The plot: basically a bunch of former rangers are attending a funeral. I don't want to give anything away, so for now that's all I have to say.

I do not own any of the characters. I don't intend to create OC's, but if I do, they will be brief and move the plot along. This is dedicated to Scott because it is my first PR fic, I figure I ought to dedicate it to someone cool ;) Enjoy, and please R&R =)

Chapter 1

Who would have thought that death would be my reason for coming back here?

Adam Park was wearing his best black suit. His hands on the steering wheel of an old Chevy, Adam's thoughts floated around in his head like clouds passing through the sky on a windy day. He kept checking the time as though staring at it would somehow make it go back. He wasn't in a hurry to get to the funeral, but he certainly didn't want to be the last one there. Being last always meant so many questions.

I guess this is what I get for not visiting more often. It's a wonder Kim even called me at all. Kim...wonder why she's kept my number for so long.

Adam wasn't usually filled with this much doubt, but his reason for returning to Angel Grove wasn't exactly the most pleasant. He hadn't seen or heard from anybody in Angel Grove in years. Not that it was anybody else's fault. Running his own dojo had proved to be more work than he had originally planned, but that wasn't really an excuse.

The passing of the powers. If I'd known then what I know now...I wouldn't have left. I wouldn't have let...

Adam cringed thinking about all the bad things that had happened while he'd been away.

When Adam had been called on by the Sentinel Knight to fight off Thrax with Tori, Bridge, Kira, and Xander, he thought he was doing a good thing. He thought he might be making up for leaving Angel Grove without a second thought.

When he brought his new teammates to Angel Grove to retrieve Alpha 6 to repair the Operation Overdrive link to the Morphing Grid, he didn't have time to reflect on the fact that he hadn't been there since he'd helped Carlos regain his confidence.

Driving along a winding stretch of desert road, Adam could smell the dry air. And man did he ever miss it. A standard ringing sound came from the passenger side of his car. He pulled off to the side of the road and answered his phone. "Yellow?"

"Pink!" the voice on the other end made Adam smile. "And when were you ever yellow, Adam?"

"Kim, it's my way of trying to keep the mood light. How are you? You ready to get this done?"

There was a brief pause. "Yeah I guess so. It's gonna be weird though, you know? I mean gosh...how long has it been since we've all seen each other? Are you bringing anybody uh...with you?"

Adam opened his mouth to answer, but no words came out. He knew Kim was expecting him to be bringing Rocky, but Adam and Rocky hadn't been on speaking terms for some time. "No. I uh...I'm coming alone. What about you? Are you...?" he couldn't finish.

Now it was Kim's turn to be without words. It wasn't all that long ago that she had pictured herself marrying one of her former team mates. After she left the original rangers, she broke up with Tommy through a letter. She knew that wasn't the nicest thing to do, but she didn't know how else to allow him to be with Katherine.

Jason hadn't been the same since he'd lost the gold ranger powers. When they reunited to help the other rangers with the shelter though, Kimberly had sensed her feelings for Jason returning (though nothing had come of it).

"Nope, I'm a free bird." She laughed uneasily. "So my car just died and I was actually calling for a ride. D'you think you could maybe pick me up?"

Adam hadn't been expecting that. "Sure. It will be nice to see your face...catch up."

"Uh...yeah, great. I'll meet you outside the mall."

"You're shopping on a day like this? Kimberly Hart, I'm surprised at you."

"Well it's more like I don't feel like having you be confused trying to get to my apartment. Call me when you're close, ok? I have someone else on the other line."

"Sure th..."Adam had been cut off before he could say goodbye.

This is going to be some fun.

He began to blush.

Unresolved feelings, happy and not so happy reunions...I hope I didn't just make a huge mistake.

"Hello?" Kim had lost her phone, so she was stuck with a downgrade model that didn't have caller ID.

"Hey Kim, it's me."

Kim's jaw dropped. The voice on the other end of her phone was all too familiar. "Jason? I didn't know you still...where have you...? How are y...?" Kim's thoughts ran wild. She had a million questions for him and unfortunately for her, her mouth hadn't quite caught up to her brain.

Jason laughed. "I'm good. I'm with Billy and Zack right now, actually. I've been thinking about you, but I haven't had the courage to call you."

She was shocked. "Well I don't really blame you for waiting until now. I mean...it's not like I call to check in on you or anything." Kim stopped talking. That sounded so rude. "So how are the guys? Do you all have a way to the uh...?"

"Yeah. Yeah...actually no, no. I flew in this morning and took a taxi to Billy's old house. Zack did the same thing."

"And let me guess: Billy still doesn't drive."

More laughter from Jason. "Well can you blame the guy? I mean he's been living on Aquitar with Cestria for years. I don't think they really need cars up there."

"Did she come back with him?"

"No, she's at home with the kids." Kim giggled. "What? She is." Jason smiled. Even after all these years, he still didn't fully understand Kim's sense of humour.

"Well it's just...it's kindof mean but...out of all of us? I never pictured Billy being the first of us to settle down and have actual kids." Kim sighed and brushed her hair out of her face. Her short, black dress was tucked between her legs. The wind was picking up. "So is this you asking me for a ride? Or did you just want to sit around and play 20 questions before we get to the funeral?"

"A little of column A, a little of column B. If you have a car and you happen to be heading the same way as us, I figured why not give it a shot."

"As it so happens, I don't have a car." She could hear Jason letting out a disappointed sigh. "I'm actually getting a lift with Adam. I can call him and see if he'd be willing to grab you guys after he picks me up. If you want, that is."
Adam. Now there is a person I've been meaning to speak to for some time.

"Sure, thanks." Jason paused. "Actually, would you mind just giving me his number? I feel kinda bad making you ask for us."

"Uh sure. 876-1215."

"Thanks Kim. See you soon."

"Anytime!" with that, the two former power rangers ended their call. Kim's heart couldn't help but flutter a bit. In fact, she felt kind of pathetic.

He wanted a lift, that's all. He's probably still with what's-her-name anyways. Maybe he didn't mention her because he knows we don't get along and he didn't want to upset me. That's a pretty thoughtful thing for him to have done. Oh stop it Kim. It can't happen. Remember what he did? Remember what he said? Get. Over. It.

Jason quickly dialled Adam's number. It rang several times.

I wonder if he knows it's me.

On the 10th ring, just as Jason was about to hang up, he heard a click. "Hello?"

"Hey Adam, it's Jason."

"Need a lift?"

"When did you become a mind-reader?" Asked Jason, smiling. He knew he could count on Adam.

"Well once you retire from active ranger duty, you have to pick up new skills to compensate for the lack of kicking evil butt." Adam and Jason both laughed. "Kim just called to ask the same thing. I figure most of the calls I'm going to get today are going to be about the adventure we're going on."

"Yeah." The silence was slightly less than awkward, but still up there on the un-fun scale. Adam and Jason had hardly talked when they first met, and hadn't really kept in touch since. It was hard to strike up a mutually satisfiable conversation. "So uh...where are you meeting Kim?"

"She's at the mall. I can come get you wherever you are though. Doesn't really bother me. Not in a big hurry."

Jason couldn't blame him for that comment, though it stung somehow. "Zack and I are over at Billy's old house. I think you've been there before, right?"

Adam grinned. "Yeah, I've been there. I'll get Kim to give you a call when we're close by, alright? I'd hate to have to keep pulling my car over just to talk on the phone."

"No problem." A longer pause. "Thanks, Adam."

"Anytime. See ya." They hung up.

Adam's grin of amusement stayed on his face until he got to the mall. As far as he knew, he wasn't the most reliable of the original rangers. Yet today of all days, everyone was calling on him. He liked that though. He liked being the reliable one.

Kim opened the rear passenger door and flung her stuff onto the back seat. She slammed the door and jumped into the passenger seat. She buckled up and smiled at Adam. "That was pretty fast. You weren't speeding were you?"

"Of course not. Too many deaths in our family, right now. Wouldn't want to add to the body count."

Kim had no response. She'd never heard Adam speak so darkly before. She put her hand on his knee. "I'm scared too, you know. We all are. This isn't going to be fun. But we're in it together, and I'm always going to be here for you."

Adam glanced at her quickly. He sighed and placed his hand on top of hers. "Same here, Kim. Always."

They drove the rest of the way to Billy's house in silence.