Warning: Swearing

Shiro's born with wings that are black and white and gray, speckled and beautiful and big.

His parents take one look at him and try to cut the wings off, but the wings won't be cut off and Shiro's screams are enough to stop them, so eventually, they just give up on it.

He's taught to hide them, taught that he can't be different, that it's wrong, and so he learns to hide them, all the way up until he gets to Garrison and meets Keith, the hothead with the unrepentant red feathers.

He stares at Keith in wonder, surprise that he won't keep it a secret, that he's so openly showing his wings, and when Keith catches him staring, he narrows his eyes and snarls, "Whatcha looking at, fuckwad?"

And Shiro. He can't rip his eyes away, so he just replies, high pitched and honest, "Your wings."

Keith is surprised at his honestly, Shiro can tell, with his wide eyes and the way that his hands falter, the way his wings stop twitching for a moment to just still. And then, the wings are moving again, wild and restless, and Keith sneers, "Well, stop. You look like a fish."

Shiro lowers his gaze to his feet and turns red. If someone so much younger than him is okay with showing his wings like this, well, then, Shiro can be too, right?

He cuts the back of his shirts so his wings can peek through, and hushed whispers fill the hall that there are two of them and what, why is Shiro showing wings, of all things? but Shiro ignores them in favor of the still shock of Keith's stare.

Shiro smiles cheerfully and waves at Keith, before he says teasingly, "Stop looking. You look like a fish," and Keith stops to glare at him, or at least tries to, because he can't quite tear his eyes away, just like Shiro with Keith's wings.

Then Keith mumbles, quiet and honest, "They're nice," and Shiro laughs at that, loud and wide and honest.

Because, really, he supposes, Keith can't say much else.

Shiro adores this freedom, this wonder in showing his wings, and when he and Keith both become Garrison's best pilots, he hears the mutters, the rumors that the wings are helping them cheat somehow.

Shiro doesn't dissuade this rumor, just laughs and says that maybe it's just natural talent, he doesn't know, but the rumors stop at that and people go back to smiling at him, uncaring of his wings.

(He ignores the twinge in his chest when this doesn't happen to Keith, when Keith storms by, wings full and red and furious and people slam against the walls and snarl curses at him.)

Then one of his professors find him, and admits softly, "Shiro... we're concerned about..." He purses his lips together and gestures at Shiro's wings and Shiro's heart drops because of course his wings would be an issue, of course his wings would be a problem. Of course.

Shiro lowers his gaze to his hands, and his wings fold on his back as he says quietly, "I understand, professor. I'll try to keep them folded from now on."

The professor smiles, relieved, and Shiro thinks in the back of his mind that he must have also attempted this with Keith and had failed before. "I'm glad you understand, Shiro," he sighs, smiling brightly, and continues, "Garrison has a reputation for being the elite, you must understand. And while we think there's nothing wrong with your..." Something flickers in his eyes. "Mutation... we would really hate for rumors to fly around, you must understand."

Shiro bites his tongue even as his brow furrows, not understanding, but he agrees, "Of course," and buys some new shirts, ones that don't have holes cut in the back.

His wings are uncomfortable and itchy against his skin, and it feels incredibly wrong to keep them pressed against his skin like that, but he can tell that everyone's relieved, the way that his friends laugh about his 'phase', the way his teachers praise him more for his superb flying skills, the way that everyone just seems generally nicer.

(He ignores Keith's stare at the back of his head every time he passes, pretends not to notice the way that Keith's just that much more hostile when they talk... no, not hostile, just wistful perhaps, furious that Shiro's hidden away such a big part of himself for other's sakes. Shiro tries to pretend that Keith's being the childish one here, tries to pretend that there's actually a good reason that Shiro's wings are hidden against his back.)

The spacesuit they make for him has room for his wings, and while Commander Holt's fascination with studying his wings is alright, Matt's open, almost childish wonder and excitement is what makes it feel alright for Shiro to keep his wings stretched out when they're in space.

Then they're captured by the Galra, and they don't see anything special about his wings (of course they don't, they're aliens) but they find endless amusement in making him fly while they try to shoot him down.

(It terrifies Shiro, and he almost hates his wings, but he thinks of Matt, gushing over his wings, and Keith, red wings spread, angry and proud and defiant, and he thinks that maybe it's a blessing in disguise.)

In the arena, the wings are definitely an advantage, helping him maneuver that much more easily and helping him to dodge, moving swifter and faster than his feet ever could.

Then he meets the other paladins, and sees that all five of them have wings, and he thinks, this is right.

Shiro was born with black wings, speckled with grey and white. And they are absolutely beautiful.