Brother, My Brother
Ch. 7: Help From Unexpected Places
"I don't remember how long it was that Jason had convulsions … five minutes, ten … I just don't know," David sighed, rubbing his face with both hands wearily. "I was too busy trying to calm him, to prevent him from injuring himself, but had no idea how. If Tommy hadn't come back then …"
~*~
Never in his life had David been so relieved to hear the sound of teleportation.
"Man, what a waste of time," Tommy groused even as he powered down. "That had to be one of the lamest monsters ever – worse even than Squatt or Baboo. Can you believe it was a giant lawnmower this time? If that's the best Divatox can do, she won't hold out for long. We didn't even need to summon the Zords; the Turbo Ram was more than enough to deal with …"
David interrupted his rambling with a sharp exclamation.
"Tommy!"
Puzzled, the Red Ranger paused and stared at his brother and friend, of whom the latter was writhing on the dusty ground, agonized groans coming from the heaving chest while the former was apparently restraining him forcibly.
"What the hell's going on here?" Tommy asked, coming closer. The two had problems, as he'd learned, but surely neither would resort to physical violence. Wouldn't they? "You're not fighting, are you?"
Even in his panic, David could see how it might look that way.
"No! Tommy, Jason's been bitten by a rattler; he was unconscious when I got here. I gave him the antitoxin, but I think he's having an allergic reaction … he needs help, NOW!" It was a frantic rush or words, totally unlike David's usually placid tone, and that, more than anything else, convinced Tommy that David wasn't joking.
He blanched. For a second, his mind went blank, then instinct set in. Tearing his eyes away from the agony contorting Jason's face, Tommy quickly considered his options. Getting the car here was out of the question; so was transporting Jason to the car. The drive alone would take far too long. So, the obvious – the only – solution was using the Power Chamber's teleportation system – if there weren't the restriction of not using it for personal matters. If Jason were still a Ranger, he could take him to their base … but he wasn't, there was no guarantee that the Power Chamber even had the resources to treat his condition …
"The hell with it!" Tommy wasn't even aware he'd spoken aloud. Jason had done his duty as a Ranger, not once, but twice – almost losing his life the second time. If anyone deserved special consideration from Zordon, an exception made to save his life, it was him. Better act first, explain later.
Decision made, Tommy crouched next to his companions, taking hold both of David and Jason's arms. Almost as an afterthought, he morphed.
"I'll take you directly to the hospital."
*
Their arrival in a streak of crimson light, the Red Ranger carrying both an unconscious youth and a Native American, had caused a minor sensation in the ER, but the trained personnel had acted quickly once the seriousness of Jason's condition became apparent. As controlled chaos broke out, Tommy slipped away unobtrusively to a restroom, demorphed and rejoined David who'd been shouldered aside by the nurses. He'd had enough experience at fibbing where his Ranger activities were concerned, so it was easy to concoct a halfway plausible story where the Turbo Rangers had just happened to be in the vicinity when things got dangerous. No, he didn't know where the Red Ranger had gone to. No, he didn't know why or how the Rangers come to be near their camp, or why the Red Ranger had decided to help them, and could he PLEASE call his friend's family already?
The resident asking the questions let himself be distracted by that bit of administrative detail. With long practice, Tommy had glossed over his sudden appearance, redirecting attention to Jason. The patient was unconscious, the hospital needed someone to authorize treatment … yes, of course, there's a phone at the nurses' station.
Getting out of the doctor's way with alacrity, Tommy had placed a call to the Scotts, summoning them to Angel Grove Memorial on the double, while David had retreated to a waiting area, sinking into a faux-leather chair and letting the horror of what happened wash over him. He didn't object when Tommy tasked him to call Kat, who would summon the rest of the Rangers, while he stayed to wait for Jason's parents. When they arrived, it caused David another pang to see how Tommy was treated like a second son by both Helen and Joe Scott, how he was admitted to the treatment room just like family, but it was fainter than before – more out of wistfulness than envy.
He'd made the call to Tommy's girlfriend who'd been horrified at what he had to tell her; she promised to inform their friends right away and come as soon as they'd be able. They would support their friends as always, even if it was just by being there. Then, after a moment's reflection, David called his foster father, too. Because right now, David needed someone to support him.
~*~
"It's all my fault, anyway," he murmured once he was finished with his tale, leaning forward and letting his long hair hide his face. Nobody needed to see how miserable he was feeling.
There was a long silence from the assembled friends as they digested what David had just told them. Even Sam Trueheart was quiet, his lined face showing both a sad and stern expression. He hadn't liked hearing his foster son admit to jealousy and pettiness, and how he'd treated someone dear to a close relative. It went against everything he'd tried to teach David, and he knew they'd have words about that – later.
Characteristically, it was fair-minded Trini who spoke up first, forestalling a still-seething Rocky.
"How is it your fault, David?" she asked quietly. "You had to give Jason the antivenom, or he'd be dead of the poison by now. You couldn't have known he's allergic to the remedy."
There were agreeing murmurs from the others.
"Maybe so, but if I hadn't picked a fight with him, if I had finished checking the campsite area for wildlife … I knew there might be snakes, or scorpions, I never completed what I'd set out to do, what I was proud of doing without help … I let myself be distracted by my dislike, and that's how, WHY he was bitten!"
"So you were a little forgetful," Trini conceded, smiling slightly. It seemed the brothers shared more than looks. "But that's hardly a crime. Jason may not have your expertise about the wilderness, but he's hardly a complete neophyte. He should have checked where he sat himself. You did not make the snake bite Jason. Nor did you make him sit down near its lair. It was an accident!"
"For which I'm responsible!"
"How do you figure that?" Adam asked. "I mean, sure, you should've finished your check, but even if you had, you might not have found the snake, anyway. What if it had been hunting? Then you wouldn't have found it, right?"
David looked helplessly at the slim Asian. Why couldn't he see it was his fault?
"But …"
"No buts, David," Tanya interjected firmly. "Trini's right, it was an accident. It could just as easily have happened to Tommy or you." The others nodded at that, too. Of course they would have liked to blame someone for Jason's condition, but were fair enough to see that, despite David's tale of jealousy and misunderstandings, he was not the one.
David wasn't ready to let go that easily. He shook his head despairingly.
"But if I'd walked faster when Tommy dropped me off, if I hadn't taken my time … I should have reached Jason much sooner, given him the antidote faster …"
The group of friends considered this quietly, exchanging glances. It was a thought that had occurred to them as soon as David mentioned it.
"Would you have reached Jason in time to prevent him from being bitten at all?" Zack asked suddenly. David looked startled; he hadn't thought about that yet.
"I … I don't know. Maybe not," he had to admit. "I mean, I was slow getting to camp, but not all that slow … and Jason said he'd been halfway to the well; I might not have seen him."
"So the bite isn't really your fault. Okay. After it happened, though … did you have any choice but to give Jase the antivenom?"
"… no …"
Zack grinned a bit wryly. "And nobody knew that Jase was allergic to it. So how the heck is it your fault?"
What Zack said made sense, and a part of David was relieved to be exonerated, but a bigger part of him sought to place blame – and since he had been there, had been the one to administer the (as it turned out, near-fatal) drug, it was natural that his conscience wanted to accept responsibility. More so, maybe, since there had been a moment when he had wished Jason would come to harm.
"It feels like it is," David muttered stubbornly.
"I know why," Rocky said, to everyone's surprise. He'd calmed down while listening, and was now able to look at things with a measure of detachment – caused in part by his own experience. "You think it ought to be your fault because right now you're feeling guilty for being jealous of Jase, for disliking him even though he hasn't really given you reason to feel that way. And for wishing a couple of times he'd just go away."
David slowly looked up at the former Zeo Ranger Four. That was what, in more quiet moments, his mind had already been telling him. Only his stricken conscience wouldn't let him listen; too vivid was the memory of his brother's quickly-masked panic, of the terror in the chocolate eyes when he'd realized his best friend was in mortal danger and there was nothing he, Tommy, could do to save him.
"I … yeah, I guess so," he said, thinking it over. Rocky's statement did pretty much sum up his present state of mind. "How … how do you know?" David searched the brown eyes for truth. The wry expression spreading across the mobile face astonished him.
"Because I've been there, pal," Rocky stated simply. "When Jason first came back and rejoined the team, I was so jealous of him like you wouldn't believe. I felt pushed aside, worthless … desperate to to guard my place on the team. I even took on Mondo all by myself, thinking I had to prove something."
Tanya, Katherine and Adam nodded; they remembered that incident all too well.
"I ended up getting my butt kicked. Nearly endangered the team, too. And if that had gone wrong … the consequences would've been pretty gruesome," Rocky continued seriously. "Not just for one person, but for the whole world."
"But we made it through that – together," Kat reminded him softly. "As a team, and were the stronger for that. We just have to hope that Jason will make it, too."
As if on cue, a doctor entered Jason's room, and soon after, Jason's stricken-looking parents were led out, Helen held by Tommy. Joe Scott murmured something to his wife, then, with a last helpless glance at his son's sickroom, took his leave. Tommy guided Jason's mother to the waiting area, where Trini relinquished her seat immediately, but hovered close by. Wearily, the distraught woman sank down, clinging to Tommy's hand as if to a lifeline. He let her hold on for a full minute before gently disengaging himself.
"Will you be okay with Trini for a minute, Helen?" Tommy asked softly. "I need to use the restroom."
"I … of course," Helen murmured, her lips quivering in a not-smile when Trini smoothly took Tommy's place.
"Don't worry, Tommy, I'll be here," she assured her friend. After all, she'd been in and out of the Scotts' house countless times ever since she became friends with Jason in grade school; Helen was as familiar and dear to her as the Taylors, the Harts or Mr. Cranston.
"I'll only be a minute," he said, and quickly went off. Helen looked after him, a rather watery smile on her pale face.
"I really don't know what we'd do without him," she confided to Trini. "Tommy's been such a rock for us … me especially, now that Joe had to leave. But he has customers waiting, and we can't allow the business to fail …"
"We understand, Mrs. Scott," Trini murmured, patting the older woman's arm. "Nobody's blaming him."
But Helen hardly seemed to hear her, her mind still on her son's best friend. "Tommy is such a dear; if I'd known Jason would build such a relationship with someone, I wouldn't have hesitated to adopt a child myself, give him the brother he always wanted. You kids all were so close, but when he met Tommy – there's always been a loneliness deep within Jason that only went away when they became friends."
"They were very tight, right from the get-go," Zack agreed. He'd come to sit with the two women, the only other of the original group of friends present. "It really surprised us all."
Trini smiled gently. "Jason and Tommy have called each other 'Bro' almost as soon as they met," she recalled. "They truly are as brothers – not in the flesh, maybe, but certainly in spirit."
"Yes," Helen said, fresh tears threatening, but she dashed them away. The time for crying hadn't come – yet. "Which reminds me … where's Mr. Trueheart?" She looked around for David. Spotting him at the edge of the row of chairs, she waved him over. Reluctantly, he obeyed her summons.
He'd heard every word Helen had said, and they were like knives in his heart, reviving all of his bitterness and jealousy, but those feelings withered when Helen's blue eyes met his warmly, and she grasped his hand.
"I'd like to thank you for what you did for Jason," Mrs. Scott murmured. "If it hadn't been for your thoughtfulness in bringing the antivenom, and for knowing how to administer it …"
That was about the very last thing David had expected to hear, and his astonishment and confusion was evident in his expression.
"Huh?"
"Yes," Helen nodded. "You saved his life, you know."
"B-but …"
"How is Jason, Mrs. Scott?" Zack interrupted curiously. "Nobody's telling us anything!"
"Yes, we're worried, too," Katherine added in her soft, accented voice.
"Oh, I'm sorry," Helen apologized. "I thought someone had … oh, never mind. He's stable for now; they managed to stall whatever's reacting negatively on his system."
"That's good, isn't it?" Rocky asked. There was something in Jason's mother's voice which made him very uncomfortable, and her next words confirmed it.
"Yes and no," she sighed. "Jason's not getting worse, true, but unfortunately that doesn't mean he's getting better, either. It seems as if he has some strange health condition nobody has an explanation for that is preventing all known remedies to work."
At that, the former Zeo Rangers exchanged furtive, guilty looks. They had a very good idea that it was Jason's near-fatal brush with the Gold Powers which was the reason, but that wasn't something they could disclose. Not without betraying their shared secret.
"Talk about being caught between a rock and a hard place," Rocky mumbled under his breath, only to be shushed by Tanya's elbow in his side. "Oof." She shot him a quelling glance and he blushed, clamping his mouth shut.
"Then – how can you be thanking me?!?" David blurted, completely dumbfounded. Jason was still in danger, because of something he'd done … "I don't understand! It's my fault that he went into anaphylactic shock! If I hadn't given him the antidote …"
"… Jason would have died of the snakebite," Helen said firmly. "Mr. Trueheart – David – at the very least, the poison would have done serious damage to his kidneys, or even his heart if you hadn't acted as quickly as you did. The antitoxin prevented that, at least."
"I feel responsible …" David murmured, knowing he should feel relieved that he was thus exonerated from blame, yet strangely didn't. If anything, Helen Scott's forgiveness made him feel even worse. For the first time in his life, David understood the meaning of 'having coals of fire heaped on one's head'. He wished he could just disappear into some hole and pull it in after himself.
"You're not. Trust me, I'd just love to have someone to blame for Jason's condition, but nobody knew he's allergic to some ingredient in the antivenom. You couldn't have known. As it is … he's very, very ill, yes, but there is still a chance. If you hadn't given him the injection, though …" Helen's up-to-then brave, firm voice trailed away, cut off by a choked sob.
"He'd be dead," Adam completed quietly. "David, it's true. Don't go on blaming yourself."
"At least now, we can hope Jason may yet come through," Kat said soothingly, wishing that there was something she could do. It wasn't in her nature to sit idly by while someone suffered. However, her hands were tied, by lack of knowledge as much as circumstance.
Helen had herself under control again.
"Indeed. And if you'll excuse me, I think I'll need to go ask for some more hope," she sighed, getting up. Noticing the puzzled glances her son's friends exchanged at her somewhat cryptic remark, she couldn't help a tiny smile from forming. "I believe there's a chapel here somewhere?"
"Of course!" Trini exclaimed, joining the blonde woman. "May I come with?"
"Yes, dear," Helen agreed. "I'm sure Jason would appreciate your support."
She took the slim girl's arm, and together they left, in search of comfort nobody present could give them.
~*~
The others watched them go with thoughtful expressions on their faces, sending their wishes along even though neither felt the need to express them in a more formalized setting; their place, they believed, was close to their friend, as if being near could impart some of their strength and vigor to the patient behind door number 227.
Only when the swinging doors had closed again behind Mrs. Scott and Trini did they notice Tommy, who had returned from his trip to the bathroom. On the way, he'd collected a soda, but he was merely staring at the can, not drinking from it. When he finally looked up at his gathered friends, they were shocked to see the haunted look in his eyes. It didn't bode well for Jason.
"Oh Tommy," Kat whispered, going up to her boyfriend. "I'm so sorry …" She reached out as if to hug him, but recoiled when he stiffened and took a step backwards.
"Tommy? Can't I help you?" she asked, hurt.
"Not now, Kat," he rasped tightly. "I'm sorry, I know what you're trying to do, but …" He shook his head, despair in every line of his body.
"I – I just can't. Not now. I … I need to keep it together … for Helen," he tried to explain. *Also for myself,* he didn't have to add. Tommy's friends knew him well enough to realize that, being who and what he was, he couldn't give his emotions free rein right now, or he'd lose it completely. And that was not the Red Turbo Ranger's way.
"Okay," Katherine murmured, only partially mollified. All she wanted to do was comfort him, help him deal with his obvious pain, but once again Tommy retreated into his loner personality, rebuffing everyone, even those who he should know cared about him.
It occurred not just to Kat, but to all of the watching Rangers, that the one person whose help would not have been refused was lying only a few feet away, struggling for his life.
The Rangers sat in silence after that, each by himself except for Tanya, who had scooted up to her best friend. She was trying to soothe Kat's ruffled feathers by telling her that her boyfriend, shy, gentle Adam, hadn't acted all that differently only a short time ago when his best friend had hurt his back before the Karate Tournament and they hadn't known whether Rocky would ever walk again. It seemed to work – slowly, but surely, and Tanya was glad; Kat would need all her strength to be there for Tommy should the unthinkable really happen.
~*~
There was a slight commotion at the nurses' station; heads came up slowly as the friends heard familiar voices in the distance. Eyes widened in shock, then cautious joy as two well-known figures rounded the corner to the waiting area.
"Billy! Kim!"
"Hey guys," the blond scientist smiled, even though his green eyes were distant. However, his friends assumed – correctly – that it was out of concern for Jason, not because Billy was reluctant to be back. They surged forward to greet him with suppressed enthusiasm.
"Man, it's so great you're back! Are you okay? How's Aquitar? Have you recovered?"
Billy interrupted the babble of voices with a raised hand.
"Thank you, yes, fine, and mostly," he answered all questions in one go, then posed one of his own. "How is Jason?"
Adam was the first to recover his equilibrium. Dark eyes sparkling, he replied sombrely. "According to his mom, hanging in there. No better, but not getting worse, either."
"From what we heard, we think that the aftereffects of holding the Gold Powers are causing him extra problems," Rocky added. "That sort of interferes with everything else, I guess."
"I would tend to agree, based on the research I was able to do," Billy murmured. "The Triforians' genetic makeup is such that … let's say that in retrospect, I have had moments where I counted myself fortunate that I was unable to assist Trey at the time."
"Whoa," Rocky whistled. Because he'd felt so guilty for 'usurping' Billy's color, he'd watched him more than usual, and had seen how miserable Billy had felt at being denied that chance to join the Rangers again. "That bad, huh?"
"Trust me, you don't want to know, Rocky. Only a Human with Jason's robust physique and incredible stamina, coupled with his enormous force of will, could have held them at all. As it is, I'm amazed how long he held out."
"But he was recovering from that," Tanya interjected. "Slowly, yes, but Zordon was keeping an eye on him, and we knew he was getting better!"
"Until the snakebite, that is," Zack sighed. He sincerely wished he'd met his old friend again for a more cheerful reason.
"I think it's just too much on top of each other," Adam speculated. "The Gold Powers, the physical exertion of the hike with David and Tommy, then the snakebite – and to crown it all, he's allergic to the antitoxin. If Tommy hadn't bent the rules and teleported him directly here …" He shuddered.
"Well, I hope I can be of assistance," Billy said, to everyone's delight. "The Alien Rangers have collected enough data on Human biology while they were here that they were able to concoct a remedy that just might be the solution to Jason's problem. However, I'm at a loss as to how I can present it to Jason's doctors without betraying any secrets."
"Well … Tommy brought Jason in as the Red Ranger," Kat mused, her crystal eyes regaining their usual lustre. "What if the Rangers decided to help some more, as they are involved already …"
"Great idea, Kat! We can ask Justin; he's intelligent enough to relay Billy's instructions without mistakes, when he's morphed he doesn't look or sound like the boy he is, and most of all, he probably won't be associated with us!" Tanya, too, was getting excited. "In fact, the Blue Ranger would be a perfect choice!"
"It does sound like an ideal solution," Billy concurred. "However, this drug has never been tested on a Human before; do you think the Scotts would agree to it? I am as sure as can be that it won't be harmful to Jason, but there is an undeniable element of risk."
"I'm sure Tommy can talk them into it," Kat assured the young genius. "They treat him like a second son, anyway, and I don't think there'll be much of a problem. Right, Tommy?"
Only now did she – and everyone else – notice that Tommy hadn't been part of the happy crowd surrounding Billy. When he and Kimberly had appeared so unexpectedly, Tommy had been leaning against the wall, lost in his private hell of fear for his best friend. Kat looked over her shoulder at her boyfriend, saw that he had taken a couple of steps away from the wall and was even paler than before. He was staring transfixedly at something that seemed to be just behind Billy's left shoulder. As if by a silent command, the group of friends changed position, forming a corridor between Tommy and that something.
Not something.
Someone.
Behind Billy, all but forgotten in the heady rush of welcome and good news, stood Kimberly, her doe-brown eyes sad and serious as she met Tommy's burning gaze.
He stared at her for what seemed like a small eternity, ramrod-stiff and frozen, but the longer the former couple traded glances, the more the iron façade of control began to crack.
"Kimberly," he whispered.
"Tommy," she murmured back.
The sound of her voice, the concern and affection in it, was too much for Tommy. Knowing that here at last was someone who would not censure him, who had seen him at his lowest and still been there, who knew like only three other people did what Jason meant to him, he broke.
Released from his momentary paralysis all at once, he stumbled forward, arms reaching out to his first love, and he pulled her to him, burying his face in the caramel locks as he finally gave vent to his too-long suppressed feelings.
Kat watched the scene, shock, anger and fear written clearly on her porcelain face. She wanted to shout out her pain at seeing Tommy, her boyfriend, turning to Kimberly, who had left him over a year ago, but she couldn't. Not now, when Tommy, strong, confident Tommy, was kneeling in front of the petite girl, his shoulders wracked with sobs as his fear for Jason finally found a voice in a torrent of scalding tears.
To Be Continued …