February 14th fell on a Saturday and, after spending five days in the Lee Scott's spare bedroom recovering after being released from the hospital, Laura woke early and the day passed quickly.
Now, as the afternoon was slowly passing, Laura stood in front of the full-length mirror in the master bedroom, admiring the purple dress, shoes, and fancy hat that Helen was lending her for the party.
"What do you think, dear?" Helen asked as she came into the bedroom and sat down on the bed.
Laura sighed and quickly removed the hat, "It's really nice," she replied even though she was worried about how thin she looked in such a fancy dress. "Thank you for lending it to me, Mrs. Lee Scott."
"It's not a problem," Helen replied gently. "Would you like me to do something nice with your hair?"
Laura immediately shook her head and quickly left the master bedroom with the hat in her hand. She immediately ran into Ashley, who was resting on the living room couch in a pair of blue sweats, yellow socks, and a yellow t-shirt with her hair in a ponytail. Ashley's eyes widened at Laura's appearance.
"Do you think Jason's gonna think you're hot?" Ashley asked in an amused voice. "You look nice!"
Laura sighed and gave Ashley a look, "Where'd you learn to talk like that?" she asked tiredly.
"Sorry," Ashley replied softly as Laura came over to the couch and sat down. "Can I come tonight?"
Laura quickly shook her head, "You're a little young to come, Ashley," she replied in a gentle voice.
Ashley pouted, but before she could whine about it, there was a knock at the door followed by quick footsteps. Ashley and Laura watched Helen hurry to the door, check the peephole, and open it.
"Helen!" a cheerful voice suddenly spoke. "I hope you don't mind that Eugene and I are here tonight?"
Helen smiled, "Ashley and I are grateful for the company since Thomas is working and Malcolm, Jason, and Laura are all going to that murder mystery party," she replied softly. "Please come in; both of you."
There was quiet murmuring as people came in and the door closed, revealing Wilma Skullovitch, who was wearing jeans, boots, and a t-shirt and a tired looking Eugene, who was wearing sweats, sneakers, and a loose red t-shirt that was covered by an open hoodie and he had a bandana covering his head.
Ashley immediately bolted off the couch and into Skull's arms, "Eugene, you're okay!" she said in an excited voice as Skull slowly hugged her back. "Mrs. Lee Scott, I had this scary experience a really long time ago where Eugene and I were trapped and he was sick, but the Power Rangers saved our lives!"
"Oh my," Wilma said in a shocked voice as she looked at Eugene. "Eugene, you never told me that."
Skull shrugged as Ashley released him, "It's not really important," he replied. "Can I sit down?"
"Yes, of course," Helen replied in a gentle voice as she gestured to the living room. "Why don't you have a little rest on the couch, Eugene, and I'll make you something warm to drink? Your mom can help me."
Skull nodded and silently walked over to the couch, completely ignoring Laura and Ashley as he made himself comfortable on another section of the couch, "Eugene, remember me?" Ashley asked softly.
"Yep," Skull replied, smiling at Ashley. "I'm not strong enough to go to that murder mystery thing with Bulk tonight, so I asked my mom if we could come here and hang out. You helped me at a bad time."
Ashley smiled and watched Skull slouch, "Jason's mom has been taking care of me since I came to Angel Grove because Doctor Oliver got tortured by some guy named King Mondo," she said in a worried voice, ignoring the shocked look that Laura was giving her. "He sent Laura to stay here too cause she was sick."
"I'm feeling better now," Laura cut in, not wanting Skull to feel sorry for her. "I'm well enough to go to the party tonight, anyway; that is, if Jason and Malcolm ever get ready and if Katherine ever comes."
Skull sighed and fought back a yawn just as Malcolm came into the room wearing a navy blue suit, white dress shirt, navy tie, black shoes, and a navy blue fedora. He smiled at seeing Skull resting on the couch, but turned his attention to Ashley and Laura, as he knew giving Skull lots of attention would annoy him.
"Eugene's gonna hang out here tonight while you take your girlfriend to the big people party," Ashley said in a gentle voice as Laura got to her feet and put the purple hat over her hair. "You look hot."
Laura's eyes widened, but Malcolm merely chuckled, "I hope Katherine thinks so too," he replied in an amused voice. "Jason's almost ready to go; he's just in the bathroom making sure he looks perfect."
Ding-dong.
"Ah, that must be Katherine and Mark," Malcolm said happily. "I'll answer the door and let them in."
As Malcolm hurried over to the door and opened it, Skull suddenly looked nervous and looked silently at the couch; he hoped that Katherine wouldn't say anything about how mean he had been to Mark.
Malcolm opened the door and was immediately eased against the wall of the foyer in a hug by Katherine, who was wearing a knee length fuschia dress that had a collared neckline and long sleeves with fuschia gloves over her hands. There was a fuschia hat on her head and her hair was in a bun. The entire ensemble was completed by fuschia high heels that had small feathers near the pointed toes.
"Wow," Malcolm commented in an awed voice. "Katherine, you look absolutely stunning in that outfit!"
Katherine smiled, kissed Malcolm's cheek, and stepped back, "Thank you," she replied softly. "I love that navy suit on you, Malcolm." Malcolm grinned and sighed, ignoring the fact that he was blushing.
The bathroom door suddenly opened and Jason, who was wearing dark shoes and a gold fedora with a matching gold suit, came into the foyer. He smiled at Kat and Malcolm before looking at Laura.
"Ready to go?" Jason asked, fighting the urge to tell Laura that she looked amazing in her outfit.
Laura nodded and smiled at Ashley and Skull, "Have fun tonight," she said. "I love you, Ashley."
"Love you too, Laura," Ashley replied softly. "Are you gonna go hang out at Doctor Oliver's after?"
Laura smiled, "I'm not sure what's going to happen after," she replied. "Just relax tonight, okay?"
Ashley nodded and Laura quickly turned away, "Where's Mark?" she asked in a concerned voice.
"Mark decided to wait in the truck with David," Katherine replied gently. "Are we all ready to go?"
Jason and Malcolm nodded, but Laura was silent; she was seriously tempted to back out of this event and stay where there were at least other non-Power Rangers. Jason, Malcolm, Katherine, Tommy, Adam, Tanya, and Rocky were all attending the event and they all had power to protect them, but…
"David's truck only holds four," Laura said in a firm voice. "I'll walk to the party; the house isn't far."
Katherine immediately frowned, "We planned on going together, Laura," she replied worriedly.
Not wanting Katherine to know that she was feeling out of place being their friend now that she had no power, Laura shrugged and moved over to the door, "I'll be fine," she stated. "I'll see you all there."
"I can walk with you," Jason offered in a gentle voice, not wanting anything bad to happen to Laura.
Laura sighed and nodded, "Let's get going," she replied in a terse voice. "Thank you very much, Jason."
"Tommy?" Tommy heard a faint voice say as he straightened the red tie that he was wearing with his red suit, dark shoes, and red fedora. "Tommy, I want to talk to you for a minute in my office."
Tommy sighed, left his bedroom, and travelled down the hallway to his uncle's office. The door was open and he saw that his Uncle Frank was sitting behind the desk with his casted leg stretched out and resting on a padded ottoman. His khaki pants and shirt were wrinkled and he looked very distressed.
"Tommy, is Adam still getting ready?" Frank asked in a distressed voice. "I need you to come in…"
Tommy nodded and moved into the office, "What's up, Uncle Frank?" he asked in a cheerful voice.
"Tommy, I don't know if you should go to the murder mystery party tonight," Frank replied in a worried voice as he looked up at his happy nephew. "I've got this terrible feeling that something will happen…"
Tommy frowned, "What do you mean?" he asked in a worried voice. "Has Zordon said something?"
"No, I've just got this feeling that this party will end in disaster," Frank replied softly. "I don't know…"
Tommy smiled, "If there was a problem, Uncle Frank, Zordon would have told us," he replied. "I heard at school that Billy's father recently came into some money and he's hosting this at his new house as an effort to bring forth a better spirit of unity in Angel Grove. I'm really sure that nothing will go wrong."
"Okay, I'll let you go, but on one condition," Frank replied softly. "Do not let yourself be alone at ANY time during the evening, even during the game. If you agree to that, I'll let you go to the party."
Tommy nodded just as Adam came into the doorway wearing a forest green suit, dark shoes, forest green tie, and forest green fedora, "I heard talking in here," Adam commented. "I'm ready to go."
"What time is Rocky supposed to come?" Frank asked in a concerned voice. "Or is he going alone?"
Adam sighed, "He was supposed to go with Tanya to the house, but Tanya decided to go with her new boyfriend at the last minute, so he went alone," he replied. "Is Tommy ready to go, Doctor Oliver?"
"Be careful tonight, both of you," Dr. Oliver replied softly. "I'll be at the Youth Center if you need me."
Tommy grinned, "Going on a date tonight, Uncle Frank?" he asked in an amused voice.
"It is socializing with a friend, Thomas," Frank replied in an amused voice. "Go and have fun."
Adam and Tommy grinned, but left the office in silence. Frank quickly picked up the phone and dialed.
"Ms. Appleby, it's Frank Oliver," Frank said as a voice responded. "Are you free to go out with me tonight?"
Billy, who was wearing a dark blue suit, tie, fedora, and dark blue shoes, silently lingered in the bedroom that he had occupied since his father had been given the house in a supposed contest. In all reality, Rita and Prince Gasket had fashioned this reality so that they would be successful in capturing Tommy and Malcolm to do whatever they wanted with them. The party would be the perfect place to capture them.
The mirror in his large bedroom was the perfect place for him to reflect on what he was going to do, Billy thought as he continued to stare at himself. He was so wrapped up in going over the plan in his mind that he didn't hear the knocking at the door; the door then opened and Rocky was in the hall.
"Hey Billy, your dad answered the door and said I could come up," Rocky, who was wearing a dark red suit, tie, and fedora with dark shoes, said cheerfully. "I heard you were out of town for a while…"
Remembering Rita's warning to seem as pleasant as possible to the Rangers until the time was right to abduct Tommy and Malcolm, Billy plastered a smile on his face, "Yes, I was doing some soul searching in the form of camping," Billy replied pleasantly. "I returned to Angel Grove to find that my father had accumulated a great deal of financial gain and had won a house in a contest, so I suggested this…"
"That's cool," Rocky replied pleasantly. "It's really good to see you back, Billy; we've missed you…"
"Rocky is such a good-doer," Rita hissed as she watched Rocky and Billy leave the bedroom and travel down the stairs of the mansion to the common room where everyone was to meet. "After I capture Malcolm and restore Zedison to his former glory, I'm going to have to remind Rocky of his place."
There was a loud chuckle as Prince Gasket came into the Machine Empire throne room, "You should be at the mansion already to help bring your son home," he said in a regal tone. "I am fine here, Rita."
"Of course," Rita replied in an amused voice. She smiled, waved her wand, and promptly vanished.
As Prince Gasket strode out of the room to prepare his father's Cogs to bring Tommy to him, he was seemingly unaware of the small Rita doll that had been left on the floor near the magical telescope.
"Tanya!" Katherine said in an excited voice as Tanya, who was wearing a shimmering yellow gown, boa, and yellow feather in her curly updo, came into the mansion's foyer clinging to Shawn, who was wearing a dark tuxedo and a stoic expression on his face. Tanya gazed at Katherine briefly, but said nothing.
As Tanya and Shawn went over to the steps to check in with Lt. Stone, Katherine sighed and moved back into the sitting room where Jason, Malcolm, Tommy, Rocky, Adam, Laura, Bulk, Mark, David, and many other teenagers and young adults were waiting in the finest attire that they had. Seeing the distressed look on Katherine's face, Malcolm immediately hurried to her side and gently put an arm around her.
Katherine smiled at him, but before she could reply, Mr. Cranston came down the stairs dressed in a fancy suit with a sharp looking Billy at his side, "Welcome to my home," Mr. Cranston said gently. "I must say, you all look very sharp this evening and I hope Billy, Lt. Stone, and myself can be…."
The lights suddenly went out and quickly returned, but Lt. Stone and Mr. Cranston were both missing and Billy looked nervous, "It seems that my father and Lt. Stone have vanished from our view," Billy stated in a nervous voice. "I now invite all of you to search the mansion for clues that may explain their disappearance and hope that you will find enjoyment in this evening's 'whodunit' gathering…"
Again, the lights flickered and Billy was suddenly gone, "This is so lame!" Shawn hooted. "Lieutenant Stone, Mr. Cranston, and Billy are probably just hiding in the basement waiting for us to find them!"
There were murmurs and people slowly began to filter out of the sitting room to go look in the basement to see if Shawn was right, leaving only the Rangers, Bulk, David, Mark, and Laura there.
"I'm gonna go join the others in the basement," Shawn hooted. "Are you coming, Tanya?"
Tanya shook her head and glared at him, "I'm going to have some fun looking through the mansion for clues like we're supposed to," she replied in a frosty tone. "You go to the basement if you want to."
Shawn shrugged and walked out of the sitting room, "I think we should all split up into groups and each take a section of the house," Tommy spoke up in a gentle voice. "What do you all think of that idea?"
"I'd kind of like to stick with Kat and David," Mark spoke up nervously. "If that's okay with everyone?"
Katherine smiled sadly at Mark; his nightmares had been worse the night before and he had almost changed his mind about coming to the party, "Yes, that's fine," she replied. "Malcolm, do you mind..?"
"I'll come with you, Mark, and David," Malcolm replied, smiling at her. "We'll check the rooms on this floor and come back here when we're done. Jason, you should check upstairs with Tanya, Tommy, Bulk and Laura for clues. When you're all done, come back here so we can discuss our findings, okay?"
Bulk suddenly looked nervous, "I don't wanna go up there!" he protested. "What if I disappear?"
"Bulk can come with Rocky and I," Adam volunteered. "We're going to start by looking in here."
Bulk nodded and Laura took the opportunity to silently move out of the room and up the long staircase by herself. Unfortunately for her, Tommy had seen her leave and had silently followed her upstairs.
"I guess Tommy and Laura already started," Jason commented in an amused voice. "Let's go."
Deeply amused, Katherine led Mark into the other side of the house and David followed after them with Malcolm. Jason and Tanya quickly left the room and went upstairs, leaving Rocky, Adam, and Bulk alone.
Before Rocky, Adam, or Bulk could decide what to do, a fog suddenly arose and enveloped them.
"…Tommy…"
The sound of Kimberly's voice echoed through Tommy's ears as he reached the top of the stairs and saw a long hallway filled with half-open doors awaiting him. He couldn't see Laura, however, and that concerned him deeply; he wasn't supposed to be alone under any circumstance during the evening.
"Tommy, Laura, are you up here?" Jason's voice suddenly asked as footsteps ascended the stairs.
Tommy frowned as Jason and Tanya came up the stairs, "I can't find Laura," he replied worriedly.
Suddenly, there was the sound of breaking glass and a loud scream from the library, "Please, somebody help me!" Laura's scared voice yelled. Tommy frowned when he suddenly heard Kimberly's evil laugh.
Jason, Tanya and Tommy hurried to the library and saw that Kimberly was indeed there and pinning Laura to a wall whilst holding a bloody glass shard. Laura was crying as her arm bled heavily.
"I knew you'd come running when you heard your precious little Laura crying for help," Kimberly sneered as she released Laura and turned to face Jason, Tanya, Tommy, and Bulk. "I see that Skull's not tagging along with his overweight controller anymore. I guess he finally came to his senses about Bulk."
Jason frowned, "Skull's getting better, but he wasn't strong enough to come tonight," he replied softly, not wanting anyone to discover that he had donated the marrow that Skull needed to pull through.
"I don't really care about Skull," Kimberly replied darkly. "I care about getting my hands on Tommy."
There was suddenly a loud scream from downstairs, "MARK!" they heard Katherine scream angrily.
Kimberly cackled and gestured to Tommy just as Rita appeared beside her, "Well, well, my beloved Evil Green Ranger!" Rita cackled as she gazed at Tommy briefly before looking at the others. "Goodbye!"
Before Jason, Tanya, or Laura could reply, Rita grabbed Tommy's arm roughly and vanished with him and Kimberly in a flash of light, "TOMMY!" Jason yelled angrily. "RITA, BRING TOMMY BACK!"
"YOU WILL NEVER SEE HIM AGAIN!" Rita's voice replied as the four suddenly found themselves in the den of the mansion with Katherine, Mark, Malcolm, and David. Klank, Orbus, and Goldar were blocking the exit and looking very amused at how terrified Katherine and Malcolm looked at seeing them.
Goldar cackled, "As soon as we claim our Prince Zedison and the rest of his power source, we will be glad to leave you all in peace," he said in an amused voice. "You know who I'm talking about."
"I don't know who this Prince Zedison is," Mark said nervously as he clung to Katherine. "I really…"
Two Cogs suddenly appeared and grabbed hold of Mark, pulling him away from Katherine. Katherine and David started after them, but they were pushed back by Goldar. Malcolm immediately grabbed Katherine and held her against her protectively as David struggled to keep from falling over.
"Now, Malcolm, you have three friends trapped in the sitting room," Goldar hissed as he brandished his sword at Malcolm, barely missing Katherine's outfit. "You have two choices; either come or they die."
Malcolm said nothing and continued to hold Katherine close, "LET ME HELP YOU MAKE UP YOUR MIND!" Rita's voice suddenly roared from out of nowhere. "COME TO ME NOW, MALCOLM!"
A bolt of light shot down from the ceiling and hit Malcolm, causing him to promptly vanish from Katherine's side and from the room, "MALCOLM!" Jason yelled angrily. "What's going on?!"
"Ta ta for now," Goldar cackled evilly as he and the Cogs vanished with Mark in their grasp.
Klank cackled, "T'was lovely tae see ye," he said in a gleeful voice. "Prince Gasket sends his regards."
As Klank and Orbus vanished, the room began to shake and one by one, the group began to vanish.
Anxious talking and crying greeted Jason, Rocky, Adam, Tanya, Katherine, David, Laura, and Bulk as they appeared in the Youth Center. Jason immediately saw a distraught looking Mr. Cranston and tired looking Billy talking to a pair of uniformed cops while Lt. Stone was talking with a concerned Ernie.
"Jason!" Jason suddenly heard as his mother and father hurried over to him. "Jason, are you okay?"
As his mother hugged him tightly, Jason looked at his anxious looking father, "Dad, where's Malcolm?" he asked, already knowing what the answer would be. "We were at the party and monsters…"
"I know," Thomas replied in a very somber voice. "Malcolm was kidnapped by them, Jason."
Jason sighed and fought the urge to cry, "Rita Repulsa, that scary space witch, is back," he said in a somber voice, knowing that Zordon would soon contact all of them. "Dad, I'm really scared."
"Excuse me a moment, Jason," Thomas replied softly, having just noticed Dr. Oliver and Ms. Appleby come into the room from a more private dining area in the Youth Center. "Frank, we need to talk."
Dr. Oliver frowned, but nodded as he leaned on his crutches, "Frank, some sort of monsters attacked the party at the Cranstons tonight," Thomas explained, unaware that Lt. Stone and the police chief were approaching after talking with Ernie and with each other about the situation. "Tommy was taken."
"Taken?" Dr. Oliver asked, hating that his instincts had been right. "Taken by whom exactly?"
Thomas shrugged just as Mr. Caplan came into the room with a horde of reporters chasing after him, wanting to get information, "Lieutenant Stone, I want a word!" he said angrily as he hurried over to where the police chief and Lt. Stone were standing. "You assured me that this party would be safe!"
"Jerome Stone is no longer a representative of the Angel Grove Police Department," the police chief suddenly interjected in an angry tone, shooting a glare at Lt. Stone. "Mister Caplan, come with me…"
Lt. Stone looked aghast as the police chief and Mr. Caplan walked off out of the common area to further discuss what they knew so far, "…Frank?" he suddenly heard Ms. Appleby ask. "Frank, are you okay?"
"I just need to sit down," Dr. Oliver replied tonelessly as he hobbled over to an unoccupied table and eased himself into a chair so that he wouldn't collapse from shock. "I need to have time to think."
Katherine suddenly gasped as she looked at Laura's arm, "Laura, you're bleeding," she replied anxiously.
"Let me see your arm, young lady," Thomas said, having overheard Katherine's comment.
Laura immediately moved over to Thomas and showed him her bleeding arm, "One of the monsters who attacked the party stabbed me before they took Tommy," she said in a pained voice, not wanting to reveal that it was Kimberly who stabbed her in case it cost Tommy his life. "Can you fix it?"
"I most certainly can," Thomas replied softly, anxious to keep his mind off of his endangered nephew. "Let's go out to my rig."
As she was led away, Laura suddenly looked very concerned, "Mrs. Lee Scott, where's Ashley?" she asked. "Is she okay?"
"Oh, Ashley's at the house with Eugene and Wilma," Helen replied gently. "She's perfectly fine and safe from any monsters."
Chattering suddenly filled the room as more shellshocked participants began to filter into the Youth Center and Bulk suddenly found himself lost in the crowd. He swallowed hard and instinctively moved over to where Lt. Stone was standing with a depressed expression on his face. Lt. Stone looked at him.
"Now that I'm not on the force anymore, I can pursue my true dream," Lt. Stone said in a low, yet very determined voice. "I'm going to open a detective agency and personally begin a search for Tommy Oliver and Malcolm Lee Scott; I believe that whoever took them don't intend on keeping them forever. Now, Mister Bulkmeier, I cannot work alone on this. Would you and Mister Skullovitch work part-time for me?"
Bulk's eyes widened and he nodded, "I can't speak for Skull, sir," he replied in a shocked voice. "I'll help you find Tommy and Malcolm, though."
"Good," Lt. Stone replied in a determined voice. "Hopefully, once Skullovitch is well enough, we can even get the Power Rangers to help us."
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