Public Nuisance

Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.

Summary: Kai tries to flirt with Wes. Eric tries to help…sort of. It goes about as well as you would expect it to. Eric/Kai.

This is a self indulgent, incredibly crackish one shot. I don't know when these guys would ever get together; I just know that I really wanted to write this story.

I repeat, this is not serious, for reals. Eric would never act like this. I just wanted to do something fun.

Enjoy.

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Eric wasn't entirely sure exactly how he came to miming suggestions for topics to Kai; or why no one else was bothered by it, or why the blue ranger was actually attempting to discern Eric's frantic motioning and apply it to his endeavors to flirt with Wes, but somehow here he was, confidently gesturing away while the Kai chatted up the red Time Force ranger. Wes would occasionally cast a glance over his shoulder and Eric would have to snap his arms down and pretend to stare at some of the pictures on the wall until the blond looked away again, but other then that, everything was going swimmingly.

Well…not for Kai, which was actually the goal as Eric's form of "helping" was intended to be as unhelpful as possible, leading to many awkward pauses and confused silences where the Silver Guardian could actually taste victory. It wasn't that he was protective over Wes, he could actually care less about the blond, it was Kai he was interested in. He hadn't gotten a chance to engage in wooing before the blue ranger had taken a liking to Wes, so Eric had put it upon himself to "break" the two of them up before anything serious could happen. Not that they would fall in love in two minutes, Wes wasn't that great, Eric just…didn't want to take any chances.

Besides, if Kai was going to trust him to be a wingman (a rather stupid decision on his part), the least Eric could was is take that trust and use it to his best advantage.

The blue ranger would thank him in the long run.

"What are you doing?"

Eric ignored Carter as he motioned to Wes' red beret, following it with thumbs up. Wes hated to talk about work during his down time.

It was almost too easy.

…wait, he should at least try to play nice. Carter wasn't the worst company.

"Running interference," he murmured, even though the other two rangers were too far away to hear their conversation, it never hurt to be careful.

Eric couldn't see Wes's face, but he knew the forced-smile posture when he saw it. The Silver Guardians had enough public meet-and-greets for the Quantum Ranger to develop a look of practiced patience of his own.

This was going so badly.

"…for Kai?"

"Yes," Eric replied, giving the blue ranger a sympathetic head shake before motioning to Wes' cup. He would allow Kai to interpret that one for himself.

There was an uneasy pause beside him.

"Okay, what exactly is the end goal here?" Carter asked, though something in his voice said he didn't want to know the answer.

Well, maybe Eric didn't want him to know it either. Huh, how you like that? Then nobody would know.

But he did want someone to know his genius, so he told the Lightspeed Ranger anyway.

Damn his pride.

It was simple really.

"Kai will fail, and then I'll offer him a shoulder to cry on, and then he will see how awesome I am, and we will date."

There was another pause.

"…Don't you think he'll catch on?"

Eric thought about it, and shook his head.

"No, he trusts me."

Wes assured Kai he didn't need another drink and the blue ranger gave the blond an annoyed look.

It was wonderful.

"I don't know why."

"What?"

There was a sigh. "Nothing."

Carter watched him as Eric made some more some more vague hand gestures.

Try to figure that one out.

Carter sighed again. "Have you thought about just asking him out?"

Actually he had, but the odds of Kai saying yes when he was so obviously smitten with Wes made Eric's chances pitiful at best.

"He'd say no."

Hence the elaborate plan.

"Are you sure?"

Eric ceased his miming temporarily to glare at the other red ranger. He liked Carter, he really did, he wasn't nearly as annoying as say…Leo, but he really needed to be faster on the uptake.

But Eric was trying to be nice, so he only came off as mildly insulting when he replied, "Yes."

Hence the elaborate plan.

Some guys just didn't get it.

"Why don't you try anyway?"

Eric stopped again mid-action, leaving Kai awkwardly hanging as he turned to give Carter his full attention. Clearly communication wasn't the other ranger's strongest suit.

He just needed to be patient with him.

"He wants Wes," Eric explained, motioning to the two rangers in question. Carter gave him a dubious look and lifted an eyebrow, appearing far too smug for Eric's tastes, and the Quantum Ranger turned to see what made him feel so pleased when he saw that both Kai and Wes were watching them intently, the blond with a bemused look on his face and Kai looking…miffed.

Except instead that anger being aimed at him, it looked like it was aimed at…Carter.

Interesting

Eyes still locked on the other Silver Guardian and company, Eric leaned over and whispered to Carter, "What did you do?"

Carter's stupid, smug face grew stupidly smugger. "Take your attention from him."

Eric blinked, then turned to look at him, then back to Kai, and then back to Carter because…

His smile grew, and out of the corner of his eye he saw Kai silently fuming.

Perhaps he was doing the wrong type of motioning.

He turned back to Kai, pointed to the blue ranger before pointing to himself, smiling when he saw the other ranger's face light up.

Oh, okay. That was much easier.

"You're welcome," Carter whispered before slinking away, but Eric just waved him off, moving forward to intercept his (and not Wes') designated, super-sexy, person of interest.

Though he supposed that Carter was a much better wingman than he was.

But hell, you couldn't win them all.

Well, he could, but he was just awesome like that.

Also, so was Kai.

Just as a side note.

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Endnotes:

To be honest I came up with the summary before I came up with the story, and it just had to be written.

You may assume that they are at some kind of Ranger reunion, if such details will bring you comfort.

Until next time.