Disclaimer: I'm still not convinced that power walking is a sport, but SOTPR and probably won't accept my offer to buy them for a pretty penny. Literally. It's a really pretty one, too, all new and shiny... and probably better off in my hands, now that I think of it.

Half
by Starhawk

The table wasn't really one color. It looked like it from a distance, but up close it was full of glittery flecks and silver-white sparkles that made the grey table shine when it was clean. Not that it had ever been clean very often, and recently it had been covered with a fine layer of dust that dulled the gleam even further. But this particular part was so polished that it would probably reflect images when he let the light strike it again.

He exhaled, watching his breath damp down the tiny glimmer that still managed to find the metal tabletop. As the slight fog evaporated the glimmer brightened again, then dimmed with his next breath. The air against his face was warm, and he shifted a little to allow fresh oxygen to wander through the confined space between his arms. More light filtered in, and he closed his eyes to avoid it.

Little glowing shapes danced lazily across the darkness behind his eyelids, and he watched idly as they formed orange mosaics for his amusement. He had found that if he concentrated on them long enough he could make them look like anything he wanted, but he wasn't up for that kind of effort right now. So he just watched them shift as he breathed in, felt the warmth on his skin as he breathed out, and ignored the shiny tabletop in favor of the lightshow in his mind.

"Zhane?" The voice sounded uncertain, and he wondered if he could make it go away by ignoring it. He had heard the teleportation that heralded an interruption of his solitude, but he didn't feel like doing anything about it.

"Are you all right?" Carlos' voice sounded more puzzled than concerned, but it wasn't going away. He supposed he ought to lift his head off of his arms and reassure the Black Ranger, but it seemed like too much work. He was becoming very fond of this table and the orange shapes that played above it.

"Yes," he said, not moving. He heard the sound of footsteps, and the orange glow became a little darker. Carlos must be standing in his light. "I'm fine."

"Are you sure?" The concern was stronger this time, and he could practically feel the other Ranger hovering over him. "You don't look fine."

With a sigh, Zhane lifted his head and blinked up at the Black Ranger. The world was bright and sharp to his dark-adapted eyes, and the colors seemed to be slightly skewed. It was as though everything had become just a shade more blue while his eyes were closed, and now his vision was trying to compensate.

"Well, I am," he told Carlos, blinking again. "I'm more than fine, in fact. I'm peachy. How are you?"

Carlos frowned, but apparently decided not to press him. "I'm good, I guess. The Alliance wants to talk to the Earth Rangers. Where is everyone?"

"Don't know." Zhane clenched his fists and stacked them on top of each other before resting his chin on them, contemplating the table once more. In point of fact, he did know, but he didn't feel like being responsible for anyone else right now.

"DECA, where are the other Rangers?" Carlos asked, glancing up at the ship's nearest camera.

The camera's red light was already on, Zhane noted. He stared up at the camera without turning his head, gazing at it from the corner of his eye until the angle started to bother him. Looking down at the table again, he wasn't at all surprised by DECA's answer.

"To whom do you refer?" she inquired.

Carlos just sighed. "DECA, I want anyone who has an astromorpher on this ship in five minutes. Do you think you can do that for me?"

DECA didn't react to the impatience in his tone. "I will endeavor to fulfill your request," she said calmly, as though he had asked for some new food from the synthetron.

"Won't work," Zhane remarked, considering the shine on the table's surface. It was, as he had suspected, much stronger directly in front of him. "She won't be able to reach Andros."

"Why not?" Carlos demanded, pulling out a stool from the other side of the table and sitting down. "Where is he?"

Zhane shrugged, reaching out to trace a pattern across the gleaming tabletop. "Don't know," he repeated. "He was gone when I woke up this morning. No message, no nothing. Not answering his communicator."

"Is he all right?" Carlos shifted slightly, and Zhane lifted his gaze to watch the Black Ranger glance back and forth between him and DECA. "Maybe something happened to him. Can we track him down?"

"Already tried." Zhane's fingers tapped moodily against the table, and he decided to stare at them instead of Carlos. "No Power signature anymore. He's not that easy to find when he disappears."

"And you're not worried?" Carlos persisted. "With his talent for getting into trouble?"

Zhane shrugged again, still watching his fingers drum out an idle rhythm against the metal. "He's all right. I'd know otherwise."

"Zhane, are you sure you're okay?" Carlos sounded torn between frustration and worry. "Did something happen? What's going on? Did you and Andros fight?"

Zhane considered that for a moment, formulating one-word answers and trying to remember each question in order. Annoying Carlos was easily the most entertaining thing he'd done all day. "Yes, yes, nothing, and no."

"Then why are you acting like this?" Carlos wanted to know. The frustration in his voice was beginning to edge out the concern, and he sounded about two seconds from throwing his hands in the air and giving up.

Zhane smiled down at the table. "It's kind of fun."

He could almost feel Carlos glaring at him. "Well, I'm glad I could amuse you," the Black Ranger said sarcastically.

"Me too," Zhane agreed, not looking up.

Carlos made no further attempts at conversation, and they sat there in silence until the metallic song of magical teleportation intruded. Zhane didn't bother to look over, knowing who would be standing in front of the jump tubes. Kerone had gone to Earth at Cassie's request, and DECA had informed him later that the sorceress was in the company of not only Cassie but TJ and Tessa as well.

She had encouraged him to join them. Zhane wasn't sure whether the suggestion or the intent behind it seemed stranger to him at the moment. He had no reason to visit Earth. In fact, he found himself becoming vaguely resentful of the planet as a whole. DECA, too, seemed to be going out of her way to irritate him today, but he couldn't put his finger on exactly how.

"DECA said it was important." TJ's voice slid across his thoughts without interrupting him, though there was a definite note of urgency in the Blue Ranger's voice. His tone also made it clear that his was a question, not a statement, and he expected an immediate answer.

"It is," Carlos said firmly. "Where's Ashley?"

The way his voice changed told Zhane that he had turned his head, no doubt checking with DECA for an answer Zhane could have given. The rustling of people rearranging themselves as no imminent danger presented itself made him wonder how much longer he could get away without saying anything. They'd probably be making themselves comfortable at the table in a few minutes, and he didn't really feel like moving.

"I have been unable to locate either Ashley or Andros," DECA replied. "They are either not wearing or not responding to their communicators."

"That doesn't sound good." TJ had reverted to leader mode, Zhane noticed. He proceeded to ask exactly the same questions Carlos had voiced. "Could something have happened? Can we track them?"

"You will have to be more specific in your inquiry when it comes to the nature of 'something'," DECA answered with some asperity. "I can conduct a thorough scan for their biosigns, but the procedure will take some time."

"Do it." Zhane could almost hear TJ's attention shift. "Carlos? What's going on?"

"We need to work some things out," Carlos declared. "The Alliance wants to talk to 'the Earth Rangers', and we need to decide whether there's any such thing. I'm sorry to drag you all up here so abruptly, but we didn't get anywhere last night and no one is going to wait around for us to figure out what we're doing."

"Agreed," TJ said, not surprising Zhane in the slightest. "Where do we start?"

"We start with everyone who has a morpher and then we vote." Carlos response was swift and unusually stern, as though he expected objections but wasn't about to put up with them. "It's the only fair way."

"All right," TJ said slowly. Then, with a hint of humor in his voice, he added, "All in favor?"

"Why are you looking at me?" Cassie asked, a moment later. "I'm just along for the ride."

"Sorry." Zhane couldn't read TJ's voice, but he didn't look up even when the Blue Ranger asked neutrally, "Kerone?"

"Voting... seems fair," she said hesitantly.

"Zhane?" Carlos' voice overrode his momentary curiosity at Kerone's response, and Zhane shrugged once. "Is that a yes?"

"Vote, don't vote; I don't care," Zhane told the table. The conversation was too interesting to ignore, but he wished Carlos would stop asking him to participate. "It doesn't have anything to do with me."

"Zhane?" Cassie sounded alarmed, and he suppressed a sigh as the questions began all over again. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he said, lifting his head to shoot an exasperated look in her direction. "And I really wish people would stop asking me that!"

"Look, Zhane, you're an Astro Ranger." Carlos' statement left no room for argument. "If you don't vote, we don't have a majority, and we're back to square one. I don't know about you, but I'd like to resolve this sometime this year."

This time Zhane did sigh. "Fine," he said, taking one arm off the table and turning slightly to face them. "What are we voting on?"

"KO-35 wants the Astro Rangers to defend the Kerova system," Carlos said, addressing everyone once more. "The Alliance wants Earth to have Ranger protection too, and I'm pretty sure Earth would agree. But the whole team can't be in two places at once--"

"Split the team," Zhane interrupted. "We're not one team anymore anyway."

"I'd have to agree." TJ sounded a little reluctant, but not uncertain. "Especially after today, there are Kerovan Rangers and there are Earth Rangers. Ashley will have to make her own decision, but we can't ignore the fact that things have changed."

"Especially after today?" Carlos echoed. "What do you mean by that?"

"Cassie gave her morpher to Kerone." TJ's voice was flat, as though his own opinion was irrelevant. Which it was, Zhane supposed. Still, while he wasn't surprised by Cassie's decision, he wouldn't have thought Kerone would go along with it.

"Well," Carlos said, after a moment's pause. "I suppose that makes this more fair. Two votes from Earth and two from KO-35."

"So?" Zhane demanded impatiently. "Are we voting or not?"

"All in favor of splitting the team," TJ declared. "Zhane, Andros, and Kerone become Kerovan Rangers, and Carlos and I continue as Earth Rangers. Ashley decides for herself later. Raise your hand to vote yes."

Zhane lifted his hand, leaving his elbow propped on the table. They knew where he stood. TJ and Carlos raised their hands too, but Kerone shot an uncertain look at Cassie. The other girl just folded her arms, giving Kerone a reassuring smile. After a brief hesitation, Andros' sister slowly held up her hand.

"Well, that was easy," Tessa offered, speaking for the first time.

"KO-35 won't like it," TJ said, lowering his hand with a frown. "They want all the astromorphers defending their planet."

"Tough," Carlos responded. "They're our morphers. Andros gave them to us."

"Will he agree with this decision?" Kerone wanted to know. "I think maybe he wanted to keep the team together, not split it up."

"Andros wants you guys to keep your morphers." Zhane frowned down at the floor, wondering what Andros would say when he found out that they had put Ashley in the uncomfortable position of choosing. "He didn't want us to split up, but he'll go along with it because it means KO-35 has no authority over you anymore."

"Really?" Carlos sounded surprised. "What, just because we say so?"

Zhane lifted his gaze, staring at the Black Ranger curiously. "If you didn't think you could decide for yourself, why did you vote in the first place?"

"So what are we going to say to the Alliance?" TJ asked, into the silence that followed Zhane's question. "And why are they waiting to talk to us when the Kerovan Council didn't bother asking Zhane and Andros?"

"Because the Council is stupid," Zhane muttered under his breath.

There was another silence, until finally Kerone spoke. "Zhane and Ashley and I were talking about that last night," she told TJ. "The Council was wrong not to confer with us. I wasn't convinced the Alliance would do any better, but it looks like they're at least trying. If they'll listen, I think you should tell them what we just decided."

"That the Astro Rangers split up," Carlos agreed. "Now there are two teams, one for Kerova and one for Earth. The Earth Rangers will keep the Power that chose them."

"And the Kerovan Rangers will do the same," Kerone said firmly. "Andros says that's the way it's always worked with the Power Rangers. The Kerovan Council doesn't have any real jurisdiction over the Power, whether the morphers once belonged to them or not."

"Aquitar uses Eltaran morphers," Carlos volunteered. "And so did Earth, once."

"Elisia's morphing crystals are Eltaran," Cassie offered. "Eltare was the first planet to discover how to access the morphing grid. They've been sharing their technology ever since."

"That would be a good thing to mention," Kerone said with a small smile. "If KO-35 is going to blatantly disregard Earth, there's no reason Earth shouldn't make a few pointed comments in return."

"I don't want to turn this into a fight." TJ grabbed one of the stools from underneath the table and sat down, a troubled look on his face. "The morphers are ours, and I don't see that insulting KO-35 is going to make that any more or less true."

"I'm not talking about insulting them," Kerone insisted. "I'm talking about defending your right to be Rangers. If Eltare acknowledges that the Power chooses where it will, regardless of what planet a person is from, then I don't see why KO-35 can't abide by the same rule."

TJ frowned. "It's not us that they're objecting to, exactly. It's not so much that they don't want us to have the Power as it is that they do want their people to have it. It's perfectly understandable for a planet to want a complete Ranger team."

"What's complete?" Kerone retorted. "Zhane and Andros defended KO-35 alone for three years. If the two of them could protect a Border planet in the middle of a war, I don't see why three people can't do just as well during a time of peace."

TJ didn't have any answer for that, but Zhane saw Carlos shrug out of the corner of his eye. "She's got a point," the Black Ranger commented. "I know where you're coming from, TJ, but we can't avoid a fight if we're going to stand up for ourselves. We have to explain why we're not giving up our morphers, to the Alliance if no one else. We can't expect them to defend our decision if we don't tell them why."

"Actually, you can," Cassie interjected. "That's what it means to be an Allied world. But I agree with Carlos. KO-35 started this, and if you don't fight back they'll turn the intergalactic media into their playground."

TJ gave her an amused look. "Is that your professional diplomatic opinion?"

"For whatever it's worth," she agreed, returning his smile. "The Defense can make just as good a case for KO-35, so you'd better give the Alliance as much to work with as you can. It's probably better to get in touch with them sooner rather than later."

Zhane saw TJ and Carlos exchange glances, and he felt compelled to point out, "It would help if you knew what Ashley thinks. If the Earth Rangers are going to take a stand, you should know who the Earth Rangers are."

TJ didn't answer directly, but he gave DECA's camera a sideways glance. "DECA? Any luck finding them?"

"I have not been able to locate them yet, TJ." DECA's camera blinked, as though she were irritated with her own failure. "I have tried contacting both Andros and Ashley again, but I have yet to receive any kind of response."

TJ got to his feet. "Then let's go looking. Cassie, can you check with the Hammonds?" When she nodded, he glanced at Carlos. "If you can ask around the dorm and see if anyone's seen them, that would be great. Maybe her roommate knows something."

"Sure thing," Carlos said quickly. "What about the Surf Spot? Could they have gone there?"

"Tessa and I will check." TJ caught Tessa's eye, and she smiled in agreement. "We'll hit a couple of places around campus, too. I'll call you if we find anything." He saw Cassie's look, and amended, "I'll call Carlos, and he can call DECA. She'll let everyone know."

*Zhane?*

The mental query was so unexpected that he blinked. Glancing Kerone's way, he found her regarding him intently. *I could probably find her, if it's important. Do you think I should offer?*

*Up to you.* It was so easy to forget how capable Kerone really was. *But no, if you want my opinion. I don't. She's probably with Andros. Let them hide if they want to.*

*But you said it would help,* she protested.

*I know what I said.* He switched his glare back to the floor, trying not to think dark thoughts that Kerone might overhear. *It doesn't matter, okay?*

"Want to come?" Cassie was asking, the question apparently directed at Kerone. "You can help me think of a story to tell Ash's parents. Plus if you're there they won't ask me about Saryn so much," she said with a rueful grin.

Kerone smiled back, but her expression was apologetic rather than conspiratorial. "I'd like to help, but I have someone waiting for me on KO-35. I'll be late if I stay much longer."

Zhane looked up in surprise, but Cassie didn't bat an eye. "Have fun, then," she told the other girl warmly. "And call me sometime, okay? We should get together."

"I'd like that," Kerone agreed sincerely. "Say hi to Saryn for me."

"I will," Cassie promised.

"See you later, Kerone," TJ added. "Thanks for helping us out today."

Carlos nodded to her. "Take care."

"You too," Kerone said, still smiling. "All of you." She didn't move, clearly waiting on their departure before she made her own.

"DECA?" TJ asked, looking up at her camera. "You know where we're going?"

"It is safe to say that I recall the conversation in far greater detail than you," DECA replied. "Teleporting."

Zhane felt a smirk tug at his expression when he saw outrage flicker across TJ's face just before he disappeared. The Blue Ranger would probably spend all afternoon thinking up a retort. There were days when Zhane would have taken it upon himself to put the computer in her place, whether the remark had been directed at him or not, but today wasn't one of them.

He didn't forget Kerone's reason for not participating, though, and he gave her a curious look. "Who are you meeting on KO-35?" he asked. He hoped he didn't sound as resentful as he felt. It seemed like everyone had something in particular they wanted to be doing lately--and people they wanted to be doing it with.

"Some friends from the agrec crew," she said, studying him. "There's a hay party tonight. I want you to come."

He wasn't sure he'd heard her right. "Excuse me?"

"I want you to come with me," she said patiently. "I think you'd have fun."

She had never invited anyone but Ashley to go with her when she visited her spring friends. For so he had come to think of them: seasonal friends that only existed in the abstract. She'd worked on an agri reclamation site for several months, but she rarely mentioned the people she'd met there. She returned for periodic visits, but she had never asked him or Andros to accompany her.

"Sure," he said, before she could change her mind. "I'd love to go."

Kerone smiled, holding out her hand. "Then come on. I don't want to miss anything."

***

The desert was starting to come alive as she stepped out of the shuttleport, the intense heat of the afternoon beginning to fade into evening's pleasant warmth. Sunset was still far in the future, though, and it was a dramatic change from the night that had hung heavily over Angel Grove by the time Cassie left. She could feel her drowsiness lightening as she set out for the outskirts of town, tucking her Ranger ID into the pocket of her jeans and smiling absently at passersby.

She had meant to return before Saryn, knowing that he wouldn't be happy to come home and find nothing but a message flashing on the vid screen. Looking for Ashley had taken longer than anyone expected, however, and ultimately it had proved unsuccessful. The only clue they had managed to garner was the testimony of her roommate, who reported that Ashley had left early that morning in the company of a boy with long, highlighted hair.

Neither she nor Andros had been heard from since, and eventually TJ and Carlos went ahead and contacted the Alliance without her. The organization took the news of the team's split in stride, and their approval gave the decision a ring of legitimacy that Cassie suspected both of them had been looking for. The Alliance had recorded their statement, but they didn't say whether it would be played during the official rebuttal of KO-35's broadcast or held until later.

Cassie and Tessa had let the boys treat them to dinner afterward, and despite the circumstances there had been something of a celebratory atmosphere. Carlos had left to call Aura as soon as they finished, but he rejoined them when Tessa suggested a movie and he accompanied them to the park for ice cream afterward. After three months offplanet the movie had been more of a novelty than anything else, but Cassie found that she had missed ice cream.

The Ranger compound was starting to stir by the time she reached it, and the doors to the community center had been thrown open to catch the evening breeze. She wandered in, noting idly that Shei had been fingerpainting again. Child-size handprints covered one of the tables and some of the surrounding floor, and there was a blanket with similar designs hanging near the door to dry. Neither the artist nor her parents were anywhere to be seen, however, and Cassie wondered if one of the Rangers was cooking tonight.

She spent an indecisive moment gazing out into the courtyard, trying to remember whether she should know the answer to that without checking. Eventually, as much out of a desire to postpone the confrontation with Saryn as real curiosity, she went over to investigate the list posted behind the buffet counter. The evening's slot was blank, although Raine had promised to make a walk-through treat before bedtime.

She looked up at the sound of the door chime, glancing around in time to see Kyril pace into the community center. It was his wont to touch the chime upon entering, for his bare feet made no noise on the hard floor. His brother often complained that he was going to scare someone to death sneaking up on them unintentionally, so the Blue Ranger made the effort to alert others to his presence.

Cassie smiled in greeting before turning back to the list, knowing he wasn't likely to speak unless he had come specifically to see her. A moment later, though, she heard a tap on the counter behind her, and she turned to see Kyril leaning casually against it. His gaze was directed over her shoulder at the meal board, but his eyes wandered until they seemed to meet hers entirely by accident.

"Saryn was looking for you," he remarked. He held himself so still that he barely seemed to breathe, but his tone was perfectly normal.

She smiled again, wondering if that meant that Saryn had interrogated everyone in the compound in her absence. "Good," she said lightly. "I'm looking for him too."

"He's across the way," Kyril told her, his gaze sliding away as he straightened up. He moved around the counter, heading for the kitchen without another word. She passed him as she started for the door and it was like passing a ghost. There was a brief fluctuation of air, but nothing more.

"Across the way" could mean almost anything, but she assumed he would have said if Saryn were with one of the others. She probably would have been safer if he had been; Saryn didn't like causing a scene. She wondered if the fact that he hadn't tried to contact her since he'd realized she was gone was good or bad.

The courtyard was welcoming in the way that all familiar places are after an absence, no matter how brief, and Cassie smiled involuntarily as she realized how quickly this place had become her home. She wasn't on vacation, as she had pretended at first, or enjoying it only because Saryn did. She was truly happy here, with friends and their families giving the community a sense of permanence.

She picked up one of Shei's toys and set it under the shaded promenade, where the sun wouldn't fade the colors so quickly, and took a deep breath before heading inside. The door was open and the scent of dinner greeted her the moment she stepped through, both good and normal signs. She was probably making this into more than it was, but then, that had always been Saryn's specialty.

He was standing behind the counter by the stove when she came in. His eyes were fixed on something outside the windows, or maybe he was just staring off into the distance. The intensity of his gaze made it hard to tell sometimes. He didn't turn at her entrance, though he must have known she was there.

Cassie hooked her fingers into the back pockets of her jeans and wandered over to the counter. There was nothing on the stove, but the smell was stronger here and she sniffed appreciatively. "Mmm," she said, watching him out of the corner of her eye while she hunted for the source of the aroma. "Smells good!"

Saryn turned around at last, and his eyes were hooded when he pinned his gaze on her. "You deceived me."

She suppressed a sigh. "Yeah," she agreed, not bothering to argue his conclusion. It was true, after all. A random thought occurred to her then and she was hard-pressed not to smile. "Think how handy that will be on your birthday."

He studied her for a moment. Then, to her surprise, his gaze softened and he looked away. "You could have told me where you were going," he said quietly.

"I thought it would be better if you didn't worry," she offered, feeling awkward all of a sudden. He wasn't angry, just... tired. He was letting other people's problems hound him again, and there wasn't a thing she could do about it.

"We have had this conversation before," he replied, catching her eye. There was a gentle amusement in his voice as he searched her expression. "When we first met... do you remember?"

Still a little off balance, Cassie could only shake her head.

"Not knowing does not make one worry any less," he prompted, clearly expecting her to recognize the statement. "It's not comforting to not know--it's torture."

Her eyes widened. "How do you remember that?" she blurted, unable to keep from smiling as she thought back to that day on the Megaship. "And why does your ability for total recall only apply to things that are inconvenient for me?"

His lips curved in response. "I would hardly share things that weaken my side of the argument," he pointed out. "You have enough of an advantage already."

Relieved to see him so relaxed, she put her elbows on the counter and leaned across it conspiratorially. "You're right," she admitted. "I should have told you."

He echoed her posture, putting his face inches from hers. "You will remember that next time?"

She nodded, and Saryn smiled again. He kissed her once, then drew back to gaze into her eyes again. "I'm glad you're home," he said simply.

She smiled back. "Me too." Cocking her head, she added, "So what's for dinner?"

"Dinner?" he repeated, blinking innocently at her.

She laughed, delighted with his expression. "What, are you going to send me to bed without food?"

Still leaning on the counter, he smirked at her. "That's an idea," he agreed, his gaze trailing suggestively over her upper body. "Are you making promises?"

She leaned closer again, inviting his kiss, and he pressed his mouth to hers hungrily. Cassie closed her eyes and surrendered to the heat and passion behind that kiss, a smoldering desire that he had let burn openly ever since he realized she matched him want for want, need for need. Sometimes it seemed strange to think that they had become lovers before they had been friends, but at times like this she knew exactly how it had happened.

"Still want dinner?" Saryn breathed, kissing his way down to her neck. She tilted her head to the side, knowing she should say "yes" for his sake but unable to make herself voice the word.

"I fail to comprehend why you think I would want to eat when you do not," he murmured, obviously sensing her conflict. "Dinner will keep."

"But I want to know," she said with a sigh, pulling back far enough to catch his eye. "What happened today? Did you see the news?"

He gazed back at her for a long moment, until finally a rueful smile crept onto his face. "Why don't you get out the dishes," he suggested, giving her hair a last caress as he straightened up. "We will eat while you explain to me what possessed you to give your astromorpher to Kerone, and then, if it's a good explanation and you're very lucky, I will tell you what happened here."

She couldn't keep from giggling as she pushed away from the counter and came around the end to join him. "You'd better be nice to me," she threatened, rummaging around in the storage space under the counter. "I'm going to cut your hair after dinner."

"You think you're going to cut my hair," he countered, not missing a beat. "This morning I thought I was married to the Pink Astro Ranger, and as it happens we are both wrong."

Cassie paused, watching him fill their bowls. "Does it bother you?"

He glanced over his shoulder, giving her an arch look. "The thought of you cutting my hair? Would I tease you so much if it did? Your motivation is transparent."

She laughed as she stepped away from the counter and followed him over to the corner windows. "I meant the morpher. Does it bother you that I gave it to Kerone?"

"I didn't want it," he replied, passing her a bowl as he sat down.

"Tell me," she insisted. "I want to know how you feel about it."

He hesitated, contemplating his food. It was several moments before he answered, and she started eating while she waited for his response. It sometimes amused her that she could stump him like this at home when he had never once been at a loss in front of others. It was part of being an empath, she supposed, that he could be better with other people's feelings than with his own.

"I feel relieved," he said at last, looking up. "It is selfish, but you seem somehow--closer, now. But..." He paused again, studying her expression. "I worry that perhaps you have done this more for me than for yourself."

She smiled, not surprised that he had seen through her. "I did it for myself months ago," she assured him. "Now I'm doing it for you. Because I want to, not because I'm making some big sacrifice."

"I appreciate the gesture," he murmured, not taking his eyes off of her. "You have given up much to be with me."

Cassie swallowed another bite and frowned over at him. "I've gotten a lot more than I've given up," she informed him. "Same as you. If you get all guilty on me I'm going to spend the night at Mirine's."

A smile flickered across his face, and the tension in his shoulders relaxed. "Which will also keep your scissors safely away from my hair," he pointed out. "Perhaps it is not such a bad idea after all."

She smirked back at him. "If that's what you really want."

"Stop looking at me like that," he complained, shifting restlessly. "It wasn't my idea to have dinner first. If I let down my shields you would not be so complacent."

"I can block as well as you can," Cassie reminded him, grinning. "Plus the rest of the compound would kill you."

He gave her a look she couldn't interpret, but it was fleeting and he sighed in apparent surrender. "Very well. Let us exchange information and be done with it, then. Why Kerone?"

She blinked, surprised by his abrupt solemnity. It took her a moment to formulate an answer, and she ended up telling him the same thing she had told Kerone. "Because she deserves it. Because I trust her and I think she'd make a good Ranger.

"Besides," she added as an afterthought. "I think the others need her. Maybe having a morpher will give her another reason to stay with them."

Saryn seemed to consider that, and it struck her suddenly that he was sitting in a particularly flattering patch of sunlight. He had probably done it on purpose. Or at least "accidentally on purpose", which seemed to be the way diplomats did everything. If there was one thing she had learned about his profession, it was that nothing was ever as coincidental as it seemed.

"That is very insightful," he said at last, and it took her a moment to remember what he was talking about. "You think she can hold the Kerovan team together?"

Cassie shrugged, gazing idly at Saryn's fingers on the bowl in front of him. "I don't really know. But Andros has a better chance of keeping Ashley with Kerone than without her, and Kerone will keep Zhane from giving up if Andros doesn't stop ignoring him." Saryn's grip was loose now, but she knew it could turn possessive in a heartbeat.

She could feel him regarding her curiously. "Your visit to Earth included time for a thorough psychoanalysis, it seems. Did you deduce all of this in just a few hours?"

She gave her head a shake. "Just a guess... Zhane's pretty depressed. And I know Ashley and Kerone were awfully close this summer. I think I may have been replaced," she added, trying to laugh but distracted by the way Saryn's shirt clung to his shoulders.

Saryn said nothing, but his bright eyes were dark when she lifted her gaze to his. Her eyes widened as she realized what was happening. "You--you sneak!" she sputtered, grabbing a pillow from the chair behind her and throwing it at him as hard as she could. "You're doing that on purpose!"

He deflected the pillow easily, and the grin on his face told her all she needed to know. "You underestimated me," he reminded her, as though it had been a slight of tremendous proportions. "I have no need to broadcast to the entire compound when you are sitting right in front of me."

She closed her eyes, concentrating on blocking his desire from her mind, but the damage had been done. She wanted him, and she wanted him right now. She gritted her teeth, unwilling to give in so easily. "At least tell me what the Defense said," she insisted, not opening her eyes.

She felt him moving closer, and was not surprised to feel a feather-soft kiss on her neck a moment later. "Linnse was predictably horrified by your choice of successors," he murmured, kissing her again. His hands slid across her shoulders, trailing gently down her arms. "I believe Tobin was secretly impressed by your actions. Overall, you have greatly simplified the position of the Defense."

For a long moment, he devoted his attention to kissing rather than speaking, and she would almost have forgiven him for leaving it at that. But he must have known what she was most curious about, for he paused long enough to whisper, "They will be able to focus on containing Kerova, rather than defending you and diverting an internal struggle between KO-35 and Elisia."

She sighed, more from his ministrations than his words. "Good," she murmured, lifting one hand to slide it through his hair and draw him closer. He came willingly, pressing against her back and banishing all other thoughts from her mind. For now there was only the two of them, a forgotten dinner, and all the time in the world.

***

The evening stars had long since set, replaced by midnight skies and eventually the constellations of predawn, but the bonfires burned on and the volume of the music had yet to abate. With hovers parked in every corner of the recently hayed field, the stereo sound was inescapable and occasionally deafening, but no one seemed to mind. One of the advantages of agri reclamation was that neighbors were all but nonexistent.

Sprawled across the back of a trailer, Kerone felt someone nudge her shoulder. She rolled over to find Tevi nodding in the same direction she had been staring a moment earlier. "Is he with you?" the other girl wanted to know, settling down on the trailer bed beside her.

She didn't have to look to know whom Tevi meant. "Yes," she said simply, relaxing again as she gazed up into the heavens. The stars twinkled and beckoned, but not as strongly as they sometimes did. Here she was free, cut off from responsibility and unencumbered by the needs of others. Why run from herself when she could run from everyone else?

"The Silver Ranger," Tevi murmured, as though talking to herself.

Kerone stiffened anyway, reacting involuntarily to any mention of the Rangers. *Everyone except Zhane,* she amended her earlier thought. She had brought him with the belief that if there was anyone who needed to get away right now, it was Zhane. In doing so, though, she had effectively erased any anonymity she might still have enjoyed on the agrec crew.

Tevi's voice intruded on her musings once again, with a question that could have any number of uncomfortable implications. "Can I ask you something?"

For a moment, Kerone considered saying no. She came here to get away from questions, not answer more. But hearing the question didn't mean she had to answer, and she couldn't help but be curious, so she agreed.

"Why didn't you tell us who you are?" Tevi asked bluntly.

Kerone didn't move. "Does it matter?"

Tevi was quiet for a moment, but at length she chuckled. "I guess not," she admitted, a grin in her voice when she added, "Mud is a great equalizer."

There was another pause, and then Tevi remarked more seriously, "It doesn't matter now, but it might have then."

Kerone nodded once, still gazing up at the sky. "That's why I didn't tell you."

"So why do you disguise your appearance, but not his?" Tevi wanted to know.

She smiled to herself, amused by the other girl's assumption. "How do you know I'm disguising my appearance?"

"I've seen you on the news," Tevi said, a hint of reproach in her voice. "I know what you look like."

"How do you know that's not the disguise?" Kerone countered. The stars winked back at her, seeming to share her good humor. "How do you know this isn't what I really look like?"

Tevi had no answer for that, and Kerone smiled again. Rolling over on her side, she sought out Zhane with her eyes. He was easy to spot, his white-blonde hair shining brighter in the firelight than his silver clothes. She found it ironic that he blended in better on Earth than he did on KO-35; he looked more "native" there than here on the planet where he'd been born.

"Sorry about my twin," Tevi offered abruptly.

Zhane was playing one of the less decent drinking games with someone Kerone didn't recognize, but with Tevi's words the resemblance became clear. She scrutinized the face as best she could through the shadows and the crowd, trying to remember if Tevi had ever mentioned siblings. "That's your twin?"

"That's Ty," Tevi confirmed. "No matter how many times I try to disown him, he just keeps coming back. He probably didn't see Zhane arrive with you--I'll tell him to back off if you want."

"No," Kerone said absently. "It's all right." Zhane actually seemed to be enjoying himself for the first time all day. That was worth something in and of itself. Without taking her eyes off of him she told Tevi, "We're not exclusive. He can kiss whoever he wants."

Zhane lost again, and when he turned to down his drink he caught her gaze on him. She didn't know what he told Ty, but moments later he was making his way toward her. The trailer shifted under his weight as he climbed up beside them, settling himself with a boneless grace that gave away his intoxicated state even before he opened his mouth. Zhane was usually clumsy on purpose, evincing grace only when he was too distracted to think straight. She had never seen him drunk before, but it didn't surprise her that he would find a way to make even that unusual.

"Hi, Astrea," he announced, grinning at her before switching his attention to Tevi. "Don't I know you from somewhere?"

"You know my twin," Tevi informed him. "Whom I'm going to go rescue him before he decides he can play Lunar Twist alone. Nice to meet you, Zhane."

The trailer bobbed again as she slid off, and Zhane just shook his head. "She says that like playing alone is a bad thing," he observed. "Just think, you could flip a coin to see whether you won or lost. Which is basically what you have to do anyway," he added, frowning a little.

Kerone had to smile. "You look like you're having fun," she commented, as he tipped his head back to regard the stars momentarily. "What's Ty like? I've never met him."

Zhane shrugged, lowering his gaze and letting it slide restlessly from her to the nearby bonfire and back again. "He's cool," he said, reverting to Earth slang. "He's not Andros, but he's a cool guy."

Kerone blinked, amused by the comparison of Andros to someone with whom Zhane had been playing Lunar Twist. Not that she didn't think her brother could be bullied into it, but the thought of him going up against Zhane made her giggle. She would have to remember to tell Ashley later. Maybe even Andros--her stoic brother didn't laugh nearly enough anymore.

"Hey, we're all alone," Zhane realized. He seemed oblivious to her humor. "That's convenient. Can I kiss you?"

He didn't wait for her answer, but she pushed him away before he could touch her. "You smell like alcohol," she told him firmly. "No kissing."

He pulled an expression remarkably similar to a pout, and she almost laughed again. She wasn't going to tell him what she thought of alcohol unless he asked, but she also wasn't going to put up with drunken intimacy. "You don't want to kiss me," she said, softening her tone a little. "You just want to kiss."

Zhane frowned at her. "How do you know? And what do you want, anyway? You never tell me."

"Maybe that's because I don't know," she responded, trying to gauge his reaction through the exaggeration of his expression. "But I don't feel like finding out right now.

"Do you want to go home?" she added belatedly. She probably should have asked before, but she hadn't wanted to pull him away from the party. "It's getting late. It's already after sunrise in Keyota."

"I don't care about Keyota," Zhane said, frowning. "You go if you want to. I'm staying here."

She stared after him as he jumped off of the trailer and walked away. She didn't know what to think of that. Since when did he not care about Keyota? Since when was he irresponsible enough to get drunk and then turn down a ride home? Since when did *he* walk away from *her*?

Ty had found a new conversation partner by now, but even from where she was Kerone could see his face light up when the Silver Ranger came his way again. Another question occurred to her, and it dampened her indignation over Zhane's behavior. Since when does Zhane have friends outside of the Rangers?

When she thought about it, she couldn't come up with any other person he consistently spent time with. He was arguably the most social of any of them, yet out of deference to Andros he had formed few lasting friendships outside of the team. She wondered if it had been like that before, on Rayven when they two had been the only Rangers--

Her eyes widened as comprehension dawned. Not only would it have been like that before, Zhane was acting as though it was *still* like that. He had befriended the "new" Astro Rangers, certainly, but he treated Andros like the other half of a team of two. He backed Andros in everything, supported every decision he made, and dropped whatever he was doing at the Red Ranger's whim. He was giving all of himself to a teammate who no longer gave it all back, and she doubted he even realized what was happening.

She wondered if introducing Zhane to the agrec crew would prevent or hasten a final, angry confrontation between the two Rangers.

"Ty will make sure he gets back safely," someone said from behind her. She hadn't heard Tevi return, but she managed not to start at the sound of her voice. "If you want out," Tevi continued, "I have a room back at the hostel."

Kerone looked over her shoulder and found Tevi leaning against the front of the trailer, resting her chin on her arms as she contemplated their surroundings. "You're sure?" she asked, and Tevi's eyes snapped back to her. "About Ty?" she elaborated.

"I know my brother," Tevi answered without hesitation. "He's lonely--his boyfriend was killed in the war--but he's a good person. He'll make sure your boy doesn't get hurt."

Your boy. She couldn't help but smile at Tevi's choice of words. "I'll take you up on that, then," she said, stifling a yawn as she stretched. She swung her legs over the side of the trailer and looked at Tevi expectantly. "I've had enough of this party."

Tevi tilted her head to the side in invitation, and Kerone hopped down to follow her across the field. Vehicles still encircled the bonfires and lined the dirt roads, and the fields probably wouldn't be empty of people until after dawn. She glanced back once, but Zhane and Ty were already lost in the dance of the firelight and the pounding hover music.

fin