The disclaimer saying that I don't own any Galaxy Ranger characters has gone out for a dinner and a movie. Here's a cute fun fic that flounced into my brain.
Little Zach's First Date
It all started when Zach Jr. found his father in the ranger's recreation lounge with Doc and Shane. "Dad? Can I talk to you a minute?"
"Sure son, what's on your mind?" Zach asked.
"Well there's this girl I really like and I want to ask her out on kind of a date," Zach Jr. scratched his head as he sat next to his father on the couch.
"Really?" Doc put down the newspaper and raised an eyebrow. "Now isn't that interesting?"
"Do you mind?" Zach snapped.
"Not at all," Doc grinned as he sat down on the couch.
"We'd be happy to help and give the kid some pointers," Shane smiled as he sat down on the other side of the couch.
"NO YOU DON'T!" Zach snapped. "I don't want either of you to say a word!"
"Why?" Both Doc and Shane asked.
"Yeah why?" Zach Jr. asked. "They seem to be pretty good at it."
"You don't want to be in their league," Zach glared at his friends.
"Well my league anyway," Doc smirked. "Since our little Gooseman is still technically a pure gosling."
"Knock if off Doc!" Shane snapped.
"What do you mean?" Zach Jr. blinked.
"It's not important," Shane interrupted. "Despite my reputation I'm not as bad as Doc. I have a lot more respect for women than that."
"More like you're emotionally crippled and scared of any type of intimacy," Doc snipped.
"I AM NOT!" Shane snapped.
"ARE TOO!" Doc snapped.
"AM NOT!"
"ARE TOO!"
"Will you kids knock it off?" Zach barked.
"If you're not, prove it!" Doc challenged Shane. "Ask Niko on a date!"
"I won't do that just to prove a pointless point to you!" Shane bristled.
"Why not? If it's so pointless why don't you just ask her anyway?" Doc kept going.
"I can't do that! She's means more to…I mean…She wouldn't like that," Shane backpedaled. "To be treated as part of a bet I mean."
"AH HA!" Doc pointed out. "You are in love with her!"
"No!" Shane barked.
"You just said she means more to you than any pointless bet!" Doc pointed out.
"That doesn't mean anything!" Shane snapped.
"Yes, it does!"
"No, it doesn't!"
"Yes, it does!"
"No, it doesn't!"
"Excuse me," Zach Jr. interrupted. "Can we get back to my problem here?"
"In a minute, son," Zach held up a hand. "Goose you can't just keep pretending that you don't love Niko when it's so freaking obvious you do even Buzzwang notices."
"He does not!" Shane challenged. "I mean because there's nothing to notice!"
"Goose will you cut it with the macho act and get real for a moment?" Zach asked.
"Why? You have another bet on when Niko and I will have a date?" Shane snapped.
"He does actually," Zach Jr. said. "The pool is still going on."
"HEY!" Zach and Doc yelled.
"I knew it!" Shane got up fuming.
"Now Gooseman take it easy," Zach got up. "Look Doc and I are really concerned. We really do care about your happiness and Niko's."
"And if we can make a quick buck to pay for some beers or little extras so much the better," Doc quipped. "Everybody will be happy." Shane glared at him. "Well maybe not everyone…"
"Look it's not like I don't want to ask her out," Shane gave in. "It's just…We work together for crying out loud. We have a great friendship."
"And you don't want to ruin that," Zach guessed.
"That and the fact that the Commander Walsh and the Board of Leaders will go ballistic if they ever found out I went on a date," Shane groaned.
"Since when do you care what they think?" Doc asked. "The Board of Leaders anyway."
"I don't. I just don't want her to get hurt because of me," Shane sighed. "I don't know."
"Well maybe you should talk to Niko?" Zach Jr. suggested. "And then maybe Dad you can talk to me?"
"Oh right," Doc blinked. "We were supposed to be giving him advice."
"We, nothing!" Zach snapped. "I am giving my son advice."
"Somebody please help me! I don't care who!" Zach Jr. groaned. "Trudy is a really nice girl and I want to make a good impression."
"Trudy?" Doc smiled.
"Trudy Miller," Zach Jr. explained. "From my old school. You know, before Dad got me expelled."
"It was not an expulsion," Zach defended. "I just thought you needed a better educational environment."
"After you attacked his principal and blew up a few walls," Doc chuckled.
"Anyway Trudy and I have been keeping in touch by e-mail and stuff and since her dad works with the government she's gonna be at BETA in a few days," Zach Jr. explained. "I was wondering how you ask a girl on a date and what you do next."
"Take it from me kid, the first time you ask a girl out is always the hardest," Doc said. "But trust me, they can be just as intimidated by you as you are of them."
"Doc I'm handling this!" Zach snapped. "He is my son after all!"
"That's why I think I should be the one to tell him these things," Doc pointed out. "Right Goose? Goose?"
"I mean what would be the harm if I just asked Niko to go get some ice cream or something?" Shane was thinking to himself. "I mean there's nothing wrong with that is there? It's not like I'm asking her to marry me or anything. Just one little ice cream cone. What's the harm in that?"
"Goose we're off you and onto Little Zach," Doc told him. "Try to pay attention."
"Sorry," Shane apologized.
"You're nervous about asking Niko on a date?" Zach Jr. was surprised. "But Goose you…"
"I know what kind of reputation I have but…Unlike you Little Zach I never really had anyone to explain certain things to me," Shane shrugged. "I mean I was told the mechanics but not the important stuff, like feelings and other crap like that."
"Part of it is because you are a Goose, not a Gander," Doc pointed out.
"Doc!" Zach snapped. "You mean Commander Walsh…"
"Didn't exactly encourage me to think about girls much less go on a date," Shane said. "In fact I didn't even know what sex was until I was fifteen and the inhibitor drugs wore off."
"Inhibitor drugs?" Zach Jr. blinked.
"Don't ask," Zach sighed. "Trust me, son. You really don't want to know."
"The point is I had no one to go to with my questions," Shane said. "I had to learn all I knew about girls and how to talk to them from soap operas and porn movies."
"Really? So did I," Doc blinked.
"Oh great!" Zach groaned. "Look son, just be yourself. Treat her with respect and listen to her. It'll be fine."
"How about taking her to the commissary?" Doc suggested.
"You think Niko would like that?" Shane blinked.
"Not you! Little Zach!" Doc snapped. "Boy you really have it bad, don't you?"
"I do not!" Shane bristled. "I just…Oh forget about it! It's a stupid idea anyway!" He stormed out of the room.
"Is it me or has he gotten a lot more sensitive lately?" Doc asked.
"I guess Goose is just a late bloomer," Zach shrugged.
"Uh Dad…?" Zach Jr. asked.
"Oh right," Zach was back on track. "Son just be yourself and everything will be fine. I'm sure she'd love lunch in the commissary and showing her around BETA."
"Just do us all a favor and don't take off in any spaceships or touch any of Q-Ball's inventions or anything like that," Doc smirked.
"Trust me Doc, that's the last thing I'm going to do!" Zach Jr. said. "I kind of already have a bit of a reputation at my old school as a bit of a nutcase. I don't need any more instances like that!"
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In the commissary Zach Jr. was sitting with a teenage girl with large red hair and a pretty green dress and fashionable black boots. They were talking, eating and relaxing. Everything seemed to be going well.
Unfortunately for them a certain blue and white robot was nearby.
"I feel funny doing this," Buzzwang spoke into the receiver that was implanted in his wrist.
"What the camera in your eye still tingling?" Doc asked. He was sitting with Zach a few feet away in a booth hiding. Doc was holding some kind of surveillance equipment.
"No, isn't this some kind of invasion of Little Zach's privacy?" Buzzwang said.
"We're not invading his privacy," Doc said.
"We're not?" Buzzwang asked.
"No, we're just field testing some new features in your circuitry," Doc smiled. "I mean you do want to be a greater asset to the Galaxy Rangers right? Well if this spy equipment I put in could lead to a lot of undercover missions. We're just getting all the bugs out."
"You put bugs in me too?" Buzzwang gasped.
"I can't believe this," Zach grumbled.
"What? That we're using Buzzwang to spy on your son's date?" Doc asked.
"No I can't believe how clear this picture is," Zach remarked as he flexed his arms. "How come my cameras never get a picture like that?"
"Zach will you stop moving your arm around?" Doc said. "This is a delicate operation. The Doctor needs to concentrate."
"I think my arm's on the fritz again," Zach looked at it. "It's got that weird tingle."
"Fine, I'll look at that right after we finish our recon mission," Doc rolled his eyes. "Buzzwang, move closer into position."
"Captain Foxx is it possible that you still have issues with being a bit over protective of your family?" Buzzwang asked.
"Is it possible for you to shut your metal yap and get over there?" Zach snapped. "Besides we are not spying. We're merely monitoring for inappropriate behavior."
"We're spying aren't we?" Buzzwang asked.
"Just get over there!" Zach snapped. "And don't talk to us."
"We'll give you orders through the comm. link inside your head so no one else can hear," Doc told him. "Now go over and say hello."
Buzzwang walked over to the teenagers. "Hello there Little Zach and Little Zach's date!" Buzzwang said cheerfully. "I am saying hello! I am not spying on you! I am just standing here. Saying hello. Hello. Hello. Uh…Hello."
"Buzzwang, has Bubblehead been playing with your circuits again?" Zach Jr. gave him a look.
"Well someone has been…" Buzzwang began. "You see…"
"Forget that!" Zach snapped. He heard everything through a microphone in Buzzwang's body. "Ask who Trudy is!"
"Oh right? So who is Trudy?" Buzzwang looked back and forth at the only two kids at the table, one he knew rather well.
"Zach…You know this robot?" Trudy blinked.
"Yeah, this is Buzzwang. He's a friend of mine," Zach Jr. said.
"Yes Trudy I am Buzzwang! Galaxy Ranger robot!" Buzzwang saluted.
"Okay Buzzwang I…" Doc began to say something when Zach accidentally jolted his arm and wrecked the device. "Zachery!"
"Sorry," Zach said. "I told you my arm has been acting funny again!"
"I just hope it doesn't…" Doc looked over and did a double take. "Mess up his circuits."
Buzzwang started to break-dance around the floor. "Oh my! I feel so funny!"
"You said this robot is a friend of yours?" Trudy blinked.
"Did I say friend?" Zach Jr. amended. "I meant acquaintance I barely know."
"Doc hurry up and fix it!" Zach hissed at his friend. "Before we're discovered!"
"If you and your twitchy arm hadn't broke it in the first place we wouldn't have this problem!" Doc hissed back. "Just give me a minute! It's not damaged that badly! I think I can fix it!"
"Zach…" Trudy said as Buzzwang danced around. "This is really weird."
"No, it's not weird," Zach laughed nervously. "Not really."
"Okay I'm better now," Buzzwang got up and hit his head a few times. "Sorry I uh…Got dance fever! Yeah that's it."
"You really do know some strange people don't you Zach?" Trudy asked.
"No, not all of them are strange," Zach Jr. defended.
Right on cue Bubblehead flew in. "Hello! Hello!" He flew down and landed on top of Buzzwang's head. "Anybody see some dancing pineapples running around?"
"Okay maybe the bird is a little weird," Zach Jr. groaned. "But other than that BETA is a normal base. Just like anywhere else."
Just then Dr. Nagata floated by. "Hello Young Zachery. I wanted to let you know that I got you those downloads on space ship mechanics you asked for. I gave them to your father."
"Oh thanks Dr. Nagata," Zach Jr. waved as the brain unit left. "See you."
"What was that?" Trudy asked. "It looked like a brain inside a machine."
"It was a brain inside a machine," Zach Jr. explained. "That's Dr. Nagata."
"You know a living brain?" Trudy blinked.
"Well yeah," Zach Jr. gulped. "He wasn't always a living brain. Funny story…"
"Never mind…" Trudy stopped him. "All of the sudden I've lost my appetite."
"Oh uh…How about some ice cream?" Buzzwang said. "I know where you can get some ice cream."
"Hey how come I hear Doc's voice in your head?" Bubblehead picked up the frequency with his own robotic circuitry. "Hello? Doc? You in there?" He tried to look into Buzzwang's brain.
"What are you talking about?" Zach Jr. frowned.
"I hear live people," Bubblehead said.
"No you don't!" Buzzwang said. "You do not hear Captain Foxx and Ranger Hartford giving me orders through my new spy ware systems. Oops!"
"What?" Zach Jr. yelled. "They're using you to spy on me?"
"Uh yes, I mean no! Uh I mean they're not hiding over there behind that booth giving me orders."
"DAD!" Zach Jr. shouted as he saw them. "DOC!"
"Uh oh…" Doc gulped. "Busted."
"I'm sorry Ranger Hartford I cracked under pressure!" Buzzwang blurted.
"You just cracked period," Bubblehead chirped. He flew to Trudy and landed on her head. "Can I have your socks?"
"EWW! GET IT OFF ME!" Trudy tried to swat Bubblehead off her head but for some reason Bubblehead clung onto her hair with his feet. "IT'S IN MY HAIR! IT'S IN MY HAIR!"
"IT'S IN MY FEET! IT'S IN MY FEET!" Bubblehead cried out loud.
"Trudy calm down!" Zach Jr. said. "I'll get Bubblehead out! Bubblehead stop it and let go!" He tried to grab Bubblehead. Fortunately Bubblehead let go of Trudy and flew off. "Trudy I am so sorry about this."
"Everyone run for your lives!" A Ranger ran in screaming. "Some weird alien monster escaped from some kind of wormhole in Q-Ball's lab!"
"Oh right, I knew there was something I did before I came in here," Bubblehead scratched his head with his wing.
"Q-BALL I THOUGHT I ORDERED YOU NEVER TO MAKE ANOTHER WORMHOLE DEVICE AGAIN!" Commander Walsh was heard shouting in the hallway.
A giant glowing dog like creature bounded into the commissary. "Yum! Steak!" It helped happily.
"Oh boy a new friend!" Bubblehead chirped as the dog creature ran around eating everything in sight.
"Come back here you mutt!" Zach tried to catch the creature but it escaped him.
"I got him!" Doc pulled out his lasso and got it around the creature's neck. However the creature was far too strong for him. "HE GOT ME! AAAAAAAHHH!"
"Fear not Ranger Hartford for Galaxy Ranger Buzzwang shall assist!" Buzzwang said as he went to help. "AAAH! GET OFF! GET OFF! MY LEG IS NOT A CHEW TOY!"
"Woof! Woof!" The creature said happily as it pulled off one of the robot's legs and ran around the cafeteria.
Doc had let go of the rope and lay down on the floor, face down. "Oh this floor is so soft…"
"Woof! Woof Woof!" The creature happily ran around and ran up to Zach Jr's table. He barely grabbed Trudy out of the way before it jumped up onto the table and started eating their food.
However it did knock some food onto Trudy's dress. "My dress!" She screamed.
"Come here you stupid mutt!" Zach tried to grab the creature without any success. It ran around happily barking and ran over Doc's back.
"OW!" Doc yelled.
Shane ran in and saw the chaos. "There he is!" He jumped in the fray and grabbed the creature. The creature let go of Buzzwang's leg and gave Shane a bite. Of course Shane used his badge to turn into a glowing creature with a dog face.
"I GOT HIM!" Shane barked.
"Good boy Goose!" Q-Ball ran in with a strange device. He turned it on and a glowing wormhole appeared. "Throw him in there!"
"Doggy go bye bye!" Bubblehead chirped as the creature was sent back to the right dimension.
"Are you all right?" Shane asked the kids, still in beast form.
"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" Trudy ran out of the room screaming.
"What's her problem?" Shane changed back.
"Oh man…" Zach Jr. hung his head down. "My reputation is toast."
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"Just be myself you said," Zach Jr. lectured his father and his friends back at his apartment. "Don't worry about anything you said. Have lunch in BETA's commissary you told me. What could possibly go wrong?"
"Okay I admit things kind of got a little out of hand…" Zach gulped.
"A little out of hand?" Niko folded her arms. She had joined them in the room. "All of you not only infringed on Little Zach's privacy, you gave the wrong impression to that poor girl."
"No, I think she got a pretty accurate impression about us," Shane remarked.
"You boys are worse than mother hens," Niko gave them a look. "Do you have anything to say for yourselves?"
"Buck-aw?" Doc did a weak chicken impression.
"Not only is Trudy never going to go near me again, she's probably told half the student population that I'm weird and related to dangerous lunatics!" Zach Jr. snapped.
"That's not fair," Shane said. "It's only Zach you're related too."
"Let's not forget her father threatened to do some very nasty things to me with a chainsaw if I even came near her again!" Zach Jr. rolled his eyes. "Of course Dad you blowing up another wall after her dad threatened me didn't exactly help the situation!"
"I told you! My bionic arm's a bit on the fritz again!" Zach snapped. "I got a little emotional…"
"A little?" Zach Jr. snapped. "Dad you blew up an entire wall! Not to mention any chance of me ever talking to Trudy again! Her father made sure of that!"
"A boy always remembers his first restraining order," Doc grinned.
"I am never going to date ever again…" Zach Jr. moaned. Just then the home communicator rang. "Oh great! More bad news."
"Hi big brother," Jessica was on the vid phone. "You look awful. Is there anything wrong?"
"Yes, my life is totally ruined and it's all my Dad's fault!" Zach Jr. groaned.
"Hey! Doc helped too!" Bubblehead chirped.
"Pay no attention to your brother. He had a bad day," Doc waved. "So what's up Jessica?"
"Oh I'm just calling to tell Dad that I can't come home this weekend," Jessica said. "I kind of have something this weekend with a couple of friends. There's a huge study party and a school fair. I'm running a booth with a couple of friends and we have a lot of work to do."
"That's great Jessica," Zach said. "So you and your girlfriends are going to have a good weekends."
"Yeah and a couple of boys too," Jessica shrugged.
"A couple of boys?" Zach yelled. "WAIT A MINUTE!"
"Oh no you don't!" Niko snapped at him. "Jessica you have a good time now."
"HOLD IT!" Zach yelled as Niko calmly shut off the vid phone. "Put her back on! You can't just let her stay there! She can't be in that group! There are boys in that group!"
"So?" Niko put her hands on her hips. "I hang out with you guys all the time and I'm usually the only woman in the group."
For some reason Shane felt a little nervous. "Uh well, yeah." Doc just chuckled, Zach gave him a death glare and Niko was just plain confused.
"So Dad are you gonna fly over there and ruin her date too or are you still too tired from ruining mine?" Zach Jr. snapped.
"It's not a date!" Zach snapped at his son. "She's just hanging out with a few friends."
"Who happen to be all male," Doc grinned. "I sense a road trip coming up!"
"Goose, can you ask Commander Walsh if he has an extra supply of inhibitor drugs?" Zach groaned.