"They look so nervous," Emily tells Jayden as they watch the newest team stand awkwardly in between the SPD rangers and the Wild Force team.
"That's perfectly understandable," agrees Jayden. "They have a lot to live up to. And they're so young too."
"We just had this conversation." Emily rolls her eyes playfully. "You started when you were seven, they're seventeen-or so. I mean, I was that young when we started."
"But in high school?" Jayden raises an eyebrow. Emily shrugs and tugs on his hand, leading him over to the Megaforce rangers.
"Hi," she greets them cheerfully. They look at her, startled. "I'm Emily and this is Jayden."
"Samurai, right?" The one with glasses asks. Emily nods, smiling brightly. She hadn't quite mastered the new ranger's names yet, since they just became part of the grid a few months ago. "I'm Noah, Megaforce blue."
"I would've guessed," giggles Emily, gesturing to his blue tie. His cheeks tine slightly pink but he nods and unlike the other two, doesn't pull at it in annoyance.
"My name's Emma," the girl in the pink pipes up. She shakes Emily's hand with a small smile on her face as she turns to do the same to Jayden.
"I'm Gia, yellow." The other girl brushes her hair over one shoulder breezily.
"And my girlfriend," the guy in black tells the newlyweds. Gia frowns and smacks him lightly on the arm.
"I am not your girlfriend, Jake," she protests hotly.
"That's what they all say. I'm Jake." He grins at the Samurai rangers.
"My name is Troy," the last boy finally speaks up softly but with a firm edge to his voice. Emily looks at him interestedly. He seems a little uncomfortable around all this-even more so then his new teammates, which is a little strange.
"Congratulations," Emma says after a few seconds of awkward silence.
"Thanks, I hope you're enjoying yourselves," replies Emily. She nudges Jayden who had been quiet up until then and he stares at her, startled.
"Uh, yeah," he agrees, rubbing his arm but smiling back at his wife all the same.
"Sorry, since we're new to this, we aren't exactly sure what we should be doing," Gia tells them, pulling at her short yellow dress. Never one without her leather, her jacket is made of the slick material that hints at her usual ensemble.
"Oh it's fine." Emily waves away her apologies. "You have no reason to be familiar with anything in the first place. We were like that too."
"Oh yeah, cause you guys only defeated the…the Nighlok, right?" Noah looks at them uncertainly but Jayden nods at him encouragingly. "The Nighlok a few months ago, right?"
"Give or take a few," Emily shrugs. "We're just glad we got to meet you under more pleasant circumstances."
"Oh yeah, you'd probably have to team up with us if your nightlock came back somehow," says Jake casually, trying to catch the eye of Tori and Kira who had just walked by. "Even if the world's in danger, it's worth it just meeting all these girls!"
"First off, it's Nighlok, not nightlock," Noah corrects him. "And second off, you know Gia's right there. Hearing you. Seeing you." That seems to remind Jake of where he is.
"Oh. Yeah."
"No no, go on trying to flirt," Gia states simply. "I don't mind."
"That's a lie, G, and you know it," says Emma, twirling her dark hair between her fingers. "I hope your team wasn't like this," she adds, directing it towards the Samurai.
"Well we didn't have an obvious, love-struck playboy on our team, no," Jayden smirks.
"Be nice, Jayden," scolds Emily. "We just met them." But the fact he's now comfortable enough to joke around with people they just met, younger or no, makes her heart swell.
"No, you're very right," Troy says, seeming to lighten up a little bit as the conversation goes on. He still shifts from foot to foot, still on edge but not as much as when they first walked in.
"So are you keeping them training? Every day, for at least seven hours?" Jayden asks him with a straight face.
"Eight actually," Noah intervenes. "I'm not used to all the physical aspects of it. For me, it's more like mind over matter. Brain over brawn. That sort of thing."
"That comes in handy as well," admits Emily. "It's usually what sways the battle your way in the end anyway."
"The training isn't actually that hard," Emma says, shyly waving back to Dax and Will who nodded in her direction. "But it keeps us busy."
Troy frowns. From her statement or the fact that the two Operation Overdrive ranges are still looking at her, he doesn't know himself. "It's not that vigorous."
"That's because you've done karate since you were, like, five," Jake says dismissively.
"You're the soccer player, why are you complaining?" Gia smirks at him, raising an eyebrow suggestively.
"I never complained," protests Jake.
"He seems like Mike," Emily whispers to her husband behind her hand, her ring sparkling in the light from the crystal chandeliers. "And Troy seems like you."
"Is that only because he's quiet?" Jayden whispers back. Emily shrugs, smiling.
"So how is it working that you have school and have to save the world?" Mrs. Shiba asks the new rangers. Mrs. Shiba…she would never get tired of thinking that.
"It's so hard," breaks in Jake dramatically. "You have no idea, it's so hard."
"Please, like you worked at all in your classes anyway," Gia says teasingly. Jake scowls but smoothes his features out, not able to stay mad at his love for long.
"I do!"
"With my help," Noah reminds him. "It's actually not that hard, once you find the right balance of school and training and then, of course, the actual battles."
"You know how you once said that robots would be the last ones left to take over the world?" Emma asks, seemingly random. The others look at her strangely.
"Uh, yes?" Noah tilts his head to the side, pushing his glasses further up his nose. "Why?"
"Well you weren't entirely wrong," answers Emma, frowning slightly. "Because they stopped robots from ruling the world." She points to the RPM rangers who are laughing with the Lost Galaxy team.
"But insects could also outlast anyone too," Troy interjects, not wanting to see Emma look sad. He doesn't know why that is, though, but when she smiles at him, he feels his own spirits lift.
"Humans are the ones who would be the last, what are you talking about?" Gia twirls her bracelet around her wrist. "Isn't that what you said, Troy?"
"Oh yeah," he answers, seeing her bright eyes under her raised eyebrows. She remembered what he said all those months ago…
"You guys have some interesting conversations," says Emily, her eyes quickly dancing from one face to another. They seem like a nice group, strong too and very much a match for their enemy.
"You should hear them at Erine's." Noah rolls his eyes. "Or at school. Their brains seem to just stop working."
"Excuse you?" Gia scowls.
"I'm the one with a ninety-nine in science, not you," Emma reminds him smugly. The blue Megaforce ranger sighs but smiles at them.
"Right, I meant only Jake," he explains to Jayden and Emily who laugh lightly.
"Just because I'm not Albert Einstein," he huffs, arms crossed over his chest.
"You know he never went to school though," says Troy, deadpan. There's silence before they all burst out laughing. From what, they have no idea but it sure feels good.
"Hey guys, the limo is here." They all turn at the voice to see Antonio standing behind their little group. "Oh you must be the new people! Welcome! I'm Antonio Garcia. Did you have any of my fish? It's the best in the whole city!"
"Uh…" The two Megaforce girls look at each other, a little shocked at his outgoing behavior. The boys look at each other and then introduce themselves to the newcomer. But Emily ignores their greetings with the gold ranger, stuck on one thing.
"A limo?" She turns to her husband, incredulous. "A limo?"
"Do you like limos?" Jayden gazes at her hopefully and he looks almost like a lost puppy. "I wasn't sure what would be the best way to travel to the plane comfortably, so…"
"Plane? Where are we going?" Emily looks at him, wide eyes and Jayden chuckles at the innocent expression. He plants a kiss on her forehead.
"Off to our honeymoon."
Emily blushes but then remembers-she hadn't given any thought to their honeymoon at all! "But where are we-"
"I kind of picked it out already," Jayden cuts in sheepishly, running a hand down the back of his neck. "I'm sorry, I just wanted it to be special and-"
"No, that's fine." Emily beams at him, heart fluttering inside her chest. How could she have gotten someone as perfect as him? To plan out their honeymoon himself and arrange the details, to get a limo…it was perfect.
"Em! There you are!" Mia comes flying towards her friend, pink dress fanning behind her. "You need to get out of you gown now! You can't start off your honeymoon in your wedding dress!"
"It's bad luck," Emma says, entering the conversation. Mia quickly introduces herself before pulling Emily along.
"Come on, you have to change. Antonio is going to make sure Jayden changes too."
"It was nice to meet you all!" Emily calls, waving to the Megaforce rangers as her best friend gently tugs her away. "But why?"
"You don't want to be on a plane in your wedding dress, right?" Mia gives her a sidelong look.
"I guess you're right," agrees Emily as Mia drags her out of the reception room into the brightly lit hallway and to an extension, a tiny room along it.
A/N: So what did you all think of their maknae meeting? I hope it lived up to your expectations! I'm more of a Tremma fan, to be honest, but I didn't really include a ton of romance between the Megaforce members since I'm not as knowledgeable about them as I am with other teams. So it may not be the best I've ever written but it can't be helped.
-I am still in need of honeymoon ideas, in case anyone is interested! I believe a one Jemilyfan6 said they had an idea, so darling, leave it a review if you want it to be known! And that's open to everyone else as well. I want to hear from you guys!
-This is the second-to-last chapter, by the way. I will miss writing this story as much as you guys will (hopefully) miss reading it. Even if that sounded conceited.
-Leave an idea for the honeymoon or opinion or whatever you want in a review, please. Mwah!