When Stars Align (Shiro x Reader)[Voltron - Legendary Defender]

I.

"Where the moon river flows, the stars will sing..." your mother hums as she cradles your fractured wrist.

You sniffle, trying to be stronger. As the daughter of a healer, you've seen injuries much worse than this. But you're only seven. This is the worst pain you've ever been in, in your short life. You can already feel the bones mending, but the shock of it all--the sudden fall, the snap, the sharp burst of pain--stays. You are learning for the first time what it is to heal.

"Shhh," your mother murmurs, "Shh, sweet girl. You'll be okay."

You wake up from the dream abruptly. It's been such a long time since you've had a good dream, and not a nightmare. But you don't need to be asleep to see the fire flashing before your eyes, to hear to explosions, to see your mother's broken hand, reaching for you. You try to hold on to the good memory, but as you open your eyes to the familiar bare cell, it's hard to keep it from slipping through your fingers.

"Star-girl," the grating voice of a Galra guard draws your attention, reminding you of what woke you up. The door to your cell is open, and two guards are holding a barely-conscious gladiator between them. The guard who just spoke grins, baring sharp, yellowing teeth, "You have a patient."

You frown and stand up, murmuring, "I thought...I thought that Myzax was fighting today." The two guards move to lay the patient down on the extra cot in your cell. You're a bit startled to see how...human he looks. The second guard grins in a way that makes your blood run cold and replies, "He was. This is our new Champion." You can't hide your shock, and the guards laugh as they leave the room, smiling at the nearly-unconscious man like he's their new favorite toy. Which, you realize, he is.

As the door to your cell slides shut, you waste no time in assessing the man's injuries. He groans as you gently lift his arm to examine a deep cut. "Shhh," you murmur without thinking, "It's okay. I'm going to help you."

"Where's...Matt..." his voice is weak, and in his injured state he's doing nothing to hide his worry.

"I'm sorry," you say, quietly, as you place your hands on the wound in his arm, "I don't know anyone named Matt. The guards hardly let me out of my cell."

"Who are you?" he struggles to keep his eyes open, "Are you human?"

"You need to rest." Your voice is gentle, but firm. He doesn't listen, though, trying to pull his arm away and frantically asking, "What are you doing to me?" You don't try to reach for his arm, instead letting your hands drop to your sides. "I'm just going to heal you," you murmur, quietly. This finally makes the man pause, and you hesitantly place your hands on his shoulders, easing him back onto the cot. This time, he doesn't resist, eyelids flickering as his body suffers the effects of his injuries and pushes him towards unconsciousness.

"Rest," you say, again, and this time his eyes stay closed.

***

When the Galra guards return, you're still healing the man's injuries. "I thought you were supposed to be fast," one sneers, and you shudder. You don't know if you'll ever get used to the sound of Galran voices.

"He had fractures throughout his entire arm, several lacerations, burn wounds from Myzax's laser, two broken ribs, and multiple contusions." You respond calmly. One thing you've learned in your time on Zarkon's ship has been to stay quiet, calm, and non-confrontational. In a way, it's similar to how possums play dead to avoid predators. Something so dull, so passive, is no fun to mess around with.
The guard grunts.

"How long?"

You hesitate, wondering if you should risk lying or not. You usually do anything you can to avoid angering the Galra, but you can't remember the last time you've had a human near you. "Through the night," you respond, a slight waver in your voice, "He'll be healed by morning." The guard moves closer to you, slowly, and it takes all your self control to keep your hands placed calmly on the new Champion's hand, healing a hairline fracture in his thumb.