Chapter Twenty-Five
RJ looked on as the heroes were preparing for Christmas at JKP. Paul McCartney's "Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time" was playing as the preparations started. Then, Stevie Wonder's "What Christmas Means to Me" played as the heroes were finished the preparations for Christmas at JKP.
A few hours later, Adam looked on as customers were watching a group of children singing Christmas carols all of them which Tanya had managed to summon on short notice. They mentioned to him they wanted to do something for Jungle Karma Pizza for the Christmas holiday. They started with "Frosty the Snowman".
Some of the customers paid the Christmas carolers as well as paying for their meals they ordered.
"How is it going so far?" Adam asked.
"It seems to be going really good so far," Tanya told her husband, "don't tell RJ but I have a surprise for him that will help his business."
"Is that so?"
"Jillian and Casey mentioned that JKP has been in the red for some time," Aisha explained, "and some of the money here is going to help out this restaurant."
"Wow."
"Yeah," Tanya nodded, "RJ's going to be so surprised."
"But don't tell him," Aisha added.
Adam nodded, agreeing to keep this surprise a secret as the children were now singing "A Holly Jolly Christmas" while customers were watching, enjoying this holiday entertainment.
-Through-Dangerous-Times-
Aisha looked startled upon hearing a group of screams.
"What was that?" RJ asked.
Everyone in the dining room looked to see one of customers freaking out over a pair of ninja stars that hit the wall.
"What the?!" Aisha exclaimed.
"What's the meaning of this?!" Lily demanded, pointing to the ninja stars.
"Oh," Rekino spoke up, raising her hand, "while you all were sleeping the other night, I did a routine set – up of not only the loft, but here at JKP, too!"
"You rigged my pizza parlor," RJ exclaimed in disbelief, "and my loft?!"
"Uh oh," Dustin quipped, slightly grinning, "he's freaking out!"
"You think?" Tori replied as RJ stormed off upstairs to investigate his loft.
"Why exactly?" Tanya asked.
"The forces of evil are everywhere!" Rekino started pointing. "They can walk through walls and shit! Or even appear out of nowhere! What do you think will happen when they appear? We can't just snap our armor on or ranger up, but if I gotta katana stuffed in the couch I can cut that bitch and then get to work."
No one said a word in defense. Rekino crossed her arms under her breasts and stood triumphant.
"That's what I thought."
"Relax guys," Aisha managed to get everyone in the room calm as she and Lily managed to get the two ninja stars out of the wall, "JKP is closing in a couple of hours for the Christmas holiday."
"It's not like it could get any worse," Fran added.
As if on cue, the group heard screams coming from upstairs.
"You were saying?" Casey asked.
The Tiger Master, Fran, Tommy, Kimberly, Dustin, Ryo, Rekino, Rowen, Mia, Amaya, Sage, Hana, Conner and Eric all hurried upstairs. Kira, Ethan, Adam, Kento, Josephine, Cye, Tori and Blake were not too far behind while Aisha, Kat and Tanya managed to keep the customers and the singing children calm and remaining in the building in spite of the madness Rekino caused.
"What the hell's going on?" Rowen asked.
The group looked to see RJ looking at some Shuriken he discovered at his chair. He wasn't a happy camper to say the least.
"What the hell is this?!" RJ demanded showing the group the Shuriken.
"It's necessary," Rekino chuckled, "I did say I rigged your loft as well."
RJ rolled his eyes, annoyed, "On my chair too!"
"You're usually not freaking out like that," Casey spoke up, "but then again, you've told us in the past not to touch your chair."
"Exactamundo."
"I didn't sit on it, RJ," Rekino insisted, "I put the weapons on your chair."
"That's the same as touching my chair."
"I think we should take a bit of a breather before returning to the restaurant," Casey suggested, "things nearly got intense here."
"I'm all for that," Ryo nodded in agreement.
The heroes parted ways around the loft as they managed to work their way to keep calm from what just happened.
"No need to be a Scrooge about it!" Rekino exclaimed.
"Ah, Bah humbug!" Kento exclaimed.
"That must have been from earlier," the Wildfire Guardian couldn't help but to mutter.
-Through-Dangerous-Times-
RJ managed to play a guitar and was singing the song "Until You", not aware that others would be watching from a distance.
"Whoa," Kira muttered.
"Wow," Fran added.
"I think this is kind of rude eavesdropping like this," Billy stated.
"Then why are you doing it?" Minh asked.
"Yeah," Zack glanced at the original blue ranger, "I actually side with Minh for once."
"Don't be a hypocrite, Billy," Hayley added.
"Oh, um, I..." Billy stammered.
"He does have a talented voice," Kira stated.
"Does Jillian know about this?" Kimberly asked.
"I don't think so," Fran answered, "None of the rangers here knew he could sing, and neither did I."
"I guess not," Tommy shook his head.
"It seems there is always that one person in the family that has the ability to sing," Kimberly noted, "I highly doubt Master Finn knows this as well."
"Think we should keep it from Dad?" Conner asked.
"Good idea," Dustin nodded.
"Hey everybody," Flit arrived up the stairs with a big announcement, "Aisha wants everyone to report to the dining room immediately, she has a big announcement!"
The heroes met up with everyone back at the dining room as the children choir was now singing "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer", with Aisha leading the kids like in the other performances and Kimberly rejoined the choir, playing her guitar RJ borrowed earlier.
"Okay everyone," Aisha spoke up, "I have a big announcement!"
The customers and the heroes all looked at the Yellow Ninjetti Ranger with intent on listening to her announcement.
"I want to thank everyone for making their donations today while dining here at Jungle Karma Pizza," Aisha announced, "I did say this donation was going for a good cause. The 950 bucks that have donated here today will be to help Jungle Karma Pizza, to get it out of the red as much as possible."
The customers cheered and RJ looked on in surprise. Tanya looked over at the wolf master, "We heard that your restaurant has been in the red for some time, and we thought this donation would help you with your restaurant to get you out of the red."
RJ didn't know what to say. He couldn't thank the veteran rangers enough for this generous gift, and this would definitely help his business.
"Merry Christmas, RJ," Tanya smiled at the Wolf Master.
"Thank you," RJ smiled at the veteran rangers.
The choir was now singing "Santa Claus is Coming to Town", getting everyone in the Christmas spirit before finishing with "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas".
"God Bless Us Everyone!" Fran exclaimed with a smile.
-Through-Dangerous-Times-
It was Christmas Eve at Ocean Bluff. RJ was snuggling next to Jillian in the room they shared while listening to John Lennon's "Happy X Mas/Christmas (War is Over)" on Jillian's speaker. He couldn't remember the last time he felt this happy around this time. He definitely wasn't with Tiffany around abusing and controlling him, but luckily his friends helped him through a rough patch after she cheated on him and dumped him like yesterday's news.
Now, he had Jillian and she had been more the loving girlfriend than Tiffany would ever be.
RJ looked up as he noticed Casey walking in the room.
"You okay, man?" RJ asked.
"Yeah," Casey nodded, "I guess you can say that."
"We've had a pretty good Christmas in my opinon," Jillian stated.
"With a few hiccups as an exception," RJ nodded in agreement, "I have to agree with you there."
"Yeah," Casey glanced at his teammates, "for what it's worth, it's been a great Christmas."
"I'm going to go check on my Dad and my brothers," RJ announced.
"Go ahead," Jillian replied, "love you, boo."
"Love you, too," RJ replied before they both shared a kiss.
"Oh jeez," Casey groaned, "get a room."
RJ and Jillian chuckled before they parted ways and the former went to see his family who were all at the loft.
Conner, Eric and Dustin were all with them as they were all discovered as RJ's older brothers, and Master Finn was at the loft with all four of his sons. The first Christmas in which the James Brothers were all together. RJ found it strange he and his family shared the same last name as the first name of one of the Ronin Warriors.
Speaking of which, James and Twyla were still in Ocean Bluff. They were currently visiting the rangers and gave them Christmas cards, which the rangers appreciated. They had visited the Ronins and Guardians before proceeding to visit the rangers to give them a Christmas visit.
"Are you okay, Dad?" RJ walked over to his father, who was sitting at the table.
"Doing fine," Master Finn answered, "I'm happy that I have my family here together."
"We're doing great," Dustin smiled walking to the group, "too bad we don't have our Mom with us."
"What was she like?" Conner asked.
"She was a beautiful woman," Master Finn answered, "she was a lot like each of you boys, especially as she had brown hair like all four of you. She had green eyes and curly brown hair. Carol, your mother, died when RJ was a few months old."
The boys looked on sadly, thinking about their mother. RJ figured his hair was straight like their dad, but his hair was brown and his eyes were green, like their mother. Dustin and Conner each had curly brown hair like their mother and brown eyes like their father. Eric's brown hair was straight like their father's blonde hair, and had his father's brown eyes, but he had brown hair like their mother.
"What were you guys watching, Conner?" Master Finn asked.
"My friends and the Olivers were watching a marathon of Christmas movies with James and Twyla," Conner answered, "we started off with A Chirstmas Carol which is a pretty cool version, if you ask me."
"A classic," Dustin chuckled.
"We're going to be watching A Christmas Story and Elf within a couple of hours next," Conner stated.
RJ noted, like the Ronins and Guardians, the rangers were home for the holidays, well, the veteran rangers anyway. All of the veteran rangers went back to Angel Grove for Christmas, everyone except for the Olivers, Tommy and Kimberly, who decided to stay in Ocean Bluff with their daughter.
Tori, Blake, Hunter and Cam also returned to Blue Bay Harbor for the holidays, especially where Tori and Blake were married and Cam, for better or worse, was spending Christmas with his cousins, surviving members of his family. From what Dustin found out, Cam got lucky that Leanne decided to visit him for the holidays even though she was on a different ranger team than he was.
"How's your ranger team, Dustin?" Master Finn asked.
"Doing fine," Dustin answered, "Cam is annoyed with having to spend Christmas with Marah and Kapri, even though they're his family, but he gets to spend it with his girlfriend Leanne. Hunter's doing fine, supporting his brother. As for, Tori and Blake, they're doing great as a married couple in Christmas."
There was a pause of silence as Master Finn looked proudly at his four sons. His oldest son, Dustin, was a motor cross star, Wind Ninja Academy graduate, Yellow Ninja Storm Ranger and with the spirit of a lion. One of his middle sons, Conner was a soccer star, Red Dino Thunder Ranger and a fine leader. Then, there was his other middle son, Eric. He might have flunked out of the Wind Ninja Academy and was a bit of an airhead, but he somehow managed to become the new Red Ninja Storm Ranger after the original red ranger had fallen. Finally, there was his youngest son, RJ. He was the closest to him as he got to see what a fine son, great master and great business owner he was. He was a wolf master, manager of Jungle Karma Pizza, and the Jungle Fury Violet Wolf Ranger with the spirit of the wolf.
"You guys sharing a nice family reunion?" James asked as he walked over to the family.
"That we are," Master Finn answered, "I am proud of each of my sons. They each have proven to be fine masters, and brilliant at what they do. I appreciate the card just like everyone else here, but I have the Christmas present I could ever ask for: all four of my sons reunited and here with me."
"Merry Christmas," James smiled in response.
-Through-Dangerous-Times-
Rekino looked on as she sat in the bay windows of the Ronin Household with a mug of hot chocolate in her hands. She sighed loudly and took a small sip. This was the first major holiday she had been away from her adoptive parents. She had called them earlier, of course, to see how they were doing. Hearing her "mother's" voice caused a sadness within her. She had a hard time remembering her birth parents—specifically her mother. She remembered her father with his black hair and blue eyes. He was strict and loving. She had cried when Ryo told her of his passing.
But her mother was difficult. She had few memories of her and the ones she did have were faint; however, a woman with a soft voice and heart shaped face was burned in her mind. She had dark purple eyes and curly black hair. She felt certain that was her mother.
Rekino closed her eyes taking in a deep, calming breath as she did so. With lightning speed, she caught the knife that was cutting the air towards her. She looked over at Hana.
"Denied," the Wildfire Guardian sat the knife down.
Hana laughed and sat down next to her friend, "You okay?"
"I suppose," the petite warrior finished off her hot chocolate. "I'll be fine, though. It will just take some adjusting to."
Hana, Mia, and herself were the only Guardians in town at the moment. Amaya had returned to France to celebrate the holidays. Josephine was also with her family. Just as the five Guardians were split, the Ronin Warriors were apart as well. Kento had went with Josephine to their family home. Sage had left earlier in the day to go visit with his family. Cye, was also away visiting with his mother and sister.
"Why didn't you go to see your dad?" Rekino questioned.
Hana gave a sad smile, "Daddy and Brandon are both deployed right now. I did talk to them last week and they are fine."
Rekino turned to look out the window again and take in the wintery scene. She wasn't used to this kind of weather. It rarely snowed where she had been raised. She heard Hana talking, but wasn't comprehending her words.
"Yeah," she tried to sound convincing.
The blonde sighed loudly, "What's bugging you?"
The Guardian leader gave her a grumpy mumble. If she knew what was bothering her then she would have already solved the problem.
"Man. Fuck," Rekino stood up and started pacing around the room. "I don't know what's wrong. I got to thinking about mom and dad after I got off the phone. I thought that was it, but now I don't know what's wrong."
Hana crossed her legs elegantly, "This is like a vacation. We're in the middle of nowhere on Christmas. And it's snowing. Snowing. You said you loved the snow."
"I know!" Rekino produced a fake cry and crumbled to the ground like a drama queen. She started whining. "I do love the snow."
Hana laughed as she watched her friend roll around the room in a fake display of agony. She picked up a pillow and threw it at the rolling female. That didn't stop Rekino from continuing her rolling journey.
"Stop," Hana was still laughing.
Rekino made a pitiful noise, "But I don't know what's wrong with meeeee."
A short moment passed and Rekino stopped her rolling. She looked up at the ceiling and sighed loudly. Hana stood up and came to sit down beside her friend.
"I think I know."
"Humor me."
"You're in love," Hana smirked and cut her midnight blue eyes down to her friend.
Rekino didn't respond. She had tried to deny it, but she knew it was true. The past few weeks had been difficult. Reuniting with her brother had been one of the best things to happen to her, but with Ryo came the rest of the Ronin Warriors and with the group came Rowen Hashiba.
"Girl," the Wildfire Guardian looked at Hana, "he's so sexy and not just physically."
"Then tell him."
Rekino sat up so fast she almost made herself dizzy, "Are you high?"
"No."
"You must be if you're suggesting that I tell him that."
"YOLO!" Hana waved her hands in the air with excite. She laughed at the unamused look on her friend's face.
Rekino rolled her eyes and turned over, "YOLO, my ass. I'm not going to tell him."
"Tell 'him' who?"
Hana yelped in surprise. Rekino reached underneath the chair and grabbed a small dagger, and threw it at the source of the voice, which happened to be her brother. Lady Wildfire jumped up afterwards. She glared at Ryo, but recoiled when she saw Rowen standing beside him.
"What the hell?!" Rowen starred at the dagger stuck in the wall.
Ryo blinked slowly. He looked at his sister, "Where did you get that?"
The Guardian of Wildfire licked her lips, "I—well. Last night while everyone was asleep I did a routine set-up of the house."
Hana choked as she inhaled, her midnight blue eyes wide in disbelief, "You didn't!"
Rekino attempted to look guilty, but couldn't find the strength to. She just shrugged innocently, "I sleep easier when I know I can access a weapon in any room."
The bearers of the armors of Wildfire and Strata didn't know what to say. The Guardian of Halo buried her face in her hands.
"Mia is going to kill you when she finds out."
"Wooooo!" the ebony haired ninja busted out laughing. "You should've been a comedian."
Mia took that moment to enter the room from the kitchen. She looked around the room before her eyes landing on the dagger stuck in the wall between her fiancé and her counterpart. Her green eyes immediately narrowed at Rekino.
"You rigged my house?"
"Like I said back at Jungle Karma Pizza, the forces of evil are everywhere!" Rekino started pointing. "They can walk through walls and shit! Or even appear out of nowhere! What do you think will happen when they appear? We can't just snap our armor on, but if I gotta katana stuffed in the couch I can cut that bitch and then get to work."
No one said a word in defense. Rekino crossed her arms under her breasts and stood triumphant.
"That's what I thought."