#also our paladins currently melting

[assaultvvyvern]

ya'll asked for geography, so u get geography!!! of space, lmao. let's start with the basics. but here's my version of the magical dimension!

details under cut! (also do clic on the picture to see stuff better tunglr ruined the quality as always)

note: the size of the planets is very indicative, and just to make the map more readable.

● THE SUNS ●

the magical dimension originally had five suns that then became four after the end of the fairy-witch wars (long story short: one exploded).

the main suns are the ones you can see in the center, called the dragon's head and the dragon's tail, the biggest and the second biggest (in that order), called this way after the great dragon. then there's the elf sun, the third biggest, whose name comes from the people of graynor. and then the smallest one, called the phoenix sun, after the shadow phoenix.

the fifth one used to be the second smallest one, called the leviathan sun. it used to be right in the center of oroz, fallat and rot (now the forbidden ring).

● THE RINGS ●

there are eight rings in the magical dimension, each one with their own unique planets with similar (but different) characteristics. think culturally about them as a continent! the forbidden ring is the only one thats unhabitated, as its conditions are unlivable and the absence of a sun makes it impossibile for life to return.

🡲 light ring

the light ring is "8" shaped and goes around the tail and head suns, and it intersects with the magix ring and the harmonic ring. the name is for obvious reasons: lots of suns and lots of light!

the planets in the light ring are:

solaria: known as the planet of stars, suns, moons, and celestial bodies in general. not pictured: the moons celeste and lumenia and a third, smaller sun in its orbit, called radius.

domino: the abandoned planet of the great dragon, of its fire. its population and royal family were wiped out not long ago by an unknown evil power, and its once beautiful deserts and cities are now icy wastelands. not pictured: its moon pyros, known for its dragon population, which migrated from domino during its fall.

koria: known for being the headquarters of the order of the paladins and its school, the malacoy academy. not pictured: its other two orbiting suns, ramiel and samael, and moons, uriel and zephon.

🡲 the nature ring

the nature ring orbits around the elf sun and intersects with the steel ring. the name comes from the nature based power of (most of) the people of the planets, and their incredibile, lush, and lively natural wonders.

the planets in the nature ring are:

lynphea: known for its tall trees on which its people live, its giant animals and insects, and the enormous forests. not pictured: its second sun helianthus and its moon ipomea.

andros: covered 90% by salt water, it's the planet where merpeople live, along with a human population spread over small islands and archipelagos. it's connected through a magical space waterfall to its orbiting nano-planet, au haru (not pictured here). not pictured: its moon seantis.

romulea: the planet of oasis, deserts, savannahs, and jungles. and extremely dangerous animals too. not pictured: its other two suns mawu and magec, and its moon oko.

altaduna: the planet of mountains and rivers, there are basically no plains and hills. not pictured: its moon zorya.

dolona: its people are known for living on floating islands above large, deep and unexplored canyons. not pictured: its moon devana.

graynor: where the race of the elves live and thrive, born of the ancient magical tree known as the rainbow oak.

🡲 the magix ring

the magix ring orbits around the tail sun and intersects with the light ring. it has only one planet, magix, from which it gets its name.

magix is the current modern cultural melting pot of the magical dimension, and the planet most similar to our planet earth in terms of size and sun cycles. it's famous for having been the ground on which some of the most important historical events of the magical dimension have happened, as well as being where the three most famous schools for fairies, witches, and knights are (alfea, cloudtower, and redfountain, respectively). it's also where the high council of the magical dimension meets to discuss interplanetary matters. not pictured: its moon sen.

🡲 the harmonic ring

the harmonic ring orbits around the head sun and intersects with the steel ring, the light ring and the white ring. the people of its planets have always been known for their devotion to the arts, culture and harmony of the soul, hence the name.

a rare magical and space occurrence called the harmonic nebula, an agglomerate of cosmic dust, is fixed on the orbit. when a planet passes through the harmonic nebula, its sky becomes a swirly light red and deep purple.

the planets in the harmonic ring are:

melody: the planet of the arts. here is where music, cinema, photography, architecture, painting, poetry, dancing and more grow, evolve, and are part of the planet's magic. because the majority of the industries on the planet dominate the market, melody has the most influx of immigrants, who are mostly artists from other planets who want to find their luck here. not pictured: its moon symphony.

oppositus: the magic of this planet bases itself on opposites and the balance between them.

espero: the home planet of most of the famous philosophers, writers, and greatest thinkers of the magical dimension. for many, it's seen as a place of spiritual retreat (and the locals don't really like that). not pictured: its moon ohm.

eros: planet of love and emotions, known for having the best therapy and psychology schools of the magical dimension.

🡲 the steel ring

the steel ring orbits around the head and tail suns with an oval shape, and it intersects with the harmonic and nature rings. the name comes from the abundance of underground materials of its planets, as well as their deep cavernous systems and the warrior reputation of their people.

the planets in the steel ring are:

eraklyon: planet of iron, carbon, zinc, and more. its people are known for being powerful and fierce warriors with a great military history. lately it has been caught up in stopping an independentist war carried out by its orbiting nano-planets of charùnda, berg and cleddyf (not pictured here), which eraklyon claims as "its colonies". not pictured: its moon rhod.

hoggar: planet of the great forges and legendary blacksmiths. not pictured: its moon hors.

thordal: their people live in underground cavern systems, filled with precious gems and metals. they claim to be direct descendants of the people of downland, a mystical and ancient population that lives underground in the planet of magix.

🡲 the white ring

the white ring orbits around the phoenix sun, and it intersects with the harmonic and the night ring. its name comes from the harsh, snowy winters and cold climate of its planets.

the planets of the white ring are:

zenith: the planet of technomagic, where more than 80% of the magical dimension's tech and innovation come from. an extremely economically powerful planet and kingdom, zenith is also where most of the capital is made. not pictured: its moons manna and gateway-0001. the second is an artificial creation.

callisto: the planet of storms, harsh winds, and thunder. its people live under domes of special glass that protect them from the constant bad weather. its orbiting nano-planet, serenia (not pictured), is known for constantly rotating between extreme climate conditions and seasons even in a day.

stalax: the planet of snow and icebergs. not pictured: its moons hjuki and bil.

dyamond: a once flourishing planet of crystals and gems, it was wiped out centuries ago in a manner similar to domino. nobody knows what really happened to it. zenith has been colonizing most of it for resources.

🡲 the night ring

the night ring orbits around the phoenix sun, and intersects only with the white ring. its name comes from the (not total) lack of light on its planets, as well as the reputation of the majority of its people - witches. only wysperia is currently being inhabited.

the planets of the night ring are:

wysperia: once an empty planet, a small handful of witches, tired of their reputation in the magical dimension, colonized the grounds and created their own kingdom, which grew and thrived. it only has been recently given a seat in the high council. it's where the wysperian crystals (magical ampoules used in witch rituals and spells) are made and kept. not pictured: its moons hecate, medea and circe. they move all in a row of three and are called the "triple goddesses" by wysperi.

prometia: a planet covered in hot springs and gysers. it's currently being contested by wysperia and zenith, the first wanting to create a new witch colony and the second wanting to harvest its resources.

🡲 the forbidden ring

the forbidden ring was once called another name and probably intersected with either the harmonic ring or the steel ring. its name has been lost to time, as well as the people that lived on its planets. its sun was destroyed during the fairy-witch wars by the one and only mad king of domino.

the planets of the forbidden ring are orez, rot and fallat.

● THE GALACTIC DEPHTS ●

there are many other planets and unexplored corners of space in the magical dimension. although exploration is currently ongoing, there are two planets beyond the borders of the magical dimension that are known.

🡲 omega

omega is a planet 200 light years away from the magic dimension, covered in ice and deep canyons in which natural tunnels have formed. it's currently being used (and has been for centuries) as a prison for the worst criminals of the magic dimension.

it's accessible either through a one-of-a-kind (now sealed) portal on andros or light-speed space travel, the latter being reserved only to authorities and authorized personnel.

some internal sources say budding communities have formed for survival among the prisoners, but it has never been been confirmed by any public authority.

🡲 obsidian

another prison planet, obsidian was created to keep a great evil sealed behind its portal, hoping for it to never return. it has mostly become a legend by now, although its existence is very real. all the people who touched its grounds never came back, making it impossible to know how it looks.

#winx club #winx #winx rewrite #winx club rewrite #winx club au #winx au #magical dimension worldbuilding tag #au: so much for fairy dust #this all works for both #DO SEND ME ASKS ABT IT IF U WANNA EHEH #gael originals

[wonderwafles]

skill, nat20, & vibe! :o

Nat 20: What's the most memorable RP scene you've been a part of?

The saga of the Naked Spice Orc is legendary amongst my group! Basically, I was playing Kenku Bard named Strum, and one of our tablemates was playing an Orc Paladin named Felzak. Our characters did not get along at first, and the first part of the game was filled with (in-character) sniping at each other and bickering.

Anyway, this story is long and twisting. Because of my character setting fire to a bandit encampment we were held captive in, Felzak's armor (which was taken from him when we were captured) melted. The gold he found ransacking the place (which the DM intended as compensation for his armor) ALSO melted because Felzak insisted on going back for his armor, which by now was a fused sheet of metal. This didn't improve relations between our characters and left him with basically nothing to wear.

Maddened by rage, Felzak decided he knew exactly who was behind the bandits and the larger criminal enterprise we were investigating; a Gnomish spice merchant who had nothing to do with any of it. Because of the aforementioned lack of clothes, once we escaped he marched right back to the man's storehouse, Felzak blundered through his storage getting himself covered in spice and nothing else, and publicly accused the gnome of something he didn't do. Ballsy move, we might say.

Later that night, defeated and exhausted, our party stopped at an inn, where the proprietor asked Felzak whether or not I was his slave (Kenkus often being slaves in this universe) and, if so, if he would rent me to the bar to play for a while. Felzak consented to this and I was stuck at the bar for a while.

Anyway, I got my revenge. When Felzak and I locked eyes across the bar, I decided to introduce to the patrons my newest epic song; the Ballad of the Naked Spice Orc. The DM asked me to do a performance roll, and I got a nat 20, which was good enough not only to entrance the audience but also to get the song spread throughout the entire realm. We kept hearing it played in bars for the rest of that campaign, in increasingly distant and unlikely locales... and later on in whole other campaigns and universes. Somehow.

THAT is the story of the Ballad of the Naked Spice Orc.

Vibe: How does your character get along with the party? Does your group talk about party dynamics outside the game?

Currently I'm playing a Warlock named V who I decided to play as, basically, Odin from God of War if he was actually a nice guy. But preserving all the obsessive knowledge seeking. He pledged himself to an eldritch god seeking to be corporeal on this plane once more, in return for the knowledge to save his kingdom from a Fae spell.

He gets along fairly well with the other characters. Sometimes he tries to be a peacekeeper during what seems to be a growing rift between some of our party. Unfortunately, almost every session a new part of his body is transmuted into yellow glass after a horrific vision of the underbelly of reality and a new eldritch god has taken an interest and started playing tug of war with the first one for his soul, so sometimes it's difficult to keep the "nice uncle" vibe going. :D

Skill: Do you prefer RP, combat, or something else? Is there a part of the game you consider yourself best at?

Oh RP for sure! Combat sometimes runs the risk of getting boring for me unless there's something really intense happening. Like, borderline party wipe intense. Mabel Pines called it "Homework: the Game" or something and while I don't *agree* with that, when I'm bogged down in combat I kind of start to see where she's coming from :P

I've been gravitating away from magic casters lately partially because of that; I don't like all the bookkeeping. If I must fight, I like to be able to just point at an enemy and go, "Yeah, I hit that with my hammer."

#dnd #i also have another legendary rp(ish) story called The Time My Character Shot Herself (Almost) to Death #but the naked spice orc story needed to be told #asksolotl

[dmsden]

Campaign Basics: A Year in the Life

and

Hullo, Gentle Readers. Well, we’ve put together a whole lot of info for our Angel of Chaos campaign, and I want to start developing some structure. Before I do that, however, I have to create a tool that I find incredibly helpful for any D&D campaign. I need a calendar.

In our own world, humankind has been developing calendars for over 10,000 years. Our earliest efforts were often tied to the moon, as its regular movements were easily tracked and measured, even by ancient peoples. Even the current calendar we possess is over 400 years old, and it’s based on other calendars that are far older. It’s not strange to imagine, then, that a world with people who lives hundreds of years, like elves, or thousands of years, like dragons, people would have been tracking time.

I personally recommend that, even if you decide to have a year that lasts longer or shorter than our own 365 days (and I don’t see any problem with doing that), that you keep concepts like day, month, and year. Doing so gives your players a familiar and firm footing that will allow them to accept any changes that you might make. For example, in my campaign, a week lasts seven days, based on the phases of the smaller moon, Davron. A month lasts 28 days, based on the movements of Kassyle, the larger moon. There are 13 monthsvthat trace the passing of the seasons, giving a total of 364 days in a year. My world does not possess leap years. It does, however, have certain days when both moons are full, one is full and the other is new, and both moons are new. All of these days are significant in my campaign world. For example, both moons are new on the first day of the year, and people consider that day sacred to Oldorin, the God of Death. Both moons are full on a day called Highsummer, which is holy to Shandalene, the Goddess of Life.

A great tool for developing your calendar can be found at https://donjon.bin.sh/fantasy/calendar/  You can use this excellent tool to track days of your campaign, and it’ll even track lunar phases for you and give you ideas for astrological phenomenon. I print it out and add notes that I generate with the also excellent weather generator at https://donjon.bin.sh/d20/weather/  That way, when describing a day, I can talk about what day it is, what the weather’s like, the phase of the moons, etc.

So why do you want a calendar? Well, there are numerous reasons.

Firstly, a calendar builds a sense of realism in your campaign. It promotes that little something called verisimilitude that DMs like myself covet. By having time go by, the seasons change, etc., you create the illusion that the world your adventures take place in is a real one.

Second, a calendar is helpful for tracking a lot of data. An NPC armorer tells the PC paladin that the full plate they commissioned will be done in 13 days. If the captives the PCs are trying to rescue are going to be sacrificed is on the new moon 3 days hence, the paladin’s player knows that they’re going to have to settle for wearing their scalemail for now and come back for the platemail afterwards. Even something like tracking the PCs’ birth dates can be fun for them, as you can use it to note how time is passing.

Thirdly, there’s no point in developing a timeline of events for when things are happening in your campaign world without a way of tracking where the PCs exist in time by comparison to those events. In my current campaign, for example, the Tarrasque is rampaging across the countryside. I’ve made a timeline of when it will strike various locations, and the PCs are racing against time to collect the items they need to defeat it. If they take too long, they know there will be dire consequences, and that has turned up the pressure in the campaign as we roller coaster towards the conclusion.

For purposes of the Beyond the Borderlands/Angel of Chaos campaign, I think I’m going to go with a very basic calendar, based completely on Earth’s. Maybe the concept of a week isn’t something the inhabitants of the Realm deal with, but they get the idea of a month. Again, I’m going to say 13 months of 28 days each, based on the phases of the moon. I’m going to give them names that an agrarian society might bestow upon them: Deeprain, Planting, Highsun, Fireborn, Smokewatch, Sunwane, Harvesting, Treeblaze, Coldsnap, Snowfall, Deepnight, Frostchain, and Melting.

Now that I have a calendar, I can begin marking things like festivals and events on it, but that will be an article for next time.

[doctorslippery]

(Knowledge) Ancient tomes of sacred lore begin fading away.

(Life) All healing magic now comes at a cost to the casters own health.

(Light) The sky is darkened to a permanent twilight.

(Nature) Large swathes of wilderness are infected by a strange rot.

(Tempest) Droughts spread across the land as rain doesn’t fall as often.

(Trickery) People with normally good humor become cold and bitter.

(War) Morale is decreased and soldiers begin to mutiny against their officers.

(Death/Grave) Undead creatures have a chance to randomly rise from graves without a spell cast by a necromancer.

(Forge) The knowledge of forging mithral and adamantine armor and weapons is lost.

Nothing. Once the god is the creator of it’s own domain, but it is able to maintain itself in its absence

(Arcana) All spells now have a chance to go wild.

(Fire) The world becomes cold as it goes into a long winter

(Air) The air becomes polluted and difficult to breath. Many people die of lung related issues.

(Water) Rivers and oceans go stagnant and unmoving.

(Earth) The land becomes infertile and unusable.

(Time) Time rifts start appearing everywhere causing things from the past and the future to come into the present.

(Dragons) All dragons, dragonborn, and kobolds turn to dust

(Darkness) The world becomes filled with endless light and a never ending day

(Love) Family and friends start to hate one another and form grudges over the smallest things

(Order) Revolutions happen everywhere and anarchy reigns supreme

(Good) Empathy and altruism are no more as people are looking out for themselves

(Evil) Angels descend from the heavens to purge the world now knowing that there is no evil god to protect the wicked

(Nature) The forests run amok. Animals and plants invade cities, as every natural order accelerates out of control.

(Nature) Conversely, the forests and fields begin to die. Animals grow sickly and lethargic.

(Nature) The seasons begin to spin out of control. A day dawns with blazing heat, but snow covers the ground to a foot by lunch, and a monsoon rages that night.

(Death) Nothing may die. Nothing. Not the cattle, not the sickly, not the old, not those grievously wounded. Souls are bound to their bodies, and may never set off on their journey. Chop someone into bits, and every tiny piece still twitches in agony.

(Any) As the gods ‘body’ decomposes their essence (what they were the god of) infects the land affecting all who lived below their realm eg if the goddess of nature dies – nature explodes over the area (eventually after hundreds of years the natural green will die and become the land will become barren after the body completes decomposing). If it was the god of war or anger – every person and animal in the realm becomes driven by anger/easily angered, and plants become more dangerous, etc

(Nature) nature becomes twisted and more and more aberration like.

(Nature) herbivores turn predatory and hunt for meat

(Forge) weapons turn weak, Metal is prone to bending and it tarnishes easily.

(Weather) drought spreads across the land

(Weather) destructive “sunder storms” where lightning falls like rain destroy the landscape.

(Weather) winter never ends.

(Any) Angels, demons, fey, other gods, and spirits start competing for that gods power and worship to fill the vacuum

(Any) If the god who dies has worshippers still his corpse enters an odd undead state. He’s too week to be an actual god again or become truly alive again. However his remaining worshippers keep him from truly dying.

(Any) desecration of the area in which it died.

(Any) the nature and landscape where it died twisting to reflect the gods domain

(Any) people in the area also changing to reflect the gods domain

(Any) powerful magic soaks into the land creating powerful items. Things like spiders whose venom can only be cured by other god touched magic. Plants whose berries heal you and their juice can even raise the dead, etc.

(Knowledge) every self aware creature must succeed on a DC 10 Int saving throw or take 1D4 psychic damage and lose as many memories as the DM decides while also losing 1d4 Ing Stat.

(Any) The heavens begin to fall to earth/fuse with the material plane

(Any) Paladins will be in a huge pickle during their conquests.

(Protection) Warding and shielding spells no longer work.

(Protection) The ancient wards that kept the Elder Evils, horrible beings whose power even the gods fear, at bay fall.

(Any) People realize the gods are not immortal, and in reaction, faith in all of the gods begins to falter.

(Tempest) The entire world becomes still: no wind, no waves, not even clouds, like the world is perfectly smooth.

(Trickery) Nobody remembers that they can lie. Everyone either states the truth or is silent, ruining the world’s governments by disabling political maneuvering.

(Forge) Metal no longer melts, making all previously forged weapons exponentially more valuable, even an old rusty sword.

(Any) All of the people that were sacrificed to the gods come back (betrayed heroes, betrayed family members etc), but all of the things that gods has given to us fade away.

(Any) Outsiders from other worlds reveal themselves as the liberators, freeing us from our oppressors by killing the gods.

(Any) The god is replaced by another god that does a terrible (or better) job as the dead god temporary replacement.

(Any) The god was slain, the being that slew the god gains the gods power or becomes the god

(Any) Nothing. The god may have been responsible for creating or shaping it’s aspect, but once it was created it doesn’t need the god to maintain it.

(Any) The gods power leaks from its remains. Any magic of the gods aspect is greatly amplified for several years. The closer to the remains the greater the power is amplified

(Death) Everything that dies rises as a zombie.

(Death) Spirits of the dead are unable to move on. Everything that dies becomes a ghost.

(Death) Spirits of the dead start coming back to the living world

(Knowledge) people begin to forget things. (Names, places, history, how to do things, what they were doing, etc.)

(Life) every living thing becomes sterile (animals are unable to have children / plants cant produce seeds)

(Nature) microorganisms reproduce at an accelerated rate & every other living thing gets wiped out

(Nature) plants and animals become withered anemic versions of themselves

(Nature) plants and animals begin to die off (decay / rot / slowly crumble to dust / slowly turn to ash)

(Nature) plants and animals begin to mutate into monstrous versions of themselves

(Nature) plants experience explosive growth and begin to take over everything

(War) People begin to become more violent and warlike.

(War) People begin to become too apathetic to fight each other. Eventually, people become too apathetic to do much of anything. They just stand around in a daze until the die of starvation or thirst.

(Any) All clerics suddenly overload on divine power (as if the gods power has been divided between them). And they all start to slowly go mad, and start to lose control.

(Light) a massive and well known constellation vanishes and leaves a dark patch right in the middle of the night sky

(War) A vanquished war-god drops his enormous miles-long sword, which falls to Earth and pierces deep into the planet’s mantle

(Death) The god’s followers begin killing at random, hoping the power of their faith will resurrect him

(Light) Random people all over the realm begin to go blind

(Tempest) A whirling hurricane forms in the middle of the Ocean… and doesn’t stop growing

(Forge) The followers of this deceased god begin a pilgrimage to destroy every craft ever created and stamped with his symbol

(Arcana) The god’s death leaves a hole in the weave. Something… unwanted fills in the gap with Its body.

(Nature) The wood of the deity’s patron plant (oak) begins to disintegrate into dust all over the world. Buildings topple.

(Life) This god’s followers have a crisis at the oxymoron of their god dying. They are slowly driven insane

(Grave) The god itself rises as an undead, an anathema to its own mission

(Arcana) People start forgetting spells. (As a spell is cast, roll to see if that is the last time it is cast)

(Arcana) Everyone gains a cantrip. Now this minor power is just something everyone does, like breathing or eating.

(Any) Suddenly there is a war in the cosmos. Minor deities, greatly powerful beings like Warlock Patrons, and other generally unknown greater powers are vying for the position.

(Any) Upon the god’s death, their body is split into thousands and thousands of pieces. These rain down like meteorites but instead of being falling rock bits, it’s a new people recently awoken. Who are these newcomers and what is their memory of or connection to this lost god?

(Tempest) Ocean currents fluctuate wildly

(Earth) Widespread tremors and volcanic activity

(Tempest) Unpredictable squalls

(Light) Continuous winter sets in

(Order) Ubiquitous revolutionary sentiment arises

(Music) Instruments quickly go out of tune, and singers forget words and have their voices crack more often

(Magic) All casters and magic items are treated as one level lower

(Nature) Animals behave erratically and crops fail

(Fate) Prominent heroes begin to meet ignominious ends

(Luck) Coin tosses and dice rolls result in predictable patterns (Heads tails, heads, tails/1,2,3,4,5,6,1 etc.)

(Luck) Randomness begins to fade. The first to go are critical successes and critical fails, but very rapidly all rolls end up as 10.5’s.

(Any) Their power returns to its source where anyone could take it for themselves

(Any) When trees and plants are cut down, instead of sap, blood starts to weep from the cuts.

(Winter) Animals that hibernate don’t wake. Plants and trees stay in their winter state. Even if the weather gets warmer things affected by season act like it never ended.

(Knowledge) every creature’s INT ticks down steadily as their memories slowly disappear until all life is reduced to animalistic intelligence.

(Death) no one can die anymore. HP can’t be dropped below 0 and no one can die of old age, accumulating age bonuses and penalties until all physical stats are reduced to 0.

(Light/sun) the sun and stars go out. The temperature continuously drops until the entire world is frozen over.

(Magic) all spells, enchantments, supernatural and spell-like abilities, etc. get progressively weaker until the entire world is basically in a null-magic zone.

(Nature) plants and animals become incapable of reproducing.

(Life) healing magic no longer works. Natural healing progressively weakens until it too is no longer possible.

(Trickery) it becomes impossible for anyone to lie or mislead

(Forge) a small mountain range of metals and the occasional gem crashes into the planet in 3… 2… 1…

(Knowledge) everyone receives random revelations rather simultaneously.

(Trickery) some guy shows up three days later, wondering what all the hubbub’s about.

(Life) Every wound healed by their clerics starts to rot, and everyone reanimated becomes undead.

(Trickery) Their holy texts go blank, holy symbols turn to dust, and all knowledge of the god is ripped from mortal minds, the god is dead and forgotten in all ways. While most people feel like they’ve forgotten something, the most devout worshippers to the lost god go mad from the hole in their mind and soul.

(Trickery) The gods secrets are spread throughout the world, the common-folk learn of their rulers corruption, people discover their spouses cheating, children learn their beloved dog didn’t go to a farm, all secrets good and bad are made known and will rip families, kingdoms, and even other faiths apart.

(Any) A shockwave of power blasts through the realms, knocking everything unconscious for d10 hours

(Arcana) Spellcasters and magic items begin to “glitch”, causing them to either be completely unable to cast spells/activate items or the spells go wild.

(Any) People and clerics begin to notice that something is…missing…

(Nature) Many two headed animals are born the following day.

(Any) The god(s) start to slip away out of people’s mind, and they start questioning if they were ever thing to begin with.

#d20 #rpg #dnd #dungeons and dragons #fantasy #sword and sorcery #campaigns #fairy tale #mythology #fable #dungeon master #dm #game master #gm #hackmaster #magic item #magic weapon #magic ring #spell book #d12 #d10 #d8 #d6 #d4 #d100 #dice

[recentanimenews]

Manga the Week of 2/24/21

SEAN: As I write this, Texas is being hit with blizzards. Why not curl up… in your dark house with no power… with some manga?

Airship gives us the print volume of the 2nd I’m in Love with the Villainess, and also a print volume for Skeleton Knight in Another World 8.

ASH: I haven’t finished reading the first volume of I’m in Love with the Villainess quite yet, but I suspect I’ll want to pick up the second.

SEAN: Denpa’s site says that The Girl with the Sanpaku Eyes 2 is out next week.

J-Novel Club has a trio of light novels. By the Grace of the Gods 6, Campfire Cooking in Another World 9, and The Greatest Magicmaster’s Retirement Plan 8.

On the manga side, they have The Faraway Paladin 4 and Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles 5.

Kodansha has two print debuts, though we’ve seen them both digitally before. Cells at Work: Baby! is essentially the superdeformed version of the series.

ASH: I enjoyed the original series, but haven’t managed to keep up with all the spinoffs!

SEAN: A Sign of Affection (Yubisaki to Renren) is one that I’ve gushed about before, but here I am gushing about it again. This story of a boy and girl meeting and falling in love, it’s all about communication, as our heroine is hearing impaired, and our globe trotting hero does not know sign language. Fans of Kimi ni Todoke should check this out.

MICHELLE: I missed this when it was a digital debut, so I’m grateful for a second chance at it.

ANNA: Amazingly, this is one of the very few Kodansha digital titles that I have read, and it is absolutely wonderful. It is by suu Morishita, so fans of Shortcake Cake should absolutely pick it up. I’m sure I bought the first couple volumes digitally due to Sean’s gushing and just never posted about it. Morishita does some wonderfully innovative storytelling as the two main characters figure out how to communicate with each other, and the hearing-impaired heroine is portrayed with great sensitivity. I’m so rooting for Yuki and her first real romance!!

ASH: I’m really looking forward to reading this one now that it’s in print. Can’t pass it up with recommendations like that.

MELINDA: Well, how can I possibly resist after that glowing recommendation?

SEAN: Also in print: Heaven’s Design Team 3. The anime is currently airing.

ASH: I have legitimately learned things about animal life reading this series.

SEAN: Digitally the debut is How Do You Do, Koharu? (Gokigenyou, Koharu-san), by the author of (and in the same universe as) Say I Love You. Koharu (the younger sister of Yamato, the male lead in Say I Love You) prefers to keep her friends solely on the digital side… till she’s tempted by a follower who she might want to be more than just friends with. This runs, of course, in Dessert. I hope it is a bit less drama-filled than its parent series.

MICHELLE: I’d seen this one on the release calendar but didn’t realize it had any connection to Say I Love You. Interesting!

SEAN: We also see DAYS 22, Harem Marriage 2, Maid in Honey 6 (the final volume), My Best () Butler 6, My Unique Skill Makes Me OP Even at Level 1 2, Shangri-La Frontier 2, What I Love About You 3, and When We’re in Love 5.

Seven Seas’s biggest debut may be one that came out first nearly 10 years ago. After a period where it seemed that you couldn’t go a week without a new volume, the Alice in the Country of _________ series vanished, allegedly due to licensing difficulties with the original creator. But now it’s back… in digital form! It’s getting rolled out over several weeks. This week we get The Clockmaker’s Story and Love Labyrinth of Thorns (Julius) and The Mad Hatter’s Late Night Tea Party 1 & 2 (Blood).

ANNA: I think I’m tapped out of Alice in the Country of stories but I’m amused to see these being released again.

ASH: Oh, wow! I had somehow previously missed this news.

SEAN: In actual new titles, the debut is Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon (Kaketa Tsuki to Donuts), a yuri office romance story that runs in Comic Yuri Hime. Always happy to see more non-high school students.

And there is The Ancient Magus’ Bride: Wizard’s Blue 2, Days of Love at Seagull Villa 2, Failed Princesses 3, and How Heavy Are the Dumbbells You Lift? 5.

MICHELLE: I still haven’t even read volume 1 of Seagull Villa!

SEAN: Square Enix Manga debuts Ragna Crimson, a Gangan Joker title whose summary has the words “dark fantasy” and “revenge-fueled quest” and I stopped caring.

In much better Square Enix manga news, we get A Man and His Cat 3.

MICHELLE: Yay!

MELINDA: Yes!

SEAN: Apologies to Tentai Books, I missed their debut light novel which is actually out later this week. World Teacher: Special Agent in Another World (World Teacher: Isekaishiki Kyouiku Agent) is another of those books where the plot is described by the title.

Tokyopop has a debut. The Cat Proposed (Bakeneko Katatte Sourou) is a one-shot BL title from Canna. A man watches a play and sees one of the actors has cat ears. Turns out he’s a bakeneko, and has chosen our protagonist as his spouse!

There’s also the 3rd and final volume of Still Sick.

Vertical has Ajin: Demi-Human 16 and Bakemonogatari’s 7th manga volume.

Yen On has had a few date shifts (try to contain your shock), but we do get a few new volumes this week… and two old ones, as Haruhi Suzumiya 3 and 4 get reprints. 4 is considered the series’ high point.

And there is Do You Love Your Mom (and Her Two-Hit, Multi-Target Attacks?) 8, The Greatest Demon Lord Is Reborn As a Typical Nobody 5, In the Land of Leadale 2, Konosuba 13, and May These Leaden Battlegrounds Leave No Trace 3.

There’s also a Yen Press title I missed last week, as it’s out this Saturday. Megumi Hayashibara’s The Characters Taught Me Everything: Living Life One Episode at a Time is her new memoir, and Yen is putting it out digitally the same day it comes out in Japan!

ASH: I really hope this is released in print at some point, too! It should be really good.

SEAN: Because of various delays and date shifts, Yen Press has FIVE manga debuts next week. We start with Adachi & Shimamura, the manga version of which we’ve already seen the light novel and the anime. Please enjoy Adachi’s gay panic and Shimamura’s attempts to be a functioning human being in a new medium. This runs in Dengeki Daioh.

Days on Fes is a series about two friends going to rock festivals, and that’s about all it is, from what I hear. Sounds like a Laid-Back Camp vibe. This runs in Comic Newtype.

ASH: Oh, that could fun.

MELINDA: I might be into this? As someone who used to go to a lot of music festivals, that is.

SEAN: The Girl without a Face (Kao ga Nai Onnanoko) is a one-shot from Comic Beam. A boy and girl are in love. She’s a bit… expressionless – literally – but that’s just fine. This looks both cute and spooky?

ASH: This could be fun, too!

SEAN: Golden Japanesque – A Splendid Yokohama Romance is the sort of josei title folks were BEGGING for ten years ago. It runs in Flowers’ online magazine, and its author did Kare First Love, for Viz fans with long memories. A Meiji-era title about a half-Japanese girl who’s discriminated against and the boy who thinks she’s a fairy-tale character.

MICHELLE: Ooh! I actually do own all of Kare First Love, as it happens.

ANNA: I am a Viz fan with a long memory and I think I own most of Kare First Love too. I am officially intrigued and will be picking this up.

ASH: Same!

MELINDA: Same here!

SEAN: Lastly there is ID:Invaded #Brake-Broken, a title which hurts me when I try to say it out loud. It’s the sequel to the anime, and runs in Young Ace.

We also get Eniale & Dewiela 2, Mieruko-chan 2, Overlord: The Undead King-Oh! 6, The Saga of Tanya the Evil 13, Slasher Maidens 2, Toilet-Bound Hanako-kun 7, The White Cat’s Revenge as Plotted from the Dragon King’s Lap 2, and A Witch’s Love at the End of the World 2.

ASH: I’ll likely be picking up a few of those, too.

SEAN: What manga melts the weather all around you?

By: Sean Gaffney

#Anime #News #Manga Bookshelf

[riskeith]

oo.. a read more.. how mysterious ;)

shsjjdhdjf hi! it’s pretty and fluffy yes ! some of it have melted away though sadly.. 🥺 how are you? hope your day has been amazing <333

i tried to go to dragonspine last night because albedo’s quest opened up for me a while back and it took me there and i failed like two seconds after so i just went to bed all angry shekdhskdbncj i kept thinking about how easy it would be if you had diluc, xiangling or klee on your team since they do ‘big’ fire attacks that would help with the frost... :(

have you decided that you want to build your whole team or just focus on 1-2 characters? i’ve heard some people say that it’s better to do just 1-2 but i’m hesitant over it... they’re your main team for a reason you want them all to be reliable yk..?

“LEGEND OF KORRA?” omg..... fun fact the first klance fic i ever wrote (never released it though since its still unfinished hskshdj) was a klance lok au! imagine the boys as rival probenders... 🥴 lance waterbender... keith firebender..... 🥵 but thank goodness you decided to give it a shot sjdkfjdk look where it lead us.

i meant that exactly! that’s not negative that’s just life because same here. i ended up just deleting everything when i started uni (the only thing i have left is tumblr) because it’s kind of hard keeping up with fandoms and stuff when the weight of the world is on your shoulders ... :/ even lost contact with practically all my internet friends lmao sheesh. do you still find it difficult to find motivation to write n stuff? (this is such a heavy topic soz)

us on our date.... chillin... suddenly hilichurls attack. incredibly romantic.... <3333 venti to your xiao i wish!!!!! #bringventiback2k21pls 🥺.. dude you reminded me!!!! i was on ao3 the other day (as one usually is) and did you know there are so many genshin fics? i was SO surprised?? kind of fun tho, have you checked them out?

no need to promise!! but you have my undying support <333

ohhh?? you wouldn’t? i mean your reasoning is absolutely valid!! the end was most definitely very disheartening in so many ways lol.... i probably would still tbh i just miss them a lot. like getting a chance to see lance and keith again with the same voice actors n everything??? i think i’d do anything for that LMAO when it comes to story though i have no idea... not really sure what they could do with it. maybe something with lotor?

YOU WATCHED SPIRITED AWAY????!!!?!? BABY I’M SO HAPPY FOR YOU!!!! i’m so so so so so glad you like it oh my gooooood this is the best news ever <333333333333333333 i take it you’re now finished with it; what did you think? 🥺 also howl’s... girl my heart is soaring. i just know you’re gonna enjoy it so much!! aaaaah, let me know when you check it out <3333

icb you’re teasing me like this....,,..... ‘just wait until you read the last section’ i’ll just go die then. that was already so beautiful and there’s more??????? let me go back to my original roots and ask; hand in marriage? 🥺💍 multiverse.... i have questions.... is it like, a one shot for each or is it like.. jumping between the universes? 🥺

stay safe, stay healthy mwah!! 🥰

hiyaaaa~

awww does snow not stay for long where you are? or is it not cold/thick enough to stay 😔 and i’m good! didn’t get as much done as i wanted but tomorrow certainly.. (i say every day FHSKFSD) hope yours is amazing as well <3 :*

FHSDKJFHSDKFHSJD omg ripppp im sorry 😭 but one day!!!! you will conquer dragonspine i can feel it. oooo wait do you not have xiangling yet? :o and also you mentioning diluc reminds me of this tweet i saw here, maybe he isn’t actually optimal for that enviroment AHAHA

yeah i agree with you! I kinda focus on building the traveller most bc i use him a lot of the time, but recently i’ve been trynna build everyone else up too and balance them out. like you said we want them all reliable and they all have different uses and functions, so.

PRO!!! BENDERS!!!!!!!!! omg wait were they gonna be... forced to work on the same team?? 🤪🥵 either way S tier concept. but also um excuse me?? you write fic too?!?!?! “first klance fic i ever wrote” implying there are more??? maybe published ones??????????? i won’t ask for links in case it like outs you LOL but omg??? excuse me?? how is this the first time i’ve heard about it >:(

shit that sucks :(( ugh im sorry you felt the need to do that! :( is it also kinda freeing and relaxing tho? that you’re not involved or have any connections or obligations.. idk sometimes all that overwhelmes me too. sometimes i have a really hard time writing yeah, but that’s also due to various other reasons unrelated to school. like twice a month i tell my friends i’ll quit FHSJFKDSHK but i never do lollll and then sometimes i’ll just get hit with such an intense urge to write and then im like?? i was so stupid for thinking otherwise? (and no worries at alll <3)

FJHSDKFS couples that fight together stay together 🤪 i think that was in one of my todobaku? fics LOL. okay but i saw some leaks (which i don’t condone but welp) suggesting that maybe... venti would return 2 banners after xiao or something so hopefully!!!!!!!!!!!!! i was looking at tier lists too and he was really high up so now im like fuuuuck maybe i can’t spend on my primogems for xiao i’ll have to save again FHSDKJFSD. ngl i was pretty surprised to see so many fics too! but nah i haven’t really read anything, hbu? also did you know there’s an official genshin impact webtoon? i haven’t read it but i am considering itttt

<33333333

AHAH yeah that’s fair tho. i think s8 ruined it so much for me that anything else would make me feel empty sighhhhh. but i was also gonna say something about lotor! honestly i feel like if they did make something else, it’d be a prequel or something, maybe even the prior paladins, so we wouldn’t even get to see klance at all fhkfhsksd.

i really liked it!! not sure if it was bc i zoned out towards the end tho, but i felt like the ending came pretty quickly? or maybe i was just so immersed i didn’t want it to end... ahaha. but i still stand by the fact i love haku sm..... i think i’ll watch howl’s tomorrow! i considered starting it tonight but i still wanna soak in spirited away for a bit so... we shall see <3 but ofc i’ll def let you know all my thoughts when i do

YOU ALREADY HAVE MY HAND BOO!!! you have my whole heart too just take it i’m giving it to you 😩❤👐. it’s one shot for each! I was actually considering making it a multichap with each chap as a new universe, but i have a horrible track record with those and idk that i could make each universe long enough fhdkfjs. ugh honestly i’m tempted to just like send you what i currently have anyway bc i honestly don’t think i’ll ever finish it fhskdf but there are some good moments in there that deserve to be Seen..

thank you!! you too, hope you’re all nice and warm 😘🤩

#marriage anon #wowclunaanswers #long post

[celsidebottom]

“So, this is a tradition of yours this time of year?”

From this post

I am SO sorry that this took me like twelve years to do

Also, you didn’t specify characters, so have some Ed/Tjelvar enjoying the new year in an orc settlement!

Tjelvar looked over their ransacked campsite.  The remaining supplies were strewn in everydirection and their tents had been sliced to bits by something with exceptionallylarge claws.  

“Evil doer!”  Ed shouted.  “I will find the fiend responsible!”

“Eddie… it’s okay.  Wewere all done here anyway.  We’ll getmore supplies back at the University.”

Ed still had his sword drawn, glancing in every directionfor a trace of the beast that had destroyed their camp, and he only sheathed itwhen he felt the weight of Tjelvar’s hand on his arm.  

“If you’re sure.”

Tjelvar nodded.  He’dbeen sent back into the mountains for an archaeological dig, and Ed had invitedhimself along.  Not that Tjelvar minded, ofcourse.  

“But we’re a day’s walk from town,” Ed remarked, looking upat the setting sun.  “Where are we goingto stay the night?”

Tjelvar scanned his memory and checked a map.  “There’s an orc settlement near here.  I have some distant relatives.”

“We should go see them!” Ed exclaimed, beaming.  

“If Aunt Linnea finds out I was nearby and didn’t drop in…”  Tjelvar shrugged.  He bore his family no ill-will, even if hedidn’t often partake in the day-to-day affairs and events of orc life.  For him, it was about the world’s history, andhe had to get out there and find it, not sing aggrandizing songs behind thick,wooden walls.  “Probably our bestbet.  Shall we?”

Tjelvar and Ed began to trek through the snow aftersalvaging what they could from their tattered campsite.  The hike wouldn’t take them long and they weredue to get there just before nightfall.  

Soon enough, with Ed excitedly telling Tjelvar about thetime during his Paladin training when he rescued a dog from the streets thatthen invaded the larder and ate everything it could get its paws on, thesettlement came into view.  

“Halt!”  A warysentinel called before they could get too close.  “Who goes there?”

“I’m Tjelvar Stornsnasson? My aunt is your chieftain.  Thishuman is with me, he’s trustworthy.”  Notparticularly trustworthy with quietness or secrets, perhaps, but neither werein high demand among orcs.  

The sentinel gasped.  “Tjelvar!  Oh, come in, come in!  It’s been so long!”

As the great wooden doors swung open, an excited mass oforcs assembled to greet Tjelvar and this strange new human with grins andcheers.  In some places, the walls thatprotected the settlement wouldn’t have been necessary; but with the unrulywildlife and brisk mountain wind, every little bit helped keep the danger andthe chill out.  

“Tjelvar!”

“Tjelvar’s back!”

“Is it really him?”

Dozens of questions erupted from the horde when one orcpushed her way to the front and immediately pulled Tjelvar into anembrace.  

“And here I thought you’d be too busy to drop in on us forthe Feast!”  She cried as she heldTjelvar out so that she could look him over from head to toe.  “You haven’t been eating enough,Tjelvar.  We’ll fix that.  And is that another scar?  You’ve got to take better care of yourself.”

“I’ve been more careful of late,” Tjelvar admitted.  He was just about to introduce Ed when AuntLinnea turned to him.  The issues betweenhumans and orcs were long in the past, and he was a friend of Tjelvar’s, sothere was no fear of this stranger in their midst.  

“Aunt Linnea, this is… my… uh…”  He stuttered. “Edward Keystone.”

“I’m Tjelvar’s boyfriend! Wow!  This place is amazing!”  Ed cried.

The joy in the orcs’ eyes grew brighter with Ed’s words andLinnea spun back to face the crowd, shouting, “My nephew Tjelvar has returnedfor a visit!  And he brought hisboyfriend with him!  Let us prepare thema place to stay and set two more spaces at the table for the Feast!”  

A great cheer rose up from the orcs, several of whom dartedoff to make the necessary preparations. The remainder swarmed around Tjelvar and Ed, pulling them into friendlyhugs while offering congratulatory and welcoming words.  

As the pair was led through the settlement and towards a houseat the center, they caught sight of a circular pit fire, surrounded by tablesadorned with heaps of food.  Bright,sparkling decorations hung from each house and every spare space.  

Ed reached out for Tjelvar as they were pushed along andasked, “What’s with all the decorations?”

“Tonight must be the Feast of the Solstice.”

“So, this is a tradition of yours this time of year?”

“Oh, yes.  Thecelebrations for moving into the new year will last for a week, at least.”

Ed’s eyes gleamed.  “Wecan stay, right?”

Despite himself, Tjelvar laughed.  How could he say no to Eddie?  “We’ll stay for some of it, at least.”

“Yes!”

The throng of orcs dispersed somewhat as Ed and Tjelvar reachedthe house provided for them, and a distant relative Tjelvar could not rememberthe name of told them to get settled.  Linneawould come get them when it was time for the Feast to start.  Tjelvar tugged Ed inside the cabin before he couldwander off.  

“Oh, come on, Tjelvar, there’s so much to see!  And do! And friends to make!”

“At least come in and set down your things first?”  He suggested. At his own insistence, Ed often carried most of their supplies and, evenif they currently weren’t weighed down with much of their camping equipment, hestill carried several finds of historical magnitude that Tjelvar wouldappreciate he didn’t lose or damage in his escapades around thesettlement.  

He sighed.  “Alright.”  Dutifully, he deposited his things andremoved some of his armor to put on an extra layer of furs to help keep out thechilly evening air.  

Tjelvar could feel Ed watching him across the space as hewithdrew a journal and began to make notes regarding their findings on the lastday of the dig, before their site was so rudely destroyed.  

“Is everything okay?” Ed asked, moving to sit beside Tjelvar on the one bed that the housecontained.  

“Yes, of course.  Whydo you ask?”

“You don’t seem very happy to see your family.”

“Oh,” Tjelvar chuckled quietly to himself.  “I’ve never been… a particularly orc-yorc.  I prefer my books to people mosttimes, you know that.  And my family is…very loud.”  He let out anotherlaugh.  “And now that Linnea knows I havea boyfriend, I’m never going to hear the end of it from my parents.”

Ed let out a heavy breath and looked down at his hands.  “I’m sorry.”

“What, Eddie, no, it’s not you!”  Tjelvar closed his book to turn entirelytoward Ed and take his hands in his own.

“I know I’m not… the best at, well, anything, but… I thoughtyou, of all people, weren’t ashamed of me.”

“Eddie…  That’s notwhat I meant at all.  I’m sorry.  What I meant is that I planned for you tomeet my parents first.  Now Linnea isgoing to write them letters, and then they’ll be upset that I didn’t tell themfirst, why haven’t they met you yet, when are we getting married, all ofthat.  I am not ashamed ofyou.  I love you, Eddie, I don’t care whoknows.  I just wanted to tell people in aslightly different order.”

Ed smiled and looked up to meet Tjelvar’s intense gaze.  “Really?”

“Of course.”  Tjelvarleaned forward and pressed a kiss to Ed’s forehead.  “It’s good we’re here now, though.  The year’s end celebrations are all aboutspending time with family and looking forward to a new year with them, and you aremy family.”

The sparkle returned to Ed’s eyes and he smiled at Tjelvar, meltingaway any archaeological or familial concerns.

After a quiet moment, hands still intwined, with Tjelvarresting his head on Ed’s shoulder and nuzzling into him, Ed asked, “So, thisFeast thing… There’s going to be food, right? I mean, that’s what a feast is, but… I’m starving.”

Tjelvar laughed and leaned a little more into Ed’sside.  “We’re orcs.  Of course, there’s going to be food!  More food than even you might be able to eat.”

“I knew I was going to like it here!”

#Anonymous #rqg #rusty quill gaming #edward keystone #tjelvar stornsnasson #stornsnasstone #thank you for the prompt!!! #I hope you like it!! #I'm sorry it took me ages

[lesmiserabby]

Tagged by @queen-paladin, thanks for the tag!

1. what is the color of your hairbrush? Red

2. name a food you never eat: Oh there are so many.... But the no bacon and no poutine seem to be horrifying to my fellow Canadians

3. are you typically too warm or too cold? Too warm is the one I actually notice so I’m gonna go with that

4. what were you doing 45 minutes ago? Practicing piano

5. what’s your favorite candy bar? I’m assuming this translates to chocolate bar in Canadian and I’m not super big on chocolate... I enjoy the occasional Snickers though.

6. have you ever been to a professional sports game? Canada vs someone in Fifa over ten years ago, it rained a lot which was unfortunate because soccer is very much outside. It was fun enough, but I’ve never been super into sports, my dad and sibling loved it though.

7. what is the last thing you said out loud? Not counting humming along to my piano, I said goodnight to my mom.

8. what is your favorite ice cream? cookie dough or butterscotch swirl.

9. what was the last thing you had to drink? Sodastream orange soda

10. do you like your wallet? Very much, it’s BB-8!

11. what is the last thing you ate? spaghettini smothered in parmesan cheese

12. did you buy any new clothes last weekend? nope

13. what’s the last sporting event you watched? I dunno, probably some bits and pieces of hockey or soccer on tv?

14. what is your favorite flavor of popcorn? Very specifically love the cheddar from this local place, absolutely fantastic, 10/10. Also love Smartfood white cheddar and also just regular popcorn with melted butter.

15. who is the last person you sent a text message to? my boyfriend

16. ever been camping? yes, so many times growing up, used to go at least once every summer. I miss it. 

17. do you take vitamins? I try to, I have forgotten for the past month or so, they are definitely needed courtesy of my inability to eat a lot of things.

18. do you regularly attend a place of worship? Sort of, I try to, I’m a preacher’s kid, but I also get bad insomnia - like went to work on less than an hour of sleep the other day bad - and accidentally sleep instead. It was very pathetic that I couldn’t even get myself out of bed and into the kitchen when we were doing our services as livestreams from home.

19. do you have a tan? No, I kind of did this summer but it’s gone again. Generally I try to cover myself in sunscreen and avoid tanning because I have the complexion of an anemic vampire and I don’t tan, I just burn and then it fades, and I HATE it. 

20. do you prefer chinese or pizza? Pizza, 

21. do you drink your soda through a straw? Depends on how coordinated I’m feeling, but probably should use my straws more often, regardless of what I’m drinking. I frequently spill water on myself when I try to drink.

22. what color socks do you usually wear? black

23. do you ever drive above the speed limit? Occasionally a couple kilometers over by accident, mostly I just walk places since I don’t have my own car. (do have my full G, cars are just too expensive)

24. what terrifies you? So so so many things. Spiders, being abandoned, losing loved ones, bitchy customers at work who don’t know how to read a menu

25. look to your left, what do you see? my wall

26. what chore do you hate most? Currently hating packing and I haven’t even started really beyond taking empty boxes from work oops

27. what do you think of when you hear an australian accent? Ok so 99.9% of the time wen I hear an Australian accent it is Siri on my boyfriend’s phone acting as a GPS and he likes to pretend to fight with Siri and be like “don’t tell me what to do” so I don’t really think anything so much as internally have a deep sigh and kind of laugh to myself. I love him.

28. what’s your favorite soda? Don’t really have one any more, used to be all over Pepsi but I’m trying to have less caffeine because insomnia and hoping cutting out caffeine helps (it hasn’t yet but oh well) so....

29. do you go in a fast food place or just hit the drive thru? I usually only ever really get fast food when I’m at work and it literally is my workplace so... I’m just already there, inside, behind the counter.

30. what’s your favorite number? A nat 20 on a D20 when playing Dungeons and Dragons.

31. who’s the last person you talked to? Not counting texts to my boyfriend, my mom

32. favorite meat? Chicken and fish, for fish specifically walleye/pickerel (ideally from NWO) and salmon

33. last song you listened to? So Soon by Marianas Trench because that piano part with Josh Ramsay’s vocals is just beautiful

34. last book you read? Currently working through Axiom’s End by Lindsay Ellis and Spine of the Dragon by Kevin J Anderson for physical books and listening to Clash of Kings for audiobook.

35. favorite day of the week? Monday because that is my therapy and piano lesson day, the one day a week I always consistently know what I’m doing, other days are uncertain because work schedule is different every week.

36. can you say the alphabet backwards? I can barely say it normally.

37. how do you like your coffee? Nonexistant, the smell makes me nauseous.

38. favorite pair of shoes? My new work shoes, specifically because they’re new and therefore not falling apart.

39. time you normally get up? Depends on what my work schedule is.

40. what do you prefer, sunrise or sunsets? sunset

41. how many blankets on your bed? 5? I think? If I counted right.

42. describe your kitchen plates: white

43. describe your kitchen at the moment: An island, cupboards, a stove, a dishwasher, a fridge, usually the dog is there begging for treats because she knows exactly where they are. I dunno, it’s a kitchen

44. do you have a favorite alcoholic drink? Mike’s Hard Lemonade is always good, I also like mixing Sourpuss with Sprite or ginger ale, I like both the raspberry and green apple. 

45. do you play cards? No.

46. what color is your car? My parents have a white car, I am helping my boyfriend pay for his truck, he calls it our truck but it’s really his, the truck is silver

47. can you change a tire? I helped my dad change one once way back in high school, haven’t done it since, definitely don’t remember.

48. your favorite state or province? Gonna sound so Ontario-centric if I say Ontario but yeah.... But not south Ontario, specifically northwest Ontario, which really should be its own province. Manitoba’s nice too. Like I live here now but not big on South Ontario. Niagara is kinda pretty but please just send me back up north.

49. favorite job you’ve had? Honestly my current job. Like there are times that it sucks but I’ve been here over a year and the competition is housekeeping (dead body, deer skull, people getting drunk and puking all over the bathrooms) and that time I got screamed at by an alcoholic woman when I was 17 for “blowing off shifts” that I wasn’t even scheduled for when I had a throat infection and then asking for time off when my grandpa died (literally screamed at me day of) so like... yeah, McDonald’s is actually heavenly in comparison.

Tagging @autie-j and @bb8-boppity-boo

[tiny-opal-essence]

Pocket Paladin Chpt 11

2nd mission

Lance pushed the red blanket off of himself as he slowly woke up.  He sat on the edge of the bed as he blinked the sleep from his eyes.  His feet touched the ground.

Wait.  My feet touch the ground?

He opened his eyes in shock and looked around.  The lights weren’t on in the room, so he couldn’t make out all the details of the furniture.  He figured he must have woken up early.  Looking down at himself, he could hardly believe his eyes.

I’m back to normal height!  OMG!  I’ve got to tell the others!

“Hey everyone!  I’m back to norm-” Lance ran into the door.  “Ow.”

Why didn’t that open?  It should open automatically, right?

When Lance’s vision cleared, he realized why it hadn’t opened.  The oversized light switch next to the door gave it away.

Oh, that’s right.  I’m in the dollhouse.

He wasn’t sure if the tears in his eyes were from the physical or emotional pain.

‘You didn’t really expect the spell to wear off that easily, did you?’

I guess not, but it would have been nice.

He heard the bed creak loudly through the wall of the dollhouse.

“Lance?” Keith said groggily.  “Are you ok?”

“Yeah, just bumped my head.” He hissed slightly in pain.

“Are you sure?” The bed continued to creak as Keith sat up.

“Don’t worry about me.  I’ll be fine.  You can go back to sleep.”

“Do you need some ice?”

“Nah, it’s not that bad.”

“It still might be a good idea to look at it, just in case.”

“Fine.” Lance agreed and wiped the tears from his eyes.

Keith slid the wall of the dollhouse away while Lance flipped on the light inside the room.

It’s just plain weird watching an entire wall move away in front of you.

“Do you feel dizzy?” Keith asked as he looked down at Lance.

“No.  My head hurts, but that’s it.”

“Do you have a headache?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Well, you’re not slurring words and you know who and where you are, so I don’t think you have a concussion.”

“That’s good.”  He paused for a second.  “How come you know how to tell if someone has a concussion?”

It was Keith’s turn to pause.  “Rough childhood.”

Lance could tell that Keith didn’t want to talk about it, so he changed the subject.

“Well, I feel ok and I don’t have a concussion, so let’s just go back to sleep, kay?” He let out a shaky laugh.  “Goodnight!”

“I heard what you said before.  About being back to normal.”  Keith said quietly.

Lance didn’t know if it was just because of being tricked by the dollhouse or if it was everything else that he was trying to hold back and hide from the others, but it all suddenly became too much for him.

“And what about it?” Lance spat out.  “Are you going to make fun of me?  Hey everyone, Lance got tricked by a stupid dollhouse and thought that he was back to normal height!  Let’s all laugh at him!” He could feel the tears forming in his eyes again.  “He’s almost been crushed, stepped on, fallen, and can’t stop thinking about all the other ways he’s almost died and how useless he is!  But even this is a new low!  I mean, tricked by a fancy piece of plastic or whatever this is made of!”  He kicked at the wall and barely held in a cry at the pain.

Yeah, that’s more heavy-duty than plastic.

No matter how much he tried, he couldn’t stop the tears from falling.  He sank down against the dollhouse wall and put his head down in his arms to try to hide them from Keith.

‘Way to lose your cool in front of your crush.  Now what will he think of you?  If there even was a chance that he liked you before it’s definitely gone now.’

Keith didn’t know how to handle this.  He’d never seen Lance this upset.  Should he try to hug him?  How would that work given their current difference in height?  Hand hug?  Maybe just pat him on the back, or tap him on the back?

“Lance?” Keith said softly while hesitatingly reaching towards him.

“Forget I said anything.”  Even though it came out a mumble, Lance’s voice was enough to make Keith’s hand pause a moment before reaching for the red bandana that had been serving as Lance’s blanket.

“Here.” Keith handed it to Lance to dry his eyes.

“Thanks.”

They were both quiet for a moment.

“I’m sorry I’m not good at this whole comforting thing.”

“Really?  I couldn’t tell.” Lance looked up at Keith with a hint of a smile on his face.

“I could go get Hunk for you if you want.”

“You don’t need to do that.  I don’t want to bother him when it’s not a big deal.”

“It kind of sounds like it might be a big deal.”

“I’m just tired.” -of being this small.  Lance rested his chin on his arms.  “I could really go for one of my mom’s hugs right now.”

“I’d give you a hug, but that might squish you.”

“You could just do what I do with the space mice.”

Oh my God, why would I say that?

“Ok.  What do I do?” Keith managed to hide his own internal nervousness.

“Just lay your hand flat on the ground for me.” Lance stood up and stepped onto Keith’s hand.  “Now, lift me up to your chest.” He could hear Keith’s heart beating before he leaned against his chest.  “And then press lightly against me with your other hand.”

Keith somewhat awkwardly brought his other hand to Lance to do just that.

Lance just barely felt his hand behind him.

“You know you can press harder than that, right?  I’m not made of glass.”

“I know, I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Believe me, if you were hurting me, I’d let you know.”

Keith pressed a bit harder and Lance let him know when it was good.

Lance could feel how warm Keith was through his pajama shirt.  The warmth surrounding him and the heartbeat in his ear were comforting.  The *bu-bump bu-bump* helped anchor him in the moment.  The sound was loud enough to get rid of almost all of his worries.  He thought he felt Keith’s heart sped up slightly, but it was probably just a trick from his tired brain.

This feels nice.

‘Don’t get used to it.  He’s only doing it because he feels sorry for you.’

I know, but that doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy it while it lasts.

Keith started absentmindedly rubbing Lance on the back and he melted into the embrace.

“Is the bandana working?”

Lance could feel Keith’s chest resonate as he spoke.  It was oddly soothing.

“Much better than whatever came with the doll bed.” Lance smiled slightly.  “I still can’t believe you thought that just that over your face would be a good disguise for rescuing Shiro.  I recognized you from over 50 yards away!”

“How did you recognize me?”

“Dude, you’re the only person I know that has a mullet.  I’d recognize that mullet anywhere.”

“I thought it was a good disguise.”

“Just cause it works in old movies doesn’t mean it works in real life.  It was still cool watching you knock out some of the senior staff, even if you didn’t remember me.”

“I did remember you.  Kind of hard not to with how loud you are.”

“Hey!  I am just the right amount of loud!” Lance looked up at Keith indignantly.

“Ok.” Keith brought his hand up and away from Lance in an ‘ok, you’re right’ motion.  “The reason it seemed like I didn’t remember you is because I thought your name was Taylor and I was confused when you said it was something else.”

“Why would you think my name was Taylor?  I told you right off the bat that ‘the name’s Lance’, remember?”

“You kept saying in class that people called you Taylor cause of how you threaded the needle.”

“The tailor.  Like the person who fixes clothes.”

“…That makes more sense.”

Lance grabbed onto Keith’s pajama shirt with his hands and buried his face into it while trying to stifle his laughter.

“You thought my name was Taylor for two years?  Two years!  Haha.”

“And a few months,” Keith added in the partial year he was in the Garrison.

“Dude, that just makes it worse.  Haha.”

Keith was glad to see Lance smiling again after his outburst, even if it was at his own expense.

“Are you feeling better?”

“Yeah.  There’s just a lot on my mind right now.  Sorry I kind of made you hug me.”

“Oh, uh, it’s ok.”

“*Yawn* I know you’re not really the biggest fan of hugs.”

Keith wanted to tell Lance that that wasn’t true, that he did like hugs, he just wasn’t used to them.  But he didn’t.  Instead, he brought Lance back to his room in the dollhouse and reached for the wall to close it.

“Wait!” Lance cried out, causing Keith to pause.  “Can you leave it open?  In case my brain decides to be stupid again?”

“Sure.”

Lance grabbed Keith’s bandana and climbed into his bed.  He pulled the makeshift blanket up to his chin and turned on his side so his back was to Keith.

“Good night, Keith.”

“Night, Lance.”

Lance breathed in the scent of the bandana and smiled slightly.

It smells just like him.

Keith turned out the light in the dollhouse and laid back down in his bed.  He could tell that Lance had fallen back asleep easily.  That was harder for Keith to do.  He laid awake for a while wondering why he couldn’t just tell Lance that he liked hugs.  It doesn’t seem like something that would be hard to say, and yet for him, it was.  He was also wondering why it felt so warm where he had been hugging Lance against his chest.  It was a different kind of warmth than just residual heat, but Keith couldn’t even begin to figure out what it was.  Maybe he should ask Shiro about it.  He’d probably just tell him that he has to figure it out himself or something similar.  It might be better to do that on his own without getting the ‘You are going to do great things one day’ speech.  He fell asleep soon after.

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“What do we know about this planet?” Shiro asked as everyone looked at the projected image.

“Dezevernent was one of the first planets to fall to the Galra Empire.” Coran began to explain.  “It’s people were told that if they went willingly, they would be spared.  They were deceived.  There were no survivors.”

“The Galra have a base here, but our sources show that it hasn’t been used in some time.” Allura pointed to the location on the projection.

“So then why is Lotor there?”  Lance asked from the floating tray.

“That’s what we’re going to find out,” Pidge said.

“Does the system say anything else about it?” Hunk wondered.

“It looks like there’s a good-sized forest.  That will give us plenty of cover so we can sneak close to the base and see what’s going on.” Pidge commented.

“It looks pretty thick.  Our lions won’t be able to go through all those trees.  We’ll have to go on foot.” Keith pointed out.

“Meaning, we’ll have to land the castleship on the planet,” Shiro stated.

“If we go over here,” Allura spun the projection to the area she was referring to, “we should be able to land the castle undetected.”

“I’ll send Rover 2.0 ahead to scout out the entrance to the base.  That way we know where Lotor’s crew is.” Pidge said.

“Are the trees really that red?” Lance looked at the pictures that were displayed next to the projected planet.

“Oh yes.  I remember visiting there with my family a few times.” Coran reminisced.  “We always had such a great time camping.  Roland always loved-” There was a faraway look in his eyes as he dropped the end of the sentence.

“Coran?  Are you alright?” Allura asked.

Coran shook himself out of the past.  “I’m alright, Princess.  Please, continue with the briefing.”

“Very well.  Since the trees are so brightly colored, Keith, you’ll be the one that’s able to get closest to plant the tracker on Lotor’s ship.” Allura continued.

“You should wear your jacket too.  It will help you blend in more with the trees.” Lance suggested.

“Good idea, Lance,” Shiro commented.

Lance beamed at the praise from his hero.

Yes!  They liked my idea!

‘Statistically speaking one of your ideas had to be good at some point.’

“Who’s Lance going to be with for this mission?” Pidge asked.

“Well, there’s only three of us that have pockets, and mine somehow got ripped when I did laundry.”  Hunk said.  “That leaves just Keith and Shiro.”

“I’m still…a bit nervous to carry Lance.” Shiro responded.

“I’m cool bringing him with me.” Keith shrugged nonchalantly.

“Wouldn’t that be a bit risky, since you’re the one that’s going to get the closest to Lotor?” Pidge asked.

“I’ll stay far enough away that they won’t notice me.  Or Lance.” Keith responded.  He wanted Lance to come on the mission.  Given his outburst earlier that morning, Lance was feeling like he couldn’t do anything.  Keith wasn’t really good at talking to people, so he couldn’t tell Lance that he was still an important member of the team, but he could show him.  “We all agreed that Lance would be allowed to come on recon missions.”

“True.  It should be alright, but if for the slightest second you think someone’s spotted you, you need to get out of there fast.  We can’t risk a fight when Lance is with us.” Shiro stated.

“This is recon only, so do not engage the enemy.  Keep the comms open and stay out of sight.” Allura added.

“Good luck, paladins,” Coran said.

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“Thanks for sticking up for me back there,” Lance said from his spot in Keith’s jacket pocket.

“Don’t mention it.  We all agreed, so that’s what we’re doing.”  Keith hacked away at the red vines as they made their way through the forest, all the while trying to make it a less bumpy ride for Lance.  They were almost at the base.

Lance could tell that Keith was trying, but despite his efforts, it was still a bit bumpy.  He kept slamming into Keith’s chest.

Slamming’s not the right word.  Bumping?  Yeah, bumping!

‘Congratulations, you know words.’

Shut up.

It was different traveling in the jacket pocket vs. the utility belt.  The jacket pocket didn’t have a zipper, so there was plenty of light.  It also made it easier for Lance to poke his head out and see what was going on if he so chose.  He found it was easier to just lay down in the pocket.  The material was softer and more hammock-like.  The pocket rocked slightly with each step Keith took, but all in all, it was preferable to the utility belt.  It was relaxing listening to the *bu-bump bu-bump* in his ear again.

Lance knew the only reason that he got to be in the jacket pocket this time was because the planet was uninhabited.  The jacket pocket gives away that there’s something in it while the utility belt doesn’t, hence why he has to be in the utility belt for inhabited planets.  They don’t want to risk someone getting too curious and seeing Lance while he’s like this.

“We’re almost there.  Is there anything we should be looking out for, Pidge?” Keith asked through the comms.

“Rover 2.0 isn’t picking up anything unusual.  Lotor and Ezor went in the base about 15 dobashes ago and the other three are still guarding the entrance.  You’re on the right track to get to their ship.  Just keep heading southwest and you’ll be there.  I’m going to see if Rover 2.0 can get a closer look.  I’ll let you know if any of them start heading your way.” Pidge replied.

“Sounds good, Pidgeon,” Lance responded.

Sure enough, a minute or so later, they saw Lotor’s ship.  Keith got out the tracking device and checked with Pidge that no one was coming towards the ship.  Once she gave the all clear, he approached the ship.  He found a good place to hide the device and made sure it was attached tight.

“Do you want to activate it?” Keith looked down at Lance.

“Me?” Lance was surprised.

“You’re part of this team, right?”

“Yeah.” Lance climbed onto Keith’s hand.  Keith lifted him up to the tracker and Lance pushed the button on it.  The light turned on to show that it was transmitting.

“Tracker’s on the ship,” Keith told the others through the comms.

“Signal’s coming in strong.  Nice job, Keith.”  Pidge said.

“And Lance,” Hunk added on.

“Thank you, Hunk,” Lance responded as Keith put him back in his pocket.  “Any luck getting Rover 2.0 closer, Pidge?”

“No.  There’s too many vines for him to get close without getting tangled in them.  I can’t get close enough to pick up what they’re saying.”

“What if Keith went closer?  He’s got heightened hearing and blends in more with all this red.” Hunk suggested.

“That could work, but it would be too risky if Lance is with you, Keith. You’d have to drop Lance off with us before you go up there.” Shiro stated.

“We don’t know how long they’re going to be here.  This could be our only chance to find out what they came here for.” Keith argued.

“Would you really be willing to risk Lance’s life for this?” Shiro asked.

“We’re paladins.  We risk our lives so others don’t have to.  And as Keith said, this might be our only chance to learn more.  If they find the tracking device before we figure out what they’re up to, we might not catch up with them again before they put their plan into action.  I’m ok with taking a bit of a risk to avoid that.” Lance responded.

“I don’t like this, but it might be our only option.  *sigh* Very well, but be careful.” Allura warned them.

“When have I ever not been careful?  Don’t answer that sentence, Hunk”

Keith stuck to the edge of the trees as he crept closer to the entrance to the base.  It seemed no one on Lotor’s team had moved from their post.  He crouched down and slowly approached them while remaining hidden and making sure Lance didn’t fall out of his pocket.  As he got closer, he saw that the cat that had been laying down suddenly get up and start walking around the three generals posted outside the entrance.  Soon enough, he could make out what was being said by the three generals.  More accurately, said by the two generals who could speak.  He repeated what he was hearing into the comms.

“How much longer is this going to take?” Zethrid asked.

“Not too much longer,” Axha responded.

“How long does it take to find the plans for whatever superweapon Lotor’s planning to use anyways?”

“It’s a big area to search.  Give them time to find what they’re looking for.”

“I’m itching to do something besides just standing guard.  Why are we even doing this?  There’s no one else here.  This dump’s been abandoned for deca-phoebs.  We could have just split up to get all the pieces of the blueprints.  It’s going to take over a movement to find the rest.”

“Lotor’s instructions were very specific.  We do as he says.”

Kova *meowed* in agreement as Narti picked him up and brought him up to her shoulders.

“Ugggh fine.  Doesn’t mean I have to enjoy it.” Zethrid grumbled out while keeping a good grip on her weapon.

“You can stop with the theatrics,” Lotor said as he and Ezor emerged from the base.  “We have what we came for.”

And so do we.

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Everyone was once again in the castleship.

“We all heard what they said.  They’re building something.  We need to find out what.” Shiro said.

“It’s too bad they didn’t mention the name of it or what planet they’re going to next.”  Hunk commented.

“That would be too good to be true if they had,” Lance said, poking his head out of Keith’s jacket pocket.

“We still have the tracker.”  Pidge pointed at the dot on the screen before it disappeared.  “We had the tracker.  Dammit!”

“It took them longer to find it than last time,” Keith mentioned.

“Yeah, but they still found it.”

“We’ll send word to our allies to be on the lookout.  If they see anything, they’ll let us know.” Coran stated.

 “For now, let’s keep heading in the same direction Lotor was before we lost the signal,” Allura recommended.

“I’m going to get dinner ready.” Hunk said.

“And in the meantime, I’ll get the game set up,” Pidge said.

“Woo hoo!  Videogame night!” Lance exclaimed from Keith’s pocket.

“Let me guess, another tradition you started while I was gone?” Shiro had a smile on his face.

“We actually consider it a part of training.  Pidge has told me that these games are helpful for hand-eye coordination and improving reflexes, though I’m still getting the hang of them.” Allura explained.

“Sounds like fun.”

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“I believe we can call that a success,” Lotor said.  “Kova served us well as a lookout and Ezor was able to sneak aboard their ship and clone the signature code on the tray while they believed she was in the base with me the entire time.”

“They didn’t even try to hide it.  It was right in the main hallway outside the control room.” Ezor responded with a smug smile.  “I also managed to swipe some treats from their kitchen.”

The others were eating some of said treats.

“These are amazing.” Axha had a rare smile on her face.

“Maybe we should go after the yellow one instead.” Zethrid joked.  “We could force him to make more of these.”

*Meow*

“Yeah, Narti.  I know we need that one for the plan.  I still don’t get what makes him so special.  He’s not much to look at.” Zethrid said.

“Especially now, given his new height,” Ezor added with a laugh.

“All will be revealed in good time.  For now, we should let commander Schurke know that he should be expecting some…guests in his sector.” Lotor smugly responded.

“They certainly won’t be getting a warm welcome from him,” Axha stated.

“Oh, I see what you did there, Axha.  That’s clever.” Ezor commented.

“Babe, you’ve got Schokolade on your face,” Zethrid said.

“Where?”

Zethrid kissed Ezor on the lips.  “There.  Got it.”

“I don’t know, I think you might have missed some.” Ezor looked up at Zethrid with a mischievous look in her eyes.

“Do keep in mind that we all use this space.” Lotor reminded them.

“We know.  Bedroom activities stay in the bedroom.”

“We’ll be back.” Zethrid grabbed Ezor’s hand and a handful of cookies before they left the room.

Narti grabbed another cookie for herself before turning back to the screen in front of her.  She zoomed in on the camera feed that the paladins were in.  Kova curled up next to the keyboard and she rubbed behind his ears, causing him to start *purring*.

“Let’s see if we can learn something from this videogame night of theirs,” Lotor commented.

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“Dinner is served.” Hunk came into the lounge followed by a floating tray.

Lance could see that Hunk had brought the doll-sized table and chairs for him and the space mice.  He also saw what food was on the tray.

“*gasp* Are those…”

“Garlic knots?  Yep.  Well, closest I can get to them.  I figured pizza and garlic knots would be good for videogame night.” Hunk responded as he set up the doll furniture on Lance’s tray.

“You got that right!  Hand ‘em over!”

“Pidge.” Shiro used his space-dad voice.

“Uggh.  Please hand ‘em over.”

Hunk divvied out the pizza and garlic knots, including mini ones for Lance and the space mice.  It was thin crust, but it looked more like deep dish from Lance’s perspective.  He wasn’t complaining.  It was better than having to practically unhinge his jaw to take a bite of a normal slice.  The garlic knots were also a bit bigger he was used to, but hey, that just means more for him.

Allura and Coran had pulled up a counter out of the floor so everyone could put their plates down.  Also, so Lance’s tray could rest on there instead of awkwardly floating around.

Lance and the space mice took their seats between Keith and Hunk.  It was nice to have something that was more to their scale, though Platt was too tall for the doll chair, so he just sat on the ground.

“Did you guys do anything fun today while we were on the mission?” Lance asked the space mice.

Most of the mice nodded, while Plachule shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.  Chulatt started *squeaking* excitedly and gesturing too fast for Lance to understand.

“I didn’t quite catch that, Chulatt.  Could you repeat it, just a bit slower?”

“He says that they worked some more on their routine.” Allura translated before Chulatt had a chance to *squeak* again.

“Routine?” Pidge asked.

“Oh, I don’t believe I told you.  The space mice have a little show they’ve been putting together, with tightropes, trapeze, and such.”  Allura explained.

“Like a circus?” Keith questioned.

“What’s a circus?” Coran asked.

“It’s basically everything Allura said, but with people instead of space mice,” Shiro stated.

“Circus.  I like that word.” Coran said.

“A space mice circus would be so cute!” Hunk exclaimed.

“Yeah!” Lance said.

“Maybe Lance could join them while he’s like this,” Pidge suggested.

“Aww, that’d be adorable!” Hunk commented.

Not exactly the word I would use.  No offense meant to the space mice.

‘But you would be so cute, just like a pet doing tricks.’

I’m not a pet!  Don’t you have anything actually important to do?

‘Don’t you?’

Everyone finished their food and Pidge started getting the game system set up.

“I’m going to go work on some repairs,” Coran said.  “I could use some help from the space mice if they’d like.”

The space mice nodded that they were ok with it.

“What needs fixing?” Lance asked.

“Oh, just some pipes.  There have been some unexplained sounds coming out of them.  It shouldn’t take too long.  Be back in a jiffy!”  Coran and the space mice left to go take care of that.

“We only have 4 controllers, so we have to rotate people in,” Pidge explained while the Smash Bros loading screen popped up.

“Sounds good,”  Shiro commented.

“I’ll sit out this round.  I’ve got to bring the dishes back to the kitchen anyway.” Hunk started gathering the dishes.

“Me too,”  Shiro said.  “It’s been a while since I played.”

“Alright everyone, choose your fighters.”  Pidge moved her cursor to select Shamus.

Allura chose Zelda and Keith chose Fox.

Lance grabbed the joystick and moved it over the characters.

Good thing I got some practice with this thing on the floating tray.

He hovered it over Kirby and reached over to select him but found that he couldn’t quite reach the buttons on the controller.  He took a few steps to the right and hit the button.

Their characters popped up in Dream Land.  The countdown began, and everyone got ready.  Once it finished, everyone started attacking each other except Lance.  Due to his height, he couldn’t move Kirby with the joystick and attack at the same time.

Just my luck.

It wasn’t long before Pidge was able to launch him off the stage.  He tried to use some of Kirby’s moves to get back on it, but that was the moment the tree decided to start blowing some wind in his direction.

“Oh come on!”

“Don’t be a sore loser, Lance.”

“Who you calling a loser?  I’ve still got three lives.  You’re going down, Pidge.”

“Bring it.”

Zelda had managed to knock Fox off the stage during that time.

“Nice, Allura.  You’ve gotten better.” Keith said.

“Not as good as me, though,” Pidge said as Shamus hit Zelda off stage.

Lance was trying to find a way to reach both the joystick and buttons.

Maybe if I lay down on the controller, I can move the joystick with my legs and hit the buttons with my hands.  Yeah, that’ll work.

Lance found he could just barely touch the joystick with his toes and reach the farthest of the four buttons.  Kirby popped back on the stage and used his ability on Shamus.

“Got you, Pidge!”

“Not for long,” Keith said as Fox was able to knock Kirby and Shamus both off the stage.  Pidge was able to get Shamus back on solid ground, but Lance couldn’t get to the joystick in time and lost Kirby’s second life.

“Dang it!”

“You’re going to pay for that, Keith.” Shamus began going crazy with attacks on Fox before he was launched once more off the stage.

“How are you this good, Pidge?” Lance asked as he waited for Kirby to pop up once more.

“If you think she’s good, you should see Matt play.  He wipes the floor with her.” Shiro commented with a smile.

Pidge looked over at him incredulously, which gave Allura the opportunity to have Zelda knock Shamus off the stage.

“That doesn’t count!  Shiro distracted me!”

“I saw that, and it definitely counts.” Hunk said as he came back into the lounge.

“Yeah, don’t be a sore loser, Pidge.” Lance taunted her.  As he looked towards her, Kirby popped back on stage and was being pushed back towards the edge by the tree.  He quickly looked back and tried to get to the joystick but wasn’t fast enough once more.

“Why does this keep happening?  I swear that tree is out to get me!” Lance hit the controller with his fists in frustration.

The others were starting to realize how much of a challenge playing the game at his new height was for Lance.  They felt bad that they hadn’t noticed it earlier.

When Kirby popped up for the last time, Fox was right next to him.  Kirby hit Fox repeatedly.  Lance noticed that Keith wasn’t hitting back.

“Why aren’t you fighting back?”

“Uh, well, you’re not doing so great.”

“Well, neither are you.  Don’t go easy on me.”

I don’t want your pity.

“Fine by me,” Pidge said as she once again knocked Kirby off the stage one last time.

With that, the game was down to only three players.  Then two as Allura was taken down.  In the end, Pidge was the winner.

Lance looked at his stats and was disappointed.

I didn’t get a single KO?  I thought I would do better than that.

‘Look at that.  You can’t even play a simple game.  What use could you possibly have to the team?’

Hey, I helped on the mission today!

‘Oh yeah, cause riding in someone’s pocket and pushing a button is so helpful.  It’s not like he could have done that without you or anything.’

“Maybe we should do a movie night instead of this.” Hunk suggested.

“What?  Why?” Lance asked.

“Well, this is presenting a…unique challenge for you,”  Allura said.

“But Hunk and Shiro haven’t had a chance to play yet.  That’s not fair to them.”

“But it isn’t really fair to you if you can’t participate,”  Shiro mentioned.

“Please don’t stop on my account.  I can just sit out and be moral support.  It’s fine.”

“If you’re sure…” Hunk started.

“I’m sure.  You should play.” Lance gestured for Hunk to grab the controller from in front of him.

“I’ll sit out too.”  Keith handed his controller to Shiro.  “Then Hunk and Shiro can both play.”

Hunk selected Pikachu and Shiro chose Link.

While the second round was going on, Keith was thinking.  It really wasn’t fair that Lance couldn’t play the game just cause he couldn’t reach the buttons and the joystick at the same time…at the same time…maybe…

Pidge was the winner of the second round, as per usual.

“Who’s switching with Keith?” Shiro asked.

“I think it might be time for someone to win besides Pidge,” Allura commented.

“Actually,” Keith interjected, “I think I figured out a way for Lance to play.”

“But he can’t reach all the buttons.  No offense, Lance.” Pidge said.

“None taken.”

“You’re right.  He can’t reach all the buttons-” Keith started.

Hey!

“-but he can reach half of them.”

“What do you mean?” Hunk asked.

“Well, maybe Lance could team up with someone and only use half of the controller while they used the other.”

“That…actually could work,”  Shiro responded.

“But there would still be a slight disadvantage with them having to say what they’re planning to do out loud.” Pidge pointed out.

“Well, then maybe we should do that everyone pairs up to use only half a controller each, that way it’s fair,” Allura suggested.

“Then we all can play at the same time!” Lance exclaimed.

“I’m down.” Hunk said and everyone voiced their agreement.

“Alright, this round’s teams are Hunk and Pidge, Keith and Lance, and me and Allura.”

Pidge and Hunk chose Shamus.  Allura and Shiro talked shortly before deciding to go with Sheik.  Lance and Keith took a little longer in their decision.

“Why would you want to be Kirby?  Fox is so much cooler.” Keith said.

“Kirby’s shaped like a friend!  He’s adorable!”

“Oh yeah, cause that’s totally useful in a fight.”

“Not with that attitude!”

“GUYS!” Pidge yelled.  “Just pick someone already.  I want another chance to kick your butts.”

They compromised on Meta Knight.  Lance was in charge of the buttons, Keith the joystick.  It was different playing this way, but fun.  Lance was just glad that he could participate like this.

The round was finished with Lance and Keith as the winners.

“What?  Re-do.  There’s no way I lost to you guys.  I kicked both of your butts in the first round.” Pidge said.

“Yeah, but with us working together, we took you down.  Team Klance for the win!” Lance exclaimed.

“Klance?”

“You know, Keith and Lance.  Klance.  It’s both of our names smashed together.”

“Oh.”

“Well, team Punk’s going to kick your butts in the next round,” Pidge claimed.

“I thought we could be team Hidge since punk’s already a thing.”

“What would ours be?  Shallura?  Alliro?” Allura asked.

“I like Shallura,” Shiro said.

“Or you guys could just be Space-parents,” Lance said jokingly.

“Alright, because of that line, you guys are going down in this next round,” Shiro stated.

“Bring it, Space-dad,” Keith said with a small smile.

They played the game through the night, unaware of the danger they were approaching.

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Realities without Lance: 95 (+11)

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#pocket paladin #voltron #VLD #klance #g/t #Shrinking #Giant/tiny #shrunk #g/t klance #g/t writing #keith #Lance #stories #writing

[kcwcommentary]

VLD7x05 – “The Ruins”

7x05 – “The Ruins”

With the Paladin roster finalized as Keith in Black, Lance in Red, and Allura in Blue, and Shiro in nothing, and with the death of Zarkon, the title sequence for this show is antiquated. It now functions at the start of every episode as a reminder of what the show used to be. The opening title sequence for a show should always be a statement about what the show is, but this sequence is so far from what the show has become. The title sequence not matching the current content of the show highlights how the show has lost its sense of direction.

I like the first shot of this episode in that the nebula is pretty, the smallness of the Lions creates some of a sense of immensity for space. I don’t like the white trails behind the Lions though. They’re not shown to be moving through anything, so what’s creating the white trails behind them?

Hunk’s sleeping, and Keith yells, “Everybody up!”

Pidge is dreaming about getting “only [a] 99 on the test.” I guess some people – I’ll say Mitch Iverson, since he wrote this episode – think grade anxiety is funny. Grade anxiety comes from a lack of parental support. A kid thinks they have to earn the absolute highest grades possible to be able to keep their parent(s) from criticizing them, emotionally abandoning them, or even at the most extreme physically abusing them. Pidge has always had endless support from her family, so having her demonstrate having grade anxiety reveals this show sees intelligence as a caricature. The creators of this show, or at least the writer of this episode, included grade anxiety without having even a basic understanding of what it is. They just thought it’s funny how some clearly intelligent people are scared of not getting perfect grades. They’re mocking people with grade anxiety, not revealing character with Pidge.

Lance and Allura want to sleep some more. Romelle’s sideways on her bed, foot on the wall, head hanging off the side: her posture made me genuinely laugh.

Everyone except for Keith and Krolia have been sleeping. Keith says, “We can’t let this long journey make us soft or dull our skills.” It’s obnoxious for this show to have Keith equate the need for sleep with weakness. They have all been through really stressful events, it makes sense that they need to rest and recover.

Shiro speaks (what? he’s still a character on this show?). “Keith’s right. Routine is what got me through being Zarkon’s prisoner and being in the infinite void of the Black Lion.” What!? Having a routine can be very useful, but neither of Shiro’s citations are instances in which he created a routine for himself. Shiro was a prisoner. Prisoners don’t manage their time, those who imprison them do. If he had a routine while imprisoned, while having to literally fight for his survival, then it was because the routine was imposed on him by the Galra. As for being in the Black Lion’s psychic space, what exactly was that routine? Literally, what actions is he supposed to have done while disembodied and existing in endlessness? This line written for Shiro is ridiculous.

Keith won’t even give the other Paladins a chance to wake up, he’s already calling or them to conduct battle simulations. Krolia has programmed a new one. I still don’t feel that she’s earned the prominence this show is giving her character. She presents the challenge. “You’re on a planet with double gravity—” what does that even mean? double what? double Earth’s gravity? “—dense volcanic fog, and eight [some kind of] raptors are attacking. What do you do?” Keith thinks that “this is a good one.”

What’s the mission objective that’s supposed to be at the center of this simulation? They’re on a planet and local lifeforms are attacking. Okay, why are they on the planet? If the challenge is solely to survive the creatures, then just leave the planet.

One of the raptors latches onto the Yellow Lion, and Krolia yells, “A [whatever kind of] raptor just melted your face off, Hunk!” Krolia has not earned the position of integration into the group that she’s being written to have. It makes her presumptuous. I guess the personalities being demonstrated in this scene are supposed to make Krolia and Keith look like badass personality types, but it doesn’t work for me.

Krolia says, “Now it’s eight-on-four,” and Hunk quietly replies, “That’s fine by me. I’m eating.” If you’ve read much of my commentaries, you’ll know that I usually have a big problem with how this show writes Hunk and food, but I like his response here. I don’t blame him one bit. Hunk, you go get yourself some food.

The planet weirdly shoots like twenty-foot wide columns of lava hundreds of feet up into the air. It looks silly to me. Keith orders everyone to “split up to thin their numbers.” For a story that’s supposed to be about the development of a team, these guys don’t really work as a team often. If you’re being attacked, you have greater safety and defense as a group. That’s why a lot of animals have herds or flocks or schools. Separating from one another makes the group weaker. This is not good leadership or tactics. Keith gets hit by an energy blast from one of the raptors. What is with this show having so many animals that can emit weapons blasts?

For a place that has “thick volcanic fog,” as Krolia said and Pidge now repeats, they all can see really well. Does this show know what the word “fog” means? Pidge says that the raptors “must use some form of thermal vision to see us.” Again, this environment has been depicted as having high visibility, not any kind of fog, so the raptors could see just like the Paladins can. But also, if they use “thermal vision” on this volcanic planet, then the raptors would have a hard time seeing. Unless this show is making up something else with its use of the term “thermal vision,” what is being referenced is the ability to see into the infrared spectrum of light. Things that are warm radiate light in the infrared portion of the spectrum. If we humans could see infrared light, every time we looked at another person, they would be glowing. I like the idea of the show presenting creatures that see more of the spectrum that humans can, but what Pidge says here doesn’t make sense. She’s presenting the idea of the raptors having “thermal vision,” as their natural ability to see, that it’s somehow supposed to be an adaptation to living in “volcanic fog.” But if the raptors see infrared, then the heat of the “volcanic fog” would inhibit that vision. And the heat of the lava on the ground would be blinding. This show really cannot do science.

Lance says, “Maybe I can lure them away with my heat-rays.” Have the raptors been distracted by the large, hot plumes of lava that jet up off the surface? No? Then they wouldn’t care about Red’s fire cannon either. But Lance blasts some rock with his fire cannon, and the raptors fly off to check it out. It’s senseless, and thus contrived.

Allura, Lance, and Pidge all get taken out simultaneously by a lava plume. Krolia chastises them for having “focused too much on the raptors and forgot about the volcano.” I still don’t like Krolia. She says, “I programmed the simulator to be unbeatable. I wanted to see how long you survived.” In other words, Krolia wasn’t trying to help them with training whatsoever. This wasn’t designed for them to learn anything, not new skills, not something about their character, nothing. Krolia was just being a troll. She and Keith woke up people who needed rest in order to mess with them.

Hunk is making burritos. He packages six of them, ties them around the space wolf, who teleports them to the others. Krolia and Keith each get one. The wolf gives Alura, Romelle and Coran each one. Then suddenly, the wolf’s bundle has more than what Hunk put in it. Pidge takes two, one for her and one for Shiro. That leaves one for Lance. I guess this counts as an animation error? Hunk only put six in the bundle, but there are eight given out. Team Voltron kind of discuss the wolf, nothing that explains the wolf’s narrative importance or reason for being included in the show or anything, but his name. Hunk suggests “Cosmo.” Keith objects to the name, “I figure when he’s ready, he’ll tell me his name.” Does Keith actually think the wolf is going to talk? Keith lived with this wolf for two years while in the quantum abyss, and he hasn’t named him yet? Who has a pet for two years and doesn’t name them?

Lance likes the way the burritos taste but doesn’t want to know what’s in them, saying, “I just want to eat it and pretend that it’s my meemaw’s home cooking.” Lance is supposed to be Cuban. Why is he calling his grandmother “meemaw?” The best I can tell, Meemaw is a southern United States thing, and I’ve seen one suggestion that it’s derived from French through Cajun culture. Why is a Cuban guy using Cajun or southern United States slang for his grandmother? As a Cuban guy, wouldn’t Lance call his grandmother Abuela?

Pidge picks up a signal that she only identifies as, “a signal!” Allura reacts with, “How did you get a signal?” Unless the Lions’ communication systems are broken or the rest of the inhabitants of the universe, including all the Galra, ceased to exist, the Lions should be getting more than a few signals. Getting any particular one they’re looking for is different, but the idea that it’s such a surprise for them to have picked up any signal at all is absurd. What is the signal? A television show from Bii-Boh-Bi’s planet. Bii-Boh-Bi is not and never has been funny, can the show please stop using him and his species? Please!? Team Voltron watching the show goes on for far too long.

There is what Pidge thinks is some interference in the signal, but Krolia – because of course it’s Krolia because why have the main characters have any importance in this show when you can instead give the importance and time to a side character like Krolia – can tell that it’s not interference. She has Pidge “amplify that signal.” She then listens to it with her eyes closed. Pidge says that it’s “just deep space interference.” Krolia says that that is “just what it’s supposed to sound like. Listen to the sounds in between the pulses. There’s a unique pattern.” Only after Krolia says this does the sound design for the show actually start including a specific beep to correspond with what Krolia is identifying. That beep did not exist in the sound until after she says so. That seems like bad sound design to me; the beep should have been there the whole time.

Krolia says, “Before the Blades were unified, we would use this crude way of communicating with each other.” Uh, when were the Blades not unified? Is this some undetailed period of the Blades’ history that the show hasn’t ever presented? Why am I expecting this show to have anything be deeper than the shallow instantaneous and fleeting use of anything just because it suits the individual moment of its usage? “Not many Blades know this code,” she says. “It must be a senior member.” I guess that means that she’s also supposed to be a senior member?

She says it’s a distress signal. They trace the signal to a specific area, which Hunk says is “a pretty severe detour from Earth.” So severe that it lasts only this one episode. So, yeah, not severe at all. Dialog like Hunk’s has no meaning, no impact on the story. It’s not like diverting to check out this signal will make them late to Earth and something bad will happen while they’re on this detour. The bad thing that’s happened to Earth has already happened because of the time jump (I’m still significantly annoyed by the time jump’s plot hole).

Cut to the Lions arriving at the planet where the signal’s coming from. That was such a big detour that it happened instantly. The planet is one of the most ludicrous planets this show has done. Like, it’s bad even for this show. It’s maybe the size of an asteroid, but it’s jagged and has weird holes and slopes. This show doesn’t even try, does it? Pidge says there are signs of a former civilization, but no signs of life. There are broken buildings. Team Voltron walks around – remember how the space wolf was injured and that’s why he supposedly couldn’t help Coran two episodes ago, well that’s resolved with no resolution.

Krolia says, “The signs are all around us. There was a massacre here.” This episode is really giving Krolia a disproportionately large amount of the script. It’s just so frustrating for a side character to be given so much screen-time, but main characters, like Shiro are nearly non-existent.

Allura says, “Some of this damage looks like it’s from magic.” What does that even mean? What are the characteristics of building damage that indicate it comes from magic? Ultimately, this line from Allura is leading. The show knows that the villain of the episode is one of Haggar’s Druids, so it has Allura make this comment to foreshadow that. Allura saying this right now though feels totally forced and manufactured.

Krolia says that some of the “strike patterns,” scratches in the rock, “look Mamoran.” If this signal is supposed to be a Mamoran signal, then is it a surprise that they might have gotten into a fight here? I know this episode thinks it’s setting up some mystery, but it doesn’t feel mysterious.

The space wolf growls and runs off and tackles someone to the ground. Keith yells at the guy, asking, “Who are you? Who’s broadcasting the signal?” Why does Keith assume this guy knows anything about the signal? Oh yeah, because characters make whatever assumptions the writers need them to, rather than behaving in a way that’s actually natural.

The guy says that he’s the one who’s broadcasting it, and Keith replies, “Impossible! You’re not Blade of Marmora!” What is Keith basing that on? Keith doesn’t know every Blade in the universe. If he’s basing it solely on the clothing the guy is wearing, then that’s senseless. Keith’s a member of the Blades, but he’s not wearing a Blade uniform currently. Krolia’s a Blade, but she’s not wearing a Blade uniform right now either. Why would Keith assume this guy couldn’t be a Blade? Again, it’s the writer leading the story, rather than the story unfolding in a natural way. The writer knows that this isn’t a Blade, so I guess it’s supposed to be foreshadowing. It gives the writing an unnatural, jerky development.

They let him up, and he takes them to his campfire. Romelle calls the location of what looks like someone struggling to survive “disgusting.” Good to know that her experience hasn’t changed her pampered, privileged mindset. At least she gets called out on her insult. She tries to cover, but it’s obnoxious. “‘Disgusting’ is Altean for lovely. You don’t speak Altean, do you?” She could have been written to recognize her privilege and apologize for her insult, but no. I don’t like Krolia, and I don’t like Romelle either. Ugh.

Pidge confirms the signal is from here. The masked guy reveals he knows they’re the Paladins of Voltron. Shiro asks him what happened here. The masked guy, with an ominous voice, says, “Bloodshed happened here. Death happened here.” I actually kind of like this line and how he sounds saying it. It actually has some creepiness to it. He identifies himself as Macidus and says that this is his home planet and that he’s the only one left alive here.

Krolia finds a not-really concealed set of blades from Blades of Marmora. She immediately turns her gun on him. He says he has them arranged as they are “in honor of their sacrifice. They died trying to protect the universe.” Knowing that he’s eventually revealed to be a Druid, he’s not exactly lying in saying that, the Blades were trying to protect the universe from people like him.

Macidus tells them how this all started when Voltron disappeared. He says that the “power vacuum that ensued destabilized much of the universe.” That again makes Voltron’s turn against Lotor look totally short-sighted. The problem I have with this is that, while this does reveal consequences to the Paladins’ actions, I never get a sense of them actually taking responsibility for those consequences.

Allura asks, “what happened to Haggar, the witch,” and Macidus says, “no one knows, but her Druids continued her work.” What work is that? This is a big part of my dislike of Haggar: Whatever she does off-screen that’s supposed to be so villainous is almost never shown. What her goals are for these actions are not revealed. We know that Honerva was obsessed with quintessence, and that drove her to poisoning herself. We know she would create Robeasts to attack Voltron, but that was mostly in support of Zarkon and his dictatorship. We know she used the komar (are we to assume there was ever only one komar?) to extract quintessence from the life on planets, but we only ever see that done once. We know she had a particular interest in Shiro – “You could have been our greatest weapon,” she said to him in 1x13 “The Black Paladin – but we have no idea why she was interested in him or what she was planning in thinking of him as a weapon. Are we supposed to think that she was just accumulating miscellaneous weapons? It’s not like Voltron had reemerged at the point she had started thinking of Shiro as a weapon, so with the Galra dominating the universe, what were the Galra lacking that meant they needed more weapons? We know she oversaw the clone program, but there was never anything that suggested the Druids were involved with that; instead, it seemed more like that was a secret side project she had. And we never are given an explanation as to why she was having so many Shiro clones produced.

So, Voltron has been missing for three years. Haggar hasn’t been seen in that time either. Given season eight, we’re supposed to understand that during these three years, she found Lotor’s colony hidden in the quantum abyss, establishing a relationship with the Alteans there, hyping them up into a vengeful fury against Voltron for killing Lotor, and using whatever powers she gained from killing the White Lion in Oriande searches through all the other realities to find one that she thinks of as being perfect? I guess I’ll get to all that when I get to those episodes, but the topic of who’s the show’s antagonist is a topic relevant to now. Once we get to Earth and dealing with the invasion and occupation there, Sendak becomes the primary antagonist. But Sendak has always only been a secondary antagonist. That’s one of the many weaknesses of the story in season seven. The villains are shallow. Ezor and Zethrid were villains for two episodes because they wanted power. Sendak wants to conquer and dominate. Haggar is off-screen, at best, only slightly coming into play with the Altean-controlled mecha at the end of season. There is no character motivation grounding the antagonism of the conflict of the season. That’s not to say the show has ever been all that great at having compelling villains because it hasn’t, but at least in the first two seasons Zarkon and Haggar worked as foils for Shiro and Allura. There was a character connection there. And as much as I hate that they played the Lotor’s-secretly-been-a-villain-all-along absurdity for seasons three through six, at least he was emotionally connected to Allura. But here in season seven, anyone that can be identified as the antagonist could be easily replaced by any other character and things are really still the same. Consider this season’s story, but instead of Sendak, it’s another Galra like Ranveig or Gnov from back in season five. The story doesn’t change whatsoever. Sendak behaves the same as every other villainous Galra.

Macidus says that Haggar’s final order to the Druids was to destroy the Blades of Marmora. Another problem with this is we don’t know anything about the Druids. Who are they? Why are they Druids? How are they Druids? They all use magic, so do they come by that magic on their own, and in demonstrating magic are recruited by Haggar into the Druids? Or does Haggar teach them magic after they join the Druids? Part of me kind of likes the Druids because they’re differentiated from regular Galra, but I find them frustrating because they don’t feel like characters. They’re masks and magic, and that’s it.

Pidge says, “After Lotor took over the throne, almost every Mamoran agent was exposed.” They were? This supposedly-multiple-millennia old covert organization failed to maintain their cover because Lotor became Emperor? This is a huge deal that’s never come up before. Did the Blades suddenly become incompetent when Lotor became Emperor? I could understand maybe Kolivan became exposed because he was broadcasting his face all over the universe when communicating with the Voltron Coalition, but every other Blade took explicit measures to conceal their identities. How were they exposed? This does not make sense.

Macidus says that “all Blades were called from their assignments and sent to this base. Kolivan knew they were being hunted and wanted to make a stand against them.” Are we to assume that the Druids were just so good at magic that the Blades’ covert methods were no protection? The Blades could conceal their existence for thousands of years, but now for no reason they couldn’t? Maybe this is the problem with all this story being told through exposition. None of the logistics of this have been thought through by the creative team.

Macidus continues, “When they arrived here, my people helped them fortify their base.” So, Kolivan wanted a base for the Blades to be able to defend against Druid attacks, and he chose an inhabited planet? I know Macidus is spinning a tale here, but thinking of it logistically, this planet has been established as having once had a civilization on it. Unfortunately, this means that once again this show reduces the concept of a civilization to a few hundred people and one city – they did it with Arus, they did it with the mermaids, they did it with Taujeerians, it also feels like they did it with the Olkari. The population of planets in this show are unbelievably too low.

“The Druids […] arrived without warning.” How were there no monitoring systems for this planet or from the Blades? Throughout human history, we monitor the borders of our respective territories, but not here.

The conflict was supposedly a long one. Casidus refers to it as “a long battle of attrition.” I guess. “Casualties on both sides were enormous.” There have only ever been a handful of Druids in this show. So, these enormous casualties had to have just been regular Galra. This show has had the Paladins blow up a lot of Galra, so this “both sides” crap feels manipulative. But then, Macidus is being manipulative, but his ruse should be such that he doesn’t care about the Druid+Galra side. Is this supposed to be another hint that Macidus is not who he’s pretending to be? The Druids have never been shown to care about Galra death before; like with Haggar, the Galra have always seemed as nothing more than pawns for them to use. I can’t believe that Macidus now cares about the Galra who died under his command.

“My people were the first to try to escape,” and they’re shown running through the city streets. I thought this was supposed to have been a war of attrition? That would require the Blades and this planet’s people to have hunkered down in a strong defensive situation. That’s antithetical to escaping. Macidus says he stayed behind with Kolivan, who “led those of us who remained to battle the last of the Druids, but for each one we were able to take down, nearly a hundred Blades would fall.” Again, there have only been a handful of Druids in this show. Allura, Kolivan, and Antok – just the three of them – were able to kill two Druids while also fighting Haggar in 2x13 “Blackout.” So, the Druids are more powerful now without Haggar than they were when they literally fought alongside her? I know that Macidus is spinning a tale, but is any of what he’s saying supposed to be considered accurate? And if it’s not, if this is all a total lie, then this episode is giving way too damn much time to his telling this tale. You don’t write a character to tell a tale like this unless most, if not all, of it is true. This conflict between the Druids and the Blades feels totally disproportionate to what we’ve seen of both Druid and Blade in the past.

Krolia can apparently “recognize every one of these blades.” She’s got a really good memory then. “I trained many of them myself.” This makes her character feel even more over-important than she’s felt already. Kolivan’s blade momentarily glows. I thought a blade only glowed for its owner. I guess the way the blades function for the Blades of Marmora is another instance of the show’s magic system never being defined. Krolia concludes that Kolivan must be still alive, and Macidus, with the cliché voice of an 80s villain, says, “Just barely.”

Surprise everyone! Isn’t everyone surprised? Macidus has tricked you all!

“Your hand is looking much better,” Macidus says to Keith, referencing way back to 1x12 “Collection and Extraction,” when Keith’s hand was injured fighting the Druid and was healed when quintessence accidentally splashed on it. That happened so long ago that it feels, not like a long-range plan for the story, but like someone in the writing staff went back and rewatched the first season and realized they never really explained that moment in that episode.

“You’ve been using that signal to draw Blades in,” Keith says. Thank you for stating the obvious, Keith. The Druid cackles like an empty, cliché villain. He teleports away, and in his place a grenade falls to the ground. Krolia yells, “No!” in slow motion as it explodes. It’s silly. The space wolf teleports to Keith and teleports him away from the explosion. The explosion creates a pink bubble of energy, and everyone is stopped inside it. I guess it’s some kind of time-stop bomb?

Keith, the wolf, and the Druid are in some tunnels. Keith and the wolf initially just walk off to the side, but then are suddenly underneath the platform the Druid is walking on. I guess the Druid is just assuming that his bomb took out everyone? Despite the thin, wooden walkway he’s clomping across, the Druid stops because he hears something somehow over his loud footsteps. I guess maybe he magically sensed something since magic is whatever the writers want it to be at any given moment in this show. A canister rolls out of nowhere, and the Druid zaps it with purple lightning and walks away. Keith turns around, and boom, the Druid is behind him and stabs down through the platform. His aim with the stab is not even remotely accurate though. I guess he’s supposed to have teleported to behind Keith after having walked away. It feels more like a fake gotcha moment.

The space wolf teleports Keith away. The Druid follows. Keith slashes at the Druid’s mask, and it breaks and falls away, revealing the Druid’s face. He doesn’t look Galra to me. He has no nose and circular ears. I don’t know if he and/or the Druids are supposed to be Galra or what. He screams and attacks. Keith fights using his Marmoran blade rather than his bayard. It makes me think of how Keith gets two weapons while Shiro gets none.

A ball of energy starts to glow in Allura’s hand, and then that quick piece of a scene cuts back to Keith. The Druid keeps teleporting after Keith, Keith and the wolf run and teleport. By happenstance, Keith and the wolf end up in a room where Kolivan is suspended by ropes from the ceiling.

The Druid arrives, and complains, “Our high priestess Haggar has forsaken us because of your treachery. But after I kill you and the other Paladins, Haggar will allow me to return.” Because the show does not show us her “forsak[ing]” the Druids, this is mostly just confusing. We’re not told or shown any specifics of what happened. Did Haggar tell the Druids off? Did she just disappear? Both could be considered her having “forsaken” them, but they’re still very different. Macidus seems to connect, I guess, the Paladins’ killing Lotor to Haggar’s leaving. I guess Haggar’s supposed to have blamed Voltron for it, but we’ve never seen anything to show what Haggar knows about Lotor’s death. The last we saw of Haggar was in 6x05 “The Black Paladins” when Lotor told her off, Axca tried to shoot her, and Haggar teleported away. Is it supposed to be that Haggar irrationally blames the Paladins for the emotional rift she created when she abused Lotor? If Haggar has forsaken the Druids, if they haven’t seen her for years, then how does Macidus think he’ll be able to present his having killed the Paladins to her? I imagine the show would just say, he’s a villain, he’s not thinking clearly, thus nothing has to make sense within the narrative. That’s just lazy writing.

The Keith-wolf-Macidus teleport battle resumes. Allura’s ball of energy glows blue, the air swirls around them, and then poof. The sphere of pink energy disappears and Allura is left glowing pink. I guess she’s supposed to have absorbed the time-stop energy? Allura asks Pidge to “lock on to Keith’s location,” and conveniently, he’s “right directly below us.” Allura slams her hand into the ground, which cracks underneath her. She blasts through to the chamber Keith is in. I guess the blast vaporized all the rock because there’s almost no debris. The other Paladins join Allura in jumping down into the chamber. They fight Macidus, and he knocks them around too easily. Again, I think back to Allura, Kolivan, and Antok killing two Druids while those Druids fought alongside Haggar, and that makes Macidus seem overpowered. He teleports behind Allura and zaps her unconscious.

Macidus looks at Keith and teleports away. Keith then closes his eyes, somehow sees flashes of where Macidus is (if he’s invisible) or will be (if he finishes a teleport to wherever he’s going to appear). Keith throws his blade at where Macidus appears, hitting him. What is this power? Since when does Keith have magic sensing powers?

Macidus has a couple of blue lightning sparks and then he glows and explodes. The other Druids we’ve seen killed didn’t explode like this, so what’s causing this other than inconsistent writing and production?

They get Kolivan down. He’s injured, but alive and will recover. We find out now that Keith gave Kolivan the coordinates of the Altean colony. Why this hasn’t been brought up before now, I don’t know. Kolivan says he “sent a team. There was nothing there, just an empty facility.” Keith would have had to have given Kolivan the coordinates sometime between the end of 6x02 “Razor’s Edge” and the beginning of 6x04 “The Colony” because he was too busy with fighting the clone and Lotor after “The Colony.” Did Kolivan sit on the information until sometime after Voltron was under the effects of the time skip during the battle with Lotor (again, ignoring the plot hole that Coran, Krolia, Romelle, and the clone would have experienced the three years that passed outside the rift since the Castle Ship never went in)? When did Haggar collect the Alteans from the colony?

I know throughout the entirety of this episode’s commentary, I’ve put a lot of work into trying to understand the logistics of events that are only halfway referenced, at best, and take place entirely off-screen. I have probably put more work into understanding this than the creative team did in writing it. I really doubt that any of them cared if any of this really made sense or not. Keith got to have a supposedly exciting fight alongside his magic space wolf, that’s all that mattered to them, really.

Kolivan says that he has to “find the others. The universe needs us now more than ever.” So, did any of the battle that Macidus described in his tale even happen? Or did he only capture Kolivan and lure other Blades to this location one-by-one to kill them? The show is not clear about what has actually happened.

Krolia declares she’ll join Kolivan to help rebuild the Blades of Marmora. At least she won’t be here to take up so much of the story for a while. She goes to Keith and says, “I’m sorry to have to say goodbye to you for a second time.” Yeah, remember when she revealed herself as his mother back in 5x05 “Bloodlines” when she couldn’t control herself in the moment and said, “I left you once. I’ll never leave you again,” remember that? Yeah, that overwhelming amount of emotion that got to her in that moment no longer exists. She’s going to leave Keith. I don’t mind her leaving (beyond my being tired of her character) because they’re both adults and they’re both fighters in a huge conflict. But her leaving here makes her previous proclamation that she would “never leave [him] again” lose meaning. It takes away whatever emotion that part of the story had. It makes her declaration hollow. Once again, this show has flipped a switch narratively, and things are just different now just because. Keith gives her his Marmoran blade, and they hug. “Thanks for everything you taught me, Mom,” Keith says. Of course, we have no idea what any of these supposed things she taught him are since almost all of their relationship has happened off-screen.

“Keith, it’s time to get going,” Shiro says. Oh? Shiro’s still in this show? Of course, the show would have it be Shiro to be the one to interrupt Keith and his mother’s moment. And why are the Paladins so eager to leave right this very minute? I know they want to get to Earth, but they’re all still in the decompression phase of this conflict with Macidus. This separation feels forced.

Krolia and Keith tell each other they love each other then cut to the Lions flying away from the planet.

I like the premise of this episode. I like bringing the Druids back into the story, but that’s mostly because the show has never treated the Druids like characters and I’ve always wanted to learn more about them. While we get a Druid as an actual character in this episode, because of his lying, we have no idea what he says is true and what he says is a lie. We still don’t have any sense of the actual organizational relationship between Haggar and the Druids.

This episode having Macidus be the specific Druid that Keith fought in “Collection and Extraction,” while kind of cool to have a reference back to that early in the show, it reminds me about Keith’s hand seemingly being healed by the quintessence. If quintessence, and not Allura’s generated quintessence, but the refined quintessence ripped from living creatures can heal wounds, then how is quintessence a substance that poisons people so that they lose control of themselves? So, unfortunately, this episode just leaves me with more questions than it answered.

While I spent a lot of time trying to understand the logistics of off-screen events, and I don’t think much of it makes sense, and I know that a lot of my questions have no answers because the show’s creative team never thought to have answers for them, this episode is still way better than the past three.

#voltron legendary defender #voltron #vld #voltron criticism #vld criticism #voltron critical #vld critical #vld season 7 #vld 7x05 #commentary

[rueitae]

No Reservations

Written for @rosieclark for @plancevalentineexchange 2019! She requested angst. I hope I have delivered. Roughly 8,700 words.

Read on Ao3.

For those who just want fluff... don’t read past ‘The lights go out.’

~~~~~

Lance sighs, content as he sinks into the plush upholstery of a lounge chair, too lazy - and full from the breakfast buffet - to bother to take off his shoes even though they’re back in the condo. He’s on vacation after all.

The Retreats at Noeuna-4 offer everything one could hope for in terms of luxury and recreation. Massive buildings contain their own climate control system, and over the past few days Lance has hiked, skied, and surfed in five different ecosystems. Between physical fun, he’s dined in high end restaurants and lazed about in several of the elaborately designed swimming pools scattered across the grounds, all advertised to host a million guests in comfort.

The rooms reflect the opulence of the common areas, complete with all the snacks and drink a couple may need. A gigantic monitor hangs on the wall, overtly labeled to make video calls or control various room functions, as well as play video games or watch television.

The technology is childishly simple for two former Voltron Paladins, but Lance is thankful to not have to think at all. That’s what vacations are for.

He reaches over to an end table, surface of polished grey stone, and picks a creamy, laminated card on top of a stack of them. He grins as he reads the contents. “Hey, Pidge. Check out this one from Veronica!” Lance clutches his chest, overwhelmed with warm fuzzies from his sister’s thoughtfulness. “She drew a tiny me as Cupid, shooting a tiny you through the heart. Awww…”

Pidge plops down across from him on the king-sized bed, small compared to the rest of their honeymoon suite. She raises an eyebrow, looking less than impressed. “Only if your ‘Cupid’s laser’,” she says, air quotes to accompany, “hit a building, bounced around an alleyway, ricocheted off a lamppost and stuck to me.”

“And it worked.” He smirks, firing finger guns at her. “This is only the beginning, Pidge. We may be married now, but I will woo you every day. I have years to make up for.”

Pidge simmers, her upper body slumping in annoyance. She selects a card from the top of a separate pile on the bed stand. “I can’t believe I signed up for this.” Despite the words, she smiles. “How did we end up like this? It feels like a dream.”

The how doesn’t matter at this point, nor that they’ve been together romantically in some capacity for years now. Not for the first time, Lance just looks at Pidge, filled with affection for his wife.

Her sundress billows across the bed’s disheveled sheets, legs crossed comfortably - something Lance only knows thanks to a hundred mornings just like this. Her hair is still damp from the bath they shared earlier in the morning and he can still feel the thick clumps of her shampooed locks in his hands. It’s as if she glows and Lance falls in love all over again.

“Are you okay?” she asks, her adorable nose wrinkled as she analyzes him. “You’ve got that lovestruck look on your face.”

Lance leans an elbow on the armrest, cheek on his fist. “Hard not to when I get to look at your face every morning.”

Pidge flushes pink, despite their intimacy the night before (even that hadn’t been the first), and she stammers for a comeback. His heart flutters - he’s thrilled to get any sort of reaction from her.

“You’re insufferable,” she says, opening the card.

Strung along by whim and a desire to be next to his wife, Lance rises from his lonely chair and slides onto the bed behind Pidge. He rests his arms on the sides her waist and plants a gentle kiss on the back of her neck. Pidge curls into him, cutting off that side of her neck. “Lance, that tickles.”

“I know,” he teases, and places a kiss on the now exposed side.

Pidge giggles (and snorts) and twists on her knees to face him, locking her soft lips with his and preventing him from kissing her neck again. She presses her hand down on his shoulder, rising over top of him. Lance buckles back onto the piles of pillows at the head of the bed, body warming and anticipation rising.

She sticks the card in his face as she pulls away, blocking his lips from reaching her. Kissing the card is better than kissing a mouse at least. “This one’s from Hunk. We should read it together.”

Lance groans. “You’re a tease,” he complains as he takes the card. He steals a kiss from her forehead. “I love you so much. I’m the luckiest guy to be married to you.”

Pidge grins and leans back into him as he opens the card for both of them to see. “Luck is one of your best traits. Like, you’re lucky my mom didn’t find out we eloped. We’d  both  be grounded.”

Lance scans the writing on Hunk’s card and lets out a sharp laugh. “Looks like we didn’t fool everyone.”

“‘You lying liars,’” Pidge recites, not bothering to contain her own laughter. “‘I know you eloped, like, a year ago and you only had the wedding to con gifts out of us. Joke’s on you. I got you an off-brand blender so your milkshakes will never be as smooth as you like them! ...I love you guys. Congratulations. Come over often and I’ll make you proper milkshakes.’”

“I don’t know how we’ll survive without him,” Lance laughs. “Maybe we should move into the attic of his Earth-based restaurant. Then we’ll never have to do any cooking ever.”

Pidge plucks Hunk’s card from his fingers and sets it off to the side. “Tempting, but you start school in a few months and I’m still testing the limits of the Defenders vehicles.” She hums, tapping a finger on her chin. "I wonder what would happen if Shiro interacted with them," she says with increasing awe before breaking out into a wide grin. "Maybe the vehicles will combine into a Voltron like the Lions! Lance! Remind me to check the dynotherm connectors when we get back - no, wait, I'm gonna call Matt right now and make him do it." She scrambles off the bed, intent on making her video call.

Lance wraps his arms around her waist, stopping her from going any further, nose pressed up against her lower back. The scent of the local perfume fills his senses and, despite leaning forward awkwardly, he wants to stay like this all day. "I love it when you talk science," he says breathlessly, "but It's our honeymoon. Your brother can wait, tell me all about it."

Small hands hold tightly onto his larger ones, resting on her abdomen. She rolls her thumb over his skin and Lance melts at the soft touches. Heat rises in his belly once more, wanting nothing more than to pull her back to the bed and lie beside her, recreating the morning’s peaceful afterglow.

"Speaking of… talking...” Pidge says instead, “did you remember to make the reservation for the Hilt tonight?"

His eyes snap open and out of his blissful daydream. The Hilt is the premier restaurant of the resort, one that has Hunk's rare seal of approval. Pidge has been wanting to eat there for a few days now.

He forgot to make the reservation again.

Lance breaks away, jumps off the bed, and makes a beeline for the video phone. "Maybe my luck will get us a free spot tonight,” he says as he reaches the video phone, turning to face her with a weak grin. “If not, I'll make a reservation for sometime this week, I promise," he assures her, clasping his hands together as if it will prove his words true.

Pidge fidgets with the hem of her dress. "Okay, sure. The soonest opening you can get, okay? It doesn't have to be the best table or anything."

"Only the best for the best," Lance insists. Though he compliments her, Pidge gives no reaction, her enthusiasm for the Defenders project so distant compared to her current fidgety mood. He runs the top of his teeth along his bottom lip, heart twisting with guilt; she really wants this. He’s a failure if he can’t read her intentions after not only dating, but also having been linked mentally through sentient robots.

But they are in the condo now, surrounded by lush alien jungle and a mile from their nearest neighbor - with nothing to distract them but each other - so Lance is determined to make it up to Pidge and finally get the reservations. It will be a romantic evening like no other - just him and his wife, candle-lit dinner and all, he swears it - he isn’t called loverboy Lance without reason.

He presses the comm button that will connect him with the hotel lobby, but instead of their pink-skinned alien hosts, static greets him.

"That's weird," he muses. "It was working fine last night when we ordered room service."

Pidge bends down and pops open the plate that hides the wiring behind the wall. She examines the bundle, fingering the wires as musician to a harp. "Everything looks normal.” Her brows furrow. “It must be on the lobby's end."

Lance groans. So much for any after-breakfast snuggling today. "Let's go then. We might as well take our swimsuits for the water park since we can just head there after stopping at the lobby."

Pidge smiles up at him, instantly lifting his mood. "I hope you brought the right swim trunks." She smirks. "I heard the Galaxy Whirl can rip them right off of you."

He matches her grin, raising his eyebrows suggestively. "You'd like that wouldn't you?"

She stands, closing the gap between them, teasingly twisting the fabric of his shirt between her fingers. "Maybe we should do a quick test run in the shower to make sure they stay on."

The lights go out.

Lance blinks to acclimate his eyes as quickly as he can, his other senses on high alert. First the comm unit and now the power? Instinct makes him reach for his bayard... which he hasn't had since the Lions departed. Perhaps the years as a Paladin have made him too paranoid. It’s probably just a malfunction.

"Who's there?" Pidge demands. Lance places a hand on her shoulder - she's just as tense as he is.

A high-pitched zing is the only warning Lance has before his shins slam together, tied snug by weighted cord. He flails his arms, seeking balance, yelping until the floor greets his face with a disorientating thud. “Owww…” He inhales through his nose and coughs wetly. Probably a nosebleed, but with his legs wound tightly together that’s the least of his concerns.

“Lance - AH!” Pidge yells.

Lance kneels. His heart catches in his throat as her head makes solid contact with the stone table lamp, her arms pinned snug against her sides. She falls onto the bed with a soft thump.

“Pidge!” He props his arms on foot of the bed, pulling himself up to be closer to her. She’s not moving. Maybe the fall wasn’t that bad, he tells himself, though his racing heart betrays his growing anxiety. He needs to make sure Pidge is okay, then find their attacker. “Talk to m-mhhhmmm!”

A clawed and scaly hand as big as his face cuts his words short. “Shhh,” the voice says softly, presumably belonging to their assailant. Quiznak, this isn’t supposed to be happening. They hadn’t been Paladins in  years  - they were so out of practice and so complacent… “We may be alone, but you’ll excite Kharl with your panicked squeals. Trust me, you don’t want that.” The voice - she, if Lance has to guess - chuckles at her own private joke. “Not yet anyway.”

A threatening hiss makes Lance jump, but the hand keeps him firmly in place. In the shadows, movement from the wall above the bed makes his skin scrawl. He's reminded of a lizard, and this would be a much larger one than he's used to on Earth.

His assailant removes her hand from his face and binds his wrists with magenta cuffs.

“We’re Paladins of Voltron,” Lance declares, filling his voice with as much confidence as he can muster, mind buzzing for a plan - a counterattack, anything. He’s picked up, and he grunts as he’s unceremoniously thrown onto the bed near Pidge. He rolls onto an elbow, making himself as big as he can. “You have no idea what you’re getting yourself into.”

"I know who you are." Flashing yellow eyes seem to float above the edge of the bed, disembodied in the darkness. Lance’s stomach ties into a knot, terrified as the terms ‘bounty hunter’, ‘Zarkon loyalist’, and ‘pirate’ roll across his mind. He worms his way between Pidge and their attacker. Though they have no physical weapons, Lance isn’t defenseless. Pidge is small, but she’s far from frail. He can distract for as long as it takes for Pidge to come to and sneak a distress call out.

"Oh." Lance swallows, tasting the blood trickling down his throat. Execution is easier said than done, but if anyone is equal to the task, it’s him. He forces a weary smile. "I don’t suppose you’re just looking for autographs then?"

The eyes glow in amusement. "Of sorts. I am a great fan of your work, Paladin Lance. Your aim and situational awareness are something of legend in certain circles, although you seem to be out of practice.”

They’ve been tracked - hunted, Lance realizes, urgency growing in time with each heartbeat. "You’ve got us at a disadvantage," he says, and chuckles, lifting his cuffed hands. "Literally. But we don't know a thing about you."

Pidge groans softly from behind him and Lance wants nothing more than to turn around and see to her injuries, but he can’t, not when their lives may depend on it.

The eyes rise to near the ceiling, and a thump - probably large feet - reverberates across the floor. "Paladin Pidge,” the voice addresses and Lance growls at his failure, “technology and stealth expert. I am Rizak Ix and I have been looking forward to hunting you and your fellow Paladins."

Despite the direness of the situation, his mouth seems to have a mind of its own. “There’s only five of us,” he says though his heart pounds in his chest and through his ears. “I suppose our autographs  are  a precious commodity.”

It sounds so stupid when it leaves his mouth, but when the whites of Rizak’s teeth glint against the darkness to form a grin, Lance lets himself feel a bit better. He can work with an enemy with a sense of humor.

“I prefer a token of flesh and blood,” she says, “although I am woefully disappointed with your performance today, your capture was far too easy. I’ve waited years for the feared Voltron Paladins to become unneeded, I expected more of a challenge.”

“Then let us go,” Pidge insists. Her voice is groggy, but it lets Lance know she’s aware, and relief floods over him.

He leans over his shoulder, catching the shadows of her face. “Is your head okay?”

“...not great,” she admits. “I’ll deal with it once we’re out of this.”

The telltale whine of a laser gun powering up snaps Lance’s attention back to their bounty hunter. She’s easier to see as she stalks around the bed towards them, her head towering to near the top of the vaulted ceiling. A forked tongue wiggles from her delighted smile. A loaded pistol sits in her large hand, with dark pink streaks lining the outside of the weapon illuminating her dark grey scales.

“Allow me to assist,” Rizak says. Lance freezes in fear as she presses the barrel into the side of his neck. It taints the memory of the soft kisses Pidge planted there in what already seems like a lifetime ago. “I’ll have you both out of here shortly.”

“Don’t hurt him!” Pidge screams desperately. “Stop!”

The gun fires and Lance knows no more.

~~~~~

Lance wakes. He wishes the tranquilizer had been stronger when he takes in the stale, rotten air.

His vision is slow to come into focus, but it's clear the place is reminiscent of Galra prison cells: rectangular, grey, and metal-looking, although instead of any discernible door, there’s a skylight, barred in magenta. It looks too small to fit through, but the low hum of a ship’s engine distracts him from pondering further. They’re no longer at the resort.

Lance coughs, a poor attempt to relieve himself of the rotting stench in the air. Whatever had been kept in this prison before them hadn’t made it out alive. He refuses to think on what that might mean for them and the cold metal digging into his chin distracts him enough.

His chest tightens, not wanting to acknowledge that its a collar. Questions flood into his thoughts anyway. Shock? Aesthetic? What does this bounty hunter want with them? Probable bounty hunter anyway. What all does the universe have left to throw at them?

No wonder his neck hurts. His bum is sore on top of it, which means he’s been sitting up for a long while. At least his hands and feet are free again and his nose isn’t bleeding anymore.

A smaller body shifts against his side.

“Pidge?” he asks. She’s hurt, he remembers. He needs to make sure she is all right.

“I’m here,” she responds groggily, making no attempt to move from his side. Lance wants it no other way. Her touch means she’s here, and they’re together, not only creating warmth for their bodies, but also in his heart. He desperately needs that thread of security now.

But guilt twists in his stomach. “Sorry, Pidge. Go back to sleep. We’re going to need your brain to get out of this one.”

It isn’t fair. They did their time and saved the universe. Why does a happy ending still elude them?

“My head is killing me,” Pidge complains. “I don’t think I can.”

Lance shifts to face her, careful to make sure she doesn’t fall to the floor. A ring of clunky metal around her neck stares back at him, a dot of green light alone in a sea of dark grey, and he’s positive it’s a mirror of what he wears himself.

Pidge diverts his focus from their dreadful situation before it can overwhelm him. Though the movement isn’t much, she gasps and heaves, vomit spilling out before them. He holds her upright and gently rubs her back in silence. Finished, she shivers, and stares at the wall across from them as if in a daze.

“Okay, well, you really should,” he says. “I don’t remember that much from health class, but I’m pretty sure you have a concussion. You look just like Keith after he came back from that ice planet.”

“I feel like crap,” Pidge moans. “This wasn’t supposed to happen yet.”

“This wasn’t supposed to happen ever,” Lance corrects, annoyed. He’s more alert now that he’s aware that he needs to take charge of the situation while Pidge recovers. “Look, we’re famous. Someone is bound to recognize us if this lady tries to sell us off. It might give us a fighting chance for escape too.” His words taste false as soon as he says them. The way the bounty hunter praised them, eager for a fight - Lance isn’t sure there’s a third party at all.

A quick, sharp buzz makes Lance jump. His heart freezes at the sight of several long, needle-like teeth grinding at the bars across the skylight. Translucent green slobber drips down to the floor as the creature gnaws, as if desperate to get in.

“Up, Kharl!” The teeth vanish from view at the bounty hunter’s words, the creature - Kharl - whining and panting as it skitters away across the top of the prison.

Lance decides he does not want to meet Kharl if he can help it.

The bars retract and a large bowl descends slowly, attached to a thick cord via a metal hook. Clear liquid, water probably, spills over the top as it jerks downward. Seeing an opportunity, Lance sets Pidge against the wall and rushes the cord, grabbing hold as it unhooks from the bowl and lifts back into the air.

He’s hit with an electric shock far worse than simple static cling, lighting his nerves on fire. He cries out as his back makes contact with the hard floor and slides backwards until Pidge catches his shoulders.

Hidden from view, Rizak laughs. The hook disappears through the opening. “Careful, Paladins, the wires are live. I wouldn’t recommend touching it twice. You’ll need your sprightliness, as well as the water, for later.”

“You won’t get away with this,” Pidge threatens. She tightens her grip on his shirt, a comfort as he comes out of his daze. “We have allies everywhere.”

“You'll find no friend in this part of the universe,” she advises. A bulging sack plummets from the skylight and it lands with a thud beside the bowl. “The water is fresh and the sack is full of rations. Eat your fill; you won’t die while on this ship.”

Lance seethes, face twisting in displeasure. He can’t stand to be patronized by their captor.

But the gesture of food and water both throw him for a loop and set his stomach into further unease. What - or who - did she need them alive for?

“Then get Pidge something for her nausea! She can’t eat if she’s sick,” he demands. His feelings don’t matter if Pidge is ill.

“Rizak the Patient,” Pidge says before the bounty hunter can respond. “I remember your name from the black market channels. Kind of an odd nickname for a bounty hunter.”

A deep chuckle reverberates through the air. “I have been watching your actions as Paladins since the early days of the Voltron Coalition,” she explains. “And the more I learned about each one of you, the greater my desire to test my skills against the defenders of the universe. I am willing to take my time to get results.”

A crash and thud from just the other side of the wall startle Lance while Pidge jumps away from the point of origin.

“Kharl, however, is not so patient.”

Claws scrape at the wall and the beast breathes deep, sniffing incessantly.

Lance catches on fast, inhaling sharply in fear. Rizak is a hunter and Kharl is her hunting dog.

He and Pidge are the prey.

The magenta bars snap back into place between the skylight. “Now that the universe no longer needs the Paladins or Voltron for its safekeeping, I will take this opportunity to hunt the both of you. I am positive you will all make excellent trophies.”

Lance swallows hard. The implication behind ‘trophies’ makes his stomach churn. He imagines those long, sharp teeth sinking into his chest, green slobber the last thing he sees in life - a life cut far too short for what they fought to preserve.

It isn’t fair.

But the thought of that fate for Pidge ignites his anger. There are plenty of flight instructors at the Garrison to guide the next generation of pilots, but there’s only one Pidge who knows the workings of the Defenders’ vehicles better than the back of her hand, no one else who possesses both the experience piloting a sentient machine with the intimate knowledge of how they work.

The universe can’t lose Pidge. Lance refuses to lose yet another loved one, not when he can do something about it. He stands, intent on giving this bounty hunter a piece of his mind.

“Some great hunter you are,” Pidge jeers, beating him to the punch. Quiznak, this is why he loves her. The sharp tongue and defiance in the face of danger are weapons in themselves. “You captured us completely unarmed and unprepared.”

He takes her hand in solidarity and offers an encouraging smile, emboldened by her snark to offer some of his own, “Must be a side job. The day one must be boring.”

Pidge returns the smile, but it isn’t full or bright, merely thankful. Her resilience is only skin deep. She’s just as terrified as he is.

“Of sorts” Rizak says, taking Lance by surprise as he snaps his head upwards, “which is why the hunt will continue elsewhere. You will have all the resources of an uninhabited planet at your disposal. Simply survive and I will test my tracking skills.”

“ What? ” Lance squeaks, incredulous he’s hearing this.

“How is that even fair?” Pidge protests. “You can’t - you have tracking devices on us!” She points to the collar around her neck.

Of course that’s what they are! What’s to stop them from carrying electricity if the wires are charged?

A single click echoes in the air. Lance yelps as a red glow surrounds him and spreads down to his toes before disappearing.

“Red Paladin Lance,” an electronic voice says. “Heart rate: elevated. Minor bruising. Broken nasal cavity; ninety percent healed. Dehydration. Suggested course of action: rest, fluids.”

The red glow in his periphery turns green.

“That particular feature is turned off. The devices you wear exist to measure your vitals only,” the bounty hunter explains.

Lance stills in fear - she’d healed his broken nose? What else had she done to them? - rage building as he balls his hands into fists. “And we’re supposed to take your word on this? After you’ve kidnapped us?”

“On my honor as a Xunalmani, you will have ample opportunity to kill me once the hunt begins. I have placed your weapons of choice across the planet so that you will not be defenseless. And… I do not intend to let you die unless it is by my hand.”

A million questions race through Lance’s mind, and Pidge’s concerned expression mirrors his thoughts. If this is actually happening - it still seems surreal despite the accommodations - then they need to be prepared. What is the wildlife like? What is safe to eat? To drink?

His hands grow clammy, becoming more terrified by the second. Less about the threat of death, he’s used to that, but how she’s prepared the hunting ground like it’s a game.

“The resourcefulness of the Paladins is legendary,” she says in awe. “You had precious little to work with in your early days and still managed to not only survive, but thrive and take down the Galra empire. I am looking forward to seeing that resourcefulness in action.”

“We’re flattered,” Pidge drones. Her hand shakes in his.

His heart breaks. He would like nothing more than to have Pidge by his side to thwart this sick sideshow… but he also wants to keep her out of danger however he can.

“You don’t need both of us!” Lance growls desperately, staring intensely as if it could somehow break apart their cell. “Shouldn’t one former Paladin be enough for you? Let Pidge go!”

“Lance!” Pidge cries. “No! Don’t you dare!”

“I appreciate the enthusiasm to go first, Paladin Lance,” Rizak says. “I will oblige, since I want all three of you.”

Pidge freezes, but Lance pays it no mind as he mentally does the math. Who else does she have? Hunk and Shiro travel with the Atlas, and there’s no way a bounty hunter could get through that kind of security. But Keith… Keith is sometimes isolated during his humanitarian missions. Caught unaware, even the best fighter among them can fall.

“What have you done with Keith?" Lance demands.

“Lance…” Pidge says so quietly, he almost doesn’t hear.

“You’re screwed if you let him loose,” he continues instead. “Give him a stick and he’ll find a way to kill you with it.”

“Lance, it's not Keith she’s talking about,” Pidge says, her voice trembling.

It’s the voice she uses so sparingly, only in the most dire of situations, when she’s exhausted of all her rage and options. So he finally turns from the skylight to his wife. She grips his hand so tightly and clenches a fistful of floral fabric near her abdomen in the other.

Her eyes lock onto his like a finely tuned guidance system. She opens her mouth, “I’m -- “

“A child of two Paladins could be the challenge of a lifetime,” Rizak interrupts. “With proper training, I will have an apprentice for years and a one of a kind trophy.”

Pidge snaps her head towards the skylight. “Over my dead body!”

“That will be easily arranged once the child is born.”

Lance barely registers his own breathing, his mouth already growing dry as it hangs open, struggling to digest the new information.

Pidge is pregnant.

Pidge is pregnant with their child and they’re imprisoned on a quiznaking ship by a quiznaking bounty hunter.

Pidge takes pity on his slow comprehension, face softening despite her hurried breaths. “I wanted to tell you at dinner, to make it extra special,” she explains. Tears threaten to break out from her eyes. “I would’ve told you earlier if I’d known all this was going to happen.”

“It’s no fun hunting prey that isn’t in peak condition,” Rizak says. “Paladin Pidge will remain on the ship until the child is born.”

“Hold on, that’s almost nine months,” Pidge squeaks, eyes narrowing again in rage. “I am not staying that long, let alone giving birth here.”

Lance steps forward, “And there’s no way I’m letting you take our baby either.” The words are foreign to his lips, and any other day he might say it over and over, just to get used to how wonderful they sound. All he can do right now is use them for bluster.

He knows as things stand, he doesn’t have much choice in the matter.

Rizak bursts out a hearty laugh. “I look forward to the challenge from both of you.” A muted beep sounds in the distance. “We’ve arrived. You have five doboshes while I take the ship into the atmosphere and release Paladin Lance for the hunt. Say what you need.”

The clunk of boots are heavy on the roof of the prison, including the jump down to ground level.

They are literally in an animal crate.

Pidge pounds on the wall. “Get back here and let us go! I’ll show you a fight!” Her threat falls short of intimidating as she swallows hard and fails to hold back her sobs. “You got lucky! You’d never have caught us if we knew you were coming!’ She kicks the wall and bows her head against it, weakly slapping it with her palm.

Lance is drawn in as she cries, wrapping his arms around her, begging whatever is left of the Paladin bond to let him take all of her sorrow. He rests his head on hers. Never mind the fact he is about to be dropped onto an unknown planet, they’re about to be separated, and he won’t be able to protect her. He already tastes the failure and it scares him.

“This is actually happening,” Pidge chokes. She twists around and wraps her arms around his neck, but instead of familiar teasing kisses she buries her face in his chest.

Before he can blink Lance is on his knees and hugging Pidge as if his life depends on it, dragging her to the floor with him. “I love you,” he says, not bothering to whisper. “I love you and our kid. I’ll find a way off the planet and I’ll get you both out of here.”

“I’ll find a way to get a distress call out,” Pidge says as she tightens her grip on him. “She’s bound to let her guard down eventually.”

“I don’t want to leave you, either of you,” he says. His heart beats so fast it feels as if it can burst from his body. He tries to focus on Pidge, commit all of her to memory - the smell of her tropical perfume, the feel of her thick hair, the look of her face (if he can only find a way to make her smile right now) - because he honestly does not know when he will next see her. And that terrifies him more than whatever fate awaits him on this planet.

Pidge sniffs. “I don’t want you to leave. I want you with me and the baby, where you belong.”

“M-maybe there’s a secret door somewhere,” he jokes. She’d teased him the last time he suggested that at least. “We aren’t separated yet, Pidge. She has to take you out first. We can jump her.”

They have to; with no weapons it will be their one shot to get out of this nightmare before it gets much worse.

Pidge leans back and wipes the snot away from her face. “Yeah, okay. We’d better get ready.”

Lance nods in agreement and stands. He's so numb. Between their capture, imminent future, and the knowledge he will be a father… his emotions are in turmoil. He exhales, rolling his shoulders forward. One thing at a time. Get out of this first. Lift spirits.

He forces himself to grin, feigning confidence as he says, “Kiss for good luck?”

It works. His heart soars with joy when she stands and smiles at him, though her eyes still shine with tears. “You would. I should withhold it for when we’re safely back at the resort.”

“When we’re safe,” he says as he takes both of her hands, “I’ll be the one giving you a kiss. Promise.”

Her smile fades almost as quickly as it had appeared. Her eyes peer into his soul. “There’s a decent chance this won’t work, Lance. We might not even have the advantage of surprise if she’s expecting us to try something. So… if - if we are separated, you stay alive. That’s all. Just stay alive. Promise me that.”

The reminder of exactly how dire their situation is overcomes him and he drops to one knee. “I already made a promise to be by your side through everything.” He rubs the smooth silver band around her finger, the one he had inlaid with diamonds around the circumference before their engagement, the ring he had the honor of slipping onto her finger twice now. “I don’t intend to let death part us that easily. Trust me.”

Pidge nods and bites her quivering lip. “I do. I brought my dad and Matt back, so you can bet I’m coming to collect your quiznaking butt off that planet.” She takes a deep breath and glares, though he knows she’s not angry with him. “I am not raising this baby without you, understand?”

Despite everything going on, her words soothe him. He’s seen firsthand what Pidge will do for her family. “I do,” he says as he rises, cupping her cheek and wiping away her residual tears with his thumb. ”I believe it.”

She leans in, bracing her hand around the back of his neck. “Then I guess I can give you this.”

He meets her lips with his. The firm and easy press lets him easily take them away from here, back to the resort and then to their home on Garrison grounds. He imagines the two of them painting the guest bedroom in soft blues and greens in preparation for their first child, and a chorus of congratulations from friends and allies alike.

Heavy footsteps break him from his blissful daydream and Pidge from him. It’s time. They have to take a post on opposite walls.

He doesn’t want to let go - he can see it in Pidge’s eyes she doesn’t either - especially if it may be their last.

Like fingernails on a chalkboard, Kharl gnaws on the other side of the wall nearest to where they stand, stopping only to inhale their scent. They both jump, and Pidge uses the distraction to slip out of his hands. Lance opens his mouth to protest, but a hydraulic hiss forces his attention to his right.

Lance pins his back to the wall and waits as the hidden door slides down. He sets a foot against the wall, ignoring Kharl’s continuous sniffing, readying to launch himself at their captor.

Rizak walks up a ramp empty-handed. It’s the first clear view he’s had of her at all. She’s more lizard-like than he imagined, with a long tail and pointed teeth inside an elongated snout.

Pidge gasps, and her eyes widen with renewed fear. A heartbeat later, she’s clenching her teeth in the same rabid determination she displayed in the search for her family, hands balled up into fists. She charges and Lance follows her lead with a battle cry.

He collides with the force field before he runs into the bounty hunter, bouncing back onto the hard floor.

His heart catches in this throat when he sees Pidge on the other side, the bounty hunter’s thick arms around her neck, leaving Pidge’s legs flailing and hands scrabbling to get free.

A soft, red glow emanates off the grey scales. Lance places his own trembling hand near his collar, and a green light shines off his skin.

His blood boils. Rizak had planned for their counterattack and used it against them.

Then guilt sets in. It was his idea.

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” Rizak teases, squeezing Pidge closer to herself. “Could it be you’ve seen my kind before?”

Lance snarls and leaps to his feet, ramming his fists against the force field. “Let her go!”

Needle-like teeth ram at the barrier, creating yellow sparks. Lance steps back on instinct as the jaws unhinge and gnaw on the force field, threatening to cut him clean in half. Kharl is long, black with thick red stripes on his snake-like body - one with thin legs and sharp claws that Lance is very sure can shred him to bits.

He’s more concerned for Pidge at the moment.

“He was hunting my brother!” she shouts. “And I’d do the same thing again!”

“We have something in common, Paladin Pidge. We would do anything for our families,” Rizak says, caressing Pidge’s terrified face in a way that makes Lance quake with rage. “You took my brother from me, so I will take pleasure in taking you from your mate.”

Pidge pales. “No, don’t! If your beef is with me - “

“And after I hunt Paladin Lance, I will take your child, hunt you down, and finish my brother’s job.” She hisses. “Down, Kharl. Not yet.”

The creature backs down and slinks off into the shadows, but its eager, red eyes remain locked on Lance.

“You have twenty varga to prepare, Paladin Lance. Keep me entertained and you will live for another hunt,” Rizak instructs.

Lance swallows, keeping his heart from leaping into his throat. He’s still trembling and he hates showing how scared he is in front of their captor. “Just don’t hurt Pidge,” he manages.

“I take my investments seriously.” Rizak grins evilly. “She will be well cared for, and”--she holds Pidge painfully closer--“will have plenty of work to do.”

They are words Lance can’t bring himself to trust, but as the gears turn and the door begins to close and cut him off from Pidge, he forces himself to hang onto them. “Pidge!” he cries desperately, pounding on the force field - standing on his toes to keep her within his sights. “Katie!”

“Lance!” Pidge screams as the door locks shut, sobs intruding in her voice as she follows with, “I love you!”

So he, with all the wisdom of a man in his 20s who’s gone through war, saved the universe, is captured, and just wants to make his wife feel better, responds, “I know!”

Quiznak, his last words to Pidge ever might be a Star Wars reference. “I lo -- "

Lance doesn’t get a chance to change his words. The prison tilts and Lance is pulled back, striking the far wall and stuck there as if he’s a cadet in the Garrison’s centrifuge machine again. His heart threatens to rip out of his body and his stomach tightens. It feels like an eternity as the force refuses to let him even move his arms or yell in alarm to relieve the fear he finally feels for himself. He’s perceptive enough to realize he’s just been airdropped. Is he even going to survive this fall?

Finally the crate slams against solid ground, throwing Lance against the - wall-floor-ceiling? - metal. A crack and sharp pain jolts through his wrist and he screams in pain. He’ll have to start off this stupid game with a probable broken hand.

As he holds his wrist gingerly, the door swings open, hitting the ground with a slam and pillowing cloud of dust. Hot, humid air rushes over his skin. Lance takes a deep, trembling breath. “No problem. Just like home. You’ve got this, Lance.”

He takes his time walking down the ramp. Dozens of large metal crates litter the area between giant trees - it chills him that he isn’t the first to face this fate, nor the last if he and Pidge can’t do anything about it. The trunks are wider than any he knows on Earth, upended roots among the thick undergrowth large enough to fit a small house under.

It's a jungle paradise, just like the resort, only on a massive scale. He now knows what an ant must feel like.

Just the thought of what he’s been taken from pulls him to his knees, chest rising and falling hard. It wasn’t that long ago he and Pidge were safe, celebrating their time together. He wants to cry, but the tears don’t come. The air is wet enough as it is. Beads of sweat dot his forehead and slip down his temple and into his eyes.

The calls of the native birds sound mournful, appropriate for his mood. He’s not even come to terms, not completely, with the fact that he is going to be a father. How can he when the mother of the child is held captive by a bounty hunter who seems to have personal history with her?

Lance falls to his hands and knees. He rips some undergrowth from the ground and screams in frustration. There’s nothing he can do.

At least not yet. Rizak said she was coming in twenty varga, and if he can believe her, there’s a gun out here somewhere for him to make it a fair fight.

Lance stands and heads back into his former prison, filled with renewed determination. The fall spilled the water, but the ration packets and the bag will be indispensable.

He has a promise to keep, so for now he plays the game - aiming to win.

~~~~~

His heart sinks when he hears the shuttle descend into the atmosphere. Rizak is early.

Lance tears apart his enclosure as his heart thumps in panic over the break of routine, tossing the limbs and leaves of his former roof into the nearby stream. He douses the fire, throwing all he can into the water, and scatters the mud that made his walls. The more he makes it seem like he was never here, the better. A shame, this had been one of the nicer areas.

It’s been a long time, so long even his time as a Paladin seems like a fever dream. Rizak never divulges outside information, and he can’t keep track of the days for fear he’ll leave evidence of his stay in any given spot. He has no other contact with living beings and if he makes it out of here alive he’ll never eat another berry again.

Lance is tired, not just physically, and his heart feels as if it’s made of lead. He kneels beside a stream and washes his face and hands - his wrist healed, a mercy given to him after the first time she caught up to him. He needs to focus. Stubble and aged wrinkles stare back at him, along with the unnatural metal necklace he still wears, light blinking its usual green. He reaches out to the surface, touching his reflection. He hardly looks like himself.

Perhaps she’s finally bored of him. She’s captured him more often than not lately. Killing Kharl must have been the last great feat he’s allowed to accomplish.

“Pidge has it under control,” he tells himself. He misses her fiercely; there is no one Lance would rather have on his side in that ship.

He collects his two possessions: the promised rifle that took him way too long to find and the sack once filled with rations. He forces his legs to move. Best to put as much distance between himself and Rizak as possible. If he’s lucky he won’t even see her. Or maybe...maybe today will be the day he can snipe her, steal her ship, and rescue Pidge and their baby.

Their baby… he wonders what Pidge looks like with her belly swollen. She has to be showing by now.

He pounds his fist against the nearest tree. Not for the first time he thinks about how lonely she is, becoming increasingly vulnerable at the hands of their captor. He should be there for her, doting on her every need, kissing her belly, feeling their child kick against her skin, and taking her to proper doctor appointments. He wants to tell the baby of epic adventures - both real and fantasy - as Pidge fights a fond smile and rolls her eyes at him.

Lance needs to be doing all of those things, not spending time in this quiznaking jungle planet fighting for his life.

But he promised Pidge he would survive so that he would have those moments with his family in the future.

So he trudges on.

He also never loses sight of the shuttle. It’s typically landed by now, but today it heads right for him.

Lance picks up speed, sure to look over his shoulder as often as he can spare. His heart pounds through his ears as it gains on him. He changes direction, zig zags, shields himself with the towering trees. None of it matters as the shuttle follows him everywhere.

He runs into another section of the winding stream and plows in, water up to his knees soaking into his tattered clothes and resisting him with every step. It takes too much energy, but there’s higher ground on the other side where he can hide for a possible shot.

He catches a glimpse of red on the water’s surface. This must be the end. Lance can’t think of any other reason why the bounty hunter has turned on the tracking function.

He swallows a sob as he reaches the opposite bank. At least it’ll be quick if he fails.

Air drier and hotter than the ambient atmosphere washes over him, and the sun disappears as the shuttle overtakes his path, landing before him.

Lance stops and brings the rifle to a firing position, intent on making a literal last stand. The scope is long since broken, so he has to rely on his own sight for this shot. He’ll only get one. But his arms ache, and feel like noodles. He will miss if they don’t stop shaking.

The shuttle’s bay doors open, spitting in the middle and spreading out. The bottom half rests on the forest floor, creating a ramp.

A figure moves in the shadows and Lance shoots. He can’t afford to wait, not when his ticket to freedom and freeing Pidge is right there with only a bounty hunter in his way.

The shot ricochets off the door and onto a tree. His fingers shake, but he readies the next shot, teeth clenched in concentration.

“Lance, stop!”

He lowers the rifle. Is he already dead?

“Pidge?” he rasps, unbelieving.

But it is Pidge who emerges from the shuttle, resting a hand against the side, smiling at him with tears poking at her eyes in clear relief. She wears a tattered Galra prison uniform around her familiar slender form, but she’s never looked more beautiful to his strained eyes.

“You’re okay. You’re okay,” she repeats breathlessly. Her legs stumble forward. Lance drops his rifle and it bounces harmlessly among the fallen leaves. He easily finds strength from deep within himself to run to her.

She falls into his arms at the end of the ramp and they sink to their knees. Just having her body next to his again heals his aching and tired limbs. Pidge drapes her arms over his shoulders, and he wraps his tightly around her. She’s crying. “It's all over, Lance. She’s dead. We’re free.”

Relief washes over him like a flood. They aren’t endangered anymore. No more running for his life. He can finally put that behind him. “Pidge. Pidge,” he says. He can’t say her name too many times. “Katie, I missed you so much.”

“I was so worried about you. Every single day. I tried to ask her about you, but she wouldn’t tell me anything. I finally broke out of my room. I got a message to Keith. He was in the next galaxy over he…” Pidge rambles. “Lance, if I hadn’t gotten his frequency he would have never known we were here. They never stopped looking for us.”

How long had it been? Wasn’t Pidge pregnant? Why isn’t she showing? “Pidge... “ He breaks away, almost scared to ask. “The baby?”

But Pidge grins and it makes his chest light. “Your daughter is spending some time with her uncle Keith.” She cocks her head to the side. “I’ve told her all I can about you, but it’s better if she sees for herself. Not that she can actually remember since she’s only a few days old but - “

Lance breaks her string of ponderings with a kiss, unable to hold himself back any further. He’s missed her so much, and he just wants to know she isn’t an illusion.

Pidge relaxes, and returns it. How good it is to feel something something other than the thick air and sour berries on his lips. He takes care to moisten the cracks in hers, chapped from the dry spaceship systems.

“I’m so sorry I wasn’t there,” he says as they part. Lance knows it isn’t his fault, but his heart goes out to her all the same. “I didn’t know what she was going to do to you.”

Pidge hesitates. “She has a trophy room. It’s best if you don’t see it. Keith is working to find their home planets… to give them proper burials.”

It goes unsaid, but Lance understands. Either of them could have become part of the macabre collection sooner or later.

“it won’t happen to anyone else,” he assures her. “You're so brave, Pidge. I love you.”

Pidge leans her tired head into his chest. “I want to go home. I want you to see your daughter and I want the three of us together.”

Chest filled with warmth at the prospect, Lance presses a kiss on top of her head, holding her close. “I’ll go wherever you want.”

Together they rise and enter the shuttle. Lance doesn’t even look back as the bay doors close. He’s pleased that his pilot instincts remain as he prepares them for takeoff.

Pidge laughs at him from the copilot seat. “I’ll take it from here, Tailor. You look like you’re going to pass out.”

It was true he hasn’t slept well for - he pauses to take in the date on the dashboard - the past eight months. Silent tears reach his mouth, but he’s too numb to really take it in. The time he’s missed.... It's almost too much to bear. Perhaps a short nap  is  in order.

Lance smiles, chest light in contentment. He won’t need to wait long to see the subject of his dreams. And all things considered, he decides not to be too angry at Keith for getting to hold his daughter before him.

It’s finally over. When he wakes, he’ll be busier than ever. Forget the honeymoon he and Pidge never finished, it’s time to get to work making sure things like this don’t happen to anyone else, defending the universe by training the next generation.

He also has dozens of kisses for a tiny head that are far overdue, and he doesn’t expect to tire from it.

#plance #pidgance #vld fanfic #rueitae #my writing #voltron legendary defender #plangst #i guess? #plance kid #does that count too? #i hope you like it! #reem gets all the credit for Hunk's card omg #it was too funny i had to use it #this was only supposed to be 2k i went a little overboard #i'm so glad you said you wanted closure rosie because i was totally going to end it with Lance getting dropped off #that's why there's so much of a time skip #established plance

[aspected-benefic]

Prompt #10: Foster

and we open up with a shot of the house just like a sitcom

wc: 2,825 (putting word count total here as a warning)

((This is a headcanon I had way back during the great server shuffle. Though my main characters are currently on Sargatanas, I also consider Faerie my second home. I have a private free company there (thanks to @abeat who signed the petition for me :D~) and a cottage in Mist. At some point, long before server merges were announced, I had the idea to make an alt on Siren to take advantage of the Road to 60 buff, level said alt's crafters, then move said alt to Faerie. The first one was Apple, but for various reasons, I stayed off of Apple for a month and missed the Road to 60 buff window to level all the crafters. D'oh! Sometime later, I made Yet Another Alt - Azrael - to accomplish the same thing. Thanks to @abeat again (she is such a sweetie, I swear...) I created another FC to pass items between Apple and Az. Apple created levekit items, Az leveled very quickly, especially thanks to Road to 60, and he succeeded to get all his crafters to 60.

That's the IRL backstory. This is the headcanon I had in regards to moving the Siren characters to Faerie, the novelty of the One Lone Boy, and said One Lone Boy's social anxiety.))

[1]

The xaela, Xiaoning Shou, drummed her large stack of papers on the table until they stacked together evenly. "That about covers this meeting's topics--oh! No, wait. One more thing!"

A green-haired viera, Alto Aria, and a pink-haired lalafell, Princess Kneesaa, tilted their heads to the side in perfect synch.

"Concerning the upcoming, ah, move incentives, and the subsequent pending of three new members to our tiny free company, Vermilion Forest, I have some good news, some bad news, and some interesting news. Which news did you all want to hear first?"

Alto took a long sip of her tea. "Bad news? Oh dear. Let me finish this cup first."

Kneesaa folded her hands together on the table as a princess would when bracing herself for unpleasant news. "Please to tell us all the bad news firstly. Get it out of our way."

"Well, I got ahold of Apple Gardenia, our contact in the, um, other realm, and she said she couldn't get the amount of skill level required for the free company recruit message. Which, as a reminder, was to get all of her disciples of hand to a high enough standard." Xiaoning held up her hand to the other two before they had anything to add. "However! She raised an apprentice who can make us guildleve kits! And has mastered every disciple of the hand to a high enough level! Even beyond what we asked for! That's the good news. Now here comes the interesting news."

Alto and Kneesaa leaned in.

"It's..."

Alto and Kneesaa leaned in further.

"... a boy."

Alto and Kneesaa fell over.

"A boy?!" Alto clenched her hands together.

"In our all-girl free company?" Kneesaa chimed in.

"Vermilion Forest just happened to be all-girl by coincidence..." Xiaoning started but was promptly cut off as Alto and Kneesaa stood to their full heights and slammed their hands on the table.

"Oh gods, do we have to allot a separate bathroom for him?" Alto asked.

"Our bathrooms are gender neutral, just like my inn--"

"What's his name?" Kneesaa asked.

"Azrael Megid, I think--"

"Race?"

"Au Ra Xaela, like me--"

"Personality?"

"Quiet? Apple says he's very shy, but a hard worker and a good person overall." Xiaoning pressed on before the other two had anything else to add. "And you know the other best part of this good news is?"

"What's that?" the other two asked in unison.

"He's a PALADIN!"

Alto and Kneesaa clasped their hands together as their starry eyes envisioned a tall au ra man clad in head-to-toe armor. "Ooohhh...!"

The last point in case was the last push their excitement meter needed. For Xiaoning and Alto, a Red Mage and Composer respectively, a tank could escort them into dangerous areas quickly. For Kneesaa, a White Mage or Scholar depending on her mood, she could have a reliable escort into dangerous areas. This proposition seemed full of win.

Soon, any pretenses of formality melted in a gaggle of flails and squeals.

"Still! A boy in the free company! A boy! So exciting!"

"Imagine, having a boy around! a boy in the house! In chat!"

Outside the free company house, the squeals of excited girls rang throughout the entire ward.

-

Meanwhile, on the aforementioned realm, smoke billowed out the chimney of a small blacksmith forge. Inside, among other things, a rack of impeccably crafted greatswords laid on the wall. Untouched. Unmoving.

Until one hinge at the far end unceremoniously snapped.

In the blink of an eye, the sword barely began its descent downwards when a blur skidded into the vicinity and caught the blade in his hands. Once stopped, the blur revealed itself to be a red-haired au ra in a crouched position.

"Phew."

The au ra, Azrael Megid, stared at his works. He looked up to see the broken hinge in question. He had just built that rack himself. There was no way that anything short of bad luck could have broken it.

Unless... it was a bad omen.

Azrael furrowed his brow. "Somehow, I have a bad feeling..."

-

[2]

Since Apple first taught him the ropes of crafting, she had warned him that eventually they would move to a new free company. That he was getting recruited for the specific task of making guildleve items. No big deal. Azrael liked to help out. Before he came to Eorzea, he had been a blacksmith by trade in the first place, both as a cover story and an actual trade. He loved creating more than destroying. Points for that. He'll have a place to stay, revenue, and a cover story. Check.

The problem? Imminent social interaction.

Even though he could speak to his free company mates Apple Gardenia and Haruka Kinome now, before he found himself at a loss for words.

What do I say? What do I say...?

That night, Azrael tossed and turned in his sleep. His thoughts of carrying a conversation - a regular old fashioned oh yes let's talk about harmless topics for hours and this and that - continued to haunt his dreams.

Eight pairs of hands raised in front of him. "Make us all the things, Azrael!"

Azrael in his dream tried to speak but nothing came out except for a few awkward noises.

Those same eight pairs of hands raised in front of him again. "Escort us through the dungeons, Azrael!" chirped the plethora of DPS and healers.

And him as the only tank in the entire free company.

"A-all at once? Today?" Azrael stuttered in his nightmare.

Azrael woke up in a cold sweat. He shot up and pressed a hand to his chest. Perhaps one day he would warm up to the idea of saying hello. That day wouldn't be moving day.

-

[3]

The fated moving day. According to a letter from Apple, the transfer papers went through without any problems and the trio were on their way. While Xiaoning could have just invited all three to the free company and day over; go home, what fun was that? Instead, Xiaoning also decided to host a small welcoming party.

A large banner saying Welcome, Sirenites! hung on the overhead partition facing the front door. On the counters laid various baked goods and other snacks and tidbits. Xiaoning, Kneessaa and Alto positioned themselves to be immediately visible as soon as the new people walked through the door. All three girls hopped in place and looked at each other with anxious, bright smiles. Neither of them could wait to see the new people!

The doorknob rattled. The trio perked up. "Here they come. Here they come!"

The door burst open. In strode a miqo'te like she had just returned home from a long day's work at the farm. Her brown, braided pigtails fell on both sides of her muscular shoulders and her face was covered in freckles. She wasn't particularly pretty, but her broad smile made everyone feel warm and welcome in her presence.

"Hey, y'all! We finally made it! Nice t'finally meet'cha'll in person!" Apple said in her unique Lominsan drawl.

"Apple! So glad you could make it! I'm so happy to see you!"

Xiaoning bounded over to Apple and wrapped her arms around the miqo'te in a giant hug. Apple returned the hug with equal force. Apple lifted Xiaoning up. Xiaoning lifted Apple up. Alto and Kneesaa came over to share the hug as well.

"Hey, everyone, this is Apple Gardenia." Xiaoning gestured to the brown-haired miqo'te. "We've maintained contact ever since she first sent her recruitment letter. She's really friendly!"

Apple laughed. "As they say back at the farm, ya wanna keep everyone happy, ya gotta feed 'em, and kindness and love are nourishment for the soul. But ya ain't gotta tell me twice to be nice. I love people! Gimme another hug!"

More group hugs. More group lifting. Except in Kneesaa's case where she gently petted everyone's knees.

A knock on the door momentarily stopped the joyous union. Unlike before, where Apple most likely rattled the door knob just to see if she had to kick a locked door down or not, this knock came as polite, yet firm. Deliberate. Like someone polite but of authority.

Xiaoning popped her head from out of the crowd. "The door's open!"

"Excuse me," said a female voice in the same gentle, yet firm manner.

The door closed behind her. There stood a beautiful female hyur with reddish-pink hair that fell into curls on her shoulders. She held her hands in front of her white attire - a garment that could only be politely called a dress, and truthfully called lingerie.

"My true name is Princess Weyll, but you, like, know me on the register as Haruka Kinome. Like, a pleasure to meet you all." The hyur known as Haruka curtsied.

The trio of Vermilion Forest stared at Haruka in awe. "Oh wow, she's so beautiful." "She looks just like a real princess!" "Look at that flawless skin!"

Xiaoning returned the bow. "A pleasure to meet you."

Kneesaa looked up in awe. "Another princess! Kneesaa had yet to meet another like her! Princesses must have pink hair!"

Haruka held a hand to her mouth in a dainty laugh. She curtsied to Kneesaa and smiled. "Yes. Like, a pleasure to make your acquaintance!"

The house quickly filled up with chatter and laughter. So excited the Vermillion Forest trio were to have new members into their small free company - and meet two new people in general - that they had completely forgotten their other point of anticipation and excitement. That was, until Kneesaa spoke up.

"Was there not one more to walk through the door?" the lalafell asked.

Apple and Haruka looked at each other. Both raised their eyebrows and smiled a combination of sheepish and awkward before turning to the trio with the same expressions.

"Y'all mean Azrael?" Apple asked. "He, uh, well..."

Haruka giggled again. "He's very shy. You could say he's not, like, properly acclimated to people."

"No kiddin'. On the battlefield, the kid fights like a primal incarnate, but anywhere else, you say anything more than hi to him and he folds over like a shrinkin' violet. Knowin' him, he'll show up long after everyone's gone to bed. Dun worry. Just do what I did when I first met 'im and leave some notes."

Xiaoning nodded. "I guess that will have to do for now."

Kneesaa bowed her head. "While it would have been nice to see our imminent one body come to the free company, we shall respect these wishes."

Alto smiled and raised her conductor's baton. "For now, though, how about a little music to kick off this celebration? We have food! Help yourself!"

Apple clasped her hands together. "Oh boy! Food! Man, I'm sure starvin'! All that hikin' from one land to another's gotten me beat!"

"Well, like, don't mind if I do. Thank you for setting this all up!" Without hesitation, Haruka took a cookie.

The joyous festivities lasted well into the night. The music and chatter could be heard deep into the ward. Only after the sun began to rise in the horizon did the lights finally go out.

-

[4]

Another day, another morning. An hour after everyone had cleared out of the free company house, the door opened with a decisive turn of the knob and a pushing of the door. Azrael peered into the building through the top of the door. Inside looked like a bazaar - yes, this was definitely the correct house. A little cramped for someone of his height, but well spaced for someone shorter. Not one was there to greet him, not even a mender or a vendor often employed in housing wards. So far so good. He closed the door behind him. Time to check out the place.

Immediately, one item caught his eye: a piece of paper with his name on it pinned to the wall. He bent over bring his face eye level to the parchment.

To Azrael,

Hello and welcome to Vermilion Forest! On behalf of everyone here, I hope you enjoy your stay. Thank you for answering our recruitment call for a levekit crafter. If it's not too much trouble, do you mind getting started as soon as you can? Here are a list of things to make. Please place the items in the third slot of the free company chest. Speaking of which, you are free to use any mats in there to help you out. But don't take everything and run! We know who you are and where you live! Anyway, thank you very much! -Xiaoning.

Xiaoning's warning made Azrael chuckle. Such honesty. And on top of that, someone - most likely Apple - must have told Xiaoning to leave a note for him, rather than scold him to become more sociable. He appreciated that.

The items Xiaoning listed were guildleve items. Azrael rolled up his sleeve. Time to get to work.

-

[5]

Xiaoning didn't awake until well into the afternoon. She yawned and smoothed down her long, black hair as she entered the free company home. "Good morning, everyone..." she mumbled into the special linkpearl created for the free company.

"Good morning, Xiaoning.." muttered a few equally tired voices.

A quick glance to the wall showed that the note Xiaoning had pinned there earlier that morning had gone. Did someone move it? Was Xiaoning just dreaming in thinking she had made a note?

Or did the one lone boy come to the free company after all?

Xiaoning looked at the free company roster. No, his name was there, just like the other newcomers. Azrael Megid.

Did that mean he had seen the note? Curiously, Xiaoning peered into the free company chest, slot three.

All of the items Xiaoning had asked for laid neatly in each compartment.

Xiaoning removed one of said items: an Iron Celata. She held the helmet in front of her head, turning it every which way to inspect in the light. Just as Apple had said, Azrael's craftsmanship was careful, precise and impeccable. Exactly what Xiaoning was recruiting for.

Tucked into the helm was parchment. Seemed too deliberately placed to have been Xiaoning's old note rolled up and put away. Sure enough, the note had been addressed to her. Or whoever saw it in general.

Thank you for having me. I'll do my best. -Az.

Xiaoning smiled and tucked the parchment away in her personal satchel. She had a feeling that the one lone boy would get along in the free company just fine.

-

[Epilogue]

"Everyone, quick! Come to the inn." Xiaoning whispered into the free company chat. "A visitor named Azrael Megid had checked himself in earlier this evening. It could be the very same one lone boy of our free company!"

Soon, the stairwell of the Ruby Phoenix Inn leading downstairs to the actual in area became crowded. Alto and Kneesaa arrived first, dying of curiosity. Apple and Haruka also arrived, though more curious than anything to see how this event played out.

Lead by Xiaoning, the group tip-toed downstairs into the inn area. The inn rooms themselves had no doors, but carefully placed partitions so people couldn't immediately see who or what was inside. Which meant they couldn't catch a glimpse of this mysterious lone boy of the free company beforehand. Although certainly a male presence had made its way here - the further along the group moved, the louder the breathing noises became. At the end of the hall, Xiaoning gestured to the group. With Alto's head on the top, Xiaoning's in the middle and Kneesaa's on the bottom, the trio peered in the room.

Lying on his back too deep in sleep to notice anything but his own slumber, was Azrael Megid, the fabled lone boy of the free company.

"Oh, there he is. So that's what he looks like." said Alto. "Au ra standards must be different, but to me, he looks so young."

"He is young. The less scales they have, the younger they are." Xiaoning whispered. "He's a xaela, just like me."

"He is so tall!" Kneesaa cooed in a whisper. "He is also very muscular. They look even bigger than yours, Xiaoning."

"What? Really? ... well what do you know..."

Azrael, completely asleep and unaware of his visitors, stirred in his sleep. His soft moan acted like a needle to burst Xiaoning, Kneesaa and Alto's collective contained excitement. The novelty! The difference! Squealing like a bunch of schoolgirls, they ran up the stairs. Apple and Haruka moved out of the way to let them pass, then smiled and shrugged to each other.

"Such a lively group." said Haruka.

"You could say that again." chuckled Apple.

#ffxiv #FFxivWrite2019 #lazy tag

[rimeshard]

Auspicious Accoutrements Menu

[ EERIE ENDOWMENTS ]

Consumables kept in stock and in multiples. Bulk orders are also available.

[ Mind Freezy-pop ]

A frozen treat, shaped in a real* skull mold and designed to resemble a humanoid skull. Wrapped in wax paper. The Freezy-pop is a delicious frozen confection; an ice cream bar with a rich cherry-vanilla flavor, ribboned throughout with a thick cherry jam and then surrounded in a crackable white chocolate shell to mirror a skull. Our apologies in advance to potential Forsaken customers who may have, in their excitement, have mistakenly believed that the Mind Freezy-Pop was, in fact, a real brain.

• Fee: Ten silver pieces per confection. *Not responsible for shards of skull left from the molding process. [ Trio Finale ]

A triad of chocolate candies, hand-poured by chocolatiers and trained wights into shaped molds, formed into frosting-piped, festive skulls. The largest skull is a milk chocolate with peanut butter filling; the second largest is a white chocolate with fudge filling, and the third and smallest is a dark chocolate with caramel filling.

Each set of dazzling confectionery skulls comes dressed in a foil nesting, and arrives in a black paper box with a satin bow for easy gifting. No skull fragmentation, insects, corpse parts or eyeball jellies used! Only all-natural cocoa beans sourced from Azeroth’s finest culinary suppliers. These handmade chocolates make a fantastic and thoughtful gift for loved ones. Memento socolata!

• Fee: Five gold pieces per gift box. *All cocoa beans are ethically sourced from reliable culinary suppliers. [ Sugar-Spun Sindragosa Wings ]

A delicious treat wrapped in wax paper to prevent any spoiling, melting or soiling of delicate sugars. These cotton candy wings are formed along a curved and spiked folded-paper cone with several prongs - not just a usual horizontal stick -  designed to replicate the Queen of the Frostbrood’s immensely powerful skeletal pinions. There are layers of blue, white and black dyed sugars expertly heated, liquified and blown through a centrifuge onto all of the forks of the cone, generously coating it with several layers of depth.

Goblin confectionery technology has allowed us to have these treats imbued with the ability to cheerfully chill the consumer’s tongue when eating;  presumably by a food-safe chemical. Presumably.

• Fee: Fifty silvers per wrapped bag of cotton candy. [ Demonsbone Armor Polish ]

Said to be pilfered from the private stash of the Deathlord, this special armor polish is bespeckled with pulverized, demon-bone-laced and overall exceedingly coarse grade sand, sourced from beneath Acherus’ current holding pattern on the Shore. It’s extra exfoliating!*

This polish is full of gristle and grit, ready to take on the most stubborn stains and buff out the worst of your armor’s scuffs. Works great on bloodstains!

*Not recommended for use on bare skin or near open wounds due to the latent demonic energies found within the powdered bones of numerous hellspawn.

The inscription on the tin reads: “Strong enough for a Deathlord, made from several mortals.”

• Fee: One gold coin per tin pot of polish. When generously measured, there’s roughly ten applications of polish. [ Blind-Bagged Bone Shards ]

These are organically sourced bone fragments in a linen bag, lovingly collected from the bottom of emptied corpse wagons. Endless uses! Jab them into eye sockets! Embed them into the exposed flesh of foes, transmitting illnesses - or a fountain of ravenous mites! Easily employ biological warfare from the comfort of mounted combat! These shards are pre-diseased pre-packaged at random for your enjoyment.

These are what amount to be a gashapon of racial bones. Collect (nearly) all* of Azeroth’s races!

• Fee: Twenty-five silver pieces per palm-sized canvas bag. * those not commonly raised into service with the Deathlord’s forces will not be found within these bags (Nightborne Highmountain, etc.) [ Bottled Smolder ]

Eternally hot to the touch, this skull-shaped glass bottle spews a seemingly unending blackened cloud of hot ash and smoke, sourced directly from the bottoms of the ever-bellowing runeforges of the dread citadel Acherus.

A resourceful smith can add these ashes to their own forge for an extra burst of heat, or a crafty criminal can use the bottle’s nearly never-ending smoke to facilitate a quick getaway when needed.

• Fee: Twenty-five silver pieces per bottle. Bottles are swaddled in a cloth due to risk of breakage. [ Noth’s Special Brew ]

( MANDATED WARNING: Aged Like Fine Wine Very Expired )

The Plaguebringer was one of Kel’thuzad’s most trusted lieutenants, responsible for refining the process that distilled the souls of the living into the mindless shackles of undeath.

He also considered himself a pretty good microbrewer, if you consider a cauldron ‘micro’.

Simmered with what were once fresh skulls and plague gas, several Knights of the Ebon Blade smuggled away unbroken bottles of the end product for - well, who knows why. Nostalgia? Death Knights are odd creatures, to say the least. Either way, this stuff has the consistency of road tar. It’s a restorative - but intended for the undead. The living are not advise to taste-test it.

• Fee: 50 silver pieces per bottle. [ Death Rattle ]

Half of an ornately carved femur of indeterminate source. It has several holes bored into it, with phalanges loosely lashed through in intervals into its hollowed-out core, all secured with knots of thin leather strips that create a “rain stick” sound effect when violently shaken.

Previously used as an unending voiceless battle cry in large groups of skeletal soldiers, the low clatter of restless bones in the Rattle echoed across the berth of a battlefield as a murmur that suffused the righteous enemies of the Scourge with disorienting fear.

( * Rhythmically oscillating a Rattle before a battle fills one with D E T E R M I N A T I O N. )

• Fee: Four gold coins per Rattle. Repeated shaking of the Death Rattle will cause it to glow blue. (That’s its attack.) [ Fizzing Scream Soda ]

This deliciously light and foamy soda is brewed in a secretive location within the continent of Pandaria, using only the finest freshly harvested vanilla bean pods to give off the flavor of a chilly scooped cone of ice cream on a warm Midsummer day.

Bottled in a festively oblong glass canister instead of a usually-shaped tall bottle, the contents give off the impression of a grinning skull when opened by way of the fizz rushing to the cap and, incidentally, forming foam pockets that resemble eye, nose and teeth sockets. Due to industrialized Gnomish partnership in funding and engineering of additives and chemicals, this soda will stay fizzy every time the top is screwed back on and reopened; guaranteed to provide an effervescent drinking experience until the bottle is drained dry.

• Fee: Fifty silver coins for a pack of six soda bottles. [ Defective “Runeblades” ]

Have you ever wanted to know what it feels like to be a Death Knight, without swearing an unbreakable oath to the undying multitude? Perhaps you’ve envisioned yourself gallantly swinging a glowing runeblade into battle on a risen deathcharger, charging forth in the name of the Lich King to slay His your enemies? Now is your chance to do so! Pick up one of the Blade’s discarded blades, each with misshapen, maligned or otherwise inert runes, which are guaranteed to not horribly disfigure or corrupt you instantly upon its holding unlike SOME worthless fallen blonde-haired paladins who are not fit to be mentioned, much less considered to marshal the most ravenous host! Enjoy all the benefits of acting as a Death Knight without inflicting a swathe of destruction to sate a gnawing need to execute atrocious acts, commanded by He who rests unsleeping upon the Frozen Throne!

• Fee: Ten gold coins per ”relatively harmless”, but still very sharp, sword. [ Herbal Poultices ]

A prepared collection of medicinal herbs safely gathered from the Plaguelands, harvested and packaged by skillfully trained geists. Guaranteed to soothe the scrapes and bruises of even the most damned still shambling upon the face of Azeroth and beyond.

These linen-bag sealed poultices contain Black Lotus pods, hints of peeled and dried Life Root, and the usually impossible to find, emaciated petals and pods of the extinct herb Arthas’ Tears.

Skilled herbalists and physicians may be able to recover and repurpose rare seeds from these plants’ pods and casings.

• Fee: Fifty silver pieces per pack of two poultices. [ Lichfire Contacts ]

As an undead creature with a hollowed skull and ever-present lich-fire eyes, have you grown tired of bearing the same ocular colors day in and day out? Has the monotony of your pallid skin extended even to the sightless eyes with which you view an uncaring world that sees you as an ally of convenience at best, and a menacing threat to the living at worst? Is it not even worth having eyelids anymore? Change your worldview with these easily replaceable lenses! These are thick glass plates, hand-shaped by our sturdiest ghouls with the steadiest claws, guaranteed to not have any unsightly flaws to snag on your inner eye tissue! Designed to fit into a corpse’s emptied sockets with ease, these refractive dyed lenses will distort the colors of your lich-fire to entirely new spectrums of entertaining colors, while allowing you to retain your perfect vision!

[ NOTE: Do not attempt to use on the living, or those with functional eyeballs.  Does not enhance vision; lenses are cosmetic only. Do not stack multiple lenses for a rainbow effect. Lenses are susceptible to high heat, and will melt into your skull. Do not use in any combat situation; shards of glass are not refundable, especially when dug used out of an eye socket. ]

• Fee: Two gold coins per set of colored contacts. Custom colors may be ordered and shipped to an address of choice.

💀 [ Curios & Rarities ] 💀

Riley is pleased to be able to offer a constantly changing list of rare, unique items and odd curios at each market she attends. Due to the structure of that item list, those items cannot feasibly be maintained on two separate menus at the same time.

If you are curious as to what this list of items entails, please view the main catalog: http://tiny.cc/accoutrefence. ( Be aware that this is a large Slides catalog and may take some time to load! )

#accoutrefence

[funtryandthepaladudes]

Previously, I made an observation that there’s a possibility that the Voltron Movie that’s currently in development hell would be the true ending to this version of the Voltron property. And then what was supposed to be a summary of the kind of movie I would like this to be turned into this monstrosity. Despite it being essentially just my rambling thoughts without any proper structure, people seemed to like it, and many even said they would be willing to watch this if it were made into a movie. Sure, there’s only a bit over a Hundred notes, but that’s almost enough to fill a small Cinema room, and isn’t that all you really need? But seriously, thank you all for being sweet. I really expected more criticism, but everybody who has reacted to this had lovely things to say. Here’s to you all! Don’t worry, I didn’t forget about you @sillygurl1021. Let’s do this!

Edit: Here’s a link to the Next part.

Allura is asleep in the medical bay of the Space Craft (Battle Ship?) looking every bit the fairytale princess that she is. ‘She hasn’t aged a day.’ you hear Lance say. We pan out, and the former Paladins are all gathered in Hunk’s restaurant again, but the mood is less festive than it was earlier. They are watching a livecast from some kind of telecommunication device. ‘I know.’ Keith responds on his end. ‘I’m right here. I’ve touched her heard her voice, and I can still scarcely believe it.’

‘I’m not sure I do, I mean, people don’t just come back from the dead. Right?’ Hunk comments, trying to process everything.

‘To be fair, she didn’t die so much as merge with all of reality. And face it, we don’t have a clue how all that mystical stuff works. Not for the lack of trying.’ Pidge mutters the last sentence. ‘And come on, Hunk. This entire Galra Galaxy Conquest started because two people refused to die.’

‘Oh right. I keep forgetting that.’

‘Be that as it may, I must confess I have my doubts as well. I may not have been as well acquainted with her as you all, but if I were some kind of malevolent entity, disguising myself in a form you all trusted.’ Acxa, who is also there, comments. 

‘If she was the entity, why would Voltron be protecting her? Why would I have had these dreams that lead me here?’ 

‘Wait, dreams? You’ve been dreaming about Allura? Since when?’ Lance speaks up again. (In the background, you can see Pidge visibly deflate.) 

‘Since a little after last Allura Day. It’s not what you think!’ 

 ‘What? Dude! Nobody, cares about your weird subconscious! We’re your friends, you should be able to tell us if you’re having cryptic dreams about our mutual friend.’

‘I told Shiro about them. I - I just didn’t know if they were really anything.’

‘Well, that tracks.’ Lance states, satisfied with Keith’s response. 

‘Either way, the fact that she was protected by a fully formed Voltron, sans Paladins, makes me optimistic. Just out of curiosity, are they still in formation?’ 

‘Not as far as I know.’ Keith answers, as he moves a way from the Medical Bay, Acxa right behind him. ‘The disengaged once I pulled her into my cruiser. Our Craft is not the largest, so we didn’t have any space in our Cargo Hold. They’ve just been flying alongside us since.’ 

‘Have you told Coran and Romelle yet?’ Shiro asks.

‘I, didn’t know if I should say anything yet. When she passed, they didn’t get to say goodbye, and I just wanted to make sure.’ He admits meekly. 

‘Look, I don’t know what’s going on, but if both the return of Voltron and Allura is any indication, then we have got to get on top of this. Let’s rendezvous at New Altea, ASAP. And tell them about this, man. They have a right to know. Plus, Coran knows her better than anyone. If anybody should be able to tell Allura from a cosmic demon, it should be him.’ Hunk adds. 

‘Sounds like a solid plan. I’ll see you then.’ And he hangs up. The Paladins discuss who is willing to go on this impromptu road trip. Shiro declines, but everybody can tell that he wants to go, but they don’t say anything because they don’t want to make things more awkward. Pidge talks about having to work on lesson plans with Chip, and sighs about the fact that she’s not going to shake her reputation as an absentee professor this year either. During all this, she makes it a point not to even look in Lance’s direction, and this visibly frustrates him. Hunk is frustrated that he has to put up with all this, and tries to cut the tension by dismissing, because it has been an eventful day, and he would like to go home to his wife. (Sorry, the wedding happened off-screen. Maybe in another draft. And yeah, I’m scrapping the Romelle vs Vrepits Sal rivalry subplot, because it was kinda dumb.) Everybody goes their separate ways.

We are back in space. Keith is just finishing off a conversation with Coran and Romelle. It’s very emotional, and they promise to be ready for everybody’s arrival. Once the conversation is done, Keith and Acxa start heading somewhere (It doesn’t really matter because they never get there. You’ll see why.). At first they’re quiet. Then, surprisingly, Acxa speaks first.

‘What happens now?’

‘We’re going to New Altea, I thought that was obvious.’

‘I meant with you. If this is Princess Allura, are you going to tell her.’

‘Tell her what?’

‘What you told me two Allura Days ago.’

Keith is visibly out of sorts. I just realized I use the word ‘visibly’ a lot. He rallies, and tries to play his reaction off. ‘That’s not important right now.’ 

‘So you’ll tell her once this ordeal is over?’

‘Acxa.’

‘What if she doesn’t stay?’

‘Then that’s all the more reason not to bring it up.’

‘Keith, you know keeping that to yourself is not doing you any good. You didn’t even tell Shiro, and I’m aware that you probably wouldn’t have told me either if circumstances weren’t what they were.’

‘Why are you bringing this up now? These past two Deca-Pheobs you didn’t so much as allude to that conversation, so why is this a topic now.’

‘I was waiting for you to speak on your own terms. But the situation is different now that she is here. I just don’t want you to make your regrets any deeper than they already are. This is me talking as a friend. Don’t keep this to yourself too long. You’re only going to hurt yourself.’

‘I just don’t want to...’

‘Uh, Boss?’ Ezor interjects from a communicator.

Keith, eager to get out of the current conversation, immediately turns his attention to her. ‘What do you need?’

‘Well, you told us to let you know if there are any changes in the Princess’ condition.’

‘Did she wake up.’ 

‘Actually, it’s more like she’s...missing.’

‘What do you mean, she’s missing?’

‘I mean her bed is empty and we can’t find her anywhere on board. Even your teleporting doggy can’t find her.’ 

‘Keep looking. We don’t know what condition she’s in, so we need to find her fast. Spread the word out, this is our number 1 priority. Have everybody keep their com-links open, I want to hear about it as soon as she’s found. Over and out.’ He’s about to rush off himself, when Acxa grabs his shoulder.

‘Keith!’

‘Acxa, I’m pretty sure we can agree that now is not the time to have this conv...’

‘Look outside the window.’

Confused he obeys her and almost has a heart attack. Allura is floating in deep space along with the Lions, and doesn’t seem to be wearing a spacesuit. 

‘Quiznack! How did she get out there?’ he turns the com-link again. ‘I’ve found her. I need whoever’s closest to the hanger to prepare my spacesuit and jet-pack. I’ll be there in a few ticks. Over.’ 

We focus on Allura, who despite not having any protective gear, seems to be doing fine. In fact, she looks blissful; you’d think she was just swimming in a peaceful pond and not the cold vacuum of space. A panicked Keith collides with her, upsetting the calm mood, but she doesn’t seem to mind. In fact, it seems like soundless giggles have escaped her. When she looks at Keith, she sees that he seems to be talking at a frantic speed, but she can’t hear him. She then notices that he has an extra helmet in his hand, and casually slips it on. She is barraged with Keith’s concerned yammering.

‘...how was I going to face everybody, if I had lost you right after getting you back. They wouldn’t be able to handle it. I wouldn’t...’

‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to alarm you. It slipped by mind that lifeforms typically need equipment to breath out here.’

‘...You...what?...’

‘It’s beautiful out here, isn’t it? I’ve experienced so many things lately, but it’s quite different from this perspective.’ 

‘...You are Allura, right?’

‘I, I believe I am.’

‘Do you know who I am?’

‘I know you’re important. And I think we did something like this once before.’ 

Keith smiles a bit as he thinks back to that memory, but then frowns. ‘You can’t remember?’

‘It’s hard to explain. I have so many things in my mind, they feel less like thoughts and memories and more like a strange and beautiful dream someone shared with me. I’m not sure of anything, but I know once I find the Catalyst everything will make sense.’ 

‘What’s the Catalyst?’

‘I’m not sure of that either.’

‘...Would it help if I told you what I remember?’

‘Perhaps, it couldn’t hurt to give it a try. The sooner I sort out my memory the better. I don’t know why, but something inside of me tells me it is immensely important now.’ 

‘I’ll do whatever I can.’

‘Thank you,...’

‘Keith.’

‘Keith. It suits you.’ She readjusts her grip on him, winding up closer. ‘Do you mind if we stay here a bit longer? I’ll keep the breathing device on if it will but you at ease.’ 

‘Sure, but are you sure you want me to stay? If I’m disrupting your, uhm, space appreciation, then I can wait for you inside.’

‘No, it’s fine. I don’t know for certain if it was the same for the Allura you remember, but I enjoy your company. It’s...soothing.’ Keith looks surprised at this comment, but that soon melts into a very soft look. 

Well, that was considerably shorter than the last one, I think. Though still very long nevertheless. Hope you all enjoyed this. I’m going to keep updating this regardless, but if you shower this post with notes--likes, comments, or reblogs. I’m not picky.--that will make me want to update sooner. And if you want this to be turned into a movie, share this with your local Dreamworks Execs! This is joke, please don’t actually do this! It will only make everybody involved miserable. I’ll see you when I see you. Funtry.

#Potential Movie Synopsis #Part 2 of ??? #I'm back #The nonesense continues #Plance #FlirtyRobot #Kallura #Vld season 8 spoilers #Reblogging for the Edit

[omggiogiothings]

Voices Chp. 8

Here it is! Long awaited chapter! In it’s 10 K glory, so heads up. It’s long af.

After discussing with my beta and sweetheart for half the day ahem, here we are. I love her so much <3

We’re finally winding down on the first arc guys. Next chapter is our long and awaited wedding night, the final installment of the wedding arc. Thanks for sticking around this long, guys, you’re the best.

Remember! You can read this here on AO3!!!!

Pidge hacked up something gross and purple onto the medical table, making the surrounding Paladins lurch away from her in disgust.

“Not to worry!” Coran exclaimed, leaving Keith’s side to come and inspect the purple ball of ew. “It’s just your body reactin’ to the medication! Trying to get those nasty toxins out of your air sacks!”

“Oh god...” Lance mumbled, eyes glued on the gross monstrosity that had exited Pidge’s body. “Please don’t call our lungs air sacks.”

“I’m sick of purple,” Hunk said, looking back to Pidge who was looking green. “Can we not have anything purple anymore?”

Keith, sitting on his own cot and gazing dazed at some place behind the group, finally looked to Hunk with a curious eyebrow.

Hunk caught his eye and his face melted into horror as he sprang towards him in panic. “Not-totally not like that! Not you, I mean, purple is totally your color, man!”

Hunk’s rambling was cut off with a sharp elbow to the side from Lance.

Honestly, it was just amusing to see the way Hunk stumbled over his words. Keith agreed with him, he never wanted to see the color purple for probably another decaphebe. But he was still a little annoyed at other things. He looked over to the Holophone by his bedside, in pieces. It had been damaged during their spelunking in the caves but it hadn’t been in pieces. Keith wasn’t sure how things had gone once they arrived back on Altea. He had dozed off beside Shiro, who held him close during the journey home. Lance and Hunk had administered emergency first aid while piloting them safely to Altea.

Keith was fairly certain someone had convinced him to dress into one of the medical suits and to get into a healing pod but he wasn’t sure who. When he had popped out of the pod (almost ready to stab Shiro who had been there to steady him) he had seen an exhausted and coughing Pidge and his Holophone in pieces. Shiro explained it had been the only way to cover up why Keith had not contacted his father when they had the opportunity. Keith appreciated the damage control but he was one Holophone short and doubted he would be given another one any time soon.

“You should be fine, my boy!” Coran exclaimed. Keith wondered if he had any other range of tone besides loud. “Scanners are showing you’re back to tip-top shape!”

Keith nodded his head in thanks as Shiro left Pidge’s side after handing her what looked like a white basin. He looked away as she loudly threw up into it. She hadn’t needed to jump into a healing pod, but the medication Coran had given her to get the poison out of her system was taking its toll. She was hunched over the basin and pale.

Shiro had just gotten to Keith’s side when one of his ears twitched, the only warning any of them had before the medbay doors opened and his father and Allura walked in.

They were tense, both of them dressed too proper for the medbay. His father made a beeline for him, sighing with something like reluctance as he gently brushed at Keith’s cheek with his knuckles. “Your uncanny ability of getting into trouble wherever you go is quite irksome and unbecoming of a prince of the Galra Empire. Do not make a habit of it.”

Despite the reprimanding words, Lotor was soft, delicate as he scratched at one of Keith’s ears, making him twitch. His father hadn’t done that since he had been a kit. He lowered his head, feeling the familiar obedience flare up in him. “Yes.”

“I have received word on the technology Pidge found on the ship.” Allura announced once she had gone over the medical scans with Coran. Pidge gave a thumbs up from where she was curled up with her face in the basin. “It was neither Altean or Galran. Therefore, we have concluded that there is a third party interference.”

Shiro, who had not left Keith’s side, crossed his arms over his chest, eyes scanning Allura and Lotor. “I take it you’ve discussed this with Emperor Zarkon, then?”

“Yes.” Allura said, also crossing her arms “We have decided to carry on with the treaty with some minor adjustments regarding the safety protocols for the prince. However, we have also changed the date of your ceremony. You are to be wed as soon as possible.”

“Hold on,” Shiro interrupted, never breaking eye contact with the princess. “We should consider if the third party is currently being housed in the castle. You can’t overlook that. It’s a bit careless, Princess.”

There was a edge to his voice that had Keith perk up in confusion. He looked towards the Paladins, seeing the tense edge of Lance’s shoulders and the way Pidge’s eyes could be seen from the top of the basin. They were narrowed.

“We have,” she said briskly, and then cast Keith a cold look. “Those are matters to be discussed at a later time and somewhere more private. Do not worry.”

Keith got it, narrowing his eyes at her in distaste. Keith wasn’t allowed to know whatever they were planning for him. He almost laughed. Why did he think the Alteans would be any different from his own people?

“So remain vigilant.” She continued on, ignoring Keith once more. “There are planets that benefit from this war and see this alliance as a hindrance, and will do everything in their power to stop it. Return to your rooms to rest. Tomorrow we will begin preparations-”

Keith sneezed, halting the princesses words in an instant. He blinked in surprise, sniffling noisily. He hadn’t meant to interrupt her. However, his father suddenly cupped his chin and forced Keith to look at him.

“What planet did you say you fell on?” Lotor asked, eyebrows furrowed as he leveled Keith with an unimpressed look.

“Euthoria in the Esther system.” Keith grumbled, twitching away from his father's grasp in annoyance.

Lotor sighed, letting him go and feeling Keith’s forehead. “We might need to postpone the wedding once more. Euthoria is an annoyance to the Galra species. It’s why we stopped sending our people there.”

“What?” Coran exclaimed, bringing up his tablet once more. “That’s not possible, Keith recovered from any wounds and toxins. Why, his body was made for the planet!”

“It won’t kill him.” Lotor said, moving back and gesturing for Keith to hop off the medical table. He did so, stumbling. Shiro’s hand was gentle across the small of his back, keeping him steady. “It’s an illness Galra are subjected to during their first visit there, especially if they are breathing it in for long periods of time. Come along, Keith. I will take you to your quarters.”

Allura looked the most baffled about the change of topic. “How long will this take?”

“A few days at most. I doubt you carry the proper medication for it and it’s hardly worth the trip to grab some. He will sweat it out by the time we do.” His father stopped to wrap an arm around Keith and nudge them towards the door. “I will let you know when he is well enough to participate in the ceremony. We will be seeing you, Princess, Paladins.”

Keith didn’t feel it was in his place to speak anymore, only hissing when his tail was jostled and sent a sore ache to his hips.

Pidge made a croaking noise as they approached the door, making Keith look over his shoulder to see she had attempted to slump forward before losing to her immune system and coughing into the basin once more. Whatever she had wanted to say was silenced by the closing of the medbay doors.

Keith immediately put planet Euthoria on his list of planets to avoid for the rest of his life.

He spent two days with muscle aches and a fever that felt worse than his heats. He spent the next day after that with a stuffy nose, hacking up a lung and feeling disgusted in his own sweaty skin. He hated that he had to sweat out the illness due to the obvious lack of medication from the Altean Medbay and due to being too far from the  Galra mothership.

He knew he was being dramatic about it, but he was alone, sleeping with a disgusting headache. He hid himself under a huge pile of blankets and wondered if it would be alright if he died now.

When the fever was just about letting up and he wasn’t swallowing around a scratchy throat, his door opened without a warning. He blinked, confused because his father had put strict orders for Keith to not be disturbed. His father hadn’t even visited when Keith was lucid enough to interact.

He blinked away the sleep from his eyes before jolting upright (or trying and failing) when Pidge grinned at him from the open door. “Hey! You alive?”

He groaned, dropping down onto the pillow and shoving the palms of his hands into his eyes to clear the sleep. “What are you doing here?”

He paused, letting go of his face to narrow a look at her. “Seriously, why are you here?”

She grinned, coming in and closing the door behind her with a few added clicks into the keypad. She jumped onto the bed without warning, making a growl suddenly erupt from Keith’s throat.

They both froze (Keith swallowed, that had felt brutal).

“Uhm?”

“Sorry, it’s...you just… jumped in my nest.” He said seriously, watching the way she looked around but didn’t understand what he had been implying. “It’s… kinda rude?”

Now she froze, awkwardly on top of his blankets while also not actually touching them. “Do you… want me to get out?”

Keith huffed, looking around and filled with unease. He sat up, one hand rubbing up and down his arm in thought. He was embarrassed at being caught with a nest. It was a mess, hastily put together with things that only smelled of him. Omegas usually only nested during heats but even then it wasn’t well practiced. Keith had found that building a small place for himself when he was feeling ill did wonders. But he hated ever showing others. In the Academy he had been reprimanded for never making it comfortable enough or big enough. Keith had never wanted to make a nest for anyone else so he didn’t understand why he had to make the nest big enough for more people. He didn’t hoard scents from others (he was never close to anyone to want to) and had never felt the urge to create magnificent pieces to please others. If he made a nest it was for his own comfort, no one else's.

The Academy tried calling it instinct, and perhaps a tiny part of the process was. But the whole notion that Omegas needed to build nests for others was a load of ruggle, just like the myth that Omegas are supposedly submissive and sex crazed during heats. His heats had been uncomfortable, painful, and itchy. It was anything but sexual.

Keith blushed, realizing he had gotten lost in his thoughts and she was still patiently waiting for an answer. “No, here, uh, gimme a sec.”

She moved, not judging him as he moved around the blankets and pillows, neatly carving out a spot for her in the nest.

He had never shared a nest before, had never wanted to. But doing this, letting Pidge in, it didn’t grate on his nerves like it did at the Academy. His own comfort, he reminded himself as he gestured for her to lay down, no one else's.

She was still, letting him shuffle the blankets around her before his brain caught up to him and he stopped and flopped down next to her in an attempt to cover his awkward hovering. She didn’t mention the nest again, raising her arm and showing off a holophone wrist watch to him. It was clunky, outdated technology he actually couldn’t recognize. It didn’t even look like the one that had met it’s end on Euthoria.

She tapped a few things on it before detaching it from her wrist and holding it out to him. She smiled at him. “So, I heard Shiro had to bust that beauty of a communicator for reasons. ”

He took the holophone, knowing he had made a face over it because Pidge snorted.

“Okay, okay, so it’s not as pretty as your old communicator, but it's a gift! I even made it myself! I gave you all these new options and some games to pass the time if you’re bored! And I also programmed all those stuffy encyclopedias you love reading so much.”

“They aren’t stuffy,” He defended on impulse, making her giggle. Ignoring her, he attached the device to his wrist, squinting before recognizing a few symbols that were in Altean and waiting for the screen to light up for him. The menu is a green color, translucent like the traditional Altean ones but the words are Galran… The menu is also over fifty items long. He gapes at it, “What is all this?”

“I’m glad you asked.” She leaned in close, her fingers dragging over the menu screen and flicking it downwards. “I added my own hardware system that separates social media garbage with your own personalization methods. Basically, it lets you access all the good stuff, like the internet, streaming, phone calls and the other good extras. I took out all the useless garbage that kept slowing it down to make it efficient and a good way to pass the time. Of course, you’ll have to personalize it but we can worry about that later.”

She clicked a few of the menu screens, sorting them out into more folders before it was down to ten items, each labeled and identifiable. That was good, he could work with that.

“There’s also a few things that's special only to Voltron, like being able to access any kind of mainframe by plugging it in and accessing our personal communicators. That’s labeled under ‘Voltron.’”

Keith stared at the blinking title. “I would have never guessed.”

She elbowed him before quickly jumping into each menu screen and taking the time to explain each of them. She also highlighted shows she recommended (“I know the Love of a Weblum sounds terrible but dude, it is literally the best thing ever.”) and broached social media with a grin. “Naturally, we have to stay away from this. Internet is only as secure as you want it to be. But you sure can get stuck and seen by millions of people. Thank god there’s now a way to get rid of shit for real but there’s still damage control. Shiro hates doing it. The universe is huge though, the internet may be limited to certain sectors but it’s still constantly working on this thing. So we only connect and get on it if we’re somewhere where it’s stable so it doesn’t overload your communicator.” She sighed, already touching a tiny square picture that looks like the head of a weblum. It’s labeled ‘Instaweb’. “This was completely taken off of your last communicator. I mean, yours could work in over 35 galaxies! And you don’t even have a Spacetagram!”

“A what?”

“Nevermind, doesn’t matter. You probably do wanna hide this thing then.”

She frowned, closing the menu screen and dropping her hands. She drummed her fingers onto his wrist with a small sigh. “I… I wanna ask you a question about the communicator. It wasn’t meant for you, Keith… It was meant to control you.”

He withdrew instantly. Keith wasn’t stupid, he knew she had probably seen how violently he had acted when she messed with his holophone on the planet. He didn’t want to admit to anyone he knew his father restricted him. He also didn’t want to know how much his father limited his freedom. The less he knew, the better.

Whatever face he was making made her fidget.

“I’m just concerned!” She blushed, grabbing on the edge of one of her pigtails and sticking it into her mouth to chew on. “You… you said you were an Omega and that you didn’t want any of this. So… What do you want, Keith? What does being an Omega even mean for you? Why is it so bad to be one? You make it seem like it’s this terrible thing to be but I haven’t seen any reason why it should be. I’m… worried.”

Keith wrinkled his nose at the way she chewed on her hair but ignored it to try and sort out what he was going to tell her. He didn’t know if he could just brush off her questions. He had promised to try a bit more with her, and the willingness of him allowing her into his nest meant more to him then he thought it would have. He didn’t want to admit his thoughts on being an Omega. Everyone had always known and treated him like an Omega. He didn’t want to ever explain it and feel ridiculed by it.

But he peeked at her, seeing the burning curiosity in her eyes and knows that wasn’t what she was aiming for at all. She admitted that they didn’t know anything about the Galra.

“It’s a biological label.” He swallowed. “Galra are born with certain biological parts. We have our distinct smells and our distinct ways of looking. We end up with three main categories although there are rare cases of different dynamics. Alpha, Beta, and Omega.”

He’s on his back, hands folded on top of his stomach as he glares at the ceiling. “It’s because of our biological features, we get sorted to different roles. Alphas tend to grow larger and stronger, they usually become hard workers. Betas can vary between being large or lean. They have the privilege in choosing whatever career path they feel they are best suited for. Omegas are a little different. They were originally the only ones able to produce offspring, but now Betas and few Alphas can have children as well. We have a biological cycle that we call a heat. It’s when we are most fertile but also vulnerable. We become appealing to those around us. I’m meant to nurture and have children as well as comfort my mate.

“Being an Omega means you have to fit into certain labels. You are submissive, obedient, and a people pleaser. You are meant to be seen, not heard. If you cannot fit into those traits, you are seen as an outcast. You don’t have to have kids but then you have to become a Druid or a Cleric. We are usually in tune with those around us, it’s what makes us such a great people pleaser.” He gave a slow blink, already not liking what he was going to admit. “And when you don’t fit into those labels and the criteria of what an Omega is supposed to be… they make sure you do.”

“By controlling you?” She shifts on her side, finally spitting out the offending piece of hair from her mouth.

“Not… really? It’s just. It’s what’s expected of you. And if you don’t know they teach you to be that way. It’s just… how it is.”

“No.” She jerks up, grabbing his shoulder and forcing him to look at her. “Nothing is ever ‘just how it is’. That is the biggest load of bullshit that anyone can say to excuse their close minded views. For the longest time we heard Galra were brutal and savage and didn’t care about peace, but you said that wasn’t true. You told us what we thought wasn’t how it was, that it was completely false! I refuse to sit here and hear you say that about yourself. Just because you can have kids doesn’t make you any less of a person.”

Something grows tight and hot in his chest, making him pull away from her and turn on his side. He curls into himself and knows without a doubt that she is absolutely right. But he can’t agree to it. Those were the standards he had made for himself such a long time ago. It was when he was a prisoner still, forced through a heat in the cells with dozens of other species. He didn’t want their attention and refused them. He fought tooth and nail to survive and he wasn’t going to let any of them think that because of something biological he would turn over and spread his legs. He refused to let anyone tell him anything.

He had carried that around for a long time and got knowing looks from his father about it. No one had corrected him because they hadn’t wanted to admit that he strayed from their ideal vision of an acceptable Omega. It wasn’t until  Keith wound up rejecting and embarrassing one of Zarkon’s own men, that his father punished him for it.

And god, Keith had tried so hard to hold onto that part of himself. He had seen his ideals reflected back at him in the Academy. Had seen all the Omegas from noble families stuck in there with him. The Academy had been a last boot effort to straighten out wayward Omegas. They didn’t have a failure rate, only a success rate. He saw each of them dragged and free will beaten out of them. He learned how to kiss, how to flutter his eyelashes just so and speak the words that everyone expected from him. He had fought at first, determined to be himself.

And then, after punishment, back to back lectures and just endless agony, he broke. He reasoned with himself. He would play their game if it meant he could get out of that hell hole. He learned in that place that all he had was himself. He learned to stop relying on someone to save him. He had to save himself. And sometimes that meant giving in.

Some of those teachings had helped him, as much as he hated to admit it. When he didn’t want to be there, he remembered meditation techniques, ways to mentally check out. They had reassured him that having kids wasn’t the end of the world. As long as he had them, it didn’t matter. It would be worth it, he would understand. And the act of making the kids? It was okay if he wasn’t mentally present for it. After all, according to them, that was the Omega way.

Pidge’s fingers play with the edges of his shirt, bringing back his awareness as he sucks in a deep breath of air. She’s quiet, gently counting down numbers and mumbling something he doesn’t recognize. He listens to her soft voice, staring at the side of the bedroom to where a few of his bouquets of flowers are starting to die. Keith appreciated the symbolism. He too felt like a wilting flower. Stuck on display for others to enjoy, even at the cost of his own life.

“I’m sorry.” She whispered, gentle and soft. “I didn’t mean to make you remember anything bad… I just. I want you to know that I’m right here okay? I see how your dad is and I know it’s hard to try and be yourself when everyone is telling you that you’re wrong. It’s not okay that they treat you differently. I… you’ve been alone for a long time, Keith. You deserve to have someone be on your side for this and… I’m willing to be that person… If you let me.”

Keith doesn’t know how to answer her for that. His heart aches, feeling something akin to hope but knows it was only going to be crushed. She had tried with him and he had allowed her in. But trusting her to stay was another matter altogether. He knew she could leave him at any moment, no longer wanting to be close. And dammit, he would let her leave. He expected it. Just like those flowers, his relationships were always going to die. That’s if his father doesn’t throw them out first.

He doesn’t know what kind of answer to give her so instead he reaches back, finding her hand and gently squeezing it. He feels something fresh, her aura soft and gentle but still as sharp as a knife when it needs to be. He swallows the new emotions that brings and croaks out, “Thanks.”

They sit in silence as he lets her go. She sniffles, probably rubbing at her eyes before sucking in a large breath.

“Okay! There’s another reason I was sent here.”

Keith blinked, turning over to see her pulling out a tablet from one of her pockets. She smiled at him before holding it out for him to take. “Coran sent me with this. It’s set up and totally easy to follow. He even translated it for you!”

It was sleek, similar to the one he had been given during their very first meeting to set up preparations for the wedding.  He clicked the screen, impressed to see the Galran language flitting across the screen. Coran was definitely one of the only Alteans (outside of Shiro) who made an effort to make him feel comfortable.

“Once you’re feeling better there will be last minute preparations and someone, I’m still not sure who, will lead you through a quick rehearsal on what’s expected. We had to up security and double check with our allies to make sure everything goes okay. You being sick helped us find time to sort everything out.”

She sat up once he flicked through a few pages on the tablet seeing all the details on how seating arrangements were done and even some details regarding their outfits. He wrinkled his nose in distaste at that, wondering what absurd outfit his father would throw him into now.

“And! One more thing. I got some info on the crash that Allura was so adamant about not telling you.”

He stared at the tablet before her words processed and looked at her in surprise. She grinned, sitting on her knees to face him and tuck her hair back over her shoulder. “It was a direct assault but poorly planned out. I think they assumed we would be doing something against you during this time and attempt to cover it up and make the Galra upset. They didn’t count on us surviving the crash or you being so good at adapting and thinking on your feet… or probably that we could get along.

“We haven’t been able to find a culprit yet but Allura is salvaging the crash site for any signs of what’s left of sabotage. What we know is that this third party benefits from the war and that they have a focus on you and Shiro specifically. They’re trying to go the route of playing us against each other which is worrying. We also know that someone released the video of your ceremony with Shiro.”

“They what? ”

She nodded, gesturing to where the holophone is still connected to his wrist. “I downloaded it for you on the communicator. I looked into where it was posted and couldn’t find any trace of anything. We hadn’t even known we were recording the event or that it had become so popular. A lot of the comments are really positive about the whole thing. They seemed to really like you.”

Keith frowned, hands tightening over the tablet. His father and his grandfather were careful about where they introduced him and to whom. He was a well kept secret, not even most of his own people had known who he was until this treaty. None of the paladins had known either. It was troubling.

“Shiro was pretty upset that they wouldn’t let you know about this. People know what you look like and you’re practically an icon for the Galra at this point. It makes you a target. It’d be stupid not to tell you about what's going on.”

Pidge got to her feet, dusting herself off and turning towards the door. “Buuut, I’m not the one who told you if anyone asks.”

“Why are you telling me then?” He demanded.

She stopped, back to him before turning with a fierce expression on her face. “Because it involves you directly. Not telling you is a mistake and I refuse to be responsible for why you get killed in the future when it was 100% preventable just by letting you know something fishy was going on. Our crash landing could have killed us both. I won’t let them try again and succeed because Allura and your father thought you didn’t have the right to know.”

She was a fierce paladin, one he was coming to admire. She was everything he had once been but probably more brutal. She had thrived when presented with a challenge instead of wilting under it. She wasn’t scared of doing what she felt was right, even against a direct order from her superiors.

She was everything he wanted to be again.

She smiled one more time before leaving him alone to his bedroom to a scratchy throat. He curled the blankets around himself and sighed.

Perhaps she would have fought more if she was him instead of laying down and letting people decide his life for him.

The moment Keith got better he almost wished he had died from that stupid illness. His father was absolutely insufferable.

When Pidge mentioned someone being responsible for showing him around he hadn’t thought it would be his own father. But there he was, tablet in hand and ordering Keith to jot down notes and pay attention. Everything was under Lotor’s scrutiny: from the flower placement, to the lace around the tables, and the smallest details like how the main altar would look during different times of day. Something was always wrong and the Alteans that trailed after them always put on a face before fixing whatever was wrong.

Keith would rather pretend he wasn’t rewriting the same word fifty times to make it look like he was doing something more useful than fix what was wrong. l

His father took him to the main garden of the Castle of Lions, gesturing to where the pillars were being decorated for the wedding. There was silk ribbons tied with floral arrangements from the garden itself. It trailed down the halls until the main entrance where the wildlife had been trimmed to showcase the Black Lion sitting at the middle of the garden. Someone had placed ivory colored pillars leading down the aisle towards where the Black Lion rested, each with a bouquet of purple and red flowers perfectly arranged. Even the lion had been cleaned up for the event and the gardens trimmed to look presentable instead of unkempt. Flowers blossomed around the lion’s ears, each a varying color of red, black, yellow, blue, and green. He assumed that they would try and tie in something Voltron related.

The benches he had lounged on with Alfor had been moved to face the altar, each having lost their vines and instead replaced with silk and flowers. He could see the lake behind the black lion, glittering against the sunlight. It was beautiful.

Even the floor had been shined to the point where Keith could see himself reflected in it.

He was sad to see that the plant life had been killed for the benefit of their wedding.

As soon as they finished seeing the set up for the wedding and his father worked him through the steps and the basic chant and words he would need to say, his wedding robes were introduced.

He wished they were robes at least.

“I had it fitted and trimmed to your size. I made sure the colors were striking for your features and clash nicely with the black Paladin’s own robes.”

Keith stared, trying to see where they were ever robes and couldn’t find anything that hinted towards it. It was red, looking more like cut off armor then anything else. From the image, he could see golden accents and the smooth cut of the armor. His eyebrow twitched at the obvious halter top and the cut offs of the undersuit. He would be revealing more skin than anything else.

His father clicked his tongue at him, tapping Keith’s lips. “That face is not becoming of you. That is the formal wear of Omega ceremonies with Altean touches. The veil was their idea. You will look positively radiant.”

“Oh joy,” he quipped, glaring at the armor that was nothing more than to be pretty. He already had the jewelry picked out for him as well. The back of the armor was tied together by golden chains, showcasing what would be the smoothness of his back. It was almost annoying. He was wondering how many quips he could make with his father in this kind of mood when Lotor leaned in to glare at the image.

“Did they forget the cuff jewel? Unbelievable.” He hissed, standing up straight and glaring at one of the Altean workers nearby. “Do not worry. I will take care of it.”

Keith stared. He’d leave the details to his father then. Keith didn’t even know what the importance of a cuff jewel was! Obviously though, Keith could not be left to his own devices as his father looked around for an escort. He found none and gestured Keith forward. “You will tag along with me then.”

“Joy.”

They went back down the aisle, Keith concentrating on the outfit and already dreading wearing it when Coran suddenly popped out from around a hallway corner, making them both flinch away in surprise.

“Prince Lotor! Just the Galra I was looking for! Paladin Hunk has started on the recipes you sent him this morning. We would like your final approval on them before we officiate it to our cooks!”

His father looked distressed for a second, glancing around and looking back towards Keith. Keith instantly picked up on what the issue was and didn’t hesitate to jump on the chance to escape. “Father, let me go with him.” They both turned to him in surprise, especially Lotor. “I’m quite familiar with how the recipes are supposed to taste like. If they aren’t to my satisfaction I know how to properly fix the issue. I’m sure the cuff is something you can deal with more… efficiently.”

His father gave him a harsh stare that made Keith clutch the tablet to his chest. Maybe he shouldn’t have been so free with his words. Lotor was agitated enough as it was, he should have read the situation better.

But then Lotor’s face softened as he gave a nod. “Very well. Keith will accompany you, Coran. He can take over the kitchen supervision duties in my place.”

His father put a hand on Keith’s shoulder, gently squeezing. “I will send Thace for you in two varga’s time. Be well.”

Once he left,  Keith let out a sigh of relief. Coran immediately sprang into action.

“Welp! Now that that’s all sorted! We should head off. Hunk’s eagerly awaiting our arrival.” He stopped to stroke at his mustache in thought. “Actually, first let us pick up some supplies! Might as well make use of another set of arms.”

He led Keith along, taking him down halls Keith wasn’t sure he would ever be able to memorize like Coran. Then again, Coran’s great something had actually crafted these very walls. He wondered how long Coran had been close to the royal family.

They made it to a supply closet that had a door similar to literally all the others in this specific hallway. Coran grabbed blankets from a box, humming to himself as he put them into Keith’s arms and then grabbed up his own stack of pillows. “Just what we needed to set up your bedroom with Shiro! I’ll have your things moved to the bedroom in the meantime. Anything you want brought with you let me know through your tablet.” He winked at Keith making him fumble slightly.

As they wandered off to who knows what floor and another door he could barely recognize (it was a silent and empty hallway, he hadn’t seen that many people wandering around which made him relieved he would at least receive some privacy after the wedding as well) and dumping their items into the room.

Coran shuffled him out before he could get a good look around. “Well then, how has all the buzz of the wedding been treating you? You’re already having the pre wedding jitter glow!”

Keith was sure he wasn’t having any kind of pre wedding whatever but indulged the man. “I’m fine. It’s been… fine.” He paused, chewing on her lower lip in thought. “Pidge uh, she told me that you translated the tablet to Galran. Thank you.”

Coran stared at him before breaking into a large grin and slapping him in the shoulder. “Not a problem, my boy! Anything to make you comfortable! Now, off we go! Hunk is still awaiting our arrival.”

Coran filled up the silence between them with age old stories. He began with the silk used for the wedding (“My, Alfor had been saving those for the Princess for ages! Of course, she was having none of that but it brings me joy to know they were used after all!”) and as they neared the kitchens he talked about the secret routes the castle had that his great something uncle had installed for him and his many brothers (“A rambunctious bunch we were! But it's a secret we Smythe’s hold close to our hearts!”). Keith was engrossed with Coran, enjoying the mystery of the castle and his own tales about his brothers. Coran had just gotten to the part of his story where he had apparently filmed a Weblum tutorial and how he himself had single handedly figured out the need for a tutorial by facing a Weblum head on when the doors for the kitchen slammed open and made them jump back in surprise at the Altean who had run out crying.

“Oh good! Hunk is in a good mood!”

“It’s not getting taste tested unless it’s perfect!”

Peering inside, Keith saw Hunk hunched over a plate and an assortment of different Alteans and Aliens scrambling around. There was a small amount of Arusians hefting up a large animal he barely recognized while another breed with hind legs of a Yupper and the scales of a reptile like animal turned to glare at where Keith and Coran had emerged.

That’s when Keith saw the long countertop filled with different dishes and realized he should not have eaten anything for breakfast.

“Hello number two! I’ve brought along Prince Keith for the taste testing. Prince Lotor had other matters to attend to.”

Hunk turned to face them, wearing what Keith assumed was civilian clothes instead of his normal paladin armor. His hair was tied up into a bun, deftly kept out of his face.

Hunk grinned, “Oh, cool! Uhm, you’re not allergic to like, anything, right?”

“No?” Galran food had always been made for him under the careful eyes of his father. He wasn’t picky at what he received from the kitchens but his father often caught commanders attempting to spike his food when he wasn’t looking. He hadn’t hesitated to claw out an eye when he found his food spiked. People believed if they could bed Prince Lotor’s son they would be ensured a right to the throne. It was a load of ruggle. Lotor would not sooner strike them through for underhanded methods.

“Great! Let’s get started then!” Hunk hummed, shooing off the other cooks once they dropped off whatever plate they had been working on. Keith saw a few Alteans turning their noses up at the food while the strange alien from before calmly added a few last touches to his own before turning away to help with clean up.

The first plate of food had meat he remembered briefly from his childhood. It was native to the mothership that he had come to appreciate whenever there was a particularly large harvest. Hunk handed him a fork and with some hesitation he dug into it. No sooner had he put it into his mouth did he realize how damn amazing it tasted. He let out what was probably a moan. “What did you do? This is amazing.”

Hunk let out a scream. “Yes!! We won over Shiro’s Fiancé!”

Keith was able to shove one more forkful in before Hunk had to yank the plate away.

They continued on with the rest of the dishes, only pausing for Keith to jump up and sit on top of the counter and start naming the different dishes for Hunk to pronounce them properly. They continued with easy banter, Keith only calling out a few dishes for missing a crucial spice that gave it the needed flavor. Hunk lamented, pulling out his own tablet and taking notes wherever he had the recipes down. Conversation flowed easily with Hunk talking about spices he could of used but had said it would be too much. Keith was rather impressed with how well he did in the kitchen. When Coran tried to help, Hunk had pulled a face before leaning in and whispering, “Altean cooking is downright terrible if you followed it to the T like Coran.”

That made Keith chew slowly in consideration. Maybe it was better that Shiro had asked for Hunk to take over cooking duties instead of the Alteans. He was a man looking out for his stomach.

Keith was finishing the last dish, scraping at the edges before squinting at the last plant left on the plate. He wasn’t sure what it was but he covered it in the sauce from the meat and put it in his mouth.

Coran and Hunk immediately screamed, hands on his shoulders and throwing him forward. “NO, NO! SPIT IT OUT MAN! THAT’S POISONOUS.”

Keith immediately spit it out back onto the plate, tongue sticking out and looking at them in shock before anger turned it’s head. “Why would you put it on the plate if it was poisonous?!”

“It’s decoration!” Hunk screamed back, yanking the plate away like he was scared Keith would try again. “It’s harmless if you don’t ingest it!”

“That’s stupid!” Keith hissed, feeling his ears already pressed down. “Why would you have decoration you couldn’t eat?!”

“Well sorry for wanting my food to look pretty! It’s also only like poisonous to nearly all the aliens here! You’d think you’d be aware of it!”

Keith was ready to defend his point on why having something on a plate of food if it wasn’t meant to even be needed when there was a crash, making them look back over where one of the large Yupper-like aliens had taken the plate from Hunk and crashed into an Altean holding a stack of plates.

“It’s poisonous?” The alien hissed, probably wanting to be as far away from the offending piece of plant as possible. Hunk, exasperated threw his arms out, “YES!”

He sent the guy off, making Keith glare at Hunk. “All I’m saying is if you put that on a plate you’re asking for everyone to eat it.”

Hunk frowned, pulling out his tablet to make another note. “Fine, fine, that’s cool. I’ll let you heathens not witness the true perfection of my art. ‘Don’t put deadly plant life on food, Galras may eat.’”

Keith flushed, embarrassed but unwilling to show it.

Later, Hunk was forced to go back and highlight his words as Thace tried a dish and ended up attempting to eat the piece of decoration as well. Keith refused to admit he was smug over being proven right.

Keith was woken up before the sun even managed to make its rounds on the day of his wedding. His father had already been sighing at his sleep mussed look which was unfair as Keith had literally just picked himself out of bed. Lotor was working around his room, picking up a few things while Keith headed off to the restroom to clean up and wake up.

He quickly became more annoyed when his father came into the restroom instructing him to scrub hard around his neck and in unmentionable areas. He was ready to rip his hair out by the time he got out, towel wrapped around his waist and another drying out his hair.

His father tossed him a robe, holding a bag with what Keith could assume was his belongings before he was escorted to whatever room he was supposed to prepare in. He would be very upset if Shiro hadn’t been made to wake up at such an ungodly hour as well.

The room was a little ways away from the garden and he was at least glad to see a few Altean workers still wandering around and making sure things were perfect for the big day. The room wasn’t large. It had a main mirror and some couches to lounge on. Just beside the mirror was his outfit. It looked just as bright in the picture as it did in person.

His father was quick to set him in front of the mirror and order him to dress into the undergarments of the outfit. It was a pair of tight fitting shorts, plain black material that reached his mid thigh. The tank top was form fitting as well, just enough to peek up from under his armor and leave his toned abdomen in sight. He tied his hair up and once he was decent enough, a few Alteans entered with a few boxes before they helped him into the armor.

They took their time in clipping the armor together, polishing it once everything was into place. Thankfully they had managed to acquire some silk for his hips, leaving him some decency. He had wondered what part of this looked Galran and which part was Altean. Once the outfit was into place his father took charge, shooing off the helpers before starting to brush out Keith’s hair and beginning to braid it. They didn’t exchange words, Lotor too focused on adding some crystals and jewelry into his hair to style it.

His father was just about done, finishing up with the extra crystals before he started talking. “Did you review the videos I sent you?”

Keith was turned, Lotor gently pushing away his bangs and then adjusting what he could assume was a crown on his head. He suddenly frowned, pressing Keith’s cheeks together. “I never liked that habit of biting your lips. How dreadful.”

“Yes.” Keith grumbled, pulling away from the touch gently. “I know where I’m supposed to stand, what to say, how to say it and what to expect from the Alteans and my Fiancé.”

He’s exasperated and he knows his father can tell in an instant. Lotor gives him a firm look before turning away to pick up some cream from the nearby table. He begins to apply it to Keith’s face, gentle with his fingers. Once he was done he grabbed onto the earrings that Keith hadn’t realized were brought with him.

He held his breath, wondering if he would even be allowed to wear them.

His father surprised him by leaning in to gently attach them to Keith’s ears. There’s a look in his eyes he can’t recognize. It’s almost soft.

“I etched these myself for your mother. It was almost unbearable to do.” He sighed, lowering his hand to gently brush against Keith’s cheek. “She was enamoured with the crystals back when they used to glow. Giving them to her is by far my greatest memory.”

Lotor stepped away, staring at Keith before reaching for the bracelet wrapped around his wrist. Keith had always noticed it. His father had worn it for special occasions. Lotor unclasped the edges of the bracelet before reaching forward and attaching them onto Keith’s earrings. Satisfied, he pulled away and stared Keith down.

“Keith, this is a new step for your life. For our life. You are and have always been the center of my world. No matter what decisions you have made in the past. This will not be easy.” Lotor held onto his shoulders bringing him close. “But everything I have done has been to prepare you for what is coming. Do not forget that. You are my heir and my only child, even my father cannot deny that and our empire cannot deny it any longer.”

Lotor pressed their foreheads together. It’s heart wrenching for Keith as he replays his father’s words. All he can think of is the arena, the Academy and the punishment to make him into something he was not. Was that to prepare him for today? To prepare him to get married? To prepare him to suck up a marriage he hadn’t even wanted to be a part of? To prepare him to carry an heir? It wasn’t fair. It made him close his eyes, feeling anger and dread swirl in his chest, making his breathing tight. He didn’t want any of it.

“Behave and all will be well.”

Keith refused to answer that, instead opening his eyes as his father pulled away, gently patting his cheek.

“Now then. Let us finish preparations so you can meet up with the others before we are called in.”

Keith feels his eyes twitch as he’s overcome with the need to rub at them. But the look his father sends him the moment his hands get close enough make him stop. They spent hours making sure he was painted as perfectly as possible. If he ruined it he thinks his dad was going to have a mental breakdown.

The outfit took a bit to get used to but he still dislikes the unconventional use of the armor. But it’s pretty, which he supposes was the whole point of it. He is self conscious over being one of the only guests showing so much skin until he catches sight of Princess Allura. She doesn’t dawn armor like him but her shirt is a cut off blouse, flowing lace and fabric that leads to her toned torso, her pink Altean markings wrapping around her skin (he catches himself wondering if Shiro has the same markings but immediately throws that thought off a cliff). Her hair is beautiful, braided behind her with crystals and flowers weaved into it, similar to Keith’s own hairstyle. It seems to be a reoccurring style as he sees other Alteans with longer hair following the same use of crystals and braids. Her father though, is wearing what he assumes is traditional Altean armor for the wedding. Keith feels like he is mixed in between two traditional Altean styles with the colors of a Galra (except it was red, which surprised him. His father’s favorite color on him was orange).

The aisles were already filled by the time they got there. Only the main officials for the wedding (the Galra royal family, the Paladins, and the Altean royal family) were waiting outside. His grandfather did not change his armor which shouldn’t have surprised Keith but he had thought his grandfather would have put more of an effort into this.

Keith sees Shrio, in between Lance and Coran who are fussing over his hair as he bats them off, looking more annoyed by the second. He looks to Pidge, who is scowling with her hair braided over her shoulder and a tiara neatly into place. What horror, she actually had to brush her hair. She catches his stare and smiles wide, widening her stance. She hadn’t been made to wear Altean garb, instead wearing what he assumes is royal Paladin armor.

It’s not the cut off armor they usually wear. Each matches their respective lion colors with a cape to match. The armor is simple, accents around their cuffs and edges. But it pales to Shiro’s armor, that glitters with black and purple accents. He finally seems to have enough as he shoves Coran and Lance away from him. There’s a veil around his neck, acting as a bandanna. He’s wearing what Keith thought was Allura’s circlet. It pushes his white bangs away, with one strand getting free and hanging on his forehead. Coran looks like he’s ready to cut it off but Shiro’s final glare makes them huff into place. It’s amusing.

“Alright! Here’s the veil!” Coran lets Shiro go in order to approach Keith, throwing a white veil over his head. It’s identical to Shiro’s only it stays on his head, not covering any of his face. Shiro lifts his own veil into place, the thin fabric covering the lower half of his face. Coran makes a few last minute adjustments to Keith’s veil before clapping his hands together “Alright Paladins! Look alive! Pidge, you’re with Lance! Hunk, you have the honors of taking the princess! And King Alfor, Emperor Zarkon, if you would lead us into the ceremony.”

There was a pause, everyone watching with bated breath as the two rulers looked at each other. Alfor didn’t back down, offering his arm for Zarkon to take. There was a quiet tick, enough to make Keith bite into his lower lip. Then, Zarkon took Alfor’s arm and they moved down the aisle together.

Once they left Shiro came beside him, wiping his hands down the sides of his armor and looking disgruntled.

Lotor gave him one more look before taking Coran’s arm and following along.

Shiro held out an arm for him to take as the other Paladins started their own descent down the aisle. Shrio sighed, looking at him. “Hi.”

Amused, Keith couldn’t help giving him his own smile. “Hi.”

Shiro grinned, looking down the aisle and then back at him. “You look… comfortable?”

Keith snorted, “Don’t let the colors fool you. This is the worst garb I’ve ever worn.”

Shiro laughed. “I do feel a little silly in this too.”

“At least your armor is practical. If I’m attacked I’d be dead in an instant. Who makes no leg armor?”

Shiro laughed, gently patting his hand before it was their turn to walk down the aisle. “Are you ready?”

Keith swallowed, not sure how to respond. He knew he wasn’t ready but it felt foolish to ask him like he had a choice. They still had to walk down the aisle no matter what their responses were. He’s scared maybe even feeling a little overwhelmed but Shiro is gentle with him.

He gently brushes his fingers over Keith’s fist. “It’s okay if you’re not. I don’t think I’m ready either. But I think we’ll be okay.”

Keith looks at him, hit with something he thinks could be longing. He nodded carefully. “Yeah. Me too.”

They take a moment to catch their breath before they start their own walk down the aisle. Keith pushes past the uncertainty and fear, holding his head high and refusing anyone to pick at his insecurities over this wedding. He’s prideful and he knows how to play that part to the Galra who want to watch him break. The Paladins wait for them by the black lion, each fanned out evenly over each side. When they get to the Altar, Alfor and Zarkon place their hands onto the side of the statue.

“We pledge on the lion of our ancestors, to the spirit of the guardian who has blessed us with land, prosperity, and fulfillment.” Alfor turns to Zarkon before they both let go of the lion and let Keith and Shiro replace them. Their linked arms turned into intertwined fingers as they wait for the rest of the ceremony. It’s not a long affair, Keith had watched numerous videos on it. If they had vows and more memories to build upon, it could have been a long affair. But it’s an arranged marriage. There wasn’t much to say about it.

“Do you pledge your union under the spirit of the guardian, to achieve the gift of land, prosperity, and fulfillment with one another?”

“We do.” They echoed.

“And does this crowd vow to bare witness to the union, with their own belief in the guardian to bless the union of these poor souls seeking guidance?”

“We do!” The crowd chanted.

They release the lion, standing across from each other with hands held close together. Shiro looks handsome in the light of the sun, eyes dark as he only focuses on Keith. Once again, Keith feels longing settle into his chest.

“We present the rings.” Zarkon rumbled, the only words he has spoken all day. It makes the room fall to a slow hush. It’s not a pleasing voice to hear, no matter what circumstance. “Each gathered by those who are to be wed. Each presenting its own inner conflict, a resolution, and hidden meanings. It strengthens the bond of those gathered here today. With these rings they vow to cherish their bond and to respect it.”

Zarkon held out a tray with two rings sitting beside each other.

Keith eyes the ring he had helped create for Shiro. The band is black, possibly even a dark purple under the sunlight. The purple jewel of the flowers glints against the rays of the sun, only reminding Keith it would glow once night fell. He catches sight of the ring Shiro chose for him and stares. It’s beautiful. The gold is shaped as vines, wrapping around one another with a pair of red crystals delicately placed. He feels something from the crystals that make him catch his breath. It was almost too beautiful to be made for him.

Shiro grabs the ring first, turning back towards Keith and lifting his left hand, slipping it onto the finger besides his pinky. There’s a pause, enough for Keith to look up in confusion. He finds a blush spreading across Shiro’s cheeks. It makes his scar stand out, his Altean markings almost glowing. But Keith’s attention is taken when Shrio cups Keith’s hands together and brings them close to his face.

“I give you this ring as a show of my faith, in the spirit of our guardian and on my devotion to care for you, respect you, and cherish you for the being you are today and the being you will become tomorrow for as long as we both may exist.”

He kisses Keith’s knuckles looking impossibly soft. For a moment, Keith feels as if it’s only the two of them in this room, speaking devotions and promises of loyalty.

He squeezes Keith’s hands before gently letting him go. Keith turns to the tray, lifting the remaining ring with careful fingers before reaching for Shiro’s left hand. He doesn’t know which finger it’s meant to go on but feels a pull before he slips it onto Shiro’s thumb. There was never a set finger to put the rings on. Wherever the ring fit is where it was made to go. He takes Shiro’s hands in his own bringing them close to his mouth before pausing to speak.

“I give you this ring as a show of my faith, in the spirit of our guardian and on my devotion to care for you, respect you, and cherish you for the being you are today and the being you will become tomorrow for as long as we both may exist.”

He gives a gentle kiss to each of Shiro’s knuckles, looking at Shiro through his lashes as he releases him. He feels the thrum of their bond in between them, feeling it almost vibrantly under his eyelids. It’s enough to make him give a smile.

Alfor starts out a chant in Altean dialect that swims too fast for Keith to catch on without his translation implant starting to confuse him. Shiro’s ears twitch, the only indication to Keith that maybe he wasn’t catching onto the Altean either. It makes him wonder just how Altean Shiro really is.

The chant lulls into a soft song, Alteans following through with it as per their tradition. Just as the song begins to pick up, heading towards a chorus, Alfor stops it by throwing his hands into the air. He is grinning at them, looking overjoyed.

“You have been blessed!”

“Blessed by the guardian!” The crowd agreed.

“You may now seal the union!”

This was the part he had been more than worried for. There had been no rehearsal to make sure they did this correctly. Keith hadn’t even caught more than a glimpse of the man before the wedding had been planned. But now it didn’t matter as Shiro took the initiative, lowering the veil from his face and leaning in for them to place kisses on each cheek. Shiro cupped his face, staring at him before leaning into press a kiss to his forehead. Keith didn’t hesitate to do the same, having to urge Shiro to bend down slightly for him to kiss his forehead.

Shiro kept his face nestled in the palms of his hand, only a small sign of hesitation before he leaned in and kissed him.

It was soft and gentle, lasting for a handful of seconds. Enough to make believable, enough to make it seem like something was there. But the feeling in Keith’s stomach hollowed, filling the silence in his head with a very silent and sad oh .

Shiro pulled away, removing his hands before intertwining their fingers and raising them high in triumph. The crowd cheered them on as they walked back down the aisle, a bonded and married couple.

Keith hoped he was able to hide the tremble in his hands as well as he schooled a neutral expression on his face.

He’s finally able to put words to the feeling of longing in his chest. He had wished, for possibly the first time in his life, that he had been able to give himself completely and intimately with someone who he had truly loved, not someone who had been forced with.

#sheith #voices #Galra Keith x Altean Shiro #galra keith #altean shiro #vld #voltron #voltron legendary defenders #AU #Alternate universe #arranged marriage au #omggiogiothings #Keith kogane #takashi shirogane #shiro #keith #writing #funtimes #Shiro and keith get married now

[jingleheimerthethaumaturgic]

Hm, yes, definitely DnD stuff because man. I like my group~ In fact.. I'm just gonna talk about my group!

I... Don't know how to read more on mobile so sorry, I'll see if I can edit it later?

3 of us DM, so we alternate. Well, it started off with just 1, then I wanted to start a story and like... Make a comic or something with the characters and ideas I have (which... Hasn't really gone anywhere) and was gonna DM to pick up while our usual DM, Jon, was real busy with schoolwork while also getting material for fleshing out my world and whatnot. Also to get better at talking and decision making hopefully. And our 3rd DM, Billy, recently started because he too had a story he wanted to tell~ And to try out ideas for like.. Rules he think would be cool.

So Jon DMs a group on Fridays mainly, so his gf can play too, but it's a bit on and off because he graduated and has work now alongside still making projects with his team, so less time for brainstorming and the like. His story has stuff to do with a cult and dreamscapes and whatnot. Deep dungeon crawling in the dream, while having more RP focus in the waking world. I play as the current party's bard, a College of the Maestro (homebrew subclass made by Matt Mercer) human named Leiris! I usually play tanky charactera or some kind of magic melee, so doing a pure support kind of playstyle to try new things. She's.. Kind of a merchant? Because she's paying off her college debt and being from the big trade city, it was the best route in her mind? Even if her 7 Wisdom has caused troubles for the Lifguards... Which is our group name we decided on 2 sessions ago that also consists of: Cade a Divination Wizard halfling, Nimbus the Dragonborn Tempest Cleric, a very... Assassins Creedy rogue named Brock, and a couple of temp? Members of some other friends that may or may not be able to join with us long term, so we'll see how that goes. As it is apparent, we are very magically inclined and also squishy! The frontline is the healer! Legitimate fun times! This is a sorta AU to when we played this campaign like.. Last year with mostly different people. Same world, different characters, different part of the continent.

Billy's campaign, is pretty fresh and interesting in a different way so far! We started off already as apprentices to the elite royal task force (at level 4 already!) of the dragonborn kingdom, and had to fight each other to determine our rankings. I play as a Half-Orc Half-Tiefling Ancestral Guardian Barbarian, Rux! Who is... Uhh. Well not to get flagged but he picked up a side job as a certain kind of entertainer. A good lovable idiot strongboy. I have 2 main spirits that I converse and battle with, 1 from each parent's ancestry. I have yet to go further in detail in game, but I really like what I came up with. Recently, Rux has gotten a cursed axe (that I as a DM already knew what it was, but y'know. Gotta play off character knowledge. And he's an idiot) soo, this'll turn out interesting. I ended up in last place on the rankings, since only 3 of us could make it to the first session and I had to fight the Shadow Sorcerer the first round and missed every attack the second round... But have now risen to rank #2! My boss (well, King Sebastian is my boss per say but I call #1 boss) is Gladiolus, a devoted Paladin and a Blue dragonborn. Our 3rd in command and mage of the group is Durza, the Shadow Sorcerer. He... Is quiet and... Doesn't do well with people but takes orders. So once he ended up melting a door to get into one of our houses to start training off early. But we also have Veraladaine, the elven Ranger~ Sounds majestic, but is a klutz. She's had some irl stuff recently, so Vera had been sick for a while. And finishing up or ranks is Ooguay, a tortle Tranquility Monk. Who is the old man. But man. What a guy. We're currently doing a trial, so we're in seperate gauntlets of monster filled rooms, and Rux is very.. Draw aggro from allies focused, so I can't do much fancy stuff class stuff for now. But ah well.

And lastly, my campaign! Which at this point is the longest running one, but it's been on and off for a month at a time once before? But it's consistant now that I have 2 weeks to prep instead of 1! The gang is on a mission to stop the personified seven deadly sins (devil based... Demigods basically?). At the moment, they've killed Gluttony and have arrived at the capital, where they hear another has surfaced. We have, Leroy J Kins a Lizardfolk Barbarian who is the most fleshed out joke character, I love him. Plus he gave juicy backstory that fit with what I had planned, so that's real nice~. He started out unable to rage (by his player's choice) since he had a second personality, Roy, who is basically his Fight of fight or flight instinct. They've meshed together well by now. Mercy, an elven Rogue who has 2 crossbows and loudly asked the group if they knew the assassin's guild in the middle of a tavern! A badass otherwise, who loves her eversmoking bottle and 40 lbs of soap in her bag of holding. Kiri, who got... Most of them to join the adventering guild they're a part of. Kiri is a Kitsune Storm Sorcerer who is a bit like... Steve Irwin?, but with strange creatures. Sorta? Also a mischevious prankster and problem instigator. Raised an awakened plant from a magic pot (after it grew for a month) and called Leroy the father when it asked last game. Naomi is the.... Either mom, secretary, or logical backbone of the group. An Aasimar Scout (rogue subclass), she wears a mask, is very sciency and experiments (mostly harmlessly) on Leroy whenever she finds weird fruit or plants. Vinnie Vin, their somewhat recently picked up Tabaxi swordbard, who sleeps on Leeroy's head/shoulders half the time because Vinnie small, Leroy tall and big. Goes nya, has a thirst for blood, and whaps foes with a shillelaghed bandora before stabbing them. One player has switched characters a lot, but because he is infrequent and keeps wanting to play different things (also kind of annoys the other players, but I try to keep group discourse low)... But the last member is a... Companion that they run into often. It is her! Domino! A Paladin! (Players found out later that her last name is Ap'al'yden, and lost their shit) a drow Paladin of Edesia's Banquet, who is on pilgramage and helps out whenever they need it (when her player can make it). The church she was a part of got taken over by Gluttony from the inside, and she's the last member to her knowledge... Has a thing for the queen of the kingdom (...Queendom? Since theres no king, the Queen leads alone with chairmen and advisors of course), since she served as a palace guard for a while before setting out. The group has also been traveling with a Silver dragon Leroy named Argent that they saved from a Necromancer (trying to turn it into a dracolich to control), an armoured slime they refer to as Blue Squishy, who communicated via gestures and charades before Leroy found a ring that let them communicate telepathically, their cart driver (who is also a guild member) Dave, and now an awakened shrub.

.....I'm real attached to my session for obvious reasons... I'm running it, we've been playing it the longest, and good party interactions~ I mean to make them kinda OP, as a sort of.. Laid back romp through things kind of session. And they enjoy it! Feels great~

....this got real long whops.

#jingle text #dnd talks #yeahhh there we go #Leroy is so prevalent because his player is fantastic and most of us are either indecisive #Or in Lea's case would careen the story into shenanigan after shenanigan #and leroy just. does things. Could speak draconic and managed to befriend the hurt dragon. Saw the slimy ring and just put it on.