Disclaimer: I don't own the concept of Power Rangers or the names of planets.
Chapter 2 summary: The first battle was over. Now it's time for introductions and finding out what they have gotten themselves into...
Chapter 2: Becoming Rangers
Shawn rubbed his arm tentatively, admiring the pure black armor that wrapped his whole body almost like a skin. It still stung a little where the deadly-looking spikes have hit him, but the armor showed no marks or other damage. It felt entirely unreal – he was just jogging like he usually did, yet everything went completely crazy in barely ten minutes.
"We need to talk."
He jumped at a girl's voice inside his head, and looked around to see the others just as surprised. The others – the guy he met in similar armor but in red, and the girl in blue. The first armed figure – he realized with a start that the voice belong to her, that she's a female – seemed to be looking around at the three of them.
"This isn't the place." Even as she spoke, Shawn became aware of the sirens closing in. "VIKI, four to teleport."
Before he could wonder whom the girl was talking to, his world dissolved into black. He flinched – and the world came back again, drastically changed.
The other guy cursed to his left. Shawn jerked around in reflex, taking in his surroundings, and the three other people standing in a line beside him. He gaped.
He was suddenly indoors, firstly. Secondly, it was a room unlike anything else he had been in – though it strongly resembled some sort of high security control room, with two rows of consoles in front of them, and a giant screen taking up most of the opposite wall. The grey walls by the sides had various control panels and screens built in, and a quick backward glance showed a wide door several feet behind them. The giant screen had a space-themed screensaver, and it almost feel like they were on some sort of spaceship. For a second he almost thought they were. But it couldn't be. It couldn't.
A muted squeak drew his attention back to the row of console in front, where the girl in white had dropped onto the nearest seat.
"Power down," she muttered, and her armor dissolved in a white flash.
The first thing Shawn noticed was the hair – long, light blond hair that fell forward, covering part of her face. She flipped her head back in a practiced movement, and her hair was swept gently to the side. She looked about their age, with light skin and an almond-shaped face. Though her clothes looked like some sort of uniform – an unbuttoned grey jacket over a white shirt, with matching grey pants and boots.
"You can power down as well, we're safe here." She said wearily.
Shawn looked down at his wrist, and briefly touched the device the girl had given all of them. And he knew.
"Power down," he said, and felt the armor dissolve. The rest had done the same, and they exchanged glances – a mix of disbelief, awe and confusion.
"Take a seat." The girl said, gesturing at the empty seats at the consoles. There were four more seats.
The girl he met at the park took the seat next to the blonde, and he and the other guy went around the consoles to the next row and turn the seats around so that they all faced each other.
"Well," the blonde started after a few seconds of rather awkward silence. "Let's start with some introductions. My name is Xadrin. And you are…?" She turned to the other guy first, as he was sitting right in front of her.
"Cody," he said, smiling a little uncertainly.
"Cody," Xadrin nodded, and turned to him expectantly.
He straightened up in his seat, "Shawn."
Similarly, Xadrin repeated his name, and moved on.
"My name's Alison," the girl started, "but just call me Aly. It wasn't the ideal circumstances – but still, nice to meet you all."
Cody chuckled, nodding in agreement.
"Wait a second," Xadrin suddenly said, "the three of you don't know each other?"
Cody and Aly shook their heads, while Shawn shrugged. "I don't think I would make it this far if I had known crazy people like them from way back," he said, pretending to frown a little.
Cody grinned. "Oh you know you don't regret this."
Xadrin cracked a smile for the first time, and it made her look younger. "I'll have to agree with Shawn on this one. All of you are crazy, doing what you did. You could have been -" she caught herself, and paused, looking away.
It felt as if the mood has suddenly become heavier. Shawn recalled the unreal and the longest few minutes of his life – of deciding to help Cody, then running back to check whether anyone else needed help, which led to Cody's crazy plan and the incredible device Xadrin gave him…
"We just wanted to help," Aly said, breaking the sudden silence. "We are not crazy enough to think we would actually win, but we thought we could at least buy you some time until the police arrive."
"Metigor isn't someone your police, or even your other defense forces could handle."
"'Metigor'?" Cody repeated, "That's what it was?"
"Metigor is his name, not his species." Xadrin frowned a little, as if recalling some unpleasant memories, "He is a fugitive. He's been on the run for years. I never – I didn't expect him to be the one."
"Which one do you mean?" Shawn probed, feeling as if Xadrin was talking more to herself.
She shook her head slightly, as if trying to refocus. "I was chasing a thief who stole a cargo ship. The trail led me to your planet. I wasn't expecting a heavily-armed mass murderer."
"Mass murderer in what–"
"A ship, do you mean a spaceship-"
"Our planet, so you're not from Earth?!"
The three of them stopped simultaneously, like how they started talking simultaneously. They watched each other for a second, noting the same disbelief mirrored in each other's faces. It did not seem appropriate, but they laughed.
Xadrin smiled wryly, and started ticking off the questions, "Yes, I'm not from Earth," she answered Cody, and turned to Aly, "Yes, I meant a space craft – blasted!"
She suddenly banged her fist on the console, "VIKI, could you trace –" she bit back a cry as her leg buckled when she tried to stand.
Aly was already helping her up by the time Shawn and Cody stood up. Xadrin's face was contorted in pain, and Shawn recalled the battle – of her being pushed back by Metigor, and taking a shot square to her back when she saved Cody…
"I'm sorry, I forgot –" Cody looked concerned and apologetic, "we should've attended to your injuries earlier…"
"I'm fine," Xadrin said through gritted teeth, even as she rested most of her weight on Aly.
"Xadrin," a feminine voice rang clearly throughout the room, "you require medical attention. I have traced the teleportation signal to its origin, but neither you nor the rest of the Rangers are fit for pursuit. I suggest you get some rest. I will monitor the ship closely. "
Shawn had traced the voice to the speakers around the room, noting that the small, almost invisible cameras around the room had pulsed in red, almost in rhythm to the speech.
"Who are you?" Cody asked out loud.
"I am VIKI, the main computer on the Ace, the spacecraft you are currently on."
And Shawn thought he was beyond surprise today. So firstly, they were on a spaceship. A freaking spaceship. Secondly, the computer did not sound like a computer at all – it sounded sentient and almost human. How advanced was the aliens' artificial intelligence technology?
"VIKI, where can I get the medical supplies?" Aly asked, adjusting Xadrin's weight on her shoulders.
"I will lead you to the medical bay," VIKI replied without delay, "follow the green light."
The door behind the room slid open, and sure enough, Shawn could see greenish light on the other side.
"I'll take care of her," Aly said, already turning to the doors, "you guys stay here."
"But –" Cody protested, and caught himself. "All right. Let us know if you need anything."
The door slid shut behind them, barely making a single sound.
The strip of green light in the middle of the wall led them silently down the corridors. Aly watched Xadrin carefully as she adjusted her own stride to match Xadrin's slower limp. Supporting her from the side was rather awkward physically, as Aly was about half a foot taller, but she bet it was nothing compared to what Xadrin must be feeling. Her right leg was hurt, yet Aly couldn't see any sign on damage on her uniform, and couldn't gauge the extent of her injuries. She had a feeling that there were more.
Xadrin gave her a quick look, and stopped, mustering a grin for her. "Don't look so worried. I'll be fine."
If she had not sounded so strained or needed to stop before she could speak, perhaps she would be more convincing. Aly kept her face neutral. "I'd rather listen to professional judgment on that."
"Well," Xadrin started forward again at Aly's gentle nudge, "VIKI will be happy to hear that."
"Indeed I am, Xadrin," VIKI's voice said, "It is gratifying to have one's professional judgment listened to and respected. That is a rare occurrence on this ship, Ranger Aly."
"Oh shut up."
Aly had a feeling that the pair must banter a lot under normal circumstances. But there was something else she did not understand, "VIKI, why do you call me 'Ranger'?"
Xadrin shot her a sideway glance at the question, but did not intervene.
"Because that is what you are now, Ranger Aly. The morphers that Xadrin gave you, Cody and Shawn were keys to unlocking Ranger powers. These include the battle armor and weapons that you have already experienced, and also faster reflexes and healing – which Ranger Xadrin will do well to remember does not equal to invincibility."
Next to her, Xadrin sighed loudly. "Yes, VIKI."
Aly was about to ask more, but the green light has ended next to an open door, and she realized with a start that this must be the medical bay.
The first thing that she noticed was how big it was. The door opened to one corner of the room, where to the right was two large bed-like equipments, one open and one enclosed in a cocoon-like glass chamber. To the left were two rows of beds facing each other, three on each side. The second thing she noticed was how empty it was. It was not just the lack of any inhabitants, but also the way everything was perfectly arranged that seemed to suggest lack of use.
Xadrin was leading her towards the open bed on the right, and she noticed that a tray of equipment was waiting by the head of the bed. There was no sign of anyone who might have prepared it. Could it be that VIKI had done it?
"Is there… is there anyone else on this ship?" she asked, wondering just how big this ship was. This spaceship, she repeated silently, and forced down her own excitement at being on a spaceship – there would be a time for this later, she hoped.
"Negative. Xadrin is the only human occupant on the Ace."
She nodded in acknowledgement, swallowing a load of other questions. They have reached the examination table. It lowered automatically at their approach.
Despite her leg, Xadrin did not plop down onto the table, but sat down carefully and slowly, which confirmed Aly's suspicions that she must be hurting somewhere else.
Aly took a quick glance at the tray of equipment as the table rose up slowly to its original height. Other than what looked like some padding used for dressing wounds, she recognized nothing.
"Ranger Aly, may I guide you through the medical examination?" VIKI offered, and Aly breathed a sigh of relief.
"Please do," she smiled hesitantly at a room corner, finding the subtle camera, "I had basic first aid training in school, but these don't look like anything I know."
It was not complicated at all. VIKI instructed her on how to use a hand-held medical scanner, which was the size of a normal hair dryer. The scanner was advanced enough that it could scan not just for surface injuries, but could also detect any internal damage if needed. Its readings could be studied from a small screen on the device itself, but they were also automatically routed to VIKI's servers, and the results could be seen on a bigger screen on the other side of the examination table.
Xadrin sat quietly throughout the examination, and seemed to be focused on controlling her breathing. Aly grimaced at the results displayed. The injuries were burns, on her leg, her back, and other assorted bruises. Some other indicators were also alarmingly low, indicating exhaustion.
A small whirring sound had started right after the results were displayed, and as the wall panel next to the table opened to a tray of supplies, Aly realized that VIKI had prepared everything she needed.
She proceeded to work. She helped Xadrin remove her jacket, which the other girl endured with only the barest of grimace. As she lifted up the white undershirt, she drew a sharp intake of breath. On the center of Xadrin's back was a perfectly rounded circle of burnt flesh, red and angry. The cold analysis from the med scanner did not prepare her for this at all.
She picked up the cream that VIKI had prepared. "I'm going to start applying some cream, all right?"
Xadrin nodded wordlessly. As Aly applied the cream she felt Xadrin's body jerked a little in pain, and noted that she had clenched her fists tightly on the table. Aly kept working.
"I don't understand," Aly said as she finished with the cream and dressing. She blinked away the wetness at the corner of her eyes as she walked around to the other side to tend to the injured leg, "Wasn't the Ranger armor supposed to protect you from these?"
She was ready for the angry burns this time, and grimly continued with dressing the wound.
"It already did." Xadrin said wearily. "VIKI, could you help…?"
"The Ranger armor can protect the body from a wide range of attacks or extreme temperatures, including all laser beams that are grade five and below. However, to preserve its flexibility for battle, it does not provide much protection against impact, except for the helmet. Metigor had used a laser-based weapon that was at least grade nine, judging from battle footage. Without the armor, Xadrin would have been incinerated."
Aly paused. Incinerated. It sent a chill down her spine. Taking a deep breath, she went back to work.
"So are Rangers some sort of soldier, where you came from?" she asked after a while, trying to sort out the torrent of other questions in her head.
"No."
"Yes."
From the corner of her eye, Aly noted that Xadrin was glaring at the corner of the room.
"No, we are not soldiers." Xadrin repeated defiantly, "We don't take orders. We work in small teams, not whole companies. We fight to protect people and homes, not at the whims of some war-hungry generals."
"Even so, you fight in wars." VIKI countered. "You take orders from your team leader. Rangers are also known to fight alongside planetary defense with fleets of fighters. Even your claims to protect and defend are reactions to the whims of war-hungry generals."
More like a super soldier, Aly thought to herself as she finished the final dressing. "So what does that mean for us? Cody, Shawn and me, I mean." She stood up, and took the used tray back to the box in the wall, "We were Rangers during the battle – I understand it was a heat-of-the-moment decision, but what now? What happens next?"
Xadrin stared at her silently, her eyes unreadable.
"You will still be Rangers if you choose so." VIKI chimed in, "The morphers the three of you have are now bound to each of you – they will not take another owner easily. But it is ultimately your decision to use it."
Aly took a moment to digest this information, trying not to panic at the implications. "There should be many of these morphers lying around, right? If we don't use them, it won't really be a waste…"
"No," VIKI replied immediately, "Morphers are extremely rare as they are not simply manufactured. The one you have is part of a set that belonged to a great team of Rangers who lived a long time ago on this ship."
Before she could ask more, Xadrin swayed a little, and Aly caught her right as she was about to fall off the table.
"What happened?" Aly asked VIKI, "Did I do something wrong?"
"No…" Xadrin muttered as she struggled to stay awake. A small whine alerted them to a bed that was moving on its own towards the examination table, stopping right next to it. "I'm just... tired."
"Xadrin had been in pursuit for five days with minimal rest." VIKI explained as Aly helped the other girl to the bed. "The stress of the new injuries on her body had worsened the exhaustion."
Aly grimaced, thinking back to the battle and how Xadrin had saved them over and over. Gently, she tucked the other girl in.
"But you and the others…" Xadrin protested, though her eyes were losing focus.
"We'll be fine. VIKI's here." Aly reassured, following the bed as it slowly wheeled back to its place on the other side of the room, "We'll be here when you wake up. Rest well."
Xadrin was already asleep. For a moment, Aly just stood there and contemplated the sleeping Ranger. What had made her devote herself to a life of putting herself between danger and some strangers?
And if what VIKI said was true, could she do the same?
When Cody stepped out of the shower, he found his clothes cleaned and neatly folded in the dressing room. They were even slightly warm to the touch. He was amazed – he was only in the shower for what, ten minutes?
Soon after, Shawn entered the dressing room as well, similarly wrapped in towels and marvelling at the cleaned clothes.
"Thank god," he said, "you have no idea how gross it is to stay in your workout clothes for hours."
"I do, actually. I also know how much worse it is to hang out with the person who stay in their workout clothes for hours." Cody grinned, "Glad that you thought of asking VIKI about showers."
Shawn snorted, throwing the shower room next door a backward glance. "Yeah well. I had a feeling that this is a big ship. Just look at the showers – five stalls. There should be more people on the ship."
"Good point," he frowned a little, "but if there are, we should have met them by now. I wonder if we are the only ones on the ship?"
"That is correct." VIKI's voice replied, and both of them jumped.
"VIKI!" Shawn held his towel tighter around his body, while Cody quickly scanned the room for cameras.
He found more than one, and felt his cheeks warm. "VIKI, this is – this is a –" Even as he said it he found it silly. VIKI is an A.I. She might sound human and very female, but she is still a computer. It was ridiculous to be embarrassed by –
"Don't do this again!" Shawn had no qualms about saying it, apparently. "This is supposed to be a private area!"
"Certainly." VIKI replied coolly, although Cody had a sneaking suspicion that she was enjoying this. "The video feed from this room, as well as all other private areas such as residential rooms, are encrypted and will never be shown to others unless explicit permission was given by the persons involved. My cameras cover every inch of space on this ship by design, to ensure optimal functioning of environmental and security systems."
"Well, that's reassuring." Shawn muttered, dressing quickly.
When they were both done, they left the room to find strips of green light lining the left corridor, leading them towards what must be the mess hall that VIKI had mentioned prior to their showers.
"VIKI, how is Xadrin doing?" Cody asked as they set off down the corridors. He recalled very well that Xadrin had gotten shot in the back because she tried to stop Metigor's flying spike from piercing him. He owed her his life now.
"She suffered multiple burns and bruises. Ranger Aly is tending to her now, do not worry."
He cringed at the answer, slowing to a stop. "Can we go see her?"
"She will require a good rest after this. I suggest you see her tomorrow morning."
Shawn waited for him to reply, Cody nodded, and they moved on. VIKI was right. Seeing her would not do her any good.
"What did you call Aly just now, VIKI? 'Ranger' Aly?" Shawn suddenly asked.
"Yes, Ranger Shawn. I address all guests by their formal title unless otherwise instructed."
"Ranger Shawn?" Cody repeated with a grin.
"Ranger Cody," Shawn shot back, snickering. "But wait a minute, when did that become our formal title?"
"When you activated the morphers and fought as Rangers in battle."
Cody sobered up. So that was what it was called. What Xadrin was. "But we only did that for a few minutes. Isn't it a bit… rushed to give us the formal titles?"
"Not to mention that we might not actually want to continue this crazy business." Shawn cut in firmly.
"It is true that your decisions to become Rangers were not made under normal circumstances, but becoming a Ranger is not as reversible as you think." VIKI replied, and Cody saw a look of alarm flashed across Shawn's face. "The morphers given to you are now bound to your essence, and they will not take new owners easily."
"What do you mean? We are stuck with this?" Shawn asked. Silently, Cody tried to grapple with what this meant. Would they face Metigor again? Would they still win the next time?
"While the morphers belong to you now, you may also choose not to use them. As such, to say that you are 'stuck' is incorrect."
The green lights finally ended next to an open door, and curiosity got the better of them at the moment.
The door led to a spacious and welcoming room. To the left was something that looked like a small kitchen, and four long tables that could seat six people each with the two rows of benches on each side. To the right, assorted couches, pillows and chairs in various colors circled a small open space in the middle, making a stark contrast to the rest of the ship's grey efficiency.
"You mentioned that there was no one else on this ship," Cody said as he looked around at the mismatched furniture, "but someone else lived here before, isn't it?"
"That is correct. There was once a Ranger team who lived on board the Ace for years. Some of their morphers have been passed on to you."
In reflex, Cody touched the morpher on his wrist. It looked like a normal digital watch with a square clock face, marked with a strip of red across the bottom. He wondered who once wore this device and bore its burden.
"But you said the morphers won't take new owners?" Shawn was asking.
"I said the morphers would not take new owners easily. The Ranger team I refer to lived here twenty Earth-years ago, the morphers have been dormant for just as long."
He exchanged glances with Shawn. That was even before either of them was even born. The ship did not even look like it was twenty years old. What exactly have they gotten themselves into?
"Look, we better start from the beginning," Shawn said, "What exactly are Rangers anyway?"
Knowing that this would likely take some time, Cody gestured at the benches in the kitchen area, and the two of them moved over to settle down on the benches as VIKI started explaining.
"Rangers are a type of warriors defined by their command of Ranger powers, which include the armor and weapons that you have already used during battle, as well as faster reflexes and healing. I had a recent disagreement with Xadrin regarding whether Rangers are soldiers, but Rangers are often at the frontlines of wars, taking on the relatively difficult missions in the name of defense."
"Do they-"
"What kind-"
Both of them stopped, and Cody gestured for Shawn to go first. Shawn continued, "What kind of wars are you talking about? Before this no one on Earth even knows for sure if there are other life forms outside of Earth. But now apparently there are, and you're saying that there are ongoing wars? And someone invented this Ranger technology to win wars?" He turned to study his own morpher as he speak, with what looked like mild distaste on his face.
"Wars have always existed when resources are scarce. As civilizations advanced into space, the scope of wars had expanded into intergalactic scale as well. However, the Ranger technology was not invented to win wars. The earliest Rangers were guardians of their planets, drawing powers from their planets' essence. They do not take any side but that of the weak and unprotected. Even now, Rangers are not under any formal command in any system, and they can refuse to fight any battle they deem inappropriate. Nevertheless, they are bound by honor and duty to protect the weak."
None of them said anything when VIKI finished. Cody had wanted to ask about command chain of Rangers, but it seemed like there was none. Where did this leave them? Metigor had only been forced to a temporary retreat, and would surely return to finish whatever it was he wanted to do. Must they be on standby to fight him? Could they defeat him? What happens if they do not?
Shawn suddenly snorted. "Does this remind you of Jedi Knights?"
Caught off guard by the reply, Cody paused for a moment, then laughed. "Please. This isn't…" he frowned and replayed VIKI's explanation, "Well, I see your point. But-"
"It's not something to joke about," Aly's voice said sternly, and Cody turned to see her entering the mess hall. She did not look happy at all at Shawn's comment. She strode pass them to the kitchen area and pressed something on the control panels – perhaps VIKI had told her how to use it.
"Xadrin suffered multiple burns and bruises from saving all our asses, I think it's very insulting to compare what she did to some Hollywood movie."
"That's not what I meant," Shawn grumbled, looking irritated.
"That's what you said."
"Look, I was trying to lighten up the situation a little," Shawn stood up from the bench as Aly turned around with a cup in her hand.
"That's exactly what I think is inappropriate – this is not something you should joke about."
Cody noticed that she was holding the cup with both hands, perhaps a little too tightly. He studied her defiant face, and thought about what she had been doing before she joined them.
"I am not taking this lightly-"
"Shawn," Cody cut in firmly, "she just came back from the med bay. I don't think you will be in the mood to joke as well if you see what she saw." He turned to Aly, "How is Xadrin doing?"
Aly sighed. "She's resting. VIKI said she was chasing Metigor's ship for the past five days with barely any sleep. Just now she almost collapsed on me."
She took a deep breath and ran a hand through her dark brown hair, "Shawn, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to jump on you like that. If you had seen the burns… she must have known that Metigor's weapon could penetrate the armor, but she fought on anyway. I – I don't know if I could do that."
Shawn shrugged. "Yeah. Did VIKI tell you that little fact about how the morphers are now bound to our 'essence', whatever that means?"
Aly nodded, still looking as though her thoughts are further away.
"We were just talking about it, wondering what we should do." Cody offered, as Shawn walked over to her and try to get a drink as well. Cody followed him.
Wordlessly, Aly taught them how to use the dispenser – which could actually dispense a pretty large variety of drinks and food, most of which he had never heard of. But now was not the time to marvel or experiment. Aly seemed to have gotten hot chocolate, and the two of them just followed suit. When they all have their drinks, they settled down on the first table behind the counter.
Nobody said anything for a while as they nursed their drinks.
"Metigor will be back," Cody stated, figuring it would be good to start with the facts.
"And Xadrin cannot fight him alone." Aly continued, not meeting their eyes.
"We have three morphers," Shawn stared at his own as he said it, fidgeting with the straps.
Cody looked at the two of them in turn, and felt that someone has to get to the point. He said firmly, "And we can help. We did it already, remember?"
As the two of them looked at him, he tried to swat away the memory of Xadrin getting shot as she tried to save him. He could not help what has already happened, but he knew he now faced a choice to help make things better in the future.
"It wasn't much, but it was something." he continued, "And let's face it – Metigor didn't come to Earth to fight Xadrin, he must be planning something big." He paused, and took a deep breath. "I don't know if I will be any good for this. But if the choice is between doing something and being sitting ducks, I'd choose to do something."
Shawn and Aly just stared at him.
After a moment Shawn chuckled, "Well, when you put it like that, it's a clear choice to me. I hate just sitting around and waiting."
Cody almost sighed in relief. He was ready to do something, but he had hoped that he would not be doing it by himself.
And now there was just one more left.
"That was fast," Aly said, slightly surprised.
"Well, you don't have to make a decision now," Cody told her, trying to think ahead and wonder how much time they had. He had no freaking idea, to be honest. But he knew it was a personal choice, and he was aware that it was now two against one.
"Of course not." Aly said, looking away for a moment, "You don't even know the full situation."
"Does that matter?" Shawn challenged, "So what if you know every piece of information? Does that change the choice between action and inaction?"
"You don't even know if that is the full set of choices." Aly retorted, though she did not sound very convinced herself.
"What, is there some middle road between-"
"Guys, guys," Cody held up both hands to stop the two of them from arguing further, "don't start, all right? This is not what we need now. Shawn, this is a very personal choice, and not all of us think about them in the same way. Aly, Shawn has a point. We may never have all the information, you have to be prepared to take a leap of faith."
Cody grinned a little at her, "At least you know the two of us are jumping."
Aly broke into a reluctant smile. "Yeah. Well. Oh right – I promised Xadrin that we would be here when she wakes up. VIKI said it's likely to be tomorrow morning. What should we do now?"
"What time is it?" Shawn wondered out loud.
"It is now 5.42pm, Crystal Falls time." VIKI announced before they could whip out their phones.
"So early?" Shawn said, echoing Cody's surprise. It felt like a long time had passed since the battle in the park.
Seeing the event reminder on his phone for the first time since the battle, Cody realized something with a start. "Crap!" He smacked his head, "I forgot about my date!"
"Your date?"
"A girl from campus. I bought a rose for her." He muttered.
"Really?"
"That's really sweet," Aly commented.
Cody was very grateful that she did not say 'aww'. Still, he felt the need to correct the misconception. "I mean balloon. A rose-shaped balloon…" he voice got smaller.
Shawn snickered. Aly giggled, and caught herself. "That's – well, aww." And she dissolved into giggles.
"Crap," Cody pretended to bang his head on the table, "crap, crap."
A/N: Please review and let me know what you think! I'll be proof-reading the other chapters, and aim to update once a week until we reach the end of arc 1. After that, who knows what's going to happen...