He was rolling on the ground, nearly blinded by fog. The walls were made of darkness, and the only source of light came from distant star-like pinpoints. He knew the air was cold enough to see his breath, but he was content to let it diffuse into the fog low to the ground. Every so often there was a clang of metal against stone. Sometimes it was far away, sometimes it drew nearer.

"There's no way out, Red Ranger!" Goldar roared.

Jason could see the metal of his sword crash a few feet away. Pressing his back flat against the ground, he tried to catch a glimpse of his morpher.

"Are you going to fight me, or hide like a coward? Come and get your morpher, Ranger! Not that it would make it a fair fight, hehehe…"

Goldar's voice was directly above him now. The dark-winged creature drew up his sword and swung it down with a mighty clang! The blade missed Jason's left ear by hairs. He broke out into a cold sweat and his breath was coming out in shudders.

Even if I get my morpher, how am I getting out? Jason thought.

All of a sudden, Goldar was cackling in front of his face.

"Thought you could hide from me, did you?"

An unimaginable pain ripped through his torso as the golden-clad warrior sneered, twisting metal into his gut.

"You lose, Ranger."

"Jason!"

Jason woke up with a jolt and sweat dripping down his face. He could have sworn there was a piece of metal jutting out from his stomach, but when he looked down, there was nothing. Kimberly was grasping his shoulders now, a picture of concern.

"Jason, are you okay?"

Bewildered, Jason blinked at Kimberly, surprised that her presence. Early daylight shone through the blinds behind him. It was a stark contrast from the Dark Dimension.

"Uh, yeah, it was a nightmare." He squinted as he made a move to get up.

"No, you stay there. I'll get you a glass of water." Kim scurried to the kitchenette.

Jason swung his legs over the side of the bed and rested his elbows on his knees. He rubbed his eyes with the back of his hands in an attempt to rid his mind of Goldar's apish evil grin. This is not real, this is not real… He repeated the mantra in his head to shake the memories from his brain. He had this nightmare every once in a while, but Goldar never succeeded in stabbing him before. He wondered why this time was different.

"Here you go." A glass of water appeared beside his arm. Kimberly sat down beside him with her legs folded beneath her. It was a habit she had since childhood.

"Thanks, Kim." He gulped down a few sips gratefully. Kimberly waited patiently for Jason to talk.

"What was it about?" she asked after a moment.

Jason closed his eyes and answered in a grainy voice. "What was what about?" He was confused.

Kimberly tilted her head to the side. "The nightmare?"

Oh. Jason sighed deeply as he set the empty glass on the floor. "Just one of our fights."

Well, technically my fight. With Goldar. Jason did not want to get into the details of the recurring nightmarish vision.

Kimberly nodded with understanding and inched closer to rub large circles on his back. He welcomed the act of comfort and rested his head on her shoulder, letting her lingering raspberry shampoo invade his senses.

"Sorry. I guess my surprise visit must have jump-started those memories."

"Maybe. I didn't think about that." He closed his eyes again.

They stayed like that for a few minutes until Jason's breathing calmed down. He belatedly noticed that she was wearing her gymnastics jacket. He assumed she was already awake from her early practice routine, and decided he did not feel as bad since he did not wake her up with his nightmare. In any case, he was not going back to sleep any time soon.

"Let's get you cleaned up." She reached for the hem of his shirt and peeled the wet cloth off of his back.

"Um, you don't have to baby me, Kim. I'm a big boy." He smiled vaguely as he pushed her hands away.

Kimberly looked at him pointedly. "I am not babying you."

Smugly, Jason said, "Okay if not that, then is there a reason why you're trying to get me naked again?"

With a swat to the side of his head, Kimberly scoffed. "Wow, someone woke up feeling like a rock star." She rolled her eyes. "You go take a shower, and while you do that I'll going to call my mom. Is that okay?" Kimberly tilted her head in the direction of the phone hanging on the wall.

"Yup. I'm just going to take my shirt off in the bathroom, away from prying eyes."

Jason got up and headed for the shower for the second time in twelve hours. As he shut the door, he heard Kim's voice through the wall.

"You know, it's not like I haven't seen it already!"

Jason stopped short. What? He poked his head out to aim a confused look at Kimberly. She waved back and smiled knowingly.

"Hi, mom." She had already dialed her mom's number.

Jason narrowed his eyes. He would ask about that little comment later.

As he stepped into the shower and let the spray wash away his muddled, nightmarish thoughts, he let his mind wander to happier times in Switzerland. Often, he found himself thinking about weekend trips and late night talks with Zack and Trini. Zack was particularly instrumental in keeping his spirits up, always cracking jokes at every turn. With the burden of being a ranger lifted, it was like Zack could finally do something important with his shining personality.

Then there was Trini. Reserved, soft-spoken, quietly beautiful Trini. Jason never said admitted it aloud, but he developed feelings for Trini while in Geneva. If Trini had feelings for him too, he did not know.

If Jason was the team's protector and leader, Trini was their rock and their healer. She was a reservoir of strength that he drew upon when in need. When he heard that she was applying for the Peace Conference, he felt her future absence strongly. So he applied also.

Fun times, good company, and breath-taking scenery did not remedy his feelings of self-deprecation, however. Ever since Tommy came back as the White Ranger, Jason felt like he was incapable of leadership—of anything, really.

Because he was unable to save Tommy from losing his Green Ranger powers, Zordon and Alpha had to intervene. Jason saw himself as a failure when Tommy was announced as the new leader. He was more than happy for his best friend…but what did that say about Jason?

Moreover, Jason saw himself as a guardian to not only to his team, but to Kimberly. She fainted in awe at the reveal of the White Ranger; since then, Tommy was her protector, her white knight in shining armor so to speak.

Zordon and Alpha did not need him to be leader of the Power Rangers. Kimberly had no need for her big brother with Tommy around. At the Peace Conference, Zack and Trini were able to flex their diplomatic muscles while Jason blundered about trying to find his place, unable to heed the irresistible call to the Power. There seemed to be no direction or purpose in his life without the Power he was not worthy to possess.

And now, things are different. I'm back in the U.S., Kim and Tommy are broken up…

It was not much, but it was a shift in his life. For once in a long time, someone needed him. Even now, he failed at that. I was too self-absorbed to really be there…

Jason decided that he was done with the self-hate for now and turned off the showerhead. He could hear Kimberly's muffled voice through the wall as he dried and clothed himself.

"Yeah, I have practices Monday through Saturday. I just have to run on Sundays. I'll probably do that later. When will I get home? Um, I don't know. Maybe in the afternoon?"

Why was Mrs. Hart asking about when Kim was coming home? Jason wondered.

"We just watched some movies. Yeah, I had some ice cream, so I have to run today."

Jason stepped out of the bathroom and watched Kimberly intently. She curled the phone cord around her fingers as she briefly smiled at him.

"She's just a girl I met. It's a relief to know someone outside of gymnastics."

Jason raised an eyebrow. Kimberly stuck out her tongue in response.

"Jasmine. Oh, mom, I gotta go. She's waiting for me and we're going to head out to breakfast soon. Okay. Bye."

She hung the phone on the hook as Jason crossed his arms.

"Did you just call me a 'she'? Named Jasmine?" He figured Kimberly did not want her mom knowing she spent the night with him, even if they only watched movies and slept.

"Yeah…she visiting me for a bit, and it was just easier to say that then to explain that you were back in town. She's a little sensitive about me being around guys after…." She raised her eyebrows.

He knew. What Mrs. Hart did not know was that Kimberly would spend the night in his bedroom when they were younger, when she was scared or felt lonely. That was something she did not ever need to know, and he was content to be labeled "Jasmine" for now.

"So…breakfast?" Jason asked.

"So, breakfast. I'm not going to have much, though. I feel like I gained a pound from last night." Kimberly puffed out her cheeks and patted her stomach.

Jason rolled his eyes and made no comment. That was one thing he would never understand.


Thanks for reading. Reviews are greatly appreciated!