Oof... this episode really struck home for me. If any of y'all had to deal with bullying of any form, you'll definitely relate to Emily's story here. It's never easy for anyone to deal with being bullied and some of us will understand what it's like being the bully. If any of you have ever been the bully, don't do it! It won't help you make yourself feel better, and it only hurts people in the long run. For those of you who have been the victims, don't be afraid to ask for help! You're stronger than you know and it won't matter what happens to you if you actually let an adult know about the problem!

Wait, where was I again? Oh, yeah! The episode! Let's get to it! (looks around) Where are those disclaimers? Ah! There they are! (reaches below the desk) Ugh! C'mere, you! (pulls them up)

Disclaimers: I don't own Power Rangers, as it is a product of Hasbro as of May 1st, 2018.

(Bekah's POV)

During training today, I worked on a little symbol power practice of my own, drawing the kanji for shadow (影) as I listened to the others practicing with their blades. I had checked in on Bulk and Spike and found that they were doing well with their training, even having a stuffed panda mascot Spike had won at Rainbow's End that he'd named Samurai, or Sam for short. Not a bad idea to have a mascot cheering you on, honestly.

I worked on the final few strokes and smiled as I saw the kanji glow and emit a shadow. "Another perfect symbol." As I got up and went to get my inkwell put away, I got knocked down by Mike and shrieked in surprise, splashing the leftover ink all over myself and shouting in pain as I smacked my head on the ground.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry, you guys!" Emily said in concern, running over and helping Mike up quickly before they both assisted me to my feet.

I shook my head slightly and groaned a little. "I'm okay." I held my head in pain, feeling the ink covering my face as I spat out a small bit on the ground. "Yuck. Gonna have a nasty aftertaste in my mouth for a while though."

Emily quickly backed up. "Oh no! I'm sorry, Bekah! I didn't mean for you to get covered in ink! Here, let me get a wet cloth for you!" She rushed inside quickly.

I looked at Mike with a small smile as he shook his head slightly, the two of us following her inside after a moment.

As I sat down to recover from hitting my head and get my face cleaned up thanks to Emily's wet washcloth, I sighed softly and groaned a little bit.

Emily returned with a vegetable pack from the freezer as she held them out to me. "Here you go!"

I glanced at the pack and then back to her inquisitively. "Frozen peas?"

"It's like an ice pack," she explained. "I was accident prone when I was a kid and it always healed me right up." She walked over and placed the pack on my head, making me shiver slightly at the cold sensation and I held back any more noise.

"Well, at least we know you could have turned out to be a Black Ranger if you'd left the ink on you, Bek," Mike commented, making me look at him in annoyance.

"Real funny. I'm gonna go get changed out of this ink stained uniform." I got up and headed to my room, not noticing the plate with another frozen pea bag until I slipped on it and screamed, dropping the first pea bag and hitting the ground hard.

"Oops! Sorry! I should have warned you!" Emily said in panic.

"Don't worry," I groaned slightly, sitting upright and holding my face where I had smacked my nose, feeling the twisted cartilage. "Ugh... I can take it." I grabbed my nose and yanked it back into place with a shout, causing winces from both of them.

"Okay, I don't wanna be mean here, but you're looking a little more accident prone than Em is right now," Mike pointed out.

I smiled and shrugged slightly as Emily helped me up. "We all have our bad days. Not much we can do about it." I headed to the kitchen and got some water, swishing it in my mouth before spitting it into the sink and heading back out, Emily running into me at the same time as we yelped and crashed to the ground together.

I moaned slightly as I felt my vision swimming from yet another smack to the head, plus a possible bruised eye. "Ow... maybe this isn't gonna be my lucky day..."

(No POV)

Down on the Junk, a new Nighlok was climbing aboard as Octoroo spoke up, "Why, it's the Prince of the Put Down himself! Welcome aboard!"

Negatron peeked up over the edge. "Speaking of aboard, that's all I ever am when I see you! I'm a-bored!" He went to say more, but his mouth was covered by the octopus Nighlok.

"Come on, Negatron! Save your insults for the human world where they'll do us some good!" Octoroo chided him, removing his hand in the process. "Your sharp tongue will make those human crybabies wail!"

"That's my plan!" Negatron agreed before starting to spout another insult.

Octoroo stopped that right away. "Your mouth is like a convenience store: Always open! Go whip on those humans, make this river flood the Earth!"

Back at the dojo, Bekah came out of her room in a fresh set of clothing and sporting a black eye as she headed to the kitchen with some painkillers and popped them in her mouth, gulping down some water and swallowing.

"You okay?" The sudden scare made her choke down the remaining water in her mouth and it shot up her nostrils as she groaned and looked around to see Mike.

"I think so... but now my sinuses are gonna burn for the rest of the day..." she responded, feeling water drip down from her nostrils. "At least it's not as bad as a black eye or a broken nose."

He nodded and passed her some tissue paper so she could clean up as she gratefully accepted and wiped her nose up, sighing softly as she leaned against the counter thoughtfully. "It is funny though. This brings me back to my days at my dad's dojo."

"What was it like back then?" Mike asked curiously, and Bekah noticed Emily coming in to hear the story as well.

She shrugged, deciding to tell both of them. "Well, honestly, I will admit I was pretty accident prone myself as a student at my dad's training school. I was always pushed to do my best and succeed no matter what I went through. If I wasn't bleeding heavily or had any limbs lost, then I'd be working my keister off during my training."

"No wonder you're built like a tank," Emily said admiringly. "You've been through crazy training and yet you still survived."

Bekah nodded to her fellow female a bit. "It's like I've said in the past: We all have our strengths and weaknesses. But if we can work to adapt and overcome those weaknesses and turn them into more strengths, then we can accomplish anything we set our minds to."

Mike nodded a bit. "Besides, it's not gonna help to put ourselves down. If we ignore the mean comments, then we can push through a good fight."

Emily smiled in understanding of his words as Bekah beamed at him proudly.

Suddenly, the Violet Samurai's hackles went up on end just as the Gap Sensor went off. "Feels like it's coming from somewhere downtown!" She headed out quickly, the others following her after a moment.

Negatron was throwing insults around town and he was insulting a driver, jumping off the crashing car and landing as he turned to the man. "I'm not going charge you for parking! Now get going, Eagle Eyes!"

As he turned to go attack another person, he suddenly turned when he heard Jayden's shout: "Surprise!"

The Red Ranger slashed Negatron and knocked him back as the others joined in behind the Nighlok.

"Samurai Rangers?! Why're you here?!" Negatron was surprised. "I've been saying all the wrong things right!"

"Talking smack about people's not cool!" Mike snapped, rushing forward to attack.

Negatron looked at Mike. "I know something about you!" He sped over and stopped Mike in place. "Your bike had training wheels until you were ten!"

Bekah was confused by the insult, but she ducked under Mike quickly as he was blasted back. "Whoa! What the?!"

Negatron went after Kevin next. "And you, Blue Ranger! You're just boring!" The insult sent Kevin flying back as Negatron insulted Mia next: "You're a lousy cook on your own!"

As Mia was blown back, Emily watched in confusion. "I don't get how he's sending everyone flying! All he's doing is saying mean things!"

"That's probably his gimmick for making people upset so that they let their tears fill the Sanzu," Bekah realized as she gripped her blade. "Just try to ignore the words he says!" She rushed Negatron with Jayden.

"Doubt you two can ignore this one!" Negatron commented as he blocked their attacks. "You're both liars to your friends!" When they didn't react, he lowered his voice menacingly and said, "You're hiding secrets. That's what makes you both a perfect lovebird pair!"

"Say what?!" Bekah was stunned that Negatron knew she was a hybrid plus her infatuation with Jayden, and she got blasted backwards with her fellow leader, both of them hitting the wall behind them and collapsing on the ground together.

"Jayden! Bekah!" Emily groaned worriedly before she heard Negatron speaking behind her, "Looks like we're down to you!"

"Your words won't phase me!" Emily said confidently. "They've got nothing to hide! You're just a mean mouthed monster spouting nothing but nonsense!" She rushed forward and swung at Negatron.

"Nonsense? If I weren't for true, they wouldn't hurt like they do!" Negatron jumped back before speaking directly to Emily. "Here's a word that'll send you flying: Airhead!"

Emily didn't get blasted back like the others, instead striking Negatron and knocking him back.

"Maybe I didn't say it loud enough!" He said, jumping over her next swing and landing. "You're a clumsy fool!"

But she ignored the remark and kept swinging, slashing him back and brushing off each insult like it was nothing.

Mike looked up in confusion. "Why isn't she getting blasted back?"

Bekah noticed as well, surprised and quizzical. "That's a good question."

Emily summoned her Earth Slicer and launched it at Negatron, knocking him down flat.

"What is her deal??" He groaned out as the others regrouped, making him get up. "I'd better go vent somewhere else!" He disappeared through a gap quickly.

"Yeah, go ahead and run, you loudmouth!" She shouted before panting heavily. "I've got a feeling we haven't heard the last from that creep."

(Bekah's POV)

"That Nighlok is a bully. He likes to hurt people's feelings. He channels mental pain into physical pain," Ji recounted to us as we recovered from the battle back at the dojo.

I nodded slightly and sighed softly. "It only makes sense. I mean, I should have seen it coming a mile away. Half of the Nighloks I've seen through the years have shown talents that none of the Rangers could beat alone, and picking up on those talents isn't always easy for me."

"He caught us off guard, but it won't work again," Mia agreed.

Mike then spoke up about the commentary, "Listen, I may have had training wherls, but I didn't need them."

"And... I'm a good cook on my own, right?" Mia asked worriedly.

Emily looked at Mia and smiled. "Yeah, but there's nothing wrong with asking for help sometimes."

Mia smiled back at the youngest Samurai.

"Am I boring to you guys?" Kevin asked in concern.

"Not at all, Kev," I smiled at him. "You're extremely disciplined and orderly, and those are admirable traits for a Ranger in general."

Kevin smiled back at me, feeling reassured by my confidence. "Yeah. You're right, it is."

But even as I was helping the others with their confidence, I looked down at my hands, messing with my fingers as I thought about what Negatron had told me. Was I really that in love with Jayden? It was true that I'd die for him, but... that was because of my loyalty to the Shiba Clan, right? No way I could love the descendant of the man I previously fell in love with... could I?

"Hey, considering that what that Nighlok said about you and Jayden, if you guys were hiding anything, you'd both would tell us on your own time and your own terms," Mike mentioned to me.

Mia nodded and smiled. "Besides, I think you two make a cute pair."

Kevin and Emily nodded in agreement, causing me and Jayden to glance at each other quickly before we looked away, and I could tell he was blushing as hard as I was.

I refocused and looked at Emily. "I'm surprised Negatron didn't affect you so much, Em. You were really showing how much you could handle him."

Emily smiled a bit. "It's nothing, really. I was bullied a lot when I was a kid. It made me sad, but my sister told me to pretend the mean comments weren't being said at all, and it really worked. So when the Nighlok said those mean things to me, it was like he didn't even say them."

I nodded and smiled. "That's a great way to push off the feelings of hurt deep inside."

"But why do you always put yourself down? It makes no sense. Unless that's how you really feel about yourself," Mike wondered, but he probably shouldn't have.

I noticed Emily's expression change and quickly went to her, giving her a gentle hug as I glared at Mike. "That Nighlok may not be able to hurt her, but it doesn't mean we can't, Mike." I looked at Emily and helped her up, leading her outside.

(No POV)

Meanwhile, Bulk and Spike hung up their samurai uniforms in a corner of the room labeled 'Spoils of War' as the older man pointed to the wall. "This is to remind us of how nasty those monsters really are."

"Uncle Bulk, can - can we really be Samurai Rangers like Bekah thinks we can?" Spike asked worriedly, passing Bulk and turning to him. "I mean today was pretty scary."

"Spike, a samurai shouldn't doubt himself," Bulk reminded him. "It's just like our sensei said to us when she first started teaching us: Never let fear deter you and always keep your courage close. If she thinks we can be Rangers, then we need to prove ourselves and protect the innocent!"

"Yeah!" Spike raised a fist fiercely, catching the bamboo sword that Bulk tossed him and raising it high as the duo shouted together, "Never give up!"

They clashed their blades together proudly before Bulk nodded. "When that monster comes back, we'll show our courage in the face of fear." He pulled out a miniature Gap Sensor and nodded a bit, placing it on a shelf. "Sensei told me that once that thing starts flashing, those monsters will show up. She'll send an alert to us and by then, we'll be ready."

Spike nodded and smiled, holding his bamboo sword at his side. "We'll show those monsters we aren't chickens!"

Back at the dojo, Bekah was strumming her shamisen to Emily's tune, the girls finding solace in each other's music.

Bekah noticed Mike coming and looked at her calmly. "I'll let you two talk, okay?"

Emily nodded and watched her teammate head inside before she looked at Mike.

"Listen, I'm sorry for what I said in there. I said to much and it wasn't cool," Mike admitted.

"It's okay," Emily told him as she stood up. "You're right. You know, I really was picked on back then as a kid. I wasn't good in school, I couldn't do anything right. I got bullied all the time. But Serena would play her flute and it made me feel better. When I heard it, it immediately made me forget about being sad. But then she got sick, and when it was time for me to take her place as a Samurai Ranger, she was the one who was crying. That's when I told myself you can't cry. I needed to be strong for my sister's sake. I guess trying to fill my sister's shoes has brought back some of my insecurities. How can I expect others to stop putting me down if I don't do it myself?"

Mike looked at her sadly, never realizing that she was feeling that way. "You don't have to apologize all the time. You have nothing to be sorry about. It's my fault. Here I am trying to be stronger than Jayden and then I lose to you. You keep calling yourself insecure, then what does that make me?"

From the doorway, Bekah smiled as she watched the two of them talking to one another. It reminded her of the talk about her insecurities to her former love interest, Corey.

(Flashback, approximately 250 years ago)

Bekah was about 15 back then and she had been training for the day when she was able to join the team when she saw Corey coming her way. "Corey. What're you doing all the way over here?"

"I had to make sure you were okay, didn't I?" He smiled at her and the two of them sat down together, looking at the sunset.

She sighed softly and rubbed her curse mark slightly. "I don't know. I mean... on one hand, I messed everything up for my future. Starting a family with you, raising our kids to protect the world from Master Xandred, then on the other hand... there are still times when I wish we could both be normal." She knew of his family's secret and he knew of her own secret, and the two had bonded over their experiences with the pressure they each faced.

He took her hand gently and caressed it as he said, "There will be a day when that time comes, and when it does, I'll always be there for you."

She looked at him with happy tears in her eyes. "You mean that?"

"I do," he nodded to her with a smile before they both leaned in and shared a compassionate kiss as the moon started rising.

(Flashback End)

Bekah was pulled out of her memory by the sound of her Samuraizer going off. "Uh-oh." She headed out to the two quickly. "Sorry to cut the talk short, but that Nighlok's back."

Mike and Emily nodded before he looked at his team member. "Thanks for letting us share our thoughts to each other, Bek."

Bekah smiled back and spoke softly, "Even I've had thoughts I needed to express to others. It never hurts to talk about what you feel is necessary."

Emily nodded a bit, looking at Mike. "You're not afraid to be yourself, and I admire that. You'll get stronger with a sword."

Bekah nodded a bit. "And if you ever need help, don't be afraid to ask."

Mike nodded in response. "Thanks, girls."

The trio headed out quickly to face Negatron once again.

(Emily's POV)

As soon as we arrived just after Negatron sent two girls into the trunk of a car, Bekah caught his attention by shouting, "Hold it right there!"

"Anyone ever tell you you're a bully?" Mia said angrily.

"Yep! Nicest thing anyone's ever said about me!" Negatron responded proudly.

At that response, we grabbed our Morphers and flicked them open. "Samuraizer! Go Go Samurai!" Drawing our symbols, we morphed quickly and pulled out our blades. "Rangers together, Samurai forever!"

"More like heartbroken forever! I know the truth about you and I'm really gonna let you have it!" Negatron taunted us.

"I don't think so!" Bekah stepped forward. "Just give it your best shot with me!"

He obliged, getting in close and saying, "Little Miss Rebel!"

"Huh?!" That jolted her senses and she was blasted back with a shout, rolling on the ground.

"Oh no!" I looked at Bekah in concern, gripping my sword tightly before I faced Negatron again. "Time to find your mute button!"

"Fine by me! I got business with you anyway, Mellow Yellow!" He responded to me. "Moogers, keep the rest of them busy!"

A platoon of Moogers came in as we charged forward, and Mike worked with me to clear a path so I could face Negatron.

"Your turn, Motor Mouth!" I swung at him, pushing through his taunts. "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me! Now shut it, creep!" I slashed him back.

"You can't ignore my insults forever! I'll find a way to get you, loser!" Negatron growled, but I retorted, "Your words don't phase me!" I slashed his back hard.

"Silly girl! You'll never be as good as your sister!" He spoke, making me look down sadly as he taunted, "Ooh, gotcha!"

I blocked his fist at that point as I remembered what Bekah said. "Maybe I won't be, but I know I'm stronger than I was before! I'm not stopping until your flapping mouth is permanently locked up!" I kicked Negatron back and pulled my Morpher out, drawing a quick symbol. "Symbol Power: Stone!" I flicked it and sent a barrage of stones to shut his piehole.

"Nice one, Em!" Mike ran over to me and hugh fived me.

I smiled before stepping forward to face Negatron again. "I've got nothing nice to say to you, so let's call it a day." I loaded my Animal Disc on my blade and spun it. "Spin Sword: Earth Symbol Strike!" I made three consecutive slashes in the shape of my symbol, knocking Negatron back again and causing him to spark as he hit the ground while the others regrouped around us.

I turned to Jayden and Bekah quickly. "About time we strike out his first life, guys!"

"Right!" Jayden locked the Beetle Disc in place on his Fire Smasher and he and Bekah swung it around, changing its form before we all placed our Discs on before kneeling down to let them shoot it off.

"No! Stop!" Negatron tried to shout through the muffler, but we weren't buying it.

"Too late for that!" Bekah spoke as she and Jayden pushed the lever together and sent a Cannon Blast at the Nighlok, destroying his first form.

(Bekah's POV)

Negatron came back in his second form, but we quickly got into Mega Mode and combined Zords, but we got struck by a Three Eyed Zapazoid attack and stumbled.

"We'd better divide and conquer!" Emily spoke, separating her Zord in time to avoid a slash.

"Nice one, Em! Kicking it!" Mike kicked out, the Megazord kicking Negatron back in response.

"Mike, you up for a combo kick?" Emily asked him, to which he replied, "Sounds good! Let's do it!" He pushed his controls forth and sent Emily's Zord at Negatron.

"Hey! Get outta my face!" Negatron shouted as he tried to block Emily, but to no avail as she knocked him back and returned to the Megazord.

"I'm back! Ready, guys?" She looked at me and Jayden.

I nodded to her. "We were born ready." I pulled out the Beetle Disc and passed it to Jayden. "Go for it!"

He obliged at once, leaving the cockpit and activating the Beetle Zord before returning as it combined with the Megazord to make it the Beetle Blaster Megazord once again.

(No POV)

Down below, Bulk and Spike were ensuring that the citizens had evacuated to a safer distance and watched the mega battle.

"Looks like the Rangers got the mega battle covered, Uncle Bulk!" Spike told him.

The larger man nodded. "Yep! And I got a feeling our sensei is with them!" He and Spike watched the mega battle proudly.

(Bekah's POV)

"What a dumb hat! What were you thinking?!" Negatron taunted, but Jayden responded with blasting him as he said, "What do you think of this?"

"Let's end this!" I snarled, the Megazord responding to our commands and slashing Negatron before we got into position to use the Rotating Beetle Blaster, launching the attack and hitting Negatron.

"Yikes! My insults backfired!" Negatron fell over and exploded, defeated by our attack.

I heard the cheers of victory from my students below and smiled behind my helmet confidently as Jayden rested his blade on his shoulder and said, "Samurai Rangers, victory is ours."

"We did it! We..." Emily passed out due to overexertion and I moved behind Kevin quickly, catching her in my arms. "Whoa there!"

Mike quickly ran over to us. "Is she okay?"

I heard her soft breath and smiled a bit. "Yeah, she's just tired, and I can't blame her."

(No POV)

As the team walked through the park with Mike carrying Emily piggyback style, Kevin spoke up, "Emily said she was fine, but I guess the Nighlok's words hurt her after all."

Bekah nodded a bit. "Still, it takes a lot of courage to hide those feelings about what she heard."

Jayden nodded, adding on, "Everyone has something they don't wanna hear, including those of us who don't like to admit some of those things."

"She was incredible," Mike agreed, "The way she fought off that Nighlok rocked! Girl's got guts."

"Her sister would be so proud of her," Bekah agreed, smiling softly as she watched Emily.

The team suddenly stopped as they heard a jingle and Mia smiled, "That's a sound I could never forget! Ice cream trucks are my favorite!"

"Sounds better than the Gap Sensor!" Mike agreed.

Emily raised her head at that point with a grin. "Did someone say ice cream?"

Bekah laughed slightly and led the team to catch up with the ice cream truck, all of them eager for a nice treat after their hard day.

Okey dokey! That's another chapter completed and set! This was s not an easy ride, but I definitely know Emily learned a valuable lesson, as I'm sure everyone else could from this episode: It's not always easy to hide our wounded feelings from mean words, but if we can push past them and find a way to turn them into positive reinforcements for the future, then I'm sure we'll all live a good life. Read and review as always, and I'll see you next time!