Author's Notes: Hi, readers. Here's chapter eight of "Just Away." This chapter has action in the form of Ninja Ranger style. I am glad to have finally gotten to this point. It has been a long time in coming, but it was worth the wait. Kat has a reunion with Kim. There are pieces of part three of "A Different Shade of Pink." This next chapter will return to part two. Stay tuned for chapter nine.

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Chapter 8: Wild Fighting/Girl Visit/Talking

Rocky grunted at his back hitting a tree in Angel Grove Park. Rito swung his sword at him as he rushed at him, only for him to move aside. He approached him, a soft growl leaving his mouth. Rocky kicked him in the face, causing him to drop his weapon. He grabbed his arm and twisted it. Rito cried out in pain. Rocky put his foot against his shoulder. He pulled to stretch it out. Rito punched him in the head roughly twice. This made him let go.

Rito got his sword. He tightened his grip on it while punching Rocky in the face multiple times. He raised it high and brought it downward. Rocky crossed his arms in which he caught it. They struggled to gain the upper hand. Rito grew determined and pushed downward, forcing Rocky on his knees. He brought his face closer to his opponent's. His bad breath made Rocky gag.

"You are so down on your luck, Red Ranger!" Rito growled and laughed evilly.

"Not a chance, Rito!" Rocky hissed in much ferocity. "No way, no how!"

Rocky pushed upward in which he got to his feet. He kicked Rito in the stomach, which made him stumble backward. He went to him, grabbing his arm. He twirled him around five times before letting go of him. Rito collided with a tree sideways. Rocky aimed his foot at his head. Rito jumped aside with a laugh.

Rito approached Rocky. He punched him with one fist, followed by the other. He alternated between them for twenty seconds before kicking him in the side. Rocky nearly lost his balance. He saw him coming his way. He aimed his fist at his enemy's head. Unfortunately, Rito caught it in his hand. He twisted his arm, smirking at his painful cries. He put his foot against his opponent's shoulder and pulled hard to stretch it out.

Rocky nailed Rito in the groin with his foot. This freed him from his grasp. He did three uppercuts to the neck. He performed a spinning heel kick to the face. He leapt over his head. He jumped off a tree and him in the back. Rito collided with the ground hard. He held his head while groaning loudly. Rocky landed gracefully and curled his hands into fists.

"You are the one who is down on your luck, Rito," Rocky said with a laugh.

Rito stood up. "That's what you think!"

Suddenly, a Tenga grabbed Rocky from behind. It delivered multiple punches to his stomach. It grabbed his throat and lowered him. It threw him very hard. He flew through the air. He crashed into the ground with a loud thud. It approached him and delivered two hard kicks to his stomach. It proceeded to beat on him with its fists.

"I love it when the heroes get pummeled," Rito said with a snicker. He caught Aisha coming up behind him in the corner of his eye socket. He charged his sword with lightning and turned around. He tossed it at her, hitting her hard. He watched her fall down. "Too slow, Yellow Ranger!"

Two Tengas took hold of Aisha and forced her to her feet. They delivered kicks to her stomach before giving her a double punch to the head. They took hold of her arms. They pulled her backward, throwing her very hard. She flew through the air. She smashed her head against a tree branch. She landed on her back. She rolled over on her stomach.

Another Tenga approached Aisha, who got on her knees. It kicked her in the stomach, relishing at her painful groans. It gave her three punches to the head. It grabbed her arm to force her to her feet. It backhanded her across the cheek, causing her to spin around twice. She ended up on her back. It took hold of her throat and proceeded to choke her.

Just then, Adam grabbed the Tenga in a headlock. He pulled it away from Aisha, who coughed three times. It broke free from his grasp. It gave him three uppercuts to the neck before backhanding him. He stumbled off the side. Rito walked toward him, stopping a short distance from him. He fired a red energy beam from his finger at him. Adam was hit hard, sending him flying backward. He landed next to Rocky's jeep.

Two Tengas forced Aisha to her feet before taking hold of her arms. They pulled her backward and heaved her as hard as they could. She landed next to Adam. A Tenga grabbed Rocky's arm. It tossed him into the air. He went flying, hitting the ground near his girlfriend. The trio stood up as the Tengas gathered around Rito. The villains came up to them.

"Damn!" Rocky groaned. "These guys are strong today."

"Yeah," Aisha said breathlessly.

Tommy and Billy flipped through the air and landed near the trio. They turned to Rito and the Tengas.

"Sorry it took us so long, guys," Tommy apologized.

"That's okay." Rito assured. "The party's just beginning."

Tommy scoffed. "I see you already brought in the clowns."

Rito growled fiercely. "All right. Let's get them!"

Rito and the Tengas charged, as did the Power Rangers. Tommy tried to kick Rito, who rolled forward to avoid him. He spun around as his enemy stood up. Rito rushed at him with a yellow. Tommy punched him in the face, knocking him on his back. He moved his elbow downward. He straightened it to avoid hurting it when Rito rolled out of the way. They stood up and faced each other.

"Down low, too slow!" Rito taunted and cackled.

"Not a good pun!" Tommy said with a snarl. He and his enemy charged and resumed their duel.

Billy kicked a Tenga in the chest. He flashed-stepped to the side as another leapt at him out of a tree. It landed on its stomach, a loud groan leaving its beak. Another Tenga charged at him. He jumped through the air. He turned his body to where he was facing its back. It came to a halt and turned around. Cawing angrily, it rushed at him. He stopped it with a punch to the beak. It fell on its back.

"Nothing like a punch to the schnozz!" Billy joked.

A Tenga leapt on the Blue Ranger from an overhanging tree branch. It pinned him down and landed punch after punch on him. He placed his foot against its stomach. He threw it over his head. They stood up to face each other. It charged at him with a fierce caw. He swept its feet out from underneath it with a swing of his arm. It ended up on its back.

Two Tengas leapt on Billy from the side. They took turns kicking and punching him. Aisha rushed in and shoved the first one into the second. They stumbled off to the side, but they regained their footing. They made a charge at her with their hands outstretched. She punched them in their beaks. This knocked them on their backs.

Aisha was ambushed from behind by two Tengas. They grabbed her by her arms. A third Tenga delivered punches to her stomach. She shoved it away with her foot. She jerked her arms out of its companions' grasp. She elbowed the first Tenga in the beak. She kicked the second one in the chest. They attempted to grab her, only for her to teleport into the ground. She came up behind them and swung her arm at their feet. This threw them on their backs. Billy came to her side as Tengas ran around in different directions.

"These birdbrains are really starting to bug me!" Aisha said annoyingly.

"I hear you," Billy agreed.

Aisha huffed. "If only Kim were well enough to help us."

Billy cleared his throat when he spotted two Tengas coming their way. "Enough talking. We better take care of those bastards."

Billy and Aisha headed for the Tengas. They rushed their fists forward and punched them in their beaks. This knocked them down. Rocky grabbed the wrist of another Tenga. He twirled it around four times before letting go of it. It collided sideways with a tree. Adam kicked a Tenga's feet out from underneath it. Tommy delivered uppercuts to Rito's neck. He grabbed his arm and flipped him over on his back.

00000

Kim was looking out her hospital room window while lying in the bed. She could see a northern mockingbird sitting on the windowsill. It bobbed its head before running its beak through its back feathers. It did the same with the feathers in each of its wings. It turned around and spread them. It took off into the sky, its chirps echoing on the wind.

Kim sighed in much sadness. She wished she could be outside on such a beautiful morning. She wanted to feel the fresh air against her face and the wind in her hair. Unfortunately, she could not do that due to her condition. She still needed plenty of rest. At least she could take comfort in the fact that she was feeling better. Footsteps snapped her out of her thoughts. She turned to see Kat standing next to the bed.

"Kat, hi," Kim greeted and pushed herself into a sitting position.

"Hi, Kim," Kat responded and seated herself on the side of the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Better," Kim admitted.

"Tommy told me that you were in a hospital once due to a broken arm you suffered at age seven," Kat replied softly. "That must have been scary."

"It was a little bit," Kim commented and rubbed her nose. She put her bear in her lap with a sharp exhale. "I got past that rather quickly."

"I was in a hospital once too," Kat murmured. "I never told you and the others this, but I was supposed to go to the Pan Globals myself."

"As a gymnast?" Kimberly asked curiously.

"As a diver," Kat said with a small chuckle. "My coach said I was the best she'd ever seen. I was supposed to bring Australia home their first gold medal in years."

"So, what happened?" Kim wondered.

"I remember like it was yesterday. It was my last dive of the competition. It was a dive I had done perfectly a hundred times in practice. I was coming in first and had the trials locked up," Kat explained.

"And?" Kim responded while stroking her chin.

"I lost concentration," Kat said, a heavy sigh coming out of her mouth. "I don't know whether it was the excitement of knowing I'd won, or I'd just got overconfident. For whatever reason, I misjudged and hit my head on the board. They took me to the hospital. When I woke up, they told me I'd missed the meet by one point."

"Oh, wow!" Kim said sadly. "So, did you try again the next year?"

"I was too scared," Kat admitted and frowned somewhat. "I never went near the water again. It was why I didn't join you in the lake that day."

Kim reached over and touched Kat's hand to give it a gentle pat. She had nothing but sympathy for her. She remembered when Billy told her how he gained a fear of fish through one biting him. It was the reason why he did not go scuba-diving with Jason, Trini, and Zack or with her, Adam, and Tommy. She felt bad for him.

"I am sure you will be eager to go back to practicing for the gymnastics competition," Kat said hopefully.

"Actually, I can't," Kim admitted, sadness lining her voice.

Kat became a bit confused. "What do you mean? Coach Schmidt has been hoping you would return after you recovered."

"It's not that simple, Kat," Kim replied with a shake of her head. "The thing is I am—"

"You're what?" Kat asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm…I'm…" Kim stammered, unsure if she could continue.

"Come on, Kim. You can tell me," Kat said, gentleness showing in her voice.

Kim took a deep breath. She hoped her friend wouldn't freak out. "I am pregnant. Tommy is the father."

Kat let out a shocked gasp. She wondered if she heard wrong. She took a closer look at Kim and realized she was telling the truth. She felt her heart begin to beat a little faster. Kim slipped a lock of hair behind her ear before sniffling in a quiet manner.

"I am sure you told Tommy," Kat whispered and pressed her lips together.

"I did. He was completely supportive," Kim answered and wiped a tear from her eye. "He vowed to be there for me and the baby. I couldn't have asked for a better boyfriend."

"Does Billy—" Kat started.

"He knows," Kim replied, a tear falling from her eye. "He overheard us talking about it. He was shocked, but he said he supported us. He and Tommy had to go take care of something very important."

Kat suppressed a yawn while pushing her bangs out of her eyes. "How far along are you?"

"I am four months along. Dr. Wingo did an ultrasound to check on the baby. It was perfectly fine. Its growth is right on track. I am due on March 26," Kim explained happily.

"That means you will miss the final two months of your junior year," Kat murmured, sighing in heaviness.

"I know, but I will be given my schoolwork by the school teen parent program counselor while I am recovering from giving birth. I am not worried about flunking out at all," Kim assured.

"Something tells me you and Tommy dread telling your friends, families, and Aisha's parents," Kat said, a nervous chuckle escaping her lips. "I want to let you know that I support both of you. I will do anything I can to help you."

"We are," Kim admitted. "Thank you for your support. I dread telling my grandparents the most. They always give that sex-and-children-within-the-bounds-of-marriage speech whenever I see them. They hate I use birth control. It was for my acne at first. Then I just stuck with it, especially since I would likely become sexually active as my teen years progressed."

"My parents put me on birth control because I was having irregular periods. It made them mostly normal. My grandparents have no problem with it," Kat pointed out.

Kim groaned irritatingly. "You're lucky. My grandparents will likely flip out when I tell them about the baby."

Kim hugged the bear tightly. She closed her eyes while sniffling in a soft manner. She opened them, tears falling from them. She wiped them away, a shuddering breath coming from her.

"My grandmother had a baby when she was fifteen. She was forced to give it up for adoption after her boyfriend bailed out on her. I read four million American mothers had their babies placed for adoption from 1945 to 1973. Most claim they were forced or coerced into giving them up," Kat commented, cringing badly.

"That is not a pleasant part of American history at all," Kim whispered truthfully.

"Being a single mother in those days was a no-no unless she was widowed or divorced," Kat said, shaking her head in disbelief. "Grandma found her son when he was twenty-three years old. He died eight years later in a rock-climbing accident. He was my father's brother."

"I am sure your father was shocked to learn he had a brother," Kim suggested.

"Oh, he was," Kat admitted. "He got along with him after they met. He just wishes he could've had more time with him."

Kim let out a small yawn. She smacked her lips before rubbing her eyes and clearing her throat.

"Kat, Tommy told me you were the one who found me," Kim said while touching the bear's ear.

"Yes, I was," Kat admitted with a nod.

"I don't understand," Kim commented confusingly. "What were you doing at the Youth Center so late?"

"Kim, there is something I have to tell you," Kat said, closing her eyes. She opened them quickly. "It is something you may not believe, but you have to hear it, okay?"

"Okay," Kim said, nodding in a slow way. She listened as Kat proceeded to tell her about her arrival in the states.