Chapter Text
Keith didn’t expect already to have people waiting for his arrival as his driver dropped him off to the Castle of Lions.
While news spread like wildfires in these parts, he still wasn’t used to having so much attention on him. The paparazzi’s cameras flashed, blinding him like strobe lighting at a club as he strode down the path to the entrance, whacking microphones out of the way and dodging rabid fan boys or girls who tried to grab at his shirt or his hair. He still didn’t believe he earned the chance of a life-time. His father dreamed of a life like this for him, and he wouldn’t get to see Keith live it. He was drinking in the sight before him like it was some fever dream he was living.
From the moment applications were open for the newest Red Paladin, many seized that opportunity. It was a miracle he even got noticed from the swarm of those around this galaxy and neighboring galaxies who tried to make the cut. He did everything possible–audition tapes, representative ads, lots of pageants and contests and any other publicity stunts to get him noticed by the Castle of Lions and the Defenders of the Universe who lived within those walls. It really was a dream come true, and it was all of this and a combination of sacrificing years of his adolescence and early adulthood and toil that got him where he was today.
The Castle of Lions stood proudly atop the mountain peak, smackdab in the middle of the Republic of Allyria, its towering spires and majestic walls a testament to the ancient civilization that had built it. The castle's infrastructure was a marvel of engineering and Altean magic, with intricate corridors and chambers seamlessly integrated into its natural rock formations.
At the heart of the castle was the control room, a sprawling chamber crammed with high-tech consoles and holographic displays. The control room was also home to the castle's artificial intelligence.
Beyond the control room lay the castle's living quarters, a labyrinthine network of chambers and corridors that housed the Paladins and their allies. Each chamber was uniquely decorated, reflecting the personality and interests of its occupant. There was a cozy library filled with ancient tomes, a state-of-the-art gym equipped with cutting-edge exercise equipment and simulators, and a luxurious spa as well.
But the true marvel of the Castle of Lions lay beneath its surface, in the form of an enormous hangar bay. That was where the magic really happened; there, the Paladins' lions rested between missions, always ready to be deployed at a moment's notice. The hangar bay was equipped with state-of-the-art maintenance facilities, allowing the renowned and ‘respected’ Paladins to repair and upgrade their lions as needed.
As he ambled up the stairs, he skimmed through the letter once again. Even being here, he was still in disbelief. The impostor syndrome ran as deep in his veins as his hybrid lineage had.
‘Greetings, Mr. Keith Kogane! We hope you come in peace. ;)
It is with our utmost satisfaction to welcome you as our newest Paladin! We trust that you will be left wanting for nothing when we introduce you to the rest of the squad and you secure your place in the Castle of Lions. As Defenders of Neo-Altea and the rest of the known universe (or so we like to believe), it is our duty to ensure the safety of our citizens, and your strong sense of justice is just what we want for our final recruit. You are our gorgeous Red Paladin of FIre, the literal right-hand to yours truly, Takashi Shirogane, the Black Paladin of Air and the Head of Voltron.
As you may already been made aware, here’s some of our lovely assemble:
- The Yellow Paladin of Earth, Hunk Garrett, or Voltron’s left leg!
- The Green Paladin of Nature, Katie Holt, or Voltron’s left arm!
- The Blue Paladin of Water, Lance Delmar, or Voltron’s right leg!
- Commander Samuel Holt, one of our beloved superiors
- Matthew Holt and Veronica Fuentes, some of our beloved engineers
- Colleen Holt, our beloved PR manager
- Queen Allura, I don’t think I need to elaborate further
- Coran, Allura’s royal advisor
And you will meet many more members of your new family! Once you receive this letter, you should already have your swanky I.D. card and your ticket into the Castle of Lions, located at the center of the Republic of Allyria. We are glad to have you aboard and for the mission to defend our right to live here, unlike a certain world-eating alien empire!
You should arrive to the Castle of Lions ideally within three ‘quintants’.
Sincerely,
Takashi Shirogane, B.P.’
Keith snorted as he heard more girls screaming bloody murder at his arrival. The security’s attempts were feeble as they tried to hold them all off. He wasn’t here for fame or for money.
What a fucking joke.
Keith crumpled up the letter as the Castle of Lions stood before him, ever tall and majestic in its nature. It still felt like some fever dream he was having. Upon receiving that letter in his cabin, he burned himself with the butt of his cigarette several times as a more effective ‘pinch himself to make sure he wasn’t dreaming.’
And in spite of the cosmic joke that was his entire life, or in simpler, ‘explain like you’re five’ terms, as fate would have it, he wasn’t , in fact, dreaming.
He tossed the crumpled letter written in fancy Blackletter script into a nearby wastebin before entering through the sliding doors of the Castle of Lions. The ‘magic’ system must have already identified him because he wasn’t blasted off into smithereens upon entry.
“And there he is!” Keith winced at the discordant voice of an over-eager HR manager. “Welcome, Keith! It’s great to have the full assemble. This is a new development for us all, and we’re happy to have you aboard.”
“Yeah,” he grumbled, a flash of irritation evident on his face. It was far too damn early for someone to be this perky. He just barely got out of the clutches of roaring, adoring fans. “Colleen, right?”
“Yep!” Colleen flashed the badge on her right breast. “Shiro should be here in a few minutes to give you the tour and show you to your room. You’ll be right across from each other! How lucky can someone be?”
“Right,” Keith replied as he flashed his I.D. card. “And I’m guessing that lets me get anywhere I need to be from here on out.”
“Precisely, although the security system should have already recognized you. You’re already in the system.”
“And so that’s why I haven’t been blasted into smithereens, after all.”
Colleen turned to him with a wide, plastic grin on her face, gushing over the Castle’s engineering: “Nifty, isn’t it?”
Keith shrugged. His outward expression belied his inner thoughts: Shut up, already.
“You’re awfully quiet and mysterious, and that’s why we love you.” Colleen heard a faint ding! And turned to the source, as did Keith. “And here he is! The man responsible for all of this! Give us your best poster worthy grin, Keith!" She clasped her hands together and squealed like a little girl. Keith rolled his eyes but humored her. Best to stay in everyone's good graces anyway. Though he was known to have a prickly personality he was not going to show too much of his unfriendly side unless absolutely necessary.
“Hello, there, Keith! As I said in the letter, I hope you come in peace, because we sure do.” Shiro had emerged from one of the elevator doors down the hall from where they stood, his commander uniform donned in his Lion’s color. Keith already pieced together he’d have his own in his color.
What he also pieced together was Takashi Shirogane was as gorgeous (if not more so) in person as he was on billboards or posters or television or cinema.
. . . Was he by some off-chance single?
Takashi Shirogane, good god, Takashi Shirogane–he was a true sight to behold, lions and Voltron excluded. Standing at an impressive six feet tall, he towered over most people who weren’t Galra or Balmerans, and his broad shoulders and muscular frame hinted at the strength and power that lay beneath his clothes. He had toned and perfectly sculpted his body through years of intense training and conditioning.
He embodied the true definition of a silverfox, despite not being anywhere close to the age his silver fringe suggested. He just managed to look even more striking and distinguished. He styled his hair in a short, military-style cut with a few longer strands swept back from his forehead. His facial features were sharp and angular, with high cheekbones, a strong jawline, and a straight nose with a scar across it, adding more character and definition–just the kind of face that Keith would love to sit on. His eyes were a deep dark shade of brown, intense, focused, and sharp, with just a semblance of warmth and kindness lurking behind them.
Shiro dressed in utilitarian yet stylish clothing that perfectly suited his role as a leader and warrior.
Although the military outfits weren’t trendy pieces to wear at all, Shiro still looked like he was ready to take a catwalk down the runway and own the entire stage, winning the crowd.
Shiro might’ve taken note at how he might’ve been gawking, mouth suddenly void of any moisture, completely starstruck, but refrained from mentioning anything for the sake of sparing his dignity. He continued with a warm, charismatic smile, stormy gray eyes skimming his overall figure. Nothing impressive, Shiro must have noted, but he didn’t need to be because he was going to be piloting some mecha lion that transformed into a huge defending robot.
Keith had to shake himself out of his stupor, anyway. He wasn’t here to marry or to gawk. He wasn’t even here as a permanent member.
“Are you ready for us to show you around the Castle? And just your luck, you’ll be just across from my room, which I’m sure Colleen already told you. So you can bug me whenever you need something all up and personal.”
“Yeah, let’s get things going,” Keith replied through a flimsy attempt to sound jubilant and cheerful. Clearly the mask almost cracked. He was neither a cheery or jubilant person. He wasn't that professional either. He felt like a fish out of water altogether here.
The things you do . . . he mused, for some semblance of satisfaction and gratification in your otherwise miserable existence.
After Shiro showed him the simulation and training rooms, the locker rooms, the showers, the conference rooms, the bridge, the control room, the Lion’s hangars and the Lion’s themselves, and other nifty add-ons since the Castle was built over ten thousand decapheobs ago, Shiro led them down their corridor which held their bedrooms with en-suite restrooms with a bathtub and an automatic alarm coffee or tea maker and everything else Keith ever needed to be comfortable. Shir o filled him in on more information on the other dwellers on Neo-Altea who hailed from other distant planets like nearby Balmera or on Olkarion or Arus. The blending of cultures here, something Earth was once known for, was a comforting thing to Keith--especially given he wasn't wholly human himself. A part of him idly wondered if the team already knew about that side of him and still allowed him regardless. He had read up on Voltron's history and the Castle of Lions was home to all who wandered there. The Galra Empire, their enemy, was known to have refugees come here in hopes to escape their treachery. Keith was one of them, as was the home he came from: the Blade of Marmora was a band of rebels who hoped to dismantle the Empire from the inside out. Established since the war began 10,000 decapheobs ago.
As they drew the introductory things to a close, Keith wondered if he should bring up anything else about himself. He was about to open his mouth and then Shiro beat him to a discussion.
“Oh, just one last thing before I leave you to your own devices, Keith.” Shiro drew in closer into Keith’s bubble, more than what should be considered comfortable or professional. “There are no . . . secrets between us here, hm? Nothing gets past this mind.” He tapped his head for emphasis. “The Black Lion is omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent, and I share that connection, as well as these abilities, with her. I already know your intentions in being here.”
“And what’s that?” Keith challenged, keeping himself calm.
“You do have Galra blood. I had to run a DNA test on you. While we are no strangers to having Galra on our side–the first Black Paladin was Zarkon himself, after all–I want you to make sure you’re absolutely clear: I am not above revealing your lineage and destroying you if you endanger our plans. You’re with us, and therefore, you swear your loyalty to us. Am I right to assume that you are not an agent serving the Empire?”
“No.” I’m worse , his inner voice boomed . “I share the same vision as you, Shiro: world, er, universal peace.”
Shiro flashed him an unreadable smile. “Excellent, Keith. I’m so happy we can have this little talk. Oh. I lied before. One last thing . . .”
Shiro brought his hand up and Keith steeled himself, stance wide. He was caught off-guard as his organic hand brushed through his silky, thick black locks and tucked his finger under his chin. Shiro grinned.
“You are as beautiful as they say, especially up close,” Shiro murmured, drawing closer, and eyes darkening. “I only wonder if you taste as good as you look.”
Keith felt a shiver run down his spine at Shiro's words and the way his eyes roamed over his body. He shifted uncomfortably, feeling violated.
"What the fuck goes on in your head?" he sneered, his voice rising in anger and blood simmering.
Shiro's grin turned into a smirk. "Relax, Keith. I'm just having a little fun. But remember what I said earlier–there are no secrets between us here. I'll be monitoring you closely."
Keith’s amethyst eyes followed Shiro’s hand, and then flitted back up to Shiro’s face. Unreadable. Unpalpable.
“I hope the fans don’t worry you too much. With us being as desired by the masses as we are, they can get a bit . . . unhinged . I’ll be happy to protect you from that. I bought out most of those fan clubs to prevent further harassment of any of our residents here. It’s sadly been a common occurrence.”
“Now whoever said chivalry was dead?” Keith responded, tone mocking. Shiro didn’t look amused but the way his thumb brushed against Keith’s supple porcelain skin and lingered at his lips juxtaposed his overall domineering air. So much for kindness behind those eyes.
Shiro appeared to have everyone deceived.
“You can always return those gestures with a little show of appreciation. A kiss, for example.” Shiro purred as he drew their faces closer, taking Keith’s bottom lip between his own and causing Keith to grimace and shove him off. Shiro doubled over for a split second before chuckling darkly, hardly deterred. Keith gawked at him, again a look of disgust rather than awe.
“Yeah right!” Keith barked in protest, swatting Shiro’s eager hands away as they tried to draw close again. “Aren’t you supposed to be Shiro the Hero, or whatever? Heroes don’t act like that as far as I’m concerned.”
“Exactly, which is why I hope you’ll keep my little secret.” Shiro brought his organic finger to his lips. “Or I tell yours.”
Keith was reminded of why he came here in the first place. He already found it.
“Fuckin’ piece of shit,” he spat as his eyes narrowed. Shiro however remained undeterred, inspecting his nails and picking off specks of dirt beneath them.
“Takes one to know one. Until we’re called into work, I’ll be seeing you, gorgeous.”
Shiro unceremoniously winked at him and Keith shuddered as Shiro turned on his heel and retired to his bedroom. Just across his room.
How grand. How convenient. How so pre-planned. Keith grumbled a slew of curses under his breath as he entered his own bedroom, huddling in his bed as he already felt too much unease in an offer that should have him rejoicing.
He would still get his way, even if he had to pull a few strings.
He swore it over his dad’s grave.