Title: Outside Looking In
Fandom: Power Rangers - Ninja
Storm
Characters: Hunter Bradley/Shane Clarke
Prompt: 020.
Colourless.
Word Count: 808
Rating: PG for a minor swear
word
Summary: Shane waxes philosophical, and a pillow gets
abused.
Notes: Bittersweet fluff, maybe a little angsty. It's kind
of mild, really. O.o
After a long day of teaching at the Thunder Ninja Academy, Hunter was at home, comfortably watching TV and casually ignoring the mass of papers to be graded on his coffee table. It was Friday; he figured he could get to them on Sunday. He picked up the remote as a series of commercials seemed to drag on, most of them seriously unfunny. As he was flipping through the channels, he suddenly stopped short at a local news station. Normally he avoided the news like the plague, but this...caught his attention.
"Yesterday a new villain appeared on the planet Earth, this time by the name of Mesogog, and he sent a monster into the quiet town of Reefside, California."
Hunter groaned, leaning back into the couch. He knew it was inevitable; Dustin had said that they just kept coming back no matter how many were defeated before.
"The threat didn't last for long, however, as new Power Rangers appeared with their Zords to destroy the monster -- the Dino Thunder Rangers. Let us hope they can live up to the names of the predecessors and keep our planet safe. Back to you, Bob."
Dino Thunder. The new defenders of the galaxy. It was an odd thought for Hunter. Not that long ago it'd been Ninja Storm who the world was relying on, something he'd been apart of. And now he was practically settled into a normal life, teaching at a secret ninja academy aside. Was that how it was for the Rangers of the past? Did they just accept the power loss and move on?
He closed his eyes and remembered the first time he morphed, not long after the Thunder Academy had been captured. The rush of adrenaline, the strange feeling of Power encasing his entire body. It was incredible. And now it was all past tense.
The blond's eyes shot open when he heard the front door slam.
"Goddamned visiting storm ninja. Had to screw up my class, didn't they?"
Hunter raised an eyebrow. "You okay, Shane?"
Shane sighed, plopping down on the sofa next to him. "What I wouldn't give to be able to kill the idiot who decided we should be allied with the Storm Ninja Academy. All they do is cause trouble." He looked up at the TV. "Why are you watching the news? I thought you hated it."
"Normally I do," Hunter replied. "But I caught a story about the newest Rangers. Turned out to be mildly interesting."
"Newest...Rangers?" There was a tone of disbelief in Shane's voice, as if he mistrusted this new information almost like he had Hunter upon their first meeting. "Who?"
"'Dino Thunder,' apparently." Hunter switched his gaze from the TV to his boyfriend. "It's weird thinking that there's new Rangers out there. Hasn't even been that long since we sent Lothor into the Abyss."
Shane nodded. "I know. Guess that's just the way it is. One day you're the defenders of the planet, the next there's someone else doing the job in the shiny spandex, and you're just..." He paused, searching for the right word. "Colorless."
Hunter was silent for a moment, letting the words sink in. Then, a smile lit up his face. "You're definitely spending too much time around Sensei Watanabe."
The former Red Ranger picked up a nearby throw pillow and bopped Hunter in the side with it. "At least he's a better influence than some of the nuts over at the Thunder Academy."
"Well at least they're interesting," Hunter retorted good-naturedly, snatching away the throw pillow and holding it at arm's length. "I'd like to see Sensei pull that one off."
Shane leaned over the blond and grabbed the pillow back. "He was a guinea pig for almost a year. And, he almost failed ninja school."
"There ya go. All you have to do is transform into a rodent for nine months and you guys would be twins!" the thunder ninja laughed. He grabbed Shane by the waist and pulled him into his lap, no longer caring about the pillow. "But if you have any love for me at all, please don't do it."
"Oh, dude, no problem there. Trust me." Shane shifted a bit to get comfortable and put the pillow behind his head, happy with his small victory. "So, you think these guys can stop the newest weirdo from taking over the planet?"
"No one's failed yet, so I think it's safe to say that they will." Hunter smirked. "They'll probably screw up at least once though, and since they just started, now would be the time for it to happen."
A mischievous grin spread across Shane's face. "I'll grab the popcorn."
"And I'll order the TiVo."
Not being the one wearing the spandex with the weight of the world on your shoulders had its advantages, Hunter decided.
END
