Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Four days wasn’t enough time to plan.  

It’s not like they forgot about it, it was more that Keith’s obvious lack of interest in the day caused them to let it slip into the back of their mind until Shiro excitedly mentioned finding an expensive camera Keith once wanted on sale at a nearby electronics shop. 

It was all downhill from there.  

For four whole days, the former paladins rushed around left to right making preparations. Krolia, who was never given the chance to celebrate a birthday with her son, was tasked with keeping Keith occupied by various means of distracting trips. As part of his mission to introduce Krolia to various parts of Earth culture- and subsequently and unknowingly keep him away from the others while they gathered birthday supplies for their arsenal- Keith showed her the zoo, the Grand Canyon, various stores and even laser tag in the span of a single day. That night they came home, Keith slumped down beside her, tired but smiling. The others grinned knowingly at Krolia, who would rub her son’s back while she asked various questions about Earth culture. Keith was none the wiser.  

Except that he was. 

It started the second day of planning. Keith, like his mother, rose with the sunrise, his biological clock unwavering. “I see you’re an early riser,” Krolia commented upon Keith’s entry into the kitchen where she sat with a cup of what appeared to be coffee. At first, Keith didn’t say anything and instead opened the fridge. Krolia smiled over the rim of her mug before she drank, knowing that her stating the obvious for the umpteenth time since they arrived back on Earth was a surefire way to get Keith to speak.  

“You already knew that,” Keith reminded her pointedly, pulling a glass down from the cabinet to pour his juice in. “Galra heritage?” 

“Galra heritage,” Krolia confirmed, setting down her mug and watching Keith join her at the island with a glass of orange juice. “How did you sleep?” 

“Like a rock.” Keith sipped from his glass for a few moments before he notices Krolia’s quizzical expression. He remembers belatedly that human idioms vary greatly from Galra idioms. “It’s an expression; it means I slept well.” 

Krolia chuckled, “I’ll get the hang of your idioms someday.” 

“I know you will, mom,” Keith had agreed, drinking more of his juice. “So, what’s on the agenda for today?” 

Krolia paused for a moment, recalling the request to keep Keith as busy as possible while the others prepared. An idea struck her, and she put it into fruition. “I was thinking you could show me some of your favorite places? Shiro told me how you enjoy nature and use to frequent a spot just south of here.” Keith was taken aback. Yesterday all they did was go from place to place to teach Krolia about Earth culture- know she’s asking to see some of his most private places and he isn’t sure what to tell her. He ponders for a moment, debating the technicalities of admitting that he’s not sure he’s ready to show her the spots he cherishes most before her voice snaps him out of his reverie. “Keith?” 

“Sorry, I- yeah, yeah I can show you.”  

Her brows knit, unsure. “Are you sure, Keith? You don’t have to if you’re not comfortable wi-” 

“It’s fine,” Keith said a little too quickly, cutting her off before chugging the rest of his juice and setting down the glass with a loud thud. “It’s fine, really.” Keith’s resulting smile was clearly forced, but Krolia remembered Shiro’s words and chose to heed them for the time being. “Let me get dressed and we can go.”  

“Alright.” 

Within the hour they were on Keith’s bike, riding off and speeding towards the first destination. Keith was stoic the entire ride, Krolia sitting behind her son quietly and watching the veins in his bare hands shift with each movement of his fingers against the handlebars. He had forgotten his gloves. The bike stops just in front of a small, grassy alcove. Krolia recalls this place from several of the visions she witnessed in the Quantum Abyss. She had a feeling she was going to be seeing several places from the visions. Keith cut the engine and slipped off the bike in silence, Krolia right behind him.  

Keith turned back to his mother with a soft smile, “ready?” 

Returning the smile, Krolia followed Keith into the clearing in companionable silence. A comfortable October breeze caught Keith’s hair, ruffling it to the side. He didn’t appear to mind and continued his stroll, dodging branches of autumn leaves with a seemingly rehearsed grace. They arrived at a cliff face just a few minutes into their journey, and in an instant Keith’s face became alight with a kind of peace that can only come with familiarity. He looked right at home, and it became immediately clear to Krolia why that was. 

Under a cloudless blue sky, the cliff overlooked a large, bustling city below. Being so high above it, the only sounds came from the rustling of brightly colored leaves in the cool morning air. Keith sat down on the edge, seemingly ignorant of the danger. Krolia felt a pang from her slight maternal instinct, ready to advise him to sit back a little more to prevent the danger of falling- but that seemed like an insult to his character after all they had been through as paladins. Instead, she sat down right beside him, admiring how tranquil it was up there. “It’s beautiful, Keith.” 

“You should see it in the spring.” Keith cast his gaze to the side, eyeing up a patch of grass just to the left of him. “There are these yellow daisies that grow almost as soon as winter is over. I use to weave them into crowns to calm down.” The last part of the sentence caught her attention the most, and she turned to look at Keith wearing an expression of concern. Rather than meet her eyes, Keith kept staring at the grass before turning his head to look at the city below. “I came here a lot when I was younger. Mostly when I was angry, but a few times when I was upset and didn’t want Shiro or Adam to see me.” 

“Keith...” The look on her son’s face broke her heart; no parent, not even a mother who was absent for most of her child’s life, should ever have to bear witness to such a heartbreaking expression.  

Keith just kept staring sadly below them, refusing to meet her gaze. “A lot of the times I came here, I was angry with you. I didn’t understand why you left, and I wanted you back. Every time Shiro or Adam would try to comfort me when it came to you, I would get angry at them and run here...” He trailed off, unwilling to continue speaking for the time being.  

Krolia swallowed awkwardly before resting her hand on top of Keith’s, a gesture meant to comfort him but seemed to have no effect one way or the other. “I’m so sorry, Keith. I know that you still harbor some ill feelings, and you have every right to. But I’m here now, and nothing will ever take me from you again.” Krolia wasn’t sure what happened in the few seconds following her statement, but the next thing she knew tears were streaming down Keith’s cheeks. Betraying every survival instinct she’s ever given light, she instantly opened her arms to take Keith into a warm embrace as the tears began to fall with more of a vengeance.  

“It’s so hard, mom...” Keith sniffed, wrapping his arms around Krolia.  

“I know, Keith,” she soothed, rubbing Keith’s back through his jacket. “You were hurting, and now it’s difficult to adapt to the change. Just know that I’m never leaving you again.” As if to seal the deal, Krolia pressed a motherly kiss to Keith’s head, continuing to rub his back until his crying had subsided. When it did, he sniffed and sat up, wiping at his eyes stubbornly with an expression of annoyance. Smiling, Krolia used her thumbs to brush away the remaining tears. “Do you feel better now?” 

“A little,” Keith admitted quietly, only slightly phased by the fact that he just broke down and showed vulnerability with no resistance. Krolia would call that an improvement, knowing how unhealthy it was for humans to be so emotionally guarded like Keith was. “Thanks, mom.” 

“For what?” 

“You know...everything. I know you only did what you had to, and even despite knowing you were needed somewhere else after completing your mission you ended up coming home where you belong.” The where you belong came so naturally to Keith, he didn’t even notice the weight his words would end up carrying. He sounded so much like his father, and while it awoke feelings of immense relief from within Krolia, it gutted her at the same time. Keith seemed to notice the confliction in Krolia’s reaction, and quickly moved on, turning to look at the bright blue of the sky. “It’s beautiful today.” 

“It is,” Krolia agreed, following Keith’s lead and smiling at the sky. “I missed mornings on Earth. Your father would wake up later than I would, but he always made me breakfast every morning like it didn’t matter that I was a much earlier riser.” 

Keith laughed inwardly, “sounds like dad alright. Waffles every Tuesday?” 

“Waffles every Tuesday.”  

They spent the next few hours reminiscing about the various memories they unknowingly shared, laughing when the situation called for it, crying when happy memories ebbed into sadness and eventually shifting back to happier times. It’s something Keith always wanted but never truly realized just how badly he needed until then. After a while, they dropped the topic and moved on to something more relevant to the upcoming times. “So... Your birthday is coming up. Is there anything in particular that you want?” 

No, Keith wanted to answer, I have everything I ever wanted right here. Instead, he shrugged. “Why do you ask?” 

Because I missed the large majority of your birthdays and have a bare minimum knowledge of your interests outside training and nature. “Isn’t is custom for Earthlings to receive gifts on their birthday?” 

“It is, but-” Keith cut himself off before he could finish, unsure of how to proceed. Tell her the truth? Brush it off? Lie?  

“But what, Keith?” Krolia looked confused, unaware that Keith never enjoyed birthdays for the sole reason that she and his father weren’t there. She knew from the debriefing the others gave her that he wasn’t really one for extravagant celebrations, but beyond that held no prior knowledge to his dilemma.  

“I really don’t like celebrating my birthday at all. It’s just another day to me.” Nailed it.  

Every ounce of carefully cultivated self-control Krolia spent years developing is nearly tossed off the cliff with those two sentences. The one thing they neglected to mention is that Keith doesn’t like celebrating at all. She’s carried out missions with less information, but this isn’t a mission. This is her son’s life and she would have preferred to know this incredibly important detail before they ran around on a wild krowrok chase. Still, she collected herself and pressed on without giving any inkling to her temporary crisis. “It’s a day to celebrate your birth, Keith. I understand that you may not think much of it, but it’s incredibly important.” She paused, letting Keith think it over for a few moments before she continued. “So, is there anything you want?” 

“For it to be over already,” Keith deadpanned sarcastically, pulling his knees to his chest so he could rest his head.  

Krolia still hadn’t mastered the concept of sarcasm and took it incredibly literally. “I’m afraid it’s not that simple. Soon, you will be a full year older and while you don’t have to celebrate, I know the others would like it if you at least allowed them the liberty to do so.”  

She realized her error far too late, and Keith was already staring at her as if she’d just said something incredibly strange. Which, she did. Krolia was a tactiton, relying on both instinct and physical aptitude to carry her through. What she wasn’t, was someone who was able to differentiate necessarily kept secrets from publicly known information when it comes to Keith. That, she was still learning. Keith blinked at her, perplexed, “what?” 

Salvage this, for Keith’s sake. Her mind was overcome with thoughts on how to make her slip less telling than it was. She looked at Keith like nothing she said was out of the ordinary, desperate to turn things around. “I know you dislike birthdays, Keith, but, is there any harm in celebrating at least once? I’m told human birthday celebrations can be quite interesting if done correctly.”  

Though he was about to move on, Keith didn’t appear to find what she said any less strange than her previous statement. “There really is no correct way to celebrate... At least, I think. I never bothered to care before I was adopted by Adam and Shiro, and even after that happened, we never really did anything for my birthday.” 

Krolia hummed to herself, thinking. “In the event that you did celebrate, what would you want to do?” 

The question got Keith thinking enough that he seemed to have forgotten about Krolia’s momentary lapse. He was silent for a little while before answering, having been unaccustomed to the idea of actually caring about his birthday. “I guess I would just want to spend time with family? I wouldn’t actually want to go anywhere, be sung to or even given a birthday cake. Just, family and maybe some simple food like pizza or donuts. Red velvet donuts, for sure.” 

It was only more progress than anyone had made previously, but for as simple as it was Krolia was grateful. She smiled warmly at Keith, “I can’t wait to celebrate with you, Keith.” 

This time, the smile she received in return was genuine and full of gratitude. “Me too, mom. Me too.” 

He chose to leave out the fact that he was suddenly incredibly suspicious of his family’s motives when it came to his birthday.  

Chapter Text

The third day of planning went relatively well for the majority of the day until Keith was unexpectedly stricken with a wave of sickness so overwhelming that it not only left him immobilized in his bed, but temporarily decommissioned one of the biggest contributors to the planning. Though Shiro, Adam, and Krolia offered to take care of the newly sick Keith, Lance insisted that he had to be the one to take care of Keith. After Keith did his best to take care of Lance when he was the one who was sick, it only made sense for Lance to return the favor. That and it seemed less suspicious. So, he took care of his sick- and stubborn- boyfriend.  

Knowing that when Keith got sick, he was affected hard, Lance only left Keith’s side to fetch things he needed like soup broth and cold cloths for his head. Until he ran to Krolia, hopeful that now that she was here, she could tell him if there was anything they could do to help Keith. Unfortunately, Galra immune systems were genetically different than humans and the medicine Keith needed didn’t exist on Earth. Frustrated, Lance had thrown his hands up and declared that he’d gladly jet off to any planet in the galaxy if it meant keeping Keith from suffering. Shiro had politely offered to go with Krolia to find the medicine, even if it meant setting back production for a little while. 

Lance kissed his boyfriend’s head, frowning upon discovering that his fever still hadn’t broken. Below him, Keith whined, “I’ll be fine, Lance, just let me get out of be-” 

“No, nonononono,” Lance said rapidly, interrupting Keith and tsking before pressing another cold rag to his head. “You’re not going anywhere with a fever like that.” 

“But-” 

“No buts, querido. You’re staying in this room until you’re not sick anymore.”  Keith whined again, an uncharacteristically pitiful noise that made him sound like a kicked puppy. Lance’s heart shattered in his chest. “I know, Keith… Your mom and Shiro are on their way to get you your medicine. Just hold out a little longer, okay?” 

“Okay... Can you get me some water?” Keith erupted into a coughing almost as soon as Lance left the bed, and it made Lance cringe. Electricity crackled and the hairs on the back of Lance’s neck rose, signaling the arrival of Kosmo, who began to whine upon noticing Keith’s fit. When Lance turned back with the glass, Keith’s coughing finally began to subside and the wolf was on the bed, sitting on Keith’s legs with seemingly no regard to how heavy he actually is.  Kosmo pawed gently at Keith’s chest, nuzzling him. “Good boy,” Keith murmured, turning to Lance with a soft smile. He reached for the glass weakly and frowned when Lance kept it just out his reach. “I can drink, Lance.” 

“Let me?” Lance pleaded, petting Kosmo’s head with his free hand while sitting down on the edge of the bed. “Come on man, I never get to take care of you! Let me have this, please?" 

As much as Keith wanted to tell him no, feigning annoyance with Lance was entirely impossible when he was pouting like he was. He really hated Lance’s I want something and you can’t stop me from getting it because I know that you can’t say ‘no’ to me voice. Keith’s own carefully constructed rationale and self-control was rapidly slipping from his grasp- he really hated when Lance used that voice. “Fine.” 

Lance grinned excitedly, unbothered by the fact that his opportunity to take care of his boyfriend only arose when he became sick. He gingerly cupped the back of Keith’s skull, threading his fingers through the soft dark locks and lifting his head, holding the cup to his lips. Keith drank greedily, his aching throat eager for the sustenance. Lance suddenly felt a wave of nostalgia, remembering cold winters tending to his younger cousins and nieces and nephews when they were sick. Keith appeared no different than they, weak and feverish. Lance wished more than anything that Keith didn’t have to feel this way. “Oh, babe...” 

Keith emptied two more glasses before he was finished, after which he curled up with Kosmo, sniffling. Lance moved to stand, but a hand holding fast to the hem of his jacket stopped him. He turned back to find a glassy-eyed Keith looking up at him expectantly with Kosmo’s head resting on his chest. “Stay?” he asked tiredly. 

Lance couldn’t resist that request, despite the need to slip way temporarily to check on planning progress. “Of course, man.” Keith shimmied back with Kosmo to allow Lance some room to lie. As soon as Lance was on the bed, Keith wrapped his arm around him tightly, a subtle yet pointed gesture that said I’m not letting you go. Turning, Lance kissed Keith’s forehead, “get better already.” 

“S’not that easy,” Keith mumbled into Lance’s shirt. Keith’s burning forehead expelled so much heat it burned Lance through the thin cotton of his shirt. It worried Lance immensely, and he suddenly forgot all about the others. He just wanted Keith to get better. “I know what you’re thinking. Just stay here. I’ll sweat it out.” 

“Keith-” 

“Stay.” 

“Okay, okay, jeez.” They laid there for a while, Keith’s entire body aflame. With each passing moment, Lance grew increasingly more frustrated; there had been no word from anyone on the progress of Shiro and Krolia and lying there with a sick Keith with no way to alleviate his pain, nor had anyone texted to let him know how things were coming along. 

Unbeknownst to Lance, his manic energy was so pervasive even Keith, who was so physically drained from the sickness that he couldn’t even move from the bed, noticed. “Babe? You okay?” 

“No!” Lance suddenly declared, sitting up and startling Kosmo enough that he awoke to lift his head from Keith’s stomach. “You’re sick and I can’t do anything about it except for the bare minimum! You have the highest fever I've ever seen and sweating it out not only isn’t working, but it seems to just be making it worse. Your mom and Shiro still aren’t back with the medicine and on top of it all, I have no idea how things are going with the par-” Lance slapped a hand over his mouth so suddenly that it made an audible thud.  

Slowly, Keith sat up too. He didn’t know what Lance was about to say but knows from his reaction that it was definitely something he wasn’t supposed to. He was tired, ill, and in no mood for games. “Finish that sentence, Lance.” 

“It’s- it’s not important!” Lance insisted, his expression nervous beneath the innocent façade. “Nothing to worry about, babe!” 

“Lance,” Keith persisted, suddenly very annoyed. “If this has anything to do why everyone has been acting so weird the past few days then I want to know.” Lance’s eyes darted from left to right then back again, scrambling for any sort of explanation. Keith sighed, “Lance, I’m not in the mood for this. I’m tired, sick, and you won’t let me get up out of bed. I’m going to lie down and try to sleep. When I wake up, I want an answer.” 

Even when sick, Keith was still his usual self. Lance’s mouth opened to answer, but Keith was already fast asleep. In any other case, it would have been endearing to see Keith curled up with Kosmo. However, this wasn’t any other case, and Lance had a few hours to devise a plan and check on the others, possibly less depending on how quickly Shiro and Krolia could get back with the medicine. Turning over to face away from Keith, Lance reached for his phone and texted the first person in his conversation list: “hes on to us.”

Chapter Text

On the fourth and final day of planning, no one was more on edge than Keith. The medicine they retrieved from Vohiri not only knocked the sickness right out of him but zapped what little remained of his energy and rendered him immobilized by sleep in his bed for the rest of the night and well into the afternoon the next day. When he woke up to find nothing but cold sheets where Lance once was and groggily reached for his phone to check the time, he was so badly startled by how late into the day it was that he bolted upright quickly and fell off the bed. Landing with a groan, Keith shuffled to his feet, limbs heavy with exhaustion. As much as he wanted to get up, his head was dizzy and his heart was pounding from the sudden change in his position. So much for waking up and getting answers.

When he did eventually rise to his feet, he did so unhurriedly. His prior commitment to finding the truth overtaken by the overwhelming feeling of lead in his veins. Krolia would later inform him that this was a common occurrence in halflings, though she wasn’t entirely sure it was normal for humans. He blamed the medicine anyway and trudged out of his room in search of the others. Slow, uneasy steps carried him through the halls. As Keith walked he struggled to clear the fog from his sleep-addled brain, only to find himself following the direction of what appeared to be laughter. Laughter that sounded suspiciously like Shiro, Lance, and Pidge.  

It grew quieter as he advanced in the right direction, eventually being replaced Coran’s ostentatious voice. “Alrighty then... If you’re absolutely sure this is how you wish to carry on, roll for persuasion.” There was a period of silence followed by a series of repeating thuds. Then, all at once, an eruption of surprised and delighted cheering that pulled Keith right to the exact room where it originated from. He opened the door to the lounge to find all of his friends, mother and dog around a table with a game board, shouting while Lance beamed and pumped the air with his fist. Coran suddenly looked incredibly tired, dropping his head to his hands and mumbling. “You… Successfully persuade the monster to release the prisoner and lure it to the other room to do your business.” 

“The first twenty you ever rolled and you managed to seduce the equivalent of an Eldritch abomination,” Pidge grinned, amused as the excitement began to die down. 

“What can I say?” Lance declared proudly, flashing a garish smile. “I’m just that good.” 

“Really? Because I’d call that beginners luck,” Hunk chimed in, either ignoring Lance’s betrayed expression or not noticing it. “All your roles sucked before dude, especially when it came to seducing things. You just got lucky.” 

 “More like Pike is getting lucky,” Pidge chuckled. Keith suddenly understood what he was seeing: Krolia overseeing the others playing Monsters and Mana, watching confused but intrigued. Though he was making no effort to hide, no one seemed to notice his arrival. Surprising, given that sitting at the table were at least two of the most perceptive members of his family. 

He shifted from one foot to another, and the subtle movement somehow drew the attention of Romelle, who smiled widely and waved, “Hello Keith! How are you feeling?” 

Everyone’s eyes suddenly fell to him, and he squirmed uncomfortably under their gazes. “Better…” 

“Come sit next to me, babe!” Lance pat the spot on the couch beside him and Keith shuffled over immediately, slow but sure. “Sorry I wasn’t there when you woke up.” 

“It’s fine,” Keith mumbled, resting his head on Lance’s shoulder as soon as he got settled. He chose not to say anything about last night for the time being, knowing that Monsters and Mana was meant to be fun. They continued to play for a while until the game concluded after a boss fight. Keith wanted to pay attention, but the odd behavior of the others over the past few days consumed him. As the weight in his limbs lifted, the weight in his heart grew. The last time they were being this secretive, he found out that Lance had died. He had a bad feeling, one that sat unpleasantly in the bottom of his gut. Not to sound selfish, but Keith didn’t need any more heartache, especially not so close to the birthday he never thought he’d live to see. While the team wound down and chatted idly with one another, Keith stood and turned to Lance, who immediately halted his conversation with Romelle and Allura to look up at him expectantly. “I need to talk to you, Lance.” 

The former blue paladin excused himself and followed Keith to his room, shutting the door behind them and moving to sit on the bed while Keith stood, waiting. “You okay, babe?” 

“No Lance, I’m not,” Keith admittedly tensely, voice as sharp as his cherished blade. “I want to know why you guys have been acting so weird these past few days.” The shift in the air was palpable immediately. The kinetic energy transformed the tension into a new kind, and there was a frozen moment between them before Keith transversed the few feet between his desk chair and the head of his double bed, staring down at Lance. “Lance, please. All I want is the truth.” 

“Keith-” Lance’s mistake of murmuring Keith’s name in a tone that sounded so much like pity is what ultimately did it. Armed with a lifetime of emotional instability and the desire to just have things go right for once, Keith finally snapped. 

“No! Don’t use that tone with me, Lance! For the past four days, everyone has danced around me like they knew something I didn’t and were just waiting for the right time to tell me! The last time you guys acted like this, I had the misfortune of finding out that you died. Forgive me for sounding selfish, but another heartbreak like that is the last thing I need in my life. I’m tired of everyone keeping whatever secret this is from me and keeping me on edge! All I want is to know if everything is okay-” Keith’s voice finally broke, and the tears he kept at bay for the past four days finally spilled, the dam burst. He collapsed into Lance’s arms almost as soon as Lance was on his feet, “please… Tell me everything is okay.”  

“Keith… Baby, no, don’t cry,” Lance tried, holding Keith tightly and kissing his head repeatedly. His reassurance fell on deaf ears, and Lance knew he had to try a different tactic this time. “Everything is okay, Keith. No one is hurt, no one is dead, and there’s a perfectly reasonable explanation for now we’ve all been acting.” Keith continued to sob in his chest, and Lance knew it was time to pull out the big guns. He sat Keith down and held him while humming softly, and Keith knew what was coming. As soon as Lance began to sing the Spanish lullaby he saved for occasions just like this, Keith felt the heaviness in his chest dissipate. Whenever Keith was upset, Lance would sing to him; it was the same song every time, and Keith still didn’t know what any of the words meant. He just knew that it was incredibly soothing when combined with Lance’s melodic voice.  

By the time the song ended, Keith felt lighter than he had in a long time. He nuzzled Lance’s neck with his nose, cheeks wet with tears. Lance smiled sadly and used the sleeve of his jacket to wipe at Keith’s face, “hey man…” 

Keith sniffed indignantly, “I hate crying.” 

“I know you do, Keith.” 

“Will you tell me what’s going on now?” 

Lance sighed, disappointed that Keith had to break down over what they thought was a positive contribution to what would end up being a positive experience. Rubbing Keith’s back, Lance decided that no surprise was worth Keith’s suffering. “It was supposed to be a surprise, but… These past few days we’ve been running around trying to get things together for your birthday tomorrow. That’s why we tried to keep you busy and why I seemed so jittery and eager to get away last night. We just want to make things perfect for you.” 

Keith suddenly laughed breathlessly against Lance’s neck, eliciting a torrent of goose flesh all down his arms. “That’s all it is?” he asked, surprising Lance.  

“What-what do you mean ‘that’s all it is?’?!” Lance detached himself from his boyfriend and looked at him with wide eyes, seemingly taken aback by Keith’s lack of interest in the manor. 

Keith just smiled, cupping Lance’s face with an icy hand. Lance flinched, but Keith just talked like nothing was out of the ordinary- he was use to Lance reacting like that to his cold hands anyway. “Lance, I really appreciate that you guys have been doing things for me, but next time, just tell me. If I had known from the beginning that you guys were planning for my birthday I would have volunteered to stay away so you didn’t have to keep sending me off.” Lance spluttered unhelpfully in shock for a few seconds before Keith silenced him with a kiss. “I’m just glad that little feeling in the back of my mind was right after all.” 

“Little feeling?” Lance inquired, eager to know what Keith was thinking outside of his intense worry.  

Keith dropped his hand. “The second day I went out with my mom, she said something that made me think about how close my birthday is. She acted really weird when I said I don’t really like to celebrate much. Then last night when you wouldn’t tell me what you were going to say, I figured you guys really were throwing me a party. With everyone else acting weird too, it was the most logical conclusion I could come to underneath the idea that something was wrong.” He shrugged it off like he hadn’t just broken down in Lance’s arms a few minutes ago. Lance chose not to mention that. “You guys better not have done anything huge.” 

“Of course not,” Lance promised, kissing Keith’s forehead. “It was mostly running around to gather supplies and presents. The party won’t be huge and I’m sure you’ll love it.” Keith had no doubt about that, and the thought alone made him smile. “Hey, Keith?” 

“Yeah, Lance?” 

Lance was silent for a moment, contemplating. When he spoke again, it was to ask, “should we tell the others that you know?” 

“Nope.” Keith had this look on his face that promised nothing but trouble and Lance was struck with the semi-horrifying realization that he was smitten. “Think you can act?” 

“Oh baby, I was born for this.” 

Chapter Text

The next morning everyone rises early, bustling around to finish the final touches before it’s time to bring Keith in. As part of their plan, Keith doesn’t wake Lance when he hears the others exiting their rooms. Instead, he lets Lance sleep until he’s ready to get up, which ends up being a good few hours after everyone else. When Keith finally feels Lance stir beside him he turns, planting a kiss to his temple, “morning, sleeping beauty.” 

Lance groans and turns his back to Keith, “too early...” 

“You have a party to host today, Lance,” Keith reminds him, sitting up and leaning over him. An arm on either side of Lance’s chest cages him in, and a smile graces his lips as his eyes flutter open to see Keith gazing down at him with one of the most loving expressions he’s ever seen.  

Lance turns, staring up at Keith with an expression that’s just as loving. “You know, if this is the sight that greets me every morning, I wouldn’t mind waking up early.” Keith lowers himself to kiss Lance tenderly in response. If they didn’t have plans, Keith would have no qualms about spending his morning chest to chest with the man he loves- but the others didn’t spend four days planning just to have Keith ditch to cuddle his boyfriend. Lance tucks a lock of hair behind Keith’s ear, “beautiful.” 

Despite how often Lance compliments Keith, it still has the same effect now that it did when they first got together. Keith flushes red and rolls off Lance, sitting up and swinging his legs over the edge of the bed while holding his rapidly warming face in his palm. “You should, you should get up and get ready. I know how long it takes for you to finish your morning routine.” 

A few more kisses later they’re both up and moving. To cut down on time, they shower together and savor the warmth of the water before stepping out, one man getting dressed while the other delves right into his daily self-care routine. While Lance primes his face with perfumed creams, Keith slips out of his room in search of Shiro. Who he finds instead is someone completely different- and unexpected. “Kolivan?” 

“Hello, Keith, happy birthday.” Kolivan stands tall and intimidating as ever in his Blade leader uniform, but there’s an air of fondness around him that’s uncharacteristic and slightly unnerving.  

“Um... Thanks?” Of all people Keith expected to see today, Kolivan was not one of them. Still, he appreciates the gesture.  

“I’m afraid I won’t be staying for today’s festivities, but I do have something to gift you.” Kolivan reaches into his pocket and produces a small, square device covered in some sort of shiny white material, presumably plastic, and passes it to Keith. “I was told you have an affinity for photography. It works similar to your phone and contains an unlimited supply of storage, as well as doubles as a small camera.”  

Keith examines it in awe for a minute before he looks back up to Kolivan, who smiles back at him. “This is, thank you Kolivan.”  

Kolivan raises a hand and places it on Keith’s shoulder, still smiling, “you’ve grown into a fine young man, Keith. I look forward to seeing you accomplish even more.” And with that, he’s gone, leaving Keith an odd mixture of confused and elated to have such approval- if you could call it that. Shaking it off, Keith returns his search for Shiro. He turns the device on while he walks, immediately tapping on the gallery icon out of curiosity. To his astonishment, there are already at least a dozen photos saved, the first of which is the photo of he, Kolivan, Krolia, and Kosmo that was taken shortly after the paladins were released from the hospital.  

The ones that follow are from various adventures both on and off Earth, including two from his first time playing Monsters and Mana with the team and one of Kolivan and Krolia standing together in their Blade leader uniforms, smiling at one another. He makes a note to ask how Kolivan got a hold of the other pictures later. Shiro is in the kitchen with Adam, appearing to be taking a break from party prep with a cup of coffee and tea respectively. Being as it’s been a few hours since Shiro first got up around six am this morning, Keith can only assume that they just didn’t get the time to sit down until now. “There’s the birthday boy,” Shiro smiles, lowering his mug to the island.  

Adam is the one who stands first, opening his arms to engulf Keith in a hug before Shiro is even off the stool, “happy birthday, kid. Well, you’re not that much of a kid anymore, are you?” 

Shiro joins the hug and Keith is squished between the warm bodies of his brother and brother in law and a chorus of “happy birthday’s” sung in sing-song voices. When they finally release Keith, Shiro keeps an arm around Keith’s shoulder, “how does it feel, little bro?” 

“Not that much different,” Keith admits, smoothing down the hair that was displaced from the group hug.  

“Just wait until you’re our age,” Adam muses, taking his seat again and grabbing his teacup. “Then you’ll start feeling it.” 

“That makes it sound like you’re old,” Keith jokes, walking with Shiro and joining him at the island. “What’s that expression? You’re only as old as you feel?” 

“I for one feel pretty young!” Shiro says enthusiastically, taking a quick swig of his coffee. Keith knows he was hiding something under that cheery demeanor, and luckily Adam has his back.  

“Takashi just the other night you found a single gray hair in that sea of white and started having a crisis in the middle of Wal-Mart.” Adam sips from his tea knowingly, blatantly ignoring the expression of betrayal Shiro throws his way. 

“Betrayed... By my own husband.” 

“You know you love him anyway.” Keith snatches Shiro’s mug and takes a sip of coffee before passing it back to Shiro, who is still glaring at Adam in a way that can only be described as playful. Keith notices how neither of them has any intention of addressing the elephant in the room, but he expected no different. So, he carries on like nothing is abnormal. “Where’s everyone else?”  

Shiro and Adam exchange glances but remain silent. The crinkle of Adam’s brow tells Keith he’s thinking, and he can only assume he’s trying to come up with a quick explanation that doesn’t reveal too much. “At home, for now, I believe.” 

Keith hums, swiping Shiro’s mug again before slipping off the stool, “well call me if they swing by. I have to go see if Lance is ready yet.” 

“Ready for what?” Shiro asks, his tone just toeing the line of worry. 

Keith smiles to himself before turning around, looking the picture of innocence. “Oh, Lance is taking me out. He won’t tell me where, but we should be gone for a while.” 

Shiro and Adam seem to forget that Keith’s hearing is far more advanced than that of a human, for as soon as they swear Keith is out of earshot they start whispering. “Lance can’t be taking him out! He knew the party was today!” 

“Easy, Takashi. Maybe this is just to keep Keith away for a little longer?” 

“But he doesn’t have to, Adam. Everything is already done. All we need is to set up the lounge.” 

Keith makes his way back to his room with a smile on his face. When he opens the door, he finds Lance sitting on the floor in front of the standing mirror with his legs crossed, plucking his eyebrows. “Did they buy it?”  

“Oh yeah,” Keith smirks, closing the door and walking over to lean down and kiss Lance’s head. “But you have maybe about twenty minutes before one of them comes looking for an explanation. Think you can hurry a little?” 

“Just a few more minutes, babe,” Lance assures, plucking some more. “You might want to change though. It’s at least ninety out there.” 

“Got it.” Keith strips off his jacket and shirt, tossing them on the bed. Lance, who was watching from the mirror, wolf whistles and makes a few inappropriate comments that get a balled-up shirt thrown at the back of his head. Keith settles for something more weather appropriate- in this case, the tank top Lance loves so much- and waits for Lance to finish up before grabbing his phone and slipping into his pocket. “Ready?” 

“Oh yeah.” At first, they expect for it to be a challenge to dodge the others on their way out. However, it would seem that they’re all doing their best to hide until it’s time, possibly meeting somewhere to rethink their strategy in light of the news that Lance is going back on the original plan. The two slip out undetected and take Keith’s bike into the city under the hot Arizona sun.  

Meanwhile back at the ranch, the others are chattering away in the lounge, where they migrated after hearing Keith’s bike start up and promptly speed off.  Hunk chimes in with his concern, saying, “I dunno man. Lance didn’t tell me anything about taking Keith out today.” 

“There’s no reason he should have,” Pidge argues, clutching their fourth cup of coffee tightly. “He knew that the party was today. Why would he just take Keith and leave after all the work we did?” 

“Maybe he thought it best to keep Keith away for a few more hours?” Shay asks from her spot beside Hunk. “We still have to set up, don’t we? It would make sense to not let Keith be here while we do.” 

Shiro shakes his head, “I told Lance last night that it wouldn’t be necessary. The only thing I can think of is that he had some other plan for Keith today that we didn’t know about.” 

“What, like taking him out for breakfast or something?” Pidge sneered, sipping their coffee. “Keith doesn’t like to go out, and Lance knows that.” 

“Whatever the case, sitting around here debating isn’t going to help us get anything done.” Shiro rises to his feet and looks around. The lounge is clean and ready for their intervention, all they need is the decorations, presents and the cake. “Pidge, can you set up the music a while?” 

“On it, captain,” they saluted, taking another sip before getting up and walking to their room to retrieve their computer.  

“Allura, you and Romelle are in charge of the drinks. Keith really likes that punch you made before, do you have everything to make it again?” 

Allura ticks some things off on her fingers before looking at her girlfriend, who nods, “everything we need is readily available, yes. We’ll get started right away!” 

Smiling, Shiro gives out the rest of the orders before getting to work himself, helping Adam, Coran, and Krolia with the decorations.  

Hours pass before Keith and Lance arrive home again with a satisfying hum of the engine. Everyone takes their places in various parts of the lounge while outside, Lance is hyping Keith up, passing him the bouquet of flowers he bought him before they started making their way to the entrance. “Alright, you just need to act surprised for a max of ten seconds. After that, all you have to do is pretend you had no idea.” 

“I know what I’m doing, Lance.” Keith tries to sound annoyed, but he knows Lance’s heart is in the right place and can’t find it in him to do anything but smile. “Ready?” 

“Ready,” Lance affirms, taking Keith’s free hand and walking him towards the front door. Arriving on the doorstep, Lance opens the door for Keith like a gentleman and pretends to be deep in conversation, “so anyway then I said-” 

“Happy birthday, Keith!” comes the interruption from within, everyone grinning excitedly at the two as they enter. Not much is different in the lounge- red helium balloons are scattered at various points around the room, a mountain of presents sits in one corner accompanied by a particularly large – and poorly wrapped – lump of a present in a shape Keith can’t identify, and on the table is a brightly colored punch, four pizza boxes and a plate of decorated red velvet donuts stacked in a pyramid with a number of candles sticking out of them. It’s not much by party standards, but to Keith it’s perfect. 

“Guys...” Keith tries his best to feign surprise, but it’s hard to tell if he’s convincing enough. Lance produces a party hat from seemingly nowhere and straps it to his head, taking the flowers from his hand, and even if Keith did a terrible job of acting surprised the others don’t seem to notice. Thankfully they remember his request not to be sung to and instead come forward to hug him individually. He takes each and every one with a big smile, eventually allowing Pidge to hop on his back to be carried around. “You guys didn’t have to do any of this.”  

“Sure we did!” Pidge says cheerfully from his back, smiling at him when he turns his head. “This is the first time you’ve had your family all together, right? We couldn’t just not celebrate.” 

“Pidge is right,” Shiro agrees, grinning at Keith proudly. “We know you don’t really like celebrating, but this really is a special occasion.” Keith sits down on the couch and Pidge stays on his back, peering over his shoulder. Everyone else takes their seats as well, Shiro sitting down with Adam and Krolia on the opposite couch. “Hunk knew you don’t care much for cake, so he improvised.” 

“Red velvet,” Keith murmurs, the gratitude evident on his face when he turns to Hunk. “You remembered.” 

“Of course I did, dude!” Hunk beams appreciatively. “You told me red velvet was your favorite, and I knew a cake wasn’t a good idea so I made donuts instead.” 

After a few minutes of chatter, during which Keith repeatedly thanks the others for all they’ve done, Krolia finally asks, “well Keith? Do you want to blow out the candles?” 

Adam produces a lighter and lights them for Keith, who sits there pondering for a moment before blowing each and every one out. The others clap and cheer for him, and Lance delivers a kiss right to his cheek. For the first time in a long time, Keith feels entirely at peace, a newfound positive experience in his life that can only come from finally having a family to celebrate with. “So, what did you wish for?” Coran asks, smiling.  

Keith didn’t have to wish for anything, and so he didn’t. “Everything I always wished for has already come true.” It’s a humble enough statement, but it’s enough to bring everyone together into a massive group hug. The emotion Keith is feeling can only be described as love, and it’s a feeling he wouldn’t trade for the world.  

After a modest dinner of pizza, donuts and fancy juice, Lance drags the presents over one by one before pushing the big lumpy one forward and all but demanding Keith open it first. It turns out to be a giant stuffed hippo larger than Pidge, and Lance swears he sees stars in Keith’s eyes. The remaining presents are much smaller and consist of – but aren’t limited to – an expensive camera, a rainbow knife, a comprehensive guide to Altean cryptids – Keith beamed at Coran and thanked him profusely for this one – and a new jacket to replace his current one that’s worse for the wear. The afternoon is drifting into evening, bathing the world in a swirl of oranges, and Shiro suddenly snaps his fingers, “oh! There's one we nearly forgot.” 

Everyone except Keith and Lance exchange knowing looks, and suddenly they all stand. They all follow Shiro outside, and Keith leans in to whisper to Lance, “do you know where we’re going?” 

“No,” Lance answers honestly. “This one is a total mystery.” The genuine confusion in his tone informs Keith that Lance is telling the truth, and as they circle around to the back of the house Keith is wondering what exactly is going on. His answer comes in the form of a sleek, four door van, the dying sunlight offsetting the shiny black exterior. After a quick look inside, Keith determines the vehicle to seat at least ten passengers, if not more, and he turns to Shiro for an explanation. 

“Do you remember how you said you always wanted to take a family road trip?” Shiro asks, smiling like there’s even more to the story.  

“Yeah?” Keith did remember saying that, but it was years ago before they became paladins. “I appreciate the thought but, we still have the lions. We can go anywhere.” 

Shiro chuckles, shaking his head. “Actually, this trip will be for a more... special occasion.” 

“Special how?” Keith asks, head tilting. He crosses his arms over his chest and waits. 

“Get your old gear ready,” Adam responds, taking a step forward. “Tomorrow, we begin our cross country cryptid hunt.” 

And at that moment, no star in the sky can match the brightness of Keith’s smile. This really is the best birthday he’s ever had.