outliers [klance au]

1. summons

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The morning light filtered through the window of Lance's small room, waking him from a restless sleep. Groaning quietly, he opened his eyes, squinting past the rays that fell through his curtains. He yawned, stretched, stood, and made his way to the kitchen to make himself some coffee.

Before, he never would have drunk coffee. Before, he didn't like the taste of it. But he was in the After now and there was nothing he could do about it. The After had changed a lot of things and it was no use lingering on the logistics of it all, so coffee it was.

Sighing, Lance ran a hand through his hair as he waited for his coffee to brew, messing with it to try to get it to lay flat. He had neglected cutting it for so long that he feared that it would turn into a mullet like Keith's, but it hadn't come to that point yet, so he figured he could put it off a little longer.

After a breakfast of coffee and toast, Lance dressed in his normal Altean clothing- farmers' clothing that suited his job- and stepped outside. He lived in a small house on the edge of his field, a modest home that provided the essentials and not much else.

As if on command, his eyes lifted to the marble statue that looked over his fields. Allura's expression held a small, stern smile and her hair was down, just as voluminous as it had been in real life. Lance felt his heart ache but he mustered a smile. "Good morning, Allura."

Lance categorized his life into two sections- Before and After. Before Allura's death and After.

He knew it was unhealthy. He knew it wasn't like him to be this way. But he felt like he couldn't do anything about it.

There was just too much history. After Allura's death, no one had talked him through what he was supposed to do. Yes, he had the other paladins, but they were all wallowing in their own grief and he didn't want to disturb them. So, of course, being the natural idiot he was, he decided to bottle everything up and cover it with his usual facade of The Dumb One.

Except now, he knew that the other paladins could tell that something was wrong. Shiro had even voiced his concerns to Lance, but the farmer had politely ignored Shiro's warnings. Besides, everyone else had already moved on. Shiro and Curtis had gotten married, Keith was off with the Blade, Pidge and Matt were with their family establishing the next generation of Legendary Defenders, and Hunk was busy being the galaxy's best chef.

No one had time for Lance, it seemed, so he was content with his lifestyle of loneliness. It didn't matter anyways, there was nothing he could do about it anymore.

Lance began his work in the fields with Allura's marble eyes on his back, carrying a large woven basket in the crook of his elbow and gathering the flowering Juniberry blooms. He'd barely begun working, though, when he heard the familliar whoosh of the flying platform Coran now rode aorund on. Lance looked up with a smile on his lips, genuinely happy to see Coran.

Since Allura's death, Coran had become somewhat of an uncle-like figure to Lance. They were close because of their bond to Allura when she had been alive, but they were closer now, and literally too, as Lance's house was just outside the Garrison where Coran now worked.

Allura's death had taken it's toll on the great Altean advisor. Coran, who had vowed to Alfor to look after the princess. Coran, who had stuck by her side and who had led her through Voltron's missions. Coran, who hadn't been able to say goodbye to the young woman he viewed as his own daughter.

Physically, Coran was the same. Same flaming orange hair and stocky composure, but Lance knew that behind those knowing eyes, there was a hole in Coran's heart that would never be filled. But, unlike Lance, Coran was somewhat able to move on.

"Good morning, Lance!" Coran said happily as he stepped off the platform.

"Good morning, Coran," Lance replied, straightening and putting down his basket. A few magenta blooms were in bloom by their feet and Coran plucked one up, twirling it delicately between his gloved fingers.

"I'm sorry to come bother you so early, but I have urgent news," Coran informed Lance. "Would you be willing to stop by the Garrison in an hour to talk?"

Lance tilted his head to the side. "Sure, why not." Coran nodded sharply and was off again before Lance could even ask what the whole thing was about. It couldn't possibly be a mission- the Garrison handled almost everything now. It was probably just a monthly meeting to discuss matters post-Voltron.

Lance hesitated. Did that mean that everyone would be there too? The other Paladins? It had been a while since they'd all been together even though Hunk and Pidge tried to call weekly to catch up with Lance. It was comforting, but Lance missed the closeness of the team and he felt like he needed them now more than ever.

A hint of excitement crept into Lance's heart and he felt his hopes lift a bit for the first time in a few days. He wouldn't miss this opportunity. Hurrying back to his house, he placed the basket of blooms on his porch and headed inside to shower and change into more suitable clothing.

As he stood in front of his closet, his eyes lingered on his Paladin suit. Gently, he pulled the outfit out of the closet, running his hand lightly over the hard chest plate and rivulets of color. It was odd that it was so sentimental for him, but the blue suit had been with him from the start and he felt an odd emotional attachment to it. Sighing with a smile, Lance returned the suit to its place in his closet and pulled on a light blue tunic and joggers.

He decided to leave early so he could go say hello to some other tenants of the Garrison, but before he left, his eyes caught his reflection in the mirror. Pausing, he pressed his fingertips to the Altean marks on his cheeks, standing out against his light freckles. A constant reminder, he thought ruefully.

Turning away, Lance walked outside, stopping only to pick up his basket of Juniberry blooms, and began his walk up to the Garrison.

...

hello! my name is cal and welcome to Outliers, my fourth (full-length) klance fic. just a few things you should know going forward-

this is the first klance fic I've ever written that's set in the actual Voltron universe, and similarly, it's my first fix-it fic. however, this fic will be a lot more plot-based than most fix-it fics and will definitely be a lot longer and include a lot more. that said, it will
be a different experience for both me and those of you who have read my other kl fics.

also, disclaimer:
this fic is going to allude to a lot of other general aus! any similarities to plot of any other klance fic are purely incidental- frankly I don't even read many klance fics just bc I spend my time writing. so if there are any incidental references ("omg dirty laundry flashbacks" is something i get sometimes ahaha i've never read it i'm sorry) just know that they're accidents.

that being said, the leakira fic is different than general aus and is definitely going to have a large role in this fic, so i want you to know that i'm doing my best to learn more about it so i can portray it properly(:

i update weekly! usually on weekends. if something happens and i can't update, i'll post an announcement on my message board and i also post announcements every time i update a new chapter.

in my other fics, i did a short a/n and a qotd at the end of each chapter. would you like me to do that for this work as well?

if i think of anything else, i'll put it in the next chapter^^ and if you have any questions, slap em right here and i'll answer them (:

anyways, welcome back if you're coming from another one of my fics, and it's nice to meet you if you're new to my works (; i'm so happy that you all are here and i can't wait to see where this journey takes us <33
much love, cal