Disclaimer: Power Rangers? Nope, don't own them.
A/N: For refrences, this chapter mentions We Are Family Chapter 2, Katie's segment of this story, and After Blue. Keep an eye out for the final story of Yellow Hearts, 'Friends Are Like', and the Pink Rangers' story "X's and O's" coming soon to a desktop near you!
Taylor followed the Princess to Merric, but did not confront him. Instead, she watched him and she watched her team. The hope they had in Merric joining them worried her. Not that the Wolf Ranger wasn't good in a fight, but he was unpredictable. Finally, Taylor entered Willie's Roadhouse, it was empty, but for Merric, who was playing pool by himself. "Merric," she said, "I need to talk to you."
"What about?" Merric asked, barely looking at her.
"About whether you are a part of Wild Force or not," Taylor replied.
"What do you mean?" Merric said, standing up and leaning against the pool table.
"You need to decide," Taylor said, "Either you're our teammate or not. You wear the jacket, you have the morpher, certainly you've been helping us, but I'm not sure your heart is in it. Cole and the others are beginning to depend on you being a part of our team. I won't deny that I'd like to feel the same way, but if you're going to take off and not be there, I'd like to know. How dependable are you? When things get tough are you running or staying?"
"Why do you ask this?" Merric asked.
"Because, I'm not going to get hurt by trusting someone who isn't going to be there when I need them," Taylor replied. "You don't want to be on the Animarium, fine. I certainly don't spend all my time up there, none of us really do. It would be nice if you came by, though. Shayla worries about you."
Merric looked into her face, and then straightened up, "Taylor, Yellow Wild Force, as I pledge to Princess Shayla, I also pledge to you. For however long Wild Force needs me, I will be there."
Taylor nodded, and when the next battle came and Merric was there, she relaxed a little. She didn't let her guard down, but it was certainly nice when Merric came up to the Animarium and they could spend time as a team. She never told anyone, but Taylor never felt right when Merric wasn't with them, or when one of the others made to leave the Animarium. She wouldn't admit it, but it reflected in her attitude. Although with that Silver Guardian Eric Myers, that was his fault, he rubbed her the wrong way.
Katie, on the other hand, Taylor liked. Not the other Yellow's naturally cheerful nature, but how, when the two of them were the first one up, Taylor saw Katie looking at each of her teammates before doing anything else. "I think I like them best asleep," Katie murmured as she joined Taylor at the cook fire.
Taylor snorted, "I agree."
"Don't get me wrong," Katie said, "I care for all of them, but still, it's nice when they're quiet."
"I agree," Taylor said.
"I'm surprised Merric doesn't stay up here," Katie said after a moment.
"He works in the evenings, well, until early morning at least. It's been easier for him to sleep at the Roadhouse instead of here." Taylor replied. "We see him often enough."
"Sounds like Eric," Katie said, "he had his own place. It always felt weird, though."
"What do you mean?" Taylor asked.
"Once he was part of the team, it never felt right that he would go home and not stay at the clock tower." Katie said, "No one else ever mentioned it, but…"
"I know what you're talking about," Taylor said. "It feels like that when Merric isn't here. Why is that?"
"I don't know," Katie replied. "There aren't many Rangers in the future. Between our predecessor, SPD and now Time Force, we haven't had the kind of evil that you face. There isn't much call for people to have morphers. I think the only reason we keep ours is because of the DNA lock. They can't take our morphers."
"Do you expect them to do something?" Taylor asked.
"We've planned for it," Katie replied, softly. "The only thing I don't know is how we'll be able to blend into the past."
Taylor frowned a moment, and looked over at Alyssa, who was just starting to roll over. "Talk to Alyssa. There's some sort of Ranger relocation and refugee program she's working with. I don't know all the details, but if you guys need new identities, she might be able to help."
"I'll mention it to Jen," Katie said, she shrugged, "I've never been a fan of history. I mean, I know that this time period is full of fighting and intrigue, but I don't remember all the details."
Taylor nodded towards Alyssa as the white ranger approached, "Do you know how weird it is for you to call this history by the way? For us, this is the present."
"And I'm from the future," Katie agreed with a soft laugh, "I might know something about that." At Taylor's look, she added, "It might have been a dream, but I spent time in Silver Hills during the 1800s, about a week or so. They were building the clock tower that we lived in last year."
"I can't say that has ever happened to me," Taylor replied.
"What are you guys talking about?" Jen asked.
And just like that, everyone was awake and it was time for their battle against the MuteOrgs.
Later, Taylor would think about that conversation, especially about the wrongness of a teammate being apart from the team; especially when the Moon Mission happened. At least the other Rangers were used to her being bad tempered. She suspected that Alyssa thought it was worry that sharpened her tongue, but it was the feeling that Cole was so far away and he needed to be in Turtle Cove, because they were fighting a war and without their Red Ranger, they were, at best, at half strength.
The day they destroyed Master Org and Princess Shayla took the Animarium and the Wild Zords away, Taylor felt something in her snap. As she looked at her teammates, she found that while she still felt them, there was an echo she had grown used to that was gone. Cole, looking over at her, smiled sadly, "I can't hear the Wild Zords either."
Taylor blinked; it hadn't even occurred to her that she'd been hearing the Wild Zords. "I didn't know," she said finally. It was enough, Cole understood, even if the others looked puzzled.