Guys, I congratulate you! You actually managed to piss off my muse. (Now she's mad at me, too)


Kali huffed as she stalked through the streets of Briarwood with Nick at her side. They'd just been kicked out of the Rock Porium for causing a scene and were nowhere near clearing it up as they were to starting a new one.

"Why can't just you just be reasonable for once and admit that you were wrong?" Nick asked, breaking the tense silence.

Kali shot him a glare. "Wrong about what?" she snapped. "For liking someone?"

"Neither of us should be dating anyone right now," Nick argued. "We're not exactly in a stable position to have partners."

"Neither is Xander, which is what makes it work," said Kali. "We both have the same shift schedule as Rangers, and we work around the Rock Porium shifts. Chip and Vida have filled in for both of us in the last few weeks, you're the only one who has a problem with the whole thing."

Nick scoffed and shook his head. "I don't have a problem with anything," he defended. "I just don't think he's right for you."

"Oh, so you're trying to protect me?" Kali asked.

"Don't I always?"

"Where were you being protective when I was with Jason in High school?" Kali asked. "He assaulted me, twice, and I got picked up by the police for defending myself. How about Spring Break last year when I got arrested for punching Luke because he was trying to undo my bikini top? Where were you then?"

Nick folded his arms and turned to face Kali. "You agreed to start dating them," he argued.

"Just like I agreed to start dating Xander," Kali argued.

"I just think you're rushing into things."

It was Kali's turn to scoff. "I started dating Zach a week after I met him," she pointed out. "I met Leighton during Winter break two years ago, and we got together three days later. Xander had the decency to agree to wait for me."

"Wait for you?" Nick repeated. "He didn't wait very long."

Kali shook her head. "I was the one who told him I needed to make sure you were alright with everything before I went on a date with him," she said. "I've cancelled on him three times because I've been worried about what you would think. I don't know what I've done to make you hate me all of a sudden, but it has to stop!"

"I don't hate you."

"No? Well, you have a funny way of showing it," said Kali. "I thought, at least, my best friend would be happy that I met a guy that truly cares about me. A guy that is interested in me as a person, and not a bit of eye candy that he can show off."

Nick sighed. Kali had a point. All her other boyfriends had only seen her as a piece on the side; more than once she had come to him crying because she had found them cheating on her, or because they had admitted that they were only with her because she made them look good to others.

The ground rumbled and people started to run screaming as a monster burst out of the ground, directly in front of Nick and Kali.

"Toad monster?" Nick sighed.

"Like I need this right now," Kali complained.

Nick couldn't help but agree. "What do you want?" he asked.

"You'll find out soon enough," Hekatoid said, take this. He pressed a wart on his stomach and sprayed sludge at the pair.

Kali shoved Nick aside and then dove in the opposite direction as the sludge hit the ground where they had once stood, scorching the ground.

"Ready!" Nick called, snapping open his Morpher.

Kali followed his lead and punched in the first three-digit. "Legendary Source, Mystic Force!" she called out.

Galwit Mysto Neramax!

"Mystic Lion Staff!" Nick called, rushing at the toad monster first. He wielded the staff around and smashed it against the toad, knocking him back a few steps.

"Inferno!" Kali shouted, jumping over Nick and unleashing a ball of dark energy onto Hekatoid.

The toad cried out as he stumbled. "See if you can catch me!" he called, running up a set of steps.

"That won't be a problem," said Nick.

Kali nodded her agreement.

The pair had barely reached the top of the steps when Hekatoid appeared, catching them off guard. He laughed and sprayed them again.

"Look out!" Nick called, grabbing Kali around the waist and pulling her backwards. They both slipped in the sludge and rolled to the bottom of the steps, panting and covered in icky sticky sludge.

Hekatoid laughed. "My slime will give Serpentina a better chance," he announced. He raised his hammer but was knocked off course by a golden blast as Daggeron arrived with the others.

"Nick, Kali, are you all right?" Daggeron asked, turning to his students.

"We're fine," the pair answered.

Panting, Hekatoid made it back to his feet and grumbled as he saw the full team of Rangers waiting for him. "You shouldn't have called your friends," he said. "Now I have to stomp all of you!"

He expanded and then shot into the air, towering over the city.

"Let's get him, guys," said Nick, holding up his lion staff. "Code Three! Legend of the Sky, Mystic Firebird!"

"Code Four!" the others called. "Legend of the Jungle, Mystic Lion!"

"Manticore Megazord!"

"Solar Streak Megazord!"

Hekatoid held up his hammer but paused as nothing happened. He gasped and looked down. "It's time for the selection ceremony!" he said. "Lucky for you, I have to go!"

He bounced into the air and then disappeared underground.

"Well, that was a waste of time," Kali grumbled.

~X~

After the battle, the team returned to Root core with Daggeron in hopes of figuring out why Hekatoid had been in the city when the selection ceremony hadn't even taken place yet.

"We got to find out what that toad's plan is," said Xander, leaning against the round table. "Was there anything unusual about him?"

"Yeah, he slimed us with some gross toad juice," Nick grimaced.

"Urgh. Toads," Maddie grumbled. She hated toads.

Kali patted Maddie's shoulder sympathetically. "Thankfully, it didn't do anything to us," she said.

"Yeah, she's still as stubborn as ever was," Nick snapped.

"I'm not the one trying to interfere with her best friend's life?!" Kali yelled, turning quickly to face Nick.

Chip folded his arms as he looked between the pair. "There must have been a side effect to that frog juice," he said. "You guys are obviously under some sort of 'I can't stand your guts' spell."

"No, Chip, that started about two weeks ago," Kali said.

Nick looked ready to argue.

"Guys, with Udonna gone now, is not the time for fighting," said Maddie. "Like it or not, you two are going to have to work together."

"I'm pretty sure we've proven that we can work together as Rangers despite our differences, right now," said Kali. "It's just when we're off the battlefield that things tend to go wrong."

Nick scoffed and turned his back.

The crystal ball chimed and Kali turned to find a cloud of darkness billowing up in the centre. When it cleared, a snake monster stood in the middle of downtown. "My name is S-Serpentina, and I am here to destroy your world!" she hissed.

Kali groaned. "Why does it have to be snakes?" she asked.

~X~

Racing to the scene, the team found Daggeron mid-battle with the new terror. He seemed to fare well, despite Serpentina giving her all in return.

"Come on, let's ranger up," said Nick, reaching for his Morpher.

The others followed his lead.

"Magical Source, Mystic Force!"

Kali furrowed her brow as she looked from the others, down at herself, and then across at Nick. "What happened?" she asked. "Why didn't we morph?"

"Chip was right. This has something to do with that frog sliming us," said Nick.

The city rumbled as Serpentina managed to overpower Daggeron.

"We don't have time to figure out this morphin' malfunction," said Xander, taking the lead. He usually did if neither Nick or Kali were available. "We have to help him. We'll have to circle back to this issue later. Let's go!" he told the others.

They raced off, leaving Kali and Nick to watch them go.

Galwit Mysto Prifior!

Kali twined her fingers together behind her head and tilted her head back in frustration as she watched her friends take on their titan forms and attack.

"I can't believe we have to just stand here and watch," Nick complained.

"They're not at full power without us," said Kali. "They don't stand a chance. We got to do something!" she added, panic-stricken as the others were floored by Serpentina.

Instinctively, Nick reached for Kali's hand as she cupped them both over her mouth, watching in terror as Daggeron and Jenji hit the ground next.

"Hey, we still have our magic," said Nick, tugging her hands away from her face. "Let's combine our powers and distract her somehow."

"How about a spell to knock her off balance?" Kali suggested.

"Sounds good."

Kali snapped open her Morpher. "There's a spell that Claire told me about once. She complained that it took her months to master, but it works wonders in throwing someone off-balance," she explained. "There's no code to it, so it should work straight off the bat."

Nick nodded. "What is it?" he asked.

"Udfus Bethud," Kali replied. She met his gaze and nodded. "Ready?"

Nick nodded once and pointed his wand at Serpentina along with Kali. "Udfus Bethud!" they both muttered, and two strands of red and black sparks hit Serpentina, causing her to stumble backwards into a building.

"Yeah! Good job, Kali," Nick grinned.

Kali nudged him. "We still make a pretty good team," she said, returning the grin.

Nick chuckled.

The joy was short-lived, unfortunately, as Serpentina shrunk down and headed directly towards the pair.

"Kali, look out!" Xander yelled.

Kali gasped and took a step backward as Serpentina got within a foot of her and Nick. Then, the terror was blasted back as Daggeron jumped over them and unleashed Jenji from his lamp.

"Jenji Shining Attack!" Jenji yelled, slashing, clawing and punching at Serpentina.

Serpentina blocked the attacks with her shield, before grasping Jenji by the scruff. "Now it's my turn!" she hissed, tossing him aside. "Sic him!"

Jenji gasped as snakes appeared out of the ground, latching onto his forearm and digging their pointy little fangs into his skin.

"Jenji!" Daggeron yelled.

"What did you do to him?" Kali demanded.

"You'll see," said Serpentina.

Daggeron held up the lamp and called Jenji back. The cat disappeared into a fine mist and shrunk down; he later popped back up in his lamp but instantly turned to stone.

The rangers gasped.

"Soon, my s-s-snakes will bite everyone in the human world," Serpentina exclaimed, "and when my shield activates, they will all turn to stone."

"You're not going to get away with this!" Vida said.

"If you want to keep fighting, you'll have to play by my rules," said Serpentina. "Come to my s-s-serpent dimension." She disappeared, leaving the team behind.

Maddie groaned and lightly ran her fingers over Jenji's statue. "Oh, Jenji, I know what you're going through," she said.

"We have to defeat Serpentina to break the spell," said Vida. "It worked on you, Maddie."

Maddie nodded.

"But, how," said Kali, looking around. "You can't follow her into an unknown dimension while you're two rangers down."

Daggeron sighed. "We don't have a choice," he said, shaking his head. "This is the only way to stop her. Xander, Madison, Chip, and Vida, you're with me."

"Wait. What about us?" Nick asked.

"We can't leave the rest of the city unprotected," said Daggeron.

"What are we supposed to do without our ability to morph?" Kali asked. "Our magic will only go so far!"

Nick nodded in agreement.

Daggeron placed his hand on Kali's shoulder. "You'll figure it out," he said. He then turned and led the others away.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Kali scoffed, gesturing after them. "This is a big mistake!"

As the others disappeared, Kali turned on her heel and headed back through the city. She didn't know where she was heading, but she needed to calm her thoughts and racing heartbeat before she did something stupid.

~X~

Nick followed behind Kali as they walked through the park. The people there were oblivious to what had happened only a few minutes ago and were still socialising with friends and family.

After a while, Kali stopped walking and took a seat on an empty bench near the park fountain. She sighed heavily and ran a hand through her hair, twining her fingers with its thick locks and adjusting it against the afternoon heat.

Nick sat beside her, silently watching her from the corner of his eye. He figured he should say something, but lately, it seemed, that whenever they had a chance to be alone, he usually said something that set her off.

Like this morning, she had come into the Rock Porium like a raging bull and he had simply told her to calm down, and she'd gone off on one.

"I can't believe we have to stay behind!" Kali grumbled, breaking the silence.

"Yeah, I don't like it, either," said Nick. It wasn't the total truth, in all honesty, he preferred to be alone with her in the city than in some weird dimension where she'd be with Xander. He knew that he was being childish, and selfish, but right now he didn't care.

Silence fell between them again. But instead of the usual comfortable silence that they were used to, it was wrought with tension and unspoken words. After a few minutes, Kali sighed and turned in her seat to face him.

"What is it about Xander that irritates you?" Kali asked.

Nick looked shocked at her question. "I don't know what you -" he started.

"Cut the bullshit, Nick," Kali interrupted. "You've never shown an interest in the guys I date until now. What is it about Xander that annoys you? Because he's Mr Personality? What, you think he's going to be like the others? That he's only into me because it'll boost his popularity or street cred if he can prove he's got a hot girlfriend?"

Nick looked down, painfully aware of her scrutinising gaze on the side of his head. He could tell her, he could tell her everything right now. He could admit that the reason he didn't approve of her relationship with Xander was because he wanted a relationship with her, he could tell her that he had loved her for so many years, but hadn't said anything because she'd never shown an interest in him.

Her boyfriends had always been on the opposite side of the spectrum to him - popular jocks that could get scholarships to pristine colleges, like Harvard or Yale, but never the best friend or even the boy-next-door.

Always someone else and never him.

"I'm sorry if I hurt you," Kali apologised. "That was never my intention."

Nick ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "You remember that girl I dated in high school?" he asked. "Zoe Shaw?"

"You mean the manipulative little -" Kali broke off at the look he was giving her. "Sorry." She had never approved of Zoe and Nick's relationship. Zoe had been the vain cheerleader at their public high school and had admitted - after breaking up with Nick - that she only agreed to date him to make the quarterback - who was currently dating Kali - jealous.

"She thought that if you saw me with her then you'd get upset enough to dump Brad, so she could crawl back to him. At the time, I didn't know what she meant, nor did I understand why she'd think you'd be jealous of us."

Kali cocked her head to the side.

"When I see you with Xander," Nick continued, staring at the ground. "I think of her and her reasons for dating me."

"You think Xander's dating me to make you jealous?"

Nick shrugged.

"Why would he even think that?" Kali asked. "You're my best friend, Nick, you don't even like me like that." She paused, her mind working a mile a minute as she stared at Nick. She watched him swallow and glance at her from the corner of his eye. "Do you?"

Nick licked his lower lip and braced his hand against his thigh. He laughed, lightly and turned his head to the side, meeting her gaze. She looked so confused, curious, but unsure. Like she was struggling with an internal battle. "What do you remember about the fight with Oculous?" he asked.

"Not much," said Kali, shaking her head. "After that laser hit me..."

Nick watched as she trailed off, her brow furrowing in concentration as she tried to remember something that had long since happened. Why couldn't he have just said it then? Why couldn't he have just said 'I love you' before she had been taken? Maybe they wouldn't even be having this conversation if he had.

After he had rescued her and the others, he had thought he'd lost his chance. After all, she had hugged him in relief and then stepped back into Xander's arms, plus, if what Chip and Vida had been teasing was true, the pair had shared another kiss before he had found them.

But, he had a second chance now. All he had to do was buck up the courage and say it aloud. Kali, I love you. It wasn't that hard. Four simple words, that's all it was. Four words that made his heart ache every time he saw her with Xander - four words that had made his heart ache every time he saw her with anyone that wasn't him.

"Kali, there's something you should know..." Nick said, earning her attention again. He reached out and brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear, his fingers brushing against her cheek, sent a jolt of electricity throughout his body.

It was now or never.

"Iloveyou!" Nick said, the words tumbling out of his mouth in one big jumble.

Kali felt her heart skip a beat at his confession. "What?" she asked, although she was sure that she had heard him correctly.

"I love you..." Nick repeated, slower. His eyes flickered to her lips, and then back to her eyes. Was he leaning in? Was she leaning in? He couldn't be sure. Was he finally going to get his chance to kiss her? To finally feel what it felt like to kiss someone he was actually in love with?

But then, Kali pulled back and stood up, breaking the trance-like state they had both been in. She turned her back, her hand coming up to cover her mouth and she took a step away from him.

"Kali, wait," Nick called, jumping up and reaching for her. He caught her wrist and she turned to face him. Her face was flushed and she looked to be panting; her eyes searched his face for any signs of a lie, and when she didn't find it, she shook her hand free and stepped away from him again.

"I can't do this right now," said Kali, shaking her head. She was clenching and unclenching her fists, something she only did when she was anxious, angry, or nervous. He had done that to her, he had made her skittish. He had done the same thing to her that she had done to herself when she had kissed Xander.

Nick scolded himself for his stupidity. "I'm sorry," he said, hoping to offer some comfort.

"And I'm sorry to have left you two behind!" Serpentina hissed as she appeared in the middle of the park, causing its occupants to scatter in fear. "I'm going to swallow you whole, just like the others!"

"Like the others?" Nick repeated. "You mean -?"

"Yes, I ate them all, and they were no match for my power," Serpentina hissed.

Kali grit her teeth as she took a step toward Serpentina. "Give us back our friends!" she growled.

"Don't worry, you'll s-s-see them soon enough, inside my stomach, that is!"

Clenching her hand into a fist, Kali and Nick rushed Serpentina. They pushed off from the ground and aimed a well-aimed kick and punch to her shield, but their attacks barely bounced off. The pair stumbled back, but Kali regained her footing quicker and rushed forward again. She ducked under the shield and aimed a punch for Serpentina's stomach.

Serpentina hissed and grabbed Kali's wrist, twisting it and causing her to yell out.

"Let her go!" Nick shouted. He rushed forward and was knocked off his feet as Serpentina threw Kali into him. The pair groaned as they hit the ground but quickly stood to face Serpentina again.

Serpentina laughed and blasted the pair, rendering them back to the floor. "Yes!" she cheered, feeling her victory growing closer.

"Hold it right there!"

Kali blinked and looked down as she felt a moment of wooziness wash over her. A flicker of purple magic surrounded both her and Nick and then there was a sudden rushing of warmth that spread right to the tips of her fingers and toes.

"What?" Serpentina yelled, surprised.

"What was that?" Nick panted.

Kali looked down at her hands again. She could feel the warmth of her magic coursing through her veins. "I think we just got our morphin' powers back," she said.

"Itassis?" Serpentina hissed, spotting her fellow Terror nearby. "How dare you interfere in my plan?!"

"Serpentina, you've been underhanded and deceitful," Itassis said, striding out of the shadows. "You must abide by the rules of darkness."

"I haven't broken any rules-s-s," Serpentina hissed, turning her back. "Listen, you think you're so s-s-smart, but someday, you'll fall." She whipped back around and pointed an accusing finger at Itassis.

"I do not doubt that you will be defeated, Rangers," said Itassis, her gaze unwavering from Serpentina. "But now the fight will be within the laws." She disappeared, leaving Nick and Kali to share a look of surprise but determination.

Reaching for his Morpher, Nick snapped it open and Kali followed suit.

"Ready!"

"Legendary Source, Mystic Force!"

The pair morphed and Serpentina gasped as she faced them again.

"Legend Warriors, dual magic blast!" the pair commanded, holding up their staffs. A ball of sparkling red and black energy appeared before them, and they pushed it towards Serpentina.

The snake cried out as she sparked dangerously, and then exploded, spitting out the other Rangers in the process.

"You guys okay?" Kali asked, jogging over with Nick and helping the others stand.

"Yeah," Daggeron said as the others nodded.

Vida looked around and spotted the smouldering remains of Serpentina. "What happened?" she asked. "How did you get your powers back?"

Kali glanced towards Nick. "Trust me," she said, returning her attention to her friend. "I'm still trying to wrap my head around it."

"Yeah, it was beyond weird," Nick agreed. "These Terror's take the rules of darkness pretty damn seriously."

The others cocked their heads to the side in confusion.

~X~

"Hey."

Kali looked up as Nick sat beside her. She'd text him and asked him to meet her at the park. They had to talk about what he had said earlier, and she didn't want to have an audience around while she explained her reasons behind some of the decisions she had made.

At first, when Nick had confessed his feelings for her, she had been almost giddy. But then she had thought of Xander and her heart had dropped. Was that how Nick felt when he saw her with Xander? She wouldn't exactly call it a jealous feeling, more like guilt, at least on her part. She couldn't speak for Nick.

"What's up?" Nick asked. "What couldn't we talk about at home or the Rock Porium?"

Kali drew her lower lip into her mouth and ran her tongue across the seam. "Given our history, I didn't come to this decision lightly," she said, staring dead ahead. "But, I think you and I need some time apart."

"What? No, Kali."

Kali shook her head. "I don't know whether you said what you said because it's the truth, or because I'm with Xander and you don't like it," she said, tears forming in her eyes. "How am I supposed to know if you have genuine feelings for me, or if they've just formed out of jealousy?"

"I'd never do that to you," said Nick.

"I want to believe that, I do," said Kali, nodding. She took a deep breath and turned to face him. "But, the fact of the matter is, that I like Xander, a lot." She paused, steeling herself for the next part of her confession. She exhaled, sharply. "But I've loved you for years."

A look of surprise crossed Nick's face.

Kali pressed on before he had a chance to interrupt her. "I just never said anything because you had never expressed an interest in me, and I didn't want to ruin our friendship by admitting to something that wasn't returned. So I settled for being your best friend instead," she said.

Nick looked down at the ground. She loved him. She had always loved him, and he had been too blind to see it.

"Now, I'm just confused," Kali continued. "I need time to process everything, to figure out what my next step is going to be."

"What about Xander?"

"I've already spoken to him. He says he understands, but I know I'm not being fair to either him or you. So, I told him that I need to figure out my feelings," Kali took a deep shuddering breath and then forced a smile. "In the meantime, I'm going to stay at Root core. Daggeron said I can use one of the empty rooms."

"You know you don't have to move out," said Nick.

Kali nodded. "Yeah, I know, but I can't figure out my feelings if you're only a few feet away in the night," she admitted, "and it's not fair to Xander if I'm still sharing a bedroom with you. This way, I can be alone, and it's fair to both of you."

"Kali, I'm sorry," said Nick, reaching for her hand. He stopped at the last second and pulled back. "I didn't mean to hurt you or put you in this position. I just couldn't keep it inside any longer."

"I know," Kali said. She leaned forward, bracing her forearms on her thighs and rubbing the palms of her hands over her shoulders and back down. "I'm going to head back before it gets dark." She looked up at him and smiled. "Goodnight, Nick."

Nick watched as Kali stood and walked towards a nearby tree. He sighed as she disappeared, leaving him alone on the park bench as the sun started to set.