thisavrou_log | all along the watchtower

Who: Ex-Residents of Lion House
When: During the mediation center and ingress complex assaults.
Where: Angela Zeigler's old house
What: The remainder of Team Voltron piece themselves back together again.
Warnings: none yet
Notes: tag around, tag whoever, it's the saddest mingle log.

Angela's house is just as it was the last time anyone had stepped in. Dustier, colder. But the furniture is there. The non-perishable and medical supplies are there. It's still got some power to it, and for what isn't online, there's a fireplace and blankets. The smuggled cow is wandering around in back of the house. Out of sight.

It's off the beaten path.

As good a place as any to hunker down, wait out the storm of what might come. Make plans. Figure out what the next step is going to be, once the dust settles.

And address the absences from the household. The quiet where there should be red and blue. Their armor is settled into a chair, empty and waiting. They aren't whole anymore. Now they have to figure out where to go from here.

So nap, talk, make plans - the whole house is yours. It's going to be a long day and a longer night.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[She jumps a little when she hears Shiro's voice, twisting around to get a look at him from her spot on the floor. Her laptop slips slightly, and Shiro can probably see all the windows she has pulled up with all the endless lines of code filling them up. It probably doesn't make sense to anyone but her. Not that it matters.

What does matter is that Shiro can probably see the weariness on Pidge's face. She doesn't even bother trying to hide it. Certainly not from him. Instead she just sniffs at him once, turning again to rearrange the way her computer sits in her lap, pushing her big glasses up her nose like that'll shield her eyes from view.]

I'm just. Trying to get a read on the Ingress. The usual.

[He might not understand what the information on the screen says, but the fact she has too many windows up, all of them crawling with numbers and letters -- it says enough. It says more than she probably thinks it does. He has to wonder, standing in the doorway, if this is how she was before. When she'd been searching for any sign of her family the first time.]

[... it makes something in him twist. Something flickering and angry. She's already lost too much. Now this place, now Darin, was taking more.]

What can I do?

[Because he also sees the tired lines in her face. The way she's hiding her eyes from him. And, without thinking, he's crossing the room to her side.]

[Pidge wishes so badly that her mental state wasn't so obvious. Especially to Shiro, who has enough on his mind as it is, who spends every waking moment trying to take care of the rest of them when he's the one who needs it most. She bites down on her lip, listening to his footsteps as they grow louder and closer, trying to think of a reason to turn him away.

She's too tired. She can't think of one.]

I... I don't know yet.

[She frowns at her screen again, her eyes moving over some more lines of code, and then she glances over at Shiro again.] ..Maybe just sit with me. For a bit.

Yeah.

I can do that.

[If nothing else, he can do that. He stops beside her, before slowly levering himself to the ground. At her side. She looks like he feels. Like the world is barely strung together at the edges, and the lines of her computer are all that hold it together.]

[This isn't fair. This is so colossally unfair. How many more times does she have to uproot? To be the one left behind?]

Long as you need. Okay? [There's a hand at her back. Between her shoulder blades. If only to remind her she's not the only one still here.]

[Pidge nods once, and it's amazing how reassuring it is just to have him sitting next to her. To know that he's still here, and he hasn't left, and they've managed to stay together. That pressure on her back is so grounding, and for a moment her hands just lay still on top of her laptop, fingers resting lightly on the keys.

She doesn't move to look at him or anything. She just sits there next to him for a moment, focusing on her breathing, on the lights of her keyboard. She won't break down again, she's done doing that, but it's hard to really focus on what she's been trying to do now that Shiro's sitting beside her. She chews on the inside of her cheek, closes her eyes, breathes in as deep as she can.]

...I feel like my brain's stopped working.

[His fingers press a little more. Light pressure. Absently moving between her shoulder blades. In this moment, he doesn't know what to say. How to make this better -- make it less like what she's already suffered. Maybe there isn't anything to be said, or done.]

[Except sit here with her. Let her know she isn't alone.]

Like nothing's solid anymore? [Maybe it's the lack of sleep talking. That makes everything feel wobbly around the edges. Or, at the same time, too sharp.] I'd normally say... that probably means you need to get some rest.

[Normally, if this wasn't Pidge. If they didn't know how hard it was for both of them to accomplish.]

[She nods again, and this time she even leans back a bit, into the press of his hand on her back. Just because it's comforting. Because it's solid.]

Like nothing makes sense, either. Like I just... can't read anymore.

[Pidge lets out a small sigh, eyes opening just so she can continue to stare absently at the lines of code on her screen.] ..What do you say abnormally?

Yeah. Yeah, I know.

[It's as easy as breathing to let his arm settle around her. As much as she's appreciating the pressure, having something solid under his hand is also a reassurance to him. As oddly selfish as that feels.]

I know. [He goes quiet for a moment. Almost laughs. It's a very, very near thing.] Abnormally... I could always order you to take a break.

[Feeling his arm around her is about all she needs. She doesn't push the laptop away, but she does lean more fully against Shiro, her fingers curling away from the keys and into her palms.]

...I just need to be sure they're okay.

[He goes quiet too, again. It feels, honestly, like they've done this too many times. More than she deserves. But here... she's looking for the reassurance. The support.]

[Both arms go around her then. Holding on.]

So do I, Pidge. [It's okay. He knows. He knows.] I think... we all do.

[For a moment she lets herself forget about the laptop. Instead she lets herself curl up against Shiro for a bit, turning her face into him as if that'll help keep her from losing her grip.]

..We had it pretty good for a while, though. Right?

[In response, he just folds around her. Letting her curl, wrapping his arms around her. Letting her head slot under his chin. Silent for several long, steady moments. Like machinery fitting together. Parts of a whole.]

[Funny, how that's the comparison that comes to mind.]

Yeah... yeah, we did.

[She can probably already hear what's coming, but honestly, he has to say it.]

I -- I was so excited for a while. Y'know? Felt like you guys could just... be yourselves there.

all along the watchtower

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