Chapter 21: What Fate Weaves.
Zack maneuvers Kim’s body in his arms, lifting her up and
allowing her head to cradle on his shoulder.
Then Tommy is there, his eyes dark and wide and his arms open. Zack wordlessly slips Kimberly carefully into
Tommy’s arms and looks up at Zordon.
Aisha grabs for a scanner and nudges Billy, who runs it quickly over
Kim’s limp form.
“She has the flu,” the scientist announces with a small
sigh of relief. “We need to get her to
my place and let her sleep.” Rocky grins
widely. Billy sets down the scanner and
moves to the wall, tapping what seems to be a perfectly ordinary part of
it. It opens and he pulls out a few
beakers. “We better go now.”
“THAT WOULD BE BEST, BILLY. TAKE CARE OF KIMBERLY,” Zordon
interjects and Kat nods, shooting a quick look at Tommy’s impassive face. She walks up to him and presses the button on
his teleporter, then watches the white and pink
streams exit the
Alie and Dulcea exchange concerned looks and then the
Ninjetti warrior looks up at Zordon’s tired visage.
“I suppose I better explain about Alie…”
~*~
The moment Billy reforms in his living room he spins
around, his eyes methodically searching out Tommy. “Let’s put her in the guest room.” The White Ranger nods and walks briskly after
his friend, his physical burden barely straining his resources. Billy flings open the door and sets the
beakers down on the small nightstand then pulls down the blankets as Tommy lays
Kim down. “When she wakes up, have her
drink those,” he orders and walks out quietly, shutting the door with a feather
touch.
Tommy sits down on the edge of the bed and gently runs a
finger over her cheek. “Get better…
please.”
Zack prowls around the living room, all his limbs moving
in an onslaught of nervous energy.
“You’re making me dizzy you know,” Kat says as she
watches him from her spot on one of the armchairs. He flashes her an
apologetic smile and sits down next to Aisha who has curled up on the couch.
“We should call Jase and Trini,” Billy calls out as he
walks into the room. Adam wordless
tosses him the phone and the Blue Ranger dials the number without looking up.
“And Bianca,” Rocky interjects and flushes as Zack shoots
him a smug look.
~*~
Zack Taylor & Jason Scott’s Room
The phone trills sharply and Trini lifts her head from
its place on Jason’s shoulder. She
reaches out with a tired hand and picks it up.
“Hello?” she speaks and her eyes catch Jason’s suddenly
alert ones.
“Trini, they’re back,” announces Billy’s voice and all
the tense muscles in her body suddenly relax as she sags into Jason. One look at her face and Jason himself looks
as if he had just won the International Karate Tournament.
He grabs for the receiver. “Are they okay?”
“Kat’s fine. Kim has the flu but she’ll be fine too,”
Billy responds, his voice unusually lighthearted. Jason exhales loudly and grabs Trini into a
bear hug, which tumbles them both off the bed.
Trini grabs the phone as well as she can when being
squished by the former Red Ranger.
“Thanks Billy. Bye.” She hugs
Jason back just as hard, her melodic laughter echoing and tears shimmering in
her eyes.
~*~
Billy quirks an eyebrow as he presses the off
button and tosses the phone to Rocky. Zack looks quizzically at his old friend who
just shakes his head and shrugs.
Rocky looks at Aisha helplessly. “What’s Kim’s number in
“Hello?” Bianca’s sleepy voice pours through the line.
“Anca? She’s back,” he announces
joyfully.
“Oh!” she exclaims and a chocking sob rips from her
throat.
“She’s fine, Anca, I promise. She has a bit of the flu
but she’s going to be okay,” he sooths automatically, quite adept at dealing
with crying women, having four sisters and a widowed mother.
“Oh I know,” she replies, laughing. “I’m just so relieved I can’t help but cry.”
“Get back to sleep,” he orders. “It should come easier now.”
“Thanks Rocky,” she says softly. “Call me when she wakes will you?”
“Of course,” he affirms.
“Bye.”
“Bye.”
Rocky looks at the slim black phone with a goofy smile
and Zack starts to laugh. The Red Ranger
looks up, his eyes narrowed, and then grins widely. “Careful
~*~
Kat groans as the effects of having slept in an armchair
make themselves known in the achy muscles and creaky joints.
“You okay?” Adam asks very quietly as he sits up from his
spot on the carpet.
“I will be,” she replies, smiling ruefully. “Well, after a few dozen naps and a decent
meal or two.”
“Well I can’t help you with the naps, but the meal…” he
trails off and rises, walking over to Rocky and poking him in the ribs. Rocky shoots up from the couch with a yell
that has everyone in the room waking immediately.
“What was that for?” he whines.
“You get to make breakfast Rocko,”
Adam replies. “Kat’s hungry.” Rocky sighs and obediently walks out the
door, heading for the kitchen.
“I can’t believe I slept on the couch,” Aisha groans.
“I blame Rocky,” Zack comments as he rubs the shoulder
that she used for a pillow.
“You threw the first pillow,” Kat accuses.
“But he threatened me,” he replies with a wounded
air. Kat catches Aisha’s
gaze and they share an exasperated look.
Zack and Rocky got everyone into the pillow fight last night and by the
end of it they were all too tired to find actual beds.
“When are you flying back?” Billy inquires.
Zack sits up straight and rubs his forehead with the back
of his hand. “Next
flight out. I'm already in deep trouble.” He shakes his head and grins. “Only after breakfast of
course.”
“I’m going to go check on Tommy and Kim,” Aisha announces
and stands up slowly. The others nod in
agreement and she leaves, her gait slow and slightly
wobbly. Her hand turns the knob very
softly and she peeks in, smiling at the sight in front of her. Kim is asleep on her back and Tommy is
apparently napping with his head on her stomach. Then Kim’s hand moves, running through Tommy’s
hair, and Aisha notices that her friend’s eyes are open. “Kim?” she whispers.
“Hey Sha,” Kim replies,
a small smile playing on her lips.
“Up for a bit of breakfast?” she asks, taking a step into
the room.
“Who’s making it?” Kim asks suspiciously, wrinkling her
nose.
“Don’t worry we know better than to let Adam or Zack near
a stove. It’s Rocky actually.”
Kim’s eyes light up with delight. “Feed me
“Hey Ish.” Rocky
greets as she walks into the kitchen and hops onto the counter. He is holding a truly giant sized pan full of
something that smells really, really good.
She grabs for the cover and he smacks her hand away.
“Now Rocky, didn’t anyone ever teach you not to hit
women?” Zack asks as he walks up to them and casually slings an arm around Aisha’s shoulders.
“Women, yes. Food stealing demonic
imps, no,” he quips and sets the pan on a trivet.
Aisha gasps. “I
resent that, you food hogging evil… thing…”
“Oh yeah, now that was insult,” Rocky mocks. “Now why don’t you run along and invite
everyone to breakfast.” She tries to
take a swing at him just as Zack grabs her hand and draws her to the hall and
into the living room.
“Breakfast is ready, people,” Zack announces and Kat
springs from her seat happily. Adam
follows her, with Billy right behind.
They rush in to find a huge pan full of scrambled eggs with what looks
like cheese, tomatoes, mushrooms, onions and peppers. Rocky is piling a plate full of toast and the
orange juice is already on the table.
Kat gasps in delight and throws her arms around
Rocky. “Food. Real food with salt and stuff.” She grins and grabs a plate from the
cupboard, her eyes glued to the mass of colorful edibles. Adam shakes his head and pulls out a set of
plates, then rummages for forks and knives, quietly setting the table.
“Rocko, I’ll take some food to
Kim and Tommy. Might as well say goodbye while I’m at it,” Zack says as he picks
up two plates and holds them out. Rocky
nods and plops large portions of eggs and toast on them, then nudges Zack to
the door. Aisha rolls her eyes and takes
two glasses out, filling them with juice, then picks up some utensils and
follows him.
“Who wants food?” Zack calls out in a sing-song. Kim wraps her slender fingers around Tommy’s
shoulder and pushes.
“Huh? Wha?” he mutters sleepily
and tries to bury his head back into her stomach. Zack sets one plate down on the nightstand
and waves the other near Tommy’s nose.
The sleepy eyed young man raises his head slowly, following the pleasant
scent. Kim laughs and accepts her plate
from Aisha along with a fork. The other
girl smiles, one glance to make sure the glasses won’t fall off the nightstand
and that Zack has everything under control, and rushes out.
Tommy yawns, his arms stretching over his head and his
mouth straining open like a baby bird who is waiting
to be fed. His gaze falls on Kim and he
reaches for her forehead, gently pressing the back of his hand to it. It’s slightly warm but not so much that it
would be cause for concern. She smiles
at him and he returns the smile, his dark eyes warm. Zack passes the plate under Tommy’s nose
again and this time he finally grabs for it, Zack pulling it out of his reach.
“Get up Oliver, or no Rocky made breakfast for you!” Zack
orders and Tommy sits up, muttering something about bossy freaks. He gets a slap to the shoulder for his
trouble and groans, but takes the offered plate anyway.
“How are you feeling, Kimberly?” Zack asks as he seats
himself in the free chair.
“M’k,” she mumbles through a
forkful of eggs.
“Good,” he affirms and leans forward, smiling at
her. “I’ll be going back to
Kim’s fork freezes midair. “Already? I’ll miss
you. Again.”
He offers her a grin.
“Of course you will. How can anyone not miss the Zack-man?” He yelps as a pillow hits him in the head and
then sobers. “I’ll miss you too, sis.”
She winces lightly, her nose wrinkling. As hard as it was to let Jason, Trini and
Zack go the first time, it’s harder now, with the
certainty of what their absence brings.
“Love you, Lightning Streak.”
“Right back at ya, Fire
Starter.” The smile that
accompanies the soft statement is equally soft, not the kind people expect to
see on Zachary Peter Taylor’s face, at least not people who aren’t family. Kim matches his smile and for a moment they
stare at each other, reaffirming their familial ties.
“We aw ove ew,
mang,” Tommy injects, his mouth full of toast,
presumably trying to say ‘we all love you, man’ or at least that is how the
phrase is understood by the room’s other occupants.
Zack grins, the soft smile stored away for the next rare
occasion, and rises from his seat. “I
best get going. No sense in getting into any more trouble.” He leans over and gives Tommy that awkward,
one-armed hug that men share when they do not wish to admit to the depth of
their feelings, then moves over to the bed, gingerly wrapping Kimberly into his
embrace. She sets her plate down and
crushes him to herself with all the force she can muster. A mere moment later he disentangles himself
and walks out of the door without a second glance, even when he hears a quiet
sniffle as he pulls it closed.
Aisha collides into something rather hard as she rushes
down the hall. She is caught in a firm,
familiar embrace and when she looks up she meets a pair of laughing, mahogany
eyes.
“Where’s the fire Sha?” Zack
asks, laughter laced through his low-timbre voice.
She rolls her eyes and pulls away. “Adam said you don’t have much time before
the next plane departs. Just enough to say good-bye to
Zordon.” She offers him a large,
wrapped package. “Rocky packed
food.” He takes it with an easy smile
and offers her his arm, which she takes with a matching smile, and they briskly
make their way down the hall.
“Ready?” Billy asks the moment they darken the doorway
into the kitchen. Zack nods, lays the
package on a counter, and the beam that departs the
“… ARRANGEMENTS ARE MADE,” Zordon finishes saying just as
the Ranger re-materialize in the middle of the
“I just wanted to say goodbye,” Zack says, his usual
inability to stand still coupled with a healthy dose of anxiety. The softened, blue outline
of Zordon’s face smiles.
“Good luck young warrior,” Dulcea speaks, her tone almost
that of a priest offering benediction.
Alie just grins, one finger twirling an aqua curl.
“Ai-ai-ai we will miss you,
Zachary,” Alpha vows, having long ago earned the Billy suggested title of the
most emotional AI in the universe. In
this case, though, the emotion is indeed warranted.
“BE SAFE ZACK,” Zordon adds. The former Black Ranger nods, the suggestion
taken as an order through habit.
Kat wrinkles her forehead. “Is Alie staying here?”
The fuchsia-and-gray clad woman smiles. “I, like Zack, must return to the place where
I belong. I am Queen of Karadio. It is past time for
me to resume my duties.” For a moment a
flash of regal stature is visible in her posture but then it’s gone and she
strides forward to hug the lithe blonde.
“Thank you again.” Katherine
returns the hug without hesitation and smiles.
Adam checks his watch.
“We should hurry.” The agreement is
silent and the close-knit beam streaks through the sky again.
Aisha picks up the packed food again and Rocky shoulders
Zack’s bag.
“How are we going there?” Kat asks, leaning back against
the fridge.
“Billy still has my car,” Adam suggests. “If he’s finished adjusting it, we can drive
to the airport.”
Billy laughs lightly.
“Apparently Murphy’s Law has reversed itself radically, as I had just
finished fine tuning it right before all this began.”
“Can I drive?” Aisha asks eagerly. Adam’s eyes round in
horror.
“Sha, I just fixed it, don’t
make me do it again,” Billy pleads. She
crosses her arms over her chest and sticks out her lower lip.
“Face it Ish,” Rocky
admonishes, “you can drive a motorcycle like a pro, but you are awful with
anything that has more than two wheels.”
She rolls her eyes and sighs, her face the very image of patient
suffering. Zack looks at her with
curiosity.
“It’s a long story,” she responds to his gaze and shrugs.
“We need to leave now, guys,” Adam informs and begins walking
to the garage, the others following quickly.
“You’ll have to tell me the story sometime,” Zack says,
fingertips brushing Aisha’s arm.
“I’ll think about it,” she teases. “Plus I need Kim’s permission.”
“Now I really have to know,” he says, one hand holding
the door open for her.
Billy tosses Adam the keys and he unlocks the black
Toyota Camry, Rocky immediately hopping in the passenger spot, Zack’s duffel
still in hand. Adam shakes his head,
laughing silently as he slips into the driver’s seat.
“We’ll have to squish a little I think,” Kat comments as
she climbs into the back gracefully.
Billy takes the seat next to her and pulls the door closed.
“We’ll do alright,” Aisha replies, settling on the other
side of Kat and just as soon as Zack clambers in and shuts the door he finds
her legs flung in his lap. “See? Space conservation… or something of the sort.” Kat’s peals of laughter ring melodically
through the car as Adam starts the engine.
~*~
Zack accepts his ticket and information from the clerk
and turns around to face his friends.
“This is it I guess.”
“Don’t be a stranger,” Kat offers, a tiny bittersweet
smile on her face. Zack nods.
One side of Rocky’s mouth
quirks up as he holds his hand out, palm down.
“Rangers…” he whispers. Adam lays
his hand over Rocky’s. Kat’s hand is next. Then Aisha’s.
“And friends…” Billy adds as his hand settles on
top. Zack favors them with his trademark
brilliant smile and sets his hand on his friend’s.
“Forever!” they exclaim together, startling smiles for
onlookers. They break the hold just as a
mechanical voice sounds through the waiting room.
“Boarding call for the American
Airlines Flight 983 to
“That’s me,” Zack affirms and takes his bag from Rocky,
slinging it easily over his shoulder and hugging him quickly, again the one
armed awkward hug. Aisha steps forward,
handing him the food package, then she throws her arms around his neck in a
tight if brief embrace. She kisses his
cheek and moves away. Adam offers his
hand, but Kat pushes him forward so that he winds up in hug. Billy is next, this contact less hesitant and
just a moment longer. Then it’s Kat’s
turn as she embraces him without hesitation, then lets
go and slightly nudges him in the direction of his gate. He nods and spins around on his heels,
striding away, leaving them all frozen and staring at his back.
They are all still there five minutes later when they see
a huge silver machine lift into the sky, its rumble distinct and unforgettable. Just like Zack.