THE BET

DISCLAIMER

Power Rangers belongs to Fox Kids, Haim Saban, and Disney. Each chapter will take place in a different era of MMPR, but not necessarily after a particular episode. This first chapter is pre-Tommy and as far as I know "Hush Little Baby" is traditional.

CHAPTER ONE: JASON LOSES

School had just let out, and while students usually went home after the last class, today they were sticking around. The reason? Kimberly Hart and Jason Lee Scott were both trying to out do each other athletically. So far, both had done simple things: handstands, cartwheels, flips, etc.

"Hey. Why don't we make this interesting?" Kimberly suggested.

"What? You mean like a bet?" Jason queried.

"Now, fellas. You know the rules say" William "Billy" Cranston began to object.

"Not for money," Kimberly interrupted.

"Then, what?" wondered Zachary "Zack" Taylor.

"Loser has to sing "Hush Little Baby" in front of the whole youth center," Kimberly responded. Zack, Billy, Trini Quan, and the rest of the student body laughed.

"Ohhh, how embarrassing," Zack groaned amidst his laughter.

"I'll say," Jason agreed. "What should be the deciding factor?" he queried.

"Three front flips and three spins which segue into a cartwheel," Kimberly said.

"You're on," Jason approved. "Ladies first," he said.

"Thank you," Kimberly acknowledged. She got into position.

"Kim, you might wanna warm up your singing voice," Jason cautioned.

"Don't count on it, buddy," Kimberly responded. She then did the proposed routine. Everyone clapped at the flawless performance. Then it was Jason's turn. He did the front flips and spins with no problem. The cartwheel, however, proved to be his undoing. The previous acts of sportsmanship had messed up his equilibrium and he tumbled to the floor.

"Dang it!" he exclaimed. Kimberly laughed.

"You're singing "Hush Little Baby"," she said, helping him up. Minutes later, the kids assembled at Ernie's Gym and Juice Bar, the local hangout. Kimberly pulled Jason up to the portion of the youth center, which was usually used for sparring.

"Hey, Ernie! Do you have any microphones?" someone asked.

"Yeah. What do you need it for?" Ernie wondered.

"Jason's gonna perform," the same person replied.

"What?" Ernie queried, his face becoming a visage of confusion.

"You'll see what I mean in a few minutes," the kid responded. Ernie shrugged, but went to the back. A few seconds later, he came out with a microphone, which was handed to Kimberly, who plugged it in.

"Hey, everybody! We have a special presentation for you today," she announced. Jason rolled his eyes.

"Do you think you could take a little less pleasure in this?" he requested.

"Let's give it up for Jason!" the petite girl exclaimed. Everyone clapped and whistled.

"I don't know how I got myself into this," he muttered. He cleared his throat. "Hush little baby and don't say a word, papa's gonna buy you a mockingbird. If that mockingbird don't sing, papa's gonna buy you a diamond ring," he sang softly.

"Louder!" someone called. Jason thought it sounded like Bulk, but he couldn't be sure.

"If that diamond ring turns brass, papa's gonna buy you a looking glass. If that looking glass gets broke, papa's gonna buy you a Billy Goat…" the leader of the Power Rangers continued the song until he had gotten to last line. As soon as he had finished, he hurried into the crowd.

"Jase, I didn't know you had such a good singing voice," Kimberly teased.

"Kim, never again," Jason declared.