Disclaimer: Not mine

Notes: Takes place late in the series, spoilers apply. Written for cutebunny43 for the funhappyprfic community on LiveJournal. Happy Holidays!

Katie had thought she wanted this day to come.

And in many ways she still did. Going back in the past to capture Ransik had gone from a virtual suicide mission to something that would (not might) happen in a few weeks. They'd go home again. She'd see her family again.

Except she had family in this time now, too.

… It was the tiny things she was going to miss about Wes the most. His stupid jokes, his all night movie marathons with Trip, how he kept trying to get Jen to relax (and sometimes succeeded). But of course it couldn't last forever, she reminded herself as she started to put away her brushes and paint. No matter how much they had grown to love it here, at some point the four of them would have to go home. She'd go back to her family, Jen would return to her jab and Lucas would start racing again-- and Trip would go back to Xybria.

... She hadn't even thought about that. But it was only logical. Trip had lived on Xybria all his life before Time Force and of course he'd want to go home after they returned to 3000. Probably forever, too. She knew she'd do the same if she had been away from home for so long.

As if on cue, Trip glanced at her over his work, smiling-- or at least trying to. She didn't need Trip's telepathic abilities to know something was bothering him.

Katie tried to smile back, but it must not have worked, since Trip's face fell and he looked away. She didn't want to lose him, just like she didn't want Wes and Jen to lose each other. But it was looking like the future had other plans for them.

But hadn't she told Trip the future was theirs to make?

Well, maybe it was time to start doing instead of just talking.

"C'mon, Trip." Katie's tone left no room for argument as she grabbed supplies with her left hand, and Trip with her right. "We're going for an ice cream run."

Trip gaped at her. "B-but Katie, Lucas is expecting us--"

Katie kept heading for the door. "And we can do all of that after our ice cream run."

--

"Katie? You haven't even touched your ice cream."

She glanced down at her rapidly melting double scoop of rocky road. Hunh, Trip was right. "Sorry," she said as she helped herself to a spoonful. "I'm the one who coerced you three into coming here, I guess the least I could do is enjoy myself?" Katie gave him an easy grin.

Trip didn't grin back. "Katie, you've been down since work earlier. What's wrong?"

"… I'm fine."

"No, you're not." Trip's brow was furrowed with worry, and Katie felt her gut twist. So much for cheering up her teammate. "Please tell me what's wrong?"

Katie let out a huff of air. "It's stupid."

"First off, I don't think anything you say could ever be stupid, Katie. Second," he continued with a faint twist of his lips, "even if it is, I could use some background noise as I finish my second helping of pistachio with sprinkles."

She reached out for Trip's hand. She's couldn't help it; this was one of those times that she had to touch him, and soon he wouldn't be around to touch. "I'm really going to miss you, Trip."

"Am I going somewhere?"

Maybe she hadn't been clear. "When this is over. You're lea-- going back to Xybria, right?"

Trip shook his head so quickly it looked like his hat was about to topple off for a second. "No, Katie, I-- I'm sorry, that's wrong."

"What do you mean?"

He squeezed her palm. "It's true, I'm from Xybria. But Katie, you and the others are my family." He stared at his ice cream sadly. "I know that the future's still an unknown, but if I can stay with the others… with you… I think that's all I need to be happy."

"Well, then we'll just have to make sure our future turns out that way, won't we?"

Trip smiled madly, and continued to do so as Katie dragged him out of the ice cream store. She had no idea where they were going next, but they would be together, and that was all that mattered.