Remuré Memorium

Chapter 10

Gem and Gemma were… protective of Ziggy. The younger man understood them in a way none of the others could, not even K. K felt guilty for what she'd done, she had shadows weighing on her shoulders. But Ziggy had a deep darkness all around his heart, haunting him every day, and he had to smile constantly because if he didn't he'd fall apart into too many pieces to put back together. The twins were the same. They had recognized that trait in Ziggy the first week they were here; around the same time, Ziggy had recognized it in them. Since then, they'd been protective of the young man.

Ziggy was a strong person but he was still remarkably fragile. Anyone walking around with that kind of weight on their shoulders always was. There were times when the younger man had come to them, wishing to escape from the rest of team, to not have to keep up a façade of always being okay. They helped him where they could, found ways to keep him sane when things got too rough for him to handle on his own, and they took great care to never push far enough to make him break. Ziggy never told them much but whatever was troubling was probably a lot bigger than anything they could have guessed.

And in return, Ziggy kept their secrets, hid their darkness from the rest of the team, and helped them adjust to living in the city. They had often found themselves sharing some of their darker nightmares with the young man, needing his bright smile to chase away their demons. Sometimes they even shared their lighter secrets. Ziggy was one of those types where it felt like they could tell him anything and he'd keep their confidence.

And then, he'd disappeared. It had been a hard day on the boy, harder than usual. Nearly immediately after he'd woken up, Ziggy had run back to his room, slamming the door just a bit harder than was strictly necessary. They'd known that it was bad then when Ziggy hadn't come to them. Then they'd seen Dillon and Summer coming out of the kitchen, Dillon looking up at Ziggy's door worriedly. Everything had fallen into place with that and they'd traded concerned looks. The two of them and Ziggy had roughly the same tells so it had been easy to see just how in love with Dillon Ziggy really was and just how much Ziggy was hurt that Dillon didn't even seem to notice him once Summer was in the room. When the alarms had gone off, it had been a few seconds before Ziggy had come back down, looking worn, with his shirt messy, and his eyes red-rimmed. No one but them had seemed to notice the fragility with which Ziggy was holding himself together. The twins had sworn to themselves that when they'd gotten back, they'd grab the boy and hold him close, shield him from the rest of the world till he was okay again. They hadn't gotten the chance.

For nearly a week, they'd fretted themselves sick, worried about Ziggy. They worried about his health, about if he was even alive; where he was if he was, if Dillon was with him, if he could handle being with Dillon so soon after his breakdown. They'd worried that they'd lost the one person on the team that could look past their mask and see their pain.

Then, he'd been back. He'd been swaying on his feet, horribly pale, and glazed-eyed, but he'd been back and in one piece. Dillon had been with him and for the few days during Ziggy's recovery, the twins had thought everything would be okay. They'd been wrong. Once Ziggy was back to normal, he and Dillon started going for each other's throats. The arguments they'd had were brutal, cutting, and sometimes terrifying in their ferocity. Any sense of the comradeship and friendship they'd had before was gone. It had seemed like getting them to just talk to each other like civilized people again would be impossible. Them regaining the close friendship they'd had would be unattainable.

It hadn't made sense. The two had been so close, Ziggy had loved Dillon so fiercely, that the level of hate they'd been channeling shouldn't have happened. Nevertheless, it had and even the twins couldn't get Ziggy to tell them what had happened. Something had happened while they were gone, something neither had told them about, and they all knew it. It hurt that Ziggy hadn't trusted them with that knowledge.

However, the twins had seen what the others hadn't. They'd seen, once the sun had gone down and Ziggy and Dillon had been too tired to fight, how close the two had grown during their time away. They'd seen it before even Summer had. The friendship hadn't gone away. It had just been buried. It had taken them a while to realize it, a lot longer to understand how. Even now, the twins weren't sure they understood.

In one respect though, Summer had understood what they hadn't. She had noticed long before the fighting had stopped what was going on. They hadn't. No, it hadn't been until Scott had interfered, which they had both realized was a bad idea the minute he had done it, and Ziggy had snapped that they'd noticed what was happening.

Despite all the anger, all the fights, Dillon had somehow fallen in love with Ziggy.

It had been shocking to figure out. But it had certainly explained a few things, Summer moping around and giving the boys odd looks throughout the day being only one of them. Now that the fights had stopped, reduced to only a dark silence between the two that had completely disappeared in the following, the twins were actually starting to feel happy for their friend. Ziggy had always been so dedicated to Dillon, showing a love that the twins hadn't known was possible until then. He deserved to have it returned.

And if the twins made a point that if Ziggy was ever hurt in any way, Dillon was going to wish he'd never been born, well then, they didn't think anyone would blame them too much. Gemma was even pretty sure she could convince Flynn to help.

-0-0-

Scott was concerned. Okay, he was going mad with worry. Why? He had become convinced some greater power was trying to make the lives of his team as hard and painful as possible. First, Ziggy and Dillon had disappeared, leaving them all to fuss and fret and worry about the two with no idea if they were even alive. When they'd finally come back, one of the best partnerships on the team had been ripped apart with the two's fighting; fighting the two refused to explain, even under orders to do so. And then once that had been fixed, Summer had started to sulk about the Garage, sighing periodically for no apparent reason she would explain. She wouldn't tell anyone what was wrong. He had a few guesses himself, the one he was surest about being that she and Dillon had broken up, but there wasn't anything he could really do until she talked to him. Even the little comfort he'd tried to give her lately didn't seem to be doing much good.

Despite his worry about his suddenly depressive Ranger Yellow, his worry about Dillon took priority. The virus was winning. Dillon wasn't going to be able to last much longer and they all knew it. It was a constant threat that weighed over all of them. Everyone was on edge around Dillon. Hell, Dillon himself was on edge all the time. The Black Ranger constantly broody lately. He never said more than three words to someone anymore. There were dark bruises under his eyes from a lack of sleep and a haunted look in his eyes that shouted his fear to anyone that looked. Every day that past he grew inwards more and more, muscles growing taunt and lips pressing into a thin line. A good part of him couldn't believe he hadn't tried to run away yet.

Another, smaller part only needed to look next to the older man to understand why he hadn't. Ziggy was always close by Dillon now, despite how volatile he had become and how turbulent their friendship had been. Dillon never turned his anger on to Ziggy, as if in apology for all the arguments they'd been having, but he was even curter with Ziggy than with the others. Ziggy had paled lately and rings had formed under his eyes as well and Scott knew that Ziggy was up every night with Dillon, trying to keep him here and in control and, most importantly, sane.

The two had been acting very different lately, ever since they'd gotten back from Egypt and Scott didn't get it.

"I don't get it." Scott told Flynn. The Scotsman hummed softly, dropping a banana into the blender before turning to look at Scott. The smoothie was a formality these days, just him trying to inject a sense of normalcy into their lives while everything else crashed and burned. He didn't even really taste the drink anymore, all his thoughts focused on everything that was starting to go wrong. He still did it though because he knew a few appreciated it. The others needed the normalcy, the anchor the familiar act provided, Dillon and Ziggy among them. He turned to look at his team leader. "Wha' don't ye get?"

"Them." Scott answered, waving a tired hand towards the two men sitting away from the rest of the team, not saying anything to each other, just staring blankly in front of them. "Dillon never talks to Ziggy. Ziggy never says anything back. They just sit there, day after day. They sit there and do nothing. It's not like them and I don't get it."

Flynn gave the Red Ranger an amused look. "They talk. We jus' don' hear 'um."

Scott gave him a confused look. "That makes no sense."

Flynn gave his friend a sympathetic look. "It's like with Gem and Gemma. The two don' need to talk to each other to know wha' the other's thinkin'." He explained. "Ziggy and Dillon are close. They understand each other."

"But with everything that's been happening recently between them-"

"Scott." Flynn interrupted, giving him a serious look. "Tha' is one relationship I ain't touchin'." He warned. It was true. He knew something was going on between the two. Wasn't sure what exactly but since the two weren't tearing into each other anymore Flynn knew it really wasn't any of his business. If the two wanted to talk to them, to tell them what was going on, they would. Pushing it before the two were ready would probably just make things worse. Dillon and Ziggy had to figure things out for themselves first and Flynn wasn't going to deny them their right to do so. "Besides," he told Scott with a wicked grin. "Anythin' happen to Ziggy and the twins are goin' to make Dillon pah for it."

Scott got a look on his face as if he wasn't sure what to think about that but didn't say anything, accepting the drink Flynn handed him. They were silent after that. Everyone was silent after that. They were always silent now a days. Even the twins. Even Ziggy. Nobody chose to mention how unnatural it was; how afraid everyone was.

-0-0-

Dillon hadn't slept the past three days. So of course, neither had Ziggy. Ziggy didn't mind all that much. Sleeping meant nightmares and they both had horrible ones. Nighttime wasn't easy on either of them anymore. Ziggy, with alarming frequency, could sometimes feel the virus through the link, a thick black poison slowly spreading through Dillon's mind. It hadn't noticed the bond yet but Ziggy thought it was only a matter of time before it did, before it figured out how to use it against them. It was a terrifying thought, one he had chosen not to share with Dillon. The man had enough problems.

Ziggy leaned back against the wall in Dillon's room, watching the older man. Dillon was laid out on his bed, arms tucked behind his head and staring blankly at the ceiling. He wasn't even trying to sleep. Normally, they talked about useless things, anything to take their minds off the virus, anything to get them through to the next sunrise. Dillon hadn't said anything yet though and Ziggy didn't know what to.

"Ziggy." Dillon called. He made a soft sound in the back of his throat in acknowledgement. "Tell me something."

"What?"

"Anything. Something about before. When we were kids." Dillon requested. Ziggy watched him for a minute, tilting his head to the side, watching him, weighing what he could say. A million fond memories jumped to his attention, a million things he could say. Immediately, the spell preventing him from telling Dillon about his past awakened, warning him that those were memories he couldn't tell Dillon about. It was a stupid spell and he hated it but it was the only thing allowing him to know what was safe to tell Dillon. Without it, he probably would have ruined everything.

Finally, he found one of the rare memories that he could talk about. "I was sixteen when I was forced to move into the Kane house. My parents said it would be for the best, would help me grow closer to Tenaya. I hated the idea. I wanted to stay home. I was sixteen years old and I'd only lived in my own home, with my family, for five it. I was so, ready to hate that place. Then, I got there. You, Tenaya, and your father, you were all waiting for me. I'd seen you maybe twice that but when I saw you then, that's when the bond really took shape. The minute I saw you," he trailed off and looked up through slightly misty eyes to see Dillon propped up on one arm, staring at him with gentle eyes. "The Grovers' stopped being home because I'd gotten all of you."

It was sappy really but it was true. His ancestral house had never felt like home after that. He honestly didn't think he could have ever called it home. The few times he'd been there during his life he had been, at best, a guest.

Dillon stared at him for a minute before sitting up. A slight grin passed over his face for the first time in the last week or so, making a warm feeling travel through his body. "So, I guess my old man was cool?" he asked. Ziggy tilted his head down, laughing softly. Dillon had never called Rowan Kane 'his old man' before. Ziggy couldn't imagine anyone ever calling Lord Kane, one of the most competent and dangerous magic users the Kane family had ever produced, an old man. He looked back up at Dillon with a fond smile. "Papa is a great man. And an even greater father." He told him.

Dillon stared at him for a few minutes with a raised eyebrow. "Papa?" he asked, obviously amused. Ziggy blushed faintly but kept his smile. "He insisted I call him that. He said that calling him Lord Kane was too formal since I was marrying his son." He laughed softly. "Your father was very kind to me. Especially when bond first appeared. In fact, both your parents were. I've always considered them my parents as well." He told him. Dillon smiled, joy brightening his gaze briefly at the news of his parents before he looked down.

"You know, I don't even remember their names." Dillon whispered. Ziggy opened his mouth to utter the familiar names before the spell activated again, preventing him from saying anything. Of all the things he couldn't tell Dillon, it had to be his parents' names. He sighed softly, the spell letting go when he gave up. He hated that stupid spell. It prevented him from doing anything that might reveal something to Dillon. Of course, once Dillon figured out something on his own, he could talk about it freely. But before then, he couldn't say anything. He looked away, not wanting to meet Dillon's expectant, hopeful eyes.

After a minute of thought he reached up and grasped the necklace he still wore. He tugged it out from beneath his shirt and ran his fingers carefully over the two rings that still hung there. "These were theirs." He said, meeting Dillon's eyes. "They wanted us to have them."

Dillon stood up and walked towards him for a better look at the two rings he'd barely given a second glance before. Ziggy gulped tightly and let Dillon examine them. "You can have them if you want." He whispered, trying to hide the pain in his voice. Although the key had a lot more value to him then the rings, the rings were still special to him. The key meant he was Dillon's no matter what anyone else said about it. But the rings showed that Dillon's parents had accepted him as their own. That had meant a lot to him, especially after the disaster with his own father. He didn't want to give them up. But if Dillon asked him, he would. Like the key, they didn't really belong to him. They were gifts, that was all. And if Dillon wanted them back, he didn't have much of a say in it.

Dillon's hand curled around the two keys and he shut his eyes, bracing himself to give them up. Them their familiar weight fell back against his chest, clinking softly together.

He snapped his eyes open, gazing up at Dillon in shock. "You've been taking good care of them so far. You can keep them." Dillon told him softly. Ziggy let out a shuttering breath, feeling tears gather at the corners of his eyes. Honestly, he hadn't expected to be able to keep them. He hadn't been prepared for that. "Thank you." He whispered, his voice tight. He wondered if Dillon really knew how much this meant to him.

He reached up, wrapping his arms around Dillon's neck and burying his head in his shoulder. Dillon hesitated for a moment before he wrapped his arms around his waist. "You okay?" he asked. He nodded rapidly, hiding both his smile and his tears in Dillon's shoulder. "I'm more than okay." He whispered.

Dillon pulled him back, causing his hands to fall from his neck, frowning at the tears slowly trailing down his face, looking confused by the smile. "You make no sense to Grover." He whispered. Ziggy just laughed softly, glad to see some of the darkness in Dillon's eyes was gone, and grabbed his shirt to pull him into a kiss. It was slow, sweet, and familiar. Dillon was relearning how to kiss him again, picking up what had faded after a year alone in the Wastes and Ziggy didn't really mind that it meant he was losing his advantage. He lowered his hand and tangled it with Dillon's. The moment had become easy by now, no longer felt weird and awkward like it had when Dillon was still unsure about the bond. It felt natural.

The bond sparked alive and flooded heat through his body. The kiss deepened abruptly, turning greedy and passionate. Dillon stepped closer, cupping the back of his head and deepening the kiss, tangling their tongues together. Ziggy moaned softly as the hand in his hair played with the strands, his own hand finding the end of Dillon's shirt and slipping under to brush over the older man's heated skin. Dillon growled slightly, pulling back to mouth quick, biting kisses down his neck. Occasionally, he'd pause long enough to play with the skin, biting and licking along the spots he'd chosen. Ziggy could feel bruises slowly forming. He shivered slightly in response, the hand beneath Dillon's shirt starting to claw at his back. "Dillon…" he breathed.

Dillon moved back up, biting along the edge of his jaw. After a moment, Dillon's mouth found the spot next to his ear where his jawbone ended. He dipped down, propping with his tongue at the hollow beneath his jaw before starting to bite and suck at it. A strangled cry of pleasure burst past his lips and his knees buckled, causing the full weight of his body to crash against Dillon's. That small hollow, like his hair, was one of his weak spots and Dillon had loved to play with it before Venjix.

Dillon shifted his grip from his hair to around his waist, holding him up. Ziggy rested against him bonelessly, panting softly. Dillon backed him up slowly before picking him up, resting him on top of the desk that Dillon had never used. He let his legs fall open so Dillon could step between them, returning his attention to his neck. He groaned softly and wrapped his legs around Dillon's waist, pulling himself closer to the delicious heat of Dillon's body, rubbing slowly against him. Dillon growled again, pulling back and yanking Ziggy's shirt off, throwing it on the floor. Immediately he started to trail kisses down Ziggy's chest, taking pleasure in Ziggy's breathless gasps as he did so. Ziggy moaned repeatedly, arching up against him.

God, it had been so long since Dillon had touched him like this. He needed it badly.

The bond continued to wash heat and desire through his body, making it hard for him to focus on anything other than the heat of Dillon's mouth on his bare torso. Dillon crept down, swirling his tongue slowly around one nipple, making him whine. God, that felt good. Dillon looked up at him briefly, eyes glazed with lust before returning his attention to his chest. He took in shuddering breathes, tangling on hand in Dillon's hair. He wanted to move his other hand to but that would require him to break the contact of their hands and he didn't want that. That would weaken the bond and…

Wait, the bond… There was something about the bond he needed to remember. It wanted… to be completed. Yeah, something about…

His eyes snapped open and he immediately started trying to push Dillon away from him. "No, Dillon, no. Stop it." He pleaded. Dillon groaned softly in annoyance, nuzzling against his neck. Ziggy closed his eyes as the feeling washed over him. Oh, that felt good. No! He snatched his other hand away from Dillon's, using them to push against Dillon's chest. "Dillon stop it. Please." He begged. Dillon paused, looking up at him with confused eyes, blinking slowly. "Zig?" he asked, his voice low and rough. A shiver raced down his spine but he ignored it, forcing Dillon away from him.

Dillon stumbled away until he was leaning against the wall across from Ziggy, a strange look passing over his face. He shook his head, trying to get rid of the lingering influences of the bond. "Wha…what was that?" he asked, panting heavily and looking a little freaked out. While under the bond's spell it was impossible to notice, a difference between what the bond was creating and what were your own emotions. Once the contact was lost though, the desire created by the bond felt awkward and artificial. Ziggy gulped thickly, resisting the bond-created urge to jump Dillon again. He couldn't do that. There was still too much going on between them to even think about complicating things further by having them sleep together.

He shifted awkwardly on top of the desk, feeling Dillon's gaze spend several long moments taking in the sight of his bare torso. He coughed slightly, crossing his arms over his chest and feeling a blush work its way up his neck when Dillon looked up at him. Dillon's eyes were dark and wild, almost predatory in the way Dillon was looking at him. Ziggy really wouldn't have been surprised if Dillon had thrown him back against the desk and continued to ravage him at any moment. "I told you earlier." He whispered, coughing again when he realized his own voice was a few octaves lower than it should have been. "The bond wants to be completed."

Dillon stared at him for a long moment like he was trying to remember when Ziggy had said that. "What?" he asked. Ziggy watched him for a moment, unsure how to explain. Dillon stared back. "Magic… registers us as two halves of a whole." Ziggy said. "And we're not complete because the bond's not complete. The bond doesn't care what we're going through. It just knows it's not completed and it should be so it's trying to…"

"Make us have sex." Dillon said bluntly, a little frustrated. Ziggy winced slightly and flushed at the straightforward words but nodded. "Great." Dillon drawled out sarcastically.

"Could be worse." Ziggy said, trying to lighten the air. "Could be teenagers like last time. Add hormones to the mix."

Dillon snorted, giving him a considering look. For a long moment, nobody said anything. Then Dillon walked closer to him, tilting his head up and gazing at him carefully. "You look exhausted." Dillon whispered, sounding concerned. "You should sleep."

"I don't want to leave you alone." Dillon kept staring at him for a long moment then carefully pulled him off the desk and into his arms. Ziggy leaned against him, sighing softly in contentment. Dillon pressed a soft kiss to his forehead. "You need to sleep. I have magic and mechanics to keep me awake. You don't." Dillon told him quietly. Ziggy blinked when he was easily maneuvered around and found himself bouncing back on Dillon's bed. He started to sit up. "Dillon…"

Dillon pushed him back, kissing his head again. "Sleep, Zig. Sleep." He whispered. Ziggy felt Dillon's magic wrap around him, urging him to sleep. He blinked dazedly up at the older man as he collapsed back on the bed, feeling the spell sink into every limb of his body and force him to relax. "Dil…" he trailed off and fell asleep, unable to stay awake without his own magic.

-0-0-

When Ziggy woke up, he was once again alone. He sat up slowly and looked carefully around Dillon's darkened room, finding no sign of the older man. He stood up slowly and looked around for his shirt, finding it next to the desk. He tugged it on quickly and called out for Dillon. He didn't get any answer. He sighed softly and reached out down the bond. And found nothing but a blank emptiness. His eyes widened at the darkness that was obscuring Dillon's mind. ;Dillon?; He called louder, worried now.

The alarms went off at the same moment he registered the black poison of the virus pushing at the edge of the bond and coating the whole of Dillon's mind. His breath shuddered out of him in realization. "No."