And here we are with the next chapter of this story. I don't quite remember all what happens in this chapter, so I expect we will all be surprised with what changes I make as I go along. I also see that there are some reviews for this chapter so I will get on with the magic and then the quote so we can get on with the chapter.
Green-Extreme-Ninjetti13: Hello lovely. Thank you so much for sending in your OC, but I can't put everything you sent me into the character. I will put as much as I can from the bio into him, but I can't promise all of it will fit. As for where I will put him in, I think I will do a cameo where the rangers meet him at some point.
Vaelaa: Hello lovely. Thank you so much for the feedback. I appreciate how you are trying to help me better shape my story. I look forward to hearing more from you in the future.
On with the quote.
"The best way to find out if you can trust somebody is to trust them."
-Ernest Hemmingway
Everything seems to be in order so I will end the author's note here and we can get on with the story.
ooo0 Ninja of the Stars 0ooo
Some time later, Belle was stirring the last of the Spaghetti alla Carbonara she was making and pulled out the garlic bread she had baked in the oven. As if entranced by the smell of food, Cam headed over.
"That smells good," Cam commented when he walked into the kitchen.
"Thank you Ron."
Without Belle having to say a thing, Cam went about gathering plates for dinner then filled two glasses full of water. Once Belle had dished up dinner, they both sat down and happily dug in.
"I love your cooking," Cam sighed after taking a bite of the pasta. Belle let out a little laugh at his words.
"How did you eat before I came here?"
"Sandwiches, rice, fish."
"Nothing fancy?"
"No, I was only worried about something that I could make quickly and eat."
"Well, I'm here now and you're getting some good food," Belle pointed out.
"And I'm grateful for that," Cam told her honestly.
They both shared a smile at Cam's words before they went back to eating. It didn't take long for the two to finish their meal and Cam still insisted on doing the dishes.
"Thank you Ron," Belle smiled up at him before she pressed a kiss to his cheek.
A smile reflexively sprouted on his lips at the action while a warmth settled in his chest. Belle then slipped into her room to change into a pair of pajamas and bring out the movie she was going to watch with Cam. By the time she had everything set up, Cam brought in a bowl of popcorn and two cans of soda for the both of them.
"What movie are we watching?"
"School of Rock," Belle answered. "Have you seen it?"
"No, but it looks good from the title screen."
Belle waited until Cam was settled down beside her to lean into his side the press play on the movie. Cam took the opportunity to wrap an arm around her shoulders and he fell into a state of calm with having Belle so close. Throughout the movie, they both laughed at the comical situations the characters found themselves in and Belle sang along to all the songs that played. All the while Cam couldn't help but feel lucky to have Belle in his life. Before she came, he was just going through the motions of the day instead of actually living his life. Now he was looking forward to each day to see what Belle would do next.
Before he knew it, the movie was over and Cam was hoping that Belle had another movie she wanted to watch.
"Are you going on a ride tonight?" Cam found himself asking after the credits had ended.
"Yeah, though it might be a short one tonight."
"I'll be waiting for you in the Command Center when you get back," Cam promised her while she rose to her feet.
"You don't have to do that," Belle told him that only seemed to go in one ear and out the other. Guess there's no arguing with him, Belle sighed to herself.
"Then I'll see you later."
All Belle needed to do was put on some shoes, grab her miniaturized broom, then headed out to meet Hunter at their designated meeting place.
"Hey Lil' Firecracker," Hunter beamed when he saw her.
"Hey CB," she returned, sitting down on the blanket Hunter had put down for them.
"I realized something earlier."
"What was it?" Belle asked, a little amused at the way he worded it.
"I hardly know anything about you."
"I don't know much about you either," Belle pointed out.
"My point was that I want to know more about you," he sighed without letting the grumble he so wanted to give surface.
"Alright. How about we play 20 questions?"
"Fine, but I go first. How old are you?"
"Fifteen going on sixteen. What about your birthday? You look like a summer baby to me."
"July 23rd. What about yours?"
"October 31st. Favorite childhood memory?"
He looked ready to clam up at Belle's question, but he swallowed his hesitance and answered with a small smile.
"My favorite childhood memory is when my parents and older brother camping in the summer," he began wistfully.
"We went camping for a month every summer. The first part of our trip was learning about the wilderness, but the last part was when we would have fun. We went to fairs and carnivals. My brother and I ate so much food that almost made us hurl off of some roller coasters we went on."
Belle couldn't help the little smile on her lips when she imagined a young Hunter trying hard not to throw up after getting off one of said roller coasters. And while Hunter went on explaining about his summer experiences, Belle couldn't help but think that a Hunter who was open and talking so animatedly was really cute. After a few minutes of Hunter going on, he notices how Belle was just sitting next to him with a smile on her face. Shit, he thought when he realized that he was willingly giving so much private information about himself so easily. However, the slight panic about opening up went away with Belle's next words.
"Your parents sound like they were great people," Belle commented.
Hunter's face softened at her words and he could feel his heart making a bigger place for her.
"What about you? What's your favorite childhood memory?"
"Well, my favorite memory is of my mom, my Aunt Udonna, and my cousin Clare. We all live by the forest in Briarwood so I know about a lot of herbs and wildlife. Every weekend, at least one day was dedicated to Clare and I learning how to make medicine from the herbs we gathered from the forest from my mom and Aunt Udonna. Whenever we would successfully make a paste or elixir, they would wrap us up in big hugs and bake us cookies. Although Clare has always had some trouble getting a recipe right, we were always there to encourage her and guide her along."
"What about your dad?" Hunter asked softly when he didn't hear anything about him.
"My mother and Aunt believe him to be dead," Belle admitted with a sad smile.
"There was a war when I was a baby and that caused us to be split up. They have not seen his dead body, but they argue that if he was alive, he would have sent word back to us."
"So you grew up without a father?"
"Yes, but there's nothing that can be done about it."
With that said, Hunter reached an arm around Belle's shoulders and pulled her into his side. Belle knew that Hunter may not have vocalized his support, but he was trying to give her some comfort. Rather than say anything about it, Belle settled into Hunter's side
"What's your favorite type of music?" Belle asked after a few moments of silence.
"Rap, Rock, and Alternative," he said while her posture relaxed around her.
"I like most anything," Belle admitted. "I'd have to listen to the song before I can say I like or dislike it."
"What about movies?" Hunter ventured next.
"Romance, Comedy, Action, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, History, Documentaries...As long as it has a good plot, I'll watch it. Well, even if it doesn't have a plot I may still watch it. There have been a few bad movies that I have as guilty pleasures."
After a brief pause, Belle set on a different path of questions.
"What animal would you be?"
"What?"
"What animal would you be and why?"
"Uh," he trailed off for a minute while he tried to wrap his head around Belle's weird question.
"I guess I'd be a wolf."
"I can see that," Belle mused.
"Alright," Hunter smirked as he started to feel a bit playful. "What would your animal be then?"
"A bear."
"A bear?"
"Yeah. I am usually kind and friendly but when my friends or family are threatened, I become a force to nature to protect them."
"That's my Lil' Firecracker," Hunter smirked.
Belle rolled her eyes at his comment yet she couldn't stop a smile from breaking out on her lips. Hunter himself couldn't help but give her one of his arrogant smirks that had her shove him to the side.
"We should be getting back to our houses," Belle suggested when she saw how late it was getting.
Hunter could feel his heart sink slightly at how she was cutting their time to an end, but he tried hard to mask it.
"We're gonna need sleep for tomorrow?"
Hunter's face subtly morphed into one of anticipation rather than disappointment.
"Then I'll see you tomorrow at eleven," Hunter smiled down at her after standing up from his seat.
"Eleven at Storm Chargers," Belle promised.
While the two stood facing each other, they both felt the urge to kiss each other buzz between them. Hunter ignored it in favor of honoring his promise while Belle was debating if she wanted to. In the end, Belle stood up on the tips of her toes to peck a kiss to Hunter's cheek. Hunter gave a smile down at her before he headed off towards his home. Belle watched him walk until he was out of view and then made her way back towards the way she came so that she could tree travel back to Ninja Ops. As soon as she walked down the stairs to get to the command center, she saw Cam in his pajamas without his glasses.
"Do you normally stay up this late, or does seeing me come home safe make you feel better?" Belle questioned when she reached the bottom of the stairs.
"A little bit of both," he admitted with a smile.
Belle rolled her eyes at his answer but came forward to place a kiss on his cheek.
"Thank you Ron. Goodnight."
"Night."
Belle then retreated into her room where she turned in for the night.
The next morning passed by with Belle going out for her morning exercise then showering and dressing in a white dancing outfit. White short shorts donned her legs with white gold heels on her feet, a white sports bra under a white gold shirt that hung off one shoulder, and as a final touch Belle put her up into a high ponytail. Her phone, wallet, and other things she would need were put into a small white backpack before she ventured out to the kitchen to make breakfast. This morning Belle decided to make waffles, sausage, scrambled eggs, and toast. Coffee was prepared with Cam's prefered mixture that Belle handed him when he shuffled out of his room while Belle settled for some milk and orange juice.
"What are you dressed up for?" Cam asked when he saw Belle's outfit.
"I'm taking a tango/salsa class with a friend," Belle answered easily.
"I figured I should keep up on my dancing seeing as though I want to be a professional dancer."
"What do you want to do with that?" Cam questioned, genuinely curious about her future plans.
"I'm thinking of working with musicals and movies," Belle mused. "I've always been drawn to working on a stage."
"I hope you have fun," Cam offered with a smile. "Just make sure you're back in time for training."
"Don't worry Cam. I won't be late unless I run into some trouble with some of Lothor's goons."
Cam rolled his eyes at her words while he gathered the dirty dishes.
"Go have fun. I've got the dishes."
"You're so sweet Ron," Belle smiled with a kiss to his cheek.
With that Belle disappeared in a shower of gold and silver sparkles that took her to a little alleyway right next to Storm Chargers. She quickly blended into the flow of people then slipped into Storm Chargers where Dustin was working.
"Hey Shorty," he greeted her with his signature large grin.
"Hey Géant," Belle returned with a shake of her head. "What time do you have on your clock?"
"Ten fifty-five," he said after glancing at his watch. "Are you meeting up with someone?"
"Yeah, I'm-,"
"Hey Lil' Firecracker," Hunter interrupted as he made his way over to the petite galaxy haired girl.
"Hey CB," Belle grinned despite herself.
Rather than kiss the top of her head like he wanted, Hunter opted to slide an arm around Belle's waist.
"You ready to go?"
"Yeah. I'll see you later Géant."
Dustin opened his mouth to protest but the two were already out the door.
"Shane is going to kill me," Dustin groaned to himself. "He's gonna kill Shorty and then he's gonna kill me.
Hunter and Belle were quick to duck into a little diner and order some lunch. They both chose a booth to sit in so that the both of them could face each other as they ate. Belle got a mushroom and swiss burger, french fries, and a vanilla milkshake while Hunter ordered a deluxe cheeseburger, french fries, and a soda.
"I have never seen a girl eat so much," Hunter commented when he saw how Belle was easily putting away her meal.
"You have something to say about it?" Belle challenged with a raised eyebrow.
"No," Hunter answered with a smirk. "I'm kind of glad you're not holding back. I want you to be comfortable with me."
"Dork," Belle snorted with a flick to his forehead that had Hunter grinning.
Hunter couldn't believe his luck at finding someone like Belle. He wouldn't even mind waiting two years it would take for her to turn eighteen. She made everything that was going on with his life right now fade away until it was just him and her. Given the hectic lifestyle that he had, it was a welcomed feeling. The rest of their lunch passed by with Belle telling Hunter about how she wanted to be a professional dancer after she graduated from high school. Once he had her talking about her dream, he could hardly find a reason to stop her. He loved the way she lit up while talking animatedly, her chocolate brown eyes sparkling like stars.
Before he knew it, it was time to leave the diner and head over to the dance studio.
"Hello," a tall man with shoulder length inky black hair and dark eyes greeted the two upon entering the studio.
Belle's breath almost left her at the sight of the beautiful man in front of her. The main feature that Belle ended up fixated on was the man's long, gorgeous black hair.
"Hello," Belle echoed.
Hunter gave her a disbelieving look at the way she greeted the man. What the hell is wrong with her?
"I'm Valentino, the owner of this dance studio. Are the both of you here for the salsa/tango class?"
"Yes," Hunter answered.
"I look forward to the session then," Valentino smiled before leaving Belle and Hunter by themselves.
Rather than confront Belle like he wanted to about how she had reacted to the man, Hunter held his words back and left it alone. Belle hadn't even agreed to see where their attraction towards one another would lead them so why would he say something. Though I wish she would, he thought to himself. He didn't have very long to think it over because Belle was ushering him to the front of the studio after dropping her bag off to the side. Besides the two of them, there were eight more people who were lining up towards the front. Off to the side, Belle noticed Valentino talking in rapid Spanish into his phone that sounded like he was having an argument with the person on the other end only for the call to end with a snap of his phone and a sigh. All of the students were trying not to stare at him as he moved from the side of the room to the front.
"I'm sorry to ask this of you," Valentino began while looking over his class.
"But have any of you taken a salsa or tango class before?"
"I have," Belle volunteered at once that had Hunter raising an eyebrow.
"How many have you taken?" Valentino smiled.
"I can't remember how many, but I've been taking lessons since I was three."
"Excellent," he beamed. "Will you be able to keep up with the routine or do you want to go through it a few times first?"
"I'll take a glance at it," Belle said since she hadn't a clue what routine the man was talking about.
Valentino led Belle over to the side where he gave her sketches of the routine that Belle looked over quickly before shutting the binder and nodding to let him know she had it. He directed her towards the front of the room while he walked over to start the music. Belle let the music fill her so that she could get a feel for it. When she had the feel of the music, she strutted from the left side of the room while Valentino was jumping and spinning over towards the middle of the room. When they met in the middle of the room they stopped on a dime with their chests puffed out. Belle took control of the dance and stalked forward that had Valentino backing up until she spun back into his chest. Everyone could feel the heated atmosphere that surrounded the two and Hunter couldn't help but feel jealous over it. The reason he had enrolled the both of them in this class was so that the both of them could get closer like that instead of Belle and Valentino. One of Belle's arms came back around her head and Valentino's shoulders with his hand trailing over the inside of her bicep. Hands were then held while one of Valentino's were placed on the spot between Belle's hip and lower stomach. The two then moved in sync so that they glided against the floor. Valentino's face was almost nestled comfortably into the crook of Belle's neck so that two could face the other and for her to show off some footwork then for one of her legs to come back and wrap around Valentino's waist. Valentino then leaned back with his hand on her thigh only to spin her again that ended with Belle in a dip. The two then split to do a mirrored dance that had them getting closer with each other more until they came back together then apart again only to her leg around his waist. His hand held under her knee as she spun her around then dipped her again. That was the last of the song so Valentino held Belle for a few more minutes then let her leg slowly move back down to the ground.
"Gracias," Valentino grinned down at her, starting slightly after Hunter cleared his throat.
"That is one of the basic tangoes that you will come across. For this class, I will be helping you to come up with routines to songs of your choosing."
At that announcement, Belle's mind began to race with song ideas that could work for her dynamic with Hunter. Hmm, she thought to herself. We'll need something passionate and full of tension. Maybe "Así se baila el tango" by Bailongo! Feat. Veronica Verdier would be a good choice for us.
"Now I don't expect you to think of a song by today," Valentino began while he walked around the room.
"But I would like for you to have it by next Tuesday. Please, use this time to talk with your partners."
Belle hastened to stand beside Hunter and look up at him with a fire in her eyes.
"I think I have our song," Belle told him with a wide smile. "But I want you to listen to it before we actually start coming up with a routine."
"You have a song already?" Hunter asked in disbelief.
"You forget that I'm a dancer," Belle sassed with a poke to his chest. "That and I like listening to instrumental music and I just happened to listen to it this morning."
Hunter smirked at her answer.
"So I take it that you have a copy of the song?"
"Yeah. It should still be in my bag."
Hunter got no warning when Belle pulled him over to a secluded side of the dance studio.
"You know, my arm is gonna be out of socket before the day is over," Hunter commented when Belle finally let go of his arm.
"Are you saying that you can't take a girl's strength," Belle teased.
"You wish."
They both settled down on the floor while Belle put the desired CD in her portable CD player then put in the headphone splitter so that she could offer a pair to Hunter while she placed a set over her own ears. Hunter wanted to ask about how prepared Belle was for this class when the beginning guitar came over the audio. While Hunter was taking in the music, Belle pulled out a sketchbook from her bag. When the music stopped, Belle stopped the player and turned to Hunter.
"So, what do you think?"
"Hmm, I think I like it," Hunter thought out loud. "But how are we going to be able to come up with a routine?"
"You leave that to me," Belle assured him while her brain was working overtime. "But before I can do that, how much can you lift?"
"What?" Hunter questioned in surprise at her question. "Why are you asking"
"I'm thinking about putting in some lifts in the routine with maybe twirling me around your shoulders."
"What the hell? You're really thinking about doing that?"
All Belle did was nod.
"Well, that doesn't seem like a problem. You're not that heavy."
"You're such a charmer CB," Belle chuckled before turning serious. "The most difficult part of the lifts will be trusting each other."
While Hunter did have a hard time trusting people, he found himself wanting to try trusting her when he saw the way she was looking at him. As if sensing his hesitance, Belle gave him a smile.
"It's alright Hunter. We have time to work on it. No pressure."
All of the uneasiness in Hunter's face melted away at Belle's words and his heart softened at her nurturing nature.
"Do you-," Hunter attempted to say but was cut off by an explosion that shook the whole building.
Belle's hands flew up to Hunter's chest to steady herself while one of Hunter's arms wrapped around Belle's waist and the other pressed against the wall to brace the both of them.
"What the hell was that?" Belle asked even though she had a pretty good idea what it was.
To disguise her communicator's beep, Belle kept the sound going and fished out her phone.
"Hey Cam," she answered, using her magic so that Hunter couldn't hear Cam.
"We have a monster by Storm Chargers. Where are you?"
"At the dance studio."
"Can you get away?"
"I don't know. I can try but I can't promise anything."
"Keep me posted then."
"Who was that?" Hunter inquired after Belle "hung up".
"One of my friends Cam. There's a monster out there and he wanted to know where I was."
"Did he want you to meet up with him?"
"Yeah, but I don't know if I can."
"It would be better for us to stay here," Hunter interjected.
"But I need to find my friends," Belle argued as she tried to come up with a plan.
If she was able to get outside, she could make a copy of herself and go help the others while she stayed with Hunter thus keeping her identity a secret.
"Anna, you should be worrying about yourself," Hunter pointed out.
"I'm going out there with or without you," Belle insisted with a determined look in her brown eyes.
"Anna" Hunter groaned in frustration. "I just wanna keep you safe."
"I would do the same for you," she pointed out.
Hunter let out a deep breath at her words and he had to resist the urge to shake Belle by her shoulders.
"Alright," Hunter relented. "I'll take you to your friends, but you have to listen to everything I say when I say it."
"I understand."
Belle dumped everything back in her backpack then stood up and took one of Hunter's hands in hers. He raised an eyebrow at her as if to ask why.
"It's so we don't get separated," Belle supplied.
Hunter said nothing else as he led her outside. Thankfully they didn't run into the monster yet they ran into a few Kelzaks. They both fought back to back, with Belle dampening her skills so that Hunter wouldn't think that she had martial arts training to ranger level. During this little interaction, Belle managed to sneak a copy of herself off to meet with the other rangers.
"Anna!" Dustin shouted in joy when he saw her run up in her ranger uniform on the other side of town.
"You guys are so lucky I can use magic," she grumbled as she made her fans appear.
"Why's that?" Shane asked while dodging another attack.
"I'll tell you later. Ready the formation from practice."
Everyone drew their specialized weapons then fell into the formation with Dustin in the front, Belle and Shane in the center, and Tori bringing up the rear. On the other side of the city, Hunter was guiding Belle through the streets all the while fighting off the Kelzaks.
"I don't see them anywhere," Belle fretted, her chocolate brown eyes wide in panic to keep up the act.
"We'll find the Lil' Firecracker," Hunter promised her.
Her grip tightened on Hunter's hand which made one of his thumbs absentmindedly rub against the back of her hand. After a few more minutes of searching, Hunter stopped in an area that didn't have any people so that he could strategize where to go next.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" a monster who looked like a Japanese oni in traditional dressed down kimono said.
Cursing under his breath, Hunter moved Belle behind him to protect her. What am I going to do, he hissed in his mind. To take him on I'll need to morph, but I can't do that in front of Anna. If I did, I would have to kill her to keep my secret.
"A couple going for a walk? How romantic," the monster sneered. "I think I should break the two of you up starting with the blond."
At those words, Belle's protective instincts reared its head that had her stepping out in front of Hunter. Fuck, she thought to herself as nerves settled inside her. I can't take him on without rangering up but my body moved before I had time to think.
"Annabelle, what are you doing?!" Hunter demanded through clenched teeth.
I don't fucking know, Belle wanted to shout back at him although her body did not move from standing in front of him.
"Protecting you," Belle managed to say before she launched herself at the enemy.
Rather than rely on her fighting style, Belle threw different moves left in right that would confuse anyone who was trying to analyze her moves. With a shout, Belle ran forward and launched a kick at the monster. It easily caught her foot but Belle's other leg was quick to snap from the other side and clip the monster on the jaw.
"Ah!" the monster cried out in pain as he all but threw her away from him. Belle stumbled back from the throw but she was quick to find her footing.
"You little bitch," the monster growled. "You're not gonna be so tough when I kill you."
Belle could do nothing but jump to the side to avoid the blast that was aimed at her and roll to a crouch a few feet away. At first Hunter wasn't all that concerned with the safety of Belle and was happy to watch her get destroyed by the monster, but it all changed when the monster managed to get his hand around Belle's throat.
"Let go of me," Belle choked out from around his hold, her hands scratching to try to pry the hand off her.
"You rat bastard."
"You have such fire for someone about to die," the monster commented while squeezing her delicate neck.
Belle attempted to try to kick the monster but all of her thrashing only served to choke her quicker. Belle let out a gasp at a last ditch attempt to get air into her lungs as her vision started to blackout and her lungs started to burn. While she tried to fight, her hazy eyes met the ash blue of Hunter who stayed where he was.
"Get...out...of here," she rasped out to Hunter, her strength rapidly leaving her body due to lack of air. At seeing the way Belle was slowly heading towards death, something snapped in Hunter.
"Put her down," he demanded in a cold voice that had Belle's eyes trying to focus on Hunter despite her dizziness.
"And why should I?" the monster challenged while his grip on Belle's throat eased up a little.
Belle managed to take in small breaths that had her vision steadying so that she could see the morpher on Hunter's wrist.
"THUNDER STROM!
RANGER FORM!"
Belle's eyes were as wide as could be when she saw Hunter be replaced with a crimson ranger.
"Says I," the newly altered voice of Hunter spoke. "She is under my protection."
"You think that just because Lord Lothor favors you, you can do whatever you please?"
"Of course," Hunter smirked under his helmet before he streaked forward with a staff that crackled with lightning. The monster was only able to drop Belle to the ground and scream before he evaporated into dust. Now that the threat was gone, Belle took this time to catch her breath and gently rub her tender neck.
Out of the corner of her eye, Belle saw Hunter's crimson boots stop just inches from her crouched form and she tried to keep a strong front even though she could feel dread settle in her.
"Of course not CB," Belle let out in a hoarse voice. "I was willing to fight and give my life for you. Nothing has changed, though you could have jumped in a little sooner."
Hunter shook his head while he smirked under his helmet. He hadn't expected any less from his Lil' Firecracker.
"I'll explain tonight at the usual place," he promised her before he ninja streaked away. However, unbeknown to Belle, Hunter had only relocated to the roof of a nearby building. It wasn't long before the other rangers plus the Belle copy emerged in full ranger costume. Back at the other battlefield, Belle had managed to explain to the others what had happened so they didn't break character when they came to kneel in front of her.
"Are you alright Miss?" Shane asked her, placing a hand on her shoulder to "comfort" her.
"Have you seen my friend?" Belle rushed out in her injured voice, her eyes taking on a panicked look while tears welled up in the corner of her eyes.
For good measure, she fisted handfulls of Shane's uniform in attempt to bring him closer. Hunter couldn't help but feel touched at how Belle was acting to keep his identity secret.
"Calm down Miss," Shane attempted to soothe her as he placed his hands over hers that held his shirt.
"What's his name?"
"Hunter. We were taking a dance class together, but it was interrupted by the monster."
"I'm sure your friend is safe," Tori assured her only to be interrupted by the destroyed monster coming back as a large version of itself.
"We've got to go," Dustin offered the unmorphed Belle before the four rangers left to fight the monster.
Satisfied with the outcome, Hunter left the roof and headed back home to think about how he was going to deal with Belle. The unmorphed Belle then promptly ran into a secluded alleyway and dissolved into a shower of gold and silver sparkles. Back in her wolf zord, Belle gave a slight shudder as her magic rejoined her body. This is definitely going to be a weird story to share tonight.
"And then that is when we showed up," Belle recounted after she had downed a healing potion when she came home. She also made sure to leave out the part where Hunter morphed into a ranger right before her very eyes.
"That was a gutsy yet foolish move," Shane pointed out. "You could have gotten yourself killed."
"I didn't know you could do that," Tori remarked while Dustin added his two cents in about how weird the occurrence was.
"There are a lot of things that I can do with my magic," Belle told Tori. "By the way, this has been bothering me for some time. We're going to need codenames for the field. Even if our voices are modified, people will still notice us calling each other by our real names."
"She has a point," Cam agreed.
"And I have the perfect names," Belle grinned.
Curious as to her thought process, everyone gave her their undivided attention.
"Shane is Hawke, Dustin is Leo, Tori id Finn, and Cam is Bushi."
"You just named us after our zords," Shane deadpanned.
"Which makes them perfect," Belle defended her choices.
"I like mine!" Dustin exclaimed with joy.
"What would yours be Anna?" Tori asked.
"Lupa," Belle answered easily.
"Why is my codename Bushi?" Cam piped up after thinking about it.
"It's short for Bushido."
Cam's eyes sparkled at the codename when he made the connection.
"It's perfect."
"Any objections?" Belle ventured to which no one made any attempt to.
"Good. We'll use them from now on to protect our identities. We might also want to fight with our black masks on when we fight in our school uniforms."
"You think of everything," Dustin remarked, impressed.
"I just want to cover all of our bases," Belle supplied, biting her thumbnail at the anxiousness she had swirling in her stomach. Belle had an inkling that if the monster had talked about Lothor with Hunter, it was safe to assume that he was working with him. She did not want to have to be caught in the middle of the rangers and Hunter outside of battle where their identities weren't a mystery.
"What brought this on?" Sensei Watanabe inquired at Belle's worried expression.
"I feel like we're going to be facing something big soon, and I don't want us to be caught unaware."
The others adopted a grim look on their faces and nodded together to show they understood. With that being said, Sensei Watanabe decided to end training early for everyone except for Belle who was advised to rest from her ordeal that day. However, once the other rangers were gone, Belle's mind was filled with plans and preparations for the group Halloween costumes she was making for her and her friends from back home. The theme was the Avengers with Belle as Black Widow, Xander as Hawkeye, Chip was going to be Thor, Maddie as Captain America, and Vida as Iron Man. She wanted to make the costumes at least somewhat lifelike for them without it weighing them down too much. But I'll need their measurements, Belle mused to herself. Maybe I'll go home this weekend after connecting my room here to my room back home.
"Anna," an exasperated voice spoke up that broke through her thoughts.
"What?" she said when she became aware of her surroundings again.
"I was asking you what was bothering you," Cam repeated in slight exasperation.
"Oh, nothing is bothering me," Belle denied with a shake of her head.
"I was just thinking about Halloween costumes for my friends and I."
"Are they group costumes?"
"Yeah, we're going as the Avengers."
"Who are you going as?"
"Black Widow."
While Cam felt that wasn't the real reason he saw her troubled earlier, he let it go and vowed that he would ask her about it again later.
"By the way," Belle continued. "Would you want to watch me connect my room here to my room back home after my lessons and come coding?"
"You can do that?" Cam uttered in shock.
"Yes. So, are you accepting my offer?"
"Sure."
Like the days before, Belle went quickly through her online classes. That meant that Belle could slide over beside Cam to look over the software for the Tsunami Cycles.
"I'll have to give the software to Dustin soon," Cam sighed. "I need him to look over it so see if I'm missing something."
"I'm sure it'll be fine," Belle assured him even though she herself was unsure. While she didn't get any warnings from her prophecies, she wasn't 100% certain either.
"I guess that's good for right now since you're so set on me having breaks."
Belle rolled her eyes at his sass before she started to pull him from his seat. It was Cam's turn to roll his eyes yet he rose obediently from his chair to follow after her. No matter how many times Cam entered the room, he was overcome with a sense of peace. Belle quickly ushered Cam to sit on her bed while she walked over to her closet. She was quick to pull out her wand and point it to the doorway.
"Iungo(Connect)," Belle uttered that had white gold burst of magic seeping into the wood of the door and through it to the doorway.
While her magic worked to make the connection, she closed her eyes so that she could focus on imagining the door opening and leading to her closet doorway out to her room back in Briarwood. After about ten minutes, Belle cut off all but a little flow of magic in a circular shape on the wall next to the door. She carefully placed her hand on the circle so that it could recognize her handprint then turned to face Cam.
"Come over here Ron. I want you to register your handprint along with mine."
He hesitated but nonetheless moved over to stand beside her and place his hand where he had seen Belle place hers. The circular spot glowed green for a second then faded back to the natural white gold color of Belle's magic.
"That should do it." Belle announced happily once the magic circle beside the door solidified into a silver and gold plate. She paused for a few minutes as if thinking before she spoke.
"Would you like to meet my mother?"
Cam paled slightly at the mention of meeting said mother, but Belle didn't let him think about it any longer because she all but dragged him through the doorway.
ooo0ooo
When Cam entered her room in Briarwood, he could see the similarities between this room and the room back at Ninja Ops. Both rooms had the warm incense that invited you to sit down and relax while her furniture looked very homey and welcoming. However, there was one difference between the two. This room had sunlight filtering in through the large windows and through a skylight that made up the majority of Belle's ceiling. That was all Cam was able to take in before Belle was tugging him out of the doorway.
"Mama!" Belle called out as she moved towards the stairs. "I have someone for you to meet!"
"Anna!" Mama Luna exclaimed from downstairs, rushing to the living room to the base of the stairs. Belle let go of Cam's hand to wrap her arms around her mother. Mama Luna in turn wrapped up her only child in an almost crushing hug.
"I missed you so much ma petite étoile," she gushed. "I was wondering when you would figure out how to link your two rooms."
"Maman," Belle gasped while her arms flailed and her newly healed throat acted up again.
"Étouffer, ne pas respirer(Choking, not breathing)."
A tiny smirk arose on Cam's face at Belle's misfortune, but it fell when Mama Luna's eyes fell on him.
"Who is this?" she asked as she let go of Belle. "Is he one of the rangers?"
Cam's eyes flew up to Belle at the question in shock and disbelief. There had to be a reason that Belle's mother knew of the rangers when Belle wasn't allowed to tell anyone about them.
"Mama, this is Cameron Watanabe. Ron, this is my mom Luna."
"You need not worry Cameron," Mama Luna assured him. "I have known about Power Rangers way before Anna was chosen. In time I will look after my own team of rangers."
Cam visibly relaxed at her words.
"No, I'm not a Ranger," Cam let out with slight bitterness. "I'm the tech guy."
"That is still an important role," Mama Luna pointed out.
"How would the rangers have their zords or any upgrades if not for you?"
Cam couldn't even think of a comeback to that and he found himself feeling a little better about his role now. Even if he still wanted to fight alongside the rangers. Mama Luna made to say something else but stopped when she saw a ripple along Belle's neck that let her know that Belle was casting a concealment spell.
"Annabelle," Mama Luna said with a no nonsense tone that had Belle jolting in dread.
"What is wrong with your neck?"
At the mention, Cam looked at Belle's neck to see that the bruising around her throat was completely gone in the course of minutes.
"Anna, what happened to-,"
Belle quickly shook her head to shut him up behind her mother's turned head that had him uneasily rubbing the back of his neck.
"What is he talking about Annabelle?"
"Well…," she trailed off only to have her mother swipe a hand and dispel the spell to reveal the bruising.
"Annabelle Lee Devereaux! Where did you get this?!"
Belle laughed uneasily while she rubbed her arms to prepare herself to tell her mom the tale. Cam wisely stayed quiet while Belle talked seeing as though he had no input in a mother daughter discussion.
"I commend you on keeping your secrets," Mama Luna started. "But I am so very angry with you for putting yourself at risk like that! You could have gotten yourself killed!"
"I know Mama," Belle placated with her head bowed. Mama Luna sighed in aggravation as she pinched the bridge of her nose then looked up at Cam with annoyed bottle green eyes.
"This is why she should be monitored at all times," she told him. "She has way too big a heart and protective instincts to think rationally when her friends are in trouble."
Belle seemed to shrink in on herself at her mother's words but Mama Luna's green eyes softened when she saw how her words were affecting her daughter.
"And I love you for it ma choupette," Mama Luna said as she wrapped her arms around her little one.
"I just don't like that people can take advantage of you through that."
"I'll make sure to look after her Ms. Deveroux," Cam promised her.
"It's Mama Luna dear," Mama Luna amended with fondness for the young adult.
"And thank you dear. It will be nice to know that she has someone looking after her."
There was a pause in the conversation as Mama Luna's word sunk in before she turned to her daughter.
"What did you stop over for?"
"I'm going to need help with making the costumes for Halloween," Belle answered, turning so that Cam was included.
"I'll need your help too Ron. Iron Man's costume is made entirely out of metal and you're the only one I know who can pull off making it."
"I'll be happy to help."
"Great! Then you can meet my friends too!"
Mama Luna and Cam couldn't help but smile at Belle's enthusiasm. After seeing the look Cam was giving her, Mama Luna grew concerned for the boy. She knew that Belle already loved someone else and that was only going to break poor Cam's heart.
"We should probably head back," Cam pointed out when he looked at his watch.
"I forgot about dinner!" Belle exclaimed in panic before she grabbed Cam's hand.
"I'll call you through bird messaging later!" Belle called back to her mother.
"I expect to meet your sensei!" Mama Luna shouted after her. Cam and Belle were quick to pass through the portal in Belle's closet that led back to Ninja Ops and to the kitchen.
As soon as she reached the kitchen, Belle was a cooking whirlwind to make spaghetti and meatballs with some garlic bread. Cam was smart and stayed out of her way lest he get plowed over by Belle in her haste. Dinner then passed by without any hassle and as usual Cam insisted on doing the dishes. Once they were done, Belle sought out Sensei Watanabe who was having a cup of tea in the Command Center.
"Sensei Watanabe," Belle began while coming to stand before him. "I have someone I would love for you to meet."
That had Sensei Watanabe giving Belle his undivided attention as she explained her mother's knowledge about the Power Rangers.
"I would love to meet your mother," Sensei Watanabe smiled at her.
Belle in turn grinned and pulled out her wand. Her eyes closed in concentration while the tip of her wand glowed as her magic flared up. She then waved her wand in a circle around her head that had a shimmery eagle coming into existence glowing white gold of Belle's magic. Belle's eyes then opened to show that they were glowing the same white gold as her magic that had the eagle giving off a loud screech then flew out of the room through the wall. Cam couldn't help but marvel at the way Belle seemed to glow with her magic until the whole room was changed into Belle's living room back home. Cam and Sensei Watanabe looked around them in surprise at the sudden environmental change while Belle calmly moved to sit on the couch and gestured for Cam and Sensei Watanabe to do the same.
"Make yourselves at home," she insisted. "Mom is probably with Aunt Udonna right now but she should be here shortly."
Just as she finished saying that, Mama Luna appeared in a burst of silver sparkles.
"Hello again Cameron," she greeted the familiar teen before turning to the small guinea pig body of Sensei Watanabe.
"Mom, this is Sensei Watanabe. Sensei, this is my mother Luna Deveroux."
"It is nice to finally meet you Mr. Watanabe."
"I could say the same," Sensei Watanabe bowed to the red haired woman.
"I hope that she hasn't been too much trouble," Mama Luna teased that had Belle rolling her eyes.
"Quite the contrary," Sensei Watanabe chuckled. "She has been a delight to have in our home. I had forgotten how much laughter and a good meal could warm up a home."
Belle smiled softly at her Sensei's words while Mama Luna looked at her daughter with proud eyes.
"She has a way of worming herself into people's hearts even if they don't want it."
"I can agree to that," Cam smirked.
"Hey!" Belle protested in faux annoyance even though she was trying to hold back a smile. Everyone shared a smile at the banter before Mama Luna regained a serious expression.
"I believe we have some serious topics to discuss," Mama Luna said to Sensei Watanabe.
"I agree. Which would you like to discuss first?"
"It might be easier to talk over your situation first. Anna has already told me about some of it."
And so Sensei Watanabe went on to tell Mama Luna about the different ninja academies across the country and then explained about Lothor and how he wants to take over the world.
"I believe it is my turn to tell you about our magic," Mama Luna began.
"With every wizard and sorceress birth, they are blessed with the magic of an element. In special cases, twins might have the same magic or opposite aspects of magic. I was blessed with Moon magic the same as my twin sister Niella. My sister Udonna was gifted with snow magic. Anna was gifted with the magic of the stars."
"You also said that you would be looking after your own rangers in the future," Sensei Watanabe ventured.
"That is correct," Mama Luna confirmed.
"A few years ago, there was a great battle in a dimension parallel to this dimension between the evil warrior Morticon who controlled an army of the undead and four forces. With the valiant efforts of five great warriors and my brother-in-law Leanbow managed to banish their whole army to the Underworld and sealed them there. However, it has been told that the seal is going to fade and we will need to enlist the aid of our own team of rangers."
"I'd hate to cut this short," Belle piped up from her spot on the couch. "But we might want to end the session."
"Anna is right," Mama Luna agreed. "But it might be best to send you back with this."
With that Mama Luna made a small mirror appear in Sensei Watanabe's paws.
"This will help you keep in touch. Just touch the engraved moon in the middle of the frame and you'll be able to see me in the glass."
"I hope to speak with you soon," Sensei Watanabe bowed.
"Until we speak again," Mama Luna returned.
"Bye Mrs.-Mama Luna," Cam amended when he saw the glare aimed his way.
"Bye Mom," Belle smiled as she moved over to her mother to give her a kiss on the cheek and a hug.
"Don't be a stranger now Anna."
"I won't. I'll probably come back tomorrow or the day after."
"At least the four will finally stop moping," Mama Luna commented.
"They literally came to visit not that long ago," Belle pointed out in exasperation.
All Mama Luna could do was shrug in response.
"Bye Mom. I'll see you later."
A wave of the hand was all it took to deposit the three of them back at Ninja Ops.
"Thank you for that Annabelle," Sensei Watanabe said to the galaxy haired girl. "Not a problem Sensei but if you'll excuse me, I think I'll go take a ride."
"Be safe," Sensei Watanabe called after her.
"I will."
As soon as Belle reached the trees, she tree traveled a few feet from her meeting place with Hunter then walked the rest of the way. Hunter was waiting for her, his face without emotion while his eyes betrayed his anxiousness. Instead of getting right to the chase, Belle came to sit down on the large log next to him so that he could gather his thoughts.
"For as far back as I can remember," he began softly.
"I was alone. I lived on the streets with no family and people mocking me because I was a homeless orphan."
At his words, Belle reached out to place one of her hands on top of Hunter's to give it a gentle squeeze.
"More often than not I went to bed hungry and chilled to my bones. So many times I asked myself what was the point of living. Did I live just to suffer day in and day out?"
Belle hated the far away and pained look Hunter had in his eyes so much, she moved to sit sideways on his lap and wrap her arms around his shoulders. Vanilla, sandalwood, and lavender were quick to rise up from Belle's hair and skin that had Hunter's sadness and tension melting away the longer he breathed in the scent. It gave him enough strength to continue telling his story.
"That's how the Bradleys found me. I was at death's door and they said that they couldn't leave me to die when they saw me. They had brought me to their home while I was asleep or passed out, I can't remember which one it was, and they had IVs coming out of me. Mom, Mrs. Bradley, was a doctor and she knew how to treat me for my malnutrition."
Belle cuddled up into Hunter's chest at the pain that leaked from Hunter's words that had Hunter's own arm snaking around Belle's waist with the other running itself through her hair to seek some of the comfort she offered.
"This of course freaked me the fuck out," Hunter chuckled softly.
"I didn't know where I was or what was happening to me plus the fact that I had tons of needles sticking into my arms didn't exactly keep me calm. Blake was the first person I saw when I woke up and he did a pretty damn good job of calming me down. Mom and Dad were quick to come into the room and explain what was going on. It took a long time after that for them to gain my trust but when they did, I was unshakably loyal to them. When I was healthy, the Bradleys decided to take me to train at the Thunder Ninja Academy."
I was right about the symbol, Belle thought to herself without letting her face show her realization. But why was he telling me all this, Belle mused to herself. We weren't supposed to tell anyone of our academy's existence. So why was he telling someone who he thought to be a normal civilian about his school? Hunter on the other hand was oblivious to her facial expression and continued with his story.
"For years I trained at the academy until my parents were killed," Hunter ground out, his voice catching in his throat while his jaw worked to hold back his tears. Belle gave him a comforting squeeze that had Hunter taking in a shaky breath. "Blake and I were taken in by Sensei Omino and he continued to train and raise us. I never knew who killed them until our academy was attacked a couple months ago. Our sensei gave us our morphers and we wandered after that because we did not know what to do. Fortunately for us, Lothor found us and told us that Sensei Watanabe from the Wind Ninja Academy was the one who killed our parents and offered us a chance to take revenge."
Rather than try to argue with Hunter like she wanted to, both her desire to keep her ranger identity a secret and her desire not to aggravate his emotional wounds, Belle simply nudged Hunter's head to rest in the crook of where her shoulder and neck met. One of her hands rubbed soothing circles in his broad back while the other played with the hair at the nape of his neck. The complete and utter acceptance and comfort Hunter felt from Belle was more than enough to reduce him to tears. Arms that were once loose around her were now steel tight around her middle while Hunter clutched Belle to his chest as he grieved. Belle's heart broke for the tall blond and she desperately wanted to make him feel better. Words won't work, she thought in her head. I'll just have to comfort him until he feels better. Hunter was grateful that Belle didn't say anything and just let him grieve. If she had tried to assure him that everything was alright or tried to make him laugh, he would not have appreciated it. Instead, his heart swelled with the comfort he was getting from Belle's silence as well as the way her arms seemed to hold him together so strongly. They both sat there for minutes as Hunter gradually calmed down and simply rubbed his thumb against the exposed skin of Belle's side.
"Hey Anna."
"Yes, Hunter?"
"Why didn't you rat me out to the other rangers?"
That is a question I'm still asking myself, Belle thought to herself before she came up with an answer that would satisfy him.
"The point of a secret identity is to stay secret, isn't it?"
It was then that Hunter came to a hasty yet huge decision.
"Anna."
"Yes?"
"I want to give you something."
Belle pulled her head back a little to look on curiously as Hunter reached into his pants pocket to pull out a white gold ring that had a raised design in the band that looked to be either two teeth or a thunderbolt.
"This was my mom's engagement ring from my father," Hunter told her, bringing up his hand so that Belle could see it. He looked thoughtfully down at the ring for a few moments before ash blue eyes came up to meet her brown.
"And I want you to have it."
Belle was completely stunned while she looked down at the beautiful piece of jewelry.
"Why are you giving this to me Hunter?" Belle asked with her heart pounding away in her ears.
"It is a representation of me giving you my trust," he said. "You've shown to be there for me when I need you so this is my promise that I'll be there for you."
Tears welled up in the corners of Belle's eyes that quickly spilled over down her cheeks. She was happy the Hunter trusted her that much, but was also feeling guilty about not telling Hunter about her being a ranger. Hunter of course only thought she was happy so he rubbed her upper arms while chuckling.
"I may not be a joy most of the time, but I will be here for you Anna."
Belle had no words as Hunter slid the ring on her left index finger.
"It's a perfect fit," Hunter grinned.
Belle flashed him a weak smile that was just enough to fool him.
"I should probably head back," Belle spoke up after a minute or so of silence.
"Alright, but we should meet up tomorrow to talk over our dance routine."
Belle gave a small nod before she rose from Hunter's lap.
"See you tomorrow CB," Belle said in an attempt to play off her internal turmoil.
"I'll see you Lil' Firecracker," Hunter smirked fondly at the petite girl.
Belle made sure she was well out of Hunter's sight before she vanished in a shower of sparkles. Within seconds she appeared in the Command Center where Cam was working on something on the computer. Upon hearing the sound of Belle's teleportation, Cam turned to face her.
"How was your-," Cam's question died off when he saw Belle's conflicted and slightly tear stained face. Although he very much wanted to ask a flurry of questions, Cam held himself back and simply held his arms out to her. Belle wasted no time running into Cam's strong chest and wrapping her arms tight around his waist. As soon as Cam wrapped his arms around her, the dam burst open and Belle cried out her feelings into his chest. Cam said nothing, although he could feel a strong protective instinct over Belle well up in his chest while Belle let her emotions run their course. Minutes later, Belle was able to get a hold of herself through shuddering gasps and hiccups.
"Are you okay?" Cam asked gently as he pulled back to look into Belle's tear filled brown eyes.
"Do you want something to drink? Milk? Water? Tea?"
"I'd like some hot chocolate," Belle said softly.
"Then we'll get you some hot chocolate," Cam offered while he placed an arm around Belle's shoulders to lead her into the kitchen. He made sure that she sat down at the table before he moved over to the counter to make the hot chocolate. As soon as Cam handed her the mug, he relocated her to the living room. They both settled down on the couch with Belle tucking her feet under herself. She took a few sips of her drink that calmed her nerves a bit.
"Are you ready to talk?" Cam ventured softly. Belle froze at his question and tensed up. She couldn't betray Hunter's trust like this yet she had to get this off of her chest.
"I can't," Belle said softly.
"Why not?"
"I can't betray his trust. It's amazing that he gave it to me at all."
"I promise that I won't tell anyone," Cam insisted, his face taking on sincerity. Belle looked wearily into Cam's dark eyes.
"If I told you, you wouldn't even be able to tell your father," Belle pointed out. Cam winced at the prospect of lying to his father. Sure, he's done it before, but that doesn't mean that he likes it.
"Is it that bad?"
"It has the potential to be."
With lips in a tight, thin line, Cam took one of Belle's hands in his and looked her straight in the eyes.
"I won't tell anyone Anna. Including my father."
Still wary about her decision, Belle told Cam about Hunter and what had happened. At first Cam was wary of the mentioned Hunter that soon turned to stunned silence. Hunter was a rogue ranger who wanted to kill his father.
"Say something Ron," Belle insisted after a few moments of silence.
"You shouldn't see him anymore," Cam advised with a clenched jaw.
"I can't just ignore him!" Belle argued.
"If he finds out you're a ranger, you'll die!"
Both Cam and Belle froze at Cam's words. Cam because he had not meant to yell at her and Belle because Cam hadn't raised his voice at her before. Again tears welled up in Belle's eyes and Cam had regret quickly showing on his face.
"Anna, I-,"
"Fine," Belle interrupted in clipped tones. "I guess I shouldn't have told you anything."
"Anna-,"
"I'm still going to hang out with him Cameron."
Cam recoiled back as if struck by Belle using his full name.
"Anna, I'm just-,"
"Save it Watanabe."
With that said, Belle placed her mug on the coffee table that stalked out of the room to hers. Cam gave a deep, heavy sigh before he rose from his spot to take care of Belle's still warm cocoa. Meanwhile in Belle's room, she wanted so badly to pick things up and throw them or to blow things up, but she held off when she realized that it wouldn't do any good. I could call my friends, she thought only to squash that idea. It's late for them and I don't want to wake them up. I guess I'll just turn in for the night. With that thought in mind, Belle shrugged under her blankets and let herself slip off to sleep.
ooo0ooo
"Where were you?" Blake asked Hunter as soon as he came in through the front door.
"Hanging out with Anna."
"You mean that girl with the weird hair?"
"Yes," Hunter replied, coming to plop down into a chair in the living room across from this brother.
"How did that go?"
Without hesitation, Hunter told him everything that happened earlier which left the dark haired man speechless and angry. He couldn't believe that Hunter had revealed his secret for a little nobody.
"And why didn't you kill her?"
"Because I trust her."
"She could rat you out to the rangers anytime she chooses," Blake pointed out.
"Yet she didn't when she had the chance," Hunter defended her.
"You're letting your feelings for her cloud your judgement," Blake sighed in disappointment.
"You said you'd take her out if need be."
Hunter's jaw clenched in anger and frustration yet he said nothing.
"Tomorrow we'll kidnap her and use her to lure out the rangers. We'll give Lothor's monsters one last chance to take them out."
"What if they fail again?"
"Then I guess it's time we showed our faces."
ooo0 Ninja of the Stars 0ooo
Ok, wow, I think the chapters are getting shorter now that I'm going through the revision. I'm just wondering if it was needed because it was unnecessary or if it was to make Belle seem more real. Or to make the bond Belle has with her childhood friends seem a little bit stronger. I digress. Anyways, I kind of like how things are progressing now. Although, I had to tweak a bit of Belle's interaction with Hunter even though I kept the basic premise and the outcome the same. What do you guys think of this new scene? Do you think this is better than the original or is it still lacking. I would love to hear your feedback so that I can see what is working for this story and what is not. However, I kept Belle's interaction with Cam the same towards the end because I felt that I couldn't really change how that conversation was going. What do you guys think about how both Belle and Cam reacted to the conversation? That was all I had for this part so I will get on with the outro. If you have any questions or comments feel free to shoot me a pm or leave a review. Remember, reviews are magic!
-White Wolf