Gone and Mute

Chapter 11

Keith was distracted and giddy as he flew into the battle and it came out in how he fought. Despite having the fastest lion, his movements were slow and he lagged behind the others, nearly crashing into ships on multiple occasions. This, naturally, put Shiro on edge. He was suddenly having to cover for Hunk and Pidge as Keith pulled lazily into the ring the other four Paldins had formed.

"Keith!" Shiro snapped over the comms. The unaddressed Paladins flinched, and Keith seemed to be pulled out of whatever stupor he'd been cast into. He pushed thoughts of Lance's lips against his out of his head and directed his attention to the battle at hand.

Lance watched from where he was standing on the bridge, half watching the battle through the window, and half watching the Paladins from the cameras positioned in the lions for communication. Shiro looked annoyed and put a lot of angry strength into his actions. Pidge seemed detached and slow in hers. Hunk was freaking out, feeling like he had to cover everyone, and Allura was taking frequent hits for the team. So when a massive battleship wormholed into the area, Lance felt a wave of dread come over him. They couldn't fight it individually, but there was no way they could form Voltron like this.

Allura flew in the way of a shot and was thrown back against Hunk. Shiro flew above them to try and cover PIdge, and Keith floated on the outskirts, not knowing where to shoot. Lance watched with a deep frown before shaking Coran's arm. Coran looked at him and Lance pointed at Keith, snapping his fingers.

Thankfully, Coran got the message. "Keith?"

"Not now, Coran!" Keith snapped, frustrated.

"It's Lance."

Keith paused and turned to look at the cameras as Lance wildly signed something as fast as he could remember the movements- which was actually quite fast.

"Keith what's going on?" Shiro asked.

"It's Lance. He's... telling us to form Voltron."

"I don't think we're in the right head space-" Pidge started.

"He knows, he knows, just-" Keith watched Lance's movements closely. "He's saying we're focusing too much on an individual- whether that be ourselves or someone else... and that we need to stop focusing so much on keeping ourselves protected, but instead focus on taking down the enemy. Service before self."

"What?" Allura cried shrilly. "But that might leave us vulnerable!"

"... he says it's how he's done it."

"Just.. charge into battle with only the focus of the mission in mind?" Shiro sounded concerned.

"... yes."

"We don't have time for this!" Hunk cried, and Shiro averted his attention from Lance.

"Well, you heard him. Focus on taking down the battleship," Shiro ordered, and there were nods of confirmation as the four dove through space towards the ship.

They would admit later that they'd been so hyped up on adrenaline and panic, and concern, that they hadn't notice the transition, but by the time the battleship was destroyed, they had formed Voltron. Lance watched with a wide grin on his features and Coran clapped him on the back. They disassembled and docked their lions, and Lance went to congratulate them.

Shiro stopped the Paladins on their way to the bridge, looking at their troubled and concerned expressions. "Look, I'll do the talking to Lance. Just stay quiet."

Keith finally looked up from the floor, questioning this decision but not having time to voice his opinion, as Lance ran in just then. His smile faded when he saw their expressions, and then deteriorated to a scowl. Keith watched, a sick feeling settling in the pit of his stomach. This wasn't going to go well.

"Lance, I wanted to talk to you about what you said during the battle-"

Lance signed something curtly and Keith grimaced. "Why?" He translated quietly.

"It's self destructive."

"... what else is new."

Hunk inhaled sharply and Lance shifted.

"Look, I get you aren't a part of the team anymore-"

Lance flinched.

And Keith lost it.

"Anymore? I wasn't aware Allura was permanently replacing Lance!" Keith cried.

"I am not ready for that kind of commitment. Blue still belongs to Lance." Allura's voice was shaking.

Lance held up his hands to respond but Shiro cut him off, directing his attention to Keith. "I didn't mean it like that-"

"Well then how did you mean it?" Keith snapped.

"I just meant-"

"GUYS!" Pidge roared suddenly, effectively shutting everyone up. Lance stood behind her, a hand on her shoulder. The silence felt heavy.

"It doesn't matter," Lance whispered as loudly as he could. Keith opened his mouth to protest but Pidge's look effectively shut him up. "Shiro is right. I was always too self destructive." He coughed, pressing a hand to his chest. "Besides, I'm losing my connection with Blue, and any progress I made during training.

"I don't mind permanently stepping down, if it's the best decision."