Ruva's Drabbles

SHIRO:

If you were saddened, Shiro would suggest that maybe you switch to something else; if there was something that he knows will distract you and temporarily have you be a little more at ease, he’d do that!

But also maybe add a little twist-- extra soft blankets (fresh out of the oven! Screw the bills you’re worth it), extra cheese on your favorite dish, whatever it is that can make your smile a little wider, bigger or brighter just let him know!

Would give you hugs if you asked, but usually Shiro pets your head and brushes your cheek for comfort

He also does this when he wants to ask something of you, but thats another story

Why the TV was still on was a mystery to you, you’d stopped listening a long time ago. Your partner besides you noticed, and you felt the hand around your shoulder tighten his grip a little, bringing you out of your thoughts.

“Hey, maybe we should watch something else?” he asked softly, brushing your cheek with his hand. “I can’t really listen to this anymore.”

“Yeah… Sure.” you replied, though it felt like an automated response more than your actual opinion.

“Okay, I’ll switch to that weird show Pidge recorded the other day, we agreed to watch it, right?” he replied, quickly grabbing the remote to change the program.

The first episode started playing, but the moment that it did, you felt cold as Shiro left your side.

“Where are you going?” you asked, your interlaced fingers the only thing keeping him close.

“Ah, I thought I’d make us something. We both kinda skipped dinner….”

He’d thought about putting something together that you’d like, maybe order dessert to surprise you but seeing the look on your face, leaving your side was the hardest thing to do right now.

So he gave in, and your both fell asleep until the doorbell rang with your delivery.

KEITH:

I have this headcanon that Keith isn’t very good with physical touch but after the end of voltron and after enough time of humanitarian relief, he learns how important it is for someone that’s in a specific state of mind

So the best he has to offer when his words fail is physical touch

Over your time together he’s learned what you need depending on your mood, and it helped him out lots when you were more vocal about it-- if anything he liked it when you asked for things that he could easily deliver, he’d do anything to see you smile

A hand came over your phone screen, Keith’s fingers lacing into yours and making you drop the device onto the crevices of the sofa.

“Why did you--”

“You’ve been staring at that thing for the past hour, biting at your nails.” he said in a worried tone. “That’s enough. We’re going to bed.”

“But it’s just--”

“We’re going to bed.” he repeated in a harsher tone, lifting you off your seat.

Keith sat down onto the bed first, pulling you into him. You both fell onto the bed, Keith quickly pulling the covers over your shoulders before his arms came around you.

“My alarm is my phone.”

“That’s nice, but we both know we have nothing to do tomorrow.” he replied right away, making you chuckle.

“Keith…” you called, your hands sneaking up to his face.

You brushed away some of his hair from his face as he gave you a complicated expression, unable to reflect the small smile you wore. He knew things were shit outside, that being apart from your family and other loved ones was a toll on both you and that lately negative thoughts have plagued you more often than not but Keith, despite his good intention was still somewhat of an awkward man.

“Thank you.”

He kissed you in reply and you both left it at that, glad that he had someone like you to meet him halfway.

LANCE:

Lots of hugs the moment he feels something is off with you

Will be a brat™ for the sole purpose of distracting you, bET

I feel like post-series Lance tries his best to be as observant as Allura and tries to understand others better-- but it didn't take a genius or incredible empath to know why your eyes looked like they were about to overflow at the sight of the news.

I’d like to think that Lance, with a big connected family is one of the paladins that very easily gets what you’re going through, wouldn’t be surprised he’s been called one or two things in his past either

That being said it doesn’t mean that he completely understands your personalized struggles with racial injustices that you encounter everyday; as another minority himself + coming from a culture and upbringing that might be different than yours, its a very different experience.

Memories flooded as the news anchor spoke about “lootings” and as you scrolled down your feed to see feeble attempts at sympathy from local peacekeepers. You sigh and retweet another thread, only to find something equally as shocking right after. You stopped commenting in quote retweets a while ago, you felt like you were constantly repeating that none of this was okay and that a reform was desperately needed. Rather than typing out your thoughts you typed out your name, address and email over and over again, signing one petition after the other.

Hearing sigh after sigh, Lance eventually put an arm around your shoulder. He startled you, but his soft voice made both your shoulders and your guard lower.

“Hey, do you want to make a midnight snack with me? I’m getting kinda hungry.”

“What about that new rule we were talking about? Not eating 4 hours before we went to bed?”

“Every diet has one or two cheat days, don’t they?” he replied, kissing one of your eyelids. “Come on, I’m sure your neck is sore from being like that for so long.”

In the end you both made some soul-food until a food-coma knocked you out until tomorrow. In the morning, you realized that Lance must’ve woken up in the middle of the night because you remember cuddling on the couch, and yet you’re waking up on the bed. Of course, still in his arms.

HUNK:

Having a sensible heart, I feel like both you and hunk would struggle a little about maintaining a healthy distance with current events.

Though overtime he would understand that keeping in touch with everything that’s going on is important, but not at the sake of burning out

His best bet, to him, to pull you out of a such a dark space is with comfort food

“Ok ppl feel like they want to eat a horse but they actually cant when they’re in that mind space Hunk, let’s make something sweet and small; something direct and straight to the point! Let’s add smiley faces on it!”

Your turned down the volume from the news, let your head fall backwards and brought up your forearm over your closed eyes. It felt warm and made it you realize that you had probably been staring very intensely at the screen as a wave of comfort hit your eyes the moment they were drowned in darkness. Letting out a deep breath, you stilled and let yourself bask in your thoughts until a familiar voice brought you back.

“Maybe a little bit more sugar? No, then it would be disbalanced. The base is already so sweet-- Ah, I have to take the cupcakes out or else they might get burned!”

You felt a smile grow on your lips, making you ignore the horrid news being broadcasted to turn to your partner that as usual, seemed to juggle ten thousand things to create a whole meal.

“What’s going on over here?” you asked, leaning over the counter to note that one of your favorite dishes was made and machines that were mostly used for baking had been brought out.

“Oh you know, just a little pick me up for my most favorite person ever.” he shrugged, but a smile soon came to his face. His hands were full but he leaned over, his lips meeting your cheek. “Things outside are a little dark, so I thought we could both use a little something nice.”

He turned on the machine after dropping a drop of dye to make it your favorite color and within a few minutes the icing was finished. Hunk scooped up a small amount on his finger and brought it to his lips and nod.

“Wanna taste?” he asked you, his finger dipping into the icing.

A mischievous grin spread on your features as you took his wrist and let his finger fall on your tongue, the sweetness quickly spreading through your mouth. The yellow paladin shivered as you let his digit hang in your mouth for longer than necessary, letting out a satisfied hum when you returned it to him.

“Tastes perfect.”

PIDGE:

She knew what could be fixed, she knew how to fix it but this meant she was also aware of how long such a transition would take

I think Pidge would be similar to Shiro: whatever she remembers that helps you be at ease, she would defect to that in hopes to maybe distract you for a while.

I don’t think Pidge is a very touchy person either, so if she reaches out to you _physically_ in worry, it’s a very clear sign she’s serious/anxious

I feel like she would reach out in other ways and then if she knew you were in a specific state of mind where touch was not useful, or if she just also wanted to try things out lol

As you watched the twisted information that was being shared on screen, another message caught your attention. Rather than a small red icon in the corner, a small window appeared in the middle of your computer screen.

<I found a way to modify notifications sent to another device.>

The video had stopped, every horrible gif about police brutality was paused and there was nothing else but the small window pidge had thrown onto your screen. You chuckled, and felt a pressure behind your working chair.

Another message popped up.

<You’ve been catching up with twitter for the past two hours. Surely you’re done now?>

A soft laugh came from you, making Pidge release a breath she didn’t know she was holding. You typed out an answer:

<Is it possible to be completely caught up with twitter? I follow like 500 accounts.>

<Okay, but half of them are just cat videos and the other half are just retweets of said videos.>

<Oh here I was thinking that this was an intervention to brighten my mood. We’re dragging each other’s follows now?>

<Oh please like you don’t want to be dragged, with that kind of follow list.>

<I can’t believe you’ve done this.>

You both laughed, before Pidge turned around and tapped your shoulder. She let her hand float in the air, yours coming to join it as a soon as your turned her way.

“Wanna take a nap?” she asked, letting her head fall onto your shoulder. “I had Chip make some hot chocolate, Hunk style.”

You squeezed her hand, putting your computer on sleep mode.

LANCE:

Has been waiting for this to happen, is very excited that it’s happening

Because you usually keep to yourself and Lance is a touchy person, it makes him like the work for your physical touch (hand holding is a reward!!!) but at the same time he’s always afraid that he’s accidentally going to step over the line

So when you!!! Fall asleep!! On him!!!!

My constantly skittish and shy s/o just initialized !!! physical touch !!!!

At first was ready to tease you over it but as he turns his head and he notices that you’re asleep-- its another kind of dokis that take over him

You felt comfortable to lean over his way as you fell asleep? Oh this is too precious

Kind wants to cry

Might actually cry

“Lance, is your lip quivering?” Pidge said, after having stealthily taken a picture.

“SssssssshuSH, Pidge!” Lance replied, hitting his lip with his index multiple times. “You’re doing to wake her!!”

“You’re going to wake her first with all that moving.” Keith added, arms crossed.

Lance shot him a glare, to which the black paladin only replied to with a smirk. The brunette brought his attention back to you after a few seconds as everyone settled into either another topic or focused on something else, letting his hand snake around the small of your back and pull you a little deeper into him, since your neck would wake up cramped and hurting if you stayed the way you did. To his delight you didn’t wake and let your forehead lean a little more into the crook of his neck, and if the others weren’t around he probably would’ve started humming to you.

Maybe another time.

KEITH:

Please do it

Holy shit please do it

He’ll stiffen up like a rod and will NOT know what to do it’ll be great

Hunk probably noticed you dozing off together and Pidge started filming

After a minute you fell asleep first, and if it wasn't for slight turbulence (nice timing) you would’ve fallen asleep forward, but no, onto Keith’s shoulder you go uwu

Keith doesn’t hate physical touch he’s just not that good with it-- though he does know that in the right situation and with the right person it helps out a lot

Over the years he’s gotten better at reading the room but still he’s mostly a person that keeps to himself, and so are you

So it goes to say that the times you’re intimate in public, enough for someone to noticed, you’re pretty much able to count on your fingers

It wasn’t the first time you’d fallen asleep on him. Keith and you had never been extremely touchy, but idle touches over time had been the most people would see from you, past the soft looks you’d share and comfortable silences that some would never understand why you treasured so much.

He slowly relaxed and let his hand slip into yours, a warm expression taking over his features. People looked relaxed and comfortable when they were asleep, and your serene expression when you slept was one of his favorites. You were an alert couple, you always stepping on eggshells with little social confidence and him simply being “edgy” as Pidge told him.

Speaking of Pidge, she had been the one to break him out of his thoughts, smirking into her palm.

“This is too good.” she said, making him snap his head to her.

“This doesn’t leave the room.” he threatened, though after letting his teammates see a shred of what he was in private with you, they felt nothing at his sharp words.

“Oh we are waaaaay past that.” Pidge replied, pointing her drone, still recording.

SHIRO:

Is very delighted that you’re sleeping-- though it does raise the question of “did my precious s/o get a good night sleep last night?”

Goes soft at your sleeping face like Keith, internally screaming because god you’re adoRABLE

But we been knew Shiro’s poker face is god tier-- so it doesn’t show at all

Dont worry his body shows it

He immediately mellows out to possibly get you as comfortable as you can-- if he’s taller than you he WILL consider crouching all the way to have your head in the crook of his neck, he’s a biG fan of that

After 15 seconds of squirming, the captain gave in.

He called your name softly, letting his artificial arm go under your legs slowly. You woke and rubbed your eyes as his other came around your back.

“Shiro..?” you called out, making him kiss your forehead.

“Falling asleep in that position wouldn’t be good for your neck, love.” he whispered. “Don’t mind me, you can go back to sleep.”

He said that, but you felt yourself being raised and put between his legs. His arm came to the side of your head and made you lean deeper into him, a blush coming to your face. Now fully awake you looked around to see if anyone else was awake, but was relieved to see that the other paladins were asleep.

“What about you?” you inquired, making him chuckle and brush a finger against your cheek.

“I’ll be fine. Keith will take the next watch.” he replied, letting his hand fall to your waist. “Now sleep, we have a big day ahead of us tomorrow.”

MATT

You saw him smelling the flowers

But like, his face was in them.

You tapped on his shoulder lightly, telling him that inhaling so much will probably make him sneeze after

and guess what

that’s the first thing he did when he saw you

he sneezed on your shoes.

Of course, Matt apologized and introduced himself, and only after did he freak out about a human being able to see him.

You kept meeting, and by that I mean Matt kept appearing around you in the weirdest places

“You look like you’re having a hard time with your boss there, want some of that angel charm to the rescue?”“Please, just, no. What does that even do? Can you guys interfere in the mortal plain?”“No, I’m sorry I just wanted to try saying that.”

One thing leads to another and he’s tied to you by the hip before you realize, and he basically moved into your home

Headpats are a must when you wake, go to work, come home and before you sleep: he returns the action with a peck to the cheek and you swear your entire body glows sometimes when he does that.

Obviously, your winged boyfriend always evades the question, but since nothing outrageous has happened yet you figure that it’s okay????? probably????

Matts also likes quick pecks over kisses!

But he loves hugs!! The feeling of your body melting against his when you come home from work or a draining event is his favorite.

He also likes making coffee for you in the morning: he’s not the best at cooking but he’s getting there!

You often end up making it together– an activity that you both grow to enjoy and insert quickly into your weekend mornings.

Overall Matt is a good boy, please treasure him.

SHIRO

Shiro was people watching when you met him, on top of a roof.

He was undercover and had hidden his wings, making you believe that he was a young man about to off himself.

You made your way up there and screamed at the top of your lungs to not do it

Without hearing his protests or seeing the surprise on his features when he noticed that he was visible to you, you went off desperately about how all lives are important

His laughter cut your speech, and you dropped to your knees when he showed you his angel form.

“Oh my, are you okay? I’m sorry I didn’t mean to shock you.” he laughed, a sound you felt you could listen to forever.“Oh, yeah, that.” you replied, a smile forming on your lips. “You’re an angel, in disguise. I’m sorry you didn’t shock me or anything, I’m just glad I didn’t have to see someone die today.”

After your first encounter, surprisingly almost everything just gets weirdly better

Baristas at Starbucks never get your order wrong now, cashiers never give you the wrong amount of change (all the ones you’ve encountered are super friendly and nice– like ALL of them), you get perfect .00 when you refill your gaz, the RNG gods blessed your pulls in your mobile gacha game…

It’s just the little things, but they still manage to brighten up your day when you need it

After a little less than a month, you’re convinced it’s that angel you met before and you start looking for him on rooftops now– but the day you start doing that, you bump into him on the streets.

“What a coincidence!”“Uh-huh.”

Naturally, you get closer and while those little things that brightened your day have disappeared, Shiro’s company alone is enough to brighten your whole week, so it’s fine.

Like Matt, eventually, you realize that he’s basically moved into your apartment.

You think a little about getting a new place so that you could live with him in more comfort after a few months (you’ve been meaning to get an upgrade for a while anyway) but when you do, the room you were thinking of giving Shiro becomes the guest room; he refuses to sleep in a bed without you.

Whenever you head out or come home, he always kisses the top of your head– it’s his favorite moments of the day

He loves to spoil you by getting you little things that he knows you likes– although it kept throwing your balanced diet off so now you mark all your scheduled cheat days on the calendar

ALLURA

Is a princess that was sneaking away from her guards to watch humans

Paperwork about angels below her bores her when she’s stamping for too long

she also fears a disconnection between the administration and the actual workers, so she tries her best to talk with every angel she meets

Little did she know that you were a human

she was convinced that you were just an angel in disguise when she got to the surface

she just thought that all these weird words were things that “common” angels used but nope, they’re all human things that she becomes very curious about!

so that’s how in the end you make an angel friend that at first is very interested in human culture

but over time she becomes more and more interested in you. She’s not afraid to show it either!

“What do you do? What do you like? What do you---”Her voice echoed in your brain at night. She’s been showing an awful lot of interest in you rather than your society and worldly ways lately.

Allura is obviously big smooth brain and flirts with you so very obviously that you believe chivalry isnt dead

she often brings you flowers, she does your laundry before you get home from work, little things that make your life easier at home

In return you start buying little things on your way home that you think she’d like-- flowers, snacks, etc

However, both you and Matt had proven to be busier than ever after the battle for Naxzela. Since the captain of the rebels had their hands tied going around planets and rallying new fighters (they’d lost quite the number to in the previous battle), Matt had been promoted to a higher rank in the rebels: he became the official link between the rebels and the coalition. The fact that he was related to one of the paladins was released to the public and helped strengthen the promise that they would be acting side by side against Zarkon’s empire from now on. For publicity, he was spending more time with Allura than ever before and it ate away at you. But on your end, you were so busy that you barely had time to think about. 

The sea of information that you had gained from hacking the satellite was a mess to comb through. In the midst of the battle, there was no time to actually separate useful and useless information from each other and much less time to decrypt everything that was coming through. Not only that: since the battle, Coran had also been needing assistance in handling certain of his chores for the coalition that every day had exponentially grown in sponsors, partners and more. About two earth weeks had passed since the last time you’d actually spoken to each other. And if it wasn’t for you being exhausted all the time, you would’ve noticed how his smile was forced when greeting you.

==================== ᕕ(ᐛ)ᕗ

“It’s over Pidge, she said she had someone else in mind already,” he said, head sinking into his sister’s desk.

“What?!” The younger brunette shouted, eyes lifting from her screen. “Really? Did she say who?”

“No, as she was about to answer Keith got control of the canon and---”

“And?”

His thoughts drifted: the night after Naxzela he saw you and Lance talking to each other at the docks and you had seemed depressed. You left him with higher spirits but before leaving him you hugged him tightly, sending needles into his heart as he saw him hug you back with a soft expression on his face. It was clearly affection: of what kind he didn’t know but his tired mind had concluded that it was romantic. After those dark thoughts of envy and jealousy made him spiral into an episode of self-hatred and eventually, led to him avoiding you. With this new schedule, it was an awfully easy thing to do too. The new workload was a good distraction for him until he saw you again, your face beam up in the hallways at the chance of seeing him after a few days. It was clear that you were borderline overworking yourself and every time he saw how much you were in need of a break he wished nothing more than to simply return to that sad, lost radio outpost where you’d both met, where no one could bother you there.

Or at least, almost no one.

“Matt?”

He turned his head to his sister, brought back to the present.

“I don’t know who it is,” he finally answered. “And honestly, I’m not sure I want to know.”

His tone earned a frown from his sister, who knew better than to pry when brother spoke in such a manner. She declared that she needed a break and walked to the kitchen and by coincidence, was approached by Allura. Pidge offered to make what humans called coffee, and she accepted after asking Pidge for a little of her time.

“I’m always surprised at how it comes out as this extremely brown and bitter liquid, but then turns creamy and sweet? You must tell me what you put in it!” she inquired.

After hearing about their reactions to how milk was made from Lance, Pidge quickly changed the subject.

“We can talk about that later. You said that you wanted to talk about my brother?”

Please don’t let this become a love square, Matt is already so dense...

“He’s been acting weird since the battle for Naxzela,” she said as Pidge sat down across from her, putting the filled coffee cups between them. “Of course he isn’t underperforming in any way, but occasionally your brother gets this very…. Complexed expression.”

Pidge raised her eyebrows. “Yeah, I know the one.”

“I’m relieved that I mustn't describe it in detail then. As a friend, the way he seems to lose himself to his own thoughts worries me. I was wondering if there was any way for me to help, seeing as how I will be spending more time with him for publicity in the next following days.”

Pidge could spill all of her brother’s secrets. Maybe Allura would have a more delicate way of approaching the situation and her, being as wise as she is. Two brains together are better than one alone, even if in this universe a single Holt brain was more than enough.

So naturally, his Holt brain should be enough for the task, she believed.

“I think this is something that he needs to figure out himself. My brother might not always be as smart as me, but I’m sure he’ll figure it out eventually.”

Allura sighed, obviously expecting another answer. She was aware that you couldn’t always rush someone into finding a solution for their problems, but it pained her whenever she was unable to help a friend. As one of the paladins of Voltron, Pidge knew that better than most people as one of the few connected to her in a way no one else was. The green paladin spoke up again, in a softer tone this time.

“The best we can do is offer him the support he needs, and I’m positive that knowing you’re there for him is more than enough to make the burden on his shoulders a little lighter.”

For the first time that day, Allura smiled.

==================== ᕕ(ᐛ)ᕗ

“Lance, we need to talk.”

“Us? Uh, sure. Okay, whatever you need, newborn intergalactic superstar.”

The blue paladin followed the brunette to a more private room and made himself comfortable where he could. He’d noticed the look in his eyes and followed him without question, but he was still nervous. He’d never really had the chance to have a real talk with Matt, they were both often surrounded by people. He only assumed that he would want to talk about you, and he was right.

“Do you like her?”

“What?”

“Do you like her.” he repeated. “Please don’t lie to me Lance, I’d be really nice to know if I have to give up on her or not.”

“Give up on who?”

Matt sighed. “Were you even listening to me?”

“Uh, not really? We’ve never really had a talk before and you’re one of my best friend’s older brother. Who wouldn’t be nervous getting called by someone like that?”

“R-right, Uhm, well…”

“I’m not sure I know who you’re talking about, because I obviously wasn’t listening, but I only have eyes for Allura. I thought you noticed when we first met,” Lance said in an attempt to lighten the mood. “I glared at you pretty hard for just grabbing her hand.”

“T-the memory of it didn’t stick with me. I did think Allura was gorgeous the moment I met her but she doesn’t really seem to have the time for a relationship, being the centerpiece for the coalition and all.”

Lance’s mood dropped for a moment. “Yeah, we are in the middle of a war, aren’t we?”

After he recollected himself, he let Matt speak about his feelings. The way he felt when he saw the two of you looking so close, the times he had overheard and seen you share moments with the blue paladin and what they made him feel. After a while, it simply turned into praising you to the best of his ability, Lance, in turn, interjecting with everything that he loved from the fellow Altean princess he had fought against since he left earth.

The two lost track of time and eventually one of their communicators brought them back to reality, notifying them of the duties that they had to the coalition and the universe. Reminded of their roles they separated, hearts much lighter than before.

==================== ᕕ(ᐛ)ᕗ

“So Lance doesn’t like her that way, called it.” Pidge said, extending her hand to him. “Pass me that screwdriver.”

“You have 7 lined up here. Which one?”

“Nevermind.” she sighed, reaching for it herself. “Either way, what are you going to do now?  Confess?”

“I don’t know. I don’t want to add more stress on her than needed. I want to confirm the person she says is on her mind first.”

“Really? Even Lance gave you the okay to talk to her about it and he’s probably the closest to her right now, if not for Coran.”

Coran. He had never thought about the older Altean that had been by her side during the Naxzela. Of course! If Lance didn’t know maybe Coran did!

“Pidge, you’re a genius!” Matt shouted, hurriedly getting on his feet.

“I know.” his younger sister shrugged. “Wait, what did you realize?”

“Maybe Coran knows! I should ask him, who gets to spend more time with her than anyone else in the universe right now!”

He ran towards the door, but Pidge’s voice stopped him in his tracks.

“Do you really think he knows or would’ve realized who it was? Coran’s even busier than she is!”

“Maybe he has! Maybe--- Wait. You don’t think--”

Your mother was well-known as a medic that did their part for the glory of this kingdom and honor of her family, but it didn’t change the fact that she was a commoner in the end. She died before she ever had the chance to receive a title from the ruler of the kingdom, but you were alive to accept her title for her and carry on her work.

“Party didn’t work out for you love?”  a voice said as you entered the gardens that lead to your quarters.

You turned around and was met with a sly smirk that you knew all too well. Brown eyes met yours and became soft, your reflection becoming apparent despite the darkness that surrounded you.

“What about you? It’s prime time to rob some nobles and redistribute riches,” you said, a finger booping his nose.

He cringed a little at the action but showed no other sign of disliking it, physical contact a clear weakness of his. The taller man circled you, his voice tickling your ear.

“I had more important things in mind tonight, I ditched them.”

“Pike, are you sure you should do that?” you said, turning around so you wouldn’t lose sight of him; recently he’d taken to disappearing and surprising you when he could and you were not screaming, by fear of alarming someone that might be nearby.

“I’m not the best on the team anyways! They’ll be fine without me for the rest of the night. But you, on the other hand…”

“I can last a party or two without a bodyguard, Pike.”

“I know that. I was talking about me. I can’t be without you.”

Stunned, you froze in your steps. A smirk came to your features as he reached for your hand, pulling you to your room.

“Smooth,” you commented, making him chuckle.

----

After you’d changed into more comfortable clothes, Pike had pinned you down and refused to let you leave the bed, his exhaustion becoming clearer as you got closer to him. His arms circled your waist, his face resting on the pillows just above your shoulders. Almost immediately after you’d crashed on the comforter, you felt him melt against you. Nothing would be better than falling asleep by your side, he’s convinced of it now.

“That bad huh?”

“Old man saw us coming. If it wasn’t for Meklavar and Keith I doubt we would’ve been able to tell that something was odd,” he replied. “Gotta hand it to them: I’m the assassin with detection skills and yet they’re the ones that point out traps more often than I do.”

He felt you frown even without looking at you. Often you’d heard his team members tease him and although all those involved knew that they never really meant to hurt him, the words still stung when they accidentally hit too close to home. You sighed, which made him nuzzle a little closer to you.

“At least none of them have the skills to disarm the traps though, do they?” he said, half for himself and half for you.

You kissed his temple in response, your hand staying against the back of his head. At first, you combed your hand through his hair but after a while, you started scratching the back of his ears like you did to cats and dogs that you saw during your trips to the city. By reflex, Pike tensed and you felt it, immediately regretting your action.

“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to, I just--” you stammered as he lifted himself from you.

“No, it’s alright! I was just… I wasn’t expecting it.” he said, reflecting your flushed cheeks. I don’t hate it, I was just surprised.”

“So, it doesn’t feel bad?”

“No, but it’s not the best feeling either? A-at least not to me, who isn’t used to it. S’a bit odd.”

“Then why do cats and dogs often appreciate being scratched there?”

“Probably because they don’t have opposable thumbs to reach the--- are you comparing me to an animal?” he said, fakely offended.

“Well if you want to get technical, You have wereclan tribal marks, ears and--”

“That’s it! I can’t believe that the love of my life would think of me like that!” he shouted, the hands that were holding you together pressing in dangerous places.

“Pike, no! S-stop!”

You felt the feeling course through your spine, and the laughter slipped in small doses from your lips, despite biting down on them so hard. Meanwhile, Pike kept talking.

“Comparing me to an animal you can meet in the city, even if that’s where we technically met, I cannot tolerate being insulted this way! You will pay for this!”

He acted like he was offended by what you said, but you knew that the tickle war was only to get both of your minds off of the heavy topic he’d brought up before. He always came to you when he was feeling down and while you were never the best for comfort, you were the best distraction from his insecurities. For a while, you wondered if that’s all you were going to be for him: a distraction. It was a surprise when you found out that your affections were returned, soon after you met his teammates that he had talked about so dearly during his nightly visits.

As much as you wanted to help him get over the insecurity of his place on the team, you acknowledged that it wouldn’t happen overnight and decided not to pry anymore, simply putting a hand on the one that was trying to pinch your waist. Pike came here most likely to relax and wind down from all the action he’d been through tonight, he shouldn’t be spending more energy cheering you up when he already seemed so low on it.

“Alright, it’s getting late,” you said, catching the hand that was sneaking around your waist. “I don’t know about you but I’d like to get some rest.”

Pike’s smiled turned from mischievous to gentle, his face sinking into the crook of your neck. “I’d like that very much.”