Bright Skies (Multi - Season Crossover/Power Rangers, prompt #84: Drink, T)
Still upset and depressed, and I should really get started on cleaning the bathroom since no one else bothered to do it and it has to be done *today*. But as I'm not all that keen on trying to kill myself, I was browsing LiveJournal and got into the mood to watch Jungle Fury. Instead, I wrote another chapter for Bright Skies. -Shrugs-
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/: #84: Drink
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, character death
Author's Notes/: This is mostly not at all how I planned for this prompt to go. But it feels finished, and I can’t seem to find anything worth changing about it, so I’m leaving it as is.
"Come on, Wes. It's just alcohol. What's the big deal?" T.J. persisted.
Wes glanced up from his Shirley Temple, raising an eyebrow. "The first time I got drunk, I ended up with Sky. The second time I got drunk, Eric and Vanessa stopped talking to me for a week. I love my son, but I'm not doing that again."
"Don't you trust us to keep you from doing something stupid?" Leo wheedled.
Wes leveled him with a glare. "I trust Andros and Carter to keep me from doing something stupid. I trust T.J. to egg me on, Cole to have no idea what's going on - or at least pretending he doesn't, you to take pictures of it, and Jason to laugh himself sick while it happens."
Jason considered this, then grinned. "True."
"What about me?" Eric asked suspiciously.
Wes leaned over to peck his cheek. "I trust that you'll torture them all for ever allowing it to happen ... *after* it's over."
Shane stared at him. "What did you guys *do* before we joined these things?"
"You don't want to know," Andros informed him.
Beside him, Cole shuddered in agreement.
They hadn't had a Red Ranger Reunion in years - not since Mirloc first appeared. Even after Wes had woken up from his coma, it just hadn't felt right without Conner there. But Grumm was gone, both bases of S.P.D. Earth were under reconstruction, and the farewell party for Cruger and Isinia was over. And somehow in all the excitement, all nine of them still tied to S.P.D. had come to the decision they need a good, stiff drink.
Jason wanted to celebrate Grumm's defeat and Tommy's promotion, and had orchestrated most of it. Tommy claimed it was all due to the fact that his wife had taken his job and he now found himself in charge of a base that was not the same one he'd left. Hunter wanted to forget the fact that he had been forced to use a morpher that wasn't Red, let alone that he had *ever* worn a skirt.
The rest of them had sort of fallen in after that. While the S.P.D. associated Red had been gathering, Rocky put in calls to Leo and Cole, who had come to join them with surprising eagerness. But then, as Cole had said when they'd all greeted one another, "Now that the Earth is safe again, it's time to celebrate old friends." Nick, Mack, and Casey hadn't been able to make it: Nick was working on cleanup at S.P.D. Japan, Mack was celebrating Tyzonn's return and spending some time with Sophie, and Casey had said something about a night in with Theo.
Things had certainly changed over the years, Wes reflected ruefully. They were all old men now, who'd fought their battles and gotten through to the other side. Shane and Cole were the only ones without kids as Carter and Eric had more or less adopted their partners', although Cole liked to call the menagerie of wild animals that flocked around the cabin he shared with Merrick their children. They had lives and families now; they weren't just a group of ambitious young Red Rangers, all out to prove which one of them was the best.
"We need a toast," Jason said suddenly. He lifted his glass. "To Grumm finally getting his, and Tommy getting stuck with all the paperwork."
Tommy glared at him as the rest of the guys laughed appreciatively, raising their glasses to meet his. "To Tommy!" they cheered.
"Thanks, guys. Really," Tommy said sarcastically.
"Anytime, Bro," Jason returned cheerfully, throwing an arm around Tommy's shoulders and laughing as he was he shoved away.
Shane was watching Hunter in amusement as he continued to chug his drink, at last slamming it down on the table and gesturing to the waitress for another. "You might want some water or something, you know," he informed his friend. "Cam's gonna kill us all if you come home stone drunk."
Hunter leveled him with a glare. "Cam," he informed him darkly. "Was one of the jerks who painted the *pink stripe* on my command chair."
Wes snorted his drink, accidentally inhaling it, and coughed as Eric pounded his back. He glanced up with watery eyes when he could breathe again. "Are you serious?" he wheezed.
Hunter gave him another look, and grabbed his new drink off the tray as it was brought to him, immediately chugging that one as well.
"Wasn't Cam the one who painted the green stripe?" Leo asked, eyes sparkling madly.
T.J. chuckled. "No. That was some of the cadets. They were trying to make a point."
"What point was that?" Cole wondered, blinking at them.
Shane snickered into his mug. "That Cam isn't just Hunter's second in command - he's the Co-Commander of S.P.D. Japan."
Hunter humphed in annoyance, but Wes was amused to note that he didn't actively protest.
Someone walked past them to the bar, barely brushing against Andros as they passed, but somehow he still managed to reach out and snag an arm through the heavy coat. "Charlie, what are you doing here?" he demanded.
The figure turned as the rest of them started in surprise, and Charlie scowled down at him "Getting a drink. What's it to you? I'm of age."
Andros sighed, rubbing his head with his free hand. "Sit down, Charlie."
For a moment, it looked like she was going to refuse, but she finally snagged a seat from the next table, spinning it around backward and flopping down with a sigh of her own. "So. Red Ranger thing, huh?" she asked after a moment, waving to the waitress.
"Reunion," Jason informed her. He paused, frowning. "Uh, guys this is Charlie of KO-35, A Squad Red. Charlie this is - "
"Leo Corbett and Cole Evans," she interrupted, nodding to Leo and Cole. "I remember studying about you both in Ranger History. It's an honor." She brightened as she received a drink that she hadn't actually taken the time to order, and Wes wondered how well the bartender knew her.
"Nice to met you," Leo said, sounding amused. "You come here often?"
She shrugged a shoulder. "Lately? Yeah." She hunched forward slightly over the back of the chair, eyes darkening. "Got a lot of things to stop thinking about these days." She chugged her drink without warning, gesturing for another before she'd even set the mug back down.
There was an awkward silence.
"It's been a long year, hasn't it?" Wes said at last, staring down into his glass.
"You have *no* idea," Charlie muttered.
"I still can't believe it's over," Tommy spoke up, shaking his head. "If I hadn't held that card in my hand .... It just doesn't seem real yet."
"We've been through a lot," Jason agreed.
"And a lot's changed," Leo remarked thoughtfully, eyeing them all. "This isn't the same S.P.D. I used to visit anymore."
Shane smiled faintly, but there was a hint of bitterness to it. "That's true enough. We've had to work too hard to survive this year. Not that any of the other fights we've been through haven't been bad, but this one was ... "
"Every one of us was part of it, and we still thought we were going to lose," Eric pointed out. "That makes it more personal." He frowned, and Wes squeezed his thigh beneath the table.
"There were a lot of Rangers involved this year," T.J. frowned into his own mug, thinking. "Just how many S.P.D. Rangers do we have now, anyway?"
There was a pause as they all tried to think.
"Fourteen." Wes said finally. "Counting Nova."
Eric shifted a little at the reminder of the newest Ranger, but didn't say anything.
"Fourteen Power Rangers." Jason shook his head, looking bemused. "And we started out with *five*. Man, you rookies can't keep up."
Tommy elbowed him as more than one person glared. "You ended up with six, you know."
"Well, yeah. But we were still doing all right before you joined." Jason grinned at him. "We just asked because you looked like you needed something better to do with yourself."
Tommy promptly dumped his beer mug over Jason's head.
"Can I get another round over here?" he called to the waitress politely as everyone else laughed. Even Charlie cracked a smile.
Jason gave him a dirty look as he tried to shake off some of the excess drink, but he grinned along with the rest of the table. "Thanks, Bro. I could have done without the shower."
"You deserved it," Tommy humphed, taking his new drink as it arrived and pointedly looking away from his best friend. He yelled as Jason seized him in a tight hug, soaking him as well.
"How did B Squad get so many Rangers, anyway?" Charlie asked, frowning a little. "When we left, they only had five. How'd they end up with nine?"
"Kat made Cruger a morpher, and he became Shadow Ranger," Wes explained. "Then the Omega Ranger came from fifteen years in the future after we received a distress signal saying that S.P.D. was going to fall. He stayed with us because he couldn't get home - he turned out to be an older Sam Thorn. Kat became the Kat Ranger after Birdie gave her a morpher to help stop Mooney. And then Nova showed up looking for Sam while we were defending the base from Krybots."
"Wait, *Kat* is a Ranger?" T.J. demanded. "How did that happen? And Birdie was part of Grumm's forces trying to attack Newtech City - I saw Kim's containment card. Why would he give Kat a morpher?"
Carter shrugged. "Our best guess was that he was trying to prove he was on our side. But the morpher he gave Kat was faulty, so it only lasted for a short period of time. Justin fixed it and gave it back to her as we were preparing the base defense."
"So that's why she was able to control the Delta Command Megazord," Wes murmured. "I wondered."
"I heard Kat's thinking of heading to S.P.D. Command after all, to help out Cruger," Shane added. "And if she goes, that puts us back at ten S.P.D. Rangers."
"She probably will," Hunter spoke up, still glaring into his mug. "She said she didn't like the idea of Cruger trying to rebuild S.P.D. with just him and Isinia."
Eric snorted. "Don't tell Vanessa. She'll plan the going away party."
"Ten Rangers isn't so bad," Cole pointed out. "Now one squad can rest while the other handles the emergency."
Wes paused, frowning as something occurred to him. "I don't think we should treat them as two squads anymore."
Jason looked at him, still trying to squeeze some of the beer from his clothes into an empty glass. "Oh?"
"Why not?" Charlie demanded.
He raised a hand. "Hear me out, Charlie. You're *all* Rangers now, right? All ten of you. B Squad finally reached your level. And if we keep treating you like two separate teams, we're just keeping up the old rivalry. For big emergencies when you need a full team, sure, send a whole squad. But if it's just a basic investigation, why not send whoever fits the situation best? It shouldn't matter the Squad, as long as they can do the job."
"I like it," Tommy said suddenly. He smiled. "Good idea, Wes."
"Sounds like more team building exercises to me," Eric remarked. He took a drink, raising an eyebrow at Wes. "The kids are gonna hate you."
"They haven't yet," Shane pointed out. "Wes pretty much took over B Squad this past year."
"Hey! I did not!" he objected.
Jason gave him a considering look. "Am I going to have to fight you for my squad, Wes?"
"You just might," Eric agreed, covering Wes' protests. "Syd, Bridge, and Sky still adore you, but Z goes to Wes before anyone else. They've gotten used to answering to him."
"Not true!" Wes argued. "Jack talks to Kim when he has an issue."
"That was what, once? Face it, Wes: it's your Squad now."
"It is *not*," he grumbled, stirring his drink. He *really* didn't want this to turn become a problem. Jason had been furious over Cruger taking his Squad; he'd just stepped in to give the kids someone to talk to who was more parent and Ranger than S.P.D. He hadn't taken over the squad. That was ridiculous.
"So tell me more about how they did without us," Tommy spoke up, glancing between Jason and Wes. "I noticed you have a battlizer *and* a Team Power-up."
Shane shrugged. "The Battlizer was for Jack. Dustin and Taylor decided the new Zords needed a Team Power-up to go along with it."
"Two Yellows went for the Team Power-up?" Leo looked amused. "Somehow that doesn't surprise me."
"Who designed that battlizer, anyway?" Jason demanded suddenly. "I mean, the shoulder area is fine, but it looks like - "
"Jason," T.J. interrupted, holding up a hand. "Before you finish that sentence, remember that it's my son who's wearing it."
Jason held up his hands in surrender, and Cole abruptly sat up straighter, raising one hand for silence. His eyes drifted around the room, finally settling on someone in a corner. His brow furrowed for a moment.
"What is it?" Andros asked, looking wary. Ever since the first Red Reunion, when Andros had been forced to 'rescue' Cole, he'd tended to treat the other man like a younger brother.
Cole shook his head. "I'm not sure," he said softly. "When Jason started talking about Jack's battlizer, I sensed a lot of anger and defensiveness from that person."
Wes tried not to groan. "Please let me be wrong," he muttered. He stood up, eyes narrowing on the person huddled over their table. "Cadet Landors!" he bellowed abruptly. "Attention!"
The person jumped, stumbling, and jerked upright. There was a pause, and a groan.
Wes pinched his nose. "Jack, get over here," he ordered.
The teen rose reluctantly from his seat, pushing back the hood on his sweatshirt to reveal a disgruntled look as he made his way to their table as slowly as possible. "I'm not even on duty," he complained. Wes glared at him, and he hastily added "Sir."
"How did you even get in here?" T.J. demanded, snagging a chair from another table and gesturing for his son to sit beside him.
Jack shrugged. "Apparently they don't card Rangers."
"Not that it would have mattered with all the fake I.D.s you've got, right?" Wes gave him a pointed look.
There was a pause, and Jack shrugged. "Nope," he agreed, raising his hand for a drink.
"Soda, please," T.J. told the waitress as she passed. "He's not old enough for alcohol on our planet."
She nodded, and Jack shot him a scandalized look. "I've been drinking for years! What's the difference?"
"The difference is that you're not doing it in front of me," T.J. said flatly, giving his son a look of his own. "And somehow I doubt Danny and Max allowed it either."
"What they can't pin on me doesn't hurt them," Jack grumbled, taking his soda irritably as it arrived.
"How long have you been here?" Carter wanted to know, frowning at him in disapproval.
Jack shrugged. "You guys came in after I did."
Jason considered him for a moment. "So what do you think, then?"
Jack glanced up from his soda. "Which part?"
Jason shrugged back. "Any of it."
Jack sighed, swirling his soda around. "It *has* been a long year, I *don't* feel like Grumm's been defeated yet, there's nothing wrong with how many Rangers we have - and just because they're not here doesn't make Omega, Nova, *or* Shadow not S.P.D. Rangers anymore," The glare he shot them all dared them to disagree, "Kat *should* go with Cruger so he'll have someone to watch his back, combining the Squads seems like the best idea anyone's come up with yet, Wes' team building exercises stink, and there is *nothing wrong* with my battlizer."
"Good memory," Hunter commented. He smirked slightly. "But you forgot one part of the conversation."
Jack sighed again. "No, I didn't." He looked at Jason. "Look, no offense, but I don't know you," he said bluntly. "I mean, Syd and Bridge used to rave about you all the time, and Sky sort of does in his own way, so I'm sure you're a good Drill Sergeant. But the Drill Sergeant *I* know is Wes. And he's been my Drill Sergeant pretty much since I got here. When it wasn't Cruger, we went to him. He's been there for us, and that's the way we work now. I trust him more than just about anybody in S.P.D. - and my squad doesn't count. So if you really want my opinion, Lieutenant Collins already *is* B Squad's Drill Sergeant."
Wes stared at his drink, feeling distinctly uncomfortable and trying not to blush. Jack trusted him? He knew he wouldn't have said it if he didn't mean it - Jack wasn't like that. But ... he trusted him? Really trusted him?
That was probably one of the greatest compliments he'd ever gotten.
"Okay," Jason said at last, breaking the long silence.
Wes looked up at him warily. "Okay?"
Jason shrugged. "Okay," he repeated. He smiled a little. "B Squad is your squad, Wes. I'll take over H Squad." He shrugged again as Wes stared at him. "Hey, I always liked working with beginners. They work harder, and they need more reassurance. Besides, just because it's your squad doesn't mean they're not my nieces and nephews anymore." He raised his glass. "We're good, man. Honest."
Wes hesitated, at last raising his own glass to bump it against Jason's with a small smile of his own. "Thanks."
"So what are you doing here?" Charlie asked Jack, eyeing him over her glass suspiciously.
Jack shrugged a little. "Getting over a broken heart."
Everyone stared at him in surprise. "You and Sky - " Carter began.
"I broke up with him," he interrupted. Something in his eyes seemed lost for a moment, then he shrugged again and took another drink. "It was for the best."
"How do you figure?" Charlie asked, giving him a dark look that abruptly reminded Wes she *had* been Sky's best friend at one point.
Jack let out a long sigh. He glanced up at her. "You know, if it was anybody but you, I'd tell you it was none of your business," he told her. He set his chin against a fist, leaning over the table. "But since Sky told me how close you two used to be, I won't."
There was silence as he seemed to search for what to say. "I can get over Sky," he said at last. "Bridge can't."
She started. "What?"
Another small shrug. "Bridge had a nervous breakdown about ... a month ago maybe. Sky made a comment about him needing to get set up with someone now that Heart's dating Ecliptor, and he started going off about how none of us trust him because we never believe in what he can do. Somewhere in all the words I actually figured out what he was really saying for once - and then I cornered Sky awhile later to prove it. Apparently when Bridge was whispering in his ear, it was to tell him that he's still in love with him."
The stunned silence was broken by Rocky's nod. “Yeah," he agreed quietly. "He won't say anything about it, but we can tell."
"But that doesn't explain why you - "
Jack held up a hand to hold off Eric's argument. "Sky was really freaked out about it," he went on. "Kept thinking it was his fault or something. Which made me realize that Sky still loves Bridge, even though he doesn't think he does. So I've been thinking about it for awhile now. And I realized that they couldn't get over each other for two and a half years. I mean, I get the whole first love thing and all, but with Bridge, I figure it's a little more than that. Bridge isn't shallow enough to cling to Sky just because he was his first boyfriend. Neither’s Sky for that matter. So, I broke up with Sky so he can get back together with Bridge."
"Are you sure that's what Sky wants?" Wes asked after another long pause.
"Whether he wants to admit it or not, Sky still loves Bridge - that's why he's been so upset over finding out Bridge hasn't moved on. And his reasons for breaking up with him in the first place were stupid." He rolled his eyes. "Eventually he'll get over it, figure out that Bridge is still waiting for him and I'm not. So they'll get back together, and I'll find someone else." He shrugged and downed his soda with an abruptness that suggested he wished it was something stronger.
"What about you?" Charlie asked, giving him a look that almost bordered on respect.
Jack shrugged again. "Like I said, I can get over Sky. I love him, but it's not the end of the world for me if we're not together. When I tried to put myself in Bridge's shoes, I realized I couldn't hang on to someone for that long. If it's over, it's over. And as long as they're both happy and we're all still friends, I'll be okay."
Her eyes narrowed. "What's the real reason?"
He shot her an amused glance. "That *is* the real reason. I've been thinking about this for awhile, remember?" He paused as she continued to stare at him and sighed. "I realized I was checking someone else out," he muttered finally. "And if I'm interested in someone else, that means I can *definitely* move on from Sky."
Charlie looked at him for a long moment. "You think too much," she said at last, handing him her mug before T.J. could move to intercept it.
Jack chugged half of it and choked, pushing it away with a grimace. "That's disgusting. What is it?"
"Kerovian beer."
"It's horrible. Keep it away from me."
"Yeah. Sure," she snorted. The moment T.J. shook his head and looked away from them, she handed it back. Jack finished it off without a second thought.
Eric snorted. "That's one way to have a team building exercise," he muttered, trying not to smirk.
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/: #84: Drink
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, character death
Author's Notes/: This is mostly not at all how I planned for this prompt to go. But it feels finished, and I can’t seem to find anything worth changing about it, so I’m leaving it as is.
"Come on, Wes. It's just alcohol. What's the big deal?" T.J. persisted.
Wes glanced up from his Shirley Temple, raising an eyebrow. "The first time I got drunk, I ended up with Sky. The second time I got drunk, Eric and Vanessa stopped talking to me for a week. I love my son, but I'm not doing that again."
"Don't you trust us to keep you from doing something stupid?" Leo wheedled.
Wes leveled him with a glare. "I trust Andros and Carter to keep me from doing something stupid. I trust T.J. to egg me on, Cole to have no idea what's going on - or at least pretending he doesn't, you to take pictures of it, and Jason to laugh himself sick while it happens."
Jason considered this, then grinned. "True."
"What about me?" Eric asked suspiciously.
Wes leaned over to peck his cheek. "I trust that you'll torture them all for ever allowing it to happen ... *after* it's over."
Shane stared at him. "What did you guys *do* before we joined these things?"
"You don't want to know," Andros informed him.
Beside him, Cole shuddered in agreement.
They hadn't had a Red Ranger Reunion in years - not since Mirloc first appeared. Even after Wes had woken up from his coma, it just hadn't felt right without Conner there. But Grumm was gone, both bases of S.P.D. Earth were under reconstruction, and the farewell party for Cruger and Isinia was over. And somehow in all the excitement, all nine of them still tied to S.P.D. had come to the decision they need a good, stiff drink.
Jason wanted to celebrate Grumm's defeat and Tommy's promotion, and had orchestrated most of it. Tommy claimed it was all due to the fact that his wife had taken his job and he now found himself in charge of a base that was not the same one he'd left. Hunter wanted to forget the fact that he had been forced to use a morpher that wasn't Red, let alone that he had *ever* worn a skirt.
The rest of them had sort of fallen in after that. While the S.P.D. associated Red had been gathering, Rocky put in calls to Leo and Cole, who had come to join them with surprising eagerness. But then, as Cole had said when they'd all greeted one another, "Now that the Earth is safe again, it's time to celebrate old friends." Nick, Mack, and Casey hadn't been able to make it: Nick was working on cleanup at S.P.D. Japan, Mack was celebrating Tyzonn's return and spending some time with Sophie, and Casey had said something about a night in with Theo.
Things had certainly changed over the years, Wes reflected ruefully. They were all old men now, who'd fought their battles and gotten through to the other side. Shane and Cole were the only ones without kids as Carter and Eric had more or less adopted their partners', although Cole liked to call the menagerie of wild animals that flocked around the cabin he shared with Merrick their children. They had lives and families now; they weren't just a group of ambitious young Red Rangers, all out to prove which one of them was the best.
"We need a toast," Jason said suddenly. He lifted his glass. "To Grumm finally getting his, and Tommy getting stuck with all the paperwork."
Tommy glared at him as the rest of the guys laughed appreciatively, raising their glasses to meet his. "To Tommy!" they cheered.
"Thanks, guys. Really," Tommy said sarcastically.
"Anytime, Bro," Jason returned cheerfully, throwing an arm around Tommy's shoulders and laughing as he was he shoved away.
Shane was watching Hunter in amusement as he continued to chug his drink, at last slamming it down on the table and gesturing to the waitress for another. "You might want some water or something, you know," he informed his friend. "Cam's gonna kill us all if you come home stone drunk."
Hunter leveled him with a glare. "Cam," he informed him darkly. "Was one of the jerks who painted the *pink stripe* on my command chair."
Wes snorted his drink, accidentally inhaling it, and coughed as Eric pounded his back. He glanced up with watery eyes when he could breathe again. "Are you serious?" he wheezed.
Hunter gave him another look, and grabbed his new drink off the tray as it was brought to him, immediately chugging that one as well.
"Wasn't Cam the one who painted the green stripe?" Leo asked, eyes sparkling madly.
T.J. chuckled. "No. That was some of the cadets. They were trying to make a point."
"What point was that?" Cole wondered, blinking at them.
Shane snickered into his mug. "That Cam isn't just Hunter's second in command - he's the Co-Commander of S.P.D. Japan."
Hunter humphed in annoyance, but Wes was amused to note that he didn't actively protest.
Someone walked past them to the bar, barely brushing against Andros as they passed, but somehow he still managed to reach out and snag an arm through the heavy coat. "Charlie, what are you doing here?" he demanded.
The figure turned as the rest of them started in surprise, and Charlie scowled down at him "Getting a drink. What's it to you? I'm of age."
Andros sighed, rubbing his head with his free hand. "Sit down, Charlie."
For a moment, it looked like she was going to refuse, but she finally snagged a seat from the next table, spinning it around backward and flopping down with a sigh of her own. "So. Red Ranger thing, huh?" she asked after a moment, waving to the waitress.
"Reunion," Jason informed her. He paused, frowning. "Uh, guys this is Charlie of KO-35, A Squad Red. Charlie this is - "
"Leo Corbett and Cole Evans," she interrupted, nodding to Leo and Cole. "I remember studying about you both in Ranger History. It's an honor." She brightened as she received a drink that she hadn't actually taken the time to order, and Wes wondered how well the bartender knew her.
"Nice to met you," Leo said, sounding amused. "You come here often?"
She shrugged a shoulder. "Lately? Yeah." She hunched forward slightly over the back of the chair, eyes darkening. "Got a lot of things to stop thinking about these days." She chugged her drink without warning, gesturing for another before she'd even set the mug back down.
There was an awkward silence.
"It's been a long year, hasn't it?" Wes said at last, staring down into his glass.
"You have *no* idea," Charlie muttered.
"I still can't believe it's over," Tommy spoke up, shaking his head. "If I hadn't held that card in my hand .... It just doesn't seem real yet."
"We've been through a lot," Jason agreed.
"And a lot's changed," Leo remarked thoughtfully, eyeing them all. "This isn't the same S.P.D. I used to visit anymore."
Shane smiled faintly, but there was a hint of bitterness to it. "That's true enough. We've had to work too hard to survive this year. Not that any of the other fights we've been through haven't been bad, but this one was ... "
"Every one of us was part of it, and we still thought we were going to lose," Eric pointed out. "That makes it more personal." He frowned, and Wes squeezed his thigh beneath the table.
"There were a lot of Rangers involved this year," T.J. frowned into his own mug, thinking. "Just how many S.P.D. Rangers do we have now, anyway?"
There was a pause as they all tried to think.
"Fourteen." Wes said finally. "Counting Nova."
Eric shifted a little at the reminder of the newest Ranger, but didn't say anything.
"Fourteen Power Rangers." Jason shook his head, looking bemused. "And we started out with *five*. Man, you rookies can't keep up."
Tommy elbowed him as more than one person glared. "You ended up with six, you know."
"Well, yeah. But we were still doing all right before you joined." Jason grinned at him. "We just asked because you looked like you needed something better to do with yourself."
Tommy promptly dumped his beer mug over Jason's head.
"Can I get another round over here?" he called to the waitress politely as everyone else laughed. Even Charlie cracked a smile.
Jason gave him a dirty look as he tried to shake off some of the excess drink, but he grinned along with the rest of the table. "Thanks, Bro. I could have done without the shower."
"You deserved it," Tommy humphed, taking his new drink as it arrived and pointedly looking away from his best friend. He yelled as Jason seized him in a tight hug, soaking him as well.
"How did B Squad get so many Rangers, anyway?" Charlie asked, frowning a little. "When we left, they only had five. How'd they end up with nine?"
"Kat made Cruger a morpher, and he became Shadow Ranger," Wes explained. "Then the Omega Ranger came from fifteen years in the future after we received a distress signal saying that S.P.D. was going to fall. He stayed with us because he couldn't get home - he turned out to be an older Sam Thorn. Kat became the Kat Ranger after Birdie gave her a morpher to help stop Mooney. And then Nova showed up looking for Sam while we were defending the base from Krybots."
"Wait, *Kat* is a Ranger?" T.J. demanded. "How did that happen? And Birdie was part of Grumm's forces trying to attack Newtech City - I saw Kim's containment card. Why would he give Kat a morpher?"
Carter shrugged. "Our best guess was that he was trying to prove he was on our side. But the morpher he gave Kat was faulty, so it only lasted for a short period of time. Justin fixed it and gave it back to her as we were preparing the base defense."
"So that's why she was able to control the Delta Command Megazord," Wes murmured. "I wondered."
"I heard Kat's thinking of heading to S.P.D. Command after all, to help out Cruger," Shane added. "And if she goes, that puts us back at ten S.P.D. Rangers."
"She probably will," Hunter spoke up, still glaring into his mug. "She said she didn't like the idea of Cruger trying to rebuild S.P.D. with just him and Isinia."
Eric snorted. "Don't tell Vanessa. She'll plan the going away party."
"Ten Rangers isn't so bad," Cole pointed out. "Now one squad can rest while the other handles the emergency."
Wes paused, frowning as something occurred to him. "I don't think we should treat them as two squads anymore."
Jason looked at him, still trying to squeeze some of the beer from his clothes into an empty glass. "Oh?"
"Why not?" Charlie demanded.
He raised a hand. "Hear me out, Charlie. You're *all* Rangers now, right? All ten of you. B Squad finally reached your level. And if we keep treating you like two separate teams, we're just keeping up the old rivalry. For big emergencies when you need a full team, sure, send a whole squad. But if it's just a basic investigation, why not send whoever fits the situation best? It shouldn't matter the Squad, as long as they can do the job."
"I like it," Tommy said suddenly. He smiled. "Good idea, Wes."
"Sounds like more team building exercises to me," Eric remarked. He took a drink, raising an eyebrow at Wes. "The kids are gonna hate you."
"They haven't yet," Shane pointed out. "Wes pretty much took over B Squad this past year."
"Hey! I did not!" he objected.
Jason gave him a considering look. "Am I going to have to fight you for my squad, Wes?"
"You just might," Eric agreed, covering Wes' protests. "Syd, Bridge, and Sky still adore you, but Z goes to Wes before anyone else. They've gotten used to answering to him."
"Not true!" Wes argued. "Jack talks to Kim when he has an issue."
"That was what, once? Face it, Wes: it's your Squad now."
"It is *not*," he grumbled, stirring his drink. He *really* didn't want this to turn become a problem. Jason had been furious over Cruger taking his Squad; he'd just stepped in to give the kids someone to talk to who was more parent and Ranger than S.P.D. He hadn't taken over the squad. That was ridiculous.
"So tell me more about how they did without us," Tommy spoke up, glancing between Jason and Wes. "I noticed you have a battlizer *and* a Team Power-up."
Shane shrugged. "The Battlizer was for Jack. Dustin and Taylor decided the new Zords needed a Team Power-up to go along with it."
"Two Yellows went for the Team Power-up?" Leo looked amused. "Somehow that doesn't surprise me."
"Who designed that battlizer, anyway?" Jason demanded suddenly. "I mean, the shoulder area is fine, but it looks like - "
"Jason," T.J. interrupted, holding up a hand. "Before you finish that sentence, remember that it's my son who's wearing it."
Jason held up his hands in surrender, and Cole abruptly sat up straighter, raising one hand for silence. His eyes drifted around the room, finally settling on someone in a corner. His brow furrowed for a moment.
"What is it?" Andros asked, looking wary. Ever since the first Red Reunion, when Andros had been forced to 'rescue' Cole, he'd tended to treat the other man like a younger brother.
Cole shook his head. "I'm not sure," he said softly. "When Jason started talking about Jack's battlizer, I sensed a lot of anger and defensiveness from that person."
Wes tried not to groan. "Please let me be wrong," he muttered. He stood up, eyes narrowing on the person huddled over their table. "Cadet Landors!" he bellowed abruptly. "Attention!"
The person jumped, stumbling, and jerked upright. There was a pause, and a groan.
Wes pinched his nose. "Jack, get over here," he ordered.
The teen rose reluctantly from his seat, pushing back the hood on his sweatshirt to reveal a disgruntled look as he made his way to their table as slowly as possible. "I'm not even on duty," he complained. Wes glared at him, and he hastily added "Sir."
"How did you even get in here?" T.J. demanded, snagging a chair from another table and gesturing for his son to sit beside him.
Jack shrugged. "Apparently they don't card Rangers."
"Not that it would have mattered with all the fake I.D.s you've got, right?" Wes gave him a pointed look.
There was a pause, and Jack shrugged. "Nope," he agreed, raising his hand for a drink.
"Soda, please," T.J. told the waitress as she passed. "He's not old enough for alcohol on our planet."
She nodded, and Jack shot him a scandalized look. "I've been drinking for years! What's the difference?"
"The difference is that you're not doing it in front of me," T.J. said flatly, giving his son a look of his own. "And somehow I doubt Danny and Max allowed it either."
"What they can't pin on me doesn't hurt them," Jack grumbled, taking his soda irritably as it arrived.
"How long have you been here?" Carter wanted to know, frowning at him in disapproval.
Jack shrugged. "You guys came in after I did."
Jason considered him for a moment. "So what do you think, then?"
Jack glanced up from his soda. "Which part?"
Jason shrugged back. "Any of it."
Jack sighed, swirling his soda around. "It *has* been a long year, I *don't* feel like Grumm's been defeated yet, there's nothing wrong with how many Rangers we have - and just because they're not here doesn't make Omega, Nova, *or* Shadow not S.P.D. Rangers anymore," The glare he shot them all dared them to disagree, "Kat *should* go with Cruger so he'll have someone to watch his back, combining the Squads seems like the best idea anyone's come up with yet, Wes' team building exercises stink, and there is *nothing wrong* with my battlizer."
"Good memory," Hunter commented. He smirked slightly. "But you forgot one part of the conversation."
Jack sighed again. "No, I didn't." He looked at Jason. "Look, no offense, but I don't know you," he said bluntly. "I mean, Syd and Bridge used to rave about you all the time, and Sky sort of does in his own way, so I'm sure you're a good Drill Sergeant. But the Drill Sergeant *I* know is Wes. And he's been my Drill Sergeant pretty much since I got here. When it wasn't Cruger, we went to him. He's been there for us, and that's the way we work now. I trust him more than just about anybody in S.P.D. - and my squad doesn't count. So if you really want my opinion, Lieutenant Collins already *is* B Squad's Drill Sergeant."
Wes stared at his drink, feeling distinctly uncomfortable and trying not to blush. Jack trusted him? He knew he wouldn't have said it if he didn't mean it - Jack wasn't like that. But ... he trusted him? Really trusted him?
That was probably one of the greatest compliments he'd ever gotten.
"Okay," Jason said at last, breaking the long silence.
Wes looked up at him warily. "Okay?"
Jason shrugged. "Okay," he repeated. He smiled a little. "B Squad is your squad, Wes. I'll take over H Squad." He shrugged again as Wes stared at him. "Hey, I always liked working with beginners. They work harder, and they need more reassurance. Besides, just because it's your squad doesn't mean they're not my nieces and nephews anymore." He raised his glass. "We're good, man. Honest."
Wes hesitated, at last raising his own glass to bump it against Jason's with a small smile of his own. "Thanks."
"So what are you doing here?" Charlie asked Jack, eyeing him over her glass suspiciously.
Jack shrugged a little. "Getting over a broken heart."
Everyone stared at him in surprise. "You and Sky - " Carter began.
"I broke up with him," he interrupted. Something in his eyes seemed lost for a moment, then he shrugged again and took another drink. "It was for the best."
"How do you figure?" Charlie asked, giving him a dark look that abruptly reminded Wes she *had* been Sky's best friend at one point.
Jack let out a long sigh. He glanced up at her. "You know, if it was anybody but you, I'd tell you it was none of your business," he told her. He set his chin against a fist, leaning over the table. "But since Sky told me how close you two used to be, I won't."
There was silence as he seemed to search for what to say. "I can get over Sky," he said at last. "Bridge can't."
She started. "What?"
Another small shrug. "Bridge had a nervous breakdown about ... a month ago maybe. Sky made a comment about him needing to get set up with someone now that Heart's dating Ecliptor, and he started going off about how none of us trust him because we never believe in what he can do. Somewhere in all the words I actually figured out what he was really saying for once - and then I cornered Sky awhile later to prove it. Apparently when Bridge was whispering in his ear, it was to tell him that he's still in love with him."
The stunned silence was broken by Rocky's nod. “Yeah," he agreed quietly. "He won't say anything about it, but we can tell."
"But that doesn't explain why you - "
Jack held up a hand to hold off Eric's argument. "Sky was really freaked out about it," he went on. "Kept thinking it was his fault or something. Which made me realize that Sky still loves Bridge, even though he doesn't think he does. So I've been thinking about it for awhile now. And I realized that they couldn't get over each other for two and a half years. I mean, I get the whole first love thing and all, but with Bridge, I figure it's a little more than that. Bridge isn't shallow enough to cling to Sky just because he was his first boyfriend. Neither’s Sky for that matter. So, I broke up with Sky so he can get back together with Bridge."
"Are you sure that's what Sky wants?" Wes asked after another long pause.
"Whether he wants to admit it or not, Sky still loves Bridge - that's why he's been so upset over finding out Bridge hasn't moved on. And his reasons for breaking up with him in the first place were stupid." He rolled his eyes. "Eventually he'll get over it, figure out that Bridge is still waiting for him and I'm not. So they'll get back together, and I'll find someone else." He shrugged and downed his soda with an abruptness that suggested he wished it was something stronger.
"What about you?" Charlie asked, giving him a look that almost bordered on respect.
Jack shrugged again. "Like I said, I can get over Sky. I love him, but it's not the end of the world for me if we're not together. When I tried to put myself in Bridge's shoes, I realized I couldn't hang on to someone for that long. If it's over, it's over. And as long as they're both happy and we're all still friends, I'll be okay."
Her eyes narrowed. "What's the real reason?"
He shot her an amused glance. "That *is* the real reason. I've been thinking about this for awhile, remember?" He paused as she continued to stare at him and sighed. "I realized I was checking someone else out," he muttered finally. "And if I'm interested in someone else, that means I can *definitely* move on from Sky."
Charlie looked at him for a long moment. "You think too much," she said at last, handing him her mug before T.J. could move to intercept it.
Jack chugged half of it and choked, pushing it away with a grimace. "That's disgusting. What is it?"
"Kerovian beer."
"It's horrible. Keep it away from me."
"Yeah. Sure," she snorted. The moment T.J. shook his head and looked away from them, she handed it back. Jack finished it off without a second thought.
Eric snorted. "That's one way to have a team building exercise," he muttered, trying not to smirk.