[ video ]

[tempredmental]

Who: Keith, Open
Broadcast: Yes
Action: Huntress, Blameless, or Iskaulit
When: starting August 17 and through the rest of the month

=====

VIDEO

[The feed was a little shaky as Keith got settled. His voice was a little quiet for a moment.]

...how these happened so close together...

[He was definitely muttering to himself. The picture spun until it was facing him. He looked different. Tired, a little bruised up, older... he'd visibly aged further than Lance, Pidge, or Shiro. His hair was longer and even more grown out than before, and, when he turned to face the camera for real, there was a large burn scar along the right side of his face.]

Hey... just letting everyone know I'm back, I guess. It's weird how close this happened this time. But, yeah. In case you guys were wondering...

Oh, and, uh... thanks to whoever looked after Snow while I was gone. I appreciate it.

[And with that, he clicked off.]

=====

ACTION

[Keith could be found around the Huntress, the Iskaulit, or the Blameless. There might be a stop or two to the Bishop and the Tourist as well to check up on Pidge and Allura respectively. In person, he was a bit taller, and his shoulders were wider. Guess who's jacket didn't fit him anymore. His shirts were all a bit tight across the top now, too. He was going to need some new clothes when they get to the next system.]

=====

{OOC: Keith is back! Unlike his buddies, returning home dumped him into a quantum abyss that caused him to age two years faster than anyone else on the team. Once he got back from that trip to the team, he fought Shiro, and the two of them are pretty beat up because of it (hence Keith's new facial scar).}

Comments

action!

[axi]

[Kaname gives him time to get reacquainted with the fleet, since she's noticed the visible changes from his broadcast. Meaning, it's the next day when she seeks him out. It's in one of the park areas of the Iskaulit when she finds him. Without even calling his name, she goes over, and once she's sure he notices her, too, Kaname just hugs him.]

[tempredmental]

[Keith heard her approach and turned to see who it was. As soon as they made eye contact, Kaname moved in and gave him a hug. It took him a second to react, but that was pretty normal for Keith anyway. He put his arms around her in return, and just stood there like that, closing his eyes.]

[axi]

[A few moments later, she squeezes him lightly then steps back, a relieved smile in place.]

I already told Lance, but you guys should really give your friends a warning before you head off for a trip home.

[It's a joke, of course, but she's still got a grip on his forearms, like he might just vanish again.]

[tempredmental]

Heh... Yeah.

[Keith gave her a small smile.]

We'll try better next time, okay?

[He didn't pull away from Kaname's grip, either, like he understood what she was feeling.]

Action on the Bishop

[tiedonastring]

[Hux had to do a double take as he was passing by when he thought he spotted Keith onboard the Bishop. Only, Keith appeared to be different. He looked older and was taller.]

Keith?

[Hux approached him cautiously, uncertain. He had been on his way to do a few repairs that the mouse droid couldn't do. Let alone taking up the extra work when Pidge had disappeared.]

[tempredmental]

[Keith turned when he heard his name, and it took a moment for him to remember who he was talking to. He honestly had never been great at remembering people, but he'd interacted with Hux often enough that it came back quickly.]

Hey.

[He managed a small smile.]

Good to see you again.

[tiedonastring]

I had been wondering what happened. Did you guys go back home? That is a thing that can happen here right?

[Hux replied with a nod in greeting.]

action

[airily]

[ Seeing a shipmate come back is always a thing, and Zaveid supposes he ought to do what he can to make sure the guy is alright. He's still not entirely sure about who can see who and what, but he wanders around anyway, checking until he spots Keith ahead of him. It's easy, then, to stride up and lean on him. ]

Hey, how's it going.

Re: action

[tempredmental]

[Keith blinked, taking a second to let his memory catch up. It had been a while in his own head, even if had only been a week here. And, because of the time slippage in the quantum abyss, it had been even longer for Keith than the others from his world that had disappeared and come back.]

Hey.

[He did manage a small smile once he recognized Zaveid, not having lost his ability to see the seraph. Keith had always a somewhat higher sensitivity to resonance due to his own higher sensitivity to quintessence, so it hadn't taken him long to start seeing the seraph crew members he was with.]

I heard I didn't miss much?

[airily]

[ Zaveid, luckily, isn't the kinda guy to push; he did his own sleeping and he knows what it's like. Waking up with sixty years between when he fell asleep and coming to the fleet again, so he knows the disorientation is sometimes intense. At least Keith seems to be handling it well. ]

Yeah, you didn't miss a whole lot.

[ He shifts, moving to lean back against the wall and give the man his space. ]

Lucky for you. You feeling alright?

voice;

[monolike]

Keith! I'm so glad you're okay.

Re: voice;

[tempredmental]

Hey, Sorey. Thanks. It's uh... actually pretty good to be back.

voice;

[monolike]

Why d'you say that? [A pause, concerned:] Are you okay?

text

[stormfist]

Welcome back. You okay?

[ 'Cause you definitely look older than the last few times she's seen you around, and she knows a lot can happen when, well, this kind of thing happens. ]

Re: text

[tempredmental]

thx

ive been better but im ok

[Definitely a lot...]

[stormfist]

good

[ She's.. always been bad at comforting people, or knowing what to say, or anything like that. And it doesn't bother her, per se, but she's plenty aware she sucks at it. fjsdkl There's a pause, then another text: ]

if you need to let off some steam and want a sparring or workout partner I'm around

[ Nailed it. ]

action

[pidge_out]

[Pidge happens to be in her room on the Bishop at the moment. Keith is sure to know the way there and when he arrives, he'll find her just sitting on the floor in the middle of the room, the gauntlet from her Paladin armor turned on and projecting a holographic star map in front of her face. She keeps scrolling through it, hyper-focused, clearly searching for something specific.

He might be able to guess that she's searching for Earth. And the maps connected to her gauntlet are extremely limited, especially now without the castleship's database to link up to.

But she's trying anyway.]

Re: action

[tempredmental]

[Keith watched silently for a moment and then stepped in.]

We'll get there, you know.

[He had to believe that, really... for the sake of the team.]

[pidge_out]

[She tenses when he first speaks, only to relax again after another second. It's just Keith. And honestly, she's glad it's Keith.]

...It's gonna take us a long time to get there. The fight with Lotor... kinda wiped us out.

video;

[luxoraculi]

[ Keith certainly looks different, but more concerning, he looks injured. Lunafreya shifts a little as she listens to what he's got to say, and her expression shows that she is concerned. ]

Keith, I am pleased to see you. But... are you alright? Do you require assistance?

[ You are looking just a tad bit bruised, and you've got a scar on your face now, sir. She's worried. ]

Re: video;

[tempredmental]

[Keith managed a weak smile.]

Hey, Luna.

I uh... I've been better. It was a rough trip home this time.

[He wasn't going to ask, but he wouldn't turn down an offer. He also had both good news and bad news.]

Have you seen Shiro?

video;

[luxoraculi]

[ Poor man... she smiles sympathetically in return. ]

I can see that. Where are you at the moment? I will come to you and heal you the best I can.

[ Because she is not going to leave him like that, thank you very much. She pauses, though, at that last bit. ]

I have... what happened to the two of you?

action

[princessences]

[ It's been a few days since The Talk and Allura is--well, not really in the best of moods still, but she's coping and distracting herself, which is all she can really do. The fact that there is no actions he can actually take on the events back in their universe doesn't sit well with her. Allura is the sort of person who can plan and wait when necessary, but it's impossible to account for a distance of time and space and no control over it, impossible to take plan or impulsive action.

It's driving her a little crazy.

So she is a little frazzled when she finds Keith in a place that she didn't expect at all; on her ship. ]

...Keith? What are you doing here?

Re: action

[tempredmental]

Uh, hey... [What was he doing here? Checking up on everyone... trying to be a leader... making sure his team was okay... it had been a rough time for all of them, even the ones that didn't go back home.] I just wanted to see how you were doing. [He managed a small smile.]

I know things haven't been great lately. [Understatement of the deca-pheobe, but it wasn't wrong.]

[princessences]

[ It strikes her as a little odd to think Keith, of all people, is the one reaching out. They had never been particularly close on the team, but perhaps that was because they had more in common than they didn't. (Far be it for Allura to admit that, though.) But he had also been the one with the most insight to her situation...and she had heard all that had happened.

Keith had been instrumental in all of it.

So while there is a small moment of hesitation, Allura relaxes ever so slightly and offers a weak smile in return. ]

I feel that I should be checking in on you instead. It hasn't been a full movement since you've returned, has it?