Disclaimer: Don't own them, don't sue. I'm a fan therefore it is fan fiction. If I wasn't a fan it wouldn't be fan fiction so I wouldn't be posting it on a site called would I?
A.N: Thank you to everyone for the wonderful reviews. They mean a lot to me and my muses; can't forget the muses. Just so you are aware I disappear off to warmer climates on the 8th so I won't be able to update for 10 days. Apologies for starting this and then disappearing off on vacation. Had I known I was going I would have put off starting this till after I got back but surprises come at awkward moments I guess.
To the anonymous review known just as ahem I have this to say – I can tweak the timeline however I wish and I wanted him to be 25 because it makes for some good quarter of a century jokes. Plus, I am British, I know very little about your schooling system and whilst Ren has been very helpful it still confuses me. Over here he could have (I think) finished his course and taken a fast track teaching course before the age of 25. I am only 15 myself so I don't know entirely how these matters work. So I'm sorry if it annoys you that this story isn't perfectly true to real life but I have news for you. It isn't real. I've had to twist reality to fit my purpose and that is the point in fictional stories. Had I been publishing this for real I would have paid more attention to that but for this one piece of writing I think it is okay for it to be skewed slightly. I'm sorry if that irritates you but if you wish to continue reading I just suggest that you pretend he is tuning 29 or something more appropriate.
Dedications/Thanks: To Rene, as always. Thanks so much for everything and I'm thinking of you. Yes, you created a monster, but a monster who likes happy endings at least.
Amnesia Chapter Two: An Explosive Night
Placing the receiver back down in the cradle relatively gently, for Hayley, she spared not a moment in hesitation before running to her unconscious friend. Propped between the two males was a limp looking Thomas "Tommy Oliver" whose current appearance greatly resembled that of a scarecrow. Hayley thought that if the situation wasn't so dire and life threatening she may have laughed at the sight. Tommy was not one to ever appear helpless or show that he needed support from anyone yet here he was unable to do anything without the support of two teenage males. He would've hated that one great big juxtaposition. It would only have been made worse if Kira had been helping him get moved too, which, of course, she could have done, but it was awkward for three people to carry him and the lads just naturally took over. Like always.
Now was not a time for jealousy or arguing though. Right now the only thing that was on their minds was helping Dr. O. The mission to save his life was consuming them, slowly taking over; masking them of any sense. Tommy's life hanging in the balance caused more pain and uncertainty for the Rangers that him dying outright and Messagog knew all to well what that meant. It left them a weakened force whose mind was not fully on the task at hand when fighting. It was a cold, calculated and manipulative plan, one worthy only of the most evil of villains.
As the group stumbled and fumbled their way into basement Hayley let her instinct take over and shut of the part off her brain which thought too much and over analyzed her emotions. She didn't need emotion to get in the way now, it would only complicate things if she let them get involved and tangled up in the mess before her. Silently she pulled out a gurney type trolley bed that she and Tommy had built in case of there ever being such an emergency as this, which warranted the use of one. The thought of just pinching one from the local hospital then donating a large sum of money to them had crossed their minds but two flaws came up in their minds, one practical one emotional. The emotional one was they felt bad taking one for their own personal gain considering half the people in the ER who desperately needed gurneys and beds were usually in there because they had been caught up in a monster battle. The practical one came to Hayley before it did Tommy, how the hell do you get a gurney out of a hospital without anyone noticing? Tommy never was the practical type in that sense; listening to Billy reminisce about high school had confirmed that notion steadily in her Hayley's mind.
Conner and Ethan lowered Tommy down onto the bed as gently as they could, trying to move his head as little as possible. The first aid courses Tommy had forced them to participate in had taught them that you should never move someone unconscious, except into the recovery position and even then you keep the head still. However, they had been unable to follow protocol this time and had to do with trying to keep his head as still as possible in the worst imaginable of all circumstances. As the boys backed away slowly rubbing weary eyes with sweaty dirty palms Kira dashed forwards. Meanwhile Hayley disappeared off to pull out a few needed inventions and pieces of equipment. As she did this Kira quickly went to undressing her teacher. She hated that she had to do it but she knew neither of the boys would feel comfortable with it despite it having to be done. Kira had a limited knowledge of the equipment Hayley would be using as she had helped her build them, along with Ethan and a rather unhelpful Conner. The one vital piece of information she retained was that it was an upper body scanner and all pieces of metal had to be removed as well as all upper body clothing. Her hands were trembling as she slowly undid the buttons on his torn and tattered grey shirt. Her hands were the only part of her giving away her true emotions. She kept a straight face and didn't allow herself to breakdown like she desperately wanted to, she had to remain strong for Dr. O's sake; after all she was a Power ranger, Power Rangers don't cry. Not as far as she knew or thought anyway.
Slowly she pulled away the ragged grey clothing out from under his upper body before peeling off the tight black t-shirt he wore underneath. Only then did she allow herself a wince at the bloody sight before her which had once been her teacher's chest. It still was but now it was barely recognisable as human due to all the blood from the gaping wound stretching down the right hand side of his torso. It wasn't too deep, she could tell that much, as there was still a strong pulse to be found in Dr. O's wrist and his skin turned from white to red to white again when pressure was applied and released. She had tested this quickly on his ear lobes when she had checked for breathing at the scene of the battle. Never had she been more thankful for her teacher and mentor pushing her to do something. Gently she tugged the material out from under his torso before searching him for any metal. Swiftly she removed his jeep keys and wallet from his pocked before quickly removing his belt, careful to make sure her hands didn't touch anything they shouldn't have. They may have had a close relationship considering they had started out as teacher and student but they certainly weren't that close! After doing so she finally allowed herself a glimpse of his beaten and bruised face. She had seen sights like this many time before with each of the Rangers, Tommy, Conner, Ethan and ever herself, but with the intensity of the situation the pain she felt was only worsened. Slowly he reached out and removed the thin rimmed glasses which were lying skewed across his face and, deciding that was all the metal she could find on him, retreated back to place the personal belonging in a safe place. She decided it was best to keep them in the top draw of his desk, she had never actually seen inside the draw as she knew that was where he kept any personal belongings that he felt necessary to bring downstairs into the lab. Now was not the time to worry about Dr. O's desire of privacy. She knew deep down he would be more annoyed if any of the belongings he kept on his person were damaged than if she went into his draw… he always seemed very protective over his wallet. They had all noticed, Conner had come up with the conclusion that it contained a rather explicit photograph of a former lover, or a current one – for all they knew Tommy and Hayley could have been having a mad, passionate affair all this time – which he would rather none of the kids saw. Either that or he was just tight and wouldn't allow the kids anywhere near his wallet, even if he had said he would pay for the pizzas.
Looking back at her teachers still form, Kira realised that she would have to remove something else from him that she would rather not take off. It had to be done though, he couldn't go into the scanner with metal on him, no matter how tiny the amount. That meant she had to remove the jeans. After all it wasn't only the button and zip that were made from metal; there were the studs that decorated the pockets too. What were those for anyway? They were completely useless and, frankly, just got in the way – especially at times like this. Taking in a deep breath she braved herself for this. Dr. Oliver would never have to known and if anyone ever told him they wouldn't see the light of day ever again. Kira was not a shy person, she just didn't think she should get that up close and personal with a guy ten years her senior, or any guy for that matter, especially not one who was her teacher! Her resolved firmed and she marched over quickly. The sooner she did it the sooner it would be over and done with. Hastily she undid the button and did her best to avoid the curious glances she was getting from Conner, oh he would have a field day taunting her about this and she would revel in breaking his nose if he ever did. Next she quickly undid the zipper and did her best to keep her hands from grazing anything they shouldn't. Some girls at school would love to be in her position right now but she certainly wasn't happy. Moving at a steady pace she quickly tugged the jeans down and off leaving Tommy lying there in only a pair of tight black boxers. She was certainly seeing more of him than she ever wanted to see. Scrunching the jeans up in a ball she tossed them down in the corner and returned to her post by the stairs.
On the other side of the room Hayley and Ethan set the scanner up and positioned it carefully over the unconscious form of Tommy, sprawled out on the table. The contraption looked like something that came straight out of a science fiction movie – which, considering they had practically been living in one the past six months was quite appropriate. The appeared, however, did not put off Hayley, Ethan or any of the others. Tommy had been the only sceptic but that was only because he didn't know what the others knew. He didn't know who designed it. All he knew was that Hayley had been sent some blue prints from a friend and had been given rights excluding her for paying to make the patented machine. He was completely oblivious to the fact it had been designed by one for the most intelligent people he knew – William "Billy" Cranston. After all, Hayley wouldn't use just anyone's blueprints on the Rangers.
The only sound that could be heard in the basement lair under Dr. Thomas Oliver's house was the gently clacking of typing on a keyboard as Conner kept a vigil over the monitors displaying different areas of Reefside and the location of each of the rangers and the Dino Gems. For some reason Trent Fernadez, the white ranger, was not showing up and his communicator was on the blink. Explains why he didn't come to help in that battle, mused Conner silently to himself still seething with suppressed rage. Angrily he hit a few keys on the keyboard more forcefully than he had meant to and was surprised when it rewarded him with a communications link to Trent and a visible of him on screen. Quickly he sent whispered information and updates to the stunned white range who had not realised he had been out of contact with the rangers all evening whilst the battle raged on. He responded without haste and assured Conner he would get to them as soon as possible without drawing attention to himself. Last thing they needed was Cassie – the school "reporter" (or school gossip as she was better known) – to start following Trent and snooping around for her latest scoop. She was well known for her obsession with Dr. Oliver so she made it a habit of hers to keep tabs on his closest students.
Ethan retreated away from the machine now covering most of his mentor's upper body and went to stand next to Kira near the stairs leading up to the main house. Instinctively he put a protective arm around her shoulders as Conner came across to join them. It was time to find out what damage Zeltrax had caused and how serious it was. A clap of thunder somewhere over head startled the group. The storm was giving them an uneasy feeling about this. There was an eerie atmosphere hanging in the air almost alla Jekyll and Hide. Slowly Hayley began the scans, almost hesitantly despite knowing fine well they had to be done. Without a word she set about reading the scans as soon as they came through. She did her best to ignore the three sets of eyes boring into her back, burning a metaphorical hole in her jumper. Nothing to out of the ordinary came up on the scans, well nothing that couldn't be explained away by the powers and some heavy duty concussion. That was the main reason Billy invented this machine for Hayley and all the other Ranger teams; the powers created abnormalities on brain scans so where possible they kept Rangers from the hospital and tried to treat them at base. Billy's invention had helped greatly with this and also meant a lot less explaining was needed where doctors were concerned.
Hayley's eyes widened suddenly and her body tensed. The whole room changed in atmosphere, the three teens stood expecting devastating news from the fiery red-head when she turned around.
However she never managed to turn around. Something knocked her off her feet, sending her sprawling across the floor before she could turn and inform the rangers of the latest developments.
Another clap of thunder echoed around the room. It must have followed a fork of lighting as suddenly there was a loud crackling. All the computers blanked out and the room was cast into sheer darkness. Just as their eyes were adjusting to the light, or lack thereof a bright white light was emitted from the scanner as it sparked and crackled before bursting into bright orange flames which licked up around the metal framework slowly making their way to the body inside. The flames danced like snakes, unfurling up to the ceiling, reaching out and licking the air as if trying to taste the disaster they were causing. As the contents began to explode a side panel was thrown off and hit Hayley hard in the back causing her to be flung across the room like a rag doll. On instinct the three teens dived forwards. Ethan made his way quickly to an injured Hayley whilst Conner and Kira each grabbed out into the darkness for Tommy's unconscious form. As their hands eventually found something they could only assume were his legs they pulled sharply, dragging the body out from the metal work which was slowly being engulfed in flames. Stumbling and fumbling in the dark in seemed like a life time had passed before Ethan found the fire extinguisher Tommy had insisted they keep down here for safety reasons. None of them had ever been more grateful for what they had first believed was just Tommy's pessimistic nature; now they saw the vitality of such minor details.
Once the flames were doused the group stood panting, their breathing heavy due to the adrenaline coursing through their systems. Hayley was the first to speak.
"I'm guessing there was a power surge. I don't know what it will have done to Tommy since he was in the scanner at the time of the surge. It may have caused him more damage to the brain, plus there may be some facial lacerations and burns from the flames. I need some light to see how bad the extent of the damage as is."
"You say more damage Hayley, which means there must already have been damage to begin with. What happened to him Hayley, what did Zeltrax do to him?" Kira's voice was cautious but demanding. Hayley knew she couldn't brush it off, especially not since the young girl had so carefully analysed her use of English.
"There were some abnormalities with the memory side of his brain. A few bruised areas and slightly swollen areas showed up, which, according to some very left-wing research I read about, could indicate the rare condition of amnesia. At the moment it is impossible to tell how bad it is going to be, how long it will last and whether or not it is selective or not. Right now, though, that is the least of our worries. Conner can you go find the circuit breaker and go get us some power and lighting. I think the backup generator blew along with the rest of the mains electrics."
Nodding slightly, not knowing what to say on the matter, Conner began to make his way up the stairs into the main house.
"Wait!" Ethan called, bringing the young soccer star to halt, "Do you hear that?"
The others strained hard to hear what Ethan had commented on. Sure enough the sound of someone fumbling around in the dark somewhere above their heads could be heard.
"Oh great, Dr. O's unconscious, we have no power and now someone has decided to beak into the house! Can this night get any worse?" Conner's voice was laced with so much rage that it just seemed to drip with frustration, "That guy better watch out because the way I'm feeling right now I think I may break a few bones."
Storming off upstairs as quietly as he could manage in his current fame of mind, Conner looked ready to explode if anyone crossed his path.
Hayley looked to Kira and shook her head in dismay before going and doing her best to check on Tommy in the confines of the pitch black lair. Part of her felt sorry for the intruder upstairs – being on the end of Conner's wrath when he was like this could only be beaten by being on the end of Tommy's wrath in one of those moods; well as far as she was concerned that was.
Kira looked up to the ceiling wishing that her power had been x-ray vision rather than the Petra Scream now. All was pretty much silent until some muffled sounds floated down to the basement indicating Conner had found the intruder and was indeed dealing with it him or her in a rather vicious manner. Muffled yells vibrated through the ceiling as Ethan and Kira began to edge closer to the stairwell. What if it wasn't a simple intruder, what if Messagog had sent Zeltrax or Elsa to destroy the remaining Rangers now they were a ranger down? A loud crack echoed round the room as the lights flickered back to life causing a groan from the room's occupants whose eyes had just about adjusted to the darkness and were now being plunged back into the harsh bright light. All eyes six travelled to gaze upon the unconscious Dr. Olivier lying on the floor. As they rested their gaze upon him a collective gasp and intake of breath filled the room as Ethan, Hayley and Kira did a double take.
Their attention was quickly pulled from the unconscious man on the floor to the two men tussling on their way down the stairs into the lair.
"Get your hands off of me!" Conner looked slightly pained as the man he had a relatively firm grip on fought back against him. It appeared as if he didn't willingly participate in his "capture" as Conner was now sporting a rather bloody nose, "I told you this is a damn emergency why the hell can't you believe me?" Under his breath the mysterious male added, "I'm sure Jase wasn't as arrogant and cocky when he was Red ranger, Tommy neither."
"Look, I caught you snooping around, after presumably breaking into, someone else's property so I have a right to shoot you right now if I wanted to but instead I'm doing as you asked and taking you to Hayley. She can decide what to do because, quite frankly, I don't give a damn."
"You have no rights Conner McKnight because I think you'll find this isn't your property, it belongs to a one Dr. Thomas Oliver so if you would so kindly as to get your damn hands off of me…"
The voice trailed off as Conner dropped the man's arms out of shock due to what he had just said. How the hell did he know his name? How did he know this was Tommy's house? Who was this guy?
Hayley, on the other hand, knew exactly who it was. She recognised the voice immediately but was too shocked to react. She didn't want to know how he had gotten here so quickly, well not just yet, it did intrigue her but there were more important things to think about right now. For a moment she just stood stunned at one end of the basement lair looking at the sandy haired man before.
Gathering his bearings he straightened his glasses which were now lying slightly skewed on the bridge of his nose and ran a shaky hand through his messy mop of hair. His crystal blues eyes scanned the room quickly taking in as many details as he could muster in his flustered state. That was certainly not the welcome he had been expecting. Okay, he hadn't been expecting banners, bunting and trumpets playing either but getting man handled by the latest Red Ranger certainly didn't cut it either. A handshake would have done. He was going to have to make sure Hayley got these kids to watch the old ranger tapes back again, Tommy would be appalled if he knew this is how the originals were getting treated by the rookies on his latest team. Slowly he brushed himself off to let Hayley get used to the shock. She had undoubtedly not expected him to arrive so soon, he hadn't even expected to arrive so soon. He was sure his new teleportation system would have at least a few bugs in it the first time he tried. He had actually braced himself for landing up on The Great Barrier Reef rather than Reefside, but apparently he had managed to get it working perfectly first time.
Finally overcoming her shock Hayley ran forwards to the man she hadn't seen in years and latched her arms tightly around his neck as he lifted her from the ground and swung her in a round before placing her gently back on the ground again. Yeah, you could say they had, had a close relationship when they knew each other to begin with.
"Billy. You don't know how glad I am to see you. Your timing couldn't be better. I never thought things could get this bad so fast. I wasn't expecting you until tomorrow at the earliest, not after that phone call anyway. Full of surprises you are Billy Cranston. I'll introduce you to the kids quickly then I really need you help."
Hayley finally stopped and took a breath allowing room for Ethan to jump right in, "Did you say Billy Cranston? As in the William 'Billy' Cranston; world renowned inventor and computer expert who designed that scanner which just blew up a few moments ago?"
"It blew up!" Billy asked incredulously.
"Power surge," Hayley informed him with a shrug, "The storm must have caused a build up in power when the lights went out resulting in a surge through the machine which would have been using the back up generator to keep the scans going until they were completed."
The three Dino Teens stood back, awed by who was stood in front of them. Conner looked desperate to apologise profusely but seemed unable to find the words so just stood there with his mouth opening and closing every now and then like a gold fish. This was the Billy Cranston, original Blue Ranger, and he had mad handled him all the way down the stairs after pouncing on him in the dark. There wasn't time to dwell on that now though. Billy was obviously here for a purpose and that purpose seemed to be to help them help Tommy. Quickly Conner moved forward to help the boy, no, correction, man in blue to move the unconscious Tommy back onto the gurney which was slightly mangled at one end where it had started to melt, but other than that is was perfectly useful. Only now did Conner realise that something was up, there was something wrong about the man before him. Surely it couldn't be. Dr. Oliver wasn't morphed when he went into the scanner, was he?
"Hayley he didn't go into the scanner morphed did he? I didn't design this to be able to read though your helmets." Billy asked quite concerned as to why his friend was fully morphed in his black ranger uniform. Part of Billy couldn't quite get over the concept of Tommy in black. Black was Zack's colour, not his. Just like red was Jason's. He had never been able to fully adjust to Tommy taking over their old friends' colours. To him Tommy was the White Ranger, the White Knight, or the Evil Green ranger (that part of Tommy had died long ago but it was still one of his colours) – Tommy wasn't red or black. Those colours weren't him.
Shaking her head Hayley replied, "No, he didn't. That's why I am so glad you are here. His morpher was left on him when he went in the scanner and that is partly metal. I think then the power surged through the machine the electrons jumped the gap to his morpher and travelled through his body, reacting with the powers to cause him to morph involuntarily."
"Okay, well were the scans completed before the explosion," Billy scratched quotation marks into the air when he said the word explosion, just to make sure he got his point across.
Nodding, Hayley handed him the print outs which she had collected from the floor a few seconds earlier in anticipation for Billy wanting to read through them. He would undoubtedly draw the same conclusion as she had done. That Tommy was most like suffering from a form of amnesia and that other than that he seemed to be perfectly fine except for the one hell of a headache he would be feeling over the next few days from the almost definite concussion he had inherited from the blow.
"Okay," Billy slowly let out a shaky breath he hadn't even realised he had been holding, "This doesn't look promising. I take it you've already interpreted these so I won't bother to reiterate your findings back to you. Good news is though no physical or mental damage other than the amnesia. Bad news, the amnesia can't be cured by any form of medicine and the increased healing powers of the Dino Gems isn't going to be able to help him recover either. This is something that we as ordinary, mortal humans are going to have to combat in as many ways as possible. Also, from what I remember of the suit designs you sent me, there is no way to get Tommy to power down without him commanding the suit to do so. That means someone is going to have to get Tommy to say the words which means we are going to have to either keep him away from any form of reflective surface until he says them or we have to tell him he is a Ranger."
"We have to tell him," Kira commented, "It's not just stopping him looking into a mirror that's the problem, it's topping him looking down at his hands or legs, or stopping him from trying to run a hand through his hair. If we don't tell him he is a Ranger then how are we going to explain the suit?"
"Smart kid," Billy commented looking over at Kira who smiled slightly and allowed a blush to creep up her cheeks. No-one had ever really complimented her on her intelligence before, only her singing voice.
"So who wants to be the one to tell him then?" asked Ethan backing u slowly as all eyes turned to Hayley and Billy. They could fight it out between themselves but, rest assured, it was not going to be one of the Dino Teens who took on this battle.
Billy and Hayley looked apprehensively towards one and other. Billy naturally wanted to do the dashing male hero thing and say he would do it but the rational part of his mind, the part which hadn't been corrupted by Jason and Tommy's actions as teenagers, told him that he might not necessarily be the best person to do so, particularly if Tommy didn't remember him.
"It'll either be me or Hayley but we should wait until he rouses to see who he remembers best and who he trusts more. The Tommy which wakes up isn't necessarily going to be the Tommy you all remember. He could have reverted back to his teenage self from the time I knew him or he could've have gone even further back and reverted back to being a child. Yet again he could have forgotten all his childhood and only remember his life in Reefside. Thee are so many possibilities it is impossible to decided upon a course of action so early in the development. I think right now we should postpone any plans and get to sorting out things around here. It looks as if something exploded in here."
The twinkle in Billy's eye caused Hayley to laugh slightly. She was glad he was here to help her deal with all of this; she didn't think she could handle it alone. Also, she knew what he was doing for was for the best; he was bringing humour into a dire situation which always made things appear better. After all laughter is the greatest remedy. She remembered how fondly Tommy had talked of his teenage friend Zack who always had a witty one liner ready to cheer them all up when the going got tough. She could only assume that Billy was modelling the way he was acting now upon all his old friends to strike the right support balance for the new group. From what she had heard they all had very different personalities and characteristic that, when brought together as one, made them invincible. She was glad of that; just knowing that one of the originals was here made her feel much more confident in her endeavour.
"Good idea; lets get this place cleaned up so we can sit down and relax once it's done. First I think you guys have to ring your parents and tell them that you'll be staying at each other's houses. Assuming you want to spend the night here with Tommy, that is?" Hayley knew she didn't have to ask but felt obliged to.
"Of course we are staying. Wild horses wouldn't drag us away," Kira assured her.
"Okay then, well, we'll stat to tidy up whilst you guys ring round. You know where the phone is by now. Once you are done you can help us finish up then I'll introduce you properly to out new friend.
A little over half an hour later – thirty-three minutes and forty-five seconds to be exact, Hayley had been clock watching to see how long Tommy stayed down for – the group finished their tidy and were acquaint themselves with their new acquaintance. As the others crashed out on the tattered old couches which took up one area of the lair Ethan strode downstairs carrying a load of refreshments for the group. They would need a lot of sugar and caffeine to last the night so he brought down some strong black coffee for the adults, some sodas for the kids and a box of doughnuts he had seen stood by Dr. O's sink – he couldn't but wonder how the guy could eat so much yet not put on any weight at all. Mind you he did work out twice as hard as the rest of them.
"So you really are the Billy Cranston then?" Ethan asked taking a seat opposite one of his numerous idols in the technological field.
"Yes, Ethan, I am that Billy Cranston but not really the Billy Cranston, after all I was named after my grandfather," Billy couldn't help but let a small smile play on his lips. Yeah he had made it big in the world, but he would never have come so far without being part of the Rangers and gaining so much knowledge from Zordon and Alpha 5, "So please, no more of the, the, okay? I'm just plain old Billy."
"Yeah, but, still, all multi-million inventions aside you are still the original Blue Ranger," Conner commented still slightly stunned. It had been one thing to find out their teacher was not only one of the original Power rangers but the all time greatest Power ranger, but to meet one of the original originals, who had been doing this since before even Tommy had, was just incredible.
Billy laughed slightly; he hadn't expected this kind of impact upon his arrival. He was the tech Ranger, the smart one who sucked at the fighting. If this was the kind of reaction he stirred up what kind of response would Jason or Kim initiate.
"Yeah, come on tell us what it was like to be one of the original Power Rangers. We've seen the videos but Tommy didn't like to talk about his past experiences much so we haven't really heard it all first hand. Plus, I'm quite intrigued as to how you know Hayley," Kira commented, not failing to notice the slightly flushed look Hayley got as she realised the insinuation that laced her comments.
"Fine, fine," Billy relented holding up his hands to stop the onslaught of pleas he could guess were about to come, "I'll tell you some stories from back in mine and Tommy's original Ranger days and I'll tell you the story of how I met Hayley at University, okay?"
The group settled down ready to listen to his stories. Hayley included. She had heard Tommy talk of his past life many times before but never Billy and Billy's outlook on things always fascinated Hayley. So she snuggled down into the sofa next to Billy, a warm coffee cup nestled in her hands, making sure she was perfectly comfortable so she could sit and listen to him for hours if time allowed.
A few hours later, Hayley had lost track of time but knew it was now after midnight, Billy cut one of his stories to an abrupt halt as a soft groaning could be heard from somewhere behind him. Instinctively he stood and rushed to his friend's side in three fluid, easy strides.
"Tommy? Tommy, can you hear me?" His voice was soft and gently, not wanting to startle the slowly awakening ranger.
"What… what's going on?"