It's pretty late at night, but I wanted to give you guys a chapter. I won't leave much here as far as author's notes go. Just know that there are no real warnings for this chapter as far as I can remember. There are some surprises this chapter along with some new faces.

Please remember that this is pure fiction and I own nothing but the OCs and Plot.

Um, I think that's it for the AN...

Read on, and see me at the bottom!

Inside The Moon Racer

Kyle was laying on the back seat with his head in Autumn's lap. His eyes were closed, but he breathed deeply and let his mate sooth him. Though he had calmed down since his panic attack, he still felt worn down.

Autumn closed her eyes and breathed deep, matching her heartbeat to his. Looking deep inside herself, she quietly searched for her inner dragon. Only a moment passed before the spirit dragon appeared before her.

"I know your distress, Lady Dragon."

"What can I do to help him?" she asked.

"We are one spirit. What worries you, worries me."

"Then help me help him!"

I am you and you are me; we are one. I know only what you do."

Great…

"I'm am not some cosmic being. I am you. What I do know is that there is a wall to the path between you and Kyle. It separates you. Once you break it down, then you can help him.

"By completing the bond?"

The dragon shrugged in a very human like way. "I don't know."

Autumn opened her eyes feeling frustrated. She was still no closer to finding a way to help her mate…

She looked down at Kyle and realized that he'd been watching her the whole time. "Corazon, are you okay?"

Autumn nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"No you're not." Kyle retorted with a frown; a moment later, he pointed to his chest and then at hers.

"Hey you guys, we're here." Lief said from the front seat. "We'll just give you a moment alone."

"Thanks," Kyle said as he slowly sat up. When they were alone, Kyle took Autumn's hand in his own.

"I could feel everything. What's going on?"

When they emerged from the van, Kyle and Autumn noticed that their friends were gone and in their place were the parents. The moment they appeared Rocky waved at them with a smirk. "Finally come up for air?"

Kyle rolled his eyes. "As if I'd tell you."

Autumn chuckled and shook her head. "Kyle had a panic attack at school today and we were discussing ways to prevent it happening again."

At her words, Rocky's smirk vanished and one of worry replaced it. "You okay, Son?"

Kyle nodded. "Yeah. The Principle held the school assembly in the gym….it was my first time going near to the locker room since…"

Rocky blew out a breath. "Did you guys come up with any ideas?"

Kyle shook his head. "Not yet, Dad. It's hard to fight against your own mind."

"Yeah, I figured as much." A moment passed and then the parents exchanged glances with each other.

Autumn immediately sensed a change in their mood. "What's going on?"

"We need to have a talk, Sweetie." Tanya answered. "Before you guys freak out, it's nothing bad or wrong. It's just a slight adjustment that's going to take some getting used to. More for us than for you."

Autumn exchanged a glance with Kyle before looking back at her parents. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, it's something that's been in the works for some time." Rocky answered. "I knew this day would come, ever since you sold your gaming equipment to get Autumn her ring…right around the time of your soul fusion."

"What about it?" Kyle asked feeling uneasy. "Could you please just spit it out?"

"Well, we've decided that it's time to get you kids a space of your own." Adam answered with a grimace. "You guys have been released from your vows and with our friends from KO-35 coming to stay with us for the foreseeable future, space is getting more limited."

Kyle looked at his mate and then at his dad. "That's a little out of left field. You got us a house?"

"It's only a temporary space." Rocky reassured him. "What becomes your permanent housing is for you and Autumn to decide. We're not stepping on your toes when it comes to that."

Kyle looked at Autumn for her reaction. She was looking at Adam. "Dad, this is really sudden, I don't know what to say? Why didn't you tell us about this weeks ago?"

"Because Andros is an important political figure on KO-35." Adam answered. "For having as many Ranger Teams on Earth as we do, we are seriously lacking in the planetary defense sector."

"There is no Embassy for KO-35 here on Earth and we are literally the only place on Earth aside from Wes and Jen's house with adequate security." Rocky continued. "We don't think Andros has any political enemies, but we're not taking any chances. To keep things secure, we had to keep everything a secret and that meant figuring out where to house everyone."

Adam looked really uncomfortable as he finished. "It's not like you guys weren't heading this way eventually. We're just giving you guys some privacy; with that being said, I still want you guys to eat with us in the manor and not hide yourselves away."

A second passed and then Kyle suddenly had a moment of clarity. He looked his parents in the eye and instantly read between the lines. A moment later he looked at Adam and saw the silent warning in his eyes and only nodded at him.

"So, what's the new place look like?"

Rocky snorted softly. "Come and check it out for yourselves."

Kyle inhaled the smoky scents of the BBQ and his eyes strayed to the cookout as they walked passed it; his mouth was watering.

Rocky smirked at his son in complete understanding. "I promise Son, this won't take long and then you can chow down on burgers and brats."

Autumn smirked at her boyfriend. "Like father, like son."

Damn, right." Rocky replied with a proud grin as they approached the farthest cleared area of the property. As they passed by Conner and Kira's cottage, Tris ran to them on three legs to greet them with wagging butt and happy yips.

Kyle knelt down and scratched behind her ears. "Hey Tris, shouldn't you be at the cookout begging for food right about now?"

A moment later Kira walked out with a sleepy smile.

"Usually, by now, she would" Kira said as she stifled a yawn. "But she's also my shadow, so where I go, she goes."

"Have a good nap?" Tanya asked her.

Kira nodded. "Yep. But I woke up to that amazing smell of Barbeque. I hope those teenagers saved some food for me. "She paused and gently rubbed her belly. "Apparently that's what my little orca is craving."

"I'm way ahead of you, Rockstar." Conner said as he sprinted towards her. "I already have a plate set aside for you."

Kira grinned at him as he swept her up in his arms. "Anytime, Babe."

"Jock, we talked about this." Kira deadpanned. "Don't piss off a pregnant woman!"

Just as Conner smirked and stepped closer to his wife, Rocky cleared his throat. "Guys, this is adorable, but…" he trailed off as Connor grinned sheepishly.

"Yeah, sorry guys. We'll just go now…" Kira said as she took her husband's hand and walked away from them.

Adam shook his head at the pair of lovers and then looked at the teens. "Alright, moving on."

The travel trailer wasn't too far from the cottage; it was just far enough away from the trailer to give some privacy to the insatiable lovers while preserving the innocence of the newer neighbors.

It wasn't a newer model, but it was still in great condition. "It's got enough room for your friends if they want to camp out in the bunks." Adam said softly. "Go check it out."

Kyle looked at Autumn, "It'd be kind of awkward to try and carry you up those stairs; so, ladies first."

Autumn grinned at him and then walked up the steps. Kyle was just behind her as she walked through the door.

The inside was more spacious then either teen pictured. The RV wasn't as big as this space was, at least not as far as Autumn could tell. It was the same kind of set up as the vehicle they'd road tripped in, but this time, it held some promise.

A TV had been installed in the small cubby hole and….

"Oh my gosh, they bought me a new gaming system?" Kyle said as he knelt down in front of the new X-box."

Autumn smiled as she continued on to the back area which held a bed. She turned and sat down on the mattress. She could feel eyes on her and she looked up to see Kyle staring at her. Their bond, though still a little fuzzy flared to life and she felt his emotions; a mixture of desire and calm.

Getting up, she walked to him and he drew her against him. Instantly, her lips were on hers and his hands sought out the 'safe' area of her body. Mindful that their parents were outside, they kept the kiss short.

Kyle gave her a breathless smile. "Do you think we can make this place our home?"

Autumn nodded, just as breathless. "Don't think you're getting nookie tonight. I fully intend to hold out until we have no choice."

"It shouldn't have to be that way, Corazon. I don't want our first time to happen out of desperation. It should be on our terms, when we're ready."

"And when do you expect that to be?" Autumn asked as she bit her lip.

Kyle shook his head. "I wish it could be now. But not with our parents standing right outside.

That reminder was the bucket of cold water thrown on them.

Autumn pecked his lips. "So, let's check out the rest of our space." She didn't give him a chance to reply as she turned and walked the few steps to the bunk area. Just before the alcove where the bunk beds were situated there was a door leading two a very small shower and bathroom area.

"I think I actually prefer the kiddie bathroom." Kyle commented.

"I don't mind it…. I've never had privacy like this." Autumn murmured to herself.

With those words, a subtle shift took place in his mate.

"All you had to do was ask me." Kyle replied in a soft voice. "I'm your mate. It's my job to."

Autumn gasped an turned to him, blushing profusely. "Oh crap, I didn't mean to say that out loud."

Kyle chuckled, brushing her hair back from her face. "Even if you hadn't said it, I would have felt it. I'm a dude, but it would have been pretty easy to hear what you don't say."

They shared another kiss and when they parted, they took a deep breath.

"We better get out there and thank our parents…before they think we've really christened this place."

Kyle chuckled and kissed her forehead. "Good idea…but I do want to revisit this topic tonight. We're mates and this is just another step for us."

"We will, but first." She paused and looked towards the door.

"Yeah." Kyle said with grin.

When they came out, the parents looked up at them expectantly.

"So, what do you think?" Rocky asked. "You were in there for a while."

We love it, Dad. We were just taking it all in."

"We can't wait to move in."

The moment that Kyle and Autumn's parental units shooed them away, they rest of the crew walked to the back of the manor and found themselves at a cookout. Everyone was there, including some new faces.

This new group of faces sat at a picnic table talking amongst themselves and picking at their food. Well, almost all of them. The only male in the group was stuffing his face with a fully loaded hamburger. He swallowed his food as the teens approached them and wiped his face with a napkin.

Leif took charge. "So, you guys are the new arrivals?"

The older boy nodded. "Yeah, I'm Ryder of the house of Zane. We've only been here a few hours." Ryder looked much like his father with the silver hair that was mussed up like he didn't really care how messy it looked. He had a tall stature and it was obvious that he worked out a lot. He'd ditched his space clothes and only wore a white tank top and blue jeans which rode low on his hips. He wore comfy flip flops on his feet and a pair of sunglasses on his head. His whole look screamed party boy!

The goth boy nodded. "I see." He exhaled softly. "I'm Leif and this is my girlfriend, Sapphire." He stepped back and pointed at the guys behind him. "This is Ranook and Katsume. Our ringleaders, Kyle and Autumn are having some time with their parents.

Ryder nodded and gestured to the young girl next to him. "This is my younger sister, Elara." The girl he gestured to had to be about nine or ten. She had soft brown hair with blonde streaks in it and a slight stature. Her hair was pulled back in a French braid and she wore pale purple t-shirt and blue jean capris. She wore the same kind of flip-flops and around her waist was a utility belt with a few spacy looking tools attached to it.

"Then there's our cousins, Titania and Miranda of the house of Andros."

There could be no doubt whom their parents were. The twin girls had the same unique hair color as their father, and had Ashley's eyes, but that's where the similarities ended. While both were dressed up in normal earth clothes, their styles were different. One teen was a natural beauty and she carried herself with a quiet dignity and real happiness radiated out of her. The reason for that happiness, Rowan, walked up to them with his own plate piled high with food.

The other twin was just as beautiful, though she was a little more relaxed, both in the clothes she wore and her character. While one sister looked like she'd bought her clothes at JC Penny, the younger one looked like she bought her clothes at Hot Topic. In addition to this, the latter twin gave them a winning smile and she had an inquisitive look about her, like she was eager to learn everything she could about life on Earth.

"It's nice to meet you," Leif said as Sapphire was seated. He leaned down to her ear. "The usual?"

Sapphire nodded. "Yep. The usual, and extra potato salad."

"Coming right up!"

When he was gone, talk resumed. "So, you're an interesting group of Earth people." Ryder said in curiosity. "I wasn't expecting such diversity."

Sapphire shrugged. "It's true, but we didn't start like this. At first, Leif and I were just following orders from our Queen. Kyle and Autumn were nice enough to invite us to join them to the Christmas Dance; we've been friends ever since."

"Christmas; that's something I've been wondering about." Miranda said. "Dad sad we're here just in time for the Holiday Season. Does Christmas last a whole season?"

"Not exactly." Sapphire said. "The holiday season is made up of four holidays. It starts with Halloween night, where everyone dresses up in costumes and the kids go around begging for candy, then we have Thanksgiving which is a time to feast and be thankful for what we have, and then Christmas which is more like a month long holiday full of fun more feasting and gift giving, and then it ends not long after with New Years which is the one night everyone can stay up past midnight to cheer on the new year."

"So much partying!" Miranda exclaimed. "How do you guy not get worn out?"

"We learn to pace ourselves." Ranook broke in. "There's no rule that says you can't take breaks every now and again. I can't imagine having to make it through one constant four- month celebration."

"So, this Halloween; how can everyone be okay with kids begging for candy?" Titania asked.

"It's just one of the Halloween traditions besides carving pumpkins, dressing up, visiting haunted houses and generally having fun getting scared. The begging for candy thing is mostly for kids and their chaperones, but the whole night is fun for everyone."

"Wait, so this takes place at night?" Ryder asked.

Lief nodded. "Yep, that's part of the fun. A lot of people decorate their houses with lights and things that glow in the dark and you can't see that stuff during the day. To keep safe, we all wear glowing pendants and bracelets so we can see each other. Everyone goes out in groups and we stick together. We get as much candy as we can until around nine at night and then we all come home and sleep happy."

"Stellar!" Miranda exclaimed. "But that's still a month away. What do we do until then?"

"Go to school." Sapphire replied "And there's the harvest festival later this month. That's always lots of fun."

"Another party?" Ryder asked in surprise.

"Not so much a party as it is a city event. The proceeds generally go to charities like the food bank and Toys for Tots. The holiday season would be hard for families without them. This way, no one gets left out of the fun."

"Yeah, I would have never gotten toys if it weren't for Toys For Tots." Katsume piped up. "I always got excited when the Marines would show up with presents for us."

That made everyone get quiet.

Ryder cocked his head to the side. "You mean…why would you need to ask for charity?"

"Until a few weeks ago, I was a ward of the state, but now that Trent is my guardian, well, I might get a chance at a real Christmas…all that stuff I hear about in those Christmas carols I hear on the radio."

"You can count on it." Leif said. "We're going to check everything off the list!"

So, thoughts on this chapter?

At first I wasn't sure if I was going to do this, but after a lot of thought, I decided that doing this would benefit the series in the long run. That being said, I hope to get some positive feedback from this chapter.

Thanks in advance!