The story of us (Shance Fluff Week 17/18)

Of Spaghetti and Pina Coladas (2017 DAY 8: Free day)

Back at the Garrison, Shiro had learned of the dangers of black holes. Sure, there was no chance of finding one in their solar system, but should they ever venture outside of it, it was a hazard that should be remembered.
Spagettitfication, he recalled. Every atom of your body being stretched into immeasurably long strings of matter by a gravity stronger than anything known; death in milliseconds.
Sure, he'd remembered it was over quickly, but here, floating endlessly through a mental space, Shiro was pretty sure this was what those milliseconds left like.

It was an odd experience. Shiro wasn't moving, had no momentum to move anywhere, but the stars and galaxies were smoothly edging out of sight. He wasn't even aware of his body and where it ended. For all he knew, his fingertips stretched on for infinity, and every twitch was pulled into hours. He was just floating through the endless void of space.
If he stopped to think about that, he'd probably be in a lot more panic than he ever was. Most of his time there was taken up with onslaughts of visuals that slammed into his head from the Black Lion; visuals of his team, how they didn't want to admit it but they were falling apart around him, and of Black's history and the events that had shaped it's life. At times, he wasn't even aware of his own breathing, unsure how he even could breathe in this empty void. Time didn't exist here, days only punctuated by flashes of colour from his dreams.
"You will be safe here." Black's echoing roar insisted, blunt as ever but with a concerned, worried undertone. "Rest. Heal. Your time will come again soon."
He had little choice but to believe her.

He fell backwards, and darkness overtook his closed eyes. Silence.

~

Shiro awoke to the soft rushing of waves and a solid ground below him. It was jarring, unknown compared to the feeling of endlessly floating through an abyss. Whatever he was leaning on was grainy and slipped between his fingers no matter how much he grabbed, and shifted under his shoulder blades with each movement of his arm.
He opened his eyes to a brilliant nights sky, but not like those he'd come to expect in space. If he focused hard enough, he could make out familiar constellations; Cancer, Gemini, Cassiopeia, Pegasus just peeping up from the horizon. Earth constellations.
Was he home?

Turning his head slightly, Shiro learned he was on a beach; that explained the faint whisper of waves, and the sand that wormed round his fingertips. It slipped under him when he tried to stand, legs so unused to working that they were shaky and unresponsive.

"I see you're awake." A low voice echoed, seemingly coming from everywhere but nowhere. Shiro turned rapidly on the ball of his foot frantically. "There's no need to panic, Cub, you're safe."
"Who are you?" He called back, wincing at the waver in his voice. He span back around to face the ocean once again, and was greeted by a jet black lion that had materialised into view; it was huge, with a large, yellow speckled mane, golden markings across its fur and large red wings ruffling in the faint breeze. In the starlight, it seemed to glow, knowing eyes staring him down. "Relax." It said again, although it's mouth never moved.
Shiro felt himself go lax, breathing deeply to beat the panic growing in his throat. "Where am I?" He asked slowly.
"Not where you think you are." The lion replied, monotonous and regal.
"Which is?"
"We decided your quintessence was healed enough to regain a spiritual form." The lion shifted onto all fours, slinking forwards and inclined her head for Shiro to follow. "We also decided that Blue's mindscape would be the most suitable to stage the next part of your recovery. Unfortunately, you can only be here when the Blue Paladin sleeps, for that is the only time when Blue activates her mindscape."
"I'm sorry, I don't understand." Shiro ran to catch up, falling into step next to the lion. "Mindscape? Recovery? You've lost me, I'm sorry."
Next to him, the lion gave a rumble in place of what he assumed was a laugh. "After the confrontation with my former Paladin, your quintessence was drained to dangerous levels. To avert this, we stored your remaining energy in, what I believe you humans call the 'Astral Plane'. Each lion's plane takes on a different form, suited to them and their paladin. You've seen mine." Shiro nodded numbly, incredibly familiar with the void of space he'd been in. "Blue's is the most peaceful right now. It's usually water related, but this must be somewhere personal to her cub, don't you agree?"
"What's wrong with the other ones?" He inquired curiously, frowning at the rumble the lion released again.
"Red's is always violent, even more so with her current cub. Yellow's is currently a scrapyard, apparently his cub has a habit of tinkering and inventing, and Green's is never active because her cub has never heard of sleep. None of these places are suitable for your recovery." The statement was very matter-of-fact, shutting down any questions Shiro had on the matter. It was all quite overwhelming, but the soft hush of a beach by moonlight was infinitely nicer than never-ending space.
"If this is Blue's plane, will Lance be here soon?" There was excitement present in his voice; the chance to see Lance again, to pull him close and tell him he's alive was something he hadn't considered before.
"Be patient, my cub. He will be present soon. Do you want to sit?" There were two deck chairs behind him, instantly materialising just like everything else. Shiro gingerly took a seat on the hard plastic, and waited.