ShiKeiLan || Voltron || ShiKeiLan || Prince in Peril || ShiKeiLan || Voltron || ShiKeiLan

Title: Advent Calendar Project – Prince in Peril

Fandom: Voltron: Legendary Defender

Disclaimer: All rights to the remake reserved to DreamWorks, Lauren Montgomery and Joaquim Dos Santos, and to the original to Toei Animation. This fanfiction on the other hand is entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Warnings: shounen-ai, polyamory (threesome), medieval, knights, fluff, sharing body-heat

Main Pairing: Shiro/Keith/Lance

Voltron Characters: Lance Charles McClain, Keith Kogane, Takashi 'Shiro' Shirogane

Summary: Keith and Shiro set out to save the prince, who got abducted by a vicious dragon. Only that Lance didn't get abducted, he ran away. That he ran straight into the arms or a dragon is an entirely different story.

Advent Calendar Project

Prince in Peril

Lance groaned frustrated where he sat in his golden cage, looking down at the two stupidly handsome knights. Shiro and Keith, the strongest, fiercest, handsomest knights of the Altean Kingdom. The very reasons why Prince Lance of Altea had run away in the first place.

"Go away", grunted Lance nonplussed. "I don't need saving."

Keith raised one elegant eyebrow, looking like the cocky shit Lance knew him to be. "You're literally sitting in a golden cage, dangling from the ceiling, being guarded by a dragon."

Lance opened his mouth to protest as Shiro offered that dazzlingly blinding smile of his. Urgh. Stupid, perfect, broad-shouldered knight. Lance was so gone on both of them, which was exactly why Lance had run away. He couldn't continue watching Shiro and Keith secretly kiss behind the stables, looking gorgeous together and loving each other, while Lance was a prince. He would never be able to even secretly have that kind of love. He'd one day be married off to some princess. And sure, he liked girls just as much as knights, but right now he was maddeningly in love with Shiro and Keith, so how was he supposed to move on from that if he had to see them every day? He just wanted to get away, wanted a chance to get over them and make his own way without responsibility. He wasn't next in line anyway, his big sister Allura would be a good and fair queen and the people already loved her anyway. He was just the 'spare heir'. The goofball little brother no one really took seriously. It wasn't his fault he had run straight into a dragon though!

"You were abducted from the palace-", started Shiro in that gentle tone of his.

"No, I wasn't. I ran away. This is just... a set-back. But I can handle it on my own", groaned Lance.

"...Ran away?", echoed Keith in disbelief before turning to Shiro. "Did... Did he really just...?"

"Yes, he did", confirmed Shiro, frowning. "Why would you run away, my prince?"

And that. That was exactly why he had run away. He would never be more than their prince. They would never see him as their equal, much less as a love interest. No one would ever see Lance as just Lance. Everyone always just saw the royal prince. Allura's baby-brother. Gritting his teeth, Lance looked away from the two handsome heroes, instead glaring at the ground.

"My prince?", asked Shiro gently, clearly confused. "Did... anything happen?"

"If someone hurt you, show me their face", growled Keith darkly, protectively.

Lance flushed at that. Another reason why he had to leave. They were both fiercely protective of Lance, always nice to Lance. But those were their jobs. They didn't do it because they cared about Lance as a person. All the while Lance was stupidly, hopelessly in love with them both.

The next moment, Lance was free falling and screaming. Apparently, Keith had opened the cage. Lance would be cussing if not for Shiro's insanely strong arms catching him. Lance flushed brightly as he found himself carried princess-style by Shiro, the knight smiling down at him charmingly.

"Let's get you out of here for now, my prince", stated Shiro firmly.

"Uhm... Shiro. I think we should stay a little longer", disagreed Keith with a glare.

He had gone ahead to the entrance of the cave, pointing at the snow outside. The sky was black as white fell in a harsh storm. Shiro's grip on Lance tightened as the two knights walked away from the cave's entrance, going deeper into the cave toward the dragon's hoard. Gold and treasure, but also silk and expensive fabrics that would do well for a makeshift bed.

"...You can put me down", grunted Lance frustrated.

Keith glared in equal frustration as he watched Shiro put down their prince. Honestly, Keith had hoped this to be a grand rescue. That their prince would fawn over them, be grateful and admire them for being his heroes. Instead, their prince was being completely ungrateful. Sure, the feelings Keith and Shiro had for their prince were absolutely inappropriate, but was it really asking too much to get a basic level of gratitude from the pretty prince? Instead of focusing on Lance, Keith started making a fire. With the snow-storm outside, temperatures had fallen fast now and their prince was already shuddering. Shiro all the while was gathering all soft fabrics in the cave while the prince just stood awkwardly around, shifting and decidedly not looking at them.

"Is it us?", asked Keith with gritted teeth.

"W—What?", asked Lance startled and confused.

"Are we making you uncomfortable? Did you run away because your guards make you uncomfortable?", clarified Keith, concentrating on the fire. "We literally came to save you and you act like we're annoying you with that. You ran away. You're the prince. What... What reason did you have to run away? If it is us, then we can... ask for a transfer. Hunk and Matt can be your new guards, you won't have to deal with us if that's it."

"...Why would you... What?", asked Lance confused and stunned.

"Keith", growled Shiro sharply in warning.

"No", grunted Keith, glaring at Shiro in defiance while gesturing at the prince. "What do you think why he ran away, huh? Why he's so stubborn about not needing us! Because he doesn't want us here, Shiro. Remember the last princess we saved? She practically threw herself at you!"

"What? So you'd rather I'd throw myself at you?", snorted Lance cynically.

Keith blinked confused. "Well, yes, isn't that the problem?"

"...What?", asked Lance blankly.

"My prince...", started Shiro, voice wavering a little. "Maybe we should eat something."

Both Keith and Lance stared at him dumbly for a couple of moments for just how subtle his topic change had been. Still, they complied. Keith got the provisions out they had taken along and the three of them gathered around the fire, sharing bread, water and cheese in awkward silence.

"I prepared a sleeping space for us", offered Shiro as they finished their meal. "It's... going to be a cold night. It would be best for us to share heat during the night."

"H—Heat?", sputtered Lance red-cheeks.

"Yes. Body-heat", grunted Keith and rolled his eyes. "Because if you freeze to death during our watch, the king will have our heads. Just... settle in. We'll join you in a moment."

Lance frowned at Keith. Why was Keith being so weird? Sure, he was always kind of weird, but this was a whole new level. While Lance slowly got comfortable in the soft fabrics, he watched out of the corner of his eyes how the two knights undressed. Well, they got out of their armors at least. Lance's cheeks flushed once more and he settled down, closing his eyes and deciding to pretend he was already asleep. Maybe they could just not have any more awkward conversations.

"Why is he so... so... him?", muttered Keith frustrated as the two knights sat down next to the supposedly sleeping prince. "He's been so awkward around us for weeks now. I thought if we'd save him, we'd get back onto his good side, or something. I thought..."

"You did think he'd throw himself at you", snorted Shiro fondly, gently brushing Lance's hair out of the prince's face. "Honestly, even I was expecting it a bit. Maybe you are right. Maybe we should assign Hunk and Matt to be his guards. Clearly, we have been overstepping and making him too uncomfortable around us. He never used to react these ways around us. He used to be happy to see us. Now he was so... frustrated. Perhaps you and I have done a bad job at hiding our feelings for him. Perhaps it is time to step back. Even though you and I both want to stay the ones protecting him. But we know we can trust Matt and Hunk with our prince."

"But he's our prince, Shiro", hissed Keith angrily. "Ours!"

Lance frowned confused. Theirs? Not just their prince? They were hiding their feelings? For him? He had no idea what that whole conversation even meant. Frown morphing into a glare, he sat up suddenly, startling both knights. He blinked as he looked from one to the other.

"What feelings?", asked Lance sharply, still looking from one to the other.

"...Did you seriously fake sleeping?", asked Keith stunned.

"What feelings?", repeated Lance again, still staring at them intensely.

"My prince", started Shiro, looking down at his hands shamefully. "I know it is highly inappropriate and it was not our place to look at you that way, yet over the past months of being assigned your personal guards, we... We have developed desires for you that go far beyond what a knight should feel for their prince. And if our feelings for you made you uncomfortable-"

"Are you... serious?", interrupted Lance stunned, staring doe-eyed from one to the other. "B—But you two have each other. You don't need a spoiled brat."

"You're not a spoiled brat. You're a prince who plays with the villagers' children in the apple orchids and who milked a cow himself to bring his sick sister a glass of warm milk when the cook was feeling unwell himself. You're the prince who helped his sister hide her weird pet-mice from the governess when you were children. You're kind and caring and sweet and beautiful", listed Keith, sounding utterly frustrated. "We do. We don't just want you, we do need you."

Lance blinked slowly as he stared at the normally emotionally constipated knight with wide eyes. Keith didn't say stuff like that. Keith would never say stuff like that without meaning them. That meant that Keith liked Lance and also that Shiro liked Lance. Lance returned to looking wide-eyed from one knight to the other. His knights... liked him. He couldn't help but start laughing.

"T—This is ridiculous", gasped Lance breathlessly. "I—I ran away because you hid your feelings so well! I ran away because I was having feelings for you a—and thought... thought that you two were together and happy and I was... unnecessary. I wanted some distance, to get... over this."

"...Really?", asked Keith stunned. "But..."

Lance, calmed down now, slowly licked his lips and ducked his head. "I... really like you two a lot and seeing the two of you kiss behind the barn always makes me feel... jealous. Excluded. And that's stupid and selfish, so I thought it was best to... get away for at least a little while."

"Can... I be bold, my prince?", asked Shiro, holding his breath.

"Su—ure", nodded Lance, eagerly watching Shiro.

Shiro grasped him by the neck and pulled him into a brief kiss. "May I propose that you... and I and Keith... that we... share this love. Together. Behind the barn and in your chambers."

"Uhu. Yeah. That... That sounds awesome", nodded Lance lamely, too stunned for more words.

Keith grunted in agreement and pulled Lance down into a kiss of their own. The prince was shuddering in Keith's arms and Keith knew it wasn't just his kissing skills. As they parted, Keith safely tucked Lance between himself and Shiro for warmth and together, they settled down for the night, falling asleep curled together and happy.

~*~ The End ~*~

Author's note: Part of my Advent Calendar Project, where I took Christmas/winter-themed prompts on my tumblr (takaraphoenix)!

This is a special one because it was a birthday request - happy birthday, MFlow, I hope you enjoyed it and that you have a wonderful day today ;3