Author's Notes: Hi, readers. Here's chapter three of "Rising Above." This chapter has some Tommy/Kim and Jason/Trini. Ranger action is coming in the next few chapters. Zordon and Alpha will be introduced in the next one. Stay tuned for chapter four.

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Chapter 3: Karate Class/Being Chatty

A crowd was watching Tommy and Jason instruct their karate class thirty minutes later. Kim and Trini were seated on the stairs. Zack watched from nearby while standing. Tommy and Jason lifted their legs, as did their students. They placed their feet on the floor. Their students copied them. Unfortunately, Billy was clearly struggling.

"One, two, block three," Jason instructed while holding up his arm. The students did just that, but Billy was unable to follow. "Very nice."

"Punch four," Tommy added as he punched at the air. The students obeyed, though Billy didn't do it correctly. "Now, continue."

Tommy and Jason straightened their postures. The class did every one of their moves in almost perfect unison, but Billy continued to struggle. Jason noticed this and instructed the others to stop in Korean. The students did what he said. They looked toward Tommy while straightening their postures. He headed over to Billy.

"Try this, Billy," Jason said and turned his body sideways. He eyed his friend imitating him. He held up his left fist and put his right one back. "Now, punch."

Jason pushed his back fist forward as he brought the front one to his body. Billy mimicked his moves. Jason brought his fist back while placing his hand against it. Billy followed him with an exhale. Jason put up his arm, as did Billy with his. He turned his body to where he was looking toward the wall. Billy sighed in frustration.

"Damn. I am just not good at this," Billy mumbled in dejection.

Jason turned around to face him. "Don't sweat it, Billy. Even I was a beginner once. Just wait right here."

Jason went to the front of the class and clasped his hands together. Billy turned around, swallowing hard. Tommy placed his hands behind his back while breathing deeply. They focused their attention on their students.

"All right, class. What are the characteristics that martial arts helps us to develop?" Jason asked. Several students raised their hands, including Billy. He gestured toward him. "Billy?"

"Courage, kindness, integrity, fitness, loyalty, and discipline," Billy answered.

"That's good," Tommy complimented. "You memorized that very quickly."

Billy chuckled to himself. Kim and Trini leaned toward each other, big smiles showing on their faces.

"I had a feeling Billy memorized the characteristics of karate," Kim whispered with a squeak.

"He is so smart," Trini responded. "People like him have never been popular in high school."

"Who cares if he is a nerd? He is a nice boy," Kim commented truthfully. "Why can't people accept others for who they are, not what they look like?"

"It is human nature to be drawn to attractive people," Trini said as she yawned.

Kim propped her head up by her elbow on her leg. "That may be true, but people run from the pretty ones once they are revealed to be cruel."

Trini raised her eyebrows. "No arguing with that."

Snorting caught Kim and Trini's attention. They looked over their shoulders to see Bulk and Skull coming toward them. They saw the bullies were dressed in karate attire. Bulk and Skull passed the girls, whom gazed ahead.

"Hey, geeks," Bulk shouted as he and Skull pushed their way through the students. They approached Tommy and Jason. "Teach us how to beat people up."

"Yeah," Skull added and made some karate yells. He stopped when Bulk pushed him toward Billy. He stumbled, but he regained his balance. He shook his head while babbling. "Oh, boy."

"Martial arts was not developed to hurt others," Jason responded firmly.

"It is actually meant for defense, not for attack," Tommy added sternly.

Bulk rolled his eyes and shook his head in disbelief. He mumbled inaudible words before glaring at Tommy and Jason.

"We did not sign up for a geeky karate class," Bulk hissed in much annoyance.

"Yeah!" Skull blurted out.

"Okay, Bulk," Jason said and rubbed his hands together. "Maybe you're ready for some more advanced training techniques."

Bulk snapped his fingers. "Oh, okay."

Jason huffed in determination. "Try a side kick."

Jason turned his body sideways and balled his hands into fists. He kicked at the air with a soft grunt. He placed his foot on the ground before turning to face Bulk, who smirked widely.

"Anything you can do, I can do better, baby," Bulk said with a scoff. He growled in much fierceness. "Here I go."

Bulk moved his body into a sideways position. He performed a kick at the air while letting out a loud yell. He put his foot on the ground and faced Jason. Skull applauded with a chuckle. He became still and quiet quickly.

"How was that, dweeb?" Bulk asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Very impressive, Bulk," Tommy answered and smirked. "Let's see you try a…triple tornado kick."

Jason moved back a little bit. Tommy clenched his teeth and did three tornado kicks in rapid succession. He landed gracefully and rushed a fist forward. He straightened his posture and looked Bulk in the eye. Bulk groaned nervously and gazed at Skull, who gave him a thumbs-up. He turned back to Tommy. He hissed determinedly and waved his arms around. He jumped, only to spin around and land on his stomach. Skull applauded him as the students broke into a fit of hysterical laughter. Bulk glared up at him, causing him to stop. Tommy and Jason looked at their students, seeing them become quiet.

"Class dismissed," Jason announced.

The students bowed, as did their teachers. The former went out the exit while the latter stayed where they were. Bulk stood up and went to Skull. He grabbed his arm and dragged him away. They mumbled obscenities in Spanish. Jason looked at Tommy and let out a soft chuckle. Kim and Trini rose to their feet and went toward them along with Zack.

"Nice work, Tommy. You really showed Bulk there," Zack complimented as he, Kim, and Trini stopped before the duo.

"Karma will keep biting Bulk and Skull in their asses until they wise up and stop bullying people," Tommy said bluntly.

"Who knows when that will be?" Kim wondered.

Trini huffed. "Probably never."

"Tommy and I are going to get changed. We will meet you three at the Juice Bar along with Billy," Jason commented.

"That sounds good," Trini said sweetly.

Tommy waved at the trio. "We'll see you in a few minutes."

Tommy and Jason walked out the exit. Kim, Trini, and Zack turned to each other and began talking about the time Bulk and Skull ran into trashcans when they tried to beat up the duo.

00000

Tommy, Kim, Jason, Trini, Billy, and Zack sat together at their usual table forty-five minutes later. They were talking about Billy's first karate lesson. A young woman entered and headed for a table close to the arcade area. Ernie went over to her and pulled out his notepad. She told him what she wanted. He wrote down her order and headed for the kitchen.

"Billy, I'm telling you. For your first lesson, you did really well," Jason said, warmth echoing from his voice.

"I did?" Billy said in much surprise.

"Yeah. We were watching you," Kim responded, a small smile crossing her lips.

"You were very good," Trini commented, giving the genius a wink.

Billy frowned a bit. "I don't know if I have what it takes."

"It's all a state of mind, Billy. You don't need to be strong in martial arts," Trini

"Yeah, man. It's all up here," Zack said while pointing his finger at his forehead.

"You'll get the hang of it, Billy," Jason assured.

"We promise," Tommy added and stroked his chin.

Kim waved her hands in the air. "Let's not discuss Billy's first karate lesson now. Let's discuss something else."

"Like Bulk humiliating himself when he tried to copy Tommy's triple tornado kick?" Jason asked, snickering under his breath.

"That was really funny," Billy responded and laughed as he hit his hand on the table. "I can't believe he thought he could do better than either of you."

"You two have become masters at karate," Zack said in amazement.

"We have, though Tommy is the better of the two," Jason said while motioning toward Tommy. "His karate skills are exceptional."

Tommy scratched the back of his neck. "Well, I did start doing karate when I was six. I caught on fairly quick. I've spent nine years strengthening my skills. Of course, there is always room for improvement."

"Who knows how many people have attempted to learn karate without proper instruction from a teacher?" Trini wondered.

Jason groaned annoyingly. "Too many to count."

"In The Karate Kid, Daniel attempted to learn karate from an instruction manual. It didn't help him fight off Johnny and his friends very well," Tommy commented and chuckled nervously. "It was only when Miyagi took him on as his student that he got proper instruction."

"Miyagi's way of teaching Daniel was a little strange. He had him do various chores around his house first. Daniel complained he hadn't learned anything of karate. Miyagi showed he was learning defensive blocks through muscle memory. He showed how each chore demonstrated a move. Wax-on and wax-off taught Daniel how to fend off kicks. Painting the fence showed him how to fend off punches," Jason explained.

Trini giggled. "That is pretty damn cool."

Zack clapped three times. "No denying that."

Kim stretched her arms above her head. She laid her hands in her lap before leaning against Tommy. Trini took Jason's hand into hers. She gave it a gentle squeeze.

"I am totally looking forward to seeing Jurassic Park tonight," Kim said excitedly.

"I am too," Trini squealed in much glee.

"Hey, you aren't the only ones," Tommy pointed out as he put his arm around Kim.

"Tommy and I are looking forward to the movie just as much as you two are," Jason added and flicked Trini's nose.

"I hope you boys don't hog all the popcorn," Kim quipped and stifled a snicker.

"Hey, you girls eat just as much popcorn as we do every time that we go see a movie," Jason responded matter-of-factly.

"We might, but you two always get the ones with the butter," Trini commented and spoke gibberish. "Yes, you do."

Tommy and Jason waved their girlfriends off. Kim and Trini smacked their boyfriends upside their heads twice. They flicked their noses three times. Kim slipped a lock of hair behind her ear.

"Tommy, Jason, Trini, Billy, and Zack are lucky their parents agree with them going on dates. My parents clash with each other over it," Kim muttered, a frown forming on her face. "Mom has no problem with me dating, but Dad is very much against it. He thinks boys just want in my pants, even if he has known them all their lives."

"He basically says it is okay for you to be friends with boys, but dating them is bad," Trini said with a heavy sigh. "I don't agree with that at all."

"I can understand parents feeling uncertain about their teens going out on dates. I would respect their decision not to let them date until a certain age, even if I didn't agree with it," Jason admitted and emitted a soft snort. "However, thinking every person of the opposite sex just wants to screw them and leave them in the dust is crazy."

"What's worse is some children continue to follow their parents' orders well into adulthood. They don't have the courage to stand up to them," Billy muttered, his body shaking quite a bit.

"They've been taught to never think for themselves," Trini said, shaking her head in disbelief. "They obey authority without question."

"That is a recipe for disaster," Tommy commented and mumbled inaudible words. "Someone could tell such a person to get in their car. The person obeys. They end up being raped and/or murdered."

"That is really scary," Kim muttered, gulping quietly.

"That is not the only scenario capable of happening," Billy added and cleared his throat. "A person who was raised to obey authority without question could be convinced by someone to do something illegal."

"Like robbing a store," Tommy murmured.

"Exactly," Zack agreed with a nod. "The person wants to please authority because they see them as right."

"It is very important for children to develop critical thinking skills. It will help them to avoid dangerous situations," Jason responded in bluntness.

"We are capable of thinking for ourselves," Billy said, gesturing toward his friends and himself. "We do a damn good job of it."

"We may not agree with each other on everything, but we do respect each other's beliefs," Jason said, a smile forming on his face.

"Let's never let anyone tear us apart," Kim said in much determination.

"Let's high-five to that," Jason commented, clapping twice. He held up his hand, his smile growing wider. "What do you say?"

Tommy, Kim, Trini, Billy, and Zack voiced their agreement. They held up their hands. They and Jason high-fived each other somewhat hard. They laid them on the table. They proceeded to talk about the end of eighth grade.