A/N: Really sorry about the tardiness. Enjoy the chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers Samurai or Samurai Sentai Shinkenger. I just own most of the plot and the characters and things you don't recognize from the original versions.

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~

"It was supposed to be a simple day off. The last thing Mike wanted to do was see was his face again."

Better Together

Power Rangers: Samurai REDO

Season 1, Episode 17: Parental Guidance

Keller Forest, Panorama City, California

July 28, 2014

It was a free day today, so the Rangers were all split up. Jayden, Kevin, and Emily (not having anything else in mind) decided to go back to the Keller Forest House (and let the other three do their own thing). This time, they focused on who their fallen comrades were as people.

"So, Antonio's trying to find a way to combine the Claw and Octo Zords," Kevin said, as he, Emily, and Jayden were all searching in separate rooms with all five bedroom doors open. He was currently in Blake's room and was finding that he and Blake were very, very similar people (for example, they both had their own libraries). "Where's Mike and Mia?"

"I don't know," Jayden replied. "Some restaurant I can't remember the name of." He was currently in Matthew's room, going through his drawers filled with lined paper that had poems and various stories on it (it seemed he was a writer).

"You think it's a date?" Kevin asked, a little worried. He wondered if Blake had anyone he had the hots for (if he did, that person deserved to know what happened to Blake).

"Unlikely," Jayden said. Then again, he didn't know much about love. "Why do you ask?"

"It's because he has a crush on Mia~!" Emily called out, in Lauren's room, having been silent up to this point, yet a smile obviously on her face.

"EMILY!" Kevin was quick to yell.

"I never would've guessed," Jayden said, sarcasm clearly lacing his voice.

Kevin groaned, "Oh, come on. Is it really that obvious?"

"Yes," Jayden and Emily both said at the same time.

Kevin groaned again.

Jayden chuckled, "It's okay, Kevin. We all have a crush on someone at least one point in our lives."

"Oh, yeah. Do you have a crush on somebody?" Kevin shot back.

Jayden cleared his throat, feeling his face heat up again, "Yes." He prayed that Kevin wouldn't ask who it was (Emily was in the same house, within immediate hearing range, after all).

"Oh, yeah?" He could hear the teasing in Kevin's voice. "Who is it?"

"I can decline to state, you know," Jayden gently shot back, his face still red, as he continued to read Matthew's works.

"Dammit," he heard Kevin mutter under his breath, before he called out in a louder voice, "What about you, Em?"

"What about what?" Emily asked. Jayden was rather concerned about her now. She was rather quiet and when she spoke just now, she sounded as if her mind was far away from here.

"Do you have a crush on someone?" Kevin replied, sounding concerned as well.

"Oh, that," Emily said, still sounded distracted. "Maybe."

"What's wrong, Em?" Jayden asked, his instincts telling him that she had found something that was causing her mind to wander.

"I found a diary," Emily replied, "written by Lauren."

Emily was caught off guard when Kevin and Jayden came into her room, despite the fact that she could hear their footsteps coming. She was sitting on Lauren's bed, holding Lauren's diary that was open to the first page.

"Lauren's diary?" Jayden asked as he sat next to Emily.

"Yeah," she replied, showing him what the first page said. "In the first entry here, she writes about how she plans to jot down a record of events based on how she views every day." She turned to the last page that had something written on it (which was far from the very last page of the diary). "And in the last entry here, it seems that she managed to succeed, but the last word just trails off."

"Almost as if something happened that made her drop her pencil," Jayden said.

"Yeah..."

Kevin sat on Emily's other side, so he could see the diary too. He pointed at the date on the page, "Friday, October 13, 2006. You said the incident happened in 2006, Jayden, right?"

"Yeah," Jayden replied, before understanding what Kevin was getting at. "Oh."

"Yeah. It's very possible that we finally have the date of the incident," Kevin explained. "If we read this, we might be able to get more information on what happened to them. Maybe the three Nighlock that attacked them were stalking them. Maybe nothing happened at all. The answers we need could be in this diary."

"Yeah," Jayden was quiet, and so was Emily. This was it. This was their key to the answers they've been searching for since 2006.

"Maybe the others had diaries too," Emily suggested. "Or letters to home they weren't allowed to send. They were isolated, after all."

"Matthew's poems and stories," Jayden said, recalling which room he originally was in. "Most of them were about missing family or returning home."

"Grab them," Kevin said. "Let's get back to searching. Maybe we'll find out more information." The Blue Ranger then left the room, presumably to go back into Blake's room to keep searching.

This was it.

Emily's body was tingling. She couldn't let go of the diary. Her hands were shaking.

At least until Jayden placed his larger, much calmer hand over hers. "It's gonna be okay, Em."

"I'm finally gonna get answers," was her response. "Real answers this time, and not ones made up to make a little kid feel better."

"I know," Jayden quietly said. He's been waiting for answers ever since Lion came back to the Shiba House.

"Promise me we'll read this together, Jay," she asked quietly, calling him the nickname she used when she was vulnerable around him.

"I promise, Em," he gently, quietly replied. "Besides, I don't think I could stand to read this by myself."

"Emotional overload?"

"Most likely." Emily hummed, telling him that she knew what that was like (and was expecting the same thing to happen to her). "We'll face this together."

"Yeah."

After a moment of silence, Jayden stood up, "C'mon. Let's keep looking."

Emily closed the diary and placed it in the messenger bag they brought (for things they found and needed to bring bag with them).

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

Junk Ship, Sanzu River, Netherworld

Jartle boarded onto the Junk Ship, having been summoned by General Octoroo.

"Sorry I'm late!" Jartle greeted. "Action Commander Jartle is here and ready for orders!" It was then that he noticed the place was empty. "What? Where is everybody?"

"Where? Where? Where? Where? Where?" Furrywarts came down from the ceiling and annoying repeated his words at him.

Jartle smacked them away. "Whatever, I already know what to do. Raise the River! That's what all orders boil down to, after all!"

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

Sandra's Restaurant, City Square, Panorama City, California

"'Sandra's'?" Mia asked, noting the name of the restaurant that she, Mike, and his little brother David were in front of.

"Yeah," Mike said. "You said you wanted to us to hang out more, and also what everyone's favorite places to eat out were. This place is mine."

"How are they?" Mia asked as the trio went inside. "Is their food any good?"

"Oh, delicious," Mike replied. "Tastes homemade, because the owner uses only family recipes. And the service is incredible. They've known me and David since we were kids."

"Yeah, Mom takes us here every Saturday," David cut in as they were led to a table.

"Because she used to work here," Mike told Mia, "in high school."

"She did?" Mia asked.

"Yeah," Mike replied. "As a waitress. She once said that it was the best job she's ever had."

"Must have been a great job. How long have they been in business?" Mia was curious about that.

"Since 1965," Mike said, before turning to the waitress that had walked up to them.

"Eveline!" David greeted her with a smile on his face.

She was an African-American woman who looked to be in her mid-50s, and when she spoke, she was very friendly and joyful, "Hello, dear. How are you boys today?"

"We're great," Mike said.

"I see you have a friend," Eveline noted Mia's presence. "Hello, dear. I'm Eveline."

"Hi, I'm Mia. I'm a friend of Mike's and one of David's daycare instructors."

"Oh, so you know these boys well." Mia nodded, and Eveline chuckled. "What would you like, dears?"

Mia turned to Mike and David, "What do you guys recommend?"

"Pancakes, all the way," Mike replied with a smile. "Trust us. They are heavenly."

Mia giggled, before looking at her menu (to check the toppings they had, because they had an entire page dedicated to their pancakes), "I'll have the strawberry pancakes then."

"And the usual for us," Mike told Eveline as he handed her the menus.

Eveline took the menus, before resuming her writing, "One strawberry pancakes, and two chocolate chip pancakes. Got it. Any drinks?"

"Three hot chocolates," Mike continued.

Eveline nodded before leaving to place their orders.

"Hot chocolate on a summer day?" Mia asked, a smile on her face.

"It's the best hot chocolate you'll ever have," David answered. "Trust us, it's worth it."

"Okay," Mia shrugged.

"Are strawberries your favorite fruit?" Mike asked.

"No, actually. Cherries are," Mia replied. "Strawberries are in a close second though."

Mike chuckled. This was nice. He and Mia were getting closer as friends, and David was enjoying himself too. Mia was including him, and that was important to Mike. Far too often, his old friends would leave David out of conversations and always attempted to get Mike to do the same (even though it never worked). So, Mike cut those friends out of his life, even though it left with no friends at all. But that was okay with him, because soon after, he became the Green Ranger and met Jayden, Antonio, and Emily (Kevin and Mia he already knew), and now they all were close friends.

Real friends, because they all knew very well how much Mike's family meant to him, which Mike deeply appreciated.

Just then, the restaurant door opened and in stepped a man that looked very familiar to him.

Apparently, his gaze had wandered and his voice had trailed off, because Mia and David took notice of where he was looking.

"Mike, what's wrong?" Mia asked, before following his line of sight.

The man that had just walked in was looking around, but stopped when he saw Mike staring back at him.

Mia watched Mike's smile fade into a death glare.

"What the hell are you doing here?!" Mike, gritting his teeth, asked the man as the man walked up to their table.

There was one man that Mike hated more than anything in the world, the reason that Mike had problems with older males with authority over younger people, the reason that Mike had self-esteem issues.

"You're Mike's dad?" Mia asked, not believing that was finally meeting the man that caused the most damage to Mike.

"Yep," Mike curtly, angrily responded. "Mia, David, meet Alejandro Rodriguez, mine and David's father."

"That's Dad?" David asked.

Mia noted the look of guilt that Mike suddenly had. "Yeah," Mike replied. "That's Dad."

Mr. Rodriguez looked uncomfortable. It was obvious that he was not welcome here, and it was obvious that he knew that.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

Sunset Plaza, Panorama City, California

Jartle exited the Gap to find an area full of people. Of course people started running away when they saw him, but he was able to corner a business man in a really fancy suit.

Forcing him onto his knees, he laid a red egg from his mouth onto the man's head.

Instantly, the man's demeanor changed from fear to anger.

"My eggs sap the good morals right out of people," Jartle explained to the man. "So now you're free to do whatever you want."

The man stood up and kicked down a row of bikes.

Jartle clapped in excitement, "Marauders, why don't you help him out?" The man led the Marauders into the city after they handed him one of their swords, while Jartle called back to him, "Remember, don't let that egg get destroyed or you'll be back to your old self!"

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

Shiba House, Gianni Forest, Panorama City, California

Once the Gap Sensor went off, Antonio looked at the map before using his Morpher to call Mike.

"Yeah?" Mike sounded angry and preoccupied.

"There's a Nighlock in the city. Sunset Plaza," Antonio replied.

"Sorry, buddy, but I can't make it this time," Mike said, his anger not letting up (making Antonio have a brief moment of 'is he mad at me?'). "I'm at Sandra's. Can you tell my mom that my dad is here and it looks like he wants to talk? You do know where she works, right?"

"Yeah. I-I'm on it."

"Thanks, Antonio," Mike sounded grateful before he hung up.

Mike's dad was here? No wonder Mike sounded so pissed and stressed out.

Antonio then called Jayden, who picked up immediately, "What's up, Antonio?"

"Nighlock at Sunset Plaza," Antonio relayed the Gap Sensor information. "No idea who it is, or what their powers are, so be careful."

"Right," Jayden replied.

"And Jayden?"

"Yeah? What's wrong?"

Antonio wasn't sure if Mike wanted him to relay the information about Mike's dad's return or not, so he didn't say anything. "You three might be the only ones who will be there. Mike's dealing with something...rather personal."

"Okay. And Mia?"

"Not sure yet, but you know how badly she always wants to help her friends."

"Got it. And you?"

"I need to run an errand for Mike real quick," Antonio explained, before vowing, "I'll join you as soon as I can."

"Okay," Jayden replied, sounding concerned. "Take care of yourselves."

"We will," Antonio said before he and Jayden hung up.

Mike's dad was back. Who knows what Mike was going through? Antonio himself never knew his dad, and he never got an answer as to why.

But he could deal with his own feelings later. Right now, Mike was counting on him.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

Sunset Plaza, Panorama City, California

Jartle turned two more victims to a moral-free state. "Don't let those eggs get destroyed!" He called out after them as they ran into the city.

Jayden (fully morphed), at the moment, leapt into the fray and landed a solid hit on the Nighlock while he was clapping with excitement. Jartle saw Kevin and Emily (also fully morphed) run up and stand next to their leader.

"Samurai Rangers?!"

"So you're the one who's been placing eggs on all those people's heads?" Jayden asked, Sword slung over his shoulder.

"I'm just giving them freedom from the pressure their morals place on them," Jartle shot back. "Who are you to give that stress back to them?"

"We've taken care of everybody except for the two you just sent out," Jayden replied. "That just leaves stopping you. Kevin, Emily, go take care of those two."

"Right!" And the Blue and Yellow Rangers ran after them as Jayden rushed at the Nighlock, he and Jartle clashing swords.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

Playground, Four-Leaf Elementary School, Panorama City, California

Mike's mom, Carmen Hernandez, worked as an elementary school teacher. Currently, her class and all of their peers were at recess, so Carmen was free to talk through the fence that surrounded the school.

After catching her attention, Antonio watched as she walked over to him, slightly confused, "Who are you? And how do you know me?"

"I'm Antonio. I'm a friend of Mike's. He wanted me to tell you that your ex-husband is currently at Sandra's, where Mike and David are, and it looks like he wants to talk."

Her shoulders dropped, but not in relief, "So Alejandro is here, just like he said."

"He said this to you?"

Carmen solemnly nodded, "Yes. He called me a couple days ago, telling me he was coming back to Panorama City to talk to us about something. I warned him to leave Michael and David out of this, but I guess he didn't listen. I'm sorry. I should've told them about it."

"You're scared for them." Carmen nodded. Antonio had hit a nail on the head. "You don't have to be sorry for any of this. Your ex has a history of verbal abuse, which, believe me, has damaged Mike's self-esteem. You're entirely justified in wanting to keep your sons safe from him."

Carmen smiled at him with tear-filled eyes, "Thank you. You said you're a friend of Mike's?"

"Yeah," Antonio replied. "He's one of my best friends, actually."

"Keep him and David safe from Alejandro," Carmen pleaded. "Please. Just do me that one favor."

Antonio nodded, fully intent on keeping that promise.

"Thank you," Carmen said with a smile before turning back to her class as Antonio headed towards Sandra's.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

Sandra's Restaurant, City Square, Panorama City, California

Mike turned to Mia and David, "You two should probably leave now." He wouldn't let either of them get hurt by his own father, not on his watch.

"I'm not leaving you here, Mike," Mia immediately said.

"Antonio said it was urgent," Mike shot back. "At least one of us should go."

"I'm not leaving," Mia repeated, slower this time.

"Me neither," David added.

Okay then. (But he did appreciate the support.)

Alejandro slowly sat down at the empty seat at their table, "I understand the precautions being taken here."

"Do you, Alejandro?" Mike bit back.

"You didn't call me Dad..."

"Because you don't deserve it," Mike's answers were short and clearly defined his anger.

"Well...I can't deny that." Mike tried to evaluate the emotions his father feeling. He couldn't tell if that was sincere or not.

"Why are you here?" The Green Ranger asked, this time calmer, but still mad.

"I'm in a twelve step reformation program," Alejandro explained. "I've made it to the step where we're supposed to make amends with the people we've hurt, and I realize that you're one of those people." He took a deep breath, as Mia took note of the door opening again to reveal Antonio. "I realize how difficult it is to forgive someone, so I won't ask for forgiveness. I'm just here to say 'I'm sorry'. I know I've hurt you and David in a way that can't be fixed. I'm sorry. I'll leave before my prescence degrades your mood even further."

After a moment of silence, Alejandro stood up to leave.

"You are an idiot who has changed one bit," Mike ground out, his teeth clenched, his hands balled into fists and shaking in anger. "Even when apologizing and trying to be selfless, you still make it about yourself. If you were sincere in your guilt, you would give me a chance to explain my feelings instead of walking away after you have your say like a coward. Fathers are supposed to look after and protect their kids, not tear them down with every breath they take. And to be honest, I've been feeling perfectly fine until you showed your face again. I have friends who actually care about me and feel more like siblings, and a father figure that's old enough to be my grandpa, but is far greater a guardian than you will ever be."

Once a bully, always a bully, apprently.

As Alejandro was quietly processing Mike's words (which were obviously having a genuine, heavy-hitting impact on him), Mia was quiet as she asked, "Mike, you okay?"

Mike was quiet too, but he turned to Mia and Antonio (who had joined them), and said, "That felt good."

"Good," Antonio replied. "That means you're healing, but if you really want closure, then you two have to meet each other halfway."

"Oh, I know," Mike told them, feeling incredibly cheerful, before turning to his dad, "because I just realized that none of what you do is my fault."

Antonio and Mia both smiled. Mike was healing. That was a good thing. None of the Rangers liked seeing Mike being so hard on himself or distrusting of older men like Ji because they reminded him of his father.

"I...I'm so sorry," Alejandro finally replied, this time his guilt shining through with honesty and clarity. "You're right, son. I really haven't changed at all."

Mike wasn't mad anymore. He motioned his father to sit back down (who obeyed), and spoke softly, from the heart, "Start over in your program, from Step 1, and take your time with this one. Be serious about it."

"O-Okay," his father nodded. "And maybe, when I come back next time...maybe we can all talk and get the closure you boys and Carmen deserve."

"To be honest," Mike grumbled out, "I want nothing to do with you. My life right now is great, but...maybe. Maybe, one day, that can happen. Just focus on your therapy for now." Alejandro nodded, and Mike continued, "And don't forget that I'm not the only one who you need to apologize to. David and Mom too."

Alejandro nodded again before turning to David, "I know we didn't talk much this time, Davie, but I will be back. Maybe not anytime soon, but I will."

David, who had been quiet to this point, merely nodded.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

Sunset Plaza, Panorama City, California

Jayden and Jartle's fight continued as Kevin and Emily succeeded in cutting the eggs on the duo's heads, returning everyone to normal.

Jayden jumped to avoid a swing, clashed a couple times with the Nighlock, before moving behind a column to avoid another strike.

Jartle hit the column Jayden had hid behind and was immediately ambushed by the Red Ranger on the other side of the column. After hitting the column again, Jartle was forced to the ground by Jayden's Sword striking him square in the chest.

At that moment, Kevin and Emily jumped back into the fray and each landed a hit on the Nighlock.

Jartle got back up to face the three Rangers. "Why do you Rangers always have to ruin our fun?!" He spit out three eggs, which launched at the three Rangers.

The trio easily moved out of the way to dodge the incoming explosion. Jartle shot three more eggs at them.

"Spin Sword: Blazing Fury!" After roasting the eggs, Jayden slashed them all in half.

The green goop inside was now a solid. "No! Hard-boiled eggs are useless!"

"Fire Smasher!" Armed with his weapon, Jayden rushed forward.

"You're gonna pay for this!" Jartle shot yellow beams from his eyes, which Jayden easily blocked with his Fire Smasher, before using it to slash the Nighlock across his stomach, which sent him flying.

Kevin and Emily hooked up their colored Disks to their Spin Swords and leapt up into the air. "Spin Swords!"

"Dragon Splash!"

"Seismic Quake!"

The three turned their back to the explosion they caused that ended Jartle's first life, before Jayden turned back around to watch Jartle revive into his second life.

They couldn't form the Megazord without Mike or Mia, both of whom were also the OverSeer for the Beetle Zord (so the Battlewing was out of the question too). All they could do was wait for the others.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

Sandra's Restaurant, City Square, Panorama City, California

Alejandro left the restaurant, feeling a lot lighter than when he first entered the building. He felt better that knowing there was room for closure. On the phone, Carmen told him that she was willing to listen, but to leave their sons out of this. But both Michael and David were willing to, at least, hear him out.

Mike also felt a lot lighter than when he entered the restaurant. He managed to get a lot off his chest and his shoulders.

"Dad's sick, isn't he?" David asked him.

Not physically, but there were definitely some problems going on mentally. "I guess you could say that," Mike answered. "Dad's...not exactly in a good place right now, but it looks like he's trying to get better. He just needed a stronger push, I guess." He looked to Mia and Antonio, who both nodded.

"So, he does love us?" David asked, a question that kind of broke Mike's heart.

Mike shrugged, "I don't know. That's up to him. But right now, he needs to focus on himself before he focuses on how much he really loves us."

"At least we still have Mom, right?" David asked.

Mike smiled and nodded, "Yeah. We'll always have Mom. And each other."

"And you guys!" David motioned to Mia and Antonio.

The two smiled, as Mia nodded and said, "You always will."

"Come on, guys," Antonio said. "Mike and Mia still have something to take care of. I'll take David to safety."

Oh yeah. The Nighlock was still out there. Otherwise, Jayden, Kevin, and Emily would've called them and said something.

"We'll be back, Eveline!" Mike called out to the good-hearted waitress.

"Alright, dears! I'll be keeping your pancakes nice and hot for you!" She called back.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

Sunset Plaza, Panorama City, California

By the time Mike and Mia had left Sandra's, the Nighlock had grown to his Mega form.

"It's the second life already?" Mia asked.

"Must've been an easy Nighlock to beat then," Mike commented, as the two started running.

Jayden, Kevin, and Emily (all fully morphed) were waiting for them by the time they got there.

"Mike! Mia!" Jayden called out.

"We're here!" Mike said.

The two pulled out their Samuraizers. "Go, Go, Samurai!"

Once the two landed next to the other three on the steps (all fully morphed), they pulled out their Folding Zords. "Activate Folding Zords! Zords Combine! Battlewing Megazord, We Are United!"

By this time, Jartle was pissed, "My eggs may be useless for sapping morals away, but they can still be used as weapons." He then bombarded them with egg bombs, which hit the Megazord dead on.

The cockpit jolted as Emily said, "We need to get closer somehow!"

"We need Antonio!" Kevin said.

"I'm here!" Antonio announced over the comm system, as if on cue. "Clawzord Transformation! Claw Battlezord: East! Ready! Sorry I'm late!"

"Where were you?" Jayden asked.

"Sorry, I had to drop David off somewhere safe! At least, I'm here now!" Antonio called back. "Now, let's do this! Claw Battlezord: West! Ready!"

Clawzord used his tail fan to bat away the egg bombs, which eventually landed on the fan at the right angle to come back and hit Jartle.

"Ow! That hurt!"

Antonio spun the disk again, "Claw Battlezord: East! Ready! Now, Jayden!"

"Right."

The Battlewing Megazord flew up in the air and came down for the final attack. "Katana Power: Super Aerial Strike!"

"Katana Power: Claw Pincer Slash!"

And with that, Jartle's second life was gone too.

~B~E~T~T~E~R~~T~O~G~E~T~H~E~R~~P~O~W~E~R~~R~A~N~G~E~R~S~~S~A~M~U~R~A~I~~R~E~D~O~

Sandra's Restaurant, City Square, Panorama City, California

Today was a hectic day (for some reason, all days off turned out to be like this).

Mike met his dad again, and he considered himself fortunate that everything turned out the way it did. He didn't feel too hopeful about his dad actually coming to love them as a father would, but did keep his hopes up for all four of them finally getting closure in the future.

Maybe it said something about him as a person, but Mike felt sorry for his dad. Whether his dad was abused by his dad or not, Mike considered himself as a surrogate father figure for David, and he loved it. He felt sorry for his dad missing out on all of that.

Mia and Antonio also got to see Mike's dad in all his 'glory', and Mike was sorry they had to witness that, but he also felt happy and comforted that they both chose to stay.

Mike also learned that Jayden, Emily, and Kevin found a diary written in Lauren's hand, a diary that could very well hold some if not all of the answers Jayden and Emily so desperately deserved.

But he could think about all that stuff later. Right now, he deserved to enjoy the best pancakes in the universe with his five best friends and his brother.

~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~PRS~REDO~

Original Shinkenger Episode: Act 21

Original PRS Episode: N/A

Note: Apologies if I get things wrong. I've never had to step in Mike's shoes. Next chapter is the beloved Lord Butler episode. Also, the Rider crossover elements were actually really easy to write out.

A/N: Do review, please. If you guys have any ideas you want me to consider adding, please PM me. A preview for the next chapter:

Season 1, Episode 18: "Heart of Yellow"

"Souleater knew what pure happiness felt like. So did Emily. But unlike the Nighlock, Emily actually wanted people to keep theirs."