#mckinlily writes: vld fic

[mckinlily]

Summary:

Allura's father died a month before she graduated high school. That is not relevant to this story. (It's not.) Allura has been looking forward to her first semester of college for ages, and she has it all planned out from her major to extracurricular to her dorm room aesthetic. Except… Nothing in is turning out the way she had planned. Boringly easy classes, difficult peers, unfulfilling clubs… And who is this Shiro with understated snark and more secrets than meets the eye?

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

#voltron #allura #shiro #vld fic #foster care au #mckinlily writes: vld fic

[braincoins]

Allura tries an alchemical experiment to see if she can track someone she's attuned to. She attunes to Shiro. And... something goes... wrong? Is it just because Shiro's not Altean or is there something... more going on?

Fandom: VLD Rating: Teen and up Ships: Shallura Tags:  Mind Meld, Dream Sex, Nightmares, I hate forming Voltron in fic and yet I KEEP WRITING IT, why do I do this to myself?, Allura as a (non-Mad) scientist, Altean Alchemy

Author’s Notes: At long last, the dreamsharing Shallura fic I've been teasing! Hope it's worth the wait.

Thanks to @mckinlily for the beta!

(11,126 Words - on Ao3)

Teaser below cut:

           Shiro addressed the little screen that had popped up. “You sent for me, Princess?”

           Her face on the screen smiled and nodded. “Yes. Come in.” And the door opened.

           Shiro entered slowly, taking in the full sight of what had been King Alfor’s lab. Two semi-circle tables facing each other, a walkway between them, and each full of bottles and beakers and capped petri dishes – at least, that’s what he would have characterized each of these things as. Some of the containers were full of liquids or powders or strange objects he couldn’t begin to identify.

           And above each table were floating shelves of books and boxes. He had no idea how they stayed on the shelves when the Castle took a hit – maybe they didn’t? – but for now they looked stable as they hovered. There were more traditional shelves built into the walls either side of the door he’d just walked through. The other walls were covered with charts and posters, blueprints and planning documents. He recognized something that looked like a slightly reordered (and expanded) periodic table; another was an outline of an Altean body, he assumed, the different parts labeled (it's not like he could read it).

           Allura was standing between the two tables, and she was still smiling as she waved him closer. “I need you for an experiment.”

           He’d been about to join her but stopped just shy of the tables. “What sort of experiment?”

           She chuckled. “It won’t hurt.”

           He asked again, “What is it?” but he was already moving forward. He trusted Allura, he was just curious.

           “It’s a simple attunement first, and then turning it into a tracer.”

           He didn’t know what the first part meant but… “You’re going to track me? Can’t the Castle do that?”

           “Yes, when you’re in or near the Castle or in the Black Lion. But with this I can track you. It could be useful for finding lost paladins,” which happened often enough, especially when Keith hared off after something, “or if we had a prisoner, I could trace them if they escaped. We could trace Blade members aboard a Galra ship… Really, anyone, so long as I’m able to attune to them first.”

           He nodded. “Could be very useful.”

           “I just need to practice to be certain I can do it properly. I’ve gotten good at attuning myself to the extant energies of the cosmos, but I’m not really used to attuning to another person. And even if it’s simple to pull off, I’d like to see how long I can keep it up.”

           “I could go out in Black, too,” he suggested, “to see how far you can track.”

           “Ooh, yes, good addition!” Her smile widened. “You see, this is why I chose you for the test. And, also, everyone else is busy.”

           He laughed. “Lance would have loved a rescue from cleaning duty.”

           “Yes, and he would have doubtless made some more of those terrible comments while he was in here,” she replied, mouth twisting briefly in distaste. “He’s a good person, a good paladin, but… well, anyway, let’s just get on with the experiment, shall we?”

           “And it doesn’t hurt, right?” he teased her.

           But she answered sincerely, “It doesn’t hurt.” Then paused and added, “If I do it right.”

           “Okay, now I’m getting a little worried.”

           “Shiro, I…”

           “…would never hurt me,” he finished. “I know, Princess.”

#Shallura #Socks writes Voltron fanfic

[maychorian]

Weekly Voltron Fic Recs #44

Rules: You can find past weekly rec lists here, and non-list recs in my general fic rec tag. Also follow @maychorianrecs for individually tagged posts, the easier to search and reblog. This is stuff I like, and I have a huge bias toward Lance, hurt/comfort, and general fluff, in that order. Gen unless otherwise noted. Please comment on the fics if you read and enjoy them!

The Monster in the Mirror by squirenonny Words: 42,621 Author’s Summary: Keith pulls Shiro from a dying Galra ship. He’s injured, severely dehydrated, and barely conscious–but he’s alive, and Keith has to believe that’s enough. But as Team Voltron struggles to piece itself back together, Shiro begins to wonder whether something in him has broken beyond repair. Light-years away, Matt Holt pulls Shiro out of a pod in a Galra laboratory. All Shiro remembers about his captivity is the phrase “Operation Kuron” and a face identical to his own staring back at him through the open door. Now Shiro and Matt have to track down Team Voltron before Haggar’s machinations tear them apart. My Comments: Shatt at the end. I absolutely love this take on what happens after Season Three. All of the characterization is wonderful, and I love how the fic deals with Kuron and his relationship with the rest of the crew. Adding in Rebel Matt just brought it up to eleven. It was exciting and heartfelt and had a great flow–once I started reading it, I didn’t stop. The fic also set aside some time to deal with Lance’s insecurities, which was really, really lovely. I enjoyed this thoroughly.

Synergy by Kokochan Words: 74,064 Author’s Summary: The vines were large, stiff, gnarly, and thick-stemmed, with blue leaves as big and round as dinner plates, but Shiro’s battle-arm was able to sever several long straggles with ease. The vines draped easily enough over the shuttle and hid it quite handily from view. “Good enough, I suppose,” Shiro said, glaring at the empty greenish-blue sky. “Come on, let’s… Hunk? What’s the matter?” Hunk was staring at something behind him. “Shiro, don’t make any sudden moves just now, but there’s a really big lizard thing standing right behind you. Um. Two of them.” Surprised, Shiro turned, albeit carefully. He’d never even heard them approach. That was rather impressive, considering the size of the beasts. It was as though someone had taken a pair of Arizonan horned lizards and rebuilt them more on the lines of a tiger without leaving out any of the spikes, then expanded them to about the size of an Indian elephant and added six large, intelligent blue eyes. Understandably, Shiro froze in place. My Comments: This fic is more focused on OCs than I typically enjoy, but it’s all about the worldbuilding. This take on Galra society is definitely an AU, but it’s so cool, and the fic really does its own thing. It’s very well-written and enjoyable to read, and there’s plenty of team bonding and good characterization for Team Voltron as well as the OCs. Give it a shot. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised, as I was.

Say My Name by showmethelions (sightandsound3733) Words: 1,996 Author’s Summary: The Castle’s malfunctioned again, leaving an injured Paladin a little worse for wear. My Comments: Oh gosh, poor Shiro. Poor Pidge. This is heartbreaking.

VLD Whump Week by Rangergirl3 Words: 2,489 Author’s Summary: Day 1: Fever Keith gets a fever. I guess this is…sort of set around the beginning of Season 3? My Comments: Nice pair of fics featuring hurt!Keith and some good team support. This author’s stuff is always so intense, especially when it involved Keith.

Just Enough to Fly by mckinlily Words: 1,814 Author’s Summary: It’s not that the Lion’s don’t want to work with their new paladins. It’s just each Lion has a very distinct way to communicate—and not one everyone understands. Keith, Lance, and Allura struggle to adjust to the Lion swap. My Comments: I really like this sort of meditation on how Black, Red, and Blue are different, and how that presents difficulties for their new paladins. It makes a lot of sense.

Late nights, and Long talks by TheBlackLagoon Words: 1,404 Author’s Summary: Lance can’t sleep, and apparently neither can Red. Lance shares some stories, and she listens. (This is literally just a way of giving Lance the hug he deserves) My Comments: Aw, so cute. Lance and Red deserve to bond.

The Drone Disadvange by spitfire00 Words: 3,392 Author’s Summary: Pidge suffers the consequences of her previous battle. Allura helps soothe her mind. Sequel to “The Drone Advantage” My Comments: Poor Pidge. Being the last one standing isn’t easy, even when you manage to save everyone else. Great follow-up to a great fic.

Comb through by dragonesdepapel Words: 1,693 Author’s Summary: The strands brush her neck again, the pencil skitters away to the other side of the room, and Pidge is one slight inconvenience away from giving up on this project altogether. My Comments: The Garrison Trio is so good and adorable, always. Love Hunk and Lance giving Pidge sibling-like attention and care.

The Worst Part by BossToaster (ChaoticReactions) Words: 2,550 Author’s Summary: The problem with having identical immune systems is what hits one hard also takes down the other. Shiro and Ryou deal with it My Comments: Absolutely adorable continuation of a series in which Shiro’s clone is rescued and becomes his twin brother, basically. The sibling bantering and fighting in this fic is super cute. And adorable. Did I mention adorable?

Little Crystals by VelkynKarma Words: 448 (1/?) Author’s Summary: A collection of prompts & fills from tumblr, finally being assembled on AO3 by popular demand. Different prompts feature different themes and characters, but all stories will be platonic. Ratings range from general to teen, lengths are entirely unpredictable. My Comments: You should just go ahead and subscribe to this now, because everything velkynkarma writes is amazing. I’m really glad she’s collecting these on AO3 so I can comment on them more easily.

Five Wars and a Moment of Peace by MoonlitWaterSunnyRiver Words: 2,823 Author’s Summary: In every universe, Shiro is a soldier. It’s part of who he is. In some universes, he fails. Those are the ones he remembers. My Comments: Tagged as possible romantic Sheith but can be read as gen. This is an interesting and heartbreaking premise, well-executed. The fluff at the end is much appreciated.

Krypto the Voltron Dog by BossToaster (ChaoticReactions) for buttered_onions Words: 8,380 Author’s Summary: “krypto the amazing space-pup. the bestest space-pup of all” -Butteredonions On a mission, Shiro finds a dog. An Earth dog. My Comments: Absolutely adorable and delightful and heartwarming in every single way. If anyone in the universe needs and deserves a puppy, it’s Shiro.

Whump Week by fairy_laughing Words: 8,978 Author’s Summary: Prompts for the VLD Whump Week August 13-20. August 13: Fever Keith is the fire paladin, he should be able to handle a little sore throat and mild fever, right? Right… (season 1, before leaving Arus) August 14: Hypothermia Classic huddling for warmth trope with a Shiro-Lance-Keith sandwich. (season 2) August 15: Near Death and/or Blood Loss Pidge knows a lot about the human body. August 16: Torture Coran is unbreakable. August 17: Insomnia and/or Mental Illness Shiro can’t sleep, won’t sleep, near Allura.August 18: Poison Diplomacy is also 1.8% avoiding poison. August 19: Internal Damage and/or Head Injury August 20: Free day! My Comments: Mild Klance in one chapter and established Shallura in another, but most of the chapters are gen. This is a great variety of whumpees, all a pleasure to read.

Mother Knows Best by Longpig Words: 2,467 Author’s Summary: When Lotor falls mysteriously ill, there is one person his generals can think of who may be able to help… but will she? My Comments: I find Lotor more interesting and compelling as a villain than likable as a character, so seeing him featured in a sickfic doesn’t give me quite the same hurt/comfort happiness as seeing my favorite members of Team Voltron. This is nonethless an interesting character study and perspective on Lotor and everyone important in his life, and I stories like this do help me understand the appeal.

Put On A Mask by StorySongs Words: 1,603 Author’s Summary: The team unexpectedly learns another one of Shiro’s triggers. My Comments: Everyone does such a great job of supporting Shiro in this. It was a punch out of the blue, but they dealt with gracefully.

The Most Brilliant Stars by wordsaplenty Words: 5,442 Author’s Summary: We Galra have many advanced methods of interrogation and torture. But me, I’m a fan of more, old fashioned, techniques. His hands settled on a serrated knife, at least six inches long. “So, Red Paladin,” he sneered, moving to stand next to Keith, “I believe it would be a waste of my time to ask you questions. You do not seem to be the type to let go of secrets.” Suddenly he plunged the knife into Keith’s shoulder, giving it a twist. **Belated Entry to VLD Whump Week: Day Four: Torture My Comments: Brutal beginning, and the recovery time is not without its bumps. Great character moments, though, and a satisfying resolution.

Must be Mice by vrepitsals Words: 1,459 Author’s Summary: Coran is running. He’s running with the fate of the universe on his shoulders. He’s running to their final destination, their last option, the zero point zero zero one percent chance they have of survival, of finding a way out of this mess. My Comments: You’ve heard the crack theory that the mice are the original paladins? Here’s a surprisingly angsty exploration of that premise.

Voltron Whump Week 2017 by hufflepirate Words: 8,969 Author’s Summary: I didn’t do the whole week, but I did end up with some monster fics when I meant to write microfics. (Well, not that monster. Just… 4k is not micro.) Day 2 - Hypothermia - Hunk fights his way through the snow to get everyone back to their lions after a diplomatic meeting. He isn’t fast enough to keep Lance from getting hypothermia, but Blue is waiting for them and everyone’s ready to support each other. Also features LOTR jokes. Day 4 - Torture - Coran hangs from his wrists and thinks back on his training in resisting torture. He’s happy to think Allura’s far away, safe with her lion, but she has some thoughts of her own about letting him be in pain. She isn’t her father, but he’d give just as much for her. Day 6 - Poison - Allura and Hunk are poisoned at a diplomatic dinner. Hunk knows what to do in the immediate moment, and the rest of the team is there to fix it afterward. Allura and Hunk grow closer through the experience. My Comments: These are some of my favorite works to come out of Whump Week. I especially loved the Coran-focused fic. Such cool worldbuilding in the midst of a terrible situation, and the ending with Allura was so beautiful and fitting. Highly, highly recommended.

Sabbatical by eugyne (AreteNike) Words: 2,641 Author’s Summary: There are a few moments of clarity in the hell Shiro lives, but not many. My Comments: Superhero AU in which Shiro is being mind-controlled by Zarkon until Matt sets him free. Short but intriguing and well-written.

For One So Small by Stratagem Words: 1,407 Author’s Summary: Eleven-year-old Lance gets to hold his baby sister for the first time and ends up naming her. My Comments: It’s so fluffy I’m gonna die.

A Sky of Stars by Bandity Words: 2,797 Author’s Summary: Lance was having a good night. So he wasn’t really sure how he ended up lost and wandering around the woods alone. His team would come for him, right? My Comments: A little more on the lighthearted side, but still a rough road for Lance, poor dear. Good thing the team found him quickly.

The Reluctant Soldier by Bandity Words: 4,167 Author’s Summary: Lance is badly injured on a mission and struggles with his role as sharpshooter. My Comments: Absolutely FABULOUS aftermath in this one. Lance goes through both a physical and emotional wringer, and needs support from every single one of his teammates to get back in fighting form. This is one of my favorites.

Lava by bookwormgir1LH Words: 1,339 Author’s Summary: Sometimes you have to get inventive to avoid boredom. My Comments: The floor is lava in space! Absolutely adorable. I love that Allura and Coran get in on the game.

So Cold Even My Hair Is Numb by wordsaplenty Words: 2,479 Author’s Summary: It was cold. That was Keith’s first thought. Why was it cold? Where was he? Why was it dark? Last he remembered there was a fight? Right? He had a job to do, he was supposed to help Lance. Lance! AKA what happens when, one conscious and one unconscious, paladins are stuck in a dark lion with the temperature rapidly dropping. **Belated entry to VLD: Whump Week: Day 2 Hypothermia My Comments: Tense and suspenseful. Whump week is the gift that keeps on giving.

lacerate by againstmygreeleaf Words: 26,012 Author’s Summary: A collection of one-shots for Voltron Whump Week! 1: Fever- Wherein Hunk’s nausea is not caused by his anxiety. 2: Hypothermia- Wherein Keith gets a taste of the Blue Lion’s element. 3: Near Death and/or Blood Loss- Wherein Pidge and Hunk find themselves in a tight spot. 4: Torture- Wherein Allura is set up and pays the price. 5: Insomnia and/or Mental Illness- Prompt modified to be Mental Torment, essentially. Wherein Shiro perceives a series of particularly unfortunate events and much more. 6: Poison- Wherein it’s Pidge vs Nature. My Comments: Every single one of these is absolutely fantastic, but probably chapter five with Shiro is the most devastating. There’s a lot of gore, so be aware of that, but I love the character interactions, and the comfort after the hurt is usually enough to make up for what the characters have been through. At least somewhat. Lance is particularly adorable and supportive and sweet, and for once he’s not the one getting hurt. Much.

Worst Case Scenario by stover Words: 8,711 Author’s Summary: Pulled out of a cryo-pod and into a devastated world, 18-year-old Lance McClain meets a veteran survivor of a global epidemic that was supposed to have ended ten years ago. My Comments: The action scenes in this fic are incredibly intense and well-written, and the setup is incredibly intriguing and feels like it has the potential for much, much more. It’s marked as the first story of a series, so I’m looking forward to seeing what happens next.

Worst Case Scenario by stover Words: 8,711 Author’s Summary: Pulled out of a cryo-pod and into a devastated world, 18-year-old Lance McClain meets a veteran survivor of a global epidemic that was supposed to have ended ten years ago. My Comments: The action scenes in this fic are incredibly intense and well-written, and the setup is incredibly intriguing and feels like it has the potential for much, much more. It’s marked as the first story of a series, so I’m looking forward to seeing what happens next.

Take These Broken Wings by BossToaster (ChaoticReactions) Words: 27,867 Author’s Summary: When Shiro disappears, the Black Lion goes dead, the team struggles under the new understanding of what it means to fight a war, and changes in leadership. Stepping into the position is difficult, and Keith doesn’t know the right answers.But then they hear a radio transmission about the return of the Champion. My Comments: Heartwrenching and messy, but completely believable, from the character interactions to the final resolution. Shiro goes through hell, AGAIN, and he does not come out unchanged.

Previously Recced Fics That Updated:

Ten Days (58957 words) Truce (180865 words) Scattered (75718 words) - now complete familiar (100126 words) - now complete As Color Fades Away (132309 words) Gate Keeper (91441 words) The Ones Who Were Left Behind (41869 words) Fusion Confusion (19269 words) The Wounds We Heal, and Those We Don't (22034 words)  - now complete

#voltron legendary defender #weekly voltron fic recs #fic rec #vldgen

[mckinlily]

Greatly Exaggerated

Summary:

Allura's father died a month before she graduated high school. That is not relevant to this story. (It's not.) Allura has been looking forward to her first semester of college for ages, and she has it all planned out from her major to extracurricular to her dorm room aesthetic. Except… Nothing in is turning out the way she had planned. Boringly easy classes, difficult peers, unfulfilling clubs… And who is this Shiro with understated snark and more secrets than meets the eye?

Chapter 1 is up!

Behold! The long-promised Allura-centric fic for the foster care au! Total fic is 5 chapters. I have them all written out and edited and am aiming to update every other days. Big thanks to @headspacedad to beta-ing for me and assuring me this is a story worth sharing!

#allura #shiro #vld fic #foster care au #there's a few ship teases in this but it's really mostly gen #the long awaited allura fic #if there's still interest anyway #but *I* really like this story so that makes it worth it right? #mckinlily writes: vld fic

[mckinlily]

Voltron post-s2 AU

Voltron fix-it in year of our lord two thousand twenty three? More likely than you think! Or rather, if I were writing Voltron after season 2, here’s what I’d do:

First of all Shiro doesn’t die. There also isn’t a clone arc because I could never figure out a path that totally satisfied me but that’s a me issue. Shiro does disappear at the end of season 2, but he gets sent to an alternate reality like in this post. Short form is that reality’s Takashi Shirogane was the Blue Paladin and died died ten years age. The alternate!paladins (inclusive of alt!Allura who is the Blue Paladin) are much older than their canon counterparts and low-key having a crisis about this baby version of their long-dead teammate suddenly dropped into their mist. Especially when they realize how traumatized and young he is—and utterly lacking in self worth. These older paladins cannot stand letting another Takashi Shirogane get himself killed and will do anything to ensure that doesn’t happen.

(Just so long as everyone’s conflicting trauma doesn't get in the way)

But while Shiro’s stuck in reality universe getting a crash course on self worth and YES you matter, don’t you dare freaking die (and also getting some helpful Voltron tips from much more experienced paladins) back in our OG reality…

The canon team is struggling.

They’re trying. But Shiro is GONE, and no one knows what happened to him. The remaining paladins are four teenagers who were thrown into a war without warning, have essentially been on the run ever since, and now just lost the only remaining source of stability they had. They’re scared, overwhelmed, and fighting like cats and dogs. Allura’s trying to lead them, but the hole that Shiro left is gaping and almost too painful to touch. It doesn’t help that Allura feels the personal loss keenly but believes to be an effective leader she has to put on a strong face. This causes certain paladins (Keith, it’s obviously Keith) to be furious with her, thinking she doesn’t care, and everything deteriorates from there.

In addition to the interpersonal issues, the Black Lion is offline. It won’t turn on—not for Keith, not for Allura, not for anyone. And they’ve all tried in desperation, but it won’t even flicker. As long as the Black Lion is unresponsive, they try everything they can think of, but they can’t find a single hint of a clue of what happened to Shiro or where he might be. And still, the Black Lion does nothing. So in addition to the terror and uncertainty in missing Shiro, they are now down a Lion and completely unable to form Voltron.

Not good. Especially not good because while Zarkon is down (though for how long, they don’t know), there are still plenty of Galra commanders who are ready and gunning for blood. Vengeance is swift and the paladins are only escaping by the skin of their teeth. The stress is putting even more pressure on the already flaring tensions and tempers in the wake of Shiro’s absence, and Team Voltron is in serious danger, both from the outside and within.

Then Lotor shows up.

Now this Lotor doesn’t have his generals, and it’s not entirely clear where he came from. He says he’s here to help. And he just so happens to have Altean heritage, which obviously interests and intrigues Allura. (He just oh so conveniently forgets to mention the tiny little fact that Zarkon is his father.) Allura, who is alone and desperately aching for support without Shiro, obviously jumps at the opportunity to connect with another Altean. 

The paladins are less charmed. Hunk is immediately suspicious. Lance is jealous of his apparent interest to Allura. Pidge is barely speaking to her teammates these days. She doesn’t give a shit about some random purple guy. Keith hates him immediately. Then again, Keith seems to hate everyone since Shiro has disappeared, so maybe that doesn’t mean anything. 

And look, Allura isn’t stupid. She knows she should be cautious. And she is. But she also desperately needs a friend, and Lotor steps up while the other paladins have been failing her. 

Obviously, they can’t hide the massive Dead Black Lion issue for long, and Lotor is very interested. But he keeps it cool. He talks Allura into letting him try. The other paladins are deeply unhappy about it but not too worried because obviously it’s not going to work, right?

Expect then the Black Lion lights up.

It’s only for a moment and then the Black Lion goes dark again. But it’s the most reaction anyone has been able to get out the Lion. 

And they’re desperate.

Keith is BEYOND offended at the mere idea of anyone other than Shiro being the Black Paladin and nearly splits from the team over it. It’s only Lance going after him and, in a surprising show of maturity, overcoming his jealousy and practically begging Keith to stay that keeps him from vanishing completely. He’s still furious though. Hunk is beyond anxious, and even Pidge, who has been trying to check out from all emotion and people up until now, is becoming suspicious and anxious. 

But Allura… Look, she’s the sole leader right now. She sometimes feels like she’s the only one who still cares about saving the universe from the Galra anymore. But she also is very aware that she is now solely responsible for the remaining young paladins. If she owes Shiro anything in his absence, isn’t it to protect the team he gave his life for?

And to do that…they need Voltron. 

So when Lotor confesses to her that he had felt the Black Lion but suspects the Black Lion was damaged in the last fight against Zarkon, she listens. Lotor has access to some rare surviving records of Altean alchemy. He says he has a spell that, combined with Allura’s connection to the Lions, could fix the Black Lion. He says if Allura helps him strengthen his connection to the Black Lion, he’ll help them fight the Galra.

And Allura… it’s not that she doesn’t want Shiro back, of course she’d rather have Shiro! She can’t trust Lotor like she knew she could trust Shiro (even if he is Altean), and the other paladins clearly don’t like him. But she’s all alone. She has to keep Shiro’s team alive for him. They NEED Voltron.

So, at night, behind the other’s backs, she preforms the ritual with Lotor. 

And it works. 

Lotor is now the Black Paladin. No, it’s not ideal, and there other paladins are deeply unhappy, but all the Lions functional. It’s the best option they have available. 

… Right?

(to be continued)

#voltron #vld fic #vld fix it #post s2 au #alternate realities crossover au #mckinlily writes: vld fic #full disclosure: i'm not a lotor stan #this won't include a lotor redemption arc fyi #in case anyone was getting their hopes up #i am and remain a One True Black Paladin Shiro stan #i will use lotor for nefarious purposes though

[mckinlily]

Voltron post-s2 AU pt. 2

So what is going on with Lotor? Is he the True Black Paladin?

(Spoiler: Of course not. Who do you take me for?!)

BUT he is the son of two very powerful individual, and while he hates his father, this Lotor is plenty close to his mother. Close enough to be aware the arm she stole from her Favorite Prisoner and has been using for experimental quintessence extraction—particularly Black Paladin quintessence. Hagar’s original plan was to use this human’s surprisingly potent and robust quintessence to bolster an ever-zombifying Zarkon. But she is nothing if not flexible and opportunistic. With Zarkon down for the count and the new Black Paladin mysteriously absent, she is more than happy to enable her son’s on his own power quest.

So Lotor injects himself with stolen Shiro quintessence and flies off to Team Voltron. He finds he was right—the new Black Paladin is missing. And even better, no one can get the Black Lion to work. The timing is perfect.

Lotor, with his stolen and wrongly appropriated quintessence, makes his attempt.

And it almost works.

Black recognizes her paladin’s quintessence, though somewhat decayed and corrupted, and perks up. She immediately realizes that this is NOT her paladin though and shuts down in disgust.

But the damage is done. Although Black knows Lotor is a lying imposter who lies, she has no good way of communicating that without her true paladin. To everyone else, it really looks like Lotor is their best chance at connecting with the Black Lion at all.

And Lotor, clever and slippery as he is, uses that. He sympathizes with their worry. Comments on how tragic it is that it is not Allura who could wake the Black Lion. Even demonstrates patience with Keith spitting at him like a rabid raccoon. He understands, Allura. What a hard spot she has been put in, perhaps he can help?

Lotor oh so carefully suggests that maybe the Black Lion is damaged and he just so happens to have a possible solution.

Except the Black Lion isn’t damaged. At least not the way Lotor describes. And the ritual spell Lotor convinces Allura to try doesn’t fix Black. Instead, it uses that tiny portion of Shiro’s old quintessence he injected to force a bond between himself and the Black Lion.

Allura doesn’t know this is what she’s done. She doesn't have any way to know. But the Black Lion is FURIOUS. As if she wasn’t already angry with them for trying to create a new bond instead of finding her paladin. Now THIS?! After she JUST got free of her corrupted bond with Zarkon? Black is so angry with Allura and despises Lotor with a heat that makes Keith look chill.

She can't break the bond though. Allura's spell is too powerful. She makes her feelings very clear to Lotor, but since he never cared about the Lion's feelings in the first place, he finds it annoying but ultimately doesn't change anything. He can force the Black Lion to work for him, and that's all that matters.

In addition to forcing a bond Black does not want, the spell also interferes with her bond with Shiro. It doesn't break it (nothing can break Black's bond with her paladin besides Shiro himself), but it's blocked significantly. There's enough there for Black to know Shiro is alive, but she can't pin point where he is to bring him back or communicate with him in any way. And Black aches. Her paladin is all alone and thinks she abandoned him. She can just barely feel him, but it's so clear he can't feel her.

She's helpless to fix it. She can't break the bonding spell Allura created, not without the help of her paladin, and she can't reach her paladin because of the spell.

Needless to say, Black is very angry at everyone and is NOT playing nice in whatever way she can.

Unfortunately, what she can do isn't enough to tip off the humans and Allura to what's wrong.

With Lotor in the Black Lion, the team is able to start fighting again. And just in time because the Galra sharks are circling.

There's just one problem: they can't form Voltron.

And Lotor is about to learn there's a lot more to being the Black Paladin than controlling the Black Lion.

[part 1]

[Where is Shiro?]

#vld fic #vld fix it #post s2 au #alternate realities crossover au #imma post these in chunks so maybe you can get semi frequent updates? #mckinlily writes: vld fic

[mckinlily]

Nothing

Summary:

Shiro's finally done it: he's gotten himself and his siblings out of the Zarkon home for good.

Somehow, it doesn't feel like the kind of victory it should be.

“You are NOTHING.”

The hiss hurts in Shiro’s ears, locking up his spine, causing splinters in his bones at the pure hate on Honerva’s face.

Her manicured fingernails dig into the still tender joint between where his flesh ends and the metal contraption she had built into him begins. Pain flares up into his shoulder as she shakes him.

“I made you,” she hisses, her voice thick with hate. “You would be dead without me! I saved you, made you better, made you who you are, and THIS is how you repay me?!”

Spittle flies in Shiro’s face. His shoulders ache, tense and tired from hours of battling—pleading—fighting—various social workers to finally, finally get them to just SEE the pit of depravity that was the Zarkons. Every nerve he has has been on high alert for days now and is fried to a constant burn, brittle and cracking.

But he won.

He might be fifteen, skinny and damaged, but he won.

Read More

#shiro #haggar #vld #foster care au #sorry this one's angsty folks #mckinlily writes: vld fic

[mckinlily]

Kill your darlings? Nay. Copy and paste to tumblr those bits you think won’t make the final cut.

Proof I AM working on that Allura-centric story in the foster care au. It’s just taking me approx. 10,000 years to finish it:

Shiro came home a few hours later, retrieved Hunk and Lance from the basement, (“Did you get lost? Did you get held captive by a ghost? Seriously, please try not to piss off the dead, we have enough issues without the paranormal.”), dragged Keith in from the fire escape (“What were you even doing out there?!”), and confiscated an apparently illegal chemistry set from Pidge (“But, Shiro! I need to prove the basement isn’t haunted!” “Not by bringing toxic chemicals in here, you’re not.”). He also brought home three boxes of very cheap cheese pizza for them all. They sat in a circle on the living room floor, eating straight from the box, the air filled with snickers and well-meaning bickering. Once the last slice was fought over and consumed (won by Pidge in a very complicated and violent game of rock-paper-scissors), Shiro picked up the empty pizza boxes and his keys and turned to Allura.

“You good to go home?”

 For a moment, Allura had forgotten the apartment wasn’t home. It was tiny and cramped and excessively loud ninety percent of the time, but it also felt alive in a way she hadn’t been in a long time. It wasn’t hers though, and Keith was giving her a look that suggested she was reaching the end of her welcome, and she was really looking forward to a shower and wearing her own clothes. So she collected her things and waved goodbye to Keith and Lance who were wrestling over use of a controller while Pidge and Hunk egged them on.

“Please don’t kill anything,” said Shiro in a long-suffering voice and was largely ignored. 

#wip #foster care au #space family is a disaster family #i'm still writing i swear! #it just takes me a very very long time #mckinlily writes: vld fic

[mckinlily]

Miraculous Shallura AU

Like it says on in the title: A Miraculous Ladybug au with shallura as our favorite (idiot) super heroes.

Basic premise: Give Shiro and Allura superpowers as well as still-developing frontal cortexes… It’s gonna be good XD

Allura is obviously Ladybug. 

She’s the daughter of the city mayor and relishes in the chance to escape and GET SHIT DONE as Ladybug.

But this also why she’s so protective of her identity (even with Chat Noir)

Allura has dark, curly hair IRL, but her hair turns silver-white with the Ladybug transformation

Allura used to be a pitcher on the softball team. Combine this with superpowers, and her yo-yo is deadly

Forget tangling akuma up in her line. Allura is knocking people out cold 

It is a VERY good thing the Healing Light heals concussions XD

Shiro is Chat Noir

He lost his arm in a bad accident and generally goes around one-armed IRL. But when he transforms the suit includes a magical prosthetic that functions almost like a real hand in addition to the super strength and cataclysm

Chat Noir is his chance to escape the limitations of daily life.

And you know Shiro jumped at the chance to be able to help people while also defying all known laws of physics

A key part of this au is that both of them are DEFINITELY teenagers

AKA super-powered, teenaged Shiro and Allura are 10000% as passionate and not NEARLY as sensible as their adult selves

What I’m saying is Ladybug and Chat Noir are an awe-inspiring wild force of nature flying through the city.

It’s a very good thing that Allura’s Healing Light puts everything back as it started after they’re finished haha

#miraculous shallura #just you wait #i have more head canons for this #because of course i do #mckinlily writes: vld fic

[mckinlily]

So apparently in older versions of Voltron (don’t take my word for is, I’ve only heard secondhand and I can’t be bothered to research), the Lions came from another reality and were cast out for arrogance or something. But ignoring my clear lack source checking, I’ve always found the idea interesting.

The Lions were originally one 5-part inter-reality being that got kicked out and forced into a mortal form in a single reality. It explains some things, like how they’re overpowered, why they seem to operate on different rules from every other ship in canon, why Zarkon couldn’t just make another Voltron or Black Lion. They prompted Alfor to sculpt them into forms they found most familiar, but there was another curse that came with their physical forms: they could only act when bonded with a mortal in their new reality.

The first time, they chose the best. Kings and rulers, people with power and influence that fit the Lions’ sense of previous grandeur. The Lions were immortal beings with abilities beyond any mortal’s imagination. Surely only the most accomplished, the most competent could handle them.

So they chose the original paladins. Alfor, Trigel, Blaytz, Gyrgan. Zarkon. Great leaders who had the respect and admiration of billions. Surely these would make the greatest paladins.

And they did. For a time. But slowly, and then all at once, they fell apart. The Lions may be separate, but they were One. Voltron. They were meant to work together.

But somehow, the paladins didn’t get that. They separated the Lions for months, whole years at a time, attending to their separate duties and personal interests. They no longer worked as a unit, and worse they began treating the Lions as tools, ships to be picked up or locked away as it suited them.

But the Lions were bonded, and in these mortals they had discovered new kind of being, one that connected them to the mortal world in a way they simply couldn’t let got of anymore. They were...blinded by their bonds to the paladins.

Until they couldn’t be blind anymore. Until Black was forced to turn on her pride, her soul, and. She. Couldn’t. Stop. It.

Voltron shattered that day. The betrayal ran deep. Among all the Lions (how could their paladins turn them against each other?!), but especially in Black who never seemed the same after that. 

They became weak, broken even, when they had never been so much as damaged before, and separated to be hidden from the paladin who had once lead them. And so they stayed, for ten thousand years.

The first time, the Lions chose the paladins who matched their strengths.

The second time, they chose those who match their weaknesses.

The new paladins are young, uncertain. They’re scared and isolated and lonely and longing for connection. They have none of the grander of the previous paladins; the planet the could from is practically primitive and quaint. There is strength inside of them, potential of the paladins they could be, but it’s buried under insecurities and trauma and the bumbling misdirection of youth. 

But they bond. Faster and stronger than the original paladins ever did. They ask questions, learn from the Lions. Their minds spark with new ideas and with hope that is as potent as it is irrational. 

And, most importantly, they are Pride. The Black Paladin is the leader, who claimed all of them with an immediate “Mine mine mine mine”,  a mantra of love and protection. And the others get swept up, adding and growing it. There is a new element, one that was never part of Voltron before.

Loyalty.

One that’s born out of love, empathy, sheer determination. A pattern that is millennia deep in a species that has never stepped foot outside of its own galaxy. Something that these five in particular seem particularly strong in. Even the Black Paladin.

Especially the Black Paladin.

A new Voltron rises. The Lions teach their new paladins about flight and power and the ways to bend their reality in only ways a Lion of Voltron can. 

The paladins in turn, teach the Lions what it means to be family. 

They do not know it yet, but this new Voltron is going to be so very different, and so very much more powerful, than the one that came before.

Powerful enough, in fact, to free the universe. 

#vld #voltron lions #voltron paladins #as usual I blur the line between fic and meta with utter abandon #mckinlily writes: vld fic

[mckinlily]

I have this headcanon that Shiro grew up with a single mom and not all that much money. And Shiro being, well, Shiro was kind of a lot. Squash down that much stubbornness determination and force of character into one small, preteen boy? Yeah, there’s going to be some drama at least.

So Shiro’s mom, the seemingly prim, soft spoken, mild-mannered woman (but this is the mother of Takashi Shirogane and what would you know but she has some tricks up her sleeves), in an effort to give her son an outlet for all his excess energy and inner fire, gets them a hoverbike.

It’s not the best hoverbike. In fact, it looks something much closer to a rustbucket, but it’s what they can afford. Mama Shirogane is a nurse not a mechanic, but nothing can stand up against pure Shirogane determination, and they get it working again. 

Which is how Shiro learns how to fly on a hoverbike clunker that’s always throwing out some unexpected problem or other, and from his quiet, proper mother who just so happens to know how to launch a hovercraft off a cliff without dying. Shiro not only learns how to do a lot of tricks that no sane person would attempt, but he learns how to adjust on the fly. What to do if your sway bar suddenly just falls off. How to compensate for jammed gears or bent turbines or any other number of alarming emergencies that can happen when your hover resembles the creatively assembles components from a junk yard. “Going wrong” becomes synonymous with “going,” and there’s very few things that can phase him.

The Galaxy Garrison is made up of primarily students who have been working towards this all their lives, professional tutors, private piloting lessons--and Shiro shows up on scholarship and with an entrance test score that immediately starts rumors of cheating. 

The rumors turn quickly to frustration as Shiro continues to outfly every other student pilot in the Garrison and then has the audacity to look around like “It’s not hard?”

More than a few bitter upper classmates mutter among themselves. “Just wait until he has to fly real airships. He can’t keep it all up then.”

And he doesn’t. Shiro does better. He might have done well on memorized, prescribed routes and exercises, but he blows the competition out of the water when parameters open up and he has to get creative. What do you mean you already have a tried and true method to get a jet out of a stall? You’ve flown this model what, once? How did you know that was going to work when the landing gears got stuck?? 

(He didn’t, but if his mother taught him anything, it was the importance of flexibility.)

Many new pilots struggle to adjust to the real world after their training: Shiro raises like the morning star and just keeps going.

And then he meets another kid. Who is young and underprivileged, just like he was. But who has fire and so much damn talent.

Shiro takes one look at the skinny face and storm cloud eyes, and some part deep inside of him goes, Mine.

The Galaxy Garrison didn’t know what to make of Takashi Shirogane. But they are nowhere near prepared Keith Kogane.

Especially since, would you know it, Shirogane tenacity is learned, not hereditary and guess what, exactly, Shiro is passing on to his new protégée?

(Shiro, for his part, is delightedly happy, and his mom just hums and smiles along with a knowing smile)

#what is this? #fic #headcanon #? idk #but here y'all go #broganes #vld #mckinlily writes: vld fic

[mckinlily]

After almost ten years in space and finally returning to Earth, Lance didn’t quite expect to find himself back in the Castle kitchen after only a few days with his family. Seemingly for no reason except that he’d jumped into Blue and flown there.

(No reason except for the anxiety creeping in his chest, the uneasy feelings waring with his insides, the way everything was the same and yet nothing felt safe, and the planet he had missed so much felt foreign and jarring and wrong.

Or maybe it was just Lance who was that way.)

Somehow, he’d been less surprised to find Shiro there as well.

(I think I have PTSD, he’d said, and Shiro had looked so incredibly sad. Yeah, you probably do.)

“This...” Lance gestured, encompassing his anxiety, the conflict and distress inside his chest, and just...everything. “This is what you were trying to protect us from.”

For the first time, Lance understood the painful, searing regret in Shiro’s eyes.

 “Yeah. I was.” 

Silence fell heavy. There were a hundred things between them and all the things Lance wanted to say but couldn’t because they weren’t true. Things like “you didn’t have to do that” or “we wouldn’t have been hurt by you” or anything that got away from the messy, painful truth of their situation. 

The truth that Shiro had been right. It wasn’t fair, what he had to do. But they’d needed him, and if he hadn’t— 

“Thank you,” said Lance, the one thing they’d never managed to say, angry and frustrated with his self-destructive behavior, the way he never seemed to care about himself and shut them all out, all in the name of protecting and caring for them. 

Tears built up in Lance’s eyes. It wasn’t fair. He flung himself into Shiro, hugging him tightly. It wasn’t fair that it’d happened, and it wasn’t fair how relieved and grateful Lance was that he’d done it. 

 “Thank you,” Lanced choked again into Shiro’s shoulder. 

Shiro hugged him back just as tightly. “I’m sorry. I wanted to protect you better. I didn’t want this for you.” 

There wasn’t anything else to say. Lance hung on tightly and let himself cry—for himself and for Shiro. For his friend, his brother, his mentor—his teammate, leader, and hero. For everything that had happened and they had had to go through. But most of all, for a universe where someone he loved so dearly could sacrifice so much—and it would still be the right thing to do. 

Lance could never repay Shiro for what he had done. All he could do was hug him and cry for him and sob...because he couldn’t in honesty say he wished Shiro hadn’t done it. 

“Thank you,” he wept into Shiro’s shoulder. “Thank you thank you thank you.” 

And this time, just maybe, Shiro would hear him.

(This is entirely @void-tiger‘s fault so blame her for this. I bear not responsibility here.) 

#vld #shiro #lance #voltron au #because when do i ever acknowledge anything past season 2? #why have a post apocalyptic earth when you can have #earth almost exactly the same #and the returning paladins having to face the heartbreaking reality that THEY are no longer the same #and don't fit anything #plus a good dose of 'we're the same age as Shiro was when we started! Haha...ah...' *wordless horror* #mckinlily writes: vld fic

[mckinlily]

I started this for Shallura Month in (checks notes) freaking February, but it’s finally it a state fit to be seen. 

Kiss, Kiss (Don’t Fall In Love)

Summary:

Someone spiked Shiro's drink, and now he's acting strange. Behaving like a lovesick schoolboy kind of strange.

Allura may not survive this.

Excerpt:

He was sitting in a secluded chamber off the ballroom—slouching, really, in his seat at the booth, which looked unexpectedly unnatural on his body. He had been staring dazedly at the corner where the wall met the ceiling but looked over when she approached. And his eyes lit up.

“Allura,” he said in as much awe as delight.

A thrill ran down her spine. Allura tried to stamp down the inappropriate reaction. She hadn’t been the focus of that much unfiltered adoration since…well, never really. She’d never had anyone look at her the way Shiro was looking at her right now. And that might be nice, wonderful really, if it weren’t for the tiny fact that Shiro wasn’t in his right mind right now and couldn’t remotely mean the things he said.

Someone—and Allura was furious at the entire planet for allowing it to happen—had drugged Shiro’s drink, and now he was like this. And while that was worrying enough, especially since they had no idea what the drug actually was, for Allura it held a particular sting: Shiro was looking at her like a fulfillment of all her most private dreams, and none of it was real.

It felt like a very unique brand of torture actually.

(Read More)

#shallura #vld fic #shiro #allura #mckinlily writes: vld fic

[mckinlily]

Idea where the Voltron Paladins start to develop elemental powers from their Lions. Except...not the most obvious ones. 

Shiro can teleport. Well. That’s the most visible aspect of his power. What he actually does is warp the fabric of space-time because of course he does that. You know how Shiro basically fights like gravity is optional? Yeah, that just got 100x worse. Shiro essentially floats and drops and moves however he needs, and now he affects space-time for everyone else, too. You can tell when Shiro’s gotten really pissed because there’s this immense pressure and everything is suddenly heavy. Or in a combat, his enemies who were grounded are now bouncing and floating. And if you think “space”= “no gravity”, you’re forgetting this is the star pilot of the Garrison who certainly knows about orbitals and gravitational assists. He doesn’t need any alien robot-lion bond to calculate multi-body trajectories instantaneously in his head even with changing gravitational fields. Teleportation might be flashy and all, but every member of team Voltron knows that’s the least dangerous thing he can do.

Lance is an empath. At first, he’s disappointed he didn’t get anything cool and flashy like Shiro. Actually, at first, Lance didn’t think he got a power at all. This is just a normal part of forming Voltron, right? Right?? Why is no one else so exhausted from all the feelings? Guess I’m just weak... Lance actually has a near breakdown before the rest of the team clocks it and realizes he’s constantly swimming in everyone’s feelings and yeah, no. No one can handle all that. Allura steps him to teach him how to build boundaries, and still, he has to spend a few days avoiding Keith and Shiro (”What the hell, you two?! Do you guys feel ANYTHING that’s not twenty shades of repressed trauma???”). But with time, Lance learns to control and use his power to help the team. His connection is strongest with the other paladins, and he mostly uses his power to look after them and help them out during the down times. Lance has learned the importance of being a support and takes pride in healing his team when they’re down so they’re ready to kick ass in battle. But he also shines on diplomatic missions. His ability to ping what other people are feeling not only helps him smooth over offenses or fears, but he can pick up on inconsistencies and unseen red flags. Not to mention, Lance can nudge other’s emotions. Normally just slightly, but it’s enough to swing things in their favor. Lance might not be flashy, but that doesn’t make him less powerful. And anyone on the other side of the negotiating table quickly learns that.

Keith has precognition. Think Jedi see-things-just-before-they-happen Force shenanigans. His instincts aren’t just on point--he’s often reacting to things just before they happen. Naturally, this makes him almost impossible to face in combat. Incidentally, this is also part of why Keith is so bad at communicating: he’s often thinking in multiple points of time at once and condensing that down to one point to talk about is just...it doesn’t work like that. But slowly, as Keith learns how to work in a team and, if he can’t quite communicate with words, to let the others in so they sense what he’s sensing, Keith’s precognition stops throwing him out of sync with everyone else and pretty soon Voltron has the same too-fast reflexes as Keith. The others have gotten used to the flashes of Keith-thoughts zipping through the Lion bonds and letting him move them when they do. Now not only are the Lions practically indestructible, but Voltron is nearly impossible to land a hit on in the first place. 

At first Pidge is annoyed about the paladins powers because--Green Lion? Of course she’s going to get plants. And Olkarion might have helped her appreciate the natural world more, but she still thinks plant powers are lame. She’s not Poison Ivy. Give her computers and climate control any day. But then she starts talking to Green as she’s coding, and at first she just figures she’s a genius (which she is, thank you very much) but her programs are like nothing she or anyone else has seen before. Especially the viruses she writes for Galra tech. They grow. She can plant a “seed” on one part of system and later she’ll find that code sinking its roots into an entirely different part of the enemy ship. It creeps like vines, breaking through any firewall, tangling up any kind of security, alive in a way even the best AI isn’t. Pidge doesn’t even really need an access point anymore, just let her loose near some tech and like an invasive species, soon she’s overrun it all. Pidge’s code is like vines, like ivy or tangle weed, and once it’s in there, you can try to root it out. But you won’t succeed. Pidge likes this kind of plant.

And finally Hunk can kind of just...bend reality. Normally it’s little things, like cables that shouldn’t work suddenly don’t need an adaptor, the rust jamming certain gears is magically clean, that fuel cell that’s been on empty for the last three varga is still going strong. Of all the paladins, Hunk appreciates that difference little things can make (for good or for really, really bad. You won’t think changing the rotation rate of that star by half a second would make a difference, but turns out that changes the magnetic fields which create solar flares which...). Hunk’s happy making small, manageable adjustments to reality that he can predict the full consequences of. Mostly. But there’s still definitely been a time that someone’s held a gun to one of his teammate only to find--the gun isn’t there anymore? It never was? There wasn’t even a gun in existence in the first place? And occasionally someone will realize that aren’t really limits to what Hunk can change besides those Hunk sets himself. Those people start to back away very slowly as Hunk talks to himself about whether or not he should turn this rock into space chocolate That’s a pretty big molecular change, not telling what side effects with come with that. But if he took something that was already food, now there’s an idea... Hunk doesn’t use his power in combat that much. Or, at least, not in ways people notice (but isn’t it convenient that with Hunk around, armor lasts longer, equipment runs better, no one’s amo ever runs out...)

All these abilities would be chaos to work with, except that the paladins have grown to develop a low-level mind-meld like they have in the Lions. Normally it’s white noise far in the background, but it can flare up when needed and nothing is quite as disconcerting as when Keith pings something and all of them turn as one to look a second before something happens. Sometimes people swear that even when the paladins are outside of their Lions, doing separate things, they still move unnervingly like part of one unit. And in the Lions--

Gone are the days of inexperienced pilots attempting to survive. Pidge is turning your tech against you. Keith is predicting your every move. Shiro and Hunk are wrecking havoc on reality and all known laws of physics. This in addition to all the bells and whistles and impossible weapons they’ve unlocked in Voltron. And while you’re panicking, trying to figure out how the hell you’re supposed to fight this thing, Lance is there cranking your dread to eleven. Suddenly, it’s no longer surprising that Voltron is the most powerful weapon in the universe.

“Don’t they ever scare you?” ask some planetary leaders after witnessing the might of Voltron. Sure, the paladins are supposed to be the good guys, but... “What if they stop listening to you?”

“Oh, I’m not worried,” says Allura, the woman who has the power to heal and destroy planets in her fingertips. She smiles like her teeth haven’t turned sharp and blinding white in the last minute. 

“I am their Princess.” 

#voltron #vld #shiro #keith #lance #pidge #hunk #allura #shiro and hunk trying to serve cookies to the locals: why are they scared of us :( #pidge: maybe because you guy are kinda big? #shiro: [distressed shiro noises] #lance: *sighs* [gets to work soothing emotions so his scary-but-sensitive friends don't get their feelings hurt] #voltron paladin powers #mckinlily writes: vld fic

[mckinlily]

um. im a big fan of your paladin powers series and was wondering if you had anything else for that as well? not that you have to of course

Thank you!! I'm so flattered! I've wanted to answer this for a while, but I didn't know what to say. But!! Then I realized I hadn't explored anything with the paladin bayards, so let's do that here!!

One idea I've loved is that as the paladins grow, they "unlock" new bayard forms. These paladins have bonded enough with their Lions that they could probably form about anything if they really needed ("Lance, why do you suddenly have a slushy maker?" "Magic works in mysterious ways, Pidge."). However, they mostly have a couple forms they stick with.

Lance can form any kind of gun, including a machine gun and a sniper rifle in addition to his usual single shot. He can also form a stinging whip if he needs too, and sometimes instead of the normal blaster shots, his shorts are liquid-nitrogen instant-cell-death levels of cold.

Pidge also gets guns, specifically dual pistols, and she's deadly with them, especially with how rapidly she can switch between them and her usual grappling-laser form.

Oh, and she can form a freaking rocket launcher. You know, because she wasn't already overpowered.

Keith isn't trusted with guns (his aim is shit; years of space wars hasn't made it any better). He does have a flamethrower. Luckily for everyone really, he doesn't favor that form. He typically sticks to his original sword and the somewhat newer laser-edged glaive. Allura has trained him with pole arms, and he is deadly efficient. And yes, he can also dual weld his bayard and Marmora blade.

Hunk can transform his bayard into a second armor that his practically invulnerable. The really neat thing is the armor doesn't always need to be on him. Hunk has saved and protected his teammates many times when would have otherwise been in grave danger. He can also create a comically huge hammer (AND has the strength to wield it), an extra strength shield, and a missile launcher. As in, heat-sensing missiles that can down an entire Galra warship.

Also, a toaster. (What? He gets hungry!)

Shiro's base bayard form is wings because, I mean, it's Shiro. How can I NOT give him wings?? Shiro's wings are the same shape and almost the same size as Black's when activated, the "feathers" are laser-edged and can be launched like throwing knives when Shiro gets really pissed. Which, let's face it, you're already shit out of luck if Shiro is really pissed.

Perhaps surprisingly, however, Shiro doesn't actually use his bayard all that much. He doesn't need it to teleport, and wings aren't really necessary when he can just teleport to higher and higher points in the sky (plus the tactical advantage of being even less predictable if he's teleporting). After years of Hunk, Pidge, and Allura tinkering with his arm, this time with his consent and input, it is even more deadly and efficient than Haggar could have ever dreamed of. With it and his close-range fighting style, he doesn't really need a bayard.

Shiro probably has the most surprising use of his bayard. More than anyone, he has pulled out the most variety and sheer volume of bayard forms. There are times (especially in the beginning) when even Shiro doesn't know what he's going to find when he pulls out his bayard.

But the most consistent use Shiro has for his bayard isn't actually in his hands at all. Shiro has discovered that if he gives his bayard to one of his teammates, it came combine with their own and create a doubly powerful weapon. Not only that, but Shiro's bayard on its own, can form weapons for others if he wills it. The other bayards are active only for the paladins who have bonded with the corresponding Lion, but Shiro can share. What this means is that Shiro will typically choose who needs his advantage most in the battle and pass it (or throw it--or teleport it) to them while he himself attacks with nothing but his bare hands.

And the person who most often ends up with the Black bayard?

Allura.

Allura had to have a talk with the Black Lion about how she would never replace Shiro as the Black Paladin and would in fact protect Shiro with her life, but now the Black bayard works almost precisely as well for her as it does for Shiro.

Allura's base bayard form is a massive shield, much like the one Zarkon conjured in season 1. But Allura's is a weapon. The edges are burning with laser blades, just like Pidge's bayard. The top is sharp and jagged, designed so that Allura can slam opponents against a wall, points of the shield sparking on either side of their neck. And this is if Allura stops to give them a moment to breathe. With the massive shield on one arm, laser edges crackling, she can tear through a battle field like a single extremely-devastating tank. The shield basically take Allura's insane brute strength and weaponizes it to its fullest extent.

The paladins sit back when she really gets going and crack open the popcorn.

(Courtesy of their bayards, of course)

#thanks for the ask! #anon #vld #paladin powers #mckinlily writes: vld fic

[mckinlily]

Miraculous Shallura - pt. 3

Continuing from these posts…

Hawk Moth:

Hagar is Hawk Moth. She wants the Ladybug and Chat Noir miraculouses to tear apart and dissect reality itself or some nonsenses.

Look she’s basically just a mad scientist ok?

She is annoyed beyond words at how STUPID the costumes for her RoboBeasts always end up being. 

And yet. She can do nothing to change it.

(She also rants a lot about the petty concerns of her Akumatized victims and how unappreciative and uncreative they are with the power she’s given them. Pathetic, the lot of them. And yet. And yet she still can’t do anything about it.)

Zarkon is the pompous, uptight executive of company in the fashion industry a la Gabriel Agreste because I find the idea hilarious.

Zarkon supports his wife’s reality ripping and magical terrorism because good partners support their spouses’ intertrests. Also what’s a moral conscience anyway?

Zarkon and Alfor used to be bffs but had a falling out several years ago and now spend an inordinate amount of time sending passive aggressive letters to each other.

(The fall out just happened to be over the Most Handsome Man of the Year Award)

((Coran actually came in first place for that one. Alfor and Zarkon are fighting over who should have gotten second))

Allura and Shiro family life:

Coran is Alfor’s personal assist and practically Allura’s second father

Alfor loves his daughter and cares for her, but he’s incredibly busy being mayor, politicking and running the city sending petty emails to Zarkon, so Coran turns out to be the one doing a lot of the actual parenting.

Coran totally knows Allura is Ladybug, but he lets her think he doesn’t and subtly helps her keep her secret and make excuses to Alfor/school/whoever to hide her identity

Allura, have ISSUES because of her somewhat absentee father? Of course not. HER?! What would make you even suggest such a thing

(Chat Noir sometimes mentions his moms or his little brother with such warmth and Ladybug aches with something she can’t—or won’t—describe.)

Yes, Shiro has two moms. His bio mom, Mama Shirogane, and her wife married when he was about two, so are far as Shiro is concerned, they are his family, full stop

Keith is Shiro’s little brother and a full fledged Shirogane in all but name. 

He’s technically still in foster care, but Mom and Mama Shirogane have been fostering him since he was nine and fully intend to adopt him as soon as he turns eighteen. They’d have adopted him already if it weren’t for irritating legal barriers

Keith is definitely part of the Shirogane family though, no matter what the law says. Shiro’s promised if his moms don’t adopt Keith officially, he will. But neither of the should worry—Shiroganes don’t let go of people easily

The Shirogane moms love their sons fiercely and unconditionally, but they do wish sometimes those two stubborn boys would reach out and realize they don’t have to fight everything on their own all the time.

(And Chat Noir could at least let them know when he’s going to be late for dinner. It’s hard enough to keep a growing teenage boy well fed—let alone a superhero)

#miraculous shallura #mckinlily writes: vld fic