Disclaimer: I do not own the Power Rangers.

Chapter 4

Spanish should be outlawed. Ashley stared blearily at her textbook, conjugating irregular verbs in her mind. "Where's Carlos when you need him?" she muttered.

She paused to gulp down a mouthful of orange juice. So she should have studied this last night. She'd even tried to. Was it her fault that she found daydreaming about the Red Ranger more interesting than the Spanish quiz she had in an hour?

"Amar," she said to herself. "Yo amarĂ­a..." She stopped to check herself with the book and groaned. That was conditional.

She was supposed to know the subjunctive. Ashley slammed her textbook shut and let out a sigh. No way was she going to get anything to sink in before first period.

It was only one quiz, she decided finally, brightening a bit. Not even a test, and she could always make it up next week, anyway. Mrs. Browne always let her students make up work and she dropped the lowest score at the end of the semester.

Feeling much better now, Ashley set her book to the side and concentrated on her breakfast. Unsurprisingly, her mind landed on Andros. He was just so... gorgeous.

And he hadn't taken much of a liking to her. To any of them, really. Ashley frowned. Four months earlier, he had refused to take them on as his team... but she thought that he had been a little reluctant.

It was probably all in her head, she was probably just seeing what she wanted to see but she hoped that he would warm up to them as time went by. She truly wanted to be his friend and knew that the others felt the same.

Ashley glanced up when she saw someone hovering in the doorway, almost choking on her orange juice when she recognized him. "Andros," she gasped, coughing. "Morning."

He stepped into the holding bay, carefully avoiding her eyes. "Good morning," he said tonelessly.

Ashley watched him move towards the Synthetron, unsure of what to say. "Sleep well?" she asked finally.

"Fine," he muttered, his eyes anywhere but on her.

So he wasn't much for conversation. Ashley sighed, but didn't stop watching him. He grimaced briefly as he sat down and she looked at him in concern.

"Are you okay?"

He finally looked up at her, startled. "I'm fine," he said shortly. "Don't worry about me."

"Sorry," she offered quietly, still watching him intently. "I can be pushy sometimes. Just tell me if I start to annoy you."

"You aren't." He stared down at his plate while he spoke, thought he still had yet to take a bite.

"Oh." Ashley didn't know what to say to that. Give it up, Ash, she told herself. He doesn't need that right now. And he really didn't. Zhane had been vague with the details, but it only took one look into Andros's face to know that he'd been through hell.

She knew she should feel guilty for wanting to force her friendship on him. And she did. But his eyes are so amazing...

Annoyed with her own selfishness, Ashley pushed her stool back, grimacing as the legs scraped across the deck. She picked up her plate and cup, returning them to the Synthetron, before stepping back to the table for her Spanish book and backpack.

"I've got to get to class," she explained, balancing her backpack on one knee while she crammed the book into it. Andros didn't so much as glance up and Ashley got the distinct impression that she was talking to herself. "I'll see you later sometime..."

Andros didn't answer, and Ashley left the holding bay with a sigh.


Her hair always seemed like it was too long early in the morning. Cassie set her brush down with a yawn, casting a longing glance at the warm bed that she had just crawled out of. It wasn't as if she could stay in bed longer if she had shorter hair, but it always took longer to brush her hair in the morning than it did any other time of day.

Yawning again, she shoved her feet into an old pair of sneakers and grabbed her backpack. With any luck, she just might be on time today.

Ashley strolled down the hall as Cassie headed out to breakfast, a slightly dreamy smile on the Yellow Ranger's face. Cassie rolled her eyes to herself, knowing exactly what must be on her best friend's mind.

"Ash," she said, loudly enough to break through Ashley's daydream. "You okay?"

"I just saw him at breakfast..." Ashley's expression was more troubled now. "All I have to do is look at him and it's so obvious that he's hurting... I just want to be his friend."

"Give him some more time," Cassie soothed. "He's only been here a day, after all. He'll let you in when he's ready to."

"I know." Ashley sighed and shook her head, shooting a sideways glance at her best friend. "And how about you?"

Cassie stalled. "What about me?"

"Oh no, you don't," Ashley exclaimed, crossing her arms over her chest. "If you think for one second that--"

"Okay, okay." Cassie held up her hands in surrender before Ashley could get too worked up. "I don't know."

"You're not going to talk to him?"

"I don't know," Cassie said again, trying hard to avoid Ashley's gaze. "I'll talk to you soon, he said on Hercuron. It's been almost three months."

"I know," Ashley said sympathetically. "But he's been busy..."

"Yeah." Cassie nodded her head. "Searching for Zordon comes first."

"I didn't say that," Ashley protested.

"You didn't need to." She hesitated. "Deca, where's Phantom Ranger?"

"Phantom Ranger is currently in Hangar Bay Two," Deca reported, and both girls looked up.

"You don't think--"

"I have to talk to him," Cassie blurted out. "I'll see you later, Ash."

She thought her friend called after her, but Cassie didn't hear her as she took off running down the hall. He was probably just doing maintenence on his ship, she tried to convince herself but even as she skidded to a halt just outside the hangar she knew it wasn't true.

"Phantom?" she called out, watching him freeze at the sound of her voice.

"Cassie," he said quietly, turning slowly to face her. "I was--"

"Leaving," she finished for him, proud of how little bitterness slipped into her voice. "You were leaving."

He couldn't seem to think of a counterargument. "Yes," he agreed. "I was leaving."

"Why so soon?" she pressed. "Can't you stay a day or two?"

"I have much work to do," Phantom replied. "I cannot."

"I understand," she said stiffly. What else was she supposed to tell him? That she wanted him with her more than she wanted the universe safe?

"Cassie..." He hesitated a few moments. "I will be back."

Tears pressed against her eyes. "Yeah." In a year, maybe. But she didn't say that, and just watched as he left her. Again.


It was cool and quiet in here. Andros lay on his back, arms wrapped around his chest. Sweat plastered his hair to his head, but the cool breeze and the soft grass of the park were soothing as his heart calmed.

Maybe he was weaker than he liked, but he had still managed to work through seven straight levels of training. The last three he had done on sheer determination, but he had done it. He would add another three levels tomorrow and three more the next day, until he could work his way through all twenty training sims effortlessly.

Andros hugged his arms a bit closer to his body. He knew that he should call a team training session soon. His worry was that he wouldn't catch himself before he made the same mistakes that he had last time--mistakes that had been entirely his fault, entirely preventable, and had ultimately led to the fall of KO-35.

"One more time," Andros insisted, scowling at his teammates. "Aerynn, you and Leyton switch places this time. Reya, cover Aerynn and Zhane, you cover Leyton. I'll--"

"Reya and Zhane are our strongest fighters," Leyton cut in, his exhaustion after the two hour workout showing in his irritation. "You're crippling the team by forcing them to the back."

"Exactly." The Blue Ranger nodded her head, wiping sweat from her forehead. "A much better strategy would be to team Aerynn and Leyton to be our defensive line while Zhane and I take the most offensive positions and you back us up. And it'd be even better if we took a break first, had some lunch or something."

"No," Andros snapped, glaring down the taller girl. "I know what I'm doing."

"Andros--" Aerynn could hardly get a word out before he rounded on her.

"I'm the leader of this team," he reminded her harshly. "You'll follow my orders, and I want you and Leyton in the front."

Zhane and Aerynn exchanged uneasy glances before the Silver Ranger turned to Andros. "Hey, we're not questioning you as a leader," he began. "But we're just asking you to consider our suggestions."

Andros glared at him, unable to suppress a stinging sensation of betrayal. Zhane was the closest to him in age, and the only one to reach out to him. Andros had dared to think of the Silver Ranger as a friend, only to realize now that he was nothing of the sort.

"Maybe next time," Andros said, though he had no intention of doing so. "This time, we'll stick to my plan."

"Andros, your plans have cost us more battles than they've won," Reya said quietly. "You're a strong fighter, but you don't have the experience or the training to be a strong leader."

"But I have enough," Andros snapped back. "Or else Kinwon wouldn't have made me the leader."

"No, Andros," Leyton tried. "You're the leader because you're the Red Ranger, but..."

He glanced at Reya, who took over. "But we've talked this over and we're not sure that you being the leader is in the team's best interest."

Andros closed his eyes, scrubbing hard at his face with a sleeve. He wished more than anything that he had heeded the warning they'd given him then. Instead, he had let his hurt and resentment rule his emotions, and he had made some stupid--very stupid--decisions.

He wouldn't make those mistakes again, he vowed to himself. He wasn't twelve years old any longer, and he knew what he was doing now. The other Rangers all seemed friendly enough and it didn't hurt that he was older than half of them.

Slowly, he pushed himself up, shoving sweaty hair back from his face. "Stop simulation."

Andros was gone from the Simudeck before the park had fully vanished. The Earth-born Rangers were at school and Zhane was probably still asleep, but he wasn't sure where Phantom was. Andros wasn't in the mood to see anyone at all, and so he hurried back to his room.

Once safely inside, he locked the door and stepped into the bathroom, locking that door behind him as well. Andros stubbornly kept his back to the mirror as he stripped and stepped into the shower, but he couldn't help catching a glimpse of himself as he dried off.

It wasn't nearly as bad as he had expected it to be, he consoled himself. The old scars he had accepted years ago. The new ones he would eventually do the same. And besides, what did it really matter? He didn't plan on showing them to anyone. Only Zhane had ever seen those scars, though if Andros had been given any say in the matter he would have nursed his own wounds.

Andros sighed and grabbed another towel to wring out his hair. His eyes were still on the mirror and as he turned, he got a good look at the mark on his left shoulder. It wasn't very large and it was really only a crude drawing of two sister planets, Viton and Jenzan--but it branded him forever as a slave.

How long had it been since that had been forced onto him? he wondered, resisting the urge to reach over his shoulder and trace the design. Eleven years, he realized with a sinking heart, almost twelve now. Two thirds of his life and the memories would always haunt him.

Andros let out a deep breath, gripping the counter until he was in control of himself. Dropping both towels onto the bathroom floor, he stepped back into his room and dressed quickly. He knew that if he kept busy the memories would leave him alone. It worked every time.


"I'm home," Ashley called loudly. "Anyone here?"

There was no answer. Ashley smiled and dropped her backpack just inside the living room doorway. Her shoes landed alongside of her backpack when she kicked them off, and she turned to go grab a snack from the kitchen before starting her homework.

She passed the wall full of family pictures on the way to the kitchen and sighed. When no one else was around, she always looked at these pictures. As much as it hurt, she liked remembering a time when her family had been complete.

Ashley glared at a picture of herself on her father's lap, then one of her with her two brothers. Jonathan had been seventeen when the divorce happened and he'd vanished into thin air along with their dad. It hurt to remember that abandonment but Ashley knew that it hurt her mom more. In five years, there hadn't been so much as a phone call or a postcard.

She shook her head and continued into the kitchen. It was no use living in the past and the Hammonds were still a happy family. Jeff was a freshmen at AGU this year but he still lived at home, and their mom was the greatest.

She was also a great cook. Ashley smiled brightly when she found some leftover chili in the refrigerator. She put the bowl into the microwave and then realized that it was her turn to cook dinner. Ashley liked cooking--but she'd really wanted to be on the Megaship tonight.

Stop it, she scolded herself. Your family is more important than some guy who doesn't want you around. But whether he wanted her around or not... Andros wasn't just "some guy." Ashley couldn't explain the feeling that she got from him, but she knew that he was different somehow, special.

"Aww, I wanted that," a voice whined, and Ashley jumped.

"Don't sneak up on me," she complained.

"Sorry." Jeff grinned at her. "Did you save me any?"

"This is the last of it," she said with a shake of her head. "But I think there's the chicken from last Sunday in there."

"Sunday?" Jeff repeated. "That's almost a week old."

"Four days," Ashley corrected. The microwave beeped and she reached in for her chili. "It's still good."

Jeff pouted. "Can't I have any?"

"Get your own." Ashley slapped his hands away. She shrieked when he tickled her sides, smirking when he grabbed the bowl away from her. "I guess I won't make lasange for dinner after all."

He hesitated. "Lasange?"

Ashley smirked at him. "With garlic bread."

Jeff returned the bowl. "I hate you sometimes."

Ashley smiled. "Love you too."