Shiro felt tingles run through his spine when Keith put his hands on him, he almost couldn’t breathe. He looked deep into those purple eyes and the reassurance it gave him that Keith wasn’t upset, that he wasn’t going to leave was such a relief. He smiled gently and leaned his head gently into Keith’s hand, enjoying the warmth he had radiating from them.

He watched Keith with a sense of excitement as his face changed from fear to a sense of determination. Shiro followed him, using the ebbing waves to help push his long heavy tail back into the water and he pushed himself along after Keith in the water. He could hear Keith’s heart pounding in his chest but he grinned with pride. This was clearly extremely difficult for Keith, but he was facing his fears bravely. Shiro followed him until he stopped, watching the waters to make sure the thing that had scared him before didn’t come back.

When Keith stopped, frozen, Shiro reached out a hand and slid it into Keith’s then squeezed it reassuringly, hoping that it told Keith he was here, he was going to protect Keith and make sure that nothing harmed him.