When Stars Align (Shiro x Reader)[Voltron - Legendary Defender]

II.

Only two days pass before you see Shiro again. This time, you're awake when the guards appear at your door and throw him down onto the cot. Your heart skips a beat when you see him--blood is pouring down his face, with no sign of stopping. You can tell he's already lost a lot.
"Be quick about it, star-girl," one of the guards says, smiling grotesquely, "Zarkon has big plans for this one." You try not to dwell on his words as the guards leave.
Shiro reaches up to wipe blood of his face and starts to speak, but you shush him. "Don't talk right now, I need to concentrate."
As you examine and begin healing the wound, you have to fight to keep a straight face. There's a deep gash across the front of his head, and as you begin to staunch the blood flow you can see a sliver of bone where the skin is cut open over the bridge of his nose. You swallow and close your eyes--even though you were born a healer, you weren't born with an iron stomach.
You know the guards will probably return fairly soon--you have an hour or two, at most--so once the wound begins to close you ask, "What happened?"
"Another Galran gladiator," he says, relief in his voice as the pain from the gash begins to ebb.
"It must have been Hyzzyx," you mumble, frowning. You know what this means, and it isn't good.
"Hyzzyx?" He asks, wincing as you move your fingers to the opposite side of his face, and you nod. "Their second best."
"Second best? What does that mean?"
Your frown deepens and you try not to look too worried as you respond, "Galrans--and Zarkon especially-- love gladiator fights. It's the only sort of entertainment they have, really, besides blowing up planets and slaughtering innocents. For the entire time I've been here, they've had their three best gladiators: Myzax, Hyzzyx, and Rydak. The rules of the game are fairly simple. If someone is able to defeat all three, that person becomes the new Champion." Shiro's frown mirrors yours as you speak.
"I already defeated Myzax, though." He says; it's a question more than a statement.
"Myzax was their old Champion. The day they sent you to fight him, they weren't expecting a real fight. Often, they'll send prisoners to be slaughtered by Myzax just because they enjoy watching it. Since you've beaten him, it's assumed that you'll beat Hyzzyx and Rydak, which is why the guards are already calling you Champion. But they're still putting you through the motions of a traditional gladiator challenge, only in reverse."
"And what happens when I'm the champion?" Shiro asks. His voice is surprisingly calm, and you try to mirror his demeanor. But your voice cracks as you answer, "You fight." You don't elaborate, but he seems to understand. You fight--that's all gladiators do. You fight and fight and fight and you don't stop until you're dead. You have to suppress a shudder as you remember the guard's words: Zarkon has big plans for this one...
When the wound finally closes under your hands, there's still a large scar stretched across Shiro's face, jagged at the edges. As he reaches up to touch it, you can't help but think to yourself that it's only the first of many.
You move to the sink in the corner and begin to wash the blood off your hands. The water is running red down the drain when Shiro says, "You never told me your name."
Without turning around, you answer, "I'm called Lyda here. I had another name, before, but Galran prisoners are reidentified once they're taken. Really, I'm lucky I was even given a name. Most prisoners are just numbers."
Shiro doesn't ask what your name used to be, and you don't offer it. Dwelling on the past hasn't done you any good. Here, you're Lyda. You're a machine. You don't need a mother or a father or a home.
As you turn around, you offer a tentative smile, saying, "Soon your name will be Champion, I guess."
Shiro runs his fingers over the new scar on his face, and his voice is hard as he says, "No. No matter what happens, I'll be Shiro."
You want to tell him that it's silly to think that. You want to say that being soft in a hard place is more painful than he thinks. That you can't be human on a Galra ship. That it's easier to let go than hold on, to accept your new name, your new identity, and let it protect you. But something in his expression stops you.
Instead, you tell him, "I believe you," and are surprised to find that the words feel true.