Live Like You Were Dying

Title: Live Like You Were Dying
Author: kazeko
Show: Power Rangers
Rating: PG 13
Chapters: ?
Series: no, also no relation to "Children of the Gods"
Multipart: yes
Time: About a year after Power Rangers in Space, changing the Power Rangers timeline after that
Couple(s): Tommy/Kimberly, Jason/Kat, Tanya/Adam
Disclaimer: Saban and Disney own Power Rangers and they don't deserve it if they won't release MMPR on DVD!
Disclaimer 2: I own everything else, including characters, other planets, and the plot.

Chapter 9: Confessions of the Red Ranger

Jason watched Kat listen to Kimberly's story, brushing his brown hair behind his pointed ears. His hair was almost as long as Kat's, though Kimberly had let hers grow to her feet in the last seventy years. She had hers braided around her head so the others couldn't tell, but Shamirii valued long hair as a sign of position and power.

He let his thoughts return to Kat, smiling at the sparkle in her light blue eyes, the way her blonde curls shone in the light, the way her warm spirit tried to reach out and comfort her friend. Kimberly had chosen her to be the second Pink Ranger because no one was more qualified, more kind, more loving, even if she did fall for the wrong man. Jason sighed and walked away from the window, leaving the apartment, wondering if anyone even noticed.

He wandered down to the park, knowing that he was dressed strangely even for Angel Grove and not even caring. He found the old oak tree and sat down beneath it, dark eyes staring out across the calm waters of the small pond. "I miss this."

"What?" He hadn't realized he had spoken out loud until Kat's gentle voice interrupted his musings. "What do you miss?"

"This calm. Life is a lot harder in the Adamarei Alliance. Please, join me Kat." He moved over and placed his cape on the ground for the second Pink Ranger. "You followed me?"

"Yeah. I wondered why you left."

"I lived it; Kim's little explanation just upsets me." Jason sighed and hung his head. "Tommy doesn't like to think about it anymore. They're my family, Kat; they're all I have left, and it's hard watching them deny the truth. Kim's dying and there's nothing any of us can do. I promised her that I would help take care of Shana, but that's all I can do for her."

Kat placed her small hand on Jason's shoulder, tears sparkling in her blue eyes. "Jason, why don't you have your own family? Are you waiting for something?"

"No. The woman I would have chosen is lost."

"Kimberly mentioned something like that. Who was she?" Kat didn't wait for an answer, knowing that the Mage had the same restraint Kimberly did. "She must have been a pretty special gal to catch your eye."

"She was. And gorgeous, too."

Kat grinned, glad that Jason seemed a little happier. "Tell me about her."

"There isn't that much I can say. She and I didn't know each other for very long. I never had to hide anything from her and she was so innocent. Not in a naïve kind of innocence, but a sweet, gentle, caring kind of innocence. No matter what life threw at her, she came up smiling. During some of our darker moments, I have missed her."

"Did you guys ever come back and visit Earth?"

"Once or twice. We eventually contacted the other ex-Rangers and told them what happened to us, and they wished us luck. We invited them to Kim and Tommy's wedding, and they managed to make some time away from their families to visit Adamaren Prime. It was a beautiful ceremony."

"She was there, wasn't she? And you wished that it was you and her getting married."

Jason nodded, staring off across the clear waters. "I really did, Kat."

Kat smiled. "I imagined marrying Tommy one day, long ago, but he never really stopped loving Kimberly. I really can't see now why I ever thought that he and I had a chance—all I have to do is look at them and see that they're meant for each other. Maybe they're having problems right now, but every couple does, and they fix them by your time." She let the silence claim them again.

"Jase, where have you been?"

"Talking to Kat. You?"

Tommy smiled as he and Jason sat on the couch, cupping one hand on top of another in their laps, eyes closing as they prepared to cast a locator spell. Kimberly and most of the ex-Rangers had gone to Jason and Rocky's dojo, knowing that they had to keep the princess away from any sort of power. Unbeknownst to the older Rangers, Jason had remained behind, curious about the two Mages. He watched from the next room as the pair prepared for their spell. "My stubborn younger self. He was finally convinced that I love Kimberly as much as he does. How was your conversation with Kat?"

Jason sighed and paused in his preparations for the spell, pained brown eyes startling his younger self. "It kinda hurts, to see her so young and innocent. I don't want my younger self to go off and leave her again. He really doesn't deserve to go through that pain." Pain? What was the older Mage talking about? Jason leaned closer, listening closely. "After all, I know that he's been thinking recently about his own happy ending."

"Bro, if anyone deserves to be happy, you do. Maybe you can drop hints so Jason will figure out that he's falling in love. It might make these later years easier. I'm sure it wouldn't hurt the timeline that much."

"I really love her," Jason whispered as both returned to their spell. "I just realized it far too late to do anything."

Love? Kat? Oh God . . .

Somehow the first Red Ranger managed to slip out of the apartment while the two Mages wove their locator spell, mind trying desperately to grasp his older self's words. How could he be in love with Kat? She was a really good friend, sure, and the time he had spent serving with her as Rangers was great, but she was taken.

He stopped short at his own mental words. "No she's not," he whispered. "Not anymore. I never let myself look at her because she was Tommy's girl."

That didn't stop you with Kimberly. You didn't have to be stopped with Kimberly, he reminded himself.

"Well, sure, because she's like my little sister. I never saw her that way." He knew that anyone who walked past him on the way to the dojo would think him insane for carrying on a conversation with himself, but he really didn't care.

And did you ever see Kat that way? Do you now?

"I really don't know."

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but there just aren't any empty seats on this plane. No amount of money will change that."

"And this is the only flight?"

"From Miami to Angel Grove, yes. There will be one to Chicago tomorrow afternoon and one from Chicago to Angel Grove after that, but planes don't go there much anymore. There's no call for it, now that the Power Rangers are gone and all." The man at the ticket booth frowned at the tears in the young woman's eyes. "Look, miss, I'm really sorry, but I can't help you."

"Maybe I can." One of the passengers, a tall woman with strawberry blonde hair and silvery gray eyes smiled as she approached the counter and handed the man two tickets. She placed two tickets on the counter, one with her name on the face and the other blank. Flashing the appropriate ID, the woman smiled at the pink-clad brunette and held out her free hand. "I'm Alina. You?"

"K-Kimberly," she managed, taking the woman's hand. "You sound Australian."

"I am. You sound like you're from California, so I'd guess that you need to get back home—which looks to be Angel Grove. How'd you know I was Australian, anyway?"

"You mean and not British? I've got a friend back home, in Angel Grove. I need to get there as soon as possible." Kimberly glanced at Shana, smiling. She wasn't really sure what prompted this sudden urge to fly, but she wasn't going to fight the child. Wait, she knew an Aussie? Who? When? The image of a tall blonde with blue eyes flashed through her mind, but it was gone as quickly as it materialized. "But the plane is full."

"Not true. I've got two tickets, but my brother couldn't make it and I was afraid the second seat would go to waste. Are you heading home to see her father?" Alina cast her eyes over the young mother, wondering what could have happened to the brunette in Florida. The child looked so much like her mother that it was scary, but she didn't seem to have anything to take care of her with.

"Yes, I am. I have to get there soon."

"Then take the extra ticket." Alina handed a pen to Kimberly and pointed at the small scrap of paper. The man watched, smiling, as the woman neatly printed 'Kimberly Ann Hart and Shana Rose Oliver' in the blank. "Kimberly Hart? The gymnast?"

"Yes, that's right. I can't thank you enough . . ."

"Please don't. I'm glad I could help. Do you have any bags or anything?"

Kimberly shook her head. "They're at my apartment, and I can't go home—He knows where I live."

Alina bristled protectively as she led the young mother onto the plane, gathering her bags and swinging them over one shoulder. Someone had scared the gymnast badly, and she no longer felt safe in Miami. She seemed so determined to get back to her home, and Alina realized that she did not doubt that the petite mother could do whatever she needed to in order to protect her child. She decided to choose a safe topic as she led Kimberly to their two first-class seats, touching the sleepy baby. "Shana? That's her name?"

"Yeah." Kimberly's eyes softened as she smiled at the baby, leaning back so Alina could help her fasten her seatbelt. "It means 'Miracle'."

"Really? What language?"

"I'm not sure. Tommy picked it."

"I assume he's Mr. Oliver, her father?"

"Yeah." A darkness seemed to envelop the young woman at the mention of Tommy, and Alina wondered if he even knew about his child. After all, he and Kimberly didn't seem to be married, and maybe the young gymnast was afraid of his reaction when he found out. She decided to change topics and grabbed the first thing that came to mind.

"So, what's it like to be a world-famous gymnast?"

TBC