Note: Unfortunately I don't own Power Rangers, Power Rangers RPM, or the characters featured within this story. If only.. :(
Note Two: This will get a mediocre rating for now, but it's definitely going to go up in the future as I add more chapters so guess where it's headed. Enjoy!
The solitary drop of liquid that ran down the Doctor's cheek confused Dillon. Of Venjix origin, he wasn't raised to understand emotions, nor had he experienced any personally.
Yes, in his short time with the rangers he had begun to tap into his human side and become a more watered down version of himself, but the current situation with Doctor K was one he couldn't understand - a woman whom he often thought of as a machine due to how immune she was to even the thought of emotions was.. crying?
Turning away and about to head for his room, Dillon spotted a slim, messy figure heading towards the lab. Ziggy had just be shunned away from Scott and was still babbling on about how unrealistic their zords were as he passed his best friend.
The Black Ranger was in one mind to stop him from entering the lab, but his other mind convinced him that was a bad idea. He came to the realisation that she had shown emotion before, breaking down all her boundaries and saving Ziggy from Fresno Bob and the rest of the cartels. He remembered her protection of him, and realised that he might be just what she needs and this point in time.
So, with a wry smile, he let the teen carry on his merry way.
"...it doesn't make any sense, I've never seen an eagle drive, they fly - fly! The zord doesn't even have wings! Look at a plane if you want to put wheels on a flying thing Doc… wait, that almost helps justify the driving eagle, ignore that par-..."
Ziggy's famed rambling was ceased by the scene that greeted him as he entered the lab.
What he now referred to as 'the underwear cannon' was in the middle of the floor, muzzle separated from the rest of the appliance.
But that wasn't the most alarming thing.
Feet in front of him sat his mentor - a woman completely devoid of any emotion whom, like Dillon, often reminded him of a perfectly oiled machine - in tears.
To anyone else, someone crying would be a simple human reaction to a situation but, to anyone who knew her, specifically the Ranger camp, Doctor K crying was something that was thought of as completely inconceivable and impossible.
It took Ziggy a moment of jaw-dropped stillness to comprehend what he was seeing before a rather concerned look began to spread across his face. The infamously emotionally drained teenage genius had broken down, in full view of anyone nearby also - something was definitely very, very wrong.
She cradled one side of her face with a shaky hand, elbow resting on the pure white desk. In her other hand she rolled a rather mysterious object between the thumb and forefinger, and as he took a quiet step forward Ziggy realised it was the pencil that was always kept in her top draw - that thick, decently used green one.
Why that pencil was such a sentimental object to her he had no idea, but he respected it - after all, when he was five he kept a bottle cap and named it Derrick because he was sure it had moved and was alive.
"Doc?" muttered the now very obviously worried Operator Series Green quietly, as if he was trying not to surprise her too much. Although this was to no avail, as the fellow teen in front of him became startled, whipping her chair around to the centre of the desk so her face was hidden behind the central computer monitor, wiping each side of her face with its respective hand in order to try and rid of the evidence.
Taking further steps towards her as the lab doors closed due to the lack of his presence, Ziggy stood behind the computer that the good Doctor was so desperately trying to use to hide herself.
"Doctor K?" he questioned with growing concern.
"Ranger Operator Series Green, may I enquire as to why you are present? I-" Doctor K strongly enquired before having to stop to compose herself, "I currently do not require you for any tasks or training".
Seemingly ignoring the statement she had just made, Ziggy walked around the computer station and approached the doctor, placing himself next to her chair with his concern still evident - although not necessarily to her, as she was trying to avoid any sort of eye contact with the young man.
"What's up Doc?"
"I am preening the second Flux Overthruster of nanobites. Due to the technology being one that was duplicated by a Venjix attack bot, there is reason to believe that it could contain the virus and thus lead to implications upon the Zenith megazord"
She expected a quirky, not-so-intelligent reply that she had learnt how to deal with, so she could brush him off and be left alone again. She expected something along the lines of 'oh, that's bad stuff that might happen, isn't it?'.
What she did get, however, was a straight to the point, factual statement - "The computers aren't even on"
The introvert could only manage a stuttered "err" in reply, realising that for one of the first times, if not the first time, in her life she had actually told a lie.
Kneeling beside her, Ziggy said her name once more. However, this time it completely threw her.
Her head jolted upright, her eyes widened and goosebumps grew across her skin. The annunciation of her name was forceful, abrupt - unlike him.
Doctor K began to realise just exactly who this was beside her. Yes, she knew it was him entering the lab thanks to the glow of the small green light just below her desk, (linked to the DNA of each series operator thanks to the bonding process), and the unmistakable sound of his voice.
But what she hadn't realised was how drastic the situation was. This was Ziggy, the human that she was so inquisitive about, the one she was so protective of she couldn't use his actual name, and the one who distributed a warmth within her with his presence and his company - a warmth which she didn't understand and scared her to the very core.
The last time she experienced new emotions, Gem and Gemma seemingly perished in the ruins of Alphabet Soup.
That couldn't happen now, thus why she always seemed to be so hostile towards him - she was trying to push him away so they would both avoid harm.
The magnitude of the situation became more apparent when he thrust her chair around to face him.
He was met with a hastily applied furious expression and arms folded across the chest, her way of trying to end this encounter so work could begin on returning thoughts and emotions to normal.
As soon as this was bestowed however, it was gone.
She looked straight at the adolescent in front of her, his current look very unique to him.
His chocolate eyes were wider than usual, firmly planted on her. Gone was the smile or smug expression, and instead there was one of seriousness and worry. His head was slightly tilted to the side, giving an inquisitive look, as he stood and thus towered over the short and seated Doctor, arm still outreach to the top of the chair above her shoulder where he twisted it round.
She noticed his lips part as if to talk before quickly returning, and after a second of stillness a strong, sharp breath out before looking down at her.
Ziggy could make light of anything - literally anything. If Tenaya 7 had got hold of the morpher he would have said how it wasn't a problem with her being such a 'chick'. Aside from anything relating to the cartels, he never looked sad or talked in a depressing way, but his whole aura had changed here as he looked down at his mentor.
She had trouble reading his emotional response to her with him acting so uniquely, but was soon settled on one thing - care. He cared about her.
She was in a situation that was completely alien to her, so there was reason for him to be acting so differently also. It was realised in that moment by the Doctor how much he seemingly cared for her, wanted to help her, and didn't want her to suffer the emotions of sadness and despair which he was able read, unlike Dillon and her.
She registered how much she meant to Ziggy from his current expression. Personally, Doctor K became aware that, despite all of her efforts to push him away and save them both from emotional trauma, she was still thoroughly intrigued and interested in Ziggy, even valuing him as an entity in her life.
It all made her feel safe, secure in the presence of someone like never before. It broke her, spelling the end of the short-lived drought upon her cheeks. It started a shower, then a stream, then a river, and then a sea. It was a force that could not be stopped.
He said nothing. Instead he squatted down in front of her. His hand ghosted her shoulder and upper arm before returning to his side.
The feeling of said action caused her to remove the hands from her face, and tilting her head up she looked straight into his eyes. They twitched with worry, but she saw something very recognisable in this very different event - his smile.
It may have been small, but it made her notice the warmth inside her for the first time since this started. It had always been there since he had entered the room, but it was now growing at a substantial rate, causing another warmth - within her cheeks. They turned rose red as she blushed and had to slightly turn her head away to stop herself from overloading.
Ziggy had surprised even himself with the way he was acting, his extroverted self had been withered away by a simple reaction.
But it was not just the fact it was a simple human reaction - it was the fact that it was being performed by Doctor K, the young woman who unwittingly and unknowingly held the key to his heart. Something was very wrong, and he would do his very best to fix it.
"It's actually pretty hard"
He cursed himself for the words that had left his mouth, although he did have to stifle down a laugh at the rather bewildered doctors facial expression - one eyebrow raised in curiosity while the other furrowed in confusion, all while still in floods of tears.
He'd started going down this path so he might as well finish the hike. Hey, it could be a nice conversation that might help improve the situation and also get her to open up.
"Being stupid and all, that's what I mean"
"What?"
Her voice surprised the both of them. she had managed to cut through the despair and tears and talk. And she wasn't pushing Ziggy away, she was merely enquiring.
"Well, you asked me what it's like being stupid remember? Before we went out and fought big-shiny-mirrory-copy-weapons-guy?" a simple nod registered that what he said had jogged the memory and that he had permission to continue.
"It's hard because I don't understand most of what you say, for one!" was Ziggy's starting point, with Doctor K giving a sarcastic, knowing nod in response.
"And when we're out fighting Venjix's goons, I can only just handle myself. I mean, that's probably not being stupid, just a lack of ability. Mind you, you would think I could fight and stuff after Fresno Bob and friends - who comes out of the cartels not knowing how to fight, I mean co-"
Ziggy was cut off by a slight murmur coming from in-front of him. That murmur was in fact a words - a sarcastic "So incoherent". The young woman was oddly feeling slightly cheered by his disjointed rambling, but wanted him to continue with his explanation.
After a quick apology, the teenager restarted from where he had left off: "It's hard 'being stupid' because you're treated as stupid. I'm dumb and do a load of dorky, idiotic things yes, but that's the outside. On the inside I'm happy, carefree guy who's trying to put everything into saving Corinth and the world. I want to be able to keep up with everyone else, but I've been plunged into this without any experience. I mean you could say I chose this path, but I wasn't going to let a Venjix general get hold of and bond to a morpher was I?! Everybody talks down to me, I'm treated like the runt of the litter and, hell, I don't know what properly what we're doing most days because of the techno-science babble. That's nothing against you, Doc. It's just now I'm now a Ranger, the same as the others, giving everything I've got to help - and I want to be treated as an equal."
Breathing out heavily, Ziggy took a rest after his explanation. It was tough on him getting it all off his chest, and in the instant of registering this he cursed himself - Doctor K was in a period of emotional trauma, and he'd just piled his own on her. Trying to silently berate himself, he bit his lip and dug his nails into the lining of the chair in-front of him.
Said chair belonged to Doctor K, who was still sat in silence and trying to register what Ziggy had just told her. He was always upbeat and without a care in the world, with her discovery of his past not changing a single thing. Yeah, he was silly and idiotic, but she was drawn to that - he was like a stain of black on the degrading white walls of her Alphabet Soup prison.
Anyway, that silliness and idiocy was something that she didn't realise came at a cost. She had thought she was the only one amongst them who had any difficulty with anything. Of course there was Dillon, who was being ravaged from the inside out by the Venjix virus, but that was something else.
Simply, Ziggy found it hard 'being stupid' and Doctor K found it hard 'being intelligent', with both of them hating the baggage that came with it.
Realising that she is not the only one who detests the way she is perceived, as well as the extent of the explanation from Ziggy, the Doctor started breathing from the mouth, heavier and heavier, with this action causing the tears to slow to a slight dribble.
She felt a connection.
"Z-Zi… Ra-ran.." stammered Doctor K, said feeling of connection being strong enough for her to start using the male's name but then stopping herself, going on to be unable to talk.
"I'm sorry. That was too much from me. Now you know how I feel but this was the wrong time to talk about it. It can't have made you feel better" was Ziggy's apology, spoken firm but also softly at the same time.
"Yes"
A word penetrating the tears and heavy breathing was again surprising but, with it already happening in the conversation, he took it in his stride. He was however inquisitive, the simple word puzzling him.
Being able to speak the word had helped the Doctor steady her breathing, the tears slowing to be almost non-existent. Seeing the curious expression on Ranger Operator Series Green's face, she let out a small smirk, partially lifting the corner of her mouth.
Starting with a deep breath, she expanded on her response to the apology;
"Yes, your clarification did help to improve my emotional state-" Doctor K began, sitting up so her face ended up only an inch away from his: "-Ziggy".
Ziggy's face lit up as he heard his name resonate from the young woman's mouth. God, he never thought it could sound so good.
He wanted to stay in this moment forever, for they had both seem to have found peace - in each other.
However, a little shiver ran down his spine. This was Doctor K, who was such an introverted, isolated person - he didn't want to mess this up, and so was going to let the Doctor take control.
Speaking of her, she now inched closer to him so her lips were nestled by his.
"I now know that I am not alone" she whispered, closing her eyes to breathe in the male in-front of her.
The smile on Ziggy's face from the use of his name was erased, but that wasn't a bad thing. Instead of being distracted by wild things such as the use of his name, his loving gaze was now solely focused on her.
Copying the young woman, he slowly and gently closed his eyes and breathed in the scent of the woman in front of him.
That is where they stayed for what was only a minute, but felt like a blissful eternity to them both.
Ziggy felt their noses gently brush against each other, and it all became too much.
He took her lips into his in a prolonged yet tender kiss, feeling a pang of regret and worry as he felt her freeze and not return the action.
However, after a few seconds, Doctor K began to melt into him, returning the kiss. She had to take a second to compose herself, for while she wanted it it was also so unique to her.
After a period of connection, she took care in inching her chair slightly forward so he could draw her in. Taking heed of her actions Ziggy did so, reaching behind her to run his hand through her hair while his other hand was placed on top of hers, which was laid out on the arm of her chair.
They only released their lips in order to breathe. Keeping their lips nestled together as before, they could both feel the other's warm, heavy breaths on their face and neck.
It took a good few minutes of recovery before either of them were willing to speak and break the silence and moment. It was the Doctor that did it first, however.
"We should keep this a secret"
"W..we.. we?!"
Giggling like a schoolgirl, she responded with a single "Yup"
Gazing lovingly into her eyes, Ziggy let out a warm smile. He wanted to express his love for her in this personal moment, but that would push her away. She probably knew from recent events anyway.
Raising his hand to her cheek, Ziggy affectionately rubbed away the last of the tears on his partner's face - they had fully stopped flowing during the kiss. He got lost in the moment, with the Doctor's voice snapping him out of his trance: "You had better return to the other Rangers before they sense an issue"
"Ah, um, yes good point I guess. Um, bye, see ya later, err yeah"
Ziggy stood and stumbled towards the door, nearly falling to his knees at one point.
He neared the lab doors, which opened with his presence. As he went to walk out, a voice came from behind him;
"Au revoir, Operator Series Green"
Ziggy spun round to be greeted by his companion staring right at him, a playful grin on her face. She gave him a wink before returning her gaze to the computer in order to turn it back on.
Returning the grin, he went to turn back to walk into the main section of the garage before remembering something - "Oh, Doc, I haven't forgotten about the Eagle Zord!"
And with a skip and a jump Ziggy left the lab, not seeing the shake of the head and laugh that Doctor K gave in response.
"Ah, here's the young'un!" Flynn exclaimed, motioning towards the slightly flustered but also bouncing figure of Ziggy that was currently heading up the stairs towards the Ranger's personal rooms. "Where'd ya head?"
"Toilet" was the oddly short reply, as Ziggy seemed to stop in front of Flynn with a jump and added a beaming smile in for good measure.
Dillon rolled his eyes and almost ran into his room to escape. His closest friend lying about where he was meant something probably happened, and he didn't fancy hanging around to learn what it was.
Watching him till the door slammed shut, Flynn turned back to Ziggy and, pointing to the door with his thumb, asked "What's up with him?"
"Probably needed it too" was the cheeky reply, as the Green Ranger cheerily skipped into his room.
"Bejesus I'll be damned if I ever know what goes on in this place" the Blue Ranger muttered to himself before making way himself.