After the Picnic

Disclaimer: I make no claim to own Power Rangers or its characters. Saban owns Power Rangers, and I only write this story with love for the characters. Thank you.

A/N: This is what I hope/wish happened after the PRTF/PRWF team-up. I like happy endings. Hope you like.


Last night was the first night that Jen had slept soundly since returning to the future. It didn't matter that Ransik had been locked up, she just couldn't sleep, even though she knew she needed it. Sometimes at night she would cry, though she would never admit that to anyone. Yesterday she and her team had almost gotten killed by Mut-Orgs, and yet last night she had actually felt happy… and safe. She could try to ignore it, but it wouldn't change the fact that she felt safe because she was with Wes, and that she loved him. All that she wanted was to spend more time with him, and today that would come to an end.

She knew that she wouldn't be able to stay. It wasn't that Jen could never break Time Force rules, after all, she did steal the Time Ship to follow Ransik to 2001, but even if she tried to stay in the past, someone would always come back in time to get her. Jen had meant it last night when she told Wes that she could change her destiny too. The real question was how. After the Wild and Time Force Rangers worked together with Ransik, they had managed to defeat the Mut-Orgs. She and the other Rangers from the future were supposed to leave soon, but Katie had managed to convince Jen to let them stay a few more hours for a picnic with the Wild Force Rangers in the Animarium. However, it wasn't as if convincing her had been all that difficult. Staying for the picnic meant at least a few hours to come up with a plan. For now, she could laugh as Cole and Wes tried to have a race. Cole pulled slightly ahead of Wes, but it was a very close race. Jen gave Wes a small kiss on the cheek as a consolation prize, anyway. In response, Wes pulled her close, and Jen just wanted to melt into his arms as they walked back to the rest of the group with Cole and Alyssa. They sat together on the grass chatting with the others, and watched as Erik stole Taylor's book. Those two made a funny pair, but Jen could tell how happy it made Wes to see Erik loosening up with someone. Jen stayed quiet through most of the conversation, scheming on how she could stay in 2002. The only way that Time Force wouldn't come back looking for her would be if she died. At least, they would have to think that she died. She knew that Time Force would try to keep an eye on Wes, but surely they wouldn't be able to see everything since there was a thousand years in between. Wes's personal life wasn't likely to be passed on to Time Force records, at least as long as he wasn't exceptionally public about it, because the people recording history before Time Force wouldn't be aware enough to record it. So Jen would have to fake her own death. Unless…

"What do you think, Jen? Jen?" She looked up at Tripp in surprise, unaware of his question. Wes frowned, and studied her face.

"Hey, are you okay? You don't look so good."

"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied nervously, "just… distracted."

Wes could tell that she was avoiding something, so he moved closer to Jen, and pulled her over so that she was leaning against his chest.

"It's okay," he said quietly, "you can relax now. Let's just enjoy this time, okay?" Wes looked into her eyes for confirmation.

"Okay." Jen breathed out as she relaxed against Wes, and he held her hand. Tripp and Katie shared a look with Danny, and he smiled.

"Where'd Max go?" Cole asked, breaking the moment of silence.

Danny gestured behind him, "He's off trying to impress Nadira."

Tripp grinned and winked, " Lucas is sure taking it well."

Everyone looked back to see Lucas looking at Max jealously, and as Ransik went to stop Max from talking to Nadira, Lucas went and offered Nadira his hand. She gladly took it, and the two of them walked off into the trees with Ransik looking on, disappointed. Lucas and Nadira had made up after returning to the future, after Lucas confessed to Nadira that the poem had been for his race car, and that he had been a slob on purpose so that he wouldn't have to break up with her. No one else really knew what had happened afterward.

For as long as they wanted it to last, the afternoon started to turn into evening. It was time that the Time Force Rangers, minus Wes and Eric, returned to their own time. Wes, Erik and the Wild Force accompanied them back to the new Time Ship. Ransik, Nadira, and the Time Force Rangers began to say their goodbyes, but Jen interrupted.

"Wait!" Everyone looked at her expectantly. Jen addressed Katie, Lucas, Tripp, Nadira, and Ransik. "Please, when you go back, tell them that I died fighting the Mut-Orgs." She bit her lip, and looked at Ransik. "Please."

The others drew a collective sigh of relief. Katie smiled at Jen. "Finally! We were worried that we were going to have to do it without telling you."

Jen looked at her and the rest of her team from the future in confusion, and Tripp explained.

"We planned on making some 'mistakes' when starting the Time Ship, so that it would blow up." He paused as Wes, Jen, Erik, and the Wild Force looked at him like he was crazy.

Lucas sighed, "We were gonna set it so that we would have enough time to run out first."

Katie jumped in, "But Time Force wouldn't know that."

Max stepped forward from the Wild Force.

"You guys don't want to go home?" he asked.

They looked at one another smiling, and Tripp said, "We are home. You guys, Wes, Eric," he looked around at the other Rangers, "and each other. As long as we're together, it doesn't matter what time we're in."

Lucas grinned at Jen, "Now that you're in on it, it'll be a lot easier."

Jen was shocked. She never would have asked her friends to stay, and had never known that they wanted to. But wait…

"What were you going to do if I didn't know? I wouldn't leave the ship," she protested.

Katie gave Jen a sheepish look, "Let's just say that it involved some manhandling."

Tripp clarified, "If we still couldn't get you to leave we were going to knock you out."

"Wow," said Erik, "that was the dumbest plan I've ever heard" He rolled his eyes, "but I'm glad you guys are staying."

"Well, we still have to make it work." Jen pulled away to get started, but Wes caught her arm. She turned, and he took her hands.

"I can't tell you how happy I am that you want to stay, but are you sure? I don't want you to give up your life."

"I'm not. My life can never go back to the way it was before," she said slowly, "and I don't want it to." She tried not to smile, "Besides, I was hoping that there might be a position open for me… on the Silver Guardians?"

Wes grinned, "Always."

"Um," Katie interrupted, "I assume that goes for all of us?"

Wes beamed as he looked from Jen to all of his friends. "Of course!"

The whole group of them laughed, and the Time Force Rangers headed into the ship to put their plan in action.