Chapter 29
Stay With Me
"Now I know how Bailey feels," Avalon murmured, resting her chin on top of her crossed her arms. She slowly moved her eyes around the cafeteria. "It seems like everyone's watching me." Though she didn't see any eyes directly coming her way, or even staring at her in general, she couldn't help the feeling that her skin was crawling and she wanted to jump out of it as soon as possible. She sat up straight and looked around at the rangers, kicking her feet back and forth, lightly scuffing the tip of her boot against the floor. "They should all know what's happened by now."
"Well, considering you're only eighteen they have to wait until you're twenty-one to specifically mention your name in the paper," Trini said, trying to reassure her. The yellow ranger gave her a tiny smile before exchanging a glance with Billy. Avalon's eyes narrowed for, they had been doing that a lot lately, and it was starting to bug her. "Otherwise, to be honest, it's not hard for anyone to connect that dots that they'd be talking about your and Bailey."
"But everyone is so nice here, Av, no one's going to say anything to your face and we all just want you to be able to make sure that you and Bailey can make it through this difficult time," Kimberly said gently. She placed her hand on Avalon's shoulder and gently squeezed it. Around her, Billy, Zack, Tommy, and Jason all nodded in agreement. "After we go to the police station after school we can go shopping or something. I mean, prom isn't that far away and we're going to need dresses if we want to beat the rush."
"It's so like you, Kim, that you'd try to comfort a friend and then turn the conversation back to your shopping needs," Zack teased her. Kimberly stuck her tongue out at him. "She's right though, it's probably better if you keep your mind off everything until it all blows over."
"Or all blows up," Avalon grumbled.
"Have you always been a pessimist?" Jason asked, lowering a carton of milk from his mouth. His eyebrows furrowed together as he studied the orange ranger. Sure things looked a little bleak at the moment, but they were all trying their hardest to cheer up their friends, though nothing seemed to be working. "You really need to look on the bright side of things. Now you and Bailey have the chance for things to get even better for you. If you just focus on little things day after day you'll get through it." He nudged Tommy on the arm, who nodded. "And we're all going to be here to help you."
Kimberly, Trini, Zack, and Billy and made sounds of agreement, nodding as well.
Avalon gave a half smile, as she sat up, starting to drum her fingers on the table in front of her. They were right. She really did need to stop dwelling over everything that had gone wrong before and just focus on getting her life better and being there for her sister and her friends. The fact that she needed to go to the police station to answer some questions, probably reveal her work within the Vipers, and get some sort of protection and things wouldn't be that bad. It would be the first step to getting things to go her way for once.
"Thanks guys," she said finally. "You all are legends." She looked down at the empty space in front of her before sitting up straight, looking over her shoulder at the line in the cafeteria. "Now that we got that out of the way, I'm starving." She got up from the table to laughter from her friends and walked over to the lunch line, sliding in right behind Bulk and Skull, who were shoving people out of their way to get to the front of the line. Avalon laughed. "I see that you guys haven't given up your day jobs," She remarked.
"Everybody here should know that Bulky should get first dibs on all the good stuff," Skull said, slapping Bulk on the shoulder for emphasis. "It's been like that since forever and these kids need to remember that!"
"That's right," Bulk agreed. He picked up a couple of hamburgers and placed them onto his plate. Skull leaned over and frowned when he saw that Bulk had taken all of the hamburgers. He elbowed Bulk in the side, who had shoved one in him mouth and was vigorously chewing. Bulk turned and looked at him, shrugging before taking another bite of the burger in his fist. "Everything around here belongs to us."
"Does that include everyone that's in it?" Avalon questioned, raising an eyebrow. As she continued to speak, she leaned over and discreetly took a hamburger from Bulk's tray and placed it on Skulls. He made a nose of happiness and picked it up, taking a bite. "Because it would make a lot of sense as to why you've staked a claim on Kimberly."
"Up until that Tommy guy got here anyway," Skull mumbled around his mouthful of food. Little bits of mushed up burger flew out of his mouth and onto his tray below.
"As charming as ever, Skull," Avalon said, patting him on the shoulder. Skull beamed at her, obviously pleased. As she did so, she reached her other arm around and grabbed onto another hamburger, taking it for her own. Once she had it, she picked up her tray and moved it around Bulk and Skull to get to the fries and peas that were being offered as well. "I haven't seen you guys around lately," she said. "If you're not in class, I don't see you at all. Not even in the lunch line."
"We've been out every day trying to figure out the identity of the power rangers!" Bulk replied with so much gusto it caused Avalon's mouth to drop open in surprise. She was even sure she drooled a little before managing to close her mouth and turn away from them. Her eyes shifted back and forth. Looking for the power rangers? How successful had they been? Were they ever around whenever she didn't know and had seen them morph? Avalon scowled hearing Bailey's voice in her head reminding her to be careful about her powers.
That know it all.
"That's right!" Bulk took her silence for admiration. "The power rangers! We figured, if we could find a way to reveal their identities, we'll be famous, world renowned, and get all of the attention that we could ever imagine!" Bulk threw out his arms, catching Skull in the side of the head.
The resulting chaos caused Bulk and Skull to somehow bend the metal contraption that the trays slid on, breaking the side of the food trays, sending food and condiments flying everywhere, onto nearby students, but mostly on Bulk and Skull, who were collapsed on the ground, staring up at the ceiling in shock s food dribbled down the sides of their faces and the fronts of their clothes. Avalon laughed loudly, clutching the sides of her tray to make sure she didn't drop her food, backing away from the food. The rest of the cafeteria laughed at the two tried to pull themselves to their feet, wiping ketchup and mustard off their faces.
Skull went as far as to pick up his hamburger and wipe it in the ketchup across Bulk's face, sopping up the excess mess before taking a large bite of his burger. He moved to do the same and Bulk grabbed his face, pushing him away.
"You know you're going to have to pay for that," The lunch lady said, leaning over the side of the food line, glaring down at Bulk and Skull. Bulk glared back at her, shaking her head.
"I can start with paying for my food," Avalon said, tossing a five dollar bill onto the table. She gently placed her tray down on a nearby table before walking over and grabbing Bulk's and Skull's arms, pulling them to their feet. "You guys may want to hose down before you go anywhere. Don't want any seagulls following ya, yeah?"
"At this point we're used to them," Skull said, taking another bite. He rubbed the hamburger on a mustard patch on his sleeve and did his famous laugh. "They even have names! Henry is the one with the blue talons!"
Avalon laughed and crossed he arms over her chest. "You guys are a trip," she said. She turned and picked up her tray, walking back over to the rangers. They were laughing just as hard as she was, still looking over at Bulk and Skull as they made their way out of the cafeteria to get cleaned up. "Have those two always been like that?"
"As long as we can remember," Kimberly said. She rolled her eyes. "They've always been tripping over things, breaking things, spilling food, being bullies."
"They don't seem to be much of bullies now," Avalon remarked. She placed her tray on the table and sat down, straddling the bench. She looked around and lowered her voice. "Considering the fact that they're trying to find the identity of the power rangers." She regarded the varying degrees of shock and concern on the other rangers' faces. "Now that I think about it, I remember them saying it sometime before, but we weren't really friends then so—"
"Don't worry about it," Billy said with a wave of his hand. "The likelihood that they'd be able to disclose our identities as the ranger has a probability that's so low there's no prospect of them being successful."
"Or as we say in Oz, and in a lot shorter form, there's Buckley's chance," Avalon said simply. She smiled as the rangers all laughed and continued to eat lunch. They changed the subject to prom, more like Kimberly and Trini high-jacked the conversation to talk about prom, and what they were going to do that night, who long they were going to stay out, what they would have for breakfast after after prom the next day, and who's house they were going to stay at to get some sleep. They were all surprised when Avalon asked as many questions as possible, having not heard of a prom or ever been to one before.
It was then that the boys decided to leave the table. "We'll see you girls later, we have some stuff that we have to do," Zack said, picking up his tray. Trini leaned back and looked up at him, noticing the frown on the lack ranger's face.
"You don't seem so happy," She remarked gently.
Tommy reached out and shook Zack's shoulder, trying to get him to smile. "We're all going to sign up for the football team. Since his dad is so adamant about him joining, we figured that we would all go together and offer him some support."
Kimberly held up a finger, pressing it to the side of her face. "Uh, weren't you guys, like, already on the team?" She asked. "Last year or so."
"All of you?" Avalon's eyebrows rose. She laughed a little, shaking her head. "Wow, the team must have been really desperate if they wanted to—Ow!" Kimberly elbowed Avalon in the side and Avalon turned and glared at her. Kimberly glared back, making a motion for her to close her mouth. "What? What'd I say?"
"You really need to think before you speak, sweetie," Kimberly said, patting her on the cheek before picking up the orange ranger's hamburger and placing it into her mouth. Avalon glared, bringing her hands up to pull her hamburger from her mouth, making a show of taking large, vicious bites. "Good luck guys, we'll be rooting for all of you."
"Thanks," Zack said. He managed a small smile, despite the fact that he still didn't really want to be on the football team. Avalon could see it in his face; he was trying his hardest to stay on his father's good side, though he was also doing his best to look on the bright side of things. "But think of it this way, all of that dancing I've been doing will make for having quick feet on the football field."
"We can come watch you tryout if you want," Trini offered. "Give you some quick support."
"That may be a good idea," Billy agreed. "It's been scientifically proven that the positive reinforcement with sports has been linked to the increased abilities that athletes have the capability of." He crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm surprised that I'm even deciding to try out again." He smiled modestly. "I got on the team, but…admittedly I never got a lot of time to play, so I figured I'd try to see how I would fare now. Especially considering the new practices that Trini's Uncle Howard managed to bestow upon me."
"I think you're going to do great, Smurf," Avalon reassured him with a shrug. "If you can get over your fear of water, you can do anything you put your mind to."
"Yeah! You're going to do great, Billy, I know it!" Kimberly bounced in her seat with excitement. "So I think we should get seats a few rows up the bleachers, that way it won't look like we're there only to see you."
"That way the pressure won't be so strong," Trini agreed. "But we'll still be there to support you all."
"Thanks girls, but I think we'll all do better without the pressure of you all watching," Jason said with a warm smile. "That way when Tommy messes up he won't have any witnesses." The white ranger gave a sarcastic laugh, shoving Jason on the shoulder. "We'll see you girls later." The boys all waved and left the cafeteria.
"So, prom!" Kimberly declared, lacing her fingers together.
"Should have known you'd try to turn the conversation back to you," Avalon teased. "I'm sure if there was a conversation that didn't have your name in it, your head would explode, Pinkerbell." She gave an over the top smile and rapidly raised and lowered her eyebrows, as if to say I win. Kimberly gave her a slow smile before turning back to Trini.
"Anyway, I was thinking that we should go out and get our dresses this weekend, that way we'll have time to get them altered if we need to and if things don't work out for the dresses we find, then we can take them back and find some new ones before all of the other girls swoop in and start to find stuff." Her eyes lit up. "My mom can come! She can always tell whenever a dress is right for me." She waved a hand. "Saves me a lot of time of indecision."
"My Mom can come too," Trini added. She tucked her hair behind her ear, resting her cheek in her hand. "It'll be the perfect time to spend together." She sat up straight and glanced over at Kimberly, the two exchanging a worried glance before turning to Avalon. "Maybe Mrs. Cranston would like to come along as well," She suggested. "It'd be a great bonding experience for all of us."
Whether she expected Avalon to turn it down, say something sarcastic, or imply something somewhat insulting to her, Trini didn't show it as Avalon thought for a long moment, alternatively tapping her fingers against her chin. Finally, she stood up and brought both legs underneath the table and shrugged. "Sounds bonzer, actually," she said. "It just depends on whether or not she can get some time off from the university." She brought her hair over her shoulder. "It's the least I can do to try and thank her for bringing us in."
"How are things over there?" Trini leaned towards her. She could feel a strange sense of anxiety come from Avalon's aura. Not the kind that she had felt around her before, when she was at the hospital. This time it was different, as if she wanted to jump out of her skin and run away as soon as possible, like she had wanted to do before. "It can't be that easy…suddenly being thrust into a new life and everything…"
"How do you think I felt with becoming a power ranger?" Avalon reminded him. "Having to suddenly be thrust with all of that responsibility while being in a gang at the same time?" She shook her head. "Sometimes I just wanted to shoot myself in the head and get it over with."
"Don't speak like that," Kimberly warned. "What would we do without you?" She started to count off on her fingers. "Things would be a lot more entertaining, we wouldn't have to worry about your bad wardrobe, I could come to school and not worry about being insulted…" Kimberly laughed as Avalon made a face, pouting. Kimberly leaned over and put her arm around Avalon's shoulders. Something she wouldn't have been able to do, ages before. "I'm kidding Av, I love having you around. I mean, if I thought we would have been friends when I first met you…especially with that tacky leather jacket you continued to wear, I wouldn't have believed it."
Avalon continued to pout towards her. It wasn't that she didn't believe what Kimberly was saying to her, she really did believe it, deep, deep down she did. In fact, it was Kimberly who had convinced her that they were really friends in the first place. When she was back in the hospital, telling her friends everything she and Bailey had been through and had revealed to Kimberly that she was the one that had broken into her house and stolen her pearl necklace. The fact that Kimberly hadn't been mad at her and continued to want to be around her showed her that they really were her friends and was going to do whatever they could to help her. It was only fair that she returned the favor whether in battle or anything else they ever needed.
Besides, just because she was working to get her way out of the gang didn't mean that she couldn't still use her connections to help them out. That wasn't so bad was it?
"But you've proven that you're a great friend to have and an even greater part of the team," Kimberly continued. "And we couldn't be happier about it." Trini nodded.
Avalon finally dropped her pout, gently shaking her head. "If you're done with the sappiness, we need to get to class." Still, she managed a smile as she picked up her tray and walked to the tray return.
And unlike some of her more recent smiles, this one stuck around for the rest of the day.
Bailey teleported to the command center, dropping her backpack to the floor. "Geez, I know Fred can talk a lot, but I don't think he took a break for five minutes," She murmured. "It's a stupid middle school science fair; I don't think it needs to have this much work done with it." She turned the corner of the Command Center and spotted Alpha. "Hey Alpha, I didn't see you there."
"Bailey, it's nice to see you," Alpha said, spreading out his arms. Bailey smiled and hooked her arm through his. "Billy's not here so I believe we're going to have to hold off on the progress we were making on the Megazord's sword."
"Excuse me, but I think I have the capability to work on it myself," Bailey said, thumping herself on the chest. "I've been around the Command Center long enough for you all to trust my abilities and I can't thank you enough for that." She reached over and patted Alpha on the top of the head. Alpha bashfully bobbed his head back and forth.
"Of course you do, Bailey," Alpha said warmly. "You're a great asset to the team, just as good as Avalon." He cleared his throat. "Now, I believe that you were talking to yourself on the way in here, about Fred?" Bailey gave him an indignant look. "I didn't know it was customary for humans to talk about other humans like this so much."
"Clearly you haven't been around Tommy and Kim a lot," Bailey joked. She reached up and scratched her forehead. "No worries. We were just working on our science fair project." She closed an eye. "In fact, I may need to borrow some stuff from the command center for it. Otherwise, he's been really…insistent about it and it's driving me crazy. All he wants to do is work on the project."
"Well, Bailey, I don't know much about humans or teenagers and the way they act with each other," Alpha said as they walked into the main area of the Command Center. The doors opened to reveal Zordon floating in his tube. "But have you thought that the reason that Fred is talking about the science fair so much is to keep your mind off of the things that's been going around your school and the city of Angel Grove?"
Bailey thought about it for a long moment. In a way, it made sense. Fred had met her at school every day she had arrived and would tell her a joke or a story each time they would head out to their lockers. While in the classes they had together and at lunch he would sit with her and every time they had study hall they worked on their plans for their project, even getting most of the technical aspects of it constructed and out of the way. Now that she thought about it, he was doing a really good job with keeping her mind off of the students that were whispering around her. She knew they were, she could see the glances and couldn't help but notice whenever someone stopped talking when she got closer.
It was already hard being the new kid, but being the new kid and being dragged into one of Angel Grove's biggest scandals was even harder. The fact that Fred was doing his best to distract her was sweet.
"Yeah, maybe," Bailey finally said. "Who knows? Anyway, I'm going to get started working on the Power Sword, to see if anything's happened with it now that Trini has gotten her powers." She dropped her backpack to the floor and waved to Zordon before walking into the back room.
"I'm sure you're going to do progress well, Bailey," Zordon said to her with a fond smile.
"Thanks, Zordon," Bailey called over her shoulder. She picked up a few reading devices before pulling on some gloves, taking the Power Cube and the Ankylosaurus Power Morpher along with her. She took them all out to the main area of the Command Center and placed them on the empty space of a counter. She then walked into another room and looked for the blueprints of the Thunder Mega Zord, in particularly the weaponry. She walked back out of the room and placed the blueprints on the counter as well.
Picking up a reading device she waved it over the Power Cube. While waiting to get the results, she glanced at the Ankylosaurus Power Morpher. The coin flashed as she continued to watch it. Bailey chewed her bottom lip, thinking about what Alpha and Zordon had said when Trini got her powers to control electricity. What was it that really made someone become a power ranger? They said there was something already in them, but was that really true or was it possible to learn how to get those attributes.
"Zordon?" Bailey turned back to the rangers' mentor. "Did you think Av would be a good ranger from the beginning?" Zordon turned to look at her curiously. "You said that the power has been residing in them. But at the beginning, it didn't seem like Av would be a good choice considering…the decisions she's made."
"Yes, well, that was a topic of debate from the very beginning," Zordon said. "Admittedly, Alpha didn't have a whole lot of trust in her, knowing that she wasn't as pure and kind hearted as the others.
"Really?" Bailey glanced at the animatronic robot. He shrugged sheepishly.
"I'm afraid so, Bailey," Alpha said, walking over to her. "I was skeptical about her abilities, but she has proven me wrong. I'm glad she did." She nodded.
"You seem to have a lot of questions about the rangers' start young one," Zordon continued. He paused for a moment. "The curiosity in you is refreshing and something that will take you far in life." Bailey beamed. "Take a look at the viewing globe and you'll see how the rangers have started out."
Bailey did as she was told, continued to alternative glance at the reading device that was in her hands. It was taking a while to give her information she needed to know. However, once and image of her sister appeared on screen of the viewing globe, she was transfixed. She recognized it as one of the few times they had completely run out of food in their apartment and was running low on money in general. One of the few times where she started to get worried, though Avalon did a good job of keeping her in the dark of their troubles.
"Bailey!" Avalon on the viewing globe called as she walked through the apartment, taking in the empty cupboards. With a loud sigh, she walked over to the pantry and looked inside as well. Nothing. Not even a little crumb. Avalon placed her hands on her hips and tilted her head back towards the ceiling, worry evident in her face. "No worries, Av, you've dealt with this before," she murmured, accent thick in her ears. Turning on her heel, she walked over to the counter and started to flip through the envelopes.
Bills. Bills. And more bills.
The rent was due too.
"Bailey!" Avalon called again.
Pushing her long, dark hair behind her shoulders she turned towards the entrance to the kitchen, listening as footsteps headed her way. Her dark brown eyes surveyed the colorless apartment. It was fit for four, but only two lived there. The walls were pretty bare apart from a few pictures that had been set up of their family. Though it resembled an apartment that was set up for a tour, it was spotless; the only thing that showed that anyone lived there.
"What's up, Av?" Bailey appeared around the corner. She pushed her glasses up her nose and looked at her sister impatiently. "I'm working on a science project."
Avalon's eyes narrowed as she gazed at her sister. "It's not another spore is it?"
"No worries, Av." Bailey waved a hand. "It won't be anything that could potentially poison or harm anyone else." Her eyes shifted. "I made sure of that this time." Avalon rolled her eyes. "What'd you call me for?"
"We don't have any food," Avalon explained, lowering her voice in seriousness. Bailey's eyes turned downcast and she lightly kicked at the ground. Avalon reached over to the leather jacket that was sitting on the back of a chair. "So I'm going to go out and-"
"I know where you're going!" Bailey snapped. Avalon lifted an eyebrow at her sister's attitude, but allowed her to continue. "Av, you're such a boofhead. These guys…they're not good for you to be hanging out with. You keep getting in trouble and-"
"-And we get food on the table, the bills paid, and we can live comfortably," Avalon reminded her. "Don't be such a yobbo. I know what I'm doing." Avalon reached out a hand and mussed her sister's hair. "Everything'll be ok, Bay, I promise." She reached out her pinkie finger and Bailey gave a small smile, hooking hers around her sister's. "Keep the door locked and don't answer if anyone comes by. I'll knock twice before using my key so you know that it's me at the door when I get back."
"Ok." Bailey nodded glumly. "See you, Av."
"Stay out of trouble," Avalon called as she walked to the front door.
"I should be telling you that," Bailey shot back, sticking her tongue out at her sister. Avalon stuck her tongue out over her shoulder before slipping out the front door. Avalon walked down a flight of stairs and went through the lobby of the apartment building. Once she walked out the front door of the apartment complex, she walked down the street and over to a group of teenagers waiting for her.
"Finally you got here, Pinkie," Chase said. He stuffed his hands into the pockets of his own leather jacket, his eyes moving over the rest of the group that was with him. With his movement, the bottom of his shirt lifted, revealing the hilt of a switch blade. "Is everyone ready?"
Avalon and the others nodded.
"Let's go."
The viewing globe then switched to show Kimberly and Trini sitting in Kimberly's room. Bailey smiled, seeing how young they looked. The fights and constant worries over Rita and Zedd had clearly aged them a bit over the couple of years they had been fighting, she could see it now. How hard was it to try and keep everything a secret? Bailey only worked from the sidelines, watching them and helping them with their weapons when they needed to, but she didn't have the brut of all of that responsibility on her shoulders.
She felt bad for them. More so than she had before. They were giving up their lives as teenagers to do something humans had never done before. Bailey smile to herself, continuing to watch on the viewing globe.
"Kim, c'mon we've got to get going!" Trini called, looking at her watch. She rested her chin in her hand, looking towards the door to a very pink bedroom. "We're meeting the guys, remember?"
"Like, I'll be out in a minute, Trini," Kimberly called back. Trini could hear the sound of make-up bottles being pushed around, caps being opened, and water running. "I just need to make sure that I got my make-up right for the rad party this weekend." A second later the door opened and Kimberly stepped out, the light pink dress she was holding against her body brushed her legs and her short brown hair swinging around her shoulders. She turned to her best friend with a smile before placing her hands by her face. "Now, which side do you like better?"
Kimberly turned this way and that as Trini studied her face. The left half of her face was more muted, going more with the natural look. A light swipe of blush was on her cheeks, along with the light pink eye shadow, tiny bit of mascara, and light colored lip gloss. The right side of her face was darker, with a look that was more for the nightlife, with dark pink, almost red eye shadow, a line of eye liner, and dark lipstick.
Trini smiled as she shook her head back and forth. "You look great either way, Kim," she reminded her.
"Thanks Trin." Kimberly beamed. She turned to the mirror that was resting over her desk and puckered her lips as she studied her reflection. She ran her fingers through her hair for a moment before shrugging and standing up. With a light giggle, she turned back to Trini. "Both look great, I might use both outfits and change in the middle of the night."
"Kim!" Trini grinned as she stood up, crossing her arms over her chest. She reached a hand down and scratched her bare stomach before looking at her watch again.
Kimberly noticed her movement. "I know, I know." She held up her hands before backing up to the bathroom. "Don't have a freak attack. I'll just wash this off and we can get going." Kimberly turned on her heel and flounced off into the bathroom.
Trini decided to use the spare time to practice her Mantis-style kung-fu. It was proving to be more difficult than she originally anticipated. But she was coming along with it well. She loved the way her body moved in the slow movements as she concentrated on her breathing and perfecting the moves. Everything was connected in that style of kung-fu; her body, her breath, the earth, the energies around her.
"Ok, I'm ready!" Kimberly walked back into the room and leaned against the doorway, and patiently watched as Trini finished up her routine. The slowness was a way to perfect the moves and even though there were times that she didn't do things perfectly, the practice always paid off. "You're starting to get really good, Trini," she congratulated her friend.
"Thanks." Trini smiled warmly as she lowered her arms. "It's a lot of hard work, but I'm really enjoying it." She put her arm around Kimberly's shoulder and the two left the latter's bedroom. Kimberly called goodbye to her mother before the two left the house.
As they walked to meet up with their friends, their conversations ranged from anything to everything. From the party that Kimberly was going to that weekend, to the family gathering that Trini was going to the next weekend. From homework to school projects. From clubs to organizations the two were a part of. From friends to boys. Though their personalities were different, Trini being more conscious about the earth as well as loyalty and Kimberly being more conscious of being social and shopping, there was no doubt that the two of them really were best friends. As they turned and walked into a nearby neighborhood, down the street, the caught a glimpse of a teenager in red and a teenager in black sparring in a driveway.
Kimberly nudged Trini's arm and pointed. Trini followed her gaze and her smile widened. Jason and Zack were always up to something energetic, whether it was playing a sport, sparing, dancing, or working out; the two never seemed to sit still.
"So who do you think is going to win this time?" Kimberly gracefully leapt up onto a bench they were passing by and held her arms out, expertly balancing, utilizing her gymnastics trained muscles to keep herself upright. When she reached the end of the make-shift balance beam, she lifted her arms and did a perfect flip forward, landing on her feet. She threw her arms up into the air, completing the move.
"Nice job, Kimberly!" Trini grinned and placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "That was really good."
"Thanks, Trini." Kimberly replied.
The two girls approached their friends as they continued to circle around each other. Jason held his hands up in the perfect tae-kwon-do style as Zack was bouncing around a lot more, practicing what he called hip hop kido. The two girls watched as Jason and Zack threw punches and kicks, acting and reacting to each other's movements. In the end, Jason managed to grab Zack's arm out of the arm and gently put his fist into Zack's side, signaling the end of the fight. Though Zack lost, the smile didn't drop from his face as the two clasped hands and came together to high-five.
"Great job this time, Zack," Jason said with a light laugh. "Good recovery, too. You're really getting the hang of this."
"What can I say, I have a good teacher," Zack replied.
"Careful," Kimberly called, teasingly. She placed her hand on her hips as she smiled at her two guy friends. "You don't want to make his head bigger than it already is." Her smile widened as Jason rolled his eyes. He wasn't offended by it, the two traded jokes like that all the time.
All of a sudden, Kimberly and Trini felt something land on their shoulders and they turned around to see Bulk and Skull, the resident bullies standing behind them. Kimberly's upper lip curled and she turned her head to face Trini, who looked just as disgusted as she did. Trini faced forward and looked at Jason and Zack, who appeared to be as irritated as the girls were.
"So what about that double date that we were planning?" Bulk asked, leering at Kimberly.
"We already told you guys, we're not interested," Trini said. She tried to push Skull's arm off of her shoulder, but he had a tight grip on her. Looking at Kimberly out of the corner of her eye, she could see that Kimberly wasn't able to get away, either.
"So, please, leave us alone," Kimberly added.
"Oh come on, we're sure that you'll have a good time once you get to know us," Bulk added. He brought his chin forward and rested it on Kimberly's shoulder. She winced and pulled her head away from him. "I mean, there's enough of me to go around if that's the problem."
"Yeah," Skull added. "There's enough of him to go around."
Zack's eyes narrowed and he took a step forward. "You heard the girls, leave them alone," he said.
"Don't worry about us, Zack, we can handle them," Trini reassured him. Jason, though, hadn't moved throughout the ordeal. He continued to move his eyes back and forth over Kimberly, Bulk, Skull, and Trini. He knew what the girls could do, they could handle themselves. But he still had the feeling of wanting to help them as much as Zack wanted to.
"Yeah, they can handle us," Bulk continued. His leer turned into a long gaze as he looked Kimberly up and down. Reaching out a hand, Bulk grabbed Kimberly's ass causing her to let out a shriek of surprise and fury. Trini must have fallen to the same fate of Skull because, while she didn't let out a cry like Kimberly did, her face clouded and at the same time, the two flipped Bulk and Skull over their shoulders and onto the ground, where they lay, dazed, staring at the sky.
Jason smiled as Zack laughed. Kimberly and Trini smirked down at the bullies. "You should've joined Jason's karate class. It would have been less humiliating," Kimberly said.
Skull moved to get to his feet, but laid back down, the dazed look still in his eyes. Kimberly and Trini stepped over Bulk and Skull and stepped up next to their friends. "Salutations comrades!" They all turned to see Billy Cranston walking over to them, waving, a cheerful smile on his face. The other teenagers smiled back at him, walking over to meet him.
"Hey Billy, how's it going?" Zack asked, slapping him on the shoulder.
Billy stumbled a little, and then fixed his glasses as they threatened to fall off his nose. "Good. I'm glad I managed to catch up to you all." His eyes shifted behind his four friends and over to Bulk and Skull. "Did I miscue something of the upmost importance?"
Kimberly, Jason, and Zack gave him blank looks.
Trini chuckled. "He asked if he missed anything important." Beside her, Billy nodded.
"Nothing too important," Kimberly said, shaking her head. "C'mon!" The group continued to walk down the street, leaving Bulk and Skull behind.
Bailey turned away from the viewing globe as she looked back at the reading device in her hands. It finally gave her what she was looking for, what she expected. The Power Cube had infinite amounts of power, much more than the Power Sword of the Thunder Mega Zord had in general. The power must be able to contain itself if it didn't overpower the Thunder Mega Zord, Bailey realized. We really need to find out the origin of this stuff so we can really have the means to defeat Rita and Zedd.
If anyone could do it, the power rangers could.
She knew that for sure.
They were able to get through it all.
Avalon walked through the living room of the Cranston house, head bent over the open backpack that draped off her arm. Everything she needed seemed to be in there. She jumped as something wet suddenly hit her on the side of the head. Reaching a hand up, Avalon turned and saw Billy standing at the sink; hands plunged into soapy water, washing dishes. He smiled at Avalon's glare.
"Your power may be that you can control water, Smurf, but don't think I won't drown you," Avalon warned, walking over to him.
"It's a better way to test out your life saving skills then," Billy replied, still holding onto that shy smile.
Avalon smiled back, shaking her head. She knew what he was referring to, but had a feeling he didn't. He probably thought his comment sounded more innocent than what he had just insinuated. Either way, the thought made her smile with amusement. She rested against the further side of the counter and rested her weight against it. "So how did the tryouts go?" She asked. "Kim, Trini, and I would have gone, but Jason made it absolutely clear that we weren't supposed to be there." She lifted her chin, giving him a knowing look. "I'm guessing he was worried about Kim going into cheerleading mode, right?"
"Affirmative," Billy replied. "We're not going to know who got on the team until the end of the week."
"So how do you think you did?"
"Passable, but we won't know until the Coach puts up the list."
Even with the positive lift in his voice, Avalon could see the doubt residing in his eyes. Reaching out, Avalon patted his hand before pushing herself away from the counter, heading towards the front door. "Where are you going?"
"Out," Avalon said, not slowing her stride. "Don't wait up." She stepped out the front door and closed it behind her a little harder than she intended. She closed her eyes, keeping her hand on the doorknob. She hadn't meant to snap at Billy, but the last thing she wanted at the moment was to have a lot of questions thrown her way. She didn't want her good mood from earlier that day to be wasted away just because her own nerves were shot.
She stated to walk down the sidewalk, her hands in the pockets of her flannel shirt, head down. If anyone was going to jump her, then would be the right time, she wasn't in the right mind. She hadn't been able to get everything she wanted to say out in the open. It wasn't strange for her; she was blunt and honest and usually said the first thing that came to mind. However, she could never talk about her feeling, she preferred to keep things to herself and ignore her emotional plight unless she couldn't hold it in any longer. She had only broken down and cried once recently, when Bailey had demanded to know why they weren't looking for their parents.
She had said that Bailey was too young to understand, maybe she was wrong. Maybe Bailey understood a lot more than Avalon believe, only because she was the older sister and wanted to take care of her. Maybe that was the problem the whole time; that she treated Bailey like her daughter rather than her sister. Acting as a parent more than a friend and confidant that every sister wanted out of her sibling.
Maybe she had been the problem all along…
"Penny for your thoughts? Though considering it's you, you might not be able to spare that much." Avalon rolled her eyes at Jason's teasing. He walked over to her, arms crossed over his chest in his familiar stance, now that Avalon noticed it. He always had a way to tease someone and still give them a disarming smile at the same time. She had seen him do it with the rangers as well as with Bulk and Skull, though the latter seemed not to get it. "What are you doing out here?"
"I was going to ask you the same thing," Avalon said, stopping in front of him.
Jason gestured over his shoulder towards the house behind him. "I was just putting out the trash and figured I'd see what you were up to." He looked around. "Are you ok?"
"You don't have to be worried about me, Jason, I can take care of myself," Avalon said to him.
"Can't help it," Jason replied. He grimaced, hearing Zack's vice in his head singing the word "protective". He knew if the black ranger had been by his side he would have been short of dancing around Jason, singing the word over and over again as Jason either tried to get him to shut up or beg for the ground to swallow him up then and there. "Were you going somewhere?"
"Why? Were you going to follow me?" Avalon started walking once more. Jason fell into step beside her, though she hadn't invited him to. She didn't mind. She was starting to get used to having someone around her all the time, being a part of the power rangers meant there was always someone to hang out with or turn to. She was starting to figure that out.
"If I have to," Jason said. And he had to. He had to make sure that none of the Vipers were waiting to jump her or drag her into something else that would make things worse around them.
The two continued to walk out of the neighborhood and into the city. Avalon took a right at the third intersection they made it to and led them towards the outskirts of the city. There was an overpass that brought tourists in and out of Angel Grove, also leading towards the baseball stadium that was a few counties over. Jason followed Avalon up to a concrete wall; he watched as she reached out a hand and ran it over the lines of black and silver that created a large shape he couldn't make out.
"It's the symbol for the Vipers," Avalon explained, turning to look at him. "I spray painted it here shortly after I got the tattoo to show my loyalty." She briefly looked over at him before backing up a few steps.
"Are you going to get a tattoo for us?" Jason pressed. He watched Avalon's expression. She appeared to think about it, her eyebrows raising as she dropped her backpack to the ground and opened it. Then a smile appeared on her face. "I was kidding."
"Don't joke about things that hold a truth in them," Avalon pointed out, flipping her hair out of her face and smiling at him. "I could take it for advice," she warned. She pulled out a spray can and looked at the label before starting to shake it, the metal ball inside making a clacking sound with her movements. "And you shouldn't insult me either."
"Insult?" Jason's eyebrows rose. "I merely told the truth."
"Whatever helps you sleep at night, Rudolph."
"Oh, so we're back to the nickname again?" He asked.
Avalon stopped shaking the spray can and started to spray the pain onto the concrete wall. "Sorry? Does it bother you?" She turned away from the wall and held her hands up. "I mean, I figured it'd be a better chance than potentially getting cooties."
Jason laughed. "Are you always this straight forward?"
"Only when I'm around someone I'm comfortable with," Avalon admitted. She then paused, looking stricken, as if she had just revealed too much. "Lucky for you I made an exception."
"Ouch. I'm feeling the love there, Av." He walked closer to Avalon and stood shoulder to shoulder with her, moving a hand up in front of her mouth as she continued to add to the drawing that was on the wall. "You're really good," he noted, voice muffled form behind his hand. "I didn't know that you were an artist."
"Not many people do," Avalon replied. She lowered her arm and grabbed another spray can, shaking this one as well. "So you're one of the lucky few that gets into the part of Avalon Lily Mitchell that no one else gets to see." She gave him a genuine smile this time. "Lucky you. Most people that get to know me still turn tail and run."
"That was before we became friends," Jason reminded her.
"True. It's funny, when I first met you guys, I thought that there was no way I could ever be friends with any of you. You were all so…together; it was obvious that you'd be there to help each other." Avalon let out a sigh. "To be honest, I was kind of jealous. At that time, I was really into the Vipers and I knew even though I had gone through the ranks to be Chase' right hand man, I knew he didn't trust me. So the trust that you all had in each other, what Bailey and I only had for each other was something I always wanted." She sucked in a breath between her teeth. "Then again, I never pegged myself to become friends with the all American boy either."
"That's all American-Boy-Next-Door, actually," Jason corrected her, causing Avalon to laugh.
"Right, the one with the girls chasing after him left and right and is still inconspicuously single." Avalon backed away from the wall and looked it over for a few long moments. She had connected a bunch of, what looked like random shapes to Jason, to the letter 'V'. Backing up a few paces he could finally make out the shapes were actually letters and they were forming the word 'Valor'. The same word that she had told him that her tattoo stood for. All of the designs around it created a mural where you couldn't look at one part without your eyes being drawn to another piece. As Avalon walked over to the corner and started to spray paint her initials, Jason realized he had seen the same thing around the city.
The news had been up in arms about the vandalism that was popping up everywhere; he didn't know that someone he associated with had been doing it. It must have been an outlet for her, he realized. To be able to express everything in her art work, for a way to be able to express the things she bottled up publicly without having to actually say anything.
Avalon backed up so that she was standing shoulder to shoulder with him once more. Jason reached down and grabbed onto her wrist, right above her hand, to get her attention. She looked at him out of the corner of her eye, her face softer than it had been since he first met her. He could see it in her eyes, then, that she was tired and scared and anxious. No one knew what was going to happen in the future and the thought alone was obviously plaguing her more than she wanted to admit.
"I know I've said this before, but something you have to know is that, being a ranger, you're never really as alone as you think you are," Jason said under his breath. Avalon turned to look at him, her dark eyes boring straight into his. "There's always someone that'll be there to help you out whenever you need it, whether in battle or not. I know you're scared about everything that could potentially happen when you least expect it. Me and the others…we want to be able to help you, but you need to open up and let us in sometimes. I promise that we're not going to let all of this weigh down on you and make you feel like there's no other option in ways to continue."
Avalon snorted. "Anything else? Or is it something that's just trying to make yourself feel better? Am I some other person that you want to save? Is it your duties as a power ranger to try and help me too?" She lowered her gaze and was silent for a long moment.
Jason waited for her response.
"Thanks, Jase," she said honestly, the sudden hard edge to her voice gone. "It means a lot. Really. I know that…I always jump to focus on finding the bad things in situations, but I'm used to it. I'm used to finding the bad things in everything, but I'm trying." She turned her head, brushing her cheek with her shoulder.
"Are you ready to go to the police?" Jason asked.
Avalon took a deep breath, placing her hands on her hips. The movement pulled Jason's hand off her wrist. "With my friends by my side…try and stop me."
A/N: Whew, long this chapter took so long for me to put up. I have a lot of things I need to mention or tie up before the story ends (eleven chapters left, whoo! The story's winding down, but it's not the last of Avalon's and Bailey's story) so I was trying my best to make sure I had things as planned out as well as I'd like, though there are a few things I've continued to change my mind about.
For those of you that hadn't seen it, the part with Bailey, it had been in Giving Up The Game. Like I said before, I was going to incorporate parts of it into this story, so I hope those that hadn't seen it liked it and those that had seen it before think it was incorporated well into the story.
Anyone that can correctly guess the two former chapters of this story I referenced in this one will be a small character in my next story, as in they'll appear in a couple of chapters. ;)
Thanks to SonofWhitebeard, TerraHeart, ZoeyBoey224, Guest, and brankel1 for reviewing the last chapter.
Oh and Happy (early) Valentine's Day!
~Avalon
