Chapter 7: My Friend Redbot

"There's no way it's happening," Daisy spoke stubbornly as she and Aaron walked into the school.

"You can't miss it again, come on," Aaron laughed. "You missed Victor take a swan dive into the punch bowl last year. It was incredible," he grinned as Daisy couldn't help but laugh at the idea.

"As entertaining as that sounds, I don't like stuff like this. And I can't dance," the Black Ranger shook her head stubbornly. Her cousin sighed in exasperation, shaking his head.

"Well, I tried. Maybe your friends will have more luck than me. I better go, I volunteered to help decorate," Aaron jogged off as she waved to him. She then walked over to where Brody and Sarah were talking, discussing the dance as well.

"Hey Daisy," Brody smiled as she approached them. "You helping out with the dance too?" he asked her.

"I guess so," she shrugged, looking around the bustling area, where everyone was helping set up for the dance.

"You guess so?" Sarah's brow furrowed in confusion. "Can you not make it tonight?" she asked curiously.

"I don't like dances. I'm just gonna stay home and train," Daisy shook her head as Hayley walked past, carrying a massive bowl of punch carefully. Sarah and Brody exchanged startled looks, before turning back to Daisy. She immediately put her hands up. "Don't even try to talk me out of it," she laughed as they stopped.

"But Daisy..." Brody shook his head. "We're all going, it'll be fun," he insisted, and she shrugged.

"And you'll have fun regardless of if I'm there or not," Daisy replied, and took a banner out of his hands. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to help," she smiled, walking away. Brody watched, frowning, and Sarah glanced to him, before looking back at Daisy as she spoke to another girl. She grinned, shaking her head.

"We gotta convince her to go, it won't be the same without everyone," Brody said to her, but before the Pink Ranger could speak, a clap echoed through the hall, making them look around. Victor strode across the floor, with Monty trailing behind him with Victor's jacket in his arms.

"Music!" Victor called, and fell into a strange stance.

"Teddie?" Sarah walked over to the girl, who was tuning a guitar. The Green Ranger looked up, and saw Victor still standing there. She giggled, and nodded, getting to her feet.

"J, you good?" she turned to the blond sitting behind the drum-kit, twirling the sticks. He grinned, fixing his sunglasses, and sat up properly.

"Sure thing," he nodded, and the two began to play. Victor started to dance, and everyone turned their attention to him as he pranced around.

"You know, this might almost be worth going to the dance tonight, if he shows off like this," Daisy laughed as she walked over to Hayley and Brody. They giggled, and Victor stopped, hands in the air.

"And now for my super-duper-mega twirl!" he declared. He began to spin rapidly, only to trip over a bucket and crash into the table. The force flipped the table, and the punch bowl flew through the air, drenching Brody, Hayley and Daisy. The music stopped, as Teddie and Jeremy howled with laughter.

"Nice moves Victor..." Brody grumbled as Daisy pushed her hair from her face. The young man was still on the ground, groaning as his vision spun.

"We better go clean up before Victor shows us his super-twirl again," Hayley glared at him.

"So sticky..." Daisy complained.

"Orange suits you," Brody said as they walked towards Mick's lab, and she slapped his hand when he poked her stained shirt, giggling.

"You're so not funny," Daisy rolled her eyes, but was smiling a little. Brody didn't miss it, and his grin widened.

"You think I'm funny," he argued, and Hayley followed behind them, unable to hide her smile.

"So much for getting everything ready way in advance," Teddie mused as she went back to tuning her guitar. Jeremy nudged his sunglasses up to wipe the tears of laughter from his eyes.

"Well, we'll be ready," he laughed, making her giggle.

"No doubt. Thanks for coming back for this," she reached out, and bumped his fist.

"Wouldn't miss a chance to show off with you. It's been too long. And Ryan's still not feeling up for music," Jeremy shrugged, and both their demeanour immediately darkened. Both put their hands to their chests, where their gemstones shone, with Teddie's White while Jeremy's was Silver.

"How's he doing?" Teddie asked, her voice softer now. Jeremy gave a soft sigh.

"Better. He struggled for a while, wasn't sure if he was good or evil," he admitted.

"Heckyl was the same," Teddie reminded him, and Jeremy hummed. "With you guys there, he'll be fine. And I'll come visit soon too. It's just a little difficult considering.." she glanced to where Calvin and Sarah were helping to mop up the punch.

"Still not told them huh?" Jeremy gave a small laugh.

"It's hard to find the right time. Daisy suspects I'm hiding something, I know that much," Teddie shrugged, strumming a few notes.

"She was always pretty perceptive," Jeremy nodded.

"It's just a little hard to find a point that's good to go 'hey guys, so before I was in this team, I was a Ranger and didn't age for over a year. Oh, and my family have all been Rangers too, and my mum is kind of a legend'," Teddie grumbled, making Jeremy laugh again.

"You missed out the 'dating a guy who spent a while trying to destroy the world', and 'I'm not entirely human'," he added, and Teddie threw her pick at him, blushing. "Come on, I know you haven't spent much time together recently, but you gotta accept that the rest of us are going to tease you mercilessly for it," Jeremy laughed as Teddie's blushing grew, spreading to her ears.

"I hate you," she muttered, which only made his laughter grow.


"Ah Daisy, your hair is sticking to me!" Brody complained as they went to the base.

"It's what you deserve!" she shot back, peeling her hair from his arm before climbing through the fan. Hayley's dog Kody stood up, tail wagging as he saw them.

"Hey Kody, where's Redbot?" Brody asked as he looked around, not seeing the robot anywhere. Kody barked loudly. "What did he say?" he asked Hayley, whose eyebrow rose.

"Uh...I don't know, I don't speak dog," she giggled, and he went red.

"Good point," he allowed, and she threw him a towel. Daisy intercepted, smirking at Brody as he pouted at her.

"Ask the dog for another towel," she teased, and he lunged at her, trying to grab it from her. She laughed, dodging his attempts as Hayley looked around for Redbot.

"He was here earlier, we were talking," the White Ranger frowned in confusion, not paying much attention to their antics.

"Hey, what's this?" Daisy noticed a red book sitting upside down on the table. Brody released his hold on Daisy to lift it curiously.

"Won't you accompany me to the grand ball?" he read aloud.

"It's a fairytale," Daisy peeked over his shoulder, and he moved the book so she could see. "Cute, but hardly a romantic gesture that'd sway someone," she commented.

"That's exactly what Redbot said to me," Hayley laughed, making them look up at her.

"He asked you to the dance?" Brody asked in surprise.

"That's so cute," Daisy grinned, and Hayley shrugged.

"What did you say?" Brody tilted his head, confused. Hayley arched an eyebrow at him.

"I told him no, of course," she laughed, making them frown. "Come on, he's just a robot," she took the towel they'd abandoned, and started trying to dry her jumper.

"And they say I'm the cold one," Daisy muttered.

"I wonder if you hurt his feelings when you said no," Brody considered, setting the book down on the table again.

"You're kidding, right?" Hayley laughed. "Robots don't have feelings," she dismissed his suggestion, still laughing to herself.

"Redbot does," Brody frowned at her. "He's quite advanced. He always..." he stopped, shaking his head as he still seemed irritated by how flippant Hayley was being. "Why else would he leave?" Brody argued.

"He probably went for a stroll to stretch his springs...or oil his joints?" Hayley suggested, shaking her head. Brody sighed, turning away.

"I'm going to go look for him," he decided.

"I'll come with you," Daisy offered, but before they could leave, Hayley sighed and called out.

"No...you guys promised you'd help with the dance," she reminded them.

"I'm not just going to leave Redbot-"

"Kody and I will find Redbot," Hayley interrupted before Brody could start arguing with her. Brody hesitated, before nodding.

"Alright. Thanks Hayley," the Red Ranger offered a small smile, before leaving with Daisy.

"You okay?" Daisy asked him, seeing his frown.

"Redbot has feelings," he muttered, and glanced to Daisy when she put a hand on his arm.

"I know he does. Hayley will realise that too when she gets to know him," she soothed with a small smile. "He'll be okay. Let's go get changed and help clean up the hall for the dance," Daisy told him as Brody relaxed a little.

"Thanks Flower Girl," he nudged her. Daisy rolled her eyes at the nickname.

"Don't make me regret being nice to you, Sky Boy," she retorted, making him laugh.


Sarah approached Teddie as she played a few notes, looking through a notebook. Jeremy had gone for something to eat, but Teddie had wanted a little more practice first. Sarah looked down at it curiously, seeing how worn the book was, filled with scribbles that she could only guess were words.

"What's up Sarah?" Teddie asked without looking up.

"I seriously don't know how you and Brody can do that," the Pink Ranger laughed, taking a seat on the edge of the stage they'd put together.

"Spacial awareness," she smiled in amusement as Teddie looked up with a grin.

"Thanks, for doing this," Sarah gestured to the stage, and Teddie shrugged.

"I haven't had a chance to perform for a while, it was really cool for you to ask me," she replied, unable to hide her excitement.

"Are you kidding? You're amazing, and when you mentioned that you were in a band, we had to get you to play at the dance," Sarah told her, and Teddie blushed. While she loved to perform, she was still embarrassed by the compliments. "I'm just glad Principal Hastings agreed to it," the girl commented.

"No doubt," Teddie agreed. "Though I think cutting out the cost of a DJ set or a band outside of the school probably swayed her," she considered, and Sarah nodded in agreement. Teddie had refused any sort of payment, and Jeremy had looked alarmed when offered, telling Sarah to speak with Teddie about the business side of what they did. "It would have been nice for Ryan to make it too, but..." Sarah saw the dark, worried look in Teddie's face as she looked away, and wondered just what was wrong with the third member of the band to make the normally upbeat Green Ranger look so worried. She was almost as upbeat as Sarah, and that was saying something.

"I'm sure you guys will be amazing," Sarah insisted, smiling wider, and Teddie looked up at her, nodding with a small smile of her own.

"The whole dance will be," Teddie replied, looking around as everyone worked together to get the place set up. The mess Victor had caused had long since been cleaned up, and it looked even better than before. Her eyes were drawn to the sparkle of the mirror ball that Brody and Daisy hoisted into the air to dangle over what was to be the dance floor.

"They've gotten even closer," Sarah commented, and Teddie glanced to her, before turning back to see Daisy smirking at Brody, teasing him about something as he smiled in amusement, not bothered.

"Yeah they have," Teddie agreed, giggling. "It's cute," Sarah nodded as Brody ruffled Daisy's hair, and she swatted at him, smiling back.

"She's still the only one other than Mick he lets touch him," Sarah commented. None of them had missed his aversion to being touched.

"Being a prisoner on Galvanax's ship for a decade...I can't even begin to image the horrors he went through," Teddie shivered at the thought. "And he's still one of the most optimistic dudes I've ever met," she added as Brody laughed. Hearing a bark, they looked around to see Kody run in, straight over to Calvin. The Yellow Ranger crouched, a little confused as to why the dog was there without his owner.

"Hey Kody, where's Hayley?" he asked softly, scratching behind the dog's ear as Kody nudged him urgently. His hand trailed down, and he realised something was attached to his collar.

"Didn't Hayley bring Kody with her when she went looking for Redbot?" Daisy asked as she and Brody approached. Sarah stood up, and Teddie put her guitar down, lifting her notebook, and they joined them.

"Guys...it's Hayley's Ninja Com," Calvin held up the device, and their eyes widened at the broken device, which was flashing red. The plastic over the front was cracked, with a piece missing, and the glass underneath was broken too.

"She must have run into trouble," Sarah realised. Calvin's breath caught at the idea of Hayley in danger, alone without her Com.

"Kody, take us to Hayley," he said to the dog quickly, and with a loud bark, Kody ran off. Glancing around, the Rangers took off, and Savannah, who was sitting nearby, arched an eyebrow.


The Rangers didn't slow, running after the dog as he bounded away from the school and towards the forest nearby. Finally he stopped, barking repeatedly as the Rangers looked around for any sign of Hayley, but there was nothing.

"Wonder why he stopped us," Calvin frowned. He got his answer, when an explosion nearby showered them with dirt and forced them to take cover.

"I think that's why..." Teddie muttered, brushing the dirt from her hair.

"Kody was warning us!" Preston realised. "Good boy!" he praised the dog happily, patting him.

"Hello Rangers," Brody stiffened at the voice that called out to them. "Thanks for letting me join the party," Ripcon smirked to Badpipes.

"Ripcon," the Red Ranger glared at the monster.

"Did you miss me, Rat Bait?" Ripcon mocked him. Brody glared back, hating the monster who had made his life hell for a decade.

"Time for me to chime in," Badpipes lifted the instrument in his hands, and began to play. Immediately the Rangers slumped, falling under his spell. "Hand over your Power Stars," he ordered as Ripcon laughed. Their laughter faded, however, as only five of the six lifted their Power Stars. Instead, Teddie put her hands to her head, letting out a whimper.

"What are you doing Badpipes? Put them all under your spell!" Ripcon snapped at him.

"I thought I had!" the monster defended in his unusual accent. "The rest of them are offering them up fine!" he argued.

"What is with that Green Ranger...there's something familiar about her," Ripcon muttered as Badpipes played more notes, and Teddie stopped resisting, pulling her Power Star from her pocket like the rest. He continued to play, and the Rangers walked towards them slowly. "We're about to make history," Ripcon smirked, and Badpipes laughed, only for Hayley to ride in and blast the bagpipes from his hands.

"Eat rubber!" on her Mega Morph Cycle, Hayley slammed into Ripcon and landed easily. "Get to safety," she told Redbot, who had been on the back of the bike.

"Your spell is broken!" Ripcon snarled as the Rangers recovered.

"Whoa, talk about getting whammied," Teddie complained, a hand to her head as they all lifted their swords.

"We've got to destroy his bagpipes," Hayley told them as she ran over to him. They nodded, and ran forwards, but Ripcon attacked first, tossing them to the ground. Hayley demorphed as they groaned in pain.

"You can't stop the music!" Badpipes taunted. "Those bagpipes are mine, and soon your Power Stars will be too!" he laughed, approaching his bagpipes. With a loud bark, Kody ran over, grabbing the bagpipes and dragging them over to the Rangers.

"Good work Kody!" Hayley praised her dog happily, and he bounded off. "Time to hit mute, Badpipes!"

"Ninja Blasters!" with several shots from their blasters, the Rangers destroyed the bagpipes, and the monster wailed in horror, falling to his knees.

"Time to crush you, Rangers!" Ripcon declared.

"We'll see about that," Teddie called back as they stood together.

"It's Morphin' Time! Power Stars!"

"Lock in! Ready!"

"NINJA SPIN!"

"Ninja Rangers, fear no danger!" Ripcon let out a furious snarl, raising one of his swords in anger at losing the perfect chance to steal the Power Stars.

"I'm gonna change your tune!" Badpipes vowed, rushing in. The Rangers met him, with Brody facing Ripcon while the rest focused on Badpipes. Easily overwhelmed, the monster ran away, and all but Teddie followed as she ran to help Brody. As the Red Ranger hit the ground again, Ripcon laughed and stood over him.

"Even with all that power, you're still a weak child, Rat Bait," he mocked, only for his laughter to be cut off by Teddie's sword slashing down his back.

"Shut your mouth, creep," Teddie called, and turned to Brody as he stared up at her. "Come on," she offered her hand, and he hesitated before taking it.

"Thanks," he nodded as she pulled him back to his feet.

"Don't think you have to take him on alone Brody. We're a team," Teddie smiled slightly at him, and he nodded.

"I know," he muttered back, turning to face Ripcon as he got back to his feet. Teddie tilted her head slightly as his golden eyes focused on her. For the most part, Galvanax and his two lackies only really focused on Brody, but she found he was staring at her, and something told her it wasn't to do with the hit she'd gotten in. "Let's finish this and go help the others," Brody told Teddie, not seeming to notice, and she nodded.

"Right," she agreed.

"You're good, Ripcon," Brody allowed as he lifted his sword. "But not good enough! Red Ninja Spirit!"

"Green Ninja Spirit!"

"Steel Slash! Ninja Spin!" the two rushed at Ripcon, before suddenly leaping into the air. Surprised, Ripcon was unable to defend himself from the powerful attacks, and he slammed into a tree. He groaned, green blood dripping from where he'd been hit, and pushed himself back to his feet.

"You've been me this time Red Ranger, but I will have my victory over you! And your Green Ranger won't always be there to help you!" he vowed. "And you, I will find out what it is that bothers me about you," Ripcon vanished, and Teddie tilted her head.


Soaring through the air and cackling, Badpipes dodged each attack fired his way.

"I'm sick of you winging it!" he was suddenly caught off guard by Calvin slamming his shoulder into him, and the two crashed into the sand.

"I'll get you Yellow!" Badpipes scrambled to his feet and rushed towards Calvin, who was still on the ground.

"No you won't!" Hayley and Daisy intercepted, slashing him with their swords and knocking him backwards with a cry.

"Let's take him out!" Preston called to Sarah, and the two changed their Morphers to bows.

"Battle Morpher, arrow attack! Final attack!" with powerful moves, they destroyed him.

"Guys, how are you doing?" Brody called as he and Teddie reached them.

"You okay?" Teddie asked as they regrouped, all a little out of breath. Hearing thunder, they looked around to see Badpipes grow.

"As if his ego wasn't big enough," Preston rolled his eyes as the monster towered over them.

"Let's get some help with this," Brody grinned to him. "Zord Stars!"

"Lock in! Activate, Ninja Spin!" the Rangers called on their Zords, and combined them to form their Megazord. Going on the offensive, they used their sword to attack, but Badpipe was powerful as well, using his massive fan to batter them with strong winds. They stumbled backwards, barely keeping their footing.

"I'm putting my nose where it doesn't belong!" Badpipe laughed, and his horn-like nose shot out, slamming into them.

"That's just creepy," Daisy complained. "I'm never going to be able to watch Pinocchio again," she grumbled.

"We have to do something," Calvin groaned.

"I know just what we need," Brody wasn't shaken by the powerful monster. "Rumble Tusk Ninja Steel Megazord, combine, Ninja Spin!" calling on the elephant Zord, Brody combined the newest Zord with their Megazord.

"You're still doomed!" Badpipes wasn't impressed, and his nose extended again to hit them with an off-key note. However, the trunk of the Rumble Tusk wrapped around it, and they shattered it. Badpipes screamed in pain, and without waiting for him to recover, they destroyed his fan.

"Ninja Master Blade! Energize! Ninja Spin!"

"Rumble Tusk Ninja Steel Megazord! Double Axe, final attack!" using their powerful axes, the Rangers destroyed Badpipes as he screeched.

"Show's over! Ninjas win!" Brody laughed.


The dance was well under way, with Teddie and Jeremy performing a selection of songs while people danced.

Brody watched as Teddie sang while playing guitar, wearing a green and white dress. Her hair was loose for once, curled around her face, while Jeremy wore a shirt, tie and waistcoat, but still had his sunglasses on.

"Hey," he jolted when Daisy offered him a glass of punch. "You okay?" she asked, and he took in her own appearance. She was wearing a black dress and heels, and her hair fell down to her ribs. When she fiddled with her hair almost shyly, Brody felt his face warm.

"F-fine," he said, looking away quickly and gulping down the punch in hopes it would cool him down.

"Then why do you look so tense? I was promised that this would be fun, and it looks like Calvin and Sarah are having the best time," Daisy chuckled as she watched the two dance, almost as if they were pros.

"Sorry," Brody sighed.

"Ripcon can't get you any more Brody," Daisy's voice was barely audible over the music, and Brody felt himself tense at the name. "None of them can. We're a team, we'll taken them together," she promised.

"Teddie said that too," Brody commented, his gaze returning to the Green Ranger as she started another song. "And Ripcon said something too...that something about her bothered him," he turned to Daisy, and this time was able to keep her gaze.

"What could that mean?" Daisy wondered.

"I don't know, but there's something she's hiding that even Galvanax knows about," Brody commented, and turned back to Teddie as he wondered just what it was. His eyes were drawn to the necklace she wore; a long white gemstone that was almost identical to the silver one Jeremy was wearing, and his suspicions about the Green Ranger grew.

"Guys," they looked around at Preston's gleeful whisper, and their eyes widened as they saw Redbot standing with him.

"Are you crazy?" Brody demanded. "What are-" he stopped as he saw the shimmer around the robot.

"Don't worry," Preston laughed lightly. "Teddie and I cast a spell that makes Redbot look like a normal person to everyone else. We're the only ones who can see through it," he explained, and Brody relaxed, smiling.

"That's epic," he laughed, and Hayley approached.

"Redbot? Would you like to dance?" she asked him with a smile, having bonded with the robot in the forest after he'd saved her life.

"Me?" Redbot was surprised by her offer, and she nodded. "Dance? With you? Mighty megabytes, that would be such fun!" he cheered, making them laugh. "Just like the grand ball in my book. Shall we dance, my lady?" he bowed to her, and Hayley giggled, taking his hand and leading him towards the dance floor.

"Come on," Brody caught Daisy's hand, and she stiffened as he pulled her towards the dance floor.

"I told you Sky Boy, I don't dance," she shook her head, pulling away as the others joined Hayley and Redbot.

"Well, Flower Girl," Brody grinned, taking her hand again. "There's a first time for everything. Come on," Daisy groaned at his innocent smile, and let him lead her to join the others. Teddie laughed as she saw them all dancing, and continued to play, glancing to Jeremy, who grinned back at her.


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