Disclaimer: Once again, I do not own the Power Rangers. I really do not like saying that.
Jason closed his locker after getting his books out for his morning classes. He tried to shake off the tiredness he was feeling as he turned from his locker. Before he could take two steps, he bumped into someone, knocking books from his hands and the other person's as well. Jason looked at the person who he had bumped into, giving her an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry," he said softly. "I wasn't watching where I was going. Are you okay?"
The young girl smiled at him, bending down with him to help pick up the books that had fallen onto the floor. "I'm fine," she said, handing him one of his books. "It wasn't all your fault. I was too busy looking at room numbers and not watching for other people." She smiled at Jason as they both stood up, holding out her hand. "I'm Christine Peterson," she said as she shook his hand. "My family just moved here from San Diego."
Jason gave her a small smile as he let go of her hand. "Nice to meet you," he said. "I'm Jason Scott. Do you need help finding anything?"
Christine gave him a grateful look. "That would be great," she said. "I didn't have time to look for all of my classrooms when I came to see the school last week. Do you know where homeroom 12 is located?"
Jason nodded. "It's my homeroom," he said. "If you want to walk with me, I'll show you where it is."
"Thank you," Christine said, falling into step beside him. "I'd appreciate that." She walked with Jason down the hall, glancing around at the mass of students heading for their homerooms. "I didn't think the school was going to be this big," she said. "I'm finding myself getting lost rather easily."
Jason glanced at her briefly as they walked towards their homeroom. "If you need any help finding places, just let me know," he said. "I'd be glad to help." He slowed down as they approached room 12. "This is it," he said.
Christine smiled at him as he stood to the side and allowed her to enter before him. She looked around nervously, seeing curious eyes focusing on her as she entered.
The homeroom teacher smiled at Christine and walked over to her, holding out his hand. "Good morning," he said. "I'm Mr. Phillips. You must be Christine. Welcome to homeroom 12."
Christine shook his hand, giving him a small smile. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Phillips," she said.
Mr. Phillips saw Jason behind Christine and his smile widened. "Jason," he said. "Nice to see you back. How are you feeling?"
"I'm okay, Mr. Phillips," Jason said. "A little stiff, but okay."
"Good," Mr. Phillips said, glancing from Jason to Christine and back again. "Please come over to my desk, both of you."
Jason and Christine followed Mr. Phillips to his desk.
Mr. Phillips picked up a note on his desk, facing the two teenagers. "It seems that Christine has the same schedule of classes as you, Jason," he said. "Mr. Jacobs left me a note asking if you would be willing to show her around the school. Her class schedule is identical to yours. She even has lunch and study hall with you." He glanced at Jason. "Would that be all right?"
Jason nodded, glancing at Christine. "I'd be glad to, Mr. Phillips," he said, giving Christine a small smile. "It's not a problem."
Mr. Phillips smiled. "Thank you, Jason," he said. "I believe the desk behind yours is empty. Please show Christine where it is and you both can have a seat. The bell should be ringing soon."
Jason nodded and looked at Christine. "We'll be in the row next to the windows," he said. "Fourth and fifth desks."
Christine nodded and followed him to their desks, sitting down behind him. She leaned forward as Jason sat down in front of her. "Thanks, Jason," she said. "I hope this won't be any trouble for you."
Jason looked at her over his shoulder. "No trouble at all," he said. "It will be pretty easy, since we have the same classes. I'm happy to do it." He turned back around as the bell rang.
Zordon looked down from his tube, watching Jason in the viewing globe. He frowned as he saw the tired slump of Jason's shoulders. Something was wrong, he could feel it. He looked away from the viewing globe, finding Alpha standing near the computers. "Alpha," he said. "Something is wrong with Jason. I want to see how he slept last night. Please bring it up on the viewing globe."
"Right away, Zordon," Alpha said. He pushed some buttons on the control panel, bringing up the images of Jason getting into bed.
Zordon watched Jason closely as he fell to sleep. He frowned as he saw the brief flash of light enter the teen's room, and then turn into a dark mist that descended onto the bed. His frown deepened as he saw Jason toss and turn, unable to wake up in the hold of the mist.
Alpha looked up at Zordon as the images disappeared from the viewing globe. "That looks like a sleeping spell of some kind, Zordon," he said. "Do you think that Zedd is doing this to Jason?"
Zordon nodded, looking at Jason's image as he walked with Christine down the hallway of the high school. "I'm almost sure of it, Alpha," he said. "I want you to keep the viewing globe focused on Jason today. Zedd is up to something and we need to be prepared to stop it."
"No problem, Zordon," Alpha said. "Is there anything else you need me to do?"
"Yes, Alpha," Zordon said. "I want you to work on creating a force field to put up around Jason's room at night. I don't know what Zedd is up to, but we are going to stop it, right now."
"Consider it done, Zordon," Alpha said, turning to the computers. "I'll have it ready by this afternoon."
Zordon nodded, keeping his attention on Jason as he entered his first class for the day. He did not know what Zedd was trying to do, but he was going to protect Jason in any way that he could.
Zedd stood on the balcony of the moon palace, watching Jason through his visor. He let out a little laugh as he saw the tired slump of Jason's shoulders. "What's the matter, red ranger," he asked gleefully. "Not sleeping well? Having some nightmares?" His body began to glow red as he watched Jason sink into his desk in his first period class. "Don't worry, Jason," he said. "The nightmares are nothing compared to what I have in store for you." He turned away from the earth, heading out of the throne room without another glance at his future victim.
Finster looked up as Zedd entered his lab. He got up from his table, holding a piece of paper in his hand as he bowed to Zedd. "I'm glad to see you, my lord," he said. "I found the perfect dimension for you to use for the red ranger." He held out the piece of paper as Zedd walked over to him.
Zedd took the paper, reading the information over before looking back to Finster. "You are sure about the coordinates," he asked.
Finster nodded. "It is in a place that Zordon will not be able to find, my lord," he said. "Furthermore, I believe Rita created it with the red ranger in mind. From what I've learned about it, it seems set up just for him."
Zedd looked at the paper once again, and then turned from the lab. "Tell Goldar that I'm going to this dimension to check it over," he said. "I'll be back in a little while."
Finster nodded and bowed as Zedd left the lab. "I will do as you ask, my lord," he said.
Kim, Tommy, Trini, Zack and Billy sat at their table in the lunchroom, waiting for Jason to join them.
Tommy sat staring at the doors to the lunchroom, wanting to see Jason. He had heard the others talking about how tired Jason looked and his concern for his friend was growing with every second as Jason did not appear. He looked at the others, frowning slightly. "He should be here by now," he said. "I wonder what's keeping him."
Jason closed his locker after putting his books in from his morning classes. He sighed lightly and put his head against the locker, closing his eyes as he fought the tiredness. Images from his nightmares flashed through his mind and he opened his eyes quickly, shaking his head to get rid of the images. He took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "Come on, Jason," he said quietly to himself. "Get it together. They were only nightmares, none of it was real. Just let them go." He shook his head again, taking another deep breath before squaring his shoulders and heading away from his locker.
Christine smiled at Jason as he walked up to her locker. "Are you sure your friends won't mind if I join you," she asked. "I don't want to intrude."
Jason gave her a small smile. "You won't be intruding," he said. "I think you'll like my friends. All of them are nice and I know they will welcome you without any hesitation. Let's go join them, I'm hungry."
Christine smiled wider. "All right," she said. "I'm ready for lunch."
Trini looked at Tommy as he looked back towards the doors to the lunchroom. "Tommy, relax," she said. "Jason is showing a new girl around the school. He'll be here in a few minutes."
Tommy let out a little sigh as he saw Jason walk into the lunchroom, walking beside a girl he did not know. "Here he comes now," he said, turning back to the others.
Jason and Christine walked over to the table, taking the two empty chairs as the others looked at them.
Jason put his hand on Christine's arm. "Christine, these are my friends," he said. "This is Billy, Zack, Trini, Kim and Tommy. This is Christine. She just moved to Angel Grove this past week."
Trini smiled warmly at Christine. "Welcome to Angel Grove," she said. "It's nice to meet you."
Christine smiled at Trini as the others said hi. "Thanks," she said. "It's nice to be here. I hope you don't mind if I join you, but I don't know anybody other than Jason."
Zack gave her a wide smile. "No problem," he said. "Any friend of Jason's is a friend of ours. Nice to meet you."
Kim sat back after giving Christine a welcoming smile. She watched the easy way that Christine and Jason talked and was surprised to feel herself growing a little jealous. Kim picked up her sandwich and began to eat, fighting the growing feeling as she sat next to Tommy.
Zedd looked around the dimension, glancing at the chains that hung on a far wall. He walked over to them, lifting one and looking at the cuffs on the ends. He let the chain go, turning to look at the other items in the dimension. He spotted an item in the corner and walked over to it. He picked the item up, turning it over in his hands, and then began to laugh as he realized why Rita had put it here. He set the item down, walking over to the portal that was waiting to take him back to the moon palace. He stopped just before the portal, looking around the dimension once more. "This will be perfect," he said. He turned back to the portal. "Now, all I need is the red ranger. Very soon, Jason, you will be mine." He walked through the portal, leaving the items in the dimension as he had found them.
Trini and Kim walked down the hallway after school, both heading for their lockers before going home.
Kim looked at Trini, biting her lip nervously. "What did you think of Christine," she asked.
Trini smiled. "I like her," she said. "She seems really nice. I'm looking forward to getting to know her better."
Kim let out a little sigh. "She is really nice, isn't she," she said. "And very pretty. I noticed a lot of guys looking at her during lunch and in Miss Appleby's class as well."
Trini looked at Kim as they arrived at their lockers. "Christine didn't seem to notice," Trini said. "I saw her looking at Jason a lot, when his attention was on something else. I think she's attracted to him."
Kim felt a twinge of jealousy at the words, but managed to hide it from Trini. She did not understand why she would be feeling this way. After all, she was very happy being with Tommy once again. She managed to give Trini a small smile. "It would be nice to see Jason with some girl who is interested in him," she said softly. "Someone who would want to be with him for who he is and not how popular he is in school."
Trini nodded her agreement as she pulled her homework assignments from her locker. "Yes it would," she said, closing her locker. She turned to face Kim as they shut their lockers. "Will I see you at the youth center later?"
Kim nodded. "Tommy said we'd catch up with you guys there," she said. "I'm going with him to the library to do some research for our history project. We shouldn't be too long."
"See you there, Kim," Trini said and headed out of the school.
"See you later, Trini," Kim said and walked down the hall to meet Tommy.
Zack closed his locker, looking up as Billy walked over to him. "Hey, Billy," Zack said. "Who's your partner for the history project?"
Billy grinned at Zack. "Trini," he said. "She's meeting me at the youth center today to go over the project with me. Who did you get?"
"Angela," Zack said, fairly beaming at Billy. "She said she'd be at the youth center today after school as well. Do you and Trini want a ride?"
"Why not," Billy said. "Trini said she'd meet me out in front of the school."
Zack turned from his locker. "Then, let's get going," he said. "We don't want to keep the ladies waiting."
Billy fell into step beside Zack, walking with him towards the entrance of the school. They met Trini outside, and then headed for Zack's car together.
Jason closed his locker after putting his books away for the day. He turned from the locker, looking up as someone walked over to him.
Steve walked over to Jason, giving him a small smile. "Hi, Jason," he said. "Mind if I walk out with you?"
Jason smiled at Steve. "Of course not," he said. "How was your day?"
Steve gave a little shrug. "Okay," he said. "How about you? You look tired, real tired."
Jason walked with Steve down the hall, sighing lightly. "I didn't sleep well last night," he said. "Other than being over tired, I'm okay."
Steve nodded, stopping as they got to the doors. "I wanted to ask you something," he said to Jason, his voice soft. "But, I didn't want to do it in front of anyone else."
Jason also stopped, facing Steve. "What is it," he asked.
"The funeral for Derek is on Saturday," Steve said. "It's private, but I talked to mom and dad and we all want you to be there. I thought since you were such a good friend of Derek's you might want to be there as well. If you don't want to come, I understand, but I could really use a friend there for support."
Jason put his hand on Steve's shoulder. "I'll be there," he said. "You just let me know what time, okay?"
Steve gave Jason a small smile. "Thanks, Jason," he said. "I don't think I could get through the day without some support."
Jason returned Steve's smile. "No problem," he said. He removed his hand and looked at his watch, grimacing slightly. "I've got to go," he said. "I promised my dad I'd be home right after school. He's still a little over protective right now."
Steve nodded. "Are you coming to the youth center later on," he asked. "A bunch of us are meeting there to hook up with our partners for the history project. Who did you get?"
Jason frowned slightly. "Laurie," he said. "I'm meeting her at the youth center later this evening."
Steve flinched. "Oh man," he said. "Why did Mr. Gonzalez partner her with you? Doesn't he know what she's been like where you are concerned?"
Jason shook his head. "Probably not," he said. "She always acts totally different around me when we're in class. This is not going to be a fun project for me. Who's your partner?"
"Some new girl," he said. "Christine Peterson I think is her name. She will be at the youth center later as well. Do you know her?"
Jason nodded. "She's in all of my classes," he said. "I think you two will get along fine. She seems really nice."
Steve nodded, turning back to the doors and heading out with Jason right beside him. "I'll see you later at the youth center," he said.
Jason said goodbye to Steve and headed for his home.
Zedd stood on the balcony once again, watching Jason through his visor. He watched as Jason walked through the park, heading for his home. "All alone, red ranger," he asked. "Well, perhaps I should send you some company." He turned from the balcony, looking at Goldar who was standing behind him. "Take some putties and head to earth," Zedd ordered. "Capture the red ranger and take him to the dimension. I'll be there waiting for you."
Goldar bowed. "At once, my lord," he said. He stood up and headed out of the throne room to gather the putties and follow his orders.
Zedd turned back to the earth, finding Jason as he approached the lake. "I'm not going to let Zordon figure out my plans, Jason," he said. "I'm going to take you now, before you have the chance to recover from the nightmares and lack of sleep. You will join me, or die."
Tommy and Kim walked through the park, following Jason without him knowing they were around.
Kim glanced up at Tommy. "Do you really think something is going to happen to him," she asked.
Before Tommy could answer, they saw Goldar and several putties appear to surround Jason. "Does that answer your question," he asked, throwing his backpack down and running towards his friend.
Kim threw her book bag down and followed right behind Tommy.
Jason looked up as Goldar and the putties appeared suddenly. He dropped his backpack, going into a defensive stance.
Goldar sneered at Jason as the putties moved to surround him. "It will go easier on you if you don't fight us, red ranger," he snarled. "We are here to take you to Lord Zedd. Just come along and you won't get hurt."
Jason shook his head. "No thanks," he said, keeping a wary eye on the putties as they began to circle him. "I'm happy right here. I think I'll stay here."
Goldar laughed. "It was not a request," he said, pointing his sword at Jason. "It was an order. Take him!"
Jason bent his knees, ducking under the swing of a putty in front of him. He came back up; his right hand clenched in a tight fist and caught the putty on the chest. The putty fell back, breaking into pieces from the hit on its Z.
Two of the putties reached out for Jason, meaning to grab his arms and pull him back towards them. Hands on their shoulders pulled them both back.
Jason spun around, his left leg held waist high. He shot his left leg out, hitting another putty on the Z on its chest and knocking it back. He heard someone else fighting the putties, but did not let it distract him as he faced two more. Jason lowered his left leg, and then jumped up, shooting his legs out in front of him. His feet connected with the Zs on the two putties in front of him, sending them flying away from him.
The putties fell to the ground, breaking apart as Jason landed back on his feet.
Tommy pulled one of the putties away from Jason, spinning it around and sending his right fist shooting out to hit it on the Z. He moved towards Jason as the putty fell to the ground, ignoring it as it broke apart.
Kim braced herself on her left leg and shot her right leg out in front of her. She gave a small smile as her foot connected with the Z on the putty in front of her and it fell back. She moved towards Jason, right beside Tommy, as the putty broke apart.
Goldar stood back, watching as Kim and Tommy moved to stand behind Jason, placing their backs against his.
Jason felt Tommy and Kim behind him as he faced another putty that charged him. He dropped into his defensive stance, blocking the punch the putty sent at him and shooting his left fist out. He gave a little smile as his fist connected with the Z on the putty, watching in satisfaction as it flew back and broke apart.
Goldar snarled in anger as Tommy and Kim got rid of the last two putties, both of them sending their fists into the Zs on their chests and sending them flying backwards. He ran at Jason, swinging his sword at the teen.
Jason heard Goldar heading for him and spun around. He staggered back as Goldar's sword slashed at him.
Tommy and Kim spun around as they heard Goldar. "Jason look out!"
Tommy's yell came too late as three putties appeared behind Jason.
Jason tried to stop his stagger, but the three putties grabbed him before he could move.
Tommy and Kim started towards Jason, but came to a stop as Goldar reached him first and placed the blade of his sword against Jason's throat.
Jason stood still as the blade pressed against his skin.
Goldar looked at Tommy and Kim over his shoulder. "Take one more step and I'll let you watch him bleed to death," he snarled. "You can't stop this, rangers. Lord Zedd wants Jason and I'm taking him to him."
Tommy glared at Goldar. "Let him go, Goldar," he said in a low, angry voice. "Zedd can't have Jason."
Goldar laughed, pressing the blade tighter against Jason's throat. "He all ready has him, Tommy," he sneered. "And you can do nothing about it." He reached out with his left hand, placing it on Jason's shoulder.
Tommy stood with his fists clenched in anger as Goldar and the putties teleported away, taking Jason with them. He turned as he felt Kim's hand on his arm. "Let's get to the command center," he said. "Zordon will know what to do."
Kim nodded and lifted her arm, wordlessly teleporting to the command center with Tommy.
A/N: I finally had the chance to work on this again. I hope you liked it. Let me know.
