Author's Notes: Hoo boy, was this one something else. Since posting chapter 5, I had no idea where I wanted to take this story. There's a couple of events that cannot happen for quite awhile, so now I'm just kind of filling in time. At this point in particular, I wasn't sure where to go, since I didn't know what Sunday activities I wanted them all to participate in, or if I was going to skip to the next Monday and go from there. As it is, I cheated a little and we haven't even left Saturday night, yet.

Anyways, once I got started on it, it just kinda rolled from there. The whole chapter is mega-fluffy all over the place. Never let it be said that guys can't write fluff! Our main protagonists have reached a decision! As for the rest of the chapter, well… I can't really say where that came from. I know that I've never drank alcohol in my life, so writing a scene with booze in it was, for lack of a better word, weird. Finally, I have no idea if I plan to make Kimberly a permanent character or not. Maybe. I was originally planning on the majority of Zordon's 12 (excluding only a few of them) to be involved in some gigantic "Love Web" (compared to a Love Triangle). As it was originally imagined, there would be three females vying for Tommy's attention (the obvious three: Kim, Kat, and Hayley), but those same ladies were going to have others wanting them, and them possibly feeling something similar. It helps that I didn't plan on any of them to actually be seriously involved with anyone from the start. Anyways, I hope you all enjoy this chapter, and please feel free to leave your comments and complaints in the review box.

Disclaimer: Power Rangers is owned by Saban. Power Rangers Dino Thunder was owned by Disney at the time. I only own the story and the words, as well as Caroline.

It had been an exhausting Saturday, and the afternoon was getting a little long. The excitement of meeting all of the original Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, along with the training that morning and all that encompassed it, and finally the battle that had occurred that afternoon had all quickly faded and now the teens were starting to get tired. Dr. Oliver understood and was just as happy to let them leave as this would allow him to catch up in person with his old teammates. He hadn't prepared for them to arrive so soon, but it was just as well that they showed up sooner rather than later.

Once his old friends and Hayley had settled into the living room, Tommy turned to his best friend and said, "How could you honestly bring up my age in front of my students? It's bad enough they already look at me like I'm an old man…"

Jason cracked a smile and said, "Hey, it's not my fault you keep getting new powers. I mean, sure, I can still use my first powers, but I'm not active, unlike you. And considering you're a science teacher, it's real easy to call you old…"

Kimberly giggled and said, "Especially when you wear those glasses. They really add five years to you, you know?"

Tommy narrowed his eyes at her and swiftly changed the subject. "So before you all barged in with lunch, Jason and I were training the kids in some beginner martial arts. Kira and Ethan stumbled a little while trying to learn the kata, but Conner, with that ability of his, managed it almost flawlessly… and strangely enough, so did Caroline, though she wasn't actually there to be trained." He paused a moment to examine their reactions. Most of them looked surprised, though Jason was just nodding. He continued, "When it was noticed that the exercise was not actually combat related, she jumped up from the table and started following along. I was watching her; it was amazing. I think she inherited that from her father."

Trini gave a sage nod and said, "It makes sense. Observational Memory doesn't usually just spring up in people; they usually have a parent or grandparent with the ability already, so this instance isn't so unusual."

Hayley interjected, "That's not to mention that it fits with the current theme of Rangers having some kind of powers outside of their Ranger ones. While she isn't a currently active Ranger, there's a very high chance that she could become one at some point down the line. Her Pink signal is certainly pointing in that direction. We'll want to keep an eye open in her future. Unless The Power comes from some program like Lightspeed Rescue, Conner will have to watch for the signs of her acquiring a power source."

"But that's not for a long time." Zack said. He turned to his former leader and said, "Now let's talk about the here and now; how come you had to steal my color? I thought we were friends, man?"

Tommy rolled his eyes and said, "Didn't I already say that I didn't choose this? If I could have, I'd have given that Gem to just about anybody, even that kid they met this morning with all the anger issues." He thought about that last statement for a second before saying, "Actually, no, I wouldn't. If he's destined for a Gem, he's probably destined to be evil, and I can't subject my Rangers to that this soon after getting their powers. They need a couple of weeks before something like that should happen to them."

Billy shook his head at this notion. "You know as well as the rest of us that we don't choose when evil Rangers attack. He could pop up tomorrow and you could do nothing about it but fight back."

That put a damper on the mood. Looking to his companions, Jason asked," Hey Bro, you got any beer? After that I think I need one…"

Tommy looked at him like he'd spoken a foreign language. "Are you kidding me? I'm a high school teacher… of course I have beer!" Then he considered his last statement and said, "Of course, now that I'm active, I guess there's no more drinking for me. Can't go getting drunk when the city's in danger…"

Jason's face lit up and he said, "Hey, no problem! I'll just take it off your hands…" He got up and went into the kitchen. After some rustling sounds were heard, Jason once again reappeared with several bottles in his hand. He passed them around, though Billy and Trini both refused them, as did Tommy after giving it a good hard stare.

Jason was about to get started on his first one when another idea popped into his head. He dug into his pocket and produced his cell phone. Zach took a quick swig and asked, "Who ya callin', Jase?"

Jason smiled and said, "Andros. Gotta get the word out and find out who won the Color Pool."

Tommy shook his head. Kimberly's face soured and she said, "Yeah, that's right! You owe me fifty bucks, Dr. Black Ranger! I told you if you weren't pink it was coming out of your pocket!" The others laughed and Tommy's mouth was held agape. She smiled and said, "I know… you can give me a tour of the Reefside mall this week!"

Now Tommy just groaned and said, "No! Anything but that…"

Her expression neutralized at that and she regarded him for a moment before saying, "Anything, huh…?"

Jason had just gotten off the phone, though he'd been following the conversation with his other ear. After hearing her say that, his eyes widened and he said, "No, I'm not hearing this. I don't want to know what my little sister is considering as alternative payment…"

Now Kimberly adopted a predatory look as she stared at her somewhat former boyfriend. She said, "Trini, I don't think I'm coming back to the hotel room tonight. You don't mind do you?"

Trini's eyes gleamed as she said, "Nope, no problem at all. You just have fun tonight, alright?"

Tommy was just staring at her at this point, looking very much like the proverbial deer in the headlights. The others were already on their feet at this point and starting to head out the door. Jason said, "Thanks for the beer, Bro. See you tomorrow… uh, probably late in the morning…" He shuddered. "Don't want to walk in on anything…"

Tommy shook his head violently for a moment before remembering to call out, "Hey, who won the pool, anyways?"

Jason turned back and said, "Strangely enough, it was Adam. He was the only one to figure you'd end up Black. I guess this will make up for you stealing his color, huh?" He grinned up to him and said, "Good thing I never got to that beer, huh? Would've made riding this thing a bit difficult…" He put on his helmet, revved up his motorcycle and with a wave sped off back to his hotel. Tommy noticed that the others had already left as well, and was starting to feel relieved that he was alone when he turned around and saw her standing there.

Kimberly smiled and said, "So, what do you want to do?"

A short way down the road after leaving their mentor's house, a thought occurred to Conner. Without taking his eyes off the road, he asked his companions, "Er, how would you guys like to come over for dinner again? Since I'll be home, it's my night to cook… I was thinking of stir fry tonight."

He looked in his rearview mirror and could see Kira smiling back to him. She answered him, "Sure, why not? I don't mind spending time with your family."

Conner sneaked a sideways glance to Ethan. He answered, "I've got some things to do tonight; some modifications to my computer that were inspired by mine and Kira's predecessors."

Conner nodded and continued driving, now knowing that his first stop will be the James house. Fortunately the stop was along the way to his own house, so it wouldn't be a diversion. They reached it in short order and Ethan stopped to wave back at them as they pulled back out onto the road. Minutes later they were pulling into Conner's driveway.

Caroline bounced out of the car and ran inside; the door was left unlocked in anticipation of their return. Conner waited outside of the car for Kira to exit the vehicle. They smiled at each other for a moment before Conner reached out his hand and took hers. As they were walking up to the house, Conner couldn't help but be pleased that only Kira wanted to stay for dinner. Since everything that happened that morning, he had wanted to spend some more time with her that wasn't actively fighting or training.

They walked through the door and were confronted almost immediately by Conner's mother. She saw them and smiled, saying, "And how was training, dear?"

"I'll tell you all about it at dinner. I should go get it started…" He let go of Kira's hand and walked into the kitchen.

Despite knowing exactly what she was feeling, Kira was still a little nervous around Conner's mother. She gestured to the living room and walked in to take a seat herself. Kira followed after and decided on one of the chairs opposite of where she was sitting. Mrs. McKnight opened the conversation. "It seems my son has taken a liking to you. I know it might be special circumstances since you're saving the world together, but it's more than he's been capable of for a long time now."

Kira's cheeks turned a soft pink as she said, "I know I've only really known Conner for such a short time now, but he really means a lot to me. Knowing what he's had to go through and how he's handled it this whole time… coming to terms with is all and making the decisions he's had to recently made me see him in a completely new light… like the real Conner McKnight was always there under the surface, and only now was it finally able to break free."

"That's the Conner that we've always seen. He would seem so normal, but the moment he walked out the door it's like he put on a mask. I've been so happy to see him acting more like his old self recently…" She sighed. "And then there's Caroline… she adores you, you know? Of course, you're the first female friend of Conner's that she's ever met, so that might have something to do with it. Either way, though, you have managed to take a place in both of their hearts…"

Kira regarded the woman for a moment. The way she talked, it sounded like she had a similar power to her own. She dismissed it, however, since according to Billy, people with the gift were apparently rare in the universe at large. She smiled and said, "I hope you don't mind my saying, but they've both taken a place in mine, as well." She paused for a moment. "To be honest, though, just like us being Rangers, something about all this feels right. It's like some higher power than I can comprehend is drawing me to him. I have no desire to turn away from him…"

The conversation had settled into silence, both of them pleased in the current situation. A moment later Caroline came bounding down the stairs and into the living room. She stopped momentarily to look between the two. After basically no time at all, she chose to sit next to… no, more like snuggle up to Kira. Kira just blushed at the blatant show of affection, to which the girl's grandmother laughed softly. Unbeknownst to her, Kira could feel how pleased the scene made her, and so just let it happen.

The moment was more or less shattered by the simultaneous activities of Conner announcing that dinner was prepared and both Conner's father and brother walking in. Everyone jumped all at once, which saved Kira the slight embarrassment of appearing to act the part of mother in front of the two men.

They all filed into the kitchen and each of them took a plate to fill. Conner had already made his daughter's plate up beforehand, knowing exactly how much she could eat. Once they were ready, they gathered around the table and started eating.

After a few minutes, Mrs. McKnight reasked her question, "So, how was your training with Dr. Oliver this morning?"

Conner swallowed the bite he had been chewing before answering, "It was pretty okay; kind of a refresher, though, since I did manage to retain some of those lessons from my youth." He got a little far off look before continuing, "But I did learn something new: a kata."

Caroline spoke up at that. "Uncle Jason taught us that!"

Conner's mother was taken aback by the outburst and glared at Conner. "Just who is this Uncle Jason and why is he teaching my granddaughter anything?"

Conner, for his part, kept calm at his mother's accusations. He said, "Jason is Dr. Oliver's best friend and the original Red Ranger." Her expression lessoned ever so slightly, which gave him the confidence to continue, "A kata, in this case, is mostly something done for centering an individual. For us, it's a means of finding balance and discipline. No actual fighting technique was taught to Caroline." Beneath his indifferent expression, Conner thought, 'Of course, she watched all of that training, and if she's anything like me, she'll retain that for the rest of her life.'

His mother now looked placated from the explanation. She said, "I guess I can't complain about that. So I take you all enjoyed yourselves today?"

Conner nodded. "Yeah, actually Jason wasn't the only original Ranger to be up for a visit; all five of the original Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers are apparently in Reefside for a week. We all spent some time in the park this afternoon, and I even played in a small pickup game of soccer… it felt like I'd never quit the team. It was almost perfect, until the 'drones attacked…"

Kira felt a little panicked at him even mentioning it, though for their part, his parents were seeming to take the news in stride. She decided to pick up where Conner left off. "Fortunately the former Rangers were all there with us. We formed a ring around Caroline and protected her until Hayley got to the Command Center and teleported her back to the house. After that, we weren't in any danger; the others were fighting back like they'd never left it."

Conner nodded in response to this and continued, "Once we got back, we found Caroline was alright and some rock Dr. Oliver found this morning was glowing. He apparently found another Dino Gem like ours, and once he was able to examine it, he was able to free it and bond with it…"

It took a moment before Conner's words sunk in. Then realization dawned and his father said, "So he's going to be fighting alongside you now, eh? I take it he's in Black?" They were stunned by his deductive reasoning and simply nodded in response. He chuckled and said, "It wasn't difficult after that little display earlier this week where he was all flustered about his colors being different."

"Anyways," Kira continued, spurred on by their seeming lack of outward concern, "So Dr. Oliver bonded to the Black Gem and was given his bracelet just before a real attack happened. A lot of different things happened today, and most of them were positive. We certainly all enjoyed ourselves."

They continued eating and talking quietly amongst themselves. When everyone was finished, Conner gathered up the plates and took them into the kitchen to wash them out. While he was away, Caroline absentmindedly said, "Can you be my mommy, Kira?"

She visibly sputtered at the sudden question, and Conner's parents eyed her warily for her response. She replied, "That's not up to me, Caroline…"

The little girl got a funny look on her face when she said this, as if that was definitely not the correct answer to her question. She said, "That's not what daddy said! He said it was up to you…"

Kira did her best to stay calm; she could sense the confusion in her heart at hearing the exact opposite of what she was expecting. Kira wasn't surprised that Conner would have answered that way, what with their feelings for each other. She smiled to the little girl and said, "In that case, I'll need to talk to your father…"

Conner returned shortly after that and the family retired to the living room. Eric excused himself to his bedroom. The remaining McKnights sat around and began another round of quiet conversation. Mrs. McKnight spoke to Kira, "I hear you had a concert last night at that café. How was it?"

Kira closed her eyes and sighed contentedly at the memory. She answered, "It was wonderful. The turnout was pretty good, and for the most part it seemed everyone enjoyed it."

With a yawn, Caroline said, "She sounds like an angel!"

Kira visibly blushed at the praise. Conner chuckled and said, "Yes she does. And you sound like you're about to drop. Time for bed, munchkin."

He was about to take his daughter upstairs when the two older McKnights stood up. Mr. McKnight said, "Actually, we're going to bed, too, so we'll take her." Conner stared up at them for a moment; it was rare that they volunteered to tuck her in.

When they were left alone, Conner relaxed a little and put an arm around Kira's shoulder. She leaned against him, feeling both of their contentment at the same time. She sighed and said, "We need to talk, Conner… Caroline asked me if I could be her mother…"

Conner tensed at this, unsure of if the answer was going to be good or bad for either of them. He asked her, "What did you tell her?"

"I said it wasn't up to me." Conner winced when she said this, knowing it had conflicted directly with what he had said before. She continued, "So, what do you think? Even though we barely know each other and are still in high school, can you see us going that far?"

Conner gave it some real thought before answering her. He held her a little tighter and said, "Yes. All things considered, you know much more about me than basically everyone else I've ever met, then there's the fact that we're Rangers together, so we already watch each others' backs, and finally there's your power… it'll more or less keep me honest with you—not that I have any intention of lying at any point—and it should make our experiences together so much more than they would be otherwise." To punctuate his statement, he did his best to amplify his feelings towards her, and her sharp inhalation right afterward was an indicator that he had succeeded.

She settled in a little closer to him and said, "Well, it's not something I have to keep to myself… Billy told me that in time and with training, I can learn to project my own feelings to others, with ways to differentiate it between making the recipient think it's their own feeling, and having them know it's coming from me. You don't always have to feel at a disadvantage around me…"

"I've never felt at a disadvantage, even after you told me." He leaned over and placed a light kiss on her cheek, which caused her to shiver from the contact. Conner could feel himself trembling on the inside, as this was the most feeling he'd shown another girl since Jessica had passed.

Kira felt his uncertainty for his previous action. She decided to sooth his fear by leaning up and reciprocating the action, which calmed him immensely. She smiled at the reaction, but then frowned as she looked over to the wall clock. She said, "It's getting a little late… I hate to say it, but I should probably get home."

Conner nodded and said, "Yeah, who knows what Dr. Oliver and his friends have in store for us tomorrow. Or Mesogog for that matter. We should probably try to stay well rested for as long as we're Rangers…"

Reluctantly, they disengaged from each other and stood up. Together they walked out the door and to Conner's car. Kira yawned a few times throughout the ride. When they arrived, Conner parked his vehicle and got out, different from the other couple of times he dropped her off. He walked her to the door and buried her in a hug before she walked inside. Kira watched from inside the house as he sped off to return home. She turned around and was about to head off to her room when she ran into her mother.

Eying her daughter warily, she asked, "Did you enjoy your dinner at the McKnights?"

Not wavering, Kira said, "Yes I did. Conner's a good cook; I might have to stay for dinner more often."

Seeing that she wasn't backing down, Mrs. Ford sighed. "You know I just don't want you to feel obligated, and I certainly don't want you to get hurt…"

Kira held a hand up to stop her mother from continuing. She said, "Stop it, mom. For one thing, you know I can verify basically everything he says to me; I trust him with far more than my life. As for the other thing, no, I feel no obligation; now that we both have been honest with each other about everything, I'm now more sure than ever that this is the right thing to do. I care for both him and his daughter, and I know he cares for me just as much, if not more."

Her mother sighed again and turned around. Before she started to walk away, she said, "If this is what you want, I can't stop you; just please be careful?" With that, she walked upstairs.

Kira knew precisely what her mother meant by that statement. If her mother knew just how much his experiences had scarred him, she wouldn't be quite so concerned. Still, she decided to take the words to heart regardless, as she could apply them to her situation, anyways. After all, what good would promising to be her mother do if she got herself killed while trying to save the world?