Title: Along For the Ride (2?)
Author: dannyblue
Fandoms: Supernatural, Power Rangers: Dino Thunder
Pairing: None.
Rating: PG
Spoilers: General spoilers for both shows.
Summary: Gen fic. Dean picks up a hitchhiker, a teen-aged girl who seems to favor the color yellow.

CHAPTER TWO

"Can I use your phone?"

Dean glanced over at his young passenger. Kira still sat stiff as a board in her seat, and nervous fingers fiddled with the bracelet—a silver band with a yellow stone in the center—on her left wrist.

Dean took his cell out his jacket's inner pocket. "Here you go."

With a mumbled, "Thanks," Kira took the phone and quickly started to dial. Long distance, judging by the number of digits she pressed.

Eyes back on the road, Dean sighed. He wouldn't say he was starting to panic. Not out loud, anyway. It was more like the size of the mess he'd stepped in had just hit home.

Really, what was he supposed to do? Drop her off at the next town, fresh meat for the first sick piece of work that came along. She was young, pretty, alone, and scared—no matter how hard she tried to hide it. Some psycho would take one look at her and think it was their lucky day.

Taking her home was an option…if she'd even admit where home was. And, if she had good reasons to run away from the place, who said she'd be any better off going back there?

Besides, runaways could be skittish as nervous colts. Push too hard, say the wrong thing, and she'd rabbit before he figured out what to do with her.

As he heard Kira dialing another number, Dean realized she hadn't said anything the first time. So her first call hadn't been answered.

Trying not to be obvious about it, Dean watched as she pressed the phone to her ear. Maybe she'd decided life on the road was a little too real for her and was trying to call home. In which case, problem solved.

If not, he could always drop her off at the nearest police station. Let the authorities deal with her. That was the "sensible" thing to do. But Dean had heard about one runaway who managed to slip out of police custody. He ended up the star of some pretty ugly crime scene photos.

Damn! The already short list of options kept getting shorter every second.

Dean shook his head. Picking Kira up had complicated his life in a hurry.

Snapping the phone shut without ever saying a word, Kira handed it back to him. "Thanks."

"No problem," Dean said as he pocketed his cell. "Nobody home?"

"I guess not." And if 'sadness' and 'dejection' ever needed a poster girl, she could be it.

So he had a young, scared, depressed teen-aged runaway in his car. This went beyond complicated. And, if he wanted to uncomplicate things, talking to her would be a good start.

Dean rolled his eyes. Playing social worker wasn't his deal. But it wasn't like he had much choice.

"So, where you from?" he began, even though he doubted she'd answer.

So he was surprised when she did, and without hesitation.

"Reefside. In California?" She looked at him expectantly. "Ever hear of it?"

"Can't say I have."

Kira frowned, almost like she didn't believe him. "You've never heard of Reefside?"

Eyes narrowed, Dean went over the mental list of California towns he'd driven through over the years. "Don't think so. Why? Should I have?"

His ignorance of her hometown seemed to depress her even more. "If you've never heard of Reefside, I guess you've never heard of the Power Rangers either."

"What are they, a team from back home? They win some big championship or something?"

Kira sighed, and it was like all the energy drained out of her body on that one breath. She sunk down low in her seat. "It's not important."

Dean frowned. It must be important, or she wouldn't be reacting this way. But he couldn't figure out why his never hearing of Reefside or Power Rangers (and what kind of name was that for a team anyway?) would bother her so much.

"You're a long way from home," Dean continued, trying to keep her talking.

"You have no idea." Then Kira closed her eyes, a clear sign she didn't want to talk anymore.

Kira Ford's eyes were closed, but her mind was racing. She was trying not to freak out. It was something she'd gotten good at since she became a Ranger. But this? This was out there, even for her.

She'd known something weird had happened. One minute, she was fully morphed, fighting one of Mesagog's mutant freaks in the heart of the city. The next, she was unmorphed, and standing in the middle of the woods.

Her first thought had been teleportation. And the fact that the explanation made perfect sense to her told you what her life was like. And, while she was a little freaked by the unexpected trip, she hadn't really been worried. She'd just contact Dr. Oliver. He'd know what to do.

Only, when she tried to use her communicator to contact Dr. O, or Hayley, or the guys or anybody, she got nothing. And when she tried to re-morph, nothing happened.

So her communicator/morpher was damaged. No big deal. She could always phone home the old fashioned way.

Kira walked through the woods for about half an hour (and was soon sick and tired of green, and trees, and nature in general) before she stumbled on the main road. Picking a direction, she started walking. But she soon realized she was in the middle of nowhere. And, by foot, it might take hours to reach whatever passed for civilization around here.

That's when she decided to stop a car and ask to use a cell phone. But the road didn't have a lot of traffic. At least ten minutes passed between cars, and none of them even slowed down. Not when she waved her arms in the universal sign for, "I need help, please stop." Not when she switched to the hitchhiking sign, hoping that would be more effective.

No, that wasn't true. One vehicle slowed down. A dark blue, creepy-assed van with rusted paint and tinted windows. Not only did it slow down, it seemed to crawl as it went past her. Something about the van sent a shiver down Kira's spine, and she was relieved when it disappeared out of sight.

The fact that the same van, traveling in the opposite direction, did another slow drive by about five minutes later left her truly wigged. She wanted to believe it was just some local teens messing with her or something. But she had a bad feeling it wasn't. And, Ranger or not, there were some situations where being scared was just good common sense.

When she saw a car coming that wasn't Creepy Van, she almost fainted with relief. She had her arm out and thumb up before she could even think about it.

It was a cool old car, and the driver was a guy who would have most of the girls at Reefside High swooning at his feet.

She'd only intended to ask for a phone. But, then, the driver asked if she wanted a ride. And the idea of being anywhere but at the side of that road made her heart leap in her chest. Then, she was filled with the sudden, irrational fear that he'd just up and drive away, leaving her there all by herself…just in time for Creepy Van to make another pass.

Kira had always been good at reading people. Becoming a Ranger just made her better at it. And she wasn't getting any bad vibes off this Dean Winchester guy. Besides, she was a Ranger. She might not be able to morph, might not have her full power, but she had enough to handle the guy if he turned out to be a jerk.

So, she hopped into the car, and away they went.

Her mom would kill her if she ever found out. And Dr. O would help. Good thing she never intended to tell them.

When her new chauffer let her use his phone, the first number she called was Dr. O's. But, when she dialed the home of her teacher and mentor, she got one of those, "We're sorry, your call cannot be completed as dialed," messages.

Next, she called her home number. But it wasn't her home number anymore. It was the number of some Chinese take-out place.

She hung up without saying anything, because she couldn't talk. Not with the insane suspicion twirling around in her head. A suspicion that became more real after her brief chat with Dean Winchester.

When giant mutant monsters attacked a city on a regular basis, that city became big news. Especially when a team of multi-colored superheroes battled those monsters. So there was no way anyone who wasn't living under a rock wouldn't have heard of Reefside or the Power Rangers. Unless…

Unless she was in a place where the Power Rangers didn't exist. Unless she'd been transported not just to a different location, but to a different reality. Which was impossible.

Just like multi-colored superheroes fighting giant mutant monsters was impossible.

Kira was quiet for so long, Dean thought she'd fallen asleep. Then, the sound of a stomach growling filled the car, and her eyes flew open.

Dean couldn't hide a smirk as he watched Kira's pale skin turn beet read.

"You hungry?" he asked, a lilt of amusement in his voice.

Another growl answered his question. And Dean chuckled when he heard Kira's groan of embarrassment.

"Okay. We're stopping to get something to eat."

"Um, no thanks." Kira squirmed in her seat. "I'm okay."

"Oh, come on!" Dean scoffed. "You trying to tell me you aren't hungry? Because I think your stomach begs to differ."

"No, it's not that. It's just…Well, I don't exactly have any money."

He'd thought as much. "No problem. I'll pay."

When she opened her mouth to speak, Dean figured he was about to hear a denial. So, he cut her off at the pass. "Look, it's okay. I don't expect you to pay me back." He paused meaningfully. "In any way. Got it?"

Kira blushed even harder, if that was possible. "Uh, y-yeah," she stammered. "Got it."

"Good." Dean smiled, glad at least one thing had been settled.

After that, another silence fell over the car. But this one was more comfortable than the last.

TO BE CONTINUED