"I'M A WHAT?"
The rangers had just finished battling off Zelyrax and nearly a dozen Tyrannodrones. The group now stood in the partially destroyed Cyber-Café, trying to explain to Kelly about everything that had just happened. During the battle the young girl had kept herself calm, yet once everything had calmed down she hadn't been able to keep her emotions inside any longer.
"Calm down, Kell," said Trent gently, resting a hand on her shoulder. He could still remember what it felt like when he had first learned that he was a ranger. His friends had been there to help him and now he wanted to do the same for Kelly.
He lifted a chair from the ground and helped her to sit down. He kept his hand on her shoulder, watching over her as she breathed deeply and attempted to calm down. "A p-power what?" Kelly asked finally, looking up to the others.
"A power ranger," stated Hayley calmly. She smiled and continued upon noticing Kelly's confused look. "A crime fighting hero...for lack of a better word."
"Sounds corny," said Connor with a grin. "Yet, it's true."
Kelly exhaled deeply, gazing intently at the floor as she lost herself to her thoughts. After a few moments she looked up, blue eyes continuing to sparkle with confusion. She reached up and brushed a bit of hair from her face, nodding slightly, deciding that she believed them. "Ok..." She whispered softly. "But…Why me? Of all people, why me?"
"It's your destiny," Tommy put in, stepping forward and smiling reassuringly down at his nervous and confused student. "It wasn't us that picked you, it was the gem. You were destined to be a ranger, yet that doesn't necessarily mean that you have to be one. If you chose to be a ranger your life will be changed forever, this is your life, Kelly; it's your choice and yours alone."
Kelly stayed silent, looking as though she wished she could simply disappear into the chair.
"You can think about this, we don't need an answer right now," added Tommy. "Take your time."
Trent nodded, smiling down at her and squeezing her shoulder gently. Kelly sighed quietly and nodded, biting her lip. After a few more moments of thought she asked, "How long have you guys been…'super heroes'?" complete with air quotes around super heroes.
"Quite a while, actually..." Ethan said, taking a chair and plopping down in it, though so he was sitting with the back of the chair in front of his chest. He rested his arms on the top of the chair and rested his head on his arms. "Kira, Connor and I were first. Then Dr. O was kidnapped and with Hayley's help we rescued him, resulting in him becoming the black ranger. Trent joined up next and now you." He finished with a tone of finalization in his voice.
Kelly nodded, trying to make sense of the millions of questions that were swarming her mind. "How'd you get over the fact that you were all of a sudden a power ranger?" She asked, turning her last two words over in her mind, still in slight shock.
"You get used to it." Kira put in, lifting her guitar from the table it had been resting on and strumming a few cords. "At first I didn't want to be one, I actually gave my gem to Connor and Ethan...though in the end I changed my mind…"
Connor nodded in agreement, stepping forward to tell his own story. "I was about to quit to join a soccer team...though I ended up saving this little girl, who I had seen playing soccer in the park...and after that I decided that saving lives was more important to me than playing soccer."
Kelly nodded before turning her head, looking to Trent who had just spoken up from behind her. "I didn't have many problems with it when I first joined." He said quietly, thinking back to the fateful day when he had become a ranger.
"Why's that?" Kelly asked quietly, brow furrowing in confusion.
Trent smiled warmly down at her. "Because I had my friends to help me through it, as do you." He told her gently.
Kelly smiled, looking over to the only ranger who hadn't spoken up. "And you, Dr. Oliver?" She asked quietly.
The oldest ranger sighed quietly and looked around, not wanting anyone to come in and overhear their discussion. "It's a long story…" He said quietly. "I'll show you once we get back to the Ranger Lab."
Once again Kelly frowned in confusion. "The what?" She asked, rising to her feet and brushing a bit of dirt and dust from her clothes that had come onto her clothing during the fight.
"His house." Hayley put in, teasingly rolling her eyes at Tommy. She understood him better than most, having lived with him for six months and known him for even longer. She knew almost too well that he tended to either let out too much or too little, yet little personality quirks like that only caused her feelings for him to grow fonder.
Thirty minutes later the group was settling in to the Ranger Lab hidden inside of Dr. Oliver's house. Hayley was silently leaning against the wall, watching along with everyone else, as Tommy paced the floor.
"Where to begin...where to begin..." He muttered to himself.
"Why not show her the movie?" Ethan suggested, referring to the one that they had earlier showed to Trent and that he, himself, had watched after Dr. Oliver had gone missing.
"Hayley? Love? Could be a dear and put it on?" Tommy asked, a hint of playfulness in his voice as he spoke with his friend. He appreciated her company more than anyone knew. The other rangers were wonderful, yet around them he had to act the part of mentor. With Hayley, he could play and tease without feeling as though he'd be setting a bad example.
"Hm?" asked Hayley, shaking her head as she pulled herself from her daydreams. "Oh...right, hold on." She added with a smile, slipping between the rangers and quickly getting the movie up, before returning to her resting place.
Kira leaned back in the chair that she and Kelly were sharing, already having seen the movie twice before. Her mind and eyes began to wander, eventually settling on Dr. Oliver. She studied his face and expressions, soon noticing a strange behavior coming from her teacher. Each time that the first pink ranger, Kimberly, was on the screen Dr. O would smile. His took on a slightly lonely and longing look as he watched, though seeing Kimberly also brought laughter to his sad eyes. Kira made a mental note to speak about this to her fellow rangers.
While Kira' eyes were on Dr. Oliver, Kelly's were stuck on the screen as the movie continued playing. She couldn't believe how many rangers had come before her and she was sure that there were many to come after her. She turned her head and looked up to her teacher. He had been a ranger for a many years of his life and he didn't seem to regret his choice in the slightest. He turned and looked down at the group and Kelly could see pride shining through his eyes, yet she also saw something else...something that she didn't like…
The movie ended minutes later and Tommy's eyes moved to Kelly. "Well, Kelly? What do you think? Have you come to a decision?" He asked gently, prepared to give her more time if she needed it.
Kelly nodded, squaring her shoulders and looking quite sure of herself. "I want to be a ranger." She said in a confidence voice.
Tommy smiled and opened his mouth to speak, yet he was interrupted as the phone rang. "I'll get that." He said with a smile, before turning around and disappearing up the stairs.
Kira rose from her chair, crossing the room and making sure that he was really gone, before she turned and faced her friends. "Hayley?" She asked, looking over to the other woman. "Did the rangers...like…you know…ever date each other?" She slowly said, as the other rangers suddenly turned to look at Hayley, each one wanting to hear the answer for their own reasons.
Hayley nodded, continuing to lean back against the wall, arms crossed over her chest as she spoke. "It was easier to date someone from team...less lying involved when they needed to fight. It was also good supportive wise; for each understood the pressure the other was under. Some went out for short periods, others for longer...some were even married."
"What about Dr. Oliver?" Trent asked, unknowingly speaking the question that was on the minds of all of the rangers.
Hayley nodded once again. "Oh yeah...he had his share of relationships. His first was with Kimberly...From what I've heard they were quite close, yet she moved away and they broke things off. Kat took her place for a while, yet they broke things off too because Tommy's heart belonged to someone else."
"What next?" Connor asked, eyes wide with curiosity, like a child in a candy store.
"After they broke up Kat called her friend and fellow ranger, Jason. They were married and had a child, Julie – she's five now. Kat died a few years ago...brain cancer. Jason and Julie moved in with Tommy for a year and he helped them cope with her death…As for Kim, though, no one really knows. She and Tommy met up last year at Trini's funeral; she was the first yellow ranger. The two had promised to talk, yet she left before they had a chance to." Hayley finished up, sounding as if she hadn't wanted to go into the subject at all.
"Tommy still has feeling for her," said Kira quietly.
"No, he doesn't!" Hayley snapped, cheeks flushing slightly and eyes flashing.
"Yes he does..." Kelly put in softly, hugging her knees to her chest. "Didn't you see him when he was watching the movie?"
Ethan nodded, looking deep in thought. "He did look happier when she was on the screen...I thought it was just me though..."
"Sounds like Dr. O still digs this ranger chick," said Connor, the gears turning in his mind as things began to click together.
"Connor." Kira muttered, rolling her eyes in annoyance.
"Ok, ok." Connor replied, holding his hands up in surrender. "Anyway, what're we going to do about this?"
"We have to hook them up, of course," answered Kelly, a slight hint of shyness in her voice. She still didn't know Connor, Ethan or Hayley that well and if it hadn't been for Kira and Trent, whom she was closer with, she wouldn't've even spoken up about her opinion.
"I thought you liked him..." Kira whispered quietly to her friend, Kelly having already confided in Kira about her feelings for their teacher.
"Sometimes it's necessary to put other people's feelings before your own." Kelly replied softly.
Kira smiled and nodded in slight admiration. She took a moment to think of her own crush and she knew that she couldn't've made such a decision as Kelly had just done. This crush was her second in the past few months, the first being Trent. She and Trent had gone out quite a few times before, yet in the end they had decided that things were better when they were simply friends.
"I'm happy as long as he's happy." Kelly added, running her fingers through her hair, still mentally trying to convince herself that she was doing the right thing.
"So..." Trent said, after a few moments of silence. "What's the plan?"
"Are you kids sure that you want to do this?" asked Hayley, looking slightly uneasy. Her thoughts were the opposites of Kelly's, for she believed that if Tommy couldn't be hers, then he couldn't be anyone's.
"Of course...why wouldn't we?" Ethan wondered aloud, brow furrowing slightly in confusion.
"I mean..." Hayley began slowly; trying to phrase her words so that the group didn't catch on that she had quite a strong attraction for everyone's favorite doctor. "Are you sure that Tommy really wants this? Are you sure that this won't be opening old wounds that he'd prefer to leave along?"
"Hayley." Kira began, sounding as if she was speaking to a small child that refused to see reason, which wasn't too far from the truth of the situation. "I saw the look in Dr. Oliver's eyes…he loves her...I know that look..." She said, voice steadily growing quieter as she trailed off.
"And how would you know, Kira?" Connor asked, leaning forward with a teasing smirk on his face, eyes sparkling mischievously.
"That's for me to know and for you to find out," said Kira with a laugh, a smile lighting up her face as she held down a blush.
"Are you implying that you want me to find out?" Connor questioned, smile widening.
Ethan cleared his throat loudly, half glaring at the two. "Focus you two; we're talking about Dr. O's love life, not Kira's."
Tommy entered the room once more as Ethan finished speaking. "What was that about 'Dr. O's love life'?" He asked, a hint of amusement in his sparkling eyes.
"Nothing." Trent said, quickly thinking of a way to change the topic. "Who was on the phone?"
Tommy looked to Hayley, remembering why he had returned to them. "It's for you Hayley...it's your mum. She said it's really important." He said, frowning slightly, the amusement leaving his eyes. Hayley nodded, biting her lip and rushing from the room to go to the phone. Tommy turned back to the rangers, trying to rid himself of the feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach. "So...as you were saying. What was it you were all talking about while I was gone?"
"We were learning a bit of ranger history from Hayley." Connor put in, tilting back in his chair, so the chair was only standing on its back two legs.
"Connor." Tommy scolded gently, smiling as Connor set the chair right. "I thought you said that you were talking about my love life." He added, looking to Ethan.
"We were." Kira said, a sparkle of mischief in her eyes as she spoke.
Tommy opened his mouth to ask another question, before realization dawned on him. "Ah..." He whispered quietly. "Learn anything of interest?" He questioned, a bit of suspicion in his voice.
"Of course, Dr. O," replied Ethan with a laugh. "Your entire life is interesting."
Tommy shook his head in disagreement. "No it isn't..." He said slowly.
"Dr. Oliver." Kira began kindly, though with a raised brow as if to say 'Who are you trying to kid?'. "You've been a power ranger for many years… including this one."
"And you've been four different colors, not including the time when you were the evil green ranger." Kelly put in with a soft smile.
Connor nodded, clearing his throat softly before putting in his own bit. "You created ugly dino robots that ended up turning against you."
"And put together a new team of rangers, while maintaining a love life...to a degree." Ethan added with a grin.
"And you're a super hero." Trent pointed out obviously, laughing slightly.
"We're all super heroes, kids." Tommy said, crossing his arms over his chest as he smiled down at them.
"You get what we mean though." Kira said, rolling her eyes once again.
Tommy nodded. "Indeed I do. Yet, I'm not the only ranger with a love life, you know. There were many others aside from me, like Ashley and Andros, Jason and Kat, Jen and Alex…and, of coarse, we can't forget Kira and Trent, no matter how short lived it was." He added with a laugh, as Kira and Trent blushed, each looking to the floor.
"Things didn't work out; I don't think that should count." Kira said in her own and Trent's defense.
"True, yet it happened, so I believe I does count to some degree…don't worry though, I'm sure that won't be the last ranger couple in this group." Tommy added, a small smirk on his face and a sparkle in his eyes.
"What?" The rangers, excluding Tommy, shouted in unison, all staring at him wide-eyed.
"You heard me," said Tommy, laughing as he watched them. The group silenced, all avoiding each other's eyes and all blushing to some degree. Footsteps sounded as Hayley walked down the stairs and all the rangers looked up in surprise as they noticed the tears in her eyes. "Hayley? What is it? What's wrong?" Tommy asked, quickly rushing over to her.
"M-my sister..." Hayley whispered, pausing as he approached her. She bit her lip, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to spill from her eyes.
"What happened?" Trent asked, worry filling his voice. He rose to his feet and walked over, standing beside Tommy, heart catching in his throat as he watched her. Hayley was more than a boss to him, she was like the mother he never had and it frightened him to see her so upset.
Hayley took a moment to answer. She closed her eyes and took in a few deep breaths before saying quietly. "She and her husband have been in a car accident…"
"Are they alright?" Connor questioned quietly, voice barely above a whisper as he spoke to her.
"I don't know..." Hayley said, reopening her eyes and looking up at Tommy. The two looked at each other for a long time, Tommy's understanding and sympathetic eyes boring in Hayley's sorrowful ones. Finally it was too much for her and she broke down, falling to her knees and sobbing uncontrollably.
A/N: That's it for this chapter. Tell me what you think. Ok, I want to know what you guys think I should do with Devin. I have a story line for everyone expect him. I don't want to leave him out. If you have any ideas tell me. I don't want to add any new people plus the person I'm adding next chapter. I promise no more rangers. I want to know if you guys want to see more "rangers" scenes or keep it to their personal life.
Beta Comments:
To the writer – You are a great writer; don't ever doubt that you're not. You've got amazing ideas in that crazy little head of yours and I can't wait to see more. I'm really honored to be betaing your work, you've made me really happy and I think it's helping me mentally too...writing this has been a good thing, because it helps me to unwind and get stress free, which is what I need. Thanks so much, I love you, baby. ^-^ (AN: She is more of a co-writer then a beta and is a good one at that.)
To Flame31 – Thanks, I'm glad that you liked it. Don't worry, we're going to make sure that Kelly isn't perfect, she'll have her flaws and they'll come out more as the story moves on. She hit it off pretty well with Trent and Kira, which we believe to be pretty realistic. Yet, we'll make sure that she isn't 'buddy buddy' with Ethan and Connor just yet. We'll also make sure not to make her better with drawing, computers, soccer or at singing/playing the guitar. I hope you continue to read, your comments mean a lot to us and they help to make the story better. Thanks again, love ya ^-^ (AN: She will have her own thing, writing, which you will see in the next chapter.)
To everyone else – Please read and review. I'd like to know what you think of the story and how we can better it. Your support means a lot to us. Thanks, love you guys! ^-^
Next Chapter: An Ally's Sorrow
Finds out what happens to Hayley's sister and brother-in-law,
New person,
Old Friends come to visit…