Make Your Own Merry
gen, 2.5k
Rating: G
Tags: fluff, friendship, holidays
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to @tea-and-lemons! I’m your secret santa for the @voltronexchange :D I saw that you’d asked for holiday-themed stuff and I couldn’t resist doing a Christmas story in space. I hope you like it!
Read it on Ao3 here.
The stuff covering the trees wasn’t exactly snow, but it was close enough. The trees weren’t exactly trees either, their purple bark shining like crystals as the twin suns set on the distant horizon. In fact, the whole scene wasn’t terribly Christmas-y or Earth-like but the paladins were obstinately festive regardless.
Snow -- or, as Coran kept explaining, frozen deuterium -- crunched underfoot. Shiro was leading the way, his black armor standing out like a beacon against the white landscape. Behind him, Lance and Hunk packed down the knee-high snow with their boots, making it easier for Pidge to wade through. Allura, in her pink armor, brought up the rear with Coran, observing the happy chatter of the Earth paladins.
Shiro paused and glanced at his wrist computer, trying to match up the position of the suns with the displayed map. “We should be almost there,” he said, sounding less than certain.
“Almost?” Lance echoed. “You said that twenty minutes ago!”
Behind them, the white spires of the Castle had long since faded into the drifting snow. They’d landed the huge ship far enough away that the secret base shouldn’t pick it up on scanners, but close enough to make a trek feasible. Except if they got lost, that could slow down things considerably.
“There it is!” Pidge shouted. She had climbed Hunk like a tree and was perched on his broad shoulders, pointing out toward the snowy hillsides up ahead. “I can see the door!”
Lance darted forward until the snow mired him down to a slower pace. “About time. I’m freezing!”
“You’re the ice paladin,” Allura pointed out. “Shouldn’t you be more immune to cold than the others?”
Lance pouted in her direction, where she had taken off her helmet to let the snowflakes land in her hair. “I’m from a very warm climate. I like water just fine when it’s liquid and, y’know, not freezing.”
“How are you holding up, princess?” Shiro asked. “Aren’t you cold too?”
Allura shook her head, letting her hair fly in the wind. “I have full conscious control over my internal temperature. I simply increased the bloodflow to my extremities and raised my core temperature a few degrees...”
“Not to interrupt,” Hunk cut in, “but we humans can’t do that. And we’re all really cold right now so could we talk about it once we’re inside?”
Pidge kicked her heels into his shoulders. “Let’s move.”
Luckily it was a very short walk to the hidden entrance of the Blade’s listening post. The door opened easily for them even without Pidge resorting to hacking.
“Think he’s expecting us?” Hunk asked. “I don’t want to think this is a trap.”
“I’m sure it’ll be fine.” Lance patted him on the back. “Keith wouldn’t hurt us.”
“We might as well head up to the control room and let him know we’re here.” Shiro once again took the lead through the base’s maze of dimly-lit corridors. Allura followed close at his shoulder, glaring at the purple lights and Galra architecture.
“You know,” Pidge said, finally having climbed down from Hunk’s shoulders, “if a year ago someone had told me I’d be spending Christmas on an alien planet, tracking down my part-alien teammate, while I’m wearing alien armor and in the company of aliens...” She paused for dramatic effect. “I would have jumped at the chance.”
“A year ago, I was home for Christmas with my whole family,” Lance added.
Hunk nodded. “Me too.”
“Last year, I --” Shiro started, then stopped abruptly.
Allura filled in the sudden uncomfortable silence, “Around this time last year I was still in cryosleep and had never heard of your holidays. So I think this is definitely a good thing that we all get to celebrate this ‘Krissmuss’ together!”
“I’ve been thinking,” Coran piped up from where he’d been quietly watching for a while, “this holiday seems similar to the winter solstice. In terms of gift-giving and feasting, that is. The winter solstice on Altea was also the time of the biggest meteor shower so it was too dangerous to go outside; there were more falling rocks than normal. Everyone stayed indoors and played games instead.”
“That sounds like fun?” Lance tried to act sympathetic.
Allura shook her head. “I think your holidays sound much more friendly, to be honest.”
“We’re here,” Shiro announced, stopping before a large imposing door. “Try to act happy.”
There were several eye rolls, as well as an exaggerated grin from Pidge. Grumbling to himself at their lack of holiday spirit, Shiro opened the door and they all stepped into the main area of the base.
Keith was standing at the far side of the room, his back to them as he scowled at battle schematics laid out on a holographic screen.
“What --?” he startled, turning partly around and reaching for his knife.
“Happy birthday!” Coran shouted, then covered his mouth at the glare Hunk sent him. “Sorry, I mixed that up.”
“Merry Christmas,” the paladins said in unison.
Keith stared back at them in surprise from the depths of his hood, then slowly a radiant grin spread across his face. “You guys came all the way out here just to see me?!”
“Not like there’s a lot else out here,” Lance commented.
Keith turned back to the control panels for a moment, setting functions to run automatically so he could step away for a while. “I still can’t believe you’re all here. How did you know where to find me?”
“Magic,” and “Kolivan,” Hunk and Shiro said at the same time.
Allura sighed and shifted her backpack to the floor. “If it’s all right with everyone, could we start the festivities soon? The walk here was a bit longer than expected.”
“Festivities?” Keith echoed, looking more and more surprised by the moment.
“There’s more to this than just a courtesy call,” Shiro said. He turned to Lance, who procured a red, lumpy sweater from his pack and tossed it to Keith. “Black may look good on you but I miss seeing you in red. Plus it’s the color of the season.”
Keith caught the sweater and raised an eyebrow at the texture. “Knitted?”
Beaming, Lance nodded. “Do you have any idea how hard it is to find yarn in space?”
“And we brought tons of food, too!” Hunk indicated the bulging pack he was carrying. “It’s not ham and mashed potatoes, but it’s the closest I could get with the ingredients I could find.”
“I’m sure it’ll be absolutely perfect.” Keith moved in close, stance open. He was still smiling softly and the others took it as an invitation for a group hug, something they hadn’t had since Keith had first left to become a full-fledged Blade.
While the war had kept them busy, the paladins hadn’t realized how much they missed him. But now, with each other as the only humans around for lightyears, it felt like home.
----
Hunk was in the galley kitchen, fussing over Keith’s lack of proper food and cooking utensils and “what the heck, Keith, some of this stuff has gone bad. Are you really eating it?!”. Lance was with him, staying out of the way and handing the chef ingredients as he called for them. The Green and Black Paladins had been kicked out, Shiro on principle and Pidge because she suggested frying the meat in rocket fuel to make it cook faster. Keith was lingering on the fringes of the scene, standing by with the Alteans and watching events unfold.
“Who’s up for a snowball fight?” Pidge asked, pulling out of her sulk at being forced from the kitchen. “I bet I’ll win.”
Allura looked perplexed. “I thought you wanted a vacation from fighting?”
“I bet I’ll win.” Shiro reached over and pulled a wool-ish cap down over Pidge’s eyes.
Grinning, Keith got into the fray. “You sure? How many hours have you spent practicing your marksmanship?”
“Only one way to find out.” Pidge darted off down the corridors, back toward the main door. “I’ll bet you a tray of Hunk’s cookies that --” Her voice trailed off as the door opened, revealing a swirling curtain of white.
“That’s a problem,” Shiro said. He stuck out his right arm and watched as snowflakes clumped on the metal. The freezing wind whisked through the open door and made them all shiver despite their armor and various winter clothes.
Keith shivered and pushed the door shut. “On second thought, we’ll have to delay the fight for another day. Blizzards here can last a while and they’re very dangerous if you get lost in them.”
“Good thing we brought plenty of supplies!” Coran looked, as usual, surprisingly chipper. “On Altea, this sort of thing would happen all the time --”
“What are we supposed to do now?” Pidge crossed her arms and let her winter hat sink down to cover her eyes. “We can’t go back to the kitchen.”
“We could...” Shiro paused, clearly searching for ideas. “We could sing carols?”
Once again, the Alteans were confused. Keith looked dubious as well.
Pidge giggled. “Clearly you’ve never heard me try to sing.”
“We could build a fire,” Keith said at last. “And maybe sit around and tell stories? Or just be together?”
That earned him another hug, squished between Shiro and Pidge.
“Fantastic!” Allura looked around at the network of hallways. “I assume you have fuel to burn? And a safe place for the fire?”
“The control room has a concrete floor, it’ll be safe there. It’s also close to the kitchen so we could have dinner there too.”
So that was how the next hour saw the two Alteans, two paladins, and one Blade rearranging the main room of the secret base. They scooted the mobile parts of the control consoles to the very edges, then hauled in crates and cushions to act as tables and chairs. Keith set up a fire in the middle of the floor, a neat pyramid of wood that flamed up merrily when he lit it.
“Anyone want to go see if Hunk and Lance are done?”
Pidge shot Shiro a suspicious glance. “No, thanks, they already shouted at me once.”
Keith rose to his feet. “It’s my base. They can’t kick me out of my own kitchen.” As he left the room, Shiro took his place by the fire, warming his hands and looking around at how they’d transformed the room.
“Decorations?” Pidge asked, already reaching for her backpack.
“You bet!”
----
Hunk was crouched down level with the countertop, trying to get a reading on the measuring cup. “Lance, I swear if you don’t stop shaking the counter...”
“Hey, Keith!” Lance jumped up from where he’d been perched on the counter, landing with a thump on the floor and jostling Hunk’s measurements again. “You need something? Dinner’s almost ready, right, Hunk?”
“In a manner of speaking.” Hunk stood up and moved to the stove, stirring a pot of what might have been green beans except they were colored deep blue. “Want to lend a hand?”
Keith reached for a potholder. “I’m not the best cook, but I can follow directions.” As he bent to retrieve the rolls from the oven, Hunk and Lance shared a conspiratorial smile. All they had to do was keep Keith busy long enough for the others to set up the decorations, and they’d have a truly wonderful surprise for their friend.
“What sort of Christmas stuff did you used to do, back on Earth?” Lance asked. All the other paladins had talked about their families’ traditions on the trek to the base, and it was only fair for Keith to get a turn to share.
Keith gave a small shrug and set the rolls on the counter. “Most times, the orphanage would set up a tree. All the kids would get to decorate it, so most of the ornaments ended up around the bottom of the tree because no one could reach the top. There were always a lot of cookies, too, and hot chocolate.”
“They probably aren’t what you’re used to, but I’ve got plenty of cookies in the oven now!” Hunk bustled around the small area, checking pots and stirring their contents. “Chocolate is hard to find in space so I hope you like cider instead?”
“You could give me hot water and I’d appreciate it, Hunk.”
The bigger man frowned. “I knew you weren’t eating well --”
“It’s the thought that counts, right?” Lance interrupted before things got too upsetting. “Besides, you don’t want to miss out on Hunk’s cider, he makes the absolute best!”
“I’m sure he does. Speaking of, what’s in the big pot? It smells amazing.”
Hunk beamed. “It’s roast... something, with yorra-root gravy. I haven’t made this recipe before so you all are in for a real treat.”
At that moment, a timer started beeping and both Hunk and Lance hurried to take care of the food.
“I hope you have enough plates for all of us,” Lance said, helping move the roast off to the side so Hunk could use the stove to heat up the half dozen other pots and pans.
Keith brought out a huge stack from one of the cabinets. “Lucky for us, this base used to house several dozen Blades, before the war started getting so hard on them. I don’t think place settings will be an issue.”
“Why don’t you go call the others?” Hunk asked. “Everyone can come get their food, then we can go sit around the fire while we eat.”
Keith headed off without a word, and the two shared a quiet high five. Knowing Keith, he wouldn’t expect anything special to be done on his account, so they could imagine the surprise and glee on his face when he walked into the newly-decorated control room.
All the purple lights had been replaced with soft white, giving a homey glow around the edges of the room. Garland hung from the ceiling and strands of it draped the walls, along with more lights and strings of green and red ornaments. The fire was burning cheerfully, surrounded by handfuls of fake snow. On every table there were sprigs of fragrant greenery and little striped disks that looked almost like peppermints.
The rest of the team was there, armor set aside, decked out in sweaters and pompom-topped hats.
“Hey, guys, dinner is --” Keith went silent as he crossed the threshold and realized the scene inside. He swallowed heavily and let his gaze drift around the room. “I can’t believe you’re doing all this for me.” There were almost tears in his voice.
“Well, it’s Christmas for us too, so it’s not wholly selfless,” Pidge pointed out, but her tone was kind.
“It wouldn’t be the holidays without you.” Lance and Hunk joined everyone else by the fire. “Come on and join us.”
----
It wasn’t exactly Christmas, just the same as everything else on this planet. Not-snow, not-trees, not-Christmas. But it was something close enough: friends, food, warmth. Just being together without any intergalactic matters looming over them.
Keith looked around the fire at everyone’s smiles. Lance was laughing at his own jokes, Hunk was passing around a tray of cookies, Coran was tending to the fire. Pidge was trying to explain marshmallows, much to Allura’s confused delight. Shiro was sitting next to the princess, a mug of not-cider in his hand as he watched the mesmerizing flicker of the fire.
Definitely not-Christmas.
But it was something just as good.
