Disclaimer: I don't own the Power Rangers; I do own Andrew (he's mine!), the plot, the feelings and everything else you don't recognize!

A/N: this chapter is a step higher in emotional distress.. I guess, it's sad, I know but I assure you of a compensating ending. Eventually. ;snickersevilly;

Phantom Rogue: You'll have to wait and read….;D (or not:P)

Trish: hey mate, thanks for the review! Umm.. no, Andrew is not Sky's evil friend :P Andrew's hotter than that:D

BellaCordelia: no, no and no :P but I appreciate the effort, matey! ;gives you a lollypop;

Star Fata: thanks mate, is this fast enough:D

SweetSas: love you mate, and umm.. Ashley had a .. something :D ? It wasn't important, but she was cured as you can see:D Andros.. well, he kinda deserve that kick, but he won't deserve it later. He's intentions were kinda.. harmfully sweet? ;shrugs; wait and see.

I dedicate this chapter to Star Fata: I reread your latest review to Happiness & Mischief and I'm so glad you noticed:) ;gives you cookie; I love you, you're awesome!

Quest into Space part II: Father and Son
by DarkHonda aka Tal

Chapter 2

I was standing in the entrance to Aunt Karone and Uncle Zhane's house; I could only guess the hour but I could tell it was very late; it was dark and streets were all deserted, I was the only one standing outside, wearing a red T shirt and black training pants, drenched to the bone, shivering from the cold.
It took me a while of staring until I was read to knock; I took a long breath, 'one, two….three,' I thought and knocked firmly on the door, yet not more than three knocks, I knew that if they are not up by now I should find a cozy place to sleep, because no matter what I was not coming back home. Never again.
The door opened with a slight turn of key, I was facing Uncle Zhane now, as he opened the door, clearly awoken from deep sleep. I felt embarrassed as I his alarm and bewilderment crept into me, he glanced at me; my wet clothes that were glued to my body, my soaked hair and my favorite Timberland shoes I got from Aunt Cassie to my 17th birthday. At first we stared at each other, it was so surreal, he in the coziness of his home, awoken from a deep sleep and then there was me; from the coldness of outside, haven't even considered sleeping, only wanted a place for the night…

"Andrew? Did something happen at home?" he asked, his alarm and worry obvious in his voice, I lowered my gaze and he only opened the door wider and stepped aside, letting me enter. "Get in, buddy, you'll get yourself sick," he said with his uncle zhane-ish tone. I stepped into the house, its coziness comforted me a bit. A part of me did feel at home at that place, loving Zhane almost like I should love my father. I sighed silently and he closed the door quietly. "Andrew?" he asked again and I shook my head.

"No, nothing happened," I said quietly and let myself fall on the purplish carpet, embracing my knees to my chest, staring at the floor; I didn't know what to say to him, how could I explained it all?
In the meantime Uncle Zhane disappeared down the hall and then came back with a towel and some dry clothes, he handed them to me without any word, maybe he understood me. I slowly moved the towel on my exposed skin, on my face and neck. I rubbed my face with the towel, I wanted to erase them, I wanted to erase everything that attached me to that family and that father. 'My father. My family,' I knew. I took off my red shirt and dried my chest, then donned the long grey shirt he gave me, heat spread in me again along with his confusion.

"Uncle Zhane?" I asked him and he looked at me as I was folding the wet shirt I took off, "Can I stay here for the night? I don't mind sleeping on the floor," I begged.

"It's not even a question buddy," he said with a typical zhane-ish sly smile, "why do you think your mother named you Zhane?" he asked and I could smile faintly, he never let it go, the fact my mum named me Andrew Zhane! "'Cause your uncle here," he said and patted on his chest, "is always here for you. So why don't you go and finish changing while I'll make us both something to drink?" he said with a smile and I nodded. I almost happily agreed, yet there was something he needed to know.

"Uncle Zhane?" I asked again, a little more stressed, "Please don't tell my parents about me staying here," I almost begged, looking him in the eyes, knowing my eyes are begging him as I whispered, "I can't be with them anymore."
The expression on his face changed drastically, he wasn't sort of amused, now he was really worried and eyed me eerily as he sighed his expected answer.

"Go change, bud, I won't tell anyone except your aunt," His tone relaxed me and I went to change at the bathroom, as soon as I came into the bathroom I undid my shoe laces in the speed of light, kicked away my training pants and wore the blue PJ pants Uncle Zhane gave me. They were a little bigger than my usual size but it was okay, I folded the clothes I took off and sprinted to the living room. When I got back a huge mug of hot chocolate was waiting for me along with my now worried to death, Uncle and Aunt. I knew that if he woke my aunt it meant he feels something important is going on, and that he doesn't want to deal with it alone. I couldn't blame him, I didn't want to deal with it alone, but I had to; I was sick of pretending and faking happiness. I was tired of being almost happy, it was time to let it all out; pain, grudge, unhappiness, betrayal, misery… I landed on the chair in front of her, her blue eyes boring into mine with compassion and care.

"Andrew, I want you to tell me what made you come here," she asked gently, putting her hand on mine. "I don't want you to be alone, please talk to me," she was almost begging, I tried to swallow the lump in my throat, clenching my jaw. She only stared now, and I absently sensed her 'queen of evil' aura taking over, "Andrew, tell me," she commanded. I sighed miserably and knew I should probably tell her, but I couldn't find the words that can express my hurt.

"Call me Drew," was the three words I managed to blurt out, I couldn't bear the similarity of our names. Not anymore. "I will not answer to Andrew," I said sternly, depressing the urge to cry.

"Drew Zhane," my Uncle said quietly, indicating of our bond, "You know you can trust us, don't let us guess the worst." Aunt Karone nodded and I sighed silently again. 'Should I tell them?' I wondered, 'what if they tell dad? And what if they make me go back home?' I thought, after all they were rangers and they could easily make me go whenever they wanted. So I decided to give them the short version of the things;

"I gave some papers to dad, wanted him to sign them for me. He wanted to know why and I told him why," I said quietly. It was, after all, the truth, isn't it? I was telling the truth, I only wanted them to stop investigating, it was bad enough to deal with dad, I couldn't deal with them too.

"What kind of papers?" asked my aunt, 'damn,' I thought, wondering how could I have ever doubted she would know, after all, I admitted she knew me the best of all. I decided to be honest for once, I decided to share my pain with them, with my…family?

"Maybe he shouldn't tell us," Uncle Zhane proposed and Aunt Karone shot him a death glare. I was embarrassed, not wanting to cause any more trouble than I already did.

"I applied to SPD Police Academy on Earth," I blurted out and both of them were silence at once, awe struck. Aunt Karone pierced me with her worrying gaze, looking into my soul with her beautiful blue eyes. Eyes that, I learnt, could see me for who I am, not who I seem to be.

"Do you realize it's a serious decision?" she asked me quietly, and I looked down to my mug of hot chocolate, suddenly I felt so childish, 'am I running away instead of dealing?' I thought but a moment later I knew I didn't. I just couldn't bear the lies, the mocked happiness, and the endless pretence.

"Aunt," I said and raised a firm gaze straight to her eyes, "I want to be a ranger," I said quietly, "I'm seventeen and I'm not stupid, all my life, all I ever wanted to be was a ranger." I said the complete truth, "and I will be one." I added ambitiously.

"What color?" Uncle Zhane smiled as he asked, and aunt Karone shot him a warning glare.

"Red."

"Like your dad," uncle Zhane smiled and nodded his support, but he didn't understand me, not like I knew my aunt would.

"I don't want to be my dad," I said firmly, "I want to be a red ranger because I know I can be one, a good one. All I need is the opportunity," I told them and my aunt looked at me strangely, as if not sure of what she sees, as if I there was something in me she was missing. I frowned at her weird expression and all she did was to clear her throat quietly.

"Zhane, check on the kids." She said and I knew she was onto me, she read me like an open book. Uncle Zhane obeyed and she finally sat in the chair in front of me, avoiding her penetrating gaze I stared at my mug, my palms holding it tightly, as the warmth from the mug spread in my. I felt her gentle hand lifting my chin so I stared straight into her truth-seeking blue eyes again.

"Andrew, you must tell me the truth," she said firmly, "I can't hide you from your dad without even knowing what really happened, you can tell me everything, Andrew," She whispered with a calm voice. I wanted to believe her, oh how I wanted to… but I couldn't! She was just one of them, what did she know about being different, about being laughed at and spending your life in a living hell?
What did any of them know about me? Nothing. They didn't know anything because they never even bothered to try and know me! And why?
Because I really was different, because my hair was ugly, my face was a mixture of dirty blood and my name was only a symbol of my hated heritage.
'How do they expect me to tell them how I feel when they never gave me the chance to tell them? How do they dare to make me keep my temper when everyone else belongs and I'm not? Why did they cruelly sentence me to four years of being rejected in a split of a second? Why did they never take interest in me!' So many questions went through me, I felt older, I felt rejected and unwanted. I was finally angry, finally letting it wash me, release me…

"I don't want to be Andrew, don't you understand? I'm not him! I'm just a half blood, a filth who has no friends and barely even a family," I blurted out quietly, yet furiously, stormed with moving emotions. "Since we got here, I was alone. I'm always alone, Aunt Karone, they have each other and da-Andros has Rin. And now when another baby is going to join us, I finally realized I don't belong here." I said and she caressed my hair, biting her bottom lip, but I continued to rage on, quietly but heart breaking all the same.

"I don't belong anywhere, on Earth I was Skunk-boy, but I had some kind of identity, I was Andrew Hammond of Earth, I knew my dad was dead and that I can read my mum's mind and that I can move things with my thoughts and here…" I stopped and took a deep breath, closing my eyes, swallowing down that heart broken lump, squeezing my eyes so I won't cry. "I don't even have this, here, I'm a loser, I'm the son of Ashley Hammond of Earth and Andros of KO-35, two rangers who saved the universe from forces of evil. I'm not important as long as my father is Andros and my mother is Ashley, can't you see that? I can't be me." I whimpered and finally gave in to tears, they started streaming down my cheeks, burning their way, releasing more than just anger, but a heart broken little boy who grew up to the hurt young man that I am.
She hugged me, trying to comfort me, but once I started I couldn't stop my feelings away, not after I finally had the courage to confess them.

"Here I'm just Andrew, the only thing I did was reuniting my mum and dad, and they don't need me now. They have their own little family, they don't care about me anymore, Aunt." I wiped away my tears, trying to calm myself down; "I used to think that dad and I will have our moments, but before we could even reach here Rin was born and dad prefers to be his dad. I don't mind it, Aunt, I really don't," I said quietly, the truth was a painful wound that penetrate my heart every moment of my hurtful life, "it's just that... They've taken my mum away, and she is everything I have." I cried, tears running all over my face. I felt horrible yet relived all the same; it was somewhat comforting to share it with someone, someone who relates, someone who actually cares.

"Drew, your mum and dad love you very much," she said quietly, now standing by my side, hugging me as my wet cheek was pressed against her shoulder.

"So, why when dad talked to me earlier he only said that I'm going to break my mum's heart?" I told her, "He doesn't care about me, he would be relieved when I'm gone. That way I won't burden their lives and they'll have the fresh start they always wanted. If I go now, Rin will not remember me and they would have the ultimate family." I stuttered.
It was my worst fear, mum and dad having a new family and forgetting about me, and it came true. And it felt more than horrible, more than hurtful…more than anything I could ever feel. It was loneliness, fear and desperation boring through every string and core in my body. It was like waking up into a nightmare, being constantly scared and helpless; because there was no way in hell I was going to make mum unhappy. Mum's happiness was too important, too fragile; I vowed years ago, when she was lying in bed, dying, that I would never make her unhappy if she survived.

"Your dad loves you, baby, I know he does," she muttered in my ear, my face buried in her shoulder, she stroking my hair gently, "he adores the ground you walk on."
But I didn't believe it, how could I? If he cared about me, he'd show, he'd say, he'd actually see more into me than just a trouble maker, more than just a burden…
He didn't and I knew he didn't.

"I want to go away, I want to disappear," I cried to her shoulder, "I'm so lonely, Aunt Karone, I'm so lonely and they never noticed. I'm breaking from the inside and nobody cares for me. I want to be far away." My voice was broken now, I couldn't talk anymore, I ran out of words and my thoughts were all scattered, I was more confused than ever, I was never that vulnerable.

"You should go to bed," she told me and led my crying delicate form to the silver-ish guest room where a warm bed waited for me. "Good night Andrew," she whispered in my ear as she tucked me in, placing a kiss on my forehead.

I fell asleep immediately.

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A/N: so, what do you think? Too sad:D