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A/N 1: It has been a ridiculously long time since I've been involved in the Power Rangers fandom. Megaforce has officially brought me back. I absolutely love Troy and Emma; the few scenes they've had together show a lot of chemistry, IMO.

This will be a series of chronological one-shots about how they become closer as friends and teammates. It will feature a lot of my own head canons, such as Troy's little sister. I just think he'd be a good big brother. Because Megaforce is still airing, this may or may not be compliant with the show's canon, but I hope you all enjoy it anyway. Unfortunately, this is probably going to be updated pretty sporadically because I'm working on other things right now, but hang in there. :)

Baby Steps

Emma Goodall had a plan.

She was excited about this plan. As soon as the bell that signaled lunch rang, the Pink Ranger was out of her seat and walking briskly into the hallway. Emma's brown eyes scanned the hall for the person she was looking for and she smiled slightly as she caught sight of him.

The Pink Ranger staggered her pace so that Troy wouldn't think she was following him. Which, okay, she was, but he didn't need to know that. And Emma knew there was a good reason for her actions, so she didn't feel too weird about them.

Even though Troy Burrows had been both her classmate and teammate for several weeks now, Emma hardly knew anything about the Red Ranger. He was just so distant outside of battle. To tell the truth, it was starting to bug Emma a little bit. And the brunette girl definitely intended to fix this.

It wasn't easy, though. None of their other teammates seemed to be particularly bothered by Troy's lack of efforts towards being friends. Jake and Noah had each other, of course, and neither male Ranger seemed to want to change this. Gia Moran, Emma's best friend, was constantly telling her that she should just stop bothering with Troy. Clearly, the Yellow Ranger said, if he wanted to be friends, he would meet them halfway. It was also well known to Emma that Gia liked her privacy and therefore would be the first to defend someone else's right to it.

But today, Gia would be spending her lunch period tutoring a boy from her calculus class. This left Emma free to follow Troy without being nagged at by her friend to leave him alone.

The Red Ranger had stopped by a tree to one side of the quad. As she was learning was typically for the boy, he had chosen an area that was nearly uninhabited. The autumn weather was still pleasantly warm, but most of Harwood County High's students preferred to eat in the cafeteria. This made the quad quiet and peaceful. Emma could see why the lone wolf on their team would want to spend his time here.

"Hey," Emma greeted as she approached the boy. "Do you mind if I eat with you?"

She could see the surprise in Troy's green eyes as he looked up at her. "No," he said finally.

The Pink Ranger focused on staying calm as she folded herself onto the grass next to her Red counterpart. Maybe this would easier than Emma had thought; she had expected to have to talk him into agreeing.

As Emma reached into her backpack for her lunch, she could feel Troy staring at her. "Is something wrong?" the brunette girl asked, her brow furrowed.

He shook his head. "Not really," the Red Ranger replied. "I'm just wondering why you want to eat with me all of a sudden. Don't you usually spend your lunch break with Gia and the others?"

So he was paying attention to her, at least a little bit. Emma nodded in response and said, "Gia is tutoring today. I heard Jake say he had to do a detention for Mr. Burley, and Noah is busy with his Science Club. I saw you coming out here and thought it might be nice if we were alone together."

Emma inwardly winced. That had not come out right at all. Troy was still staring at her. The Pink Phoenix felt herself blush under his scrutiny. She was considering apologizing and getting up to walk away when he spoke again. "So I was your last resort."

"Of course not," Emma said in a rush. "That's not what I meant at all. I'm so sorry if that's what it sounded like."

But Troy was smiling at her. "I was kidding, Emma," the Red Ranger assured her.

She smiled back, relieved. Then she said, "So you're capable of having a sense of humor." Emma was careful to say this in what she hoped was a thoughtful sort of tone. The Pink Ranger was optimistic that maybe if Troy knew she wanted to know more about him, he might just tell her everything she wanted to know. It was a long shot, maybe, but still one worth taking.

Troy arched an eyebrow at her. "What's that supposed to mean?" he questioned.

Emma was worried that she had offended him. But she still stood her ground. "You're so distant. It's frustrating," the Phoenix admitted. "So whenever I see something new with you I try to take note of it." She winced for real this time as she realized how this sounded. "And now you probably think I'm crazy."

"Not crazy," Troy said decidedly. "Just passionate. Though why you've picked me to be passionate about, I'm not sure."

Emma was pleased to hear that it seemed like he was teasing her again. "I'm a sucker for a good mystery," she told him. Troy looked a little bit wary at this statement. The Pink Ranger quickly backtracked. "Don't worry," she added. "I'm not going to grill you or anything. I prefer to put things together for myself. And I have a feeling you wouldn't respond well to being questioned, anyway."

"I wouldn't," he assured her. Then the Dragon Ranger reached into his own backpack. He came up with an apple and his copy of Hamlet, which they were reading for their English class. He probably had the right idea, Emma thought. She reluctantly fetched her own copy of the play from her bag.

The rest of the lunch period passed rather pleasantly. Emma ate her sandwich and granola bar while she brushed up on Act III and took note of the little details. Their English teacher was notorious for asking very hard questioned on her pop quizzes.

The Pink Ranger was also guilty of sneaking more than a few glances at her Dragon counterpart. He was so focused and serious and she'd be lying to herself if she said she didn't find that a little attractive, even if it also frustrated her to no end. But there would be time for that later, Emma told herself, after they knew each other better.

The lunch period was nearly over when she heard an electronic chiming. Emma glanced over at Troy to see him sliding a red phone out of his pocket. He tapped the screen and let out a small groan upon reading the message. "My mom," the Red Ranger explained, having guessed that she was about to ask. "I have to get my sister from the bus stop after school."

But Emma just smiled at this new piece of information as she turned it over in her mind. "Another piece of the puzzle. You have a sister."

Troy got to his feet and slung his bag over his shoulder. "I have a sister," he confirmed. He offered her his hand and Emma took it without hesitation. Troy hauled the Pink Phoenix to her feet easily. Together, both Rangers headed back towards the school's English wing.

They were nearly to the door of Mrs. Nolan's classroom when Troy placed a hand on Emma's arm, stopping her in her tracks. She looked up at him curiously. "I…um…" he stammered. There was a hint of nervousness in the boy's tone. Emma tilted her head to the side, now even more curious as to what Troy was trying to tell her.

"I eat lunch at the same spot every day," he said finally. "You know, if you, uh, find yourself alone again or something."

The Pink Ranger beamed. He was inviting her back, which was a definite step in the right direction as far as Emma was concerned. "I'll keep that in mind," she said with as much nonchalance as she could muster, though she was certain that Troy could see right through her.

With that said, Emma joined the group of students filing into the classroom. As she settled in at her desk, she could tell someone was staring at her. She glanced to her right, only to lock gazes with Troy.

He was smiling.

A/N 2: So, hopelessly cheesy, right? Well, Power Rangers is supposed to be cheesy. :)