AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER
Second part of the fic and takes place after "No Kind Of Life", which means Raf's left but Leah's still around so there's gonna be a seven-person team. Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban, Fox Kids, Nickelodeon, and whoever else is affiliated with it. Flashpoint belongs to Mark Ellis, Media Bell, Ava Mar, and Pink Sky. I only own the plot of the fic.
Jules blew out a breath as she walked into the training area and watched the recruits who were being led by Ed and Greg. Once more, it had gotten boiled down to six recruits. Hearing footsteps, she turned to see Sam.
"Hey, you," she greeted.
"Hey," he acknowledged. "These the final six?" he queried.
"Yeah. They're really good," she confirmed. "I'm just surprised Donna didn't retry," she stated.
"Ed and the Boss invited her, said they'd fast-track her and everything, but she said she was happy on Team 3," he replied.
"Okay then," she accepted and they both turned to watch the recruits. As they did so, Sam glanced at the woman beside him and smiled a bit ruefully. She was an amazing woman and there were times that he wished that they were still dating, but he knew that she was completely in love with her long-time boyfriend Tommy Oliver. Okay, so in the five years he had known her, she had only been dating Tommy for the last two years, but after the couple's reunion, it had become clear that she had never stopped loving her ex, whom she had broken up with in order to keep him safe from a stalker. And yes, she had told him the full story. But he could never call her "Kimberly" or "Kim" as she would always be "Jules" to him. And while a part of him would always love her, he knew that he didn't stand a chance with her. He then shook this off and refocused his attention on the people trying out. A lot of them were keeping up with everything that the Boss and Ed were putting them through, but one in particular had caught his eye: a Caucasian man who was around their age with jet black hair that looked that it had just been freshly cut. Seeing this, Jules followed his gaze. Then, she stiffened, an action that didn't go unnoticed by her former flame.
"What is it? Do you know him?" he asked urgently. If this was someone she didn't trust, their Boss had to know.
"No, not really. He just…feels familiar," she answered. It's almost like he's one of us, she thought to herself. One of the side effects of being a Ranger was being able to tell if someone had held the Power.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"Once you've held the Power, you kind of…have this…beacon for other people who have also held it," she explained. At this, Sam did a double take.
"You're telling me that there could be another Power Ranger in here?" he questioned softly.
"Yup," she confirmed in the same tone. They continued to watch the physical part of the training, moving closer so that they could see each candidate. Presently, Jules went up to Greg.
"Not a good time," he told her.
"What've we got? What are your thoughts?" she asked.
"They're all doing well. It's going to be a tough call," he said.
"Anyone you like in particular?" she queried.
"An American transfer. Mike Corbett. Apparently, he moved here a couple of years back and worked his butt off to get into the Toronto P.D," he responded.
"And now he's trying for the Cool Pants," she surmised as the rest of the team came up. That name sounds familiar. Why does it sound familiar? she wondered.
"Who's trying for the Cool Pants?" Leah asked.
"An American," Greg replied.
"Who did the interviews?" Spike wondered.
"Ed and I shared them," Greg replied again and the rest of the team nodded in understanding. Then, they were told to go about their business and they had no choice but to do so, which included a Hot Call that took them a while to get through. But they had done it: Jules, Sam, Leah, Spike, and Ed. Greg had had to stay behind to finish the screening process, but he had assured them that they'd be fine. And they had been.
"So you think Sarge's made a decision yet?" Leah asked.
"Wouldn't be surprised," Ed replied.
"I just wish I knew why the name Mike Corbett sounded familiar," Jules griped.
"Why would it sound familiar?" Spike wondered.
"I dunno. He just feels familiar. Like he's held the Power or something," Jules replied with a shrug and Leah looked at her in confusion.
"Power?" she repeated and everyone froze. They had all gotten so used to talking about it freely that they had forgotten that Leah didn't know.
"Oh, right," Jules said sheepishly. "I was a Power Ranger. The first Pink. And my name's actually Kimberly Hart," she told her.
"What?" Leah gasped.
"Come on, I'll fill ya in," Spike told her and took her aside. Jules and the others, on the other hand, continued to watch the session. When the sessions were finally done, Team One was called into the Briefing Room. They all stared at the man and Jules frowned, trying to figure out why he looked familiar.
"Everyone, I want you to meet the newest member of Team One, Mike Corbett," Greg stated. "Mike, meet the team: Sam, Leah, you've met Ed, Spike, and Jules," he continued.
"Hey," they all chorused. Mike nodded in acknowledgment as he looked at each member of the team. When he saw Jules, he did a double take.
"Kimberly Hart? You were-" he cut himself off. Stupid! You probably just blew her identity! he berated. Just because the Space Rangers and some of the other Rangers were okay with having their identities revealed, it didn't mean she was.
"Yes, I was," she confirmed. "And don't worry about it. They all know," she said, seeing his expression.
"They know?" he asked, checking to make sure that she wasn't just trying to put him at ease with his near slip.
"They know," she confirmed.
"So you were a Ranger too then?" Spike asked.
"Yep," Mike replied.
"Were you guys on the same team?" Sam wondered and Mike chuckled.
"No. I wish. I was after her time," he answered. "And I was actually more of the backup for the Galaxy team," he continued.
"The Magna Defender! That's who you were!" Jules exclaimed, snapping her fingers.
"Yeah," Mike confirmed.
"But you're selling yourself short. You may have been a Sixth Ranger, but they're never just backup. We're all a team," she told him. He nodded, sensing that it wouldn't do to argue with her. The team was about to say more when the alarm blared.
"Team One, hot call!" Winnie called, causing everyone to groan.
"Winnie feed us on the fly," Greg commanded, starting out.
"Let's go, Rook," Spike stated as he and the others followed their sergeant.
"Is it always this crazy?" Mike queried.
"Always," Jules confirmed.
"Mike, you and Jules will be in the Command Post," Ed stated.
"Copy that," Jules agreed.
"Got it," Mike said at the same time.
"It's gonna be good having another one us on the team," she told him, grinning and he grinned back as he mentally prepared himself for his first day on the job. Yeah, joining the S.R.U. had been one of the best decisions he had ever made…
THE END
