Title: Like Us
Summary: Early in Dino Thunder, Tommy calls Jason to tell him about the new team. No pairings, friendship fic
Disclaimer: The Power Rangers are not mine. They belong to Saban. I'm not making money off this.
Note: It bugged me that never once did we see or even hear Tommy mention talking to any of the other rangers. So I felt the need to remedy that. Set somewhere after Back in Black, but before White Thunder.
"Hey bro, hadn't heard from you in a while. I was getting worried," Jason said as he picked up the phone.
It had been close to a month since they had talked. That usually only happened when Tommy was on a dig.
"We've been busy. Mesogog finally attacked. There's a new team. That's why I called. I have got to tell about them, Jase," Tommy said.
The original red ranger couldn't help but laugh. He had known Tommy wouldn't be able to stay away.
"So you're the mentor these days?" Jason teased.
"Umm, well I'm kind of back in action," The original green ranger admitted.
Tommy let Jason laugh for several minutes before interrupting.
"You done?" He asked.
"Ok, what color this time?" Jason asked.
"Black," Tommy confessed.
That set the first red off laughing again.
"Bro, seriously, how is this so funny?" The original green demanded in annoyance.
He failed to find this as amusing as he best friend apparently did.
"Have you told Zack yet?" Jason asked.
Tommy froze. Crap. He hadn't. If Zack learned about it from anyone else he'd be dead meat.
"I'll take the silence as a no. You had better call him soon, Tommy," Jason told him.
"I'll call him tomorrow," Tommy promised.
He made a mental note to write himself an actual note so that he remembered to do so. Some things never change.
"So, this team of yours. What are they like?" Jason asked.
He knew Tommy was teaching high school now. If they were back to high school aged Rangers, he wanted to know what kind of team Tommy was having to deal with. Jason only hoped they were up to the task.
"It's smaller than ours ever were. There were three Rangers before I got my new powers. The new Red's name is Conner McKnight. Jase, he is like a combination of you and me, with a bit of arrogant jock added in. He'll grow into the powers well though. I'm sure of it. He fits the Red Code," Tommy said.
"Sounds like he could be an interesting Red. How has he handled battle command so far?" Jason asked.
"He's doing ok. He's young, but so were we in the beginning. I'm there to help, but I let him call the shots as much as possible. The others have to know they can rely on him. Anyway, the blue is Ethan James. He's like a cross between Billy and Zack with Billy's brains and Zack's temperament. It's funny at times. There is no telling what havoc that boy could cause if he was so inclined. So far the worst I've seen is him setting the lawn sprinklers to go off mid-day. I'm sure he'll do something else," The original green said with a chuckle.
"Oh man. That's only two so far and I'd say you have your hands full, bro," The original red said.
"I do. The yellow is Kira Ford. She's very different from any of our girls. She's tough and independent like our yellows were, but she's very different from them beyond that. She's a musician. She's good actually. Hayley is letting Kira's band play at the Cybercafe," Tommy told his friend.
"That's cool of Hayley. Tell her I say hi, by the way," Jason said.
"Will do, bro," Tommy assured.
"So, will Kira be able to keep those boys in line?" Jason asked, the fact that he was smirking was evident in his voice.
"I think so. Ironically she was the least interested in becoming a ranger. She went so far as to give her dino gem back. She's totally onboard now though. Had to worry about Conner almost quitting on me too. That was the one time I started doubting he was the right person. I couldn't tell him that though. Had to tell him I was sure he was the right choice. But what Red is willing to walk away after seeing what good we can do?" The original green asked.
The original red sighed. Tommy was forgetting a rather important point.
"Bro, I did, remember?" Jason reminded him.
"You retired after over a year of service to go do something else that was good for the world. He wanted to quit after a week because it was interfering with soccer. That's one hell of a difference, bro," Tommy responded vehemently. Then he added, "And when I needed you to come back and take the Gold Ranger Powers, you did it without hesitation."
Jason smiled. There were still times he questioned whether he had made the right choice to go to the Peace Conference. Rocky had been a suitable replacement, sure, but he still wondered sometimes if he left when his friends really needed him.
Jason's silence was telling sign of his thoughts to his best friend.
"None of us ever blamed you guys for going. It was the chance of a lifetime," Tommy said.
"Thanks, bro. What changed the kid's mind?" The original red asked.
"A little girl they saved during the fight. He said she reminded him of why this matters," The original green said.
"You're right, he fits the code," Jason agreed.
"Yeah. So enough about me. How have you been?" Tommy asked.
"My life is nowhere near as exciting as yours these days it seems," Jason said.
They spent the next half hour just catching up on other things. Tommy liked that even after all this time he could still call his best friend whenever he needed to talk. Jason was always there. He needed that right now. Sure Hayley was great, but she had never been a Ranger. She couldn't truly understand the way Jason could.
Right before they prepared to hang up Jason said, "Bro if you ever need my help don't hesitate to call me. Rocky and Adam can handle the dojo without me for however long you'd need me up there. If it was really bad, I'm sure the others would be willing to come up too."
"Thanks, bro. I appreciate it," Tommy said.
He really did. It was nice to have other Rangers he could call on if things ever got that bad.
"That's what best friends are for," Jason reminded him.
Tommy smiled at that. He knew he had great friends. They had all helped each other get through so many challenges over the years.
"I know. I got to go. Papers to grade," Tommy said reluctantly.
He missed his bro. They rarely got to see each other anymore. He missed all of his friends, but he and Jason were the closest. Maybe he'd be able to go back to Angel Grove for Christmas this year. If not, the trip would have to wait until Mesogog was defeated.
"Have fun," Jason said with a laugh.
Tommy shook his head as he put down the phone and went to grab the papers he needed to grade. He knew his life wasn't normal, but he wasn't sure he would want it to be.
THE END