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The entire team was collapsed, exhausted, together on the couch after their last mission. They had been visiting the Bixi people when the castle they were in was under attack by Zarkon. The five had fought tooth and nail and even that was barely enough to ward off the attackers.
The five laid in a comfortable silence only broken by the hissing and creaking of the ship as it moved and settled. There was this sort of unspoken agreement the five weren’t going to try and talk to the others as it would break the tranquil and sleepy air the room had.
Coran, obviously, didn’t get the memo though as he busted into the room, saying boisterously, “Yet another job well done! There is room for improvement but that’s nothing a little training can’t fix.”
Lance and Keith groaned audibly, Lance shooting upright. “Coran, I think I speak for all of us when I say this; be quiet.”
“No need to be like that! I have good news to share!”
“What news?” Shiro asked.
“Allura has a child! There’s a new royal baby on board.”
The reaction was instantaneous as all had mixed feelings and reactions.
“This is the best day of my life.” Hunk sniffed. “I’m going to be an uncle.”
“They better not drool anywhere near my equipment.” Pidge had said, their face pinched in distaste at the very thought of a child touching their stuff.
“Can we really take care of a child?” Shiro asked, turning seriously to Coran. “We don’t have the most qualified personalities.”
“He’s talking about Keith and Lance.” Pidge interjected.
“Hey!” They both protested.
“I’ll have you know that kids love me, Pidge.” Lance proclaimed. “I became friends with you, didn’t I?”
“What I meant,” Shiro said, effectively cutting of Pidge’s retort, “is that we’re fighting Zarkon in everything we do. Do you really think having a child we could put in danger is a good idea?”
“Hmm, I see what you mean, Shiro. But we don’t really have a choice. The child is of royal Bixi blood. He had wandered on here. Poor thing hasn’t stopped crying. We managed to locate the parents but it needs to calm down before we can drop them off as it’s heavily guarded by Zarkon soldiers. To drop the child off, we need to be quiet. So in the meantime, who wants to get him ready for bed?”
Nobody did but Allura stormed in and pulled Lance and Keith out of the room by their collars, marching down the hall to where the kid was being kept. Lance and Keith tried to fight but Allura threw them into the room, closing the door behind them with a crisp, “Make sure he’s asleep before either of you come out.”
“You know, I think Allura wants this kid gone too.” Lance commented.
The entire room was a mess with drapings covering the floor, some sort of gel gunk dripping from various corners, and Allura’s clothes torn. All of this destruction led back to a small, chubby kid in the middle of the room, chewing on forlornly on one of Allura’s dresses.
When the kid spotted Keith and Lance, it let out a sharp, shrill screech with bright neon tears leaking out of its eyes. It’s sobs grated on Lance’s nerves and hurt Keith’s ears.
“Okay, so..do you think that green stuff is poisonous?” Lance asked.
Keith stepped forward, carefully approaching the kid. It howled louder and stamped its feet as Keith sat next to it. It tried to swat at Keith when he sat down and its howling turned even more high pitched. Keith refused to give up though as he tried to offer some of the things scattered around the floor near the kid. It looked like there were gears and screws that the kid had chewed on but he was not having it with Keith handing them to him.
“Step aside.” Lance announced, stepping over to the two. The screeching got even louder somehow. “I’ll do better than you any day.” He sat on the other side of the kid and did the exact same thing.
“Of course you’d say that, pretty boy.”Keith all but snarled.
“You think I’m pretty? Oh, Keith that’s so sweet.” Lance placed his hand over his heart in mock affection. “But it won’t get the kid to stop crying.”
“Yeah, you’re right. Do you know how to take care of kids?”
“Of course. I’m a people person.” Lance picked the kid up, sitting him in his lap. “Hey there, little fella. I know you’re scared but we’re gonna get you to your parents soon. Now, how about some sleep?”
The kid’s screaming faltered, looking perplexed. Lance shot a smug look at Keith before the crying came back tenfold. Lance almost dropped the kid in his surprise.
“Ugh, okay, I have an idea…”
Keith held out his arms, resignation written all over him. It was clear he wanted the kid as far away from him as possible. But he still brought the kid close, ignoring the scrabbling the kid put up. He sighed, before starting to sing softly.
It was an old lullaby he remembered before his parents had died. It was an ancient Earth Lullaby and was incredibly soothing to him. It worked in calming the baby down and it seemed more keen on staying quiet.
“I didn’t know you could sing.” Lance commented. He was blown away by the softness in Keith’s expression, how his hard exterior almost vanished. He was still rigid and looked uncomfortable for being touched but he didn’t seem to mind as his voice carried, soft yet strong.
Keith bristled. He forgot Lance was there. “I don’t do it because there’s no use for it. It’s the only song I know though.”
“I have one. It’s a Spanish one from my grandmother.” Lance shifted so the baby could see him. He, too, started singing, starting strong and proud but it soon melted and became sweet and gentle.
Keith felt a small shock as he recognized the song Lance was singing. He joined in, harmonizing perfectly with Lance as the two voices melded and mixed together. Lance looked alarmed, his voice faltering slightly. When the kid gave a squeak, it came back just as strong though.
The two were determined to keep singing till the kid passed out. There was only the one song the two both knew so they recycled it, using the same three verses. The repetition seemed to be the trick as soon, the child slumped against Keith, dead weight and dead to the world.
The two gave a sigh of relief as they finished the verse and stopped.
Lance gave a soft, almost smirking, smile as he turned to Keith and said, “I’ll remember this bonding moment.”