Archive of Our Own

I think some people are just inexplicably bonded.

Drawn by forces beyond their own comprehension.

They have no choice but to gravitate toward one another.

Destined by fate to keep crossing paths until they finally get it right.

In their eighth life —

Ever since he was young, Lance had dreams of the same person. They were always in a different place and in a different time, yet the only constant was the person in his dreams. 

He couldn’t see him, though. Every time he dreamt, the person would look blurry. It was like a camera out of focus no matter how much Lance concentrated and tried to glimpse at this mysterious person.

Some nights, Lance couldn’t wait to sleep to get the continuation of the dream. Other times he tried to stay awake to stop the tragedy he knew would happen in his Dreamscape if he sleeps.

In one dream, he was in a large palace with the most beautiful garden in the desert. In another, he was experiencing death around him so much, Lance didn’t want to sleep for the next few days. 

“It’s a gift, hijo. Not many people have it and that makes you special.” His mother told him one day after sitting him down on her lap. “But don’t go telling anyone about your gift.”

“Why Mama?”

“Because people fear the unknown. They do horrible things when they don’t know anything. So promise me hijo, don’t tell anyone about it.”

“I promise.”

Lance didn’t understand it at that time, why his mother didn’t want him to tell anyone about his gift. He never broke his promise though, and the next few years, he kept his secret to himself. That was until he met Hunk in the Garrison.

It was the first time he ever told anyone other than the people in his family so he was pretty nervous about it. He didn’t want to think what Hunk thought of him when he knew of his secret.

He expected Hunk to think he was crazy and maybe not consider him a friend anymore. Lance didn’t think his friend would be interested in the stories of his past life and was totally cool with it.

When Pidge joined their circle a few months later, there were a few times Lance debated on whether or not to tell their new friend about his secret. Hunk was always there to encourage him whenever Lance was having second thoughts. In the end, Lance decided what’s the worse that could happen other than maybe being sent to the mental hospital? Lance really shouldn’t have doubted Pidge so much.

That was the start of a beautiful friendship.

~

One day as Lance was walking through the corridors of the Garisson, he bumped into someone. Actually it wasn’t really his fault. The cadet was running, in what Lance assumed was full speed, while turning into the corridor he was walking.

They fell onto the floor with a loud slam and Lance groaned in pain when his head smacked the ground, his eyes screwed shut.

“Hey are you alright? I didn’t mean to run into you.” A concerned voice asked. Well at least the person was worried. Lance was prepared to rip the person a new one, but decided against it when the body on top of him was quick to get off. Lance was sure he wouldn’t be breathing that easily if a full grown person was leaning their whole weight against him.

“Yeah it’s fine. My head hurts a lot though, but I think it should be fine.” Sitting up slowly, Lance touched the spot where it hurt the most and started rubbing the bruised spot.

“Are you sure? Do you want me to bring you to the nurse’s office?”

“No it’s fine, really. I have a hard head from all the time my siblings decided to bash their toys on my skull.” He joked, trying to lessen the guilt he was sure the cadet was feeling. Opening his eyes, Lance looked to see the person who slammed into him and felt familiarity wash over him.

The first thing Lance noticed was the unique colour their eyes had, a dark shade of indigo. The next thing he noticed was that the person was really pale, not sickly pale, it was the kind of paleness of someone who never go out much. And from what Lance felt when they slammed into one another, the guy was fit underneath the Garrison uniform. 

Lance was sure he would have a crush on the guy if it wasn’t for the godforsaken mullet he had. Who even has a mullet anymore? Even if he can look attractive with it, it was just no.

“Oh, okay than. You might want to get it checked though, just in case.” Standing up, the guy extended a hand to Lance which he grabbed and was being pulled up.

“I should really be going though. See you around!” with a slight wave, the cadet was already running through the corridor. Lance didn’t think of asking his name until he was gone.

Weeks later, Lance would find out that the cadet was none other than Keith, the guy who always beat him at everything. He would also find out that Keith left the garrison for some reason or another. 

It was days after they finally told Pidge about his secret did Lance dream again. In his Dreamscape, he was dreaming about one of his past lives. He was walking in a forest with a large lake. Creeping towards the person standing on the edge of the lake, he pushed them into the water.

Lance could hear himself laughing when the other surfaced from the water, shouting and cursing at him followed by laughter. Looking at the mysterious person, Lance felt surprise when he could finally see them instead of a blurry image when he got close. 

He felt like he saw the person before in his current life. Thinking hard, Lance tried to pinpoint who it was. It wasn’t until they stopped laughing and opened their eyes did Lance felt himself go still. Because he recognized the colour of their eyes. There was no way anyone had that particular shade of indigo and look almost exactly like them.

But that wasn’t what made Lance stop, it was the smile they had on their face and the way they looked at him.

When he woke up the next morning, Lance could only stare at the ceiling as he replayed the scene again and again. For the following whole week, the brunet continued dreaming his past life. Each time Keith smiled to him in his dream, Lance could feel the growing need to see the Keith in his current life smile. But the teen wasn’t even in the Garisson anymore and no one knows where he went.

On the day that he dreamt of the last dream of his past life, Lance woke up crying, tears staining his pillow as he curled up in his sheets. The sobs that he was trying to keep in broke free, loosely clutching his chest at the tragedy that ended in his past life. But most of all, he cried for his past self for the happiness that never continued.

A year later when Lance saw Keith once again while rescuing Shiro, he tried to ignore the hurt he felt when he realised Keith didn’t even remember him.

~

When you’re in space, time is irrelevant. Days could fly pass and it could have been months since they left Earth and no one would know. However, that doesn’t change the fact that Lance was feeling homesick. Sometimes it keeps him awake late into, what everybody assumes was night and morning. Other times he wakes up from a nightmare where everyone he knew on Earth is gone by the time he returns. Those days were the worse and he’ll have dark circles underneath his eyes.

During those sleepless nights, he’ll go to the room Lance dubbed the planetarium. It was a room he found by accident one day while strolling through the castle halls. Ever since then, the room was like a safe heaven he could cry in or to just savour the feeling of home.

Tonight, it seems like it was one of those nights where he woke up in cold sweat. Grabbing his jacket, Lance navigated himself towards the room silently. When he entered the planetarium, it glowed and soon the room was lit with tiny little dots of Earth’s constellation shining back at him. Lance didn’t know how the room knew which constellation he wanted, but he was grateful for it.

Sitting down in the middle of the room, with his knees to his chest, Lance looked at the stars. He started to slowly find each constellation, first Hercules, Ursa minor, Lupus, Ara, as Lance continued in his search, he could feel his eyelids slowly dropping. Suddenly, the door slid open causing the him to jump, turning towards the entrance with a startled look he realized it was only Keith.

“Lance? What are you doing here and what is this room?” the red paladin asked with awe in his voice, looking at the room filled with stars.

“Figures you haven’t slept.” Lance commented while adjusting his position on the floor, trying to get comfortable again. “I have no idea what this room was for but I call it the planetarium, it lets you see the constellations of different planets.”

Lance felt Keith taking a seat beside him, legs stretched out in front of him and arms behind him, eyes taking in the stars in the room.

“You still haven’t answered me about why you’re still up.”

“What’s to say I’m not tired?”

“You’re a bad liar and the dark circles you have tell a different story.” Shit, even Keith, the densest and most oblivious out of everyone in the team was starting to notice.

“Fine, I’ve been having nightmares for a while now and I can’t sleep.” Lance muttered, arms tightening around his knees.

“Want to talk about it? It could make you feel better if you talk about it.”

“Are you my physiatrist now?” the brunet asked jokingly which Keith returned with a light punch to his shoulder, a frown on his face. 

“We were having a bonding moment you idiot.” There was a moment of silence before they started laughing. Lance would never admit it, but he loved seeing Keith’s laugh. The way his face relaxed into happiness and the slight crinkling around his eyes makes his heart beat faster.

“If you promise not to laugh, I’ll tell you.”

“Yeah, I promise.” Sitting quietly beside one another, Keith slowly waited for Lance to start talking.

“I guess I kind of miss Earth. Sometimes I think too much and couldn’t sleep. I’ll have nightmares once in a while too, about how everyone I know back on Earth is gone by the time we finish defeating the Galra Empire.” Lance took a shuddering breath before continuing, swallowing the lump forming in his throat.

“I miss my family, a lot. I miss the late night chats my older sister and I would have. I miss my younger brothers and sisters yells and screams while they’re playing. I miss papa’s bear hugs that make you warm and happy. I miss the goodnight kisses mama gives to everyone before we go to bed. I miss abuelo’s jokes that makes the whole family laugh till our stomach hurts. I miss dancing with abuela to one of her old time favourites in the living room when she can’t sleep.” By the time Lance finished, he was already crying. His hands trying to rub away the tears, yet it wouldn’t stop. “I miss them.”

Keith didn’t know what to do. He didn’t have any advice or helpful words he could give because how was he to help in this situation when he was an orphan since a young age? He couldn’t understand the meaning or how a family feels.

Keith knows his foster parents tried to be there with him whenever they could, however their work causes them to be travelling throughout the world. He was never really close to them as a result, not like how Lance’s family was.

Looking at Lance crying made something twist in Keith’s heart. Not really knowing how to show comfort to the crying teen, he reached out and pulled Lance towards him so that he was leaning against him.

“Let it out. Who knows how long you were holding it in so cry it out, you’ll feel better.” That seems to be the trigger as Lance started sobbing hard. His head falling down towards his knees with shudders wrecking through his body. Keith sat there silently, the hand that he reached out with still on Lance’s shoulder.

Somewhere along the way, Lance fell asleep after crying. Keith couldn’t really feel the lower half of his body or his hands anymore from staying in the same position. However he didn’t have the heart to wake Lance up, who at least now was asleep with a relaxed look on his face.

Feeling sleepy himself and not really wanting to carry Lance back to his room, he adjusted their position so that they were lying down side by side on the floor. The sleeping brunet groaned and mumbled when he was adjusted, luckily he didn’t wake up.

Keith was a little surprised when Lance latched onto him not a second after he laid down on the floor. Blushing slightly when Lance cuddled closer to him, Keith awkwardly placed his hand over the other teen. Moving his head so that his chin was placed on soft brown locks, Keith started to relax. The soft scent of lavender from Lance’s hair was making him realize how tired he was. Not a moment later, he was out.

~

Lance knew he was dreaming when he looked around his surroundings. He was in a garden with flowers and a pond not too far away. The white water lilies blooming beautifully in a sea of blue. 

He knew that the garden he was in was a private one. He’s seen it many times when he was a child, young and slightly confused as to why he was dreaming such things. Looking at his clothes, he confirmed that he was dreaming about his first life, the life where he first met Keith.

Lance turned around when he heard footsteps and felt happiness bloom in his chest when he saw Keith walking towards him, a small smile on his lips. They met each other with a hug and a kiss that makes him feel like he’s falling in love all over again.

“Did you wait long?” Keith asked, the two of them making their way towards a secluded bench near the pond.

“When it comes to waiting for you, time is irrelevant.” That got his lover to laugh, the sound like soft melodies to Lance’s ear.

“How did I ever fall in love with someone like you?” Keith questioned, his eyes dancing in merriment. Lance couldn’t help but think how the kohl around his eyes makes him look exotic in a beautiful way. 

“Because of my looks?” Lance replied with a grin knowing he’ll get a soft scoff in return which he did.

“Flattery would get you nowhere.” The two of them sat there in contentment, no words were being spoken. Their hands interlaced together as they stared at the water lilies in the pond.

Lance felt Keith leaning his head onto his bony shoulders. The small jewellery that was woven into his hair made a soft clinking sound. “Have you ever felt like your whole life is meaningless until you saw the person you know you were meant for?”

Raising his eyebrows at the question Lance looked down at his lover who started looking at his hands that was scarred and littered with blisters from all the work he did in the palace. “What brought this up?”

“Just answer the question.”

Lance thought for a moment before answering. “I never thought of my life as meaningless, not with the family I came from. I had my parents to care for and siblings to look after so I didn’t have the time to think of such things. Everyday, my thoughts are with them.”

“I wouldn’t say it’s meaningless. I get to learn lots of things each day, even if some of them gets me scolded for making a mistake. I get to make friends with the people around me and some of them are my best friends. I get to meet you, the person I thought wouldn’t remember me or even look at me after that feast. You’re so out of my league I wouldn’t have imagined having you here with me now a few months ago!” Lance laughed nervously as he looked to see Keith staring at him back, his face impassive as he waited for Lance to continue.

“But here we are. Sometimes being reminded that I’m a slave and I wouldn’t get to see my family again gets me really down. However the thought of why I’m doing this is enough to get me to work harder for them. So I wouldn’t say life is meaningless. Meeting your significant other is an added bonus that makes your life even more brighter." 

Raising a hand to cradle Keith’s cheek, Lance tried to convey all the love he was feeling into the kiss he gave which Keith returned. Moving back, he leaned their foreheads together. “Meeting you brightened up my life. So thank you for being here.”

“I didn’t know you were so sappy Lance.”

“Shut up. You wanted an answer and I gave you one so don’t complain.” Keith laughed softly when he saw the pout Lance was giving him 

“Mind telling me what were you thinking? Lance asked quietly, not wanting to disrupt the atmosphere they were having. Keith hummed to himself for a moment before replying. 

“Just thinking about how much more meaningful life is now that I’ve got you in my life.”

“And you called me sap not too long ago.” Keith’s response was to kiss Lance which garnered a grin in return.

“Life wouldn’t be as bright as when you’re not in it.” His lover admitted, hand holding the ones on his cheek. Indigo hued eyes boring into blue ones. “If we were to meet each other in another life, would you still love me?”

“I would love you for 1000 years, 10000 years and it would never be enough.” 

“That’s a long time Lance. Won’t you get tired of me by then?” Even though it was just a question, Lance could feel the hand holding his trembling a little.

“I won’t. I would take an oath and swear it if I have to make you believe that.”

“I believe you. You won’t lie to me and that’s something you’re horrible at.”

“Hey! I can make a believable lie! It’s only when I’m around you that it falls apart!”

“Oh really?” Lance huffed, leaning back before a mischievous smile formed on his face which Keith immediately moved away knowing what was about to happen.

“Don’t you dare Lance, I swear if what you’re about to do is exactly what I’m thinking you are so dead!” Lance ignored the threat and launched himself at his fleeing lover, trying to get away from the tickle fight that Keith knows he’s going to lose. 

As Lance slowly watched the end of the memory fade away, he couldn’t help but feel the warmth that bubbled in his chest at the beautiful memory. Dreaming about the happy memories his past lives had always made the love he had for a certain red paladin grow. Even when he still couldn’t see his partner’s faces, he was slowly learning to love them.

~

When Lance woke up, he was confused at first about where he was before he remembered what happened the previous night. He felt embarrassment at the thought of breaking down in front of Keith, the one person he didn’t want to see him in that state. However, Lance had to admit that now after crying out all the pent up feelings of homesickness he had, he was feeling much better.

Hearing the sound of his empty stomach, Lance decided it was time to get up from the floor he had fallen asleep on. Just as he thought that Keith was such a lazy ass that he couldn’t even carry him back to his room, he felt resistance when he tried to sit up. Looking down, he found an arm on his chest. Twisting around, he saw the person he was just cursing of in his head and felt his cheeks redden.

Carefully he tried to lift Keith’s hands off him, but he wouldn’t move. Instead, Lance felt himself being hugged tighter and brought closer to a toned chest and was Keith seriously rubbing his face against his hair like a cat?!

Lance really didn’t want to wake the other teen up, he tried getting out of Keith’s hold and no matter how much he tried, Lance felt like he had a koala hugging him. Sighing, he decided that if Keith was going to be pissed at him when he woke up, Lance could always say he was the one who wouldn’t let go of him.

“Keith, wake up.” Shaking the sleeping paladin, the only response he got was a soft mumble. 

“Keith, get up. I can’t leave if you won’t let go of me.” Shaking harder now, Keith groaned, moving slightly before opening his eyes. At first, Lance thought Keith was going to move his arm, instead sleepy indigo eyes closed again and the blue paladin resisted the urge to just poke the other awake.

Shaking the teen one last time, Keith opened his eyes again and this time he finally moved his arm off of Lance to rub his sleep crusted eyes. Sitting up, Lance stretched his arms and felt satisfied when a few of his bones made popping sounds. Looking at Keith again, Lance resisted the urge to snicker at the ridiculous bed head he had.

“Come on, time to get up.” For a moment, Lance thought he heard a soft whine from the other paladin before he was slowly sitting up. Seeing that the other had woken up, Lance stood before heading towards the door until he felt a tug on his jacket. Turning to look around, he had to fought off the coo that was forming in his throat at the adorable sight of Keith holding onto his jacket and still rubbing his sleepy eyes. Who knew the ever cool looking red paladin was not a morning person when he woke up?

Walking through the hallways of the castle, Keith followed him like a duckling and Lance couldn’t decide if he wanted to keep the information as good blackmail material or run off to tell everybody in the castle how Keith behaved when he just woke up. He settled on just keeping quiet and appreciating how Keith’s bedhead still made him look good, even with a mullet.

When they reached Keith’s room, Lance had to slowly loosen the fingers holding his jacket. As soon as he finished, Keith was already lying down on his bed, sleeping already. Sighing, Lance took off Keith’s shoe and tucked the other underneath the sheets, even though he had a little difficulty because Keith was heavy despite his looks. Once he was done, Lance took a few moments to look at the sleeping paladin with a fond expression before he left.

~

Breakfast that day was a little different from usual. It was subtle and very unnoticeable if you weren’t paying attention enough. The usual bickering and fights didn’t have any bite to it anymore. The tension between the two as they continue to throw insults back and forth was softer now.

“Did something happened last night between the two of you?” Shiro asked in an amused tone. Pidge snickered a little at the thought of what they could have done. Hunk, who caught on to what Pidge was thinking of blushed scarlet at the innuendo. 

“Yes, I’m quite curious myself. The air between the two of you is much lighter now. Did you bonded last night?” Allura’s eyes sparkled at the thought that her two paladins were finally closer together which would make forming Voltron easier. Coran looked like he was about to bring out the nunville to celebrate the joyous occasion. In the background Pidge was full out laughing right now and Hunk was trying to make them stop by getting their head out of the gutter.

As Keith and Lance looked at each other they realised that yes, it was different now.

“Yeah we had a bonding moment.”

“At least this time you didn’t forget.”

“Shut up mullet boy.”

~

They continued saving planets and liberating them from the Galra empire. Their teamwork also improved after much team training sessions. Allura was a very tough task mistress to please, resulting in the most recent session where they were still ache due to the much higher levelled gladiator they had to face. At least the practice on the invisible maze was a breeze. 

When it was lights out, occasionally, Lance would dream about one of his past lives. For the most part, he dreamt of the happy memories instead of how he or even Keith died. Sometimes it was him who died first and other times it was Keith.

He never dreamt about his third life much or even talk about it to Pidge or Hunk due to how painful the memory was.

During those times, Lance would wake up with tears in his eyes, his heart constricting so hard in his chest it hurt. He would get up and make his way to the training room, because it was usually where Keith was other than his room. It was the only way to reassure himself that Keith was alive, he wasn’t dying, he wasn’t throwing up blood and his voice wasn’t getting softer by the seconds.

When Lance see’s Keith from the observation deck, he could feel his anxiety fade away. He would stay there for a few minutes or even a few hours till the other teen went back to his room before Lance returns to his own messy bed.

It didn’t help that after dreams like these or ones that were filled with happiness made Lance want to hug Keith or even kiss him every morning. Sometimes in his groggy sleep state, he would almost slip up and peck the other’s forehead. 

Pidge and Hunk would give him looks during those times. Not the ‘what were you thinking’ kind of look, but the ones that said ‘just tell him already’. However, Lance didn’t want to. It would only make Keith think that what Lance was feeling wasn’t genuine, a leftover feeling the blue paladin was imagining from his previous life’s. What Lance was afraid the most was for Keith to avoid him, to never speak a word to him.

It was one thing telling your best friends that you’re dreaming about your previous lives and lovers. It’s another when you’re telling said person who was your previous lives lovers that you’re dreaming about them since you were a kid.  

That was a one way ticket to make Keith freak the fuck out and never want to associate with him ever again.

Thinking about these thoughts always got Lance a headache and stressed out. That’s why when Allura told them they were going to stop at a planet that was yet to be enslaved by the Galra empire, Lance was relieved.

It was a diplomatic meeting with the Xoinusrians. They looked close to humans if you didn’t count the fact that they were blue from head to toe, wings that were transparent and shimmering. Their eyes a very dark shade of blue that it looks like black.

During the meeting in the Xoinusrians large crystal palace, Lance couldn’t get the feeling like something was watching them. Discreetly looking around the room, he saw the Xoinusrian princess, Ymmythea looking at them or to be more exact, at Keith. The weird gleam in her eyes as she stared across from the table from where they were sitting gave Lance a bad feeling. 

When the meeting was adjoined, Lance waited for their now Xoinusrian allies to leave first before he grabbed Keith’s wrist. Ignoring the startled sound behind him and the various of inquiries on what he’s doing from the rest of the team, Lance walked briskly down the hall before pulling them into an unoccupied room. 

“What’s going on Lance?” Keith questioned, slightly annoyed and concerned at the serious look Lance had.

“Okay, so I didn’t want to say this in front of Allura since we just gained an ally, but you have to be careful around that Xoinusrian princess.”

“And why should I?” the confused tone Keith replied made Lance want to slam his head on the wall. Didn’t the guy see the way the princess was looking at him. 

“It’s giving me a bad feeling, like something’s going to happen.”

“Are you sure you’re not jealous that a princess was looking at me rather than you?” That earned an indignant shout from Lance.

“Rude! Here I am trying to tell you to keep a look out and you’re saying I’m jealous about the princess looking at you? Please, she doesn’t know a handsome guy when he’s just sitting right in front of her.” Lance said, trying to tell himself that no he wasn’t jealous or the fact that another person had gained interest in Keith. 

Alright, Lance might be a tiny little bit jealous, but that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t trust his gut feeling when it says that something awful was going to happen.

“Fine, I’ll be careful. Is that all?” 

“Yeah, you can go back to being your emo self now.” Flipping Lance off, Keith left the snickering blue paladin in the room.

~

For now they had a little relaxation time, which Lance decided to explore the palace. An Xoinusrian ambassador by the name of Labaris, saw him walking around the hallways and decided to give him a little brief history lesson. Apparently the planet, Xoinus, would get colder as the planet’s equivalent to the sun set. Once it’s dark out, it’ll get very cold. 

As they passed by the castle gardens, Lance stopped for a moment to stare at the glowing tree in the middle of the garden. The Xoinusrian must have felt that he wasn’t being followed anymore and turned around before a look of recognition appeared on it’s face. 

“That’s one of the Xoinusrians most favourite trees, Moon Drop.” Labaris said, motioning for Lance to follow him as he stepped onto the snow covered ground. The blue paladin shivered a little at the sudden change in temperature from the warm hallways to the coldness outside the palace. 

“The Moon Drop tree is a very important part of our culture. Not only does it taste very delicious on the New moon, it also has a very special property as well.” Unfurling his wings, Labaris flew off the ground to pick the white coloured fruit that was shaped like a large orange. Landing on the ground, the Xoinusrian showed the softly glowing fruit in his hand. 

“Let me tell you a legend which we Xoinusrian have. Long ago, back when it was still an ordinary plant, a pair of lovers met underneath a Moon Drop tree. Every day, they wished to be together, however due to their different status, they could never meet the other until the moon was at the highest peak.”

“One day, on the full moon, they were caught. The female Xoinusrian parents sent out guards to bring her back and to kill the man who she was secretly meeting. A fight broke out and just when her lover was going to be killed, she shielded him, dying instead. Just before she died, she made a wish to see her lover in the next life. The Xoinusrian man was filled with so much grief, he ended his life shortly after, another wish made to see her in their next life.” 

“As the moon goddess looked down on the two lovers in sadness and pity, she weaved her magic on the Moon Drop tree. Slowly, the tree began to glow, and the fruits became special. If you took a bite of the fruit that was harvested on the full moon, memories of your past life would come back. However because of this, every Xoinusrians wanted to know their past life and so a law was placed. Only wedded lovers were allowed to take a bite of the fruit. Since the Xoinusrians only have one person they ever love and never multiple people, it’s never a problem for us.”

Moving the fruit away from Lance, Labaris took a bite of the fruit. Seeing the shocked look on Lance’s face, the Xoinusrian waved his hand, a smile on his face. “I’m already married. My wife and I ate the fruit on our wedding day so it’s alright.”

As Lance was trying to process the Xoinusrian story that was told, he blinked in surprise when he saw the glowing fruit in front of his face. “Why are you giving me this? I thought you said those who aren’t wedded can’t eat the fruit?” 

“Yes that is true, but you already have your past memories don’t you?” Flinching, Lance took a step back, looking at Labaris who still stood there, a Moon drop fruit in an outstretched hand while the other was holding his own fruit with a large bite in it.

“It’s very easy to notice here in Xoinus if you remembered your previous lives. I have no idea about your species, but Xoinusrians have a different feel to them once they take a bite of the Moon Drop. I wasn’t quite sure if you remembered or not seeing as I never saw your species before, yet the air around you is different from your fellow friends.” Gesturing for Lance to pick up the fruit, he gingerly took it.

“I guess it’s alright if you eat it, just don’t tell anyone I gave you the fruit.” With a laugh and the last bite of the fruit, Labaris continued on with the tour of the palace. As Lance slowly walked away from the tree, he looked at the Moon Drop in his hand before taking a soft bite. The sweet juice dripping all over his fingers. Seeing as there wasn’t any reaction, Lance continued eating the white glowing fruit.

~

It was freezing cold when the last rays of light disappeared over the horizon. The room was insulated so that it would stay hot, to Keith however, it was still too cold. Rubbing his hands together, he blew out some air over them.

Seeing as he couldn’t sleep, he decided that taking a midnight stroll through the palace halls wasn’t a bad idea. Grabbing the thick coat that was given to him by the Xoinusrian, Keith went out of his room.

It wasn’t as cold as it was outside the hallways since it was lined with brightly lit torches against the wall but still Keith shivered slightly. The corridor was quiet and empty, unlike in the morning where there were at least a few people walking about. Turning his head to look outside, Keith was slightly surprised that it was snowing lightly. 

Keith slowly admired the scenery outside the palace. It was like a winter wonderland that any children would dream about and want to visit. Up here in the palace, he could distantly see the lights down in the town area. 

Turning a corner, Keith suddenly tensed up, his hands immediately went to hold his bayard that he grabbed while leaving the room. The hallway he was in now was slightly darker, a few of the torches being blown out. The feeling of being watched didn’t leave him as he walked down the hall. The hairs at the back of his neck standing up when he got closer to the part of the hall where the torches weren’t lit.

Hearing footsteps, Keith stood still. The grip on his bayard tightened as a figure emerged from the shadows. One look at the circlet around her head and Keith knew he was looking at the person Lance warned him about, Ymmythea.

“Good evening red paladin. What are you doing out at this late hour?” The princess of Xoinus asked. The gown she was wearing trailed behind her slowly. Her hair was out of the intricate braid she wore in the diplomatic meeting and it was now falling just around mid-back in soft waves.

“I could say the same to you” Keith thought. “Just a stroll, I couldn’t sleep.”

“Oh? I hope it wasn’t the cold keeping you up. We have guests who would ask for more blankets because of the temperature.” She smiled serenely but the way she was watching Keith made him twitch, his instincts telling him to be on guard. 

“Yes I should do that. May I ask why you’re up as well princess?” Keith returned the question, trying to see how she would react.

“I was on my way back to my room, however I decided that a few minutes of peaceful walk wouldn’t hurt.” Ymmythea replied. Turning around, she went back towards the direction she came from. Keith was about to relax his tensed muscles before she looked back, her eyes staring at him.

“Would you be a gentleman and escort me back to my room? It’s quite late now and you wouldn’t know what’s lurking in the palace.”

“Than why are you out in the first place?” Nodding his head, Keith followed the princess a few steps back. Occasionally, he would see her moving her head slightly to look at him and Keith was getting uncomfortable by the minute.

“Do you mind if we stopped by somewhere first?” Without waiting for his reply, she was turning towards another corridor at the intersection where they would arrive at the royal wing. Holding back a groan of frustration, Keith followed.

The red paladin was sure he was going to get lost once he finished returning Ymmythea back to her room from all the twist and turn they took. Just when he was about to ask her where they were going, she stopped in front of a large ornate door with the most detailed and complex design out of all the doors Keith has ever seen.

Pushing the door open, he was hit with the scent of nature and fresh snow as Ymmythea stepped into the room, her shoes stepping into what Keith assumed was an indoor garden. 

Slowly walking into the dome shaped room, the red paladin looked around. The majority of the indoor garden was filled with flowers of different types. There was one which was crystalized and a flower that looked like a lily that produced gold dust if you so much as touch it. As Keith tried to shake away the gold dust off his hands, his ears caught the sound of something fluttering. Turning around, he saw Ymmythea flying to grab something from a glowing tree.

When she landed, she slowly made her way towards him, a white round shaped fruit in hand. “A present, for our new alliance agreement we had today.”

Looking at the fruit, Keith reached out hesitantly. When it was in his hands, Keith couldn’t help but marvel at how warm it was.

“It’s Xoinus’s favourite fruit to eat, Moon Drop. It’s really delicious too. Try it.” Gesturing for him to take a bite, Keith ate it and felt a burst of flavours explode in his mouth, not seeing the dark satisfied look Ymmythea was wearing.

Just as he was about to take another bite from the juicy fruit, Keith suddenly felt tired. Blinking the bleariness out of his eyes, he tried rubbing them. Next thing he knew, he was lying on the snow covered floor, the half eaten Moon Drop landing not too far away. He felt himself being moved and suddenly Ymmythea was looking down at him with a very happy smile on her face.

“Zitraite, my dear Zitraite. For many lives now I’ve waited for you, but you never showed up. Finally, we’re reunited and soon, we’ll be together again.” Ymmythea said, petting Keith’s hair which he didn’t have the strength to push away.

“Go to sleep now my dear, once you get your memories back, we’ll have much to talk about.”

The last thing Keith thought of before sleep overtook him was that Lance was right, princess Ymmythea was bad news and he really shouldn’t have eaten a fruit given by said person.

~

Mornings in Xoinus were beautiful. Especially during mornings where you have the diamond dust effect. Team Voltron was really surprised by the sight that met them when they woke up that morning.

Lance sat in his seat yawning while stretching his hands. Pidge and Hunk were chattering about something related to technology, which Lance long tuned out. Coran was back in the Castle of Lions to check that everything was ready for that day’s departure. Allura and Shiro were chatting with the King of Xoinus, Qydhae about Xoinusrian culture. Looking at the seat beside him, Lance was a little puzzled as to where Keith was. The red paladin was usually very punctual for meals. Even though sometimes one of them had to drag him out of the training deck because he forgot about the time. Standing up, he caught Pidge and Hunks questioning gaze.

“Going to grab a certain someone who forgot to wake up. Be back in a bit.” Waving a hand, he went out of the room and towards the wing that they were staying in.

Knocking on the door that he knew was assigned to Keith, he waited for an answer. When none came, he decided to try the door knob, thinking that he would have to break it to get it to open. Lance was slightly surprised when the door wasn’t locked. Cautiously, he stepped into the room, expecting to see Keith still sleeping in his bed, instead it was empty and rumpled. Feeling the coldness in the room, Lance deduced that Keith wasn’t in the room for a while now. The dreadful feeling he had was coming back and Lance was already running back towards the dining room he was in not moments before.

Slamming the doors open, he ignored the way everyone jumped in shock. His eyes trying to find princess Ymmythea. When he realised with a sinking feeling that she wasn’t in the room, he went straight to Pidge.

“Pidge, if you have a tracking device, now’s a good time to find where’s Keith!” He shouted shaking Pidge’s shoulder.

“W-what? Why would you need that?”

“Just do it!” May be it was the urgency in Lance’s voice, may be it was the fear that Pidge saw in his eyes because they didn’t ask anymore questions and immediately picked up the bag beside them, taking out one of their personalized computer.

“Lance, could you explain what’s going on? What’s this about finding Keith? Isn’t he in his room?” Shiro asked calmly, placing a hand on Lance’s shoulder. The blue paladin was taking slow, deep breathe to calm down his rapidly beating heart.

“Okay, so yesterday we were having the meeting with king Qydhae right? I felt like someone was looking at us and it’s only when I looked at Ymmythea that I knew she was the one giving off a really bad vibe. The way she was staring at Keith gave me an awful feeling so I told Keith to be careful. Now, not only is Keith missing, Ymmythea’s missing too!” Lance said, turning around to face Shiro, who was just about to open his mouth. “Say whatever you want about me thinking too impulsively about how the princess couldn’t be the one to kidnap Keith or he might even be walking around the palace right now. That doesn’t change my gut instincts about the dreadful feeling I have.”

Hoping that he didn’t offend Qydhae, Lance looked towards the king and was surprised to see instead of rage at the accusation that his daughter was a kidnapper, he saw resignation.

“King Qydhae, was there something you should tell us?” Allura asked, her voice hard, commanding the king to tell her what is going on. 

“I’m afraid you would have to accept my sincerest apology princess Allura.” Qydhae stood, bowing slightly. “I’m sure you’ve heard about Xoinusrians culture and about the Moon Drop fruit.” 

“Yes, but what does that have to do with the situation we’re in right now?”

“Ymmythea is a special child.” Qydhae began slowly. “She retained the memories of her past life’s when she was old enough to walk and write. Because of that, she’s trying to find her Xoinusrian lover, Zitraite, who has yet to be reincarnated for the past three lives.”

“Ymmythea grew lonely and sad as she waited for Zitraite to come back to her but that turned into an obsession for her to find Zitraite. The amount of times she tried to force male Xoinusrians who fit the description of her lover to eat the Moon Drop is far and many. For awhile now, I thought she had given up and tried to wait for Zitraite to come back to her. However, it was because of this negligence of mine that led to one of your paladins to be kidnapped and for that I have to apologize once again.” 

Everyone was quiet. The only sound in the room is the soft tapping of the keyboard as Pidge ran multiple scans on their computer. Finally, Allura sighed, a weary look on her face.

“Apology accepted king Qydhae. However, Ymmythea’s punishment would be in our hands if any harm were to come to the red paladin, is that clear?”

“Yes, that’s quite alright.” Qydhae replied, a deep rooted tiredness settled on his face.

“I’ve got it!” All the occupants in the room turned their attention towards Pidge who was smiling triumphly at their computer screen. “You know the modifications I made to the bayard's a few weeks ago? Well I also placed a tracking device in case of anything and luckily, Keith seems to have it with him.”

“So? Where is he?” Hunk asked, trying to look over Pidge’s shoulder to see the screen.

“He’s somewhere in the north part of the palace. King Qydhae, do you think you would know which room Ymmythea would lead Keith to?” The Xoinusrian king thought for a moment before he replied.

“There’s an indoor garden which is only private to the royal family and there’s a Moon Drop tree in that room.” That spurred everyone into action because who knew how long Ymmythea had Keith with her.

The trip to their destination was too long for Lance’s taste, especially with all the unnecessary corridors and hallways. Anyone would get lost in here! When they finally stopped in front of an ornate door, everyone was tense. Lance could see the team was preparing for a fight, hands on their bayard which was ready to activate at any moment. 

Opening the doors, Qydhae stepped into the room, followed by the entire team. It took a few second to stop admiring the beautiful view in front of them to search for their missing friend. While the other paladins, Allura and the king went to different parts of the garden, Lance went straight for the glowing tree in the room.

Snow crunched underneath his feet and he was slightly cold but all Lance could think about at the moment was that Keith was in here, in this garden somewhere. As Lance neared the Moon Drop tree, he felt anxiety when he didn’t see Keith. Stopping in front of the tree, Lance looked around before something caught his attention. Walking to the back of the tree, he felt a relieved sigh leave his lips as he found Keith sleeping underneath a bed of flowers. Telling the team that he found Keith through their comm links, he knelt down in front of the sleeping paladin.

“Geez mullet brain, you scared us half to death and here you are sleeping without a care in the world. Come on, it’s time to wake up now.” Shaking Keith, Lance stopped for a moment to look at the sleeping teen carefully. His skin was cold, freezing cold when Lance touched his cheeks. His lips were slowly turning into a pale blue and no matter how much Lance continued to shake Keith to awaken, the red paladin never opened his eyes.

“Guys, something’s wrong. Keith won’t wake up.” Lance said worriedly, adjusting the sleeping teen so that he was cradling him in his arms, Lance tried finding his pulse and was relieved that Keith didn’t freeze to death.

“What do you mean he won’t wake up?” Shiro asked, concerned at the news he was receiving.

“It’s like he’s in a deep sleep or something, he just won’t wake up no matter what I do.” Lance decided to lightly pat Keith’s face to see if that could make him open his eyes, but even than it didn’t rouse him up.

“We’re almost there Lance. Give us a few ticks.”

“Hey Lance, is Ymmythea around your area? Cause I don’t see her.” The blue paladin looked puzzled as he surveyed his surroundings and found that Pidge was right. Ymmythea wasn’t here so where was she?

Lance didn’t have much time to think where the Xoinusrian princess was because soon the paladins were running towards him along with Allura and Qydhae.

Shiro was the first to reach, kneeling beside Keith, his hands went to check for his breathing and temperature. Next, he took off his helmet to press his ears to Keith’s chest, frowning.

“His heart rate is a little slow. We have to get him back to one of the healing pods.” Shiro informed, which Allura was already using the communicator she had on hand to relay the situation to Coran. Her face was pinched with worry and concern as she looked at Keith.

“King Qydhae, is there any place we could warm up our friend before we transfer him to our ship? The way from this garden to the Castle of Lions would be a stretch and who knows what would happen along the way.” Hunk asked, his fingers twisting against each other, a habit he had formed when he’s really anxious.

“Yes, theres one not far from here let’s—” 

“What are you people doing here?” As one, all heads turned to look at Ymmythea, a frown on her face. On her back, her wings looked like it was quivering with agitation.

“Princess Ymmythea, I demand an explanation on what you did to the red paladin.” Allura asked coldly, a tone no one has heard before other than being directed at Zarkon.

“There is nothing to explain. Zitraite has come back to me and we are going to be reunited soon.” Ymmythea replied with equal amounts of coldness to Allura, her arms folded and a slightly haughty look on her face. 

“Ymmythea, that’s enough. Can’t you see that what you’ve been doing won’t make the soul of your lover return to you faster?” Qydhae said, his voice loud and commanding yet trying to make his only child see reason to her error. The princess of Xoinus’s expression wavered for a moment before she scowled. 

“No this time I am certain he is Zitraite. He looks like him and acts like him when we first met. If anyone dares to stand in my way, I’ll kill them.” Holding up a hand, a small orb appeared. In a flurry of snow, a sharp blade of ice was in Ymmythea’s hands as she brandished it at Qydhae. “Even if it’s you father, I won’t let you stand in my way again.”

“Your love for Zitraite has made you mad my daughter.”

“So it would seem.” In a flash, she was in front of the king, her arms moving to strike before a glowing shield was blocking her sword. She immediately moved back when Shiro tried to attack her with his arm.

“Pidge, now would be a good time to shock her.” Hunk yelled as he looked at the cracks on his shield created by the sword. Ymmythea tried to fly up, but Pidge was already using their bayard to shock her into unconsciousness even before she fell to the ground.

King Qydhae sighed and walked slowly towards his daughter, picking her up gently in his hands.

“A thousand apologise would never be enough to tell you how sorry I am for Ymmythea’s behaviour princess Allura.” Qydhae said tiredly. “Please let me accommodate your friend in the best room in the palace. It shouldn’t be too far from here.” 

While Allura was negotiating with Qydhae, Lance started shifting Keith in his arms so that he was carrying him. Grunting from the weight, he was slightly thankful that Keith wasn’t wearing his flight suit as well. It would have been difficult to carry him with all the armor added with his body weight.

“Lance do you need me to carry him?” Shiro asked, ready to reach out for a helping hand but Lance declined with a shake of his head. 

“It’s fine, I can carry him. Besides I can hold this moment over his head for a while when he wakes up.” Lance tried to grin but it felt brittle on his face. The corner of Shiro’s lips tilted a little as he nodded.

Carrying Keith to the guest room a few corridors away from the garden, Lance was worried. From what Ymmythea was saying, Keith ate the Moon Drop, and knowing him, he didn’t know what’s so special about the fruit. Remembering that last night was a Full moon, Lance winced at the fact that Keith would be remembering all of their past lives memories. It took Lance into his teenage years to get all of them but what about Keith? Would it take him years to wake up?

Clutching the red paladins slightly warmer body towards him, Lance prayed that that wouldn’t be the case.

~

Keith didn’t know where he was as he surveyed his surroundings. Everything was dark and quiet in the landscape he was in. Racking his brain on where he is, a bright light shone causing him to close his eyes.

When he opened his eyes cautiously, he was a little surprised he was in a large room decorated luxuriously. The amount of gold he saw in the room was blinding. He turned around when he heard the soft jingling of bells and felt his jaw dropping. He was sure his cheeks were glowing red too.

The person standing in front of the dresser was an almost exact copy of him with eyes outlined darkly with kohl and is that light red eye shadow he’s seeing? But that isn’t what made him want to hide his face behind his hands it’s the clothes! Their practically see through!

Looking down to check that he was indeed wearing his own set of clothing, he was surprised to find that his hands were transparent. In fact, his whole body was see through.

A knock and the opening of the door caused him to observe the newcomer which he felt his heart stop at the familiar face. If there was one person he knew with that particular shade of blue as their eye colour, it was Lance. 

Keith couldn’t hear what they were talking about, yet with their gestures and body language, he felt his throat dry up at the conclusion he arrived with. They were lovers. From the way they left almost practically no space between them and the loving looks in their eyes, it was really easy to see that they were in love with each other.

An unknown feeling bubbled in his chest as he looked at Lance. It was the same feeling he had for a while now whenever he so much as glanced at the blue paladin.

Seeing his doppelgänger in Lance’s arms and they way Keith’s own heart twisted with jealousy, he wished that it was him in those arms instead. That sudden thought made Keith widened his eyes as he raised a hand to his wildly beating heart. Because there was no way he was falling in love with Lance, the most annoying, gorgeous, funny—

The kiss the two shared made the feeling in his heart grow stronger as he watched on.

~

Lance blinked blearily awake as he stretched his aching limbs from sleeping on the floor for so many days. His friends were worried about him, Pidge pointed out how he had huge eye bags while Hunk was fussing over the amount of food Lance was eating, which was lesser and a much smaller portion than his usual. Shiro and Coran tried to get him to get a good night’s sleep in his own room however he always refused. Even when Allura tried to manhandle him back to his room, he always snuck out to go to the medical bay where Keith was still in the healing pods. 

“Keith.” Hands touching the healing pod, Lance looked at his relaxed face. The relaxed expression was totally different from the frowning face Keith would always be making. A memory of their second lives flashed for a brief moment at the exact same expression Keith was making. However back then, he was really sleeping. Right now, they don’t know what’s happening to the red paladin.

According to one of the Xoinusrian healers, when someone takes a bite of the fruit, they wouldn’t fall into a deep sleep much less a coma. They thought that it might have to do with the effect the Moon Drop had on humans. That was what the Xoinusrian healers told the team. But Lance knew the truth, the real reason why Keith wasn’t waking up.

As each day passed by, the blue paladin hoped that Keith would wake up soon. Yet each day he would be filled with disappointment and fear that he won’t be able to see those indigo eyes ever again. 

Since Keith wasn’t harmed in any way or form, Ymmythea’s punishment was left in Qydhae’s hands. It left a sour taste in everyone’s mouth, but when Allura was told of the punishment that Qydhae would enforce so that there won’t be a repeat of such incidents ever again, she was quite happy with the outcome. 

“To the Xoinusrians, erasing of memories is a taboo unless it was agreed by all of the King’s trusted advisors. Ymmythea would no longer remember her past lives unless she eats a Moon Drop which king Qydhae assured me that they will keep it far away from her.” 

That was weeks ago, they were in space for almost a month now and Keith had yet to wake up. Sighing, Lance decided that since Keith would be in there for who knows how long, he might as well get a quick bite.

Leaving reluctantly, he was just a few steps away from the door only to hear a hiss of the healing pod opening behind him. Turning his head around so fast like he had whiplash, Lance confirmed that yes, the healing pod was opening and Keith was falling out of it. He immediately ran to catch the still not awake paladin, letting out a breath of relief when he caught him.

Keith let out a low groan before he was opening his eyes and Lance was still blown away by the beautiful indigo colour it had even if it was still dim with sleep.

“Hey sleepy head, finally decided to wake up?” Lance joked, his arms still around Keith’s waste even though he was already able to support himself.

“Lance? Where are we? Wasn’t the ship sinking just now?” Keith asked hoarsely a look of slight panic on his face. Lance stiffened at what he said, in his present life, he had never stepped on a ship before, a boat yes but never a ship. There was only one moment that he could think of in his past life where he was on a ship.

“Don’t tell me he remembers everything?” He thought as he plastered a fake smile on his face. “What are you talking about Keith? We’re in the Castle of Lions right now. You remember that alien princess I told you to stay clear of? Well, you didn’t listen and decided to eat a fruit given to you by that same alien princess was a good idea.”

Blinking in confusion for a moment, Keith furrowed his brows as he looked around the room before recognition dawned on his face. When he saw that he was in Lance’s arms, he pushed the other teen away from him. Lance was a little shock when Keith’s cheeks started to redden so he wasn’t prepared for the push and landing on the floor with a loud thud.

“Ow! What’s that for mullet head! I demand an apology for treating me this way. And here I was waiting for you to wake up this whole ti¾” Lance covered his mouth in shock at what he had just said. As he looked towards Keith, he saw the red deepening and even the tips of his ears was starting to get pink.

“W-what?”

“I mean I was waiting for you to wake up this whole time so that I can tell the team that you woke up, yeah, we worked a schedule that we rotate everyday on who looks after you. Today it was my turn so I couldn’t wait for it to be over.” Lance lied with a sheepish smile on his face. When he saw how Keith’s face fell however, he wished he could have taken it all back.

“How long have I been in the healing pods?” Keith asked once he masked his emotion, helping Lance up with an outstretched hand.

“You were in there quite awhile.”

“How long?” Lance sighed, looking away and rubbing the back of his head as he replied.

“If you didn’t wake up today, you would have been sleeping for almost a month now.” Keith winced, a month? He was sleeping for a month! With all the memories he had seen, it felt like years had passed instead. Now that he was fully awake, Keith could feel a headache pounding at the back of his head. The amount of memories he obtained was a lot to process, especially with all the things that happened in it.

“Hey you okay? You’re looking a little pale right now, do you still need to rest? What am I talking about, of course you need to rest. And food, we need to feed you too, you must be really hungry.” Lance rambled, the concerned look never leaving his face as he steered Keith back towards his room. “But first you need a bath and a change of clothes. Than we can get Hunk to whip you up with some of his new recipes he made while you were still out.” Feeling Lance’s hands over his hands, Keith tried to calm his rapidly beating heart. 

“He doesn’t like you, you idiot. What you were dreaming about was in the past. There was no way Lance could like you in this life! He’s your friend and only treats you as a friend. Stop dreaming.” Keith told himself, the sudden thought about the fact that Lance wouldn’t see him more than just a comrade and a friend made his chest hurt.

The relieved smile that Lance gave him when they reached his room and telling him how ‘glad that you’re awake now,’ caused him to wish that he could have stayed in his memories just a little while longer.

~

It was dinner time when Lance and Keith entered the dinning room. You could see everyone stop in their conversation and eating to stare at the red paladin who was trying not to fidget underneath all the stares he was getting.

The sudden tackle by Pidge almost caused him to fall, but luckily Keith caught both of them. Pidge jabbed him in the sides saying that next time if he slept for that long ever again, they’ll shock him awake. Hunk who had tears in his eyes gave him a really tight hug, which he was promptly let go of and placed in one of the chairs, a plate of food was placed in front of him which Keith didn’t recognize but it smelt delicious. 

While he was almost swallowing his food without chewing, he felt a hand ruffle his hair causing him to look up to see Shiro smiling at him. “It’s good to have you back Keith." 

“Yes! I say we should bring out the super secret recipe that belonged to my grandmother. Why she would always whip it out whenever—”

“Yes Coran, that sounds lovely. Keith are you feeling alright? Do you feel anything strange when you woke up?” Allura asked, her face filled with concern.

“Yeah I’m alright.” Keith reassured.

“Did you get any memories of your past life back? They said it would if you ate the Moon Drop on a full moon.” Pidge questioned, a slightly fascinated look on their face when they remembered the white glowing fruit of the Xoinusrian.

Before Keith could answer, a shout could be heard and he was looking at Lance trying to run away from Coran holding a bowl of— whatever Altean food that was.

“No Coran, I’m not going to eat that! It looks disgusting and smells disgusting!” Lance shouted, running around the room with Coran hot on his heels.

“It is not! It’s one of the most treasured recipes my grandmother has made and it doesn’t taste as made as it smells or looks!”

“I’m still not trusting you! Hunk save me!”

Laughter filled the room as everyone watched the spectacle. It ended with the bowl spilling over Allura which sparked a food fight with every one aiming at one another. The question about Keith’s past memories were forgotten as the fight continued on till all the food on the table was gone.

When Keith went to sleep that night, he dreamt of a love he knew he couldn’t have. Waking up the next day and seeing Lance smiling at him, being nice to him made Keith decide that his heart couldn’t take the hurt and unrequited love he was feeling.

~

Just a week had passed and Lance didn’t know why, but he’s got the feeling that Keith was ignoring him. No that wasn’t right, he was outright avoiding him! If he steps into a room, Keith would make an excuse to leave it. When it comes to team bonding exercise, he’ll go to the farthest end of the room so they wouldn’t be standing beside each other. Eating meals together were the same thing even when there’s an open seat beside Lance. Keith would go all the way to ensure that he was sitting in between someone else, making sure that Lance wouldn’t seat beside him.

It wasn’t affecting the formation of Voltron but he could feel the judging and questioning stares of everyone on what he did to offend Keith. He didn’t even do anything! Even when he was confronted by Shiro and Allura about what was going on between Keith and him, he couldn’t reply because he doesn’t know what’s wrong!

It got to the point where Lance tried to catch Keith off guard by cornering him in hallways and even in rooms, however he always managed to give him the slip. Lance was ready to scream in frustration at this point.

When it was announced that they would land on an uninhabited planet the meteor shower that only happens every thousands of years, Lance decided it was time to hatch a plan and this time Keith wasn’t going to get away.

The planet they were on was dark when they arrived. The large amount of stars that littered the sky caused them to gasp at the beauty for just a moment while Shiro was telling them not to go too far away from the ship. Grabbing Keith’s wrist before he can bolt again, Lance pulled them away from the team. Passing by the other three paladins, Shiro smiled while Pidge and Hunk gave him thumbs up, wishing him good luck.

Lance ignored Keith’s question on where they were going or the insistent tug for him to let go of his wrist. Lance just tightened his grip and pulled the red paladin to a somewhere more secluded area. Once they reached a dark clearing, Lance finally let go of Keith’s wrist which he snatched back quickly.

“Why did you bring me out here Lance?” the red paladin asked, his voice strangely void of emotion and he wasn’t looking at him which pissed Lance off.

“Cause you wouldn’t stop trying to run away when I just want to talk to you!” His voice steadily getting louder as Lance clenched his fist.

“Every time if I’m so much as in the room with you you’ll leave! When we’re doing the training sessions we usually partnered up, but you’ve kept switching around like you didn’t want to get close to me! Let’s not even talk about the fact that you would try to sit closer to the ends of the table while making sure I couldn’t take the seat next to you.” He could feel the familiar sting of tears as he tried to hold them back. “Did I do something wrong? Did I unknowingly insult you? Because I apologize, I didn’t mean to so please just- just stop ignoring me. Don’t avoid me.” 

Tears rolled down his cheeks as Lance tried to stop the painful tugs his heart was making. His worst fears were of Keith to ignore and avoid his existence and now, he was doing just that and Lance couldn’t deal with it.

As Lance started to cry, Keith tried to squash the guilt eating at him at the anguished look Lance was showing to him but he couldn’t. Taking a few steps closer to the slowly crying teen, Keith cautiously brought his arms around to hug him.

“I’m sorry Lance. It isn’t your fault, it’s mine, so don’t blame yourself.” Keith murmured, resting his chin on Lance’s shoulder.

“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t sock you in the face now for making me think I don’t exist in your eyes.” Lance sniffled, his face slightly hoarse from the crying.

“I-it’s complicated.”Letting Lance go, Keith moved back a little, his eyes still avoid looking at the blue paladin

“No, you’re not getting away from this conversation by saying it’s complicated so, start talking.”

“It’s nothing!”

“It’s not nothing if it caused you to avoid me!” 

“Fine! You want to know why I couldn’t stay in the same room as you!” Keith yelled in frustration. “Ever since I ate that goddamn fruit I’ve been dreaming of past lives and always, every single damn time you’re always in it! In those memories we were always in love. In every memory, we were always falling for each other. Every time I look at you, seeing the amount of affection that you had for me makes me want it!”

“Do you know why I couldn’t look at you or stand to be around you? One look at you every day I wake up reminds me that those dreams were in the past and you don’t love me that way! You only see me as a friend and what I’m feeling is something I could never have. So excuse me for not wanting to hurt my aching heart more than necessary while you flirt with every single female alien species you ever laid eyes on!” Chest heaving from all the pent up emotions he was feeling, Keith couldn’t lift his eyes off the ground because now he’s done it. With this, not even the friendship that he had with Lance would last.

“He probably doesn’t even want to know me anymore.” Keith thought, a weary smile on his face.

Lance stood there watching Keith with shock on his face. He knew, he knew that Keith got his past memories back. That’s why he didn’t want to make any moves on him while he was still sorting out his memories. If he had made a move, that would only make Keith confuse on whatever he was feeling was real or not. But because of his lack of actions, Keith got the idea that he didn’t love him.

Noting that Keith was avoiding eye contact, made Lance realised that he was at fault as well, even if Keith didn’t know it.

“I never did tell you I had some interesting memories when I was a kid did I?” Lance started awkwardly after a moment of silence, rubbing the back of his neck as Keith finally looked up. “I remembered getting them since I was 4 years old. Some nights, they were warm and other nights, it was so scary I couldn’t sleep, knowing the continuation that would happen when I closed my eyes.”

“Every night, I would get visited by this special someone but I couldn’t see his face. He was always blurry and I couldn’t hear his voice properly. As I grew older, it didn’t change. I still couldn’t see him and yet, I’ve already learned to love him.”

 “One day while I was walking through the hallways of the Garrison, I bumped into this one cadet who was running through the corridor. I was ready to be a jerk to him but he apologized and even helped me up. When I opened my eyes, do you know what I saw Keith?” Lance asked as he walked closer to Keith, who stood rooted to the spot, a look of vague familiarity on his face. 

“I saw this pair of indigo hued eyes that looked really familiar. When he left, I didn’t get his name and found out later that his name was Keith, the guy who always beat me at everything.” Keith winced, trying to take a step back from Lance who was getting closer into his personal space, however a hand held his wrist stopping him.

“When I went to bed and dreamt again a few nights later, I could see him. I could finally hear his voice. The face that stared back at me while smiling was you, Keith. Night after night, I saw you smiling at me with love in your eyes that I just wanted to make the you, now in this time, smile like that, but no one could find you after you were kicked out of the Garisson. 

“You don’t know the pain I felt when you didn’t remember me when we found Shiro. Yet I was happy with just you being by my side. Whenever you laughed those rare laughs of yours, I swear my heart would stop a beat.” Lance smiled as he felt Keith trembling a little.

“I never showed you what I was feeling for you because I was waiting. Waiting for you to respond back to my flirting but you never did. When you woke up from your month long coma with all your past memories, I wanted to wait for you to sort our your feelings. I didn’t know if you wanted to pursue what we had so I never showed my love to you. That, I guess is the reason why you’re hurting. You thought I only looked at you as a friend right?” Cradling Keith’s face in his hand, he leaned their foreheads together.

“I loved you since we first met in our first life. I loved you for all of our seven lives. I’ll continue loving you in this life and all the other lives after that. I would love you for 1000 years, 10000 years and it would never be enough.”

“I love you, Keith and nothing’s going to change that." 

The kiss between them was soft. A light press of the mouth at first before it started getting more passionate. Their tongues tangled, their teeth knocked against each other in their frenzy to just kiss, to feel the love that they thought was all but unattainable.

Keith didn’t know he was crying until thumbs were brushing away the tears on his cheeks and Lance pecking him softly at where the salty tears were with a murmur of ‘I love you’ for each of them.

“Stop it Lance.” Keith laughed as he tried to push the other teen away.

“But that got you to laugh right? Lance grinned as he kissed Keith on the lips again.

The clouds overhead started to move, slowly, stars started to shine above them. The ground that they were standing on was filled with a thin layer of water, reflecting the stars in the sky, surrounding them like glittering gems.

Giving a kiss to Lance’s forehead, Keith leaned their temples together, staring at ocean blue eyes.

“I love you.” 

“I love you more.” The cheeky grin that Lance gave to Keith made him surge forward to kiss him on the lips again which only caused Lance to laugh into it. 

As the stars start to fall around them, they didn’t notice it for in their eyes, they only had each other and that was enough for them.