Chapter 2: There was an attempt to have fun

Ah, the sunrise. For many, one of the most beautiful sights to witness in life. Seeing the sun appearing on the horizon, brightening the sky with its light and signaling the start of a new day is enough to bring anyone to a good mood. Anyone but Mike, since, for him, the sunrise means that his alarm clock is about to take him out of the wonderful dreamland to throw him into the horrible reality of samurai training.

Every day starts like this and today could not be different. The alarm went off and Mike immediately turned it off as usual. But instead of turning over in bed and going back to sleep, this time he really woke up. He felt too restless to remain lying down, but not enough to go to training. So he just sat on his bed and decided to wait a while.

It had been 3 weeks since he and the others came to live at the Shiba house and every day has been the same. Wake up, have breakfast, start to train. Lunch, half an hour rest and another quick workout. After that they have the rest of the afternoon free, have dinner and then is bed time. Not to mention the occasional battles against a Nighlok or another.

Mike didn't want to be the annoying complainer of the group, but… he's tired. Exhausted. Being a Power Ranger is not easy. Well, he didn't really expect it to be, but also wasn't expecting the extra difficulties, besides the battles.

First he had to keep away from his best friends, Matthew and Reese. Not seeing them, after 6 years of friendship, never crossed his mind. It seemed too unreal to be true. But after a attack by that Nighlok Rofer, who attacked the two just because they were close to Mike, he knew there was no other way. Now all he could do was to accept that new reality.

A few days later, Mia decided that she was going to start cooking for them. She said she liked to cook and wanted to be a chef, so he thought she was at least decent in the kitchen. He was wrong. The first victim was Kevin, when the two of them were on the lookout at that baseball kid's house and Mia decided to prepare the incredible recipe for Cremated Chicken for him. But, to be fair to everyone, she repeated her crime the next day. She also said that she was going to prepare several other "wonderful" dishes for them.

If the food poisoning wasn't enough to make him sick, he still had to listen to Kevin talk for hours about Mia's hair. ('She slept on my shoulder, man. Her hair smells so nice. It almost made me forget the taste of charcoal in my mouth. Smells like vanilla.'

'You're already liking her, Kevin?'

'I am. In the same way that I'm liking you, Jayden, Emily...'

'Ah, that so? So feel free to smell their hair, but stay away from mine.')

And now boredom arises. Not being able to see his friends means that the arcade is out of the question. He still has his skateboard, but video games are essential in his life. Too bad I left my portable console at home. Would my father send it here? It's worth a shot.

Picking up his cell phone on the nightstand, he typed:

'Hey dad, what's up? Say, could you send my portable console over? There's no TV here.'

He did not expect an immediate response, but apparently his father was already awake.

'Hi Mike. Leave it to me. I'll send it over today, without fail.'

'Nice. Thanks, pops.'

'How's the samurai experience, son? Are you training properly? Giving a lot of trouble to the others?'

Of course his father was going to start with this discussion. Mike didn't want to tell him about his recent failures with the team. That he put his friends at risk, that he's the most unprepared of the group, that he only managed to make a symbol correctly two days ago and that, even though he had thought of a good plan to defeat Rofer, if it weren't for Jayden he would have failed. I have to change the subject.

'Everything's going great, old man. How bout you, boozing up?'

'I wish, but your mother found my drink stock of and threw it all away.'

'It's better this way, right dad? Your liver should already be looking like a rag. Are you going to the therapist?'

'I am. Stop worrying about me. I'm the father here. And don't think I didn't notice that you changed the subject. I want you to tell me everything later, okay?'

'Right. Right. Hey dad, I should be going now. It's time for morning training. See ya.'

'See ya. Go on, sonny. Don't let your team down, alright? XOXO.'

Don't let your team down ... Mike has no intention of letting anyone down. But, as it is, that will end up happening. He needs to try harder, train more ... listen more. I'll do it. I'll show my dad that he doesn't have to worry about me.

He looked at his watch. 5:45. Maybe tomorrow. Today I'm going shredding.

"Ah, Mike. Finally woke up?"

Damn it!

He hid the skateboard behind his back but Mentor would definitely notice the helmet that was already set on his head. After all the care he took to be quiet and walk out the back door ... Finding Mentor in the garden is horrible bad luck.

"H-hi, Mentor. Yeah, yeah. Today is such a beautiful day that I decided to see the flowers before training. Haha. They're so pretty!"

"Right. Could you give a message to the others for me? I've talked to Jayden but I haven't had a chance to talk to them yet."

"Sure, sure. Everything for our favorite Mentor."

He didn't seem amused by the compliments and excuses that Mike's brain created in a desperate attempt to not be punished for trying to escape training.

"... Tell them that today you will have the day off. You've been working hard these weeks and deserve a break. "

... Did I hear that right or am I delirious?

"Is that for real, Mentor?"

"Yes. You can't continue to fight efficiently if you're feeling tired and overwhelmed. Rest is essential for success. Now, go on. Today I will have my own rest and take care of my garden."

"Thanks, Mentor Ji! You're awesome, dude sir!"

He ran to find the others without even waiting for an answer. It's unbelievable. It seems that some magical force in the universe heard his request and made it a reality. Kevin, Mia and Emily were training at the dojo when he came in to tell the news. They were just as excited as he was. It seems that everyone was feeling tired.

"What to do?" Mia began "I could shop for shoes that aren't designed for fighting monsters, or catch a flick."

"But it's such a beautiful day! It'd be a shame to stay cooped up inside."

He agrees with Emily about that. He may have said that to mislead Mentor, but the day really is beautiful. Maybe it's because of his forest powers, but Mike has always loved the outdoors. In his conversations with the Yellow Ranger, the two quickly identified that they had this in common. They loved the warmth of the sun touching their skin, the scent of freshly cut grass, the wind messing up their hair...

Soon an idea came to him.

"Em, I can teach you how to shred."

It would be wonderful! He already enjoys her company a lot. And doing one of his favorite hobbies with her ... Emily's expression however indicated that she didn't think the same.

"Well, I was thinking Rainbow's End." Aww. Okay. I'll convince her later. After all, an amusement park sounds pretty good too. "I've never been on a rollercoaster before."

"What? Never?"

She looked at him a little embarrassed to have admitted it.

"They don't have amusement parks where I'm from."

The shredding can wait. This girl needs to be introduced to the wonders of a amusement park urgently.

"Then it's settled."

"Rainbow's End, here we come!"

Of course. But of COURSE, on their first day off, a Nighlok shows up to ruin everything. They didn't get a chance to do anything at the park. Just watched some jugglers and had a snack when that Dradhead guy showed up. A nighlok that cannot be touched. How wonderful. Not even to be a normal monster for us to defeat soon and return to the park.

In the end, Jayden managed to defeat him using the power of the Beetle Disc and Mentor let them have the next day off as well, to make up for the last one. ... Jayden is really amazing. Mentor said that it takes twice as much symbol force to tame the Beetle Disc and he did it in one day.

Mike didn't want to admit it, but he was a little jealous of the Red Ranger. He was everything that Green wanted to be but couldn't. Serious, dedicated, skillful. The latter he managed with training, of course, but it seems that, no matter how much Mike trains, Jayden is always 3 steps ahead of him. But that doesn't mean that I'll give up. I can be very stubborn when I want to. Wait for it, Jayden. One day I will surpass you.

"I'm so glad that Mentor gave us another day off."

Mia's words took him out of his thoughts. They decided to go back to the amusement park, to really enjoy it this time, and Jayden choose to accompany them. He seemed more relaxed and as soon as they arrived he said he was going to buy cotton candy for everyone. Emily volunteered to help, keeping Mike, Kevin and Mia waiting.

"It's only fair, since our last one involved scrapping with a nighlok." It's better to leave those thoughts of rivalry for later. Now we're here to have fun and that's what I'm going to do!

"Well, if mentor felt it was alright, I guess I shouldn't argue."

"Who's gonna argue-" Emily ran back towards them, pushing one of the clouds of pink sugar in his face and giving the other one to Kevin "-with cotton candy?"

Mike couldn't help but smile. She seemed more excited than yesterday. Probably because this time they were all together. Her joy was contagious.

"This really isn't in line with my training diet."

Of course, Kevin had to be the ass of the group. He rolled his eyes at his friend, but before he could say anything, his leader was faster.

"That's true, but it's okay. Cotton candy or a day off from training can be good for you. Ji reminded me that keeping balance in life is important. It lets us be at our best."

Jayden looked like someone else at that moment. He tried to show seriousness, but he couldn't hide that he was just as excited as Emily to be there. He was raised by Mentor. He probably trained day and night with few free days to have fun. Compared to the half-hour daily workout Mike had with his father, it was no surprise that they were so different from one another. Jayden is just a teenager who was raised as an adult. It was actually unfair to compare himself to him. I'll still beat you, friend. But ... I promise to take it easy on ya.

Showing a smile on his face, Mike puts his arm around Kevin's shoulders and starts pulling the Blue Ranger who is still trying to understand how to eat a cotton candy.

"Come on, you stick-in-the-mud. The rides are this way."

"Gosh, my first rollercoaster!"

Emily pulled Mia just like Mike was pulling Kevin and Jayden laughed at them a little behind.

"But do you already want to go straight to the roller coaster? Isn't it better to start with a more peaceful one and then go to the faster toys?"

"No, no, Jayden. We have to start with the most radical ones while we still have the energy to stand in line. Then we go to the lackluster toys that have smaller lines."

"Hahaha, okay, okay. Let's do it, then."

The afternoon passed very quickly in the Rangers opinion. From the roller coaster they went to the spinner, then to the pirate ship, merry-go-round and the bumper cars, where the five of them made a bet of who would hit the others more often, turning the toy track into a private battle arena. In the end they were laughing too hard to be able to name a winner.

After the sunset, Jayden, Kevin and Mia decided to take a break to eat while Mike and Emily wanted to go on the roller coaster one last time. Then they parted ways, promising to meet at the ferris wheel in half an hour.

"That was so much fun!"

The two had been lucky to not have a queue at the toy, so they thought it best to take a look at the game booths before meeting the others.

"It realy was! Did you see what you were missing?"

"Yeah, tell me about it. I love my farm, but sometimes I feel like moving to the city just to be able to live that kind of thing everyday."

"And would you move if the opportunity came?"

She seemed to consider the question for a few seconds before answering.

"No. There is certainly more to do here and it is a beautiful city, don't get me wrong, but nothing beats the freedom I feel in the countryside. Waking up to birds singing, sitting on the grass and watching the animals, playing my flute while the wind hits my face ... I can't get away from nature. You understand me, right? You said you also likes the outdoors."

"Yes, I understand. In fact, you reminded me of something. Yesterday I offered to teach you how to skate, but I saw that you weren't too excited about the idea. I still insist, though. I think you would love it. It's very fun."

She smiled at him, but the expression was a little sad. Oh no. No no no no.

"I'm sure I would like it, Mike. You know, when I was little I loved going to the city playground to rollerblade. It was really fun. But then, one day ... well, I had to stop. I think your question just reminded me of that and I ended up feeling a little wistful. Sorry."

"Why did you stop? Didn't you love it?" Shut up, you asshole. You saw that she got sad. Do you want to make the situation worse? "Ah. Look, Emily, I'm sorry. No need to answer if-"

"It's okay. It was just a ... school bully who saw me one day and thought it was going to be super funny to break my skates and make me cry. But it's time to forget about it and move on. It's been so long, I think it will be good to relearn how to rollerblade. Or-" she nudged his arm lightly with her elbow "try to learn how to shred. I'm counting on you."

The smile on her face was now genuine and he couldn't help but return it. Even though the guilt of making a girl as happy as Emily that sad still consumed him.

"Leave it to me. Punch it in."

She completed the fistbump by the time he found the perfect way to apologize.

"Em, what if I get you a teddy bear at that thing?"

He pointed at the claw machine, and was already walking towards it, when the Yellow Ranger held his arm to stop him.

"I would be very grateful, Mike, but I don't think it's a good idea. There's one of these at the bus station in Oak Town and I've seen a lot of people lose all their money on it. They're very rigged. It's almost impossible to win."

He knows. This only makes him even more eager to get that teddy. Hopefully my experience with a joystick and my stubbornness will help me in this fight.

"No worries. I want to win the teddy for you and I will win the teddy for you."

...

Ten attempts later (and almost all the money in his wallet), Mike finally gave up. Emily was right, this is the most rigged toy in the park. The claw always starts to rise before closing on the toy, so it never picks up anything. He looked into the eyes of the plushies that judged him for his failure. 'You loser. You made the girl sad and didn't even get her a toy? How do you want to overcome Jayden? How are you going to be able to look Emily in the eye now?'

He closed his eyes and pushed the toys criticism away. He'll be able to look her in the eye, after all, he needs to apologize. Only ... not now.

"What's with the long face?"

"Aaah!"

He's not ashamed of getting scared. But also, who wouldn't be frightened by a little stuffed monkey apparently floating and talking by itself? Emily's laugh at least made the scare worth it.

"Hahahahah, sorry, Mike, sorry. I couldn't help it."

"Ha ha ha, very funny. Where did you get that monkey?"

"I won it for you at the shooting booth!" she held the toy out to him "So it can remind you of me."

Her smile faded immediately and her cheeks flushed, realizing the message that could have been passed on with that sentence. Mike would've laughed if he hadn't been as red as she was.

"I-I-I mean, uh, remind you that you didn't get me a teddy. Whenever you look at this monkey, remember the claw."

"Heh, t-thanks." He took the plushie from the girl's hands, who was doing her best to avoid eye contact with him. She's still embarrassed. Well, same could be said about me. I have to do something to undo this weird mood. "Uh ... Ah! So, since he's supposed to remind me of my fiasco on that hellish machine, I'll do better. Starting today ... Frederic Swift Paws will be proof of my promise to you. I, Michael Parry, promise to, one day, win a toy on the claw machine for you, Emily Ava."

He positioned the monkey's paw on it's chest and imitated the pose with his own hand. Luckily his exaggerated drama and silly name had the desired effect and the girl in front of him was already laughing again.

"All right then! Pinky promise?"

"Pinky promise."

"I'll be waiting. But I think we better meet with the others now. The park should be closing shortly."

"Okay."

"Where did you get that name from?"

"Which name? Frederic Swift Paws? Have you never heard of this sport legend?"

"No. Never. In fact, I'm pretty sure you made up that silly name just for fun."

"I am extremely offended by your viewing of me, miss."

As they walked and played with each other, Mike couldn't help thinking that the day had been extremely pleasant. Even the unfortunate experience with the machine has generated good memories. The stuffed monkey weighed in his hands and he smiled. It's a promise.