I got you [H/C - Joker - für mich]

[peterhforalpha.livejournal.com]

Team: Sonne
Challenge: H/C - Joker ("Jemanden tragen/stützen" von der Bingo-Karte 2017) - für mich
Titel: I got you
Fandom: Voltron
Charaktere: Keith, Lance, Shiro
Wörter: 1426 Wörter
Sprache: Englisch


“Next time you’re the bait,” Lance said followed by a painful groan.
“I was the bait,” Keith commented, adjusting his hold on Lance. He had the feeling that with every step Lance’s strength lessened and it was harder for him to put one foot in front of the other. Keith was almost carrying him by now.
“Oh right! But usually the bait is the job that’s more dangerous, isn’t it?”
“It is, yeah.” Keith hadn’t liked the plan from the beginning but he had no better idea so in the end he had agreed. The only condition was that he would play the bait. Keith could handle a few Galra drones. And Lance was the better shot anyway. He was more valuable from the distance, backing him up.
“Okay, so why am I hurt and not you?”
Keith wasn’t sure if Lance just wanted to do small talk or if he was so confused that he actually didn’t know. Either way it drove Keith nuts. He wasn’t a big talker normally and in such a situation where he was tensed up anyway it bothered him more than it should. “Could you just shut up?” He snapped. He could feel Lance twitch in his grasp and immediately he felt bad. Keith hadn’t wanted to snap at him, and only now he realized that he might be a little more tensed up because he was worried, too. Lance was right. The bait should have been the more dangerous job. That’s why Keith had demanded to do it. Lance should have been fine and not the one that got hurt.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “We just - we need to get out of here and preferably with no one else noticing.”
Lance nodded. “Do you think the others are okay?”
This little bait game had just been a decoy so that the others could get to important information. They had lured as many Galra out of the base as possible so that the others could infiltrate it and get to the computer. “I hope so.”
“There were a lot of Galra attacking us. So there were only a few left in the base. The others are probably fine.”
“Yes, probably.” Keith wasn’t so sure about that but he didn’t want to take hope away from Lance. He was injured and in pain, he didn’t need to worry about the others. He should concentrate on himself. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine.”
Keith could clearly see how not fine Lance was but he didn’t comment on that. They had no other choice than to get back to the shuttle. They had landed in a forest, a little away from the base, so they wouldn’t have been spotted. It was too risky to bring their lions because they didn’t want the Galra to know that Voltron was stealing something from them. It was an undercover operation.
But now Keith really wished they would have their lions. It would made a lot of things a lot of easier, for example carrying Lance over this planet. The lions reacted sometimes when they called him. Keith wouldn’t need to carry his partner all the way. And it would be faster. Although Lance claimed that he was fine, he didn’t look fine. He was pale and sweaty. Every step was clumsier than the one before. It was only a matter of time until he couldn’t hold himself on his feet anymore and Keith would have to carry him completely.
“We’re almost there,” Keith said because it had gotten quiet. Too quiet. Although he had complained a while ago it was disturbing if Lance was silent. He was the one who always talked. In every kind of situation. He cracked a joke even in the most serious situations. It was almost some kind of talent. Normally Keith thought it was annoying, now he couldn’t think of something better than to hear a stupid joke from Lance. “Only a little further.”
“Keith, I-” Lance started.
“What is it?”
“I don’t think-” Lance stumbled all of a sudden, something that Keith wasn’t prepared for and he lost his ballance as well. He just caught himself in the last second and managed to lower Lance to the ground slowly.
“Hey, hey, Lance, come on.” He kneeled down next to him but Lance had his eyes closed and didn’t respond, no matter how hard Keith was shaking him. “Come on,” he groaned, desperation in his voice. Nothing was of use. Lance didn’t wake up. With horror Keith noticed the high amount of blood that was seeping out of Lance’s body. “Shit,” he muttered under his breath.
He closed his eyes for a second. “Patience yields focus,” he whispered and it calmed him down a little. When he opened his eyes he felt a lot more confident. He was still worried but he knew he couldn’t lose his head now. So he grabbed Lance’s arm and hauled him over his shoulder. “I got you,” he said as if Lance could still hear him.
The shuttle was indeed not very far away but now it was way harder to walk. Still, Keith somehow managed to get to it and put Lance carefully inside. He jumped in next to him and started it immediately.
He activated the communicator the moment he was in the orbit of the planet. “Keith here,” he said.
“Keith!” Shiro’s voice. He sounded relieved. “Good to hear your voice. We tried to reach you but we had problems with the communication. Are you okay?”
Keith was well aware that they were far behind schedule. “I’m fine but Lance is hurt pretty badly. Get a stretcher in the cargo bay.”
There was a short pause. “We’ll be ready for you.”

Keith knew that he couldn’t do anything than just sit next to the healing pod but he still stayed. Shiro had told him to go to bed but in this understanding voice as if he knew that Keith had to stay for this. In the end Shiro had stayed as well. They weren’t talking, just sitting next to each other. Keith was glad that Shiro was there. He wasn’t good at all this emotional stuff and he didn’t like Lance that much anyway but he had been worried, terrified even and he just needed to know that he’d be okay again. After all Lance had been hurt while protecting Keith. He probably hadn’t noticed the Galra that was sneaking up on him because he was concentrated to keep Keith safe and backing him up.
“It’s not your fault, Keith,” Shiro said into the silence.
“I know.” Keith had pulled his legs to his chest and was clinging on to them, chin resting on his knees. He just stared at the healing pod Lance was in.
“We knew that it was a risky maneuver. Both of you knew that it would be dangerous.”
“My job should have been the more dangerous one!”
Shiro sighed, laying a hand on Keith’s shoulder and squeezing gently. “You can never anticipate how something will go down. There is no one to blame for this.”
“I don’t blame myself.” He didn’t, or did he? He voluntarily chose to be the bait because he knew that he would be the one to most likely get hurt. He didn’t cope well when others were hurt, especially not when they had tried to help him. Keith never thought that he would find other people to worry about. Other people than his family or Shiro. He would have never expected to get so attached to the rest of the team.
“It’s okay, Keith. Lance is okay. You brought him back safely.”
Keith swallowed around the lump in his throat. “When he collapsed to the ground ... not responding … I wasn’t sure if he was still alive.”
Shiro lay his arm around Keith and pulled him closer. “He’s alive. Thanks to you. You got him out of there.”
Keith wanted to mumble a ‘thank you’ or something similar but a noise let him raise his head. The healing pod was opening. At once he jumped to his feet.
Lance stepped outside and he had already his grin on his face. “So, for the record. Next time, I’m the bait.”
Without thinking about it Keith lunged forward and pulled Lance into a tight embrace. He could feel the first moment of surprise when Lance stiffened under his touch but he soon relaxed and reciprocated the hug.
“I’m okay, Keith,” he whispered into his ear. “Thank you.”
Keith nodded, pulling away. “I got you.”