Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

As he floats into consciousness, all Keith can feel is a deep throbbing in sensation in his head. All he can feel is the ache in his bones and and the cold hard surface he’s lying on. As he blinks his eyes open, the light is too bright and he squints, noticing how his limbs feel off somehow. He he can’t quite place how, it just feels wrong.

“—scans are showing normal…at least, from the one other scan we have.” The woman’s voice is unfamiliar. As his vision clears he sees the bottom half of her medical coat. Something about the angle he’s facing seems off, and he wonders why it feels like they have him on a counter rather than a bed.

“I suppose it’s the best we can do, considering he is a space wolf after all.” That voice he recognized as Colleen Holt. “Don’t have many of those on earth now, do we?”

Are they talking about Kosmo? Did he get hurt too? The last thing Keith remembered was battling another stray druid they had come across on the last recon mission, trying to teleport during the fight. Keith goes to lift his head but is interrupted by another pounding sensation in his head, and he groans.

Instead, a deep rumble emanates through his chest and he freezes. He’s never made that sound before.

“Oh, good, I think he’s awake.” Colleen steps into his line of sight and bends down with a smile. She reaches a hand out towards him, and Keith jolts as she brushes his chin, startled by the invasive contact.

Keith tries to jump up and Colleen yanks her hand back, eyes wide, more in surprise than fright. But it’s as if his body isn’t his own. Instead of sitting upright he yelps, then wriggles frantically until his hands are planted on the slippery counter, limbs shaking.

Only those aren’t his hands.

What the quiznack?

Keith’s snaps out of his daze and looks up to see the two women approach him slowly, all the while his chest is heaving far too quickly

“Kosmo, it’s okay. Everything’s alright, that’s a good boy.” Colleens voice is soft and soothing, but it does nothing to calm Keith’s panic. Why is she talking like that? Did she just call him Kosmo?

Keith tries to speak, and protest, but instead of his voice, all he gets is a wobbly howl.

Oh no.

He looks around, searching for a mirror, a reflection, anything to confirm his fear until he turns to look behind him.

Yup, that’s a tail. That’s Kosmo’s tail.

He tries to scream but all that comes out is another strained howl, and he’s freaking out, feet not able to get enough friction and the next thing he knows he’s slipping on the counter. He tumbles to the ground and his first instinct is to run, get out of this room, away from this situation as fast as possible. It has to be a nightmare, this isn’t possible. He see’s the door in his view and in the next tic he’s darting through it.

“Kosmo no! Get back here!” He hears the two women’s voice behind him as he runs down the hall of the ATLAS, faster than he’s ever moved before. Shouts of cadets and aliens follow him as he weaves through their legs, his heart beating like a jackhammer.

He doesn’t know where he’s going and doesn’t care, until he turns a corner and sees a familiar face standing in a doorway.

Shiro!

He stumbles and loses control, until he’s sliding to a stop directly into Shiro’s legs.

“What the—Oh hey Kosmo.” Shiro bends down and embraces him with a weakened smile, and Keith notices the worry in his eyes, bags underneath like he’d been up all night. “Glad you’re okay buddy.”

Shiro, no it’s me! Keith! Please help me I’m not okay I’m going insane.

All that comes out are frantic whines, and Keith feels like his tongue is putty in his mouth.

Shiro turns to look into the room besides him. “Guy’s I think somebody’s worried about Keith.” Pidge and Lance’s heads peek out the door to look down at him.

“Kosmo’s okay!” Pidge says. “I hope that means Keith will be too.”

Keith? What do you mean I’m right here? How can— The whining stops suddenly as realization dawns on him.

If he’s in Kosmo’s body, then that means…

Keith bursts through the doorway, Kosmo’s body now big enough to knock Shiro off balance easily. All eyes in the room turn to him as he enters, Hunk standing across the room and Krolia sitting on the bed holding someone’s hand.

A shiver runs down his spine as he realizes it’s his hand.

He looks up to see his body lying on the hospital bed, motionless. It’s unnerving, and for half a second he wonders if he could be dead.

No, this can’t be happening.

At the sound of the whines, Krolia reaches over to brush his fur (his fur oh quiznack he has fur) and he startles slightly. Krolia pulls her hand back with a confused look on her face until her attention is taken by movement on the bed.

His body shifts slightly. Keith is frozen in wait, watching his own indigo eyes flutter open and roam the room lazily, before eventually making eye contact with him.

He see’s himself bolt upright, eyes wide, and watches as his galran fangs are bared, a deep growl rumbling from his chest.

Keith scurries back a little on the tile floor, deeply disturbed by the sight. He didn’t even know his throat was capable of making that sound.

“KEITH!” Krolia’s stern shout interrupts the growling, and he watches his face turn sheepish and his shoulders hunch in away from Krolia. He swore if he had bigger ears they would’ve pointed down towards the floor.

Yup, that’s Kosmo. He’d know that guilty look anywhere.

“What is wrong with you?” She chides, and Kosmo hunches further in on himself like Keith’s best interpretation of a guilty puppy. That doesn’t stop him from looking back at Keith and growling slightly when Krolia leans back, obviously intimidated by another wolf in the room.

“Uh, Keith? You alright?” Lance asks. “You’re growling at Kosmo.”

Keith looks up at Lance as he approaches and tries to use his head against Lance’s legs to get his attention. There’s got to be a way he could talk to them. Had to be someway he could make them understand. He tried talking as best he could, but only earning a few varying whines and howls.

“Uh, is anybody else weirded out by this?” Hunk speaks up.

I certainly am.

“Keith, are you feeling okay?” Shiro asks as he switches places with Krolia on the bed. He takes Kosmo’s hand and Kosmo looks down at it, cocking his head.

That’s not your paw is it? Keith thinks, though he’s less than pleased when Kosmo seems to be unphased by the change. Keith huffs. How did this happen? How were they going to fix this? With all this weird behavior surely his friends could connect the dots.

Suddenly, Kosmo looks to Shiro with a smile and jumps forward to tackle him on the bed clumsily. Keith watches in horror as he straight up licks Shiro’s cheek.

Oh god no. He did not need that image in his brain.

All eyes in the room are wide with shock, awkward tension rising between everybody as Shiro freezes. Keith can’t take it, and without thinking, leaps on the bed, pushing Kosmo back down onto the pillow. Kosmo wriggled under him, but Keith decided to do what his wolf loves to do almost every morning, and lay down flat on his chest so he couldn’t move.

Stay.

“Okay, I’m really worried.” Lance said. “Does he have brain damage or something?”

“The doctor said his scans were clear. Do you think they were wrong?” Hunk’s tone wracked Keith’ stomach with guilt.

“Keith?” Krolia leaned forward hesitantly, brushing her son’s fringe away from his face. “Son, please speak to me.”

Kosmo did nothing but stare, and Keith couldn’t take it. He watched as his mother’s face turned from concern, to genuine fear.

He couldn’t take it. He had to do something.

Keith lifted his hand (or paw) so that it rested on her arm. She looked up at him, and he tried his best to speak as she had asked him to, though all that came out was a strange ‘awoo.’

Mom, please, I’m here. He didn’t know how he got into this situation, but all he knew was he would find a way to get out of it.

His heart felt like it had been wrenched out of his chest as he watched his mother turn away and step across the room holding her arms close to her torso, tears brimming in her eyes. The bed jostled as Shiro stood and placed a hand on her shoulder.

“I’ll call the doctor back in. Maybe they’ll redo the scan.”

Keith was so focused on Shiro that he didn’t notice Pidge move right beside them, until he turned and startled slightly. She bent over, scratching her chin with her hand as she looked between him and Kosmo, eyes examining them from behind her glasses. For a second, Keith thinks she’s figured it out, only she said nothing, just let out a small “Hmm…” and turned to walk away.

Suddenly, she spun back around and yelled “Kosmo!”

Keith would have been thrown off the bed with the amount of force the body underneath him exerted, if it wasn’t for his current wolf body’s sheer size. Kosmo’s excitement at hearing his name was even more obvious on a human face, and Keith wanted nothing more than to cringe at the sight.

Pidge, Hunk and Lance gasped as Krolia and Shiro turned around. Pidge cupped her hands over her mouth, as if surprised her theory was actually proven correct.

“Oh my god.” Lance mumbled.

“What? What is it?” Krolia said.

Pidge stepped closer once again, this time making eye contact with Keith the entire time. He couldn’t contain his excitement as he heard his own name on her lips.

“Keith?”

Yes! Pidge of course you'd figure it out, I love you!

He let out a half howl half bark as he attempted to nod his head up and down.

“No way.” Hunk said.

“I’m confused what’s happening.” Shiro said.

Pidge smiled in astonishment. “They’ve switched minds.”

Chapter Text

Keith watched from his spot on the bed as Shiro paced the floor with Pidge, each practically burning tracks into the floor. Lance lay sprawled on the guest ottoman with a concerned and slightly confused expression, while Hunk stared worriedly between Keith and Kosmo. The latter whom currently drooling into the pillow in sleep.

Krolia brushed her hand over Keith’s blue fur soothingly as Keith laid his head in her lap. Now that his team knew what was going on, he hardly had the energy to stay awake. Of course Pidge had figured it out, how could he ever doubt that she would?

Keith took a deep breath as he nestled further into his mother’s lap. Just because his body wasn’t his own didn’t change the fact that everything from his head to his bones ached. While he knew something had hospitalized he and Kosmo in the first place, he was too tired to care.

“Keith? You alright buddy?” Hunk voiced his concern from across the room.

“He’s tired.” Krolia said. “I am sure his body still needs recuperating.”

“I mean, yeah I’d be hella tired if I got hit with a druid blast like that.” Lance mentioned with a shiver. “It...looked pretty bad.” He glanced hesitantly between Keith and Kosmo with something akin to guilt, then turned away.

“Lance, I already told you, it wasn’t your fault.” Hunk set a hand on his friend’s shoulder.

Keith wondered what could possibly make Lance feel so guilty, until the memory suddenly flooded into Keith’s mind.

Keith had been the leader of the team assigned to rid a group of galran thugs that had taken control of a small rural desert planet, nearby where the ATLAS was currently stationed. However, what no one expected was that the thugs had a rogue druid amongst their ranks.

Thankfully Kosmo had been at his side, giving the druid a run for his money as they evaded the blasts of dark lightning and clashed swords, teleporting to and fro between the ragged buildings of the ghost town.

The last thing he remembered was an explosion somewhere in the distance, a flash in the corner of his eye and something colliding into his side.

Pidge suddenly stopped her pacing. “Lance, you saw what happened?”

Lance nodded and Pidge opened her gauntlet that she kept under her sleeve, pulling up the holo-screen and typing a few commands. “I’m pulling up your helmet cam footage…I have a theory.”

The team inched forward for a view of the screen as Pidge opened the recorded footage. Keith noticed Pidge glance his way, before moving closer and angling it for his benefit.

Thank the universe for Pidge. Once he was back in his own body, he’d make sure to tell her how grateful he was.

If he’d ever get back in his own body.

Keith shook his head to suppress the thought and eyed the screen. Focus.

The team watched as Pidge fast-forwards through the video, stopping at the point Keith and the druid teleport into view of Lance’s sniper nest. There’s a scuffle, clashing of swords, before Lance manages to land a shot to the druid’s back, knocking them face first into the ground. As their body lay unmoving, Keith glances up and gives Lance a nod of thanks. Suddenly, the camera pans away as they both react to a visible explosion in the distance. The camera pans back to Keith, whose attention is in the same direction.

What Keith doesn’t see is the druid lifting an arm from the ground, black sparks emanating from their fingertips.

The camera jostles as Lance jumps up, supposedly shouting Keith’s name, but it’s not quick enough. Lightning shoots forward right at the moment Kosmo barrels himself into Keith.

The blue flash and the black magic strike at the exact same instant.

The image is surreal, Keith and Kosmo are trapped within the sparks, flickering in and out like a glitch effect. There’s no sound in the video, but their screams can be heard all the same.

By the time both have slumped through the ground, Lance has already shot a hole through the druid’s chest.

Pidge pauses the video and lets out a shaky breath. “Well, now we know what happened.”

“You think it has to do with the druid magic?” Shiro asked.

“It’s got to be.” Pidge taps her chin. “But I think it also has to do with Kosmo’s…teleportation magic?” Pidge shrugged. “I don’t know what else to call it. But whatever it is, it obviously didn’t react well to the druid’s lightning.” She turned to look between Keith and Kosmo. “It’s the most probable theory.”

Lance’s face suddenly lights up as he snaps his fingers. “Allura! If it’s got something to do with magic, she’ll know what to do.”  

Shiro nodded. “She was able to move me from the Black Lion back into this body. While I don’t know the specifics, I’m sure she could figure out a way to switch them back.”

Hunk nodded, determination set in his brow. “I’ll go get her.” He said, before turning and jogging out of the room down the hall.

Shiro moved to sit by Krolia, meeting Keith’s eyes with an uncertain expression. “Is…is this alright with you? I know you can’t exactly respond but…”

Keith moved a paw to rest on Shiro’s hand. He may not have his words, but instead tries to convey as much confidence as he could into his expression, if he had any expression at all. He trusted Allura with his life. There was no way she would let him or Kosmo down.

Shiro let out a breath of relief, then moved to scratch Keith behind the ears with a smile. “Alright then. We’ll wait for Allura and get you two back to your own selves as soon as possible.”

Keith let out a yowl of agreement then stood to his feet. Now that they had a plan, his exhaustion didn’t seem to stop the surge of anticipation at being back in his own body.

“Someone’s excited.” Lance smirked. Suddenly, his eyes lit up. “Oh my gosh guys, what do you think would happen if I just threw a ball down the hall right now? You think Keith would fetch it?”

Keith wanted nothing more than to groan in annoyance, but he had to settle for a slight growl instead. Lance lifted his hands in surrender instantly.

“Kidding, kidding.”

Keith internally smirked. Now this I could get used to.

“Actually, that’s a hypothesis I wouldn’t mind testing—”

Unfortunately, Keith didn’t get to hear the end of Pidge’s remark. One moment, he felt the familiar sensation of needing to sneeze. The next, there was a flash of light as the world seemed to blank out around him.

Keith yelped as the world suddenly reappeared around him, and he landed awkwardly and painfully on a hard surface. He heard the exclamation of various people around him, none of which sounded like whom he was just with.

“Kosmo?”

Keith scrambled for purchase on the slick floor (curse these paws) and turned to see one of the ATLAS crew staring at him.

“Uh, you okay buddy?” Curtis asked, attention stolen from his communications pane.

Keith turned to see the rest of the crew’s surprised faces.

Did he just teleport onto the control deck?

Oh quiznak.

Oh…oh no no no no.

Keith started to panic. How in the hell was he supposed to deal with this? How could he have forgotten? His wolf was a cosmic wolf with teleportation powers. What was supposed to do, hold in all his sneezes? What if he can’t control it? What if it happens again?

What if I teleport off the ship?

“Hey, hey, it’s okay.” Curtis said, reaching to pet the fur on his head. Keith then realized he had begun whining and padding around in circles. “Keith’s safe, he’s still in recovery.”

“Uh, Colleen?” Sam Holt said into one of the communicators. “I found your runaway…yeah he’s in the control deck.”

Now, as much as the rational side of Keith’s brain said otherwise, the impulsive side wanted nothing more than to get out of there, so instead of staying put, he bolted towards the door.

And crashed face first into a large body the instant the door opened.

“OOof!”

Keith blinked the stars away to see Shiro toppled over on the floor. He heard footsteps of the crew quickly approaching their downed captain.

“Captain! Are you okay?” Curtis crouched over Shiro, helping him sit up.

“Keith!” Shiro exclaimed in relief, grasping Keith tightly to his chest, as if he could bolt at any instant. “Thank goodness we found you.”

Unfortunately, Keith couldn’t take comfort in the embrace as it would not stop him from teleporting again accidentally. A wave of panic shot through him of the idea of taking Shiro with him.

“Keith, stop wriggling, you’re too big for me to carry.”

“Uh…” Curtis looked between the two curiously, setting a hand on Shiro’s shoulder. “Babe?” He whispered with a frighteningly concerned smile. “Are you…okay?”

“Huh?” Shiro said, before realization hit and a bright red blush ran up his cheeks. “Oh, I mean…uh…Kosmo! Yeah, uh…why…did I say Keith? Haha…”

As much as Keith wanted to revel in his brother’s embarassment, the last thing he wanted was to do was accidentally zap him into a vaccum to die. Keith jumped out of his arms and bolted down the hallway. In his haste he decided it better to look for Allura than go back to the medbay and wait. He didn’t know how long it would be before he teleported again, and dreaded it happening.

As he turned a corner, his paws slipped on the tile and he slammed into a wall. Crew members gasped as he shook it off.

Thankfully, he caught sight of Allura down the hall next to Hunk. Keith bounded forward, eager  to reach the princess until he felt the familiar tickling sensation in his nose.

No no no no…

As hard as he tried, he couldn’t stop it.

A flash of light, and the world was gone.