Whether or not Shiro had clothes, didn’t effect what Parlex thought of the dusty skinned alien. The affection and determination, was warming. If anything, Shiro sounded like any other member of the resistance Parlex had been living with. Although deep down, maybe Parlex wanted to cling to anything that didn’t make him feel so alone and so small as being a prisoner on this warship.
He realized this was no time for tears. He wiped stopped crying and wiped them away. WIth the cold eating at his skin, he looked at Shiro. The alien looked much like Parlex and Zusu did, with a thin layer of flesh or flesh-like material which covered muscles underneath. There was no hint of the fur, fat, or other organic material such as the Balmerran’s rock-skin, that would make him impervious to the cold of the cells.
“Shiro gonna be okay. We will leave.”
Parlex wrapped his arms around Shiro. The only way he and his friends had kept warm on those nights they were far from home as the luxury of heaters and fire, they often couldn’t afford as it would draw too much attention to their missions which never were anything other than secret. He rubbed Shiro’s back hoping the light friction would generate enough heat to keep the cold at bay. It was the only way he could think of to help.
Parlex also wasn’t naive. He had heard plenty of stories from aliens he’d rescued from the Galra. The Galra would return for Shiro for their entertainment, as much as he was certain the Druid’s wouldn’t stop trying to break him. Yet, Shiro was right even if he didn’t know the reason why. They will be okay. Violet would find him, but only if he didn’t break first. He knew there was no other choice other than to get Shiro’s help.
“Par… I need to speak truth. If team is four, then Parlex have team, not partner. We are four. Parlex, Violet, Zusu, Cobalt.”
“Druid keep me to break break me. They break me to learn my weapon. It is secret to them. They told what it does, but they not know how it works. They not know who or how made. It only works for me, it only lives for me. If I break, then they make it live for them. It has secrets. Secrets to home, and more. I can’t let home die. I can’t let Violet lose or we lose everything with him.”
It was normally against his instinct to mention his bayard. The word belonged to the lost Altean culture so he doubted anyone except another paladin would know it. Describing it with his limited understanding of Shiro’s language was frustrating. All of it was true. The bayard had been remade to be a gauntlet, only to hide its true nature. It saved the bayard from being identified numerous times. But now, the Druid’s had seen some of what it did in the recordings and they had Parlex to tell them what it was, how it worked, and …. that there were more than the lions of Voltron.
“I need your help. Get out, get weapon. Violet find us then, bring Zusu and Cobalt. No Galra ship, no Galra fighter stop us then. We be free.”
It didn’t take long for the Galra to notice the difference in Shiro’s protective behavior and they took full advantage. The humiliation was more than the human could bare but he only granted himself a short time to recover before returning to Parlex for comfort and rest. As much as he didn’t wish give his cellmate the wrong ideas, Shiro’s sleep was leagues better when sharing body warmth with Parlex. This was survival. With Parlex, hope was tangible. Shiro got used to touching and being touched; sometimes taking Parlex’s hands and putting them in his own armpits to keep him warm.
And there he was cuddling with Parlex on a particularly cold evening.
“Thank you.” He mumbled into the other’s hair. “You’ve given me strength I wouldn’t have had otherwise. I think it’s time to get that weapon of yours.” He believed in whoever Violet was..it was strange but Shiro could feel it. Violet was powerful and loyal and it felt like he already knew them somehow. Was he losing his mind? Was this all some kind of terrible space madness? He held his cellmate a little tighter. Shiro hadn’t cried in a while and he wasn’t about to start now.
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