Chapter Text
A shudder went through his whole body as the cold breeze crawled underneath his cloak, gnawing and picking at his skin making goosebumps decorate the whole expanse of it. Even in the darkness that surrounded him he knew that his breath flew in front of his face in tiny clouds that evaporated soon after leaving his lungs.
As the blue-eyed male pulled his thin cloak closer around his body a shuddering sigh left his lips. Yes, he was lost. Quite literally as he couldn’t think of How to proceed with his journey. In the distance sounded the howls of wolves and suddenly he didn’t feel as brave anymore as he oh so loudly had proclaimed only hours before.
“What a man doesn’t do for love…” he muttered through trembling lips as the brunette’s eyes searched the forest for at least some kind of pathway.
The image of tears filled bright blue eyes and dirt stained white locks with the usually soft untouched face bruised but flashed before his eyes, making him puff out a breath. He’ll make it through this damned and definitely not scary forest and look for his one true love like the brave man he was! And once he has saved her, she won’t be able to refuse his affection anymore!
With newfound determination he decided to just slip through the line of trees. After all, everything was better than just standing still with the prospect of freezing to death or getting eaten alive by a pack of wolves that definitely had gotten closer in the last seconds. They must smell his courage, he told himself with a nod.
Who would have thought that Lance would find himself on a heroic mission when only four hours prior he was enjoying a drink at the tavern with his best friend talking about his favorite cow giving birth, when suddenly Coran came bursting through the wooden doors screaming loudly.
While the ginger haired man was a very friendly and funny guy if you get the chance to know him, he is also known for being more on the crazier side of the town’s people, telling stories about his life as a royal consultant years ago as one of the only survivors of a fallen kingdom that no one knows of. making himself sound like he was hundreds of years old even though the man was only in his forties. The wildest of his tellings though was about huge lions in various different colors that he himself had tamed to aid his people back then in a war. Since then the majority of people had declared him crazy and wouldn’t bat an eye at his weird behavior. As was the case at that moment too. The band had stopped playing, the chatter died down only for the split second it took for everyone in the open room to register who exactly was causing such a ruckus.
Once their eyes had landed on the man in question, everyone turned back and continued with their business.
Coran though was persistent this time. He ran through the room, grabbing arms desperately as he cried out.
“It’s Allura! Please, someone help me!” he pleaded, tears forming at the corners of his eyes. The name made Lance perk up as his friend beside him simply sighed and the slim brunette could see Hunk rub his temples from the side as he stood and walked towards Coran who had fallen to his knees. Lance knelt in front of him, trying his best to sound calm as the man was so obviously distressed for some reason concerning his niece.
“Coran, what’s wrong with Allura?” the blue-eyed man asked then and finally Coran’s attention was on him. Instantly he grabbed his hands, making him flinch at the sudden firm grip.
“A beast has her! A true monster!” the older man cried and instantly an annoyed groan echoed through the room from the people witnessing the dramatic declaration.
Lance paused, raising one brow as he looked at the poor excuse of a man.
“A Monster? Coran are you sure she is not just…taking a walk? You know she does that sometimes.” Lance tried to reason with him but Coran just shook his head wildly, letting go of his hands to push back his right sleeve exposing his arm.
And there, clear as day, blossomed a purple bruise with some scratches that looked like a huge clawed hand had grabbed him forcefully.
Around them echoed the silence and dumbfounded looks were directed at the pair.
“What the..?”
It looked painful, Lance thought, his face scrunching up in terror as he stared at the blemished skin before Coran pulled his sleeve back down again and grabbed Lance by his shirt.
“Please, you need to help me…” the ginger haired man pleaded, making the other gulp down visibly. “I will.” Lance promised as he placed his hands on the trembling ones of the older man who was still shaking like a leaf.
And that’s how Lance found himself in the forest in the middle of the night after Hunk tried his best to keep him from going.
“Hey, I know you really like Allura but what if you get lost? What if there’s actually a monster? Lance, you’re not a soldier! You’re a farmer! What will you do?” His best friend had tried to reason with him, grabbing the slim male by his shoulders and shaking slightly.
His words stung. He knew he was merely a farmer and the most dangerous thing he usually did was fetching eggs, but it still hurt that his friend had no faith in him, even when it clearly was out of worry.
“And what if this really is just one of Coran’s crazy stories? He could have hurt himself to make it more believable!”
But Lance just shook his head. Something within told him that the ginger haired man had told them the truth. And no one else who had listened on seemed willing to believe even after the clear evidence!
Lance fetched his coat and left after Coran had given him some directions while telling him more about what had happened, leaving his worried friend behind.
Apparently Coran had gone on a walk, lost in his thoughts when he suddenly had found himself in the forest in front of a very old estate. The cold had made him try to go inside when that so-called beast had found and captured him. Allura must have noticed his absence as not too long after she came looking for her uncle. Lance wasn’t surprised by that. His Allura was so smart, she must have been able to track her uncle due to his footsteps!
Coran didn’t accompany him as he was too terrified at the thought of that monster and couldn’t remember the path he took anyways. So Lance confidently declared he wouldn’t be in need of a guide anyways since he strove through this very forest since he was a small boy!
And even though he couldn’t remember there ever being an estate as big as the older man had described. And now after hours of stumbling over hidden branches he couldn’t help but ask himself if those trees had always looked as tall and glooming as they did now.
But even with the dark surrounding him, the cold freezing his feet and the sounds of various possibly dangerous animals with their growling and howling, the brunette kept going.
When he was sure that his feet might turn into blocks of ice after hours of walking through the cold a pathway opened itself for Lance. At first he thought this might be a clearing so he walked through the path until there it was.
Right in front of him bloomed the facade of a huge towering building. It was surrounded by a brick wall and weeds tangled themselves around every surface. Was this even real? He couldn’t believe his eyes. But his feet carried him with quick steps towards the entrance. The ground a stone pavement and the stairs too from stone with several cracks grazing the edges.
He tried to get a glimpse through the wide windows but quickly noticed that they were all shut with barren wood blanks nailed against the hinges.
„Not scary at all…“ Lance muttered and directly pulled his cloak even tighter against his body as a shiver went down his spine.
The brunette took a deep breath then and pushed himself against the massive wide doors that to his surprise weren’t barricaded and gave in to the pressure with a loud squeaking noise. The doors were as heavy as one might think and when Lance was able to open them wide enough so that his slim form would fit through, he felt the muscles in his arms straining from the unusual use.
Immediately he straightened his clothes before letting his eyes scan the area. As expected the wide entrance hall was covered in darkness. He should have brought a torch, Lance thought as he walked through the open room with quiet steps. The furniture was pushed all the way back to the walls, covered by sheets, each one of them and in the middle of the hall were two wide staircases that lead onto the upper floor.
Why was it so silent? Lance advanced towards the stairs, trying his hardest to pick up any sound coming from within this lost building. But beside the tiny creaking noises coming from the wooden floor he walked on he couldn’t make out anything out of the ordinary. Not that this place seemed ordinary to begin with.
With a deep breath taken the slender man tried to school his racing heart as he decided to try his luck and actually head upstairs. And to his utter luck Lance managed to step on that one stair that was so decayed that his leg immediately burst through the wood, making him stuck with his ankle in the wood with a loud yelp.
Upon noticing the sound escaping his mouth he quickly threw his hands onto his lips as his eyes widened in terror. Oh no no no no no!
Immediately a loud growl echoed from upstairs, followed by fast and heavy steps stomping on the ground quickly, way too quickly approaching his spot before coming to a halt right at the top of the staircase. Lance didn’t move. He didn’t breathe as there was still some irrational hope left in him that if he would not move, the creature would not be able to see him. And as there was silence for at least a few moments the brunette dared to lift his head slightly to look up. He was met with a form he could not quite make out in the darkness even after his eyes had adjusted to the lack of light. But what he was able to make out were big strong legs, behind them the rapid swishing of a tail and his eyes traveled further upwards he saw the bulking form of something monstrous and Lance was already seeing his life flash before his eyes, sending prayers to his family and friends. I’m sorry mom and dad,pop-pop, Veronica, Marco, Luis and everyone else he thought, I’m sorry Hunk, you were totally right! And I’m sorry Allura, that I couldn’t save you after all.
There was another growl and a loud creak from the upper stairs as the beast ascended from the stairs coming closer and closer to the brunette man still stuck, feeling the numbness of his leg and fear radiating from every pore of his body. But as the creature came closer and Lance still wasn’t able to avert his wide eyes from the form he noticed with every slow step the other took, how exactly it looked like. And suddenly a memory flashed before his eyes. It was Veronica. Years back when they were younger and Lance was bored, already done with all of his chores he had snatched a book out of his sister’s hands, browsing through the several pages as he ran from the screaming girl. And that’s where he saw it. A picture similar to the thing he saw right before him. A massive body, a tail, ears standing proudly on top of its head and a fine layer of purple fur coating its skin.
And just as a huge claw was about to grab for his collar, or to slit up his throat, Lance’s eyes widened even more in realization.
“Y-you’re a Galra?!” he squeaked, making the beast stop in its tracks.
The massive form was frozen, arm raised mid air and a feminine scream echoed through the building.
“How did you..How?” the Galran asked, the voice sending shivers down the brunette’s spine, traveling deep into his core as they stared at each other, unmoving.