thank u, next

it wasn't easy venturing a basement you never knew you had to begin with.

it was even harder when your personal knight refused to let you even touch the ground without their consent.

lance was getting tired of both of these things.

"pidge, im more than capable of walking next to you, you know?" he said for about the millionth time that day. once again, he was met with her usual stoic silence.

"come on, pidgey. you've been walking all day and this doesnt feel fair." he continued, unwavering, "let's switch--even if its just for a minute? i feel like a horrible friend seeing you tire yourself out."

"i asked you to do this, prince lance." she replied, still stubbornly looking everywhere but on him. he sighed--this was typical katie holt. after saving altea (and also himself) from calamity zarkon, pidge had constantly been dedicating herself to ensure his utmost safety at all times. well, he had experienced that type of protectiveness before, but at least then he could communicate with her like they were equals. this time, it was as if the slate that solidified their friendship was wiped clean.

"and im asking you to do something in return." he answered, "let me lead us while you get some rest." there was a moment of silence before he was met with a soft shake of his knight's head. he managed to blurt something out before she could verbally deny his request:

"please let me do this, katie. i'm not a child that needs to be pampered and spoiled! we're doing this together for quiznak's sake!"

pidge stopped in her tracks, finally landing her gaze on lance for what seemed like the first time in a hundred years. he knew their relationship was still fragile, but he prayed to any of the godesses that she would understand where he was coming from--like she did before calamity zarkon.

"when you told me you remembered me, i thought that we could pick up from where we left off," lance whispered, "and i know that we can't do that--not now, and maybe not ever.

"but i thought, just this once, you would trust me like you did before. you would see me as a friend and not as your prince." he pushed forward, "you'd at least just call me lance." he avoided her gaze, knowing that he sounded absolutely stupid saying all of those things that pidge probably already knew. maybe a hundred years in stasis really did take a toll on his ability to communicate.

the soft, almost inaudible voice of his protector speared its way into his head and interrupted his thoughts, demanding his attention. she looked sheepish; her eyes focused on the wet stone underneath them.

"just for an hour, okay?" she murmured; walking towards the horse he was riding. lance beamed at her; giddy that she finally allowed him to break some of the walls she surrounded herself with. he stepped off the stallion and offered her his seat, which she reluctantly (but gratefully) took.

taking the reigns on his horse, lance took careful steps forward, clueless of where to go, but uncaring of his path. he stole a glance at pidge, who--after hours of non-stop walking--was rubbing her ankles with a small smile on her face.

"thank you for letting me do this, pidge." he said, and it was his turn to look at everything but her.

"you're welcome..." she started, hesitant to say whatever word was stuck at the tip of her tongue. minutes passed, and the prince almost thought that she had finished what she had to say, but--after a soft exhale--he heard her mumble something that made his heart flutter just a little:

"lance."

---

((also "calamity zarkon" had me cackling for about an hour but i kept it in bcos it truly was comedy gold))