Shiro Angst || Voltron One Shots

aftermath [part 1]

It was quiet in the Black Lion. 

A silence hung over the coms like a weight. The seat Allura once was was bare. No one had the heart to fly Blue. So the lion flew itself, it's flight not nearly as graceful as it once was. 

"So, what happens now?" Keith broke the silence in the cockpit. Shiro looked up at Keith in the driver's seat, his eyes trained forward. Although his expression remained guarded, Keith's hands shook violently on the controls.

"I... I don't know. Right now we just need to get back home."

Keith nodded weakly.

Shiro took a deep breath turned on the com, "Okay team, set a course for Earth. We should arrive in about three hours." 

"Roger that," Pidge said half-heartedly after a moment. 

"Got it," Hunk responded after her. 

It was quiet for a second. Shiro looked back at the Red Lion, which was flying on the back of the pack.

"Lance? Lance, do you copy?"

"Yeah sorry Shiro, I hear you. I just-" he stopped. Shiro could hear him suppress a sob on the other end. "I'm sorry I-"

"No, no Lance, we get it. She was important to all of us." 

The team murmured in agreement. 

Shiro shut off the com again and turned his attention to Keith. The boy had been silent during the whole exchange. He straightened himself and put his hand on Keith's shoulder. 

"Is everything okay? You've been a bit quiet." 

Keith turned to him and Shiro was taken aback. Tears glistened around the rims of his eyes, a threatened to spill over any second. 

"Hey-hey. Keith. It's going to be okay." Shiro's voice softened as he put his arms around the young man.

Keith's shoulders shudder as he cried softly into Shiro's chest. 

"Th-this is all my fault,"

Shiro's eyes widened. "What do you mean? It was Allura's choice, this was her sacrifice. How could it have-" 

"It sh-should've been me."

Shiro broke away from the hug to look Keith in the eye. 

"It should've been me!" Keith continued, louder this time. "She had a future, a people to protect, a purpose! And I just..don't" 

Shiro opened his mouth to say something, but Keith rambled on.

"It's just..she and Lance had such a good thing going** and now he's miserable and if I had done it everyone would still have a chance to be happy. I-"

He was sobbing now, shaking violently from head to toe. 

This time Shiro cut him off. "Keith. Don't. you. ever. say something like that again. You are just as much a part of this team as Allura or anyone else, and she died so we could all have a second chance to live our lives. This was not your fault."

This stopped Keith. The cockpit was quiet again, as the two looked at each other. 

The ache in Shiro's chest grew as he watched the tears stream down his younger brother's face. Keith tried to wipe his eyes but failed miserably. 

They both chuckled a bit at his attempt. Shiro pulled Keith up from his seat and guided him towards a mat on the floor. 

Keith resisted when Shiro gestured to the mat, but Shiro wasn't having it.

"You need rest, this has taken a toll on all of us. I'll wake you up when we reach Earth." 

Finally Keith nodded and curled up on the mat. Shiro smiled a little- satisfied, and headed back  to the front of the cockpit to keep watch. 

Suddenly, the Black Lion lurched backward and the controls flickered out. 

"Guys..?" Hunk called out on the com. "What's happening? Are you gu-- I can't- aHHH-"

Keith moaned from the floor but didn't wake up.

"Hunk? HUNK!" Shiro frantically tried to reboot the lion's com. "Hunk do you copy? Anyone?!"

To be continued

Authors note:  under editing rn.  also this is set after the season 8 finale if you couldn't tell. the next part is coming sooooon 

**canonically not really lol, but psfhfsh