Work Text:
"Sparklers"
"Hey, kiddo. You ready?" Calvin scooped up his son and carried him out onto the porch of his shack. He set Keith on his shoulders and held onto his legs, pointing into the distance. A pop of color appeared over the Garrison. It was fortunate that they were close enough to see the fireworks but far enough away that his son's sensitive hearing wouldn't give him any problems.
"Pretty!" Keith pointed at a recently exploded red firework. Calvin grinned. His son was showing his favoritism towards his favorite color, red.
"Indeed it is, son. Do you remember my favorite color?"
"Purple!"
"Right you are, kiddo." Calvin never told Keith why his favorite color was purple. Until he met Krolia, his favorite color had been blue, but that all changed when he met her.
"Look, Daddy! Purple!"
Calvin looked at the sky over the Garrison, seeing the purple firework his son had pointed out. He patted Keith's leg. "You having a good time, son?"
"Yeah!"
Calvin smiled. He hoped there would be many, many more moments like this one.
%%%
It had been a week since the Paladins saved Earth and a day since the last Paladin had been discharged from the hospital, and the Garrison was hosting a celebration in gratitude. They had a big fireworks display that they were going to set off. Allura, Lance, Shiro, Pidge, and Hunk were outside watching the first few fireworks being set off, when they noticed someone missing. Lance looked around. "Where's Keith?"
Hunk and Pidge looked around, but they couldn't see their leader anywhere. Shiro tapped his chin. "I think I know where he is. Follow me."
Shiro led the group back into the Garrison and to Keith's room. Lance looked skeptical. "Why would he be hiding in his room?"
"I never got a straight answer out of him, but when the Garrison set off fireworks, he hid in his room." Shiro knocked on the door. "Hey, Keith. Can the Paladins and I come in?"
"Yeah."
The group walked in to see Keith on his bed with a blanket over his head and Cosmo cuddled up next to him.
"What's wrong?" Lance asked.
Keith admitted, "I can't handle the loudness of the fireworks. Pops and I used to watch the fireworks the Garrison would shoot off from his shack. We could see the colors and patterns but the sound never reached us."
"We should do that then," Lance declared.
"How would we get past everyone?" Keith inquired.
"Dude, you have a teleporting space wolf. It's a no brainer," Lance replied.
Keith unburied himself, and everyone gathered around Cosmo, each person putting a hand on the blue fur. They all disappeared from Keith's room and reappeared in front of the porch of Keith's shack. Keith sighed. "Much better."
"I have something that will make it even better." Lance pulled something out of one of his jacket pockets. "Sparklers!"
He handed one to everyone. Keith cocked his head. "What are sparklers?"
"Let us show you." Lance pulled out a lighter and lit Pidge's green sparkler and Hunk's yellow one.
Keith's eyes widened as he watched Lance light Shiro's purple and Allura's pink. Lance then lit Keith's sparkler, which turned out to be red. Keith's eyes were glued to his sparkler, meaning he missed Lance lighting his blue sparkler.
"Now, wave it around."
Keith followed Lance's suggestion, and he couldn't help the smile forming. It was just like the time with his Pop. There were quiet pops of color and family to share it with, and there wasn't anywhere else in the universe that Keith wanted to be.
Fin