Two days later, Ninja Ops' subterranean silence and Tori, Blake and Hunter's Christmas tree decorating was broken by the twin sounds of boots bounding down the stone steps.

"Is he still sleeping, dudes, or sleeping again?"

Hunter looked up at Shane, as the Red and Yellow Rangers walked into the command room and stared at Cam's closed door. "Again. He was up for about an hour earlier."

Ever since Cam's recovery from his too-close brush with death, the samurai had not been able to stay awake for longer than a few hours at most. Doctor McAllister had predicted this, but it was still amusing for all of them to watch Cam nod off mere minutes after sitting down on anything that had a seat cushion and a backrest. And on any horizontal surface such as a sofa or a mattress, he had yet to make it even that long.

Shane and Dustin first looked at each other, then back at Tori and the Thunder Rangers, both of them grinning like Cheshire cats.

Tori was puzzled. "What?"

In lieu of an answer, Dustin plopped his backpack down on the command table and started rummaging around inside. A moment later, he was holding up a CD case and two gaming controllers.

"Ever wanted to find out how it would be to play Supercross '06 on an 80-inch computer screen?"

The Bradleys couldn't help but to join in the grin-fest, but the two Wind ninjas hadn't crossed half the distance to the Supercomputer when Cam's door opened and the technician emerged. He must have sensed the impending threat to his beloved gadget.

Shane and Dustin changed directions without missing a beat. "Hey, Sleeping Beauty's up at last," Shane exclaimed, his face a mask of perfect innocence.

Rumpled was not a state any of the ninjas had ever seen Cam in, but now they were treated to just that sight. "Don't even start; I have a lot of sleep to catch up on, after all," Cam said as he ran a hand through his sleep-tousled hair and tugged on his t-shirt in a futile attempt to straighten out the worst wrinkles. His eyes fell onto the Red and Yellow Rangers who were still clutching the game controllers and his face split into a wry grin.

"I'm pretty sure I know what you guys were up to just now, and - go ahead."

"Really?" The two Wind ninjas stared at him with looks ranging from skeptical to incredulous. It made Cam chuckle.

"Sure. Go on, play your game. It's Christmas Eve, after all. But I can't let the surveillance system be down too long, guys, so don't go crazy, okay?"

"All right, sweet!"

"Thanks, Cam!"

"No, thank you guys," Cam mumbled under his breath, trying to keep his grin to a minimum as he watched them scramble towards the Supercomputer.

"That's the Christmas spirit," Hunter said as he slung an arm around his boyfriend's shoulders, just casual enough not to be obvious. He grinned as Cam rolled his eyes. "Come on, you can help us decorate, if you're up to it."

And so, the members of Blue Bay Harbor's Power Rangers team spent the next hour split between decorating Ninja Ops' Christmas tree and demolishing each other at virtual motocross. The tree adornment ended with some graceful acrobatics from Tori - aided by the Thunder Rangers - to put the finishing ornament on top. Almost simultaneously, Shane's exasperated cry ended the Supercross game and no one needed to ask which Wind ninja had won.

Sensei suggested some hot spiced cider and before long, the six teens and their mentor were assembled around the twinkling fir tree, steaming mugs in hand. Of course, the conversation inevitably turned to Julio Morales before long.

At one point, Blake slunk away and was back again a little too quickly to have gone to the bathroom as Hunter had assumed. With a small, mysterious grin, the dark-haired Thunder ninja sat back down next to his brother, but did not divulge any explanation. Hunter frowned, but shrugged it off, laughing along with the rest of the team when Dustin launched into an impersonation of the drug lord's state of dishevelment after their streak from the mountain.

Sensei then somersaulted expertly from his mobile habitat and into their midst without spilling a drop of cider from his own miniature cup. In his paw he held a folded page of newspaper.

"I do not know whether any of you has seen this morning's paper, but this is the article about Julio Morales' arrest and the part the Power Rangers played in it," the Wind teacher announced. "He is being held without bail and scheduled to be sentenced right after the Holidays. Apparently, there is so much evidence against him that the trial is expected to be rather quick. I am very proud of you all, Rangers." He bowed to the Rangers, and his students bowed back, all of them grinning from ear to ear.

"Yeah, well, now that Julio and his cohorts are in prison, we can celebrate not only Christmas but also cleaner streets. I'll drink to that," Shane said and held up his mug for the intended toast before he took a sip. The others followed suit.

Sensei nodded. "Yes, and once Jared finishes his time in Juvenile Detention, he'll return to the academy."

"If there is an academy again by then," Dustin mumbled, and Sensei fixed him with an intent gaze.

"There will be!" he said, his furry face set in grim determination.

"But Sensei," Blake argued carefully, "even though Jared did end up doing the right thing in the end and led us to Morales, do you really think that letting him rejoin the Academy is the best thing? I mean, how can we really know that we can trust him now?" The Navy Ranger cast a look around at his teammates most of whom were nodding in agreement.

Sensei scratched his head thoughtfully before he replied. "I believe that a ninja who has fallen from grace but has been given a second chance to redeem himself will indeed prove to be a most loyal warrior."

To the Rangers' surprise, it was Cam who voiced his support to his father's opinion. "I agree," he said solemnly. "Jared has made some really bad choices, but turning himself in to the authorities and testifying against Morales clearly shows that he wants to rectify those mistakes. If he wants to re-join the Wind Academy, we'll of course keep a close eye on him, but we shouldn't deny him the chance to come back."

The assembled Wind and Thunder Rangers were clearly surprised at Cam's leniency towards the man who had almost killed him, but no one expressed any further discontent. The decision was made and that they would adhere to their sensei's wishes went without saying.

"And once the Wind Academy is back, one of the first things to be done is to relieve ourselves of Morales' drug money," Sensei Watanabe decreed. "There are many charitable organizations in Blue Bay Harbor that would benefit from an anonymous donation."

At this, heads were bobbing more easily in ready agreement and Sensei was glad to see the ninjas sharing his view on how the money should be put to good use.

Dustin suddenly nudged Cam playfully. "So Cam, what're you gonna do now? Go to Disneyland?" he quipped, quoting the popular TV commercial. "I mean, now that you have cheated death and all…"

Amidst the grins of his teammates, Cam shrugged, seemingly insouciant. "I never had any intentions of crossing over in the first place. Over there, on the other side, there's no guarantee there'd be any computers. I couldn't risk that. What would I have done all day long?" The technician deadpanned, contrary to the rest of the team who could not quite keep their faces straight. Snickers erupted among the Wind and Thunder Rangers until Ninja Ops was filled with their laughter. Before long, however, Cam's face turned somber again. "Seriously, though; without you guys, I probably would be sitting on a cloud by now, twiddling my thumbs." The samurai stared into his mug for a moment, then looked around into the faces of his team members. "I guess what I'm trying to say is - thanks, guys, for not giving up on me."

This was received with a chorus of snorts and other indignant sounds.

"Are you kidding?" Shane exclaimed. "We would never give up on you."

"But you have to give yourself some credit here, too," Tori said. When Cam's eyebrows drew together in confusion, she elaborated. "I mean, we didn't exactly do a great job of finding Morales in time and it was your determination and your Ranger powers that kept you alive as long as it did."

"True."

"Yup."

"That's right, dude!"

"Uh-huh."

Cam smiled, warmed by the outpouring of support from his friends.

They sat together for another half hour, joking, chatting and just generally enjoying each other's company. Before long, though, Dustin was the first to reluctantly break up their little round.

"Dudes, I'm sorry, but I still got, like, super-late Christmas presents to buy for the family, you know," he said apologetically as he rose.

Shane left not long after, citing that some of his relatives had flown in to spend the holidays in Blue Bay Harbor, and he did not want to arouse anyone's suspicions by staying away from home for hours on Christmas Eve.

Tori and Blake left together since Tori had invited Blake for Christmas dinner at her house. It was to be the first time he would meet her parents, and when he hugged Hunter goodbye, the Crimson Ranger was only too aware of the nervousness radiating from his younger brother. He gave him a supportive pat on the back and a look that said, You go, bro!

He watched Blake and his hopefully soon-to-be official girlfriend saunter up the stairs until he heard Cam next to him make a sound. Hunter turned his head to find his partner trying to stifle a yawn.

"I think I'll lie down for a while," the samurai said, rolling his shoulders in emphasis.

"What else is new?" Hunter grinned. "You've been up for a little over two hours; you've got to be wiped out."

"Very funny." Cam gave him his patented wry look as he rose, but the gaze turned to an almost careful expression when he asked, "Are you going to stick around a little longer?"

Hunter scratched his neck; he was glad Cam had asked since it wasn't like he had anywhere else to go and the last place he wanted to be right now was his and Blake's empty apartment. So he waved his hand in the direction of the Supercomputer and picked up one of the controllers. "Yeah, I thought I'd try my hand at that Supercross game," he said, smirking. "Don't get me wrong; it's not like I need to practice to beat Blake or Dustin at this, but it never hurts to know the tracks before you play, ya know?"

There was amusement in Cam's eyes as he squeezed his shoulder affectionately. "All right. Have fun then. I'll see you later."

"'kay." Hunter gave him a parting grin and turned his attention towards the game. It was only a few minutes later, though, that he felt Cam's familiar presence behind him again. Without taking his eyes off the screen, he said, "Thought you wanted to take a nap."

"Yeah, I did." The samurai sounded amused, but Hunter didn't think it had anything to do with the way he had just wrapped his virtual bike around a tree. "But it seems your brother left some Christmas decorations in my room."

"Huh? Blake?" Hunter turned his head, his brows drawing together in confusion.

"I'm pretty sure it was Blake." Cam jerked his head in the direction of his room in a silent 'check it out' gesture. Curiosity piqued, Hunter put the controller down and padded after his boyfriend.

Cam's chamber was small and neat to a point of being Spartan since Cam had neither space nor time for clutter. Therefore, it was easy to spot the one thing out of place in the room.

There, on Cam's bed - or more precisely, on the pillow - lay a sprig of mistletoe.

Hunter let out an amused snort. Case of Blake's mysterious disappearance from earlier on solved. "That mushy idiot." He shook his head, but his trademark crooked grin emerged in full force nevertheless while he reached out to take Cam's hand and pull him close.

"Well, I guess we should stick to tradition..."

It was good to see Cam smile that smile again. And suddenly it hit Hunter that this was the first time since Cam's return from the hospital that they were actually alone with each other. Alone without Cam being out cold, that was.

"Isn't this normally done under the mistletoe?" the Green Ranger quipped and Hunter's reply was prompt.

"Na, we're close to the mistletoe, that's good enough for me."

Cam's smile turned wry. "Same here," he said as he tilted his head back and met Hunter's mouth with his own. The Crimson Ranger responded eagerly, his arms wrapping around Cam's waist at the same time as Cam's fingers found their way into Hunter's hair. Cam's lips parted almost immediately, his impatient tongue too insistent to be ignored - not that Hunter ever had any intentions of ignoring it in the first place.

He sighed into Cam's open mouth, leaning into the kiss he had been aching for way too long, and before he knew it, he was holding Cam's head between his hands, thumbs stroking over angular cheekbones, then moving on to the soft skin of Cam's neck.

Cam responded in kind, the fingers still winding through Hunter's shaggy mop of hair tightening just enough to keep his head in place while the samurai explored his mouth with barely restrained passion.

Their kisses had become more familiar and less inhibited over the past few weeks, but Cam still mostly preferred the tentative, exploratory approach. Today, however, that nimble tongue darted in and out of Hunter's mouth, tracing his lips, teeth nibbling at the corner of his mouth before it returned again to seek out the tip of the Thunder ninja's own tongue for another languid, sensual dance.

Hunter couldn't help but smile into the kiss; normally, Cam was the one kissing with style whereas Hunter had always been the action type. But since Hunter had had to rein in his libido for the past few months for fear of scaring Cam off, it had involuntarily turned him into a connoisseur in the art of kissing and slow touches. Therefore it was not too hard a thing to do to let Cam set the pace of their kissing today. He let out an appreciative groan as Cam's hand slid under his shirt, warm fingers caressing his back in slow circular movements.

Hunter kept one hand on the side of Cam's face, but the other around the samurai's waist now pulled their bodies even closer together - before he suddenly let himself fall backwards without warning and they both collapsed onto the mattress. Hunter laughed at the small, yet undignified yelp that escaped Cam's lips as the Green Ranger landed on top of his partner.

"That was probably a bad idea," Cam remarked. "You know what's been happening to me lately when I hit a mattress."

"Well, then we'll just have to make the best of the little time we have until you conk out again," Hunter smirked.

And they did just that, continuing their kissing session for another few minutes until Hunter noticed that Cam was beginning to go slack in his arms. Apparently, even making out couldn't keep his partner's need for sleep at bay yet. Cam confirmed this notion only a moment later.

"Hunter?"

"Yeah?" the Thunder Ranger breathed against the side of Cam's neck between kisses.

"As much as I'd like to do this for the next few hours…" Cam made a noise that could have been a chuckle or a sigh. "I'm falling asleep. Sorry."

Hunter couldn't help but to laugh. "Not exactly a compliment to my make-out skills."

Cam joined in with a soft chuckle. "Not exactly one to my stamina, either."

"Okay, lay down. Rest."

Cam sank into the mattress with a sigh. "All right, but what are you going to do?"

Hunter shrugged, careful to make it look nonchalant. "I dunno. Hang out here some more, I guess, then go home."

Cam made a noncommittal noise and watched him for a moment with an all-too-knowing look in his eyes.

"Hunter?"

"Hm?"

"You could stay, you know."

That made Hunter blink. Now this needed more clarification. "Stay as in - stay?"

A sly look crossed Cam's face. "Obviously."

"How long?" Hunter couldn't help but ask.

"All night would be great," the samurai said, never breaking eye contact with Hunter.

"I don't want to sleep alone tonight," he added.

Hunter was not exactly sure what this statement implied, yet he had no intention of turning Cam down. Was Cam ready for more between them, or should he take his partner's words at face value? Probably the latter, since it wasn't like Cam could possibly remain awake for much longer. So most likely, he would be holding a snoring samurai in his arms shortly after they had settled under the covers. But that was all right with Hunter. As long as he was near Cam, felt him move, heard him breathe, knew that he was alive, alive!

He wanted to say something witty, or at least something mildly salacious, but for some reason, his mind drew a blank. So he merely nodded. "Sure, no problem. I can stay." A smile crossed his face. "But first we gotta get you changed for bed." He swung his legs off the mattress. "I'm not going to let you sleep in your clothes."

Cam looked down on himself. "Why not? I've slept in them the past two nights."

"And that's exactly why we're getting you out of them." Sporting his patented lopsided grin, Hunter held a hand out to Cam and hauled him off the bed.

Rolling his eyes in mock-exasperation, Cam crossed the short distance towards the dresser that served as his closet alternative. He rummaged through a drawer and a moment later, after only a brief hesitation on the samurai's part, two distinctly garment-like pieces sailed through the air.

"If I have to change, you change, too."

Hunter reflexively caught them with one hand held them both up for inspection - only to promptly snort a laugh.

"Flannel pajamas?" he exclaimed with a grin. Cam shrugged, his mouth turning upwards as well. Hunter blew up at his bangs. "Cam..."

But Cam was already laughing, a beautiful sound that made Hunter's heart jump. How close had he been to never hearing that sound again...

"Hey, you guys stayed here during the summer, so you didn't need those then, but in case you haven't noticed it yet..." He waved a hand at a little battery-powered space heater sitting in the corner. "Ninja Ops didn't come with a built-in heating system and it's been getting pretty cold down here lately, especially at night."

Hunter held up the green and black checkered pajama top. It actually looked like it could fit him. Which would mean that it almost certainly would be too large for Cam - which in turn would insinuate that Cam most likely hadn't gotten this for himself in the first place...Hunter managed to hold back both the knowing look and the wry grin that threatened to form on his face. This was definitely a matter that needed some more probing into at some point in time, but not tonight. Tonight they both had to catch up on some much-needed rest.

He flashed Cam a nostalgic smirk instead. "I haven't worn something like that since I was, like, eight."

"Yeah, well, don't get all reminiscent on me now, though." Cam grinned back. He then lit the two thick candles from the top of the dresser and turned off the harsh overhead lights. The room immediately took on a softer, more intimate atmosphere.

In silence they changed; Cam, being Cam, discreetly turned his back while donning his own green flannel PJ's. Hunter discarded his clothes in a wad on the floor whereas Cam neatly folded his shirt and pants, then draped it all over the back of a chair. They both instinctively kept their socks on. It was winter, after all, no matter how many blankets Cam had stacked at the foot of his bed.

Hunter spread out one of the blankets and topped it with a quilted comforter before they both slid under the covers. They arranged themselves comfortably, bodies turned towards each other, and Hunter suddenly had this vision of the two of them creeping out of the room and into the command center in the morning, looking for presents under the Christmas tree - both of them still wearing their flannel pajamas. A single picture of that, and Sensei would have enough ammunition to blackmail them for the rest of their lives. It made Hunter snicker.

"What?" Cam's eyes twinkled with mirth at his partner's amusement.

When Hunter told him, he couldn't help but chuckle as well. "Oh god, the look on Dad's face would be priceless. But you're right; I think he would milk this for all it was worth."

"Definitely."

"So we agree that word of this –" Cam pointed first at himself, then at Hunter. " – does not leave this room."

Hunter wasn't exactly sure whether Cam was referring to the pajamas or to themselves, but he nodded anyways. "Okay."

"Not even to Blake."

Okay, at least now he knew Cam was talking about their sleep wear. "Not even to Blake," he echoed, the smirk growing again.

He didn't know how long they lay snuggled up together under the comforter, legs entwined and Cam's head resting in the crook of Hunter's shoulder. It wasn't long, though, until Hunter could feel his partner's shoulders sagging and his body relaxing. Hunter lay quietly for a long moment until the increased weight of Cam's head against his shoulder confirmed to him that his partner had fallen asleep. In the faint and flickering light of the candles, Hunter watched Cam's slack face for a while longer before he closed his own eyes for some well-deserved rest and let out a sigh.

Just how did he feel about Cam? Hunter had asked himself that question innumerable times in the past few weeks, but he had never come up with a definite answer.

Not until the hospital. Forced to watch helplessly as Cam was being pulled back from the abyss of death he had finally seen clearly that a future without Cam in it just wasn't an option anymore. He was way over his head into this.

He had often asked himself whether this thing they had was just sex or love. Not that they had gotten very far in the former yet, but love? A scary concept for Hunter - until the monitor had flatlined.

The horror of the hours that followed was something Hunter wanted very much to lock away in his memories and never open that particular door of his mind again. What he did want to remember -as a matter of fact, what he had replayed countless times in his mind over the past two days - was the moment Cam had opened his eyes again and looked at him. It had taken a few hours after Dr. McAllister had administered the antidote, but Cam's vital signs had responded to the serum almost immediately and had continuously improved during the following hours. If it hadn't been for the fact that the entire team was assembled in the hospital room at that moment - including Sensei, whom Dustin had smuggled in inside his jacket pocket - Hunter would have pulled his partner into his arms and kissed him senseless. His spirits had soared higher than Shane's Hawk Zord, and judging from the cries of joy that erupted from everyone around him, his friends had felt the same way.

Yes, he loved Cam. And one day the time would be right to tell him.

But how did Cam feel? Could he, Hunter, risk opening his heart so completely to someone who might not feel the same way? Could he live with potential rebuff? Or the commitment, for that matter, if Cam reciprocated his feelings?

It would have to be addressed some day, but not anytime soon, Hunter decided. For now it was enough to just be here and near Cam, and a solid eight hours of blissful oblivion in a too-narrow bed at who knows how many feet below the earth's surface in near pitch blackness holding the warm and breathing body of the man he loved in his arms sounded really good right about now.

Cheek pressed into Cam's hair, Hunter hugged him closer and smiled when he heard the content sigh Cam emitted in his sleep.

And so, Christmas Eve went and Christmas Day came, but for the two young men entwined in each other's limbs and warmth, it arrived unnoticed as they slept on, peacefully and dreamlessly.

THE END

A/N: Well, another one finished! Hope you all enjoyed this story! It got way longer than I had anticipated, but then again – I never could write anything short :)

Thank you all for your reviews! They are very much appreciated. Every one of them!

And now stay tuned for "Deception of the samurai", a collaborative story with AngelMouse, which we will be posting soon under the pen name DanyAngel