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Capitolo 3
The most important thing Sven learned on Altea was that Lance was loud. Really loud. He basically didn’t stop talking, ever. Queen Allura was fine, and most of the time too occupied to spent time with him or Siv, but apparently Lance had sworn to make Sven’s life miserable because he didn’t stop pestering him.
But, Sven had to admit, Lance’s blabbering about his children or his wife or his time as Paladin, as much as he spoke about Keith and Shiro, really distracted Sven for thinking about his parents’ death. It was easy not thinking when your mind is filled with someone else’s thoughts.
Siv looked happier too. Romelle accompanied her around Altea and she also managed to spent a lot of time playing with the space mouse. She always loved animals.
That was it: life with Keith and Shiro wasn’t bad. They were good people, or at least until now they didn’t give Sven a reason to think otherwise. And they’re two fucking superheroes with a friendship with an alien queen, a space dog and the abilities of pilot giant robots (Lance assured him they would show them how they formed Voltron). It wasn’t bad.
Sven knew Siv was thinking the same, but she was considerate enough to not tell him directly. Sven was too used to consider only one possibilities that the idea of being wrong this time was actually scared. Luckily for him, he still had a couple of days before Keith and Shiro arrived and took them for their space holiday. Still a couple of days to return to his usual self.
“Sven! Here you are!”
Sven groaned. He managed to escape from Lance’s attention for a straight hour. Definitely too much time. “Come on, you won’t miss it.”
“Yeah, I’m sure.”
Lance didn’t catch the sarcasm, or maybe doesn’t care (he kept telling him he looked a lot like Keith). He took Sven’s hand and dragged him into the hangar. The queen was there too, and Siv and Coran.
“Just in time,” she comments.
The ceiling was opened and a second later, the green and the yellow lions landed in front of them. Sven didn’t do any effort to contain his surprise, and Siv was pretty excited. They had already flying in Black, but seeing all the lions together was pretty cool too.
They’d met Pidge, because she lived on Earth, but they had no idea about the other Paladin. They watched as the adults greeted themselves.
“Hunk, you don’t bring Shay too?” Lance asked.
“She’ll arrive later. I want to spent some time with you guys alone.”
“Oww, you’re sweet.”
“We don’t expect you until a couple of days,” the queen commented.
“Yeah, well,” Pidge wicked at him, “we decided to anticipate Keith and Shiro a little.” And she tilted her head towards Sven and Siv. “It’s definitely time for someone to tell these children the truth about their parents.”
“Oh, so they are Keith and Shiro’s children?” Hunk kneeled down. “Nice to meet you.”
Sven was about to tell them they’re not anyone children yet, but Siv’s eyes glow with expectation. “You had stories about Keith and Shiro? Stories they won’t tell us?”
“Oh, you can bet on it,” Pidge smirked. “Wait for dinner and we’ll tell you everything.”
It turned out, they were all sappy stories. Point was, Siv was expecting something about battles and dangerous, and there was undoubtedly something like that in the stories, but Keith and Shiro were just so sweet and tender one to another that everything they touched turned out into the plot of a romance.
Did we tell you that time Keith refused to form Voltron because Shiro was gone?
Did we tell you that time Shiro almost threw away a very important alliance because of Keith?
Did we tell you that time Keith brought Shiro back to life with the force of his love?
Did we tell you that time Shiro had a gay panic in front of Keith?
They were all like that. If Sven hadn’t see the scary side of both Keith and Shiro, he wouldn’t have believed they were actually two paladins of Voltron.
Siv snorted. “Your stories are boring.”
“Oh, well, complain with Keith and Shiro for that,” Lance said. “And they dare to tell me I was exaggerating when I hired the MFE pilots to asking Allura’s hand in the sky.”
Pidge rolled her eyes at him, and he shot a look back, daring her to speak.
“Well, they’re a little sappy,” Allura admitted, with a big smile. “But I suppose you can be, when you managed to keep finding each other against all the odd and the universe.”
“Yeah, it looks like a fucking fantasy love story,” Sven comments.
“It really is,” Hunk nodded.
“The important thing,” Allura continued, “is that they managed to remain good people as they kept protecting the people they loved. You two also can count on it. They’ll reach the end of the universe for you.”
Maybe. Or maybe not. After all, Shiro and Keith were fostering Sven and Siv for only six months.
***
In the dark of the room, lightened only by Keith’s datapad, Keith took a second to remember the Castle of Lions wasn’t anymore the empty warship it used to, and another second to recognize Sven’s figure and put down the knife.
Sven didn’t look amused. “Woa, slow down.”
“Sorry. Hold habits.” He smiled. “Do you need something?”
Sven shrugged. “I couldn’t sleep, so…”
Keith looked at him, as he approached his table. Since their arrival on Altea, Keith noticed a small change of Sven’s behavior. He especially didn’t miss the fact Sven hadn’t his excitement in seeing Voltron. Lance swore he didn’t do anything, and Krolia himself reassured him that probably Sven and Siv were ending their grieving period for their parents’ death. Still, Keith wondered if he could do more.
“You aren’t sleeping too,” Sven pointed out.
“Going in ten minutes. I really have to finish this report for today and then, hopefully, I’ll be on holiday for a while.”
“Cool.”
Keith checked it back and sent it to Axca. He closed the datapad, but made no sign of movements. Until Sven was there, Keith wasn’t sure how to act.
“You take care of a lot of orphan,” Sven said.
“I do. It’s one part of my job.”
“It’s because you were an orphan too?”
“Probably. But more than that, I want to help people.”
Sven nodded. Keith understood he wanted to tell him something, or ask something, but he wasn’t sure how to do. For that, Keith was grateful he learned to read things from Shiro.
“What is it? You can tell me.”
Sven looked up straight in his eyes. “I killed my mom and dad.”
“Sorry?” Keith blinked.
“I was angry. I told them that we didn’t need them and that they couldn’t return if they want. And they didn’t.”
For a long second, Keith stared. Then he stood up, moved, and hugged Sven. He didn’t think, didn’t stop to wait for a reaction, just grabbed his back and kept him as much near his chest as possible. He caressed the back of his head slowly.
“It wasn’t your fault. It was an accident,” Keith said, and repeated, once he realized Sven was crying against him. He was fourteen, and he just need a hand in his life too.
At a certain point, Sven moved away. He pushed Keith back, but it wasn’t an angry gesture. He sniffed and washed his face with the back of his hand.
“Feeling better?” Keith asked. Sven nodded, not looking at him. “Good. Let’s go to bed now.”
Sven and Siv’s room was next to Keith’s one, so first Keith put his head inside to tell Shiro he was coming, only to find a sleeping Siv on the bed, using one of Shiro’s arm as a pillow. Once Shiro’s eyes fall on Sven, he moved aside.
“She came here searching for you and then she decided to wait here and…”
“It’s okay,” Sven interrupted him.
“Oh. Good. Good.” Shiro relaxed. “You can bring her back in your room if you want.”
“Why don’t you sleep here too?” Keith proposed. “So you won’t risk to wake up Siv.”
Sven looked surprised. He blinked a couple of time, then bit his bottom lips. “You won’t be gross, won’t you?”
“We aren’t going to have sex with you two in our bed,” Keith replied. Shiro’s entire face became red.
“You’re gross because you’re disgusting sappy,” Sven replied, and then shudder. “It can’t be helped.” And, without adding anything, he climbed the bed and lied down next to Siv, taking her hand in his.
Shiro looked he was almost in tear. Keith took of the jacket and joined them on the other side, with the two children between them. “We aren’t so sappy,” he commented. Shiro raised an eyebrow. “Okay, maybe a little bit.”
Keith passed his hand over the pillow so he could take Shiro’s one without disturbing the children. Shiro whispered at the light to turn a little bit off, so that there was still light enough to permit them to look at the children. Only when they were sure the children were sleeping, Shiro nodded at Keith and stood up.
“What is it?” Keith answered as they were out of the room.
“Siv talked a little to me earlier,” Shiro said. “From what I understand, it is possible one of her previous adoptive parent tried to abuse her. It didn’t happen, but it made them… a little bit over the edge. Sven especially.”
“I’m gonna murder him,” Keith stated.
“Yeah, that was my first reaction too.”
“It explained the all bathroom incident,” Keith commented. “We should speak with the psychologist for it. Try to help them in any way.”
“I agree.”
Keith looked at Shiro. He wondered if he regretted having adopted Sven and Siv and not a child with less problem. Keith had wanted them. Had wanted to help them. Shiro just went along with it.
“You know,” Shiro returned in the room. “There was a time I’m just grateful to wake up every morning with you next to me. But now… I think I want more.”
“Wake up every morning with this?” Keith smiled. “They’re going to grow up, and we’ll get older.”
“Let me enjoy this until it last.”
***
They woke up in the morning into a very big hug together. Siv had moved in some way on the other side, and she was curled against Keith and Sven’s arm were spread wide, one of them against Shiro’s chest. They are sweet. The sweetest thing Shiro saw, save maybe for Keith alone.
“You’re right,” Keith murmured. “This is how I wanna wake up for the rest of my life.”
Shiro smiled and leaned a hand to caress Keith’s cheeks. “But they need more friends. Friend of their age. I want our house full of children.”
Keith chuckles. “That won’t be easy.” Siv moaned something and curled more against him.
“How do you make friends?” Shiro asked.
“I jumped on a Blue Lion and ended up into a planetarium war.”
“This isn’t helping.”
“Afraid not.”
Sven hid his head under the pillow. “I may have an idea,” Shiro said. “You talked about that international school that will be open in a couple of months, right?”
“You mean the interplanetarian school? The one for children of all planet in the same solar system?”
“That one. We can subscribe Sven and Siv too, right? It isn’t forbidden.”
“Not really… the only condition is to live in one of the planet around, and Daibazaal is one of them, so I supposed that it counts…” Keith murmurs. “But why?”
“A fresh start may help them,” Shiro explains. “They had to mourn their parents and then faced with the orphanage and everything… Maybe it’s time to start over.”
Keith brushed lightly Siv’s hair. “If for them is okay, I don’t have problem. But what about you? It won’t be easy from Earth…”
“Well, it’s some time Sam is organizing a scientific expedition around the other galaxies. He asked me to join him. I refused at first because of the Garrison’s work, but I really won’t mind returning back in space.”
Keith’s eyes widened. “That will be so good.”
Shiro smiled. They dreamed about exploring space, together. At that time, Shiro was with someone else and Keith was just a child from the desert. They went so far and Shiro wouldn’t regret a day of it anymore. He leaned forward to kiss him.
“Oww. Can you stop to be gross at least in the earlier morning?” Sven complained.
“Sorry, kid, but no,” Shiro joked. “It’s your fault for sleeping in our bed.”
“A mistake I won’t do again.” Still, he didn’t do any move to get away, so Shiro took it as a permission first to kiss Keith again, then to lie down next to him and pass an arm around him. Sven scoffed and he just closed his eyes again. Siv blinked a couple of time before pressing herself more against Keith.
“Sven, Siv,” Keith called. “In two months, our fostering period will end.”
“So?”
“Are you okay with us asking for a definitive adoption and move to live in the space?”
Shiro felt Sven freezing against him. Siv opened her eyes and her expression was a little lost. Keith placed his hand on her side. She took Sven’s hand.
“If we say yes, can we sleep a little more?” he commented, annoyed.
“Not before I kiss you,” Shiro replied, and he trapped Sven more with his prosthetic hand.
“No, stop, you’re gross!”
Siv laughed and so did Keith, while Sven, still blocked in Shiro’s grasp, tried to hit them with a pillow. Men, they were cute. All of them!
***
Pillion was a very popular sport in that side of the galaxy. Unlike most Galra sport, he was the least dangerous so a lot of students from the Bootes School practiced it. Both Keith and Shiro didn’t complain when Sven had asked to do it too. He had friends now, and physical activity it was good.
So, every Friday, Keith returned first to his mission to pick up Sven. He avoided coming with the Black lion because it was a little bit a show off, even if most parents knew he was a Paladin of Voltron.
Sven was waiting for him at the field’s exit, the backpack on his shoulder. As he saw Keith, he stood up and walked towards him.
“Ehi, Sven!” an altean child called for him, and Sven stopped. “Do you want to come tonight at my house? Swimming pool party!”
“I’m sorry, I can’t,” he answered. “It’s my father’s birthday and I promised to be at home.”
Keith’s heart missed a beat, and he froze on the spot.
“Oh, it sucks.”
“Next time, okay?”
“Okay. See you next week!”
Sven reached Keith and frowned. “What?”
“Oh, I… Uhm, nothing. Let’s go.”
So he didn’t even notice what he said? Because surely Keith did! And he couln’t stop thinking about it for the entire journey back home.
He parked the pod in the yard and let Sven going home. He found Shiro in the kitchen, making dinner.
“It’s your birthday, you should be the guest at your own party,” he points out.
“It’s my first birthday with the kids, I want to make something special.” Shiro placed the tray on the oven and stood up to face him. They didn’t managed to enjoy Keith’s birthday because they were busy with the transfer and everything, so Keith understood why this time Shiro wanted to do a family birthday.
He smirked. “Good, because I have something for you to make today really special.”
“Oh? My birthday present?” With a smart smile, Shiro got near and trapped Keith against the wall of the kitchen. “Can I have it now?”
“Not this,” Keith laughed as Shiro kissed his neck, but he didn’t do any move to get away. “Well, maybe this one too, but no.” He brushed his check against Shiro’s and whispered in his ear, “today Sven called you his father.”
Shiro froze, lips still on Keith’s neck and his big hands on his side. He took a deep breath. “For real?” he asked, serious, as he pushed away a little. Keith nodded and he watched as Shiro’s eyes became wet. He took off the glasses and brushed it with two fingers.
“I… I wasn’t sure it would happen. You know, Sven and Siv remembered well their parents and I don’t want them to forget…” he blabbered. “I would be okay for them just to consider us their family… this is…”
“Happy birthday,” Keith said.
Shiro hugged him. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For this. For everything.”
“It’s all your, Shiro.” Years later, there weren’t any doubts in Keith’s mind that his life without Shiro would be a lot different.
Sven entered in the kitchen. “Is dinner ready? Oh my God, not here too, please.”
Keith and Shiro moved away, embarrassed. They tried to keep the PDA a little lower, but sometime they couldn’t help it. Shiro coughed. “Five minutes,” he said.
“Okay.” Sven threw them a last disapproving look before leaving.
Shiro and Keith exchanged an amused smile and moved to set the table. Sven and Siv returned five minutes later and dinner proceeded smoothly. Siv was always more than happy to tell them what she learned at school, especially because it was something about alien cultures that she wasn’t able to have on Earth. Sven was quieter, but he liked to remark when his sister did or said something stupid and, by response, he got sass by Shiro. Keith just observed them, looking at the family he wouldn’t expect to have, and have instead.
“Before the cake,” Sven began, “we have something for you.” Siv lifted his t-shirt a little to reveal a small birthday present, a small square box with a white and black ribbon.
Shiro was again on the verge of tears. “For me?” He took the small package as it was something precious and fragile. He opened it to reveal a small glass orb with a holographic reproduction of the Earth and the moon inside.
“It’s beautiful, thank you.”
Keith recognized it: it was part of a collection of the planets of the Voltron coalition, making by the Olkarian for the fifth anniversary of the end of the war. Shiro had the entire collection on the Atlas, but since it was a present for his position as an Admiral, he never brought it home and he didn’t even consider the collection his property, but he still loved it. Now he had his own piece.
“How do you manage to buy one?” Keith asked. They weren’t easy to find anymore, and they weren’t cheaper.
“Duh. On internet.”
“And how do you manage to buy things online?”
“Grandma helped us,” Siv said, with an innocent expression.
Keith and Shiro exchanged a look. They weren’t informed of any remaining relatives of them, let aside a grandmother. Keith immediately felt a little guilty, and he was sure Shiro was feeling the same, especially because he had grown up with his grandfather.
Sven freed them from their embarrassment. “She meant Krolia.”
Oh. Oh. Keith had just the time to realize it and thinking about what his mother would react being called a grandmother, that Shiro was crying. He wasn’t even try to hide it anymore. He stood up and hug them, with Sven that this time didn’t even try to look annoyed. Shiro sniffed and leaned a hand in Keith’s direction, to order him to join their group hug. Something Keith was more than happy to oblige, putting both of his arm around the children until Shiro’s shoulder.
“I love you. I love you all,” murmured Shiro.
And then, in a whisper, Siv said, “we love you too, dads.”
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