The day Khoa was arrested was a roller coaster of emotions.

It took a while for Trini to finally admit what was going on. To finally say the words 'Khoa's been hitting me'. Stalking. Following. Threatening. It took forever for her to say it. Mrs. Scott had listened to Jason when he said Trini was going to be staying at their house that night she confronted him about messing things up for her. She didn't say anything to him then. Didn't outright admit it.

Even when Jason tried to tell his parents that something was going on, Mr. Scott said that while the information was good to know, they couldn't do anything about it without an express admission from Trini. Not to mention having to think about testifying against Khoa when the time came. He warned her about that as well as the response from her parents and his parents. Trini decided then, no, she wasn't going to say anything.

And Jason couldn't understand it. This guy was hurting her, terrorizing her, turning one of the strongest girls he knew—who didn't shed a tear when she broke her arm after falling out of the tree when she was six—to the most tears he'd ever seen her. She was scared and nothing would keep her from being scared. Not even the powers she'd had to protect the city. What was the point of having powers when you couldn't use the to defend yourself? Not that she would anyway, Jason realized. Trini cared so much more about other people that she could've been dying and continued to fight against monsters and whatever was threatening everyone else.

So as they went to school over the next couple of days, once Jason's suspension had been lifted, they didn't talk about it. People watched them as they went by. Rumors had already started to spread that Jason has fought the other guy because he was flirting with Trini and was now pegging him as a bad guy.

"Jason would never do that," Kimberly said to her cheerleader friends as they grouped around her locker to question her. "He's not the jealous type." Well, she wasn't quite sure on that point. He had been a little standoffish when she was interested in Richie. "He would never fight someone for something as small as that. If he got suspended for fighting, it was for a really good reason. One that's none of your business."

"Oh come on, Kim, we know you know more than that."

"I don't," Kimberly said honestly. "And if I did, I wouldn't tell you. Because it's none of our business."

Even on the football team Tommy, Zack, and Billy had to do damage control. "Come on guys, this is Jason we're talking about. He's the quarterback, leader of the team. If you trust him on the field, what's stopping you from trusting him off the field?" Tommy asked.

"The probability of Jason doing this out of malice is slight," Billy added. "He has a reason and we need to respect his privacy of that reason."

"Dudes, chill out," Zack advocated.

Even at Avalon's volleyball practice, when the team were running spiking drills she was asked something every time she moved up in line. "Did he really beat someone up? Why was he suspended? Is he going to be expelled?"

"No," Avalon said sharply once she reached the net. She jumped up to get the serve that headed towards her and spiked it to the ground. Then she glared at the team and added, "Now shut up about it. It's doing my blood head in."

Jason was thankful for the way his friends were standing up for him. But he couldn't help but notice how they continued to walk on egg-shells around Trini. Unsure of what to do. He felt the same way. Trini had never been anything more than strong and now that things were going on with her, they didn't know how to help her. Even Bulk and Skull turned around and practically sprinted away when they saw her coming down the hall. And Jason watched her every time it happened, watched how upset she looked, her shoulders slumping further and further in despair.

It hung over their heads, getting the truth out. Especially since Trini continued to face everything at home day after day, pretending nothing was going on. Jason waited to see if there were more bruises on her, asked Kimberly and Avalon to pay attention as they were changing for gym class or if they were going shopping. Asked Billy to take note of any changes when she and Billy studied together as they were to do nearly every day. They were a team as rangers and not as rangers and they had to be there for each other.

That's why, when Trini arrived at his house unannounced, Jason set his books aside and looked at her curiously. The hadn't made any plans to hang out. Let alone to date. She hadn't wanted to be alone with him lately, he noticed. And as much as he understood why, it hurt. He wanted to hold her, to kiss her, to let her know everything was going to be okay. Maybe it's me, he couldn't help but think. Maybe she didn't want to be alone with him in case he tried to pressure her to talk? He didn't know and the not knowing made things harder.

"Hi," Trini said quietly as she slipped into his room. She pointed over her shoulder. "Your mom let me in."

"It's cool," Jason said. He sat up against his headboard and moved his books out of the way so she had space to sit down. Trini shuffled over and sat on the edge of his bed. He couldn't help but notice she was wearing another sweatshirt, the sleeves falling down her arms. It seemed to be her uniform now, anything that'd cover up any bruises. Anger flashed through him and he took a deep breath to calm himself. No need in scaring her away. "What's up?"

Trini was silent for a long moment. Then she pushed her sleeves back from her arms. Jason stared at the black, blue, purple, green, and yellow bruises that lined her arms. He could see some of them were in the shape of fingerprint and others looked to be of blunt objects that had hit her. And Jason continued to breathe deeply to keep from letting his anger get the best of him. As it was, he wanted nothing more than to find Khoa and rip his head off. Let alone go to her parents and demand to know why they weren't doing more to protect their daughter.

But Jason stayed silent, listening as Trini cried softly. Then, it was like a flip was switched and the tears stopped. A hard expression came to her face and she looked at Jason with such ferocity that he truly knew then why she was deemed with the power of the Sabertooth Tiger.

"He's been hitting me," she said. "Stalking me. Threatening me. Doing anything he can to intimidate me into being quiet about what he's been doing." She clenched her hands into fists. "I don't want to be quite anymore."

Jason smiled.

Trini walked into her house with Jason by her side. She tightly held onto his hand as they approached the living room, hearing the voices of not only her parents speaking in rapid Vietnamese, but also of the Nguyens. She wasn't sure if Khoa was there or not, but didn't care anymore. With Jason by her side she'd be okay.

Trini cleared her throat as they stepped into the living room. She greeted her parents in Vietnamese before switching to English it say, "I have something to tell you."

Mrs. Kwan softly apologized to the Nguyens before saying to Trini in a hiss, "What's going on?" in Vietnamese then was forced to speak in English when Trini didn't response, answering the question. "What are you doing? With him?" Her eyes leveled on their hands. "Holding his hand like that."

Mr. Nguyen lifted his chin. "How can you disrespect your husband like that?"

Jason started to answer, but Trini squeezed his hand to make him fall silent. "He isn't my husband," Trini said calmly. Her voice was calm but her body betrayed her. She was starting to shake. "He isn't my fiancé. I'm not going to marry him."

Startled cries happened at numerous volumes from her parents and the Nguyens. Mrs. Nguyen stood up and pointed directly at Trini, spouting of in rapid Vietnamese, swinging her hand left and right. Trini quickly understood it to be called loose, a disgrace to her family, wasting their time…enough insults that it would've brought anyone to tears. But Trini was done crying and wanted everything to stop. She sensed Khoa coming up behind her before he even spoke but the way he asked innocently, "What's going on?" made her blood boil.

Trini turned around and glared at him so fiercely he stepped away from her. His eyes shifted back and forth and he asked his parents a question before moving to join them. Trini watched his every move before pleading to her parents. "Mom, dad, I never wanted this, to get married. This is something you saw to only benefit you and never asked my opinion on it. I agreed to talk to Khoa because he was an old friend and I wanted to reconnect. But I never wanted to marry him."

"Trini," Mr. Kwan said slowly. His eyes shifted from Trini's face to Jason's. "Talk to me, honey, what's going on."

Trini frowned. It was the first time in a while she'd herd her father call her 'honey'. He usually used another form of endearment, but it was typically reserved for serious conversations. He must've heard it in her voice or sensed something was going on with his daughter. He also had been shocked when she said she wasn't going to marry Khoa so…

Is he really on my side? Trini thought.

Trini took in a deep breath and looked over at Jason, he nodded encouragingly. Khoa frowned at this and spat, "Are you really going to listen to what she has to say?"

"Shut up, Khoa!" Jason snapped at him.

Khoa glared back. "Tough talk to the person that beat me up." He gestured towards Trini. "This guy is completely crazy and you're willing to turn your back on your family to—"

"What do you know about family?" Trini spat. "If I'm supposed to be your wife, you wouldn't be hurting me like this!"

"I've never hurt you." Trini's eyebrows rose and she pulled up the sleeves of her sweatshirt to show off the bruises that lined her arms. Reached up and wiped away the makeup that covered the last of the bruise around her black-eye. Lifting the bottom of her shirt to show off the bruises along her stomach. Khoa barely glanced at it and said, "You've been disgracing your family running around with him. I only reminded you who was to be in charge of this family."

Silence stretched through the room. Trini lowered her arms to her sides and looked at her parents. They continued to stare at the bruises that lined her arms but didn't say anything. Khoa continued to look at her smugly, his parents standing by his side, slightly in front of him. Trini realized then, that it didn't matter what Khoa did. His parents were always going to enable him. They were always going to let him do whatever he wanted.

It was then that police sirens could be heard coming closer to the house. Khoa's bravado immediately fell and he gritted his teeth. "What's that?" He demanded. "You called the police?"

"I didn't call anyone," Trini said calmly. "I just told my friends, people who love me, what's going on." She tilted her head towards Jason. "It's not my fault that his father just so happens to be a lawyer. Who is going to represent me on the charges that are ultimately going to be put against you." She lifted her arms. "I say there's a lot of evidence."

"I'll press charges back," Khoa declared. He nodded towards Jason. "He assaulted me."

"And unlike you, I'm willing to take my share of responsibility for what's gone on," Jason said. He dropped Trini's hand and folded his arms. Khoa took a step back, noticing how his biceps bulged beneath his red t-shirt, making him seem even more imposing than he had before. "I will willingly tell the police my part in it."

The sirens continued to get louder and louder, approaching the house. Trini could hear their engines creeping to a stop nearby. The red and blue flashes filled the living room. Then Khoa let out a bloodcurdling yell and everything happened at once. Raving, he surged towards Trini but Jason got to him first. Not hitting him, but holding him back enough so that Khoa didn't get any hits on him. Then the Kwans and Nguyen's were shouting at each other so loud and fast that Trini could barely understand what was being said and what was going on.

Khoa finally managed to get free of Jason's grasp, knocking him against the wall, and moved over to Trini, knocking her to the ground and grabbed her around the neck. Trini looked up into his crazed face, wondering if she truly was going to die at that moment. His eyes were blank the rest of his face filled with a snarling rage while he continued to squeeze her neck.

It wasn't until the police stormed in that he was knocked away and handcuffed by two arresting officers. The others came inside to take stock of the situation before everyone was separated to be questioned. Trini was led outside to be assessed by EMTs and it was then she saw her friends lined up outside. Whether Jason or Zordon had called them, Trini didn't know for sure. It didn't matter, she was glad they were there.

Trini hurried down the front steps and wrapped her arms around Kimberly in a tight hug. She saw Tommy's eyes widen at the bruises on her arms before his jaw set in anger. He turned away, placing his hands on his hips as he shook his head. Then Zack placed his hand on Tommy's shoulder and turned him back. His anger wasn't important right now, Trini was. Tommy nodded back and he, Zack, Billy, and Avalon joined Trini in their group hug.

It felt nice, but not good enough.

She needed to feel safe and knew Jason was the only one to do that for her. He'd been there for her the entire time, no questions asked and wanting nothing more than to make sure she was okay. They were her family. No matter if there was anyone who would threaten her, their city, their livelihood, they were her family and they'd always be there for each other.

Trini was then taken from her friends to be looked at by the EMTs. They took her vitals and took pictures of the bruises on her arms and stomach, reminding her if there was anything she wanted to talk about she could tell them. That they were there for her and were going to make sure she'd get the utmost care needed. She flinched at first, seeing their hands come near her. But the way they gently touched her, starting to wrap and dress her wounds made tears come back to her eyes.

How long had it been since she'd been touched nicely without some sort of threat coming along behind it? Too long.

"Hey, Sunny?"

Trini looked over as Avalon approached, her hands shoved into the pockets of her leather jacket. Trini watched her. She and Avalon were friends, but they weren't that close. Since arriving in Angel Grove, the orange ranger was very careful to be closed off about numerous parts of her life. But Trini had managed to break down some of her walls by her sheer positive determination. Enough to earn a nickname for herself that she and the other rangers noted was Avalon's signifier of showing they were her friend.

"Hi," Trini said quietly. She managed a small smile. The first one in a while. She looked up when Avalon pressed a card into her hand. Trini looked over the name, Haven Hills. "What's this?"

"It's a domestic abuse shelter," Avalon explained. She put her hands back in her pockets. "They give resources to those that have been harmed in their relationships with their significant others. You don't have to stay there, but they're really good people to talk to if you can't think of anyone else. They really listen and give their ideas on it rather than trying to tell you what to do."

There was a shout and the two looked over as Khoa was taken from the house, arms behind his back and wrists locked together in handcuffs. His parents walked out behind him, stone faced and with long, powerful strides. Trini didn't see her parents or Jason, they were probably still being questioned.

"Thanks, Av," Trini finally said.

"You're welcome." Avalon walked away and Jason soon replaced her, leaning against the side of the ambulance.

"They want to be sure I didn't sustain any damage when I was fighting with Khoa," Jason explained to her confused look. He glanced at a nearby police car. "I might not be with you at the hospital, though. These guys really want to talk to me."

"That's alright," Trini replied. "I'm just glad you're here."

"Me too." Jason leaned over and pressed a kiss to her temple. Trini smiled and ducked her head. It was like the quote she'd heard before. "The ache for home lives in all of us, the safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned."

She knew then.

Around Jason, she was home.

Khoa was arrested and charged with multiple counts of assault, battery, stalking, trespassing and other small crimes. Depending on his plea, it would take time until it was determined whether or not they'd have to go to trial and Trini would testify. Mr. Scott let her know, in no uncertain terms, it was looking like they would need to go to court.

"If Khoa can't see that he did anything wrong, he's going to plead not guilty," Mr. Scott had explained. "And his parents already posted his bail. I just want you to be prepared."

Trini nodded.

So far a restraining order was put in place, but there was much more coming on the horizon for her. But she could handle it. She knew she could. With all her friends and family around her she could. Surprisingly, she even had her parents on her side.

What she didn't know was that after Khoa had attacked her and she was led out of the house, Mr. Kwan then turned to attack Mr. Nguyen. The entire time he grabbed the other man he screamed about how his son could hurt his daughter, how he could disrespect his house and his family before he and his wife broke down into tears. Tears over how they had failed their daughter for their own gain, not noticing any of the signs of what had been going on and listening when she said she didn't want to marry Khoa.

And while at the hospital he held her tight and apologized over and over while her mother held her hands between hers, alternating between rubbing and patting them, nodding silently with each word Mr. Kwan said to apologize. Trini forgave them. No questions asked. They were her parents, they loved her, if they knew what was happening they would've stopped it.

She truly did believe them.

"Trini, are you ready to go?"

She heard her father call from downstairs. Trini called back and quickly finished pulling a brush through her hair before looking at her reflection. Her smiling, happy reflection. Had it really been a month since Khoa was arrested? Since her nightmare ended? It seemed like it was just yesterday she was meeting Khoa again for the first time, ignoring the warnings that flashed through the back of her mind. Now here she was, excited for each new day that was coming.

She pulled her hair back into a loose ponytail with a big yellow scrunchie. Then she picked up her books and put it in her backpack before heading down to the kitchen where her father stood by with the car keys in hand.

"You have everything?" He asked.

"Yes," Trini replied. "You know you and mom don't have to drive me to school. I can take the bus or…" She trailed off. It was a conversation they had every morning since Khoa's arrest. They wanted to be sure she was safe on the way to school, that he wasn't waiting for her anywhere.

"I wouldn't hear of it." Mr. Kwan stepped forward and pressed a kiss to her daughter's forehead. It's special time I get to spend with my daughter around her numerous activities."

"I have to stay busy, dad." If she didn't her mind wandered to think about Khoa too much. She got anxiety, started to panic, she started to have nightmares…she couldn't spend too much time thinking. Her meditative skills had certainly improved since then. "If I don't, I go crazy."

"That wouldn't be so different, would it?" Mrs. Kwan teased, handing Trini her lunch. Trini laughed and accepted the hug her mother gave her. She felt her mother squeeze her tightly. She was still apologizing for everything despite Trini already having forgiven her. Honestly, Trini didn't think she'd ever stop apologizing. "Have a good day."

"I will."

Trini followed her father outside and climbed into the passenger seat. She dropped her backpack by her feet and leaned back in her seat, watching as the world moved by her as Mr. Kwan drove to school. Along the way they rode in silence. It was just what she needed. Arriving at school, her father reached out and patted her on the knee. "Have a good day."

"You and mom are starting to sound like broken records," Trini teased.

"It's better than ignoring you, isn't it?" Mr. Kwan said.

Trini frowned. "You didn't ignore me…"

"We ignored you for what we thought was more important to our family. Nothing else. And for entirely selfish reasons." Mr. Kwan reached up and wiped at his eyes. "I know you've forgiven us but I'll never be able to forgive myself for it."

Trini leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek and a hug. Mr. Kwan hugged her back and bid her farewell again. Trini smiled and slipped out of the car, grabbing her bag and slammed the door behind her. She waved to her father before going into the school.

She found her friends at their lockers and hurried over. Slipping under Jason's arm, she looped her arm around his waist. Jason looked down at her and smiled. "Hey. Where'd you come from?"

"From under your arm," Trini replied. She stepped back and took in his football jersey before looking at the other guys. "You got a game today or did you feel like matching?" She teased.

Jason rolled his eyes while Kimberly and Avalon laughed. "How many times are we going to be asked that? Kim's ask, Bulk's asked…"

"You've seen Bulk?" Trini asked, looking over her shoulder. "Or Skull? I really wanted to apologize to them."

"I think you'd have to scrape them off the ceiling to do that," Zack said with a laugh. "They jump nearly every time you come around. Actually, yeah, go find them. I'd love to see that happen." He leaned back and forth, looking around to see if he could find the bullies.

"Leave them alone," Kimberly said.

"I'm sorry, did you just defend Bulk and Skull?" Tommy asked, arm around her shoulders.

"Have you ever had Trini mad at you? Trust me, you don't want it. If they're on her list, they're in some trouble." Kimberly laughed and gently swatted Trini on the arm. "So, are you coming to the football game? Or do you have anything to do after school?"

"If you do, we understand," Billy added. "There's probably a lot of things you need to do to prepare yourself."

Trini tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I don't have anything to do within the next couple of weeks," she explained. "But if there's something that comes up, they'll let me know as soon as possible." AKA, the restraining order had been working and the only correspondence she had with Khoa was through their lawyers. "So, count me in to be at the football game."

"Good, because I need my good luck charm," Jason said.

Avalon leaned against the lockers, folding her arms. "That'd be sweet if it wasn't about to make me puke," she teased. "God, now I have to worry about you two instead of just being annoyed by Barbie and Ken over there." She motioned to Tommy and Kimberly, laughing to herself. "I don't know, I think it might be better."

"Thanks for that stamp of approval, Av," Jason said.

Trini laughed along with her friends. She looked up as the bell rang and the hallway exploded into people hurrying to get to their classes. Trini turned to her locker to get her stuff while her friends quickly scattered off to their classes, calling out that they'd meet up later. Trini looked up when she noticed Jason waiting next to her.

"I think I can handle getting my books, Jase," Trini said to him.

"I know, I just wanted to walk you to class," Jason said. His lips pulled back into a smile. "Just have to make sure you're not going to try to find Bulk and Skull yourself and do something that may get you in trouble."

"I wouldn't do that," Trini defended herself. "I really do feel bad for what I said to them."

"Yeah, but you have to admit, it's kind of funny."

"Jase."

"I'm just saying for all of the bullying they've put us through it's not that bad." Jason held up his hands. "But I do agree that you may need to apologize to them. And preferably before our football game because I kind of want to win."

Trini closed her locker and turned to him with a raised eyebrow. "So your football game is more important than me?"

Jason squeezed an eye shut in thought. "I don't think I said that."

"Sounded like it."

"Well, if that's the case, I'm sorry." Jason lowered his voice. "Nothing is more important to me than you." A shy smile came to his face as he lowered his gaze. It made Trini giggle. How funny, he was confident in so many places and areas of his life but when it came to expressing his feelings, not so much.

It was really cute.

"I don't need you to laugh at me," Jason said.

"Okay, then how about this instead." Trini leaned in and gave him a long kiss. Long enough that the warning bell rang, letting them know they were going to be late. Jason said as much and Trini shook her head. "I don't care."

She could handle anything with Jason by her side.

She knew that now.

She was strong.

She was home.

THE END

A/N: Huh, I actually managed to get everything out in this chapter rather than two. I guess htat's what happens when you have an outline and certain scenes end up shorter than others. Anyway, that's the end!

I'm so glad you guys have enjoyed it so much. Jason/Trini wasn't a pairing I wrote a lot about before but doing it in Powerless and now in here, I've grown to really appreciate it. Trini I never put much attention on before but she's a really complex character that deserves more recognition sometimes. Thank you fall of the support while writing this story, it has continued to motivate me as it's gone on.

Honestly, if I had to change one thing, and it's something I'll be sure of to do in the rest of the stories, is that I wish the other rangers were in it a bit more. Since it's a story that focused on Trini, Khoa, and Jason, I think I did a good job with that, but I wish I balanced that and the others a bit more. As stated in this chapter, their friendship with each other (as a team and as friends) is important and I wish I showed it a bit more.

But I still love this story and am glad I was able to write it. So I have a question for you all. For the next Powerless story to read, would you rather read Kim's centered one or another group one like the first story? This time around it has to do with drunk driving if that helps.

Don't forget to check out my drabble about Bulk called Bulked Up. First time I'm writing about him so that's exciting. And my other story Fear Itself where Rita and Zedd fight the rangers based on their fears.

Thank you all so much.

~Av