"How is school going?" Jenny asked as Sarah arrived and set her bag down by the bed. The pink Ranger shrugged and sat down.
"Good, I guess."
"Do you have that aid they promised you?"
"She'll be here tomorrow," Sarah said. "Principal Hastings will call me down to the office when she arrives, and we'll go over what I need from her and stuff."
"Do you know her name?"
"Generic Mrs. Smith," Sarah shrugged. "Doesn't help very much. I just hope she's not… well, a bitch."
"I doubt she'll be a bitch," Jenny chuckled.
She liked these visits with her family. She knew she wouldn't be in the hospital for long, but it was boring to sit in a bed all day, and the doctors and nurses weren't much in the way of conversation. Jenny had no idea how tiring a heart attack could be, and found she barely had any energy at all, so getting out of bed and walking around wasn't an option and daytime television was boring.
"Any news about the drunk driver, yet?" she asked.
"They've reached a bit of a dead end," Sarah sighed. "Calvin and I don't remember much and there were so many people at school who drank the punch and left a little tipsy that it'll be hard to narrow it down to one driver."
"You don't remember anything about the car?"
"It drove off before I knew what happened," Sarah said. "They're questioning mechanics around town though to see if anyone comes in with some damages and if the car belongs to a family at the school. But…"
"That's only if they go to a mechanic in town," Jenny sighed. "Well, I guess it's up to karma now."
Sarah nodded and took her books out of her bag. She set them down on the bed next to Jenny.
"Can you help me with homework?" she asked, and Jenny nodded. She sat up in her bed and took the book and a pencil from Sarah to begin reading out the questions. Sarah was stuck with doing the math in her head, since she couldn't read and couldn't write out her thoughts. Fortunately, it didn't hold her back much at all. Sarah had already gotten used to doing math problems in her head, as it often saved her from having to rush around looking for paper while she worked on a new idea or invention.
The math homework didn't last long, though. Sarah's teacher felt like she couldn't assign her much, especially without an aid, and so often only asked Sarah to complete a few math problems at home if there was someone to help her. Fortunately, it meant Jenny had something to do other than sit in bed and watch TV, but it didn't kill all the time they have together.
"So, what's it like, being normal again?" Jenny asked with a little smile as Sarah packed up her work.
"Normal?"
"Not a Ranger."
"Oh," Sarah shrugged. "I don't know. I mean, we all still hang out and stuff. I guess I kind of miss the training together stuff. I really don't miss having the fate of the world on my shoulders, though."
"Are the Power Stars still gone?" Jenny asked. Sarah nodded her head.
"Well, they haven't come back."
"It's weird how they just… disappear. You guys are all sure they vanished. You didn't lose them?"
"We didn't lose them. The Prism is gone too and that is pretty hard to misplace," Sarah said with a chuckle. "Kelly still has the green Power Star though, so god-forbid we ever need a little power, we at least have that."
"I can't say I miss you being a Ranger," Jenny smiled. "As much as it sucked, I must admit, I'm glad it's me in the hospital this time, and not you."
"That's not funny," Sarah frowned.
"Yeah, but it's true," Jenny chuckled and took her daughter's hand. "You can't imagine what it's like to live knowing that at any second, your daughter could just… be gone."
"I think I can imagine," Sarah said. "My uncles showing up at school and driving me to a hospital gets pretty close to it."
"You're right," Jenny nodded. "How about we both be glad that the worst is behind us? Galvanax and his freaks are gone, and they took Drex with them."
"What about my mother?" Sarah asked and Jenny frowned.
"What do you mean? She's in prison, Sarah. No parole, nothing," Jenny sat up a little straighter, "Unless… did you hear something different?"
"No, but… what if something happens to you?"
"Your mother can't get custody of you from prison," Jenny said. She had always thought that went without saying.
"Okay," Sarah nodded. "So… what does happen, then?"
"What happens if what?"
"If something happens to you?" Sarah asked. "I mean, you always said if something happened to me, you wouldn't know what to do with yourself but… at least it's up to you to figure it out. If something happens to you, the State gets to just… put me somewhere."
"No."
"So then what happens."
"Where do you want to go?" Jenny asked. Sarah shrugged her shoulders. She had never thought of it before. When the State first took custody of her after removing her from her mother's care, she had no idea what was going on. She was in a foster home until a judge decided it would be in her best interest to be with her father. From there, Bill had taken care of her, and he married Jenny only after he knew she would be a good motherly-figure for Sarah. He had done everything to ensure that if something happened to him, Sarah stayed with a woman she already knew and loved.
She was down two parents already. The first being completely unfit and the second having died. All she had left was Jenny, who was lying in a hospital bed just days removed from a heart attack.
"I know you don't know him well, but Porter's got two boys," Jenny told Sarah. "He's a bit strict, but he's a good dad. Or I'm sure Shane would be happy to take you in."
Sarah shrugged her shoulders. She would be fine with Shane becoming a guardian, but she really didn't want to see it happen. As much as she had grown to love her uncle, he wasn't her dad. He wasn't her parent at all.
Jenny took Sarah's hand and sat her down next to her on the bed. She wrapped her arms around her daughter, "Hey, look, I don't plan on going anywhere, alright? Porter's got this hospital thing nailed. When I go home, he'll know exactly how I need to look after myself, and I'll do it. And you're not fighting aliens anymore. If you keep wearing that helmet and those pads, and you don't do anything overly stupid with that head of yours, we're going to be with each other for a long time, deal?"
"You can't make that deal," Sarah shook her head and Jenny cursed her daughter's intelligence. "Last week, no one would have ever imagined you getting sick and here you are. We don't know what's going to happen, so you can't say we'll always be together. You can't promise nothing is going to happen to you."
"I can't, but…"
"So what do I do if something happens to you?"
"You'll stay with Shane," Jenny said. "He's not your dad, he's not me, but he'll be a good person to have around in case of a crisis. That's really what you need at sixteen, right?"
Sarah shrugged her shoulders. Jenny squeezed her a little tighter, "Hey, kid, it's going to be fine. You'll figure it out. It was hard when your dad died, but we managed."
"It sucked and it still sucks."
"But we're okay, right?" Jenny said and Sarah nodded her head.
"I guess."
"So, if something happens to me, it'll suck but you'll be okay. You'll figure it out. And Shane is pretty cool, right?"
"Yeah."
"You'll be okay, Sarah. Just don't worry about me. I'm doing what I have to do. I don't plan on going anywhere. So focus on homework, on your friends, on Kelly, and we'll just… go from there. Deal?"
"Deal," Sarah nodded but as she did, she and her mother heard an all too familiar beep from her communicator. Though the Rangers were no longer Rangers, they still wore their communicators just in case of trouble.
"Can we meet at the base?" Brody asked. "There's something important we need to know."
"You should probably leave anyways," Jenny said and looked to the clock. "They won't let me have visitors for much longer any way."
"Are you sure?"
"Positive," Jenny smiled and kissed her daughter's cheek. "Be safe, kiddo. I love you."
"I love you too," Sarah said as she scooped up her bag and raced out. Jenny waited until her door was closed before she let out a heavy sigh.
"Oh god, please don't let this be what I think it is," she said.