Chapter Text
Lance was of the ocean. His mother cradled him in her encompassing embrace and sung him old songs of Earth, telling him he would be wonderful and a gift to the world. He remembers playing with dolphins and singing with whales. As a little boy, when one day he washed ashore and was found by a nice family. They didn’t know where Lance had come from or how he had survived the ocean without drowning. But his mother was kind to Lance. (as he was named by his Land family)
He grew up loving the sea, and to love innocent humans. He wanted to protect his mother’s so he would fight for them. He went to train at the Garrison with Hunk (who was a child of life and creation and was THE best friend in the whole world period) but the sky wasn’t exactly something that came naturally to either of them.
Hunk was good and making and fixing things, Lance went with the flow of his path and wanted to be the one to take action: fighter Pilot. But he didn’t make the cut. It stung but if he fought hard to be the best of the best of the cargo pilots then if an opening came he would be selected. Lance was selected but was constantly reminded of all of his failings. He jumped the gun, made too many jokes. No one respected him enough to allow him to be the leader he knew he could be.
Pidge was someone Lance couldn’t understand that well. He always seemed far away, his gaze looking through Lance as he went off somewhere.
--
“Come on Hunk.” Lance Prods, “Let’s go have some fun!”
Hunk groaned, “But Lance, every time we try and do something fun for YOU we and by we I mean I get in trouble!”
--
Lance was flying a LION. And good gracious Mother Earth she was SINGING in his head, it was beautiful. It was like hearing the waves of his mother and the inner song of magic. It was a whirlpool of harmony with the sounds of birds and bubbling laughter and finally finally finally.
This Lion felt like she was OF water. Like Mother had made him herself, but like she was..of something else, and she wanted to get back to where she was supposed to be.
“Let’s see what you want to do.” And he let her tell him how to move the controls. Guide him to making a wormhole. A thrill of something ran through Lance, fear excitement? Who knew but Lance was definitely gonna find out what was beyond that wormhole and went right for it as the others screamed around him.
--
Lance couldn’t just go back now. He realized that night, after failing to flirt with a princess and getting Hunk his Lion (Hunk had nearly DIED) and forming Voltron. He was traveling in space to fight a war with five lions or one large robot and he couldn’t just go back home to see the ocean. His MOTHER. Hunk couldn’t see Te fiti. She must be SO worried about him. And Pidge definitely had a family too but never talked about them.
Lance looked out at the stars and had this ache in him. He wanted to be home, diving into his mother’s embrace. Exploring the waters, playing with the dolphins and other fish that reside there. Hunting for treasure and eating meals with his Land family. He missed his Mom’s hugs…
Suddenly there was a warm hand on his shoulder and Hunk ever the empathetic being he was, was smiling at him with tears brimming his eyes.
“We’ll get back to them one day, Lance. I’m sure of it.”
They hugged it out, but Lance couldn’t help but wonder how long it would be. 1 year? A hundred?
--
Keith was a feisty S-O-B and Lance wanted him. Badly. But of course, there was Allura that lovely spitfire of a gal he didn’t have a chance with he had to think about too. It didn’t help that both of them would honestly not give him the time of day.
Lance wasn’t sure when exactly it was that he had fallen in love with the Red Paladin of Voltron. Maybe when he saved Coran? (No way would he EVER let Keith know he remembered their bonding moment. Ever. That was a lie he could not go back on without consequences.)
How do you get an antisocial S-O-B to talk to you? Lance decided that if Keith was convinced he was self-important (not entirely a lie) and annoying (hurtful but having a personality had it’s pro’s and cons.) Lance would make it his new mission to include Keith in any activity.
The next day when dinner finished Keith got up to train, this was Lance’s cue- he also got up and followed Keith. At first, the subject (Keith) wasn’t bothered by this since the pathway to their rooms, common room, anywhere else really was connected by that one hallway. But when Lance failed to make any other turns and stay true to a couple of feet behind Keith he then got suspicious.
“What are you doing?” He asked slowly, stopping in the hallway, turning to face Lance. Lance smiled and shrugged.
“Feeling a little stir crazy. You like to train after eating, and I wanna spar with someone. We can help each other out.”
“I…train with the drone.”
“Then we can both fight the drone?” Lance suggested easily and Keith, frustrated and confused did the only thing he could, huff turns around and mutter ‘whatever, just don’t wine.’ Which Lance was cool with. Step one complete.
Turns out training a little extra was doing wonders for Lance’s muscle tone with was just fine with him but he wanted to relax for a change.
“Hey, Allura.” He approached, smiling at her as sweetly as he could and Allura looked from her glowing control panels of information.
“Lance.” She greeted, putting on a gentle smile herself, “What can I help you with?”
“I was wondering if you had like…records of movies or something. Or TV shows. Documentaries. Anything.”
“Hm. I’m not sure. I could check the files on the castle for any uncorrupted data, I’ll get back to you on that.”
Lance pumped his fist in the air in victory. “Awesome!”
And Allura did indeed let him know, apparently a good number of Altean movies were saveable from the decaying data streams in the castle and had its own form of a theater.
--
Back on earth when he was closest to his mom sometimes he could make the water move. It was really fun seeing his human family splash in the waves and his littlest siblings laughed the hardest. Seeing their smiles meant the most to him. It was also nice when he was in the bath cause if he got bored he could do something, lift it, make shapes. Super useful if there was a spill sometimes. Water was water even if it had other stuff in it.
It was totally an accident when he found out. Normally when he was around other humans he tried not to. He had known it was possible considering who his mom was. He didn't think it would work it if it WASN'T his mom.But H20 is H20 no matter where you are he found out.
It was one evening when Pidge was bored and fiddling with her electronics. Mumbling about one thing or another and a water pouch precariously placed on the edge of their laptop.
WIth a careless mutter and a jerk of their arm Pidge knocked the pouch off and lance when to grab it, reaching for it and then the water reached back the water with the pouch floated in the air a spill frozen but still liquid in mid air and Lance was stunned. The water reacted. He still had a small connection to earth. A heat built up in his eyes and he knew he would cry if he didn’t stop himself. Come on Lance you can’t cry, not in front of Pidge!
“Lance, whatever you’re doing don’t stop doing it,” Pidge demanded and quickly moved the laptop out of the war zone and they over the water from multiple angles.
“How are you doing this?” They asked, “Is this new? Cause if this is new then we really need to go see Coran cause this could be a mutation or a virus or-“
Chuckling Lance wiggled his fingers returning the wayward water to the pouch where it belonged and he grabbed the pouch from the air. “No Pidge, this isn’t new” Lance smiled so wide and chuckled again. “It’s…kinda nice.”
Hunk was grinning at Lance from his spot on the couch, a translated book on his pad. He gave a thumb up and Lance grinned back.
He had to go ask Coran.
Coran was pleased by the challenge, “I can’t guarantee it’ll be like your earth Oceans but I’ll find you something safe to swim in my boy you have my guarantee!
Relief was like a cool balm and he patted Coran’s shoulder in thanks, “Don’t run yourself raged my dude, we still have a universe to save after all.” And he turned to go see what Pidge was up to.
“I swear hunk there’s something about pidge.” Lance narrowed his eyes at their resident gremlin. “She managed to get the EXACT part we needed. She talked to them for like, what…five minutes?”
Pidge rolled her eyes, “All I did was trade them something of mine, which honestly a copy of the Hamilton soundtrack isn’t that bad a trade at all.” She grinned, “But I didn’t tell them how to convert the format.”
Lance shivered, A monster. Pidge is a real monster. Fey perhaps?
--
Fighting The Galra totally sucked and did horrible things to Lance’s skin due to the oil he produced due to the stress of floating and flying in a void of nothing while facing life and death. Right now they were in a lull and Lance was desperate to do some relaxing, but he didn’t want to do it alone.
“Keeiiiith.” Lance whined dramatically flopping next to him in the common room. “You’re skin is just crying for a nice treatment. Come on, when was the last time you relaxed?”
“Uh…” Keith thought back, “When was the last time you forced me to watch that Altean movie?”
“Dude that was like, three days ago! You haven’t relaxed since then?”
Keith shrugged, “I train with you, that’s kinda relaxing.”
Lance huffed shoving his shoulder into Keith’s, “That’s like.. exercise. Relaxing in some form or another but.. not like the relaxing I mean my man. I mean like…taking a shower and putting a face mask, or brushing your hair, deep conditioning. Some… maintenance. You know?”
Keith frowned, furrowing his brows at Lance taking in the words processing and processing until-
“I… don’t really do that. I take showers sure but that’s just.. to clean you know? But… sometimes when everything is just loud or whatever I go to my room to uh, sharpen my knife.”
Lance grinned, “Alright, let’s do that. I deep clean my skin and you deep clean your knife. Two bro’s just relaxing doing what makes them feel better.”
Keith rolled his eyes but got up when Lance did, “As long as you don’t force me to wear that goo stuff we’ll be good.”
“Promise,” Lance responded and felt this giddy part of him as he realizes that he’s gonna have Keith alone in his room for a little while.