Chapter Text
There has to be something.
Keith wraps both hands around the black lion’s bayard- Shiro’s bayard- and he waits. Keith reaches for the feeling that awoke his Galran blade- that strange, intangible emotion that first felt like defeat. He reaches through the not-knowing, tries to squash the desperation that threatens to cloud his mind.
If anyone can awaken Shiro’s bayard, it’s him.
And if Keith can unlock the bayard- unlock the last action Shiro took while he was still piloting the black lion…
Maybe he can find him.
Keith is clutching the bayard so tightly that his fingers are going numb. When he tries to loosen his grip, the weapon clatters to the ground.
Patience, Keith wills at himself, but he can already feel his heart racing, heat prickling behind his eyes. Patience, patience, patience-
He hears a sharp sob, it echoes in the empty hangar and Keith’s almost shocked to realise the sound came from him.
“You’re part of a team, Shiro,” Keith chokes, the words raw and hollow in his windpipe. Behind him, the crumpled body of the black lion doesn’t move.
“Being in a team means not leaving! And not leaving anyone behind.”
Keith sucks a breath, his knees hit the ground and he’s shaking, a low ringing in his ears. He’s no longer sure whether he’s addressing Shiro or himself.
“Show me! ” Keith roars at the bayard, a violence to it that frightens him. He can almost see Shiro dip his head, his knowing smile and a heavy hand on his shoulder, Shiro’s voice saying something utterly and infuriatingly understanding, like-
“Uh, so maybe now would be a good time for a break?”
“Shiro? ”
Keith’s head whips up, he’s blurted out the question before he can stop himself. Standing over him is Lance, his hair ruffled and his eyes wide, his mouth ever so slightly open in an expression Keith takes a second to recognise. And then he does.
And immediately feels a good deal worse.
“Don’t you dare be concerned about me!” Keith spits, he leaps unsteadily to his feet as the tips of his ears flush hot. “I’m not going to get hurt trying to connect with a bayard! Shiro, meanwhile, is out there, in who knows what danger! He’s the one you should be concerned about, instead of, oh, I don’t know, getting your beauty sleep!”
Keith swallows, fiercely swipes the heels of both hands over his cheeks. Now that he’s face to face with Lance, the blue paladin looks the polar opposite of someone who’s ever slept at all, let alone in the past few days. Lance’s normally tanned skin has taken on a distinctly pale hue, darker below his reddened eyes. His brows pinch above his nose, for a moment Lance looks like he’s about to shoot an accusation right back at him.
For a moment, Keith wonders if he deserves it.
Instead, Lance simply holds out his right hand, palm open.
“What?” snaps Keith, the curtness of it manages to cover the fact that his whole body is trembling.
“Bayard,” says Lance, twitches his jaw toward the black bayard lying between them. “I’ll give it a whirl.”
“You think you can get it to work?” Keith answers scathingly. He grits his teeth as he reaches to the ground, the room swaying in several uncomfortable directions as he stands up.
“Nope,” says Lance, shrugs as Keith presses the weapon into his hand. “But if you’re not gonna take a break, I figure you at least have to stop while I try.”
Keith crosses his arms, narrows his eyes. He’s not sure whether he’s angry or grateful or about to be ill, but when he glares at Lance again, the blue paladin has grown surprisingly quiet.
“And you’re right,” Lance says softly, he gives the bayard a couple of test swipes through the air. “If there’s a chance it could give us a clue about Shiro…”
Lance’s mouth hardens, he flinches his head when he can’t finish. Keith feels an ache rise in his throat, the sting slowly fades as he exhales.
Lance closes his eyes and holds the bayard loosely in front of his chest. He’s concentrating, listening for something neither of them can hear.
Please Shiro, Keith wills again, shapes his focus from a call, to a question, to a plea. He stretches out his mind, the way he does to the red lion when he’s in trouble.
We need you.
I need you.
... I never told you that.
Keith squeezes his eyes tighter, stares out into the dark. He can sense Lance- or rather, the blue lion- they’re flying side by side, stars spattered and flaring as they gain speed. With a jolt, Keith realises he’s no longer seeing the vision through his viewport, but through Red’s eyes. In a single, splintering second, he wonders if this is how Shiro had connected with Black all along.
Where are you?
The surge of galaxies brightens and wanes, Keith stumbles as the hangar comes back into focus. Lance looks no less exhausted, his arms drift useless by his sides and his gaze drops down to his boots.
“I’m sorry, Keith,” he mumbles, doesn’t meet Keith’s stare as he hands back the bayard.
“Paladins are supposed to have a connection,” Keith whispers bitterly. “But when I reach for him… there’s just… nothing.”
To Keith’s surprise, Lance leans toward him, makes a clumsy sort of gesture with his hand. His cheeks are wet too, the shadows have deepened below the rims of his eyes. For a moment, Keith feels more than ready to yell at him again. All this time he’d thought Lance was taking it so lightly- his stupid jokes and upbeat suggestions certainly hadn’t suffered in Shiro’s absence, Lance had been grating on his nerves more and more every day.
Had Lance been trying to keep him going the whole time?
“You’re not reaching for him alone,” Lance whispers.
Keith glares at him until his vision blurs over, until his mouth crumples at the corners and he pulls Lance against his chest. They embrace, Keith with one arm and his posture stiff and rigid, Lance flopped into him, sniffling uncontrollably every time Keith rubs his back.
“I’m not reaching far enough,” Keith murmurs.
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