Bright Skies (Multi - Season Crossover/Power Rangers, prompt #26: Just Passing Through, T)
I managed to write for over twelve hours straight, and this is what came out of it. Thankfully, I made myself sleep and read over it again before I posted. ^.^;;
Author/: Tsukino Akume
Fandom/: Power Rangers Time Force moving into S.P.D., multiple Rangers from each season
Characters/: Wes (Time Force), multiple Rangers from other teams (Literally too many to list)
Pairings/: Post - Wes/Eric, Rocky/Adam, Shane/Dustin, Hunter/Cam, Carter/Dana, Andros/Ashley, Zhane/Karone, Carlos/Ronny, Jason/Taylor, Conner/Ethan, Justin/Rose, Tommy/Kimberly, Tyzonn/Mack, Cassie/OC, Nick/Maddison, Zack/Aisha, Trent/Kira, Post - Billy/Cestria. Future Ryan/Carter and Billy/Hayley. More couples will most likely be mentioned, but not shown.
prompt/: #26: Just Passing Through
Rating/: T (For non - graphic mentions of people having babies and being violent with one another)
Disclaimer/: I don't own the Power Rangers, but if Disney's hiring any new writers I volunteer.
Summary/: When Wes' life starts to fall apart, an accident gives him a chance at a fresh start in New Tech City, with Space Patrol Delta. But even a new life has its ups and downs - and weird friends. Meanwhile, Eric tries to move on.
Warnings/: A mentally handicapped person living in a medical facility, angst, male and female slash, non - cemented couples (In otherwords, pairings that will be separated), children created by scientific means
Author's Notes/: Once again, I have never been involved in a wedding. What you are about to read is my own active imagination combined with an obsession for the show 'Who's Wedding is it Anyway?' that came over me for several weeks. I planned out so many details of this wedding that never got used after all. -Sighs- Such is the nature of the muse.
"Has anyone seen my shoes?"
"What about my hair clip?"
"For goodness sake, who's got the hair curler *now*?!"
"Cole, will you *please* keep Rosa out from under foot?"
"Sorry. Come here, Rosa!"
Wes still wasn't quite sure what he was doing here, but as long as it gave him something to do by pretending to keep an eye on the boys, that was fine with him. He watched as the young wolf pup bounded over to Cole, her tail lashing at the air happily as she pounced against his side.
"Down, girl," he admonished gently, reaching over to ruffle her fur gently. "Don't upset Ruby."
The pup in his lap whined pitifully in agreement.
Tanya paused in the middle of doing her hair to eye Cole warily. "Cole, are you sure you really don't mind wearing that robe? I know Sergeant Earheart said he was going to get you one of the ones with a blue monogram instead, after the gift mix-up ... "
"This is fine," Cole assured her with a sunny smile as he continued to pet the his pups. "Pink is almost red anyway."
Hayley snorted. "Not in our world," she reminded him with an amused glance.
Bridge frowned. "Does that mean I can't be a Pink Ranger?"
Several of the women fought grins as Aisha turned to her son with a warm smile. "You can be whatever Ranger you want to be someday, Baby," she promised, kissing the top of his head. "But first, let's wait until you're a little older, okay?"
"Okay, Mama," he sighed, happily leaning into her.
She frowned, hugging him closer and checking his forehead. "You feeling okay, Bridge? Anybody bothering you?"
"Uh-uh," Bridge mumbled, snuggling against her shoulder. "You're so shiny, Mama."
Aisha relaxed slowly in relief, stroking Bridge's hair gently. "Tell you what. If you let me finish getting ready, I'll hug you all you want as soon as all this chaos is over with."
Bridge sighed reluctantly, pulling away from her at last. "Okay, Mama. Sorry."
"Don't ever be sorry, Baby," she admonished gently.
Wes watched Bridge carefully as Aisha moved back to getting ready, frowning as he saw the little boy wince slightly. "Bridge!" he called. "Hey kiddo, why don't you come sit with me? Aunt Tanya and Aunt Hayley will run you over if you stand there."
He ignored the irritated look Tanya shot him while Hayley seemed almost tolerantly amused, making sure to keep himself calm and relatively cheerful as Bridge scurried over and clambered into his lap. He wrapped his arms around the little boy, reminding himself of how much fun it was to watch Tanya and Aisha stress in contrast to Haley's calm and efficient work to dress herself up.
He was rewarded with a soft sigh, and Bridge snuggling against his shoulder. "Thanks for not tellin' on me, Uncle Wes," he whispered. "I don' wanna mess up Aunt Taylor's special day."
He gave Bridge a hug, silently musing how precious this kid was. He wasn't Sky, who he loved more than anything in the world, but Bridge was a charmer in his own way. "I'm here for you, buddy," he murmured, trying not to rumple the small suit jacket as he rubbed Bridge's back soothingly.
"Kim? Are you sure you're all right?"
He glanced up at Katherine's concerned voice. Kimberly was leaning over the vanity, her hands trembling as she clutched a hair brush. She looked up at Katherine's question, face pale and brown eyes teary. "I ... "
Her eyes suddenly went wide and she clapped a hand over her mouth, rushing for the bathroom and nearly knocking over Tanya in the process. The unmistakable sounds of someone being sick immediately followed.
The assorted bridesmaids exchanged worried looks, and Aisha stopped what she was doing to go knock on the door. "Kim? What's wrong?"
"I still think you should have gone with that beautiful designer dress we looked at," Daphne Earhart sighed dramatically as she followed Taylor and Alyssa out of the room in the bridal suite that had been set aside for the bride herself.
Daphne Earhart may have been an army wife at some point in her life according to Taylor, but Wes had taken one look at her and seen 'old money', a term his dad had taught him when he was younger. The woman had spared no expense on the wedding of her only daughter, and constantly lamented that Taylor hadn't allowed her to do anything more extravagant than this mess already was. She didn't hesitate to throw more money into the tiniest details, and pretended not to understand why Taylor could ever want something simple. Even now, on a day when no one was supposed to outshine the bride herself, her dress was a dramatic silver with a full skirt, calling far more attention to her figure than Taylor's simple golden gown.
Wes could see Taylor's eye twitch even from his position across the room. "First of all Mom, it was lacy. Second, I kept tripping over that stupid train. And third, that sash was *pink*."
"And what's wrong with pink?" her mother demanded. "You looked lovely in it."
"And I've told you a thousand times Mom, my color is *yellow*, not pink." Taylor ground out. Her fists clenched sporadically at her sides.
Bridge whimpered softly against Wes' neck.
He stood swiftly, carrying the little boy with him as he headed toward Taylor. "You look beautiful, Taylor," he said loudly. "Don't you think so, Bridge?"
Taylor turned, startled, and he could immediately see her trying to force herself to calm down before Bridge came any closer. "Thanks," she told him after a moment, looking slightly uncomfortable at the compliment.
Bridge peeked out from Wes' neck to glance at Taylor, his eyes widening in awe. "Wow! You're almost as pretty as Mama, Aunt Taylor!"
The corner of Taylor's mouth quirked, her gaze dropping to the floor for a second. When she looked back up, she gave Bridge a warm smile. "Thank you, Bridge. That's very sweet of you to say."
"It's true," he said earnestly. "You're all sparkly golden colors. It's so pretty!"
She leaned down to tap her finger against Bridge's nose with a smile. "I'm flattered you think so."
Bridge giggled. "That tickles Aunt Taylor!"
She raised an eyebrow. "Oh, really? Then what about ... this?" Her fingers attacked Bridge's sides without warning, and he shrieked in delight as Wes tried to hold him in place for her.
"Is someone sick?"
Taylor paused as her mother's words registered, and Wes quickly took a step back, holding Bridge closer as he gasped for air and giggled weakly. "Sick?" she repeated, turning around.
"Kim," Aisha answered her, glancing at the bathroom door again. Kimberly had apparently managed to shut the door, but the retching sounds started up again after another moment. "I know she's been on edge all day, but she wouldn't tell me why."
Taylor frowned, moving to knock softly on the door. "Kim?" she called gently.
There was a cough, and a very weak " ... Yes?"
"Are you okay? Do you need us to get you anything?" As she spoke, Taylor narrowed her eyes at Cole, nodding towards the door of the suite and mouthing 'Jason', followed by a slight tap to her left wrist on the new old-fashioned style communicator she wore.
Cole nodded, gently shifting his pups from his lap and patting his leg for them to follow him as he moved.
"Does she need a doctor?" Daphne asked, looking anxious. "Do you think she'll be able to make it through the ceremony?"
"Tommy!" Cole yelped.
Everyone turned in surprise as Tommy strode quickly into the room. Wearing a black suit with a white dress shirt, red vest, and green tie, as well a small blue flower clipped to his breast pocket, he would have looked almost comical if not for the determined set to his face and the dark expression in his eyes. He headed straight for the bathroom Kimberly had holed up in, pausing beside Taylor to turn and gently kiss her cheek. "You look lovely, Taylor," he told her with a sincere smile. "Sorry I about lurking outside like that, but I *have* to talk to Kimberly."
"She's all yours," Taylor returned, raising an eyebrow as she gestured to the bathroom.
"Thanks," Tommy told her. The smile on his face vanished as he turned back to the door. Thankfully Kimberly hadn't managed to lock it; something in Tommy's expression told them all that he wouldn't have hesitated to break it down to get inside.
Instead he turned the knob softly and strode through, shutting and locking the door behind him.
Taylor turned to look at the rest of the room, giving them all a bemused look.
Everyone else shrugged in response.
"We'll go over and tell Jason that there might be a delay." Cole offered after a moment, reaching down to scratch Rosa‘s ear.
"And we'll come with you, right Bridge?" Wes said quickly. He glanced to his side where Garrett Hillard regarded the rest of the room with solemn eyes. "You wanna come with us, Garrett? We can give the girls a chance to finish up."
The boy looked up at him for a moment, then slowly nodded.
"Daijobou?" Katherine asked, frowning down at her son. "You don't have to go if you don't want to."
Garrett nodded again.
Katherine sighed, smiling fondly at him. She leaned over to kiss his hair, ruffling it gently after a moment. "I'll see you later, okay Sweetheart?" She whispered something in his ear, and managed to get the first tiny smile Wes had seen yet out of the kid.
Wes glanced down at Garrett as he and Cole finally managed to escape the girls' suite. From what they told him, Katherine had been raising him to speak more Japanese than English, but he did know enough to tell someone when he didn't understand. Unfortunately, Wes' own grasp of Japanese was painfully limited, and he doubted Cole knew any at all. His contacts within S.P.D. Japan all spoke English first , and he hadn’t exactly been expecting many wedding guests to be passing though Newtech City that didn’t.
He wondered if Garrett had always been this quiet, or if he was just really shy.
The guys suite greeted them all jubilantly, looking up from a game of cards as they lounged around the room. Only Merrick, Adam, and Billy seemed to be completely ready; the other groomsmen were in various states of undress, and a miserable looking Danny was sitting in only his boxers. Jason meanwhile, was laughing as Rocky stripped off his dress shirt to set it down carefully on the chair besides him.
"Are you guys playing strip poker?" Wes demanded incredulously.
Zack shrugged, reclining back in his chair. He appeared to only have lost his jacket and tie so far, although he'd left his vest open for the time being. "Those girls aren't gonna be ready anytime soon, and it doesn't take that long to put on a shirt and jacket."
"Speak for yourself," Danny sighed, making Max snicker beside him. He shot his boyfriend a wounded look.
Zack glanced up and frowned. "Hey Bridge, you feeling okay buddy?"
Bridge glanced up. "Yes," he answered quickly.
Adam sighed, coming over to take him from Wes. "No, you're not," he scolded gently, shifting his son against his side with a slight grunt of effort; Bridge was finally starting to get too big to be held. He rubbed Bridge's back as the boy snuggled against his shoulder. "Why didn't you tell your mom?" he asked.
"M'okay," Bridge mumbled. "An' I don' wanna mess up Aunt Taylor's special day." He paused, wrinkling his nose. "But Aunt Kim's sick, so that might mess it up 'fore I c'n mess it up."
"Hey, you can't mess anything up with something you can't help," Rocky told him sternly as he joined Adam. He wrapped his arms around his husband and son, leaning over Adam's shoulder to rest his forehead against Bridge's. "And Aunt Taylor would have been more upset if you didn't say anything and something bad happened, right?"
Bridge sighed softly, leaning into his parents with a relaxed and content expression. "Mm-hmm," he murmured.
"In one ear and out the other," Zack quipped, watching the trio with a fond expression.
Bridge opened an eye. "I might feel even better if you gave me a hug too, Daddy," he suggested hopefully.
Zack laughed openly, while Rocky and Adam exchanged amused looks. "Is that so?" Zack teased, even as he pushed himself to his feet.
"Uh-huh," Bridge answered, a smile starting to light up his face as Zack approached.
Wes watched the way Zack easily moved into hug Adam and Bridge as well, leaving the boy fully cocooned between the three of them. No matter how long he'd known the Carson family, they never seemed to stop making him take stock of how comfortable they were together, even though he knew Zack and Aisha had been married for just over two years now, and Rocky and Adam had been committed to one another for long than he'd known them. But something about raising a child together had made them in their own way, a tight family unit.
And every time he remembered that, he couldn't help a small flare of jealousy.
"Group hug!" Rocky laughed, lifting turning his head to kiss Adam's cheek.
"Group hug!" Zack echoed, squeezing tightly as Adam oomped in surprise.
The look on Bridge's face was a mix of delight and pure bliss.
Feeling uncomfortable, Wes glanced around. He noticed Cole talking to Jason, who was frowning in concern. Jason started to stand, but Cole caught him with a reassuring hand on his arm and a smile.
"What are you guys all still doing sitting around?" Tommy called from the doorway. "Isn't somebody supposed to be getting married today?"
Wes jumped slightly, turning to frown at the other man. "How's Kimberly?" he asked, concerned.
Tommy's smile dimmed slightly, but he nodded. "She's finally calmed down enough to be reasonable, and we're going to talk some more later. She'll be all right."
"What happened, Bro?" Jason asked worriedly, rising to his feet.
Tommy looked at him for a long moment. His serious expression suddenly broke into a wide grin. "I'm gonna be a father!"
Everyone in the room did a double take, followed by a resounding "What?!"
****
Wes slid into his seat beside Vanessa with an exhausted sigh.
"Tired?" she asked, sounding amused.
"You have no idea," he sighed. "But everything's finally just about ready to start." He turned to glance over at Vanessa and Sky and froze.
Eric Myers was sitting on Sky's other side.
"Eric ... " he murmured before he could stop himself, and he fought back a wince at the pained sound in his voice.
Eric nodded stiffly, looking distinctly uncomfortable. "Wes."
"Sky asked Uncle Eric to sit with us, since he doesn't know anyone else so well," Vanessa explained, and Wes noted the slightly pinched look to her face as she kept her voice cheerful.
He reached out instinctively to squeeze her hand where Sky couldn't see, silently reassuring her that he was all right. He swallowed, forced himself to smile, and looked at Eric again. He would not ruin today for anyone; Sky was going to bored enough as it was. "It's great to see you, Eric. How have you been?"
Eric's eyes narrowed ever-so-slightly as he stared at him, followed by a barely perceptible nod. "Same old, same old."
And even throughout the years they'd been apart, Wes still knew how to read him. Fine. If that's the way you want to do things, I'll play along.
"Nothing new?" Wes persisted, and from the way Vanessa was looking at him he could tell his smile was starting to look strained.
Eric hesitated for a second. "Got a cat," he said finally.
Wes blinked. That was ... far more normal of a response than he'd expected. "That's great," he said honestly. "What's it's name?"
Eric rolled his eyes. "It's a cat; it doesn't need a name."
Vanessa's eyes narrowed slightly and Sky was looking up at Eric in surprise, but Wes saw through him in an instant. "Uh huh," he returned, smiling faintly. "So what's it's name?"
The sudden start of music *should* have freed Eric from being forced to respond; Vanessa had already turned to see who was coming down the aisle. But Wes knew better then to look away from Eric before getting an answer, and now Sky was glancing back and between them with a curious expression.
The final answer was so soft he barely heard it, but he caught it none the less.
"Gracie."
Wes smiled to himself and shifted to watch as Zack and Kimberly, who looked far better now than she had earlier, made their way to the altar.
The ceremony was simple, but beautiful. Each pair walked down the aisle proudly displaying their Ranger Color in their dresses and colored vests and ties, and in some cases, colors. Remembering what Jason had told him about combining their teams, Wes took the time to search for the symbols he knew they each treasured and found them. Every member of the wedding party wore on of the classic-style communicators - some obviously less worn than others, and a single flower somewhere on their person. Each flower was different, and displayed just as proudly. In addition, with the unavoidable exceptions of Zack and Kimberly, Billy and Hayley, and Adam and Tanya, each member of Taylor's team walked with a member of Jason's, from Danny and Katherine all the way to Tommy and Alyssa as the Best Man and Maid of Honor made their way together.
There was one exception to this, and the moment he saw him Wes understood.
A hand tugged gently on his sleeve, and he glanced over to see Sky frowning at him as Vanessa looked puzzled and Eric bemused. "Daddy, why's Uncle Merrick walking by 'imself?" Sky whispered.
Wes leaned in to respond, gently stroking his son's hair. "You see that flower he's holding?"
Sky squinted, and Wes glanced over himself as Merrick solemnly walked with one arm crocked to the air for someone who wasn't there, carrying a single yellow daffodil in his hand. "Yeah ... " Sky answered, frowning in confusion.
"That's for Trini Kwan, the very first Yellow Ranger Earth ever had," he explained softly. "She was one of Jason's teammates, but she died in a car accident a long time ago. But even though she can't walk down the aisle with them, they want to remember that she'll always be part of their team."
"Oh ... " Sky said softly.
Wes couldn't help glancing at Vanessa and Eric to see if either of them understood. Vanessa he wasn't quite sure about; she was frowning as she watched Merrick. But Eric ...
A light had entered Eric's eyes, his mouth set in a grim line. And when Merrick passed them, he inclined his head ever so slightly in the direction of the woman who wasn't there, but should have been.
But then, Wes mused to himself as he did the same, Eric *would* have understood what it meant to honor a person who wasn't there.
Everyone turned to stand for the wedding march, and found themselves treated to quite possibly the sweetest thing that could have happened next to Merrick's walk.
Bridge, wearing a bright smile and an expression that told anyone who knew him how pleased he was with himself, walked arm in arm with Garrett. Between them the two boys clutched Bridge's flower basket, taking turns carefully spreading handfuls of what yellow petals and leaves as they went. It was easy to see that Garrett was a last minute addition; Bridge was the only one of them to wear a small flower pinned to his jacket just like the groomsmen, and Garrett's suit was slightly rumpled and covered in what Wes suspected to be wolf hair. But he kept his gaze focused determinedly ahead as Bridge happily squeezed his hand and threw petals, pausing only once to wave at Sky as they passed them.
Somehow Taylor still managed to shine just as Bridge had claimed she did, in her own way. Between the pale golden gown hugged her curves gracefully and the large white flower pinned to her hair beneath the veil, she was beautiful in a way that wasn't often noticeable. But even as Sergeant Earhart lifted her veil and turned to give her away to Jason, Wes could see the smirk on her face rather than the happy smile a bride usually wore.
After all, fancy, symbolic wedding or not, Taylor was still Taylor.