A Matter of Family

Chapter Three: Good to be Back

*note to readers* Hello again! Hope you're having a great summer filled with lots of fun! Mine has been slow and somewhat uneventful, but I think things are gonna start speeding up pretty soon. I'll try to keep on posting this story every day. Speaking of which, here's the next chapter and I hope you enjoy!

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Lance, Pidge, Hunk and Allura all huddle in front of Keith's pod, watching him closely. Pidge was in the middle, with her hands on the glass to support herself as she stood on tiptoe, trying to see Keith's face better as everyone leaned in. Lance was on Pidge's left, Hunk standing quite close to him. Allura was on the other side of Pidge, looking at Keith's still face in patients, the space mice on her shoulder and watching with interest. Shiro was behind them all, his height helping him see Keith over the others. Lance tapped his foot impatiently with crossed arms as he looked at Keith anxiously.

"He's breathing, right?" Hunk suddenly asked, looking closely at Keith's very still (but breathing) form.

"Yes Hunk," Lance replied to him, "he's breathing."

"I wonder how comfortable it is in there." Pidge thought aloud, having never been in one of the healing pods before (yet again, it was probably something she shouldn't pursue or look forward to).

As time dragged on, the team soon began to wander from the pod to find some way to entertain themselves. Lance soon walked away to lean against the wall with his arms crossed across his chest, gaze cast downward. Allura sat down on the stairs and fiddled with her nails, the mice soon climbing down her shoulder and snuggling together beside her. Pidge sat on Allura's right, tenderly picking up the small pile of mice in her hands and setting them comfortably in her lab, petting each one in turn. Hunk sat down next to Pidge, while Coran (who had been standing in the sidelines) came and sat on the other side of Allura. Shiro stood patiently in front of the pod, having not moved an inch from where he had been standing.

Several minutes passed, but then, a soft beep echoed through the room. Everyone's heads perked up as they looked over to Keith's pod. Before they knew it, the glass was fading away, the compressed air inside finally escaping with a hiss. Keith's form slowly fell forward, and he was caught in Shiro's arms.

"Keith?" Shiro asked him, turning him around and setting him down on the ground and in his lap, holding his head as everyone else quickly gathered around.

Keith's closed eyes twitched slightly at the sound of his name, then fluttered open, and he looked up at Shiro, Allura, Lance, Pidge, Hunk and Coran (and the mice who had climbed back up to Allura's shoulder) with slightly tired eyes. They looked back at him, silent and unsure, waiting. Keith's brow furrowed a split second as he looked at all of them, a little confused about where he was (and why he wasn't dead). Seeing their more worried expressions though, he decided to give them a rare, teeth showing smile which showed he was quite tired still.

"Hey." he greeted, quiet and tired.

Shiro, Allura, Lance, Pidge, Hunk and Coran all took in a happy and excited gasp as they heard and saw him speak.

"KEITH!" they all exclaimed together.

They all lifted Keith up and wrapped him in one big hug, just like they had done when he left team Voltron. It felt good, and Keith couldn't help but widen his smile in having honestly missed such tender embraces.

"I thought I'd never see you guys again." He told them, remembering when he had blacked out in the moments he thought would be his last.

"You scared the livein' life out of us!" Lance scolded, squeezing Keith tighter, to which Keith had to give a small wheezing breath of air.