Chapter Text
The sunsets over Olkarion's vast, dense forests had always struck a chord within Keith.
The young man stood on a large terrace and stared out at the panoramic view, breathing in the refreshing scents and basking in the sunlight. Unlinke Earth's sunsets, those on Olkarion lasted much longer, even up to an hour depending on the season. Keith could just stand there and watch the beautiful world unravel in front of him for hours on end. This tranquility was still so appealing to him - even after two years with no one but Krolia and Yorak, his cosmic wolf.
Still, he had some things to do yet, before the day came to an end. He had been training for hours, then talked with Kolivan about the Quantum Abyss, and learned he still had to prepare an actual, formal report. He should see how Yorak was doing and of course help the Olkari in whichever way he could.
With a soft sigh followed by a small smile Keith willed himself to move. Making plans for the rest of the day, he directed his steps towards his temporary suite. He had already showered after the training but the weather was so hot he wished to visit the baths once again before doing anything else. He could work on that report for a while, but that was the biggest concession he was going to afford.
The Olkari he passed by smiled and waved at him, the few Blades temporarily stationed on the planet or replenishing their suppiles while on their way to other locations inclined their heads. He thought about how a couple of years ago he would have ducked his head and tried to disappear from their sight to sulk in solitude. These days he understood his role so much better, knew how important his actions - and person itself - were. And he was fine with it, however odd it seemed.
'I guess I really have matured,' he murmured to himself, a small smile tugging at his lips. Finally, he was becoming the person he was meant to be. Wanted to be.
After a short while he found himself in his suite. It consisted of a few rooms - a bedroom, a small bathroom, a sitting room, an office, and one more room for some basic physical exercises - making him feel misplaced. He was a warrior, a Paladin, a spy - not some star who needed this kind of space. Not that he was going to complain. It felt too big and empty but it was his - at least for the time being. He could sit there and think and not feel out of place.
Keith looked round the suite and took a deep breath. After freeing himself from his armour, he entered the small office and sat at the desk, ready to fill in the report. His fingers skimmed over the smooth surface of the screen with some sporadic breaks when he got lost in his memories.
Overthinking things had always been his forte - his family situation, his stay in the home, Shiro's wording, Shiro's smiles and gestures, his constant support and belief and warmth, and...
Keith's fingers froze above the screen. He needed to stop. Thinking had never been so exhausting before for some reason. His body had been tired and sore since the training but had his emotions been taxed too? When?
'Enough is enough,' he told himself. 'You need to know when to stop.' Wow. When exactly had this happened? Shiro would be proud, wouldn't he?
He slowly, deliberately pushed himself away from the desk, forcing his thoughts in a different direction. He really needed to go to the baths, calm his mind, refresh his body. He was tired and his mind always betrayed him in times like this.
Keith grabbed a fresh tank top and a towel before heading off towards the baths. He tried very hard but couldn't get rid of this persistent hollow and lancinating feeling within his chest. He didn't even know why he felt this way, he hadn't been hurt, hadn't suffered from any injury - physical or mental. He shook his head and focused on staring at his feet.
Eventually, Keith entered the changing room and quickly stripped to his underwear. He looked around, trying to gauge how many people he could expect to accompany him. To his surprise, he found only one taken shelf. Perhaps the Olkari were still working or something.
Not wasting any more time, he walked into the adjacent chamber. Many gleaming pools filled with slightly iridescent water came into his view and he couldn't help a soft smile blooming on his lips. The room in general was dark, there were no lights overhead, and the pools gave off a magical aura. The Olkari had already started to integrate the room with their beloved nature and some technology-infused plants littered the ground beneath his feet. There wasn't a single thing capable of making him choose his suite's bathroom over this miracle.
Suddenly remembering the other set of clothing, he searched for his companion. And as he quickly learned, he had already been spotted.
Keith's heart skipped a beat and his brain shut off when Shiro gave him a soft smile. He slowly walked over to the other man's pool, desperately trying to memorise the sight before him. Shiro had chosen the one with turquoise glow, not exactly on the border but not in the centre either. It was a peaceful, beautiful spot.
And Shiro, despite having been dead, resided in the Black Lion as a spirit and been transferred into someone else's barely living body, looked more beautiful than anything Keith had ever laid his eyes on. The white hair made him look even more ethereal - especially in this place.
'Hey, Shiro,' Keith said softly, stopping just at the edge of the pool. Thank God for the additional two years and a somewhat more stable voice.
'Hello, Keith.' There it was, that wide, warm smile that melted Keith's insides. He didn't even care that those were the very same words the clone - or Kuron, as Shiro called him - had said to him in that wicked facility. All that mattered was that Shiro was safe and sound.
'Mind if I join you?'
Shiro moved a little, signalling his approval. Once in the water, Keith allowed himself to study the other man's face for a moment. He still looked weary but in fact was in good condition. The body was healthy, just suddenly lost all connection to Haggar and, consequently, its driving power. But now it was Shiro's and Shiro's alone and he was making sure to care for it properly.
'How are you feeling?' Keith asked before he could stop himself. He didn't care if he came across as overprotective, as long as Shiro told him the truth.
The Black Paladin shrugged. 'For the most part, I'm just bored. I used to be so active and now I do nothing all day long. In the astral plane I could at least watch the others, now it's just me and my suite. I appreciate the rest, and I know I need it, but having an opportunity to take things off my mind would be really welcome.'
Keith stifled a relieved sigh at the notion of Shiro getting his much-needed rest for once.
'Yeah, resting and not getting beaten up is the worst, ugh.' Keith wrinkled his nose, earning a quiet chuckle from Shiro. 'No, seriously. How can anyone think that doing nothing by a man who has gone through hell and back is any good? Idiots.'
Shiro laughed. 'Okay, I get it. I'm supposed to lie in bed, wrapped tightly in a thick, fluffy blanket and sleeping on end. So I shouldn't consider you to be my ally.'
'Nope. At least not until those dark circles under your eyes disappear and your complexion goes back to normal from that ghostly paleness. Then you can present me with your offer.'
'Fair enough. I'll start listing the benefits.'
It was stupid but they both ended up laughing anyway. Although they probably needed just that, needed to release the tension, fear and stress of the last couple of months - if not even longer.
And Jesus, how beautiful did Shiro look with his eyes half-open, tiny wrinkles in their corners, carefree laughter escaping from his perfect lips. No music had ever sounded so sweet to Keith's ears. That's what he had missed the most for so long - those wonderful moments of familiarity and intimacy with the Japanese pilot. Something he had had before the disaster of the Kerberos mission, before the alleged "pilot error", before Voltron, Blade of Marmora and every other insanity that changed everything.
Eventually, they calmed down and Keith watched as Shiro rested his head on the edge of the tub. He was looking at the vault with a soft smile touching his lips. Keith followed his gaze and saw tiny dots littering the surface, mirroring stars. Knowing the Olkari, it was probably an accurate map of the universe. The younger man smiled, thinking about the highly intelligent race. If he had to choose a foreign planet to live out his days, it would probably be this one.
'How's Yorak?' The question came suddenly, jarring Keith out of his reverie. He looked to the side to see the Black Paladin watching him with interest.
'He's... fine, I think.' Keith frowned. 'I haven't seen him since morning. He must be with Krolia, probably getting ready to jump onto me as soon as I get within his range.'
Shiro snorted, seeing the look on his face. 'I think it's cute.'
'Of course you do. He isn't jumping on you. Not yet anyway.'
That seemed to worry Shiro a little bit but he still sported that damn, wide and gorgeous smile that set Keith's heart on fire. And he couldn't remain unaffected. His own face split in a stupid grin.
'He's great. I'm so happy we found him.'
'You seem to be attached to him,' Shiro noticed.
'Well, he was one of the only two beings I've been able to see and interact with for two years. And we've had him since he was a pup so that helps too.'
'Yeah.' Suddenly, Shiro seemed lost in thought, somewhat wistful. Keith wondered what had he said wrong and then the realisation of what the problem was came to him in a flash. Shiro probably blamed himself for Keith's situation. They both knew there wasn't another way and yet this wonderful man, too good for this world, was still yearning to find the perfect means. 'Why Yoark?' Shiro asked before Keith could find the proper words, startling him.
'Oh. Uh, Krolia wanted to name me this but my father proposed Keith and Keith it was. I wanted to... I don't know, honour them, I guess? They had gone through a lot and were forced to do things they didn't want.'
Shiro was looking at him with deep sadness in his eyes. How could a man look so rueful and so beautiful at the same time? 'I'm sorry, Keith.'
'Don't be.' Keith smiled and tilted his head to one side. 'If it hadn't happened, I wouldn't be who I am, and I wouldn't be here now. I have no regrets, Shiro.'
The corner of Shiro's mouth lifted and his eyes lit up. It was painfully obvious how relieved and happy he was at this little admission. Keith felt a sudden sharp twinge in his chest. The Japanese had gone through so much pain, so much suffering and atrocities, and yet he remained so painfully considerate, focused on everyone but himself. Keith wanted to be the one to take care of him. Desperately.
'So two years, huh? How does it feel, being twenty-plus? You're almost as old as me now,' Shiro chuckled but Keith knew he was slightly unsettled. Whether by the fact alone or his absence during that time, Keith didn't know.
'It's still five years, old man,' Keith smirked and raised an eyebrow.
'"Old man"?' Shiro echoed, his eyes wide, his mouth hanging open. He pressed his left hand to his chest, above his heart. 'Ow. Why are you, kids, so cruel these days?'
'I'm not cruel, Mr. Shirogane,' Keith opposed in a sweet voice. 'I'm just being honest. After all, you're a silver fox now.'
An adorable look of surprise and abashment crossed Shiro's handsome face. The older man murmured softly under his breath and ran his hand through his white hair, his cheeks and neck colouring.
'Don't worry, Shiro, it looks fine.'
The Japanese winced. 'Even my eyebrows...'
'I like it,' Keith said casually, shrugging. 'It suits you. Besides, you really are shiro now.'
The younger man watched as the Black Paladin's shoulders relaxed at that. Even his gaze softened. 'You have a nice accent,' he noticed.
'Uh, um.' Keith's cheeks reddened as he diverted his gaze and fidgeted with his gloveless hands. The scar on his face turned darker, standing out even more. Shiro still didn't know how to feel about it. He hadn't hurt Keith, he was dead at the time - but Kuron did. And he was Shiro too. Well, one of them. But Kuron felt more like himself now. It was so confusing and getting even more so with each passing day. Had they been two different people or the same one? 'I had actually been preparing some speech for your return after Kerberos,' Keith admitted, interrupting the Japanese's train of thought. 'And I wanted to deliver some of it in your mother tongue. So I trained a little bit, took some lessons.'
When Keith raised his gaze, Shiro was staring at him with wide eyes. 'Keith... You decided to learn a new language for me?'
'Don't get ahead of yourself,' Keith scolded but his blush spread onto his neck as well. 'I can say only a few sentences and your name. Perhaps I remember a bunch of words, too. But that's it. It's not a whole language, don't flatter yourself.'
Shiro chuckled slightly nervously and nodded. He kept glancing at Keith's face.
'What? What are you looking at?' the younger man asked, his fingers brushing his jawline self-consciously. He almost missed the way Shiro's eyes trailed the movement.
'The scar,' the Black Paladin tilted his head. 'Does it still hurt?'
Keith's fingers slowly moved to the patch of scar tissue. 'No, not really. It does feel taut at times, sometimes itches, like when I'm right after a training and sweat gets onto it or something.' The Red Paladin shrugged. 'It hurt like hell then. Now it's fine. Makes me feel like this nightmare is over and we're all safe now.'
Except Kuron, flashed briefly in Shiro's mind but he managed a warm smile that wasn't fake at all. 'It's good to have a reminder, eh?'
Keith glanced at him and fought an inward battle with himself. Eventually, he steeled himself and looked into his friend's grey eyes. 'Like after you escaped?'
'Yeah.' Shiro's voice was soft, tone the one Keith had already learned to recognise as a sign of melancholy reflection. 'Just like that.'
Keith felt a lump forming in his throat. This pure, good man had gone through so much and yet still remained the best person in the world. Keith couldn't believe he was able to call him his friend. He couldn't believe this man changed his life - his, of all people.
And now he was making him think about the horrors of his past instead of his hopefully bright future. So he plastered a big smile onto his face and jabbed his elbow into Shiro's ribs, earning the cutest, confused look from him.
'How's things with your new, fly arm?' he asked to lighten the mood.
'We've tested it twice today and got some nice results. There's a lot of progress every day,' Shiro admitted, his mucles relaxing a little when he focused on his brand new limb.
The Olkari had designed it to look like an actual human arm but he asked them to change the design almost straight away. He didn't mean to be rude but he wasn't about to conceal everything that had happened to him. He wanted to have a proof of his experiences, of what he had survived and learnt. He still didn't know what his job would be now so in case he had to stay on Earth, he needed something to remind himself. And so the arm was Olkari of build and Altean by design. To put it simply, he loved it.
But as it turned out, the Olkari technology wasn't nearly as compatible with human physiology as they had thought. The nerves were a bit different, and their brains processed information in variant ways. So they had to run tests and diagnostics on it by establishing a temporary link with Shiro's actual body for examinations and corrections before it could be attached permanently. It wasn't exactly a quick process but it would have been impossible on Earth. It wasn't like they were going anywhere anytime soon anyway. They had time and a new arm would make Shiro even more useful than before.
'Yesterday we reached the part I don't understand anymore, so whatever they're doing now, it looks like magic,' he admitted now. 'But it's definitely working. I can feel shapes and temperatures but they want to have it process textures as well, and some more fancy stuff. Seems like I'm getting an actual proper substitute.'
'Why haven't you said anything? It's so amazing, Shiro!' Keith's eyes gleamed from excitement. 'Have they estimated when it's gonna be ready?'
Shiro rubbed his nape, grinning stupidly. 'They say everything should be done within a week, maybe two. Before the Lions get back to full efficiency for sure.'
'I can't wait,' Keith blurted out. 'We'll be able to spar again, you'll be able to pilot again, and—'
'And let's maybe start with writing, okay?' Shiro interrupted with a small laugh. 'Baby steps. It's gonna be a big change and I'll need some getting used to it. Then we can do all that crazy stuff again.'
'Oh. Yeah, sure. Of course.'
'Well, if you want more action than that,' Shiro started after seeing how Keith masked his sudden deflation. He moved closer to him to press his weight into him playfully for a moment, almost toppling him over, 'we can high five,' he finished with his most horrible grin that threatened to split his face in half.
'You know I hate high fiving,' Keith grumbled, bracing himself against Shiro and trying to topple him back, futilely.
The Japanese laughed heartily. 'I'll get you to give me one someday,' he promised.
'You already have. And my opinion stands.' Keith fought the urge to fold his arms over his chest. It was a habit of old and he didn't intend to go back that lane. Especially not with Shiro. He deserved to see him mature and changed.
For a moment they just sat like this, until Keith glanced to the side and saw Shiro watching him carefully. The look on his face caused every single atom of Keith's body to churn. He immediately looked away and up at the starry vault, feeling heat pooling all over his skin. It actually burned where their shoulders touched but he couldn't bring himself to move away. His stomach twisted and his hands started to shake minutely. Stupid, stupid body.
'You could have let me go. Save yourself. You didn't.'
It took Keith a moment to fully understand what he meant. Slowly, he turned his face to to look at the Black Paladin. Shiro was staring at him with the most serious expression he had ever seen on him. His heart skipped a beat and began pounding against his ribs.
They hadn't talked about any of this yet. He wasn't even sure if Shiro remembered anything. After all, he wasn't Kuron. But now it sounded like he might be. Was he? How much did he remember? How much would have come from him in the same situation? How would it all have ended?
How would he feel with what Keith had said and did?
Well, he was about to find out now, wasn't he? And Keith felt in his bones that it was the time they talked about everything. He took a deep breath.
'Of course,' he admitted seriously. 'I've found Krolia but you are still the most important person in my life, Shiro, my guiding light.'
Keith didn't hesitate. With his feelings surging to the forefront of his mind with a deafening roar and blinding intensity, he put his hand on Shiro's. The older man stared at it for a torturously long while before glancing up at him and back down once their eyes met. He was quiet for another long moment during which Keith's heart must have bruised his ribs and everything they were supposed to protect.
'You know he didn't want to hurt you, right, Keith?' Shiro finally spoke in a voice barely louder than whisper, which dropped even further in volume with his next words - and yet they carried so much conviction Keith felt them as actual blows. 'He loved you.'
A few excruciatingly long seconds passed before Keith managed an undignified squeak of laughter. 'What could possibly make you say that? Why would he love me?'
And again, physical blows.
'You can't have a believable Shiro without this huge part of me.'
Keith's mind went blank. He could only stare dumbly at Shiro, his mouth agape, his eyes blown wide. He was freezing and burning at the same time. He couldn't breathe. Suddenly, he realised that the Japanese had freed his remaining hand from Keith's grasp - only to tightly interlace their fingers.
Keith watched as the white-haired man glanced up at him again and once more dropped his gaze even quicker. Keith's heart was torn open by the Black Paladin's insecurity and it finally shook him out of his haze.
'Shiro, I...' Keith mumbled and broke off. Shiro still wasn't looking at him and it wrecked him. 'Takashi.' The older man looked up and found Keith so close their breaths mixed. Their eyes locked and their hearts thundered in their chests. 'I love you.'
His voice didn't break from desperation, it didn't hitch from the purest blend of anguish and hope. But never in his entire life had Keith ever uttered words so emotionally loaded.
Shiro was the first one to inch forward but they met halfway. Their eyes closed when their lips touched for the very first time, electric shocks sparking through them instantly. This chaste kiss lasted for a few seconds before they pulled away, eyes still closed.
And then pressed forward again, their restraint snapping. Shiro's lips felt searingly hot against Keith's, the taste of his breath dancing on Keith's tongue. They moved in unison, their teeth clanking, their lips bruising. At some point Shiro went as far as gently nibbling on Keith's lower lip, sending a bolt of lightning down his spine.
This kiss was sloppy, full of excessive saliva, with startling, sometimes slightly painful collisions. Utterly perfect.
Shiro broke the kiss and pressed his forehead against Keith's, trying to calm his breathing and his pounding heart. Finally he opened his eyes to find the younger man already watching him with a ridiculously wide grin plastered on his face. His beautiful, purple eyes gleamed and his reddened lips glistened with moisture. They watched each other, giggling quietly, unable to look away.
Eventually, Keith bit his lip and moved his free hand onto Shiro's nape, his thumb brushing against the short hair there. The hollow, lancinating feeling in his chest was gone.
'It's good to have you back,' he whispered, his voice quaking from the blizzard of emotions.
'It's good to be back,' came an equally shaky reply.
Using his leverage on his neck, Keith pulled Shiro close once again, already missing the taste of his lips. Shiro released his hand to wrap his arm around Keith as best he could, allowing the younger man to card his fingers through his hair. Feeling Shiro's tongue for the first time, Keith shivered and tears of joy spilled down his cheeks. Shiro chuckled into his mouth and suddenly they both were crying, their hearts beating in tandem after so many years.
There was no finesse whatsoever this time, only desperate need and love, and absolute devotion.
And it was perfectly fine because nothing in the entire universe beyond them mattered and those were just the very first moments of their shared dream coming true, at long last.