Story: The Bonding Moment

Me: Hey guys! Welcome to my first Voltron fanfic!

Disclaimer: Yay. Voltron.

Me: What? Don't you like it?

Disclaimer: OF COURSE I DO! BUT ALL WEEK ALL I'VE BEEN HEARING ABOUT IS KLANCE KLANCE KLANCE!

Me: Oh…sorry?

Disclaimer: *sighs* We own nothing.

Summary: Bonding moment? What bonding moment? And what is this about "cradled in Keith's arms?" Oh, Lance remembers perfectly. Not that he'd tell Keith that.

Rating-13+

"We are a good team," he murmured in exhaustion.

Keith smiled, and his grip on Lance's hand tightened subconsciously. It was a quiet, tender exchange, and a rare one at that, between the two rivals.

But it was short lived.

Lance groaned and Keith could tell he was about to fall. He dove into action, never letting go of his hand. His free arm shot out and caught him by the shoulder. He moved into a more comfortable position, slipping it under his shoulder blades.

"Easy," he soothed.

The Blue Paladin let out a soft hum, and his dark blue eyes met Keith's deep violet, and in them he could see how much pain Lance was really in. Shiro had been right. This was bad.

"It's…it's gonna be okay. Hunk and Coran will be back here with the crystal in no time, okay?" he promised, voice trembling.

Lance nodded, an almost unnoticeable shake of the head. He gave one of his small, classic grins, teeth sparkling. He coughed then, panicking Keith as a small speck of blood trickled from his lips.

He sensed a presence behind him, but his focus was on Lance.

The Cuban shivered and Keith drew him closer, positioning his elbow under Lance's neck.

"Coran and Hunk just entered the atmosphere. The cryopods will be up within fifteen minutes," Shiro informed him quietly, resting a hand on his shoulder.

Keith nodded. "Hey, Lance. You with me man?" he shook him gently.

"Mmm," he mumbled. The teen was hardly lucid. "S-Sí, estoy despierto."

Keith frowned. Lance never spoke Spanish. But he did know that Lance had said yes, which was a good sign.

"Lance, we've got to get you on your feet. Can you stand?" he tried.

He felt Lance try, but the second he left Keith's arms, he flopped back in exhaustion. The Red Paladin caught him instantly, making him yelp as he jarred his battered body.

"Oh kay…let's not try that again," he chuckled softly. His small smile vanished when Lance wheezed loudly.

Shiro shifted behind him, and he could see Pidge and Allura hovering in the corner of his eye in concern.

"Just hold on a little longer Lance. You're gonna be fine," in a rare display of emotion, he let go of Lance's hand to reach up and smooth back his coffee hair. A small tear slipped down his cheek.

The two felt the rumble of the pod landing, crystal in tow.

"Ya hear that Lance?" he smiled. "They're here. It's gonna be fine."

"Hey…mullet?" came the soft, almost inaudible voice.

"Yeah moron?" he replied quietly.

"Thanks…but shut up?" he whispered with a wheezy chuckle, making Keith grin again.

His face fell when Lance's eyes slipped shut, the hand that was draped across his stomach falling to the floor.

"Lance? Hey, wake up buddy," he shook him gingerly, patting his cheek. "C'mon man, open your eyes."

He felt Shiro put a hand on his shoulder again.

"You're gonna have to carry him. Can you handle that?"

Keith glanced down at his younger friend's slack face. His mouth was slightly ajar, and he was wheezing harshly. Blood slowly trickled from the corner of his mouth, and the burn marks all over his armor only served to remind Keith just how lucky Lance actually was to have been wearing it.

"Yeah I've got him," he muttered.

He moved his free hand away from Lance's hair where he'd been brushing it from where it had stuck to his forehead with sweat. He swiftly tucked his arm beneath the bends of his knees. Lance let out a pitiful whimper as Keith lifted him into the air. His head fell against the older teen's shoulder, and the hot breath that blew against his neck was almost reassuring in a way that he was still alive.

When Keith had entered the crystal room after the explosion and the smoke had cleared, Lance had looked dead. He would not let that happen. Not to Lance. Not today. Not ever.

"Start heading toward the infirmary. Walk slowly. By the time you get there we should have the cryopods back online," Allura ordered gently. Her blue eyes danced over the wounded Paladin in concern.

"Understood," he nodded.

He and Shiro did as they were told, making their way to the infirmary. Lance was lighter than Keith had thought he'd be, weighing only about a hundred and twenty pounds from what he could tell, though he had to adjust his hold several times.

"He's actually lighter than I thought he'd be," he voiced to Shiro.

He nearly jumped out of his skin when Hunk, who'd trailed behind them after he and Coran dropped off the crystal, spoke. "He never really ate much at the Garrison."

"Why not?" Shiro frowned.

"Well, his metabolism for one. He burns calories faster than he gains them…I'm kind of envious," he chuckled halfheartedly. "Second, he was too generous for his own good. Sometimes as a punishment for failure in the Garrison, they'd take away your dinner. If he didn't get it taken away himself, he'd give his away to the people that needed it," he shrugged. "He may seem like a clown all the time, but he's pretty serious when he needs to be."

Keith stopped at the door. Shiro pushed it open, and a frustrated Hunk commed Allura impatiently.

"Allura, is it almost ready?"

'Just a few more ticks.'

A whirring echoed through the castle, and the lights slowly flickered on.

Shiro wasted no time in readying a cryopod. He was surprised to almost have to pry Lance from Keith's arms. He gently started to remove his armor.

Allura and Coran, along with Pidge jogged into the room.

"Here," she handed him a cryosuit.

He pursed his lips but shot her a grateful look. He carefully avoided the harsh burns on his face and tried not to bother his injuries as he stripped him of his undersuit to change him.

"How did this even happen?" Keith murmured, turning away in distress.

"He saved my life, that's how," Coran crossed his arms, face showing nothing but pride.

Keith arched an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Coran looked toward Lance as they gently zipped the back of the cryosuit over Lance's burned back, causing him to make a pitiful whimpering sound. "That explosion would have killed me. But Lance shoved me out of the way just in the tick of time. It happened so fast…he was lucky to have been wearing his armor. I don't want to imagine what would have happened if he hadn't."

Keith sighed. Of course. Lance was reckless…but selflessly reckless. Lance would sell his soul to save a complete stranger. He seemed like a douche at first, but once you watched him for a while, it became clear just how much he valued life, all life. Lance couldn't hurt a fly. The only time he ever tried to hurt anyone was during battle, and even then he tried to leave as many alive as he could. Unless of course the enemy was Galra. He was also pretty kind when he wasn't flirting or arguing. He was quiet and reserved, and he didn't talk much.

A hissing sound drew his attention, and he looked up to see they'd gotten Lance in the cryopod. The hissing was the door of the pod, and he watched as the glass iced over and Lance froze in place.

"After a day in here, he should be fully healed…"

As the others filed out of the room, Keith hesitated. He found his legs moving against his will towards the pod. He softly laid a hand on the glass over Lance's face. He sighed, closing his eyes. Then, he smiled.

"You're welcome."

Keith grinned at his Lion.

"I missed ya girl," he stroked her massive nose.

Red purred, a sound he'd grown accustomed to. It made a warm, tingly feeling spread in his chest.

What he wasn't accustomed to was the second sound. It was a higher pitched, more…feminine, was the only way Keith could describe it. It was a youthful purr, and he recognized it immediately, even before the shadow of the Blue Lion passed over him.

He turned to face her as she sat down and lowered her head to look at him.

"Hey girl," he smiled, laying a hand on her snout. "How'd you get in here?"

She pressed into his touch happily, and he giggled. She was acting like a big puppy. He looked behind her and realized she must have squeezed through the small passages linking their hangars together.

"You lookin' for Lance, Blue?" he inquired.

She purred, and Keith rolled his eyes. The Blue Lion was too friendly for her own good, but he supposed she took after her Paladin in some ways.

"He can't come and hang out right now, but he'll be okay," he assured her.

She let out a sound akin to a mechanical huff. She moved her nose forward and lifted him by his chest off the ground, then dropped him on his butt.

"H—Ow! Blue!" he whined, rubbing the sore area.

She…it wasn't really a laugh but it was pretty close, but she sniggered smugly at him.

"Oh Ha ha. Very funny. God you're just like Lance!" he groaned.

Then he realized his own Lion was giggling too, the mechanical rumble filling the hangar.

"Aw, c'mon you guys!"

A/N

Me: Well? What do you all think?

Disclaimer: It was kinda cu—WAIT WOT?

Me: What?

Disclaimer: SINCE WHEN DID YOU CHANGE YOUR NAME?

Me: Yesterday?

Disclaimer: Oh…why?

Me: Because I wanted to add Voltron to my name, and I didn't need two Justice League related words in my name?

Disclaimer: I…guess that's reasonable…

TRANSLATIONS

"Si...estoy despierto."-"Yeah...I'm awake." (Spanish)

-SWGPOC227