#pidge probably only knows to call him a kitty because lance or hunk told her his appearance

[chibi-pix]

I had come across this post with The Boulder and Toph and I had to do it, but with Pidge and Sendak. And, yes, utilizing Pidge being blind in an AU, but with a different outfit than I gave her in my MitD au series.  But. This felt perfect. Another option was using Haxus instead of Sendak, but I liked Sendak more since, in blind AU/s, Haxus is a good guy. 

Anyway, I hope y’all enjoyed this one! Until next time!

[maychorian]

Weekly Voltron Fics #32

Rules: You can find past weekly rec lists here, and non-list recs in my general fic rec tag. Also follow @maychorianrecs​ for individually tagged posts, the easier to search and reblog. This is stuff I like, and I have a huge bias toward Lance, hurt/comfort, and general fluff, in that order. Gen unless otherwise noted. Please comment on the fics if you read and enjoy them!

A Very Bland Voltron Christmas by genericfanatic Words: 1,367 Author’s Summary: The paladins go shopping for space christmas gifts at the mall. Made in honor of getting 100 followers on my sideblog blandvoltronheadcanons! My Comments: Super cute and fun little fic about the team going back to the mall.

If You Trust Me by yet_intrepid Words: 3,430 (1/?) Author’s Summary: “I’m sorry,” the young man says to her, as they slow to a walk in an empty residential street. He’s dropped her hand; Allura thinks for a moment that she misses the closeness. “I could have gotten you arrested.” “I almost got myself arrested,” Allura points out. “Your apologies are unneeded. Let me offer my thanks instead.” “No,” he insists. “You would have been in worse trouble had you been caught with me. I have—a history.” She looks down at his right arm, ending bluntly before the wrist. “You’re really a thief?” My Comments: Holy crow, I am IN to this. It’s an Aladdin fusion AU with Shiro as the leader of the group of homeless kids and Allura as the princess running away from home, and it works amazingly well. I can’t wait to see what happens next. Shallura.

Hallelujah, You’re Home by tymedfire Words: 4,542 Author’s Summary: It’s been two years. Two years since they’ve felt rain on their faces. Two years since they’ve seen their families, since they’ve spoken to their families. Two years since they really started to learn what war was. Two years since they stopped being teenagers and became soldiers. Two years since they left Earth. Three, for Shiro. But now they’re going back. They’re going home My Comments: This is wonderful, sad but very beautiful. Going home is really hard sometimes. Everyone’s support of Lance was gorgeous, especially Pidge, but everyone.

Surface Tension by Teramina Words:  8,425 Author’s Summary: Companion piece to 2x08, Shiro’s perspective + aftermath My Comments: Really well-written missing scene and alternate perspective for a very important episode. The mutual protectiveness and concern in this relationship always gets at me.

Down Time (Don’t Let Me Down) by EdgarAllenPoet Words: 2,096 (2/?) Author’s Summary:  “Hunk smiled, a tint of guilt on his face, and tightened the hose with a final tug. ‘Oh,’ he said. 'I’m winning a game of hide and seek.’” My Comments: I really like this author’s gen stuff, so of course I’m going to read their collection of prompt fills. The first one is some really cute fluff featuring Hunk and Pidge, and the second one is an angsty Shiro character study. You should probably subscribe so you don’t miss any. I did.

Hold these Shattered Pieces of My Heart by WildWolf25 Words: 6,322 Author’s Summary: Those memories seemed so far away; cozy nights holed up in a blanket fort in the living room, lit up only by the glow of the television screen, were a stark contrast from the hell he had been experiencing for the past two years. He wished he erase these past couple of years and go back to the days before the Kerberos mission, back when his biggest problem was trying to beat Katie at rock-paper-scissors to choose which Alien movie to watch first. He wished he could go back to summer barbecues and robotics team competitions and stargazing and looking for UFOs on the hill behind the house. Back when the horrors he witnessed could just be turned off with the press of a button and exchanged for a different movie. Back when he could sleep through the night without waking up in a cold sweat with a racing heart and fear running through his veins; back before a time where waking up didn’t mean the nightmare was over, only that the dream version had ended and he was stuck in one he could never wake up from. (Matt has some trouble sleeping after he’s rescued, but Shiro’s got his back. Or, front, in this case) My Comments: Can be viewed as platonic or pre-slash. This is a really sad but sweet fic, very heavy and vivid with the feelings it evokes.

Singularity by this_book_has_been_loved  Words: 29,260  Author’s Summary: AU where instead of landing in the trash nebula, Pidge finds herself on the same planet as a certain Galra prison camp. My Comments: Well-written little AU about Pidge going all-out to rescue her family and everyone else helps. Canon won’t be like this, but that’s okay. Fic is good. 

when next we meet by julesdap Words: 1,899 Author’s Summary: Hunk had told her to eat, and when Pidge had said nothing, he brought her a meal. Keith had told her to change out of her dirty paladin gear, and when Pidge had, still, said nothing, he said he would guard Matt closely while she left to change. Shiro had told her to rest, and without waiting for a response, offered to watch Matt while she napped, promising to wake her as soon as Matt did. Lance had told her, simply, that Matt would be alright soon, but also that he understood how it felt, to worry all the time for your family. All in all, Pidge was grateful. My Comments: Lovely and poignant fic about Pidge finding Matt and all the healing and adjustment that needs to be done. Everyone was delightfully supportive, and there’s a Shiro/Matt kiss, if you’re into that, but the focus is on Pidge and her brother.

Soft Kitty, Warm Kitty by Ford_Ye_Fiji Words: 1,534 Author’s Summary: When the Galra attack unexpectedly, Keith is incapacitated. The Red Lion has to take some drastic measures due to the absence of the other Paladins. My Comments: Red is Keith’s adoptive mama, and she is FIERCE about it. Fun fic.

if you’ll be my stars, then i’ll be your sky by Lobo_Loca Words: 10,910 (2/?) Author’s Summary: [“Road trip!” Lance exclaimed. Shiro sighed. “We are going on interplanetary reconnaissance and diplomatic missions, Lance. It may seem a bit scenic, but it’s not a road trip.”“I don’t know,” Hunk chimed in. “Dubiously edible food, extended periods of time in confined vehicles, strange places with stranger people, sleeping in vehicles instead of local establishments because who knows what happened in those beds: sounds like a road trip to me.”] For Day 1 of Voltron Week: Space/Travel. My Comments: The paladins split up into two groups and head off for adventure! Great fun so far, good banter and character interaction, and it looks like there will be plenty of hijinks to come.

We’re Good by kuro Words: 2,455 Author’s Summary: So Keith and Lance weren’t actually on bad terms, or that was what Keith had come to believe, at least. Which made it all the weirder that Lance had been rather snippy lately.(Or, Keith and Lance try to figure out how to be friends with each other. They might not be very good at it.) My Comments: Aw, poor Keith. He really wants to be friends with Lance and doesn’t get it when Lance starts snapping at him for reasons that are beyond Keith’s control. Fortunately, Hunk is there to tell Lance that he’s being a jerk. Very cute ending. I love when these two become friends, with no shipping in sight.

Halcyon Day by Stratagem Words: 1,599 Author’s Summary: Altea is celebrating the creation of Voltron, and as usual, Coran is busy tracking down one missing princess. Also, Coran’s family loves him very much. My Comments: Gah, this author just does the best and most heartbreaking family stuff. This is beautiful, and it’s sad only because you know what’s going to happen in the future.

The Truth is Out There… Right Under Lance’s Nose… by Ninja_Librarian Words: 5,706 Author’s Summary: Katie Holt’s infiltration of the Galaxy Garrison under the male alias of Pidge Gunderson was marginally successful. There were hiccups along the way. But her true identity–and gender–were never revealed. Although there were a few close calls, courtesy of her pilot teammate… Or, 5 Times Lance probably could have figured out that Pidge was a girl… My Comments: Lance is an innocent soul who always takes Pidge’s words exactly at face value no matter how outlandish her explanations get. Hunk is more suspicious and figures it out before he even reads her diary. Also, Pidge is protective of Lance because he is a dumb baby who needs to be protected. Love this fic.

If we couldn’t laugh, we would all go insane by WildWolf25 Words: 2,745 Author’s Summary: Sleepless nights and homesickness are not uncommon for the paladins. Sometimes the best cure is adopting each other as surrogate siblings. My Comments: Absolutely excellent Pidge and Lance friendship culminating in a sleepover and the sleepy determination that they are all siblings. Shiro shows up at the end and is also summarily adopted. Super cute stuff.

Daddy Daycare by EdgarAllenPoet Words: 1,552 Author’s Summary: “Kolivan turned to investigate the yelp and saw Lance rubbing at his side and pouting. Antok shrugged innocently, and well, he’d never done great with children. Antok tended to practice pinching as a discipline tactic.” My Comments: The Dads of Marmora are so quality. Lance and Keith act like toddlers and get put in time out. Perfection.

Altean Benadryl is evil and they should also put english labels on the damn bottles by GreenhouseNurse Words: 1,978 (4/?) Author’s Summary: Lance just wanted some stomache medicine. Lance can’t read altean. Medicines can have very similar names.This isn’t going to end well.(Gift for Anon who like my prompts on tumblr ) My Comments: Very short chapters, which is usually a bad sign, but this is great so far. Good descriptions and good emotions, the works. Everyone is very worried, as they should be.

Slav has Seen Some Shit by Megaeevee Words: 1,616 (1/?) Author’s Summary: Slav has lived a long life. It wasn’t always a good one, but at least he survived. He’s seen things that nobody should see, and done things that nobody should have to do… but he’s still here after all of it. And he may not seem like it, but Slav is a fighter. He made it, despite there being too many realities in which he didn’t. My Comments: I’ve never seen a Slav-centric fic before! This has a great, though heartbreaking start, and I’m very much looking forward to more. No idea where it’s going to go, which is kind of exciting.

Grayscale Images by cipheredsong Words: 6,173 (2/?) Author’s Summary: On a mission to form an alliance with a new planet, Lance has a run-in with a strange species of plant that gives him an even stranger virus-type illness. It doesn’t seem to be that bad… until Lance’s whole world is fading away around him. Or is he fading himself? He can’t trust himself to think clearly, but he can’t trust anyone else, either. My Comments: I’ve read plenty of OOC Langst where the team is cruel and dismissive to Lance for no reason at all. This is not that. It’s an alien infection invading his thoughts and convincing him that they don’t care and it’s useless to go to them with his hurts, and that’s a GREAT premise. I’m totally into this fic and can’t wait for more.

i can’t drown my demons by electricindigo Words: 5,906 Author’s Summary: But really, he’s okay. He’s great, actually. He’s dealt with this before, and it’s not like it’s new to him. He doesn’t need anyone to take care of him, he doesn’t want Shiro to see, so it’s fine. He’s fine. He’s okay. He’s okay. (He’s not.) - Lance gets seriously hurt during a mission, affecting both his physical health and mental health. The team is worried. Lance doesn’t remember what happened. He doesn’t want to be helped. My Comments: Heartbreaking but very well-written and realistic fic about the aftermath of captivity and sexual assault. (Mind the tags.) Lance’s PTSD is a little grittier and more awful than typical fics, but it felt very real, and all the worse for it. The way he pushed the others away even while he desperately needed their help was definitely true to my experience. Good thing Shiro didn’t give up. The comfort part was fantastic, too. Good and necessary cuddling, that’s what I like to see.

Previously Recced Fics That Updated:

tommino posted a new chapter of Fighting the Surface HapaxLegomenon posted a new chapter of The Machinations of Perception MoonlitPaladin (MoonlitStardust) posted a new chapter of Gate Keeper Eastofthemoon posted a new chapter of Towards The Sun IcyPanther posted a new chapter of As Color Fades Away kyanve posted a new chapter of Truce Rururinchan posted a new chapter of Worth of A Paladin squirenonny posted a new chapter of Someplace Like Home TheHomestuckWhovian posted a new chapter of This Is New achieving elysium (Ogygia) posted a new chapter of familiar KairaKara101 posted a new chapter of I'm not the Lance You think I am ptw30 posted a new chapter of Bromances in Space buttered_onions posted a new chapter of The Size Of Our Actions MagmaWrites posted a new chapter of The Times They Remembered Pidge Was a Girl CamsthiSky posted a new chapter of It's Getting Darker But I'll Carry On WildWolf25 posted a new chapter of Coran's Guide to the Care and Keeping of Earthling Humans LonelyGirlInSpace posted a new chapter of The Color Of Our Planet From Far Far Away

[tokyoteddywolf]

A Blue CatAstrophe!

Lance isn't missing, he's right there. It was an accident, how he'd ended up 'missing', but Blue said that there should be some cure for this. He wished he was human again, so he could comfort his team with the knowledge that he wasn't dead. But no, he's a cat, and the only way to make sure they smile is to knock all the pens to the ground, chase some string, and occasionally wake up his crush and idol up from a nightmare and almost get smacked across the room by accident. Well, okay, that last one had to be mended since he was apparently a good stress reliever if you ran your hands down his back... too bad it wouldn't happen if he was a human. So, for now, he'll deal with being a brown and darker brown swirled tabby kitten for just a little bit longer. Purrrrrrrr.....

A Cat Au, where Lance becomes a cat and hell ensues.

“Well, maybe you should go find a better, more serious Blue Paladin who's more useful than I apparently am, Shiro!”

Lance gunned Blue's engines, rocketing away from the Castle and across the planet they were currently trying to form an alliance with, away from the city and away from the boiling argument he'd just had with the Black Paladin. They nearly broke the sound barrier with the speed they were flying at, but Lance just had to get away. He couldn't stand seeing that angry look on Shiro's face. The one that was usually filled with fond amusement or seriousness during battle or planning. He couldn't get it out of his head, the fight they'd had during the strategy meeting on the diplomatic approach to the alien colony down below.

He'd just wanted to go down with the team that was to speak with the city leader, but Shiro had told him that he would be better elsewhere, away from the city's population. He'd asked why, and got a “Because we can't have you flirting with the wrong alien and lose the chance for an alliance, Lance.” in return. Of course, he'd tried to say that he could be serious when he wanted, only to be rebuffed because he was “the joker of the group” and his people skills weren't exactly helpful in this situation.

Lance, having become tired and increasingly frustrated during the past year they'd been in space, finally blew up at his former hero. He was so sick of always being pushed aside in favor of someone else. Tired of trying to help only to be scorned and grumbled at, tired of trying to keep up the fake act of being happy and trying to cheer up the others, tired of being nobody special like the others. As soon as the words had left his mouth, he'd bolted for Blue's hangar, not noticing the shocked and horrified faces of his team and the Alteans he left behind in that hologram lit room.

Blue growled in concern, and he finally landed her in a field of giant green and gray flowers that looked vaguely familiar. He stumbled out of the cockpit and in a fit of childish anger, roundhouse kicked one of the large green flower trees. He threw back his head and screamed in frustration, the stress that had built up and torn into his chest bubbling up and bleeding out into his voice. He punched the nearest tree, barely registering the pale golden silver dust filtering down from the overhead petals and getting into his hair, giving it a shiny glowing sheen. “Why?!? Why am I not good enough?!?” He wailed, punching the tree over and over, leaning his head against it and furiously fighting back tears. Blue whined, worried for her Paladin. Lance didn't hear it that well, but as the anger and frustration faded into sadness, he suddenly realized it was getting really hard to breathe, and that the air felt really dry and dusty for some reason.

Coughing, he pulled up his arm to rub at the strange, almost gritty feeling on the back of his neck, and noticed that his jacket was covered in pale, fine dust that shimmered in the white light of the overhead sun. Right. He wasn't in Paladin armor because the planet had breathable air. Ha. Breathable air? Lance was choking on the... sudden burning feeling... in his throat… oh shit.

Gasping, Lance stumbled away from the tree he'd been banging his bleeding fist on, since the bark of the tree felt like rough glass and scraped his knuckles, and clawed at his throat, trying to hack up the fireball currently traveling down his windpipe and into his lungs, where it got even worse. He screamed, this time in agony, as his whole body felt like it was on fire. Blue roared in panic, activating her ice cannon and freezing the offending plant and surrounding area, covering everything within a ten mile radius with ice.

Lance stumbled and slid, collapsing onto the ground and convulsing, tears streaming down his face as he burned alive, feeling his bones bake and his blood boil under his skin, and the last thing he remembered before blacking out was the screams of Blue as she scooped him up and activated her particle barrier, trying to filter out the air and get him to breathe again.

He woke up and regretted it, as everything ached and throbbed dully. He let out a soft, pained noise in the back of his throat and curled up tighter on the chair he had somehow landed on during the black, fuzzy haze from when Blue had tried to help him. He heard loud noises from outside, and felt the entire cockpit shake as something had picked them up and was moving them somewhere. His body felt strange and out of place, and way too small. He flattened his ears back as another too loud sound echoed outside his Lion, tail twitching over his paws as he looked around… wait. That did not seem right at all.

He didn't have a tail or paws, nor did his ears move. Blue purred with relief at the fact that he was awake, but rumbled with concern as she sent him a mental image of what he'd become. Soft, dark brown fur with lighter brown stripes, sock paws, ears and tail tip. Pretty blue eyes with slitted irises and four light brown spots lining under his eyes, swirls on his back like a river. A small black nose. Lance flinched. That pollen stuff or whatever, had turned him into a cat?!? No wonder he felt wrong in his own body, like he should be bigger but wasn't. Blue rumbled and sent him an image of Black and Yellow towing Blue back to the Castle, and how they were currently setting them down in the Blue Hangar. Lance curled in on himself, his clothes having been shredded during his violent transformation and ruined with blood that had been squeezed out from his rearranging body, and trembled in his seat. “I don't want to be seen like this.” He thought, panicking. Blue, acknowledging her Paladin's wish, kept her barrier up and her jaw locked, even as Black growled at her to open up.

Lance could see Hunk and Shiro out of Blue's monitors down below, Keith and Pidge also appearing to stand below Blue's jaw, all looking very worried. He snorted. They wouldn't find him in Blue. Well, not his human self anyways. He registered Black's commanding growl, and Blue struggling not to bow down to her leader.

“Not here, not here. My Paladin is no longer here, as he used to be.” Blue whispered mournfully to her sisters, showing them the blood splattered cockpit and shredded clothes, and the tiny, fluffy body in her Paladin's seat, trembling and scared. Black immediately ceased growling, and instead rumbled with worry, as the other Paladins all jumped or flinched, startled by whatever their Lions were sending them, and then Shiro began banging on Blue's barrier, frantically calling for Lance. Hunk looked almost sick, Pidge seemed like she was about to cry, and Keith was clenching his fists and tapping his foot against the ground.

Blue, feeling guilty that she couldn't have stopped Lance from getting hurt, finally bent down and opened her jaw, the Paladins all hurrying inside with frantic, desperate movements. Lance hissed and slid off the seat, scrambling for a place to hide, squeezing himself into a corner under the dashboard. Blue sent him waves of soft, soothing comfort, tinged with guilt, and he sent back the thought that it wasn't her fault, they didn't know, and it was okay, but he still didn't want to be seen like this.

“Lance!” Shiro was the first to reach the pilot seat, and Lance watched from his hiding spot as a look of pure horror flooded the Black Paladin's face as he saw the blood and torn up fabric. The others had similar reactions, Hunk covering his mouth and trying not to vomit, Pidge going as pale as a sheet of ice, and Keith making a choked noise that sounded suspiciously like a sob.

Lance let out an involuntary mewl of grief at the sorrowful faces in front of him. He didn't think that him disappearing, possibly being dead, would have them react like this. Pidge, with her sharp hearing, looked over to where he was hiding. She moved over, and crouched down, reaching in and feeling around for him. Lance hissed, and swatted at her hand with sheathed claws. The others made sounds of astonishment at the noise, and Pidge somehow got her hands around his wriggling, tiny form and pulled him out, gasps echoing in the Blue Lion as they saw Pidge holding what looked to be an Earth kitten. Lance mewled again, wriggling around, trying to fight the tired achy feeling in his body, but Pidge was cradling him close, and he was just exhausted from all the stress of the day, and he slowly settled into a barely awake, half alert, ears pricked state of being in his friend's warm arms.

Blue purred quietly in his mind, informing him that all would be well once he woke up, and he had nothing to fear for now. So, he drifted off, hoping that he could figure out how to turn back to normal in the morning.

//thats a wrap for chapter 1!!! next time is probably Pidge POV, instead of this weird all over the place POV i've been doing lately. Next time, kitty Lance gets tangled into things he shouldn't, and Shiro is an absolute wreck. Langst is kind of fun to write, ngl. *yawns * well, i'm going to get some sleep now, hope you enjoyed! I'm gonna go post this on AO3, too :) Night! (or morning, afternoon, whenever.)

[mischiefandspirits]

We Are One

Sequel to Roar

Now that all the lions have been found, the team are faced with new challenges and changes. While the paladins and their cats learn how to work together, Allura and Coran prepare the castle to take their fight to the stars. Until then, they get to meet new friends and defend against an old enemy.

Find more. Also on: AO3 & Fanfiction

Part 2: Purr-ty Time

The paladins "enjoy" the wonders of alien cuisine, a fight with a robeast, and a party with the Arusians. In the end, it's a blast!

<Ugh, what is that smell?> Pua gagged as he stepped into the dining room, followed by his brothers and Merla.

<Space food,> Merla sighed.

<It smells disgusting,> Blue said, his nose scrunching up.

<Tried to warn you. You all have been spoiled.>

“Hey, Merla,” Keith said as the cats reached their paladins. She purred and focused in on the conversation Coran and Shiro were having just in time for Coran to lift the lid off the dish he was carrying. The paladins all groaned in time with their cats. Pua actually ran out of the room as the scent became stronger with the food uncovered. Blue’s nose twitched and he followed.

<Wimps!> Merla called after them. She turned, only to meet Ryou’s unimpressed stare.

<Be nice to your pride-mates.>

<Yeah, yeah.>

Keith and Lance went to sit down at the other end of the table and Merla followed. She placed herself between the two boys and was pleased to find she received twice the scratches for her efforts.

Hunk pulled a plant out of his pocket and held it up, saying, “Coran, we're on a planet now with fresh herbs, spices, and whatever this thing is. A tuber? Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to head back to the kitchen and spice things up.”

As Hunk left through the door to the kitchen, Shiro asked, “Where's Pidge?”

“He's probably checking on those prisoners we rescued from Zarkon. They'll all be waking soon in the infirmary,” Coran answered, his mouth full of food.

Shiro stood up, and came face to fork with Coran’s cooking.

“Open the hatch. Food lion coming in!” Coran said before imitating an airplane like Merla had seen humans do to their children. She didn’t realize Alteans did it as well. Bizarre.

“No. Just... no,” Shiro deadpanned, moving around the fork. “Come on, Ryou.”

“You don't know what you're missing!” Coran called as the two left. He turned to Keith and Lance held out the fork. “What about you two?”

“I’ll pass,” Lance said, standing up. “Tell Hunk to call me when he’s done.”

Merla snickered as Keith gave his Don’t leave me here! expression. They joined Lance in the hallway and Keith asked, “Where are you going?”

“What’s it to you, Mullet?”

“Anywhere’s better than near Coran’s cooking.”

“Good point. Alright, you can come with me, I guess. I need Merla anyways.”

Merla’s ears perked up and she looked at her love’s paladin. <Me?>

“Why do you need Merla?”

“I’ll show you.”

Lance led them to a room near where the paladin armor had been stored. Blue was already there and waiting. He perked up when Merla came in and she walked over to curl up with him.

“I still can’t believe he’d betray me like that,” Lance huffed as he watched the two of them.

“You do realize they’ve probably been together since long before we were born, right?”

“Yeah, whatever. Help me with this, would you?” Lance asked, as he picked up some armor off a table.

Keith walked over and grabbed one of the pieces. “What is this?”

Lance smirked.

“Wow, you did all this?” Keith asked, looking over the armor Blue and Merla were wearing.

“Yeah. The armor looked tacky when you guys took Merla and Ryou up before so I figured I’d give it a paint job. Something more fitting for our partners in crime.”

“Well, you did a great job.” Merla’s armor had been repainted to match Keith’s, though the red portions on everything except the helmet and forelegs had been painted white and vice versa. Likewise, Blue had armor that matched Lance’s in a similar way, though the collar was painted a bright red.

“I… Well, uh, of course I did,” Lance stumbled, not expecting the compliment.

“Did you make armor for all the lions?”

“Yeah, but I've only tried them on Blue and Merla so far.”

“Hurrrfff.”

The two turned to see Pua standing in the doorway.

“Guess Hunk must be done.”

“Let's hope it’s better than whatever Coran had tried to feed us.”

There was a clatter and they looked over to see Merla sans armor shaking herself off.

“How-”

“Magic,” Keith shrugged.

Blue sniffed at the bowl Hunk had placed on the ground. <Well, it smells better than the other stuff.>

<I think it's just plants mixed with supplements,> her brother said. Pua lapped at the mixture and his nose wrinkled up. <Why do Alteans have to be herbivores?>

<Keeeeiiiiith! He's trying to kill me! I need meeeeeaaaaaat! Let's go hunting! Pleeeaaaase!> Merla whined, completely ignoring the bowl in favor of draping herself against her cub’s legs and clawing at his shin.

“Do you even need to eat?” Keith asked quietly in between bites.

<That's not the point!>

BZZZZZZT! BZZZZZZT! BZZZZZZT! BZZZZZZT!

The group looked up at the alarm and Allura brought up a surveillance feed.

“What is that?” Keith asked as they watched a short creature dart behind a rock.

<Do you think it’s food?> Merla asked and Blue shoved the smaller cat.

“I don't know what it is. Maybe it's a local Arusian.”

“He's approaching the Castle,” Allura noted as it moved from rock to rock with a battlecry.

Hunk cooed and Lance said, “Doesn't look too dangerous.”

“You never know,” Keith muttered, summoning his bayard.

<Calm down your paladin,> Pua huffed and Merla snorted.

<My cub’s got the right idea. We don’t know what it wants and it’s got a weapon. I raised him right.>

“No. Alteans believe in peace first. Let's go welcome them,” Allura said, heading out with Coran and Pua sent Merla a victorious look.

“That's adorable.”

“Hey, maybe we can knit him a little sweater!”

Pua and Blue followed as their paladins chased after the Alteans.

“I'm not taking any chances,” Keith said before he and Merla fell in behind them.

<I agree, we don’t know who or what it is. It very well might be delicious.>

“What is it with you and food today?” Keith muttered quietly. “The others aren’t complaining.”

<I haven’t been allowed to hunt in ages! I’m not used to being cooped up like these other spoiled little house cats!>

<We’re the ones who are spoiled yet your the one doing all the complaining.>

<Love, if you hadn’t been subjected to the horrors of kitty kibble you’d be complaining too. There’s nothing better than sinking your fangs into a fresh kill.>

<That sounds disgusting. Blue, I think you’re soul-bound’s gone feral.>

<Gone?>

<Oh haha, very funny. You know you love me.>

<True,> Blue growled softly, falling back to nuzzle the cheetah.

When the group reached the doors, Allura waved the cats off. “You three wait here. We don’t want to scare him.”

Merla snorted as the princess walked off. <Speak for yourself.>

<Merla,> Blue started, but she was already chasing after her paladin.

“Greetings,” Allura said, leaning over the bush the Arusian was hiding in. “We know you’re there. No harm will come to you.”

The Arusian hopped out of the bush and held out his blade.

Hunk cooed, but Merla growled and both she and her paladin stepped forward to protect the princess.

“Wait! He could be dangerous. Drop your weapon!”

<Or I’ll make you!>

“No one takes Klaizap’s weapon!”

Merla crouched to pounce on the creature as he turned his blade towards her paladin, but Allura ordered, “Keith, Red, stand down, both of you!”

Keith sighed and lowered his bayard. Merla’s tail twitched, but she stopped baring her teeth and stood up.

“Please, kind sir, accept my most humble apologies.”

Merla’s tail flicked back and forth as the Arusian spoke.

<Lion Goddess? You think he means Merla or Chip? Or maybe you Blue?> Pua asked as they snuck up behind the group.

<The carving looks like a tiger, so I guess it’s me.>

<Really? My guess is Merla. He keeps saying she’s angry right? Merla makes sense.>

<I’m going to rip your tail off,> Merla growled lowly.

<See! And he said fire, definitely Merla.>

<Pua, he’s talking about Voltron! Even your paladin figured that out!>

<And what’s that supposed to mean?>

<Why’s he bowing to Allura? She’s not even a lion,> Blue snorted.

<Does this mean we’re not going to eat him?> Merla huffed as Allura asked to come to his village. She stepped forward to sniff at the Arusian and he jumped back with a shout.

“No, Merla, you can’t eat him,” Keith sighed, grabbing her scruff and tugging her away from the frightened Arusian.

<Why can’t we be down there partying?> Pua whined.

<I’m guessing it’s because someone couldn’t keep her stomach in check.>

<I regret nothing. I don’t want to be down there anyways,> Merla sniffed.

<Well I do, I want to play! I wonder if they have any good food?>

<Does roasted Arusian sound good, Pua, because I think they’re about to throw one of their own on a pyre. Should we be worried about our paladins?>

<Eh, Keith doesn’t seem worried. Looks like the princess is handling things. I think I’ll go down anyways though. Just in case.>

<Merla, Allura told us to stay here.>

<She can’t tell me what to do. Who does she think she is, Ryou?>

The siblings sighed as Merla left her metallic form and ran off towards the party.

Ryou and Chip watched their paladins disappear into the destroyed Galra ship.

<Should we follow them?> Chip asked as she peeked inside.

<They’ll be fine. We’re of more use out here, keeping watch.> Ryou said, staring up in the sky. <Sense that?>

Chip looked up. <No. Wait, yes. What is that?>

<It feels like a ship, but not.>

<Asteroid?>

<Hm…>

The two watched the sky until they felt the craft enter the atmosphere.

Ryou jumped to his feet. <Get to your body, now!>

<Right!>

The two returned to their metallic forms in time to leap in front of their escaping paladins as the craft crashed down on top of the fallen ship.

“… need to learn to follow orders and…”

Merla’s tail twitched as Keith nudged her, bring her focus back to Allura for half a second. “Pay attention,” he whispered.

<Why? She’s not my boss. She’s not even your boss. That’s Ryou and Shiro.>

“Her house, her rules.”

<Do you really think either of us believe that?>

Keith crossed his arms and leaned against a tree.

<That’s what I thought.> Merla chirped. Suddenly she turned to the sky. <Do you feel that?>

“Feel what?” Keith pushed away from the tree and looked up.

“… so- Red, are you listening?”

“Something’s up,” Keith answered for her. “Ship?”

<No. I don’t know what it is.>

“Ship?” Hunk asked, looking worried.

“No, but-” Keith cut off as whatever it was let out a sonic boom.

<Move!> Blue said, leaping to his feet and running towards her metallic form.

“What’s going on? Where’s Blue going? Pua! Come back!” Hunk shouted, watching the lion rush after his brother.

“Merla?” Keith asked.

<Blue’s right, we need to go.>

“Team, come in! We need backup! Hello?”

“Shiro?”

“Where is everyone?”

“We need to go,” Keith said. He and Merla moved to run, but the ground shook beneath their feet.

The Arusians started panicking and running around.

“Everyone get inside and stay down!” Allura called out as Merla took off.

<Hurt! This isn’t wor- Seemed confi- We need a new pla- New information.>

“When I attacked him before, I had a sword!”

<Sword? Sword! But- No! Yes! Too soon! Too soon? Yes! No!>

“Orb! Orb!”

<Years! Not the same! Can help! No! YES!>

“We can't take another shot like that!”

<Keith! Can help! Do! Do! Bayard!>

“Wait a second, guys! I think Merla's telling me what to do.”

<Merla! No! Yes! Good! Keith! Yes!>

“Well whatever it is, hurry up and do it! He's about to fire his third shot!”

<Pain! Hurts! Keith!>

{Red Bayard inserted. Scanning. Red Paladin Keith Bayard operation accepted. Processing Red Paladin Keith Bayard primary form. Red Paladin Keith Bayard primary form: Katar. Red Paladin Keith Voltron Bayard weapon translating. Red Paladin Keith Voltron Bayard weapon translation: Single-edged broadsword. Weapon formed.}

<Attack! Finally! Victory!>

“Yeah! We did it! Woohoo!”

“How did you do that?”

{Red Bayard ejected. Weapon deconstructed. Red Paladin Keith Voltron Bayard weapon translation filed.}

“Whoa. Hehe. Thanks, Merla.”

<Victory! Merla! Told you! Yes! Right! Congratulations! Victory! Merla!>

<Why couldn’t we play Voltron? It would have been fun!> Pua whined, watching the performance the Arusians were putting on.

<We would have gotten it right, too,> Merla snorted.

<Be nice, love,> Blue huffed, licking the serval kitten’s cheek.

<I’ll be nice when they stop trying to pick me up!> Merla hissed as another Arusian came over to coo at her. She ducked under Blue and the Arusian pouted. <Why do we have to be small again?>

<We look more friendly this way,> the cat purred, he head butting the Arusian’s hand to accept the scratches in Merla’s place.

<I’m not a toy! I’m a warrior! A weapon! I don’t need to look friendly!>

<Stop being extra,> her sister said as she ran past. Chip was chasing Rover in circles around her paladin.

<You stop being extra!> Merla called back. When another Arusian approached, she darted away and curled around Keith’s ankle. <Keith! Make them stop!>

Keith frowned and picked her up. He held her up and she nestled herself between his neck and the collar of his armor. “Better?”

<Yes!>

“How about, uh... I say Vol- and you say -tron. Vol!”

“Uh…” Keith blinked, caught off guard. He shrugged. “Voltron?”

“No! No, no, no. The cheer includes the instructions. I say Vol- and you say…”

<Why does Blue always pick the weird ones?>

“Vol…tron?”

“We'll work on it,” Lance sighed. He took a drink of whatever he was holding and gagged.

Merla snickered and curled up around Keith’s neck to nap.

When she woke up, she shook herself. <I want food.>

Keith snorted and helped her down. “There’s food floating around everywhere go find some.”

Merla huffed, but left the boy. She had just managed to hop onto a platter when she spotted Lance leaving. <Where’s he going?> she purred. She grabbed one of the cake pop-like deserts then jumped down to follow him.

“Well you seem proud of yourself,” Pidge chuckled.

<Why shouldn’t I be? I have proven that I am the better of your partners,> Chip purred and shifted to try to find a more comfortable position.

“So, Pidge,” Allura said, walking up in front of the girl. She paused when she noticed Chip perched atop the floating Galra drone. “What is Green doing?”

“I think she’s asserting her dominance over Rover.”

<Close enough.>

“I see… Anyways, we haven't had a chance to really talk. Tell me about yourself.”

Chip blinked and tilted her head.

Pidge hummed. “Well, I like peanut butter, and I like peanut butter cookies, but I hate peanuts. They're so dry. Also, I sweat a lot. I-I mean, in general, unrelated to the peanuts.” She moved to walk away, but Allura stepped in front of her.

“I suppose I was thinking of something a little more personal.” The princess winked then leaned down so she and Pidge were face to face. “We have a lot in common.”

<Is she attempting to mate with you? That’s what you call flirting, correct?>

“Like what?”

Allura blanched. “Oh, well, both of us had our fathers taken away by Zarkon.”

<Rude.>

“Yeah, but I'm going to get mine back.”

<Ruder,> Chip snorted as Allura gasped.

“I'm sorry. I-I really didn't mean to-”

“No, I understand. I just want you to know that you can confide in me.” She leaned down again.

<She rebounds quick.>

“If there's anything you ever want to talk about… Anything.”

“Huh? Okay. I do have something to tell you.”

Allura popped up. “I had a feeling. What is it?”

“I'm leaving Team Voltron.”

Chip fell off Rover.

“Wait, what?”

“I decrypted the information from the Galra ship about where my family might be, or at least where they were. I've made up my mind. I'm leaving tonight.”

<Pidge?> Chip whined pawing at her paladin’s ankle.

“Pidge, you can't. You're one of five paladins. You have a sacred trust to defend the universe.” Allura grabbed Pidge’s shoulders, but the girl jerked away from both the Altean and the cat.

“My first priority is to find my family!” Pidge snapped. “I thought you of all people would understand. If you had a chance to get your father back, wouldn't you?”

Allura frowned and Chip curled around her feet.

“I'm sorry. I should go tell everyone else.”

They watched Pidge walk away, Rover flying behind her.

“What are we going to do?”

<I wish I knew,> Chip sniffed. She looked around, but didn’t see her sister. She spotted Pua playing with some Arusian children and Blue being pampered by a another group. She darted past them and ran out the door. Finally she spotted Ryou, prowling next to Shiro in his liger form. <RYOU!>

<Chip, what’s wrong?>

“Hey Chip, what’s the matter?”

Both Shiro and Ryou turned to her, Shiro kneeling down and holding out his hand.

Chip climbed up Shiro’s arm and jumped onto Ryou’s back. She curled up on his neck, burrowing her face into his fur.

<What happened, Chip?>

“Hey now, what’s wrong? Is Pidge okay?”

Chip gave a wordless whine.

“Shiro? I need to talk to you.”

Shiro and Ryou looked up as Pidge walked over. “Pidge, something’s wrong with Chip?”

The girl sighed. “She’s probably not happy with me, but I made my decision. I’d rather tell you all at once though.”

“Alright, let’s go get the others.”

Haxus watched the Green Paladin approach the Black and leveled the scanner at the group. He waited as the scanner registered the two paladins’ armor systems, the drone, and, to Haxus’ surprise, the two creatures next to the paladins. His eyes widened as the scanner listed signature codes of the creatures.

The black one does resemble the lions, but why…

Haxus shook off his confusion and cloned the drone’s signature code. He ducked back behind the rocks he was hiding in and loaded it into the bomb drone. “Bomb activated.”

The drone acknowledged his command then flew off towards the castle. Haxus watched it go before returning back to Sendak.

“Haxus?” the commander greeted.

“Everything’s in place.”

“Excellent.”

“There’s something else.” Haxus brought up the data from the earlier scan and showed it to his superior. “The creatures that have been following the paladins…”

“The signatures resemble the Red Lion.” Sendak said. “Why?”

“I don’t know, but I’m sure Zarkon will want to find out.”

Sendak nodded. “We’ll take them and the rest when we capture the castle.”

Lance looked up when Merla padded up next to him. “Hey there Merla. What are you doing here?”

Merla watched him scrub at his eyes before reaching over to run his hand down her back. <Were you crying?> she purred, moving over to lick his cheek.

The boy chuckled and scratched under her chin. “Don’t tell Keith I was crying, okay?” he said in a joking tone.

<I make no promises. I probably won’t tell though.> She climbed into his lap and laid down. <Cuddles usually help Keith.>

They sat in silence for a few moments before Coran came in. Merla listened as the two talked. When Lance moved to stand, she climbed up to curl against his neck like she had done to Keith before. The two talked for a while, exchanging stories, before Coran set his hand on Lance’s shoulder.

“How about we return to the party now?”

Lance stared up at the stars for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, alright.”

They turned and headed towards the door. It opened just before they reached it, admitting a Galra drone.

“Hey, Rover,” Lance greeted as he passed it.

Merla’s nose twitched and she looked up just as Lance turned. Did the drone smell like-

“Wait. Where's Pidge?”

The drone’s details turned red and it started beeping rapidly.

<GALRA!> Merla yowled as Lance gasped.

“Coran, look out!” the Blue Paladin shouted as he tackled the Altean.

The room exploded behind them.

A quick question: I plan on writing out chapters for the comic's storyline, but I'm not sure if it should be an interlude like the Mother of Cats arc or as normal chapters since it's not technically part of the main story. Which would y'all prefer?