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Disclaimer: The Tomorrow People is the property of the CW. No copyright infringement is intended.

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Italicized words indicate thoughts

Italicized words in quotes indicate mental telepathy/communication

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John and Charlotte waited until after Cara went on a supply raid taking most of the crew with her. John casually offered, "How bout I teach you some more chess moves. We'll play Tim." He kept his voice nonchalant, and the few people left in the common area never even looked up.

Charlotte followed him to Tim's room where John recovered a small cooler and folding chairs he had stashed away that morning. He and Charlotte exchanged conspiratorial snickers.

He firmly grasped her hand teleporting them to the roof of a building overlooking the Hudson river. The city was celebrating the Fourth of July holiday with their yearly fireworks display, and John had promised to take Charlotte. He was every bit as eager to see them as the young girl.

The first firework had just gone off, so they hadn't missed much. Charlotte clapped her hands with glee while John set up the chairs. He grinned as he watched her. She was so engrossed he had to guide her to a chair and plunk her down in it. It reminded him of the first time he had seen fireworks. He had been just as enthralled.

John sat back enjoying Charlotte's reactions as much as the spectacle in the sky. He had forgotten how much this once a year celebration meant to him and vowed to make it an annual venture with the girl.

A loud boom made Charlotte jump and clench his arm. When a whizzer exploded filling the night sky with an eerie screaming sound, John pretended to jump with her, making her laugh and mock punch him.

"Those are my favorites," he confided.

Charlotte, eyes shining, gushed, "Mine too."

John flipped the cooler lid back and unpacked a soda for each, twisting off the top and passing one to her. Next, he took out a huge bag of caramel corn, pulling the plastic edges apart with his teeth. They pushed handfuls of the sticky sweet into their mouths without taking their eyes off the magnificent colors and shapes.

It was a perfect night. The sky was clear without clouds, and there was no wind. After the ever present damp chill in their subterranean lair, the summer air felt delightfully dry and warm.

Charlie missed her mouth as a green dragon exploded across the sky. John chuckled and pulled the sticky caramel corn from her hair. She laughed with him.

"How'd you find this place?" Charlotte asked between volleys. "The view is perfect."

A shadow briefly crossed John's face before he rallied. "Someone I knew rented an apartment here for storage. The manager gave him access to the roof," he quietly explained. A huge burst of red, white, and blue made him exclaim and point. "Aw, look at that one!"

Cries of "ooh!" and "aw!" split the air as all kinds of brilliant colors and breathtaking designs exploded across the sky accompanied by cracks and booms.

As the grand finale began, they craned their necks upward, mouths open.

When the final flares died down, they looked at each other with deep satisfaction.

"Awesome!" Charlotte's comment expressed her delight with the evening's entertainment.

"It was, wasn't it?" John agreed.

They stood, John folding up the chairs and slinging them over his shoulder, while Charlotte packed up the cooler.

They jumped when a disembodied voice spoke from the shadows. "So, this year you came back."

John whipped around at the sound of that voice. As Jedikiah stepped out from the shadows, he pushed Charlotte behind him. "Hang on to me!"

Jedikiah, noticing the protective gesture, spread his hands out low and wide. "I'm by myself, and I'm not wearing a gun.

John tried to gauge the truth of what his mentor said. He searched and sensed no other thoughts nearby. Jedikiah was in jeans and a t-shirt, no shoulder holster in evidence. He could hide a gun in the waistband behind his back, but John could teleport out before Jedikiah could reach behind him. No need to panic, but John still cursed himself for getting careless and letting his mental guard down.

"Whatya doing here?" John asked, while Charlotte peered fearfully around him.

"I've come here every year since you ran away," Jedikiah calmly said. "It was our tradition."

His eyes took it all in; Charlotte's arms wrapped around John's waist, her head peeping out from under his arm, the protective stance John maintained, angling his body between the girl and him.

"My father always took me to the fireworks. It was a tradition in our family. I did the same with you, son." He nodded at the girl. "I'm glad you're keeping the custom in the family."

John eyed him resentfully. "It's just fireworks, nothing more. Don't flatter yourself," he said bitterly, before whisking Charlotte away.

Jedikiah, putting his hands in his jean pockets, strolled over to examine the contents of the abandoned cooler. He flipped the lid open with one foot. An enigmatic smile played over his lips at the sight of empty SoBE cream soda bottles and a plastic bag, holding a few leftover kernels, emblazoned with the KarmelKorn logo. Right, John. Just Fireworks.

He remembered the very first time he brought John here. The kid had never seen fireworks before, and he could barely contain his excitement. After that, they came every year, even when John became a teenager. Just like his father had done for him and his brother. They even drank the same soda and munched on the same treat. Jedikiah was a firm believer in family traditions.

The two landed in a secluded area of the lair. John put up a warning finger, cautioning her. "Be quiet and with luck we won't get caught."

She nodded and tiptoed off to her room.

John searched carefully, but Cara wasn't back yet. He made it to his room and was just pulling his shirt over his head when Charlotte happily sent him a message. "He said you're keeping it in the family. I like that. It means we're family."

John's first impulse was to angrily deny Jedikiah was his family. Confusion followed when he recognized that he had subconsciously tried to recreate his childhood experience for Charlie. Finally, scratching his head, he asked himself was repudiating Jedikiah worth destroying Charlie's pleasure?

He realized once again that Jedikiah was the closest thing he had to a father, and when his thoughts turned to family he had only that man to relate to. He shook his head, amazed that he hadn't realized he was mimicking what Jedikiah had done for him; the soda, the snack, the place. And above all else, he couldn't deny Charlotte what she craved.

"Yeah, it means we're family." He felt a burst of pleasure from the little girl and that, John decided, made the evening perfect.

~ FIN ~