Orange? Yeah Right!

by Mahande3

A KimTommy fic that explains a lot, and introduces a new friend. TomKim, KatOther

1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Yeah I like the power rangers. Guilty as charged. that's the ONLY charge I'm guilty of. None of this belongs to me, thus I am making no money off anything in this story. Sue me if you want. 50% of 0 is still 0 lol.

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A/N: Just so any of my readers know, this story has been in the making for a long time. I recently finished re-editing some of the content for a better fit IMHO. So check it out and let me know what you think!

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Pink. Ugh I hate pink. But she likes the color for whatever reason. At least they aren't roses. He thought as he walked through the hospital hallway. He was carrying a vase of pink carnations to Kimberly Hart in room 113. The stocky gentleman peeked his head around the corner of the door to see if she was asleep, and was surprised to find her deeply engrossed in a magazine.

"You? Reading? Guess that asshole and the coma must have done a bit more damage than I thought", he said with a sly grin.

She looked up at the door with a surprised and happy smile, "Ryan! Sorry, I wasn't expecting anyone to drop by."

"Oh, so you only read when people aren't looking?"

"That's not what I meant smart ass. Come in and sit a few. What I meant was that I was bored enough to pick up a magazine because all that's left on the TV at this hour of the day is that soap opera junk."

He walked into the room and placed the vase of pink carnations as well as his hat, on a table next to the bed.

"Ahh, well I also brought something to liven up the room", he said with a smile.

"Pink carnations? You didn't go into spasms when you bought them did you?"

Ryan fidgeted in his chair and started to scratch himself for added theatrics, "No, but I think I'm starting to break out into hives. Can colors cause allergic reactions?"

Kim reached over and slapped his shoulder, then pulled him closer to plant a kiss on his cheek, "Well I love pink carnations, thanks Ryan."

"No problem, Kim."

She regarded him with a grin. Ryan was almost like the brother she never had. They connected in a way that you really only do with a sibling. He had dark brown hair, but you wouldn't realize it because whenever he would go anywhere his hair was covered by his favorite Dale Earnhardt Jr. hat. He also had taken a liking to sporting a goatee, which he had justified due to his belief that his baby face features made him look too young. All in all, Kim thought of him as pretty good looking, she just had never thought of him as anything more than a brother, and she didn't know why.

"Still haven't lost the hat like Roxanne and I told you to huh?"

He smiled back at her, "Nope, and I'm thinking of gluing it to my head just so you two quit nagging me about it. I leave it at home these days when we go drinking. You know, just in case I find another chick at a bar that's completely plowed under and drooling at me."

She gasped at him, "I was NOT drooling at you."

"How do you know? You can barely remember what you were wearing. And, for you, that's saying a lot."

She sat back with a grunt of indignation and folded her arms. Ryan loved to push her buttons and he had gotten quite good at it. Now she remembered why he was always like a brother to her. A pesky, annoying bastard of a little brother whom you couldn't help but love.

"I just came by to talk. The final bit of the hearing was today. I know you didn't have to be there, but I figured you'd want to know what happened to him."

He watched as a slightly pained expression glazed over her face for a moment, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have mentioned it. It was hard enough for you to walk into the courtroom to testify a few days ago, I should have just left it alone."

She put on her brave front and forced a smile for his benefit, "No, it's okay Ryan. I'd like to hear what happened. I want to know that he is getting what he deserves."

She had been in a coma for nearly five years after what happened. The beating she had taken had been bad enough to cause massive internal bleeding. The doctors had called it a miracle that she had survived, but she liked to think that her lost Ranger powers were still there, protecting her. He had testified against Scott, her attacker, as she had been understandably absent. Ryan made sure that he was present during the entire trial, for Kim's sake and for his own satisfaction. He had been determined to make sure that the bastard didn't get away for nearly killing the person that had become his best friend in the entire world.

"His appeal to be let out on parole was denied. Honestly I think it was because of your testimony. He took almost seven years of your life between the coma and the recovery. Only fair that he should be punished more than what you had to endure."

Kim just sat there and smiled at him, glad that he had been there through the whole thing. Ryan had even visited her while she was still in her coma. It was only fitting that he had been the one talking to her the day she woke up. He had been sitting in the chair next to her bed playing a game on his laptop absentmindedly talking to her as he had done once a week ever since she had gone into the hospital. Her first memory of waking up had been her talking a deep breath. Ryan had looked over at her to see her eyes open. He had been unable to speak for a moment before finally saying her name. All she had said was "Hi Ryan" in a weak voice before he had jammed his hand on the call button and all but dumped his laptop on the floor. He had her in a hug with tears streaming down his face before she knew it. Orderlies had come in and gotten him off of her so they could check everything out, but it would have taken every employee in the hospital to have removed him from the room.

For almost the next two years he had been there for her every step of the way, helping her through her rehab. Her father had come to visit a few times but he had his job in California and couldn't be there as much as Ryan had been. Learning to walk again, learning to talk again, it all had been so hard. Having him there with her through it all kept her going. There were times when depression about her condition had set in, but Ryan had been there to lift her spirits and set her back on the right path. Now the whole thing was going to be over. She could go back to some semblance of a normal life.

"You almost ready to leave this place? It's been home for a long while."

"I know, everyone here has been so nice. I feel like I'm leaving one family here, but going home to another

"It wasn't your fault Kim. You didn't deserve it at all. He was just an asshole. But, because it was what you wanted, we supported you instead of keeping you away. Something that I really wish we could do over again."

That made Kim look up at Ryan, her eyes moist with unshed tears, "I'm sorry, Ryan."

He kept his emotions in check, but couldn't help the anger that colored his words, "You have nothing to be sorry for, Kim. I'm the one that should be apologizing for not keeping you away from that creep. My best friend got beaten within an inch of her life and put in a coma. Then had multiple surgeries to stop internal bleeding, not to mention more bruises than the moon has craters."

The memories from that night washed over him like a tidal wave. In his mind he went through the whole night over again. The panicked phone call at three in the morning. The yelling and screaming he had heard from the street. He even went through the 911 call he had placed while going ninety miles an hour in a thirty zone. He remembered kicking the door down and finding Kim laying on the floor, bloody and bruised. So vivid was the image that he even remembered the sickening way she had been laying on the floor, one arm outstretched with the open flip phone lying just out of reach. That image alone haunted him to this very day. He remembered walking around the corner and into the hallway to find Scott still holding the bloody baseball bat in his hands. The feeling of the punches landing and nasal bones breaking under his knuckles still brought Ryan a delicious satisfaction the likes of which he had never known. The police had handcuffed him and thrown him in jail for the night. It was only after the police had questioned the neighbors that they had correctly pieced together what had happened that night. His father had been pretty pissed off when he picked him up from the police station. Well, until he told his father exactly what had happened. He was shaken from his thoughts by her hand on his cheek.

"Ryan, its not your fault either. If it's anyone's, it's mine."

She thought back to the argument she had had with Scott that night. She had left practice early to pack her things up and move out. Kim had been planning the whole thing for a week, but there is only so much you can pack into a car before it begins to look suspicious. Ryan had wanted to help her but she insisted that her doing it alone was the best way. She was tired of depending on people to fight her battles for her. It had all started with Tommy during her days as a Power Ranger. Oh sure, she had been a formidable fighter in her own right, but whenever she got over her head she had called on her green or white knight to save her. Then it had been Aisha's parents offering to put her up until the end of the school year. She found herself doing the same thing when she had arrived in Florida, except this time it was Scott helping her. They had moved in together to save money on rent and pursue a development of their relationship, but things progressively got worse and worse.

At first, it hadn't been all that bad. She went with him to bars after practice and enjoyed a few drinks while he proceeded to get drunk and hang out with his friends. Oh, he would get jealous every now and then when a guy would hit on her. She would politely refuse the newcomer's advances with a smile. Invariably they never knew when to cut their losses and realize the only answer they were going to get was no. This was always followed by Scott seeing them, running them off and turning to Kim with accusations. She would always calm him down and have to reassure him that she was there to be with him. The whole charade eventually got too tiresome which led to her own adventures in the Sarasota night life, without him.

Her decision to face her situation with a newly longed sense of independence led to her current situation. He had returned home before she was fully packed and gone. The argument had been long, loud and vicious. She never saw him grab the bat. It was a testament to the human race and its tenacity that she had survived the events of that night. She had fought countless evil minions and monsters and for what its worth, come through relatively unscathed. Yet, caught off guard by a man nearly twice her size holding a forty inch piece of ash wood, she had been helpless.

"I should have let you help me, Ryan. I tried to do it all on my own and I didn't see it coming. I should have let you, and Cory and Kyle help me move all my crap out of there and been done with it but I was just so stupid about the whole thing..."

Ryan got up, sat on the bed next to her, and wrapped his arms around her when she leaned into his embrace.

"Well that's all in the past now. We don't blame you for not listening. We get enough shit wrong in our own lives that it's quite understandable", he said with a chuckle. "None of us saw this coming either. If we had, I think we would have protested a bit more than we did."

He paused his train of thought to kiss her on the top of her head and tighten the hold he had on her. Kim knew he loved her, as much as anyone else in the entire world loved their REAL sister. And lucky for her, Ryan was the kind of guy who wasn't afraid to let it show. He was just as chauvinistic and manly as the rest of the male population of the world, but when she needed it, he was her rock and her teddy bear all rolled into one.

Ryan spoke with his lips still partially touching her head, "I know you are moving back to California as soon as you get out of here and I understand why you're doing it. I just wish I could make you change your mind. What am I going to do without my best friend? Who will I shrink wrap my brothers car doors closed with? Who will I scare the shit out of with rubber snakes in the guest bed? Most importantly though, who will be there when I need the shoulder to cry on?"

She held tight to him as he laid back against the raised head portion of her hospital bed. Kim listened to his heartbeat as her head came to rest on his chest. She would probably miss these moments with him the most.

"Well it wasn't an easy decision. I love all you guys here. Who would have thought that I'd find a second family in a bar of all places. After my parents got divorced I thought I'd never feel like part of a family again until I had my own. But I found you guys. You and your brother Cory. Kyle and Roxanne. Even Eoin and Kyle's sister were great, but it's like us five made a team, a family."

She sighed and thought to herself for a moment, Why is it always five? Kyle, Roxanne, Ryan, Cory, and Kim... god that's scary. I once again found a group of four people that damn near complete me. Maybe five has some sort of cosmic significance or something. Zordon would know.

Kim briefly remembered back to the day she walked into the bar in question. Hammerhead Reds was a family bar during the day and a nice place to kick back and watch sports, play darts, and shoot pool in the evening. The night she came in though she definitely had other intentions. She had just gotten done with gymnastics practice and more importantly, another fight with Scott. The only thing she was looking for that night was some comfort in a glass. After a lengthy stay and a slightly longer bar tab, Rick the owner of the bar, made Ryan sit down next to her that night and make sure she was okay. He had seen her bar tab laying on the bar top and made some sly comment about not knowing that a one hundred pound girl could pack away so much alcohol. The rest of the night was a bit fuzzy.

Ryan told her later that she was all over him for the rest of the night, but not in the way he wanted. She hadn't been aware of it at the time, but Rick had placed next to her what was probably the only man in the entire bar that wouldn't take advantage of a woman so drunk she needed an entire weekend to get her equilibrium back. He had an almost knightly sense of chivalry when it came to certain things. Just like Tommy. That was a name that took her back. She hadn't thought about him in a long while. He reminded her a lot of Tommy. But while Tommy was mostly serious, Ryan was mostly a joker. The big thing similar between them however was their care for their friends, determination to protect those friends, and their sense of honor. Ryan would normally have no problem with a beautiful woman hitting on him, but without her wits about her, his nature had been to protect rather than get her naked.

"Hey down there", Ryan said as he waved a hand in front of her face. "Earth to Kimberly. Where'd you go? I thought I was the one with a short attention span."

Kim smiled and looked up at him, "Sorry, just lost myself in thought for a moment"

Ryan laughed, "I thought you fell asleep for a moment there."

"For a moment?"

"Then I remembered about the cute little snore you have when you sleep."

"The only reason you know about that is because of our friend Captain Morgan", she said as she slapped him lightly on the side.

She didn't remember leaving Reds that night, but she would never forget the next morning. Evidently sometime around two in the morning, she tried to leave and Ryan had followed her into the parking lot. She was stumbling and weaving her way to her car like Jackie Chan from "Legend of Drunken Master". She had leaned up against her car to fish her keys from her purse, only to be held there and have Ryan fish them out and keep them. He had dangled the keys from his fingers and scolded her a bit for trying to drive. Proclaiming to her that it was for her own good, he tried to drive her home. Halfway there however, she had said that she was afraid to go home, so Ryan took her back to his place. He offered to sleep on the couch and let her take the bed, but she wasn't having it and told him that two responsible adults could share a bed without anything sexual coming of it. She was right, but when she awoke the next morning, she found herself in Ryan's arms and both of them half naked. He apparently had gotten cold during the middle of the night and gotten under the covers with her, only to have her unconsciously snuggle up to him, attracted to the body heat. She awoke first in the morning and in a still half drunken haze, thought the worst and panicked. It took about fifteen minutes to calm her down but he succeeded. After a nice hot shower and a liberal amount of caffeine, he told her the whole story over breakfast. Ever since then they had been friends, often accused of being together too, by anyone who didn't know them.

"Our friend?"

"Well, yours", she giggled. "He and I haven't been friends since that night. Just like Rick's blaster shots have sworn you off of Jagermeister, and we both stay away from tequila."

"I'm just disappointed that it took all those drinks to make you want to come onto me, and here I thought I was a good looking guy"

"Ryan you ARE good looking. Your timing just sucks."

"So would it be bad timing to tell you I've got a hard on right now?"

She gave him a shocked look and slapped him on the chest, "Ryan!"

"Sorry, I've got a hot chick in bed with me. I can't help it if a hot chick in Hello Kitty pajamas turns me on."

She slid up his body to cuddle closer with him. In doing so, she brushed against his crotch with her leg a bit and realized he was telling the truth. She looked at him and turned a bright red color, but also got a mischievous gleam in her eye.

"I can't help it either", she said with a sultry tone in her voice as she climbed onto his lap and straddled him.

Ryan groaned, "Kim what the hell are you doing? This is like wrong in SO many ways. I feel like such a Kentucky redneck."

That comment made her laugh and she looked him straight in the eyes, "I just wanted to do something to thank you for saving me the night that son of a bitch put me in here."

Ryan looked at her wide eyed and opened his mouth to say something, but never got a chance as Kim kissed him full on the lips. Ryan responded in kind after a moment and turned it into a full french kiss. After a moment Kim pulled back with a scowl on her face.

"What?" he said.

"You were right. Don't get me wrong Ryan, you're a great kisser but it felt like kissing my brother."

"Well do me a favor and get off your brother's lap."

She looked at him for a moment and self consciously turned bright red. She swung her leg off of him and laughed at him.

"It was actually kind of enjoyable even if it was with my pseudo sister, and besides, that's the most action I've gotten in months."

He gave her a sly grin as he got off of her bed. Ryan sat back down in the chair next to the bed just as the door opened and Kimberly's doctor walked in.

"What's all the commotion in here?"

Ryan looked at him with a straight face, "Sorry Doc, she wanted a romp in the sheets before she left."

Kim gasped, "Ryan! Sorry doctor. He hasn't had his medication today and I forgot his leash. I'll try not to get any hair on the furniture."

Ryan sat back into the chair with a glare in her direction.

The doctor grinned, "See that you don't Ms. Hart. I'll have an orderly come by sometime in the next couple hours with your release papers, and then you can leave tomorrow as planned."

"Thank you Dr. Evans."

"No more romping Ms. Hart", He said with a wave and a knowing grin, as he exited the room and walked down the hallway.

"So, where did you plan on going to anyway, Kim? Didn't you say your dad moved out of Angel Grove?"

"Yeah, he moved to a town called Reefside last year. I told you he got into real estate after he and mom separated, right? Well, he found a smaller place in Reefside that would suit him. Mom left for France with her new husband and I'm still here in Florida, so he sold the house in Angel Grove and moved up there. He said it was too big of a house for just him in it."

"You going to move back in with him?"

She wrinkled her face like she had caught a whiff of road kill, "No, I would just feel too weird about that after being on my own for so long. He is going to pay for my rent in the meantime though, until I can get a job and start paying him back."

"So Reefside it is. Did he find you an apartment, or you gonna have to do some hunting?"

"He got me a cheap house to rent. I just need to move the stuff from here to there. I'm gonna rent a U-haul and just drive."

That statement gave him a bit of concern, "Kim, I don't know where Reefside is, but it IS in California. Sarasota, Florida to Reefside in Cali? That's a lot of mileage, too much for me to let my big sister do it herself."

"You want to come with me?", she asked with a surprised expression.

"Yeah sure, I've never been to California. Besides, on the way there we can stop by in Vegas and see a few shows", He said with a leering grin.

"You're horrible Ryan."

---

The trip to Reefside started later that week and was pretty uneventful for the two. Other than the occasional rainstorm or two, and of course their stop in Vegas, they made pretty good time. Ryan had dragged her to one of the topless shows in Vegas and had a grand time. She had quickly fallen in love with the costumes and Ryan of course with the craftsmanship of the local plastic surgeon. Staying the night in Vegas had been expensive but well worth the experience for the both of them.

"Can we get something to eat? I'm starving."

"You ate this morning when we left Sacramento."

"Yeah, but it's almost lunch time and that breakfast the hotel had wasn't that good."

"But we are almost to my new apartment."

"You've waited this long to see it, it isn't going to change much in another hour. Besides, you don't have any food there."

"Ryan, you're starting to sound like Rocky. I thought Cory was the pig of the family?"

"He is, but I still need food. Being this damn good looking requires a lot of calories", he said with a smug grin and a nod in her direction.

She rolled her eyes and then put them back onto the road ahead of her, "Oh good lord you lay it on thick sometimes."

He ignored her verbal jab, "Rocky huh? As in your friend that you found out hurt his back when you went back to Angel Grove for Trini's funeral four years ago?"

"Yup, that's him. He had a reputation of being the local garbage disposal. Hey there's a place. Hayley's Cyberspace. The sign says it has food and smoothies, plus computers."

"Perfect, I need to check my bank account and e-mail, too."

Kim pulled the truck into a parking space and walked inside. Ryan was right behind her and whispered into her ear as he walked through the door.

"Wow, I guess the good lookin' redhead behind the counter must be Hayley."

Kim looked back at him and playfully slapped him in the stomach, "Behave."

Ryan just smiled, "Yes, ma'am"

Kim and Ryan sat at the counter and waved Hayley over.

He smiled at her as she laid down napkins on the bar for their drinks, "Hey there, Hayley!"

Hayley looked at the both of them with a puzzled look, trying to figure out who they were before looking directly at Ryan, "Do I know you?"

"No, but this is Hayley's Cyberspace, I just assumed your name was Hayley."

Kim finally ended Ryan's playtime out of pity for their gracious hostess, "Ryan, didn't I tell you to behave?"

"Right, sorry."

Hayley smiled at the couple and placed two menus in front of them, "Well actually, you happen to be right. What can I get for you?"

Ryan looked down at the menu and motioned for Kim to go first.

"I'll have a strawberry-banana smoothie."

"And for you?"

Ryan looked up at her, "I'll have a dragon fruit smoothie and a basket of chicken fingers please."

"Coming right up", Hayley complied as she ran a ticket for the kitchen in the back.

Behind them sat three of the establishments regular customers in primary colors. Conner and Kira earnestly explored their textbooks while Ethan, at a computer, explored a world of a completely different sort.

"Yes! Level thirty-three already! Man I'm gonna beat this game in record time."

Conner rolled his eyes at Ethan, "I'm telling you Kira, if we don't find a way to unplug that boy he's going to end up with a microchip in his head."

"I don't know Conner, with the way he comes up with some stuff and the way he can do math in his head like he does, I'm beginning to think he has one already", she said with a smile.

"Very funny guys", Ethan said. "This new game I discovered is pretty cool though. It's got different class and race combinations that make it really fun to play. Plus its online so I can play with like hundreds of other people all at once!"

Ryan's ears perked up at the mention of an online game and he turned his chair in Ethan's direction, "Sorry to eavesdrop, but what game are you talking about?"

Ethan turned and looked over at him, "It's called Everquest. Its awesome!"

"Really? They have EQ here?"

Kim looked over at Ethan, "Great going, whoever you are. Not only did you just find a friend, but you probably just guaranteed that my unpacking will take twice as long because Ryan will be spending half the time here playing Everquest."

He looked at Kim with an evil grin, "Only until you get your cable installed. I brought my laptop with me."

Ryan got up with his smoothie in his left hand and walked over to Ethan with his right hand extended, "My name is Ryan, the grumpy one at the counter is Kimberly."

Ethan smiled up at the man, "My name is Ethan, and my friends at the table are Conner and Kira."

Ryan nodded in their direction, "Pleasure to meet you."

Conner decided to start the conversation, "So I take it you play this game too, or at least know of it."

Ryan nodded, "Yeah I play it. In fact I have two level eighty characters that I play in a top end guild. We do some of the really hard raiding stuff."

Ethan went wide eyed, "Two? Wow, you must play a lot."

"Not a lot. Just have for a long time. The game has been out there for like seven years and I started playing pretty soon after it came out. They keep adding expansions and stuff."

Conner laughed, "Hey, there's something you don't see everyday. A role playing game that Ethan didn't know existed."

Kim chose that moment to interrupt, "Well sorry to interrupt but Ryan and I need to be going. He needs to go back and eat his food so I can see my new house before it is destroyed by the natural forces of erosion."

Kira and the two boys turned their heads toward Kim as she spoke.

"Just moved here?", Kira asked.

"Yeah, we literally just rolled into town from Florida where I had been doing gymnastics. All of my stuff is in our truck in the parking lot. I'm moving back to California to be closer to my father. He lives here in Reefside."

Ryan nodded to the teens, "Yup and I'm here to help her unload this huge truck of clothes into her new place. After that, I go back to Florida."

"You know that truck is not all clothes Ryan. I swear sometimes I feel I put up with too much abuse from you."

Ryan just smiled at her, "Hey, ya love me, so I can get away with it."

Kim rolled her eyes and turned towards the bar top halfway, "Yeah, yeah. Come on Ryan, scarf it down so we can get going. Nice meeting you three."

Conner spoke for the group, "It was nice meeting you two as well. See you around."

Ryan cast a parting glance at Ethan, "I'm sure I'll be here later. I'll show you some of the better areas to go, AND I'll log on my account so you can see some of the awesome stuff in the game."

Ethan practically beamed with excitement, "Ohhh, I can't wait! Later, man!"

Kira leaned over the table halfway in front of Conner to look at Ethan, "They seemed like a nice couple."

"Nahh, doesn't seem like they are a couple, just friends."

Kira looked at Conner funny, "Huh?"

"Well think about it. She's moving back to town and he is going home afterward. They fight like two people romantically involved but I'm guessing that's just because they are really close and he likes to antagonize her", he explained.

Ethan looked at Conner like he had grown a third head, "Dude, did you just go all Sherlock Holmes on us? What gives?"

Conner just looked at him and shrugged, "Ethan, just because I'm a dumb jock doesn't mean I don't pay attention. Besides, of the three of us, I'd say I'm the most socially inclined person here."

Kira rolled her eyes and went back to her textbook, "Well just so long as you don't get a big head about it."

---

Kim waited for Ryan to finish the food he had ordered and then ushered him out the doorway. She was in a hurry to drop most of the stuff off at her new apartment tonight so she could see her father the next morning. Kim got into the drivers seat of the truck and was just about to pull out of the parking space as a black jeep pulled into the space on the trucks passenger side. The two people in it walked right in front of the truck not noticing its occupants. One was wearing white and one was wearing black. As the one in black passed in front of the truck, Kim gasped. Tommy? No way! No that couldn't have been him. That guys hair was short and spiky. Tommy never would have cut his hair that short. He loved his hair almost as much as I do mine.

Ryan poked her in the shoulder, "Kim? You okay?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah yeah, I'm fine."

"You sure Kim? You're talking to me and not even looking at me. You keep staring at the door to the Cyberspace there."

Kim looked at him and smiled, "Its nothing, lets go."

The two buckled their seat belts and headed out of the parking lot, bound for Kim's new apartment.

---

Tommy and Trent entered the Cyberspace and waved at Hayley behind the counter before going over to Ethan, Kira, and Conner.

Ethan looked up from his game and spoke, "Hey Dr. O, hey Trent."

Tommy came to a stop at the table and rested his hands on the back of any empty chair, "Hey guys. We need to go back to the lab. I want to run a few tests on the new Battlizer Armor the Shield of Triumph gives you, Conner."

"Sure thing Dr. O.", Conner replied.

Tommy turned around to Hayley who was trying to get his attention. He walked over to the counter and saw that Hayley had an uneasy look on her face.

"Hayley? What is it?"

"Two people just walked out of here. One was named Ryan and the other was named Kimberly. Now I'm not completely sure, but this Kimberly looked a LOT like what you've told me and what I've seen of your Kimberly from High School."

Tommy's eyes went wide in shock. Kim! Here! Oh boy, what did I do to deserve this twist of fate?

"You're sure?"

"No, Tommy I'm not. That's why I said I'm not. But it does look a lot like her. I just wanted you to know incase you saw her in here and it turned out not to be her. Wouldn't want you making a fool of yourself to a stranger."

Tommy grinned at her, "Yeah, that would be awkward wouldn't it? Thanks for the heads up, Hayley."

"No problem."

"Hey, we are going back to the lab to test Conner's new armor. Can you leave for a bit to come with us? I could use your help running the tests."

"Sure, I'll leave one of my employees in charge."

"Great, lets get going."

---

"Hey Kim?" He shouted.

"Yeah?"

"Which room is this heavy ass chair going in? And please say somewhere close cause I think I'm going to fall over soon."

Kim laughed and yelled inside from the back of the truck, "Put it in that first room, the one that's right next to the kitchen."

She turned again to figure out what to unload from the truck next, only to find herself stuck in the moment earlier when she saw that man clad in black walk by the truck.

She whispered to herself, "There's no way that could have been Tommy."

"Woah, wait a tick. Tommy? As in THE Tommy?"

Kim whirled around to find Ryan leaning on the back of the truck waiting for more stuff to put inside. More importantly though, he was waiting for an answer.

"Yeah THE Tommy", she mimicked him. "But like I said, I don't think it was him. His hair was short and spiky. Tommy wore his long like I do."

"Any chance he could have cut it?"

"I don't think so. That was the one thing he was girly about, his hair. It was longer than mine when we dated in high school."

"Is this the same Tommy you had me help write you that awful Dear John letter to?"

Oh god... the letter! I almost forgot all about that horrible thing!

"Yeah that's him", she sighed.

"Kim, if it IS him then this return home could get a bit heavy."

"Yeah, I've thought of that."

She gave up on the truck for the moment and sat down on the back, dangling her legs over the back next to where Ryan was leaning on it.

"Not to mention that if you two get into an extended conversation he's gonna want to know what happened. Are you ready to tell him everything? It's been a long time since you and he lost contact. I'm sure he is going to want to know exactly what happened, and you've only recently gotten the closure on the whole thing you needed."

"Yeah, I don't think I can yet. But I'll just have to cross that bridge when I get to it. For now lets keep going so we can get this all inside before sunset. If we can manage that I'll order some pizza for us this evening, my treat."

"Excellent. Pizza huh? Well you either know how to spoil a guy or you aren't exactly eating like a gymnast anymore"

She turned back into the truck with a scowl to get a box for him, "Oh bite me."

---

She got out of the car with an exasperated sigh. Jeez, I don't remember California traffic being THIS bad. But then it IS just past rush hour, and I've never been to this city. She carefully checked her reservation and fished the room key from her jeans pocket. As she opened the door she noticed the clock on the dresser next to the bed and smiled to herself. She walked over to the windows and pulled the drapes back just in time to see the sun setting over the cool California water in the distance. Well at least the room has a good view. I kinda missed the sunsets here. She turned around and unclasped her hair, letting her golden blonde tresses fall to the middle of her back. Taking a seat on the bed behind her, she took off her shoes and then rolled into a sprawled out position to relax.

"Boy are my dogs tired", she said in an Australian accent and a weary smile.

She never really understood that phrase, but after leaving the ballet school in London for a University in the southern United States to study Marine Biology, she heard it all too often and knew what it meant. However, every time she heard it, it made her laugh just due to the sheer ridiculousness the image implied. Once she had graduated and earned her bachelors degree, she applied and earned a position at a widely known marine biological institute. Sure, although she still did ballet occasionally and kept up with all the ins and outs of her former dream, it wasn't near as often as she had. At one time that had been exactly what she wanted to do out of high school. However, after seeing some of the uglier sides of it at the ballet academy in London, she decided to take on a more mundane field of study. She had recently finished a study done in Madagascar with Dr. Hall. When she got back to the institute, she was given the opportunity to do a minor study on her own. Solo projects, no matter how small, meant that they trusted her to make the right decisions on her own. This assignment was a chance to prove herself to the institute and she intended not to betray their trust. The location of the study just happened to be an added bonus. She decided early on after taking the assignment that she would have to give in to nostalgia a bit and look up some old friends.

Kathrine Hillard had been sent to Reefside, California.

---

In another dimension somewhere, a lone figure stood looking at a screen of information. He was bathed in an eerie light as he manipulated the controls and found something interesting. He emitted a raspy sigh of glee and hit a button on his console.

"Elsaaaa, report to me now."

A slight woman with a fierce look and evil demeanor entered the room as the double doors off to his right opened.

"You summoned me my master?", She said with a slight bow.

"There is a power source showing on my scanner. It is large enough to possibly be a dino gem. Do something productive and send some Tyrannodrones to retrieve it. And Elsa, you had better not fail me."

Elsa exhibited a sly smile,"It shall be done my lord."

She turned toward the door with a snap and exited the room, set upon her task.

Mesogog returned his gaze to the console with an evil hiss, and waited for the next phase of his plan to unfold.

---

"Okay Conner, you can power down now, I think we have all the data we need", said Tommy

Red light burst from all around the Red Ranger's body as he released the power and sent it falling from his body in shards.

Hayley turned around in her chair and looked at Tommy, "This new armor is really really powerful. I don't think we have even seen a tenth of what Conner is now capable of. This could be exactly what we needed to finish Mesogog off once and for all."

Tommy looked at her with a grin of satisfaction, "Good to hear that, the day he's gone is the day we can all sleep easy again."

Suddenly, a beeping noise began to come from Hayley's computer. Loud and insistent, she pushed a few buttons on the keyboard to cancel the alarm and see what the problem was. The computer responded by bringing up a map of Reefside, and a blinking red light in the lower lefthand corner of the map.

Tommy walked over to stand behind Hayley's chair, "What is it Hayley?"

"I don't know, but its a power source whatever it is."

"Another dino egg?"

"It's a bit more powerful than that, it could be a gem."

Tommy turned around facing the four teenagers, "Go check it out. If we can get this reading then so can Mesogog. It's a safe bet that he's already sending lackeys to get it. I'll join you if you need me."

"We're on it Dr. O", Conner said. "Ready guys?"

"DINO THUNDER, POWER UP! HA!"

"WHITE RANGER, DINO POWER!"

Now morphed, the four Rangers sped out the cave entrance on their bikes and ATV. The place they were headed, was Kimberly's new back yard.

---

Ryan and Kim sat in folding deck chairs on her new back porch enjoying their pizza and good conversation.

"I still can't believe you grabbed my boob like that, I mean, we were in public!"

"Hey its not like I've never done it before. Inside a topless Vegas show isn't exactly a place people are paying attention to the crowd. Besides you got your revenge by a slap to the head if I recall correctly."

"At least you didn't dive face first into them like you've done to Julie."

"Twice."

"Twice?"

"Yeah you weren't there the first time, Cory was behind me and I thought he was gonna flip out."

Kim grinned and took another bite of pizza.

"Kim what the hell is that?"

She looked down at her plate, and took a page from Ryan's playbook, "Umm, pizza?"

She looked up at Ryan with a grin and got a glare for it.

"Hah Hah, no dippy, out there, in your backyard."

Kim looked through the screened in porch to see what Ryan was pointing at. A faint orange glow coming from the base of a bush that was along the back property line drew her attention.

"I don't know. Maybe some kid left his toy under the bush."

"I'm gonna go find out what it is", he said as he opened the screen door to her porch.

"Ryan be careful, there could be snakes in the bushes."

"Kim need I remind you where I'm from? In Florida there's snake in EVERY bush", he replied with a laugh.

Ryan opened the screen door and walked silently out to the property line and eyed the bushes carefully. He stooped down to see what was giving off the glow, but as he reached for it something grabbed him on the shoulder.

"JESUS!" Ryan yelled as he recoiled his hand and turned quickly to face his attacker.

Kim jumped back a few paces and screamed as well.

"GOD KIM! Thanks for scaring the shit out of me!"

"Sorry Ryan, usually you can tell when people are around you."

"Yeah but not when I'm distracted by something. No touching people that are wary of being bitten by shit!"

She threw up her hands, "Sorry sorry! So what is it?"

"The glowing eyes of a snake, I don't know, I was just about to see when you grabbed my shoulder and made me run a line in my fucking underwear."

Kim couldn't help but howl in laughter at his comment.

"Yeah yeah, yuck it up", Ryan said as he turned again to the bush and reached his hand down towards the glowing object. Ryan grabbed a lower part of the bush and shook it hard.

"What was that for?"

"Well, if that had been a snake, it would have moved. I guess it isn't."

Kim smiled and turned her attention back to the bush in question.

As he reached in, he made sure to listen for a snakes movement or anything else that might decide to bite his hand. No sense in letting Kim be able to say "I told you so!" As his fingers made contact with the item and he whipped his arm out quickly to prevent said unknown animals from harming him, an orange glow raced up his arm and engulfed his body momentarily. Shocked by it, Ryan yelped and released the stone, only to fling it into the backyard and toward Kim's porch behind him.

"What the fuck was that!" Ryan gasped.

Kimberly's eyes grew in concern, "Oh God, did something bite you?"

Ryan looked up at her and saw the fear in her eyes, "No no, that rock... it... it's like it sent a surge of energy through me!"

Ryan turned around and stood up. He and Kimberly walked to where the object now lay and bent down to study it.

"Scary thing is Kim, I think I liked it."

Kim watched Ryan with wide eyes as he reached down and grasped the rock in his hand. Ryan did not receive another pulse of energy, but when he brought his hand up and opened it, the strange orange rock was glowing.

"I'm no paleontologist, but this thing looks old, really old."

"What was that power it sent through you?"

"I have no idea. I think I'm gonna look up some local paleontologist online at the Cyberspace tomorrow. See if I can find someone who can tell me what this is."

"Alright, you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine Kim. Lets see about getting the rest of your clothes and other stuff unpacked."

Kim and Ryan walked back to the porch and back inside. The whole way Kim was mothering Ryan, unsure if he was as okay as he said he was.

As they walked inside, four figures, three on bikes, and one on an ATV, rolled up and strolled into her backyard.

---

Ethan got off his Raptor Cycle with an energy meter stretched out in front of him. Seeing nothing, he turned to Conner.

"Is this the place, Conner?"

"These are the coordinates Hayley gave me, are you getting anything?"

"Not a thing, whatever was here, is either dormant now or long gone."

"Shit! That must mean Mesogog beat us to it."

"Not exactly!", Kira suddenly exclaimed.

Conner turned his head to look at her, "Why do you say that, Kira?"

Kira pointed across the yard, "Because then what are THEY still doing here?"

All four Rangers looked across the backyard to find a group of Tyrannodrones lead by Elsa bearing down on them.

"I was getting a bit bored, but now things should get more exciting", Trent said with a smile.

Conner took point with Ethan and Kira on his right and Trent on his left. He nodded to them and everyone drew their weapons.

"Tyrannodrones attack!" Elsa cried out. She then turned with her scanner to try to find whatever energy source that had led them there.

"Time to go to work", Conner said as he charged the incoming drones with his compatriots right behind him.

The first Tyrannodrone swung high at Conner. Conner ducked and shoved the head of his Tyranno Staff into its stomach, using its speed to vault it up and over Conner's head. Conner stood and quickly blocked to his left, catching an incoming swipe from another drone. He kicked his left foot out and sent the drone flying.

Ethan rushed in with a shield strike to the stomach of the first drone, stunning it, then he lifted the shield and the drone over to his right, crashing it into a drone which was approaching Kira from behind. After dispatching her own drone with a kick, Kira spun around, hearing the crash behind her. Ethan nodded at her and Kira mocked a quick salute with one of her Pteragrips, then both turned and went back into the fray.

After turning to the side of good, where he felt he belonged, Trent always took a secret satisfaction out of beating the shit out of anything Mesogog sent their way. He knew that in a way, he was helping his father get just that much closer to destroying Mesogog and freeing him. Trent started with a few hack and slash maneuvers to put some pain into the drones, after that he quickly switched to hand to hand tactics to spread them out. He then dropped to one knee and back flipped out of the middle to put all of the drones in front of him.

'DRAGO SWORD! ENERGY ARROWS! FIRE!"

Trent swished his sword in all different directions, creating the arrows, then with a final flick of his wrist released them at the drones causing most of them to fall and not get back up. He took out the final two drones with a slash from his sword and a roundhouse.

Conner lunged toward the last of his drones with a kick to the stomach. It doubled over and Conner brought his staff up quickly underneath the drones chin, sending it back flipping over the bushes. A final jab and back kick took care of the other two that had surrounded him. Looking around, he saw that all the others were in the same shape he was.

Kira and Ethan took care of their final few drones with little effort. Kira slashed drones on either side of her with her grips and finished them with a jumping split kick. Both drones went flying as another rushed her from the front. It was met with a well placed roundhouse.

Ethan blocked a strike with his shield as he pulled out his blaster and fired into the drone at point blank range. The drone flew back a few feet and didn't get up again. Four more drones surrounded him and he quickly handled them with a few quick shots in all directions. Ethan raised the tip of his blaster to his lip plate and mockingly blew off the smoke, then he rolled the blaster on his finger like an old western gunslinger before putting it back in its holster and jogging over to his friends.

Elsa who had watched the entire fight from the sidelines rolled her eyes.

"You may have won this round rangers, but not to worry, Mesogog will have his dream!", she said then disappeared along with the fallen Tyrannodrones.

Kira was the first to speak, "Did they get whatever the energy reading was?"

Conner replied, "I don't know. I didn't see any of them with anything. It's possible that they had another lackey grab it and take off during the fight. But we would have seen them take off during the fight, right?"

Conner activated his communicator and spoke into his wrist, "Dr O., what happened to the energy reading?"

"It dropped off the map just before you got there. That means it was most likely a gem, and whoever has it either is shielding it, or has bonded with it", Tommy stated.

"Great", Ethan sighed. "Another evil ranger to deal with? Trent was bad enough."

"I don't think it was Mesogog who found it", said Trent.

The Red Ranger looked in his direction, "How do you know?"

Trent continued his explanation calmly, "Because if he had he wouldn't have left the drones here to occupy us. Mesogog knows we can kick the crap out Tyrannodrones by now. He was counting on a quick smash and grab. If Elsa had gotten it during the fight, they would have been out of here in a flash. And if they had gotten it before the fight, they wouldn't even have been here."

"He wouldn't have left a few here to occupy us?", asked Ethan

"A few months ago, I would have said yes. But before I was released from his hold on me I know he was running lower and lower on supplies for drones. He cant just make them out of nothing. Every time we bust some up he teleports them away. He does this to see what he can salvage so he doesn't use as much materials to make more. If he's running as low as I think he is, he wouldn't have left the drones unless there was something to gain."

"I agree with Trent, Rangers. If Mesogog didn't find it though, we need to find out who did. Report back and we will figure out where to go from there."

"On our way", replied Conner.

The rangers walked over to their various vehicles and rode away. Unbeknownst to them, they were being watched.

---

"Boy the kids in this neighborhood sure do stay up late." Ryan said to Kimberly from where he was looking out the side window of her apartment.

"Oh do they now?"

"Yeah, I just saw four of them stroll from somewhere behind your apartment and walk out front to some dirt bikes and an ATV. At least they were wearing helmets. Its too dark out there to make out anything more than that. They ought to put in some street lights in your neighborhood."

"Sure Mr. Safety, I'll go down to city hall and tell them first thing in the morning."

He shot her a glare, "I'll have you know that I'm all for safety. Take this old bookcase you have for example, if I were to put any books on it I'm sure it would topple right over. And that sucks cause its beautiful and made of nice thick oak. You just didn't take care of it very well."

Kimberly blew into the air to signal her disbelief, "Yeah yeah, I'll have you know that that bookcase was my grandmothers. Sure its old, sure its rickety, but it reminds me of her and I'll probably have it until the day it breaks. It still holds books just fine too."

"Couldn't prove it by the way it looks though", came the mumbled reply.

Kimberly shot him a look, "And you look like you're strong, but I bet you're just a big wuss."

"Wuss, huh? Well come on then little girl. Lets see how big a wuss I am? No bed in here yet means plenty of room to pin your scrawny little ass to the floor."

"You do remember that I was took martial arts and I'm a gold medal gymnast right?"

"Yeah so what? Oh no! Not a back handspring! I surrender!", He mocked her with a wide grin.

Kim turned around to face him and made little horns on her head with her fingers, then scuffed the carpet back with one foot.

Ryan laughed and held his hands out to the side as if shaking a red cape, "Toro toro, woman... bring it."

Kim charged Ryan, wrapping her arms around his waist. Ryan grabbed her around the stomach from behind and fell to a sitting position, placing Kim completely upside down and breaking her grip on his waist. Her head was now between his legs, facing away from him, touching the floor and her legs were flailing in the air to try and wriggle free, but her struggles for freedom were no match for Ryan's grip. Ryan heard her grunts and groans during her attempt to free herself and couldn't help but laugh.

"Need I remind you who wrestled in High School, little girl?"

"Shut up and fight you pussy", came the strained reply.

"Okay, Kim, but you asked for it."

He laid down to his back and quickly rolled her to the bottom to get position on her. She struggled to prevent him getting behind her, but the weight and strength advantage was too great. Then with his chest still on her back, he spun one hundred and eighty degrees to put himself behind her, both of them in a crouched position.

"You like this position way too much, Ryan."

"Don't get any dirty ideas woman, I'm just using it to kick your ass", he said with a grin.

Kim made the first move and pulled his left arm underneath her, knowing she had to get him off her back before he dug in if she was going to win. Ryan panicked for a minute as he fell off her and got rolled to his back. Kim used that moment of distraction to pounce on him from the side. Seeing her momentum, Ryan used it to roll her over again to the bottom, which Kim then used to re-roll herself to the top... and right into the bookcase.

"OW!", cried Ryan. Then he looked behind her to see the bookcase falling on top of them.

"OH SHIT!"

Ryan reacted immediately. He stuck his arms out on either side of Kim to help protect her from the falling bookcase and closed his eyes not wanting to watch the pain come. Oh shit, this is gonna hurt! That thing has gotta weigh at least two hundred pounds. I was frankly amazed we were able to get it out of the truck, let alone inside. Wait... why hasn't it hit my hands yet?

Ryan slowly opened his eyes to find Kimberly still laying on top of him, eyes squeezed shut, and the bookcase nearly at a forty five degree angle above them both.

"Umm, Kim? You okay?"

She opened her eyes slowly and looked down at him, "Yeah, I cant believe you caught it."

"Me either, I'm not holding it."

Kim looked at him weird and turned her head to see that he indeed wasn't holding the bookcase. She crawled out from between his arms, then stood up and examined the massive teetering object with amazement.

"What the hell? It's just stopped there in midair!"

Suddenly, Ryan got an idea. Kim watched in disbelief as the bookcase righted itself and came to rest gently against the wall where it had been. Ryan sprang up to his feet and shouted in excitement.

"HOLY CRAP THAT WAS AWESOME!"

"Ryan, what are you talking about that could have broken my back!"

"No, no, Kim! Not that! I did it!"

"Did what?"

"I caught the bookcase! And then I moved it back against the wall!"

"No you didn't."

"So how do you explain what happened? Somehow I've gained like a telekinesis, and I'll prove it."

Ryan outstretched his hand towards Kim's bedroom window. Kim looked on in shock as Ryan's bottle of Mountain Dew floated from its resting place on the windowsill, across the room, and gently into Ryan's hand.

"Holy shit!"

A large smile grew upon Ryan's face, like the kind you would find on a five year old walking into a giant toy store, "Oh I know, Luke Skywalker better watch his fucking back, there's a new sheriff in town!"

"When did you get the ability to do this? You never did anything like this before, right?"

"I don't know, Kim. This is the first time I've had anything like this happen to me. It would have come in handy for dart leagues on Thursday nights. Come to think of it, if I would have known about this earlier, maybe I wouldn't have gotten beaten up so much in middle school. It would have been hard for the bullies to hit me from up against the ceiling", he said with a chuckle.

"Okay so we know you didn't get these powers too long ago."

Come to think of it, something else strange happened tonight too. I bet its related. Ryan looked down and pulled the strange orange gem out of his pocket.

"Wow, did you read my mind too?"

Ryan laughed, "No, Kim. Great minds just think alike. After I stopped and thought about it for a moment I realized something else pretty strange happened to me tonight."

"You mean that orange glow that surrounded you when you first touched that thing?"

"Yeah."

"OK you are definitely finding out what that thing is tomorrow."

Kim was once again thrust into an odd situation. Hell I remember when my life was full of them. This feels WAY too familiar to the old days when I was still a Ranger. I hope this doesn't have anything to do with the Ranger team here. Last thing I need is to get caught up in that stuff again.

Ryan held the gem up in front of his face and studied it carefully, "No shit. I'm not sure whether to be elated or terrified of this thing."

Ryan shook himself from his reverie, put the gem back into his pocket, and looked at Kim, "Okay, lets get your bed in here and put together so you can get some sleep. Something tells me tomorrow is gonna be a really long day."

Kim walked out the room and called back to Ryan, "Look on the bright side though, It'll be really easy to get the mattress and box spring in here."

Ryan thought for a second before pointing at her as she retreated out the door, "I like where you head's at!"

---

The next morning Kim and Ryan arrived at Hayley's Cyberspace for breakfast and more importantly, to look up an archaeologist in the area to tell them what the strange gem was. Ryan held the door for Kim and then followed her inside. They looked around to discover that they weren't the first ones to arrive. At their table in the back enjoying various breakfast amenities sat Kira, Trent, Conner, and Ethan. Kim walked to the counter to order a couple muffins and breakfast smoothies from Hayley. Ryan walked over past the table and sat down at one of the computer terminals.

Ryan called out to the Ranger foursome from around the side of his computer monitor, "Well it looks like you kids are up bright and early. Ready for a fun day at school?"

Ethan looked up from his breakfast with tired eyes and smiled weakly at Ryan, "We had a long night, man. We didn't get much sleep."

"Cramming?", Ryan asked.

"Not exactly", Kira supplied.

"That's okay, you wont be the only one dragging ass there today. Kim and I saw some teenagers out last night at god knows what hour riding dirt bikes and an ATV."

Kira was the first to put two and two together, "Were they wearing helmets and body suits?"

"Helmets yeah I saw those. And come to think of it I didn't see any loose clothing on them so yeah they could have been wearing body suits. Why? Are they the local gang or something?"

Conner chose that moment to put his foot in his mouth, "It was us", he yawned.

Ethan, Kira and Trent all attacked Conner with various books and note pads. The few harsh blows he took was enough to reawaken his brain from the half asleep state which it was in.

"Ow HEY!"

Ryan gave them a funny look, "You four are in a gang?"

Ethan Kira and Trent all looked at Conner with scowls, waiting for him to dig them out of the hole he had blasted them into with his mouth.

"No no no, that's just silly, man. We were ahhh... looking for Kira's dog... yeah that's it. He got out and we were trying to help her find him."

Ryan looked at Conner critically for a moment. Okay Conner obviously made up that response on the fly, whatever it was he doesn't wanna tell you so just shut up and take what he gave you.

Ryan shrugged and turned back to the computer screen, "Well that was nice of you guys. Did you find him?"

Trent sighed, "Not exactly. We ran into a few friends though. They are always a blast to hang out with."

Ryan laughed at the four teenagers going at their morning routine half awake, "Sounds like you guys had a busy night. I hope you find your dog, Kira."

Kimberly chose then to reappear from the counter holding two smoothies and breakfast muffins for her and Ryan. She set down Ryan's banana smoothie next to his arm for which she received a silent thanks. She then took a seat next to him to see how far he had gotten in his search.

Ethan got up, walked behind Ryan, and looked at the screen over Ryan's shoulder, "So what are you doing here this morning? Getting in some early gaming?"

Ryan smiled and replied, "Well they call it Evercrack for a reason, but I'm thankfully not as addicted to it as I used to be. Kim here would kick my ass if I ever got too involved with it again. What I AM doing is looking for a local paleontologist. I found this cool rock yesterday and it looks really old. I figure someone might be able to tell me what it is."

This time it was Ethan doing the mental math as he looked back at Conner and Kira with wide eyes. If the energy signature was in Kim's backyard last night,and we didn't get it, and Mesogog didn't get it, maybe Ryan did. He turned again to Ryan and asked, "Can I see what you found?"

"Sure", he replied. Ryan reached into his pocket and pulled out what Ethan quickly realized was an orange dino gem. Ryan held it out to Ethan, who gently took it with two fingers and turned again towards Conner and Kira.

"Heres a guy, Ethan. His name is Anton Mercer. It says here that he has a home in this area. Maybe I can give this guy a call."

Conner got up and walked over next to Ethan and was followed closely by Kira.

Conner looked down at Ryan with a stoic expression, "Actually Ryan, our science teacher at school has a degree in paleontology and a minor in archaeology. Maybe you can drop by our school today and ask him. Anton Mercer is a big business man here and might not have time to see you anytime soon. Besides, I think Dr. O may have seen something like this before."

Ryan turned to the teen and smiled, "Sure, I think I'll do that. Can't hurt. And if he doesn't, I can always go see Dr. Mercer about it later."

Ethan smiled as Ryan agreed to Conner's proposal and handed the orange gem back to Ryan, "Yup, sure can. Okay, well we need to get going, we don't want to be late for first period."

"Alright guys, seeya later. And thanks for the help Conner. I'll stop by today to see your teacher."

Conner nodded to him and led the four rangers out the door, the last of which was Kira who waved goodbye on her way out. Ryan turned to Kim and snatched a muffin out from in front of her by jedi pulling it into his hand.

"Wow, you know, that never gets old!", Ryan said with a huge grin.

Kim smacked him across the shoulder, "Don't do that in public! Who knows who could be watching? Besides, you are starting to annoy me with it."

"Never let your enemy know your weaknesses my young padawan", he said while grinning evilly at her.

Kim looked at him with a stern expression. After they had gotten Kim's bed all set up and ready for sleep, Ryan had taken it upon himself to provide a bit of entertainment by telekinetically flying the green stuffed dragon Tommy had gotten her in high school, all around the room. While normally she might have thought that that was cute, the thing that made it annoying, was that he had been making roaring noises the whole time and dive bombing Kim.

"Oh these powers are a fucking hoot Kim. I'm like a kid in a candy store."

"You were always a kid, we were just usually missing the candy store", Kim replied with a roll of her eyes.

Kimberly couldn't help but notice sometimes at how many faces Ryan seemed to have, and the scary thing was how much it reminded her of ALL her male ranger teammates. At one moment he was like he was now, carefree, excitable and curious, just like Rocky. In fact, he spent a LOT of time acting like Rocky, just without the huge appetite. Then the next moment he could be quiet as a mouse, brooding, and almost invisible, blending into the background like Adam always was. He was usually only like that when something was wrong though. Evidently he had grown out of most of his natural shyness before she had met him. A small part of him even had a great intelligence like Billy. It wasn't nearly as well pronounced, but it was there. And then there was the part it seemed that she was drawn to the most. He could be dead serious, work out difficult problems, and seem ready to lead troops into a war with confidence, a born leader, just like Tommy. Seemed no matter how much she tried to ignore it, everything seemed to come back to Tommy.

"You done with your muffin?"

"Huh? Oh yeah", she said. She handed him the wrapper and shook her head to remove the cobwebs after Ryan had gotten up to throw their trash away.

"Come on Kim, lets go find out what this rock is", he said to her with a smile.

"Right behind ya."

They both heard the front doors creak open at the same time, and turned their heads simultaneously. Suddenly Ryan's world went into slow motion as he saw her walk in. Kat's golden hair sashayed back and forth halfway down her back as she walked. She was wearing a pair of light pink cut off shorts and a light blue tee shirt. Holy crap shes gorgeous! He watched her walk across the room and to the counter to order.

Kim looked at the woman in disbelief, then looked over at Ryan who wore a somewhat shell shocked expression on his face. Oh wow, he's got it bad. Wait a sec, if she's here, then that means that that WAS Tommy I saw before. And that means she and Tommy must be still together. Kim's heart sank as she realized what Kat being here would mean. They had been pretty well involved when she had gone back for Trini's funeral, not to mention their little trip to Muranthias. Ending her mental pity party, she decided to gather herself up and go say "hi" to her old friend anyway. Just because Kat was dating or maybe even married to the man that she had let go back in High School didn't mean she was the enemy.

"Come on slack jaw, I'll introduce you", she said while lightly slapping Ryan in the stomach with the back of her hand before walking away.

Ryan shook himself back to reality, picked his jaw off the floor, and grabbed Kim by the arm before she could get very far, "Wait a sec. You know her?"

"Yes, I do, and before you get any ideas from the head of yours that isn't so smart, she is more than likely involved with someone and maybe even married. Now come on."

She took Ryan by the hand and guided him over to Kat who was now sitting at the counter, waiting on her order to be filled.

"Kat?"

Kat turned her head at the mention of her name and was pleasantly surprised to fine none other than Kimberly Hart. She beamed a big smile in her direction and bounced up out of her chair and towards her friend.

"Kim!"

Kimberly's face burst into a huge smile. She dropped Ryan's hand and was rewarded with an enthusiastic hug from Kat.

"Wow! What are you doing in Reefside? Do you live here now?"

"Actually, yes. I just moved here, back from Florida. My dad got a house here about two years ago so I decided here was better than being alone in Angel Grove. I wouldn't know anyone there anymore. What about You?"

"I just got here myself. I'm going to be here for a couple days doing some research. I dropped the ballet thing and came back to the states to get a degree in Marine Biology."

"Oh wow, I never took you for a science girl. Billy would be so proud."

"Thanks, Kim."

Kat looked over Kim's shoulder at the man behind her, then back to Kim, "So who is your boyfriend here?"

Kim smiled and turned halfway to allow Ryan into the conversation, "Sorry, I forgot my manners for a moment. This is my friend Ryan. He's not my boyfriend, he's more like my brother than anything. We agreed long ago that we know entirely too much about each other now for it to be anything but a bit weird. He's from Florida and came out here with me to help me move everything into my new apartment. He will probably have to leave in a few days."

Kat listened with a smile. That's too bad. He's pretty good looking.

"Ryan? This is Katherine Hillard. Kat? This is Ryan Schrock", she introduced her two friends to each other and watched as they made the usual pleasantries to each other.

Ryan gave Kat a big smile and extended his shaking hand to shake hers. He took her dainty hand into his and marveled at how soft they were, "Pleased to meet you Kat. Someone in Florida had to watch over this little girl and I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. Our relationship is for the best the way it is anyway. She is far too beautiful for me to have ever gotten anywhere with her otherwise."

As he shook Kat's hand, she noticed how the smile reached his eyes and how his hat shaded his eyes and made his gaze almost look even deeper. Oh my god, he's got a gorgeous smile! I'd say he's being pretty humble about his looks. Strong hands too, I wonder if he wouldn't mind using them on other areas of me sometime. WOAH! Where did that come from? You just met this guy, take it easy!

"Nice to meet you too Ryan", She managed to choke out in a heavy Australian accent. Her accent tended to get heavier when she was nervous. She was so lost in his hazel eyes, she wasn't sure where she was at the moment.

Ryan listened to her accept his greeting and reluctantly released her hand, but not her eyes. Her blue eyes kept staring at his and he was quickly getting lost in her whirlpools of color. The thing that had done him in however was her accent. He was a complete sucker for English and Australian accents.

Kim picked that moment to break them out of their collective stupor with a loud cough. Both of them blinked a few times and turned to Kim. Kim turned to look at Kat with a pleased expression which caused Kat to blush. Kim's expression turned to one of indifference as she spoke again.

"Are you and Tommy still together?"

Kat shook her head, "No, he and I decided that a long distance relationship wouldn't be much good for either of us. No offense, but after what happened between you and him, it was a pretty obvious decision. We split up just after our... extracurricular High School activities ended, and I went to London for the ballet academy."

"So he stayed in Angel Grove?"

"To the best of my knowledge yes. When I left he had started driving a stock car for his uncle's race team. He was pretty good and they were talking about getting involved in a national racing series. I think they said it was the ASA series."

"Wow, you know what I never made the connection before but it all makes sense now. I saw a guy named Tommy Oliver drive out at the old DeSoto Speedway in Bradenton. The guy was pretty good for a rookie and was constantly raking in top five finishes. He didn't win the race that night and narrowly missed having a shot at the championship in the last race that year, but everyone I know was pretty impressed with him. I had no idea that he and the Tommy you went to school with were the same person."

Kim looked back at Ryan, "Is he still racing?"

Ryan shook his head, "I don't think so. He left after his rookie season which had everyone puzzled. He just kind of disappeared after that."

Having resolved that inquiry, Kim turned back to her old friend, "Well we just stopped in to get some breakfast before heading out for some errands today."

"Me too. I have some research to do off the coast starting this afternoon and I have to get everything ready to go with a charter boat and my equipment this morning", Kat stated.

Ryan chimed in with a proposal, "Well we really need to get going, Kat. But if you'll still be in the area around lunchtime, we can stop back in here, get some food, and the two of you can catch up some more."

Kat replied with a smile, "Sure, that sounds wonderful. Meet back here around noon then?"

Kim responded for both of them, "Yeah sounds good. Okay you party pooper, out the door. Bye Kat."

"Bye Kim. Nice meeting you Ryan"

"You too Kat."

Ryan and Kim walked out the door and got into the truck. She had noticed the way Ryan and Kat almost couldn't look away from one another, and she had also noticed that they had both been red in the face at one point or another in their innocuous conversation. Kim wondered how long it would take before Kat and Ryan ended up seriously going after one another. She smiled and made a mental note to get them together as soon as possible. Ryan deserved someone like Kat after all he had been through and all he had done for her. She was sure the same could be said for Kat.

"What's the smile for?"

Kim looked over at Ryan and the smile grew, "Oh nothing."

"Nothing? Couldn't have been nothing. I know your evil grins as well as you know mine and that one was definitely evil."

"Just trust me, you'll find out."

"Why do I always get scared when you say that?"

Kim gave him a raspberry as she turned the truck and headed for her fathers house a few minutes away.

---

Conner, Kira, Trent, and Ethan walked into Tommy's classroom before the start of first period to find him at his desk. Tommy looked up from the papers he was working on when he heard the door open and saw them walk in. He put down the red pen he was using to correct a few papers and greeted them while leaning back in his chair.

"Good morning guys. What's up?"

Conner looked at him with a worried expression, "Dr. O, we need to talk. We think we may have found out who got whatever the energy signature was last night."

"Overnight? How did you come by this information?", Tommy asked with a quizzical expression.

Ethan sat on the top of one of the desks behind him and folded his arms in front of him before speaking, "Dumb luck actually. We met two people yesterday at Hayley's. They are pretty nice people. Anyway we saw them again this morning. Their names are Kim and Ryan and Ryan was there to look up local archaeologists in the area because he found a cool rock last night."

Tommy leaned forward and rested his forearms on the edge of his desk with a sigh, "I think I see where you are going with this. What makes you think that they DO have it though?"

"Because we saw it", said Kira. "Ethan asked Ryan to see it and sure enough he pulled out an orange rock. There's no mistaking that it was a dino gem."

"Okay so where are they now?"

"Probably still at the Cyberspace, but they are going to stop by to see you later on today to see if you can tell them what it is", replied Conner. "I told them that you were an archaeologist and could probably tell them."

"Is the gem bonded to him?"

"We don't know. We didn't get any indication that it was or wasn't", said Trent.

They finished their conversation just as the door opened and a few other kids came into the room getting ready for class and taking their seats.

"Okay guys. Thanks for telling me. In the meantime you guys better take your seats, the bell for first period should be ringing soon."

"Okay, Let us know what you find out?"

"I will. In fact, all of you come over to my house tonight and we will see if we can't figure this out exactly and discuss what to do about it. I'll probably only be able to do so much here."

"You got it Dr. O", Conner said.

The Rangers moved to their seats and began pulling their class materials from their bags. Tommy was quite pleased with how things in this situation were playing out so far. He thought about the various scenarios as he sat there watching his students enter the room and prepare for class. If its bonded with him this will mean we have even more power and another Ranger to beat Mesogog with. If it hasn't then we need to protect it to make sure it doesn't fall into the wrong hands. The hard part is going to be getting him to cooperate. He might not give it up willingly. Tommy switched his mind to other things and began preparing his lecture for the morning. The first period bell rang and he got back to the business at hand.

---

Ryan and Kim arrived at the high school and parked in the guest area. They had gone to see her father this morning and had been amazed to see that he had bought her a brand new metallic blue VW Jetta as a coming home present. She had argued that he had no business buying her such an expensive gift, but he had made a convincing argument to the contrary about her being his daughter and his newly found wealth was his to spend as he saw fit. If he wanted to buy the daughter he loved more than anything a new car then she would just have to take it and make him even more proud of her to earn it. After a short visit and a promise to return soon when things weren't so busy, they left to return the U-haul truck and end up at their current location. They then walked to the main office and greeted the receptionist at the counter.

"Good morning", Ryan said. "We were wondering if we could see a teacher for a few moments. We are old friends of his."

"Is he expecting you?"

"No we wanted to surprise him."

"Well let me call him and ask him if he is in a class at the moment. Which teacher are you here to see?"

"His kids call him Dr. O. He's an archaeologist and paleontologist."

"Ahh yes. The science wing. Yes he is well known here, especially by the female portion of the school."

"Really?"

"Yes he's young and most if not all the female students think he is dreamy", She said with her hands making quotes in the air. She smiled at them before continuing, "He might be a bit out of my age group, but I can't say that I disagree. What is your name sir?"

"Ryan."

The receptionist nodded and dialed the phone. She received an answer quickly on the other end.

"Excuse me sir, but there are two people here to see you. Yes. He says his name is Ryan. Okay. Bye." She turned back to Kim and Ryan, "He will see you in a few moments. First period is about to end and he has second period free. He is in room 304."

"Thank you for all your help ma'am", Ryan said as he and Kim made their way through the door and back out into the school.

Ryan turned to Kim as they walked, "I hope this guy knows what this thing is."

"Well the kids seemed to have confidence in him", she said.

They turned the corner for his hallway just in time to hear the bell ring. Teenagers began pouring out of every doorway. In seconds the hall became a sea of teenagers hustling to get to their lockers or their next class. Ryan and Kim weaved in and out of the teenagers to make it the final four hundred feet down the hall to room 304.

"Holy drowning in hormones, Batman!", Ryan quipped.

Kim couldn't help but chuckle as she waited for all the students in room 304 to file out. Finally after the last student had exited, she walked through the door and led Ryan inside. Her smile immediately dropped as she was stunned, almost as if it was a tazer. Tommy turned his head towards the door to find Kim standing there. Kim was frozen in place. It felt like someone had just kicked her in the chest. Tommy stood in surprise and held the same stunned expression. Ryan looked at them both with a quizzical expression, then all at once he put it all together in his head and joined them in their shocked expression. Oh holy shit! I recognize him! That's Tommy. He looks like some of the pictures of Kim's I've seen of him. Tommy is Dr. O? No, Doctor Oliver. Having a doctorate in paleontology, he would be a doctor. The kids called him Dr. O. I'm so stupid.

Tommy and Kim's brains had completely shut down from the shock of seeing each other after so long. Ryan knocked himself from his stupor and noticed the two people in front of him were still in it.

"Okay Kim why don't you have a seat here", Ryan said as he led her to one of the desks in the front row.

Ryan turned to Tommy, "Doctor Oliver, I presume?"

Tommy focused his mind but didn't take his eyes off of Kimberly, "Yes that's me, what can I do for you?"

"My name is Ryan, and its pretty obvious you know Kimberly here. I'm a friend of hers from Florida."

Tommy looked up at Ryan with just a hint of rage locked in his face, Was this the guy? Is this who she left me for in that goddamn letter?

Ryan took the eye contact and continued, "As much as I know you two would like to have a reconciliation and reminisce, we kinda have another purpose for being here."

The words coming from Ryan's mouth drove Tommy to the task at hand. He sounded a lot like Billy. Tommy watched him as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a glowing orange stone. Oh yeah. That's a dino gem alright.

"Put that back into your pocket please. I don't need anyone coming in that door and asking questions about it later."

Ryan agreed with a nod and placed the gem back into his pocket.

"Has it bonded with you?"

"Bonded?"

"Yes, it probably would have felt like a mild electric shock with the color of the gem flowing over you."

"Yeah I'd say that happened. Something else weird too."

"Like a special ability?"

"Yes, telekinesis."

"So you can move stuff with your mind?"

"Yeah, like this."

Ryan stuck out his hand and the pen Tommy had been using floated through the air and into Ryan's grasp.

The door to the room opened and in walked four teenagers in red, white, yellow, and blue. Everyone looked up to the door to find none other than Conner, Trent, Kira and Ethan.

"Oh good you made it", said Conner. "We told Dr. O this morning that you'd be stopping by."

"Yes, but I think maybe you should have given us his full name. Not only was it a slight run around in the office a little while ago to find him, but it would have saved a bit of stress."

"Huh?"

Ryan looked at Kim as if asking permission. She stared at him blankly for a moment and then gave a slight nod.

He sat on top of the desk behind her and draped his arm on her shoulder, "Let's just say that Kimberly here knows the good doctor. She was his high school sweetheart."

The four teens' eyes went wide for a moment and Kira knew immediately what was going on.

"And I'm guessing things didn't exactly end very well?", Kira asked with a concerned look.

"That would be a bit of an understatement, yes."

Kira walked over to Kim and rested her hand on her shoulder, "You okay Kim?"

Kimberly looked up at the young woman and gave a slight smile, "Yeah I'll be okay. I'm just still a little shell shocked. I haven't seen Tommy in years, so I never thought I'd run into him here of all places."

Tommy coughed and finally spoke up, "Well not to be rude, but what are the four of you doing here? You guys have P.E. right now and I know Coach Martin is never thrilled about his students being late for a class."

Trent spoke up for them all, "Conner forgot his jacket in here and since we are going to be out on the baseball field today, he figured he would need it. We just came with him on our way out to the field."

Tommy sighed, "Well not that I don't love my students knowing about my past love life but I still have a lot of work to do yet today before the weekend. We can talk about all of this and more tonight at my house."

Tommy was given questioning looks from both parties, but he quickly dismissed them.

"All questions will be answered later. Please just for now lets do what we need to do to get through the day. We have all weekend to satisfy your curiosities."

"What time do you want us to meet you there?", asked Ryan

"Come around seven. Hell, I'll even prepare dinner. No sense being a lousy host."

Ryan nodded and helped Kim out of her chair, "I'll bring her too. I know you two are going to have a lot to talk about."

Tommy nodded his thanks. He knows something. Not about the gem. About Kimberly and I. Hoo, boy is tonight gonna suck.

Tommy walked out from behind his desk and gave Kim a parting hug while speaking softly to avoid ease droppers, "It's good to see you Kim. I know we have a lot to talk about, and we will, I'm just not so sure I want to do it now with an audience."

Kim nodded against his shoulder, "That's okay, I completely agree. I'm sure it'll get pretty emotional for the both of us."

He released his hold on her reluctantly and Ryan helped Kim out the door as he turned to his pupils.

"So why do we have to be there tonight?", said Trent.

"Because, things have happened that are going to change our team a bit," said Tommy. "The gem has bonded with Ryan."

Conner looked Tommy in the eyes, "So does this mean we have another Ranger?"

Tommy stared at the doorway and replied, "I'm not sure."

---

Ryan helped Kim into the passenger seat and walked around to the driver's side. Kim had been chastising herself since she and Ryan left Tommy's classroom. Ryan had taken her keys and driven, figuring she had a lot to think about. About halfway back to her apartment her mental punishment finally led her to words.

"Jesus why didn't I say something instead of just sitting there?"

"I don't know Kim. Can't say I blame you though. That was a very unexpected blast from the past."

"Blast is right. I felt like I got hit by another monster."

"Monster? A monster what?"

Kim gazed out the window and slightly shook her head, "Never mind."

Hoo boy almost let that one out of the bag didn't you, Kim. So much of my life was left in Angel grove. Its almost a blessing AND a curse that some of it has followed me here.

Kim stayed silent the rest of the way back to her apartment as did Ryan. Ryan figured that she had just been through a pretty big shock. They had known that Tommy MIGHT be here, but they weren't sure, Kim hadn't gotten a good look at the person that day at the Cyberspace. Last place they expected to find Tommy was in a school teaching with a doctorate behind him. Kim had still thought he was off being a race car driver even though Ryan had said he wasn't in a touring series anymore.

Ryan pulled into the parking lot in front of Kim's apartment complex. He shut off the engine, took his Earnhardt hat off and ran his fingers back through his hair with a sigh.

"We are back Kim. You okay now?"

"I'm not sure. I didn't expect to see him again. Least of all here. I mean we knew it was possible that was him that day but that was only a fleeting thought."

"Yeah I had gone over that same thing in my head on the way back."

"Well it's done now. Maybe when I go with you to his house tonight more will get said from this end of the conversation."

Ryan nodded at her, put his hat back on and opened the car door. Kim opened her door as well and both got out. Ryan clicked the doors locked over his shoulder as he walked up the small walkway to her front door.

"Did you eat all the leftover pizza, Ryan?"

"Nope."

"Good I need something. We had a small breakfast and I'm starving."

"Maybe sometime soon we ought to actually go to the store. You know, get you stocked up on actual food. Usually I'm not one to complain about eating like a bachelor cause face it, I am one, but enough is enough", Ryan said with a laugh and a glance in her direction.

"You know, maybe you aren't as bad as Rocky after all", Kim returned with a grin of her own.

"Thanks... I think", Ryan replied with a look of confusion.

Kim opened her door and Ryan held it open for her, then followed her in. Ryan flopped down on the couch and turned on the TV to find something interesting. Suddenly Ryan remembered something and called over his shoulder into the kitchen.

"Hey Kim? Don't eat too much. We gotta go back to the Cyberspace at noon and have lunch with Kat."

"Oh yeah. I almost forgot. Wait a sec, how did YOU remember that?"

Ryan's selective and sometimes nonexistent memory is another thing that reminded her of Tommy.

"I never forget about a meal with a beautiful woman", Ryan said with a sly grin on his face.

Kim snorted and shook her head with a smile and returned her view to the interior of the fridge. Good lord. How did I ever get to be such good friends with such a chauvinistic pain in the ass?

---

The sun, now high in the sky, continued to bake the California countryside beneath it as Kat parked her car outside the small cafe. She stepped out of her car onto the hot asphalt and shut her car door. She mused to herself as she walked towards the cafe door in shorts and a curve hugging old T-shirt. Boy they weren't kidding when they said that the marine life around here was going to be fascinating. The couple days that I'll be here are gonna be quite fun, especially with Kim around.

She opened the door to the cafe and was greeted by Hayley.

"Hey there Kat, good to see you again."

"Hello Hayley. Are Kim and Ryan here yet?"

"No not yet. Are they supposed to meet you for lunch?"

"Yeah."

"Well they probably aren't far off then. Have a seat and I'll get you something to drink while you wait for them."

"Pina Colada smoothie please", Kat said with a smile.

"It's virgin, but still a good choice", Hayley replied with a large grin of her own.

Kat had been seated for about five minutes, reading the day's newspaper when Ryan and Kim strolled in from the hot California sun. They waved at Hayley and then sat down with Kat.

"Hey there", Kat said, breaking the ice as they sat down.

"Did you find anything interesting in the local sea life?", Ryan asked with a smile. He was glad lunch had come so fast.

"Well yes and no. I've seen what I saw this morning before, but I sure didn't expect to find it here. The study I'm doing is to find out why."

"Cool. So where did we leave off this morning in conversation?"

Kat cocked her head to the side a bit before answering, "Conversation? Nah that was more like one of our old hallway exchanges we used to have in High School."

Kim nodded, "Yeah, need to know info and then zip off to the next class." Kim and Kat shared a grin at each other.

"Came in handy too, usually about good gossip and guys though", Kat said with an evil grin.

With that said Ryan threw up his hands then folded his arms over his chest and sat back in the chair. Girls will be girls I suppose.

"Yeah well please refrain from any gossip in my presence please. I've had enough drama for one day."

Kat gave Ryan a questioning look before turning to Kim.

"We ran into Tommy this morning at the high school. Apparently he's teaching earth sciences at Reefside High. I walked into the room and damn near froze in terror. Ryan almost had to carry me to a seat so I wouldn't fall over from the shock of it all. Gosh Kat, I was so stupid! I mean I just wish I hadn't frozen like that and been able to say something you know?"

"Tommy is here too? I thought he would still be in Angel Grove. Wait, you said a teacher in the earth sciences? That would mean he got a teaching degree or something."

Ryan supplied the missing information, "Doctorate actually, in paleontology. The kids call him Dr. O."

Kat couldn't help but smile at how cute that sounded, "Oh wow, I'm not sure if he would be mortified or proud of a nickname like that."

Ryan shrugged, "Not sure, but the way he acted when the kids called him that at least means he has made his peace with it, one way or the other."

"I just can't believe I froze like that. That's never happened to me before."

"Well that's in the past now Kim. I'm kinda surprised he didn't do a little of the same. You should have seen the look on his face when he walked out of the Youth Center after reading your letter, and what made it worse was the fact that he was lifting weights at the time and had Adam start reading it aloud."

Ryan's eyes went wide with shock, "Woah woah woah, hold up a minute. Kim you sent that letter to a public place?"

"Yeah I figured that it would be easiest to get it to him there."

Ryan threw his hands up in defeat, "Well no wonder he ignored you the whole time, kept it to business and barely said a word otherwise. Kim you took his heart, tied it to the back of a car and drove it all the way back to Florida with you. When you arrived it was still yours, but it's now bloody, bruised, broken, and just about every other nasty B word you can think of, including betrayed."

"He's right Kim. Having it out in the open like that, and finding out in that manner was horrible. He looked worse than I ever saw him at that moment. Made worse by the fact that he was in a public place and had no outlet for the pain."

She hadn't thought about that when she had sent the letter. Everyone standing around him watching him go through all those emotions in public. All of the gang staring at him with somber expressions waiting for him to say something. He must have wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out from the sheer embarrassment and humiliation, not to mention the pain and suffering. Kim held her face in her hands and began to cry, "What have I done?", was what was barely heard. It was very quiet, and muffled underneath her quivering and soaked hands.

Ryan got up from his seat, walked around Kat, and placed his hands on Kim's shoulders, "Its not your fault Kim. You were just doing what you thought you had to do. Admittedly you probably should have sent it to his house instead, but that asshole made you write it. It wasn't what you wanted and it damn sure wasn't what was in your heart."

Kat took all this information in with a feeling of relief, So it was coerced and Ryan isn't the guy she was talking about in the letter.

"How do you think I feel about all this Kim? I helped you write the damn thing to try and let him down easy. Turn around and look at me, hon."

Kim swiveled her chair around slowly and gently lifted her face up to his. Her makeup was smeared all over her face and hands, so much so that it almost made her take on a Gothic look.

Ryan cupped the back of her jaw in both hands and made her look him in the eyes, "You can't change the past. You made him feel like shit. Now you feel like even bigger shit because of it. But put the past where it belongs, in the past. Apologize for it if you must but don't live in it. You still love Tommy don't you?"

She gave a weak nod in his hands.

"Then no more crying. Tell him what happened tonight and set things right. Then if he wants to come back, let him. Give him the option, and if he loves you like you once told me he did, he will forgive you. Remember what I told you back when you woke up from your coma? I love you. You didn't listen to me or any of us that told you Scott was bad news but I forgive you because I love you. If he loves you, he will, too."

Kim leaned forward in her chair and wrapped her arms around Ryan's neck to hug him. He took and smoothed her hair with his left hand while signaling an okay sign to Kat. He held her there for a minute and then gently forced her back against her chair.

"That I think is the first time I've ever seen you cry like that Kim. Now, go hit the little girls room with Kat and get cleaned up. You look worse than you did the night after those two Mai Tai's at the BaiHai Hut."

This evoked a smile from her which made Ryan smile in return. Ryan guided her to Kat who turned her to the ladies room near the back.

Ryan turned and took a drink of his melting smoothie. A napkin was placed in front of him and he looked up to see Hayley standing in front of him behind the bar top.

"You have a wet spot on your shoulder", she said.

"Yeah, at least I'm wearing black, hides the mascara better."

He smiled at her and took another drink of his smoothie.

"So who is this Tommy fellow she was crying about? An old flame?"

"You know who he is, Haley", he replied.

"Excuse me?"

"Ahh ahh, missy, no playing dumb with me. I might be pretty silly sometimes but I'm not stupid, nor am I unobservant", he said right before he took another drink.

"Wow you have a lot of nerve."

"Yes ma'am, and those nerves attach my brain to keen eyes. I watched you sneak over out of the corner of my eye and listen to that whole thing. I couldn't tell that you were piecing the story together cause I couldn't see your face, I just figured you were nosy. Now that things are said and done, I can see the math you did in your head with the information you already had. You know Tommy, and I dare say you know Kim, too. Did you recognize her when she and I came into your place yesterday?"

Hayley paused a moment under his calm, but piercing glare, then let out a sigh of defeat.

"No. I didn't know if it was her or not, but her face was very familiar and you two just got here from Florida. I got two and two from that and gave Tommy a heads up just in case."

"I see, that explains why he seemed to be a bit more prepared and put himself together faster than she did. Do you know the whole story?"

"For the most part, just from Tommy's perspective. I didn't know the feelings from her side were that strong pre or post relationship, but I'm glad to hear that they are. She was his everything. Some people would call it a High School fling but not me. Sometimes he would talk about her when we were in college and his eyes would light up like tossing gasoline into a bonfire. The first time I saw that happen I knew I'd never have a shot with him, so I settled for being the friend. Looks like you did the same."

"Yeah well, someone has to keep these two idiots in line and headed in the right direction."

"So you wanted her to come back to California?"

Ryan laughed, "No I wanted her to stay with me in Florida so I could keep an eye on her, despite the fact that her father is here. Now that I have the information I do though, there's no way I'd let her come back to Florida. What she wants... What she needs, is here."

"Well I don't know any of that for sure, but we will all be told the whole story finally tonight I'm guessing."

"Tonight?"

"Yes. I'll be there with you, her, Tommy, and the foursome you saw in here earlier, at Tommy's tonight."

"So you know about the stone I have?"

"Yes, Tommy called me and told me earlier."

"So what is it and why did it shock me?"

"That's something Tommy wants to be able to tell you. I know it sucks to be not told everything but trust me when I tell you there's a good reason.

Ryan nodded and took another drink of his smoothie.

"Well if you don't mind Haley, I'm going to see where the little women went off to. They are making me miss my lunch."

Haley smiled and shook her head as Ryan turned and walked towards the women's bathroom to ferret out his lunch dates.

---

Kim slowly walked into the bathroom and propped herself up on the counter with her hands. She stared at her own reflection in the mirror and grew angrier and angrier as the moments passed.

"You okay Kim?"

"Yeah, just peachy. How could I have been such a complete fucking moron Kat?"

"We were all a bit young and stupid back then remember Kim? Remember what I did to you just because I had a crush on Tommy? I stole your power coin and damn near watched you die falling off that balance beam!"

"Kat you know damn well that wasn't your fault or just because of a stupid crush. You were under Rita's spell. You didn't have a choice."

"Yes but remember what Billy said. The spell was made stronger because it stemmed part of its power from the darkness within. Some part of me wanted you out of the way so I could have him. You forgave me. Now its time to forgive yourself and try to move on like Ryan said."

"Yeah I know. It's just gonna be so damned hard."

"Nothing worth it is ever easy."

She chuckled slightly, "That's what Ryan always says."

Kim turned back to the mirror and looked at herself. Gone were the lines that anger had etched across her face. Kat's sympathy had made her feel a bit better, even if she hadn't really wanted it. She had gotten herself into this awful mess and by god she was gonna get herself out too. He was right, no more moping for her. She was going to press forward and work the problem from the road ahead. She turned on the sink and began to wash the ruined makeup off of her face. It was cleansing in a way she had never thought possible. It was like her pent up worries and frustrations were washing away with it. It was time for a new day. Time for a new Kimberly Hart.

"So if you don't mind me asking. What exactly happened in Florida?"

She sighed and looked at Kat, "Well I suppose I could tell you so that its not so hard to tell Tommy later. You mind if I tell you while I wash all this crap off my face and reapply some new makeup?"

"No problem Kim. Take your time."

"Well as you know I took a chance to compete in the Pan Global games. I went to Florida to train under Coach Schmidt. He was the one who came to Angel Grove and offered the spot to me. I got to Sarasota, Florida and was amazed by the facilities this guy had. I was as happy as a pig in slop and couldn't wait to get started."

Kat smiled at her friends enthusiasm.

"I was living in the dorms and there really wasn't much to do so occasionally me and a few others would go out to a karaoke bar or some other fun place to have a few drinks and relax. A little while after I got there I met a guy from another of the teams that were training on the complex. His name was Scott and I'm sorry but I get chills when I have to say his name so that's the only time I'll say it."

"That's okay Kim. Go ahead."

"Anyway, he was nice, and sweet, and a caring person. I decided to move in with him eventually. I moved into his place out of the dormitories. All was going just fine until one night we got into a fight because I was still calling to talk to Tommy every so often. He hated it and said I had no reason to talk to him anymore. Tommy was my past and he was my future. Needless to say I got upset and drove off into the night. I didn't care where I ended up I just wanted to be out of there. I wound up in a parking lot crying. Not as bad as just now but enough, and angry as hell too. I went for a walk in the shopping plaza I was stopped in front of because nothing made me happy like shopping. I came past a lively little sports bar I had never been to before, so I decided to head in to drown my sorrows in some hard liquor."

"You probably didn't get very far. Tolerance and body weight have a lot to do with how much you can consume. You don't weigh a hell of a lot and I'll wager a bet you weren't very strong on the tolerance side either."

"Oh you hit the nail on the head. Three shots of Jagermeister and two lemon drops later and I was soaring without any wings if you catch my drift. So I'm just sitting there and Ryan, whom I don't know at this point in the story, comes up and says hi to me. He knows the owner of the bar, Rick, who sent him over to see if I was okay. Ryan was a regular there and was playing darts with Rick. Anyway though, he introduces himself and wants to know if I'm okay. Apparently I slurred out "Yeash,itzokImfine". At that point Freddy, the bartender that night, cut me off saying I had had enough."

Kat laughed out loud as Kim re-enacted her slurred speech, hand gestures and all.

"So Rick and Ryan spend about fifteen minutes convincing me to let Ryan drive me home, because I'm obviously in no shape to drive and they want to keep me out of trouble. All the while too apparently I was getting very friendly with Ryan in that non-innocent type of way. That's really all I remember until I wake up the next morning. I was seriously hammered. Before that though, sometime around one in the morning I tried to leave and Ryan followed me into the parking lot. He says I was stumbling and weaving my way to my car. He pinned me against my car, and snatched my keys out of my hand from behind. He had dangled the keys from his fingers for added theatrics and scolded me. Proclaiming to me that it was for my own good. He led me to his car and opened the door for me and helped get me in. Halfway back to HIS place however I started panicking and saying I was afraid to go home. So Ryan took me back to his place. Apparently soon after I got there I used his bathroom for porcelain worship. He cleaned me up and then offered to sleep on his couch in the living room. I, still being a bit loopy, insisted that it would be fine to share. The next morning I find myself in Ryan's arms and both of us half naked. He had made a snide comment about not remembering going to sleep under the covers, or snuggled up to such a gorgeous half naked woman, but happy with the way things turned out. I don't think I can ever remember being so panicked. After I calmed down and he explained what happened things went a bit more smoothly."

"Woke up in his arms, huh?" Lucky girl.

"Yeah, scared the hell out of me."

"Lucky you that you found the one bar full of people that WOULDN'T take advantage of that."

"Yeah but my luck was quickly running out. HE was super pissed that I never came home. He was even more pissed that I had spent the night with another guy. Soon after that he had me write Tommy that awful letter and Ryan helped me on it. It was all in protest but he understood why. I started hanging out with Ryan and his friends at Trivia Night at the bar I had stumbled into, Hammerhead Reds. HE came out a few times I'm guessing to see what I was up to, but you could tell he wasn't overly thrilled to be there. That went on for quite a while, we had our ups and downs as all couples do. But the worst part was the verbal abuse I took from him and I don't know why I did. A bit later I was starting to have enough of all of HIS bullshit and so I tried to move back into the dorms. Unfortunately though, they had been filled up by new people and no rooms were empty anymore. I was still determined to end it and get away from him though so I made up a plan to get out and get my own apartment. Ryan and his brother wanted to help me move out just in case but I told them I could handle it by myself. I thought, 'I was a Power Ranger, surely I can handle this ass wipe if he gets out of hand.' I was wrong."

Kat's inquisitive face gaped in horror as Kim continued applying her make up in a slow methodical manner. Her eyes were dead and cold as she stared into the mirror.

"The night I was trying to move out all of my stuff came and he was out late like I expected. Problem is though he came back earlier than I expected him to. He walked in that door, saw what I was doing and just went ballistic. Ryan and Kyle and Cory had all warned me that it was coming, but I just didn't think it was possible. He was drunk and just started going crazy mad. He was swinging a baseball bat and tearing up the place because I was leaving him. When he was done tearing up the apartment he turned towards me. In a panic, I hit my send button on my phone twice to try to warn someone and call for help. Ryan was the person I had talked to last. I got out a cry for help but HE grabbed the phone out of my hands and smashed it. He beat me literally within an inch of my life. Ryan told me that the place was a wreck when he walked in and found me on the floor. He dialed 911 and then saw HIM come out of another room. HE lunged at Ryan, but seeing as how HE was beyond drunk and Ryan was sober at the moment, Ryan picked him apart like something out of the UFC. Ryan broke his nose, and later told me it gave him pleasure to do it. I can't say I felt bad about it myself either. I was in a coma for almost five years after that, he had fractured nearly every bone in my skull and lots more in my arms and ribs. How I didn't have any brain damage, I'll never know. The arms were mostly my fault when I was trying to shield my head from the bat."

By this time, Kat's eyes were streaming silent tears down her cheeks. Her mouth was permanently fixed in a state of horror. Kim's eyes lost the dead look as she snapped herself out of her trip down memory lane and turned to Kat.

"I'm okay Kat. Ryan helped me face it all. Well all except the Tommy part."

Kat was still speechless when she wordlessly walked to Kim and helds onto her for dear life. Tears and sobs began to flow from her eyes like Niagara Falls as the wave of emotion hit her. Kim held onto her friend and soothed her as Ryan had done to her earlier. Kim and Kat stood there holding each other for a few moments, locked in an embrace of friendship long forgotten, and now rekindled by a spark of sorrow.

"Knock Knock! You ladies still in here?"

Kim smiled and answered the call of Ryan whom she knew was peeking through the doorway but not around the corner to see them.

"Yeah Ryan we are in here still."

"I'm hungry Kim."

"I know Ryan, we will be out in a minute. We have two makeup jobs to redo now."

"Kimberly Ann Hart, what did I tell you about water fights in the bathroom. Now clean up that mess and get your butt out here to eat your lunch. And pronto."

Kim rolled her eyes and replied, "Yes dear."

They heard the door shut and Kat looked at Kim with a scowl, "I can't believe he just said that. I am so gonna kick his ass."

Kim laughed at her reaction, "It's okay. He knows we didn't have a water fight. He knows exactly what happened. He just said that so we wouldn't wallow in it. It's just his goofy ass way of helping, and in all honestly it works better than you might think. Especially after you know the guy a while."

"Yeah I guess so."

"Okay Kat, your turn now for a makeup redo."

Kat laughed and turned to the sink to wash her face. She could get used to being here a while. Its not home, but its starting to feel like a close second.

---

Kat and Kim walked out of the bathroom and towards the bar top, feeling much better and not so weighed down with emotion. Ryan turned to greet them when he heard them approach.

"Welcome back ladies. Can I offer you a menu?"

Ryan handed them both a menu and was rewarded by nods of thanks.

"You know what you are eating already, Ryan?"

"Yes I do, I took the liberty of rifling through the menu while you were redoing Kat's lovely face and I think I'm gonna stick to a good old fashioned cheeseburger today."

"Wow actually that doesn't sound bad, what about you Kat?"

"Hey count me in. I've been missing burgers. My last posting was in the south Pacific. Nothing but rice and noodles there, and a few things I'm not even sure what it was. I just ate it because I had to eat."

Ryan waved his hands in the air, "Okay, okay, okay, enough details please. I'd like to keep my appetite."

Hayley spotted Ryan's waving hands and picked then to wander back over.

"Have you all decided?"

"Yes Hayley. All three of us have decided on the cheeseburger."

"Fries or chips as a side?"

"Fries for me. Ladies?"

"Same."

"Me too."

Ryan sat there slightly amazed and more than slightly amused, "Wow you girls definitely aren't on diets. How odd for California girls."

"Don't judge us by our silly peers", Kat answered for them both.

---

Mesogog sat in his chambers fuming over the latest failure of his lackey Elsa. Every time he had a chance to make a goal, to gain a victory over the Power Rangers, he was dealt a defeat instead of the victory he needed to set his plan into motion. To make matters worse, the accursed human whom played host to him, Anton Mercer, was getting stronger and stronger willed. It was taking more and more of a struggle to push him back and assert his dominance over this annoying pest's body.

"ZELTRAX!"

Zeltrax heard the bellow of his master from the next chamber over. He dropped what he was occupied with and walked to the door. The door opened and he walked to the throne with dignity and knelt at the foot of Mesogog's throne.

"Yes my lord? I am here to serve you."

'Zeltrax, Elsa has failed me. She failed to retrieve what appears to be a dino gem. It is being held by a human who looks like this."

Mesogog presseed a button on his throne and a picture of Ryan appeared on the view screen to Zeltrax's right. Zeltrax looked up and glanced at the screen.

"You are to assault this human and retrieve it for me. We WILL return this land to the world of the dinosaurs, to whom this planet rightfully belongs! He is currently inside Hayley's Cyberspace, use an ambush of your choosing when he exits, and DO NOT fail me Zeltrax!"

Zeltrax saluted Mesogog while still kneeling.

"It shall be done my lord. The gem is as good as yours."

Zeltrax stood and walked out the door behind him.

"It had better be, Zeltrax. It had better be."

---

Ryan finished his burger first and then excused himself to use the bathroom, leaving the two friends at the bar top all alone.

"So what do you think of Ryan?", Kim asked Kat

"He's okay. Probably has the girls pining after him back home eh?"

"Actually no. He is single and has been for a while."

"Wow, why is that?"

"Dunno. Probably just no one gets to know him first, they just write him off."

Kim sat there and chewed her last bite of cheeseburger while thinking.

"You like him don't you?"

"Well, I think I'm leaning in that direction yeah."

"If it gives you any confidence, he dropped his jaw on the floor when you walked in this morning."

"Really?"

"Oh yeah, you could totally play with him a bit. Don't break him cause I'll kick your ass Kat. Don't string him along if you don't intend to do anything with him. But if you do like him, play with him all you like, that would make me laugh so hard. He's not usually in those situations. He will so freak out."

Just then, Ryan exited the bathroom and began to walk back over to the bar top.

"Okay Kim. Let the fun commence."

"Well what have you chatty cathy's been talking about while I was gone?"

Kim shot Kat a smile, "Just talking about the good ol' days"

"Oh I see. So are we all done and ready to go?"

"I'm done", Kat replied. "But Kim has a few fries left. Sit down for a minute while I get my money out."

"Oh please Kat. Like I'm going to let Hayley take your money for your lunch.", Ryan said while swatting at her hand which was reaching inside her purse.

"Well thank you Ryan, that's sweet."

"Think nothing of it."

Kim swallowed a mouthful of fries and wiped her mouth off with a napkin, "Say Kat, you doing anything tonight?"

"Not that I'm aware of why?"

Ryan looked at Kim wide eyed and began mouthing no, pointing to his pocket and frantically spelling T-O-M-M-Y in the air behind Kat's back.

"Well Ryan and I are going to go have a chat with Tommy at his house. I figured another old friend might be a welcome surprise."

"I don't know Kim. Being that you and Tommy are going to talk about personal things..."

Kim cut Kat off, "That you already know about. Don't worry about it."

Ryan trying to play cool and failing replied, "Yeah but we got that OTHER thing to talk about too ya know!"

Kim looked away in mock remembrance, "Oh THAT! Yeah that's okay, nothing she would be surprised about."

Ryan sat gape mouthed in a silently shocked protest to Kim.

"Trust me Ryan."

"You know Kim, you're throwing that word around very loosely in my presence lately. I'm not sure what to do with that."

"It'll be okay Ryan. You'll see."

"Yeah okay", he said sarcastically.

Kat turned to face Ryan, "By the way Ryan, I heard what you did for Kimberly. Staying with her while she was in a coma, saving her from that royal dirt bag."

"Well she's my friend why wouldn't I do it."

Hayley came by just then with the signing slip for Ryan's credit card. He signed it and returned it to Hayley, "And now there's another guest tonight at the Oliver residence."

"Who? Kat?" Hayley said quizzically.

"Yeah."

"It's okay Hayley", Kim said. "She's one of the old gang."

"Yeah, I know all about who she is. Come on over tonight, Kat. I'm sure he'd be delighted to see you."

Ryan's mouth gaped open once again and looked from one woman to the other trying to decide which was the craziest, "DID I MISS A MEMO!"

Kat turned to Ryan with a laugh, "Yes, you did. By the way, this is a thank you for helping my friend so much when she needed it."

Ryan gulped in embarrassment as Kat sexily sauntered up to him, leaned down, and planted a deep french kiss on him. Ryan was so stunned it took a moment for him to move his lips and enjoy it. Kat reluctantly pulled away from him to see him still sitting there with his eyes partly closed in a stunned stupor.

"Okay well time to go then I guess. I'll see you tonight Hayley, Kim. Bye Ryan!", She said while walking through the door and blowing him a kiss.

Kim waved at Kat as she walked through the door, then walked back over to Ryan.

"You alive?"

Ryan didn't move anything but his lips as he spoke, "Kim... she... kissed me."

"Yeah, Ryan apparently she did. Now snap the hell out of it and lets go."

"I can't."

"What if she's waiting for you in the parking lot?", Kim said as she walked towards the front door.

Ryan bounded off his chair and was through the door in a flash, "Coming!"

Ryan and Kim walked to her car side by side and saw that she was indeed still in the parking lot getting ready to pull out in her yellow Jeep.

Ryan waved to her and was about to get into the passenger side of Kim's car, when suddenly a rift opened on the hill about 500 feet away. Ryan's attention was diverted as soon as he heard the portal open. As he stared at it, out poured Zeltrax and a hoard of Tyrannodrones.

"Hey Kim? What the hell are those?"

Kim looked over the top of her car behind Ryan and immediately turned and yelled for Kat.

"KAT! WE GOT COMPANY!"

Kat quickly put her jeep back into park, turned off the ignition and jumped out to assist her.

Meanwhile, Zeltrax had spotted Ryan and he cackled with evil glee.

"There is our target! GET HIM! ATTACK!"

Ryan looked in amazement as the Tyrannodrones started scrambling for him.

"Get HIM! Oh shit, I'm the only guy here!"

Ryan scrambled around to the other side of the car where Kim and Kat were, "I'll say it again Kim, WHAT THE FUCK ARE THESE THINGS?"

"I have no idea Ryan, but its time to put those Air Force hand to hand combat training programs to use!"

"Dammit, I was better with a gun", Ryan said as he assumed a defensive stance alongside the girls. "They are after me by the way. They said "get HIM!""

"Okay Ryan, just stay in between us and defend yourself okay?"

"You got it. You know martial arts and I don't remember? I'm staying wherever the hell you tell me to!"

---

Hayley watched her patrons exit and then turned to set their dishes inside the dishwasher. They seem like nice people. They'll make a nice temporary supplement to the team.

Hayley straightened herself back up as she closed the dishwasher and looked out the window to see Zeltrax and a very large group of Tyrannodrones had portaled in on the hill above the parking lot.

"Oh crap!"

She fumbled for the phone and called Tommy's cell phone number.

"Oh shit. Please pick up, please pick up."

"Hello?"

"Tommy?"

"Hayley?"

"Tommy please step outside your classroom for a moment to talk."

"Alright. Hey class, please excuse me a moment, keep reading about the Paleolithic Era for a moment."

Tommy walked out the door and closed it behind him.

"Go ahead Hayley."

"Tommy get the Rangers here ASAP! Ryan, Kim, and Kat just got jumped by Zeltrax and a huge army of Tyrannodrones in my parking lot!"

"Kat? What the hell? Never mind it can wait. I'll get them on their way right now."

"Hurry Tommy! I don't know how long they will last! Two ex-rangers and a civilian isn't exactly the best fighting force in the world."

"I understand that Hayley. Just hold on they are on their way."

"Thanks, Tommy."

She hung up the phone and began to say a small prayer for her new friends, who outside, began a fight for their lives.