Title: In Your Mind
Fandom: Voltron, Vehicle & Lion Team
Author: Purrsia Kat
Genre: Action/Adventure, Drama, Angst
Pairings: Jeff/Lisa
Rating: R,
Warnings: Violence and language. Adult situations.
Character death.
Start Date: April 2006
Summary: Sequel to Winning Days. After Planet Drule self-destructs and its corrupt
leaders are taken out of power, peace settles across the near universe. The new
Drule Empire actually joins with the
By Purrsia Kat
Jeff lay beside Lisa on the grassy
hillside, looking up at the scant few puffy clouds that drifted past in the
blue sky above. He was enjoying one of their stolen moments alone together.
True, the war with the Drules had been over for a few years now but that hardly
meant the exploration unit they served with was taking it easy. First they
found suitable and permanent arrangements for the displaced Drules and helped them
rebuild, including their governing structure. Then they had to get back to the
basic mission the Explorer crew had originally been dispatched to do – find a
new, livable world for their own overcrowded people and then help settle it. To
say the least, they had plenty to keep them busy. So whatever down time they
had, he and Lisa tried to make the best of it together.
But as he lay beside her, his mind
turned to a certain line of thought he’d been giving more and more serious
weight to lately.
He turned his head to look at her
and found Lisa gazing serenely up at the heavens. Propping himself up on his
elbows, he regarded her quietly for a moment. He’d never broached this topic
with her in the course of their somewhat secretive, romantic relationship and
wondered how she would react.
“Lisa, I’ve been thinking,” he
began. Her dark eyes met his gaze, which gave him a fit of butterflies in his
stomach.
“What is it, Jeff?”
“Well, we’re almost done with our
mission,” he continued, to which she nodded.
“Our support fleet is out there
right now,” she said, her eyes darting back toward the heavens, “to escort the
first wave of new settlers from Earth. It’s funny, we were so used to fighting
the Drules when we first got out here, that it almost seems strange to be
working with them. Hazar has been great in leading the Drules and working to
keep the peace, of course. But now we’re so close to finishing what we
originally came to do. I feel like it’s the last day of school.”
Jeff looked out across the meadow at
an impressive mountain range in the distance. The new settlers would find, he
thought, the new planet very comforting and familiar so much like Earth that it
was. “That’s what got me thinking. Thinking about what’s next after this.”
Lisa’s visage turned thoughtful.
“Maybe Garrison will send us to the Denubian Galaxy. Zarkon’s still a threat
out there. Perhaps the Lion Team could use a hand. And we know Chip would love
to see his brother Pidge again.”
“I don’t know,” Jeff began
tentatively to which Lisa looked up at him in surprise. “I mean, I hope they
get help but…I’ve been thinking about getting out, Lisa.”
Lisa sat up, looking at Jeff
intently. “You mean, off the team? Off the Explorer?”
“Yeah,” he replied, holding her
gaze. “All of it. Our mission is pretty much done and my current tour is up
soon, too. I was seriously thinking of asking the Commander for discharge
instead of re-enlisting.”
Lisa was struck speechless for a
moment, while Jeff struggled for the words to explain his conflicted emotions.
“Look, fighting I could do without,”
he tried again, “I love the teams. I love exploring, but what I love most…” he
trailed off and took her hand in his, “…is you.”
“Jeff…” She looked down the hill
briefly, at the sparkling bay below where the Explorer – so far off it looked
more like a toy boat than a massive spacecraft - drifted peacefully.
“I want to settle down,” he
continued, feeling a renewed courage to go on and just say what he had to say.
“And you know we can’t do that serving under the same command. I don’t want to
sneak around anymore. I want to be able to be open, to have you beside me at
night when we go to sleep and wake up next to you in the morning. I want to get
married. I want to have kids.”
He smiled at her, a bit out of nervousness and a bit
with relief for finally having laid out how he’d been feeling. Jeff hoped she
felt the same way. As much as he loved space exploration and his teammates, he
couldn’t take another four years of secretive trysts with her. It was time to
start a new chapter in his life and he only hoped she’d want to be a part of
it. The only thing he could imagine being worse was if his declaration was too
much for her and they spent another tour strained and distant.
He squeezed her hand and searched
her face, but all he could read was what could pass as stunned shock. He wished
she’d say something – anything. The longer she didn’t respond definitively, the
more his heart took on a sinking feeling.
“I’m sorry,” he said with abashed
smile, if only to break the grueling silence. He cast his eyes to the grassy
earth below them. “It’s okay if you don’t feel –“
He was surprised to get cut off by a
passionate kiss. In fact, she nearly knocked him onto his back before he could
regain some composure. If this was how she said yes, he had no quarrel with it.
When she finally broke off the kiss,
he gripped her tightly around the waist with both arms, hoisting her up
slightly so she was raised above him. Her long, dark hair flowed in the gentle
breeze, the perfect contrast against the blue sky. It would be a moment he’d
remember for a lifetime, and surely one of the happiest moments of his life.
She smiled down at him, giggling in that sweet
girlish way he loved. “Promise me you’ll finally take me to see Earth.”
He nodded, knowing she’d always been curious about
his home world. “I’ll show you mine if you show me yours,” he joked to which
they both shared a laugh. He did always wonder about Lisa’s world – this place
that clung to superstition and believed in the mystical power of different
crystals. It would be sad to leave the team, but he was sure together they
would spawn their own great adventures, free to love openly without worry.
The mirth of the moment died quickly as Jeff caught
a glimpse of something on the horizon, even through the flowing strands of
Lisa’s hair. He loosened his grip on her, shifting one hand up to her head to
still her blowing locks so he could get a better look. His expression must have
alarmed her.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, while twisting to try to
see what had his concerned attention.
There, coming over the ridge of mountains, was what
looked like a massive swarm of locusts at that distance - thousands of little
black dots marring the sunny sky. Jeff knew in his gut it was far too many
ships to be their support fleet and settlers. This was something he hadn’t seen
in years – not since the war with the Drules.
Just as he was about to voice his misgivings to
Lisa, they both heard it drifting up from the bay – the old familiar launch
alert coming from the Explorer.
“C’mon,” Jeff shouted while jumping to his feet and
taking Lisa’s hand. The surge of adrenaline was a familiar feeling.
Still holding her by the hand, Jeff raced down the
hillside as fast as he could. A painful stitch hit Jeff’s side as he watched
his teammates ships launch out of the Explorer. Whatever was coming over those
mountains had the Commander concerned and Jeff had a bad feeling. He just hoped
he and Lisa could get on board and launch in time to intercept whoever was out
there.
TO BE CONTINUED…
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