Disclaimer: Not mine

Ashley Hammond/Astro Yellow: Thanks, I'll try not to let school get me down. :(

Juzblue: Yeah, I realized I should probably explain why they weren't winning... :P

Mz. Daydream: Ashley is so sweet, and it's even sweeter when Andros is there for Ashley.

JDPhoenix: Don't worry, I'll kill Arrow. He won't be alive at the end.

DizneeDol: Here's more. Sorry it took so long, but besides school, I usually stop updating right before the story ends, because I don't want it to. But I really don't want to write a Part 3 to this, so it'll be over in a few days. :P

Sandra: Happy ending, yes. Andros's baby, wait and see. :P

C.C.C: Thanks. Hope you love this part just as much.

RisingGundam2004: Thanks. Arrow won't go squishy, but he won't go peacefully in his sleep, either. :P

the-power-of-love: Thanks, here's more.

Jenny: I thought you had a good memory too. Oh well, as long as you remember what happened in the last chapter, I guess it doesn't matter. :P

Melissa: School sucks. Only 35 more weeks to go. :P

Chapter 18

"Ash had an idea," Andros said the next morning at breakfast, squeezing her hand slightly under the table. The other rangers looked up from their food and looked at her expectantly.

"I don't know if it could work or not," Ashley said hesitantly. "But if I'm right, then I think we could capture Arrow."

"Out with it then!" Cassie exclaimed. "Let's hear this master plan of yours."

"Do you guys remember when we fought Arrow on Centaur B?" Ashley asked.

"Yeah," TJ said. "Andros almost died and Zhane woke up."

"That was it," Ashley said. "Do you remember why he didn't kill Andros?"

"Zhane woke up and helped us out," TJ said, slightly puzzled. Ashley shook her head.

"That's only part of it," she explained. "He had two chances to kill Andros without much interference from us. One was when he had the sword to his neck. When he told us to step away or he'd kill him, we didn't have much choice. The other was after Andros was shot. He could have gotten to him pretty easily in the confusion, but he didn't. His suit started to shimmer, remember?"

"I do remember," Carlos said, sounding surprised. "Funny... I completely forgot about that."

"When Zhane and I fought him four years ago, it happened then, too," Andros added. "It was what made us able to capture him."

"Did his suit ever do that in your dimension?" Ashley asked Blaze and Alana hopefully. They looked at each other and slowly shook their heads.

"I can't say that it did," Blaze said finally. "Maybe it only happens in this dimension," he added, seeing the look of disappointment on Ashley's face. "His morpher might not work properly here."

"I was hoping that it had something to do with the amount of time he'd been morphed," Ashley said with a sigh. "If it did, then if we dragged out the battle long enough..."

"We'll try, Ash," Karone assured her.

"Definitely," Zhane said. "It's a better plan than any we've come up with so far, at least."

"It's entirely possible that it will work," Alana said thoughtfully. "But if it doesn't, what other reasons could there be?"

"Maybe it has nothing to do with how long he's been morphed," Cassie suggested. "Could it be related to how hard he's been fighting? Think about it... all the times that you mentioned, Ash, he was fighting one on two, or more. Now he's protected by Killian, and a few dozen lackeys."

"Is that even possible?" Carlos wondered. "A ranger's power being overtaxed that way?"

After a moment, Andros said, "It is possible... For a ranger's suit to reflect their current energy. It's unusual, but far from unheard of."

"Let's try it, then," Ashley said, hope springing back into her eyes.

"I have just one question," Carlos said. "Andros, Zhane, you guys captured Arrow, but he got away? How'd he do that, and how do we keep it from happening again?"

Ashley winced slightly as the hand loosely holding hers suddenly clamped down in a vise-like grip. Andros's other hand was balled into a fist. "It won't happen again."

"How can you be sure?" Carlos pressed. "What happened?"

"He..." Andros let his voice trail off, and glanced helplessly at Ashley, who squeezed his hand, but said nothing. Zhane was staring at him with dawning comprehension. Andros had never admitted even to Zhane what had happened that night, but when Zhane had seen the state Andros was in the next morning, he'd formed an educated guess.

"Well?" Carlos prompted.

Andros looked away. He wasn't sure he wanted to know what they would think of him if he admitted that he'd set Arrow free, but it was something he should have told them a long time ago, instead of feeling sorry for himself. With a sigh, Andros looked up at the black ranger, holding his gaze as he said quietly, "Arrow escaped because I helped him."

"You what?" Cassie exclaimed before she could help herself. At the look on Andros's face, she added, "Sorry, it's just..."

"I know," Andros said. He laughed bitterly. "Trust me, he won't be getting away again."

"Why'd you let him go?" TJ asked.

"I thought he knew something," was all Andros would say. Karone didn't need to know.

Andros became aware that both Carlos and Alana were glaring furiously at him. He sighed, resigned to their anger. "Just say it."

"Four years ago, my sister was still alive," Alana spat at him. "What was in it for you? What did he promise you? Traitor!"

Andros's already painful grip on Ashley's hand grew even tighter, but other than that, he made no reaction for several minutes. Then he turned his head towards Carlos. "I assume you agree with her?"

"Of course I agree with her," Carlos exploded. "You're the red ranger! You're not supposed to fall for stupid tricks like that! And you haven't learned, either! You led Ashley right into that ambush."

"Enough," Ashley snapped coldly. "You didn't exactly object at the idea of sitting around relaxing while Andros and I went down there ourselves. We all fell for Arrow's tricks."

"Why do you defend him?" Alana demanded.

"I love him," Ashley answered quietly. "And I believe him when he says that Arrow won't escape another time."

"Didn't you also believe him all those times when he promised he'd never let anyone hurt you?" Carlos shouted. "Ashley, don't you see?"

"No." Ashley's voice was deadly quiet, and her entire body was shaking with fury. "You're the one who doesn't see, Carlos. You weren't there. You don't know what happened, and you don't need to. It was stupid of Andros to promise me that, and it was stupid of me to let him. We're rangers, and sometimes that comes with a price."

"A price you shouldn't have paid for a traitor!" Alana snapped.

"It's not for you to decide what Andros's life should be worth to me," Ashley said cooly. "And it's also not your place to question his leadership, when you were so desperate to have him that you arranged for Arrow to ambush us."

"It was Calan-"

"Who you left behind," Ashley interrupted. "Even when Andros hated me, he didn't leave me stranded on the other side of a mirror."

"Arrow has appeared on the planet surface."

Deca's voice interrupted them, and Ashley raised her eyes to glare at Carlos and Alana.

"This is it," she said, speaking to them all, but her eyes never moving. "Choose whatever you can live with."

Andros waited a moment before standing up, his hand still in Ashley's. He addressed the other rangers, stunned into silence. "It's time to go."

A/N: Sorry for the long wait. There's only three or four chapters left, and I've decided who Angel's father is. It's not said directly, but she gets her fathers eyes. Arrow has gray eyes, and Andros has hazel eyes, so read the epilogue carefully. :P Please review.