You Never See the Fin

🌊🌊🌊

It was early morning when Lance got out onto the water. So early, in fact, that the sun was barely peeking over the horizon in its bed of blushing sky. He revelled in the cool humidity, the breeze caressing his curls out of his eyes, letting his hands float on the slightly chilly waves. He felt like one with the water. If it were certain that souls had colors, he would bet everything he owned that his would be overflowing with different shades of ocean, like a part of the wave he could see rising, the sun shining through it like a burning golden eye surrounded by hues of green, blue, and yellow. He turned into position and caught the wave. He felt light and giddy as he swung and snapped off the top once… twice… three times. He aligned his energy with the wave and ducked just in time to ride through the barrel, getting his curly hair slightly damp with salt spray.

Once he was out of the wave, he was looking for another one when he noticed a silhouette walking along the beach.

"Hermano! C'mon, breakfast! Mama is gonna hit you with la chancla if you don't vamos!" Luís shouted, his voice barely audible in comparison to the power of the ocean.

Lance waved to let him know he'd heard, before catching a small wave and riding it in.

"That was some pretty cute surfing you did there. Do you do that a lot, or do you know how to actually surf?"

Lance glowered at his brother.

"Fuck off, Luís. At least I don't wipe out in front of my crush, ya know, like you did, in front of Lisa… and then land on a reef like a dumbass surfing too close to shore."

Luís shoved Lance's face away and they shared a few laughs as they walked back to the house.

The McClain family's house was a light blue with dark brown roofing and white trim, everything faded with age, heavy salt consistency, and weathering. But it was home. He and his siblings had grown up in the house where his parents had lived for nearly 30 years. They had 5 kids altogether. Luís, Veronica, Marco, Rachel, and Lance. Luís had married Lisa a few years ago and they had two kids, Nadia, age 5, and Sylvio, age 2. They lived just off the main house in a smaller house that Papa and his sons had built together. Veronica lived on a military base where she worked as a computer technician for the Air Force. Marco, Rachel, and Lance were still in college, but taking online so they could all surf together at the prime hours of the tide.

Lance and Luís raced each other the last little bit to the house, where Lance smoked his brother in the race.

Laughing, Lance crowed, "Hermano, I think Lisa has been giving you too many pineapple daiquiris– you're an old man!"

Luís attempted to get his brother in a headlock, but Lance was still high from his time on the water and his surfboard, Blue, was able to turn the tides on his brother.

They finally joined the breakfast table and both Papa and Marco were ragging on Lance for news from the water as he toweled his curling hair somewhat dry.

"Surf is excellent, and the weather is perfect– I saw Neptune's eye this morning– the water is so clear. It was amazing!"

It wasn't long after breakfast that Hunk and Pidge showed up for their online classes together. During lunch break, all three of them went surfing.

Pidge was the more technical of the group, focusing more on the perfect angles and aspects of her moves, practicing each one she knew based on the type of waves she chose. Hunk was more into the simplicity of his moves. He never did anything over the top, choosing surfing as a hobby, not life, like Lance and Pidge. And of course, Lance was an all around surfer. He was like the water: adaptable. He could make decisions without thinking about it, just flowing with the waves and always performing his best in each move.

And then lunch break was over and they all went back to the proverbial grindstone. Lance sat on his bed, Pepper, the family's (read: Lance's) 2 year old Chow Chow, resting her head on his leg beside his computer, and went back to his general course studies with physical therapy courses sprinkled in, Hunk to his culinary and engineering courses, and Pidge to her too many science and math classes.

She was only 19, but she had graduated high school at 14, and was on a course to finish her Master's in the next year and a half before aiming for her doctorate. Hunk, at 25, was learning as much as he could about all the possibilities of the culinary arts from around the world. His moms were so proud of him, and so was his other family.

Lance, currently 24, didn't really know what he wanted to do with his life other than surf. He was taking PT classes, yes, but that was so he would know what to do in case his family or friends got hurt while surfing and didn't want to go to a center. At 9 years old, he had won his first Menehune Surfing Championship following up with winning first place 11 more times before graduating to the adult class at 16. Since then, he had won the Men's Championship 2 more times and was training for sub finals next week for the biggest competition world–wide. People from all over the world would be coming to this competition–

Fingers snapping in front of his face brought him back from staring at his computer screen. He had typed 40 pages of the letter "h" by accident.

"Surf's up, Lance!" Pidge whined.

Lance groaned as he deleted his lack of attention from his document.

"What's up, Pigeon?" he asked tiredly.

School work was boring, and his brain was 

not on land.

"No, seriously, dude," Hunk interjected excitedly, "the surf's up. Let's go!"

Lance grinned and quickly followed his best friends to the water. They surfed as late as they could, which was until Mama called them in. As they staggered back to the beach, Mama Rosa chased them with her sandal for ignoring Marco, Luís, and Matt, Pidge's biological older brother. All three of them raced back to the house, followed closely by a not-really-angry Rosa, who was chuckling at her son's, and adopted adult children's antics. She understood the call her son felt to the sea, to the waves. And she knew that where Lance would go, Hunk and Pidge would not be far behind.

🌊🌊🌊

The next week came, and with it, came the semi-finals for the world championship. This also meant that anyone who placed in the top three would get to be sponsored by one of the largest surfing corporations in the world; Voltron. Anyone who was anyone knew how big Voltron was, and it was homegrown right there in the Hawaiian Islands, in Altea. Altea was a tiny Island off of Molokai and Maui. It had been founded by Alfor Aolani, kahuna of Altea Island. He had passed away in a tragic car accident 3 years ago, leaving Voltron to be run by his daughter, Allura Aolani. Alfor's best friend and co-owner of Voltron, Zarkon Makelina, and his wife, Honerva, had also perished. Their son, Lotor, hadn't wanted anything to do with Voltron, so he gave his inherited shares to Allura to run with her papa, Coran.

Lance watched the different heats as they swam out into the water, bobbing over the smaller waves, and duck diving under the others, each looking to snag the perfect wave. Looking back at the observation booth that was 30 feet in the air, he could see Allura herself watching the competition. Her solid white bob blowing gently in the wind. Her girlfriend, Romelle, stood beside her, blonde hair up in a large bun, and Coran stood beside both of them. Lance sighed and looked back out to the water, only to be tackled in a headlock by his cousin, Adam.

"Ready for your heat?" Adam needled him.

"I was born ready," Lance jabbed back, jamming his fingers into Adam's ticklish ribs, causing him to shriek and back off.

"Hey, pay attention. You're next, bruddah," Hunk nudged him.

"We're next," Lance corrected.

He and Hunk had been best friends and inseparable since they were in diapers, Pidge and Matt joining not long after.

Matt drew Lance's attention as he didn't appear to be breathing as he watched for his girlfriend, Amara Okuikai, who was currently in third place.

"Yo, Matt! Pidge is gonna have to get the defibrillator if you don't take a breath. Amara is going to be fine. They have a minute left and she's gonna place."

Matt inhaled sharply and Lance looked back out to the surf where Amara had just scratched a wave. She snapped off the top and even spun her board a little, placing her in second, which were their final results.

The gang all cheered for her and she beamed at Matt as he scrambled forward to plant a kiss on her cheek.

Lance and Hunk joined the 5 others in their heat before swimming out into the surf toward the invisible line that marked their start off point.

Lance was paddling beside Hunk when a large spray of water drenched both of them. Lotor shot forward, chuckling as he started to bait them. Hunk didn't fall for it, but Lance was spurred on. He knew every single one of Lotor's moves and motives, thanks to Pidge's ingenious idea of scanning his moves from the competitions being aired. The two of them had been competitors since childhood, but while Lotor had gone to travel the world in surfing competitions, Lance stayed and became the islands' beloved favorite. He knew this reef and these waters better than the back of his hand. Blue bobbed as a small wave rolled under her, picking up the currents of energy swirl around him. Another wave followed, which Lotor took advantage of to get on the scoreboard first. Lance duck dove under it as Lotor was carried away. His wave came next and he heard his number shouted out over the speakers from the box as he scratched the top perfectly. He was in first place now, not Lotor.

He managed to hold first place until the end of the heat, in which he won first, one of his surfing friends named Ryan, held second, and Lotor had placed third. Hunk hadn't placed at all, but he had just been surfing for fun.

"Great job, guys," Lance congratulated Ryan and Lotor.

He pulled Ryan up onto the first place platform with him, and tried to get Lotor to join them, but he scoffed and stalked away.

"Just ignore him. He'll be snooty later," Hunk advised as he nearly squeezed the life out of Lance in his certified Best Friend Hug™.

Pidge joined them in the hug, and they were soon surrounded by Lance's family, Hunk's moms, Pidge's parents, Matt, and Amara.

Once the hug broke apart, Lance and Ryan were approached by Coran, Allura, and Romelle.

"You lads were bloody fantastic out there," Coran exclaimed jovially, his New Zealander's accent shining through.

"I agree. You were amazing," Romelle agreed.

"How would you two like to be two of the three sponsored by Voltron?" Allura asked.

Lance grinned brightly.

"We'd be honored, Miss Aolani."

🌊🌊🌊

Classes continued as normal after the competition and the excitement had died down. Lance was training with Matt and Amara every chance he got, and even his brothers, Hunk, Pidge, Mama, Papa, Mrs. Holt, and Hunk's moms joined them in surfing. Rachel stood on the shore and recorded each training session, running several cameras at once.

When lunchtime came, Hunk and Pidge dragged Lance off to the living room to chat for a few minutes.

"It's Hallow's Eve tomorrow, and there's a full moon too. Perfect for night surfing. You've gotta come this time," Pidge begged him quietly.

She and Hunk had been to the gathering the last few years in a row, Hunk mainly going to keep an eye on Pidge so her mom wouldn't worry.

"I doubt Mama will let me go," Lance sighed.

Pidge pulled out the big guns and gave him the puppy dog eyes with a little pout. No one, not even her parents, were able to resist the power of the pout. Lance withstood it for 5 minutes, which was a record, before he caved.

"Okalrightfine! But you two are spending the night."

Pidge grinned and Hunk patted his shoulder.

"Oh, and Matt is going to take us to the best surfing beach on Halloween. You, me, Hunk, and Matt. Mama Rosa already agreed since we said it was for practice."

Lance smiled. He knew where they were going. It was a great place to surf, and not many people would go out there as it was deep within the island. One had to park up on the mountain and descend the rest of the way through thick forest and down the rocky incline on foot to get to the beach.

Soon, Hallow's Eve was here, and the trio went about their day as usual. When surfing time came, his Mama joined them. 

She was a surfing legend and everyone knew who Lance got his love for water and surfing from. Papa and Tio Sam loved to tell the story of how Mama had refused to stay out of the water for 98% of her last pregnancy. She surfed and swam everyday and had brought Lance into the world under the warm, sunlit water while holding onto her surfboard. She had wanted to go surfing one last time before giving birth to her son, but he had decided he wanted to come out and surf too, thus cutting her surfing short.

Papa, Aleka and Mei, Hunk's moms, and Pidge's and Matt's mom, Colleen, had all kept watch for sharks and other dangers while Sam had focused on delivering the newest member of the McClain family. Ronnie and little Rachel had clung to Mama's hands and held her head above water until Leandro "Lance" Charles Neptuno McCLain had surfaced. They say he had moved his arms and legs and swam to the surface, straight into Mama's arms. He didn't even cry and the second he opened his eyes, the blue of the ocean suddenly couldn't compare. He learned to swim at a very young age, and learned to surf not long after, learning by co-surfing with his family.

They ate on the beach and were later joined by Papa, Luís, Marco, Rachel, and Matt. Lisa watched from the shore to keep an eye on Nadia and Sylvio. Lance, of course, swam back to shore, beached his board, and went to play with his niblings.

That night after dinner, the trio went to bed for a while until they were sure everyone else was asleep. Then, they snuck out through the window. Lance was terrified his mama would discover their absence, but Pidge assured him that Luís, Marco, Rachel, and even Veronica had all done it. Their friends, James and Ryan, met them a block down the street in James' old orange truck with several surf boards strapped snuggly to the top.

The water in the full moonlight was breathtaking. The waves curled down, beckoning Lance to do some night surfing.

But first, they had to get glow in the dark bracelets and necklaces. Lance chose blue, Pidge took green, and Hunk, as always, went with yellow.

They surfed for hours on end before close to midnight when they took a breather.

"It's so beautiful out here," Lance breathed quietly, taking in the full moon and stars reflecting off of the dark water.

Hunk agreed.

"Yep, it's hard to beat a view like this at any given time. Unless it's–"

Both Lance and Hunk fell in the water as Pidge flipped their boards over with a cackle and they didn't hear the rest of her statement.

Hunk scrambled back onto his board, but Lance swam under and flipped Pidge's board– hard. She squealed as she flew through the air for several yards before she hit the water, and when she came up, all three were laughing.

"It's almost midnight!" Hunk chanted excitedly.

"What happens at midnight?" Lance pestered, but only received the cryptic answer of, "You'll see," from Pidge as she climbed back onto her board, Green

The three of them sat and faced the open ocean until a high pitched whistle went up from behind them, followed by a quick explosion and a burst of bright blue. Yellow, green, purple, and red followed.

Lance's smile nearly split his face as he watched the fireworks over the water. Everything was perfect. And after tomorrow, he'd begin training for the newest championship.

They snuck back inside his house around 2 a.m., and crawled into their beds before promptly passing out. Lance dreamed of nothing but the perfect waves that he'd surf tomorrow.

Lance stretched and yawned as Hunk's alarm went off around 7. He was suddenly launched out of bed by an overly excited Pidge.

"Get up! Matt's on his way!"

Lance rolled over and pretended to ignore her. She sat on his side and bounced until he lashed out and grabbed her in a tickle fight, her only known physical weakness, aside from extreme exhaustion.

Hunk joined in and Lance's bed frame nearly broke under the pressure. Finally getting situated, all three went downstairs after changing into their swimsuits.

"So, how was last night?" Mama Rosa asked her youngest. 

Lance paled slightly as she fixed him with her usually warm, suddenly sharp, honey brown eyes, daring him to lie to her.

"What do you mean, Mama?" Pidge asked, ever trying to get out of trouble.

"Mi hijo knows."

Lance gulped.

"It was my first time going, Mama, honest. I never went when we were teens."

Mama stared hard at him for a moment more until Lance was shifting uncomfortably in his seat, before she smiled. 

"It's fine. Luís went when he was 13, and he still thinks I don't know. You're an adult and you are very responsible, so it's alright."

Lance choked on his orange juice as Pidge and Hunk snickered. 

"Not to mention that I know for a fact that Marco and Rachel went with him when he turned 17. Veronica asked if she could go, and went anyway even after I said no."

"I'll be sure to ask next time, Mama, as long as you say yes," her son chuckled.

They finished a light breakfast as Lance's papa, Magnus, came down to try and get food, but Mama slapped his hands, stating he couldn't as he had a checkup later that morning.

"What she hasn't told you is that she started night surfing when she was 12. She kept it up until she got caught at 18, and by then, she was already surfing in adult competitions," Papa revealed with a smirk.

Mama gasped and whacked him playfully on the arm.

"They weren't going to know about that," she exclaimed, but a smile was forming on her husband's face as a song came over the radio.

"Remember, mí alma? This was the song that was playing when I first laid eyes on you."

He scooped her up into a dance and Mama giggled like a high school girl, blushing as her husband danced her around the kitchen, their squabble forgotten.

Lance always loved how his parents loved each other and were unashamed to be found kissing and PDA-ing. They loved each other so much that it made everyone else sick with second-hand embarrassment, but Lance didn't mind it at all. He was a romantic at heart– he couldn't help it. He could only hope that his future partner wouldn't mind if he loved them like that.

He'd had a few relationships before, but they never went anywhere. None of his partners, girlfriends or boyfriends, had appreciated his love for the ocean and surfing, and only wanted something from him in the end, which he was not willing to give. He trusted his gut and never slept around, choosing to go out and surf instead. He'd never broken up with any of his partners; they had always broken it off with him, so he swore off dating until he was a little older. 

His most recent relationship, a girl by the name of Nyma, had been a mainlander and she had been on the run from her many flings, all of which she had acquired by cheating, which she had done on the islands too. She had made him feel lesser than he was, but he rejuvenated himself by surfing. She tried to take that away from him but he'd refused, instead, leaving her to catch a massive wave. She had gone back to shore and left him, telling Ryan, who was Lance's surfing buddy that day, that she was done with him. When Lance had come back to get some water, he wasn't surprised; he was disappointed that she couldn't love the ocean like he did, but he wasn't surprised at all. Ryan and his boyfriend, James, stayed surfing with him for the rest of the day until they were joined by Hunk and Pidge. He was fine.

A car horn blared in the silence, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Matt's here!" Pidge yelled from the front door.

Lance chugged the rest of his orange juice, kissed his mama and hugged his papa goodbye, and made sure to grab Blue from the side of the house. Ten minutes later, he and Hunk were squeezed into the backseat of Matt's old gray pickup while Pidge rode shotgun.

They listened to all manner of music from pop, hip hop, rock and roll, to island hits. Then, they arrived. Matt parked in the shade and they unstrapped their boards before making their way down the path to the beach. Lance could feel the energy of the ocean as he saw the perfect waves rolling in. Fed up with taking their time, they raced each other down to the shore, Pidge winning by a landslide. She knew how to run faster despite her short stature.

They stood and watched the waves in awe for a short time before Lance took off toward it, hauling Blue under his arm. He beat Pidge into the surf and the four of them started having a paddle battle until Hunk chose a perfect wave for boogie boarding. The other three chose waves in which they could perform their best moves on. 

It was an hour and a half later when they were floating around to catch their breath, Hunk chatting with Lance about his Voltron sponsorship, and Pidge and Matt observing a small pod of fish.

"So, think this will help you to decide what you want to do with your life?" Hunk asked.

Lance smiled.

"Maybe. I mean Voltron sponsoring me is like a dream. I'm definitely gonna become a pro surfer."

Hunk laughed and splashed his best friend.

"And what if you decide to change your field for something a little more different? Matt mentioned that he's going on a trip to help survivors of a hurricane in a week. Maybe you can do something like that and help bring relief."

Lance shrugged, dragging his left hand through the water and feeling its energy.

"Maybe. I don't know about leaving home though. I know he's travelled the world and all, but I want to just stay here. When I'm too old to surf I might teach classes or something, but I'll continue to surf and paddle through the waves of life with both hands."

He rested his cheek on his right arm and let his left float out a bit more to flow with the energy, absorbing the sun's rays. Hunk thought about how to respond, but he didn't get the chance to. 

🦈🦈🦈

One second, everything was quiet, peaceful. The next, a harsh crunching sound split the air like a gunshot. Lance felt a harsh tug on his left arm before it vanished, leaving swirling water behind. Someone was screaming– it hurt his ears– and then, multiple panicked voices were speaking gibberish that rang around his head over the sound of rushing as if he were inside one of those bells from a church steeple. Everything was moving too slow. Or was it too fast? He didn't know. It was all blurring together as if an artist poured water on a watercolor painting in his vision. 

Somebody was pushing his board through the water with shaking hands as he fought to stay conscious– why was he fighting to stay awake? Why was he suddenly so exhausted? What had happened? His vision started blurring too much red and not enough blue, while he suddenly felt like he couldn't breathe; like water was pouring into his lungs.

🌊🌊🌊

Pidge paddled ahead of the others faster than she ever had in her life, bee-lining for shore. The words "shark attack" and "Lance is hurt" wailed over and over in her mind like a tornado siren she'd heard on tv. When she reached the beach, she pelted across the harder sand, stumbled up the rocky mountain as fast as she could, and made it to Matt's truck– only to find the damn thing was locked! 

She panicked for a split second before she grabbed the nearest fist sized rock and flung it into the window. It shattered and she dove in, not noticing or caring that she was getting cut on broken glass. She grabbed Matt's phone and called an ambulance, panting heavily into the receiver about a shark attack, lots of blood, and their location. She started back down the mountain when she realized they'd have to put Lance in the bed of the truck as he wouldn't fit in the cab. She turned and ran back to the truck, preparing for Lance's transport.

🌊🌊🌊

Lance winced in the blinding sunlight as Matt rolled him from his stomach to his back as he changed surf boards. Hunk was puking in the water on the shore, distraught by the mangled and bloody sight of his best friend. He was never meant to look so pale or so red. He was never meant to be the victim of an attack. He was never meant to– Hunk nearly buried his head in the sand as his stomach rejected everything.

Matt was tightening his makeshift shirt tourniquet around Lance's shoulder when Lance's blue eyes fixated on him. The shirt was already dark red.

"S'ok, 'm ok," he breathed out, struggling to keep air flowing through his lungs.

Matt wanted to scream, but held it in.

"Sure ya are, kiddo."

His voice was surprisingly steady, despite the desperate panic roiling inside of him.

"Where's Mama?"

Lance's words were heavily slurring but his blue eyes never left Matt's face. This boy trusted Matt to take care of him. And he would. He damn well would.

At the lost look in Lance's eyes, his heart shattered again.

"She's coming. She'll be here soon."

He felt bad lying to the poor kid as he lay on his own purple and orange surfboard, but he would not give the kid a reason to cry. He refused.

"Is Hunk…?"

"Hunk's fine. He had a bad banana this morning. He's coming– HUNK! GET OVER HERE, NOW!"

Hunk was sobbing, but came when summoned. Together, he and Matt picked up the board holding Lance as carefully as possible and rushed him as fast and as easily as they could to the truck, Matt at the head of the board and Hunk at the foot.

"M'ok," Lance's words were slurring worse, but his blue eyes never dulled past slight shock, "S'ok."

He wasn't screaming or crying, and that more than anything kept Matt calm enough to think.

Pidge had jerked open the tailgate and cleared a space for them. They hauled Lance in as Matt passed his part of the board to her, Hunk clambered in after them and grasped Lance's hand while Pidge kept pressure on the wound, adding her green sweatshirt to the tourniquet. Then, as she sat balanced between holding pressure on Lance's wound and bouncing in the bed of the truck as Matt took off, she called Mama Rosa.

🌺🌊🌺

Mama was sitting at the dining table when Luís came in to get orange juice for the kids.

"So," she began, "Lance went night surfing with Hunk and Pidge last night."

"That doofus. Did he ask?" Luís snickered.

Mama pounced.

"No, he takes after his oldest brother, but at least he didn't go out at 13 without asking. He waited until he was at least an adult before going."

Luís had the sense to look ashamed at being caught nearly 22 years later.

The phone rang and she answered it cheerfully.

She felt the blood drain from her face as she heard Pidge's panicked voice, Hunk's sobs, and her baby boy mumbling almost incoherently in the background, sounding worlds and worlds away.

"Where's my mama?"

Her free hand covered her mouth as her eyes burned and vision blurred.

"She's almost here, buddy, she's almost here," Hunk's voice broke as he tried to stay calm.

Lance sniffled on the other end before croaking, "I want my mama, please. I need her to know m'ok."

Pidge's breathless, trembling voice took her main focus once more as she said quietly, "Mama, he's lost his left arm and is in slight shock. We're heading to meet the ambulance right now, you need to meet us at the hospital."

Her limbs, stomach, and fingers went icy cold and her eyes widened in horror. She dropped the phone and ran for the keys to her van before Luís' voice dragged her out of her fog and his hands grabbed her just before she reached the vehicle.

"Lancito…" she gasped for air, "shark attack. He's–" she gasped for air and her vocal chords stopped working along with her lungs.

It was all she could say, but Luís didn't need to know more than that before he snatched the keys from her and hauled both of them into the van, racing to the hospital.

On the way there, an ambulance practically flew past them, followed closely by what they immediately recognized as Matt's truck, the driver side window broken, gunning the gas to run a red light. Luís joined the chase, praying to any deity listening to not take his little brother.

🌊🌊🌊

Lance's eyes rolled listlessly in his head. He still felt numb, not even feeling where the paramedics stuck needles in him. He didn't understand what was going on, and the voices he could make out were broken and sounded like they were in an echoey cave. His body felt heavier than it ever had, and he noticed the world was slowly spinning amongst the deepening blur.

"Going…to shock."

He vaguely felt himself being wheeled into the hospital, seeing his Mama's face, shining almost like an angel's, Luís' close beside hers. He saw his papa's horrified expression as he went by, Lance trying to convey he felt fine despite not feeling well at all. Then, everything faded to darkness. 

☁️🌊☁️

He felt the energy in the coming wave. He had the perfect line up, before taking the wave. He snapped off the top in a perfect move, both arms balancing him out. He glided through the barrel as if in slow motion, his fingers brushing the belly of the wave. He could see a bright light at the end, and saw Neptune's eye watching him. He saw flashes of his childhood, growing up with Hunk and Pidge, before watching himself win competitions. Neptune's eye grew closer and closer until he was engulfed in warmth as he made it out of the barrel–

Beep… beep… beep… beep…

He opened his eyes and the blurry hospital room came slowly into view. His dad was sitting in a chair against the wall, Rachel and Veronica were on the couch, Rachel's head in Ronnie's lap, and Luís and Marco were tiredly playing on their phones, Luís no doubt checking in on his family. Lance looked to his right and saw Mama, her head resting on her arms against the side of his bed.

"Ma…" Lance's voice came out raspy and breathless as he tried to speak.

Her head shot off the bed and she looked at him closely, her brown eyes rimmed with red. She looked like she had aged 20 years, her precious face harboring deeper wrinkles than when he'd seen her last.

"Mí dulce bebe," she crooned to him and brushed her cool fingers against his too warm cheeks.

He moved his arms to take her hand, but paused as only one made it into his vision. He slowly looked down at his left side where his left arm should have been, and froze, his eyes growing wide. It was empty. His arm was gone.

"Ma–"

"Shhh, it's alright sweetheart."

His mama cupped his face and turned him back to face her. Then she planted a series of soft, warm kisses on his forehead and cheeks as his heart monitor beeped faster in his panic, warm tears gliding down her cheeks.

"I'll go get Tio Sam," Luís mumbled quietly as he bolted out the door.

"I'll get him some water," Marco added and followed.

"Hermanito, it's ok, it's alright," Ronnie comforted him, as did Rachel.

Papa put his hand on top of his youngest's head and stroked his hair with his thumb, fighting back tears.

After a few minutes, Lance's panic slowed down.

"Wh–…"

Marco entered with water, which Mama helped him to sip slowly. Once the cup was empty he cleared his throat, everyone backing away to give him space.

"Wha' 'appened?"

Mama looked at Papa, who looked at Rachel, who looked at Ronnie, who looked at Marco.

"We… we don't exactly know. All we know for sure is that there was a shark where you guys were surfing," Marco explained quietly.

Lance glanced down at his left side again, putting two and two together.

Luís entered, followed closely by Sam, Pidge and Matt's dad, who was the resident doctor.

"How's my favorite patient?" Sam asked, trying to be cheerful.

A corner of Lance's mouth quirked up a little.

"You say that to all your patients, Tio Sam," Lance croaked.

Sam paused at the use of the title. He hadn't heard that in a long time.

"Well, I mean it with you. You're family. How are you feeling?"

Lance pondered for a moment.

"It… it hurts, but-but it's just achy."

Sam nodded and added something to his IV drip. 

"This will help to dull the ache and assist in getting you to feel better."

The door opened and Matt came in almost hesitantly, peering around the door to make sure he was welcome.

Mama rushed him and tackled him into a suffocating hug.

"Thank you! Thank you for saving my baby boy! Thank you, thank you!"

Matt wrapped his arms around the sobbing woman as his wide eyes landed on Lance.

"Mama, let him breathe," Luís chastised gently and pulled her off of his best friend, allowing Matt to edge forward to Lance.

"Hey, kid. Howzit?"

Lance gave him a faint smile, feeling the drugs working in his system.

"Fine, 'm pretty sure I owe you my life... 'n a new surf shirt."

Matt gave a sad smile. Lance's words were still slurry and his voice was scratchy from lack of use.

"Nah, don't worry about it. I didn't care much for that shirt anyway."

Lance nodded and slowly began drifting off, his eyelids drooping lower and lower.

"How's 'unk 'n… Pidgey?"

Matt smiled a little.

"They're fine. They're at home with Mom and Aunts Aleka and Mei."

Lance was quiet for a few moments, long enough everyone thought he was asleep as his eyes were closed.

"How's Blue?"

Matt's teeth and heart clenched. Lance's beloved surfboard, the one he'd been surfing on since he had caught his first wave by himself, had a massive bite missing out of her. The kid loved that board. She was his very first one, and he always took excellent care of her.

"She's fine. You need to go to sleep, hermano," Matt said gently, leaning down and pressing his lips to the top of Lance's head, letting him know he was safe and surrounded by family.

Lance nodded before his breathing deepened as he drifted off.

☁️🦈☁️

The water was darker than the darkest night, but a silvery shark fin broke the surface for just a second. Fear pulsated through veins instead of blood, but movement didn't seem to be an option. A flash of sharp teeth and a cloud of too much red–

Pidge woke up screaming at the same time Hunk did. Matt and Mom burst into the room and comforted both of them.

"You're safe, you're ok, he's safe and he'll be ok," they both crooned to the panic-stricken teen and 25 year old.

Pidge was sobbing into Matt's shoulder and Hunk was sniffling into Colleen's.

"You know what this means, right?" Mom asked them.

Pidge sniffled and Hunk trembled.

"You need to go see him."

Pidge whimpered. She really did want to go see Lance, but she was terrified. He had been one of her best friends– an adopted brother since she was 4. She had seen him in his many forms, his ups and downs, but never like this. He was his own force of nature– indestructible... until now.

Hunk felt sick to his stomach, remembering watching Lance's arm being ripped off before disappearing to the depths. He had known Lance since before the man could walk. They were practically attached at the hip for so long that they could read each other's mind without even looking.

His best friend was in the hospital and he couldn't get the courage to go see him– what kind of best friend was he?!

Hunk voiced his fears to Colleen, who comforted him just like his moms did, a skill that all the moms of the trio had perfected with each one.

"He will understand. You miss him, so you should go see him. He needs both of you. This is going to be one of the hardest times in his life."

Hunk found his resolve. He was going to be the best friend ever to Lance. Pidge met his gaze with her own determination shining through and he knew she was going to do everything Pidge-possible to help their Lance.

🌊🌊🌊

Lance lay slouched back on his bed. He'd been in the hospital for almost 2 full weeks and hadn't seen any sign of his two best friends. Matt came to visit him a lot, bringing flowers and even Amara for a visit. She had brought him a boogie board signed by all the surfers in the area with little notes of encouragement for him. 

He flipped through the channels, but all that was on were news channels and he was the main topic.

"–surfing with his close family friends, when a– what has been determined by specialists to be a Great White– shark bit off his left arm. He didn't even make a sound as his friends got him back to shore. The young man's act of bravery did not go unnoticed as he was more worried about his friends than he was about himself. He kept telling them that he was alright, and that everything would be ok–"

"You're practically a celebrity. You're on every channel."

Lance looked to the door and smiled as he saw Hunk and Pidge.

"Hey! Where have you two been hiding?"

Hunk looked slightly embarrassed and Pidge fiddled with her lime green and navy blue flannel shirt hem.

"Oh, nowhere, just… at home."

They both sat on his bed, keeping him in the middle.

"Mm," he hummed, "how've you really been doing?"

He fixed both of them with an electric blue eyed gaze, critical in every way. He knew.

Pidge stayed silent.

Hunk cracked first, as always. The poor guy couldn't lie or keep a secret to save his life, least of all from his best friend.

"Horrible. We miss you so much, but we haven't been able to sleep hardly at all without both of us having the same nightmare."

Lance winced.

"I'm sorry."

Hunk blanched.

"No! You don't have to or need to be sorry. It's not your fault at all. Colleen enrolled us to see to a therapist and that's where we've been half the time. Mama Rosa is probably going to enroll you too. And we will be there every step of the way whether you want us or not. We are your barnacles, bruddah."

Lance nodded, a faint smile on his face.

"Yeah. You know I'll always want both of you there if you feel like you can be. Honestly, I think I need you two more than you'll ever know."

Pidge cuddled up to his left side, careful to avoid his bandaged nub, resting her head on his chest.

He reached over and gave her a one armed hug.

"M'alright, Pidgeot. That shark just wanted a taste of Loverboy Lance. You guys saved my life."

She snorted before sniffling thickly.

"Idiot," she mumbled fondly, wiping her eyes.

Hunk crushed both of them to his chest in his best Best Friend Hug™.

"We're gonna be stuck to you so much that not even a barnacle knife can pry us off, dude."

Lance laughed at that and the tension in the room lifted like an early morning fog.

"Have you eaten today?" Pidge asked and Hunk's soft gaze sharpened.

"I… no. I haven't been all that hungry."

His best friend gasped exaggeratedly.

"Well, then it's a good thing I brought you something that will make your mouth water: Cuban sliders with a touch of home."

He handed Lance a plastic container. The lid was easy to pry off with his only hand and he smiled as he inhaled the spicy, sweet, and savory dish.

"It smells amazing, Hunk."

He dug in and closed his eyes as he ate. Hunk and Pidge watched him closely. He seemed ok on the outside at first glance, but his eye bags were becoming designer brands and he had faint stress lines near his eyebrows and the corners of his mouth.

He finished one slider and was reaching for another when they hugged him again.

"It's ok to not be ok, kaikua'ana."

Oh. Hunk was speaking Hawaiian. He knew. He knew how Lance was truly feeling, despite all his hard work to hide it from everyone else. The mind reading was both a blessing and a curse between the two of them.

Lance tucked his rapidly deteriorating composure into the crook of his best friend's neck and shoulder, his body shaking as he fought crying.

"How will I ever surf again? How can I do what I wanted to do with my life since I was a kid? Will Voltron even sponsor a broken surfer?"

"Voltron will still sponsor you, Lance, my boy. I, for one, believe that you are a brave, strong-willed young man, and you have my eternal respect."

The trio jumped at the newcomer's voice.

Coran, Allura, and Romelle stood just inside the room, watching them. Allura held a vase of blue and white flowers, while Romelle held something behind her back, looking sheepish at being caught interrupting such a moment.

Lance sniffled and quickly wiped his face, trying to appear less distraught.

"Don't worry about how you look, lad. Not even a yalmor would look ok after coming in contact with what you have."

The trio's eyebrows met.

What the heck is a yalmor?

"Papa, I think Lance is in need of some water. Would you–?"

"Of course, my dear. I'll be back faster than you can say "quiznak"."

After he left, Allura and Romelle approached the bed.

"We are glad that you're making a recovery, Lance," Allura spoke gently.

He smiled nervously. This was the part where she would tell him Voltron wouldn't sponsor him anymore.

"And I'm sure that pretty soon, you'll be back on the water and surfing even better than before in no time. So, don't give up your training, yeah?"

His heart fluttered like a flying fish.

"You mean… Voltron isn't going to drop me?"

Allura looked like she'd been slapped.

"What do you mean, "Drop you"? Why would we drop you? Once Voltron sponsors you, you're stuck with us, no matter what happens."

Lance sniffled and wiped his eyes on Hunk's sleeve.

"I'm so lucky," he blubbered.

Allura smiled and offered him the flowers. He took them before he noticed Romelle looked a little put out.

"Lura," she whined a little.

"Oh, right. My bad, ipo."

Lance handed the flowers back to Allura, slightly amused, and turned to Romelle.

"I… I know that you may not like sharks, because of what that one did, but… I'm…"

She froze, looking horrified as she couldn't find the words.

"She is a selachimorphologist, or a shark biologist, meaning she studies sharks. Specifically, the socialization of Great Whites with humans. She has a gift for you, but it might be… um…"

"I'll just give it to him."

Romelle held out the gift. It was a Great White Shark plushie. Lance gingerly took it and held it to his chest. It was weighted so it was even better.

"It's so soft. Thank you– guys, look at its cute little face!"

He showed it to Hunk and Pidge, who both smiled, looking almost pained. It was just like Lance to love any sea life plushie, no matter if the realistic version of it cost him an arm or not.

"What are you gonna name it?" Romelle asked excitedly.

Allura hid a smile at her ditzy girlfriend.

Lance grinned back, feeling a little better. He hugged his new plushie and thought for a moment.

"I think I'll call her Nibbles."

Pidge choked on her water, and Hunk made a high pitched whine in his throat, passing it off as a sneeze. Allura's eyes widened and her hand rested on Romelle's shoulder. Her girlfriend ignored her, however, and cooed over the name.

"That's adorable! I'm really glad you like her."

She gushed for a little longer about sharks until Coran returned with water for Lance. Then, Allura politely bowed herself and her companions out of the room.

Hunk sighed and Pidge huffed.

"The nerve of her, bringing you a stuffed shark after–" Pidge began, but Lance ignored her, nuzzling his new plushie.

"She's so cute! Right, Hunk? Isn't Nibbles adorable?"

Pidge shut her mouth as Hunk smiled. Their best friend could have lost both arms and legs to a shark and he would still find a way to call them adorable.

"Yeah. She is. Very cute."

Lance settled back down in his bed and finished the sliders, Nibbles curled up in the crook of his elbow.

Pidge had put in a movie, which Hunk immediately changed to a cartoon. Going from the opening theme of "Jaws" to "Moana" made Lance huff with mirth.

"Really, guys, I'll be ok. Tio Sam said that there were a few things I'd struggle to do, and there's even less that I won't ever be able to do."

Hunk and Pidge didn't believe him, but they both knew that they and all their families would do everything to make sure he would be ok.

🌊🌊🌊

Lance leaned back against the passenger seat headrest in Mama's van as she drove him home. He'd spent a little over a month in the hospital, first recovering, then doing easygoing physical therapy. He wanted to get back to the water as soon as he could.

"Let's try getting used to being home first, ok? We'll have lunch, you'll have a shower, and then we can go for a walk on the beach. No surfing yet."

Lance sighed but nodded as his mama pulled into their driveway. His heart slammed against his ribs when he saw all the reporters. Every reporter from all the islands combined seemed to be standing in their front yard.

Then, Mama was suddenly pushed over to the middle console as Papa filled the driver seat. He backed up way too fast to be safe, then threw the shifter into drive and revved past all the reporters to their backyard, where Luís slammed the gate shut behind the van. Lance sat frozen in his seat, white knuckling the door handle until he realized the car was off.

"Nice driving, Toretto."

Papa grinned at the movie reference.

Luís and Ronnie pulled Lance out of the car, giving their parents a minute.

"I didn't know you could drive like that, Magnus," Rosa hummed casually as she looked at her husband, sitting in his lap now.

He looked sheepish.

"I had to figure out a way to beat Marco at bumper cars," he admitted.

She giggled and he looked at her fondly.

"What are we going to do?" he asked as they watched Lance follow his siblings inside.

Rosa sighed.

"You remember when we brought Luís home after he was born? How we had no idea what we were doing? And how we weren't sure we'd be good parents?"

Magnus nodded.

"We do that again. We find a groove and we stick to whatever works for him. He's been so strong, Magnus. I don't think he's fully comprehended what has happened yet. I think that he will realize that once he starts surfing again, and we need to be ready when he does. He may not want to ever get in the water again, but we need to support whatever he chooses."

Her husband nodded before cupping her cheeks and kissing her. Gods, how he loved this woman.

They joined their kids in the kitchen just as Lance walked to his room. Ronnie looked angry and Marco looked upset. Luís and Rachel were facing away from the room, their backs stiff.

"He… he tried to help…" Marco looked lost.

"But he couldn't get the burritos folded," Ronnie finished.

Then, they realized she wasn't angry at Lance, but at herself.

🌊🌊🌊

Lance walked into his room for the first time in a while. It wasn't dusty like he'd half expected, and the window to his balcony was open, allowing fresh sea air into his room. He sat on the bed and his eyes landed on his guitar. A pang went through him as he realized he wouldn't be able to play it anymore, not with one hand. That, more than anything, hurt, causing his nub to ache. Tio Sam said that it would probably ache from time to time, but he didn't want it to. He wanted his arm back…

A gentle knock on his door frame alerted him to his mama, and Pepper, who was wriggling in excitement at the sight of him. She jumped onto his bed and nuzzled him for affection. He scratched behind her ears and she grumbled happily, before sniffing his bandages.

"Something's missing, yeah?" he asked her glumly.

Mama cleared her throat, looking at him with her large brown eyes.

"Can you help with lunch? Luís had to run to the store and we need someone to stuff the burritos."

Lance smiled into Pepper's fluff. He was needed. He was useful even with one arm.

He eased her back to the floor and got up, following his mama to the kitchen, where Ronnie was waiting by a stack of empty tortillas. Lance immediately set to work, spooning out the stuffing onto the tortilla, only to have it whisked away and folded by Ronnie. He kept up with her and soon, they were all laughing. 

"Vamós, Lancito," Ronnie chided him as she waited for another one.

Her statement lacked any heat or malice and he saw her brown eyes sparkling with mirth.

He did as he was told, but "accidentally" flung some stuffing onto her cheek and neck, making her gasp.

"Sorry! You can't rush perfection, Ronnie! Accidents are bound to happen."

He ducked as she went to smack a loaded tortilla into his face, but she nailed Marco instead. Then, it was an all out food fight. Cheese, meat, sauce, and even tortillas were everywhere. But, Lance was laughing. He was laughing more than he had in weeks. This was home. This was the family he loved so dearly.

Everyone froze as Mama gasped from the doorway, her hands gripping the door frame in shock as she observed the chaos dripping all over her beloved kitchen.

Lance watched as her emotions played across her face: anger and confusion being the dominant ones. He watched in horror as he grabbed a spoon loaded with sour cream and flicked it at her, his mind horrified at what his body was doing without his consent. The glob smacked their mama on the face, and her eyes bulged like she did when she was really angry. The rest of her children watched in shock as she looked hard at Lance, who surprisingly, stood tall as if he hadn't just thrown food at their mama, the one person on Earth who would not hesitate to end them.

Then, she grabbed a larger spoonful of guacamole. She tasted it and then flicked the spoon at Lance, hitting him in the neck with the green paste. Laughter bubbled up from her chest and spilled out into the room as the food fight resumed, this time, Mama pairing up with Lance to take down the rest of her children. 

"Dios mío! It's like a warzone in here!" Papa screeched as he hurtled around the corner and slipped on a puddle of salsa.

Marco got him full in the face with a loaded tortilla as he went down. Mama burst out laughing, followed by the others as Papa slipped and slid, trying to regain his balance on the messy floor.

Finally, after everything was cleaned up, everyone took turns taking quick showers to rid themselves of the food stuck in their hair, on their skin, and in Marco's case, in other places that Lance had no idea how anything could have gotten there. Lunch was enjoyable and tasted even better after the fight.

"Once Lance got out of the bathroom. He spent almost an hour in there!" Rachel broke into his thoughts with her complaints.

"That was Marco! He he somehow got guacamole in his–"

"Lance!" Marco whined, "you promised you wouldn't say anything!"

The siblings all giggled at Marco's expense.

That night, Lance lay awake in his room. He was alone, and he didn't like it. He hated being alone.

Tomorrow was his first therapy appointment after coming home. Hunk and Pidge would be there, and he wouldn't be alone then, he hoped. He rolled over and tossed and turned, unable to get comfortable in the plushy softness of his bed. He liked tons of blankets and pillows in a nest around him, making him feel safe. After a while, he sat up and dug around in his bag on the floor. With Nibbles safely tucked against his chest, he sighed, hoping for sleep. It didn't make an appearance, so he started tossing and turning again.

His door opened and he flipped over to see who it was. Ronnie, Rachel, and Marco crept into his room in varying stages of tiredness.

"Whas'sup?" Lance asked, worried he'd woken them up.

"You, and us, apparently," Marco yawned.

Lance sighed.

"Yeah. Can't sleep."

His siblings climbed into his bed and wrapped him up in their arms. He felt his chin twitch, quickly followed by his lower lip trembling and his eyes burning. His breath caught in his chest and Ronnie tightened her arms around him from the front. Tears slid out of his eyes as his nerves burned in his arm.

His siblings caught onto what was happening and closed ranks around him.

"It's ok, Lancey. You're gonna be ok."

He cried soundlessly for a moment before gasping for air, his body forcing him into the crying fest he'd put off for so long.

His siblings hummed to him, stroking his hair back from his face and comforted him in the only way they knew how. Eventually, he calmed down and wriggled closer to Ronnie, who held him tightly. Marco closed in behind him and Rachel put a hand on his side from behind Marco.

"The… the movies got it all wrong," Lance stammered through his gasping for air.

"What do you mean?" Ronnie asked.

Lance reached for his phone and played the clip from YouTube he'd been examining. It was a combined clip of several shark attack movies in one. No one saw anything wrong with what they were seeing, but Lance obviously did.

"Hollywood got it wrong. In these clips, you… you can see the fin before the attack. But in real life, you never see the fin. No one saw the fin before the attack, not even Hunk, and he saw everything, but he didn't see a fin."

Lance dissolved into tears once more and his siblings closed ranks.

"We've got you, cariño."

His siblings' voices harmonized in a lullaby and he felt himself drifting off, still clinging to Ronnie and Nibbles like a child.

🌺🌊🌺

The next morning, Rosa woke early and went to start the coffee pot. Then, she went to check on Lance. She had heard him tossing and turning late into the night. She hoped he had gotten enough sleep. Pidge and Hunk would arrive soon to take him to his appointment. She cracked the door to his bedroom and her heart melted. 4 of her children were sardined onto his bed, with Lance's bandaged nub the only visible part of him in the tangle of limbs, bodies, and blankets. She crept in and perched on the edge of the bed next to her youngest. 

Upon moving closer, she was able to see his face hidden under his blue covers. His skin was red and splotchy. He'd broken down last night. She was glad that his siblings had been there for this one. She knew Lance was the kind to bottle up what he was truly feeling, only letting it out in private or when it became too much.

She ran her fingers gently through his curly hair and he subconsciously leaned into her touch, sighing as he seemingly melted into his oldest sister's embrace. His blue eyes cracked open and landed on her. 

"Mama…?"

She smiled and leaned down, pressing a kiss to his forehead.

"Good morning, cariño, would you like to come help with breakfast?"

He thought for a moment, his eyes drifting closed as he focused on her gentle touch. He was quiet and still for so long that she thought he had gone back to sleep again.

"Yeah. I'll come help."

He struggled for a moment, his nub lifting as if trying to reach for her hand to help him up, but froze. He eyed it, hiding his emotions before shoving himself up and sliding out of bed. Marco was Veronica's next snuggle victim. She wrapped her arms around him so tightly that he wheezed in his sleep, but continued his chainsaw snoring.

Lance followed her to the kitchen, where she had set up a little cutting board with arms on either side of the orange he was going to be quartering.

"What's this?" he asked as he prodded the fancy cutting board.

Mama smiled.

"The Holts designed that for you so you can cut things with it. The arms hold the orange, for example, and you just start cutting."

Lance tried it, cutting the orange in half, then quartering it. She noticed he couldn't stop smiling. 

He was actually able to cut things now! He was able to help make meals just like before… well… almost just like before. His eyes stung and he quickly wiped them on his shoulder. Mama put his knife on the counter before she cupped his face. He sniffled and she wiped his cheeks before her arms wrapped around him.

"We will take this one stroke at a time, just like when you first learned how to surf. Ok?"

Lance nodded and sniffled against his mama's shoulder.

They finished preparing breakfast by the time the rest of the house was awake. Everyone was just sitting down when the chairs on either side of Lance were filled by Hunk and Pidge, both of whom tackled him between them in their Best Friend Sandwich Hug™. Pidge hugged him from the front and Hunk hugged him from the side. It wasn't much of a sandwich anymore, but they weren't going to change the name.

After breakfast, Lance went with Hunk and Pidge to the therapy session that Colleen had set up for him. His therapist, Luxia, was very nice and super chill. She had blue and purple hair, and green eyes that seemed to catch onto everything Lance wasn't saying.

She let him talk about everything, from surfing, to the competitions he'd been in, everything except the shark attack. She could see he was trying to avoid it, and he knew he was too, but she didn't try to force it out of him. He would talk about it when he was ready. Hunk and Pidge went to raid the snack machines and Lance noticed Luxia looking at him, her head tilted to the side.

He tried to ignore the words and emotions eating at his insides, burning his skin as he tried to ignore them, but she was so open and understanding–

"I was attacked by a shark."

Shit. So much for avoiding the elephant in the room…

Her eyes softened.

"What kind?" she asked.

He smiled a little.

"We think, Hunk and I, because he saw it and I trust him, and the news people also believe, that it was a Great White. My surfboard, Blue–"

He nearly choked on his words. He clenched a fist over his aching heart to try and alleviate the pain.

Blue. His beautiful board was in shambles. She had a huge chunk missing from her left side and no matter how much Papa, Luís, or even Matt cleaned and scrubbed her, his blood was permanently stained in her jagged wound.

"She… she has a pretty big bite out of her, and the only thing big enough to make a bite that size was a Great White. She was my first board."

Luxia nodded and Lance reached in his bag and rubbed Nibbles' back, her dorsal fin flexing under his fingertips.

"Do you mind telling me what's in the bag?"

He smiled at the memory of Romelle giving him Nibbles.

"This is Nibbles. She was given to me by Allura's girlfriend, Romelle. Allura runs Voltron."

He pulled out the shark plushie and Luxia's eyes widened. Then, her look softened and she smiled a little.

"That was nice of her. Did you name her yourself?"

Lance nodded.

"I did, but everyone seemed upset about her name and her being gifted to me in the first place. I'm not an invalid, I just… struggle… to do things like… like I normally would."

She nodded and took a few notes.

"What kind of things?"

Lance sat back, resting Nibbles on his lap and stroking her plushiness.

"Making meals– helping make meals, showering, getting up– I haven't been surfing yet because I have to wait til my bandages come off… I'm… not sure how I'll feel about that."

Luxia smiled kindly.

"That's alright, it's going to be a big step in getting back to where you want to be, and it's ok that everything isn't going to be the same. You are very brave, Lance. Helping make the meals, from what you've told me, is something that can help you learn to make the meals by yourself. Does your family let you switch roles when helping?"

He nodded.

"Yeah, Pidge, Matt, and Hunk designed a few things to help me, like this cutting board–"

And he explained everything that his friends and family were doing to make him feel included and useful. He saw her write a few notes down until he finished his rambling.

"And what about school? What were you going to school for?"

Lance grew quiet at that.

"I… I was just doing general studies… and a few PT courses… I had decided years ago that I wanted to be a pro surfer, but now…" he wiggled his nub a little and Luxia nodded sympathetically.

"I'm sure you can still be a pro surfer. But, maybe there's other things you can do with surfing as well. You said you were taking PT courses as well?"

Lance nodded.

"I started taking them in case one of us got hurt and didn't want to go to a center for treatment, we could do at home stuff, and I could take care of my family."

Luxia nodded as she took a few more notes.

"Since you've already gotten some of those classes under your belt, judging by what you've told me, you only have a few more classes you need before you can get certified as a Physical Therapist. Maybe you can think of some form of PT you'd be comfortable with using to help others?"

Lance grew quiet. His thoughts turned from what he thought was wrong with him, to what ways he could use his future to help others. Luxia's voice snapped him back out of his funk.

"We can talk about anything you think of in your next session. Are you alright to be going?"

Lance smiled and nodded.

"Yeah. Thank you for your time, Luxia. It really does mean a lot, to have someone who will listen that is… well… kind of a stranger."

Luxia smiled back and bade him farewell.

Lance joined Hunk and Pidge at the snack machine, where Pidge had gotten her powdered donuts stuck between the glass on the bottom row. She was pouting pretty heavily.

"I can't reach it. My arms are too short, and Hunk's won't fit," she whined and smacked the machine halfheartedly.

Lance didn't say a word as he reached in, twisted his arm and wrist before knocking the snack into the bottom. Pidge squealed and fished out her diabetes rings and chowed down on them, poofing everyone with powdered sugar.

🌊🌊🌊

The next weekend, Lance was taken to the hospital for Tio Sam to remove his bandages. He was nervous. What if there was a horrendous scar? What if it had gotten infected and they had to take the rest off at the shoulder? What if Sam said he could never get in the water again?

Sam entered the room, a small smile on his face at the sight of his honorary nephew.

"Do you want me to stay?" Mama asked, gripping his hand gently.

Lance nodded and she hugged him, shielding his face from view of the bandages that Sam was removing. He could feel the moment the tape left his skin, and the cool air hit his nub. He shivered slightly in his mother's hold and she tightened her arms around him. After a few minutes, he let her know she could let go and she led him to the mirror in the bathroom connected to the room. 

His eyes landed on what was left of his arm. It had been taken off between his shoulder and his elbow, closer to his shoulder. There was a bow shaped line of scarring like a mouth on the upper side and the underside was smooth from where they had pulled the skin to the front of his arm before stitching it closed. He put his hand on the bite scars and shuddered, leaning into his mama for support. His eyes quickly became glassy and she tugged him into the protective cocoon of her arms again.

"It's alright, cariño. I'm here."

He sniffled and buried his head into her shoulder, wrapping his arm around her neck to his nub on the other side before quietly breaking down. Tio Sam hugged him from behind and Lance sagged into their hold. It lasted for half an hour before a gentle knock came on the door and the rest of his family came in to check on him. They joined the hug as Sam left to continue his other appointments, but not before he pressed a fatherly kiss to Lance's forehead.

"If you need anything, I'll be here, ok?"

Lance nodded and mumbled something suspiciously like "thank you". Tio Sam smiled and disappeared as Papa took his place.

"Hey, now you can get back into the water, hermano! And, I can finally kick your ass on that triple spin move," Marco boasted.

Mama smacked him for his language as Lance chuckled.

"I doubt that. I don't even have to have one arm tied behind my back to beat you anymore."

The room went deathly quiet at the joke until Rachel started snickering. Then, the tension broke and everyone was giggling or laughing.

Leave it to Lance to cheer everyone up in any situation no matter how dire.

That night, Lance climbed onto the roof above his balcony and sat down, looking at the stars and the ocean rolling back and forth.

Pepper somehow joined him and curled up with her head on his lap. She had brought Nibbles with her and gently deposited the shark plushie on his legs before lying down. He leaned over and buried his face in her salty smelling mane. Luís had probably taken her surfing that afternoon. He sniffled and she licked his arm with her trademark purple tongue to try and console him. He smiled as he sniffled and she licked his chin with baby kisses, knowing he couldn't handle a full blown slobber fest like she usually bestowed upon him. 

He was the only one she would give kisses to. She turned her nose up at everyone else. Mama had taken to calling her his girlfriend as a little joke, which had caused a stir of jealousy in a few of his past relationships– at least until they found out his "girlfriend" was actually a dog, and it was only said as an inside joke. 

Pepper hadn't liked any of his past partners. She had cold-shouldered Jenny, ignoring her anytime she came over. She growled at Derrick while choosing to stand between him and Lance anytime he had visited, snapped at Grayson when he tried to pet her or touch Lance, and nearly mauled Nyma. Turns out, Jenny was just using him to make her ex jealous, Derrick was the one to try and force Lance to do things he didn't want to do in public, Grayson was the one to try and force him to sleep with him, and Nyma was really physically and mentally abusive.

"Love you, Peppy," Lance mumbled into her fur.

She grumbled happily and gave him more baby kisses.

"Thought I'd find you two up here. If I'd known it was date night I would have knocked."

Lance gave Ronnie a flat look.

"The things I do with my beautiful, fluffy lady are my business."

Lance hooked his arm around Pepper's maned neck and she licked his cheek.

Ronnie smiled and Pepper shuffled between them, Pepper giving Ronnie the cold shoulder.

Lance got the Chow Chow to lay down with her head on his thigh and Ronnie sighed.

"I was thinking… wanna go out on the water tomorrow?"

Lance gripped Pepper's thick fur with his hand.

"I… want to, but we don't have any extra boards."

Ronnie smiled a little.

"I think Papa and Hunk have a few extra. Pidge and Matt are coming tomorrow too. It's gonna be a party."

Lance sighed and Pepper whined. 

"I'd like to, but we'll see."

Ronnie nodded and gently rumpled her brother's hair. Pepper nudged her arm away with her navy nose.

"Alright, dulce niña, I get it. You want time with your novio."

Lance gasped dramatically and placed his hand on his chest.

"I'll have you know that she happens to love me very much, and I love her just as much."

Pepper took the opportunity to press her nose gently against his and give him a baby kiss. He crooned to her and her tail wagged uncontrollably behind her.

Ronnie snorted and disappeared back into his window.

"Thanks, Peppy. You always know how to make me feel better."

Eventually, they climbed down and she crawled into bed with him, snuggling up to his chest.

☁️🦈☁️

There was a massive wave heading toward the islands. They didn't have time to get away before the wave struck. Lance cried out as he saw his family and friends being swept away. He tried to reach out and grab them, but he suddenly didn't have any arms. He tried to keep his head above the toiling water as he was jerked away from the building he'd been holding onto, but his legs wouldn't work and he was swept under the current. Familiar terror pulsated through his body as a more recent event had changed his life–

He sat bolt upright, panting heavily and soaked in a cold sweat. Pepper whined loudly and tried to calm him down, but it didn't work. She opened his cracked door with her nose and rushed into the hallway. A split second later, Mama came running in. She pulled Lance into her arms and held him as he trembled, whispering about his nightmare. He could still feel the very real fear still rushing through his veins like lightning.

"It's alright, Lancito. It was just a dream. Nothing like that will happen, and if it does, there are ways to get everyone to safety."

She stayed with him for the rest of the night, humming a lullaby to him and speaking calming words when he got worked up again. Finally, sound sleep overcame him and his dreams were much more pleasant.

🌊🌊🌊

The next morning, Lance was up dealing with breakfast. He was making it on his own. He decided fresh fruit, coffee, bacon and waffles were a good start. He set the table and his family watched anxiously as he pulled waffle after waffle off the maker, before bringing in everything. Ok, so the bacon was a little too floppy, and maybe the waffles were a little overdone, but he has one arm– ok? Give him a break.

But no one said anything about the food being bad, and gave a few compliments instead, boosting his crumbling morale. Later on, they all went out to the beach.

"Wait, we can't start without Papa and Matt," Lance exclaimed before his family could get into the water.

"Oh, right… darn," Marco snapped his fingers as if disappointed.

"They'll be here in a few minutes. They went to go get something," Mama explained gently.

They waited until Luís and Hunk saw them coming down the path.

"What's in the box?" Lance asked curiously when his dad and brother reached them.

"Something special," Papa smiled.

Everyone settled in a circle around Lance as he worked to open the box. Rachel helped him and finally, the lid was free. He pulled it off and immediately his eyes burned. He sniffled and Luís had to hold him upright. 

"You guys didn't."

Matt grinned.

"We did and we didn't. This is Blue 2.0. in varying styles; from Blue 2.0 Longboard-style, all the way to Blue 2.0 Fish-style. The original Blue is… still in your dad's shop."

All styles of the new Blue 2.0 were beautiful, with different shades of swirling blue with white to make wave patterns across her top. They were almost too pretty to wax. But Matt handed him some board wax and he immediately set to work, excited to get back in the water that whispered his name. Finally, it was time.

Amara stood about waist deep in the water with the video recorder that Pidge had brought for when Lance caught his first wave after the attack.

At long last, after around 35 attempts, he finally caught one. Everyone cheered, and even the few locals that often surfed with them whooped and shouted in glee. Lance didn't stop smiling. Now that he had caught his wave, training could begin. 

The next few weeks passed and he and his family worked hard to get him ready for the upcoming competition. He had to go from a Longboard to a Fish in three weeks. He knew he could do it. He could still become a pro surfer with one arm. He knew he could.

Two weeks in, and he was starting to feel more confident. He had this. Everything was going to be great! 

Then, the three weeks were up and the competition was starting in 5 minutes and he was nervous as hell. Time seemed to go by way too fast, and soon, he was waxing his board. Ryan and James were behind him and unfortunately, Lotor was in sight.

He was waxing away when one of the officials crouched beside him.

"The judges have agreed to give you a 5 minute head start if you want it."

Lance looked down and saw Lotor watching and listening, a smirk playing around his mouth. Lance shook his head.

"I'll be fine. Thanks though."

The official nodded and disappeared.

"Dude, you sure you don't need it?" James asked and Ryan whacked him.

"Nah, I'll be fine," Lance assured them while trying to assure himself.

Lotor snickered as everyone for the upcoming heat started packing away their gear, getting ready to surf.

"You'll wish you had more than 5 minutes in a headstart," he sneered.

"Lotor, back off," Ryan warned, stepping between him and Lance.

James closed ranks beside him. Lotor, realizing he was outnumbered, scoffed and stalked away. But the damage was already done.

"Don't worry about him. Me and Ryan will kick his ass for you."

Lance smiled a little.

"Don't worry about it. We'll let the surfing do the talking."

"Glad to have you back, bro," Ryan grinned as he patted Lance's right shoulder.

Lance went to the starting line next to Ryan and James, as far away from Lotor as he could get. Unfortunately, Lotor moved positions to stand right next to him at the last minute.

The air horn sounded and everyone sprinted to the water. Lance paddled unrelentingly to the lineup, where he waited with all the other surfers for waves. Suddenly, he and Lotor were paddle battling it out over the first wave. Lance had the wave, but Lotor stole it from him, knocking him into the shoulder.

Lance surfaced, coughing up a lung full of water before managing to clamber back onto his board.

"Hey! You ok?" Ryan asked as he paddled up to check on him.

"Yeah. I had it, dammit!"

Ryan grinned apologetically.

"Don't worry. You'll get the next one."

They paddled back to the lineup and once again, Lance paddled as fast as he could to the newest swell forming. Lotor joined him and tried to take the wave, but Lance managed to out maneuver him. He scratched off the top, and felt the energy building up for a ramp. He took his chance and built up his momentum before launching himself airborne. His balance was way off and he didn't complete the move. He rejoined the lineup and Ryan and James patted his back in comfort. 

Lotor rejoined them as Ryan caught a wave. 

"You know, if you really want to win, there is one way I'd let you, but you'll have to promise to follow through if I decide to give you the win~," he purred at Lance.

Lance shot him a dark look.

"Forget it, Lotor. Nothing in life is worth having if anyone has to deal with you."

Lotor laughed.

"Oh, I'll get you one day, and maybe, if you're good enough, I'll let you win~."

Suddenly, Lance flung himself onto his board and paddled away for the next wave, James and Lotor joining him. All three of them stood up, but James crashed purposefully into Lotor with a snarl and a threat for how he spoke to Lance.

Lance took the wave and performed his aerials before going back to the lineup. Ryan was waiting for him, looking angry.

"What the hell happened that James got disqualified?"

Lance paled.

"He was defending me… Lotor was saying he'd let me win if I promised to do something for him, and you know how Lotor is."

Ryan's nostrils flared in his anger.

"Oh yeah. I know."

He and Lance caught a few more waves before Lotor came back with a vengeance. He cut Lance off, stole several waves from him, and was being an all around asshole. James had given him a pretty good shiner on his upper cheek. Lance only got a good view of it before Lotor knocked him flying.

The next thing he knew, he was getting ragdolled by the current. He slammed into the rocks on the bottom, knocking what little air he had out of his lungs. He was getting dizzy with being tossed around and lack of oxygen, but all he could do was let the wave throw him around. 

Finally, he surfaced and coughed up too much water. He was done. He was too tired. A jet ski rode out to him and hauled him back to shore. As Mama grabbed him, he began coughing and threw up more water.

"I'm done. I can't… I can't do this anymore," he gasped, and his family felt his heart breaking.

He let Ronnie put a towel around him and they tried to get to the truck, but reporters were keeping them from their escape route.

"Lance! Lance!"

"Mr. McClain!"

"Leandro!"

Too many voices clashed in his ears. He stepped forward and jerked the towel off his left shoulder. Everyone went quiet. They were shocked, awed, maybe, but they could see the trauma he had gone through. 

Then, one camera clicked and flashed, and everyone else seemed to come to their senses. More cameras clicked and flashed before Luís covered him back up and Papa and Marco started pushing people out of the way to make a path for him.

Lance sat in his room while everyone else had dinner. Blue 2.0 Fish-style rested in the corner next to his guitar. He longed for music to ease the tension in his body. He missed the way the chords would carry him just like the waves did when he surfed. He found himself hunched over the instrument as it lay in his lap. His fingertips ran over the strings, producing the warm, mellow sound that soothed his heart. But it wasn't enough. He needed more. He tried to play a little more, but he couldn't do it. He couldn't play it with one hand.

Tears filled his eyes as he shoved the instrument away and clung to Pepper and Nibbles. He sobbed into Pepper's fur until he cried himself to sleep.

🌊🌊🌊

Hunk watched his best friend breaking from his bedroom door. Lance needed more help than what he was getting, but he was hiding the worst of what he was feeling. Hunk silently entered Lance's room and scooped up the undamaged guitar. He gently held it and began to pluck the strings softly, allowing the chords to fill the room. He looked at Lance and watched as his friend visibly relaxed, falling deeper asleep the longer he played. Hunk waited until Lance was snoring his little kitten snores before leaving, closing the door most of the way behind him.

He took the instrument down to the living room, where Pidge, Matt, and Papa were sitting, mulling over what had happened to Lance.

Suddenly, Papa stood up and rushed outside to his workshop, Matt following.

"Lance needs a way he can play his guitar with one hand," Hunk stated to Pidge.

Pidge sighed.

"Papa Magnus and Matt are trying to figure out ways to make surfing easier for him. The places he's having trouble with personally are duck diving and standing up– wait, what about his guitar?"

Hunk explained what he'd seen, and what Lance had done subconsciously as he slept when Hunk played for him.

Pidge stared at the guitar long and hard.

"I know that look. What are you thinking?" Hunk smiled knowingly.

Pidge's amber eyes nearly glowed.

"Well, he's right handed completely now, so he will need a right handed guitar. We switch the strings and come up with a way for him to hold it so he can play without dropping it–"

She froze, her eyes glazed and staring unseeingly at one spot on the wall. Hunk didn't answer. He knew that when she had that look, she was following a train of thought and riding to the farthest end of the tracks–

"That's it!"

Hunk nearly leapt out of his skin at her abrupt "AHA Moment™".

Pidge started speaking so fast that not even Matt or Sam could have understood her even if they tried. Hunk waited until she finished before having her repeat everything slower.

When she finished, he grinned in excitement. He could fix it to where his best friend could play again!

He and Pidge bade the others a quick goodbye and dashed to Matt's workshop 3 blocks down.

"He'll need–"

Pidge quickly drew a rough draft blueprint of what they were going to be making, while Hunk carefully rearranged the strings and restrung the guitar to fit a right handed musician.

🌊🌊🌊

Lance didn't see hide nor hair of Hunk, Pidge, Papa, or Matt for days. It wasn't that he didn't notice their absence much anyway. His guitar was missing and he supposed it was for the best. Someone who had both hands could play it better than he could, and deserved the instrument more than he did.

He started going off of food, not wanting to be around anyone much anymore. He didn't have anything now. No surfing, no music, and he was pushing his family away. Only Pepper was allowed to see him, and only Mama was allowed to let her out to do her business and let her back in afterwards.

His therapy sessions with Luxia he attended alone. He was glad she had several boxes of tissues in her office.

One day, about two weeks after his guitar had gone missing, and two days after his last therapy session, a knock at his door sounded. He didn't respond. That was, until his door was practically kicked in.

"Get your ass outta bed!" Pidge screeched at him like an angry seagull.

Lance rolled his head and looked at her with reddened, swollen eyes.

Hunk stood behind her, half hidden by the wall of his doorway.

"C'mon, Lance. It's time for you to come downstairs. I know you may not feel like it, but we have something for you, ok? Will you please come down?" his best friend asked in a soothing voice.

Lance sighed before slinging his legs over his bed and trying to stand. He was thinner. Too much thinner than before. Pidge noticed the plate of food on his dresser. It had hardly been touched. He was letting himself waste away and dammit if Pidge wasn't gonna let him do that to himself.

Her eyes burned and she sniffled as she watched Lance pull on a shirt, covering up how his ribs were becoming more prominent. Hunk grabbed his hand and led him downstairs, leaving Pidge to recover her composure. She grabbed Lance's pillow and cried into it for a moment. It felt like she was losing one of her brothers and it hurt so much. She was losing him, and she didn't know what to do to fix it.

An arm snaked around her middle and hauled her up against a too thin chest. Warm tears landed in her hair as Lance held her and started crying as well. She clung to him and Hunk sat behind them and held them both up.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry I'm–"

Lance couldn't finish his sentence before Pidge hugged him tighter.

"I don't care if you have to have someone hand feed you– I'll do it myself, but you're not going to waste away. You're not a waste of space, and you're one of my big brothers. I lov-love you, Lance, and I don-don't wanna lose you!"

After 20 minutes, the three of them were all cried out. Hunk went to the kitchen and brought back water and grilled cheese sandwiches, which were consumed rather quickly.

Then, instead of dragging Lance downstairs, Hunk had also brought up what he and Pidge had done for Lance.

He took his guitar and examined it closely, working to keep an open mind. They had restrung the instrument so he could play with his right hand along the neck, but he still didn't have an arm to play the chords–

Hunk then pulled some guitar straps out of his bag and had Lance hold the instrument up as if he were about to play it while he strapped the guitar to his buddy. One long strap went around his back and shoulders from the neck of the instrument to the bottom of the body, while a second strap secured it from the sides, and the instrument itself attached to a lock mechanism at his hip. Pidge had to help him into a belt for that part. He wiggled it around, trying to see if he could dislodge it, even just a little, but his best friends had made it and therefore was indestructible. He looked at his friends as if asking to be told what to do next. Hunk obliged. He was the one who had taught Lance to play in the first place, and he would teach him how to play again.

Hunk and Pidge attached a similar set up to his guitar and he strapped it to himself before laying one hand, his right hand, on the bed.

"You're not going to use both hands?" Lance asked, confused.

Hunk shook his head.

"Not right away. Right now, I want to teach you how to start playing with one hand. It is possible, and I've managed to figure out how you can do it. I just need an hour of your time, ok? Can you do that for me?"

Lance sniffled and nodded, wiping his eyes quickly before giving Hunk his undivided attention.

"Alright. You can do this. Ok? Repeat after me."

Lance was suddenly presented with a memory of Hunk and himself when they were 5 years old, when Hunk showed him how to hold a guitar. He smiled as Hunk showed him once again how to hold the neck, and then, how to play from the neck in a way that it would resonate within the body of the instrument. They started off with Hunk's favorite beginner song he'd composed himself: Little Sand Dollar. Lance already knew the chords and picking to most songs, and he was able to switch the memories from using his left hand to his right. 

The next part was remembering to use his fingertips to strum the strings with each chord. The longer he practiced, the better he felt and the more confident he became.

Hunk and Pidge watched Lance play around with the chords and picking until he was playing smoother than he had when they first started. Then, Hunk began playing the second guitar part, and started singing.

Lance joined in and Hunk dropped to a baritone as they played and sang. Pidge watched Lance relax the longer he and Hunk harmonized. She also noticed a few eavesdroppers standing in the doorway. Mama was wiping her eyes and Ronnie and Luís were hugging each other. Then, Pidge had an idea. It was still early in the evening, and she knew the fire pit was all set up, and the Kehua'lani's had a freshly killed pig for a party sometime soon. She quickly tiptoed to the door and gave the idea to Mama, who smiled and Luís disappeared to go and ask the neighbors to join in.

🌊🌊🌊

The next evening, Lance smelled the most delicious smell that only came around every once in a while. It sparked a plethora of fond memories.

"Is someone having a luau?" Hunk asked.

Pidge grinned and led them both downstairs to the beach for the party.

"Ah! Music! That's just what we need to get this party started!" Mrs. Kehua'lani exclaimed happily, hugging everyone.

Lance turned red and tried to back out but Hunk nudged him forward.

"If I can have everyone's attention, please?" Hunk called.

His family, Lance's family, Pidge's family, and the Kahua'lanis all quieted and looked around at Hunk.

"As you know, Lance went through a big change in his life, one that none of us ever expected to go through. Yet, my best friend went through it, and I'm so proud of him for being here today. He hung in there and he's doing so well, and I'm beyond words in how proud I am of him."

Lance sniffled and wiped his eyes as he listened to Hunk. Pidge and Marco hugged him between them.

"And I'm honored to call such a strong young man my brother in all but blood."

Hunk looked at Lance with such pride that Lance broke and had to twist his guitar around his body in order to give Hunk a hug.

"And the reason we have our guitars like this is we've been practicing, and I think we're ready."

He and Lance sat on the logs smoothed over by decades of luaus and parties. Lance pulled his guitar back around and together, he and Hunk opened up the best luau they'd had in a long time.

🌊🌊🌊

It was a long while before Lance so much as looked at Blue 2.0 again. And when he did, it was as he was leaving to go with Matt, Pidge, and Hunk to a group of islands across the world to bring relief to tsunami victims. He had gotten better over the 3 months since he had quit surfing. He had his guitar and he was doing much better. Hunk and Pidge had reopened a door for him and he was healing. He spent more time with his family, began cooking by himself, and even started his classes up again.

The journey was long and tedious, but he managed easily with his best friends by his side. Matt led them to a relief group, where a woman was shouting in what sounded like French to a few of the relief workers.

"Plaxum!" Matt shouted over the din.

The platinum blonde woman turned and smiled brightly at them.

"Matthew Holt! I'm so glad to see you!"

Plaxum hugged Matt and he introduced her to the gang. 

"This is Pidge, my little sister, and her best friends– practically our brothers– Hunk and Lance."

Lance smiled nervously as Plaxum's eyes lingered on his left side a little longer than normal. 

"I have just the job for you four. This way."

🌊🌊🌊

Hours later, Lance plopped down on the sand, letting his feet get soaked by the waves. Plaxum had told him that the water was completely safe now, everyone was just afraid of it after the tsunami. 

Lance had been helping her wrap a woman's wounds she had gotten when she tried to pull her family from the water, but they had all drowned, and she was the last one alive. Lance had excused himself and hurried to the water where he felt a little calmer.

He felt eyes on him and turned to look for the source when he saw a little girl barely three years old hiding behind some fronds lying between some fallen palm trees. He got up and made his way to her slowly, showing her he meant no harm. She watched with wide mismatched blue and green eyes as he crouched in front of her.

"Hi," he spoke softly, giving her a small smile.

She blinked but didn't say anything.

"My name is Lance. What's yours?"

She didn't answer.

"Hey, Lance, who ya got there– oh."

Lance looked up at Matt. He nearly fell over as the little girl tackled him in a hug, her frail little arms tightening around his neck.

"What's her name?" Lance asked Matt as he wrapped his arm around her.

"No one knows. Two days after the tsunami, she showed up completely alone. She hasn't said a word to anyone, and hasn't touched anyone, or let anyone touch her. And no one has come to claim her. She seems to have taken a liking to you, Leandro."

The little girl perked up at the name and Lance noticed.

"Mí nombre es Leandro, ¿cuál es la tuya?"

(My name is Leandro, what's yours?)

The little girl shifted as Lance supported her with his arm.

"Leila."

Lance smiled.

"Es un placer conocerte, Leila."

(It's nice to meet you, Leila.)

She gave him a small smile but clung to him as he tried to put her down.

"Esta bien. ¿Tienes hambre?" he asked her, hosting her back up onto his hip.

(It's alright. Are you hungry?)

She nodded and they went and got her some food and water. Lance sat on the sand, watching the waves with Leila in his lap as she nibbled at an MRE.

She watched closely as each wave rolled in, and tensed if one got too close.

"It's alright, it won't hurt you," Lance promised her, his voice calm.

She looked up at him and then buried her face in his shirt. He put his hand on the back of her head in a comforting gesture. Another wave rolled in and she got up and toddled away to hide behind the fronds again. Lance got up and threw her meal trash away before following her, noticing that several people had surfboards that were not being used.

"Can I borrow your board, please?" he asked a young boy, who looked to be about 9.

He nodded and Lance lifted it with ease. He carried it to the water and then, looking back at Leila, who was still hiding, he took it into the waves and sat on it. Nothing happened, as he knew it wouldn't. He heard several gasps from the shore and he smiled. He spun the board around with his legs and glided on a few small waves to the shore before going back out again, but never straying too far so he wouldn't worry the child or anyone else. Then, he pulled the board back to shore, beached it, and stood on it, pretending to land surf, motioning for Leila to come join him, a bright, easygoing smile on his face. She shook her head and retreated further back. Lance repeated the floating process until he noticed her moving closer. She was between him and the fronds now. 

Smiling, he went up to her and held out his hand, water dripping onto the sand next to her. She examined it for a moment, then took gentle hold of his fingers. He walked slowly with her towards the board. She laid down on it on her tummy and he pulled her out into the calm water. He scooped up a handful of water and let it dribble onto her head, making her giggle. She splashed him and he laughed before gently flicking water on her. Then, he started teaching her how to balance on the board. She was a fast learner and picked up little bits of English as they went.

Soon, there were several people joining them in the waves. They had overcome their fear. Leila squealed as Lance pushed the board with a wave and she paddled as fast as her little arms could go. She wasn't moving much of her own volition, but she didn't need to know that. She was having fun. They spent hours in the water, people jumping over the waves, some boogie boarding, others surfing, and all the while, Leila never let Lance out of her sight.

That night, around a fire set up in the square of the wrecked homes, Lance pulled out his guitar as Hunk pulled out his ukulele. Lance was perfectly fine with his best friend playing with both hands again, and everyone was in awe at how well he played with just one. Lance told his story to Plaxum, who translated it for those who didn't speak good English.

"And I'm glad I came because I got to meet so many of you. You have all taught me something different, but most importantly, every one of you has reminded me that it's ok to lean on each other for support."

Plaxum translated and Lance began to play. Hunk joined in on his ukulele when he recognized the song. Leila sat beside him as he played, watching his single hand doing the work of two.

They sang and played 'Somewhere over the Rainbow', and a small voice joined in with theirs. It took him a moment to realize that Leila was humming with them. More people joined in their native tongue and Lance smiled, his eyes burning.

That night, in their tents, Lance tossed and turned, wondering where Leila was sleeping. She seemed to disappear the moment the sun set. He saw a shadow pass over his, Pidge's, and Hunk's tent, and heard the zipper being tugged. Then, as the flap pulled back, he saw those familiar mismatched eyes: one brilliant blue, and the other summer green. Leila crawled in, holding a ratty stuffed animal that resembled a whale, and curled up beside him. He smiled and brushed her hair back with long fingers. She sighed and snuggled closer to him. After she drifted to sleep, his thoughts turned to what would happen to her after he left. She was attached to him, and he didn't know what to do about it as he was equally attached to her. He couldn't offer her much, but maybe…

Two weeks went by and he still had no idea what to do about Leila. She refused to let him out of her sight unless it was to the bathroom, and even then, she stayed where she could hear him.

"We still don't know anything about her, and she refuses to talk to anyone, or let anyone hold her except you."

Lance listened to what Plax had to say, and it worried him.

"Would… could someone adopt her?"

Plaxum paused.

"Maybe, I mean, there are plenty of people who would take good care of her, but I think she has attached herself to you."

Lance swallowed nervously.

"Would… would the government let me adopt her? I have a good home and a wonderful family that would help me take care of her, but I just wonder what would happen to her if I left… it would break her heart again…"

Plaxum sighed.

"It's one of the many struggles after a horrible event like this from Mother Nature. Orphans are common, and it is common for them to get attached to relief workers, but I don't…"

Lance looked away. He couldn't bear to hear that he couldn't adopt Leila. He knew he couldn't.

"–see why you couldn't. I mean, it's also common for relief workers to bond with the orphans and then adopt them."

Lance stood up, his heart pounding, even more than it had after he'd been attacked.

"Could you talk to someone? The government? Anyone that would let me adopt her?"

Plaxum smiled.

"I already have. I did a week ago when I noticed she started staying attached to your hip. I don't want her to have her heart broken again, and I know that the two of you already have a stronger bond than anyone else has ever managed with her in the weeks since the tsunami."

"What did they say?"

Plaxum sighed.

"They won't have an answer for a few more days, I'm afraid."

"But we leave in two days. Maybe there's enough time..."

Lance couldn't help but get his hopes up. He knew he could take care of Leila. He was doing so much better, and he still had the money that he'd won from competitions growing up. He'd saved up for something important, and he knew he had enough to get an apartment or a small house and adopt Leila.

The day to leave was upon them too quickly and Lance couldn't find Leila anywhere. He called for her along the beach, around the square, anywhere he could think of. He had tried to find Plaxum to ask her, but no one knew where she was either. He was starting to panic. What had happened to them? Was Leila hurt? Was she lost? Had someone come to claim her?

Even Matt grew worried about the whereabouts of Plaxum, and by extension, Leila. It wasn't until they were reluctantly boarding the bus that a shout went up from behind the crowd. Lance turned and saw Plaxum trying to get to him, Leila in her arms. The crowd wasn't listening very well, intent on bidding the relief team farewell. Then, Leila disappeared from view. Plaxum's eyes widened in horror. With this many people in a wild crowd, she could be trampled and hurt.

Lance leapt into action, running toward where Leila had disappeared, and people parted for him. He saw a flash of dark curly hair, mismatched eyes, and then he had an armful of squealing Leila.

"Papí! Papí!"

He met Plaxum's gaze over the crowd with wide eyes filling quickly with tears and she smiled, nodding.

The overjoyed tears fell as he spun Leila around, both of them laughing.

Plaxum finally made it through and he smiled down at her.

"How much do I need to pay for the adoption?"

She smiled again.

"Not a cent. One of the men whom you helped fix his car was one of the officials of this area, and he paid for you to adopt her. He noticed that she refused to let go of you and how well you two got along together. He honestly thought she really was your daughter until he found out from someone else that she was an orphan. He hated to see the two of you torn apart, so he paid the adoption fees, passport fees, and even found some new clothes for her."

Lance couldn't contain the sniffles or the tears as he pulled Plaxum into an awkward hug with Leila between them.

"Thank you. Thank you so much."

She smiled again before giving him a gentle push.

"Better get going. You have a plane to catch and don't need to be late."

He got into the bus with Leila against his chest and a huge smile on his face. Their relief party cheered and Lance hugged Leila, his daughter. 

Holy shit, I'm a father! 

They had a little bit of a layover while getting back home and when he called Ronnie to explain what happened from the airport on the mainland, she squealed so loud that he almost went deaf.

"I can't believe you, hermano!"

"Ronnie, I know. I almost can't believe it either, but I love her. She's my kid now, and I will do everything in my power to keep her. Do you understand me, hermana?"

Ronnie sighed audibly over the phone.

"Well, guess it's a good thing we've got–" the phone cut out a little, "huh?"

"What?"

"Just wait til you get here, idiota."

"Love you too, hermana," he scoffed playfully.

When they got home, Lance held Leila on his arm and she stared with wide eyes at all the plants and colorful animals making up the new world all around her.

They walked up to the steps of the house and the door opened. Pepper came pelting out toward Lance and jumped up on him excitedly, but paused at the scent of someone new on her "boyfriend".

Lance crouched down and let her sniff Leila. The Chow Chow snuffled closer to the child's bare feet, her sandals having been put in the bag Lance had bought in one of the airports. She snuffled from Leila's foot to her hand, which she gave a tentative little lick, causing Leila to giggle. Pepper followed with braver kisses before giving the child one firm lick up her neck and cheek before Lance stood to give Leila space from his dog.

"This is Pepper," Lance introduced Leila, "and Pepper, this is Leila."

Footsteps sounded on the porch and his family came running toward him.

"Leandro Charles Neptuno McClain!"

Lance jolted and paled, turning a little to shield Leila from his mama, who had just dropped his full name like she was having a casual conversation about the freaking weather and not like she was giving him a heart attack.

"Ma-Mamí, please. I know that–"

"I'm an abuela to another child and you didn't tell me?!"

Lance froze.

"You mean… you're ok with it?"

She smiled and cupped his cheeks.

"Mí cariño, I am so proud of you. You have come so far from the boy I raised on a surfboard. This is your daughter now. And we, as your family, will do everything we can to support the two of you."

Lance smiled and turned back so Leila was in view of his mama.

"Well, Mama, this is Leila Meilani McClain."

🌊🌊🌊

Leila was settling in very well with his family. Lance had decided to wait on getting a house or an apartment until he could finish college. He was applying for jobs left and right, but none of them needed or wanted someone with only one arm. Meanwhile, he was training for the newest surf competition, the biggest one of the year. He was also getting tons of mail from all over the world. Some of it was encouragement, most of it was fan mail, and a few were marriage proposals, and his family had already sent responses out in his place in thanks, or letting those select few down gently.

He was building his body back up from becoming lax, and his family and friends were helping. He was on a roll. He was finishing his classes, having completed his general courses, and moved on to the rest of the Physical Therapy courses he needed. He decided he wanted to do water related PT for those who were handicapped, and if they wanted and were able, he would teach them to surf.

Currently, he was sprinting across the beach as fast as he could with a large backpack full of rocks pressing against his spine. He had just finished doing his 200 one armed pushups with Leila balanced on his back, without assistance, and up next was his balance training where Hunk, Pidge, and most likely, Leila, would throw tennis balls at him while he balanced on a miniature teeter totter. 

The training was brutal, but he refused to let himself fall back to rock bottom. He was focusing on bettering himself and being a father to Leila, and it was working. His body, mind, and attitude were showing his hard work. His physique was changing from lanky and lightly muscled, to quadrupling his muscle mass and filling out. He could now easily beat all his siblings and Papa at arm wrestling, and he was beginning to beat them at their little wrestling matches. His diet had improved, balancing out for building muscle mass, and he, Rachel, and Lisa were doing yoga every morning before breakfast.

Leila was growing faster, running and playing with Nadia and Sylvio, and she was learning at an amazing rate thanks to Mama's homeschooling. Her English was improving and her Spanish was almost perfect.

Lance made it to the end of his line and dropped the backpack off at Hunk's feet with a huff. His best friend gave him some water, which he sipped while Leila clung to his leg. He scooped her up and spun her around before she climbed onto his back and he got on the teeter totter. Pidge and Hunk began chucking tennis balls at him. Leila was trying to throw off his balance, but he was able to adjust and dodge at the same time.

This training regime went on for 4 months, and as a cool down in the evening, Lance and everyone would go surfing. Leila was learning to co-surf, just like he had with his mama, and she was getting really good at pointing out the best waves.

"I'm still having trouble duck diving. Is there anything that I can do better?" Lance asked as they sat around the dinner table.

Papa paused and put down his fork.

"What do you have in mind?"

Lance sighed and ran his fingers through Leila's hair as she laid her head on his lap.

"It's almost like I need a handle or something. I've tried holding onto the side and it's harder than it looks with just one… ya know."

Papa's eyes narrowed, then widened and he bolted from the table to his workshop. Everyone else ran after him, but he locked his workshop door. It wasn't long before he came running back out with Blue 2.0 Hybrid-style in his arms, his eyes wide with excitement.

"Like this?"

He showed them the top of the board where he had attached a rope handle by drilling two holes on either side of the top center of the board.

Lance grinned.

"That's perfect!"

He grabbed the board, Leila clambering up onto his back, and raced to the shore. They paddled out into the early dusk, Hunk, Pidge, Marco, Mama, Luís, Lisa, and Rachel joining them. They lined up and waited. Then, there was a paddle battle between Lance and Luís for the first wave. Lance pulled the lead and Leila tucked herself closer against his back right before he dove under the wave. The handle was just what he needed. They popped out of the other side of the wave just in time to catch a bigger one. Lance pushed himself and Leila up on the board. She squealed and laughed as they rode the wave, and Lance was excited. He could finally surf again!

After tucking Leila in her bed, Pepper bounded into his room and to his bed. She curled up and waited for him, her tail wagging. He smiled and crawled under the covers and pulled her against him. He loved his dog so much. She nuzzled her head under his chin and sighed, one of her forelegs resting on his side.

"Such a good girl, Peppy."

She gave him a baby kiss and he booped her nose with his.

The next morning dawned early and the rising sun found Lance up and fixing breakfast. Pepper was by his legs, watching every move he made. The soft pitter patter of tiny feet reached his ears and he turned just in time to catch Leila as she flung herself at him. He scooped her up and peppered her face with kisses.

"Good morning, sweet girl," he mumbled to her.

She grumbled and buried her face against his shoulder.

"Breakfast is almost ready, and then we have to head to the other side of the island for the competition. Are you excited to get to watch me?"

She nodded and clung to him like a baby octopus. He braced her little butt against the counter as he continued cooking. More noise from the other parts of the house alerted him to the rest of his family waking up. The side door of the kitchen burst open and Hunk, Pidge, Matt, Amara, Sam, Colleen, Luís, Lisa, Nadia, and Sylvio all came barrelling in. Hunk's moms came in after more calmly, bringing coffee and juice.

"Are you ready to go?" Pidge asked, her excitement building the more she spun on the bar stool.

He was surprised she hadn't puked yet.

"She had 5 coffees this morning," Hunk groaned with a yawn.

"Jeezus, take a breather, Pidgey. We still gotta eat some form of breakfast," Lance chastised her.

She grumbled and ate a piece of fruit.

"Ok, I've eaten, can we go now?"

Hunk and Lance shared a look.

"They're never gonna let her surf like this. She's got the jitters."

Pidge gasped.

"They will so let me surf! I'm the fastest one out there!"

Lance rolled his eyes and let Matt and Colleen deal with her while he fed Leila. Once his daughter's hair was in adorable pigtails he had perfected with one hand, he scooped her up on his shoulders. She clung to his head as he grabbed her bag, his backpack, and Blue 2.0 Fish-style. Everyone loaded into their cars, Lance joining Hunk and Pidge in Hunk's yellow Hummer, and they drove in a caravan to the other side of the island.

The beach was so crowded that they almost couldn't make it through. Only thanks to Voltron security did Lance and his family make it to a spot for the surfers' families. James and Ryan ran up to him and James' jaw dropped.

"Holy crap, dude! You did a 180 since the last time–"

James was cut off by a sharp elbow from his boyfriend.

"You look good, Lance. Ready to catch some waves?"

Lance had a feeling of deja vu as he looked at the blue expanse in front of him.

"Yeah, you?"

"Totally! There's actually some dudes from Australia here that are sponsored by Wallaby Way in Sydney!"

Lance grinned. He'd missed this. 

He set his and Leila's stuff down by Lisa's bag chair. Leila giggled and gently gripped his hair to keep from tumbling off.

"Who's this? Another niece?" James asked and tried to tickle Leila's feet.

She tucked them against her papí and hid behind his head.

"Hey, it's alright, mija. These are my friends too."

He slipped her from on his shoulders to propping her on his arm against his chest.

"Leila, this is Ryan," Ryan waved, "and his novio, James," James grinned, "and guys, this is Leila, my daughter."

Their jaws dropped again.

"Dude, she's like… 3? Did you and–"

"No. I was able to adopt her from a tiny island off the coast of Daibizaal."

Both guys crooned as Leila hid her face against her dad.

"She's still a little shy, but she'll come around. We're having a luau next week if you two want to come. I'm sure she would enjoy playing with you guys. We're even teaching her to co-surf right now, but she'll be surfing on her own in no time."

Ryan laughed and Leila observed him closely. Then, she reached for him. He didn't try to take her, but leaned closer so she could play with his hair. He had it in a short, thick, loc style and he was used to children wanting to play with it. He always took good care of his hair and didn't mind one bit. He was a daycare teacher after all.

She didn't tug on it like most kids her age did. Instead, she took one loc between her fingers and was just feeling the different texture. She smiled and brushed her small hand against a few others, causing them to sway a little before returning to their original resting position. He laughed as she did so; he couldn't help it. It tickled.

Lance had just gotten her settled with Nadia and Sylvio when a shadow darkened the sky over him. He turned and stood up, coming face to face with Lotor, who looked surprised.

"Well, well, well, it seems you've been working hard," he purred, reaching out to trace a fingertip against Lance's puka shell necklace.

A hand smacked his away, and Lotor looked affronted.

"If you have anything to say, you can say it without touching me, Lotor."

Lotor lifted his upper lip in a snarl, but stopped as he noticed the child clinging to Lance's leg.

He crouched down and looked at her coldly.

"Listen, kid. I need to talk to your uncle alone, so go find your mom. Run along now."

Her mismatched eyes widened and became glassy, for reasons he didn't care to understand. She tightened her grip on Lance's leg.

"Get out of here, Lotor. There's plenty of beach where you can set up. Leave us alone!" Lance snarled, taking his daughter onto his arm.

Lotor backtracked, not sure what he could have said to cause Lance's sudden hostility.

"I just wanted to talk to you, Lance. I can't do that if she's not with her mother."

"You stay away from my daughter, Lotor."

The latter paused. 

"Your daughter?"

By this time, Hunk, Pidge, Ryan, and James had joined ranks around Lance and Leila. 

"Yes. My daughter."

Lotor blinked. Then, he seemed to realize he had a misunderstanding of the whole situation. 

"Pidge, take Leila to Mama," Lance said far too calmly and passed his child to her.

Pidge did as she was told without arguing. She knew Lance was in protective dad mode and Lotor was about to either get his ass kicked, or he was about to be given a talk. 

Once Pidge and Leila were out of sight, Lance turned to Lotor.

"I don't know what you have against me, be it surfing rivals or whatever, but if you speak to my daughter like that one more time you will never surf around these islands ever again."

Lotor nodded. 

"Does she… not have a mother? I apologize for being so brash and rude to her, and to you. And I'm sorry for your loss–"

Lance held up a hand.

"She is my daughter by adoption. She was an orphan, Lotor. Her parents were killed by that tsunami around Daibizaal 5 months ago. I would accept your apology, but I'd rather just surf and let bygones be bygones. Let's catch some good ones out there, yeah?"

Lance held out his hand for Lotor to shake, which he did after a few seconds. 

"Good luck, Lance. Don't expect me to go easy on you."

Lance smiled.

"I don't. And, while you're here, I want to thank you."

Lotor blinked, confusion darkening his features as he asked, "For what?"

"For never taking it easy on me. You never treated me any different than you did before this," he twitched his nub, "and because of that, I now have the determination to place in this competition."

All Lotor could do was nod and walk away. Lance watched him go. 

"You ok, bruddah?" Hunk asked, putting a hand on his right shoulder. 

"Yeah. For a moment there, I couldn't tell if I was going to deck him or do what I did. I'm glad I chose the second one. He's not a bad person, just has had bad circumstances. He lost both his parents at the same time, and I don't think he has anyone."

The group was distracted as soon as the first heat began. Lance's and Ryan's would be the 5th and last one of the day, so they had a bit before having to get ready. 

Lance stood tall with Leila on his shoulders. He quizzed her on the types of waves and surfers' maneuvers. She did almost perfectly. Then he, Ryan, James, Hunk, and Pidge built a sand castle with her, Nadia, and Sylvio before his and Ryan's time came to prepare for their heat. 

Lance grabbed Blue 2.0 and followed Ryan to the area of beach set up for the following heat surfers. He noticed Lotor was quiet throughout. Before the horn sounded for their heat to begin, he glanced back and met Leila's eyes. She smiled and he winked and smiled back before taking off at the sound of the horn.

The energy of the water was ebbing back and forth, like he knew it would. Something was coming, but not yet. He saw a good wave building up and took off towards it, battling Lotor for position. Lotor pushed ahead little by little, but in his rush, he missed the position. Lance duck dived under him and took up the position. He was first on the scoreboard with an 8.6. He and Lotor were battling it out for first place throughout the heat. 

Currently, Lotor was in first with an 8.8. That feeling of deja vu coursed through Lance's veins again and he knew what was coming. The sun was sinking lower and lower toward the horizon, and he felt it in his soul. The water was dead, but Lance ignored it. He started paddling out a little further than any of them had gone throughout the heat. He ignored the voices shouting at him, the voice over the speaker, who was wondering what he saw, and waited, the timer continuing its countdown.

Then, he felt the energy spike. Adrenaline surged through him and he lined up as a massive wave, the biggest one that islanders and surfers alike had seen that year began forming, and it was all Lance's. He knew time was running out, and managed to stand as he took the wave, he hoped, before the horn signaled the end of the heat and took the drop. He felt as if everything was happening in slow motion, nothing but the energy of the ocean filling his body, allowing him to flow with the wave. He turned just like in his dream from months ago, and knew a barrel would be forming.

It did, and he could see Neptune's eye from inside the wave. The water closed him in the barrel, but he continued surfing smoothly closer and closer to the other end of the barrel. He felt nothing but peace. He was at peace with the water, the creatures that lived in it, and the events that he had once thought had ruined his life; that he had thought ruined his dreams. He seemed to wake up as he exited the barrel, and heard shouts and cheers from the shore.

He'd done it. He had caught his wave. Whether he won or not, it didn't matter.

He made it back to shore and staggered a little as he was tackled by his friends and fellow surfers, except Lotor. His siblings joined in, and then Mama came up with Leila in her arms. His mama and daughter were crying and trembling, but both were smiling as he took his daughter.

"She knew what you were going after when no one else did, Lancito."

He smiled and pressed kisses to Leila's hair.

The loud voice on the speaker suddenly started shouting excitedly that the wave Lance had just caught counted as a 9.9, almost a perfect score, thus proclaiming Lance as the champion.

Cheers and more screaming erupted from the crowd and Lance was put up on the winner's platform, with Lotor in second, a man from Australia, whom Lance had met several times before, by the name of Blaytz, placed third, Ryan in fourth, and a young man, Jeremy, who won fifth place. Lance could hardly believe he'd actually caught his wave. He pulled all the placed surfers in for a picture before the rest of them from the same heat squished together for one big photo from the drone.

Then, he was pulled to the side for pictures with Allura, Coran, Ryan, and Lotor. Afterwards, he had to stay for photos with Blue 2.0 Fish-style. Once he was alone, Leila tackled his legs with giggles that melted his heart.

"Who's this, Lance?" Allura asked as she smiled and waved at Leila.

"This is Leila, my little girl. I adopted her from the island Matt took us to a few months ago."

Allura smiled and started snapping more pictures as Leila posed adorably with her Papí.

Then, Leila had to go back to his mama so he could do interviews. Lotor was also there, giving an account of what he felt when he saw Lance surf the wave.

"Mr. McClain! How do you feel about winning?" one male reporter asked.

"Well, it feels great, but I just really enjoy surfing."

"How did you feel when you lost your arm almost a year ago?"

Lance paused, trying not to feel or look uncomfortable.

"I… it was a lot. One day I had my arm, the next, I didn't. There were several learning curves I had to deal with, but I had my friends and family to help me. I was in a dark place for a while before my two best friends reached down and pulled me out. It helped that my family was also there to support me. I don't know where I'd be without any of them."

"When you were attacked, did you see the size of the fin of the shark that took your arm?"

Lance paused. Everyone else did too.

"Uh… no. I didn't. I... let me explain it this way. You know how those war movies where that bright eyed kid soldier is fighting and suddenly there's a shot that rings out, and he's been grievously wounded?"

Nods came from all the reporters.

"Well, they also have shark movies where the victims see the shark's fin just seconds before they're attacked. It's... It's not like that. Just as you never hear the bullet, you never see the fin."

Reporters were quiet for a moment as they processed what he'd said, then began clamoring his attention over more.

"What would you say to people like you who have lost limbs or have handicaps similar to yours?"

He thought for a moment. This was where he could say something inspirational, or it would fall flat. He squared his shoulders and looked directly into the nearest camera.

"Don't give up. It will be hard and you'll often feel like you just can't, but ignore that feeling. Your experiences and your trauma don't make you any less human. They become a part of your journey. It's ok to lean on others who support you, and just because you have gone through what you went through, or are currently going through, it doesn't mean you are weak. It never means weakness. Never give up, even when you feel like you're getting ragdolled under a wave, times when you feel like you don't have control. Because even if you're in a dark place right now, someday, your wave will roll in and you will be able to conquer it. Don't rush into it, be patient. Patience yields focus, which means remember to be patient and you will be able to have a clear mind on your task and be able to focus. So please, don't give up. You're still alive– you're still strong."

The reporters all smiled and clamored for his attention until he was able to escape. Leila wriggled free of Mama's arms and raced across the sand to her papí, who knelt down and scooped her up. She pointed to the waves and he smiled before getting Blue 2.0 Longboard-style. They were about to enter the water when someone cleared their throat behind them.

Lance turned and was surprised to see Lotor.

"I… want to apologize for how I spoke to you in the last contest… and this one. It was wrong, disgusting, and very unbecoming of me, and for that I want you to know that I truly am sorry. I understand if you don't want to speak to me ever again, but I would like to ask for your forgiveness, though I know I don't deserve it."

Lance looked eye to eye with Lotor, who was looking sincere and ashamed. Then, he smiled.

"Water under the surfboard, dude."

Lotor looked up, his eyes wide with shock.

"Thank you, Lance. I'll make sure I won't make the same mistakes with anyone else that I did with you– and I'll make it up to you."

They shook hands and Lotor smiled at Leila.

"Your dad is a great person, Leila."

The child nodded vigorously, her curly pigtails flopping.

Lotor left them and they went out into the water, joined by Hunk, Pidge, Ryan, James, Matt, Mama, his siblings, and Papa.

They surfed until dark before going back to shore where a few locals had started up a luau for the surfing party.

"Hey, Lance, let Pidge show you the photo she got of you on Rover," Hunk suggested, and Pidge whipped out her computer excitedly.

She pulled up a photo and Lance gaped. It was the outside of the barrel from his big wave, and he could see Neptune's golden eye shining through, with his silhouette dead center. She patted Rover, her flying camera drone she had built herself, proudly.

"I have had so many offers for it for the news, but I submitted it to the news instead, so you're not only gonna be on TV, but probably every magazine and newspaper on the islands and the mainland– even the world."

Lance turned red.

"Gee… thanks," he deadpanned.

She elbowed him and he tickled her until she squealed.

After the food, Mama brought out his guitar while Hunk pulled out his ukulele. Pidge helped him strap the guitar on and everyone gathered around the fire for the best part of the night.

They played and sang until their voices were almost hoarse, and Leila, Nadia, and Sylvio were almost asleep. Nadia was in her mother's lap, curled up with her head under Lisa's chin, Sylvio was passed out in Luís' arms, starfishing the best he could, and Leila was leaning on her papí's side, her eyes glazed as she fought sleep.

Hunk unclipped Lance's guitar and he scooped his daughter up, adjusting her so she was comfortable. She nuzzled her forehead against his neck and sighed.

"Te amo, Papí. Estoy tan orgulloso de ti."

(I love you, Papí. I'm so proud of you.)

His heart melted faster than an ice cube on the sidewalk in mid Hawaiian summer.

"I love you too, cariña. So, so very much, mí pequeña ola."

(my little wave.)

🌊🌊🌊

Nearly 3,525.47 miles away on the mainland, a man sat slouched on the old sofa in his and his brother's apartment. His brother was out right now, working to support the two of them. He couldn't work. He couldn't find anyone who would take him, not that he was in a good head space to begin with. He flipped through the channels until his phone went off and he pulled it out. His pen pal and friend, Matt Holt, had sent him a link. He tapped on it, wondering what it could have been.

He flipped it up onto his tv screen once he realized it was a newsreel link.

"–lost his arm in a shark attack last summer, but that didn't stop him. Lance McClain just won the world wide surfing competition–"

The newscaster disappeared to reveal a video of a young man with one arm surfing a massive wave. The man on the couch gasped when the surfer disappeared behind a wall of water, and with the sun shining through the wave, it looked like a golden eye fringed with greens and blues. The eye was fierce, challenging, but also held promise of a better future.

"You mean that young man actually was brave enough to get back in the water after such an attack?" another caster joined in.

"Yes, Dave, he was. When he was first attacked, he didn't even scream. All he did was try to make sure the friends he was surfing with were safe, before trying to convince them that he was ok, despite losing nearly 64% of the blood in his body. That's 3.2 liters out of 5 in the average human body. Yet, he lived to tell his story. It wasn't an easy journey by far, as shown by Melissa Carp and her crew, who went to Hawaii to find out more."

The screen changed again and Lance was taking up the screen, probably a few months after losing his arm. His blue eyes were dull and camera flashes whited out his features a few times as his healed injury was revealed.

The man on the couch understood that expression. He sniffled for what felt like the thousandth time that day as he reached past his wheelchair for the tissues.

Then, three photos of Lance before the attack, not long after the attack, and a current photo were put up next to each other. He had completely changed. In the older picture, he was tall, lanky, slightly built, and looked like he would challenge the world. In the middle, he was small, skeletal almost, and his eyes had dimmed. In the third, he had built up his muscle mass almost 4 times as much as before, and he looked proud. He had challenged the world, and won, his blue eyes bright and determined.

The next clip of the news showed Lance after he'd won.

"How did you feel when you lost your arm almost a year ago?"

Lance paused, and the man could tell he was a little uncomfortable.

"I… it was a lot. One day I had my arm, the next, I didn't. There were several learning curves I had to deal with, but I had my friends and family to help me. I was in a dark place for a while before my two best friends reached down and pulled me out. It helped that my family was also there to support me. I don't know where I'd be without any of them."

The man felt that immensely. He'd had his arm one day, and the next, he didn't, and he had lost most of the feeling in his right side, particularly his leg.

"When you were attacked, did you see the size of the fin of the shark that took your arm?"

Lance paused. Everyone else did too.

"Uh… no. I didn't. I... let me explain it this way. You know how those war movies where that bright eyed kid soldier is fighting and suddenly there's a shot that rings out, and he's been grievously wounded?"

Nods came from all the reporters.

"Well, they also have shark movies where the victims see the shark's fin just seconds before they're attacked. It's... it's not like that. Just as you never hear the bullet, you never see the fin."

Those words struck a chord within the man on the couch. He understood the same sentiment. He never heard the bomb go off.

"What would you say to people like you who have lost limbs or have handicaps similar to yours?"

Lance appeared deep in thought for a moment, and the man leaned forward expectantly. Then, the surfer looked directly at the camera, his blue eyes piercing into the man's very soul and held it gently, like it was something precious.

"Don't give up. It will be hard and you'll often feel like you just can't, but ignore that feeling. Your experiences and your trauma don't make you any less human. They become a part of your journey. It's ok to lean on others who support you, and just because you have gone through what you went through, or are currently going through, it doesn't mean you are weak. It never means weakness. Never give up, even when you feel like you're getting ragdolled under a wave, times when you feel like you don't have control. Because even if you're in a dark place right now, someday, your wave will roll in and you will be able to conquer it. Don't rush into it, be patient. Patience yields focus, which means remember to be patient and you will be able to have a clear mind on your task and be able to focus. So please, don't give up. You're still alive– you're still strong."

The man started to openly sob as Lance smiled warmly into the camera. After the surfer managed to escape the interviews, a little girl came running to Lance as fast as her legs could carry her across the sand and he scooped her up on his arm.

"Lance actually went on a relief trip to one of the islands near Daibizaal after the tsunami a few months ago. There, he bonded with a little girl who, for three weeks, wouldn't speak to anyone, touch anyone, nor let anyone touch her. The two found each other and bonded, Lance later adopting her despite their losses, and his friends and family say that he has been bettering himself for her, and for them. His mother, and famed surfing legend, Rosa McClain, told reporters that she is very proud of him, watching him continue fighting and never giving up."

The man on the couch watched with watery eyes and uneven breaths as the father and daughter duo co-surfed as their friends and family joined them. Then, the man sobbed harder and wiped his eyes and nose on tissue after tissue, until he heard the front door burst open and managed to pause the reel.

"Shiro?!"

His brother came rushing into the living room and landed on his knees beside him.

Shiro crumpled into his little brother's arms and cried harder, Lance's words still ringing in his ears.

"Shiro, what's wrong? Did someone in that movie die or something?" Keith asked him.

Shiro shook his head as his breathing hitched roughly.

"I-I wan-wanna g-go to Ha-Hawa-Hawaii. Ple-Please, Keith, please ta-take me back to Ha-Hawaii."

Keith sighed and comforted his brother as best he could. This wasn't his strong suit, but for Shiro…

"Alright. I'll see what I can do, ok? Maybe Uncle Kolivan can help."

Shiro nodded and Keith paused. His brother had never agreed to getting help from anyone after the incident, he barely let Keith help– he had to practically beg!

"Shiro, what happened?"

Shiro wouldn't or couldn't tell him, for when Keith looked down, Shiro was actually asleep. Sighing, he scooped his brother up into his arms. Shiro was much too light for someone his age and height. He had been too heavy with muscle mass before the incident. After said incident, he'd stopped eating, stopped… everything. He was just… existing. It killed Keith to see his big brother in such a state. The same brother who got him on the right track away from ending up in prison; the same brother who helped him realize his dreams; the same brother who accepted him for who he was, and supported him when not many others wanted anything to do with him after he came out. This was still that Shiro, but Keith felt he'd been reduced to a fragile shell.

He was going to get Shiro to Hawaii. He would work his fingers and hands to the bone marrow if it meant taking his brother somewhere he wanted to go after so long of pleading and compromising.

He glanced at the TV screen, which had frozen on a massive wave. The way the sun shone through it, it looked like a slitted eye.

He shook his head and went to Shiro's room, gently depositing his brother in his bed and covered him up before retrieving the wheelchair. He collapsed back on the couch where Shiro had created an indent. He buried his face in his hands, seeking relief from the headache pounding in his skull. Yorak, his Blue Bay Shepherd, whined and nuzzled his elbow for attention. In doing so, he accidentally pressed play on Shiro's phone, causing the TV to spring to life, making Keith jump. Turns out, it wasn't a movie at all.

"–has been going to college for the last few years trying to figure out what he wanted to do. He had decided to become a pro-surfer and was following that path, up until a Great White bit his left arm off while he was surfing with his friends almost a year ago."

Keith flopped on the couch and Yorak took that as permission to drop all his dead weight of 110 pounds on top of him. Keith groaned but didn't budge, not that he could move his muscle hound of a dog.

"–told reporters today–"

And then a new voice came over the TV, not that Keith could see who it was, but he had to admit… the voice gave him chills and a swirl of warmth in his chest.

"Don't give up. It will be hard and you'll often feel like you just can't, but ignore that feeling. Your experiences and your trauma don't make you any less human. They become a part of your journey. It's ok to lean on others who support you, and just because you have gone through what you went through, or are currently going through, it doesn't mean you are weak. It never means weakness. Never give up, even when you feel like you're getting ragdolled under a wave, times when you feel like you don't have control. Because even if you're in a dark place right now, someday, your wave will roll in and you will be able to conquer it. Don't rush into it, be patient. Patience yields focus, which means remember to be patient and you will be able to have a clear mind on your task and be able to focus. So please, don't give up. You're still alive– you're still strong."

Keith struggled to move his dog off him to see the young man speaking, but Yorak was too heavy and refused to budge.

Maybe that guy's words had somehow reached Shiro. He had been watching the video when Keith had come home, after all. 

Determination to get his brother to Hawaii burned hotter than he'd ever felt it, and he texted his mom and his uncle Kolivan. Both responded quickly, asking if he was sure that Shiro was the one who wanted to go to Hawaii and not himself.

Keith called both of them in a joint call, agitated that they thought he would enjoy it.

"I don't want to go to Hawaii for myself. I hate the sun. I turn into a damn lobster. But Shiro wants to go, and I'll gladly suffer being a lobster for him. He practically begged me to take him! He was in tears over something when I came home and then begged me to take him back to Hawaii. So, I'm going to take him. With or without your help," he snapped when they both answered.

Silence reigned over both sides of the phone.

"Did he… was there a reason he wanted to go?" Mom asked tentatively.

"He was watching a news thing on TV talking about some guy who lost his arm in a shark attack and still went on to win the world wide surfing competition. He… this guy had some advice that I think actually reached Shiro. Lemme send you the link."

He copied and pasted the link from Shiro's phone and sent it to their mom and uncle.

After several minutes, Uncle Kolivan spoke.

"I believe you're right, Keith. Thace says he knows of the young man in question, and… I think that you are right to take him to Hawaii. The house over there is still in good condition, so that shouldn't be a problem of where you two will stay. Will it be a permanent move or just temporary?"

"I… I don't know. I'll let Shiro decide, but I'm taking Yorak with us."

"Very well. Krolia, what say you on this matter?"

His mother has remained silent for several minutes. 

"I'm coming with you. You might be able to handle Shiro on your own here at home, but if I'm there then it is certain."

"We will accompany you as well. I think it's time for Thace to have a change of scenery–"

"I resent that remark, nae nampyeon," came Uncle Thace's agitated voice.

(husband of mine)

"You know what I mean," Kolivan rumbled in a placating tone.

"Our lease ends in 7 months. Think that'll be enough time to get everything set up?" Keith asked. 

"More than enough," came his uncle's reply. 

The call ended shortly after and he went back in to check on Shiro. His brother was still asleep, thankfully. 

"Don't worry, bro. I'll get you to Hawaii. We'll make it, I promise."

🌊Fin🌊