Lost not Broken

Chapter 1

Keith's POV

Knock.

I blinked, face down in my pillow. The overwhelming hospital scent returned as I awoke.

Knock knock.

The knocking was a little louder this time. With a snort, I pulled the covers over my head, hoping whoever it was would just go away.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!!!

"GO AWAY!" I shouted angrily.

The knocking grew louder and more repetitive. Growling, I threw the covers to the side, swinging my legs over the side of the bed. Shakily, I lowered myself to the ground, wincing at the pain that shot through my spine down into my left leg. My patience was getting shorter and shorter with every knock.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNO-

"WHAT?!" I shouted, jerking the door open. Lance lowered his now reddened hand. "Hi." He said plainly. "Oh. Hi. You need something?!" I yawned. "I just wanted to let you know the doctors said we were free to go home today. We're all cleared minus some physical therapy and prescriptions. You ready?" He smiled faintly. "Y-Yeah. Just... let me get my things. I'll meet you all in the lobby." I said, gently closing the door. I looked across the room I had called "home" for the past four months. There was a small stack of get-well cards on the bedside table, clothes scattered about, a purple hippo plush, Cosmo on the end of the unmade bed, my armor piled in a corner with my blade and bayard on top. Sometime earlier someone had left a large military-grade duffel bag for me to put my things in. I sighed, limping over to the small mirror. I looked horrible. My hair was a mess, I had that look of exhaustion and I had bandages all over. I shakily picked up my brush, flattening out my hair. Soon, it was silky and smooth again. Finishing up my morning routine, I quickly got dressed, packed up, double checking I hadn't forgotten anything. "You ready Cosmo?" I called to the cosmic wolf. He barked, jumping down to my side. I smiled, ruffling his fur.

"Keith! It's so good to see you again. Cosmo, you too." Allura smiled, giving me a light hug. "Good to see you all too." I replied. The group walked outside before realizing the same thing. "Where do we go?" Hunk frowned. "We don't have the Castle of Lions anymore, the lions themselves are too weak to move even if we used our bonds to give them energy, and it's not like we can just go back to our families." Pidge went over all our possible choices. I felt a pang of sadness. My mom had stayed for two months but eventually had to go back with Kolivan to help restore the Blade and such. I knew it was necessary, but it still hurt. My friends were all spending time with their family, and I was just sitting in my room with Cosmo.

Shut up Keith. Enough with the self pity. You've been through worse, and you've been a loner your whole life. This isn't an excuse to suddenly start needing people, idiot.

I mentally scolded myself for being so pathetic. "WAIT! I HAVE AN IDEA!" Lance started jumping up and down like some sort of insane kangaroo. "Yes, Lance?" Shiro raised an eyebrow curiously. "What if we got someone to build us a house? Except rather than it being just any house, we can have it modeled after the Castle of Lions!" Lance grinned. There was a moment of silence. "You know what... that actually doesn't sound like a bad idea!" Allura's eyes shone with excitement. "We do have the funds, after all the ceremonies and whatnot Earth and the other planets have held for us!" Coran rubbed his mustache thoughtfully. "We could even ask some of the Olkarion engineers to help out! If they wanted, of course. They'd probably work well with builders on earth." Pidge added. "But how will we get another crystal to charge the lions?" I asked. "I can ask Shay and her people if they're able to provide us another crystal. But it might be a long time, considering how rare the crystal is." Hunk said. "Alright. I agree with the house thing, but for now, we need somewhere to stay. Does anyone have any ideas?" Silence. "The Garrison might have somewhere for us to stay." Shiro finally responded. "That's a start. We'll try that." I decided. With high hopes, Voltron slowly started towards the Garrison.