Work in Progress from my Google Drive

Through Thick and Thin (Klance V:LD au)

(DISCLAIMER: sad and UNFINISHED ending, I do like this one so I'll continue the story in a different book if y'all like it)

“Keith?” Lance asked, turning the corner and narrowly avoiding a stray Galra shot. “What, Lance?” Keith replied, sounding slightly annoyed, twisting his Malmoran blade through the armor of his opponent. “I thought this was supposed to be a scouting mission only?” Lance said, aiming at the door’s control panel that was 20 yards away. “Yeah, well-” Keith grunted as a shot glanced off his black Malmora armor. “Not anymore,” he said. Lance shot, and the door slid shut, it’s panel fried. “Heheh, that’s why they call me Sniper.” he whispered. “Uh, no one has ever called you that.” Keith replied. Lance sighed, and muted his end of the helmet comms. The mission wasn’t going according to plan. “Armor integrity, eight percent.” said the armor AI. “Stupid.” he said. He was regretting coming on the mission. He’d been sick for two days, and what had been a small headache this morning was getting worse, and he was feeling a bit hot.
(Author’s interruption: Um, yes. The armors have AIs in them. The Lions can also wormhole, and they have small living quarters, they’re bigger on the inside. I’m not going for accuracy to the show, it’s called an “Alternate Universe” for a reason.)
Keith looked at him, and took off his helmet. “You okay?” he asked. Lance looked tired, and seemed a little overheated.  “I’m fine.” came the sharp reply. Lance took off his own helmet, and looked at Keith. “What are you lookin’ at, M- Mullet Head?” he said, and glared. “Oxygen supply failure.” said the tiny voice in his helmet. Keith muttered something about armor strength and how the Paladin armor wasn’t as strong as Malmora armor, and started walking away.
Lance snickered, and stopped. *What was wrong with him?* he wondered. Following the Red Paladin, he let a small smile cross his lips. He liked the way Keith looked in his armor. Keith said something to him that he didn’t hear as his vision faded to black.

Keith looked over his shoulder in time to see Lance fall. *No!* he thought in the split second it took to catch him. Lance looked at him with half-open eyes, and closed them. Caught in Keith’s arms, and pressed to his chest, Keith felt his cheeks burn and tried to help Lance stand, but he was unconscious. “Lance, can you hear me?” he asked, with no response. “Lance?” he asked, slightly louder. Panic was starting to set in. He couldn’t do a duo mission solo. Not when this one was important to ensure the freedom of the Olkari.
Setting Lance on the floor, Keith grabbed his arm. “Status,” he said. The AI showed a holoscreen blinking red. Armor Integrity: 8%; Oxygen Feed: None; Weapon Status: Jammed;
“Tired…” Lance murmured. Keith sighed in relief, and smiled a little. “Health check.” He said, and the holoscreen changed. It showed that Lance’s temperature was 100.7. Keith frowned. No wonder Lance was out of it today, he was sick. “Idiot.” he muttered, and picked up Lance bridal style. “Red, Blue, start powering up, we’re coming your way.” he said to the Lions, and started running.
Keith got to the Lions, dodging the Galra blasts following him, and ran into Red. He set Lance on the floor, and sat in his seat. “Blue, you’re going to have to go home on your own.” he said, initiating Red’s launch sequence. Only a growl could be heard from Lance’s Lion, but she listened and left on her own. Maneuvering Red, an alert popped onto his screen. “What now?” he grumbled. They had enough power to wormhole most of the way back to the Castle of Lions, and wormholes only took like, 3 seconds, but it would take 10 hours to finish normally. Keith sighed, and hit the go ahead. He could hear the enemy firing at them, and heard the sounds of the external cannons powering up as Red flew out of the Galra cruiser. Red roared just as they wormholed. The cannons fired, and Keith was relieved when it didn’t hit them. He ran a hand through his hair, and turned around.  He now had a Lance problem.
Lance was sweating, and there was a pink tinge to his face. Checking the travel status, there were still 10 hours till they arrived. He started tending to Lance, deciding to start with the armor. Chewing the inside of his cheek, he took off the chest layer, and groaned. Lance didn’t wear a shirt under it. *This would be easier if I still thought you were annoying.* He thought, and unbuckled the layer around his legs, double checking he got the straps by his ankles. He didn’t need to think about all the times he’d forgotten to undo his own and the mishaps that had occurred afterwards. He slipped off the rest of the armor, and folded it neatly, setting it in his chair.
Next came the dilemma. He couldn’t leave Lance on the floor, he’d trip over him. Keith face palmed. He picked him up again, and carried him to his bunk, and laid him down. He had been. So close. He blushed, and went to change out of his own armor, and take a quick shower.
A couple minutes later, Lance woke up to an empty room. He bolted upright, not believing his eyes. He was in Red’s bunk. But where was his armor? He smacked his forehead. Keith must have done it. *Damn.* he thought, and felt a little embarrassed that he hadn’t worn a shirt today. He leaned back, and closed his eyes. Five minutes later, he heard Keith’s footsteps coming down the short hall leading from the cockpit to the bunk room, and looked up.
Keith was walking towards him, drying his hair with a towel, and draped it over his neck. His skin looked slick, so Lance guessed he had taken a shower. Keith stopped at the doorway, seeing Lance looking at him, and turned bright red. Keith quickly looked away, crossing an arm over his bare chest and brushed his hair out of his face. “ ‘Sup Keith?” he asked softly. Keith looked over, and crossed the room without looking at him, biting his lip. He put on a red T-shirt. He would never tell him this to his face, but Lance looked good. Lance smiled, and Keith felt his heart skip. He stared at Lance’s chest, and kept glancing up to his lips. “Ancients, help me.” he whispered. Lance looked so… delicious. *I’m gay, I’m gay, I am SO gay I know…* he thought.
Lance had propped himself up on one elbow, and was looking at him. Lance was curious. Had he seen… scars? No, it couldn’t have been scars. He’d never seen them in the showers… He mentally shrugged, devoting his attention to Keith. Lance caught Keith’s stare, and just barely heard him whisper, “Ancients.” Lance blinked, and tilted his head. Keith’s hair was messy, and his head hung back slightly. “Hmm, whatcha lookin’ at…” he started, trailing off. Keith continued to stare. “Hey, Mullet Head.” Lance was more than a little confused, “Keith?” he asked, concerned. He was still looking at Lance, who sat up. “Keith, are you… okay?” he asked, laying a hand on his shoulder. Keith let slip a small sound and covered his mouth with his hand, averting his eyes. Did he just… moan? *No, that’s not- the ever stoic Keith, moan? Well… it’s not- impossible...* Lance thought. Keith blinked a couple times, and stared at the floor, laying a hand on Lance’s and smiled. “Lance,” he whispered. “Did it hurt when you fell from heaven?”
Keith looked him in the eyes, blushing furiously, and half smiling. Lance turned bright red, and pulled his hand away with a roll of his eyes and a chuckle. “N-no.” he replied, smiling back. “But I bet I could make you sing like an angel choir.” Lance forced him back against the wall, and moved in close. “L-Lance...” he heard a hint of a whine from the smaller Paladin, and kissed him softly. Keith was surprised at how fast the other male moved, and pulled Lance closer to him, so no room separated them. Lance stroked Keith’s neck softly, and pulled away, leaving him wanting more. Keith slipped a hand behind his neck and lips met again with a crash of sparks. Lance was pleasantly surprised at how soft Keith’s lips were. When he tried to pull away from him, Lance bit his lip. Keith growled deep in his throat, and Lance backed away a step.
(Author’s interruption: Everyone knows Keith is part Galra, and NEWS FLASH nobody cares. Except Allura for like a month or two, but she got over it. They just accept it, and sorry this is late but this fanfic takes place a little bit after they defeat Zarkon. MwAhAhAHa.)
Lance grinned, and stepped closer, holding Keith’s hips. He leaned in and started to kiss his neck. Keith whimpered as Lance found his soft spot. His breathing turned ragged, and Lance was biting him softly. “We- we shouldn’t do this…” Keith murmured, and Lance looked at him with a tilted head, as if he didn’t understand. “Y-you’re sick, and…” he cut himself off, tightly closing his eyes, willing his heartbeat to slow down. Lance sighed, and nodded, even though Keith didn’t see it. He looked up, and saw the disappointment in Lance’s eyes. He picked him up bridal style and kissed him on the nose, then laid him on the bunk. Lance blushed, and laughed. Keith’s heart started to melt as he heard him laugh. It was like soft music to his ears. Unlike Hunk’s laugh, which was pretty much a bunch of discordant notes being choked from a bear’s throat. But Lance’s laugh… it had a melody to it. Keith found himself staring into space, and looked at Lance.
“How long until we get back?” Lance asked, suppressing a yawn. Keith shrugged. “I’ll go check,” he said, and turned away. Lance grabbed his arm, and he turned. “Come back?” Lance whispered, once again the tired boy he had been before. Keith hesitated. “C’mon, you know you want to.” he whispered, moving back and patting the space next to him. Keith’s cheeks tinged pink. Lance tucked an arm behind his head, and yawned. “I’ll be right back.” Keith whispered. Lance nodded, and smiled. Keith kissed his forehead, and went to the cockpit.
He went to Red’s control panel. “Open Comms to Castle,” he said. A holoscreen popped up and showed the Bridge. Allura came on screen. “Where are you, Keith? Is Lance okay? Blue said something about…” Her cheeks turned pink. Keith sighed. *Seriously, it’s not like I’m not wearing a…* His eyes widened as he realized she could see Lance’s armor on his chair. Trying not to sound panicky, and definitely trying not to turn beet red, he quickly said, “I don’t know exactly where we are, but we’re…” he checked Red’s travel status screen. “Nine hours away. And Lance is okay, just sleeping right now.” he said. Allura opened her mouth to say something more, but he closed the link. “Red, I’m going to bed. Please, whatever you do, don’t let Allura open the Comms.” he said, and left.
Lance was half awake when he got back, and smiled at Keith. “So?” Lance mumbled. “Yeah, yeah. Don’t worry.” he said, and laid down next to him. Keith sighed, and held his breath as Lance draped an arm over his chest, hand eventually grazing his belt buckle. “L-Lance-” he moaned, Lance trailed his fingertips downward ever so slightly. Keith could feel Lance’s soft, even breath on his neck, he could feel his own heart racing... He grabbed Lance’s wrist before he could go any further. Keith squeezed his eyes shut, taking a deep breath. “Lance,” he said quietly. “Hmm?” came the soft reply. “Not- not now…” he said. Lance nodded, his cheek pressed against the back of his shirt. Keith turned to face Lance. Tipping his face upwards, he kissed his forehead.
“Why not?” Lance asked, sounding both exhausted and pitiful. “Because, or else I’ll have to…” Keith paused. Lance opened his eyes halfway, and looked at him. “Have to what? Punish me?” Lance asked softly. “Y-yeah, I’ll have to… punish you.” he said, blushing. “Whatever you say, darlin’.” Lance whispered and fell asleep. Keith blushed harder, and kissed him softly, holding the other boy tightly.
A few hours later, they were woken up by the other Paladins. Pidge’s shriek was what had woken up Lance. He opened his eyes and glared at her. Shiro was staring daggers at them and tapping his foot. Coran stood dumbfounded in the doorway and was not-so-sneakily handing Allura, who was giving them two thumbs up, five grogeries. (Author’s Interruption: #ProudMom Vibes) Hunk seemed to have fainted.
Keith stirred. “What’s going on, Lance?” he mumbled. “Nothing, it’s okay.” Lance whispered back, feeling suddenly quite protective of him, and keeping an eye on Shiro who looked as if lasers were going to come out of his eyes and kill them both. He ran a hand through Keith’s hair, and stared back at all of them. “Out.” he said, and they all left, Shiro being the last one out and looking quite angry.
Keith opened his eyes, still facing Lance. “Hey.” he said. Lance looked at him. “Yeah?” he replied. Keith responded by pulling him into a kiss. Lance closed his eyes, and held him closer. Keith pulled Lance on top of him, grabbing his head and framing his face with his hands. He pulled out of the kiss, breathing heavily, and touched foreheads with Lance. Lance held Keith’s wrist, smiling at him. Keith looked around, and paled when he saw Shiro in the doorway. Lance looked at Keith, confused, and got off him.
“Keith.” Shiro said sternly, barely keeping the anger out of his voice. Keith stood up and looked at the floor. Shiro looked at Lance. “Lance. Leave.” He said, and tilted his head towards the door. Lance glanced between the angry Shiro, and the ashamed Keith, and quickly left. “Red, close.” Shiro said. Red groaned, but did as she was told.
Shiro stood in front of Keith. “Do I want to know what happened in here?” he asked. Keith didn’t answer, just awkwardly shuffling his feet. Shiro slugged him in the stomach, making him cough and stagger back a couple steps. “Answer me, Keith.” he growled, making a fist. “N-nothing happened.” Keith whispered. He received a punch in the chest, and another in the stomach. Shiro seemed to get angrier the more Keith coughed. He punched him in the jaw, and Keith saw sparks as his fist connected with his eye. “Look me in the eye when you speak. Did I really see what I just saw? Did you kiss him?!” He stopped, and knelt in front of where the other boy had fallen. Keith looked up at him, and resisted the urge to cough. “No, Shiro.” he whispered, looking at the floor. “Good.” Shiro said, rising. He kicked Keith across the room, foot squarely in the middle of his chest, and left.
Keith coughed up some blood, and wiped his mouth on the back of his hand. He slowly sat up, breath shallow, eye throbbing, and the rest of him in pain. He was grateful Shiro hadn’t pulled out his knife this time. He got up with a groan, and cleaned up the mess. He looked at his shirt, noticing the small blossoms of darker red, and sighed. He left to go to his room. When he got there he carefully pulled off his shirt, grimacing as it slid over the scrapes and bruises from his beating. Keith sat on his bed, and felt a tear slip down his cheek. He hated crying. It made him feel vulnerable and weak. He got up, and pulled a small box from the nightstand and took it into the small bathroom connected to his room. Upon opening it, there was foundation and makeup that matched his skin tone. He sighed. It wasn’t the first time he’d had to use this, which was obvious by the fact that the concealer was half gone.
There was a knock on his bedroom door just as he was finishing, and he scrambled to put the makeup away, “Who is it?” he asked, hurriedly yanking a new shirt over his head, and somehow managing not to growl in pain. “Allura.” came the reply. He gritted his teeth as he put on a black hoodie. “Coming.” he said, and went out, knowing he was about to get a talking-to for hanging up on the Princess.
Lance was in the Medical Bay getting some medicine when Shiro walked in. “Hey, Lance,” he said. *He seems a bit chipper for being angry such a short time ago.* Lance thought. He hoped Keith was alright. (A/I: Uh- sorry to break it to you Lance, but he’s not…) “Hi, Shiro.” he replied, swallowing some pills. “I… I wanted to say I’m sorry, Lance.” Shiro said. Lance nearly choked on his water, and coughed. Shiro looked concerned, and took a step forward. Lance held up a hand to show he was fine. “Do- do go on, sorry.” he said in a hoarse voice, still coughing a little. “Ah, I wanted to apologize for overreacting earlier. I was upset for no reason, and I didn’t want you to think I was mad at you.” he said. Lance nodded, and wondered what Shiro was getting at. “Uh, I was talking to Keith,” Shiro said, “and he said he wanted some space. I don’t know what it’s all about, but I’m sure he’s fine, don’t you?” he finished with a smile. Lance nodded, hiding his disappointment. *It’s ‘cause I tried to rouse him earlier, isn’t it…* he thought. “Thanks, Shiro.” he said, looking at him, and forced a smile. Shiro nodded, and left. As soon as his back was turned, Shiro smiled smugly. *Wait. If Keith wanted distance, wouldn’t he tell me himself?* Lance shook his head in confusion, and left the Med Bay to his own room.
The next time they saw each other was at supper. Lance sat across from Keith and watched him intently. Keith was unusually quiet tonight, and just pushed his food around on his plate even though Hunk’s pasta was his favorite. Lance tried to get Keith to smile by telling a joke. “Hey guys, why didn’t the clown let the mushroom join the circus?” he asked.
Pidge rolled her eyes as Hunk replied, “I dunno, why?” “Because he was too much of a fungi!” Lance said, cracking up at his own terrible joke. (Authors’ Interruption: Fungi/ Fun guy… if you don’t get it, leave. Also, I know some of you groaned as you read Lance’s awful pun. No worries. There are more in store for you guys.) There were chuckles around the table, but Keith just looked sadder. A few minutes later he stood and said he was going to bed. Lance watched him walk down the hallway with his head down, and wondered what was wrong.