Lance's Funeral

Vol 4 / part 1: New Religion

But somewhere there's a light
A sign that it's alright
I find it by your side

~The Heydaze / New Religion

***

Life and death wasn't as clear cut as Keith believed.

This fact was especially prevalent with Keith's newfound... circumstances. Not only was he living with a ghost - his dead childhood friend no less - but others could hear him. Well, not directly, nor easily, but it was an indisputable fact. What to do with this newly acquired knowledge, Keith had no idea.

Keith paced back and forth across the bedroom, his earbuds blasting music, and fingers drumming anxiously against his biceps. Lance's gaze followed his movements from the corner of the room. The left half of his body was hidden behind the chipped wallpaper. An irritating habit that rattled Keith's bones on more than one occasion. Though the ghost wasn't scary as maybe he should have been, his inhuman habits weren't capable of ignoring. Despite, Keith tried, and continued weathering a dip in the hardwood with his steps.

"So... Are you going to say something, or are you just gonna keep trotting around like a drowsy pony?" Lance asked, his color changing from a blue hue, to a yellow one, and back to blue. Keith was curious what each shade told him about the ghost boy's state of mind.

"Well, what do you suggest, your majesty?" Keith rolled his eyes.

Lance's mouth shut into a thin line. He averted his eyes when he said, "I'm not sure."

"Me neither." Keith admitted.

In all honestly, Keith was at a loss. He wanted to show the people Lance cared about that he was still among them in some... odd fashion, but with the recent slip during his previous attempt, he held doubts. Yes, Lance could've explained it was him over the phone with Hunk, but who was Keith to say how Hunk or the others would react? Among the many terrible possibilities he had piled in his head, there was the chance they would take it as some cruel prank. And, in their current mental state, they didn't need another thing to upset them.

"I say we wait." Lance spoke up. He shifted his figure from the wall, much to Keith's relief.

Keith hated to say it - like, really did - but Lance was right. Until they gathered a better understanding of things, there was no use in jumping head first into the unknown. "Ok."

Keith's phone buzzed. He looked down at the contact, and promptly picked up. Lance watched impatiently as Keith listened through his earbuds, and tilted the phone back to talk into it. "Hi?" Keith greeted Shiro. It was odd for him to call at such a time.

"Hey, Keith. I just got an invite for a party, and I was wondering if you could come."

"Party? A college party? That doesn't sound very Shiro-like."

"It's not a college party, it's a dinner party."

"Oh, that makes more sense. Who's hosting it?"

Shiro hesitated for a moment. "The McClains. They're having a family reunion in honor of Lance, and they wanted to invite his closest friends."

Keith fell silent, and turned to look at Lance directly. The ghost boy raised a brow, confused. Keith filled him in by saying, "A dinner party with the McClains? When is it?"