Roses and Thorns
Chapter Six
Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Power Rangers, Ninja Storm, and I'm not making any money from this fic
Author's Note: Ok, I apologise for this, but I revealed something in this chapter that I originally didn't plan on revealing just yet. Sorry.
RedFox: Yeah, but you're not revealing everything that you have planned
Me: That's true, I suppose
Replies to reviews:
CamFan4Ever: Well, I'm definitely not going to delete it now. -Laughs- Don't worry. I was just feeling rather miserable when I was thinking of deleting this fic
BlueAngel07: Wow, a new reviewer! I'm really glad you like this
Jorgitosbabe: -Is deafened- Wow, I guess that's a vote for keeping this fic?
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Cally sat on the sofa in the house she and Faye were renting, her head in her hands.
"Here. Drink this," Faye said, holding a glass of water out to Cally.
Cally took it, and sipped a little, wincing as the cool liquid burned the inside of her throat.
Faye sat on the sofa next to Cally. "Are you all right?" she asked gently.
Cally gave her friend an odd look. "It's been a couple of hours since that fight," she answered. "I was nearly strangled, not to mention burned... I'd say that I'm not really all right."
"Ok, it was a bit of a silly question," Faye admitted, stretching a little. "It felt really weird not to have David with us. I guess I've never really thought about what would happen if David wasn't with us. There's never been a need to. But it means that we can't use our ultimate weapon or our megazord. That's serious, Cal. It weakens us quite badly."
"How do you think they knew that there's supposed to be three of us?" Cally wanted to know, rubbing at her neck with a slight wince.
"I don't know," Faye replied. She looked at her friend with concern. "Does it hurt much?"
"Oh yeah," Cally answered. "What's with that silk? How could they make it burn like that?"
"Well, they are from the Silk Ninja Academy," Faye said. "They must have been able to make it like that in some way. It's probably their main weapon."
"You should have gone with David," Cally mumbled.
"You know that I wouldn't do that," Faye replied. "If I had, then you would have ended up battling the silk rangers on your own. And probably ended up dead."
"Not necessarily a bad thing," Cally mumbled. "Maybe it would be better if I really was dead."
Faye stared at Cally for a long moment. Then, "Don't you dare even think about trying to kill yourself again!" she snapped. "I almost didn't stop you in time the last time! The last thing I want is for you to end up in hospital again."
Cally just shrugged.
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Hunter and Blake were helping Dustin out in Storm Chargers before they were due at the track.
"So, what do you guys think of these four new Power Rangers?" Dustin asked Hunter and Blake in a low voice.
"Well, two are probably good," Hunter replied. "And it looks like the other two are... not so good."
"Dude, is there, like, any way that the silk rangers could be the good ones?" Dustin wanted to know.
Blake gave Dustin an odd look. "Bro, they hung the violet ranger from a tree, and then blocked the orange ranger's way so that she couldn't get to her friend."
"Look, all I'm saying is that we don't know anything about these new Power Rangers," Dustin commented. "They could be serious enemies, for all we know. Maybe we should wait and find out what their purpose really is before we risk helping either side again."
"You know, Dustin, sometimes you can come out with really intelligent things," Blake said.
"But I'm going to go with my gut feeling," Hunter added. "And my instincts tell me that the silk rangers are the bad guys."
"Well, dude, Tori said pretty much the same thing about you guys," Dustin responded. "You know, when you guys were trying to kill us for, like, the thousandth time."
The yellow wind ranger immediately wished that he hadn't said anything as the two thunder rangers flinched at his words. Great, Dustin, he thought to himself. Way to go. Bring up painful memories, why don't you?
"Yeah, but you know that that wasn't our fault, right?" Hunter asked carefully, his eyes showing his worry. If Dustin doesn't feel he can trust us, how can we work together?
"I know," Dustin said quickly. "I was just using you two to illustrate my point. After all, you guys originally pretended to be my friends."
"We're not pretending now, though," Blake pointed out.
"I do know that!" Dustin insisted. "I'm not saying that I don't trust you guys or anything like that. I just mean that it's easy to get taken in by people."
Blake grinned, and punched Dustin lightly on the shoulder. "You mean it's easy for you to get taken in by people."
Dustin returned the grin. Then, "Hey, aren't you guys supposed to be down at the race track?"
Hunter nodded. "Would you like to come with us?" he asked.
"Oh, man, I wish I could," Dustin answered. "But I promised Kelly I'd help her this afternoon as you two are going to be out."
"Sure, no worries," Hunter replied, clasping Dustin's hand. Then, he and Blake left.
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As he and Blake raced around the track, Hunter noticed Lila and a tall, brown-haired guy standing nearby. He guessed that that was her brother.
Hunter stopped his bike, got off, and walked over to Lila and her brother. He took off his helmet, and flashed a smile. "Hey," he said.
"Hey," Lila smiled. "This is my brother, Peter."
Hunter nodded to Peter, and held out his hand to clasp the other's. "Nice to meet you."
Peter grinned. "You were awesome out there!" he exclaimed enthusiastically.
Hunter felt Blake come up to stand next to him. His brother's presence made him feel better, and he returned Peter's grin. "Your sister said you're quite a rider yourself," he commented.
Peter shrugged a little, shooting Lila a quick glance. "I'm kind of... limited in how much riding I can do," he replied. "Because I don't own a proper helmet."
Which is why Lila is getting him a helmet, Hunter thought to himself. He looked at Peter, considering. Then, he said, "Why don't you let me see how well you can ride?"
Peter looked at Lila again, then at Hunter. "My bike's at home," he told the crimson thunder ranger.
"Borrow mine," Hunter replied. "You can also use my helmet. Mind you, if you damage the bike in any way, you can fix it, or pay for it to be fixed."
"Hm." Peter looked carefully at the bike, chewing his bottom lip, clearly considering.
In the end, it was Lila who made up Peter's mind. She glanced at her brother, then at the bike, and said, "I bet you a pair of motor cross gloves against a new pair of shoes that you'll fall off."
"Oh, really?" Peter flashed a quick grin at his sister, then clambered onto Hunter's bike, slipping the helmet easily onto his head.
Well, that answers that question, Hunter thought to himself as he watched Peter start riding.
"Hunter, are you sure that letting him ride your bike is a good thing?" Blake asked his brother softly.
"I'm sure that Peter appreciates it," Lila smiled. "He loves riding."
"Well, you know what size his head is now," Hunter told Lila. "The same size as mine. The helmet I use fits him."
Lila nodded. "This means a lot," she told Hunter. "Is there any way I can repay you?"
At that moment, Hunter made the mistake of meeting Lila's brown eyes. He blinked as he felt himself drowning in their depths. As he felt something stir deep inside himself. From the widening of her eyes, Hunter could tell that Lila felt it as well.
The spell was broken when Hunter felt his brother jab him in the side. He looked at Blake, who jerked his head towards Peter on the bike.
What just happened? Lila wondered. What did I just feel? It was... odd. Like just looking at each other was the only thing holding Hunter and I up. But that's impossible.
Hunter's eyes were on Peter, but his thoughts were just as chaotic as Lila's. It felt like we were looking into each other's souls. But why? I barely like Lila. She gets on my nerves.
Peter stopped the bike, and got off. Removing the helmet, he walked over to the group. "Well, what do you think?" he asked with a grin.
"Your turns are a little sharp," Blake answered. "And you've got too much air on your jumps."
"But with a lot of practice, you could become quite good," Hunter added. "When you get a helmet, bring your bike up here. Blake and I'll help you out."
"Great!" Peter grinned. He shot Lila a quick glance, then said, "I'll wait for you in the van, sis." He then walked away.
"Um, Hunter, can I talk to you?" Lila asked the crimson thunder ranger.
"I'll just go and pack my bike away," Blake said tactfully, moving off.
Hunter looked at Lila. "What's on your mind?"
Lila hesitated for a long moment. "I was wondering if you'd like to, um, get a coffee or something with me at some point?"
Hunter looked steadily at Lila, relieved that the strange feeling had gone. "You know, I'm not really looking for a girlfriend," he said finally.
Lila gave an easy smile. "Sure," she replied. "But we can go out as just friends, right?"
"Yeah, just friends," Hunter echoed.
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Read and review, please!
Um, could any reviewers please give me their opinion on the scene that just occurred between Hunter and Lila? And if you have any ideas as to what can happen between them, I'd love to hear them!