𝙷𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚃𝚊𝚔𝚎𝚜 𝚃𝚒𝚖𝚎 - 𝙺𝚎𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝙺𝚘𝚐𝚊𝚗𝚎 𝚡 𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚛

Chapter Sixteen - Adventures inside the Weblum

3rd P.O.V

You awoke to the sound of snoring, your eyelids feeling much lighter than they had a few hours ago when the group had insisted you get some rest while they formulated a plan. Based on the level of noise in the room, you could assume that you'd been asleep long enough for them to have figured anything out. And, with the snoring, Hunk must've dozed off, too.

After blinking a few times, you looked down, shocked to find an all too familiar red leather jacket draped over you. Smiling slightly, you picked the jacket up and wrapped it around your shoulders before standing up and, upon spotting Keith, walked towards him, barely registering as Pidge and Lance spoke to the newly awakened Hunk.

"What did I miss?", you whispered tiredly once you had reached his side, resting your head on his arm. The boy, although momentarily stunned by your sudden appearance, smiled down at you, his hand moving to your lower back and rubbing it in circular motions as he craned his neck down slightly until he was level with your ear.

"I think Shiro's about to explain. Did you sleep alright?", you nodded, your eyes meeting his. His concern for you had always been adorable, so you couldn't help as a grin made its way onto your face, though your little conversation was quickly interrupted by Shiro.

"I think we've got something here,", he admitted, still staring at the hologram. Keith returned his gaze to it, you also deciding to take it all in, considering you had been asleep and had no clue what was going on. "It's dangerous, and there are a lot of moving parts, but if we can coordinate everything just right, then--"

"Zarkon's reign will be at an end, and the savagery that's poisoned our universe can finally be cleansed,", he glanced down at the black paladin. "You've done it, Shiro,"

"We did it together,", he held his hand out, the Galran turning his body and accepting the weird handshake as his hand went to Shiro's elbow. Your eyebrows raised in amusement, but Allura soon interrupted the moment, returning the tone of the room to serious.

"As long as we all stick to the plan, it should work,", her words didn't sit well with Kolivan, their strong dislike of each other shining through now more than before, seeing as they were now face to face, and had been for the best part of three hours.

"It will work. Perhaps, then, you'll learn that not all Galra are as bad as Zarkon,", you could tell the words struck a currently sensitive part of Keith, who had discovered his partial Galra identity only hours before. Sighing, you allowed your arms to go around his torso, frowning as his body slumped into yours; he truly was feeling defeated at the moment.

"Keith,", you said softly. He gave a small 'Yeah?', and you continued. "It doesn't matter whether you're part Galra or not, okay? You're still you, no matter what. No one cares about your race and whatnot, because we know you're nothing like some of the other Galra. And, well, if a specific someone can't see that, then screw her,"

"You can't talk about the princess like that,", he chuckled, seeming to perk up a little. You noticed the princess looking your way, so you begrudgingly slid your arms from around Keith's waist and released him, though you stayed close by his side, unsure of what was going through her head now that she knew of Keith's true identity.

"Ulaz was right to trust you all,", Antok -- who you presumed was Kolivan's right-hand man -- admitted.

"He sacrificed everything to bring us together. Let's honour him by taking down Zarkon,", Shiro's words served as a cue for Pidge, Hunk and Lance to rejoin the conversation, the trio walking back to the group.

"So what's the plan?", Hunk asked, you nodding in agreement. Though you had been asleep the whole time and probably weren't going to be allowed to play any sort of prominent role in the demise of the twisted Galran leader, you still wanted to know what sort of risks your friends would be taking, and just how dangerous this entire thing was.