Space boy

Pilots

"Any luck you two?"

Coran called through the comms as the red lion steered through the vast space, it was empty, lonely in fact with a few stray asteroids or the occasional pile of space junk.

Keith and Y/N were silent, neither one ready to admit their shortcoming, Shiro was nowhere to be found. Not a trace, not a hair or even a paladin suit.

Y/N bit the inside of her cheeks before announcing quietly, fiddling with the skin of her fingers attentively.

"There's nothing out here, Coran"

The altean male sighed deeply and spoke a word of encouragement to the two(to which they half-heartedly listened to).

"We're coming home" Keith spoke before closing the comms abruptly, turning the mechanical lion around and giving out his downtrodden sigh.

Red cruised in the sky whilst Y/N looked down at the holo-pad in her hands before marking off a few coordinates, shaking her head quietly and muttering to herself about new coordinates.

A bubbling feeling of gloom settled uncomfortably in the pit of her stomach whilst Keith gripped the controller till his knuckles turned white, driving steady and skillfully.

They'd been in the sky for a couple of hours with no trace of Shiro at all, though their mood had dampened significantly there was still hope welling up within them.

E/C eyes scanned the perimeter as far as her vision would allow, entertaining her teeth with her already nervously bitten bottom lip.

If only she could have a lion or any form of a mechanical animal to search as far and fast for Shiro as she would like, the impending sense of doubt weighed on her chest whilst Y/N stared, frustratedly thinking about her inability to be significant.

Y/N felt, pathetic.

"Y/N?"

Her eyes shot up at Keith's voice staring at the back of his chair.

"You're crying"

It was only then that Y/N released the pearls of tears tumbling down her cheeks and soaking into the fabric of her clothes.

They felt cold on her face and searing hot in her eyes, she moved to brush them away but Keith was quicker.

His cool palm held her chin gently as his thumb caught her tears, a small sob erupted from her lips as the bubbling feeling began to boil mercilessly and flooded her feelings.

"Keith we didn't find him, we've not found him and where else could he be!"

Hitched breaths filled the air as she buried her head in her hands and cried, the tears pooling in the crevices of her fingers.

"Shiro believed in me through everything and I can't even help him when he's gonna need my help the most!"

Y/N harshly brushed away the overflowing rivers.

"I can't pilot, the crystal I'm supposed to be able to use I can barely control so what am I supposed to do?! I feel so useless and he would be so disappointed!"

The young altean broke down again in choked sobs and small hiccups that left her feeling even more miserable.

"Hey, hey Y/N it's alright. Ok?" Keith soothed, usually gruff and snappy voice calm and collected whilst his best friend cried in her arms.

The paladin knelt at her seated height before Y/N leant her face into his shoulder, droplets making their mark on his attire.

"You're doing everything you can to help get Shiro back, alright?"