**************************************************************
The Second Chances Saga: Fandom: Power Rangers/ Alternate Universes (duh!) Notes: This story takes place before they lose the Dinozords. Zack has moved to Iowa, and Adam took his place. There was no Peace Conference. It is loosely based on Karen Davis' BLUE YONDER, (I guess it's one of the five universes Jason never made it to.) and that concept is used with her permission.
Disclaimers: I don't own the Power Rangers, Zordon, Zords, Angel Grove, Ernie's or any of Saban's other properties. If I did, I can guarantee you it wouldn't be a kiddie show. I also don't own Storm Quest, Temblor or the Time Shard. They belong to my buddies over at Sky Comics. (Joe- Just be glad I left Seeker alone-) The rest is all from my own twisted mind, and that of my best friend Kim Nichols-Hornbuckle. This is slash fiction. If you don't like guys in love with each other- run as far and as fast as you can. I'm always open to constructive criticism. I can be reached at cobalt- blue@rocketmail.com
Tommy pulled into the parking lot of the AGHS gym, looked over at Kim and forced himself not suddenly go all gushy and sigh. She was wearing a nice pink evening dress, cut low enough to be interesting while remaining within the boundaries of good taste- barely. The sight of her sent chills down his spine. They were the good kind of chills and made him realize just how badly he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. She returned the smile and asked, "What?"
He grinned at her, pulling at the tie that was too tight around his throat, and replied, "I was just thinking how beautiful, kind and sweet you are, and just how lucky I am to have you."
She seemed to vibrate with pleasure at his words and he made a mental note to remember that, and to do something like it again. Engaging the emergency brake and removing the keys, he came around to the other side of the Jeep and helped her out. Getting out of the car she said, "You're sweet. And thank you."
Taking her arm, he gently escorted through the doors, presenting their tickets to the chaperone. He almost did a double take when he realized it was Mr. Cranston. "Hello, Tommy," Billy's dad said and nodded toward Kim, "Kimberly."
Kim grinned, "Hello Mr. Cranston. Are Billy and Jason here yet?"
Mr. Cranston shook his head, "No, not yet. Jason's car is in being repaired, and Billy had to pick him up in the radbug." He grinned at Kimberly, "By the way, thank you for taking him shopping. I almost didn't recognize him when he came into the living room this evening. It's amazing how much difference a few small changes can make."
"It was nothing, I just took him to get his haircut. The person you should really thank is Kyle. He's the one who helped him pick out the wardrobe."
Tommy saw Ms. Stone approaching them with two cups of punch. She was wearing a long teal dress, all tied up in ribbons and bows, and she had her hair neatly waved and permed. He then realized that he was surprised to see the woman wearing anything other than her usual jeans, and a functional blouse, with her hair pulled back in a ponytail.
Mr. Cranston smiled and said, "I'll have to remember to do something nice for your new friend then."
"Hello children," Ms. Stone greeted them. As she handed Mr. Cranston the punch she added, "Here you go, Edmund."
Mr. Cranston actually smiled at her as he replied, "Thank you, Murphy."
"Hello, Ms. Stone," he and Kim said in unison.
"Good to see you could make it tonight," she gestured toward the back corner, "several of the others are already here."
"Thank you, ma'am." Tommy told her as he led Kimberly toward the group of other Rangers.
"Hey guys," Kimberly said cheerfully at his side as they got within speaking distance.
Adam and Kyle both smiled up at them, "Hey Kimberly," they said in unison. Adam was wearing a black dinner jacket and waistcoat over a gray turtleneck and black slacks. Tommy noted with a smirk that Kyle was wearing a black tux jacket, a bolo tie, with a yellow waistcoat along with a pair of blue jeans and cowboy boots. On anybody else, the outfit would look ridiculous, but Kyle somehow managed to pull it off with style.
"You two made up I take it?" Kimberly asked quietly.
Kyle looked over at Adam and both boys blushed, "we're working on it," Adam said.
"Yes'm we sho 'nuff are," Kyle said in his deepest Appalachian accent, "we're gettin' 'long like a couple houn'dawg pups wit' a new bone." He gave her a huge grin and everyone laughed at Kyle's attempt of making light of the things said a week ago.
"You keep that up Bro and we'll never let you live it down," Tommy told him with a smile.
"I'll keep that in mind Tom," he smiled and leaned back. Tommy wondered about his use of the shorter, more adult version of his name. "I was just taking this opportunity to get to know some of the other team members." He shook his head, "It's going to get really confusin' with two of every color on the team."
"I've been considering that myself," Adam said. "I've noticed something about our incarnation of the team,"
"What's that?" Tom asked.
"We don't have to vocalize to summon our armor."
Kimberly looked around to as if to insure that nobody was listening before she asked, "You mean no more holding the morpher to the sky and calling our 'zord?"
Adam nodded, "When we fought StormQuest, I noticed that Billy didn't say a word, he just summoned his armor and went at them."
"Well, at least that'll keep us from accidentally calling the wrong 'zord," Tommy replied. "But, it still doesn't solve the problem of how to tell us apart."
"That's easy," Kyle said.
"Oh?" Tommy asked.
Kyle grinned widely, "We stitch all our names on the front of our uniforms."
They all laughed and Tommy looked to where Kyle and Zack were high- fiving each other, and realized just how wrong all of them had been with their unconscious assessment of the new Yellow Ranger. He shook his head and gave Zack a hard look, "You've known him for less than two weeks and you've already corrupted him."
"Hey," Zack protested, "the boy's got natural talent." They all laughed and Tommy realized that the addition of five new Rangers might work out well after all.
"Oh my goodness," Kat said holding her hand to her mouth.
Turning in the direction of where she was looking, Tommy saw his best friend calmly walking onto the dance floor with Billy in tow as a slow dance was just starting to play. Jase was wearing a black suit with a blue string tie and crimson waistcoat, while Billy had on an identical suit except his waistcoat was cobalt blue. The gym suddenly fell silent, as the two boys began to dance close to each other, leaving no question as to the affection they felt for each other. As he was pulled onto the floor by Kimberly, he silently wondered about who was leading.
The part of his mind that was the Green Ranger automatically noticed several of the line backers on the school football team seemed to be talking in whispered tones with each other in one corner. Half way through the song, Adam and Kyle quietly strode onto the dance floor hand in hand. In just a matter of seconds, the rest of both teams joined them: Kat and Rocky, Zack and Aisha, and Tanya was dragging some poor guy she'd seen sitting quietly in the corner with her. He smiled to himself at the girl's audacity. She wanted to dance, so she didn't wait until she was asked. She just grabbed a partner and headed toward the floor.
"I think Mr. Kaplan is about to flip his wig," Kimberly said in his ear. "Nobody thought to warn him about Jase and Billy."
"Well, if you see Jason before I do, tell him not to let Billy go anywhere by himself," Tommy told him. "Carty and his bunch don't look too happy about what they're seeing, and although they're bright enough not to try and take on Jase, they'd be more than willing to jump Billy."
He felt Kimberly nod against his shoulder. He knew that she had no illusions about what Jase, Billy, Adam, and Kyle just did. It would change their status at school a great deal. It helped that Jason was well known as a black belt, but Billy didn't have that kind of reputation. Kimberly pulled back from him, "I think Ms. Stone had a talk with them about this."
"What did she tell them?" Tommy asked.
"That, they should be honest, but careful too. This may be California, but there are still plenty of people out there who might not like the idea of two guys dancing together at a high school gathering." Kimberly told him.
"What do you think Kaplan will do?" Tommy asked.
"Nothing if he's smart." Kimberly held him tighter, "Ms. Stone told me that if he tries to ban them from attending these functions that Billy and Jase can take him to court and lately the law suits have been expensive for that kind of thing."
The dance was over too soon for Tommy's taste. He liked being able hold Kim close and dance with her, not that he'd ever tell her that. Joining the rest of the team back in the corner, he pulled Jason aside, "Bro, what ever you do, don't let Billy go off by himself." He indicated where the football players were leaving, "Carty and his buddies don't seem too impressed by your choice of dance partners tonight."
"They really don't want to go there," there was something dark in Jason's voice. Looking down to where the Red Ranger was holding his cup, he saw that Jason's knuckles were skinned.
"Something already happen tonight?" Tommy asked warily nodding down to his friend's hand.
Jason looked down and smiled, "Only if you count busting my hand on the engine block of Billy's radbug." He grinned widely, "Luckily Dad took pity on us. He let me drive the Dodge."
Tommy whistled, "You've got your Dad's Viper? Man, he babies that thing like there's no tomorrow. How'd you swing that?"
Jason grinned, "Honestly? I think it's because it doesn't have a back seat." Both boys laughed at the implications of that.
"How're things going with you and Billy?" Tommy asked carefully.
Jason smiled hugely, and Tommy realized just how happy his friend had become since he and Billy had started dating. It was almost as if something was in place that had always been missing but nobody knew it. "Great. It's funny, I've always known that I loved Billy, it just took being hit upside the head with a 'zord to get me to realize what kind of love it is."
"Scott," Coach Martin's voice came from behind them. Tommy and Jason turned to see the man standing with his arms crossed. "I'd like a word with you."
Jason shrugged and put down his cup and said, "Right away Coach." Looking over at Tommy, he said, "I'll be right back." Then, he walked over to where the larger man was waiting.
Tommy couldn't hear what they were saying, but he could tell it was intense. After several exchanges between them, Tommy noticed Jason's fists starting to clench and unclench. Finally, Jason stomped off toward the door saying loud enough for half the gym to hear, "Fine, if that's the way they want it then they can find a new quarterback."
Tommy and Billy headed out after him. Clearing the door, Tommy felt someone grab him from the side and sling him against the wall. Before he knew what was happening, he felt an explosion of pain in his ribs as a fist slammed him harder against the wall. Looking up, he saw that two of Carty's friend's were trying to hold him against the wall, while one of the larger defensive guards was preparing to punch him again- this time in the face.
Reflexively, he twisted his head to the side, and felt the wind of the punch as defensive guard's fist slammed into the concrete wall behind him. Bracing himself against the boys who were holding him, he snapped kicked the guy in the groin, followed by a round-house kick to the ribs. Before anyone else could react, he kicked his feet out and came back with a double back-kick to the knees of his captors.
Feeling himself released, he grabbed each of the boys holding their knees by the collar and rammed their heads into the wall. Turning back around, he saw the defensive guard saying hello to his dinner for the second time tonight. Looking around he saw Billy standing over the writhing forms of two offensive guards. Both boys were holding their knees in pain, and Billy was looking to where Jason, was standing back to back with of all people Bulk and Skull, as what was left of the offensive and defensive lines were surrounding them. "So much for Carty being smart," Tommy said.
He watched in amazement as Billy charged toward his lover screaming like a banshee. Feeling somewhat chagrined by his timid friend's reaction, he joined him half a beat later. The fight was short and brutal, and Tommy could swear that Billy was drawing on the Power to fight. He sure the hell was more like his Blue Ranger self than the young genius. More frightening was the fierce look of protectiveness in his eyes, as he dropped one of the bigger guys with a vicious series of kidney punches. The guy was about to bean Jason from behind.
"I think that's quite enough of that," Ms. Stone's voice cut through the night. Tommy smiled to himself realizing that she was right. Nobody was left standing.
"I thought I might better check on what was going on out here when you didn't come back in." She smiled up at the cameras mounted to the outside wall, "I think we've enough lighting out here to clear you of any charges."
Jason turned and offered a hand Bulk, "Thanks man. I appreciate the assist."
Bulk just smiled and looked at the hand but didn't take it. "Like I said, congratulations. But I still think you're a bunch of geeks." Then he took the hand.
**********************************************************
"I understand that you didn't start the fight, and were only defending yourself, but you do have a responsibility to avoid situations where you might find yourself involved in a fight," Mr. Kaplan told them. Leaning back, he looked at Jason, and Billy before continuing, "You two are going to have to realize that if you are going to be out of the closet, you'll have to expect this kind of thing.'
"No sir," Kyle interjected with a hardness in his voice that cut through Jase like a knife.
"Excuse me, Mr. Kerry?" Mr. Kaplan was surprised that one of his students was willing to disagree with him.
"No sir, we don't have to expect this kind of thing. We have to, and DO expect to be safe at school. We have the same rights as any other students, it's part of YOUR job to make sure we are safe." He looked back at Billy, Jase, and Adam, "Billy, Jason, and Adam don't deserve to go through being beaten, and kicked just because they're gay." Jason noted that their new friend didn't include himself in that list.
Jason had never seen anyone stand up to Mr. Kaplan quite that way. It was against his nature to challenge someone in charge, and he knew that the others felt pretty much the same way. Kyle evidently was just a little different. He wasn't being disrespectful, just forceful. "I think Kyle has a point, Mr. Kaplan." Jason told the Principal. "None of us deserve to be attacked, and although we don't want to fight, we WILL defend ourselves."
"And each other," Billy said quietly.
Mr. Kaplan leaned across his desk, "You're right, you don't deserve to be attacked, and if I find out about it, I'll take all the steps the board will allow me to, but understand this. You three," he pointed to Jason, Billy, and Tommy, "are on probation. Any more fighting and I'll be forced to suspend you." He looked over at Kyle, "As for you, this is your first week here so I'm willing to cut you some slack. I don't know how things were done at your old school, but here we show a little more respect for the administration of the school."
Kyle smiled, "Yes sir. No disrespect was intended."
Mr. Kaplan, "Then don't try to tell me how to do my job."
"Now all of you, get out of here," the man told them.
The Second Chances Saga: Fandom: Power Rangers/ Alternate Universes (duh!) Notes: This story takes place before they lose the Dinozords. Zack has moved to Iowa, and Adam took his place. There was no Peace Conference. It is loosely based on Karen Davis' BLUE YONDER, (I guess it's one of the five universes Jason never made it to.) and that concept is used with her permission.
Disclaimers: I don't own the Power Rangers, Zordon, Zords, Angel Grove, Ernie's or any of Saban's other properties. If I did, I can guarantee you it wouldn't be a kiddie show. I also don't own Storm Quest, Temblor or the Time Shard. They belong to my buddies over at Sky Comics. (Joe- Just be glad I left Seeker alone-) The rest is all from my own twisted mind, and that of my best friend Kim Nichols-Hornbuckle. This is slash fiction. If you don't like guys in love with each other- run as far and as fast as you can. I'm always open to constructive criticism. I can be reached at cobalt- blue@rocketmail.com
Tommy pulled into the parking lot of the AGHS gym, looked over at Kim and forced himself not suddenly go all gushy and sigh. She was wearing a nice pink evening dress, cut low enough to be interesting while remaining within the boundaries of good taste- barely. The sight of her sent chills down his spine. They were the good kind of chills and made him realize just how badly he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. She returned the smile and asked, "What?"
He grinned at her, pulling at the tie that was too tight around his throat, and replied, "I was just thinking how beautiful, kind and sweet you are, and just how lucky I am to have you."
She seemed to vibrate with pleasure at his words and he made a mental note to remember that, and to do something like it again. Engaging the emergency brake and removing the keys, he came around to the other side of the Jeep and helped her out. Getting out of the car she said, "You're sweet. And thank you."
Taking her arm, he gently escorted through the doors, presenting their tickets to the chaperone. He almost did a double take when he realized it was Mr. Cranston. "Hello, Tommy," Billy's dad said and nodded toward Kim, "Kimberly."
Kim grinned, "Hello Mr. Cranston. Are Billy and Jason here yet?"
Mr. Cranston shook his head, "No, not yet. Jason's car is in being repaired, and Billy had to pick him up in the radbug." He grinned at Kimberly, "By the way, thank you for taking him shopping. I almost didn't recognize him when he came into the living room this evening. It's amazing how much difference a few small changes can make."
"It was nothing, I just took him to get his haircut. The person you should really thank is Kyle. He's the one who helped him pick out the wardrobe."
Tommy saw Ms. Stone approaching them with two cups of punch. She was wearing a long teal dress, all tied up in ribbons and bows, and she had her hair neatly waved and permed. He then realized that he was surprised to see the woman wearing anything other than her usual jeans, and a functional blouse, with her hair pulled back in a ponytail.
Mr. Cranston smiled and said, "I'll have to remember to do something nice for your new friend then."
"Hello children," Ms. Stone greeted them. As she handed Mr. Cranston the punch she added, "Here you go, Edmund."
Mr. Cranston actually smiled at her as he replied, "Thank you, Murphy."
"Hello, Ms. Stone," he and Kim said in unison.
"Good to see you could make it tonight," she gestured toward the back corner, "several of the others are already here."
"Thank you, ma'am." Tommy told her as he led Kimberly toward the group of other Rangers.
"Hey guys," Kimberly said cheerfully at his side as they got within speaking distance.
Adam and Kyle both smiled up at them, "Hey Kimberly," they said in unison. Adam was wearing a black dinner jacket and waistcoat over a gray turtleneck and black slacks. Tommy noted with a smirk that Kyle was wearing a black tux jacket, a bolo tie, with a yellow waistcoat along with a pair of blue jeans and cowboy boots. On anybody else, the outfit would look ridiculous, but Kyle somehow managed to pull it off with style.
"You two made up I take it?" Kimberly asked quietly.
Kyle looked over at Adam and both boys blushed, "we're working on it," Adam said.
"Yes'm we sho 'nuff are," Kyle said in his deepest Appalachian accent, "we're gettin' 'long like a couple houn'dawg pups wit' a new bone." He gave her a huge grin and everyone laughed at Kyle's attempt of making light of the things said a week ago.
"You keep that up Bro and we'll never let you live it down," Tommy told him with a smile.
"I'll keep that in mind Tom," he smiled and leaned back. Tommy wondered about his use of the shorter, more adult version of his name. "I was just taking this opportunity to get to know some of the other team members." He shook his head, "It's going to get really confusin' with two of every color on the team."
"I've been considering that myself," Adam said. "I've noticed something about our incarnation of the team,"
"What's that?" Tom asked.
"We don't have to vocalize to summon our armor."
Kimberly looked around to as if to insure that nobody was listening before she asked, "You mean no more holding the morpher to the sky and calling our 'zord?"
Adam nodded, "When we fought StormQuest, I noticed that Billy didn't say a word, he just summoned his armor and went at them."
"Well, at least that'll keep us from accidentally calling the wrong 'zord," Tommy replied. "But, it still doesn't solve the problem of how to tell us apart."
"That's easy," Kyle said.
"Oh?" Tommy asked.
Kyle grinned widely, "We stitch all our names on the front of our uniforms."
They all laughed and Tommy looked to where Kyle and Zack were high- fiving each other, and realized just how wrong all of them had been with their unconscious assessment of the new Yellow Ranger. He shook his head and gave Zack a hard look, "You've known him for less than two weeks and you've already corrupted him."
"Hey," Zack protested, "the boy's got natural talent." They all laughed and Tommy realized that the addition of five new Rangers might work out well after all.
"Oh my goodness," Kat said holding her hand to her mouth.
Turning in the direction of where she was looking, Tommy saw his best friend calmly walking onto the dance floor with Billy in tow as a slow dance was just starting to play. Jase was wearing a black suit with a blue string tie and crimson waistcoat, while Billy had on an identical suit except his waistcoat was cobalt blue. The gym suddenly fell silent, as the two boys began to dance close to each other, leaving no question as to the affection they felt for each other. As he was pulled onto the floor by Kimberly, he silently wondered about who was leading.
The part of his mind that was the Green Ranger automatically noticed several of the line backers on the school football team seemed to be talking in whispered tones with each other in one corner. Half way through the song, Adam and Kyle quietly strode onto the dance floor hand in hand. In just a matter of seconds, the rest of both teams joined them: Kat and Rocky, Zack and Aisha, and Tanya was dragging some poor guy she'd seen sitting quietly in the corner with her. He smiled to himself at the girl's audacity. She wanted to dance, so she didn't wait until she was asked. She just grabbed a partner and headed toward the floor.
"I think Mr. Kaplan is about to flip his wig," Kimberly said in his ear. "Nobody thought to warn him about Jase and Billy."
"Well, if you see Jason before I do, tell him not to let Billy go anywhere by himself," Tommy told him. "Carty and his bunch don't look too happy about what they're seeing, and although they're bright enough not to try and take on Jase, they'd be more than willing to jump Billy."
He felt Kimberly nod against his shoulder. He knew that she had no illusions about what Jase, Billy, Adam, and Kyle just did. It would change their status at school a great deal. It helped that Jason was well known as a black belt, but Billy didn't have that kind of reputation. Kimberly pulled back from him, "I think Ms. Stone had a talk with them about this."
"What did she tell them?" Tommy asked.
"That, they should be honest, but careful too. This may be California, but there are still plenty of people out there who might not like the idea of two guys dancing together at a high school gathering." Kimberly told him.
"What do you think Kaplan will do?" Tommy asked.
"Nothing if he's smart." Kimberly held him tighter, "Ms. Stone told me that if he tries to ban them from attending these functions that Billy and Jase can take him to court and lately the law suits have been expensive for that kind of thing."
The dance was over too soon for Tommy's taste. He liked being able hold Kim close and dance with her, not that he'd ever tell her that. Joining the rest of the team back in the corner, he pulled Jason aside, "Bro, what ever you do, don't let Billy go off by himself." He indicated where the football players were leaving, "Carty and his buddies don't seem too impressed by your choice of dance partners tonight."
"They really don't want to go there," there was something dark in Jason's voice. Looking down to where the Red Ranger was holding his cup, he saw that Jason's knuckles were skinned.
"Something already happen tonight?" Tommy asked warily nodding down to his friend's hand.
Jason looked down and smiled, "Only if you count busting my hand on the engine block of Billy's radbug." He grinned widely, "Luckily Dad took pity on us. He let me drive the Dodge."
Tommy whistled, "You've got your Dad's Viper? Man, he babies that thing like there's no tomorrow. How'd you swing that?"
Jason grinned, "Honestly? I think it's because it doesn't have a back seat." Both boys laughed at the implications of that.
"How're things going with you and Billy?" Tommy asked carefully.
Jason smiled hugely, and Tommy realized just how happy his friend had become since he and Billy had started dating. It was almost as if something was in place that had always been missing but nobody knew it. "Great. It's funny, I've always known that I loved Billy, it just took being hit upside the head with a 'zord to get me to realize what kind of love it is."
"Scott," Coach Martin's voice came from behind them. Tommy and Jason turned to see the man standing with his arms crossed. "I'd like a word with you."
Jason shrugged and put down his cup and said, "Right away Coach." Looking over at Tommy, he said, "I'll be right back." Then, he walked over to where the larger man was waiting.
Tommy couldn't hear what they were saying, but he could tell it was intense. After several exchanges between them, Tommy noticed Jason's fists starting to clench and unclench. Finally, Jason stomped off toward the door saying loud enough for half the gym to hear, "Fine, if that's the way they want it then they can find a new quarterback."
Tommy and Billy headed out after him. Clearing the door, Tommy felt someone grab him from the side and sling him against the wall. Before he knew what was happening, he felt an explosion of pain in his ribs as a fist slammed him harder against the wall. Looking up, he saw that two of Carty's friend's were trying to hold him against the wall, while one of the larger defensive guards was preparing to punch him again- this time in the face.
Reflexively, he twisted his head to the side, and felt the wind of the punch as defensive guard's fist slammed into the concrete wall behind him. Bracing himself against the boys who were holding him, he snapped kicked the guy in the groin, followed by a round-house kick to the ribs. Before anyone else could react, he kicked his feet out and came back with a double back-kick to the knees of his captors.
Feeling himself released, he grabbed each of the boys holding their knees by the collar and rammed their heads into the wall. Turning back around, he saw the defensive guard saying hello to his dinner for the second time tonight. Looking around he saw Billy standing over the writhing forms of two offensive guards. Both boys were holding their knees in pain, and Billy was looking to where Jason, was standing back to back with of all people Bulk and Skull, as what was left of the offensive and defensive lines were surrounding them. "So much for Carty being smart," Tommy said.
He watched in amazement as Billy charged toward his lover screaming like a banshee. Feeling somewhat chagrined by his timid friend's reaction, he joined him half a beat later. The fight was short and brutal, and Tommy could swear that Billy was drawing on the Power to fight. He sure the hell was more like his Blue Ranger self than the young genius. More frightening was the fierce look of protectiveness in his eyes, as he dropped one of the bigger guys with a vicious series of kidney punches. The guy was about to bean Jason from behind.
"I think that's quite enough of that," Ms. Stone's voice cut through the night. Tommy smiled to himself realizing that she was right. Nobody was left standing.
"I thought I might better check on what was going on out here when you didn't come back in." She smiled up at the cameras mounted to the outside wall, "I think we've enough lighting out here to clear you of any charges."
Jason turned and offered a hand Bulk, "Thanks man. I appreciate the assist."
Bulk just smiled and looked at the hand but didn't take it. "Like I said, congratulations. But I still think you're a bunch of geeks." Then he took the hand.
**********************************************************
"I understand that you didn't start the fight, and were only defending yourself, but you do have a responsibility to avoid situations where you might find yourself involved in a fight," Mr. Kaplan told them. Leaning back, he looked at Jason, and Billy before continuing, "You two are going to have to realize that if you are going to be out of the closet, you'll have to expect this kind of thing.'
"No sir," Kyle interjected with a hardness in his voice that cut through Jase like a knife.
"Excuse me, Mr. Kerry?" Mr. Kaplan was surprised that one of his students was willing to disagree with him.
"No sir, we don't have to expect this kind of thing. We have to, and DO expect to be safe at school. We have the same rights as any other students, it's part of YOUR job to make sure we are safe." He looked back at Billy, Jase, and Adam, "Billy, Jason, and Adam don't deserve to go through being beaten, and kicked just because they're gay." Jason noted that their new friend didn't include himself in that list.
Jason had never seen anyone stand up to Mr. Kaplan quite that way. It was against his nature to challenge someone in charge, and he knew that the others felt pretty much the same way. Kyle evidently was just a little different. He wasn't being disrespectful, just forceful. "I think Kyle has a point, Mr. Kaplan." Jason told the Principal. "None of us deserve to be attacked, and although we don't want to fight, we WILL defend ourselves."
"And each other," Billy said quietly.
Mr. Kaplan leaned across his desk, "You're right, you don't deserve to be attacked, and if I find out about it, I'll take all the steps the board will allow me to, but understand this. You three," he pointed to Jason, Billy, and Tommy, "are on probation. Any more fighting and I'll be forced to suspend you." He looked over at Kyle, "As for you, this is your first week here so I'm willing to cut you some slack. I don't know how things were done at your old school, but here we show a little more respect for the administration of the school."
Kyle smiled, "Yes sir. No disrespect was intended."
Mr. Kaplan, "Then don't try to tell me how to do my job."
"Now all of you, get out of here," the man told them.