#WHAT HAPPENED TO MY FAMILYYYYY

[three-headed-monster]

jeff skinner......playoff goal.................................i miss you king

[pixthefuckup]

golem saying conk's a good kid in minecraft virus... after we already saw the implications of what might have happened to his first child... my sweet hard headed and grumpy golem was probably trying so hard not to get attached to these two random teens (im pretty sure joll and conk are just teenagers) only to stay by their side through almost all of the movies. I LOVE FOUND FAMILYYYYY I LOVE A GRUMPY FATHER FIGURE HAVING TO TAKE IN TWO TEENS WHERE ONE'S THE DUMB ONE AND ONE'S THE SMART ONE AND THEY HAVE A DOG!!!!

[curetapwater]

Idk how to search for this (i have tried) so hey if anyone has fic recommendations for what happens immediately after Shadow first opens his eyes as shown in Shadow Generations I'm all ears. I juuuuuuust wanna see people's takes on Shadow's first ever encounter with his familyyyyy because the game cuts it off and the journal only shows us a picture!!

Shadow birth. For my health.

[le-chevalier-au-lion]

It didn't occur to me to think of Alex in this AU. Like the entire first chapter, it is basically focused on Rosquez. But god, the mention of a heartbroken Alex crying in silence breaks my soul into a thousand pieces. Or her parents, god, IS JULIA THERE TOO? Okay I'm crying just thinking about it. At some point has Valentino approached any of them, even if it was an accidental collision, in those 10 hours? Heartbreaking God. Okay, okay, and if Valentino doesn't want to say the number of times because it's more than Marc's, as if one of the times that Valentino had tried to stop it, Marc had woken up from the loop but didn't want to share it, either out of pettiness, revenge or because he feels that Valentino is the one who put him in that situation. And during a point he forgets about all that feeling but he has tried everything to stop the loop and he gives up, with that defeatist attitude from the first chapter.

álex's pointed absence from that first chapter and marc's mind happens for a reason but i don't want too much into it because. i'm absolutely going to weaponize that reason a little later on. really, what is did you run here? if not the chance to add those heartbreaking little details like marc's familyyyyy

and yes valentino has! at first by accident, mostly when he didn't know the full script of how the day would go and still got caught up in things. once or twice not so accidentaly, but it's decidedly not something he wants to keep doing. for his own sanity.

but like if you had to keep marc márquez from a race, wouldn't convincing álex to talk him out of it be your first choice?

and well. i shan't comment

[tenderhooked]

👻 ab Jamie if u have one!

& 💌

loved the mom city fic this week <3

wahhh thank you :') i loved writing it!

now! onto the game!!

👻 What is your wildest headcanon?

my wildest headcanon............ hm. i don't know if this classifies as 'wild' per se but i DO strongly believe that jamie is secretly a massive NERD (affectionate).

i'm sorry but you do not shout out at the actors during plays unless you are actually invested in what is happening. once he and sam become besties they bond over lord of the rings and start a two-man book club that's just them sitting on the couch and shaking each others' shoulders like LOOK AT THIS LINE. LOOK AT IT. and WHY WOULD CHARACTER SAY THIS. WHYYY for whatever the Novel Of The Month is. nerd jamie is so true to me.

💌 Is there a favorite trope you like to write?

found family. Found Family. FOUND FAMILYYYYY. also hurt/comfort but like. the most important thing in the world to me is found family. on god i will found that family in my fics.

thank you for the asks!! <3

for this ask game!

[organchordsandlightning]

times i’ve cried over MASH in the past week: 2

[gamerbearmira]

Spiderwoman au - snippet (Minor ATSP spoilers)

"Hey! who's the new guy" Mirabel yelled as she swung across the Mumbatten buildings.

"Hey Mira!" Gwen and Pavitr greeted.

"Hey, guess what he showed up and he wasn't even invited" Hobie said with his innocent ignorance.

"I'm no-" Miles tried to speak but obviously that wasn't happening.

"Oh wow, oh! you must be Miles, well let me introduce myself"!

"My name is Mirabel Madrigal and for the past 6 years I have been the Encanto's one and only Spider woman."

"I was bit by a radioactive spider."

"Being spider woman is so cool, I get to fight bad guys, help lots of people, and spend time with my familia AND lots of other cools stuff too!"

Images of Mirabel's life from when she was bitten, to fighting bad guys, to helping civilians with tasks, to her family. One little image showed Camilo, Mirabel, and Antonio hanging out. Looking truly happy, others showed Mirabel being sidelined but Mira has gotten over it a long time ago...sort of.

She knows her worth and knows that she doesn't need gift to feel appreciated. But it still hurt to know that her abuela wants her out of the way, it still hurt to know that her own sister wants her out of the way. But at least she had Dolores, Camilo, and Antonio to make things a little better.

And now that she's a part of the spider council community she no longer feels like she's alone. Pavitr is so nice and sweet, Hobie and Gwen are cool, and Miguel is...something but nice. It doesn't take spidey sense for Mira to know not to get on his bad sad.

She loves telling Dolores, Camilo, and Antonio about all the cool adventures she has and the people she's meeting. Hobie, Gwen, and Pavitr have visited her in Encanto. Antonio loves all of them and never stops asking them questions whenever they visit.

Mira has this little odd-looking spider pet, that bit her, named Pedro. She named it that because it gave her a miracle the same way Abuelo Pedro gave her family a miracle. Mirabel's world is a mixture of 1950's and futurism, kind of like this.

Mirabel saw Gwen saw Gwen wearing a jumper and was completely fascinated by it. They have sweaters in her world yes, but not hoodie sweaters and jackets.

"What is it?"

"A...hoodie?"

"....Where do I get one?"

And that's how a hoodie became part of her spider wardrobe. She's seen people, mostly news reporters/anchors comment on how odd looking it is. But she doesn't care, there comfortable and most of them are gifts from Hobie.

She finds Peter B. funny, and she absolutely loves mayday.

Life was...going good to say the least

"And-WOAH" Mirabel began to speak but what looked to be a black disk was thrown at her.

Mira and the other four looked to see a black hole that seemed coming out of nowhere. Game time.

(I tried my best, I forgot most of the movie, so yeah)

Not her being obsessed with hoodies 😭

Not but. 6 years is longer than ANYBODY on the current Miles team, even SpiderPunk 💀 but anyway. I think her and Miles would be pretty good friends. Also, her being happy with pretty much the warm siblings. F sobbing bro. LET HER BE HAPPY WITH THE FAMILYYYYY.

But her immediately help, not out of obligation of being a spider person, but also just cause is so cool.

Forgetting the whole movie is real bro 🥸 AND I LIKE THE DESIGN‼️‼️‼️ little spider friend, IM CRYING 🐓

[sparklyslug]

Hello hi Fuck You (with love) for that Wayne fic. I am full of Emotions for a Character with 3.5 seconds of screen time and and I don’t know what to do???

Also I just cannot get over Eddie “invites his uncle to have an awkward conversation on a boat and then swims to shore when it becomes too much” Munson like I love him

Also also crying screaming sobbing at Wayne for not realising he’s always treated Eddie like his son and not a “roommate” like that’s His Boy & Eddie knows it

(Oh also Wayne having gifts was such a good touch, and the blue Christmas conversation really broke my heart)

AHHHHHHHH THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOUUUUUUUUUU!! Gosh thanks so much for reading, and for such a LOVELY comment!

Eddie on that damn boat like!!! Buddy!!! What was your plan here!! Dramatic ass being like “whelp don’t like the turn this took so I guess I’m out of here,” what a totally bizarre thing to do GOD I love him. My early draft of that scene started with them at the kitchen table and I was like nah! Let’s change up the scenery here! And suddenly Eddie is in the water and I’m like oh my god what’s wrong with you.

WAYNE IS SO! SO HARD ON HIMSELF! Does not give himself and what he does nearly enough credit! A family trait. And I’m so glad the gifts stuff worked for you too! I don’t necessarily look at Wayne in canon (and his five minutes of screen time ahahahaa fuck) and go aha yes that’s a psychic person, but I think if as in canon people can just kind of have varying degrees of powers without a specific source, and if as a whole show there’s so many nods to the world of Stephen King, then Wayne can have a little bit of a shine. Just as a treat.

The Blue Christmas scene absolutely had me literally crying over my keyboard, a thing that’s only happened to me like. Twice in my whole life. Emotionssssssssssssss Eddie being told that he’s lovedddddddd auuuuuuuughhhhhhhhhh FAMILYYYYY!!

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU AGAIN!!

[aldakat31415]

I got a lot of followers now, so I figured it's time I wrote a request page.

So. Requests. I will accept personal messages for requests, those are actually easier to see than a comment section. So I would ask you to personally message me on here for your request. Please keep it simple and easy to understand. Here are a few keys.

1. "You never listen to me?!"

2. "It was all my fault.."

3. "Cheer up, there's always tomorrow."

4. "I would say that that's a horrible idea, but I've had worse."

5. "Oh fuck, I can't believe you've done this."

6. "Well.. I wouldn't say I'm surprised."

7. "Ah yes, me, my (s/o), and their 40 inch teddy bear."

8. "Welcome to the family. No (sibling/parent) I did not eat your toaster waffles!!"

9. "That's not a gift. That's called a drug addiction."

10. "I'll explain.. ok (person) will explain."

11. " I promise you, this is not what it looks like." "Ok maybe it's exactly what it looks like."

12. "It's muggy out today."

13. "So.. what brings you here tonight."

14. " It's hard to believe, but I actually met your (s/o) dressed as a party clown." "Why did I marry you.."

15. "So, two kids, a house, a dog. What more could I want in life." "I lost the baby!" "I'm getting a divorce.."

16. "Did it hurt when you fell?" "From heaven?" "No, I meant the 30 foot flight of stairs." "Ohhhh.."

17. "If pizza rolls were sentient I would leave you for one." "I would do exactly the same." "You complete me."

18. "I've killed alot of people, how could you love me?" "I've killed alot of goldfish too. They don't live that long." "B-but we were a familyyyyy!!"

19. "Lets do get help." "We are not doing get help."

20. "I've only had (s/o) for a day, but if anything were to happen to them I'd kill everyone in this room and then myself."

21. "You're an asshole." "But you love me" "only cause I'm one too."

22. "Well this is interesting.."

23. "I would say this is midly concerning, but after what I found you two doing this morning I'm not even gonna try."

24. "We're adults, we have complete control over our lives." "So once again, what are taxes?"

25. "I'm baddest thug on the streets." "This morning you were crying because you tore your teddy bear." "Thugs can have feelings."

26. "One day I'm gonna kill him and take my revenge." "Maybe you'll have that chance when you stop planning my murder out loud."

27. "Ya know what, this might as well happen."

28. " I'm so sick of your bullshit!" "You can just leave." "Ok, then I will!" "You should put on some pants before you leave!"

29. " another birthday spent all alone.." "I've been gone for five minutes." " I was lonely!!"

Alright, there you guys go, more fanfic ideas.

[much-brighter-ink]

matthew tom thomas and charles 💖

Matthew: here!! 💖

Tom: 

overall: who? / i hate them / i dislike them / kinda wanna fight them / they’re alright / i like them / i love them / *accidentally drops thousands of pictures of them* 

opinion: again, who??? / the purest bean / cinnamon roll / who knows really / sinnamon roll / the problematic fav 

otp(s): Tom x Sybil x Gwen

other ship(s): Car Husbands (Tom x Henry) and Tom x Lucy are both cute

#noromo ship(s): he had great platonic relationships with Matthew and both the surviving Crawley sisters, we stan a big brother (or little brother to Matthew but you get it), I also remember the finale hinting at him and Edith’s editor but I really just want them to be friends 

crack ship(s): Tom and Thomas had an affair and I refuse to believe otherwise (Thomas is just collecting the Downton guys-) 

fav headcanon(s): I love my bi socialist son and cling to the belief that he took Daisy to a political protest once 

----

Thomas:

overall: who? / i hate them / i dislike them / kinda wanna fight them (at my current point in rewatching) / they’re alright / i like them / i love them / *accidentally drops thousands of pictures of them*

opinion: again, who??? / the purest bean / cinnamon roll / who knows really / sinnamon roll / the problematic fav

otp(s): Thomas x Richard 

other ship(s): Thomas x Edward, Thomas x the duke (sorta), Thomas x the guy he danced with in the movie 

#noromo ship(s): Thomas and Miss Baxter (found familyyyyy), Thomas and Daisy, Thomas and Sybil, Thomas and Anna and Bates because the AU you suggested is still in my head and I am so seriously considering starting it 

crack ship(s): see Tom & Matthew

fav headcanon(s): in a modern world? He would have tumblr. He would absolutely have tumblr. 

----

Charles: 

overall: who? / i hate them / i dislike them / kinda wanna fight them / they’re alright / i like them / i love them / *accidentally drops thousands of pictures of them*

opinion: again, who??? / the purest bean / cinnamon roll / who knows really / sinnamon roll / the problematic fav

otp(s): Charles x Mary 

other ship(s): I can highkey see him with Mary’s other 2 S4 (S5?????) suitors 

#noromo ship(s): Charles and the pigs 

crack ship(s): what if after Mary dumped him (I don’t remember when that happened but-) he married Edith to spite her 

fav headcanon(s): kids absolutely love him and George was 100% team Charles 

---- 

thanks for the asks!!!

[pafs-silly-puppets]

We have watched the entire tv show!!

They HATED the the stop motion bit in Death and me and our other Puppet Obsessed Friends shared a glance (metaphorically, this was all in a discord call) and waited for their reaction to Stain (equally visceral) and then we vibed to the end credits "when you meet a business man, you must shake him by the hand~"

"That's what FAMILY means to MEEEEE, and my FAMILYYYYY" and also they had a real wtf moment when Roy spoke "yum yum yum yum"

They cringed at Warren's "song" and thoroughly enjoyed the roast session that followed "He looks like a tumor!"

They cried about the felt plants getting knocked over when the train came through the fireplace, found the Mulhoven bit really charming until the crash, then was completely silent during the subsequent bit where reality crumbled until I commented about the clump looking super Out Of Place™ in the real world and how uncomfortable Red's actor must have been walking around outside in a felt onesie

They finally understand why I love Electracy and really enjoyed them all shredding on electric guitars at the end of that song, we made a joke about Yellow finally being medicated for ADHD, they cried about the felt plants some more, gave the most VISCERAL "AAEUGGH" sound when the Big Boys came on screen, shrieked at the Steak's cameo, found the Fridge Scene™ hella fruity, and flipped at an actual human person in dhmis

Upon finishing the series, they then went down a rabbit hole of reading theories left in the YouTube comments section of the show because we are Americans™ who don't have Channel 4

Thank you for watching me drag my friend into this lovely felt hellhole! This is what happens when someone let's me infodump to them about my hyperfixations!

I was talking about the guys in a discord call with my friend last night, said friend had only ever seen Creativity way back when, so they don't have a lot of context outside of what me or our other puppet obsessed friends have said

When I started talking about Duck, they were very concerned for multiple reasons, such as:

"What do you mean he's died three times?"

"Why does he have a kill count??? Why is the duck a serial killer??"

"He's got no organs?????"

"He's rabid-" "-He also has diabetes." "HE'S-"

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE'S A ZOMBIE???"

[kellbellsparkles]

Spiraling

A Klangst and Lance sick fic one-shot I spent days working on and I’m so glad it’s finished! I hope you all enjoy it! ^^

“Lance. Laaaaaaaance.”

My head pounded. I must've hit my limit. The last thing I remember was barely making it into the training room. Ever since we got Shiro back and reunited Pidge with her brother, Matt, it'd been one heck of a party in the castle. Allura and Coran had all sorts of questions for Matt wanting to learn any information he had that could help us win the war. Shiro and Matt bonded over what their capture had done to them and were constantly shoulder to shoulder together. Pidge and Matt were catching up on precious family time missed. I wanted to feel happy for them; reuniting with family is everything I could ever dream of. That's exactly why I could hardly stand looking at them.

Matt showed Hunk how to build these little dino-like drones that blow up when they touch an enemy, their cute exterior masking their demonic motive. He also brought with him new recipes for Hunk to start crafting himself. I'd never seen his eyes flash that excitingly since he discovered how to make whipped cream with the space goo. Meanwhile, Keith showed interest in Matt's unique combat style. Even though they weren't in the same class back in the Garrison, Matt immediately recognized him from being the best pilot besides Shiro and was more than happy to take him under his wing. Of course.  

I could grieve over how I was now the eighth wheel, but every single moment, every single day, my thoughts traveled back to Keith. He just had to attract another fan to walk right past me and remind everyone how superior he was in every way. I approached Matt with classic beauty tips to restore the shine in his skin and hair that he had to have lost during his time fighting Galra with the rebellion, which he quietly nodded to as expected, but really, I couldn't handle reliving those cargo pilot years again.

I thought, what would Keith do? Heavily ironic, I know. But I was desperate to escape from the suffocating black hole I kept being pulled into. For two weeks, I waited until I heard Keith finally go to bed to take my turn in the training room; having to be checked up on by him would've been the greatest humiliation of all. I clocked in for two hours of hand-to-hand combat exercises, steadily increasing the difficulty day after day. I'd be lying if I said I made any progress. The training bots had me on my back faster than I could even make an effort to touch them. My body was littered with cuts, bruises, and scrapes and cried for relief. However, my older brother, Craig, always said, “What doesn't kill you makes you stronger.” And I would eventually learn something from this, right?

“Wake up, sleepy-head.”

I opened my eyes finally. I saw blue space ships and shooting stars circling around the ceiling light.

Wait a minute, I thought. I rubbed my eyes to do a double-take. They were the exact same shape, exact same colors as the ones in my bedroom back home. I sat up and looked down at my bedsheets: space with the galaxy swirls and the Canis Major, Cygnus, Gemini, and all the constellations that could visibly fit into the print. My eyes wandered frantically; my shelf with all my soccer ribbons and trophies, my poster of Shiro, my stuffed starter water Pokemon, my Little Mermaid wall clock, everything was the same.

“How are you feeling?”

That voice; that sweet, soothing, gentle, motherly voice. I couldn't believe it.

“Tina?” I said. “Is that really you?”

My older sister, Tina, was right there standing in front of me. There was no mistaking her long, luscious, curly brown hair and grassy green eyes. If I were a girl, I'd be looking directly in a mirror.

“Of course it's me, silly,” she said sweetly.

“B-But--” I stammered. “Me and Hunk and Pidge-- We found Shiro-- Busted him out of the Garrison-- Blue Lion-- Took us out to Kerberos-- Then through a wormhole-- Then the Galra-- Then Voltron-- Then we-- Then we--”

“Please settle down, Lance,” Tina said. “Take a deep breath.”

A lump rose in my throat; my hands were shaking madly. Was it all just a dream then? Tina patted my head. It should've calmed me right then and there, but I couldn't breathe still.

“You've been pushing yourself way too hard,” she told me. “Everyone's worried.”

“Wh-Who's we?” I asked shakily.

“Your friends,” she replied. “They've been waiting to hear what's been bothering you so they can help ensure this never happens again.”

“I don't understand-- Oww,” I held my head in my hands. It felt like Keith had thrust his knife in there after finally having had enough of me. Tina's hand lowered to my forehead, so soft and cool.

“You're really burning up,” Tina said sorrowfully. She took my shoulders gently and laid me back down. “Here. Now stay and rest until you're feeling one hundred percent better.”

“But there's so much I have to tell you!” I cried. After what felt like years, I was finally with my sister. I wanted to reach up and hug her and never let go and never leave again, but I didn't have the strength to.

“Shhshh,” she whispered. “Everything will be fine when you wake up.”

“GOOOOD MOOORNING, MCCLAAAIN FAMILYYYYY!!”

Out of nowhere, Craig, oh Craig, appeared in aviator attire, and my room morphed into the inside of a passenger airplane. Tina was still with me, holding my hand.

“And how are we today?” Craig cheered. “We've got clear skies ahead on our flight this morning accompanied with skittled dolphins mounted by duckling warriors and a guaranteed guest performance of the Woofs!”

“AIRPLANES!!”

Then little Diego, or widely known in our family and his friends as Deets, sprung in my face, flailing his arms. At that moment, whether I was aboard the castle or back home, I knew I had to be dreaming. I looked up and discovered the plane had no ceiling and indeed, there were a multitude of dolphins, dual and tri-colored making up the colors of the rainbow, being ridden by little ducklings wearing gladiator helmets. Suddenly, heavy jazz music launched its assault on my ears. I leaped from my seat, turned around, and found a pug on a drum set playing a slow, smooth rhythm, a yellow labrador on the piano, a German shepherd on the bass, and a corgi on the saxophone. They all wore black sunglasses and fedoras with the signature paw sign on them.

“Lance, look! I'm flying!!”

And to top it all off, my little sister, Luz, was giggling her butt off as she soared and spun in the sky in close proximity of the dragons.

“Luz?!” I shouted. “How did you even-- Get down from there!!”

“AIRPLANES!” Deets exclaimed again.

“And if you look down to your right,” Craig announced. “We're just passing over Bread Town, and they've graciously supplied us with all the bread fair sculptures to jolly our appetites through this plane wreck.” He presented me with the two miniature fair and ferris wheel creations, all in working order.

“Wheat or rye?” He asked me.

“Enough!” I cried, slapping the luscious-looking bread our mom could make away from me. I had some crazy dreams, but never had I felt so scared, so panicked, my heart racing faster than when I had to get a 3-D sculpture of the face of the warden of Beta Traz without getting caught. “Who's even flying the plane??”

I hauled out of my seat and ran for the cockpit. When I opened the door, it tore from the hinges and blew out into the sky, hitting one of the dolphins. It exploded into a puff of glitter and skittles. I clung onto the metal before I could meet the same fate.

“This is why you need a seat belt,” the pilot said. He emerged from the top of the seat, directly facing me.

“Slav??” I groaned. Of all people to appear next…. “What are you doing here??”

“In the fourty-seven point four percent of realities where seat belts have never been invented,” he said. “It's time to make your own with the seat belt creation kit.”

“What even is that??”

“Not that it matters now, for soon in this reality, we're going to dive deep into the mustard of sorrow.”

The plane jerked down and flung me back into my seat. We were descending faster and at a greater angle than any roller coaster I dared to board, and into mustard; so bitter and sour.

“Pull up!!” I screeched. “Somebody!!”

“Control's beyond our reach,” Craig said, suddenly floating above me. “Such has been our lives.”

“Come fly with me, big brother!” Luz sang, now riding a dolphin herself.

“AIRPLANES!!” Deets howled in harmony with the Woofs.

I turned to my sister about to plea for help in ending this madness, but she was just sitting still, smiling at me like nothing was wrong. I curled up in a ball and covered my ears. I prayed and I pleaded for it all to end, for someone to come swoop me from the chaos, but who? Who that wasn't my nonchalant siblings?

Hunk.

Pidge.

It was all coming back to me now.

Shiro.

Allura.

Coran.

Keith.

Keith….

A great force choked my heart. I lurched forward and clutched my chest. Whatever it was, my body didn't like it and made attempts to force it out my throat.

Keith?

Without thinking, I burst from my seat and reached for the sky.

“KEEEEEITH!!”

I flailed and wailed with all my might, only to be grabbed by both sides and pushed down. The action sent a shock wave of pain and spasms through my body, a sensation absent from when I was aboard the crashing plane. Could it be I was back in the real world? If so, which one? Was I back home like I had hoped for or in the castle? I tried to open my eyes, but my body went on full auto-pilot, thinking I was still trying to escape from the descent mustard of sorrow. The muffled voices writhed and scratched against me. I felt a great pressure on my legs next; I was completely immobilized. Before I could react, I felt a slight pinch in my right arm. A wave of relief flowed through my body and allowed it to sink into wherever I laid. I could finally open my eyes without panic holding them down.

There they were: from the front down, Hunk and Coran to my left and Shiro and Keith to my right. Sweat dropped from each of their bangs as they looked down at me with great worry. I never thought it'd be possible for them to be that concerned about me. Just how bad did I look to cause them such distress? I opened my mouth to speak, but a heavy spell started to force my eyes shut again. I fought it for as long as I could; there was something I needed to do first. I needed to get a good look at Keith to understand why I called out to him out of everyone else on the ship. His eyes were so focused, so gleaming, so purple.

So his Galra side was visible after all.

When feeling came back to my body next, I wondered if I had opened my eyes at all. My surroundings were almost pitch black. I felt something encircle and tickle my mouth. I reached my hand around it to feel what I thought was Allura's hair; the beautiful maiden coming around to give me mouth to mouth, but alas. It was a respirator mask. I sat up and ripped it off my face, sighing in disappointment. However, the action invoked a violent coughing fit. As I gasped for air, I discovered my voice had been tainted by an ugly rasp. I caught colds and the flu before, but out in space, we didn't know what vile specs of bacteria could contaminate our bodies and what effect they would have on humans.

Soon, the respirator was slapped back on my face and a pair of firm, half-gloved hands promptly took me by the shoulders.

“Lance!”

It was Keith. He rubbed my back as I let out a few more painful coughs. When the ordeal was over, he carefully laid me back down. I thought I had to have been dreaming still because the Keith I knew would never be careful let alone gentle.

“Don't move,” he instructed. “Or talk. Just rest.”

I had seen him pretty banged up, for instance, when he came back from the Blade of Marmora base with Shiro, but he looked like he had been flung into a violent vortex and struck by its quintessence. I squinted when I looked at his hair, not even a mullet, just a shaggy, spiky shrub that had too many radioactive fertilizers, and he had the darkest circles under his eyes I had ever seen on anyone.

“Whoa, Keith,” I said. “What big battle did I miss?”

“Nothing,” Keith growled. “Now shut it.”

“But you look horrible,” I remarked. “You should get suited up for a healing pod or something.”

“The only one here who needs a healing pod is you,” Keith snapped. “But there was a bug that kept them from working when Coran and Pidge made an attempt to update the castle technology to this time period.”

“Really?” I chuckled. “Does this mean we have space wi-fi now?”

“I don't know what that is,” Keith said, frustrated. “But you better shut your quiznak before I shut it for you.”

Man, Keith was really out of it.

“I don't think you're using that word correctly,” I teased.

“You don't understand!!” Keith yelled. “You never do!! Do I have to spell it out for you??”

If I had the energy to move my arms, I'd clap them over my ears; Keith's fiery voice had the power to make them bleed.

“Ow,” I grunted. “You're not the only one who's tired here.”

“Yeah, I'm tired! I'm tired of you thinking of yourself and not seeing how much I care about you! You didn't think I'd notice something was wrong?? You could barely stand without wobbling and your pants looked like they were going to fall down at any given time! You and your cheeky laugh when you said you were fine! I wish I could just rip out your vocal cords and strangle you with them!”

He had me by the shoulders again. I really did it this time, I thought. I closed my eyes waiting for the classic Kogane punch or choke-hold. A good ten ticks went by. Nothing. I opened my eyes to see what was taking him so long. What I saw was even worse than any glare or blow he could ever land on me.

“We almost lost you,” he sobbed grossly. “Your fever was so high and your heart rate broke the monitor. If we hadn't put you under in time….”

His tears dripped onto my chest. Crying was never good, especially if I was the one who caused it, and Keith's face was as red as the Red Lion and his shoulders quaked and heaved with each sob.

“Hey,” I said. “It's okay. It's not really worth crying over.”

“How?” Keith choked. “How can you say that? Didn't you hear what I just said?”

“Yeah,” I said. “But you? Crying over me? It's the dumbest idea for a soap opera in this whole universe. It's a worse and more unrealistic plot line than a man in his mid-twenties owning his own company. Now if it were Hunk, Pidge, Shiro, Allura, Coran, or even Matt, then it would work better.”

A few ticks went by without a word; Keith's face appeared to have softened. I smiled, thinking my lecture had worked.

“See?” I said. “I knew you'd come to your senses--”

However, the universe had a queer idea for a prank: taking Keith's hands against my cheeks and leaning in so his forehead brushed against mine.

“Just shut up,” he whispered. “And don't ever speak that nonsense again.”

I gulped. Even though I wore a respirator, my lungs stopped functioning. My heart dropped to my stomach than bounced up to my throat. Then, I felt Keith's pants brush over my legs, and there he was, smack dab on my body. He pushed himself downward and laid his head on my chest.

“Uh,” I muttered. “Keith?”

He snored lightly in response. Just great. What if I had to use the bathroom? Surely he'd kill me for getting his clothes wet or waking up to the smell of the other thing. I shook him lightly.

“Keeeeith,” I whined. But my efforts were in vain. Just how long had I been out with this hot-headed idiot watching over me? I sighed in defeat. I would've liked it more if it had been Allura or another lovely looking space lady, but for some strange reason, I'd come to like this just as much. He laid there completely still with his arms spanned over me. I used the opportunity to flatten and straighten the blaring distraction on his head. I paused; I never imagined his hair would feel so smooth and soft. I rested and intertwined my fingers in his raven locks. If that didn't wake him up, then surely my drumming heart would, but he didn't stir an inch.

I didn't know what was coming over me. I thought maybe I had a fever still. Once I got better, everything would go back to normal. However, I had a feeling that Keith would never let this go, literally, and my hunch was right. Until I was on my two feet again, he trapped me to keep me from recklessly escaping. He didn't even care if anyone was watching or if Pidge was snapping pictures of us in an obviously intimate position. I was surprised that Shiro was enabling this behavior, but after he told me that I had contracted a space version of the flu called Phlegia, I stopped protesting. I remembered he and Keith have a history and must know the reason Keith is clinging to me like a kitten.

I panicked at the thought of Keith with little kitten ears and a tail. So cute! In fact, Galra resembled cats in a way. I found myself hoping that his Galra genes would surface and give him the same features. Suddenly, I discovered that I had never thought so intensely about an individual before despite having flirted infinitely with girls for a number of years. Why Keith, a guy, of all people? I didn't know why, but if there was one thing I was sure of, I didn't want to make him cry ever again.