[ Keith has no idea what Shiro wants to show him, but it must be important if the dragon wants to keep it private between them. Even though he's just an unbonded cadet, he's noticed the way the Garrison officials and scientists look at Shiro sometimes, and it just - it pisses him off. So much about this situation makes him angry, a little ball of tension swirling in his gut that just won't go away.
Except for when he's with Shiro, alone, like this. Somehow, being around the dragon calms him down, lets him relax. He makes a mock-offended noise at having his hair so thoroughly messed up, and attempts to straighten it out.
He'd be offended at Shiro taking a weight handicap, but... then the dragon's anxiety shows itself, and Keith has to pause, voice getting softer. ]
Shiro...
[ He can't blame Shiro for wanting to be careful. They should be safe, the shack is out in the desert but it's not that far from the Garrison, well within safely protected territory. Galra raiding parties never get that deep, even when they manage to breach border defences. But still, if there's a chance that something could go wrong... ]
Nothing's going to happen. But I'll go get my harness - it'll even us up a little. [ Not that Keith's flying harness is anything like a comparable weight to Shiro's. ] And you know I'm always armed.
[ the teacher in him automatically wants to say something about keith carrying that knife everywhere, which matt had confirmed for him was not typical teenage human behavior. the paranoid part of him, however, approves. he'd known objectively that humans were small, vulnerable creatures without scales or natural weapons, he'd grown up seeing their successes and limitations in combat.
it had never bothered him as much as it does now. his tail lashes once, like a cat's, as he tries to make himself believe keith's assurance. of course it was highly unlikely that they'd be attacked so near the base, and of course shiro is an experienced veteran, well-trained in dozens of different emergency scenarios. this is normal for them, and vital for keith, who needs the outlet of escaping the base's walls from time to time. he doesn't know why he's acting like a newly bonded hatchling all of a sudden, spooking at shadows.
well. he does know, but he can't let himself dwell on his own feelings. the garrison doesn't have any use for dragons or soldiers that are afraid. ]
You're right. [ it would, he knows, be beyond irresponsible for him to encourage keith to carry a gun he doesn't have a permit for. ] I'm sure nothing will happen.
[ It wouldn't take much encouragement for Keith to try carrying a gun, and honestly, he'd considered mounting some onto his bike a few times. But not only would that potentially get him into some very deep water with the Garrison if he got caught, it would add weight to a bike that he's spent a long time tuning for its speed. It's a racer, and it would be stupid to compromise its speed in an attempt to make it anything else - if anything ever does happen, it'll be better to be able to outrun the enemy and escape to raise the alarm, rather than sacrificing that vital advantage.
Besides, he's going to be sticking close to Shiro. With a veteran dragon watching his back, he should be fine. Just being with Shiro makes him feel safer, calming some of his more paranoid instincts.
He's still never let go of his knife, though. ]
It won't. [ He reassures Shiro, again, then pats his nose and steps back. ] Alright, I'll meet you at the gate once I've got everything.
[ right. and if he doesn't let keith go get ready, this won't happen at all.
it takes longer than he'd like to get rigged out, mostly from him having to argue with the ground crews over why, exactly, he needed to be put in harness when he didn't have a captain or a specific assigned mission. more human rules, irritating in their restrictions on his freedom. after being held captive by a hostile force, it's more than a little maddening to be constrained by his own side.
but he argues, and the ground crews have other work to be done and no senior officer in sight to foist shiro off on, so they put him in a scout rig, the lightest and briefest harness. shiro almost says something about his desire for more armor, and swallows it down. that's just... something he needs to get over.
the flight tower accepts his request without question, at least, perhaps assuming by his rig that he was on assignment, or that the labcoats wanted him to perform for testing again. he lands at the gate in a flurry of wings, snorting the dust from his nostrils. ]
no subject
Except for when he's with Shiro, alone, like this. Somehow, being around the dragon calms him down, lets him relax. He makes a mock-offended noise at having his hair so thoroughly messed up, and attempts to straighten it out.
He'd be offended at Shiro taking a weight handicap, but... then the dragon's anxiety shows itself, and Keith has to pause, voice getting softer. ]
Shiro...
[ He can't blame Shiro for wanting to be careful. They should be safe, the shack is out in the desert but it's not that far from the Garrison, well within safely protected territory. Galra raiding parties never get that deep, even when they manage to breach border defences. But still, if there's a chance that something could go wrong... ]
Nothing's going to happen. But I'll go get my harness - it'll even us up a little. [ Not that Keith's flying harness is anything like a comparable weight to Shiro's. ] And you know I'm always armed.
no subject
it had never bothered him as much as it does now. his tail lashes once, like a cat's, as he tries to make himself believe keith's assurance. of course it was highly unlikely that they'd be attacked so near the base, and of course shiro is an experienced veteran, well-trained in dozens of different emergency scenarios. this is normal for them, and vital for keith, who needs the outlet of escaping the base's walls from time to time. he doesn't know why he's acting like a newly bonded hatchling all of a sudden, spooking at shadows.
well. he does know, but he can't let himself dwell on his own feelings. the garrison doesn't have any use for dragons or soldiers that are afraid. ]
You're right. [ it would, he knows, be beyond irresponsible for him to encourage keith to carry a gun he doesn't have a permit for. ] I'm sure nothing will happen.
no subject
Besides, he's going to be sticking close to Shiro. With a veteran dragon watching his back, he should be fine. Just being with Shiro makes him feel safer, calming some of his more paranoid instincts.
He's still never let go of his knife, though. ]
It won't. [ He reassures Shiro, again, then pats his nose and steps back. ] Alright, I'll meet you at the gate once I've got everything.
no subject
[ right. and if he doesn't let keith go get ready, this won't happen at all.
it takes longer than he'd like to get rigged out, mostly from him having to argue with the ground crews over why, exactly, he needed to be put in harness when he didn't have a captain or a specific assigned mission. more human rules, irritating in their restrictions on his freedom. after being held captive by a hostile force, it's more than a little maddening to be constrained by his own side.
but he argues, and the ground crews have other work to be done and no senior officer in sight to foist shiro off on, so they put him in a scout rig, the lightest and briefest harness. shiro almost says something about his desire for more armor, and swallows it down. that's just... something he needs to get over.
the flight tower accepts his request without question, at least, perhaps assuming by his rig that he was on assignment, or that the labcoats wanted him to perform for testing again. he lands at the gate in a flurry of wings, snorting the dust from his nostrils. ]
Ready to go?