Cataclysm (Tsukino Akume, Drama/Friendship)
I made a banner!
Which, ironically, has very little to do with this chapter. I'm just posting it anyway.
Title/: Cataclysm
Author/: Tsukino Akume
Relationship/: Andros/Ashley, Zhane/Karone, mentions of Cassie/Phantom
Rating/: K+
Warnings/: emotional trauma, mentally disturbed people, depression
Disclaimer/: If I owned the Power Rangers, this universe would exist. We would have known who the Phantom Ranger was - and it *would* have been a girl because I'm weird like that - and team snuggles would be mandatory every episode. As none of that is cannon, it's safe to assume that I don't.
Summary/: When Astronema was defeated, the Astro Rangers gave up more than their Powers. Reporters, fans, and long-lost relatives are coming out of the woodwork as the team struggles to adjust to it all. Bright Skies Universe.
Theme/: #33. Busted
Author's Notes/: Much love to lunaria_kitty and rosabelle for massive amounts of help plotting this chapter, and beta work. ♥
For lunaria_kitty, because she's wonderful and in need of hugs, and purplestripe66 , because she needs something to smile about. (Dare you to picture Karone in The Shirt.
"Welcome Christmas, Christmas day!"
Cassie jerked awake, her hands already clenching into fists at the foreign sound. It took a moment to register that she was hearing the song from Dr. Seuss' The Grinch, and it was somehow blaring throughout the entire Megaship. She blinked rapidly, reaching up to rub her forehead in hopes of preventing the growing headache. Her eyes flickered to the other side of the bed, where T.J. lay staring at her.
"I vote for throwing him out the cargo bay," T.J. informed her solemnly.
She nodded slowly. "As soon as possible." She paused to stretch, sitting up slowly with a grimace. "Think Andros and Karone will help?"
"If they don't, we can always throw them out, too."
"I like that plan," she agreed. She paused to give him a hug before she stood. "Merry Christmas," she added with a wry smile.
He made a face at her. "Merry Christmas."
The megaship was more crowded this year than she'd expected it would be, she reflected as she grabbed a uniform and headed for the shower. Andros, Zhane and Karone had stayed of course, and Cassie had joined them despite Ashley's protests, because her cousin Nikki was visiting, and there really wasn't enough room at the Hammonds right now. T.J. had moved back up to the megaship to avoid his mom and give Jake a break from their fight. He hadn't talked about it much, but from what Cassie was able to get, she was angry at him for being a Ranger, and he was mad that she was angry at all.
The thought made her sigh as she turned on the water. She didn't blame T.J.; while he loved his family, they hadn't exactly kept in touch with him very well since he'd moved to Angel Grove. But she was jealous. His family wasn't perfect, but at least he knew they cared.
She sighed, leaning her head against the shower wall. My family *does* care, she reminded herself. That's half the problem.
But she couldn't say she didn't miss them. This year wasn't quite as bad as last Christmas, because then she'd only known the rest of the team for two months, and while they were friends, they really hadn't known each other all that well. She'd ended up spending the day alone in her apartment with Jetson, managing a call to Christian and Kelly around mid-afternoon before Ashley showed up to kidnap her for dinner at the Hammonds'.
This year she was with her friends, which helped. Zhane had embraced the concept of Christmas with an enthusiasm that was frightening, and now the megaship was covered in every possible Christmas decoration known to man. D.E.C.A. was less than pleased, while Andros only tolerated it because Karone thought it was interesting. T.J. had just sort of looked at her and sighed, and they mutually agreed to bear the massive eyesore the megaship had become with good humor.
At least until Zhane had discovered Christmas came with its own soundtrack.
She shut off the water and reached for a towel with a sigh. The plan for this year was to put in her shift on the Dark Fortress before Ashley showed up to drag the entire team to Christmas dinner with her family. At some point she planned to try and convince herself to call Christian and Kelly again, because she hadn't spoken to them in months, and because Chris would probably like to know he didn't need to pay for her apartment anymore. She really should have called them days ago, but she'd been avoiding it because she wasn't quite sure what to say.
Reaching for her hairbrush, she stared at her reflection in the mirror. Christmas always made her depressed, she acknowledge with a sigh. When she was younger it had been because she didn't have a 'real' family to celebrate it with, then it was because she knew Mom and Dad were struggling just to pay the bills, let alone buy them all presents. This year should have made her happy, because Dark Specter was gone , Karone was free, and they were all together again. But all she could think about was how big Sammy must be getting, how Paige must be driving Tony nuts, how much she missed her talks with Mitch. She looked at T.J. and wondered what her parents would have thought of her being a Ranger. Mom wouldn't yell - she never did - but would she be proud? Angry? What would Dad say?
Would they even care?
She shuddered slightly, setting down the brush and rubbing her hands over her face. I need to get past this. I need to ... I need to go throw Zhane out the cargo bay, and cover my shift for Ranger Base.
She swallowed, straightening, and went to collect T.J. so they could find Zhane. I need to move on with my life.
****
"You're all a bunch of sooges," Zhane grumbled, visibly pouting in his place at the table.
"That's scrooges," Cassie corrected absently as she took a plate of pancakes from the synthetron. "And we're not scrooges. We just don't like waking up at seven in the morning to Christmas carols trying to knock out our ear drums."
Zhane frowned. "How do they - "
"Earth-ism," T.J. interrupted, making Zhane huff. "She means we don't like being woken up early thinking there's an attack." He took a sip of his orange juice. "I would have figured Andros would have nearly killed you for something like this a long time ago."
"He did," Zhane sulked. "But he's a lot nicer with Karone around."
Cassie gave him an odd look. "He is?"
Zhane nodded. "He won't admit it, but he's trying to set a good example and not scare her away. He doesn't know she knows what he's doing, and she thinks it's funny."
T.J. glanced toward the door. "How are they?" he asked quietly.
Zhane sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. "It's awkward," he admitted. "She doesn't remember the last three months, and Andros is still ... " He paused, frowning as he searched for words. "He's still thinking of her as Karone, and she's still thinking of herself as Astronema," he said finally. "I've been running interference as best I can, but ... " He shrugged helplessly.
Cassie reached across the table to squeeze his hand, frowning in worry. "We'll help out as much as we can," she promised.
He glanced up at her and smiled a little. "I already knew *that*," he mocked gently, but there was gratitude in his eyes.
"Mail," Andros announced as he joined them, carrying a large mail sack, Karone following behind with another. The other three groaned.
"It's a holiday," Cassie protested. "There's no mail service on national holidays."
"No," Karone agreed. "This is the just what we haven't gotten to yet."
"Why didn't D.E.C.A. sort it this time?" T.J. complained. "It makes things so much easier."
Andros gave him a look, reaching in and pulling out a smaller bag with 'Blue Ranger' printed across it. "She did."
Cassie sighed as she took the 'Pink Ranger' bag from Karone, while Zhane tore into the 'Silver Ranger' bag with glee. The fan mail had accumulated over the week they'd been on KO-35, and eventually the other Rangers had set up several P.O. boxes for the Astro team for the sanity of the post office and safety of their families. There was an individual box for each member of the team, while the letters addressed to all of them were usually given to Karone to read and answer. D.E.C.A. teleported letters and packages daily for them, scanning each for any signs of anything suspicious. Then she would sort out what she'd scanned by name, and inform the Rangers the mail had come.
Breakfast was usually the best time to go over them, even if it did take a long time. Several days of trying to read them all had taught Cassie to organize her own system: a pile of letters from children, which usually required a reply, even if it was only a thank you; a pile from older fans, which needed to be gone over carefully, because some weren't as friendly as others; and a pile from government agencies, publishers, and reporters, all requesting some sort of service, special deal, or interview. The last pile was mostly ignored.
"So who got the book deal today?" T.J. asked, flipping through his own stack.
"Me," Zhane answered. He waved a hand distractedly at a letter off to the side as he read the one in his hand, which had stickers all over it. "Promised me a great percentage for the inside scoop. Better than the last guy. Any stalkers today?"
"Just that one for Carlos again," Karone murmured, opening a package. Her eyebrows raised. "Someone made you T-shirts for Christmas."
Zhane looked up in interest. "Really?"
She reached in, pulling out a large red T-shirt. The front loudly proclaimed 'I defeated Astronema!' in bold white letters. She looked at her brother, the corner of her mouth twitching. "Can I have it?"
Andros stared at her, looking more than slightly disturbed. At last he shook his head, going back to his bag. "Go ahead."
Cassie laughed as Karone promptly pulled the shirt over her head. It would have been large on Andros; Karone was swimming in it. "Do they all say the same thing?"
In answer, Karone pulled out color-coded T-shirts for each of them. T.J.'s said 'I saved the world!', Carlos had 'Protector of Earth', while Zhane's was 'Intergalactic Hero'. Ashley's shirt said 'I'm the cute one!', and Cassie wondered if she'd be insulted or not.
Zhane grinned brightly as he immediately pulled his shirt on. "What?" he asked innocently as they all stared at him, amused. "You know how hard it is to find silver clothing on this planet?"
Cassie chuckled, looking at her own shirt with a wry smile. Hers was a blinding shade of hot pink she would never have personally chosen to wear, and but not nearly as big as the guys' shirts were. The lettering on the front said 'Pink is Power', which made her grin.
She was in the middle of sorting through her mail when her fingers closed on small package with familiar handwriting. Her eyes caught the name, and she froze.
"Cassie?" T.J.'s hand touched her arm. "You okay?"
"Hate mail?" Andros asked, sounding irritated. He usually received the most of it, but the others had their own share.
She shook her head slowly. "It's ... from my relatives. In Stone Canyon."
"The ones you were going to live with?" T.J. said in surprise.
She nodded, swallowing as she carefully began to open the manila envelope. "I was going to try and call them today ... "
The first thing she found was a shirt. Unlike the hideous hot pink one, this was black, with a delicate flower pattern along the right side and sleeve in pink foil. It was exactly the sort of thing she would have worn ... before, and the thought made her throat feel tight.
As she unfolded the shirt, she discovered a phone card and a brand-new pager, still in its box, wrapped inside. A note with instructions on how to use it was taped to the box in that same familiar handwriting. Underneath another person had written 'USE THIS' in bold, capital letters underlined three times.
Blinking hard, she checked the envelope and found a Christmas card, signed by them both, with a hand-written letter tucked in. The letter was Kelly's handwriting, complete with the fuchsia lipstick kiss next to her signature. The card bore the same mark, while below Christian's name he had added 'Use the damn card before I drive to Angel Grove myself just to kick your ass.'
She laughed, one hand coming up to her lips as she tried to blink back the tears. He would too, and they both knew it. Chris wasn't anywhere near as bad as Mitch and Tony in temper or overprotectiveness, but he was still determined to look out for her for some reason. Arguing the point just left them both with headaches and sore throats, and Kelly laughing softly at them.
"You okay, Cassie?"
She looked up to see that the others had all abandoned their mail, and were now watching her in concern. She managed a weak smile, shaking her head. "I'm fine," she murmured. "It's just ... I didn't realize how much I missed them, I guess."
"Why didn't you spend Christmas with them, then?" T.J. asked gently, rubbing her arm.
She shrugged a little. "I really don't know them that well. They help me out a lot, but it's not because we're close. They just ... do."
Which wasn't strictly true, but she wasn't ready to explain that. She loved her friends, but her past wasn't something she really wanted to air out in front of them all.
Living with it on her own was hard enough..
****
"Cassie!" Ashley greeted with a squeal, throwing her arms around her neck before the pink sparkles had even completely faded. "You made it!"
"I figured you'd kidnap me if I didn't," she teased, hugging her back. "Sorry I'm late; I was on duty for Ranger Base."
"It's fine," Ashley dismissed, waving a hand. "I'm just glad everybody's here!"
"This is a pretty big crowd," Cassie agreed warily, glancing around. Carlos had gone to greet T.J. and the others, and she could see his mom hovering just behind him. Like the Hammonds, Arsenia had known who they were since they'd returned from space, and supported them completely, but Carlos was all she had. She never held him back, but she worried, and they all knew it. Carlos never talked about it much, but Cassie had come to realize he was just as protective of his mother as she was of him.
In one corner she could see Devon and Tabitha squabbling over something, while their cousin Nikki broke them up with a stern glare. Kevin was watching a football game with a couple of relatives Cassie didn't recognize, and she could hear several people in the kitchen. Melanie breezed through long enough to smack her husband over the head with a magazine, much to the amusement of everyone around him, and flash Cassie a smile before disappearing again.
Cassie smiled a little as she looked at her friends gathered in their own side of the room. Karone had brought the T-shirts from this morning - still wearing the one she'd taken from Andros - and Ashley was wrinkling her nose at her own. Zhane said something that made her smack his arm while everyone laughed.
She shook her head with another rueful smile, already moving to join them. It still hurt to think a little to see the Hammond family laughing together, or Arsenia shyly talking with Melanie while occasionally glancing at Carlos, but Chris and Kelly's package had helped. They weren't family exactly, but they were the closest thing she had now outside the Rangers. She hadn't been able to call them yet because of her shift on the Dark Fortress, but she promised herself she'd call tomorrow.
Her eyes moved across the living room again almost absently, sweeping over each face out of habit more than anything. It was something she'd started doing as a Ranger, because you could never tell where the Monster of the Week or a Piranhatron - or Quantron - patrol might be hiding. It was better to be safe than sorry.
She actually passed over the woman in the corner near the door before her face finally registered. When it did, she froze, her heart leaping to her throat. It couldn't ... she *couldn't* be here ...
Slowly, she turned to stare.
The woman stared back at her.
She was moving before she was even aware of it, stopping only when her back hit the wall. There were people calling her name, someone was trying to touch her arm, but it didn't matter. She closed her eyes, shaking her head as she tried to block the image from her mind. It couldn't ... she couldn't be ...
"No no no no no ... "
She barely acknowledged the words as her own.
There were more people talking, trying to catch her attention. She kept her eyes closed, head bowed, wrapping her arms around herself and shuddering. This can't be happening. Not now. Not after everything.
One voice cut through the din around her.
"Cassandra."
She shuddered again, feeling tears slip down her cheeks anyway. "No," she mumbled. "No."
"Look at me, Cassandra."
She shook her head. She didn't want see. She couldn't.
"Cassandra Christine, look at me."
The voice was one she'd heard and responded to for six years. But that wasn't what made her finally force herself to look up. The tone was firm, but there was no anger in it.
She raised her head slowly, daring to hope.
Amy Reynolds stared back at her with the tender, loving expression she'd dreamed of for over a year. One hand reached out slowly, gently cupping Cassie's cheek. "Cassandra, whatever this is, we'll fix it," she promised quietly. "We'll make it work."
Cassie burst into tears, throwing herself into the woman's arms with a sob. "*Mom*!"
Which, ironically, has very little to do with this chapter. I'm just posting it anyway.
Title/: Cataclysm
Author/: Tsukino Akume
Relationship/: Andros/Ashley, Zhane/Karone, mentions of Cassie/Phantom
Rating/: K+
Warnings/: emotional trauma, mentally disturbed people, depression
Disclaimer/: If I owned the Power Rangers, this universe would exist. We would have known who the Phantom Ranger was - and it *would* have been a girl because I'm weird like that - and team snuggles would be mandatory every episode. As none of that is cannon, it's safe to assume that I don't.
Summary/: When Astronema was defeated, the Astro Rangers gave up more than their Powers. Reporters, fans, and long-lost relatives are coming out of the woodwork as the team struggles to adjust to it all. Bright Skies Universe.
Theme/: #33. Busted
Author's Notes/: Much love to lunaria_kitty and rosabelle for massive amounts of help plotting this chapter, and beta work. ♥
For lunaria_kitty, because she's wonderful and in need of hugs, and purplestripe66 , because she needs something to smile about. (Dare you to picture Karone in The Shirt.
"Welcome Christmas, Christmas day!"
Cassie jerked awake, her hands already clenching into fists at the foreign sound. It took a moment to register that she was hearing the song from Dr. Seuss' The Grinch, and it was somehow blaring throughout the entire Megaship. She blinked rapidly, reaching up to rub her forehead in hopes of preventing the growing headache. Her eyes flickered to the other side of the bed, where T.J. lay staring at her.
"I vote for throwing him out the cargo bay," T.J. informed her solemnly.
She nodded slowly. "As soon as possible." She paused to stretch, sitting up slowly with a grimace. "Think Andros and Karone will help?"
"If they don't, we can always throw them out, too."
"I like that plan," she agreed. She paused to give him a hug before she stood. "Merry Christmas," she added with a wry smile.
He made a face at her. "Merry Christmas."
The megaship was more crowded this year than she'd expected it would be, she reflected as she grabbed a uniform and headed for the shower. Andros, Zhane and Karone had stayed of course, and Cassie had joined them despite Ashley's protests, because her cousin Nikki was visiting, and there really wasn't enough room at the Hammonds right now. T.J. had moved back up to the megaship to avoid his mom and give Jake a break from their fight. He hadn't talked about it much, but from what Cassie was able to get, she was angry at him for being a Ranger, and he was mad that she was angry at all.
The thought made her sigh as she turned on the water. She didn't blame T.J.; while he loved his family, they hadn't exactly kept in touch with him very well since he'd moved to Angel Grove. But she was jealous. His family wasn't perfect, but at least he knew they cared.
She sighed, leaning her head against the shower wall. My family *does* care, she reminded herself. That's half the problem.
But she couldn't say she didn't miss them. This year wasn't quite as bad as last Christmas, because then she'd only known the rest of the team for two months, and while they were friends, they really hadn't known each other all that well. She'd ended up spending the day alone in her apartment with Jetson, managing a call to Christian and Kelly around mid-afternoon before Ashley showed up to kidnap her for dinner at the Hammonds'.
This year she was with her friends, which helped. Zhane had embraced the concept of Christmas with an enthusiasm that was frightening, and now the megaship was covered in every possible Christmas decoration known to man. D.E.C.A. was less than pleased, while Andros only tolerated it because Karone thought it was interesting. T.J. had just sort of looked at her and sighed, and they mutually agreed to bear the massive eyesore the megaship had become with good humor.
At least until Zhane had discovered Christmas came with its own soundtrack.
She shut off the water and reached for a towel with a sigh. The plan for this year was to put in her shift on the Dark Fortress before Ashley showed up to drag the entire team to Christmas dinner with her family. At some point she planned to try and convince herself to call Christian and Kelly again, because she hadn't spoken to them in months, and because Chris would probably like to know he didn't need to pay for her apartment anymore. She really should have called them days ago, but she'd been avoiding it because she wasn't quite sure what to say.
Reaching for her hairbrush, she stared at her reflection in the mirror. Christmas always made her depressed, she acknowledge with a sigh. When she was younger it had been because she didn't have a 'real' family to celebrate it with, then it was because she knew Mom and Dad were struggling just to pay the bills, let alone buy them all presents. This year should have made her happy, because Dark Specter was gone , Karone was free, and they were all together again. But all she could think about was how big Sammy must be getting, how Paige must be driving Tony nuts, how much she missed her talks with Mitch. She looked at T.J. and wondered what her parents would have thought of her being a Ranger. Mom wouldn't yell - she never did - but would she be proud? Angry? What would Dad say?
Would they even care?
She shuddered slightly, setting down the brush and rubbing her hands over her face. I need to get past this. I need to ... I need to go throw Zhane out the cargo bay, and cover my shift for Ranger Base.
She swallowed, straightening, and went to collect T.J. so they could find Zhane. I need to move on with my life.
****
"You're all a bunch of sooges," Zhane grumbled, visibly pouting in his place at the table.
"That's scrooges," Cassie corrected absently as she took a plate of pancakes from the synthetron. "And we're not scrooges. We just don't like waking up at seven in the morning to Christmas carols trying to knock out our ear drums."
Zhane frowned. "How do they - "
"Earth-ism," T.J. interrupted, making Zhane huff. "She means we don't like being woken up early thinking there's an attack." He took a sip of his orange juice. "I would have figured Andros would have nearly killed you for something like this a long time ago."
"He did," Zhane sulked. "But he's a lot nicer with Karone around."
Cassie gave him an odd look. "He is?"
Zhane nodded. "He won't admit it, but he's trying to set a good example and not scare her away. He doesn't know she knows what he's doing, and she thinks it's funny."
T.J. glanced toward the door. "How are they?" he asked quietly.
Zhane sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. "It's awkward," he admitted. "She doesn't remember the last three months, and Andros is still ... " He paused, frowning as he searched for words. "He's still thinking of her as Karone, and she's still thinking of herself as Astronema," he said finally. "I've been running interference as best I can, but ... " He shrugged helplessly.
Cassie reached across the table to squeeze his hand, frowning in worry. "We'll help out as much as we can," she promised.
He glanced up at her and smiled a little. "I already knew *that*," he mocked gently, but there was gratitude in his eyes.
"Mail," Andros announced as he joined them, carrying a large mail sack, Karone following behind with another. The other three groaned.
"It's a holiday," Cassie protested. "There's no mail service on national holidays."
"No," Karone agreed. "This is the just what we haven't gotten to yet."
"Why didn't D.E.C.A. sort it this time?" T.J. complained. "It makes things so much easier."
Andros gave him a look, reaching in and pulling out a smaller bag with 'Blue Ranger' printed across it. "She did."
Cassie sighed as she took the 'Pink Ranger' bag from Karone, while Zhane tore into the 'Silver Ranger' bag with glee. The fan mail had accumulated over the week they'd been on KO-35, and eventually the other Rangers had set up several P.O. boxes for the Astro team for the sanity of the post office and safety of their families. There was an individual box for each member of the team, while the letters addressed to all of them were usually given to Karone to read and answer. D.E.C.A. teleported letters and packages daily for them, scanning each for any signs of anything suspicious. Then she would sort out what she'd scanned by name, and inform the Rangers the mail had come.
Breakfast was usually the best time to go over them, even if it did take a long time. Several days of trying to read them all had taught Cassie to organize her own system: a pile of letters from children, which usually required a reply, even if it was only a thank you; a pile from older fans, which needed to be gone over carefully, because some weren't as friendly as others; and a pile from government agencies, publishers, and reporters, all requesting some sort of service, special deal, or interview. The last pile was mostly ignored.
"So who got the book deal today?" T.J. asked, flipping through his own stack.
"Me," Zhane answered. He waved a hand distractedly at a letter off to the side as he read the one in his hand, which had stickers all over it. "Promised me a great percentage for the inside scoop. Better than the last guy. Any stalkers today?"
"Just that one for Carlos again," Karone murmured, opening a package. Her eyebrows raised. "Someone made you T-shirts for Christmas."
Zhane looked up in interest. "Really?"
She reached in, pulling out a large red T-shirt. The front loudly proclaimed 'I defeated Astronema!' in bold white letters. She looked at her brother, the corner of her mouth twitching. "Can I have it?"
Andros stared at her, looking more than slightly disturbed. At last he shook his head, going back to his bag. "Go ahead."
Cassie laughed as Karone promptly pulled the shirt over her head. It would have been large on Andros; Karone was swimming in it. "Do they all say the same thing?"
In answer, Karone pulled out color-coded T-shirts for each of them. T.J.'s said 'I saved the world!', Carlos had 'Protector of Earth', while Zhane's was 'Intergalactic Hero'. Ashley's shirt said 'I'm the cute one!', and Cassie wondered if she'd be insulted or not.
Zhane grinned brightly as he immediately pulled his shirt on. "What?" he asked innocently as they all stared at him, amused. "You know how hard it is to find silver clothing on this planet?"
Cassie chuckled, looking at her own shirt with a wry smile. Hers was a blinding shade of hot pink she would never have personally chosen to wear, and but not nearly as big as the guys' shirts were. The lettering on the front said 'Pink is Power', which made her grin.
She was in the middle of sorting through her mail when her fingers closed on small package with familiar handwriting. Her eyes caught the name, and she froze.
"Cassie?" T.J.'s hand touched her arm. "You okay?"
"Hate mail?" Andros asked, sounding irritated. He usually received the most of it, but the others had their own share.
She shook her head slowly. "It's ... from my relatives. In Stone Canyon."
"The ones you were going to live with?" T.J. said in surprise.
She nodded, swallowing as she carefully began to open the manila envelope. "I was going to try and call them today ... "
The first thing she found was a shirt. Unlike the hideous hot pink one, this was black, with a delicate flower pattern along the right side and sleeve in pink foil. It was exactly the sort of thing she would have worn ... before, and the thought made her throat feel tight.
As she unfolded the shirt, she discovered a phone card and a brand-new pager, still in its box, wrapped inside. A note with instructions on how to use it was taped to the box in that same familiar handwriting. Underneath another person had written 'USE THIS' in bold, capital letters underlined three times.
Blinking hard, she checked the envelope and found a Christmas card, signed by them both, with a hand-written letter tucked in. The letter was Kelly's handwriting, complete with the fuchsia lipstick kiss next to her signature. The card bore the same mark, while below Christian's name he had added 'Use the damn card before I drive to Angel Grove myself just to kick your ass.'
She laughed, one hand coming up to her lips as she tried to blink back the tears. He would too, and they both knew it. Chris wasn't anywhere near as bad as Mitch and Tony in temper or overprotectiveness, but he was still determined to look out for her for some reason. Arguing the point just left them both with headaches and sore throats, and Kelly laughing softly at them.
"You okay, Cassie?"
She looked up to see that the others had all abandoned their mail, and were now watching her in concern. She managed a weak smile, shaking her head. "I'm fine," she murmured. "It's just ... I didn't realize how much I missed them, I guess."
"Why didn't you spend Christmas with them, then?" T.J. asked gently, rubbing her arm.
She shrugged a little. "I really don't know them that well. They help me out a lot, but it's not because we're close. They just ... do."
Which wasn't strictly true, but she wasn't ready to explain that. She loved her friends, but her past wasn't something she really wanted to air out in front of them all.
Living with it on her own was hard enough..
****
"Cassie!" Ashley greeted with a squeal, throwing her arms around her neck before the pink sparkles had even completely faded. "You made it!"
"I figured you'd kidnap me if I didn't," she teased, hugging her back. "Sorry I'm late; I was on duty for Ranger Base."
"It's fine," Ashley dismissed, waving a hand. "I'm just glad everybody's here!"
"This is a pretty big crowd," Cassie agreed warily, glancing around. Carlos had gone to greet T.J. and the others, and she could see his mom hovering just behind him. Like the Hammonds, Arsenia had known who they were since they'd returned from space, and supported them completely, but Carlos was all she had. She never held him back, but she worried, and they all knew it. Carlos never talked about it much, but Cassie had come to realize he was just as protective of his mother as she was of him.
In one corner she could see Devon and Tabitha squabbling over something, while their cousin Nikki broke them up with a stern glare. Kevin was watching a football game with a couple of relatives Cassie didn't recognize, and she could hear several people in the kitchen. Melanie breezed through long enough to smack her husband over the head with a magazine, much to the amusement of everyone around him, and flash Cassie a smile before disappearing again.
Cassie smiled a little as she looked at her friends gathered in their own side of the room. Karone had brought the T-shirts from this morning - still wearing the one she'd taken from Andros - and Ashley was wrinkling her nose at her own. Zhane said something that made her smack his arm while everyone laughed.
She shook her head with another rueful smile, already moving to join them. It still hurt to think a little to see the Hammond family laughing together, or Arsenia shyly talking with Melanie while occasionally glancing at Carlos, but Chris and Kelly's package had helped. They weren't family exactly, but they were the closest thing she had now outside the Rangers. She hadn't been able to call them yet because of her shift on the Dark Fortress, but she promised herself she'd call tomorrow.
Her eyes moved across the living room again almost absently, sweeping over each face out of habit more than anything. It was something she'd started doing as a Ranger, because you could never tell where the Monster of the Week or a Piranhatron - or Quantron - patrol might be hiding. It was better to be safe than sorry.
She actually passed over the woman in the corner near the door before her face finally registered. When it did, she froze, her heart leaping to her throat. It couldn't ... she *couldn't* be here ...
Slowly, she turned to stare.
The woman stared back at her.
She was moving before she was even aware of it, stopping only when her back hit the wall. There were people calling her name, someone was trying to touch her arm, but it didn't matter. She closed her eyes, shaking her head as she tried to block the image from her mind. It couldn't ... she couldn't be ...
"No no no no no ... "
She barely acknowledged the words as her own.
There were more people talking, trying to catch her attention. She kept her eyes closed, head bowed, wrapping her arms around herself and shuddering. This can't be happening. Not now. Not after everything.
One voice cut through the din around her.
"Cassandra."
She shuddered again, feeling tears slip down her cheeks anyway. "No," she mumbled. "No."
"Look at me, Cassandra."
She shook her head. She didn't want see. She couldn't.
"Cassandra Christine, look at me."
The voice was one she'd heard and responded to for six years. But that wasn't what made her finally force herself to look up. The tone was firm, but there was no anger in it.
She raised her head slowly, daring to hope.
Amy Reynolds stared back at her with the tender, loving expression she'd dreamed of for over a year. One hand reached out slowly, gently cupping Cassie's cheek. "Cassandra, whatever this is, we'll fix it," she promised quietly. "We'll make it work."
Cassie burst into tears, throwing herself into the woman's arms with a sob. "*Mom*!"