Hiiiii!

I saw a prompt for something like this on Tumblr and I couldn't resist. Sooooo here you go.

Warning: feels

Enjoy!

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Motus was a beautiful planet. It was snowy and serene all year round and yet the inhabitants did not freeze. It was entirely habitable and perfect for life.

The people of Motus were called Motans. Over time, they had evolved to have colours that resembled their landscape. Their skin ranged in colour from the lightest pinks to the palest icy blues and anywhere in between. Their hair resembled jellyfish tendrils and floated around their heads if not pinned down. Their eyes were big and one solid colour, more often white than anything. Their hair was white as well. They were relatively humanoid except they tended to be taller and more willowy than humans. They had strange finlike shapes on the outsides of their forearms and sticking out from the backs of their heads. The fins flared when they were angry and flattened when scared or sad. Their fingers were webbed and they did not have feet, their legs instead ending in points that gave them little balance but allowed them to run very fast. Around each point was a finlike skirt that flared open when they needed to walk on the snow, allowing them to walk on top of the snow without sinking.

The Motans had a strange way of gathering power. The royal family had a special ability to manipulate emotions to become energy. They used this to power all buildings and lights and ships and everything on the planet. To give power, you simply had to place your hand on an enchanted white orb floating in the throne room. Once you did, the planet would utilize the strength of the emotion to distribute power. The lights would change colour depending on the persons emotion. The stronger the emotion, the more power they gave off.

The planet had recently been freed from the Galra's hold. The Galra hadn't had any bases on the planet, as they could not survive as well in such conditions, but they had had the king under their thumb. The king had died and so the queen took over. She had called Voltron and the saviour had come, freeing the planet.

Now the Paladins were coming for a celebratory dinner.

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The princess was sitting on a window ledge, surveying the damage from Voltron rescuing her planet. It was surprisingly minimal and she would be sure to thank them for that. None of her civilians had died and now they were free. And now she was sitting, watching the snowfall and waiting for her call to come to the dining room.

She was wearing a floaty dress that was almost jellyfish like. It was glassy colours, the palest pinks and blues to match her skin. She resembled a pearl with her colouring. That was how she had gotten her name.

Pearl.

Her mother had chosen it for the beauty of the meaning and the close ressemblance from her to her namesake.

Princess Pearl. That was who she was.

A quiet knock on the door alerted her to her call to dinner. She stood gracefully from her perch at the window and left the room, walking through the mazelike hallways to the stairs at the top of the dining room. She met up with her mother and together they walked down the stairs. As she and her mother passed the orb, they both brushed their hands against it. The colours in the room went snowy white, the colours for calm.

Her mother greeted a group of six people that Pearl assumed were the Paladins. Five were dressed in Paladin armour and the sixth was wearing a lovely dress. Pearl squinted for a moment before realizing the one in the dress was Altean. She smiled. They hadn't all been completely wiped out after all. This was wonderful news.

Pearl walked up and joined her mother. She bowed to the Paladins and said "I thank you for saving our planet. I am Princess Pearl."

The princess bowed her head "Hello. I am Princess Allura of planet Altea." She introduced the Paladins one by one. Pidge, Keith, Lance, Hunk and Shiro. Pearl smiled at each of them.

Her mother clapped her hands and said "Why don't we all sit? The food will be here shortly."

The group sat at the table, the queen at the head, Pearl at her right, Allura across from her and the five Paladins on either side of the table. Servants brought in trays of food and set them on the table. The table was made of a material that closely resembled coral. Conversation was light, the queen and Allura discussing alliances and the Paladins talking with Pearl about her planet.

Lance seemed particularly interested in her "So your name's Pearl, huh?l

Pearl nodded.

He smirked "You're prettier than your namesake."

The other Paladins all groaned while Pearl giggled softly. Her laugh was musical, like wind chimes. Their conversation continued, about life, the snow, the universe and everything else that came up. Pearl learned about all their adventures and helped Pidge and Hunk stop Keith and Lance from fighting. She heard about their time at a space mall and giggled when she heard about Hunks adventure in the kitchen, Pidge and Lance's adventure of searching through fountains for money, and all of their great escape from a mallcop on a hover scooter.

"You all sound like you have been everywhere." Pearl said "I am envious. I've never left Motus."

"Really? Never?" Pidge asked. Pearl shook her head. Pidge said "Wow."

Pearl nodded "Indeed. I spend all my time here in the snow. I do have a hobby though. I enjoy something called snow skating. It is lots of fun." She giggled "Although, I don't think your, um, feet will be able to do it. Feet sound so clumsy and the word is so weird. Feet." She shuddered delicately. The Paladins laughed.

The conversation continued. The food was finished and the dishes were taken away.

Now everyone was standing and talking. Pearl was talking to Allura, trying to act like princesses while they were actually complaining about how they wanted to punch people whenever they were at diplomatic meetings. The queen was talking to the Paladins, hearing about their adventures. She seemed very intrigued and laughed in all the right places.

"And then this man from Zojila decided 'I'm going to creep up behind Pearl in the Moon garden. Surely that won't scare her half to death.' Surprise, it did." Pearl was telling a story "I slapped him. Hard."

Allura giggled "I had a similar experience back on Altea. I was in my rooms and my bodyguard was on her way to my room because it was night. I heard a knock and said 'come in' like in always do. My bodyguard used to help me fall asleep. Someone walked in and I wasn't paying attention. It was a different Altean, someone I didn't know well. They gripped my shoulder and I saw them in the mirror and screamed really loud." Pearl giggled behind her hand as Allura kept talking "My bodyguard heard and ran inside, nearly knocking the poor Altean out cold. She escorted them out and gave them a yelled lecture in the halls. It was scary in the moment but now I find it quite funny."

Pearl sighed happily "I would like to join you and the Paladins on your castle ship but unfortunately my people need me. And, of course, my mother would never let me go."

"And why is that?" Allura cocked her head to the side.

" I was not always an only child." Pearls face darkened "I used to have an older brother and he was my best friend for years. But a few years ago he got very sick. He got what we call switch sickness. It happens to our species when we have been out in the cold for a long time and warm up too quickly. It is rather similar to an Altean fever but much more severe." Allura winced when she heard Altean fever. Altean fevers were historically famous for being childhood killers unless treated. The treatment was simple though so very few children died.

Pearl kept taking "He was shivering violently, non stop for a month. His lips were always dark blue and his teeth were chattering. In his last week of life, he was completely bedridden, unable to do anything. The last time I saw him, he was unrecognizable. He was essentially skin and bones, his skin was bright blue which is a sign of sickness and all his beautiful hair had fallen out. He died a week later." Pearl took a shaky breath in.

Allura put a hand gently on her shoulder "I'm so sorry."

Pearl smiled at her new friend "Thank you."

A crash and a thud and an "ow!" cam from behind her. She turned around and saw that the Paladins had been trying to show the queen something and had failed miserably. The queen was laughing as Lance and Hunk and (reluctantly) Pidge were doing some strange stunt with Pidge on Lances shoulders on Hunks shoulders. Keith and Shiro were standing with the queen. Shiro had his fingers pinching his nose and Keith looked like he was trying to suppress a laugh. Lance had slipped off of Hunks shoulders, pulling Pidge down with him. That had been the thud.

"Shall we go save your Paladins from embarrassing themselves or shall we watch and see if it gets better?" Pearl asked.

Allura sighed "Let's go save them." The two walked over. Allura began to scold the Paladins.

Pearl sidled up on Shiro's right and said "Are they always this amusing?"

He smiled warmly at her "Unfortunately yes." Pearl giggled.

Keith hissed at Shiro. The man turned to him. Keith did something with his hands. Shiro blushed and smacked them down. Pearl was confused. She blinked for a second before looking back at the other Paladins desperately trying to untangle themselves from each other while Allura scolded them. Pearl smiled as she watched. They resembled a family. A large, out of control, absurd family but a family none the less. Keith and the queen began a small conversation.

Pearl turned back and found Shiro looking at her. She blinked once before smiling and saying "Has my mother already explained the orb to you?"

Shiro cocked his head "No she hasn't. What is it?"

"Technically it is our planet's source of energy but that is simplifying things. Our planet's real source of power are emotions." Pearl explained.

"Emotions? How?" Shiro asked.

Pearl smiled "A long time ago, my ancestors enchanted an orb that they carved out of a pure white gemstone. They enchanted it to utilize the emotion of anyone who touches it to power everything on the planet. The lights change colour according to personality and how the person is feeling."

Shiro grinned "So that's why the lights brightened a little when you entered the room."

Pearl nodded "Indeed."

The Paladins finally untangled themselves and stood up. The group once again joined the conversation. Pearl re explained the orb. The Paladins seemed interested in trying it so the queen said they should.

Shiro went first. He walked up the stairs and stood at the orb, facing the group. He reached a hand out and pressed the palm of his hand on the orb. The lights went a soft pink colour and brightened a little. The queen and Pearl exchanged a grin.

Then it was Hunks turn. He walked slowly up to the orb, looking nervous. He reached a finger and poked the orb once. Then, feeling a little more confident, pressed his finger to it. The lights went gold and dimmed a little bit. The queen's face warmed and softened. Hunk was at peace.

Lance went next. He hopped up the stairs and swept a hand majestically over the orb. His smallest finger accidentally brushed it.

That was when the screaming started.

The lights flashed from romantic lighting to impossibly painful bright. Some of the lamps exploded in their hast to get so bright so fast. Pearl shrieked and covered her eyes with her hand, shielding herself from the light. When lamps stopped exploding and the screaming stopped, Pearl slowly opened her eyes and found Shiro in front of her with his back to Lance. He was huddled around her.

She cocked her head to the side, eyes wide.

He smiled sheepishly "Protective instinct I guess." He moved out of the way.

Pearl looked around the room.

The lights were a bright blue now. It was still brighter than comfortable but not so painful as before. Lance was a body's length away from the orb, staring forcefully at the floor. A bolt went through Pearls body as she stared at the boy.

Pidge snorted "Wow. Didn't know you were so excited for this mission, Lance."

Pearl fell to her knees, dress floating slightly. She had tears in her eyes.

Immediately, Shiro and Allura were on either side of her, asking her what was wrong, what happened, if she was okay. She was silent, eyes wide, tears escaping her eyes and trailing down her pearl coloured face and dripping to the floor.

The queen was staring wide eyed at Lance "Those were not the colours for happiness. I have only seen those colours twice before this. Once when my husband died and once when my son died." She turned to the Paladins "Those were the colours and signs of anguish."

Hunk squeaked a reply "What?"

Pearl spoke "Anguish, pain, depression. Those are the colours we saw just now. And the force with which it was dispelled. Oh my-" she was on her feet now, walking up the stairs to Lance. He was completely still, staring at the floor.

Pearl reached him and put a hand on his shoulder "Lance. How are you feeling?"

He lifted his head and looked at her. His face was now a mess of tears, lower lip trembling and jaw clenched.

Someone ran up behind Pearl and she moved aside. It was Pidge.

The girl lunged forward and wrapped her small arms around Lance and said "Why didn't you tell us?"

Lance mumbled "I-I" before seeming to crumble and collapse into Pidge's small arms. He fell into his knees and wrapped his arms around her, crying into her shoulder. She went with him, holding him tight.

And then Hunk was there too, holding them both in his arms. Pearl could hear Lance crying and she wiped a tear from her own cheek. She knew how he was feeling.

Shiro dragged Keith up the stairs and forced him to join the hug. Slowly he eased up and relaxed into it, supporting Lance with the others. The queen walked and stood beside her daughter, Allura stood on Pearls other side.

The princess of Altea whispered "I had no idea. Why didn't he tell anyone? We could have helped, I could have helped. Why didn't I notice? How oblivious am I?"

Pearl touched her shoulder "You couldn't have known because he is a very good actor. And when you feel like this, it's never easy to tell people because you don't know how they will react. I know what it is like." She shared a knowing look with her mother.

A tear fell down Allura's beautiful brown cheek "I want to..."

"You want to help him?" Pearl asked. Allura nodded.

The queen waved to the Paladin hug "So be there for him and comfort him and check in with him. Those are the best things you can do. If he asks you for anything else, be sure to provide. Now, go help your friend."

"But I must act like a diplomat. We are in your castle." Allura stuttered, holding back tears.

The queen snapped her fingers and deadbolts locking sounded from all the doors leading into the room. She reached up and took off her crown. She took off Pearl's tiara. Then she pulled the overskirt of her dress off to reveal a simple outfit of a floaty blouse and flared leg pants. Pearl removed her main skirt to reveal a similar outfit. Then the queen pulled the beautiful and ornate hair pin from her hair, letting it float wherever it wanted. Pearl did the same.

The queen smiled at Allura "We are just your friends now. Go on." Allura smiled tearfully and went to join the hug without needing to be told twice.

Pearl watched for a moment before saying "They care about him."

The queen smiled at her "And how do you know that?"

Pearl only smiled and went back to watching the friends hold each other up.