( OPEN ) don't let the sound of your own wheels make you crazy

[bayarm]

WHO: shiro & various
WHERE: around bajikan
WHEN: spread over the duration of the fleet's stay in orbit
WHAT: shiro has a series of Good Days™
WARNINGS: naps happen. and an awkward boner, too.

Comments

— KEITH

[bayarm]

[ shiro visits each district to get a feel for the planet, to see if he enjoys any of them as much as he enjoys acedia. in ira, he finds people fighting in arenas instead—he finds keith and allura fighting in one, and shiro leaves before their fight is finished, anger that he realises isn't entirely his own warring with the oppressive memory of fighting in an arena himself, being forced to kill in order to survive.

keith finds him later, after shiro's texted him to make sure he's all right, at the outskirts of acedia where sleepiness is a distant thing but comfort still settles over shiro's frayed nerves, sitting on a small bay overlooking the ocean. there are a few beach chairs and now and again, a small cafe at the far end of the beach with a waiter who comes by now and again to see if his few guests want anything.

shiro's ordered something tangy with an umbrella and fruit as garnish and not enough alcohol to make his head swim. ]

Are you all right? [ he asks. keith knows what he's doing when it comes to a fight, but shiro knows just how strong allura is, and—he can't help but think back to the arena he's fought in, over and over again. the memory isn't quite as overwhelming now as it was in ira itself, but it still leaves a bitter taste at the back of his throat. ]

[mullet]

[ In truth, he likes being in Ira. He likes it because it's raw and unrestrained and right now he feels like he's casting about without a proper orbit. It's not something he knows how to fix. Certainly not anything he wants to talk about. So, the only way he can handle it is barbed remarks and talking with his fists.

Everything was great until he got too carried away. Now that he's away from that district and has a clearer head, he's glad Allura was there as his partner to knock him down a peg before he did something he might have regretted. Still, even with the knowledge of what he's done and what could happen to him there, he knows before they're meant to be back aboard the ship that he'll return to that district and fight again until his knuckles split open and his skin mottled with bruises.

Sort of like he is right now. An assortment of random injuries are scattered across his body like stars and Keith likes each and every one of them. His muscles are sore and being around sand probably isn't the smartest thing to do right now, but he doesn't really care. He practically throws himself into the chair beside Shiro, sprawling as he adjusts for the most comfortable position. ]

Yeah, I'm fine. [ He pauses to order one of those weird sparkling waters that tastes like a fruit cocktail and fades like a rainbow in a glass. ] Never better, why?

[bayarm]

[ shiro's associations with unrestrained and raw anger and emotion is very different; to him, it's not something that makes sense but a loss of control, something that leads to death and destruction. it's a reminder of galra captivity and the darkness that's chained inside him, the weapon they made him. it's a reminder of the champion, and that isn't someone shiro wants to be. ]

You look like you should spend an hour in one of the Castle's pods. [ is his first answer, said lightly, almost but not quite a joke. but a moment later, he adds: ] I saw you fight in the arena, with Allura.

[ he's not sure how to explain what it made him think of, so he falls silent. ]