Author's Note: This chapter takes place during the episode "Double Edged Blake." Review responses are at the end of the chapter to avoid spoilers.
Previously in Parallel Realities Ninja Storm:
After helping Cam with Cyber Dustin, the two head over to a sleepover at Hunter and Blake's apartment. Sensei shows up and says it's his birthday. Meanwhile, Tori plans to give Blake sleeping pills with the side effect of him talking in his sleep, Cam plans to give Tori a love potion and Blake plans to get Tori naked. Dustin forgets his sleeping bag, so Tobi goes with him. On their way, Dustin tells Tobi that he makes him feel less weird. Tobi tells Dustin that he will need to choose between him and Hunter one day. Back at the apartment, the group plays truth or dare. Because of a dare, Dustin kisses Hunter but bites his lips, only making Hunter more aroused. Because of another dare, Cam and Tori end up baking in the kitchen. After singing Happy Birthday to Sensei, the group eats cake tainted with both Cam's love potion and Tori's sleeping pills. Tori falls for Tobi, who is horrified to find Dustin and Hunter making out. Of course, it doesn't last long as everyone passes out (except for Tori, who chews coffee grounds). To calm Tori down, Tobi makes her a bath and manages to switch morphers on her. Before calling it a night, Tobi kisses Dustin, who calls out Hunter's name in his sleep. The next morning, Blake sneaks into the bathroom naked while Tobi showers. Tori enters and gets the wrong idea, causing the truth about the closet kiss to come out and Tori to be pissed off. After his shower, Tobi spies on Dustin in Hunter's room. Hunter reveals he's the sixth grader that got Dustin into motocross. Dustin says he needs to talk to Tobi, to tell him the "chose." Tobi runs out of the house crying...
Parallel Realities Ninja Storm: Chapter 12 (Belonging For Beginners)
Tobi kept running until he was too tired and then he just walked. The events of his time in this dimension replayed in his head, but they took on a new meaning. He didn't belong here.
He hadn't really helped Tori. His sister would have ended up with Blake no matter what. She may have claimed not to have feelings for him in the past, but Tobi could see right through her. But, had Tobi not been around, their relationship wouldn't be strained right now. He wouldn't have been... in the way.
And then there was Cam. He never thought he had any chance with Tori until Tobi built up his hopes only to let them be smashed to bits. He would have been alright seeing Tori and Blake together without that false hope Tobi gave him.
Last, but certainly not least, Tobi may have pushed Dustin to admit his attractions sooner, but he could never change fate. He and Hunter were destined to be together, while Tobi was never supposed to be in this dimension at all. He had no destiny here and his presence only threw everything out of whack. Again, he didn't belong.
When he looked up, he realized that, without being aware of it, he had walked to the house he once shared with his sister... home.
He walked all the way to the front door before he realized what he was doing. Once it settled in, he turned to leave. Behind him, the front door opened.
"There you are," a familiar female voice said from behind him. "So, how was your sleepover?"
A figure walked past him and retrieved a rubberbanded newspaper from the porch.
"Mom?" he whispered.
She turned around, smiling. Then she stopped and squinted. "Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you were my daughter. You look so... similar." She clutched the newspaper to her chest as if Tobi were going to steal it. "Can I help you?"
"I'm sorry," Tobi said, shaking off his surprise at seeing his mother alive. "I'm a friend of Tori's."
"Oh," his mother said, sighing with relief. "She has so many now."
"I, uh, have a message from her," Tobi continued.
His mother stood and waited.
"She'll be home soon and..." He took a breath. "She wants to say, 'I love you, mom.'" He looked directly at her when he said the last part.
She smiled, but Tobi turned and left quickly, already feeling the tears returning.
He spent the rest of the morning waiting in the park for his sister to arrive from Lothor's ship. He busied himself by putting Tori's morpher on. He had always wanted to be a Power Ranger like his sister and like the others, but he never fit in. It was almost like he didn't belong in any dimension.
He stood up and copied his sister's movements when she transformed into her Power Ranger suit. Just for fun, he called out, "Ninja Storm, Ranger Form!" Just as he was about to say, "Power of Water!" he felt his body tingle. He looked down to see his clothes dissolve like they were exploding off of him into ash. Where there had previously been nothing underneath the shirt and shorts, he now found himself wearing his sister's blue Power Ranger suit.
There were some differences though. The suit had transformed slightly to look more masculine on him. Apparently, his DNA was close enough to Tori's for the morpher to work on him.
A sense of excitement filled him. Although he liked gold slightly more than blue, it was exhilarating to finally be a Power Ranger. He decided to try doing some of the things his sister could do. First, he ran around in a circle as fast as he could. Of course, that ended up being so fast that he felt like he was going to throw up.
Next, he concentrated on making water from a nearby sprinkler take shape in his hand. He kept concentrating, but nothing seemed to be happening. Just when he was about to give up, he noticed that the fountain near him was now spiraling water in the air around itself. Clearly the whole Power Ranger thing would take some getting used to as far as controlling the abilities.
The water came splashing down when a sound distracted him. Someone was clapping. He looked around to see his sister leaning against a tree applauding. She had a slightly amused expression on her face.
"Tori," he said, surprised. Feeling around for a button on the morpher to open the visor on his helmet, he declared, "I'm a Power Ranger!"
"Congratulations," she said unenthusiastically. "Now it's my turn."
"But..." Tobi mumbled, disappointed. "I don't want to."
"It's my suit," she reminded him, "even if it does look a little better on you." She laughed.
"What?" he asked defensively.
"It just doesn't leave much to the imagination," she explained. "Looks like someone forgot his morning jackoff session, not so little brother."
He blushed a little but he didn't feel that embarrassed, since his sister had caught him masturbating plenty of times. "Fine," he said, pouting and deactivating his morpher. He looked down to find his clothes exactly as they had been, despite the fact that they had looked like they had dissolved earlier.
She very casually approached him and reached out for the morpher.
"You sure I can't try it out for one more day?" he pleaded.
"Can't your friends make you your own?" she asked in an accusing tone. "You guys seem pretty close."
"How do you know what I've been doing?" he asked, confused.
"Lothor has this screen that shows all kinds of stuff," she explained. "I have no idea how it works. He must have cameras everywhere in the city. I wonder if Mayor Lothor has that."
"Uh, I don't know," he said, removing Tori's morpher. "And I don't know if this dimension's Power Rangers are still my friends."
"Finally come to your senses?" she asked, grinning. "And Lothor thought you'd need to be kidnapped and brainwashed. Ha!"
"Oh." He looked down while she strapped on the Morpher. "I just... I don't think I belong here. Is Lothor really trying to find a way to our dimension? If so, I... I think I want to go back."
"I think it's one way," she said, hastily activating the morpher. "Ninja Storm, Ranger Form!" she declared, transforming. "Power of Water!"
"So, are the others coming here then?" he asked.
"Maybe," she said, now in her blue Power Ranger suit. "Look, I'd love to stay and chat, but I have some things to take care of. Now, if you can get me the other morphers, I'd be really grateful. I'll send you a note!" And then, in a flash, without so much as a goodbye, she was gone.
"Bye," he mumbled. Even his real sister didn't seem to really care about him. It was almost like no one loved him. The thought made him feel depressed and abandoned.
He didn't know where to go now, so he just kept walking until he found himself at Storm Chargers.
"Hello... Tobi, wasn't it?" Kelly greeted him with a friendly tone.
"Yeah," Tobi replied, looking around. "Where's Dustin and the others?"
"Not here," she replied. "That's all I can tell you. You might check the track."
"That's okay," Tobi mumbled, turning to leave.
"Are you alright?" she asked, coming around the counter. "Did something happen between you and Dustin?"
He looked at her curiously. "Why would you think that?"
"It's just that Dustin stopped by earlier to ask if I had seen you," she explained. "Then he left in a hurry."
"He was looking for me?" Tobi asked, confused. "Oh. Was Hunter with him?"
"No," she answered. "He was alone. Why?" She seemed to realize something. "Hunter has come between you two, hasn't he?"
"What?" he replied quickly. "How do you... What do you know?"
"Just intuition," she said, grinning. "Both you and Hunter have... an interest in Dustin."
"Oh," Tobi mumbled. "Yeah, well Dustin chose Hunter."
"I see," she said, straitening a surfboard display.
He watched as she seemed to be ignoring him and turned to go again. "No one cares about me," he mumbled.
Kelly walked between Tobi and the door. "He still cares about you," she suggested before stepping aside.
"And, if I never came here, he wouldn't," he replied. "I just don't belong here. I've complicated things." He reached for the door.
"If he comes back looking for you again, what should I say?" she asked.
"Tell him... I won't get in his way." Tobi then left Storm Chargers.
This time, as he walked he heard a commotion coming from downtown. Instead of avoiding the disturbance, he found himself wandering toward it. Maybe it was because he had become so used to disturbances being caused by his sister and her friends.
People were running away, screaming and avoiding what looked like balloons. As he approached, he saw the Power Rangers fighting a balloon covered alien. When he saw Dustin take a hit, he found himself fighting the urge to run to him. Instead, Hunter helped him up and they continued fighting.
They were doing badly until Blake showed up and took the balloon alien on alone with a bladed staff weapon, which scared it off.
As the others congratulated Blake, Tori noticed Tobi watching from the distance.
When he saw them heading toward him, he instinctively turned to go.
"TZT, wait up!" Dustin called, running up to him.
Tobi turned to see Dustin's face full of concern from inside his open helmet.
"Where have you been?" Dustin asked. "You left your morpher in Hunter and Blake's bathroom so like even Cam couldn't find you."
Tobi looked down at his bare wrist and thought about the real morpher that had briefly been there. "It's not a morpher," he corrected, "and I went for a walk."
"A four hour walk?" Tori asked as the others approached him.
"You weren't, uh, with..." Shane began to ask, gesturing with his head toward Blake discretely so that Tori wouldn't notice.
"She knows about the closet," Tobi told Shane, "and I wasn't with Blake."
"You two just happen to be missing at the same time?" Shane pointed out.
"Hey!" Blake protested. "I wasn't with Tobi."
"Then where were you?" Tori asked, starting at him accusingly.
"Uh, nowhere," he answered lamely.
She rolled her eyes. "Let's get back to Ninja Ops," she suggested.
Tobi reluctantly joined them. When it came down to it, he really didn't have anywhere else to go.
Back at Ninja Ops, Cam wasn't at all pleased with Tobi's disappearance. "It's bad enough that I couldn't locate Blake," Cam scolded. "You need to keep this on you at all times," he added, forcefully handing Tobi the communicator, "especially after Lothor's goons tried kidnapping you."
"I don't think you need to worry about that happening again," Tobi pointed out.
"Why not?" Cam asked suspiciously.
"No reason," Tobi said quickly.
"Anyway, we've been having our own problems here," Cam continued. "You chose the wrong time to—"
"I'm sorry, okay!" Tobi yelled, getting sick of Cam's lecture. "And this has nothing to do with me wandering off. Look, I'm sorry I ever tried to help you out. It's all my fault I got your hopes up and they got crushed. Everything's my fault."
Cam's expression softened. "I'm sorry too," he said slowly. "I guess I did allow my expectations to go beyond what I knew inside was possible." He glanced out the corner of his glasses at Tori and sighed.
Tobi calmed down and tucked his hair behind his ears. "So, what problems have you had here?"
"Somehow Tori's morpher lost alignment with the morphing matrix," Cam explained. "Then, when I realigned the frequency manifold, the system said her morpher was in use elsewhere."
Tobi gave him a guilty look.
"But it deactivated just in time for our little fight with Inflatron," Cam continued. "Speaking of which, you guys should check this out." He said the last part loud enough to get the others' attention.
As they crowded around Cam's computer, Tobi backed away to give them room. For a moment, he felt like he was back in his own dimension, watching Dustin explain something to his fellow ninjas.
"The analysis is almost done," Cam told the others while typing. "There," he announced, looking up at the screen. "See for yourself."
The others stared blankly at the screen.
Noticing this, Cam added, "In simple terms, it seems Blake was right."
"Ah, sweet," Blake said, slapping Hunter and Shane's hands.
As Cam went on to explain Inflatron, Tobi turned around. When he did, his eyes met with Sensei's. He had obviously been watching Tobi.
"What is troubling you, Tobi?" Sensei asked.
Tobi sighed. He had never really went to the Sensei from his dimension for advice, but this Sensei was different and he sure needed some. "Sensei, if I asked you something, would you tell me the truth no matter what?" he asked.
"I will always be honest with you as I am with the others," he agreed.
Tobi was distracted briefly as Dustin said, "So, the thing was full of hot air after all," which caused everyone, including Cam to laugh. Though, Blake walked off to play with his weapon.
Tobi turned his attention back to Sensei. "Do I belong here?" he asked.
"You belong in your own dimension," Sensei said.
"I thought so," he replied, "but the thing is I never felt like I belonged there either. I mean, you—the other Sensei—never let me train to be a ninja. He said I wasn't ruthless enough and that I was too weak."
"It seems the other version of me overlooked your determination and your heart," Sensei concluded.
Tobi looked at him confused. "What do you mean?"
Sensei gestured his tiny hand toward Dustin, who was now watching Blake with the others while Blake explained where he got his "Thunderblade" from. "If you put as much passion into training as you do your time with Dustin, you would make a powerful ninja," Sensei concluded.
"You think so?" Tobi asked, surprised.
"You asked for the truth," Sensei reminded him with a grin and nose twitch.
Tobi thought about becoming a ninja. "I've done a lot of practicing on my own," he explained, "but I still never became one of them. I was never a ninja. I was never a Power Ranger. I never fit in, but you say I belong there. How do you know that?"
Sensei looked toward Cam, who was busy at his computer while the others talked to Blake. Blake spun the Thunderblade around, stopping with it behind his back. "Who says I haven't been?" he asked, turning and leaving Ninja Ops with a suspicious grin on his face.
"You should talk to Cam," Sensei advised Tobi. "He may be able to relate to your situation."
"What does he know about not fitting in?" Tobi asked skeptically. "Everyone relies on him."
"There was a time when he was not a Power Ranger and the others were. I was... hard on him," Sensei admitted. "He felt like he did not belong. I believe it was Tori who convinced him of his importance to the team.
"Oh," Tobi realized, watching Cam.
"Now, as the green Samurai Ranger, there is no question as to his importance and value," Sensei finished.
"Thanks, Sensei," Tobi said, turning back to the guinea pig. "I like this version of you." He smiled. "So, did you enjoy your birthday?"
"It was... interesting," he replied, "but, yes, I enjoyed it."
Tobi smiled again before heading over to Cam. "Uh, Cam," he greeted him. "Your dad explained to me how you used to feel like you didn't fit in."
Cam looked away from his screen and stared at Tobi briefly before glaring at his father. "Did he? I see," he said, turning back to look at Tobi and sighing. "Yes, it's true. Why did he feel the need to tell you that?"
"Only because I don't belong," Tobi replied.
"The difference is that I originated from this dimension," Cam pointed out.
"I don't just mean here," Tobi clarified. "I never fit in back in my own dimension either. I was the only non-ninja, non-Power Ranger. The only reason they put up with me was because I'm Tori's brother and no one messes with Tori."
Cam grinned. "This other Tori sounds interesting, but I know how you felt. Do you still feel that way?"
Tobi thought for a moment. "Yeah, I do, but Sensei said I might be able to become a ninja with some training."
"That is certainly possible," Cam agreed.
"And a Power Ranger too?" Tobi asked.
"That, not so much," he disagreed.
"I was wondering," Tobi began, looking at Cam's screen, "if you kept the information about where Tori's morpher was aligned."
"Yes," Cam replied, looking back at his screen and pulling up a document, "but the coordinates don't make any sense."
"Let's say," Tobi suggested, "that the coordinates point to my dimension."
"I see," Cam said, studying the screen. "Now the negative axis makes sense." He turned back to Tobi. "But why would her morpher be aligned to your dimension?"
"Nevermind that," Tobi said. "The point is, what would you do with those coordinates?"
"I don't know," he admitted. "I'm not sure if my father would make me send you back or not."
Tobi looked over at the others talking amongst themselves, all but Tori who looked lost in thought. "If you had asked me a few hours ago if I wanted to go back, I'd have said, 'When can I leave?' but now I don't know. I mean, I never fit in there and yet I don't belong here."
"Just because you don't came from this dimension doesn't mean you can't belong in it," Cam suggested.
"But you wouldn't have been like you were this morning if I hadn't gotten your hopes up with Tori. She was going to end up with Blake no matter what. In fact, me being here only messed that up too."
"You can't blame yourself for everything," Cam said.
"No one else around here could be mistaken for my sister. The closet and bathroom episodes never would have happened. Haven't you noticed Blake keeps disappearing? I'm driving him away."
"I'm starting to think it's something else entirely," Cam commented.
"And then Hunter tells Dustin they're meant to be together because they met as kids without realizing it," Tobi continued. "And... Dustin said he chose him over me."
Cam gave him a sympathetic look. "I know how you feel. Believe me, I know, but had you not come here, Dustin and Hunter would probably both still be in the closet as far as their sexuality and their feelings."
"Yeah," Tobi agreed. "I helped drive Dustin into Hunter's arms."
"If you really love him, you'll be glad you played that role," Cam replied. "You'd want him to be happy." His eyes wandered to Tori when he said the last part.
"I guess that's true," Tobi agreed, watching Hunter flirt with Dustin, "but that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt."
"I know," Cam replied somberly, watching Tori as she began to head for the exit.
"I'm going, uh, out," she told the others, who immediately exchanged suspicious looks.
Tobi decided to catch her before she left. "You're going to follow Blake, aren't you?" he asked his sister.
She looked at Tobi guiltily. "I know that he's not going off to see you, but I still don't know what he's up to."
"I'm sorry again," Tobi apologized. "I should have told you about me and Blake in the closet. I mean..."
"No, I'm sorry," she interrupted. "I was just upset over everything."
"Yeah," Tobi agreed. "Tori, how come you never told me our—your mom was alive?"
"What?" she asked, caught off guard. "Oh, so she's... not in your dimension? I didn't know."
"Yeah," Tobi mumbled. I guess she isn't really my mom, is she?"
"Well, no, I guess not," she admitted.
"I just wish I didn't know," he added. "Does that make sense?"
"Not really," she admitted. "I guess I've probably taken her for granted. Maybe I've taken a lot of things for granted." She looked toward the door. "But I intend to change that."
Tobi's eyes wandered to Dustin, who was talking with Hunter. "Do you believe in destiny, like in two people being destined to be together? You know, like you and Blake?"
She turned back to him. "I don't know if we're destined to be together. You're talking about soul mates."
"Yeah, soul mates," he repeated.
"This has to do with Dustin again, doesn't it?" she accused. "You're wondering if he's your soul mate."
"No, actually," he disagreed. "I'm wondering if he's Hunter's soul mate."
"Why would you ask that?" she asked, confused.
"Supposedly, Dustin met Hunter when Dustin was in fourth grade and Hunter was in sixth," he explained.
"Oh!" she realized. "I remember. Then the boy in our class must have been... Blake. And I had a crush on him then too... Maybe there is something to soul mates after—Wait," she interrupted herself. "Dustin said he thought that kid—Hunter—was cute. I thought he was joking. Oh..." She gave Tobi a sympathetic look. "Tobi, I'm sorry."
"It's okay," Tobi lied. "I want him to be happy."
"You deserve him more than Hunter," she said. "Hunter was a real jerk to Dustin."
"You can't make someone love you," Tobi commented.
"Or stop from loving someone," Tori added.
"Yeah," he agreed.
"Guys," Cam spoke up. "I've located Inflatron. He's on the move and there's also some kind of disturbance in the woods. I recommend we take the Mobile Command Center."
"Right," Shane agreed.
"I'm going to, uh, find Blake," Tori said, leaving.
"Can I come?" Tobi asked the others as they all headed toward the exit.
Cam activated Cyber Cam and then looked to his father.
"Perhaps it is time Tobi began his training," Sensei suggested. "He will remain behind here."
"We'll catch you later," Dustin told Tobi.
"Don't you have something to tell him?" Hunter asked Dustin.
"Uh," Dustin replied nervously. "Maybe after we get back." He then headed out the others.
"It looks like it's just the three of us, party animals," Cyber Cam said. "Or party animal and party dude."
Tobi turned to Sensei. "So, what do I do first?"
Sensei somersaulted over to Cam's computer console. "Let me see," he mumbled while Cyber Cam showed him some training screens.
"Cam sure keeps some interesting files on here," Cyber Cam commented. "That Tori is a babe!"
"This will do," Sensei said.
Cyber Cam pressed a few buttons and the walls around the room started to move. When they were done, something appeared.
Tobi turned to see Cyber Dustin. "Oh, Tobi," Cyber Dustin moaned. "Let's do it now!" He then removed his shirt and tossed it aside.
Tobi stood there with his mouth hanging open.
Sensei hopped back to his corner of the room. "Let the training begin," he said.
To be continued...
Author's Notes: Thanks Annie for another review. I'm glad you like Dustin/Hunter because that looks like how it's going to go. As for TZT and Cyber Dustin being creepy, I have to admit I find it just too fun to give up. In fact, I have an idea for the opening of the next chapter. I also plan on some more drama, so I need some humor for balance. Things will work out for Cam somehow, but I wanted someone that Tobi could talk to and be on his side while Dustin chooses Hunter and in case he betrays the others.
Thanks Ghostwriter for reviewing both my stories. I can't believe how many stories you've written! With how much time I devote to writing, you'd think I'd have more to show for it. Of course, most things I start I don't do anything with.
Thanks YellowPrincess for the review. I guess everyone wants Dustin to choose Hunter. No, I'm not complaining. As for Tori, I think she'll still end up with Blake since I'm following the NS episodes as best I can (I make Tobi be off camera in shots that appear in the show). We'll see what happens with a second Tori...