Chapter 11: Diplomatic Weddings

Ethan and Conner stood up straight as Tommy walked by them, standing at attention as they often did when their mentor was giving them a lecture like this. Of course, it wasn't necessarily out of respect as much as they were just being obnoxious, but still. "Alright, what are you two not going to do?" He instructed.

"We are not going to insult any of the dignitaries no matter how big of an ass they are," Conner answered. "We are not going to use our powers on them. We're not going to throw things at them. We aren't going to use slang when greeting them. We're not going to tell them that they should all go to hell for making us do this!"

Tommy glanced over at Ethan. "Your primary job?"

"Let him greet them and then keep Conner away from everyone," Ethan repeated, grinning his head off. Conner had been complaining all week which was similar to his primary mentor's rants and ravings. Kim, however, was Tommy's problem. Conner was Ethan and Kira's.

"Good. Make sure you do your ties properly," Tommy finished which caused both of the younger men to roll their eyes at their mentor. Jason, Zack, and Billy shook their heads and sighed, which Dante promptly imitated. Rocky and Adam were coming by later than them, fortunately since the dressing room was so small. Of course, Ethan and Conner were insistent that it was less of a politeness toward the other men and more a way to stay away from the arriving diplomats.

"Relax, Tommy," Zack said, leaning back in his chair calmly. He'd been ready first and had spent the rest of the time relaxing. He had a cheeky grin on his face, to his friend's annoyance as well. "It'll be fine. We're going to have other Rangers to help out."

Tommy gave him a look. "Have you ever met half of them, Zack? We had to call the Time Force Rangers and talk them into coming back to keep an eye on Eric. For the good of the future, or whatever bull Wes convinced them with. So, if we're lucky, that'll mean that Trip, Katie, and Lucas will be doing it since Jen and Wes will be 'reconnecting'."

"Lucas is bringing Nadira," Jason mentioned and Tommy nearly growled.

"Trip and Katie will be doing it. Unless they've finally started dating!" Tommy snapped and Zack snickered. Jason shot him a look and turned back to his best friend, trying to be soothing at the moment.

"They have, but they're dedicated to their job. None of them, not even Wes and Jen, are going to slack off," Jason answered. "Besides, Taylor will keep an eye on him. She just has to worry about Cole too."

"Let Red do it," Conner joked. "Cole won't move through the ceremony."

Billy gently smacked Conner upside the head. "Do not give him ideas."

"Seriously, Dr. O," Conner assured him, plastering as much of a reassuring look on his face as he possibly could. "Seth and Ben promised to make sure nothing evil got in and Jera with Tara are acting as semi-ushers. They'll make sure that anyone who starts anything has to leave until they calm down. We prepared for this."

"You're calm," Tommy said and Ethan rolled his eyes.

"Once again, our dorm room is trashed," he answered. "Our neighbors are starting to ask questions."

"They'll get over it," Conner assured him before turning back to his mentor. "So, Doctor O, you ready for this?"

Tommy nodded and then sighed. "This is supposed to be the happiest day of my life. So why do I have such a bad feeling about the whole thing?"

Jason patted his back. "Bro, it's you and Kim. You two attract trouble. Just remember that you're already officially married and you're doing this for the other Rangers and the good of Earth. You already had the happiest day thing."

"So, it's okay that I feel like this is one great big annoyance?" Tommy asked and Conner grinned.

"Dude, I was with Kim earlier," he reminded his mentor. "Other than seeing the other Rangers, she's not happy. This was supposed to be a fun wedding."

"Things change and don't call me 'dude'," Tommy grumbled and finished getting ready. "There. Now, best behavior. Zack, that means you! I can't have my Economic Advisor running amok."

"You got it, your Kingship," Zack joked. At Tommy's look, he just grinned. Tommy nodded once to Jason who smacked Zack upside the head this time. Zack turned to him. "Jason…"

"Military advisor," Jason reminded him. "Perk."

"How come he gets a perk?" Zack complained. Tommy rolled his eyes.

"Guys," he pleaded. "I'm not asking for much. I just want a wedding that is going to turn into an intergalactic war. That's it."

"What if it's a small war?" Conner asked and Tommy glared at him. "Shutting up now."

Kat entered back into the dressing room, her long pink dress running across the floor as she quickly sat back down to relax for a minute. Kim glanced over at her and gave a quick smile. "How is it out there?"

"Bad," she answered. "But we're prepared. Cassie, Ashley, Kendrix, and Maya are on Red patrol. I still don't know how they would manage to cause problems, but it never hurts to be prepared. Time Force promised to keep an eye on things with Wild Force to make sure no one causes any incidents. Personally, I think it's because various members of those two teams might be the group causing trouble which is why they volunteered. There is absolutely no way they could set up karaoke this time and the menu is without both chicken and fish with a definite place for groups to get vegetarian only without feeling they didn't get as much to eat. Rocky told me that Tommy is still in the dressing room and has no plans to run off. Ernie was able to come this time, so we needn't worry about Hayley having to do the catering."

"I still can't believe he knew," Kim muttered and Kat laughed.

"I still can't believe we don't know he knew," she said in response. "Face it, Kim, we weren't exactly as secretive around him and he let us get away with a lot."

Kim sighed, but nodded. "I suppose."

Kat glanced over at the other girls. "So, how's it going with Trin…"

"It won't fit!" Trini screeched. The other girls whirled around to find Trini half in her dress, tears falling down her face. Kira, how had been helping, looked sympathetically over at Kim and shrugged, not sure what to do.

"Trini, calm down," Kim said soothingly. "We'll get you in it."

"I'm a blimp," she mourned and Neen looked over.

"Aunt Trini," she began, not noticing how the rest of her aunts and surrogate sister were heading toward her slowly to shush her. "You are not full of hot air and in the sky."

Everyone paused at that, even Trini as she looked at Neen's serious face. "But I'm huge!" She whimpered.

"No. You are bigger in the tummy, but that is where the baby is," Neen said, causing Trini to both laugh and cry. Poor Neen just felt confused about the whole thing. Kira finally caught up with her and pulled her aside.

"Neen, haven't you ever been around a pregnant woman before?" She asked and Neen nodded. "Then you should know better."

"Why?" She asked and Kira sighed.

"Because women get emotional when they're pregnant and cry more," she explained and the child looked confused. Kira quickly caught on and sighed. "You've only been around pregnant Aquitians, haven't you?"

"Aff… yeah," she answered.

"How do they get?" Kira asked.

"They laugh more and act childish," Neen answered. "They also hiccup bubbles."

"Hiccup bubbles?" Kira asked, not sure if she could believe that until Neen nodded solemnly. "Okay. Well, humans get emotional so they go from happy, to sad, to anger very quickly and they throw up instead of hiccupping."

Neen looked a little disgusted by that but then nodded just as solemnly as before in understanding. "Uncle Tideus said he was surprised that there was a species left after Papa talked to him about babies."

Kira laughed a bit as, from what little communication she had with the yellow Aquitian, it did seem to be something he would mutter to a considered family member. She took Neen's hand and walked the girl back to Trini, who was now in her Matron of Honor dress, thanks to the other girls and safety pins, and looking much happier. Hayley headed over, wearing the blue dress that Kim had promised her, and finished putting the flowers in Trini's hair. Kim had finished getting ready fifteen minutes before. The bride smiled as she looked at them. "There. That looks much better," she assured them. "Everyone looks how they're supposed to. Unlike last time."

"Still, that was clever," Hayley mentioned with a smile. "Green for Trini and purple for the rest of us. That way, no one got their color."

"I had to wear white, Hayley," Kim said. "And Tommy nearly had a hissy fit for having to wear a black tux. He's much happier this time."

"We all are," Aisha assured her. "And Trini's dress really stands out."

Kim nodded as Trini's dress was just a little fancier than the others. Kira had asked if she had to do anything else due to the ambassadors thinking she was an heiress and Kim insisted she didn't. After all, they were taking the name nothing else.

"We're not happy about it anyway, Kira. I'm not about to change my look to make some snotty aliens happy," Kim snapped.

"Okay. What if they say something?" Kira asked, sounding worried. Kim grinned at that.

"Tell them to take it up with the Advisor of External Affairs," Kim instructed.

"Zack's the Economic Advisor, Jason's the Military Advisor, Billy's the Ambassador, and Trini's the Diplomatic Advisor. Who's the Advisor of External Affairs?" Kira asked, hoping she hadn't forgotten something as Kim's grin got larger.

"The next Ranger to piss me off," she answered. Kira had a sneaking suspicion that by the end of the wedding, every Ranger was going to be the Advisor of something or another.

All three teens had been told not to try to try to convince the dignitaries that others were the heirs and not them. When she'd noticed that Conner had snapped his fingers in dismay, Kira knew that Seth had been rescued from a situation he hadn't yet known about. Kim stepped forth and looked at her friends. "Alright. It's one day. Just one day. I know we give the guys a hard time about things, but let's face it. Some of us are just as bad as they are with our tempers. So, annoying as they get, just try to grin and bear it. Other than that, let's have a wedding!"

There was a resounding lack of energetic cheers as they all muttered and headed out the door. Kim sighed and followed. She wasn't that excited either.

Tommy was barely out of the room, heading toward the stage when he was nearly ran over by the Triforian and two other species he didn't even recognize. For his part, Trey did look apologetic which told Tommy that the prince had said something or another that had angered the two other diplomats. "What's the meaning of this?!" One of them, which looked to be reptilian, demanded. Tommy glanced over at Trey who looked even more embarrassed.

"Uh… it's a wedding?" Tommy guessed, not sure what they wanted him to say. He knew they weren't serving alligator and he couldn't think of anything that looked like it was made from reptiles unless he was upset about the raptors and if that was the case, they could deal. The raptors were family and besides, Kim would never let him hear the end of it if he ushered the raptors out.

"I explained how the wedding was going to work," Trey explained carefully. That made sense considering that, similar to the Aquitians, he'd gotten a video of Jason and Trini's wedding. He'd been invited, but he'd been too busy at the time.

"How dare you have a Triforian wedding!" The reptilian snapped. Tommy held up his hands.

"Whoa. We're not having a Triforian wedding. We're having a human wedding. Look, I'm sure they're similar but…" Tommy began, but he was cut off.

"Similar! Identical!" The reptile's companion, a woman with plant-like features retorted. Tommy's fist began to clench. He really didn't want to deal with this right now and he was supposed to get getting to the end of the aisle so Kim could come down and they could marry like sensible Rangers. Before he could say anything, he heard Ethan's voice instead though he didn't understand a word he was saying. The younger man had rushed over and was speaking directly to the reptitlian male who was nodded. After a minute, Ethan switched into another language as he spoke the woman and both dignitaries calmed down and spoke back to him. By the end of it, even Trey looked calmer as the duo left. Tommy turned on Ethan.

"I know you can speak Triforian and Aquitian pretty well, but since when you know how to speak other languages?" Tommy demanded and Ethan grinned.

"Since I overheard the argument and remembered that we can show them various human customs on the internet. They'll look later if they care. And since Cestro was telepathetically telling me what to say," Ethan answered. Cestro nodded once from where he was before turning back around. Tommy relaxed.

"Good. Let's get up there," he said and Ethan nodded as they headed toward the door. Conner had one hand on Dante and the other hand ran through his hair to make sure it looked right. Jason and Zack were quietly betting on which species would interrupt the vows with Rocky and Adam throwing in various suggestions. Billy was standing apart from them, looking less than amused. Jason glanced up and nodded to Tommy.

"Ready?" He asked as Tommy glanced over his white tuxedo to make sure that it was still clean. He nodded back and they headed down the aisle. As the men went down first, Conner made sure that Dante wasn't distracted too badly as he walked. The last thing they wanted was for him to lose the rings. To his surprise, Dante stayed at a good pace though he was greeting every row as he walked by them. Conner tried not to snicker when some of the dignitaries looked confused to what the boy was saying. One of them, a slightly furred, darker, older woman with leathery wings that went from her arm to her side like a bat made sure to catch him when he slipped trying to look back at one of the other dignitaries that had answered him. She set him upright and smiled, patting his head and handing him the ring that had slipped off the pillow when he'd tripped. Conner quickly murmured a thank you to her before hurrying Dante up to the front. He'd be more polite about it later.

Captain Mitchell nodded to each of them as he was presiding over the ceremony as they had wanted one of the former mentors to do it and he seemed to be the best choice. They waited and glanced at the door as the bridesmaids came in next. Those with one of them as a girlfriend looked on approvingly. Ethan looked a little sullen, but a small nudge and grin from Zack made him feel better. Glancing at Adam and Rocky also reminded him he wasn't alone.

Trini took her time headed down the aisle, last of the bridesmaids, to which no one said a word and finally the wedding march started. Neen proudly walked down the aisle carrying her basket and making sure not to go to fast. Kimberly followed as Mercer led her down the aisle acting as father of the bride for the ceremony. They realized they were slowing down further as Neen began handing some of the petals to dignitaries and set others gently on the floor. After a minute, Mercer tapped the girl lightly on the shoulder and whispered something to her which had Neen running down the aisle, throwing petals left and right as she went. Kim turned to Mercer.

"What did you say to her?" She whispered and he chuckled.

"I reminded her that the sooner we finished, the sooner we got cake," he answered and Kim tried not to laugh too loudly. He motioned to the front. "We're almost there."

"Thanks, Mercer. I really appreciate this," she told him and he smiled.

"It's my pleasure, Ms. Hart," he assured her. He let go of her and took his seat next to Elsa who was grinning. Unlike the other wedding, there were no bride and groom's sides. Instead, there was a Ranger side and a dignitary side which suited the wedding much better.

Captain Mitchell smiled at them briefly before getting into the heart of the matter. He continued loudly as Tommy and Kim stayed close and quietly spoke. Considering they'd heard it before, and as they were technically already married, they really didn't see a problem as it had been timed before. This part would last five to seven minutes before they moved on to the vows, then the rings, then the kiss.

"Did you see the sign?" Kim asked softly and Tommy tried not to laugh.

"I'm still trying to figure out how Zack could write 'Say anything and I'll sic the raptors on you' in seventy different languages followed by 'Please enjoy your stay and don't destroy Earth'," Tommy answered.

"I'm trying to figure out how our best friends let him," Kim answered, rolling her eyes. Tommy rolled his eyes.

"Encouraged is more like it," he muttered. "Even David was giving them ideas."

"His wife is beautiful, by the way," Kim said which Tommy gave her a smile for. "So is your nephew."

"I like to think so," he answered. "So, we're married."

"Yep," she answered. "Oh, say 'I do', Tommy."

"I do," he said loudly, glad that Kim was keeping up. "We're not having much of a honeymoon though. Damn Scorpina. Your turn, Kim."

"Thank you, Handsome," she said before following her husband's request. "I do."

"Vows?" She asked and he nodded, waiting for Captain Mitchell to give them the go ahead. The older man seemed amused by the duo, understandably considering that every Ranger and everyone who knew the Rangers had been let in on what was going on. It had gone from being voluntary to being forced and no former Ranger was okay with that idea. Captain Mitchell was only there because they had asked him several times and weren't deterred from the idea that he headed it. Otherwise, he'd want nothing to do with the entire thing.

"Thomas and Kimberly have decided to do a joint vow to which I'll let them proceed," Captain Mitchell said and nodded to them both.

"It's been a long journey, but we're here," Tommy began. "We've been through a lot."

"Rita," Kim agreed.

"Zedd."

"Losing your powers."

"Nearly losing you."

"Going to the games."

"The letter."

"Not really talking for a couple of years other than a letter here and there."

"Zordon's death."

"The Red Mission."

"Blowing up that island."

"You getting back in uniform."

"Nearly losing you again."

"But we're here," Kim said with a smile. "We're married."

"Just took us ten years," Tommy joked.

"Well, I like to do things slow. So, you promise to stay with me, forever, because I really love you and I'd hate it if you left," Kim informed him as she turned serious and smiled at him. "I love you, I will always love you."

"And I will always love you. Promise me we'll talk things out, that neither of us will run away from our problems because we're Rangers. We're not cowards," Tommy said sternly.

"Can I use angry words?" She asked sweetly and he nodded. "Then I promise, we'll talk it out."

"And I promise that I won't leave you. I love you, Kimberly Hart," he informed her and she smiled back at him.

"And I love you, Thomas Oliver," she answered. They both looked at Captain Mitchell, who nodded.

"By the power invested in me, I know pronounce you man and wife. You may now kiss the bride," he answered. Kim leaned up and Tommy reached down to kiss.

They both were trying not to laugh by the resounding squeals and whistles coming amid the applause from their friends. It took them nearly a minute and a half to calm down enough to be able to kiss with a slightly straight face and they erupted into laughter when they were done.

"Alright. Now, who is the bird from?" Kim asked, keeping an eye on the large, golden eagle sized bird resting on a perch with its assortment of colored feathers slightly ruffled from the noise. It hadn't made any noise, yet, to which both Kim and Tommy were eternally grateful, but many of the gifts they had gotten were unusual and this was no exception.

Tommy headed over to it and pressed a button on the collar it wore. The bird seemed unaffected as a hologram of Dulcea appeared. Kim rushed over as well as it played.

"Tommy, Kimberly, I apologize for not being able to attend, but I'm sure you both understand. One of the other guests was able to drop this present off for you. I hope you both enjoy her company and that the wedding proceeded smoothly." At that, the hologram disappeared and they were left looking at her present which carefully stretched her wings. She was still quiet, but when she finally made a noise, it was soft and pleasing to the ear.

"It's because we were birds," Tommy decided and Kim laughed, though she reached out and pet the bird which moved away in annoyance. She tried again, feeling a little frustrated and felt a hand gently pull her away.

"You're doing it wrong," Eric informed her and quickly showed her how. Kim nodded and smiled before copying. Eric nodded approvingly. "There."

"I forgot you liked birds," Kim teased and Eric shrugged.

"I'm dating one," he reminded her before heading to find his said girlfriend. "Mmm. Congrats."

"Thanks," Tommy answered and turned back to Kim. "He's getting soft."

"Don't tell him that," Kim scolded before sighing. "At least he's not involved in the 'my genius is better than your genius' contest the other groups are having."

Tommy looked in surprise back at her. "What?!"

"It's keeping them from causing a diplomatic incident," Kim said sharply. "We just need to stay out of it. I don't want to choose between two of my best friends."

"Since when is Ethan one of your best friends?" Tommy asked in confusion.

"They entered Hayley instead," Kim answered. "So did Seth, Tara, Jera, and Ben. The seven of them are all claiming her."

"She's not a Ranger," Tommy said, a little confused.

"It's a genius contest. Not a Ranger genius contest. Conner and Ethan quickly brought that up," Kim explained. "Most of the groups are staying out of trouble and away from the dignitaries, Neen and Dante are talking with Sherikari…"

"Which one's that?" Tommy whispered and Kim motioned over to the older bat woman who was laughing with the two children.

"The Nocturian," Kim answered. "Remember? Most of their species are night oriented."

"Well, as long as she's playing nice…" Tommy said with a shrug. "Let's open more gifts."

"Shouldn't we do that after the reception?" Kim asked and Tommy paused.

"You're right. Let's go back and talk to more people," he answered. Kim quickly grabbed a box.

"So, what do you think is in this one?"

"I think we lost them," Conner said, leaning against the wall. He was breathing heavily and turned to Ethan and Kira who tiredly nodded back. He looked frustrated and sighed, glancing upwards. "What part of 'honorary' brothers and sister did they not understand?"

Kira shrugged. "Dunno. But they better catch on really fast."

"We could throw Ethan to them," Conner offered which made his best friend glare back at him.

"Oh no! If I have to deal with it, so do you two," Ethan argued and Kira nodded.

"Right. I'll claim both of you as a boyfriend if I have to," she agreed. "Especially since Jera and Tara made themselves scarce when we brought it up."

"I'm just really sure I don't want to marry some princess," Conner answered. "And I tried to explain to them that Kira and I are dating, but they decided I was just trying to get out of it. Which led to other dignitaries showing up."

"Which led to us hiding behind this wall," Ethan agreed. "And eventually, someone's going to find us out."

"Kira?" Conner started.

"Yeah?" She asked.

"If we get married, can we elope? I really hate weddings," Conner answered.

"If we can," came the agreement. "For now, keep quiet!"

"What the hell is going on?" Jason demanded as he entered the fray. Kat was right on his heels, holding onto Trip while Jason tried to manhandle Wes to his feet. Aisha quickly put a hand on Jen's shoulder and Tanya held back Lucas. A thud caused Trini, the only one not in the middle of things at the minute, to wince as Eric hit the floor before getting up to try again with Katie. Cestro, Tideus, and Delphine were attempting to hold the other group back, though the rest of their team were coming to help along with Dex and Trey.

"Take it back!" Wes nearly growled. Trip was sobbing as Kat did her best to soothe him. Jen and Lucas stopped fighting against their fellow Rangers, but their looks were deep enough to kill. Eric had muttered something or another to Katie and pointed in Trip's direction which had stopped the Yellow's rampage as she went to check on her boyfriend.

"Can't handle the truth?" The other, the reptilian one that had accused Tommy before, demanded and Wes pulled against Jason. It wasn't as if Wes was weak, but especially since the Red Mission and because of the fighting last year as he'd gotten prepared to take over this year, Jason had been working out and preparing. Considering that he was stronger than Wes naturally, he was managing to keep the other man in place. Eric looked at Wes and looked over at the alien who'd caused the whole mess. He calmly walked over and faced him with the alien looking at him in disgust. Without saying a word, the Quantum Ranger nailed him in the stomach. The alien looked at him in shock as he fell over and Eric looked down impassively.

"Next time," he informed the other. "I'll let her go."

"Eric!" Jason snapped, trying to get a handle on everything. Kat looked up and shrugged.

"He deserved it," Kat decided which caused Jason to look in her direction in surprise. She was managing to keep herself calm as she glanced at Delphine whose team had managed to stop the other dignitaries. "You might want to get them out of here."

Delphine nodded and they were led away with help from Trey, Dex, and the other Aquitians. Jason turned to Kat, managing to let Wes go as he calmed down, and sighed. "Now, how is this okay?"

"They used some racial slurs against Trip, apparently the two species don't get along right now, and implied that Katie wasn't necessarily on the up and up because of her strength," Kat answered.

"Meaning?" Jason asked, trying not to smack his head against the wall.

"Since she's strong, they said she was a mutant and since they were fighting mutants…" Kat said, letting it trail off on purpose. No one wanted to repeat the word they had used: spy. Katie was fortunately distracted, though it was clear that she was still hurt over the comments and angry about what they'd said about Trip.

Jason nodded in understanding before looking over at Jen, then to Wes, and finally to Eric. "Don't let Kim find out. Don't let Tommy find out. Try not to let the kids find out."

"Why?" Wes asked and Jason looked grim.

"I heard what she told Kira. Unless you want to be the Advisor of External Affairs…" Jason started and they quickly agreed to keep quiet about it.

It was a matter of pride. Whether or not it was true, Red liked to believe that he had plenty of patience. After all, he'd let these people near his pack and extended pack, which thanks to Blue was greatly extended. He'd put up with the strange mating between his Alpha and her mate. He'd promised to be good to the best of his ability when he want to snap and attack many of the species here. He'd even put up with various pictures of him, assuming they stayed off his back. He'd kept his pack in check, but this was beyond any semblance of duty, this was a matter of pride.

He realized that he was part machine. It wasn't easy to ignore, but beyond that, he was a raptor. He looked like a raptor, acted like a raptor, and was proud of what he and his pack were. He'd fought off reptiles from the year before, but that was different. They were mistakes. The humans had said so. No one, however, said that this reptile was a mistake and he had features similar to Red. He had a tail like Red and a snout like him, and they both walked on two legs in a similar way. The raptor wasn't clothed, but they were similar in look which was why Red was so angry at the way the other was acting. First, he'd yelled at Tommy over the mating which seemed wrong to Red, but he'd ignored it. He didn't understand it either, after all. Then the other had picked on the green-haired human and his friends which, while not Red's business, still annoying him that the other reptile was behaving badly. Still, Red knew that the other's alpha would be displeased. Besides, the red and black human had physically taken care of it. But when the reptile had called the tiny female human that he cared for a "half-breed" then it became his business. He wasn't sure what it meant, but he knew an insult when he heard it. Blue called the little human "her hatchling" which made her part of his pack. That made it his business and no one insulted a member of Red's pack.

Something that looked like him was not allowed to pick on a member of his pack, especially a smaller member that couldn't fight. He gently pushed the small human to the side with his snout and chirped before advancing. He would teach this upstart just who was in charge.

Kim and Tommy groaned as they heard the chirping. He'd been doing so well too. Conner, Ethan, and Kira were racing toward the scene as well and Tommy watched as Black cleared the jump over his new wife's head as he raced toward the fight. When they got there, Yellow was trying to keep Blue back, Black was chirping up a storm, and Red was smacking the reptilian ambassador around with his tail. Black turned a bit and checked on Neen who was still crying before chirping even louder for Red as if dignitary beating was the newest raptor sport.

Tommy rushed to Neen's side while Kim and Conner attempted to stop Red. Kira and Ethan nodded to each other and went to help Yellow who was being thrown around by his twin sister. The chaos slowed, but was far from over at this point as Red and Blue were both furious, Neen was clutching to her uncle, and everything seemed to be going haywire.

"That's enough!" The yell into the crowd caused the silence and everyone turned to see Kat standing there, Trini and Jason backing her, with none of them looking happy. She marched over to where the ambassador was standing, having gotten Red off of him. "I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

"What?!" He demanded. "That beast…"

"Was within his rights as you were insulting a member of his pack," Kat said sensibly. "We apologize for the inconvenience."

"Incon… You're throwing me out after one of your own creatures attempted to kill me and you're apologizing for the 'inconvenience?!'" He demanded.

"You have caused too many problems. You have insulted two other races, both the Triforians and Xybrians though the insult toward the Xybrians was more pronounced. You also insulted two members of a Ranger team, Katie Walker and Trip Regis, who had nothing to prove to you as they performed their job admirably. Finally, you insulted a small child who happens to be the daughter of a former Ranger and current ambassador. While most of us might want to let Red finish you off, we have a responsibility to make sure that you make it back to your people. So, I'm asking you to leave so we can finish that responsibility," Kat said, managing to keep her voice calm and level.

"And just who are you to demand it?" He snapped. She sighed and pulled herself up to her full height.

"Katherine Hillard," she answered and sighed as she gave a small smile in Kim and Tommy's direction. "Advisor of External Affairs."

It was silent for a moment, but then the dignitary got up and left. The room started to get busy again and Kim turned to Kat. "Great. Now I'm going to have to come up with a new threat."

Kat laughed and Tommy put his hand on her shoulder. "Thanks, Kat."

"Any time," she answered and head off. Tommy turned to Jason.

"Jason…" he started and Jason shrugged.

"We swore her in and everything," he answered. "Aisha also called the environment and Tanya called Domestic Customs. So we swore them in too."

"What about Rocky and Adam?" Tommy asked and Jason brushed his hand around.

"Do you see them anywhere?"

"Good point."

Conner nudged Rocky to the right a bit, which knocked the older Red into Adam, who bumped into Ethan, pushed Kira out of the way and onto Zack's lap which only caused the first Black to snicker and gently help her up. It was undeniably a small space, though well-hidden. Zack glanced over at Conner who looked exceedingly uncomfortable. "Conner, stop pushing."

"How long do we have to stay here?" He demanded and Zack sighed.

"Until the insane aliens leave," he answered. "So… two more hours, four tops."

"Four!" Conner wasn't the only one less than happy by that as all of them demanded an answer at the same time.

"Yep. That sounds right," he decided. They groaned, but stayed where they were. Rocky and Adam didn't want to become Advisors of anything after all and the trio and Zack were hiding from the parade of aliens who seemed intent on marrying one of them.

"So, your plan is to hide all night?" Conner was nearly certain he hadn't said that. It was definitely feminine after all and a quick glance to their female companion said that she hadn't said anything either. He looked up and saw an amused woman looking back at him. Unlike a human, however, she had cat-ears and spots as well as slit-pupils in her eyes. She looked thoroughly amused by the entire thing.

"Uh… yeah?" Conner said looking sheepish. The woman sighed and shook her head. She had a look that was both amused and annoyed which made Conner look even more sheepish. He was pretty sure that most of the others did as well.

"Well, thank you for you concern but I'm sure you must be going now. We'll be sure to send you a thank you card for coming to the wedding. Have a nice day." Zack, of course, tended to be an exception in everything, even embarrassment. The former Black Ranger was motioning for her to leave as he tried not to move too much. She wasn't having any of it.

"Did you ever think about saying no?" The woman suggested. The teens nodded and Zack shrugged. Both Rocky and Adam tried to blend in to the wall.

"Yep," Zack answered. "Didn't work. Hiding was working until a certain feline broke our cover."

The teens were pretty sure they didn't like where this was going. Zack was infamous for his wit and how he put things. Being one of the eldest Rangers meant that he was given respect and being a successful business man meant the same. Even being an advisor had meant that most of the delegates had let him be. The female in front of them, however, didn't look intimidated by the Ranger's remarks, but instead she looked bemused.

"So your plan is to stay in the closet?" She demanded before giving a rather large smile. "Don't you humans have a saying about that?"

Conner, Ethan, Rocky and Adam piled out of the closet, falling over each other to get away from the metaphor and completely forgetting for the moment why they were hiding to begin with. The woman chuckled as Kira finished abandoning Zack by simply walking out after her teammates. Zack glared at the woman.

"Funny."

"I thought so," she said. "Now, stop being a mouse and come out. I'll protect you."

Zack grumbled, but headed out. It didn't matter if he stayed in there now. Not with Demon Cat knowing where he was. The woman, for her part, hadn't said anything else. She didn't need to. It was pretty obvious she'd won. She turned when Conner tapped her on the shoulder and raised an eyebrow.

"Yes?" She demanded.

"Umm… who are you?" Conner asked.

"Doctor Kat Manx," she answered. "I'm working on the SPD project."

Conner nodded. Wes had mentioned that after some sort of accident, he'd lent his communicator to the project for help. Before he could say anything, however, Zack piped up. "Kat Manx? Next you'll tell me you have friends named Birdie and Doggie."

Kat grinned at him though it wasn't a nice smile. "As a matter a fact…"

"Handsome…" Kim warned, but it was too late as Tommy took the offending object and chucked it as far as he could away from him. It hit a tree and Tommy hoped the communicator was broken. He also hoped that the destruction the communicator was going through somehow affected her. Kim rolled her eyes and put her hand on his arm.

"She had no right to send us anything," he snapped. "If she wanted to send something to T.J. and the others, that's one thing. But not to us. Not after what she did."

"I wasn't even…" Kim started and Tommy shook his head wildly.

"Kat, Tanya, Adam, me. Us. She has no right to send things to us. Not to us, not to the people we love," Tommy answered. Kim leaned into him. "After she stripped us…"

"Tommy, that was years ago," she gently reminded him and he nodded once.

"You gave up your power, Kim. Zordon and Billy both told me how you called once in a while to talk about it, especially after the Zeo powers because Billy would understand. He wouldn't strip Kat of hers to give yours back, but Zordon never forced you out of yours. She did. We were young, just graduated, and hurt. I couldn't concentrate enough on racing because of it. I ended up going to college that fall because Billy had convinced us to apply the year before and I happened to have been accepted. Kat and I had an agreed breakup because none of us really wanted to be near each other for a while. Adam ran to Rocky which was lucky for him because the rest of us weren't so lucky. Kat and Tanya who were so close didn't talk to each other until Zordon's death. I didn't talk to any of them until then. We were able to deal with others, but seeing each other reminded us of that day. Jason told me again and again that it wasn't my fault, but I couldn't see how. I knew I did something wrong. Something that affected all of us, not just me. It's taken us years to get this far over it," Tommy answered. "So I don't want to hear from her at my wedding."

Kim just nodded and reached over to hold him. He leaned his head against her shoulder, letting her comfort him. They were interrupted by Black who was carrying Dimitria's offending communication in his mouth and waving his tail proudly. Tommy groaned as Kim tried not to laugh. He glared at the raptor. "Only you would think I was playing fetch!"

Other than several biting comments between Dr. Manx and Zack, the rest of the initial reception went well though almost everyone was pleased when it was time for cake. Every Red Ranger was watching Jason Scott like a hawk wondering what the first Red would say about his best friend. Everyone knew that Tommy had passed his speech onto Kim when Jason and Trini had married, but they had the feeling that Jason would still rather get back at Tommy for letting her.

Trini stood up first and looked at her husband before looking over at her friends. "Congratulations, guys. Kim, I hope this is everything you've been waiting for. Tommy, I hope the wait was worth it. Try to keep each other out of trouble, okay?"

They both nodded and smiled at their friend as she sat back down before she got too tired. They turned their attention to Jason who grinned as he looked at his friends. "First, congratulations to you both. Second, I haven't forgotten by own wedding," he informed them, causing the newly wedded couple to groan. "Tommy, Kim's a great girl. She's the best surrogate little sister I could ever have. That said, pray for a son. Otherwise, you're going to be dealing with tea parties and dress-up that you're pretty sure you said no to, but you're still at the table sipping fake tea somehow. Not to mention how she can manipulate you. None of us have forgotten those battles when she was doing just fine before. Plus, she has this remarkable ability to turn everyone in the room against you. I think it might be genetic for all the women of her family because her mom tended to do the same thing."

Tommy was snickering as Kim gave the first Red Ranger a mock glare before laughing herself. Jason quickly turned on his best friend and turned his attention to the bride. "Kim, you better hope for a girl. Otherwise, you're going to have a miniature Tommy. Which, having had him as a leader twice, I don't think the world needs. Let's face it, Bro, you're a great friend and a great Ranger, sometimes your ideas tend to go haywire, not to mention the tardiness. Or the fact that it took her changing in front of you to notice that the principal who was your boss and Elsa were the same person. No offense intended, Elsa."

The principal shook her head, laughing a bit herself. With all of the stories Jason knew, he was trying to go easy on them both considering the aliens were watching. "Still, congratulations," he said and winked at them. "But when you guys have kids, the family and I are moving."

There was a good natured chuckle from most of the adults and snickering from the teenagers. All of which turned into a roar of laughter when Dante piped up.

"Amen. Let's eat cake!"

Tommy leaned into Kim as the reception continued behind them. He took her hand and smiled. "Thank you."

"Well, you did ask. Even if it was at a bad time," she teased. Tommy grinned.

"You did say yes," he reminded her. "It could have gone worse."

Kim nodded, playing with the cake topper in her hands and running her hands over the various pieces. "So, when do you think we'll get that honeymoon."

Tommy snorted. "When Rita mentors a team," he joked. She gave a half-smile and nodded.

"That's alright," she assured him. "I'm happy right here with you."

Author's Notes: Why is it that I have such a hard time with chapters like these? You'd think they'd be easier. That said, I also thought that it would be a nice calm wedding and then the characters went insane. Still, they're married! Yay!

The format for the rest of the story is actually slightly different then the first. There will be four more chapters, but if you don't wish to continue on to the next story, only read the next three. The fourth will be an epilogue of sorts, but it will lead in to the shorter middle story which will probably be three-four chapters or one very long chapter depending on how it turns out. After the short one, I have one longer one planned and that's it. Other than the prequel, if I decide to do it, and various short stories as my mind goes on, the series will be finished.

Thank you for all of the reviews. I appreciate each and every one of them. I also appreciate all of you who continue to read this and I'm sorry I haven't been updating as often as I would like. Nearly a year after graduating from college and I'm still trying to find my new balance for my life. Considering that it keeps changing on me, it might take a bit longer. Thank you all for being so patient!