Inevitably, the Samurai Rangers needed to go home. Mako had invited everyone to stay an extra night in her home, knowing they were likely tired or still sore from their battle against Dayu and Dekker, but the Rangers were needed back at the Shiba House. Ji had called the morning after the fight to tell them Dekker and Dayu had trashed everything and he needed a few hands to help him with the mess.
Saying goodbye was never easy.
Mike looked over his father once more, hating that he had to leave before he was absolutely sure there was nothing wrong with his father's head. His mother would take good care of him, but Mike needed to know for himself. His father hugged him tight, promising his skull was thick enough to take a hit from Dekker.
Emily was saying goodbye to Terran. Serena had already spent the night and day with her son and knew that if she didn't tear herself away now, she would never leave. It was getting late again, so Emily was putting Terran to bed, saying goodbye by giving him a bedtime story and tucking him in. James knew Terran would look for her and for Serena when he woke up, but this needed to be done.
Kevin was up on his feet, and like Mike was checking up on his father one more time before leaving. Both had taken hits but Kevin was more used to it than his father was, and he knew he would bounce back before the former blue Ranger.
Mia finished saying goodbye to her grandmother and wiped away the tears in her eyes before anyone else saw them. She then went to say goodbye to her mother, while Mako set her eyes on Kevin. She had spoken about their engagement with Mia the night before, but she hadn't gotten the chance to talk to Kevin. She pulled him aside.
"There's a rock on my baby girl's finger that was not there when I sent her away."
Kevin gulped. He had heard stories from James of how the older woman had trained him and was really happy he was heading out the door soon. It seemed Mia had not been exaggerating one bit when she talked to him about her grandmother.
"Mrs. Watanabe…"
"Mako," she corrected him, "You're family now, whether I like it or not."
"D-Do you like it?"
"For now, you make my granddaughter happy. If you're anything like your grandfather, then I trust you won't do anything stupid. But break her heart and you're going to learn why I wore the pink spandex. And I'll tell you now, pink has always been able to kick blue's ass. Isn't that right, Patrick?"
"Whatever you say, Mrs. Watanabe," Patrick responded, very unsure of the question, but he knew better than to argue with the former pink Ranger.
She nodded her head and gave Kevin a gentle tap on the cheek. Kevin turned away, looking a little pale. He had no intention of ever hurting Mia, but if all the stories were true, and they seemed more likely now that he had spent time with her, then he was in for a little bit of crazy no matter what.
Mia chuckled as Kevin approached her. She wrapped her arms around his waist, "She's really sweet once she warms up to you."
"I hope so."
"I talked to your mom for the first time," Mia looked up at Kevin, "She seems really nice."
"And she doesn't hide weapons in her pantry."
In the living room, Jack had pulled Serena aside to talk with her privately. He had spent most of his time with Emily, making sure she was okay after the fight, but he really wanted to talk with Serena about a few of the choices she had made: especially giving up Terran.
"Do you remember the day your mother told you she would be leaving to fight in a war?" he asked her. Serena looked to him and shook her head. She had known her whole childhood that her mother would one day disappear. Jack wrapped his arms around her and hugged her warmly, "You blew a gasket. You were only a little girl and the thought of your mother leaving terrified you to no end. During the day, you ignored her, but at night, you would scream until she let you sleep with us in our bed. This lasted for months. You eventually started to talk to her again, after she sat you down and told you it would be a long time before she went anywhere, and you slept in your own bed after a while… but I think you're still scared."
Serena furrowed her brow, "You said you wanted to talk to me about giving up Terran."
Jack nodded, "You're not losing him, Serena," he gestured out to the hallway, where everyone was saying goodbye, "He's got a huge family outside the Shiba House who all want to see him with you. James has even brought Terran up to the farm a few times. Your mother and I are keeping an eye on him. Nothing's going to happen."
"But dad…"
"And nothing's going to happen to your mother or me," Jack promised her, "The Nighlok don't scare me, and you're mother's still got a lot of fight left in her. And as you know, the neighbours…"
"Are friends with Ji, yeah."
"We're safe too. And your sister told me about the new rule…"
"I was worried Dayu would…"
"You're not losing her either."
Serena shook her head, "Dad, you can't promise that. You and mom, and even Terran, maybe, but…"
"The one thing the Nighlok will never take away from us is our family. Worrying about us, letting the fear drive you, you're not helping yourself. The Nighlok thrive when you give them that. When you fight with anger, when you lose yourself in fear and worry, you make them stronger. I'm keeping my eyes on your mother, and Terran when I can. As long as I live, you can know, without a doubt in your mind, that they are happy and they are safe. Your mother would tell you the same the thing."
"But dad…"
"Have fun, Serena. Keep those fears in the back of your mind so you don't lose sight of what's important, but you're still young. Enjoy yourself; go out with your sister and the other Rangers. Be happy with them. That'll hurt the Nighlok more than any battle ever could."
Serena gently nodded her head and her father smiled. He kissed her forehead and then got up to say goodbye to the rest of the Samurai Rangers.
Back in the living room, Mike was finishing with his goodbye to his father when Emily and his mother came back from upstairs. This was the first time the two were meeting. As they approached Mike, he saw his mother had his hands on Emily's shoulders.
"Don't let this one get away," she said, looking him right in the eyes. Mike's jaw dropped.
"My mother's on your side?"
"She's a cute girl, Mike," his mother said, "with a good head on her shoulders. You've done well for yourself."
"I hate to say it," Jayden called from the door, "but we should really go before it gets too dark."
"In other words, Jayden wants to go home. All this lovey-dovey family stuff is making him miss Mentor," Antonio teased and he was nudged by Jayden for it.
"He's right, we should go," Emily said. She hurried over to her father, gave him a kiss on the cheek, and then went to stand by Antonio and Jayden.
Mike saw her race off and turned to his mother, "What did you do?"
"She and I talked. She's a sweet girl," his mother smirked innocently. She pulled him into a hug, and just as he thought, she whispered in his ear, "The cute ones are the ones you need to look out for. Trust me, Mike."
Mike gave her a kiss on the cheek, then said goodbye to his dad and started for the door.
Kevin did the same with his parents.
Serena gave her father one final goodbye hug and then turned to James. She hadn't gotten much chance to talk to him but she wouldn't leave without doing so.
"Have Terran visit my parents more often," she told him. "Make sure someone, a neighbour or something, knows where you are at all times. Give them my number in case…"
"Serena, he'll be fine. He's my son too. I'll take good care of him."
"Not with those noodle arms you won't," Mako shook her head, "You'll be coming here every day for training."
"Sobo…"
"No, Mia, if he wants to care for a little Samurai by himself, he'll need to know how to protect the little Samurai."
"Serena…" James whined, hoping she would excuse him. Serena laughed and shook her head.
"I love that idea. Mia's grandmother will be able to keep her eyes on both of you."
Mia rolled her eyes and gave her grandmother a hug, "Don't kill this one. Serena actually likes him."
"If that fiancé of yours ever steps out of line, I can open up a second spot…"
"He's fine, Sobo," Mia shook her head, "Goodbye."
"Stay safe, princess."
"C'mon, guys," Jayden led them all out the door, "Ji's waiting."
Final goodbyes were made and the Samurai were out the door. Emily the fastest of all. Mike chuckled.
"What did my mother say?"
"I'm not at liberty to say."
"C'mon, Em…"
"She'll know," Emily shook her head, "Why didn't you warn me your mother was super protective?"
"Because I didn't know. Besides, she's got to like you. She said…"
"She likes me," Emily nodded, "but it's complicated."
"You were upstairs for five minutes with her," Antonio laughed, "How…"
"It's complicated."
While the boys tried to get an answer from Emily, Mia turned to Serena.
"We won. Terran's safe and sound."
"Yeah."
"Don't worry about him," Mia wrapped her arm around Serena, giving her a small hug, "When my grandmother promises to take care of something, she takes care of it. And we beat Dekker up pretty bad after your dad shot him. If he is still alive, it'll be a while before he comes back."
"And when he does come back…"
"Serena, you'll kick his ass."
"I say that every time and that still doesn't stop him."
"Terran's safe with all our families now. The little army we assembled isn't breaking off after today and forgetting all about him. He's safe, and you have something else you need to focus on. You're a Ranger now. We need you with us."
Serena smiled, "There's a sale at the mall tomorrow. If we get the house cleaned up in time, wanna go?"
"Are we taking munchkin with us?"
"Do I go anywhere without my sister?"
Mia shook her head, "Some places, I hope. So you're feeling better?"
"Things are good now," Serena answered as she wrapped both arms around Mia, "No sense in worrying. I might as well enjoy the time now."
