bakerstreet | I don't need another friend. I already have two.

I don't need another friend. I already have two.

The Sleepover meme

You all know how it goes. Maybe its a group of teenage friends at someone's house, maybe its adult strangers snowed in at the airport, maybe its a camping trip of kids but for some reason, you're all going to end up spending the night together. Sleep is for the weak and distractions are needed. Will lifelong friendships be forged and broken or will everyone just end up covered in silly string and hungover? Your choice will decide your fate. Better grab your overnight duffle, your favorite pillow, some people to hang out with and choose wisely.

options:

1. Games. Truth or Dare, Spin the Bottle, Settlers of Catan or a vicious game of Uno. Ice breakers, social stand-ins, conversation starters: these are the games we play that bind us together against a common enemy or tear us apart. Is it fair play or can there be only one? Find out who your friends are and keep them close. Nations have gone to war for less than this.

2. Pranks. Get enough people together in a group, add alcohol, or just insane levels of tiredness, and it's bound to happen. Maybe you were dared to or maybe you just got stuck with the phone when it was already ringing but its time to break out the TP and find a house with trees in front or figure out if your neighbor's refrigerator is running. Can things go wrong? Oh yes. Oh yes, very. Hope you wore your running sneakers when Old Man Griminch catches you with those eggs.

3. Scary times. Because really, what's a sleep-over without some fear? Whether its a horror movie in a room with no lights, Bloody Mary dares at midnight or campfire stories about true events that happened on a night just like tonight, a night together with friends doesn't end right if no one's screaming or in tears. Grab those batman snuggies, its time to get creepy.

4. Food! No party is a party without food. Maybe its making chocolate chip cookies at midnight, maybe its a food run, maybe its marshmallows over that aforementioned campfire. Whatever it is, its time to break out the grub and play fluffy bunnies until someone pukes.

5. Make-over! Break out the glitter nail polish and hot irons. This old sleep-over staple is sure to create bonding moments and only mild scarring. Learn to braid hair, learn to apply eyeliner, learn which of your friends has the fashion sense of a 1930s clown. Did someone fall asleep before the rest of the group? Well, that's what sharpie pens, shaving cream and firehouse red lipstick was invented for. The 80s are calling and they're not taking no for an answer.

6. Snuggle pile! That's right. After a hard night of pixy stix and jello twister it was only a matter of time before everyone ended up crashing. Hard. Whether you wind up in a puppy pile or just using a stranger's shoulder for a pillow, at some point one of you is going to wake up enough to steal a blanket.

7. Soul searching. It's five in the morning and everyone else has gone to sleep. Now's the time for deep thoughts, deep conversations and utterly life altering questions. Like 'do seagulls ever get sad?' and 'why are they called 'styrofoam peanuts' if you can't eat them?'. Someone's got the answers. You might have to wake them up to get them but its now or never. Universal truths aren't going to wait for reasonable hours.

8. Grab bag! you do what you want!

you know the routine. Put your character, series and any prefs in the header. Tag around. Have fun. And don't fall asleep first whatever you do.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[If asked Shiro won't even pretend he's not up for doing this again. Regularly in fact. Though... every night seems extreme.

And Shiro listens too. He's aware that both his mother and grandmother have nightly routines that they hold to religiously but those are mysteries he's never been invited to share in beyond his grandmother dabbing some of her lotion on his sunburned nose as a child or the occasional dusting of scent across him when he'd be late getting to bed as a kid and his good night kiss would end up smelling sweeter. Ten or fifteen minutes every night seems -

seems just about as sensible as any of his waking up routines he supposes, thinking of the pushups and the stretches and the breathing exercises. And... it does feel nice... His smile comes again.]

Flawless, huh? So whos prettier, your sister or you?

[When Lance finishes with the toner, he merely sets it down and opens the moisturizer. It's got a creamier feel to it, but still the same soft scent, and he dabs it on in small bits before smoothing it in just as gently. If Lance had to drop out of the Garrison for any reason other than terrible grades or Voltron, he'd take the Grease method and go straight to beauty school.

But Shiro's question has him choking, and he pauses, sulking for a moment.]

What an awful question! If I don't pick her, she'll actually murder me. She will find whatever space quadrant we're in with her sister genes and she'll throw the closest heel straight to my head! You never come between Sophia and beauty. She's like... reigning beauty champ unless you're under five.

[Shiro's unaware that they've moved on to something beyond the toner but it feels so nice to be touched and taken care of that his mind doesn't even register whether the same parts of his face are getting attention more than once. He does pick up the moment it stops though, one eye cracking open to -

he coughs.

and then he coughs again but this time he hunches his shoulders forward slightly and the next sound that comes out of him, behind the fist he has raised to his lips, is the rusty sound of Shiro laughing. It's quiet and obvious he's both not used to it and trying not to be too obvious about it but -

yeah, that's Shiro laughing.]

[What was that? Lance's eyes widen at that cough, wondering if maybe the scent hit him, or if he choked--but it doesn't even take that second to know that it's Shiro laughing right at him. The older paladin is doing his best to hide it, but it doesn't fool Lance at all.

There's another pout, but there's absolutely no bite to it as he huffs dramatically. Getting Shiro to laugh always makes him feel better, even if it's at his expense a little. He'll take it this time, blame it on Sophia.]

Har har, laugh it on up, Shiro. You'll be glad we don't have her throwing her pumps right at us from across the galaxy. Those shoes could take an eye out!

[Shiro thinks he might be a little in love. Because he's pretty sure that anyone that can throw shoes with even half the accuracy Lance describes must be a very impressive woman. But really, it's the way Lance talks about his sister, and his family by extension, that's so good feeling to hear. Shiro's an only child and as much as he loves his family and is completely content in their love for him - they were never an expressive group and he was always just a little lonely without any siblings to share his childhood with. Listening to Lance talk about his sister - its almost as if Shiro is allowed to enjoy it himself in a through the mirror kind of way and

it's nice. It's really nice.

He holds up his hands in surrender though, palms outward. Smiling.]

I'll take your word for it. She sounds like we should have just let her take on Zarkon and saved us the time.

[Lance could honestly praise his sister all day. Even though he considers her a pain, as he does with all of his siblings, he loves them to pieces. And just thinking of the day she actually nailed him from down the hall from tossing at a weird angle out of her bedroom, he can only shudder to think about how good of an aim she'd have as a Paladin.

He actually chuckles about it a little. Tilting his hand inward, he taps one of Shiro's palms with his knuckles, then dips his fingers back into the moisturizer. There, forgiven.]

Could we! She'd probably be bored out here, but we'd be done fighting Zarkon in, what? A month? Dad says she's just like mom, and mom is horrifying. She's like... Horrifying Jr. If she got a bayard that turned into a shoe we're solid.

[Shiro takes the forgiveness with a smile. It's been a long time since he's been loose enough to just relax and joke around the way he used to at the Garrison. Most of the time he's busy being the team leader/big brother/mentor/whatever they needed and he doesn't mind that at all. He's aware he's still a little bit of that even now. But - it's just nice to have casual conversation and goof around a little without any weight or responsibility on him.

He honestly has no idea what drove Lance to ambush him with facial care in the first place but - he's glad. And he hopes Lance realizes it because saying it outright seems as if it would break the magic. So instead he just closes his eyes and leans forward a little again so Lance can go back to work on his face. Grinning.]

I don't know. Maybe after she defeated the Galra Empire in under a month's time she could get her own beauty show. Travel around, test out new products and show everyone how to make the most of them. Kind of like that Travel Planet Food show but with beauty products.

[Lance definitely realized it, but he's enjoying himself enough to not say anything. He feels better, even lighter, and he can tell from Shiro's laughter that the older paladin does too. It shoves away the nostalgia of missing home and replaces it with just more fond, silly memories and a good evening even so far out into space. Lance is glad he made the jump; he had been hoping Shiro would find some sort of relaxation out of it, but the results ended up a lot nicer than he thought.

As Shiro leans forward, he returns to smoothing in the moisturizer on his face. He can't help but smile himself at Shiro's grin. This sneak.]

And give her the credit of saving the universe and being an inter-galeactic beauty vlogger? Hell no! I'll do it. She can have Galra, I'm doing that vlog.

[His grin relaxes into a smile when Lance starts on his face again and Shiro won't admit to it but the throaty hum he makes might be on the edge of a purr. Just for a moment before he stops. His eyebrows do lift a little at Lance's protest though and then -

the laugh slips out of him despite himself and he cracks one eye open, grinning again.]

I'm glad to see where your priorities are.

[That noise makes him smile more. It's almost cute, really cat-like in the good, non-furry way. He's glad Shiro's enjoying it. Maybe next time he'll try to add in a back massage or something too.

But the laugh makes him smirk, and he reaches up to lightly flick Shiro's nose. Ya jerk!]

Hey, Galra's only temporary if we've got anything to say about it, but I've gotta live with this face. My beauty must be protected and shared with the world!

[The nose flick has both of Shiro's eyes opening and going wide in his face for a long second

and then they wrinkle up and curve and he bursts into a real laugh that comes from somewhere deep in his chest. He'll dryly tease Lance in a moment about the important of preserving beauty but - ]

Did you just - nose flick me?

Edited 2017-01-19 17:26 (UTC)

[Did he break Shiro?! The laugh catches him completely off guard, and Lance honestly has to wonder what he'd said to make him crack up so suddenly. He just sounds so... so oddly happy and unreserved. It's a warm sound. But when he asks about the flick... Aha.

New trick he's learned, huh. Lance holds up his hand, middle finger poised against his thumb.]

I'll do it again!

[Still laughing, Shiro holds up his hand, metal palm in the way of a second threat and shakes his head.]

No. No, I think one is enough for me. I haven't - man, I haven't had anyone do that since I was probably about five.

[Lance just reaches over to flick the palm of his metal hand too. While he's at it, he may as well be a bit silly.]

Seems I need to catch up then. Gimme your face, we got like, what, twenty years to go?

[Still chuckling, Shiro eases back so his back is against the wall, stretching out one leg where it won't get in Lance's way. He leaves his hand up though. Lance was the first one to really acknowledge the fact he had alien tech in the place of his humanity and Lance had also been the first one to move past it with a single handshake. He's not worried about Lance handling it now. Or flicking it really. He shakes his head though.]

Nope. Think I'm good. Don't you have toner to put on your skin before your pores open up or something?

[To Lance, even with Shiro's metal arm and the scars he bears, he's still every bit of Lance's hero as he was since Lance saw his picture mounted on the wall at the Garrison. He almost flicks it again for good measure, but Shiro does have a point. Making a face, he leans back and reaches for the toner. He'll still consider it a victorious night.]

You win this time, Shiro.

[And with that, he turns the toner around in his hand and squeezes out a small orb, staring at it again.] Don't forget, I'm still painting your nails after this.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I don't need another friend. I already have two.

don't we wish we could make our collection complete?

and this accidentally takes a 360 into being part of Shiro's world again, lmao

who knew Shiro's world was destined to loop into mermaids - oh wait

Shiro did you plan this fate?!

he's a poor unfortunate soul. But seriously, I've never seen a fandom with so much mer-art before

Haha Free! has three times the fins. At least Voltron's logical about it tbh

Lance gets the prettiest mer-art. I'm pretty sure there's a fanfic about it

He does!! And there definitely are. I've got like 3 on my AO3 to-read list

ngl, watercast got me jonesing for some avian Shiro

/quietly bumps fic to top of list because avian Shiro plzzzz

merLance is pretty darn cute in it and he does save Shiro's feathered ass so bonus points

oh no oh no... guess I know what I'm reading tonight

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