The Ghost (A Voltron Fanfic)

Chapter Three

Keith shook his head again, moving to get up. Lance grabbed him, pulling into his arms. "Keith," he whispered, rubbing the shaking boy's arm. "You can talk to me. Who's going to get you? The witch?" Keith nodded. "It's okay," Lance continued, kissing his temple. "I'm going to protect you." Keith nodded again, getting up and off the bed.

"I've gotta go," Keith whispered, rubbing his eyes. "I'm coming back here after lunch to try and rest, though."

Lance nodded. "I'll be here."

**********

The training equipment wasn't easy to clean, but only a washcloth and spray was needed.  It took maybe thirty exhausting minutes to pull out everything, and Keith nearly collapsed when he finished the first step. He had just started spraying down the gladiator before the lights started flickering in the training room. The air grew cold on his sweaty skin as he looked around, paranoia setting in further. Biting his lip and shaking, Keith dropped the spray bottle on the mats before pressing himself into the corner of the room.

The lights flickered off. A figure stood on the other side of the room as the lights came back on. The lights dimmed, the lights no longer glaring, but made Keith panic.

"Please," he whispered, gripping the walls he pressed against. "Please leave me alone."

Darkness. Then light. The figure was closer, now standing near the center of the room. Keith could almost make out the features in the light. It was a tall, thin and stick-like figure. Keith felt tears fall from his eyes as he watched the creature closely. A sharp crack echoed through the room as what Keith figured was the head snapped into a tilt. Keith screamed as the lights shut off, the sound ripping from his throat as he sunk to his knees and pressed himself into the corner as much as he could.

He closed his eyes, turning and pressing his face into the mat hanging on the wall. His scream died with the lack of breathe, losing consciousness until hands gripped his biceps. He pushed off, sobbing.

"KEITH," Shiro yelled, lightly shaking him. Keith opened his eyes, letting out a loud sob as he pushed off the ground and hugged him. "Hey, it's okay," he said, standing up and lifting Keith with him. He hugged back. "It's okay, what's happening in here?"

Keith shook his head and pushed away, wrapped his arms around himself. He shook terribly and looked around, eyes darting around the room. "N-nothing," Keith hiccuped, his throat hurting. "Can I- Can I do this tomorrow?"

Shiro nodded. "Um, yeah," he said, worry all over his face. "Hey, uh, I'm sorry for getting so upset. You're obviously not doing to well." He gestured to Keith's weak state.

"O-okay, thanks," Keith muttered, still looking around at the room. "Um, could you walk me to Lance's room?

Another nod. Then a guiding hand. "Do you want to tell me what's going on?"

"It's the witch," Keith explained, breathing heavily and sniffling. "She's, uh, the ibu menyeramkan, it's haunting me."

Shiro looked skeptical. "Uh, okay? Are you sure?" Keith nodded. "Well, we discussed it, me, Allura, and Coran did, and we came to the conclusion that she might have just somehow gotten you somehow with a hallucination drug. Would this make sense?"

Keith sighed in relief. "That would make everything better," he said. "Is there something to reverse its effects?"

"We still haven't found- Keith, Keith! KEITH," Shiro yelled, diving forward but unable to catch him in time as he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

**********

The yelling startled Lance, making him jump to his feet and rush out his bedroom door. "Oh my god," he muttered as he dropped to his knees to Keith, checking his breathing while Shiro checked his pulse. "He's breathing but its so shallow."

"Faint pulse, shallow breathing," Shiro noted. "Have you noticed anything out of the ordinary recently?"

Lance nodded. "Um, he had a really bad night terror last night," he recalled. "He hasn't been getting much sleep lately, even before the witch."

Shiro nodded. "Okay," he said. He rolled Keith onto his back. "Help me lift him, we'll put him on your bed."

Keith was light, easy for the two to carry to Lance's bed close by. Lance sat on the bed next to Keith, worried. Shiro left, muttering about hallucinogens, definitely not making Lance feel better. He ran his hand through his boyfriend's hair, not knowing if he was trying to sooth himself or the unconscious Keith.

It was a few moments before he sat back at his desk, working on an email to his family, and a few moments more before the lights started flickering. Lance sighed, getting up and making his way to the door, yelling out it. "Hey!" He started. "Lights are flickering down my hall!" He didn't wait for an answer, but went back to his desk, not minding the slowly dimming lights.

Lance jumped as Keith shot up into a sitting position, gasping and feeling around. "Lance," he breathed, choking back a sob. "Lance!"

Grabbing his arms, Lance hurriedly sat on the bed, letting Keith know he was there. "Keith, I'm right here. Can't you-"

"No," Keith whispered, gripping Lance's shirt. "I can't see. Everything is dark. She's in here, I know she's in here."

Lance pulled him in close, hugging him. "Why can't you see? What happened?"

"I had this- I had this dream where she stabbed out my eyes- just before I woke up, shes," Keith took in a deep, shaky breath. "I can't- I can't take this anymore-"

Lance pulled his boyfriend back, gripping him by the shoulders and scaring him. The lights brightened. "Hey, no," Lance said sternly. "That's not how it works. We're sticking through this, okay?" Keith nodded. Lance could see him clearly. "Oh my god... Keith, your eyes..."

Keith looked up at him, but couldn't see him. His eyes were only white, no pupils, no iris, only white. "Wha-what does it look like?"

"There's nothing but white," Lance muttered, holding him. "Come on, we're going to talk to the other's about this."

Keith nodded, following Lance in standing up. "Can I get something to eat too?"