the door. Seeing the corridor empty, Keith snuck out into the corridor and made his way to his room. He was still a little lightheaded from being exposed to the toxic air however long ago it was, but it wasn't like he was going to go train or anything. He just wanted to rest in his nest, certain that he would feel better in a more familiar setting.

He hadn't planned on being seen by anyone, let alone by Lance. "Keith! What are you doing up?!"

Keith lifted his head. "I'm going to my room. What does it look like?"

"It looks like you're about to collapse. Here, let me help you." Lance went over to his side and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, escorting him to his room. He helped him settle into his nest.

Keith let out a sigh and seemed to relax. He stashed his blade within easy reach and turned to Lance, who was still standing there. "Have a seat. I have some questions."

"I bet you do." Lance sat down outside Keith's nest. He saw Keith's frown. "What's the problem? Do you need some meds?"

"No. Why are you sitting there? I meant for you to sit in my nest, not outside it."

Lance blushed. "Oh. Uh, I didn't want to intrude or assume anything." Lance stepped into the nest and settled next to Keith. "So, what did you want to know?"

"How long was I out?"

"About eighteen vargas. Krolia, Kolivan, Acxa, and Shiro have been in and out constantly, but everyone else had stopped by too. In fact, I was on my way to see you when we ran into each other."

"Did I miss anything important?"

"Other than my sister apparently dating Acxa, nope."

"Veronica is dating Acxa, huh? That's cool. I think they make a cute couple." Keith yawned. "I could use some restful sleep."

"I better tell people that you are in your room, so they don-"

An alarm blared throughout the ship and on Lance's data pad, and Lance pulled up a video message program. Shiro's face appeared on the screen. "Lance! Keith disappeared from the medical bay! Have you seen him?"

"Actually, yes. He's right here." Lance turned to screen to show a sleeping Keith, who was purring softly. "He left the medical bay on his own and seems to be okay, just tired."

Shiro groaned and turned the alarm off. "Of course, he did. I should have had someone there to prevent this."

Lance chuckled. "You know that wouldn't have stopped him. Let him rest in his nest. I will stay with him until he feels up to joining the rest of us."

"All right, Lance. I trust you to keep an eye on him." Shiro closed the channel.

Lance sighed and laid his data pad aside. He started stroking Keith's hair and smiled as he heard Keith's purr get louder. Maybe being in his nest was the best thing for his recovery.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Flit"

Keith loved watching his mate flit about their garden. Being a water fey meant that Lance was a wonderful gardener, whereas Keith was concerned about setting the entire thing ablaze. Though, he loved being in the sunlight as it was warm like the fire he could control, which was why he found himself in the garden watching his mate.

Lance knew Keith was a little uncomfortable in the garden but appreciated that his mate wanted to be near him. Normally fey of opposite elements did not become mates, but Keith and Lance felt drawn to each other since they were little.

Their families didn't live next to each other, but Keith's family had gone to the beach one day and Keith met Lance, who was an energetic water fey who only had minimal control over the element due to his age. Keith was the same way, so he was able to assure Lance that they'll be able to show off their respective talents when they learned more control. If they tried now, they could accidentally hurt each other as their elements were direct opposites of each other. Lance definitely didn't want to hurt the fey he felt connected to.

The two fey were able to convince their families to let them visit each other, and as they grew, they got to know one another. When they were old enough to live on their own, they knew they would want to live together but also knew that they should do a trial run. They spent the summer at Keith's family's summer home, getting to know each other on a more intimate level.

When the summer was over, the two fey knew they definitely wanted to live together forever. Keith's family offered them the opportunity to stay in the family's summer home, and Keith and Lance accepted. The summer home was closer to the beach than the volcano that Keith would one day learn to control, but the heat of the sun made it pleasant for Keith. The first thing Lance did was to set up the garden, giving them an outdoor location they could spend time together.

%%%

Lance tended the garden and was starting to sweat, but he wasn't quite done yet. Keith noticed this and fluttered over with a small towel to mop up the sweat. He gently wiped the towel over his mate's forehead and neck.

"Mmm. Thanks." Lance tilted his head back.

"Anytime." Keith pressed against Lance's back and planted a gentle kiss on his mate's lips, enjoying the warmth of their bodies pressed against each other.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Entangled Kits"

Krolia landed her pod back at the Castle of Lions, where the Blades were stationed and more specifically where her kit was. He was spending some more time at the castle ship, which did concern her a bit, but she did understand that the Paladins were family to him too. At least, no one hated him for being part Galra. She still disliked the princess for the neglect she subjected her kit to.

She wondered where her kit was, since it was too early (for him) to return to their nest room. He had taken to even napping away from the nest, usually in the company of one of the Paladins. She didn't blame him for wanting to spend time with them, but she just wanted to check on him.

She checked the training deck and was glad that he wasn't there. She decided to check the lounge next. The Paladins had learned how comfortable nests were and kept a large nest in there for everyone's use, hence the size. She entered the lounge and saw Keith sleeping in the nest...on top of Lance.

Their legs were tangled with each other, and Lance's arms were wrapped around Keith, who was wearing Lance's jacket. Lance's eyes were closed, and Keith was purring, which told her that both were sleeping. They were adorable, especially since they seemed to be mates.

Krolia tiptoed out of the lounge in order to not disturb the two kits. The kits needed all the sleep they could get, especially since they were key players in a war for the universe.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Not Separated"

Keith snuggled into Lance with a soft purr. He loved being able to stay with his mate, even while living at headquarters. Once his pack found out that Lance was his mate, they told him that Lance should come with him, because being without his mate caused Keith pain, which would increase over time.

The moment Keith told Lance about the separation causing pain thing Lance panicked over inadvertantly causing Keith pain. Lance asked Allura to open a wormhole to the Blades' headquarters, which she had no problem doing. Lance flew the Red Lion along the pathway as fast as he could and was escorted into the base. The tick Keith saw Lance he called out, "Lance!"

He ran over and jumped on him, wrapping his arms and legs around him and purring. Lance smiled and put his arms around Keith, making sure he couldn't fall. "Hey, kitty cat. Glad to see you too."

After a moment, Keith settled down and unwrapped his legs. He started leading Lance back to his pack's nest room and into the nest itself. Lance paused slightly outside the nest, locking eyes with each of the four Galra lounging in the mass of pillows and blankets. They all nodded, letting Lance know it was okay to enter the nest.

Lance laid down nest to Keith, who immediately cuddled up against his mate, who had never stopped purring ever since Lance arrived at headquarters.

The Blades were amused at their kit's reaction to being with his mate after being separated for a few quintants. They couldn't believe that Keith wasn't in an extreme amount of pain, but perhaps it was because he was a hybrid. A full blooded Galra could experience a debilitating amount of pain if they were separated from their mate, whereas Keith only expressed a severe discomfort. Whatever the case may have been, they wouldn't know as they weren't willing to cause their kit to experience pain. Some things weren't worth the knowledge.

Fin

Chapter Text

"A Little Helper"

Lance loved baking with his family and that included his found family up in space. It eased his homesickness. Aside from Hunk, Lance was the next best baker among the Paladins. Pidge was not interested in the kitchen, except for getting food, and Shiro was not allowed to be in the kitchen. The eldest Paladin (and Coran but that was a different reason) had been unceremoniously banned from the kitchen. Hunk had told everyone that Shiro was not allowed to even help cook/bake. What no one (except Shiro) expected was that Keith liked to help. Lance found that he enjoyed having Keith in the kitchen. The Red Paladin was good company.

Lance was once again in the kitchen when Keith walked in. Lance smiled and slipped an apron on him. "Hey. Good to see you. I could use some help!"

"Help?"

Lance paused at hearing the younger tone. Apparently, Keith had slipped into his head space, but at least it was an older head space. Lance smiled again. "Sure but first, Daddy needs to know how old you are."

"Five!" Keith announced happily.

"Such a big boy! You definitely can help, and I have just the job for you!" Lance grabbed a glass and a small bowl of sugar. He brought them over to a pan of sugar cookie balls. He set them down and motioned for Keith to come over. "You can finish making these cookies. You take this glass and do this." He dipped the glass into the sugar and then pressed it against one of the balls, flattening it with the bottom of the glass. "See? Don't forget to put more sugar on the bottom of the glass like this." Lance dipped the glass in the sugar again. "You want to try, baby?"

"Uh-huh." Keith carefully flattened the next ball and smiled brightly as he pulled it away, dipping it into the sugar before smiling even wider at his Daddy.

"Good job, baby. Daddy's going to be over here, but remember, don't eat the cookie dough. It would make your tummy feel bad. You finish all those and you can have one after they bake and cool."

"Okay, Daddy."

Lance turned around and sighed inaudibly. He hadn't been expected Keith to be regressed when he came into the kitchen. He truly wanted help with the complex recipe he was trying out. He hoped he would be able to do it by himself.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Petting A Plushie"

Curtis and Adam were watching their little nap. He had had a full afternoon of playing and was napping on Adam's lap. Adam was currently going through his phone, looking at (and trying out) games his little might find interesting, so Curtis whispered that he was going to straighten up the play room. Adam nodded, not saying anything so he wouldn't wake up Shiro, who would be cranky if he was woken up.

Curtis sat down on the floor of the play room, trying to figure out what he was going to put away first. Shiro had had a lot out as he couldn't figure out what he wanted to play with. There were wooden blocks stacked up in a half built tower with other blocks around the base of the tower. There was a coloring book and a set of crayons out of their box with a half colored picture of a dog jumping after a butterfly in a field of flowers. There was a variety of stuffed animals out including a husky, a snowy owl, a white tiger, and a snow leopard laying on the floor.

Curtis had always been a caregiver, but he was interested in things Shiro did while in little space, and he, once in a while, felt like he was what he would consider in between head spaces if he was a little, but he wasn't a little...was he?

He bit his lip as he put away the blocks, and he was trying to put the crayons back in the box, but he seemed to be having trouble doing that. He set them back down and looked down. The snow leopard plushie was somehow on his lap. He reached down and petted her head. She was super soft, and her fur made him feel nice. He continued petting her, not putting away any more toys, unaware that he actually had regressed.

%%%

It had been an hour, and Adam was concerned that Curtis hadn't come back out yet. He usually didn't take long to put away the toys. He wanted to check on him, but he also didn't want to leave Shiro unattended.

Fortunately, Shiro stirred, and his eyes opened up. He saw his Daddy holding him, just as he was when he had fallen asleep.

"Hey, baby. You have a good nap?"

"Uh-huh."

"Let's change you and check on Papa." Adam hoisted Shiro up and walked to the play room, which also served as Shiro's little room. They found Curtis sitting on the floor, petting Shiro's snow leopard. Adam paused in carrying Shiro to the changing table. "Curtis?"

Curtis turned his head. "Ada'?"

Adam's eyes widened slightly, realizing that Curtis had actually regressed. He had never considered that Curtis could actually be a little...well, he would be considered a switch. Adam smiled and set Shiro on the changing table. "You having a good time petting Snowy?"

"Uh-huh."

"Snowy?" Shiro asked.

"Curtis is petting Snowy," Adam explained. "You don't mind sharing, do you, sweety?"

"No mind," Shiro answered.

Adam changed Shiro's diaper and thought about what he just found out. It turned out that his fellow caregiver was actually a switch and would probably like to play. He might not know what he could play with. "'Kashi, do you want to play with Curtis?"

"Play with Papa?"

"Sort of. Papa is a baby right now and would like to play, so you two can share your toys." Adam replaced the diaper and re-snapped the light blue onesie he was wearing. He lifted him up and set him on the floor next to Curtis.

Curtis looked at the little and offered the snow leopard back, but Shiro shook his head and gently pushed the stuffed cat back towards him. "You play. I get Roar."

Shiro grabbed his white tiger. Adam leaned against the door frame and watched Shiro urging Curtis to play. After a bit of urging from the little, the brunette baby joined Shiro in playing with the plushies. It wasn't how Adam thought the day was going to go when Shiro had gone down for his usual nap, but it wasn't a bad thing. He couldn't fault Curtis for finding his true self and wouldn't deny him the chance to regress whenever he wanted, whether Shiro was regressed or not.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Drenched"

Keith couldn't believe his luck. He had drawn the metaphorical short straw and had to do a patrol. Normally, he wouldn't care, relishing the chance to further bond with Red while flying, but the planet that requested help from the Paladins had very dense foliage, which prevented the use of the lions. It wouldn't have been a big deal, but it was raining hard. He wasn't going to back down. It was just a little water.

%%%

Lance knew Keith was going to be soaking wet when he returned from patrol, and he was going to be there with a towel, which wasn't hard. Lance grabbed a couple of fluffy, red towels and headed for the front doors to wait for his boyfriend.

%%%

Keith was in a horrible mood due to being soaked to the bone. He didn't like how his boots squelched due to the water that soaked into them. His scowl melted off his face when he saw Lance standing there with a towel held wide open. He basically ran into Lance's arms, and his boyfriend wrapped the towel around his shoulders. Lance draped another towel over his head to help dry his boyfriend's hair.

Keith purred. "Thank you, Lance."

"Anytime, Mullet." Lance massaged Keith's hair using the towel. "I can't believe you went out in that."

"I said I would, though I would have preferred to do the patrol in Red."

"I understand that. Now, let's get you warmed up, cariño." Lance guided his boyfriend back to their room for a warm shower and dry clothes.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Warfare"

The Blades were looking for their youngest kit, who was staying at the Garrison due to him still recovering from his injuries sustained during the fight between Voltron and the Komar mech and during the crash back to Earth after the Komar mech exploded.

As they made their way down the corridor, strange yet familiar sounds became louder and louder. When they got to the upper level, the sounds were even louder. The Blades tensed as they recognized the sounds of explosions and gunfire. Ready to defend the Garrison from the obvious attack, all six drew their luxite blades and crept through the hallway. Seeing movement out of the corner of his eye, Thace growled. Seeing as no one attacked, they continued their search. As he searched the level, they were confused as to why there was no alarm blaring  until they heard their kit's voice. "Don't shoot."

The Blades paused to determine where their kit was. Once again, they heard Keith say, "That was close," which was quickly followed by, "How many of you are there?"

Antok narrowed his eyes. His kit was under attack by many opponents, and no one was coming to help. His kit sounded close like he was on the other side of the wall. Antok ran to the door and tore it off its hinges.

%%%

Lance, Pidge, and Hunk had been looking for Keith and easily located him. They had spent the first ten minutes just staring at the scene. The Black Paladin was sitting in an orange beanbag chair and playing the X-Box 360 game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 with the volume turned all the way up. Once they got used to the scene, they had to admit Keith was pretty good at the game. It was almost as if he had played before.

They weren't sure why Keith had the volume turned up to max, but it was almost loud enough to mask the sound of the door being torn off its hinges. However, they did hear it and were a little surprised to see Kolivan, Antok, Thace, Ulaz, Regris, and Krolia, each armed with their luxite blades like they were prepared for battle.

While the game was saving, Keith looked up and chirped in surprise. Krolia made a strange chuff sound. Keith's eyes flicked from his pack to the TV and back, widening in understanding. He grabbed the remote and turned the volume down. "Sorry, guys. There is no attack. I was playing a game."

"A game?" Ulaz asked.

"Yeah. I turned the volume down now, so do you want to see?"

Pleased that their kit was playing, the entire pack settled around their kit and watched him play the game. None of the Galra noticed Shiro come into the room. However, the Garrison Trio saw him and knew he noticed the damaged door.

He turned to the Garrison Trio and asked, "What happened?"

Lance stepped forward. "From what I understand, based on the conversation, the Blades mistook the sounds of Modern Warfare for actual warfare."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Father"

Kolivan was watching his pack's kit while everyone was doing their jobs. He was in his office going over reports, while Keith was lounging in the nest Kolivan kept in his office. He wasn't asleep, but he was resting because he had had a snack, and Kolivan had told him to rest before Antok came to take him to the training hall to play. Keith knew that if he didn't rest, then Kolivan wouldn't let him go with Antok.

Even though Kolivan was going over his reports, that didn't mean he wasn't aware of what his kit was doing. He was very good at multi-tasking. Each member of his pack learned this skill when they accepted Keith as a member of their pack.

At that moment, Keith was shifting slightly like he was slightly uncomfortable. Kolivan set the data pad down and turned a little in his chair. "Keith, come here, kit."

Keith slowly climbed out of the nest and stood in front of Kolivan, who pulled the kit on to his lap. The little kit almost immediately snuggled against his dad and grabbed his braid. Kolivan smiled and gently nuzzled his head, prompting him to purr.

"Love you, kit."

"Love you too, Father," Keith murmured as he drifted off into a light sleep.

Kolivan sat in his chair with a soft expression on his face. His kit finally called him 'father' instead of 'da.' He was going to enjoy that for a moment before going back to the reports.

%%%

Antok made his way to Kolivan's office to collect the kit for his usual playtime but stopped short when he heard the soft purrs of a dozing kit. He peered into the office and saw a strange scene. The sight of Keith snuggled against Kolivan wasn't strange, but Kolivan just sitting there with a weird look on his face was.

Antok knocked on the door soft enough to not rouse the kit but loud enough to draw Kolivan's attention to the fact that he was there. "Tok?"

"'Van, why do you have that strange look on your face?"

"What look?"

"Like this." Antok imitated the look his saw on his mate's face.

"Oh. Keith finally called me 'father.'"

"That's great." Antok looked at Keith. "Is the kit actually napping?"

"He seems to be."

"I suppose he can play later, especially since he is napping with his 'father.'"

"Yes. Yes, he is. I will bring him by the training hall later on."

Antok walked around behind Kolivan. "You could use some relaxation time too, 'Van."

"What are you talking about?"

Antok didn't answer verbally. He unbraided Kolivan's white strands and carded his claws through them, causing him to add his purrs to the room and causing Antok to smile. He knew how to get his mate to relax.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Post Shower Cuddles"

Keith stepped out of his shower with a towel draped over his head and proceeded to pull out his usual day clothes until he heard a roar in his head. He looked up slightly as to not knock the towel off his head. "Red?"

"Dress in your red pajamas and come see me."

Even though he was confused, Keith still followed his lion's orders and dress in his Red Paladin pajamas (and his Red Lion slippers for good measure). He slipped his Marmora blade into the robe pocket and went to go see his lion.

He entered the hangar and was pleased to see her particle barrier was down.

"Hey, Red." He approached her, and she knelt down in front of him.

"Come in, cub."

Keith climbed into her mouth and sat down into the pilot's seat with a happy sigh. He felt her prod the bond the two of them had, which was her way of telling him to meet her in the space where Paladin and lion could interact freely.

He only had one tiny problem following her. He always appeared as a child. However, there was a good part. Red appeared as a real, fluffy lioness, and he got to lie against her. He would inevitably fall asleep snuggled against her, both of them purring to each other.

Those were the reasons he always followed their bond through the bright while light, covering his eyes with his arms in order to not get blinded by the flash. He didn't uncover his eyes until he was shielded by his lion. He slowly opened his eyes and smiled at her. "Hi, Red."

"Hello, cub." Red laid down and beckoned him over with her tail. He obliged and snuggled against her, hearing and feeling her purr, which were very similar to Galran purrs.

Keith purred back in response as his eyes drifted closed. He fell asleep mentally snuggled against the soft, silky fur of his lion and physically curled up in the pilot's seat, his purr heard in both locales.

Fin

Chapter Text

"A Large Nest"

The IGF Atlas housed several species, including Galra in the form of the Blades of Marmora. Everyone had gotten appropriate accomodations as necessary for their species. Shiro had made sure of each accomodation personally. He knew the Blades needed a large room for all of them to nest in and not individual rooms. However, Keith did get an individual room as he was the leader of Voltron. (He used it as an office.)

The nest room was larger than a regular room for eight beings as the Blades cited that there were a total of fifteen beings in their pack. Shiro realized that the Blades were counting everyone whom they considered as their kits as part of their pack, and he made sure they received the largest room they had. He had no idea how it would affect more than just him in the future.

%%%

Kolivan was aggravated, not that anyone could tell due to his stoic visage. However, nothing aggravated him more than kits who didn't rest, and he had eight kits who all were working too hard. His two other kits knew they needed rest, but they were recruited to help collect two others. Each pack member went to go collect the other kits.

Kolivan and Acxa went to the bridge, where two of their kits were. Acxa made a beeline to Veronica, and they had a whispered conversation as Kolivan turned to Shiro. "Shiro, you must come with me."

"Is there a problem, Kolivan?"

"Yes. You need rest."

"I am still working. I will rest later."

"No. You need to rest now."

Shiro paused, catching sight of Acxa practically dragging Veronica off the bridge, and knew that that was going to happen to him if he didn't comply. "Very well. Commander Iverson, you have the bridge until my return."

Shiro walked off his bridge with his dignity intact or so he thought. The tick the doors closed, Kolivan picked him up and threw him over his shoulder. Shiro sputtered and opened his mouth to try to convince Kolivan that he didn't need to carry him, but the leader of the Blades cut him off. "I understand your position, kit, but as one of my kits, you need rest."

Shiro knew he had no chance at convincing Kolivan to even set him down, so he just let the leader of the Blades carry him to his nest room.

%%%

Krolia didn't need to search for her youngest biological kit as he was constantly in the training hall. However, he wasn't alone. He apparently was sparring with Princess Allura, which was good as she was considered one of their kits as well.

Krolia pulled out her data pad and sent a message to the adult members of her pack to let them know that she would be bringing the princess along with Keith. Not bothering to wait for the inevitable reply, Krolia stepped closer to the training duo and growled.

Keith and Allura heard the growl just as they were starting their third round, and they paused, recognizing the growl as Galran. Keith raised an eyebrow at his mother's presence. "Mama?"

"Both of you kits need to come with me to our nest."

Keith knew he couldn't argue with his mom as she was right. Allura, however, spoke up. "I am no kit."

"My pack says otherwise. You are our kit, and both of you need to come rest. If you don't come willingly, I will carry you."

"I'll come, Mama." Keith turned to face Allura. "It's in our best interest to go on our own terms. You know how they are."

Allura nodded. "True. I think that's where you get your stubbornness from, Keith."

"It's actually from both sides of his heritage," Krolia corrected as both of her kits joined her in returning to the nest room.

%%%

Regris and Ulaz actually found Matt and Pidge together in a lab working on a way to apply Green's cloaking technology to the MFEs. As worthy as that idea was, both Holt siblings were known to not take breaks unless coerced, which was what Regris and Ulaz were going to do.

Matt and Pidge did notice the two Blades' entrance, but they didn't stop working; not even when Ulaz stated their intentions. "Save whatever work you have done as you need rest."

"We had just made some significant progress!" Pidge insisted.

"And you will make even more after a small break," Regris stated.

"But-" Pidge started.

"No. Save your work or you will lose it as you will be carried out of here," Ulaz warned.

Matt sighed. "We might as well do as they say, especially if they are not giving us a choice."

Pidge saved her and her brother's work and closed out the programs before shutting her laptop. She picked it up, intending on taking it with her, which was obvious to the Blades. "Leave the laptop here, kit."

"But-"

Ulaz growled softly, not wanting to scare the youngest kit but wanting to make sure she understood the orders. "Leave it."

Pidge reluctantly set down her laptop before Ulaz scooped her up to carry her to the nest. Regris wrapped his tail around Matt's waist to encourage him to follow.

%%%

Thace knew he had the easiest job as he went to retrieve Lance. The Blue Paladin loved everything comfortable, and Thace knew some Earth lingo which would help him get the kit to join him. He knocked on the door to Lance's room. Lance called out, "One moment!"

Thace stood there, puzzling what a moment was, but Lance opened the door soon enough. The grin on his face was bright. "Hi, Thace!"

"Come join us in the nest, kit. It's time for a sleep over."

"A sleep over? But it's not nighttime."

"It's close enough. Come."

Lance shrugged and followed the violet furred Blade but briefly stopped by his family's room, which was next door. He stuck his head into the door and called out, "Mamá, I'm going to be in the Blades' room for a few vargas!"

"¡Graciás, mijo!" Mrs. McClain called back.

As they walked to the nest room, Lance explained. "My mother wants me to tell her where I am going to be if I'm not in my room. It's her way of making sure I don't disappear again."

%%%

Antok had the job of collecting Hunk. The largest Blade figured the Yellow Paladin was in the kitchen, and he was right. However, it didn't appear that the Paladin was cooking or baking. On the contrary, he was sitting in front of a data pad with a weary look on his face. Antok approached. "Is there a problem, kit?"

"Huh? Oh, hi, Antok. I'm just translating this recipe, and it's hard trying to come up with the right word."

"Perhaps it will come to you after some rest."

Hunk looked from the data pad to the Blade and back. He saved his work and shut it down. "You may be right."

Antok wrapped his tail around Hunk's waist, urging the kit to accompany him to the nest room.

%%%

Kolivan was pleased as he had all fifteen members of his pack in the nest. All ten kits were in various states of sleep. Keith, Acxa, Regris, and Hunk were fast sleep, the first three purring. Lance was braiding Allura's hair as the princess was drowsing. Veronica was curled around Acxa with her eyes drooping. Ulaz was grooming Shiro's short hair, getting him to sleep as well. Pidge was laying on top of Thace, loving the feeling of his fur. Matt was pressed up against Antok. Krolia was curled around Keith and Acxa, purring loud enough to soothe all of the kits, which was successful as the nest was filled with soft purrs and even breathing as all ten of them were asleep fairly quickly.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Blade Bonding"

Keith yawned and stretched. His hand brushed against something furry, and Keith almost freaked out before he remembered that he fallen asleep cuddled against Kolivan as Krolia had gone to get some real food that Keith would be able to keep down.

Kolivan rumbled to soothe him. Keith couldn't help but purr in return. Keith was glad he saw Kolivan and Krolia when he awoke after saving Earth. Both Blades were glad that Keith woke up as his recovery had been rough due to his mixed heritage.

Keith had been worried about his leader as the last time he had seen him had been after he had been saved from the mad druid, Macidus. The Blade Leader had been barely alive and talking with pauses. This scene had stayed with Keith during the mission to save Earth, so seeing him 100% better was a weight off Keith's shoulders. It was the reason that Keith asked to sleep cuddled against his leader, when Krolia was off running her errand.

%%%

Kolivan couldn't tell the kit no, when he asked to cuddle against him. It was kit instinct to cuddle a pack member, and Kolivan was honored to be considered such by the kit. He had worried that sending the kit on mission after mission had damaged their relationship and was relieved that those fears were unfounded.

%%%

Krolia had procured Galran cuisine from a strange chef that constantly talked about a mysterious chef who had taken over his shop at the Space Mall and made the most amazing food but had disappeared without a trace since. He had given her the food after extracting a promise from her that if she saw the chef that she would send him his way.

She was about to walk into Keith's room when she heard her kit's purr. She peeked into the room and was pleased to see Keith cuddling with Kolivan. Both of the most important beings in her life (that were alive) were bonding, and that was one of the most beautiful things she had witnessed lately.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Covered In Kits"

Thace shook his head slightly. He didn't know how most of his pack got turned into kits. He guessed it wasn't a good idea to send Kolivan, Keith, Acxa, Regris, and Antok on a mission together. Ulaz was in the med bay, trying to figure out if there was something he could do. Meanwhile, he and Krolia were in charge of watching the five kits. Krolia had her claws full with her three now tiny kits.

Keith, Acxa, and Regris were now three-deeca-phoebes-old and all wanted to cling to their mom, even though Keith and Acxa were her only biological kits. She had adopted Regris and he was a good big brother to her twins. She knew the three of them remembered everything, but their kit instincts were too strong to ignore. It took little coaxing for them to give into them. However, she also had two other kits that wanted to cling to her as well.

Kolivan and Antok were a bit older than the rest of the kits at ten-deca-phoebes-old. They also remembered everything and had given into their kit instincts. They wanted to stay with each other and with Krolia as well, her being so gentle and maternal to her own kits.

Krolia was covered with kits. Keith was in her arms, Acxa was curled up on her right side, while Antok and Kolivan were cuddling each other on her left. Regris was clinging onto her back, and his tail was linked with Antok's as the older kit was behind his mate.

Krolia was rumbling soothingly to the five kits, causing them to start drifting off to sleep. As purrs filled the nest, Ulaz quietly slipped back into the nest and snuggled against his mate. Making sure the kits wouldn't wake up, Ulaz whispered to Thace, "I got the results back."

"What were they?"

Ulaz smiled softly. "I discovered a strange substance in their systems but couldn't identify it. However, I did figure out that it just has to work its way out of their systems on its own."

"How long is that going to take?" Thace asked as he wrapped an arm around his mate's shoulders, pulling him closer.

"I don't know," Ulaz admitted as he snuggled against the violet furred Blade. He turned to look at the sleeping, purring kits gathered around Krolia, who was looking tired herself. Ulaz hummed, catching Krolia's attention without disturbing any of the kits. "You are tired, sister. You should get some rest too. Thace and I will keep an eye on anyone who wakes up before you do."

Krolia nodded and carefully shifted her torso so she was partially laying on her side and not laying on any of the kits. She nuzzled Keith and buried her nose into his hair, her purr joining the kits' once her eyes closed.

Ulaz and Thace sighed as they cuddled each other. They didn't know how long this was going to last, but they knew they would get through it...somehow.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Kicked Out"

It was hard to believe that Keith was one of Lance's best friends as they were complete opposites. However, Rosa McClain had a sinking feeling that Keith's home life wasn't the best. Even though he had stated that he didn't have a family, it actually had come out that he was a foster kid and the family he lived with didn't care about him.

When she had mentioned that Keith should call the family so they would know where he was, Rosa noticed fear tinting his pretty purple eyes a dull grey color. Even though he was scared, he still made the call. She didn't need to hear the other side of the conversation, even though she did. The man on the other side was clearly intoxicated and shouted into the receiver, demanding to talk to whatever adult was there. Mama McClain took the receiver and placed it against her shoulder. "I've got this. You and Lance should go into the living room and pick out a movie. I also want to know what toppings you want on your pizza so we can get that ordered."

"Pizza?"

"Yep. Everytime someone has a sleepover, we always order pizza! Let's go!" Lance tugged on Keith's arm to get him to follow him.

Rosa smiled and nodded in the direction of the living room. Once the boys were out of ear shot, she placed the receiver back up to her ear. "Hello, sorry for the delay. I am Rosa McClain. Keith is going to be spending the night with my family. I will be driving him back to your house tomorrow if I can have your address."

"If you want the brat, you can keep him. **In fact, come over and pick up what little he has before Tony torches it.**"

Rosa didn't know who 'Tony' was, but it didn't matter. Keith was clearly not safe at that house. "Certainly. I just need your address and I will come get his stuff now."

"It's 154 Cedar Crest Circle."

"Thank you. I will be over in ten minutes."

"His stuff will be on the front lawn. **If it's still there in fifteen minutes, it will be torched.**"

The dial tone indicated that the man had hung up on her. She hung up the phone and peered into the living room, delighted to see the two boys knee deep in DVDs and unaware of what the conversation had been about.

She signaled her husband and quickly told him what she had to do. "Order the pizza, but don't tell Keith what happened."

Rosa quickly made her way to Cedar Crest and to her dismay, a bookbag and a duffle bag were haphazardly thrown into the front lawn of a rich neighborhood. Both bags were worn and had holes that were patched up with duct tape. She grabbed the bags, seeing that there was a boy slightly younger than Lance and Keith watching her with a lighter in his hands. His sadistic smile faded when he saw her place the bags in her car.

The second she was seated in her front seat, her cell phone rang. Seeing her home phone number on the screen, she answered it. "Hello."

"Rosa, I swear I didn't tell him, but somehow he knew what you were doing, and he has some questions."

Rosa sighed. "Put him on."

"Ma'am, please check my duffel for my stuffed hippo. It was a gift from my Pops."

Rosa checked the duffel, and to her relief, there was a well loved purple hippo in the bag. "It's here."

Keith sighed. He didn't have to ask about his knife as he always carried it on his person. Those were the two items he cared about the most. Everything else was replaceable. "What else is in there?"

Rosa dug through the bag. "I see four shirts, four pairs of pants, socks, underwear, three pairs of pajamas, and four books along with your hippo in the duffel. Do you want me to look in the bookbag too?"

"Yes please."

Rosa zipped the duffel closed the the bookbag open. "I see a bunch of folders and a pack of pencils, pens, erasers, colored pencils, crayons, and a silver case." She pulled out the silver case, which turned out to be an art kit. "Is that everything that you have, dear?"

"Yes. Thank you so much. **I was afraid Tony would burn my stuff.**"

"You don't have to worry about that possibility anymore. You don't have to go back to that house anymore."

"But where will I go? I don't want to go back to the group home."

"Do you know your case worker's name or phone number? I can call them Monday afternoon, and you and I can sit down with him or her and talk about you staying with us."

"Could I?" The hope in Keith's tone broke Rosa's heart.

"You should be able to, because we are foster parents too. Now, is there a flavor of ice cream you like? I will be picking some up so we can have some after the pizza."

"Um, I like vanilla."

"Just vanilla?"

"Well, I do like cookies n cream." Keith sounded unsure of voicing his opinion. Rosa was sure that was a result of being in some bad foster homes.

"What a coincidence! I like cookies n cream too! I should get a gallon of it, since I finally have someone to share it with!"

Keith laughed at Rosa's over reaction. Rosa joined her hopefully soon-to-be son in laughter. She wasn't sure if the laughter was in relief or not, but it truly didn't matter, because Keith was now safe, and that was all that truly mattered to Rosa.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Stress Baking"

Allura was amazed at the level of skill Hunk had in the kitchen. He could cook all kinds of wonderful things and bake the most amazing desserts, even Altean ones (once he got the recipe translated). It had been several phoebes since the initial de-aging incident, but she still saw the Paladins as those small yet trusting children. So, when she came across Hunk in the kitchen during another night of stress baking, she knew she had to do something.

She knew Hunk was in the kitchen before she saw him due to the delectable smells emanating from the kitchen. She entered quietly so she didn't accidentally startle him, especially if he was taking something out of the oven. Fortunately, she saw him stirring something in a bowl. She smiled. "Hello, Hunk."

He whirled around and relaxed at her smile. "Hi, Princess. I'm just about to put this in the fridge. It needs to set in the fridge for several vargas."

"Then that should give you enough time to get some rest. It's the night cycle."

Hunk looked startled. "It is?"

"I already chased Keith out of the training deck and made sure Pidge was in her room."

Hunk chuckled. "You may want to consider locking the training deck for the night cycle just to make sure Keith doesn't double back and train himself to exhaustion."

"Would he really do that?"

"According to Shiro, he would attempt it back at the Garrison."

Allura frowned. It wouldn't do for Keith to train himself to exhaustion, but she also didn't like that her children were essentially tattling on each other. "I will look into that, but I don't think any of you should be telling on each other."

"I didn't say it to be mean to Keith, but all of us are worried about the amount of time he spends in there."

"And the amount of time you spend in here."

Hunk paused before he poured the contents of the bowl into a weirdly shaped container and set it into the fridge. "I just have to clean up, and then I can go to bed."

Allura grasped Hunk's arm. "I will take care of the clean up if you go to bed now."

Hunk smiled. "Thanks, Mum."

Allura watched her son as he left the kitchen before turning to face the amount of dishes. Sometimes, it was tough being mom.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Beach Trip"

Adam had had a good last class and wasn't expecting to walk into a dramatic scene playing out in his living room, but living with Shiro, it should have been expected.

Shiro was grabbing his chest in an exaggerated manner, feigning a heart attack, at whatever Keith had just told him. "How have you not been to the beach before?"

"Um, well, most of my time was-"

"That was a rhetorical question, Keith," Adam interjected.

"Oh."

"Adam! There has been a major wrong committed that we must correct!"

"Takashi, calm down. Take a few deep breaths; in through your nose and out through your mouth. Good. Now, do it again...and again. Okay. Now, what's going on?"

"Keith had never been to the beach!"

Adam turned to the skinny, fourteen-year-old. "Really?" At Keith's nod, he continued, "Well, we'll have to fix that. You two are lucky that I assigned an essay to my cargo pilot classes, so I don't have to supervise any simulator runs this weekend." Adam caught sight of Shiro's hopeful look and added, "But we are not doing an overnight trip."

"Aw. Why not?"

"You know Keith would get overwhelmed if we expose him to too much of one thing, especially something new."

"When are we going?" Keith asked, curiously.

"Are you okay with going now or do you want to wait and go tomorrow?" Adam inquired.

Keith contemplated his decision. "Would it be okay to go now?"

"If that's what you want," Adam answered, ruffling Keith's hair as he passed by to put his laptop on the table.

Keith scowled at the action, but inwardly, he was happy. The good affection had a positive effect on his mood. He always loved the head pats and hair ruffles, which made him different than other kids his age. He always got made fun of when he showed that he liked them, so he had to pretend that he didn't care one way or another.

%%%

Adam knew that Keith actually liked the hair ruffle. It had come up in one of the initial conversations he, Keith, and Takashi had had when the teen was allowed to spend nights in their apartment. Adam was big on boundaries and making sure everyone was comfortable in the apartment. He was the one of the trio who kept a cool and level head, which wasn't always the easiest thing when he had a sharp tongued cadet and a wild, disaster of a lieutenant that were both adrenaline junkies of the highest order. It was a miracle that neither had been majorly hurt on one of their stunts.

%%%

Shiro was excited to get to take Keith on his first trip to the beach. He couldn't wait until Keith got into the water, and he could teach him how to swim. His head was so full of ideas of what he wanted to do on this trip that he forgot to pack anything, so he was grateful that Adam thought of everything and decided to drive all three of them to the beach, which fortunately was only a few hours drive away. Unfortunately, that time was completely filled with Shiro chattering on about what they could do at the beach.

Keith normally didn't like inane chatter, but he couldn't blame Shiro as the man seemed genuinely excited for the trip. He managed to let Shiro's chatter fade into white noise as he watched the scenery go by through the window.

%%%

Adam parked near the entrance to the beach and was pleased that it wasn't crowded. It allowed them to get a good spot on the beach. Adam set up the large beach umbrella and large blanket. He had grabbed a smooth one as he knew Keith had an aversion to the rougher ones, which Adam completely understood.

He had to grab Shiro by the ear to prevent him from going into the water without sunscreen on. "Let's get you two lathered up before we go out into the water."

"Do we have to?"

Adam and Shiro turned to Keith. "Have to what?"

"Go into the water."

"That's half of the-"

"If you want too take this slow, that's fine, but you have to have the sunscreen on," Adam cut Shiro off.

"But, Adam-"

"If I must," Keith replied in a resigned voice.

Adam lathered both Shiro and Keith with the sunscreen, respectively, which allowed Shiro to leave first and wade out into the water. Adam paused. "Are you okay, Keith?"

"Why was Shiro so insistent about me having to go into the water?"

"He considers it half the fun. I tend to agree with him, but I also know that you need to come on your own, in your own time, so you don't get overwhelmed."

"So, it's okay for me to sit here...at least for now?"

"Absolutely. I'm going to go and join Takashi in the water."

Keith watched as Adam waded into waist deep water and splash Shiro, who sputtered and splashed Adam back. They were obviously having fun, going even deeper and generally being idiots. One day, he might join them, but that was something to think about on another beach trip.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Escaping The Empire"

Kolivan breathed a sigh of relief when his fighter was not shot down. Being the Emperor's aide had its perks. The guards had no reason to suspect that Kolivan was acting against their emperor...or that he had stashed the prince on the fighter already. Speaking of the prince, the little kit was now standing beside him, looking out at the vastness of space with extreme fascination.

"Where are we going, Daddy?"

"We are meeting some friends of mine, kit." Kolivan hadn't made the arrangements to meet with others who didn't believe the Empire's propaganda or new direction as it would have been too difficult with his position, so that job fell to his mate.

She had short purple fur with darker purple cheek stripes, and purple irises with the yellow sclera, and her headfur was two toned with violet on the top and magenta on the bottom.

"Will they like me, Daddy?"

"Of course, kit, and my mate will too."

"Is she going to be my Mama?"

"If you'd like her to be, I'm sure she would be honored. I'll tell you a secret though, kit. We're going to have a kit of our own soon, so you will be a big brother."

"So, you're happy to have more kits?"

"Of course! Why wouldn't we?"

"My birth parents didn't want me or any other kits."

Kolivan pulled his kit onto his lap and rumbled to him. "That doesn't matter anymore. You are my kit now, and no one will keep us apart. Kits are precious and should be celebrated. Besides," Kolivan bumped his nose against Lotor's temple in a Galran kiss (one between family members). "No matter how many kits my mate and I have, you have the honor of being our first."

"Love you, Daddy."

"Love you, kit."

%%%

It didn't take long for Kolivan to reach the agreed upon rendezvous point. He landed his ship and disembarked with his kit's hand in his. The pair carefully made their way to a hidden cave, where there was a small gathering of Galra. There was a really tall one with a tail that scared Lotor, so the kit tried to hide behind Kolivan. Kolivan noticed this and scooped up his kit.

"I didn't know you already had a kit, Kolivan,"  the tall, tailed Galra said.

"Not initially, no, but he was being neglected by his birth parents, who don't want him and can't see what a blessing he truly is. Now, where is everyone else, Antok? I want to introduce him to everyone at the same time."

Antok motion to a spot further back in the cave where a pale lavender Galra was examining a violet furred female while a violet furred male was standing nearby. Kolivan carried Lotor over to the group with Antok following them.

"Everything seems to be in order. You are going to have a healthy kit in a few quintants' time if not a movement. I would be able to tell more if I had equipment and a proper med bay," the pale Galra announced.

The female stayed reclined, a clawed hand resting on her large belly. "That's good, Ulaz. Kolivan will be glad to hear that."

"Indeed, I am, Marmora."

Marmora looked over and saw her mate...holding a little kit. "Who is this little darling?"

"Our kit."

"Was he abandoned?"

Kolivan shook his head. "Not really. He was neglected by his birth parents, who don't want him. So, I have taken him in. He was originally the prince of the Empire, Lotor."

The violet furred male hissed. He knew what it was like to be neglected by parents. Ulaz drew Thace into his arms and stroked his headfur. "It's all right, my mate. I'm here."

Marmora looked at the kit and held her arms open. "Come here, kit." Kolivan set his kit near his mate and waited to see what would happen. Marmora looked Lotor over before bumping her nose against his temple. "You have your father's headfur, my kit."

Kolivan smiled as he watched his expectant mate interact with their adopted kit. Step one was complete, and now, the organizing of their resistance group could begin.

Fin

Chapter Text

"A Trio of Kits"

Keith yawned and stretched slightly before curling back against his sister. It amazed him that Acxa was not only his sister but his twin! Would the universe stop yanking him around without giving him a chance to breathe and take it all in? Though, when he did get the time, he tended to overthink things, so maybe that was why.

Regris felt Keith stretch but was glad when the younger kit didn't leave the nest. It was still too early for anyone to leave the nest, let alone a kit. It was still slightly strange to have Acxa in the nest, but the entire pack welcomed her with open arms and rumbles. Her being Krolia's eldest biological kit and Keith's twin helped with the transition. Regris snuggled against Keith's back and draped his tail over his younger siblings with a purr.

Acxa wasn't entirely asleep, but she was happy to be part of a pack. Her time with Lotor and the other generals was nice, but nothing beat sleeping with a pack, especially curled up against someone she was related to. She was glad her mother contacted her once she was no longer under deep cover and told her it was safe to come home. Once she got the message, she gladly did so and was surprised to see Keith standing there with her mother's arms wrapped around him. As soon as she was close enough, Acxa felt her mother bring her close for a nuzzle and a hug. When she was within close quarters with the Paladin without protective suits on, Acxa recognized his scent. She started and looked up at Krolia, who nodded. Acxa purred and nuzzled Keith, who didn't react poorly, so their mother had obviously told him. Acxa purred when she felt Regris's tail drape over her.

Krolia smiled sleepily at her three kits. Even though he wasn't biologically hers, Regris was just as much her kit as Keith and Acxa were. She had been slightly surprised that her pack brothers were letting two kits go on missions. Regris, she could understand as he was almost an adult. However, Keith was a different matter. He was only eighteen. Her pack's reactions when that came to light weren't expected (and were at the same time). It was obvious that Keith hadn't told them his age, which hadn't been an intentional deception on his part since humans were pretty much considered adults at his age. Once everyone was filled in on all the relevant information, Krolia dropped another bombshell on them. Her daughter, Keith's twin, was coming home. In fact, she was due to arrive in a few doboshes. Krolia had been glad that her twins got along, especially since they had been separated for so long.

She was slightly concerned when she only heard two purrs and quickly identified that it was Keith who wasn't purring. She had started to move when she heard him purring. Why had he just now started? She cracked open an eye to see Thace sleepily grooming her kit's hair, a movement that always drew a purr from the youngest kit, no matter who was doing it, when they did it, and whether they were alone or not. With all three kits purring, all of the adults found it easy to fall back asleep. After all, happy kits made for a happy pack.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Keep Talking"

Pidge was rambling. She tended to do that when she was truly in a panic, and she was way beyond panicked at this moment. She and the rest of the Paladins had liberated another planet and had met with their leader along with Princess Allura. The citizens of the planet had heard about Keith's hybrid status and didn't mind that he was part Galra. He had proven himself when he protected their home planet.

During the celebration was when the quakes started. Apparently, the quakes were usually small and barely felt, but that quintant, they were quite severe and caused a bit of a panic. It was during this chaos that Keith and Pidge got caught under some of the roof that had caved in and under part of a wall that had started to crumble. Keith had protected Pidge as best he could and received a concussion for his efforts. The rest of the Paladins (and Allura and the natives) knew that the Red and Green Paladins were trapped and most likely injured, so they were trying to unearth them, but it was slow going since they didn't want to drop more debris on them.

"Heh. This kind of reminds me of this movie Matt was watching. I don't remember the title or much about the movie, but there was a group that got stuck in a very tight cave. At least I think it was a cave."

"I used...to watch...movies with my...Dad."

"Your Dad?"

"Yeah. He was...a firefighter. He...died when I...was seven."

"What kinds of movies would you two watch?"

"All kinds...westerns...fantasy...sci-fi...though he tended...to not watch any...that made fun of...aliens. I...guess I...know why now."

Pidge was still panicked, and she knew she had to keep Keith talking, which wasn't the easiest task. "So, did you watch any movies after your dad died?"

"No. The...foster families...didn't like...me, well...most didn't...so they never...let me."

"Well, then, you missed out on lots of great movies over the years, and you're in luck that my computer has a large file of different movies. When we get out of here and out of the pods, we'll have a movie night."

"That...sounds nice...Pidge, I'm...tired."

"No no no no, Keith. You can't go to sleep yet. You need to keep talking. Please."

"I'll...try."

"Um, tell me a story about you at the Garrison."

"I got...expelled from...the Garrison."

"What? Expelled? Iverson said you had 'discipline issues and flunked out.' What happened?"

"After the...fake news about...the Kerberos mission...Iverson had us...do a rescue...mission to...Kerberos. The loss...was still to raw...for me so I crashed...the simulator. He had...grabbed me and...started yelling...at me and...badmouthing Sh-Shiro. I p-punched...him in th-the eye..so hard th-that he can't s-see...out of it."

Pidge was simultaneously worried about the addition of the stutter to Keith's words and impressed that he had the gall to punch Iverson. "So, that's why he keeps the left eye closed. I had wondered."

Suddenly, there was a shift in the rubble around them and a distinct difference in air quality. Pidge found she could breathe easier. A voice called down to them. "Pidge? Keith? Are you two okay?"

It was Shiro.

"I love being stuck under several hundred pounds of debris, Shiro, but sarcasm aside, Keith's hurt. He saved me from the collapse and got a concussion. I don't know if there are any other injuries though."

"Keith?"

"Sh-Shiro?"

"Yeah. We're trying to get you out."

"I'm t-tired...and cold."

That alarmed Shiro, who told the others. "We have to get to them fast. Keith's not got much time."

Within the next few doboshes, they managed to uncover the two Paladins, who were then rushed to the castle's med bay and put into pods despite Pidge saying she was fine.

Hunk knew how to get her to agree to treatment and said, "If you would get into a pod, I will have peanut butter cookies ready when you get out."

"Deal. Oh, and we're having movie night as well. Keith has missed out on most movies growing up," Pidge told them before she stepped into a pod. Before it took effect, she saw Lance and Hunk give her a thumbs up and Shiro give her a soft smile. It may have been a rough time, but she and Keith made it through, and she learned a bit more about her emo team mate.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Atlas Chat"

Sharpshooter added Captain, Samurai, Hacker, Chef, Princess, Advisor, RebelAltean, MomSpy, BladeLeader, BladeLeader2, Doctor, DadSpy, TechBuddy, TwinSis, MFEHandler, ILived, DataAnalyst, RebelTechie, MIverson, GGDad, GGMom, MFE1, MFE2, MFE3, and MFE4 to the chat Atlas Chat.

Sharpshooter: Hey, people! What's up?

TechBuddy: The stars?

TwinSis: Aren't the stars all around us? So they are not just up.

Sharpshooter: It's just a figure of speech

Samurai: They don't realize that, Lance

Sharpshooter: I realize that now

MomSpy: Not all of us. I understood what you were saying, kit. Most of us are relaxing as it's near the end of the quintant.

Chef: So, Lance, why are there so many people in this chat?

Sharpshooter: What?

Sharpshooter: Oh no. I didn't mean to add this many people

Sharpshooter: Oh well. Welcome, everyone!

GGDad: What is this?

Hacker: Hi, Dad!

Samurai: Maybe everyone should say their name so we don't get confused

Captain: That's a good idea. I'll start. Shiro

Samurai: Keith

Sharpshooter: Lance

Hacker: Pidge

Chef: Hunk

Princess: Allura

Advisor: Coran

RebelAltean: Romelle

MomSpy: Krolia

BladeLeader: Kolivan

BladeLeader2: Antok

Doctor: Ulaz

DadSpy: Thace

TechBuddy: Regris

TwinSis: Acxa

MFEHandler: Veronica

ILived: Adam

DataAnalyst: Curtis

RebelTechie: Matt

MIverson: Commander Iverson

GGDad: Sam Holt

GGMom: Colleen Holt

MFE1: James Griffin

MFE2: Nadia Rizavi

MFE3: Ina Leifsdottir

MFE4: Ryan Kinkade

GGDad: In that case, hello, Katie

Captain: Now that everyone knows who is who. Lance, why do you have all of us in your contact list?

Sharpshooter: Why do you ask?

Hacker: It's the only way you could have added everyone. You just hit 'import contact list' without double checking who was in there

Sharpshooter: That makes sense

Samurai: Not to be mean, but why do you have Iverson in your contact list?

MIverson: Watch your tone, cadet

Samurai: How do you know what tone I'm using?

MIverson: I know, because you are the reason my left eye is even worse than before

Samurai: That is your own fault...sir

MomSpy: Kit, is this the one who...

Samurai: Yes. He is the one who badmouthed Shiro after the fake news was announced

Captain: Keith, what did you do?

Samurai: ...

MomSpy: He gets his strength from me

Captain: Keith

Samurai: Shiro

ILived: Keith

Samurai: Adam

Captain: What did you do?

Sharpshooter: Does anyone have any popcorn? It's not everyday Keith gets grilled by Adashi

Captain: Keith, this isn't over, but I have a quick question for Lance. What or who is Adashi?

Sharpshooter: It's your given name and Adam's name together. It's quicker than saying Shiro and Adam

ILived: That's fair and it's kind of cute

DataAnalyst: But shouldn't it be Cadashi then?

Sharpshooter: Oops, my bad, but in my defense, you weren't grilling Keith about his time at the Garrison

DataAnalyst: I wasn't for a couple of reasons. 1) I wasn't there and 2) Shiro and Adam were doing fine on their own

Captain: Thank you, Curtis. Anyway, Keith, what did you do?

Samurai: Fine. I punched Iverson in his left eye, you know the one he keeps squinted, and apparently messed it up even more than it already was

Captain: I'm surprised you weren't arrested or something

Samurai: I was expelled from the Garrison. Besides, if they hadn't arrested me for kicking Griffin's ass, then I doubt they'd arrest me for this

MFE1: You didn't kick my ass

Samurai: I would have if Iverson hadn't pulled me off of you

MFE1: I doubt it

Chef: I was there, dude. He may have been small but he was scrappy. You were getting your butt kicked. You were lucky to get the hits in that you did

BladeLeader2: Hits? You hit our kit multiple times?!

DadSpy: growls

Samurai: Take it easy, guys. This was a long time ago

BladeLeader: Be that as it may, kit, it's still distressing to hear

Samurai: I know, Kolivan, but at least, I overcame it

Captain: The circumstances of your expulsion weren't known to me, so Adam, where were you when this went down? You were supposed to be keeping an eye on him for me.

ILived: It was a very dark time in my life, but I did renege on my duty to Keith, so, Keith, I'm sorry

Samurai: It's not your fault, Adam. We both kind of pulled away from each other during that time

Sharpshooter: It's getting really heavy. Let's change some names!

MomSpy: I have one that I'd like to do

*MomSpy changed GGMom's name to BAM*

BAM: What does this mean?

MomSpy: Bad Ass Mom

BAM: And the reason is?

MomSpy: It takes a bad ass to ground a Paladin of Voltron, so from one mom to another, I respect you

Samurai: Pidge, Matt, our moms are bonding, should we be worried?

Hacker: Short answer, yes

RebelTechie: Run for the hills

BAM: I can and will ground all of you

DadSpy: I can see the pack getting along with Colleen

BAM: Don't think I won't ground you too!

Samurai: *snickers* I'd pay to see that!

GGDad: Colleen, dear one, the Blades are a lot older than we are

BAM: What?

Doctor: Galra reach the age of maturity at 200 deca-phoebes-old, and Kolivan, Antok, Krolia, Thace, and myself are past this age. Regris, Acxa, and Keith are not

BAM: So, I can still ground those three. Good to know

*Sharpshooter has changed Princess's name to Queen*

Queen: Thank you, Lance

Sharpshooter: You are quite welcome

*Sharpshooter has changed Chef's name to SpaceGordonRamsey*

SpaceGordonRamsey: Lance, why?

Sharpshooter: Cuz it fits. I mean you basically took over a little café in the Space Mall after being taken prisoner and made the most awesome food all while yelling at the owner

Captain: What?

MFEHandler: What?

DataAnalyst: What?

ILived: What?

Queen: What?

Advisor: What?

RebelAltean: What?

RebelTechie: What?

MomSpy: What?

TwinSis: What?

BladeLeader: What?

BladeLeader2: What?

DadSpy: What?

Doctor: What?

TechBuddy: What?

MIverson: What?

GGDad: What?

BAM: What?

MFE3: What

MFE4: What

MFE2: That sounds awesome!

MFE1: @MFE2!

Sharpshooter: Oh, those names won't do

MFE1: Why not?

Sharpshooter: Because they are too close to each other

MFE1: So are two of the Galra!

Samurai: They are the Blades of Marmora, not just some Galra! I will not allow you of all people to insult them!

BladeLeader: Stand down, kit. It is all right.

DadSpy: We're used to it

Samurai: Just because you are used to it doesn't make it okay

Captain: Keith's right

ILived: Can't believe you said that

Captain: But I'm the one who continuously told Keith that when he was at the Garrison

MomSpy: You quoted Shiro?

Samurai: Yeah. I guess there was something that finally stuck

Captain: Patience yields focus

Samurai: Okay, two things

*Sharpshooter has changed MFE1's name to MFELeader*

*Sharpshooter has changed MFE2's name to EnergeticAF*

*Sharpshooter has changed MFE3's name to BlondeOne*

*Sharpshooter has changed MFE4's name to CameraGuy*

*Samurai has changed BloneOne's name to Strategist*

Strategist: Thank you

Samurai: Lance, that was mean

Sharpshooter: I didn't know what to put

MFEHandler: I didn't know you got along with any of the MFEs, Keith

Samurai: Griffin, Ina, and I were in classes together before the Garrison. I get along with Ina, Nadia, and Ryan, just not Griffin

*Samurai has changed MFELeader's name to AHLeader*

AHLeader: ?

Samurai: Ass Hole Leader

Sharpshooter: Lmao

Hacker: Lmao

SpaceGordonRamsey: Lmao

MomSpy: Snort

BladeLeader: Krolia!

MomSpy: During our time in the Quantum Abyss, I saw how he treated my kit, so I found his name change fitting

DataAnalyst: Anyway, didn't Keith and James get along while defending Earth? What happened?

Samurai: I don't know what his excuse is, but I was willing to put the past behind me. I figured that he had matured in the five years we hadn't interacted.

AHLeader: I don't have a reason. His face just makes me want to punch it.

Captain: Why can't you two get along?

Samurai: It's not my fault he opens his mouth and dumbassery falls out.

Sharpshooter: I really need to make a smaller chat

Fin

Chapter Text

"Swear Words"

Keith had been reluctant to spend time with other members of the Blade who weren't members of his pack, but he had found a group of younger Blades that he liked to spend time with. They weren't kits as he was the only kit at headquarters, but they were younger adults. He had, at first, remained quiet and read in their presence. Later on, when he found himself training with one of them in the training hall, her presence was quite pleasant. The next time he showed up nearby, the Blade called to him and invited him to sit. It was then that he learned their names.

Tamit, Vulrn, Morill, and Khaas were pleased to spend time with the kit. They did not have any ulterior motives, but they noticed that he didn't know many Galran words but was interested in learning them. All four Blades had a bad habit of swearing as most younger adult Galra did, but Tamit, the Blade Keith had trained with, was the worst of the bunch. Since they learned that Keith was interested in learning Galran, they figured they would teach him their favorite words.

Keith was lounging in the room he met up with the younger adults, relaxed and softly purring as he was reviewing events from the Paladins. The three males and one female were happy that the kit was there and purring. "Hey, kit."

%%%

"Hey, kit."

Keith looked up and smiled at the four furry Blades. The short, lavender colored furred Tamit sat down next to Keith on his right and briefly glanced down at the data pad in his hands. "What have you got there?"

"Oh, it's an update from the Paladins." Keth looked up at the three still standing males. "Have a seat, guys."

The lilac colored Morill sat on Keith's left with the mauve colored Vulrn, and the orchid colored Khaas sat in front of Keith, who purred a bit louder in response.

"So, kit, we know you're interested in learning Galran, so we thought we'd teach you some."

Keith's eyes lit up. "Really? That'd be great!"

"So, let's see if you can pronounce these, but we'll take it one word at a time." At Keith's nod of understanding, Tamit continued, "Batoaltisjuc."

"Ba...to..." A confused look crossed Keith's face, prompting Tamit to repeat the word.

"Batoaltisjuc."

"Batoal..."

"Batoaltisjuc."

"Batoaltisjuc." When he got the word right, he trilled in triumph.

"Good job, kit."

A growl from the doorway drew their attention. The five occupants of the room looked at who was standing in the doorway.

%%%

"Batoaltisjuc."

Thace sighed. He disliked hearing the newer recruits swearing, but it wasn't his job to stop them. He was going to keep walking until he heard the word get repeated by the very familiar voice of his kit.

"Batoaltisjuc."

The trill following the word confirmed that it was Keith that had uttered the swear. Thace stepped over to the doorway in time to hear Tamit say, "Good job, kit."

Thace couldn't help but growl at the four younger adults and the fact that his kit was being taught Galran swears. Upon hearing him growling, Tamit, Morill, Vulrn, Khaas, and Keith looked up at him.

Keith smiled. "Thace!"

"Kit, come here."

His smiled faded when he heard the tone one of his fathers used. He looked at his friends but ultimately, came over to Thace's side. "What's wrong?"

"Did they tell you what that word meant?"

Keith shook his head. "No. I figured we'd get there once I properly pronounced it."

Thace sighed. He figured as much. "It is a swear word, kit."

Keith's eyes widened in alarm. He knew his pack wouldn't be happy with him learning a swear word. "I didn't know! Please!"

Thace stroked Keith's hair. "I know, kit. As long as you don't repeat that word, you won't be in any trouble." Thace's lips twitched at Keith's exhale. He lifted his eyes to the four young adults still in the room. "You four, however, are in trouble for teaching him a swear word. I never cared for your foul mouths but couldn't really do anything about it. Now, I can. You four will spend an entire quintant in the training hall with Antok." Thace paused here, letting the four moan and groan. "Or you could just tell Kolivan and Antok that you taught their kit a swear word. Your choice."

The four younger Blades knew they had a higher chance of surviving a full quintant of training than if they admitted their action to the two highest ranking Blades, especially since Kolivan and Antok were very protective of their kit. Khaas was the first to find his voice. "We'll take the training, sir."

"I thought so. Don't let anyone find you teaching Keith anymore swear words or the rest of my pack will find out. Now, get out."

The four Blades slunk into the corridor and then ran in the opposite direction that Thace and Keith would be headed in. Thace had to fight the urge to chuckle and wrapped an arm around Keith's shoulders. He led his kit back to the nest room. He laid down in the nest with Keith against his chest.

"Thace, am I truly not in any trouble?"

"No, kit. Like I said, as long as you don't use that word, you won't be in any trouble." Thace dipped his head down and started grooming Keith's hair.

Silence reigned in the nest for several doboshes until Keith asked a question that Thace had hoped he wouldn't.

"What did that word mean anyway?"

Fin

Chapter Text

"The Heir's Protection"

Lance was afraid. One minute he was being jumped by a gang intent on assaulting him and the next he was saved by none other than the Heir to the city's mafia.Where he was being taken, he didn't know nor was he brave enough to ask. He did note that Keith hadn't released his hold on Lance's hand.

%%%

Keith was slightly nervous about bringing Lance to the headquarters of The Blades. Even though he would have preferred to have been silent during the trip, he did need to ask one very important question.

"I never got your name."

"Lance. Lance McClain."

"Lance. I like it. We're going to meet The Blades." Noting Lance's fear, Keith smiled and squeezed his hand. "Don't worry. You're under my protection."

Lance met Keith's smile with one of his own, albeit weaker. Despite Keith's reassurances, Lance was still nervous. He didn't think there was going to be anything that was going to quell his nerves.

%%%

Even though he knew Keith could take care of himself, the leader of The Blades, Kolivan, was worried about his grandson. After he lost his daughter in a turf war, he was protective, maybe a little overprotective of his heir.

So, when Keith hadn't come back from his little outing, Kolivan became worried. Keith had been going out on these little outings almost everyday, but normally, he didn't stay out too late. A laptop that was sitting on his desk blinked, alerting him to an incoming message. 

"Sir, Keith has returned...with a guest."

%%%

Keith led Lance into a high security building that could only be accessed by someone who was in the Blades. The high tech building was awe inspiring and kept Lance silent.

"Keith!"

A group of four men approached them, and one of them drew Keith into a hug. Keith still had a hold on Lance's hand throughout the entire interaction.

%%%

Thace, Ulaz, Antok, and Kolivan met Keith as soon as he arrived with his guest. Ulaz, the doctor, checked Keith over for injuries and was pleased that he wasn't injured. He immediately turned to Keith's visitor, and his gaze lingered on their still conjoined hands.

"Keith, do you want to introduce your guest?"

"And explain why he's here," Antok added.

Keith tugged Lance closer. "This is Lance. I saw him at the bazaar three weeks ago and have been watching him ever since. He was in trouble today, and I saved him, declaring him under my protection."

"Does he understand what that means?" Antok asked.

"He can understand and speak for himself," Keith retorted, squeezing Lance's hand again.

"My apologies, kit. We've been worried about you." Antok buried his face in Keith's messy hair.

"I know, Antok. I'm not mad. I just want to make sure he's respected as he deserves."

"We understand, kit," Kolivan replied. "Come here, child."

Keith tugged Lance to stand before his grandfather but kept holding his hand. Kolivan looked at the brunette and could tell that his grandson was, at least, infatuated with him. He had no problem letting him come under the protection of The Blades. However, his fear should be allayed. 

"Do not fear, Lance was it? We protect our own, and if Keith says you're under his protection, then you are safe, especially here."

"B-but you're the mafia."

Thace stepped closer and reached out to place a hand on Lance's hair. Lance flinched and squeezed his eyes shut, sure he was going to be struck for speaking out. Thace gently placed his hand on top of Lance's hair with such gentleness that the brunette almost couldn't believe it. He slowly looked up and was surprised at the soft smile on the mobster's face.

"You're safe here, and we'll ensure that everyone who encounters you will know it, if you allow it."

"How will people know?"

"Everyone in The Blades have a tattoo of our symbol," Ulaz mentioned, Keith pulling up his sleeve to show a purple symbol on his left bicep. "As someone under our protection, you can have a temporary tattoo of a shield that has our symbol on it."

"If it's temporary, then it'll need to be renewed every so often."

"Then, you'll have to come back and see us," Kolivan mentioned.

Lance's mind was a whirlwind of confusion. He had always been told that the mafia was hard and cold, but here these four were being concerned about Keith and wanting to see Lance more. Another squeeze to his hand cleared his head enough to give his permission to get the symbol of protection placed on his skin. He may have been scared, but as long as Keith was with him, he knew that there was no need for him to be scared.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Learning To Read"

The mid quintant meal was over, and the two kits of the leaders' pack were on their way back to their nest to rest. Keith face planted in the pile of blankets kept in the nest for that purpose. Regris giggled at his pack brother's actions as he curled up in his spot, pulling a book out from under a nearby pillow. He began reading silently and until Keith chirped, drawing his attention.

"What are you doing?"

"Reading."

"Is it okay for you to read?"

"Ulaz says so."

"Can I do that?"

"You have to learn first. I bet Thace would be willing to teach you."

Keith perked up at the mention of his Daddy. He loved all four of his Dads equally, but he was close to Thace as the violet furred Blade was able to spend a lot of his time with him (and Regris).

"Teach who what?" Thace asked as he entered the nest room.

"Daddy! I wanna learn to read!"

"Very well, kit. We'll start after you take a nap." Thace couldn't help but smile. Keith's enthusiasm was infectious.

"Okay!" Keith snuggled into the pile of blankets with a soft, contented purr. As Keith took his nap, Thace knew he was going to have to gather supplies to teach the little kit how to read.

%%%

Keith learned how to read not only English but Galran as well. In fact, he learned to read Galran first which came in handy when he was on a mission with the Paladins.

The team needed to download one specific file and only had time to download that one file as the ship was rigged to explode. Shiro, Lance, and Hunk searched the ship for any survivors, while Pidge was supposed to download the file and Keith watched her back.

Pidge was irritated. There was no way she would be able to locate which file she needed before the ship exploded. She let out a growl worthy of a Galra, drawing Keith's attention. "You all right there, Pidge?"

"No. I can't figure out which file we need!"

Keith came over to her side and swiftly called up the directory. "Let me see what I can do."

"It's written in Galran. Man, I wish I learned how to read it. This would have gone so much faster!"

"Here it is. You need this file." Keith pointed out the file on the screen.

Pidge opened the file, and it was the file she needed! She set it to download and asked, "How did you know that?"

Keith shrugged his shoulders as he resumed watching her back. "I learned how to read Galran when I was four. My pack taught me."

"I would love to be able to read that." A beeping drew their attention. "Download complete. Let's get out of here!"

The two Paladins made their way back to their lions, meeting up with the rest of their team along the way.

Back at the castle, Pidge was sitting in the lounge, her laptop sitting beside her as it ran another program designed to locate Matt or Sam Holt. Keith peeked into the room and smiled as he saw that she was alone. He jogged over and sat down on Pidge's other side, settling the books he was carrying on his lap.

"Hi, Pidge."

"Hey, Keith. What'cha got there?"

"I remember you said that you wanted to learn to read Galran. I figured I could help. I used these same workbooks and simple books when I started. I figured they would be a good place to start."

%%%

Allura and Coran were looking for Pidge to congratulate her on locating some vital information that could use in the fight against the Empire. They weren't expecting to see her in the lounge with Keith reading a common children's book written in Galran. They were surprised to see how patient Keith was with her, even as she mispronounced a few of the words (one of which ended up coming out as a swear word causing Keith to chuckle).

Unbeknownst to the Alteans and Pidge, Keith was using the techniques Thace (and the rest of the pack, to a lesser extent) used to teach Keith when he was a tiny kit. He had asked the Blades to send over the books he used, and when they asked why, he told them Pidge wanted to learn. They were more than glad to send over the materials and also made sure to tell their kit they were proud of him for helping a slightly younger kit expand their knowledge.

Fin

Chapter Text

"De-Aged Acxa"

Keith couldn't believe what his twin did for him. The two of them had been on a mission together, categorizing some unlabeled cargo in an abandoned cruiser, when one of the crates fell to the floor near Keith and smashed, releasing some kind of unknown gas. Fearing for her twin's health, Acxa pushed Keith out of the way, the gas affecting her instead.

Keith managed to drag Acxa back to their pod without the gas affecting him. He settled her into the nest that was kept in the back, and he piloted the pod away from the ship. He set the autopilot to take them back to headquarters and turned around to check on his sister's condition. To his surprise, a small kit was laying in the nest, swamped in his sister's Blade armor. He trailed his right index and middle fingers gently across her forehead and down one cheek, a purr rising in response. Keith knew the best thing would be to get her back to their pack, especially their mom.

The trip to headquarters didn't take too long, fortunately, and it was also fortunate that Acxa did not wake on the trip there. Keith contacted his pack and asked his mom to come aboard to help.

The tick Krolia saw Keith, she drew him into her arms, stroking his hair. "What happened, kit?"

"I'm all right, Mama, but Acxa..." Keith gestured in his twin's direction, the little kit finally stirring, slowly waking up.

Krolia immediately scooped her up and rumbled to her. Recognizing her mother's sound and scent was nearby caused Acxa to wake up fully. She looked around the pod, whimpering, the sound calling for her twin. Keith stepped closer and purred, hoping to soothe her. The tick Acxa saw Keith, she stopped whimpering.

She looked from Keith to their mom. "What happened?"

"The gas you saved me from de-aged you," Keith replied.

"I think you better explain it in greater detail to all of us back in the nest, kit," Krolia said, gently nuzzling Keith to let him know that he wasn't in trouble.

When Krolia, Keith, and Acxa exited the pod, the rest of their pack surrounded them, concern for the now youngest kit clear in their actions. They nosed her headfur and gave gentle nuzzles as if to prove she was okay. Keith received the same treatment as well, and as he returned the nuzzles, he knew it was going to be a long quintant.

Fin

Chapter Text

"BoM Sleepover"

"A gathering?" Keith was slightly confused for a moment before he realized what the Blade was talking about. "You mean a sleepover?"

"Is that what humans call it?" the Blade asked.

"Yes."

"So, would you like to come, kit?"

"Sure." Keith smiled. He was reminded of the time he spent the night at Shiro's and Adam's apartment before the Kerberos Mission. "When is it?"

"Now. Follow me, kit."

Keith followed the young adult Blade to a larger room filled with blankets, pillows, and other young adult Blades. Keith settled near a large group of Blades. They were happy to see the organization's kit join them. It was going to be a good night.

%%%

Keith was not having a good night. He was tired and wanted to go to sleep but couldn't fall asleep and was frustrated. He couldn't help but whimper. The whimpering drew the attention of one of the Blades, Va'nol, a tailed Blade with long very pale lavender fur that was almost white. He turned towards Keith. "What's wrong, kit?"

Keith paused before whimpering again. "I...can't fall asleep."

Va'nol almost face palmed. Of course the kit couldn't sleep. He needed his pack to sleep since he was such a young kit. It was something that some of the Blades forgot, especially the ones who had been on missions with him or had trained with him. "Have you ever fallen asleep without your pack nearby?"

Keith paused and thought. He was about to say that he did at the castle but realized that the Paladins were a pack (and had taken to all falling asleep in a nest he built in the lounge). Keith looked down, not able to look the other Blade in the face. He whimpered again. "No. Sorry."

Va'nol used his tail to gently lift Keith's head. "No, kit. You have no reason to be sorry. I'll take you back to your pack's nest room." He escorted Keith out of the room started leading him down the corridor. "It was nice to spend time with you outside of missions, Keith."

"I liked it too. Could we do it again?"

"It would be a pleasure, kit. Ah, here's your nest room." Va'nol knocked on the door.

%%%

The four highest ranking Blades were settling in for an unusual night as their kit was at headquarters but not sleeping with them for the night. As much as they were pleased that he was spending time with other Blades, they missed having him in the nest. So, when there was a knock on their door, they were confused.

Thace got up and answered the door. Of all the scenarios he pictured, a sad Keith being escorted by another Blade was not one of them. "Kit? What happened?"

Keith whimpered and tucked himself under Thace's chin. He stroked Keith's hair and looked at Va'nol, who answered the question for Keith. "He's not used to sleeping away from his pack, so I accompanied him here." He caressed one of Keith's cheeks, the one that wasn't buried. "I'll see you later, kit. Get some sleep."

Va'nol left the leaders' nest room, and Thace gently led Keith into their room and further into their nest. Keith remained tucked under Thace's chin, even as the other three members of his pack came closer. Antok's tail wrapped itself around Keith's waist, Kolivan rubbed up and down Keith's back, and Ulaz started grooming his hair. Even though he was being doted upon, Keith still let out a small whimper.

The three other pack members had heard the conversation at the door, so they knew the situation. Kolivan was the one to speak. "You are all right, kit. No one is upset at you. It is natural for a kit as young as you are to only get sleep with their pack or in your case, packs."

Thace softly rumbled to the kit ensconced on his lap. "You're okay, kit. Just get some sleep. Everyone will be here when you wake up."

Keith let his eyes slide closed and snuggled into Thace a bit more, getting more comfortable. His whimpers had stopped when Kolivan had assured him that no one was angry at him. He found himself drifting off to sleep relatively quickly.

The Blades were not surprised to hear Keith purr after he closed his eyes. They knew he was tired but was reluctant to sleep until he was sure no one was upset with or at him. No one in the entire organization could truly be angry at the kit for following his instincts.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Altercation"

Adam sighed as he set his messenger bag on the table. He almost collapsed into the nearest chair, his head reclined back and his eyes closed.

"I was going to ask how the day went, but your posture says that it didn't go well."

Adam lifted his head and looked at his fiancée, who was standing there, holding a steaming mug of tea. Adam reached for the mug. Shiro smirked and held the mug just out of reach.

"Takashi, I swear if you don't give me that mug, I will guarantee that you will sleep on the couch."

"Ouch," Shiro commented as he handed the mug over to Adam.

Adam took a long sip with his eyes closed. He opened his eyes and looked Shiro dead in the eyes. "This cup of tea is now my fiancée."

Shiro gasped dramatically but knew that Adam didn't mean it. He sat down near Adam and waited for Adam to explain what happened.

Adam took a deep breath and opened his mouth to start when he saw Keith trying to sneak upstairs. "Don't try to slip by, Keith. This was partially your fault."

Keith froze on the stairs before he slunk over, making a soft, sad whimpering sound. He perched on the couch, trying to make himself smaller.

"What happened?" Shiro asked.

"Do you want to tell him or shall I?" Adam offered, but his tone told Keith that he better start talking.

Keith stopped whimpering and glared at the brunette man. "I didn't start it!"

"But you escalated it!"

"What did he escalate?"

"I can't help that Griffin gets under my skin!"

"He would stop if you stopped reacting!"

"What did Griffin say?"

"He knows too much about me that he knows what to say!"

"Most bullies make it a point to learn what will get their target to react."

"Am I ever going to find out what happened?"

"Right. Sorry, Takashi. My last class, which is the one Keith's in, had simulators today. They didn't get to choose their partners, so Keith and Griffin ended up on the same team."

Shiro winced. "That wasn't going to end well."

"I know, Takashi, but you know as well as I do that we all have to work with people that we don't get along with. I thought they would at least not antagonize each other during the simulator."

"They didn't?"

"They didn't get that far."

"Oh?" Shiro turned to Keith. "Keith, what happened?"

Keith sighed. "The group was Griffin, Ina, and me. We were waiting our turn and were trying to decide which roles we would be in. Ina immediately said she would take communications, so that left pilot and engineer for me and Griffin."

"Did you fight over the pilot role?"

"If you let him finish, you would know, Takashi."

"Right. Sorry, Keith."

"It's all right, Shiro. I actually offered to take the engineering role, but Griffin wouldn't let me make any decisions. He tried to order us around, having me on communications and Ina on engineering. I told him that he was going to be the pilot in any case, so what did it matter who did what. He...said that my mom left because I-" Keith couldn't finish, tears building in his eyes at remembering the insult.

Shiro's eyes move from Keith to Adam, back to Keith, and finally resting on the brunette teacher. "What did he say?"

"Can I tell him, Keith?"

Keith nodded but didn't say anything.

Adam sighed. "He said that Keith's mom left because he was so stubborn that she couldn't stand him."

Shiro tensed. He knew that that was the very reason several of Keith's foster families had returned him, so to insinuate that his mother was just like those families was a low blow. Shiro couldn't help but open his arms to Keith. "Hey, bud. Do you want a hug?"

Keith lifted his head. "Even after I punched Griffin for his comment?"

"Even then."

Keith was surprised but still went over to Shiro for the hug. The raven haired teen couldn't help but purr at the affection. It had been a rough afternoon, and all he wanted was a hug, but no one had even offered.

Shiro and Adam heard the purr and were a little surprised by it, even though they had heard it before. They would be continuing the conversation a little later but after Keith calmed down. For now, they let Keith enjoy his much needed hug.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Office Naps"

Sven walked into the command area, looking around. Isamu caught his eye. "Need something, buddy?"

"Have you seen Aki lately?"

"Lost track of him already?" Isamu joked.

"Yes. No. I mean, I'm not his keeper."

"Relax. He's still on the base. Maybe he's hanging out with..." Isamu trailed off, realizing what he was saying. "Yeah. That's not happening, but maybe one of the Paladins knows where he is."

"Maybe." Sven left the command area and walked down the hallway.

He ran into Lance not much later. "Hey, Sven. What's up?"

"Not much, just trying to find Aki. You haven't seen him, have you?"

"No, but on a related topic, have you seen Keith?"

"You can't find Keith either?"

"No." The idea hit Lance and Sven at the same time. "Maybe they're together?"

"Maybe."

"Where have you checked?"

"I checked his room and the command area. I was about to check his office when I ran into you."

"Let's go!" Lance looped an arm with one of Sven's, and the two made their way to Akira's office. Before they opened the door, Lance paused. "I hear something."

"What is it?"

Lance leaned against the door. "I think it's Keith purring. Keith wouldn't be in there alone. Akira must be inside too."

Sven gently and quietly eased the door open, and he and Lance peered inside. Keith was laying on his back on the couch, and Akira was laying on him. Both were asleep, and Keith was purring. Akira's hair was down, and Keith's arms were wrapped around Akira as if to make sure he didn't roll off.

Sven pulled a blanket out and laid it over Akira and, consequently, Keith. He then tugged Lance out the door and silently closed the door behind them.

"So they were actually napping," Lance commented.

"And we will let them sleep."

"They definitely need it."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Multi-Reality Chat"

KHolt added TShirogane, KKogane, LMcClain, HGarrett, and PAllura to the chat Voltron Force.

KHolt: What's up, bitches?

TShirogane: Pidge! Language!

KHolt: English, bitch

(DotU) KKogane: Pidge?

KHolt: What?

(DotU) KKogane: You're not Pidge

KHolt: Yeah, I am

(DotU) KKogane: Pidge's last name isn't Holt. It's Gunderson.

KHolt: That was a pseudonym when I was posing as a male cadet

(DotU) KKogane: But the Pidge of my team is a boy

TShirogane: Your team?

KHolt: Ooo! You are from a different reality! You'll need to add your Pidge

(DotU) KKogane: O-kay

*KKogane has added PGunderson*

(DotU) PGunderson: What's up, guys?

(VF) PGunderson: What's this? I was working on the lions, and this popped up

TShirogane: Another Pidge? How many of you are there?

KHolt: I have an idea. @Everyone 

(VLD) KKogane: Please don't do that again, Pidge

(VLD) HGarrett: Same. I was about to take a tray of cookies out of the oven

KHolt: Are they real cookies?

(VLD) HGarrett: That was one time! I learned my lesson already. No need to keep bringing it up

(VLD) LMcClain: Hey, look! Keith's here and not training!

(VLD) KKogane: Shut up, Lance

TShirogane: Keith, be nice

(VLD) PAllura: Paladins, please

(VLD) LMcClain: I wasn't trying to be mean! I'm happy he's here!

(DotU) PAllura: Are all Lances sassy?

(VF) LMcClain: I'm not sassy

(VF) KKogane: You really are

(VF) PAllura: Both of you are, my husbands

(DotU) HGarrett: Husbands? As in more than one?

(VF) HGarrett: Yup. She married both of them

TShirogane: I think introductions are a good idea and my team will start. I am Takashi Shirogane, but call me Shiro. I am the Black Lion's Paladin and am the leader of my team.

(VLD) KKogane: I'm Keith Kogane, the Red Paladin.

TShirogane: And second in command

(VLD) KKogane: Doesn't matter. Nothing's going to happen to you

(VLD) LMcClain: Lance McClain, resident Sharpshooter and Blue Paladin. I'm also Keith's boyfriend

KHolt: Katie Holt, but I go by Pidge. I'm the Green Paladin and the hacker of the group

(VLD) HGarrett: I'm Hunk Garrett, the Yellow Lion's Paladin. 

(VLD) LMcClain: And the resident cook. Hunk's food is amazing!

(VLD) PAllura: I am Princess Allura of Planet Altea

(DotU) KKogane: My team will go next

(DotU) KKogane: I'm Commander Keith Kogane of the Galaxy Garrison and Voltron Force, the pilot of the Black Lion, and... fiancée to Princess Allura of Planet Arus.

(DotU) LMcClain: I'm Lance McClain, the Red Lion pilot, and resident lady's man

(DotU) PGunderson: I'm Pidge Gunderson, Green Lion pilot

(DotU) HGarrett: And the youngest pilot of all of us. I'm Hunk Garrett by the way, pilot of the Yellow Lion

(DotU) PAllura: I am Princess Allura of Planet Arus, Blue Lion pilot, and engaged to Keith

(VF) KKogane: I am also Commander Keith Kogane, pilot of the Black Lion, and first husband to Queen Allura

(VF) LMcClain: I am Lance McClain, pilot of the Red Lion, and second husband of Queen Allura

(VF) PGunderson: I'm Pidge Gunderson, pilot of the Green Lion

(VF) HGarrett: And my little buddy. I'm Hunk Garrett, Yellow Lion pilot

(VF) PAllura: I'm Queen Allura of Arus, Blue Lion pilot, and wife to Keith and Lance

(VLD) LMcClain: All of our names are too confusing. We should change our screen names 

(DotU) KKogane: Sounds like a good idea. I could go by 'Commander'

(VF) KKogane: That's me too

(DotU) KKogane: Fine. Maybe BlackLion

(VF) KKogane: Still me again, Jackass

TShirogane: Technically me too

(DotU) LMcClain: What about CoffeeAddict?

(DotU) KKogane: Sure

*KKogane has changed their name to CoffeeAddict*

CoffeeAddict: I could use a cup

(VF) KKogane: You still drink coffee?

CoffeeAddict: You don't?

(VF) KKogane: Nope. That shit stopped working for me

(VF) LMcClain: Because he drank it too much

*PAllura has changed KKogane's name to PrinceConsort1*

*PAllura has changed LMcClain's name to PrinceConsort2*

PrinceConsort1: Very funny, Allura

PrinceConsort2: Why am I #2?

PrinceConsort1: Save the best for last

PrinceConsort2: ...

PrinceConsort2: You suave mofo

*PrinceConsort1 has changed PAllura's name to Queen*

PrinceConsort1: There we go

Queen: Thank you, Keith

*LMcClain has changed their name to Sharpshooter*

*Sharpshooter has changed KKogane's name to KeithyCat*

KeithyCat: Seriously, Lance?

Sharpshooter: I mean, you are part Galra, especially the ears

CoffeeAddict: What?

(DotU) LMcClain: What?

(DotU) PGunderson: What?

(DotU) HGarrett: What?

(DotU) PAllura: What?

PrinceConsort1: What?

PrinceConsort2: What?

Queen: What?

(VF) PGunderson: What?

(VF) HGarrett: What?

KeithyCat: It turns out that I am part Galra, on my mother's side. Anyone got a problem with that?

PrinceConsort1: None from my team. I am not full human either. Apparently, my family is-was from Arus. My father was considered nobility

CoffeeAddict: Who are the Galra? I haven't heard of them before

(VLD) PAllura: They were allies before the Great War. Now, the Galra Empire is the enemy but not all Galra are part of the Empire

KeithyCat: Specifically, a group called The Blade of Mamora, which is an organization that works in secret to take down the Empire. They have taken me under their tutelage

Sharpshooter: Call it what it is, Keith. They basically adopted you. It's why I call them DoM - Dads of Marmora

KeithyCat: You are lucky you're cute

Sharpshooter: Bitch, I'm adorable

TShirogane: Lance, language

*Sharpshooter has changed TShirogane's name  to SpaceDad*

SpaceDad: Lance

KeithyCat: You deserved that, Shiro

*KHolt has changed their name to Hacker*

Hacker: Much better

Sharpshooter: If we are doing this

*Sharpshooter has changed HGarrett's name to SpaceGordonRamsey*

SpaceGordonRamsey: Lance, why?

Sharpshooter: Cuz it fits. I mean, you basically took over a little café in the Space Mall after being taken prisoner and made the most awesome food all while yelling at the owner

CoffeeAddict: What?

(DotU) LMcClain: What?

(DotU) PGunderson: What?

(DotU) HGarrett: What?

(DotU) PAllura: What?

PrinceConsort1: What?

PrinceConsort2: What?

Queen: What?

(VF) PGunderson: What?

(VF) HGarrett: What?

(VLD) PAllura: When I learned of this situation, I made the decision that they were no longer allowed to go to the mall unsupervised

*Hacker has changed PAllura's name to SpaceMom*

Sharpshooter: Lmao. Fitting

SpaceMom: sigh

*LMcClain has changed their name to LadyKiller*

SpaceDad: You...kill ladies?

LadyKiller: Yea I do ;)

CoffeeAddict: Lance no

PrinceConsort1: I won't let you near my wife!

PrinceConsort2: That makes two of us!

Sharpshooter: As much as I want to protect Pidge, I'd be more worried about what she (and Allura) would do to you as they can take care of themselves

KeithyCat: Both ladies have kicked our asses and will again

LadyKiller: I didn't mean literally

CoffeeAddict: Yeah. That wasn't a good joke, Lance

LadyKiller: I noticed, but I'm not changing my name

(DotU) PAllura: We don't expect you to

*CoffeeAddict has changed PAllura's name to Princess*

CoffeeAddict: Since the other Allura's got their names changed, you deserved one as well

Princess: Thank you, my love

LadyKiller: I can tell you're blushing, Keith

CoffeeAddict: Shut up, Lance

LadyKiller: I know you don't mean that. You'd miss me talking

CoffeeAddict: sigh

CoffeeAddict: ...

CoffeeAddict: You're right

LadyKiller: Anyway...

*LadyKiller has changed PGunderson's name to Pidgey*

Pidgey: I like it!

(VF) PGunderson: I do as well

*PGunderson has changed their name to Pidgeon*

(VF) HGarrett: Hey, that's what I call you!

Pidgeon: I thought it was a good idea

(VF) HGarrett: Of course it is

*Pidgeon has changed HGarrett's name to GristleDefense*

GristleDefense: Aw, thanks, little buddy. That always cheers me up

Pidgeon: Gristle defense. Gristle defense

GristleDefense: Gristle defense. Gristle defense

PrinceConsort2: I don't know what that is about

LadyKiller: So, everyone has had a name change, except for our Hunk

(DotU) HGarrett: True

*HGarrett has changed their name to Jack*

Pidgey: Why is that your name?

Jack: Becase I am a Jack of All Trades

LadyKiller: That's a stupid name, pal

Jack: Then, what would you have picked?

*LadyKiller has changed Jack's name to Tsuyoshi*

Tsuyoshi: That's not much better

Sharpshooter: Now, that we all have our names changed, what do we do?

SpaceDad: I have no idea

Fin

Chapter Text

"Naptime"

The beginning of the day cycle began normal enough with each member of the pack going off to do their own thing. Kolivan went to his office to begin scheduling missions and going over reports, Ulaz went to the med bay to begin doing inventory, Antok was in Training Hall A overseeing the morning training session that was comprised of the more senior members, and Thace went to the communications room in order to monitor communications and to watch over Regris, who has joined him in order to try his hand at decoding a message.

Keith normally would have been trying to train, but he wasn't that quintant. He was sitting in Ulaz's office, practicing reading Galran. He wasn't feeling 100%, so he decided to spend the time between the morning meal and the mid-quintant meal quietly.

Ulaz was slightly concerned about the kit as he usually didn't spend his time quietly. He seemed more tired, but he had been sleeping peacefully during the previous night cycle, so why would he be tired? He decided to keep an eye on the kit in the meantime.

%%%

The time before the mid-quintant meal passed fairly quickly in Keith's opinion, but he had been in danger of nodding off while trying to learn. He wasn't sure how much he actually retained, but he knew that if he had turned off the data pad he was using that he would have fallen asleep. He had made the decision to power through until after he ate as it would be time for a period of rest for himself and Regris. If the other kit wasn't loud, Keith would be able to take a nap.

When it came time for the meal, Ulaz entered his office and observed his youngest kit staring at his data pad screen, but it didn't seem like he was actually seeing whatever was there. Ulaz cleared his throat, but Keith didn't respond. Ulaz made a questioning noise, which did draw Keith's attention. He chirped in response, turning off his data pad at the same time.

He stood up and stretched, stashing the data pad in one of his pouches (screen facing his body). He took a step forward, and it looked like he was about to fall, so Ulaz rushed over and used an arm to steady his kit. "Easy, kit."

"Sorry, Ulaz. I guess I was sitting too long."

"Hmm. Possibly, but I think you're tired. However, you need to eat first."

"I know. Can I have some vegis?"

"Just a little, kit, but you have to eat everything else first."

"Fine." Keith pouted slightly as the pair entered the mess hall, a fact that was noticed by the rest of the pack. Ulaz and Keith made their plates and joined the rest of their pack, who had arrived before them, at their usual table. It was round so, it gave everyone the opportunity to be sitting between pack members. Kolivan and Antok sat side by side as did Thace and Ulaz (the two pairs were mates) and Regris and Keith sat between the two pairs. At this meal, Regris had taken the seat between Antok and Thace, leaving the space between Ulaz and Kolivan for Keith.

When Keith sat down, Kolivan ran his claws through his youngest kit's hair. He bent down and bumped his nose against Keith's temple in a Galran kiss (between pack members) to which Keith responded with a soft purr. He was tired, but he wasn't going to refuse the affection so openly given by his pack. "Hello, Keith."

"Hey, Kolivan."

"You seem tired, kit."

"I am a bit, so I was going to take a nap once I finish eating." Keith felt something brush against his leg and jumped slightly before realizing what he felt. It was Regris's tail curling around his ankle. He smiled. "Hi, Regris."

"Hi, Keith." Regris looked at Ulaz. "How come Keith has vegetables?"

"Being half human, he needs more vegetables than most species, especially Galra."

"But I..."

The rest of the conversation washed over Keith as he struggled to finish his meal. He was just so tired, but he didn't know why.

%%%

Kolivan watched his youngest kit as he ate. He could see that he was tired, so tired that the leader of the Blades wasn't sure if he could make it back to the nest room without help. He noticed that Keith was done eating and when he laid against him, softly purring. Kolivan reached up and carded his claws through Keith's hair as he finished his food.

He did and pulled Keith fully onto his lap, Regris's tail uncurling. Keith snuggled against Kolivan's chest, his eyes drifting closed. "I will take the kit back to the nest for a nap. 'Tok, I will join you in Training Hall A when I am able."

"Are you sure you will be able to leave the kit's side, 'Van?"

"Yes, especially since he had mentioned that he was going to take a nap after the meal."

Kolivan stood up and carried the dozing Keith to the nest room. He laid him down in the nest, but instead of immediately leaving, he sat down next to the kit. He couldn't believe how he first met the kit, how he didn't believe that he wasn't a Galran kit, and how he forced him through the Trials. However, he couldn't think of a better set of circumstances, because he could've just as easily never met him, which was something he didn't want to even think about.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Unconscious"

Keith didn't know why every planet they liberated held a party in their honor. He would prefer just to go back to the castle after the fight and relax in private, but he was never that lucky. At least Allura made sure that the inhabitants were okay with his heritage. He was pleasantly surprised that they knew of it and had no issues, especially since he (and Red Lion) diverted a missile that was aimed at the orphanage.

Shiro had tried to get out of going to the party by saying that the Paladins didn't have any appropriate clothing for such an important occasion and they didn't want to show up in their armor and potentially offend them, but the royal family wouldn't hear of it and were more than happy to provide traditional clothing for the Paladins and Princess.

This was what led Keith to be standing against a wall dressed in what could barely be called clothes. His shoulders were bare, which drew attention to his scar from the Trials of Marmora, and the almost sheer fabric wrapped around his torso, allowing a sliver of skin to show here and there until his waist. The fabric from his waist to his upper thighs was opaque and tight fitting. The rest of the pants were billowy and sheer. His ensemble was red and purple. The rest of the male Paladins were dressed in a similar manner, while Pidge and Allura were dressed in two piece dresses. It reminded Keith of a tube top and a short skirt.

However, what made Keith different than everyone except for Allura was that his hair was styled and pinned up. Normally, he wouldn't have let anyone touch his hair, but the person doing his hair was gentle, to the point of almost making Keith purr.

Keith watched as the other Paladins mingled with the inhabitants of the planet before he started making his way to a balcony that was deserted. Once he was leaning against the railing with his back to the party, Keith felt like he could breathe. There were way too many people in the ballroom.

"You're not hiding, are you?"

Keith smiled at Shiro, who had come up beside him. "Naw. I just needed some air."

"Shiro!" Allura called out, drawing Keith's and Shiro's attention. "Shiro, the King wants to meet with the leader of the Paladins."

Shiro looked over at Keith who gave him a smile. "Go ahead, Shiro. I'm okay."

"Don't stay out here too long, ototo."

"I won't, ni-san."

Shiro offered his arm to Allura, who graciously accepted his offer of escort. Keith smiled as he watched his adoptive brother leave with the princess, when suddenly a hand was placed over his mouth and another restraining his hands behind his back. His eyes darted over, and he saw that there were three individuals that he didn't know. He couldn't get free, so he did what he could. He bit down hard and could taste blood on his tongue. The hand was removed from his mouth and he let out a chirp before he was hit across the back of his head, and his vision went black.

%%%

Shiro heard a scuffle behind him and snuck a peek at the balcony. At first, he didn't see Keith, but then he entered his view and appeared to be looking out at the view of the city beyond the balcony. The leader only had a view of his brother's back, but something seemed off. He surreptitiously slipped out his data pad.

As Voltron liberated more planets, they had come across some planets that were prejudiced against all Galra, even Keith. So, the Paladins came up with a way to keep an eye on their team mate without letting him have a constant guard, which would have irritated him. They came up with a tracking device disguised as a tooth cap. Keith liked the idea and eagerly had it fitted onto one of his molars. Each of the Paladins had a program on their data pad that could connect to the tracker and tell them where Keith was.

However, it was a moot point, because before Shiro could even open the app, Black Lion and Red Lion let out dual, resounding roars that shook the foundation of the building. Through his bond with Black, Shiro could hear her calling, "Little one!"

It was the same thing with Lance as he heard Red Lion call out, "Cub!"

When the roars shook the palace, the Keith on the balcony stumbled slightly, allowing Shiro to see his face, which clearly didn't belong to his brother. Shiro saw red, rushed over to the imposter, and hoisted him high in the air by his throat. "Where is Keith?"

The body double started gasping for air as Shiro was using his right arm. The Black Paladin lowered the imposter and loosened his grip a bit, asking again, "Where is Keith?"

"Gone."

"What do you mean 'gone?'"

"Taken."

"By who?"

"I don't know their names. I was just brought to be a body double to delay you finding out when the half-breed was taken."

Shiro released his hold, and the body double dropped to the ground but landed on his feet. He breathed a sigh of relief before he saw Shiro's fist heading for his face. Shiro knocked out the imposter and addressed his team. "Suit up! We need to get to Keith!"

%%%

Keith groaned as he came to. He realized that he was laying in the back of a transport of some sort. He also realized that he was gagged and his hands were bound behind his back. His head was pounding from the hit he had received after he bit one of his kidnappers, but that wasn't the only thing that hurt. Pretty much everywhere hurt, except for his eyes and his mouth (aside from the rough material of the gag).

"I see you are finally awake, half-breed. That will make this much more fun...for me that is."

Keith didn't have time to focus on who was talking as his attacker's foot connected with his side. Keith grunted as pain shot through his side from the steel toe of his attacker's boot. That was going to leave a deep bruise.

Keith tried to ignore his attacker and not react to anything he said or did, which was easier when he wasn't being kicked or hurt in some way. He could tell there were two beings that had kidnapped (or kit-napped, he supposed as he  was a kit in Galran culture) him. One of his kit-nappers was piloting the vehicle, but he still didn't know if he was still on planet or off. It didn't really matter which is was as the Paladins (and Lions) could find him no matter where he was.

A kick to his ribs drew a hiss from him, but it came out distorted due to the gag. Keith knew that he was going to end up in a healing pod the tick he was rescued, so he just had to endure the torment. He just hoped he wasn't going to end up with internal bleeding from all the kicks being aimed at his abdominal organs.

Keith was surprised when the gag as removed slightly. "What was that, half-breed?"

Keith took the time to chuckle albeit weakly at the kit-napper's misfortune. "You are going to be in so much trouble when I get out of here."

His attacker laughed at what he thought was a bluff. "No one knows where we are, let alone that you are missing."

Keith let out a laugh. "You underestimate my position on the team and the intelligence of my team mates. You especially underestimate how important us Paladins are to the lions."

"Gag him again! His voice is irritating!" called the pilot from the front of the ship.

The other kit-napper slid the gag back into Keith's mouth, being careful to not give Keith a chance to bite him again. Once the gag was back in place, he gave another sharp kick to his ribs, causing Keith to bite down onto the gag as he was sure at least one of his ribs was broken at this point.

%%%

"How much further he is, Shiro?" Lance asked. "Red is getting harder to control. She's really angry."

"I understand, Lance. Black is extremely angry. From what I understand, Keith is getting injured from the kidnappers."

A deafening silence reigned over the comm systems until Lance tried to crack a joke to alleviate the tension. "Don't you mean kit-nappers?"

Pidge snorted over the comm system in slight amusement. "That was lame, Tailor."

"Tailor?" Allura questioned. "Why do you call him that?"

"When we were back at the Garrison, Lance would call himself The Tailor when we would fly the simulators. He would cut things close, citing how he could 'thread the needle' but would inevitably crash," Pidge replied.

"Anyway, how much further is it?" Lance was quick to change the topic back to how close they were to getting Keith back.

%%%

Keith was hovering somewhere between conscious and unconscious when the vehicle rocked. Judging by the movement, Keith surmised that they had been in space. Keith groaned as he tried to come back all the way to conscious to see what was going on. However, he didn't get the chance as he heard two purrs in his mind that eased him into unconsciousness.

%%%

The Red and Black Lions were in a hurry to get to Keith as they could feel his pain from every hit coursing down their bonds with him. As soon as they were close enough, they sent purrs to him to let him fall gently into unconsciousness as there was no need to have him in more pain than he needed to be.

%%%

When Shiro and the other Paladins boarded the vessel, they quickly took down the kit-nappers and found Keith. He was bound, gagged, and severely injured. It was hard to look at him with the amount of damage he had been dealt. Shiro knelt down next to his brother and went to shake him awake but paused as he heard Black growl softly at him. "Red and I let him drift into unconsciousness. He was in so much pain that it was better for him not to be awake. Please hurry and get him into a pod."

Shiro nodded and scooped up Keith. He hurried into Black as the other Paladins left the kit-nappers with a warning. "Pray the Galra don't find out that you kidnapped our Red Paladin. They consider him a kit, and kits are considered precious and to be protected at all costs."

The rest of the Paladins rushed off to the lions (Lance in Red and Allura in Blue) and took off back to the castle. Shiro was already in the med bay with Coran, who was helping get Keith into the white bodysuit that helped promote healing in the pod. They were horrified to see all the damage inflicted upon their team mate.

Once Keith was in the pod, the Paladins set about getting things ready for when Keith would get out, but first, they got showers. Hunk went to the kitchen to prepare something light but filling for Keith. Allura went to the bridge to pilot the castle to a friendly sector so they wouldn't have to fear an attack. Shiro and Lance went to the Black and Red Lion, respectively, to tell them that Keith would be in the pod for a couple of vargas. Neither Paladin expected the lions to take on their real, furry lioness forms and make their way down to the med bay, where Pidge and Coran were fixing the nest the Paladins kept in there to wait for whichever team mate was unlucky enough to need healing.

%%%

It was a tense two vargas, but soon, the pod beeped, alerting everyone that the healing sequence was done and the pod was opening. Shiro caught Keith and carried him to the nest, settling him against his side with Black Lion behind them and Red Lion on Keith's other side.

Keith hated the healing pod, because it left him feeling so cold, so when he found himself warm, he was slightly confused. Soft purrs encouraged him to wake up, and he slowly opened his eyes. He saw he was in the nest they kept in the med bay, surrounded by his team and his lions. They had come for him like he knew they would. They were the one family he had that would never give up on him, and that thought caused him to purr as he ate the food Hunk had brought him and the Paladins filled him in on what had happened.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Playing Footsie"

It was dinner time at the castle ship. Hunk was in the kitchen as usual, but Lance wasn't sitting in his usual seat next to Keith but sitting across from him. Normally, Lance was always beside Keith, whether they were sitting or standing. However, that quintant, Lance decided to sit across from Keith.

The two Paladins were actually dating and had decided to keep it a secret, still playfully bantering and competing with each other as usual. Lance had decided that he wanted to play footsie with Keith under the table but that required him to be sitting across from his "secret" boyfriend for the best interaction.

When Lance's foot initially touched Keith's, the Red Paladin had to restrain himself from reacting. He knew of Lance's plan as the Blue Paladin had told him his idea, mostly so Keith wouldn't react poorly to the affectionate gesture, but he still was slightly shocked. The slight smile on Lance's face told Keith that this was a good thing and let him know he was free to return the gesture.

The two continued their actions all through dinner until one time Lance missed. His foot hit one of Pidge's who was sitting next to Keith. The look on the Green Paladin's face told Lance he better hope he wasn't paired against her during the next team training session.

"Pidge, I-"

"If you want to play footsie with your boyfriend, keep it behind closed doors and away from me and my food."

In the silence following her warning, you could hear a pin drop. Lance nervously laughed. "Heh heh. Boyfriend? With who? Mullet here? No way."

Pidge smirked. "I didn't say any names. Funny that you immediately assumed I was talking about Keith."

Lance sputtered in indignation, trying to save face. "Uh, I um-"

"Face it, McClain. You're dating Keith. Just admit it."

Lance opened his mouth but closed it without saying anything. Shiro smiled at the Cuban. "It's all right, Lance. It was pretty obvious to the rest of us."

"How come you hadn't said anything?"

"We figured you would tell us when you were ready," Shiro replied.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Tech Genius"

Thace hadn't thought that his pack would have one kit, let alone two, or that either one would want to sleep with him while he was on duty in the communications room. However, that was just what had happened. Both of his pack's kits were napping with him as he was decoding some messages. Keith was curled up in his lap, while Regris was draped over his back.

%%%

The other members of the Blade were treated to the sight of the major covered with kits. Keith and Regris were considered the entire organization's kits, even though they were part of the pack of the four highest ranking Blades. However, the other members were never tasked with watching the kits as the four adult members of their pack never went on a mission together nor went on missions that had conflicting times.

When they came across the kits spending time with one of their pack members, it was understandable that their productivity was less than normal, which irritated Kolivan, but he couldn't really say anything as he would be labeled as a hypocrite (by Antok as no one else would be brave enough to do so) as he was just as liable to do less work when either of his kits were in his office.

%%%

Thace was having trouble decoding the message. Kolivan specifically wanted Thace to decode the message as it was from one of their Blades that was in deep, deep cover. The violet furred Blade refrained from growling as it would disturb both of his kits.

"Doesn't that mean the inverse of what you wrote?"

Thace blinked at what Regris had pointed out. He hadn't realized that the kit had woken up. He looked at what Regris asked and stared. He had made a simple mistake that was preventing him from decoding the message.

"Regris, have you been trained in tech?"

"No, but I've read books. It was so interesting."

"Would you like to learn?"

"Would Keith be jealous?"

Thace petted the still sleeping kit, earning a louder purr from him. "I don't think so, and when he shows interest in something, he will get to learn from the best, just as you are. So, kit, would you like to learn?"

"Shouldn't you finish decoding the message first?"

Fin

Chapter Text

"Breaking The Cycle"

Jake Kimball had been a normal boy for the first few years of his life. He lived with his parents in a small town in the southwest United States. However, his life turned upside down when he turned seven. He and his parents were on their way back home when a drunk driver slammed into their car. His parents were killed upon impact, and he was in the intensive care unit for a few weeks . It was touch and go for two weeks, and the doctors weren't sure he was going to make it. Once he woke up, he spent the next week in the hospital while child services looked into Jake's next of kin.

He had an aunt and uncle in the next city over as his only living relatives, but they were unable to take him in. The uncle had stage three lung cancer and required a lot of care and the aunt didn't have the time or energy to take care of her seven-year-old nephew. He was sent into foster care but was passed around from family to family as no one wanted an older child with such a traumatic past. (Everyone knew what had happened as it was a small town.) He ended up aging out of the system.

Once he turned eighteen, he moved to Plaht City and made a life for himself. He knew he would want to foster and then adopt a child, preferably an older one who had many families give up on him/her; however, before he could do that, he needed a stable career and to pass the screening social services did for fosters.

He started working at a mechanics, manning the phones and making the appointments. He spent his off hours learning the ins and outs of vehicle repair and was putting himself through college to eventually have the know-how to repair the different types of vehicles that were brought in. On his twenty-third birthday, he received his bachelor's degree and an offer to become a full mechanic in the shop he had been working at for years.

He accepted the job and then started looking up the requirements of fostering a child. He took all the classes and submitted all the documents necessary. It took several months, but he was finally accepted as a viable foster parent. All that remained was for him to choose a child he wanted to give a home to. He knew the type of child he wanted to look for; the type he had been; one who had been given up on due to trauma.

On his first day off, he went to a nearby group home and was greeted by the receptionist. "Good morning, sir. May I help you?"

"Yes. I am Jake Kimball, and I'm looking to foster a child."

"Oh yes. I spoke on the phone with you earlier this week. This way, sir." The receptionist stepped out from behind her desk and led Jake through a nearby door. "What kind of child were you thinking about fostering? A baby or young child, maybe?"

"No. I want to look at the files of any children that have been returned here many times and may have been given up on."

"Why would you-"

"Because I was." Jake was curt as he was trying to keep his temper in check. He hated institutions like this one that didn't care about the older children or the ones with deep emotional trauma.

The receptionist didn't say anything else, simply leading Jake to the next room. She gestured to a chair and left quickly. She returned after a few minutes with a couple of files and two ladies who ran the orphanage. The files were placed in front of him, and he took his time looking through the thickest file first. The child's name was Keith Kogane, and he was ten-years-old. He was labeled a discipline case. His eyes roved over the sad account of the child's life. In that moment, Jake knew that this boy was meant to be his. "Can I see Keith?"

The ladies who ran the orphanage scoffed. "Surely there's a different child you would like to see."

"No. I'm sure Keith is the one," Jake insisted.

One of the ladies left and returned moments later with a sullen, raven-haired ten-years-old following her. The boy's eyes were trained on his rather worn tennis shoes. Jake observed the shy boy for a few moments. He could tell the boy wasn't willing to meet his eyes, because he was sure he would see the rejection he was accustomed to seeing from potential fosters.

%%%

Keith was in shock when he was brought before the man, so sure that it was a mistake that he whimpered a little. Keith cut himself off and cringed, knowing how the ladies who ran the orphanage (and the other kids) didn't like those weird noises he made. However, Jake simply pulled him in close and rubbed his back. He whispered, "It's okay." He raised his head. "This is the one I want."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Isolated"

Sendak was technically outside his jurisdiction, but Emperor Zarkon considered him his best commander and had given him an order to locate the Voltron lions. He had already had one and was on the trail of another.

%%%

In the bowels of the ship, the Red Lion sat with her particle barrier up, so no one could get close. She knew that her isolation was more self-imposed than anything else, but she didn't want anyone close to her other than her Paladin. She felt King Alfor's death, so she shut everyone else out, only leaving her bond open enough to feel her new Paladin's presence where ever he or she may be.

%%%

Keith wiped the sweat from his brow as he entered the mouth the of the cave where he found many of the lion carvings. He had been there many times and documented them from every angle, but he couldn't stay in his Dad's shack for hours on end, so he ended up traversing the desert and following these weird energy signals, but doing that didn't even mask his feeling of isolation and failure and sadness. The loss of his father was still fresh, as fresh as the Kerberos crew being MIA (he refused to believe that they were dead).

%%%

Red felt feelings trickle through her bond, something she hadn't felt for ten thousand deca-phoebes. It had to be her new Paladin...and he was hurt emotionally. She had to get to him. Her particle barrier came down, and she let out a tremendous roar and rammed through the side of Sendak's ship, destroying a good portion of the ship and forcing the commander to limp back to his own territory to repair his ship.

She took off for a blue and green planet, following the feelings she felt from her Paladin. She flew quickly through the sky and located where he was. She was surprised that he was near her sister, Blue, who was trying to soothe him. She sent a purr to her sister to let her know that she was there to take care of him. She landed near her sister's cave softly so as to not startle her new Paladin. She sent soothing vibes through her bond with her Paladin, urging him to leave the cave.

%%%

Keith was slightly startled to suddenly feel something that felt like a hug. It was similar to the feelings he had been feeling from the cave. However, this was much closer. He followed the feeling out of the cave and laid his eyes on a robotic red lion.

%%%

Red was surprised that her new Paladin was so young. He was just a cub! She knelt down and opened her mouth to him, urging him to enter. She understood his wariness and was patient with him.

Curiosity won out, and he entered her cockpit. He sat in the Paladin seat. He didn't touch her controls, just curling up in the seat. She purred to him, wanting to soothe him. She didn't know who had hurt her cub, but she was now there for him and neither of them would be isolated again.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Recovery"

Kolivan and Krolia had arrived on Earth after the siege had ended and, after having proved they were Blades, were met by Shiro, who explained that the Paladins were still in the hospital due to their injuries during the last battles. The captain of the Atlas escorted the two Blades to the hospital and added them to the list of the approved visitors for the Paladins. He showed them to Keith's room.

Krolia rushed over to Keith's bedside with a whine. Keith didn't move. Kolivan looked from mother and kit to Shiro in askance.

"He is stable but hasn't awoken yet. The other Paladins have woken up, and their families are with them."

"I will check on the other kits once Keith wakes up."

Shiro chuckled softly. Kolivan had learned that the Paladins were all around the same age and had basically adopted them, calling them all kits. "I will leave you to wait for Keith. I have to prepare for my speech."

Kolivan settled in a chair to wait for one of his eldest kits to wake up. He watched as Krolia settled at the foot of Keith's bed and was glad that she wasn't clutching her blade like she was on the way there. Seeing the blade flickering caused distress for both of them, but Krolia was distraught over the thought that her kit was fighting for his life.

A few hours later, Krolia turned the tv on to play Shiro's speech. Near the end of the speech, Keith's eyes fluttered before opening slowly and focusing on the two Blades, who were looking at him. "Hi."

"Hello, kit. I'm so glad you're alive. We were so worried," Krolia said.

"I didn't mean to worry you, Mom."

"Shh, kit. I know you didn't, but it wasn't just me you worried."

Kolivan stood up and stepped closer. "I am pleased you are awake, kit. Your mother was distressed when your blade flickered."

Krolia shuffled closer and gently nosed Keith's hair. "It's okay now. You're safe. That's what matters."

Keith whimpered softly. "Can you hold me?"

"Of course, kit." Krolia was careful of the IV in her kit's hand but managed to maneuver herself under her kit, who sighed in contentment before starting to purr. Both mother and kit closed their eyes.

Kolivan watched the duo until he was sure they were asleep. He was glad Keith was awake and seemed to be on the mend. Even though Shiro had said the other Paladins were okay, the dad in Kolivan needed to see the rest of the kits himself. He slipped out and found out that Pidge was in the next room. He eased into the room and watched from the doorway as the youngest Paladin interacted with her parents and older brother. He almost walked out, but Pidge saw him. "Kolivan!"

Everyone looked over to see the leader of the Blades at the door. Colleen was wary as Kolivan came closer. "You are well, kit?"

"Yes." Pidge held her arms open, and Kolivan gently hugged his youngest kit, though he released her quick enough.

Matt approached the Marmoran leader with his hand outstretched. "Kolivan, it's good to see you again."

Kolivan grasped Matt's hand but used it to tug him into a hug. "I am pleased to see you as well, kit."

Matt grinned as he hugged Kolivan back. Sam cleared his throat, causing the two to separate. "Any word on Keith's condition?"

"He has woken up briefly. Krolia and I were there for him, and she has stayed with him at his behest. They are sleeping now, so I decided to check on the other kits."

"Kits?" Colleen echoed.

"The other Paladins," Kolivan clarified.

"Kolivan basically adopted us while we were in space," Pidge explained. "Keith is part Galra and, due to his age, considered a child or kit. Kolivan found out the rest of our ages were around Keith's age, and now, he calls all of us kits, and before you get all protective Mom, it's not a legal adoption. He was just looking after us until we could return to you."

Kolivan turned to look at the Holt parents. "Any being who could keep the Green Paladin in check is to be commended. You have my respect."

"And you have our gratitude for doing all you could to keep Katie safe."

Kolivan nodded. "I must go check on the others. Again, I am pleased you are doing well, Green Paladin."

"Bye, Kolivan!"

Kolivan exited the room and entered the next Paladin's room, which was Hunk's. He wasn't surprised to see two humans he assumed were the Yellow Paladin's parents in the room, but he was slightly surprised to see a Balmeran sitting by the bed, who noticed the Galra and gasped, alerting the humans of his presence.

Hunk smiled. "Hi, Kolivan. Come in and you can meet everyone."

The large Galra entered the room and stood on the other side of Hunk's bed (the side closest to the door). He placed a gentle hand on Hunk's head. "I trust you are well, kit?"

"I could be better, but I'm just glad to have my family here. These are my parents and my girlfriend, Shay. Mom, Dad, Shay, this is Kolivan. He is the leader of the rebel Galra group, the Blade of Marmora. He's also unofficially the Paladins' Dad."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Hunk's Dad spoke up.

"I can see where the Yellow Paladin gets his kindness from. I am pleased to have known him and that he got to be reunited with all of you. However, I do have others to see."

"Wait! Have you heard about Keith yet?"

"The kit has woken up, his mother is with him, and they are resting."

Hunk smiled. "That's great. Well, I don't want to keep you from seeing the others. It was good to see you again."

"Likewise, kit."

Kolivan left Hunk's room and came across Lance's room, but the door was closed. He gently knocked on the door, and after a moment, it opened, revealing an older female wearing a grey Garrison uniform. "May I help you?"

"Is the Blue Paladin in? I was hoping to check on him."

"Is that Kolivan? Let him in, Roni! He's a good guy," Lance called out from inside the room.

Veronica stepped aside and allowed Kolivan to enter the room. The large Galra didn't go too far into the room as there were a lot of humans gathered around his kit's bed, including two little ones sitting on the bed. Lance grinned even wider. "Come closer, and I'll introduce you! This is my Mom and Dad, my brother Marco, my other brother Luis and his wife Lisa, my older sister Veronica, my twin sister Rachel, and Sylvio and Nadia who are Luis's and Lisa's kids. Everyone, this is Kolivan. He's the leader of the Blade of Marmora. He was a tremendous help in the war...and he kinda adopted us Paladins." 

"I was simply looking out for the Paladins while they were away from their families." Kolivan stepped closer to Lance's bed. "Are you well, kit?" 

Lance smiled. "Yeah. I think Red shielded me from much of the impact." 

Silence reigned for a moment before Sylvio asked, "What's that?" 

"What's what?" Lance was slightly confused. 

"What's that?" Sylvio pointed to Kolivan's blade. 

"Sylvio!" Lisa admonished. 

"It is all right. Curiosity is a good trait, especially in one so young. This is my luxite blade." Kolivan patted the hilt. "Every Marmoran agent has one." 

"Speaking of which, how's Keith?" 

"The kit has awoken and is spending time with his mother. Both are asleep at the moment. However, there is another I should check on." 

"Bye, Kolivan! You're welcome to come by anytime!" 

Kolivan stepped out of Lance's room and easily located Allura's. The door was open, and he knocked, which was merely a formality. It drew the princess's attention. "Hello, Kolivan. Please come in." 

Kolivan entered the room, and his ears pinned back. The princess was alone in her room. Well, no; not quite alone. She had her mice with her, and while they did share a telepathic bond with her, they were hardly adequate company for one of his kits. "Why are you alone?" 

Allura looked at her lap, where the mice were, and opened her mouth to retort when she was cut off. 

"I saw the mice. I meant, why do you not have adequate company?" 

"I had adequate company until a couple doboshes before you walked in." She smiled. "Romelle and Coran just left to get some food and drink. I do hope they find something better than what the hospital gives me. It is barely palatable." 

Kolivan resisted the urge to chuckle. She definitely sounded okay, but he still wanted to ask. "Are you doing okay, kit? Do the human medicines work on your injuries?" 

Allura smiled. "I am. As far as I know, the medicine works just fine. I'm more concerned about Keith. I haven't gotten any word about his condition. Everyone has mentioned Lance, Pidge, and Hunk, and while I'm glad they're doing okay, Keith is important too." 

"Easy, kit. Keith is doing okay. He woke up briefly while Krolia and I were in the room. Currently, he is resting with her." Seeing Allura's slightly skeptical look, he added, "I heard him purring." 

That sentence removed any doubt from Allura's mind. She knew that kits couldn't purr if they were in pain or distress. "Thank you for telling me. I am glad he is okay." 

"And I am pleased that all five of you are well."

Allura noticed one of his ears twitched in the direction of the door and smiled. "If you'd like to return to Keith's room, you can. Romelle and Coran are on their way back."

"If you are sure, kit." Kolivan turned to the door but paused, allowing Allura the opportunity to tell him to stay. When she didn't, he proceeded to leave the room. He was walking back to Keith's room and passed Romelle and Coran, who were on their way back to Allura's room.

Pleased that Allura wasn't alone anymore, he made his way back to Keith's room, only to hear dual purrs as he neared it. He entered the room and neared the bed. He gently carded his claws through Keith's hair, receiving a slightly louder purr in response. He smiled and rumbled to Keith, pleased that all of his kits were doing okay.

Fin

Chapter Text

"The Worst Patient"

Keith wanted to growl. He didn't like being idle or being confined, and he was currently both. He had been severely injured in battle and had been brought back to the castle to recover under Coran's watchful eye.

Unfortunately for the Altean, Keith had attempted to leave on multiple occasions but had been caught each time and put back into the bed. Even the threat of being strapped to the bed didn't keep him still. Perhaps it was because he knew Coran didn't actually mean it.

However, Coran knew he would try almost anything to get the Red Paladin to stay put, because he needed to rest whether he believed it or not. He had one idea that might actually work. He walked down the hall and knocked on Lance's door.

Fortunately, the Blue Paladin was in his room. Lance opened the door. "Hey, Coran. What's up?"

Coran smiled. "Ah, just the Paladin I need. Keith is refusing to stay put. Perhaps if you keep him company, he'll be more likely to rest."

"Will do."

He sighed and knew he had to check on his patient. Hopefully, he hadn't tried to make a break for it in his absence. However, he could make out voices near Keith's room.

"Where do you think you are going, Keith? You're supposed to be resting."

"I've been doing nothing but resting, Shiro."

"That's not what Coran's been telling us. You've been quite difficult."

"I..." the half-Galra trailed off, unable to lie about the situation.

Shiro wrapped an arm around the younger male's shoulders and led him back into his room. Coran shook his head. He was glad he had told Lance. It seemed like Keith was set against resting.

"Hey, Coran. Is he inside?" Lance gestured to the nearby room.

Coran nodded. "Shiro just escorted him back inside."

Lance shook his head. "He dislikes being idle, but I will get him to rest. Leave it to me."

Coran patted Lance on his shoulder. "Good luck."

Lance entered the room and cleared his throat, which did catch the two other Paladins' attention.

"Lance?"

"Keith, why do you keep leaving? You know you need to rest to recover."

"I can't sit still. You know that."

"I know that, cariño." Lance bent over and placed his forehead against his. "So, rest and recover, so you can come back to me."

"I will."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Baking In The Castle"

All five Paladins were gathered in the kitchen, which was quite unusual. Hunk was usually seen in the kitchen as was Lance, since the Blue Paladin liked helping his best friend. The Black, Red, and Green Paladins weren't usually there; however, Hunk was making a lot of sweets for a Coalition meeting and requested help from his team mates.

It didn't come as any great surprise that Pidge wasn't that interested in baking, though she was competent in the act. Shiro, however, was an unmitigated disaster, so Hunk quickly put him on the task of taste tester. Keith's skills came as a great surprise to everyone, except Shiro. Keith was decent at cooking, but his skills really shone when he was baking.

Once Keith helped Lance with a very difficult dessert that required precise layers and a steady hand into the oven, Lance couldn't help but ask, "Hey, Mullet, how did you get so good at baking?"

"Yeah, and how come you don't do it more often?" Pidge asked, leaning against the counter.
Keith blushed a light reddish purple and his ears pinned back in slight embarrassment. "My Dad and I used to watch baking competitions when I was little, and I learned techniques and tips that way. I would practice after school on cookies and cupcakes, but I would make my Dad a cake on his birthday. As for why I don't do it..." Keith's ears drooped and tears appeared in the corners of his eyes. "The last time I baked something, Dad didn't come home."

Hunk teared up and grabbed Keith in a big hug. "Then, we need to make some new memories associated with baking! You are more than welcome to come here and bake anytime, buddy!"

Keith hugged Hunk back and wasn't surprised to feel the rest of the team engulf him in a group hug. He purred in response. "Thank you."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Back In Red"

It was a new day, and the robot lions engaged in an early battle. However, this battle was different than the previous battles had been over the past eight months. That difference was due to Lance returning to Blue and Keith being back in Red.

It felt so good to be back in her lion that Keith was a little bit more vicious than before, tearing into the Galra ships with the jaw blade.

Shiro couldn't help but grin at his girlfriend's attitude. It was obvious that she missed being in the thick of battle. He was just glad that the Princess agreed to watch Baby Akira while they went out to battle the Galra.

"Everyone, we need Voltron!" Shiro called out, deciding that the giant robot was needed to put an end to the Galra threat. Once Voltron was formed, Keith stuck her bayard into the port in her lion.

The mighty sword was formed, and Shiro pushed forward and swung the sword, piercing the large cruisers and smaller ships alike. The remaining cruisers quickly withdrew and limped away from the team. "Good job, team! Let's go back to the castle!"

The lions split up and flew back to their hangars. The Paladins re-entered the control room, where Coran and Allura were, Baby Akira in the princess's arms.

The moment the team appeared in their casual clothes, Baby Akira leaned towards Keith. "Mama!"

Everyone froze as it was the baby's first word.

"Mama!"

Keith snapped out of her trance and hurried over to her baby's side, slipping him into her arms. "I've got you, baby. Mama's here."

The rest of the team crowded around mother and son with Shiro closest. Shiro could tell that this had been one of the greatest days for Keith since she had given birth to him, and he would make sure she had plenty more just like it.

Fin

Chapter Text

"To Sleep, Perchance To Dream"

Keith was still awake late at night. He suffered from insomnia and frequent nightmares that left him tired the next day, prompting him to drink multiple cups of coffee throughout the course of the day. He had tried so many different ways to get some sleep short of prescription meds. He didn't like the way he felt when taking the meds.

He rolled over onto his side and huffed. He needed to sleep or his reflexes were bound to suffer, and that was something he couldn't have happen. He closed his eyes, hoping that if he feigned sleep that it would actually happen. However, the second he closed his eyes, there was a knocking on his door. It was quiet though, so if he had been asleep, he wouldn't have heard it.

He got out of bed and unlocked his door. The door opened, and he was surprised to see Lance standing there. "Lance?"

"Hi, Keith. I hope I didn't wake you up. Can I come in?"

Keith moved aside. "Of course."

The Blue Paladin slipped into his room, and once the door closed, he took Keith into his arms. "I've missed you, Keith."

"I've missed you as well. Did you have a nightmare?"

"I actually couldn't sleep. Can I stay here with you?"

"Won't people notice you're missing?"

"I don't care. I just want to stay with you, so, can I stay?"

"I welcome your company, sweetheart. Come." Keith escorted Lance to his bed. They both climbed into the bed. As much as they wanted to sleep under the same blanket, they also didn't want to give anyone the idea that they were doing anything other than sleeping. However, Keith kept an extra sheet in his room for the nights his boyfriend stayed over. They each slept under individual sheets but shared a blanket, giving Keith the chance to snuggle against him.

Lance wrapped his arms around him, prompting him to purr in pleasure. He always loved having his arms around him, holding him, loving him. He snuggled closer to Lance, and his eyes drifted closed.

Lance laid his head down on top of his and closed his eyes, breathing in his scent. It was so relaxing that Lance found himself falling asleep easily.

%%%

Coran was doing his usual rounds, making sure the Paladins were sleeping. He had found Shiro, Hunk, and Pidge in their rooms. He figured Lance was as well, but Keith may not be. However, the training deck was empty, so that led the advisor to check Keith's room first.

He arrived at Keith's room and entered without knocking, not wanting to wake the Red Paladin. What he saw was a sweet scene. Keith and Lance were asleep under different sheets and with a blanket pulled up to their waists. Both were dressed in their Paladin pajamas with their lion slippers tucked next to the bed. Keith was sleeping peacefully in Lance's arms.

It was such a sweet scene that it made Coran back out of the room, so he wouldn't wake the duo. He made the decision to offer additional blankets and pillows if the two wanted to continue sharing a bed.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Too Good To Pass Up"

Krolia held Keith's hand as he toddled towards Blue's cave. It was a compromise; he got to walk to the cave, but he had hold onto her when they had to climb over some rocks to get to the mechanical lion. Krolia liked when Keith clung to her as he did as any Galran kit would do by his claws. He didn't have long nails, but they were sharp. He clung to her front with his head tucked under her chin.

Once they made it to Blue, Krolia rumbled to Keith, letting him know he could get down. Keith gently released his grip, and Krolia helped him slide down to the ground. He chirped and toddled over to the lion. Krolia knew that Keith wasn't her Paladin, but they both still had a connection to her.

She sat down near the still erected particle barrier and watched as her kit babbled to the lion. She had left a note for her mate, so he would be able to find them. He often would pack a basket of food, and they would have dinner in the cave before heading back home.

"'Lia? Keith?"

Keith's head jerked up, and he chirped when his dad came into view. "Daddy!"

Tex set down the basket as Keith ran over to him. He swung Keith into the air. "There's my boy!"

He plopped Keith onto his shoulders and made his way to his wife. He gave her a kiss, causing her to purr, Keith's purr echoing his mom's.

A mechanical purr joined theirs. The family looked up and watched in astonishment when the blue particle barrier went down for the first time.

"Blue?" Krolia's voice was soft, barely above a whisper.

Blue knelt down and opened her mouth. She sent images of space to the minds of the little family. Krolia recognized it as the location of the Blade of Marmora headquarters. Was Blue suggesting she would take them to headquarters?

"Yes. My paladin is in space. There's no reason for me to be here, and your kit needs to be in space for his lion."

"Which lion is Keith getting?"

"He is Red's."

"So Sendak loses the Red Lion. That's good." Krolia turned to face Tex. "Keith and I need to go into space. Please come with us. Keith deserves to grow up with his father and knowing his heritage."

"I can't just up and leave, 'Lia. I need a few days to put my affairs in order. Can we wait that long?"

Blue purred, hoping to soothe Tex's anxiety. "Of course we can wait a bit. Come back when you're ready, and we'll leave."

Krolia smiled. She couldn't believe that she had the option of returning home with not just her kit but her mate as well. It was almost too good to be true, but she couldn't pass it up.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Sharks"

There was still a lot of reconstruction from the devastation caused by The Fire of Purification, even years later. However, the citizens of Earth didn't want the heroes of Earth (as they referred to the Paladins) to do a lot of work as they had done plenty and refused to let them help with the heavy work, but that didn't mean the Paladins couldn't make themselves useful.

Lance was entertaining a group of alien children, weaving tales of the Paladins' epic battles and some funny moments like their food fight with Allura and Coran. Once Lance had told all the stories he had planned, he asked if any of them had any questions.

One of the children asked, "What is that around your neck?"

Lance reached up and felt around his neck. "Oh." He pulled off the necklace and held it out for the children to see. "This is a tooth of a Great White Shark. They are a dangerous, marine animal that happens to be around my home country of Cuba." He put the necklace back on and pulled out his data pad. "This is what one looks like." He turned his data pad around and showed the children what a Great White Shark looks like. The children oohed and aahed over the fish. "Humans all over the world even swim with them, including me."

Clapping drew everyone's attention to a grownup alien and, surprisingly, Keith standing there in his Blade leader uniform. "All right, children. I'm sure Paladin Lance would like to spend some time with his teammate."

"Hey, Keith. How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough to hear you telling stories, Sharpshooter."

"Aw, you like hearing my voice, Samurai. Just admit it."

Keith simply looked down and away, a reddish purple blush on his cheeks.

One of the alien children looked back and forth between Keith and Lance and asked the latter, "If he's your teammate, why is he wearing a different uniform?"

"That is a good question. What's with the new threads?"

Keith's blush deepened. "Kolivan just had me fitted for this. It signifies the leader of the Blades. Mom suggested I show you guys. You're the first one I found."

Lance smiled and waved at the kids as they left with the adult. He walked over to Keith, and the pair started walking.

"So does this mean you got a promotion?"

Keith rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah. Since Mom and Kolivan have been elected as the representatives of the Galactic Coalition, they suggested that I become leader of the Blades."

Lance tapped his lips. "I'm guessing that they wanted you as their rep and you said no."

"Yeah. Pretty much."

"Classic Keith."

Their laughter masked the approach of a few adult aliens. The children had gone to their parents about the exploits of the Blue Paladin, and the parents wanted to know more about these sharks he had mentioned.

"Anyway, I heard you telling the kids about sharks. I'm surprised you didn't mention the scar you got from one biting you."

"Eh." Lance waved his hand in a dismissive manor. "It's not that impressive. It's a small bite."

"It always sounds more impressive when you tell it."

"Most shark attacks are fatal and the ones that aren't are life threatening. I didn't even get an impressive story out of it."

The alien parents stopped following the unaware Paladins when they heard Lance's comment. They were quite sure the humans were crazy, especially if they sought out animals that could easily end their life. They would reserve their judgment on the half-Galra Paladin until they learned his position on seeking out dangerous animals.

Lance and Keith kept walking as they continued their conversation out of the ear shot of the aliens. "I mean, seriously, Keith. I got bit by a Cookie Cutter Shark. How is that impressive?!"

Fin

Chapter Text

"Little Ticks"

Lance prided himself as a observant caregiver. He noticed when Keith was exhibiting signs that he was going to regress soon, and he wasn't going to let him be by himself.

He had been watching Keith for a few quintants ever since he noticed that Keith's focus wasn't on the battle they were engaged in. He saw several instances of Keith displaying a few little ticks.

Keith tended to make Galran kit noises while he was regressed, and Lance was aware of each instance that Keith whimpered, whined, chirped, or made questioning noises, even out of head space. He was also having an occasional problem using a spoon during a couple of meals, even though he didn't have too much problem. He wasn't spending time on the training deck either, rather he was just sitting in the lounge or spending time with one of the other Paladins.

Lance was trying to be patient, but it almost seemed like Keith was trying not to regress, which wasn't good for him mentally. He needed to regress, and Lance was going to make sure he did.

It was easy to find Keith as he was sitting on the couch. He sat down next to Keith. "Hey, Keithy."

Keith couldn't help the chirp that escaped him. "H-hi...Lance."

"Come here, sweetie. I think you could use a hug." Lance held his arms open, so Keith scooted closer and leaned against Lance. Lance wrapped his arms around Keith, who relaxed against him and purred softly. The brunette smiled as he heard Keith purring. "That right, sweetie. Daddy's here."

Keith snuggled against Lance's shoulder. "Daddy."

"That's right, baby. Daddy's got you. Let's get you comfortable." Lance scooped up his little and carried him to his room. As he changed his clothes, Lance mentally planned out the rest of the quintant. His little liked a bit of a routine, and Lance was glad to oblige.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Explosive Chat"

NRizavi added BlackPaladin, RedPaladin, BluePaladin, GreenPaladin, YellowPaladin, Princess, BladeLeader, BladeLeader2, Medic, DadSpy, MomSpy, JGriffin, RKinkade, ILeifdottir, RebelTechie, and MFEHandler to the chat Explosions.

NRizavi: I'm waiting

BluePaladin: Waiting for what?

NRizavi: Read the chat name

GreenPaladin: Explosions? I'm interested

BlackPaladin: Not real explosions, right?

NRizavi: I don't know. With Keith and James in the same chat, anything is possible

BlackPaladin: Keith's more mature and won't fight unprovoked

RedPaladin: You don't know me that well, Shiro. Griffin is an asshole

JGriffin: Better an asshole than a Galra

BladeLeader: I wish to have a...talk with the leader of the MFEs

BladeLeader2: *growls* I wish to throw him out an airlock

Medic: We are not in space. Throwing him out an airlock won't do any good

DadSpy: What about out a window or off the roof?

MomSpy: We could take him into space and Antok could throw him out the airlock then

RedPaladin: He has always wanted to ride in one of the lions. We could hang him from one of their fangs

MFEHandler: You should not be planning a murder

RedPaladin: Who's talking about murder? He'd survive...I think

BluePaladin: V, you're the handler for the MFEs. Handle them!

RedPaladin: Especially Griffin

JGriffin: I don't need handling

ILeifdottir: Your actions prove otherwise

JGriffin: Ina! How could you say that?!

RedPaladin: Ha! Even your team doesn't stand behind you unlike the Paladins

YellowPaladin: It was a learning experience

Princess: Hunk is right. The team had to learn how to work together

GreenPaladin: No thanks to you, Princess

Princess: You all learned to work together thanks to me!

BluePaladin: It was because Coran handcuffed us together and you slung food goo at Pidge for her sass

Princess: *sniff* It worked

BlackPaladin: Yes. Yes, it did.

NRizavi: *munching popcorn*

RebelTechie: You're enjoying this a bit too much

NRizavi: I thrive on this chaos, which is why I made this group chat

RKinkade: Unfortunately, this is true

NRizavi: Says the guy who did a documentary on yeast

RKinkade: It wasn't on yeast. It was on fermentation

NRizavi: I don't care. It was boring

YellowPaladin: That doesn't sound boring. I'd have liked to see it

RKinkade: I still have it. I can show it to you sometime

YellowPaladin: Awesome!

BluePaladin: This is boring. Can we go back to the Blades threatening Griffin?

GreenPaladin: Speaking of, where are they? They haven't said anything

BlackPaladin: Griffin, are you there?

BlackPaladin: @JGriffin

MFEHandler: @JGriffin

BlackPaladin: No murder, @BladeLeader, @BladeLeader2, @Medic, @DadSpy, @MomSpy

BluePaladin: Can I get an 'F' in the chat for the former leader of the MFEs?

GreenPaladin: F

YellowPaladin: F

Princess: F

RedPaladin: I guess he can have it. F

ILeifdottir: F

RKinkade: F

NRizavi: F

RebelTechie: F

MFEHandler: F

MomSpy: He is not dead

BladeLeader: We taught him a lesson on respecting other races

BlackPaladin: ...

Princess: I am glad I did not have to learn that lesson in that way

RedPaladin: It still hurt that you didn't acknowledge my part in the plan to take down Zarkon's ship

BladeLeader: What?

BladeLeader2: What?

Medic: What?

DadSpy: What?

MomSpy: What?

Princess: I had thought Keith had lied about knowing his heritage. I had realized just before Keith boarded the ship that he had done no such thing

RedPaladin: That wasn't what you apologized for. You apologized for acting like you didn't want a Galra to be a Paladin, especially the Red Paladin

BlackPaladin: ...

GreenPaladin: ...

YellowPaladin: ...

BluePaladin: ...

BluePaladin: Well, this is awkward

*BluePaladin changed their name to Sharpshooter*

*Sharpshooter changed RedPaladin's name to Samurai*

*MomSpy changed Samurai's name to LittleBlade*

LittleBlade: Mom, why?

MomSpy: Because it fits.

DadSpy: You're a Blade and we take care of our own

BladeLeader: Princess, do we have to have a talk?

Princess: No! I love Keith!

LittleBlade: Princess, I love you like a sister. No offense, but I'm gay

Princess: That's fine. I didn't mean it that way!

Sharpshooter: Wait. You're gay?

LittleBlade: Yeah

Sharpshooter: And here I thought I didn't even have a chance

LittleBlade: Hang on. You had a crush on me?

Sharpshooter: ...Since the Garrison

LittleBlade: I didn't know. The only thing I got back at the Garrison was from someone named Tailor

GreenPaladin: Lmao

YellowPaladin: Lmao

LittleBlade: What am I missing?

Sharpshooter: I called myself The Tailor back at the Garrison

LittleBlade: What? Why?

Sharpshooter: Because I thought it was cool

LittleBlade: You're a dork

BlackPaladin: Pot meet kettle

RebelTechie: You have no room to speak, Shiro. I know of your love of anime

BlackPaladin: And you don't?

RebelTechie: Of course I do! I have the power of God and anime on my side!

GreenPaladin: I'm tempted to disown you

RebelTechie: I am not scared of you

YellowPaladin: I would be if I were you, Matt

RebelTechie: What's she going to do? Bite my ankles

GreenPaladin: I'll bust your kneecaps!

Sharpshooter: I'm surprised you didn't threaten to electrocute him

GreenPaladin: I can do both

BladeLeader2: I like the Green Paladin. She's a feisty kit

BladeLeader: 'Tok, are you trying to adopt the Green Paladin?

BladeLeader2: Why do you say that like it's a bad thing, 'Van? She is younger than our kit!

BladeLeader: What?!

LittleBlade: Lance, Pidge, and Hunk are younger than me and Shiro's only a little bit older than me

MomSpy: You are all just kits

Medic: Thace

DadSpy: Oh no

Medic: They are all our kits

DadSpy: Very well, 'Laz

BlackPaladin: Now, hold on a moment

Medic: Shh, kit

LittleBlade: Can we get back to the topic of Lance's crush on me?

Sharpshooter: What does it matter? You didn't even remember me when we rescued Shiro

LittleBlade: Actually, I did. I had a Gay Panic (TM) moment

Sharpshooter: What? Why?

LittleBlade: You had such a glow-up that I panicked

GreenPaladin: Sounds like what Lance went through during the Bonding Moment (TM)

LittleBlade: What are you talking about, Pidge? Lance said he didn't remember it

Sharpshooter: I actually do remember but had a Bi Panic (TM) moment. I'm sorry that I did that

LittleBlade: So, are you saying you want to go on a date?

Sharpshooter: I am if you don't mind

LittleBlade: I wouldn't have brought it up if I was against it

NRizavi: Ugh. All this beginning relationship stuff is boring...unless you guys are going to start making out

MomSpy: We are not talking about my kit mating with anyone

JGriffin: Mating?!

RKinkade: Mating?!

ILeifdottir: Mating?

NRizavi: Ooo. What's the difference between Galra relations and human relations?

LittleBlade: We are not having this conversation

Fin

Chapter Text

"Stitches"

Keith was bone tired when he returned from a solo mission Kolivan had sent him on the tick he landed in the hangar at headquarters. It was unusual for Kolivan to immediately send him on another mission; normally, the Blade leader would wait a few vargas to allow Keith the opportunity to rest as everyone knew he was considered a kit.

However, when Keith looked over the mission details, he realized what the urgency was. There was a shipment of quintessence that Keith had to disrupt. Keith figured he could even steal a canister or two. He just hoped this mission would end better than the last one did.

%%%

Keith should have known better than to have even thought that the mission would go better. No solo mission of his ever went well. Why did Kolivan keep sending him on solo missions? At that moment, he was cornered by a druid (why wasn't that in the mission details?) with a wound on his back, which was starting to go numb. He didn't see any way out of this situation.

All of a sudden, a sword was sticking out of the druid, causing him to scream and explode. The sword fell to the ground. Keith watched a figure pick up the sword through increasingly narrowed eyes. Even though he was in the process of passing out, Keith recognized the figure. "Acxa."

%%%

Acxa shook her head as Keith passed out, his eyes rolling back into his head. She couldn't believe her mate kept being sent on missions for both organizations he was a part of. She decided to accompany him back to the Blade's headquarters and have words with Kolivan.

She managed to pick up Keith and the two canisters of quintessence that were laying next to him and carried him to his ship. She piloted the ship to headquarters, a route she knew very well. She gave her code for entry and received the map to follow. She followed the map flawlessly and landed the ship in the hangar. She put the canisters into a bag and once again picked up Keith. She carried him out of the ship, but instead of going to see Kolivan first, she went to the med bay. Keith needed tended to before anything else.

%%%

Ulaz wasn't expecting a busy quintant, so he was taking his time updating his medical files on Blades. He came across Keith's mostly empty file and sighed as he flagged it incomplete. The kit tended to not come by unless he was carried in.

Suddenly, the door opened with a bang, startling the pale doctor. He left his office, and his eyes widened at the sight of his kit being laid on an examination bed by a familiar unmasked female Galra. He hurried over. "Acxa, what happened?"

"Keith was sent on a mission but was ambushed by a druid. I was fortunate enough to be nearby and dispatched the druid, but Keith passed out."

"Help me with the top of his uniform."

Together, Ulaz and Acxa peeled off the top of Keith's uniform, exposing his back. The injury was a big, open wound, which was bleeding, and was surrounded by a bluish black bruise. Ulaz quickly prepared a needle laced with a numbing agent and injected the kit with it, so he could start healing his back.

Acxa carded her claws through Keith's hair before leaning down and kissing him briefly on his lips. She straightened up and said, "I'm going to have words with Kolivan."

"No need for that."

Acxa turned and saw Kolivan standing in the doorway of the med bay. The leader of the Blades made his way to his kit's bedside. "What happened?"

"There was a druid at the facility. Keith could have died! Why did you send him on that mission solo? I thought the protocol was two Blades on a mission that involved druids!"

"We were not informed about the presence of a druid at the facility. It was supposed to be a straight forward, simple mission. However, why did you abandon your post? You were supposed to be gathering intel about the prince."

"I did everything I could. However, I could feel Keith was in danger, and I refuse to be separated from him any longer. It hurts too much."

Ulaz looked up from finishing the stitches on Keith's back. "Are you saying you two are mates?"

"Yes."

Everyone looked down at Keith, whose eyes were partially open, his breathing ragged. Acxa leaned down again and gently nuzzled Keith's head. He managed to half-heartedly return her nuzzles. "Thank you, Acxa."

"You don't have to thank me, Keith. You're my mate. I'm not going to let anything happen to you, especially if I can prevent it." She moved slightly to nose his hair. "I'm staying with you from now on. You are the most important being in my life." She locked eyes with Kolivan. "Any mission he is sent on, I am going too."

"What if he is with the Paladins?"

"Then, I will ride in his lion with him. No one is going to keep me from my mate."

"Missions are irrelevant at this moment though. His back needs to heal. Once it does, I will take out the stitches."

Acxa helped Keith off the examination bed. "Let's go to your nest."

Keith blushed slightly. "I share a nest with Kolivan, Ulaz, Thace, and Antok."

"You don't have a private nest?"

Keith shook his head.

"You don't have to isolate yourselves. Being Keith's mate means you are welcome in our nest," Kolivan stated.

"I would prefer that as well," Ulaz added. "It would make it easier if I need to give Keith more medical attention."

Acxa looked at Keith, who still looked dead on his feet. "I think that would be best."

Acxa led Keith to the pack nest, and Keith laid down, halfway asleep. Acxa settled down next to him, grooming his hair as he drifted all the way off to sleep, his purrs filling the room.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Stab Wound"

Keith hurried out of Black Lion, worried about his boyfriend. Word about Shiro's wound concerned Keith more than he liked to admit. He didn't know how bad it truly was nor what weapon did the damage. He guessed it was some kind of stab wound, but nothing prepared him for the sight of the glowing purple wound on Shiro's side. 

Shiro smiled, although it was more of a grimace, as his boyfriend hurried out of his lion. He knew that it was rough for Keith to go ahead and try to pilot Black, especially when he was used to Red and had a low self-esteem problem. He managed to lever himself off the ground when Black Lion scooped them both off and flew away from the canyon. Neither Shiro nor Keith knew where Black was taking them, but Keith did know that Red joined them shortly before they landed. Keith cautiously peeked out of the lion and was pleased to see that the lions were situated to provide protection for their paladins. Keith helped Shiro out of Black and onto the ground before he set out making a fire, so they would have heat during the night. 

Shiro watched Keith hurry about and knew there was something he needed to tell him, even though he may not make it before help arrived. Keith sat down once he got the fire going.

"Thanks for saving me."

"You'd have done the same for me. How's your wound?"

"My wound's great. It's getting bigger all the time. Just trying to lighten the mood."

"Hang in there. When Allura and Coran find us, they'll fix you right up."

"Keith, if I don't make it out of here...I want you to lead Voltron."

"Stop talking like that. You're gonna make it."

Shiro smiled and his eyes softened, shining with the love he felt for the man next to him. "Keith, I-"

Suddenly, a wormhole opened in the sky above them, and the Green Lion came through. Shiro grimaced but didn't continue his sentence. He could just tell Keith later. 

Fin

Chapter Text

"Numb"

Matt landed his ship in the castle ship and quickly exited it. He was worried about Keith, especially after his kamikaze attempt. He didn't know what was going through his boyfriend's mind when he tried to ram his ship into the cruiser's shield.

He noticed that there was a slightly damaged Galran fighter in the hangar, looking similar to the fighter that Keith flew. Matt approached it and noticed that someone was still inside. Matt peered in the window and saw Keith sitting there. He rapped on the window, trying to get his attention, but Keith didn't move.

Matt managed to open the hatch and slipped into the ship. "Keith?"

Keith didn't respond.

Matt crept closer and placed a hand on Keith's shoulder. "Keith?"

Once again, Keith didn't respond, which concerned Matt. It seemed like he was comatose and/or numb. Matt moved into Keith's field on vision and wrapped his arms around his shoulders. After a moment, he pulled back slightly and placed his forehead against Keith's, closing his eyes. "Keith, please. Come back to me."

Being close to Keith allowed Matt to hear the soft whimper that escaped the raven haired teen. Matt pulled back slightly and opened his eyes. "Keith?"

"M-Matt?"

"I'm here, Space Cat. Are you okay?"

Keith whimpered. "I don't know."

Matt tightly wrapped his arms around Keith, pulling him close. "Okay. I've got you."

"Can we get out of here?"

"Yeah, but where would we go?"

"My old room should be available."

"You know you'll need to face the others soon."

"Yeah, and I will, but for now, I just want you to hold me."

"I'm always willing to hold you, Space Cat."

"Forever?"

"Forever and always."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Adrenaline"

Pidge was running on pure adrenaline at this point. She had stayed up for the past three quintants so far and the last cup of coffee she had was already out of her system and had been for quite awhile. She normally would have another cup ready and waiting as she was working on either upgrading the lions or decoding information from a Galra base or ship, looking for her father and brother.

However, that quintant was anything but normal. It had started out that way up to and including the mission the team went on. She did her part as did all of the Paladins, but something went wrong, and she got captured. Even though she knew her team was devising a plan to free her, the adrenaline flowing through her veins wouldn't let her relax until she was back at the castle.

She had already timed the guard patrols, which surprisingly weren't numerous. There was a lack of personnel on the ship, which worked out in her favor, as she summoned her bayard to her (a move all of the Paladins had been working on with varying levels of success) and used it to dispatch the sentries that patrolled the ship. The lone flesh and blood Galra on the ship was dealt with swiftly and painfully as she electrocuted him.

During said electrocution, the ship rocked, almost throwing the Green Paladin off her feet. She kept her footing until she was lifted into the air. She almost electrocuted the being holding her until she heard the soft whine of her Galran looking boyfriend. She let her bayard disappear as Keith nosed her messy hair.

"I missed you too, Space Cat. Now, put me down."

"Nope." Keith flung Pidge over his shoulder and started carrying her off to the lions.

She could see Hunk and Lance behind Keith and addressed her fellow Paladins. "Guys, please help."

"Sorry, Pidge, but we're not getting in Keith's way," Lance stated.

"You didn't see him when he found out you were captured," Hunk explained. "He actually hissed."

"I thought he might fight Allura when she mentioned that we needed to wait and make a proper plan for your rescue," Lance mentioned.

"I was not going to wait to rescue my mate," Keith replied. "And I wouldn't have fought Allura. She knows my stance on members of my pack."

Pidge didn't have a reply to that. She knew that Keith considered the team as his pack, and Galra were highly social beings that needed other beings they trusted around them, lest their natural aggressive tendencies take over.

Just then, Pidge felt her energy flag. Her body understood that she was safe and her adrenaline levels were returning to base line, which meant she was going to crash. However, she didn't realize that she was going to crash still hanging over Keith's shoulder.

Fin

Chapter Text

"A Little Cranky"

Keith had never gotten much sleep at any point in his life, but he got even less since he got into space. He couldn't sleep for more than a few hours at a time.

Lance was observant concerning Keith's sleeping habits, considering his room was next to Keith's. Even though Lance had an extravagant routine he followed every night, he knew Keith didn't spend hardly any time in his room, which worried Lance as he knew Keith was a little. Lance decided to attempt to make Keith take a nap, whether he was in little space or not.

Lance knew Keith was either on the training deck or on his way there. He decided to go get him. Footsteps going past his door made his hurry out of his room and catch up to him.

"Hey, Keith."

"What do you want, Lance?"

"I want you to take a nap."

"A nap? I'm not taking a nap. I'm going to go train."

"But, you're always on the training deck, baby."

"Yeah, I am, but what does it matter?"

"Because you're not getting enough sleep."

"Why is it any of your business?"

"Because I am your Daddy, and I care about you."

Keith's gait faltered at Lance's statement. "But-but..."

"No, sweetheart, you need a nap." Lance wrapped an arm around Keith's shoulders. "And I'm here to make sure you take one, because you are tired."

"I'm not," Keith yawned. "Not tired."

"That's not convincing, baby. Why don't we go lay down?"

"But, Daddy, I don't want to sleep."

"How about we watch a movie then?"

"A movie?"

"Yeah, we'll get in comfortable clothes and sit on my bed and watch a movie."

"I pick the movie?"

"Sure, baby. Let's go."

"Okay."

Lance led Keith to his room and, once they entered, set about changing Keith into a pull-up and a sleeper. He changed into his Blue Paladin pajamas and scooped up his little. He settled him between his legs and tucked a fleece blanket around him, leaving his arms out. The Blue Paladin pulled out his data pad and open up his movie app.

"What movie do you want?"

"Bolt!"

"Bolt it is." Lance let the movie start as he carded his fingers through his little's hair. He knew that Keith would end up falling asleep during the movie, and that was a good with him.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Slumber Party"

Lance took a deep breath as he stood in front of the door leading to the Blades' quarters. He knew that it was actually called their nest room (courtesy of Keith, who was part of their pack). The idea had initially struck him as funny, because the Blades were tough, ninja space cats but they slept in soft, comfortable nests. He (and the rest of the Paladins) only recently found out how comfortable nests were when Keith asked to make one in the lounge during a movie night they had a few movements ago, during which Lance found out from Keith that some of the Blades were at least intrigued by human culture. Lance offered to extend an invitation to the Blades to attend their next slumber party.

However, now that Lance was standing there, he realized that he was nervous. He knew there wasn't any reason to be nervous. All of the Paladins and Blades had been introduced to each other and were comfortable in each other's presence. He knew the reason he was nervous. The Blades found out that most of the Paladins were younger than Keith, who was a young kit in their society, so they treated Lance, Pidge, Hunk, and even Shiro like kits. Honestly, Lance liked it, even though it made him slightly homesick.

He raised his hand to knock on the door when it suddenly opened, and Lance found himself mere inches away from Keith. Lance jumped back a little in surprise. "Keith!"

"Lance, what're you doing here?"

"I was going to invite the Blades to the slumber party we were setting up."

Keith grinned. He liked the slumber parties the Paladins had every so often. He grabbed Lance by the wrist and dragged him into the nest room. "You can tell them yourself!"

Lance saw the five adult Blades and two other kits of Keith's pack lounging in their nest, which was filled with so many pillows and blankets it made his head spin.

Krolia noticed Lance's entrance and motioned for him to come over. "Come here, kit."

Lance was hesitant to do so, so Keith tugged him into the nest alongside him. Ulaz took note of the Blue Paladin's tense posture and rumbled to him. "Be at ease, kit. We are all pack here."

Keith nuzzled Lance's neck before saying, "Wasn't there something you wanted to tell everyone?"

"Oh, right! Us Paladins are having a slumber party in the lounge, and we were wondering if any of you wanted to join us. We'll be having snacks and watching movies until we fall asleep in the nest we keep in there."

"You want us to come to your party?" Thace asked.

Before either Lance or Keith could reply, Krolia clapped her hands in glee. "Cal showed me some movies back on Earth, and we often fell asleep on his couch until I made a nest for us."

Keith purred at the mention of his father. Krolia often told him (and Acxa) stories about Calvin Kogane in an attempt to let them know their father and not feel sad about his absence.

Regris and Acxa looked up at their mother. Regris may not be biologically hers, but he was still just as much Krolia's kit as Keith and Acxa were. "Can we go, Mama?"

Krolia bumped her nose against each of their temples in a Galran kiss (one between family members) before responding to Regris's question. "Of course." She locked eyes with the four adult males of the pack. "We all should go."

Kolivan dipped his head slightly. "We would be delighted to spend this time with you kits."

Lance grinned. "Great!" He went to get up out of the nest and was surprised to find himself on Ulaz's lap with Keith still snuggling him. "Um, when did this happen? Nevermind. I need to go. I'm supposed to help set the lounge up."

"In a moment, kit."

%%%

It took a little longer than a moment for Lance to untangle himself from the Blades, whom were trailing after him as they made their way to the lounge. Hunk Pidge, and Shiro were already there and, from the look of the lounge, had almost everything set up.

Pidge didn't look up from her laptop when they entered. "Took you long enough, Lance. I was beginning to wonder what was keeping you."

"Hey, you invite the Blades next time and see what happens!"

Shiro tucked a blanket back into the nest. "Easy, Lance. We were just worried about-" Shiro cut himself off as Thace and Ulaz started helping with the nest.

Mistaking Shiro's confusion about their presence for worry, Ulaz rumbled to him. "Do not fret, kit. The nest needs to be larger for all of us to lay comfortably."

Once the nest was enlarged, the Blades settled in and tugged a Paladin close. Keith was of course crowded around his mother and siblings. Lance was tugged onto Thace's lap, much like Pidge was with Kolivan. Antok had Hunk tucked against his side, and Ulaz had Shiro leaning against his chest.

"So, what movie are you showing us?" Krolia asked.

"We are doing a Star Wars marathon!" Pidge announced.

"How many of the movies exactly?" Shiro asked.

"All eleven." Pidge chuckled.

"E-eleven?" Hunk stammered.

"Naw. Just the first three."

"Which three?" Shiro inquired.

"The original trilogy, of course, and not the rereleased stuff either!"

"Good." Shiro gave a sharp nod in approval.

Pidge started A New Hope and settled back against Kolivan to watch the movie, even though she had seen it a lot. Hunk passed around treats of all kinds that he made earlier that quintant, all of which were Galra friendly. He had accidentally made that mistake before and wasn't going to make it again.

%%%

The movies were good, which pleased the Blades, but not as much as having their kits sleeping on them. Keith was the first to drop off, his soft purr adding a nice background noise. Hunk was next, the warmth of Antok's fur lulling him to sleep. Lance followed shortly after, Thace grooming his hair to soothe him. Pidge lasted long enough to start the third movie but fell asleep before the opening credits finished. Shiro surprised Ulaz by snuggling against him before falling asleep, his head tucked under the Doctor's chin.

The door to the lounge opened just as the celebration on Endor (in the movie) was starting, and Coran poked his head in to check on the Paladins, who had told him that they were having a sleepover in the lounge. The Altean advisor always checked on the Paladins to make sure they went to sleep. So, he was surprised to see not just Keith but all of the Paladins snuggled up to the Blades, who were almost asleep as well (since the movie had ended). He smiled as he took pictures of the group before quietly exiting the room.

Fin

Chapter Text

"You're Me and I'm You"

Krolia nuzzled her twins as they waited for the results of the tests Ulaz performed. The entire pack was hopeful that the twins' condition could be reversed or would wear off soon, but none more than Keith and Acxa themselves. They were still unnerved by the whole situation of being in each other's bodies, but at least they were with their pack.

Ulaz's data pad dinged drawing the trio's attention. He withdrew it from his pocket and saw it was a message from Thace. Shaking his head at Krolia, Keith, and Acxa to let them know it wasn't the results, he opened the message. It was a picture of Thace's worried face with Kolivan and Antok cuddling in the background, Kolivan's braid being unbound. A line of text followed the picture. What are the results?

Results aren't in yet.

They aren't?

I will let you and the pack know when and what they are.

As soon as Ulaz sent his last response, his data pad dinged yet again. This time is was the results of the scans. He looked them over and nodded, relieved at the results. He moved over to the kits and their mother. He stroked the kits' headfur soothingly and relayed his findings.

"The results are in. Somehow, the kits were exposed to Ba'lury, which is what caused them to switch. Fortunately, it was such a small amount that they were exposed to that we just have to wait for it to dissipate."

"How long will that take?" Keith (in Acxa's body) asked.

"No more than four quintants." Ulaz began typing on his data pad, sending the results to the rest of the pack.

"Four quintants?! I have to spend four quintants as my brother?!"

"It won't be too bad, my kit," Krolia nosed the longer black headfur, which normally smelled like chocolate and cinnamon but now had the scent of lemon and honey.

"It's slightly worse than you're leading them to believe, Krolia."

Everyone looked up to see the rest of the pack standing at the doorway. Kolivan, who had spoken, entered the room first, followed closely by Antok and Thace.

"What do you mean, Kolivan?" Krolia inquired.

"There is a meeting with the Paladins on the fourth quintant, and everyone is to attend." Kolivan made it a point to stare at the twins. Initially, he stared at the black-haired kit before remembering that Keith was in his sister's body and switching his glare to the blue skinned kit.

To their surprise, Keith grinned. "Since this is going to wear off, Acxa and I could have a little fun with the Paladins, specifically Lance."

"Why would you want to mess with your mate?" Antok asked.

Keith blushed, which appeared as a darker blue. "I know he and I have crushes on each other, but we haven't actually entered into a relationship."

"Does Lance know you have a crush on him?" Acxa asked.

"No, and he doesn't know that I know of his crush either."

"How did you learn of it?"

"My room is right next to his, and the walls are really thin, so I can hear him talking. I don't know if he was talking to someone else or himself, but he was saying that he loves my hair and my attitude and even my reckless tendencies. He even mentioned that he had a crush on me since the Garrison."

The pack watched as the twins conversed and plotted, surprised that they were more at ease about being in each other's bodies since learning of the results of Ulaz's scans. These four quintants were going to be interesting.

%%%

The following three quintants weren't as interesting as the pack had originally thought, but that wasn't really surprising. The kits did have to get used to their new bodies and how they moved.

Antok wasn't letting either of them train and had to answer questions from the Blades who had grown accustomed to seeing the kits in their afternoon training sessions. Kolivan was even questioned if Keith was going to go on missions by a few other Blades (like Ilun and Vrek) whom Keith would actually team up with. Ulaz noticed some other Blades sticking their heads into the med bay as they walked by, seeing if either kit was there and hoping they weren't at the same time as that would mean the kits were hurt and no one wanted that. Thace normally didn't have much interactions with Blades in the communications room, so he was surprised when a Blade approached him, asking about his kits, specifically Keith.

"Lieutenant, I have noticed that Keith hasn't been seen around the base as much this movement. Is he with the Paladins?" Voldoi asked.

"No. The kit isn't with the Paladins right now, but we will be attending at meeting with them the next quintant."

"So, why isn't the kit doing his normal activities?"

"Are you trying to say you want the kit to act like an adult?"

Voldoi's eyes widened, and his soft, slate blue fur fluffed out in alarm. "No! Of course not! Please disregard my question, Lieutenant."

Thace watched as Voldoi fled the room. He shook his head. He couldn't wait until they left for the meeting.

%%%

Lance was excited for the meeting...well, not for the meeting but for Keith being back at least for a little while. He had missed his crush and wanted to spend some time with him. He hoped the Blades wouldn't immediately leave after the meeting, so he would get his chance.

%%%

Keith was excited to go back to the castle ship, but he would have preferred to do so in his own body. However, he was making the best of his situation and planned on seeing how much of Lance's feelings were true and how much was infatuation.

He and Acxa plotted to have Keith (in Acxa's body) flirt with Lance while Acxa (in Keith's body) would be within earshot. The twins decided to see what Lance's reaction would be before they would do anything else, but obviously, they would tell the Paladins what happened but not before Keith flirted with Lance.

Once the Marmoran ship landed in the hangar, the pack made their way to the bridge. The tick they entered was a test of how convincing Acxa could be in acting like her brother.

"Keith!"

All of a sudden, Acxa (in Keith's body) was in the middle of a group hug, consisting of the Paladins and the Alteans. Acxa knew that Keith would purr to his other pack and had no problem doing so as she could feel the love from the group. She purred and nuzzled everyone, paying special attention to Shiro (as Keith's closest friend) and Lance (as Keith's crush).

"We missed you too, Keith," Shiro responded.

"However, we do need to have a meeting, but we can spend time together after it," Allura mentioned.

Acxa whimpered at the withdraw of the hug, but she cut it off as she felt Lance's arms still around her shoulders. Lance squeezed her. "It'll be okay, Keith. We can sit next to each other at the meeting, if you'd like."

"Sure."

Everyone made their way to the dining hall, since there were enough seats there and everyone sat down. Acxa and Keith sat down on each side of Lance with Krolia sitting next to Keith (in Acxa's body) and Shiro sitting next to Acxa (in Keith's body). The pack was sitting across from their kits and Krolia with Kolivan sitting near the head of the table where Allura was sitting.

Keith and Acxa didn't really contribute the meeting, though they paid attention. It was informative as they were discussing whether or not the Blades having a presence on the castle ship would be an advantage for future missions. However, they perked up, when Shiro mentioned taking a break in the lounge.

The entire group adjourned to the lounge, which was when Keith and Acxa decided to put their plan into action. Acxa (in Keith's body) sat down next to Shiro, who was across from Lance, and Keith (in Acxa's body) sat down next to Lance. Keith was a little nervous. He didn't really flirt, but he knew how to get Lance flustered, hence the reason his twin was nearby, within earshot. 

"Hello, Lance."

Lance shot the half-Galra sitting next to him a glance. "Hey, Acxa."

"I heard your the team's sharpshooter. I bet you never miss your mark." Keith scooted a little closer to the Blue Paladin.

"Uh, yeah. That's right."

"Are you nervous?"

"Maybe." Lance scooted a little further away from his crush's twin.

"There's no reason to be nervous. You know me."

"But I don't have a crush on you."

"Who do you have a crush on?"

Lance's gaze landed on the being sitting next to Shiro. "Keith."

The twins' eyes met, and Keith (in Acxa's body) nodded. Keith looked over at his pack, wanting them to explain what happened. Ulaz realized what the youngest kit was wanting. "Our apologies for not mentioning this earlier, but the kits had an incident earlier and ended up switching bodies."

"Switching bodies?" Lance echoed.

"That means Keith is in Acxa's body and vice versa," Krolia simplified.

Lance's gaze slid back to the blue skinned kit sitting next to him. "Keith?"

Keith grinned. "Hey, Sharpshooter."

"This is weird."

"I know, and I understand that, but I do want you to know that I have a crush on you too."

"You do?"

"I do."

"I wish you were in your own body."

"Me too. Can we cuddle though in the meantime?"

Lance smiled. "Yeah. We can do that."

"Kits, would you like to spend the quintant here with the Paladins?" Kolivan asked.

"Can we?" Keith asked.

"Of course, kit."

"We can do a movie marathon! I have a whole lot to choose from," Pidge offered.

Lance grinned and whispered a suggestion into Pidge's ear. The Green Paladin grinned back and nodded. Lance clapped his hands. "All right, people. Sleepover time!"

Keith (in Acxa's body) looked at the adult members of his pack. "Can we make a nest while the Paladins are changing clothes?"

"You are changing clothes too, kit. Your pack will make a nest while you and your sister change into something more comfortable," Antok replied.

"I'll go with them," Krolia offered.

Krolia accompanied her twins to Keith's private room when he spent time at the castle ship. She busied herself with divesting herself of her armor while the twins were changing their clothes.

Acxa was surprised that there was more than one pair of the red Paladin pyjamas. She hadn't seen Keith wear them before, so she had been quite certain that there would only be one pair. Keith realized what his sister was thinking and told her, "I don't wear these often, but Coran made sure each of us had multiple pairs of the pyjamas and seeing us wearing them made him happy."

Acxa understood what Keith meant. Her twin liked doing things that made others happy, even if he didn't do many things that made him happy. That was something the pack was working on changing.

Krolia settled a hand on each of her kits' shoulders. "Let's get back to the lounge. The nest might be done by now."

"It's not been that long, Mama," Keith mentioned, falling into step behind her and beside his twin.

"That is true, but I know my pack brothers. They won't take long in constructing a nest for all of you kits to rest in."

"And the Paladins," Acxa added.

"I was counting the Paladins in the kit category."

"But they aren't kits," Keith stated.

"They are younger than you, kit, except for Shiro, but he's not that much older, so they are all kits too," Krolia explained as the trio walked into the lounge.

True to Krolia's prediction, there was a large nest in the lounge. It took up the entirety of the space between the couches and was already occupied. Kolivan and Antok were lounging near each other, the latter having already undone his mate's braid and had his claws in the white strands. Ulaz and Thace were cuddling, the former grooming his mate's violet fur. The Paladins were gathered around Pidge and her laptop. Keith wasn't sure what exactly they were doing, but he guessed they were picking movies they were going to watch.

Keith, Acxa, and Krolia entered the nest and settled down. Keith (in Acxa's body) sat down next Lance. "So, which movies did you pick?"

"Ferngully: The Last Rainforest, The Last Unicorn,  Coraline, The Dark Crystal, Watership Down, and The Secret of NIMH," Pidge listed.

Keith nodded but had no clue what some of the movies were. Shiro realized what the look that crossed the half-Galra's face was. He slid an arm around Keith's shoulders and pressed a kiss to his temple. "Don't worry. We knew you wouldn't know some of these movies, so we went ahead and picked out a selection."

"What types of movies have you picked, kits?" Krolia asked as Acxa snuggled up next to her.

"A few movies geared towards kids," Pidge replied as she started the playlist, but the grin on her face made the Blades weary.

None of the Paladins or Acxa stayed awake long enough to finish the entire list. As the nest filled with purrs, snores, and contented sighs, the adults in the pack let the movies play, but they couldn't help paying attention to them. The disturbing nature of these movies reminded them of the folk tales their parents would tell them when they were younger; not as young as these kits but still kits. As disturbing as the movies were, the Blades realized that the kits were sleeping peacefully.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Missing Him"

It wasn't normal for Kolivan to announce to his pack that they were taking the next quintant off from work and training, but after missing Keith during the movement he spent with the Paladins, the pack agreed to the news before they fell asleep in the nest.

%%%

Keith stirred slightly, rolling over in his still sleepy state. Instead of ending up snuggled against Ulaz, he ended up in Ulaz's empty spot. The lack of warm body woke Keith up. He raised his head from the pillows and made a questioning noise. The resulting rumble from across the room drew his attention to Ulaz, who was putting on his uniform. Once he was done, Ulaz knelt down next to the nest and stroked Keith's cheek stripes. "Just go back to sleep, kit. I'm heading for the med bay."

"But," Keith yawned, showing off his small fangs. "Kolivan said-"

"'Laz, if you don't get back in the nest and cuddle our kit on your own, then I will drag you back in here myself," Thace interrupted in a half growl.

Knowing how serious his mate was, Ulaz divested himself of his uniform and slipped his comfortable clothes back on. He crawled into the nest and, once moving Keith out of his spot, laid down. Keith gave a sleepy but happy chirp and snuggled against Ulaz with a purr, which went up in volume when he felt Thace curl around his back.

%%%

Unbeknownst to the others, Kolivan was awake and had watched the scene play out. He was glad that Keith and Thace got Ulaz to come back to the nest. He was tempted to check on the base himself, but he knew that he needed to follow his own orders, which truthfully wouldn't be difficult as it meant he got to spend time with his kit.

What Kolivan didn't know was that Antok was awake also. He was worried that his mate would get up to run the base like he did every quintant, so he was pleased when he felt Kolivan settle back against him. He tightened his tail around Kolivan's waist briefly in a type of hug before burying his face in his mate's unbraided white strands, easily falling back asleep himself.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Purring Blades"

The Paladins knew that Keith purred, but catching him purring loud enough that they heard him clearly was a different story. Shiro had known Keith the longest and had heard him purring when he stayed with him and Adam before the Kerberos Mission. The rest of the Paladins (and the Alteans) hadn't heard Keith purr until after the reveal of his Galran heritage, but even then, he didn't purr until everyone was okay with it, and he had been accepted into a pack at the Blade headquarters.

When Kolivan, Antok, Thace, and Ulaz found out Keith's age, they immediately took him into their pack. They correctly suspected that he didn't know anything about his heritage, so they started teaching him about their culture. This provided Keith with the knowledge that the strange noises he made in his childhood were actually Galran noises and were perfectly normal, especially for kits, which was what Keith was.

%%%

Keith was done with a short training session and had taken his shower. His pack was currently out, checking on a Galran occupied planet and seeing if the Paladins needed to liberate the inhabitants. The Red Paladin had promised his pack that he wouldn't overdo his training while they were away.

He decided to lay down in the lounge, even though the room was empty. He knew it wasn't likely to stay empty, but he wasn't going to refuse company. He closed his eyes, relaxing in the nest they kept in the lounge, inadvertantly falling asleep and beginning to purr.

Lance was on his way to the lounge to read on his data pad. Before he even entered the lounge, he heard a familiar noise that brought a smile to his face. He quietly entered the lounge to confirm his suspicions and grinned even wider. He was right. Keith was purring in his sleep. Lance settled into the nest and started reading while Keith took a nap.

%%%

Hunk wasn't used to sharing the kitchen on the castle ship but wouldn't tell Thace to leave, especially since his cooking was pretty good, definitely better than Coran's. He wasn't expecting to hear Thace softly purring as he cooked. Hunk knew that Lance called the Blades (and Galra in general) giant space cats, but he hadn't considered the validity of his friend's statement until he started spending more time around the Blades. He realized that even though Lance probably said it in jest that the Blue Paladin was mostly correct, especially considering the purr reminded Hunk strongly of Earth cats.

%%%

Ulaz was taking inventory of the castle ship's med bay's supplies and records, making sure they were up to date and not expired. The pale Galra considered taking inventory relaxing, especially since he wasn't the one in charge of a location that frequently saw injured personnel. He was so wrapped up in taking inventory that he didn't realize that he wasn't alone.

Pidge had been working in her workshop and inadvertantly sliced her fingertip. She needed to wrap it in order to keep working and not get blood everywhere. She heard a strange noise coming from the med bay, so she peeked in and saw Ulaz with his back to her. She glanced around but couldn't figure out where the noise was coming from until she edged further into the room. She then recognized what the noise was as it was similar to Keith's purr. Her eyebrows rose in surprise as she didn't realize that Galra actually purr. She thought it was a Keith thing. She grabbed a couple of bandages and slipped out of the med bay, not wanting to disturb the doctor.

%%%

Keith and Coran were on the bridge, Coran flying the castle ship and Keith sitting in his Red Paladin seat. Keith was trying to modify the defense drone but wasn't having any luck and was getting frustrated.

Kolivan entered the bridge and noticed that his kit was having trouble with whatever his task was. The leader approached the Red Paladin. "Kit, are you all right?"

Keith huffed. "Yeah. I just can't figure this out!"

"Calm yourself, kit. It'll come to you." Kolivan began running his claws through Keith's hair and purring to him.

Coran heard the distinctive purr of an adult Galra wanting to soothe a kit. He didn't even have to turn around to know that one of Keith's pack had come by to check on him, and judging from the short conversation, Coran knew it was Kolivan. He knew that Galra could purr, but he hadn't heard the leader of the Blades purr before.

%%%

Antok entered the training deck to see his kit play fighting with the Black Paladin. Since his kit was having fun, the large Blade looked around the room, his attention drawn by a small pile on the sidelines. He walked over to the pile to investigate its contents. He saw his kit's jacket, water pouches, and containers of food. He knelt down and picked up one of the containers, peering through the translucent container sides. He could make out round shapes that indicating that it was full of one of his kit's favorite snacks, cucumber slices. He quickly glanced at the other containers and saw various snack type foods. He was pleased both Paladins were taking care of themselves while they play and started purring at the thought.

Keith and Shiro noticed when Antok entered but didn't pause their spar. Keith didn't get to work his hand-to-hand combat with Shiro, who was the only one who gave Keith any competition. However, Keith guessed it was natural for Shiro to beat him. The two Paladins decided to take a break and walked over to the sidelines where their stuff was. Keith grinned at Antok and chirped at him. Antok was still purring, but it was a bit louder in response to Keith. Shiro hadn't realized that the purring Keith did back on Earth was a Galran thing, but in hindsight, he should have. Then again, he had never heard any of the Blades purr until now.

%%%

The Blades gathered in the lounge, resting in the nest. The door opened, admitting their kit, dressed in a pair of black pants and a soft, red shirt and was barefoot. He smiled as Thace beckoned him to join them in the nest. Keith slid into the nest between Thace and Antok. As the two with the thickest fur, their body heat kept Keith warm as he slept, which he wasn't too far away from, surrounded by purrs from the other four members of his pack.

Allura was on her way to her room and was passing by the lounge but paused when she heard a strange yet muffled noise. She opened the doors to the lounge and was met by the sight of Keith's entire pack sleeping in the nest and all purring. Allura had to swallow her initial reaction of cooing at the sweet scene, but she did pull out here data pad and take not only pictures but a short video as well. She sent the pictures and video to the rest of the Paladins and Coran with the caption of 'how sweet.'

She silently snuck back out of the lounge, but when the doors shut, her data pad dinged with a reply from Lance, which read, I told you guys the Galra were giant space cats.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Night Cycle Interruption"

Something woke Kolivan up, but he wasn't initially sure what it was. A soft whimpering drew his attention to the sleeping kit nestled between him and his mate, Antok. Kolivan shifted slightly and gently nosed Keith's hair, rumbling to him and hoping to soothe the kit and not wake him up. Unfortunately, Keith's eyes flew open, and he sat up, panting harshly. His fangs glinted in the dim light of the nest room.

The kit's Galran features had come in recently, and everyone was pleased with them, including the Paladins and Alteans. Keith had been worried about the others' reactions to his new looks, which he didn't actually have to worry about. When Allura saw Keith's Galran features, she smiled and had drawn him into a hug, stroking his hair. "You look so good, Keith. Are you pleased with the features you inherited?"

"Yeah." Keith had purple, fluffy ears; purple cheek stripes; sharp fangs; and a long, thin, purple tail.

"That's good."

The Paladins had gathered around the pair and had taken turns complimenting Keith and making sure they got to hug Keith. However, the previous person didn't really want to let go of Keith, so the kit ended up in the middle of a group hug, which Keith loved so much that he started purring.

The reveal had happened earlier that quintant, so why had the kit been whimpering in his sleep? Kolivan slowly reached out to Keith, carding his claws through the kit's longer hair. "Kit, are you all right?"

Keith made a questioning noise as he looked up at Kolivan. "K-Kolivan?"

"I am here, kit." Taking notice of Keith's body language, the leader of the Blades slid the kit onto his lap and wrapped his arms around him. "Do you wish to speak about your nightmare?"

Keith buried his face in Kolivan's shoulder, not wanting to voice the horror of having the Paladins and Alteans push him away and verbally attack him due to his Galran features (in his nightmare). Keith shook his head, trying to prevent himself from shaking. Kolivan could tell whatever he had dreamt had disturbed the kit greatly, so he started nuzzling his head gently. "You're all right, kit. You are safe in the nest with your pack."

Keith failed at keeping himself from shaking and gripped Kolivan's top. Kolivan started grooming Keith's hair in an attempt to soothe the kit, hoping the rest of the pack would remain asleep however, that didn't work.

"Van, what's going on?" Antok was still slightly sleepy.

"The kit had a nightmare but won't speak of it," Kolivan answered his mate. The fact that he was doting on Keith didn't have to be voiced as it was obvious.

Antok shuffled closer and bent down to nuzzle Keith's hair. However, it was at the same time as Kolivan grooming Keith's hair, and Kolivan ended up licking his mate's nose. The strange, almost strangled noise coming from Antok caused Keith to look up from Kolivan's shoulder at the two eldest pack members. Keith cast his gaze from one to the other before he busted out laughing at their expressions.

Neither one was that humorous, but the Red Paladin's emotions were still out of whack due to the nightmare. No matter the reason, the two Blades were glad that their kit was feeling better after the nightmare. He may not want to speak of it during the night cycle, but they would try again when it was lighter out. For now, they would get the kit to go back to sleep.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Wormhole Home"

Keith peeked into the command area, looking for Akira. He caught Isamu's attention. The brunette Gun called out to him. "Keith, are you looking for Aki?"

"Yeah. We are planning to depart and head back to our reality, but I wanted to say good-bye."

"Did you check his office? He spends a lot of time there."

"He does. Thanks." Keith left the command area and headed for the office. He knocked on the door.

"Come in."

The distinctive accent made Keith smile. Sven was apparently in the room with Akira. Keith opened the door and grinned. Sven had apparently gotten Akira to take a break, and the two were reclined on the love seat. Keith's entrance caused them to look up at him.

"Hello, Keith," Akira replied, his Altean marks glowing slightly.

"Hey, Akira. I was wanting to let you know that we were planning on departing soon."

Akira patted Sven's hands, which moved, allowing Akira to stand. He moved over to Keith and embraced him. "Have a safe trip home."

Keith gripped Akira tight. "Thanks. I'm going to miss you."

"I'll miss you too. I hope we get to meet again."

Sven approached the pair and laid a hand on Akira's shoulder. "Aki, you need to let go."

Akira squeezed Keith tighter before releasing his grip. He turned around and buried his face in Sven's shoulder. Sven wrapped one arm around Akira and offered the other hand to Keith. The Paladin smiled and gripped his hand. "Take care, Keith."

"Thanks, Sven." Keith released his grip and left the pair in the office. He figured they didn't want to see them leave and didn't blame them as it was like losing a family member, because of how close Keith and Akira had become.

Keith entered the hangar and saw his team ready to don their helmets and enter their lions. Lance stepped forward a little. "You good to go, Keith?"

"Yeah. I think so."

"Keith!"

Keith stopped and turned around, surprised to see Akira hurrying in his direction. "Akira, what's wrong?"

The leader of the Guns held out a data chip. "This should allow us to talk, even across realities."

Keith took it and raised an eyebrow. "This will work?"

"It should." Pidge readjusted her glasses. "If we fine tune the frequency of the..." She trailed off, catching sight of her team mate's confused expressions. "Nevermind. Yeah. It should work."

"Then, you hold onto this." Keith passed the data chip over to the tech obsessed Paladin. He turned back to face Akira, once Pidge grabbed the data chip. "I was wondering if you were going to see us off."

"It's not just me here."

Sven, Isamu, Hiroshi, and Tsuyoshi stepped into the hangar. Sven stepped forward slightly, addressing the Paladins. "Safe travels back to your reality."

"It was good to see you again, Sven, and to meet everyone else," Lance replied.

Akira embraced Keith again. "I hope to speak to you soon, brother."

Keith gave Akira a squeeze before unwrapping his arms. He turned to his team. "Paladins, to your lions."

The five Paladins donned their helmets and entered their lions. Each of the lions' eyes lit up, and there were five resounding roars before they took off. "Paladins, on me. Form Voltron."

The five lions combined into the Defender of the Universe. It wasn't much longer before glowed an Altean blue, starting at the Blue Lion and covering the entire robot. Voltron flew towards a strange wormhole that appeared nearby, and the robot disappeared from sight.

Once Voltron was out of sight, Hiroshi, Tsuyoshi, and Isamu left the hangar, leaving Akira and Sven alone. Sven walked up to Akira and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "They'll be okay, Aki. You'll see. They will make contact once they make it back to their reality."

"They weren't as strange as I initially thought they were. I'm glad we got to meet them."

"Me too, Aki. Me too."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Hallucinating"

James Griffin was making his way back to his room after attending a debriefing by Commander Iverson and Captain Shirogane. All he wanted to do was fall into bed and perhaps take a nap. However, his bed was currently occupied as he discovered when he entered his room.

The usual smile he had on his face when he saw his boyfriend was absent as James tried to make sense of what he was seeing. At first he thought he was hallucinating, because surely no one would not visit the med bay after sustaining that many injuries, but there Keith was sitting on their bed, dabbing some ointment on an injury located on his arm.

"Keith?"

Keith looked up in surprise. "Oh, James, hi. I didn't think you'd be back for another hour."

"If I was, I'd have missed this scene. As much as I like seeing you shirtless, I'd prefer if you didn't add to the numerous injuries that you accumulated during your time in space."

"Most of those weren't my fault."

"I was told that this one was from your choice." James lightly traced Keith's scar from the Trials of Marmora, making Keith shiver.

"Well, how else was I going to find out that I was part Galra?" Keith was glad that James no longer disliked him for being part Galra. At first, James almost detested him because of what the Galra, specifically The Fire of Purification, had done to Earth and its inhabitants, but he learned that not all Galra were bad, especially Keith and his pack from The Blade of Marmora. "Can you help me put this on my back?"

James looked at the tube of ointment that Keith was using. "That's not a usual ointment."

"No. I got this from Ulaz. It's supposed to work better with my physiology."

"So, your pack knows you're hurt?"

"No. Ulaz gave me this for any injuries I could sustain in the field."

"Put that away. You are going to the med bay. You need professional help with those injuries."

"Are you going to stay with me?"

"Of course. I wouldn't pass up the chance to spend more time with you."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Shackled"

Lotor was incensed. His mate, Keith, had been taken prisoner by their own people. The Galran prince had been working with not only the Paladins but the Blade of Marmora as well in order to locate Keith. He knew that Keith was important to everyone, since he was the Red Paladin, a member of the Blade of Marmora, a Galran kit, and his mate.

It had taken several quintants to find out where he was taken to. An argument broke out over who was going to get Keith. The Blades wanted to get their kit, and the Paladins wanted to get their fellow Paladin, but Lotor actually had a plan to extract Keith and bring him back to the castle ship.

Kolivan stepped forward and placed a hand on Lotor's shoulder. "Bring our kit back."

"I will."

%%%

That was an easy promise to make until he saw the state his mate was in. Keith was shackled to the wall, half-naked and covered with cuts and bruises. He was shaking from the cold and was softly whimpering.

"What. The. Hell. Happened. To. Him?!" Lotor tried to rein in his temper.

"Wha-what do you mean, you highness?" the guard stammered.

"What do I mean?" he asked, his voice was deadly quiet. "I MEAN WHY THE HELL IS MY MATE CHAINED TO A WALL, SHAKING, HALF NAKED, AND COVERED IN CUTS AND BRUISES!"

"Uh, we-we were t-trying to-"

"RELEASE HIM NOW!"

The guard didn't hesitate, opened Keith's cell, and unshackled Keith. Lotor rushed forward and caught his mate, rumbling to him. Keith's eyes fluttered open, and he whined.

Lotor lifted Keith into his arms. "I've got you, my mate. Let's get you home."

The Galran prince carried Keith to his ship and then flew to the castle ship. He was on his way to the med bay and was met on the way by Keith's pack. Ulaz fell into step beside him, trying to visibly assess his kit's wounds. He reached out and brushed Keith's bangs out of his eyes. Keith stirred at the contact, a questioning noise that ended in a whimper escaping him.

"You're safe now, kit. You're back home. Now, let's get you healed up."

Lotor and Ulaz prepped Keith for his time in a healing pod. Once Keith was set in the pod, Lotor stepped back slightly and was surprised to be pulled into a group hug of the Blades, thanks to Antok.

"Thank you for rescuing our kit," Kolivan mentioned.

"I'm sorry that he was taken to begin with."

"It's not your fault, kit," Thace stated.

Lotor's head jerked up. "Kit?"

"You are our kit's mate, which makes you part of our pack, our kit," Antok answered. Lotor smiled as the Paladins entered the med bay.

Lance went up to the pod, and Shiro approached the pack. "How long is he going to be in there?"

"Two more vargas," Ulaz answered.

"It's hard to believe," Lance said. It almost seemed like he didn't know he was actually talking out loud. "He's been through so much, and it keeps going."

Allura walked up to Lance and placed a hand on his shoulder. "At least he's back home, where his family, his entire family is."

%%% Two Vargas Later

The front of the pod disappeared, and Keith started falling but was able to be caught by Antok. Keith snuggled against the large Blade, recognizing his pack member by smell. Antok carried his kit over to the group of his pack, the Paladins, the Alteans, and his mate.

Keith slowly opened his eyes and smiled as he saw every member of his found family gathered around him. Antok set Keith on his feet, and he was surrounded by the Paladins and Alteans and the Blades and Lotor were on the outside of the group hug. Keith managed to produce a gravelly yet still soothing purr at being at the center of the hug, content with the knowledge that he was safe.

Fin

Chapter Text

"A Little Headache"

Keith closed his eyes and rubbed his temples in an attempt to stave off the slowly building headache. His actions didn't go unnoticed by the princess. She approached his Paladin seat, where he was sitting, and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Keith, are you all right?"

He fought the urge to whine in response. He swallowed hard and replied, "Y-Yeah. It's just a little headache...Allura."

Allura didn't have any reason to doubt his words, but the pause before her name concerned her. She took a step closer and brushed her fingertips against his forehead in a caress.

Keith couldn't help but lean into the caress with a soft whimper that he hoped Allura didn't hear. Unfortunately, Allura had exceptional hearing and heard the whimper. "Keith?"

"Mama."

Allura carded her fingers through her little's hair. "It's all right, sweetie. I've got you. Do you want to go lay down?"

"Mama stay?"

"Of course." Allura used her Altean strength and lifted Keith out of the Red Paladin seat and into her arms. He nuzzled her shoulder, keeping his head buried so as to help block out the bright lights of the castle ship. Allura would have normally carried him to his room, but her room was closer, so she entered her room, glad that the lights were lower than the ones in the corridor had been.

She sat down on her bed and relaxed her grip on Keith. She couldn't help but smile at him gripped her dress tightly in an attempt to keep the lights from escalating his headache. "It's all right, sweetheart. The lights are lowered."

Keith cautiously peeked out in order to check the intensity, relaxing when he saw it was true. He uncurled himself and looked around, realized they weren't in his room. He looked up at Allura in askance.

"We're in my room, baby."

Keith's attention was drawn to a pillow that was fuzzy, and he reached out to stroke it, pausing to wait for permission. Allura handed the pillow to Keith before she settled fully on the bed. Keith crawled over to lay next to her, the pillow still in his arms. Allura went back to carding her fingers through his hair, using some of her Altean magic to ease the tension in his head, which allowed him to drift off to sleep, a soft purr escaping him as he slept.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Locked Out"

Keith laid down in the nest the team kept in the lounge. He was put out that Allura had locked the training deck after dinner. She had announced it during dinner and said that it wouldn't be open again until after breakfast. That conversation kept playing over and over in his head.

%%% Flashback Begins

Everyone sat down at the table, Keith coming in last, having come from taking a shower after working out on the training deck. Hunk set the dishes on the table in front of each being before taking his seat next to Pidge.

Lance inhaled deeply and moaned. "Hunk, my man, this smells so good!"

Hunk blushed slightly. "Thanks, bro. Eat up!"

Lance immediately dug in, and the moment the food was in his mouth, his eyes widened. "This tastes even better than it smells!"

"Thanks. I finally found a use for the-" Hunk started.

"Oh no you don't!" Pidge interrupted. "Hunk, we don't want to know what you put in here. I for one just want to enjoy it, and I'm sure everyone else would agree with me."

Allura smiled at the interaction between her Paladins. She didn't want to interrupt their conversation, but she had an important announcement. "Paladins, I feel it's important to tell you that the training hall will be locked directly after dinner and remained locked until after breakfast."

There was a moment of silence before Keith asked, "Is it under repairs?"

"No, Number Four. It has come to our attention that the training deck has been used late in the quintant, especially when you are supposed to be asleep."

"Not me!" Lance exclaimed. "I train in the middle of the afternoon."

"We know that, Lance. In fact, we know who is the one who trains late," Allura stated.

"Not exactly correct, Princess," Coran corrected. "It wasn't just one Paladin. It was two."

"We all know Mullet is the one who trains the most," Lance said. Keith just glared briefly at Lance but didn't say anything.

"And I'll admit that I've trained late or early at times due to nightmares a few times," Shiro admitted. "And I have seen Keith in there."

"But you don't kick me out or anything! In fact, you usually join me in training!" Keith jumped in.

"I don't kick you out because I know how you are. You'd just wait until I left and go back to training."

"Be that as it may, it doesn't change the fact that the training deck will be closed every night cycle until after breakfast."

Keith fought the urge to whine at the news. He didn't like being idle, and now with the training deck closed, he didn't know what he could do.

%%% Flashback Ends

Keith sighed. It was going to be a long night cycle.

%%%

Lance wasn't expecting to be disturbed while applying his face mask. He made his way to the door, but the scent of freshly baked cookies wafted through the door, letting him know the identity of his visitor without him having to open the door. He opened it anyway with his arms wide open. "Hunk, buddy!"

"Aaaa!"

Zap

Thud

"$#!+. Sorry, Lance. It was a reflex," Pidge apologized. "You startled me."

Lance stood up from where he had fallen when Pidge zapped him with her bayard, groaning. "I was expecting Hunk, especially with the scent of freshly baked cookies. By the way, where are you taking those?"

"I'm taking these to the lounge. Hunk figured that Keith would be bored since he can't be on the training deck, so he's baking some treats and I said I'd deliver these."

Lance gasped. "Since Keith can't be on the training deck, we can use this time to have a slumber party!"

Pidge scoffed. "You tell Keith."

"Naw, I'm getting Shiro to tell Keith."

Pidge smirked. "Well, I'm on my way. See ya."

Pidge made her way down the corridor, and Lance went back into his room to wash the face mask off. Once it was off, Lance went a couple of doors down and knocked on Shiro's door.

Shiro answered, surprised to see Lance standing there. "Hey, Lance. What do you need?"

"Since the training deck is closed, I thought it would be a good time to have a slumber party, but Keith might need some convincing."

Shiro smiled. "Say no more. I can get Keith to agree easily."

%%%

Lance had been skeptical regardless of Shiro's promise. He entered the lounge in his Altean pajamas and lion slippers, expecting to see Keith pouting in the nest, but the scene he walked in on was completely different. Not only was Keith not pouting in the nest, but he was also wearing his Altean pajamas and lion slippers. The Red Paladin was sitting next to Pidge, who had her laptop with her and open.

Lance approached and entered the nest, settling beside Shiro. It was then that he realized that everyone was wearing their Altean pajamas and lion slippers. He snagged a rice crispy treat, throwing a smile Hunk's way, before addressing Shiro. "So, Shiro, how did you get Keith to agree to this?"

"It was easy. I asked him. Back at the Garrison, he used to have slumber parties all the time with me and Adam, and he loved them."

"I never would have thought that Mullet would be one for slumber parties."

"You don't know me as well as you think you do," Keith replied. He snagged a cookie and took a bite. He swallowed and replied, "But that's probably more on me than anything. Anyway, Pidge has made a list-"

"You helped too!" Pidge cut in.

"Pidge and I made a list of movies that we'll be watching during the slumber party."

"Really? What movies?"

"Disney movies."

Lance rolled his eyes. "I meant, which ones?"

"Frozen, Tangled, Princess and the Frog, Zootopia, Moana, Hercules, and The Emperor's New Groove."

"Hmm. I've only seen some of those. This should be fun."

Fin

Chapter Text

"Run Of The Mill Chat"

MFE1 added MFE2, MFE3, MFE4, Captain, Adam, Curtis, RedPaladin, GreenPaladin, YellowPaladin, BluePaladin, and RebelTechie to the chat.

*MFE1 has changed their name to MFELeader*

MFELeader: There we go

RebelTechie: Where's Keith...and his pack?

MFELeader: Galra don't belong in my chat

YellowPaladin: *flinch*

RedPaladin: *flinch*

Captain: *flinch*

Adam: *flinch*

Curtis: *flinch*

RebelTechie: *flinch*

BluePaladin: *flinch*

MFEHandler: *flinch*

*GreenPaladin has changed their name to Hacker*

Hacker: Hehehe

Hacker added BlackPaladin, BladeLeader, BladeLeader2, Medic, DadSpy, MomSpy,  TwinSis, and BigBro to the chat.

Hacker: Care to repeat that, Griffin?

MFELeader: No

MomSpy: Is there something I need to take care of?

BlackPaladin: Probably just Griffin being stupid

MFE4: How did you add people to the chat?

Hacker: It's literally my sn! I'm a hacker!

RedPaladin: Now, that everyone's here, let's do some name changes!

*RedPaladin has changed their name to Lancelot*

*Lancelot has changed BlackPaladin's name to KeithyCat*

KeithyCat: Really, Lance?

Lancelot: What? It fits!

Adam: It really does

Captain: Agreed

Hacker: It does

YellowPaladin: Yup

BluePaladin: Of course

KeithyCat: *facepalm*

*Captain has changed BluePaladin's name to Princess*

Princess: Thank you, Shiro

Captain: You're welcome

*KeithyCat has changed Captain's name to SpaceDad*

*KeithyCat has changed Adam's name to EarthDad*

*KeithyCat has changed Curtis's name to EarthDad2*

EarthDad: Keith, why?

KeithyCat: Do you really need an explanation?

EarthDad2: If he doesn't, I do

KeithyCat: Well, Shiro is the eldest of the Paladins, so that made him the "Dad" of the group and since we were in space, he was Space Dad.

Lancelot: Since Adam was still dating Shiro even though he was still on Earth, he's "Earth Dad"

EarthDad2: And since I am dating both and on Earth, I'm "Earth Dad #2"

YellowPaladin: Yes

MFEHandler: I have not heard from the Blades...or James in awhile

KeithyCat: I couldn't care less about Griffin, but Mom, where are you?

KeithyCat: Mom?

KeithyCat: Mom?

KeithyCat: @MomSpy?

MomSpy: Yes, kit?

KeithyCat: Where were you?

MomSpy: I love our wolf

KeithyCat: Lmao

SpaceDad: That's not an answer

MomSpy: Yes it is

KeithyCat: Yes it is

DadSpy: Like mother, like kit

Hacker: There are a lot of Dads in the chat

KeithyCat: I can make it worse :D

MFE3: How?

YellowPaladin: Please don't

*KeithyCat has changed Medic's name to Papa*

*KeithyCat has  changed BladeLeader's name to Father*

*KeithyCat has changed BladeLeader2's name to Dad*

KeithyCat: :D

SpaceDad: I'm still waiting on an answer

SpaceDad: I better not see blood anywhere on my ship

Dad: That implies Krolia was less than proficient

SpaceDad: I'm not saying she isn't good at her job, blood is notorious for being horrible to clean up

MomSpy: I was very good at keeping the blood spray to a minimum

KeithyCat: Why did you go after Griffin, anyway? Not that you need a reason. He is an asshole

EarthDad2: Language

KeithyCat: Mierda

EarthDad: Language

KeithyCat: Quiznack

SpaceDad: Cursing in Altean doesn't work either

KeithyCat: Batoaltisjuc

Father: Kit!

Dad: Kit!

Papa: Kit!

DadSpy: Kit!

MomSpy: Kit!

BigBro: :O

TwinSis: When did you learn that?

MomSpy: Acxa!

TwinSis: I mean :O

KeithyCat: ...

KeithyCat: No comment

RebelTechie: Raise your hand if you are enjoying this *raises hand*

Lancelot: *raises hand*

Hacker: *raises hand*

MFE2: *raises hand*

MFE3: *raises hand*

MFE4: *raises hand*

MFEHandler: *raises hand*

Princess: *raises hand*

YellowPaladin: *raises hand*

KeithyCat: I'm not sure if I'm feeling upset at being scolded or feeling betrayed at finding out my team (and others) are enjoying this

Lancelot: Take your pick

SpaceDad: What happened to James?

Hacker: The world may never know

Fin

Chapter Text

"Seeing Into Other Realities"

Honerva's energy ball blasted past the fused mechs and cut into one of the glowing strands behind them. The force the the strand unraveling made the Paladins (and Shiro) curl inwards as their minds were assaulted by images from what could only be an alternate reality.

%%%

Keith looked around, recognizing his location as the headquarters for the Blade of Marmora. His feet almost automatically took him to the room he was assigned when he started going on missions for Kolivan.

"Keith!"

Keith whirled around, surprised someone noticed him. He smiled though, seeing his mother heading in his direction. "Mom, I-"

He stopped as Krolia passed through him like he wasn't even there. He turned around and saw her stroking someone else's hair. He leaned sideways to get a look at that being and was surprised to see a mostly half-Galra looking version of himself. It had to be him, especially since the other's eyes were exactly like his own (with white sclera instead of the traditional Galran yellow).

Keith realized in this reality he looked more Galran which prompted his mom to take him with her instead of leaving him on Earth with his dad.

%%%

Keith thought it was strange that he actually saw an alternate version of himself in the glimpse he got. Keith barely got his breath back before Honerva destroyed another strand, the force of which sent Keith straight back into his seat.

%%%

Keith once again found himself at the Blade headquarters, but this time he was in a strange room. The room was almost completely covered by a structure made of blankets and pillows. The even stranger thing was that Antok, Thace, and Ulaz were lounging in the structure. Keith hadn't had the opportunity to get to know these particular Blades in his timeline.

Just then, the door opened and in walked Kolivan...with what looked like himself thrown over the leader's shoulder. The leader of the Blades deposited that Keith into the structure in between Thace and Ulaz. Thace nosed his hair while Ulaz smirked. "Training again, kit? You know the rules."

"I do, but I'm getting better with my blade!"

'Kit? What did that mean?' Keith thought as he watched what was apparently a reality where he was raised by the Blades, even though he looked human.

%%%

Keith managed to catch his breath this time before he was thrown into yet another reality.

%%%

This time, though, Keith wasn't in space. He immediately recognized Adam's and Shiro's apartment back on Earth. Was this a reality where he was younger than he was currently?

Seeing himself walk out of the room he always used when he stayed for the night or weekend shattered his expectations. He looked exactly like he did when he got kicked out of the Garrison. He followed his double and saw, to his amazement, both Adam and Shiro sitting on their couch. Shiro's floof was still black, and both he and Adam were sporting matching silver rings on their left hands. Keith's eyes roved over the few framed pictures on their walls and he saw one that blew his mind. Apparently, this Shiro never went on the Kerberos mission, and he and Adam actually adopted their Keith, which allowed him to stay with them at their apartment every day.

%%%

Keith could feel a headache coming on and he gripped the controls, but before he could try anything, another strand was destroyed, sending Keith into yet another reality.

%%%

"Daddy!"

Keith whirled around at the sound of a little voice. He saw an older version of himself lifting up a little girl with brown pigtails. "How's my little girl?"

"She really wanted to see you, especially after she heard our conversation last night about how you were coming home today, cariño."

Keith turned to face the person who spoke and his breath caught in his throat. It was obviously Lance. What caught his attention was the gold ring on a necklace that was around Lance's neck, one that mirrored the one around the older Keith's neck. Keith's eyes widened. He was married to Lance in this reality...and had apparently adopted a little girl.

"Where's Tyler?"

"Spending time with Auntie Pidge."

Older Keith gave a laugh. "Sometimes I wonder if that boy knows something we don't."

"Oh, he knows a lot of things we don't," Lance said.

"You're smarter than you give yourself credit for." Older Keith came closer to his Lance and cupped one of his cheeks with his free hand.

%%%

Keith came out of that reality with renewed determination. It may not be his reality, but he was in a position to stop this destruction and maybe, just maybe be able to come up with a way to restore the destroyed realities.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Training Records"

When Coran offered to let him and his mate observe the Paladins' team training session, Haxus didn't know what to expect. They knew the Paladins were young, especially the Green One. However, seeing them in simulated battle was another experience altogether. Kits as young as them shouldn't be able to fight as well as the five of them did, especially together.

It also amazed the ex-commander and ex-lieutenant that the Red Paladin was half-Galra, specifically since he didn't look half-Galra. They, along with the Blade of Marmora, had taken the young kit under their wing, determined to take care of the kit, especially when they learned he didn't have a family. He had admitted that his dad had died and that he didn't know his mother. However, seeing the blade he wielded, everyone knew who his mother would be. Unfortunately, she was on a deep cover mission, and extraction would be nigh impossible.

"Good job, team! That's all the training scheduled for the quintant!" Coran called out, drawing the two Galra's attention back to the moment. They watched the Paladins file out of the room, and Coran turned to them. "You are welcome to stay here and review their team and individual records. I'm going to whip up some focus food for the Paladins!"

Sendak and Haxus looked a little unsure about the Paladins liking the food as they knew the Yellow Paladin was the chef of the bunch. They watched Coran leave the observation area before they turned their attention to the individual records. They knew the team training was on level 25, and they were curious what levels each of the Paladins were at during their solo sessions.

They weren't exactly surprised at the first three results. The Yellow Paladin had completed level 30, while the Green Paladin had finished level 27. The Blue Paladin had recently completed level 35. However, their kit's level was insanely high and almost made them miss Shiro's level (40).

Just then, the doors to the training deck opened and in walked their kit. He took of his jacket and tied his hair back. It was obvious to the two Galra that he intended to train. Sendak, with Haxus right behind him, left the observation area and stalked onto the main floor before Keith could call out to start training level 50.

Sendak picked up Keith and flung him over his shoulder, while Haxus picked up his jacket.

"Hey! What's going on?"

"No training for you, kit."

As Keith was carried out, he half-whined, "I just wanted to see what level 50 was like!"

Fin

Chapter Text

"Dual Confessions"

Allura entered the Blue Lion's hangar to the lioness's delight and surprise. She loved flying with Lance as he was her primary Paladin, but flying with the Princess was wonderful too. Blue realized that the Princess was nervous about something, so she knelt down so the Altean could enter her cockpit and not be disturbed.

Allura wasn't entirely sure talking with Blue would help her figure out what to do about these feelings she had for Lance, but she felt like Blue would be the only one who wouldn't judge her and would let her talk about everything without interrupting her. She sank into the cockpit seat and just starting talking.

"I think I may like Lance. When he and the other Paladins first arrived, he was quite bold, but he's actually quite charming...even his ears." Allura giggled softly as she remembered her first interaction with Lance. "I'm unsure if he feels the same. I've seen him flirt with other females and a few males as well. Now that he's not actively flirting with me, I find that I miss it."

%%%

While Allura was talking with Blue, Lance made his way to his lion's hangar. He conversed with Blue daily, but this time he had a reason for the conversation. He laid against one of Blue's front paws and started talking. "Hey, beautiful. You doin' good today? Me? Not so good. I mean we saved a planet yesterday and the natives were grateful, and I flirted with some of the girls, but something was missing. I realized what is was today. I was subconsciously comparing them with Allura. I have never gotten over my crush on the princess, and I don't know if she feels anything for me."

%%%

If Blue could roll her eyes, she would. Her two Paladins were pining for each other and had decided to talk to her about their feelings. She decided that they needed to confront each other and admit their feelings. She contacted them individually. "My Paladin, come join me in our bond."

Lance grinned and closed his eyes, following his lion's instructions. He loved interacting with his lion in the space where they could freely interact. He followed Blue through the flash. When he opened his eyes, he was surprised to see Allura standing there as well. "Allura?"

%%%

Allura opened her eyes after appearing in the space where Paladin and lion could freely interact. She was surprised to see Lance standing there as well. "Lance? I didn't know you were here too."

Blue (in her real, furry lioness form) wound herself around both Lance and Allura before using her tail to push Allura closer to Lance. Unfortunately, Allura lost her balance. Fortunately, Lance was close enough to stop her from falling. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close. Blue purred and said, "You two make a cute couple."

Lance's eyes lit up, realizing what Blue meant. He looked down at the woman in his arms with a soft smile. "I finally have the most beautiful woman in my arms again, and I have no pick up lines for you."

"Didn't stop you the first time."

"Yeah. Well, a beautiful woman literally fell into my arms that time...and this time." A lopsided smile appeared on his face. "I guess you finally fell for me."

Allura giggled at the bad pick up line. "As much as I missed your pick up lines aimed in my direction, that one was...what was the word? Corny? Yes. It was corny."

"You like my pick up lines aimed at you? Well, your highness, you can expect more in the future, but for now, would you like to rest with our lion here with me?"

Allura smiled. "I would like nothing more."

Lance led Allura over to where Blue had laid down as her Paladins talked. Lance sat down, leaning against Blue, and Allura snuggled against his side. Happy with the outcome, Blue began purring, causing her Paladins to relax even more.

Fin

Chapter Text

"Cosmic Wolf"

Keith was excited. His Dads were taking him and Regris planetside for the very first time. Keith had never been on a planet, having lived his entire life at the Blade headquarters. He didn't know what to expect.

%%%

The Blades were pleased at their kits' enthusiasm for their trip. Other Blades had discovered a planet and scouted around in order to see if there was any Empire activity. Fortunately, there was none, so the Blades decided to use it as a vacation spot, but they would keep their guard up. Their kits' safety was the most important thing in the universe.

Once the pod landed, the Blades let their kits wander but always kept them within sight. Regris was happy to explore the bushes and lower branches of the trees. Keith, however, wanted to see what was at the top of the trees. He managed to jump high enough to grab onto one of the lower branches and start climbing higher.

Thace was the one currently keeping an eye on Keith and wasn't surprised to see the kit climbing. The younger kit never did grow out of the climbing phase, but at least he wasn't giving the rest of the pack heart attacks with his antics. The violet furred Blade inched closer to the base of the tree Keith was climbing so he could catch the kit if he fell.

Keith knew one of his Dads was keeping an eye on him as he climbed, but his curiosity urged him to keep climbing higher. Once he reached the top of the tree, he scanned the area above the forest canopy and was amazed at how different it looked.

As he was looking around, a bright, white light streaked across the sky. It looked like a meteor, and Keith wanted to explore the crash site. He slowly climbed down the tree, jumping the down the last few feet and slightly startling Thace.

%%%

Once Keith's feet were firmly on the ground, the young kit took off in the direction of the crash site, but he wasn't alone. The entire pack decided to investigate in case it was a ship. It wasn't a ship though. It didn't look like any space craft or ship any of the Blades had seen before, and there was a small animal laying in the crater.

Even though the adults of the pack had pushed the kits behind them in order to protect them from any potential threats, Keith managed to slip out from behind them and approach the animal. It had tri-colored fur with the main colors being black and a blue color and accents in a turquoise on its face and a light gray also on its face but also on its chest. It also looked hurt.

Keith slipped into the crater and gently ran his fingers along the animal's legs and back, making sure nothing was broken. A soft whine alerted Keith to the fact that the animal was aware of his presence, and he was suddenly face-to-face with a pair of intelligent yellow eyes.

Time seemed to slow down while the yellow eyes searched Keith's violet irised eyes for something Keith didn't know. Then, the animal left out a woof sound and nudged itself under Keith's arms, nosing his neck in the process.

Keith smiled and giggled, looking up and out of the crater at his pack. "He likes me!"

"Can you get out of there, kit?" Ulaz asked.

"Um, I think so," was the reply. Just then, there was a bright flash and Keith and the animal appeared next to the pack.

"Whoa. That was cool!" Regris exclaimed.

Antok's eyes widened when he saw the animal properly. Cosmic wolves were rare and protective of the one they consider their other half. "That's a cosmic wolf."

Keith looked from his new friend to his largest pack member and back, confusion plain on his features. He had never heard of a cosmic wolf before. "Does that mean I can't keep him?"

"Oh, kit, we couldn't keep him away even if we wanted to. Cosmic wolves travel the galaxy looking for special beings with quintessence similar to their own. These special beings are called the wolf's other half. It is immoral to attempt to separate the two halves once they meet," Antok replied.

Keith looked between the wolf and Antok again, his eyes landing on the big Galra. "So, I can keep him?"

Thace chuckled. "Yes, kit." He watched the two kits play with the wolf pup. "So, what is his name?"

Keith perked up. "Name?" Keith looked at the wolf. "He hasn't told me yet. I mean we just met."

Thace gaped and turned to Kolivan, whispering, "The kit thinks the wolf will tell him his name?"

"Who's to say he's wrong? None of us know how a cosmic wolf bonds with their chosen being and how strong that bond can be."

Laughter drew their attention back to the two kits and their new playmate. When they had taken Keith into their pack all those deca-phoebes ago, they didn't know he would be so special as to end up with a cosmic wolf companion, but looking at their youngest kit, they realized that he had proven how special he was all along.

Fin