Disclaimer: I do not own Voltron Legendary Defender or the song Monster.
Author Note: After spending what was probably an obscene amount of time on YouTube, I came across a CMV called Monster by SkitsoFanActs. It is an awesome CMV. After watching it a few times, this story was born. Keith's appearance isn't explained as I felt it was outside of this story.
"Monster"
Keith looked at his reflection in his knife's blade. Purple ears, a yellow eye, and a face streaked with purple was reflected back at him. He grimaced and resheathed the knife. He looked like a monster. That gave him an idea. He grabbed his device and scrolled through his music player until he located the song he wanted. He pressed play and turned the volume all the way up. Unbeknownest to him, he wasn't alone in that section if the ship.
Shiro and Lance were on their way to the training deck. Shiro had pressured Lance into joining him for a training session. All of a sudden, a loud thudding rocked the floor. Shiro looked to his left. "Are we under attack?"
"I don't think so." Lance shook his head. "It sounds like a deep bass."
Then, they heard some words.
"The secret side of me
I never let you see
I keep it caged
But I can't control it
So stay away from me
The beast is ugly
I feel the rage
And I just can't hold it
"It's scratching on the walls
In the closet, in the halls
It comes awake
And I can't control it
Hiding under the bed
In my body, in my head
Why won't somebody come and save me from this?
Make it end!
"I feel it deep within,
It's just beneath the skin
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I hate what I've become
The nightmare's just begun
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
"My secret side I keep
Hid under lock and key
I keep it caged
But I can't control it
'Cause if I let him out
He'll tear me up
And break me down
Why won't somebody come and save me from this?
Make it end!
"I feel it deep within,
It's just beneath the skin
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I hate what I've become
The nightmare's just begun
I must confess that I feel like a monster
"I feel it deep within,
It's just beneath the skin
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
"It's hiding in the dark
Its teeth are razor sharp
There's no escape for me
It wants my soul,
It wants my heart
"No one can hear me scream
Maybe it's just a dream
Or maybe it's inside of me
Stop this monster!
"I feel it deep within,
It's just beneath the skin
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I hate what I've become
The nightmare's just begun
I must confess that I feel like a monster
"I feel it deep within,
It's just beneath the skin
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I'm gonna lose control
Here's something radical
I must confess that I feel like a monster
"I, I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster."
Inside Keith's room, Keith turned off his music, feeling slightly better. Maybe he'd do that again later. It felt therapeutic to sing and act out without being judged.
Knock, knock.
Keith's head turned to his door, slightly afraid of who was on the other side. Allura was avoiding him like the plague, Coran was formal with him, Pidge and Hunk were a little cautious around him, but Shiro and Lance didn't treat him any different. He didn't know why the two Paladins were still so nice to him. He did admit to himself that he had a crush on both Shiro and Lance but he couldn't admit it to either of them. It might be selfish of him, but he still wanted both of them, not just one. Keith sighed as he heard the knocking again. "Come in."
To his complete surprise, both Shiro and Lance entered his room and walked over to the half-Galra. He shrank back a little. He looked cute to both of the other Paladins. They exchanged a look before going over to their slightly frightened teammate. Shiro wrapped his arms around Keith's front. Lance wrapped his arms around Keith's back. Keith was almost convinced that this was a dream. His two crushes would never hold him in real life.
Shiro leaned over close to one of his Galra ears. "You're not a monster, Keith."
Lance craned his neck to whisper into the other ear. "We love you, Keith."
"W-w-we?" Keith stammered out.
"Yes, kitten," Shiro whispered. "Lance and I love you. We both have for a long time. I have had feelings for you since before the Kerberos mission."
"And I had a crush on you since our days at the Garrison. I covered up my crush with a fake rivalry," Lance whispered, his breath tickling Keith's fur.
Keith nuzzled into Shiro's neck, unable to voice his feelings. He still couldn't believe that they both wanted him. He felt Lance shift on his back as the slightly taller pilot repositioned himself to hug Keith's side. It felt right to be held by the Black and Blue Paladins.
When Keith nuzzled into Shiro's neck, Lance repositioned himself, so he was hugging Keith's side. He raised a hand and started carding it through the other's thick mullet. Lance thought he heard something, but it was too low to determine what is was or where it was coming from.
Shiro stared at the form of the Red Paladin as he nuzzled into his neck. He smiled as he noticed Lance was carding his fingers through Keith's mullet. He felt a rumble against his chest, and he heard a very low sound coming from Keith. He reached up with his left hand and rubbed one of Keith's Galra ears, seeing if he could get Keith to make the noise louder. Suddenly, a very content purr reached his ears. He kept rubbing the ear and looked at Lance, who had ceased carding his fingers through Keith's mullet. Shiro minutely moved his head in the direction on Keith's other ear, which was currently not being rubbed. Lance caught on to the idea their leader was conveying and started rubbing the other ear. The purr went up several notches in loudness. It was very obvious that Keith enjoyed his ears being rubbed.
Keith snuggled against Shiro and continued to purr loudly. He was enjoying the attention his boyfriends (?) were paying to him. Shiro smiled at his boyfriend as the nuzzling turned into a snuggle.
Lance also smiled at his boyfriend. He wasn't normally affectionate, but apparently, showing physical Galra traits prompted an attitude shift. Maybe he always needed the affection, and not receiving it caused his abrasive attitude? The loud purring was a tell; Lance just knew. He felt his love for this new Keith grow. He wouldn't let anyone come between him, Keith, and Shiro. They were a triad. He and Shiro had had a conversation about Keith and their feelings about him. They had also confessed their feelings about each other.
"Kitten, are you okay?" Shiro asked, still rubbing his ear.
"Yes," Keith said, the purr clearly heard in his voice. "I love you both."
"I love you and Shiro," Lance replied.
"And I love you and Lance," Shiro reconfirmed.
Keith lifted his head, looking at both Shiro and Lance, both of whom ceased rubbing Keith's ears. They wrapped their arms around the half-galra, who snaked his arms around their waists. Shiro and Lance kissed Keith on his cheeks, Lance actually kissing a spot of purple fur. It was fine and felt silky smooth to Lance. He liked the feel. Lance then stroked Keith's cheek, turned to Shiro, and kissed his cheek. Shiro smiled at his boyfriends. He kissed Lance's cheek and then gently kissed Keith on the lips. Keith was caught by surprise but still managed to kiss him back. Lance vowed, "Keith, you are our boyfriend, and we'll protect you from anyone from Iverson to Allura to Zarkon. No one will hurt you without going through us first."
Shiro grabbed Keith's head, turning it to face him. "You are our Red Paladin, our fiery teammate, our frightened kitten. We will always be here for you; anytime you need us."
Shiro and Lance started rubbing Keith's ears again, causing him to collapse into Lance and start purring again. Lance held onto Keith with one hand, while rubbing one ear. Keith was almost asleep, the ear rubbing soothing to him. He needed the attention. It brought him out of the depression he had been sinking into. Shiro noticed the state of his little boyfriend. He made a series of head movements to Lance: Lance, himself, Keith, the bed. Lance understood, and both stopped rubbing Keith's ears. Lance grabbed Keith under his arms, and Shiro picked up his legs. They carried him to the bed. Lance crawled onto the bed first, sat next to the wall, and helped Shiro maneuver Keith onto the bed. Once he was in the middle of the bed, Shiro climbed in next to him, and Lance laid down behind Keith, spooning him.
Keith snuggled into Shiro's side and Lance was lying against his back. "Thank you. I needed that. I needed you two. I'm glad you guys have my back."
Shiro smiled and kissed the top of Keith's hair. "Anytime, kitten. Anytime."
Fin