A/N: This theme is a little early for the featured holiday, but this is just where it fell in the span of the themes. I had a lot of fun with this, as I played around with a few more characters and favorite couples. Enjoy!
"…": characters talking to each other
'…': characters talking to themselves
(…): extra facts about something in the story
(Takes place a few months after "Once a Ranger")
Theme 31: Why?
Angel Grove Youth Center, October 31, 2008, 9:00 pm – Angel Grove, CA, USA
It was Halloween, and the Mystic Force Rangers were beyond excited. This was their time, a time where they could perform magic and not be questioned, where they could walk around in their Ranger forms (... not that they did that) and not be questioned as to where they had found the amazingly real replicas of the costumes, where their friends from the forest could walk around without fear and where they were currently attending the Halloween Party to end all Halloween Parties in Angel Grove, the home of the original Power Rangers.
However, things weren't all bright and cheery; rather, they were kind of gloomy and depressing.
"Why is he doing this?" Vida hissed to her friend Veronica "Ronnie" Robinson. The two women, upon being introduced by Xander after the whole "Thrax" incident had hit it off, and kept in contact regularly.
"Doing what?" Ronnie asked absently, a little distracted by how nice Will looked in his costume (a musketeer, if she remembered her twelfth grade literature class correctly). Of course, he'd dressed up for her, but Ronnie sensed that he'd also done it for himself. One more step towards enticing him to fully embrace Halloween!
"That!" Vida exclaimed pointing at one person in particular. Ronnie looked over and inwardly groaned. Xander, the idiot, was flirting with Kira Ford, who was responding in kind. Her boyfriend, Trent Fernandez-Mercer was not happy either, sulking in a corner of the room with his teammates Connor McKnight and Ethan James, who seemed to be encouraging him to do something about the situation.
"I don't know; have you two argued recently?" Ronnie asked. It was common knowledge among the younger Ranger teams (i.e., those from Ninja Storm through Operation Overdrive) that the Green and Pink Mystic Force Rangers were in love with each other, though they themselves didn't see it.
"We always argue," Vida pointed out, exasperated.
"Maybe that's the problem," Ronnie shot back, irritated. She liked Vida as a friend, and appreciated having someone other than Rose (whom she got along with well, make no mistake) who loved music but sometimes it got to be too much. "Vida, if you like him so much, then do something about it."
Vida sputtered. "I don't like him!"
"Do so!" Ronnie responded. "Everyone knows it except you two, and it's getting to be annoying! Even more so than Will and me, but at least we were honest with each other!" True, it had taken the combined efforts of Clare, Tori and Kira to get the Black and Yellow Overdrive Rangers into each other's arms, but the feelings had been out there. Shyness and fear had prevented the two from acting on their feelings, but one locked closet had done the trick.
"Just do something about it before I sic Mack on you!" Vida blanched. Mack was an even worse matchmaker than the trio of females, as he'd tried to match his father up with numerous women in the past year or so, which resulted in some rather nasty break-ups. Vida and Ronnie both knew that if he caught wind that Xander and Vida were in need of some "professional" help, the Pink Ranger would never be able to live it down.
"Fine! I will!" Vida hissed. Ronnie watched in satisfaction as her friend (clothed as, ironically, a Vampire Queen) marched over to the Green Mystic Ranger and, grabbing him by the lapel of his Phantom of the Opera suit dragged his head down and kissed him. At first, Xander appeared shocked then, smirking, framed Vida's face in his hands and returned the kiss full-heartedly.
"What's up babe?" Will asked suddenly, having decided to sneak up behind his girlfriend. Without asking, he draped an arm around the Yellow Ranger's velvet-clad shoulders (Ronnie had decided to forego her usual tomboyish-clothes for a rather formal velvet dress from the Middle Ages), ignoring her sigh of resignation.
Ronnie, grinning, looked up and replied, "Vida's kissing Xander."
"I see." Will eyed the kissing couple before noting Trent walk up and, grabbing Kira's arm dragged her a few feet away from the Mystic Force Rangers and began to talk to her quietly. "Dare I ask why?"
Ronnie examined her fingernails absently. "In order to prevent Mack's matchmaking from interfering in their lives."
"Ah." Will nodded in agreement with the statement, knowing how badly his teammate was at the task. "Can't argue with that. Feel like dancing?"
"Absolutely." The rest of the party went pleasantly well, except for the incident where Mack's father was slapped by his latest girlfriend for something he said... and Mack began to realize that maybe he wasn't cut out to be a matchmaker.