Cataclysm (Tsukino Akume, Drama/Friendship)
SPF 100 is a *LIE*.
Granted, I'm only a little red. But considering how high a number I used of sunblock and the fact that I sat in the shade all morning, this is disturbing. -Ignores the fact that she's feakishly pale-skinned-
But on the other hand, garage sales lead to plotting! (And lots of boredom.)
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/: #76. Walk
Author's Notes/: This picture helped inspire the first part of the chapter, because the guy looks freakishly like Andros. o.O
For lunaria_kitty, because she asked for Andros and Cassie bonding. ♥
"Can't sleep?"
The voice was soft enough that she didn't startle when it broke the silence. She glanced up to see Andros silhouetted in the doorway to the Glider Bay. She shrugged a little, making no move to get up from the table.
"Lights." He moved to join her, sitting beside her instead of across. "I thought sitting in the dark and brooding was supposed to be my thing."
His voice was gentle, teasing in a way Andros rarely was, and she eventually lifted a shoulder again. "Sorry to steal your shtick," she murmured.
There was a pause, and she waited for him to ask what a 'shtick' was. But he stayed quiet, watching her for a few minutes. "Wanna go for a walk?" he offered finally.
She opened her mouth to say no and stopped. At last she nodded, and he gave her another soft smile. His arm went around her as they stood, and she heard him ask D.E.C.A. to send them to Angel Grove Lake just before the world dissolved into pink sparkles.
It was quiet. Few people came to the park at night, even now that Astronema was gone. Before it was common sense; now it was just habit. The result was peaceful, letting the two of them walk around the lake's edge in silence as she hugged her arms for warmth and looked up at the stars.
"Thank you," Andros said suddenly.
She glanced at him. "For what?"
He hesitated. "I was ... watching," he admitted. "When the three of you went to talk to them today." Almost yesterday now, but neither of them really cared. "I saw the way you defended me and what I did, and I wanted to thank you for that."
She frowned. "You're my friend. Of course I'd defend you." She paused, realizing what the real problem was, and moved closer to put a hand on his shoulder. "Andros ... you did the right thing."
He flinched. She pretended not to notice. "I know it was hard, and that it wasn't easy for you. I know you wish you hadn't. But you did the right thing."
He closed his eyes, swallowing hard. "I'm not so sure I can believe that," he confessed.
"I do," she said simply. "Whenever you have trouble remembering that it was right, come to me. I'll remind you."
He smiled a little. "Does that mean you'll let me help you?"
She dropped her hand, turning to look out at the lake and closing her eyes as she hugged herself again. "I don't know if you can. I don't know if anyone can," she admitted softly.
This time it was his hand on her shoulder, and he stepped closer to wrap his arm around her. "I used to think that. Once. But then a very wise person told me we're all in this together."
A reluctant smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. "Really."
"Really," he confirmed, and his other arm came up to pull her into a hug. "I'll leave it alone if you really want me to. But if you need someone to listen, I can do that, too."
For a long moment, she debated. She really *didn't* want to unload on him, but at the same time Andros wasn't normally the caring and sharing type, and if they were ever going to break him of that habit, she'd have to encourage him while she could. "That's so not fair," she muttered. She was still starting across the lake, but she knew instinctively he was trying not to smile. She thought about elbowing him in the gut just because she could, and decided against it.
Instead she sighed. "You know the feeling when everything just keeps building up, and you want to deal with it or ignore it, but it's too much to deal with at once, and you end up getting buried in it until you just explode?"
"Unfortunately."
"Yeah. It's like that."
"What's like that?" he pressed.
She huffed, shrugging the shoulder he wasn't leaning against. "Everything? It just seems like ever since we came back to Earth all this stuff just keeps happening one after another, and I just ... I can't handle it anymore."
"That's why you have us."
She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. It was weird to have him standing this close to her at all, let alone when they weren't trying to stare at the same monitor screen, and as much as she wanted him to back off, she knew it wouldn't help either of them. She had a feeling he knew it too, which annoyed her all the more. "You're a hypocrite, you know that?"
She felt him shrug, and now she *knew* he was smiling. Jerk. "Runs in the team." He paused, squeezing her slightly. "Why don't you try breaking it down for me?"
She sighed again, tilting her head to lean against his. "My parents. My brother and sister. My brother. People knowing who we are. People taking my picture." Anger surged, and she swallowed, trying to force herself to calm down. "Carlos. This stupid press conference. The former Rangers." She stopped, taking a deep breath, and eyed him again. "You pushing me to talk about everything."
"You don't have to," he reminded her.
She rolled her eyes. "But you never ask, so I feel like if I don't tell you, I'll ruin whatever social skills you're finally developing. If it were anyone but you asking, I wouldn't have to worry about it."
"I *have* social skills," he huffed, sounding like himself for the first time that night.
"Uh huh. So which one of us are you trying to imagine what they would say in this situation?"
There was a long pause.
"Ashley and Zhane," he muttered eventually, sounding sulky.
It wasn't funny, but she laughed anyway.
They fell silent again, but it seemed less awkward this time. She leaned into him a little more, and he adjusted his arm to hug her more comfortably. "So does this go both ways?" she murmured. "If I ask you what's bothering you, will you tell me?"
"I think one of us having a breakdown at a time is enough for now."
She rolled her eyes.
After a moment, he sighed quietly. " ... I'm worried. About the conference mostly, but Karone, too."
She frowned. "Because of the conference?"
"Yeah," he muttered. "I ... I don't want her there. It isn't safe. But if I tell her that, she'll just ignore me."
"Probably," she agreed.
"Definitely," he countered, sounding annoyed. "Sometimes I think she does things just to contradict me."
She smiled faintly. "Most likely. Tony and I are like that." She swallowed, tears pricking her eyes. "We used to be like that," she corrected quietly.
Andros was silent for a moment. "Karone and I never contradicted each other before," he said finally, sounding pained. "We always agreed on everything."
She reached up to squeeze his hand. "But you've both grown up since then," she reminded him softly. "You're not kids anymore. You've lived different lives, and you're different people. It makes things different, but that's not necessarily a bad thing."
"It feels like it is," he whispered.
She turned around to give him a hug, closing her eyes. "Yeah," she admitted, swallowing down the lump in her throat again. "It does."
It was sort of funny. Andros was her friend, her teammate, but she'd never thought much about the similarities between them before. There weren't many, but the others didn't know what it was like to be a twin, let alone to lose one. She and Tony may not be actually related the way Andros and Karone were, but the feelings were still the same. It was hard to rebuild a relationship with your best friend when they weren't the person you remembered anymore.
The sound of sand crunching softly beneath feet made her spin, instinctively striking up a defensive stance as Andros did the same. The person stopped walking; holding up their hands in surrender. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I didn't mean to startle you."
Cassie lowered her arms slowly in recognition, but didn't relax. "What are you doing here?" It came out ruder than she'd meant to sound, but she didn't apologize.
A slight shrug. "I think a lot of us are having trouble sleeping tonight."
She wasn't reassured, especially with Andros standing slightly behind her, stiff as a board. "What do you want, Trini?"
"A lot of things," came the quiet reply. "World peace. A new car. Hot chocolate. For Billy to come home. For Zordon to still be alive." She shrugged again. "At the moment, I want to stop fighting with you. I want to understand, so we can be friends again."
"*We* weren't the ones that changed that!" Cassie snapped.
Andros put a hand on her shoulder, squeezing slightly as he took a step forward. He looked at Trini solemnly, and Cassie clenched her fists again as she recognized his 'diplomatic' expression. "What will it take for us to be at peace with you?"
Trini looked at him for a moment. "How did he die?" she asked softly.
It was the first time Cassie hadn't seen him flinch at the thought of Zordon. Instead, he took a slow, deep breath. "Karone - my sister - was still Astronema. She attacked me. I tried to defend myself without hurting her, but she - " He cut off, sounding choked.
Cassie moved in closer, pressing against his shoulder in silent support. She wanted to tell him to stop, to tell Trini to leave it alone, but the look on his face told her he wouldn't let her. He wouldn't talk about what had happened on his own, but if the memory would help someone else to find closure, he'd force himself to suffer through it.
It was one of his more annoying self-destructive tendencies.
"Karone fell," he whispered finally, and even in the darkness she could see the tears in his eyes. "Ecliptor forced the door open and attacked me. He was grieving. He ... he said she was like a daughter to him." He swallowed hard, and she slipped her hand into his, squeezing gently. He took another slow breath, giving a slight squeeze back.
"Zordon's tube was behind me. When I first found him, he'd asked me to destroy him. But I couldn't. Zordon ... Zordon was my friend. When KO-35 fell, and all I had left was D.E.C.A. and the Astro Megaship, Zordon was the one who kept me going. He wouldn't let me give up. I didn't - " He stopped again, shuddering slightly.
"I didn't want to do it," he said finally. "But Karone was gone, and Dark Spectre was winning, and Zordon said that the energy in his tube could stop it all. And so ... " He swallowed again. "So I destroyed it. The last thing I remember is hearing his voice in my head, saying 'thank you'."
"'Remember your mission'," Cassie murmured, thinking of the voice she'd heard when the golden wave hit her, just before she demorphed.
"'I love you'," Trini whispered, a tear slipping down her cheek. "'Goodbye'."
They stood in silence for several minutes, Cassie holding onto Andros protectively while he waited for Trini's judgment, and Trini crying softly.
Eventually it was Trini who broke the quiet again, looking up at Andros with a slight sniffle as she tried to compose herself. "He was your friend?"
Andros nodded, swallowing hard. "If Zordon hadn't contacted me ... " He stopped, closing his eyes. "Without Zordon, I wouldn't be here now."
Neither of them needed to ask what he was implying, and Cassie felt tears prick her eyes at the thought.
Trini reached out, taking both of his hands in hers. Andros looked startled, and it was all Cassie could do to keep from pushing the other girl away. "I'm glad," she said simply, giving his hands a squeeze. "I'm glad that he was there for you."
She took a deep breath, closing her eyes briefly. Tears shone when she opened them again. "I'm not ready to forgive you," she admitted. "I understand, and I know now that it wasn't your fault. This was Zordon's choice. I just - " Her voice caught, and she shook her head. "I don't blame you. And I know that someday I *will* be able to forgive you. I'm just not quite there yet."
There was a long silence.
"I understand," Andros said finally, and Cassie cringed inwardly at the flat, emotionless tone.
Trini gave him a sad smile. "No, you don't." She took another deep breath. "I'll talk to the others," she said finally, turning to include Cassie now. "You're right. Things can't go on like this. We need to start working together again." She swallowed. "For Zordon, if nothing else."
"We'll do what we can," Cassie told her as Andros remained silent. She hesitated. "We're holding a press conference next Wednesday - "
"We'll be there," Trini assured her. She frowned slightly. "I'm not sure who yet, but some of us will be there to help."
"Thank you," Cassie returned, because it needed to be said even if she didn't mean it.
Trini smiled warmly at her before turning to consider Andros again. After a moment, she leaned forward to kiss his cheek. "We'll be in touch," she promised, squeezing his hands briefly before releasing him. "Good night."
They stood in silence, watching her walk away. Cassie pressed closer against his shoulder again, and he leaned into her gratefully. "Do you really think she'll talk to them?" she asked finally.
"I don't know," he returned quietly. There was a pause. "Do you think she meant it?"
She didn't pretend to misunderstand. "I don't know." But she better have, she finished silently.
Granted, I'm only a little red. But considering how high a number I used of sunblock and the fact that I sat in the shade all morning, this is disturbing. -Ignores the fact that she's feakishly pale-skinned-
But on the other hand, garage sales lead to plotting! (And lots of boredom.)
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/: #76. Walk
Author's Notes/: This picture helped inspire the first part of the chapter, because the guy looks freakishly like Andros. o.O
For lunaria_kitty, because she asked for Andros and Cassie bonding. ♥
"Can't sleep?"
The voice was soft enough that she didn't startle when it broke the silence. She glanced up to see Andros silhouetted in the doorway to the Glider Bay. She shrugged a little, making no move to get up from the table.
"Lights." He moved to join her, sitting beside her instead of across. "I thought sitting in the dark and brooding was supposed to be my thing."
His voice was gentle, teasing in a way Andros rarely was, and she eventually lifted a shoulder again. "Sorry to steal your shtick," she murmured.
There was a pause, and she waited for him to ask what a 'shtick' was. But he stayed quiet, watching her for a few minutes. "Wanna go for a walk?" he offered finally.
She opened her mouth to say no and stopped. At last she nodded, and he gave her another soft smile. His arm went around her as they stood, and she heard him ask D.E.C.A. to send them to Angel Grove Lake just before the world dissolved into pink sparkles.
It was quiet. Few people came to the park at night, even now that Astronema was gone. Before it was common sense; now it was just habit. The result was peaceful, letting the two of them walk around the lake's edge in silence as she hugged her arms for warmth and looked up at the stars.
"Thank you," Andros said suddenly.
She glanced at him. "For what?"
He hesitated. "I was ... watching," he admitted. "When the three of you went to talk to them today." Almost yesterday now, but neither of them really cared. "I saw the way you defended me and what I did, and I wanted to thank you for that."
She frowned. "You're my friend. Of course I'd defend you." She paused, realizing what the real problem was, and moved closer to put a hand on his shoulder. "Andros ... you did the right thing."
He flinched. She pretended not to notice. "I know it was hard, and that it wasn't easy for you. I know you wish you hadn't. But you did the right thing."
He closed his eyes, swallowing hard. "I'm not so sure I can believe that," he confessed.
"I do," she said simply. "Whenever you have trouble remembering that it was right, come to me. I'll remind you."
He smiled a little. "Does that mean you'll let me help you?"
She dropped her hand, turning to look out at the lake and closing her eyes as she hugged herself again. "I don't know if you can. I don't know if anyone can," she admitted softly.
This time it was his hand on her shoulder, and he stepped closer to wrap his arm around her. "I used to think that. Once. But then a very wise person told me we're all in this together."
A reluctant smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. "Really."
"Really," he confirmed, and his other arm came up to pull her into a hug. "I'll leave it alone if you really want me to. But if you need someone to listen, I can do that, too."
For a long moment, she debated. She really *didn't* want to unload on him, but at the same time Andros wasn't normally the caring and sharing type, and if they were ever going to break him of that habit, she'd have to encourage him while she could. "That's so not fair," she muttered. She was still starting across the lake, but she knew instinctively he was trying not to smile. She thought about elbowing him in the gut just because she could, and decided against it.
Instead she sighed. "You know the feeling when everything just keeps building up, and you want to deal with it or ignore it, but it's too much to deal with at once, and you end up getting buried in it until you just explode?"
"Unfortunately."
"Yeah. It's like that."
"What's like that?" he pressed.
She huffed, shrugging the shoulder he wasn't leaning against. "Everything? It just seems like ever since we came back to Earth all this stuff just keeps happening one after another, and I just ... I can't handle it anymore."
"That's why you have us."
She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. It was weird to have him standing this close to her at all, let alone when they weren't trying to stare at the same monitor screen, and as much as she wanted him to back off, she knew it wouldn't help either of them. She had a feeling he knew it too, which annoyed her all the more. "You're a hypocrite, you know that?"
She felt him shrug, and now she *knew* he was smiling. Jerk. "Runs in the team." He paused, squeezing her slightly. "Why don't you try breaking it down for me?"
She sighed again, tilting her head to lean against his. "My parents. My brother and sister. My brother. People knowing who we are. People taking my picture." Anger surged, and she swallowed, trying to force herself to calm down. "Carlos. This stupid press conference. The former Rangers." She stopped, taking a deep breath, and eyed him again. "You pushing me to talk about everything."
"You don't have to," he reminded her.
She rolled her eyes. "But you never ask, so I feel like if I don't tell you, I'll ruin whatever social skills you're finally developing. If it were anyone but you asking, I wouldn't have to worry about it."
"I *have* social skills," he huffed, sounding like himself for the first time that night.
"Uh huh. So which one of us are you trying to imagine what they would say in this situation?"
There was a long pause.
"Ashley and Zhane," he muttered eventually, sounding sulky.
It wasn't funny, but she laughed anyway.
They fell silent again, but it seemed less awkward this time. She leaned into him a little more, and he adjusted his arm to hug her more comfortably. "So does this go both ways?" she murmured. "If I ask you what's bothering you, will you tell me?"
"I think one of us having a breakdown at a time is enough for now."
She rolled her eyes.
After a moment, he sighed quietly. " ... I'm worried. About the conference mostly, but Karone, too."
She frowned. "Because of the conference?"
"Yeah," he muttered. "I ... I don't want her there. It isn't safe. But if I tell her that, she'll just ignore me."
"Probably," she agreed.
"Definitely," he countered, sounding annoyed. "Sometimes I think she does things just to contradict me."
She smiled faintly. "Most likely. Tony and I are like that." She swallowed, tears pricking her eyes. "We used to be like that," she corrected quietly.
Andros was silent for a moment. "Karone and I never contradicted each other before," he said finally, sounding pained. "We always agreed on everything."
She reached up to squeeze his hand. "But you've both grown up since then," she reminded him softly. "You're not kids anymore. You've lived different lives, and you're different people. It makes things different, but that's not necessarily a bad thing."
"It feels like it is," he whispered.
She turned around to give him a hug, closing her eyes. "Yeah," she admitted, swallowing down the lump in her throat again. "It does."
It was sort of funny. Andros was her friend, her teammate, but she'd never thought much about the similarities between them before. There weren't many, but the others didn't know what it was like to be a twin, let alone to lose one. She and Tony may not be actually related the way Andros and Karone were, but the feelings were still the same. It was hard to rebuild a relationship with your best friend when they weren't the person you remembered anymore.
The sound of sand crunching softly beneath feet made her spin, instinctively striking up a defensive stance as Andros did the same. The person stopped walking; holding up their hands in surrender. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I didn't mean to startle you."
Cassie lowered her arms slowly in recognition, but didn't relax. "What are you doing here?" It came out ruder than she'd meant to sound, but she didn't apologize.
A slight shrug. "I think a lot of us are having trouble sleeping tonight."
She wasn't reassured, especially with Andros standing slightly behind her, stiff as a board. "What do you want, Trini?"
"A lot of things," came the quiet reply. "World peace. A new car. Hot chocolate. For Billy to come home. For Zordon to still be alive." She shrugged again. "At the moment, I want to stop fighting with you. I want to understand, so we can be friends again."
"*We* weren't the ones that changed that!" Cassie snapped.
Andros put a hand on her shoulder, squeezing slightly as he took a step forward. He looked at Trini solemnly, and Cassie clenched her fists again as she recognized his 'diplomatic' expression. "What will it take for us to be at peace with you?"
Trini looked at him for a moment. "How did he die?" she asked softly.
It was the first time Cassie hadn't seen him flinch at the thought of Zordon. Instead, he took a slow, deep breath. "Karone - my sister - was still Astronema. She attacked me. I tried to defend myself without hurting her, but she - " He cut off, sounding choked.
Cassie moved in closer, pressing against his shoulder in silent support. She wanted to tell him to stop, to tell Trini to leave it alone, but the look on his face told her he wouldn't let her. He wouldn't talk about what had happened on his own, but if the memory would help someone else to find closure, he'd force himself to suffer through it.
It was one of his more annoying self-destructive tendencies.
"Karone fell," he whispered finally, and even in the darkness she could see the tears in his eyes. "Ecliptor forced the door open and attacked me. He was grieving. He ... he said she was like a daughter to him." He swallowed hard, and she slipped her hand into his, squeezing gently. He took another slow breath, giving a slight squeeze back.
"Zordon's tube was behind me. When I first found him, he'd asked me to destroy him. But I couldn't. Zordon ... Zordon was my friend. When KO-35 fell, and all I had left was D.E.C.A. and the Astro Megaship, Zordon was the one who kept me going. He wouldn't let me give up. I didn't - " He stopped again, shuddering slightly.
"I didn't want to do it," he said finally. "But Karone was gone, and Dark Spectre was winning, and Zordon said that the energy in his tube could stop it all. And so ... " He swallowed again. "So I destroyed it. The last thing I remember is hearing his voice in my head, saying 'thank you'."
"'Remember your mission'," Cassie murmured, thinking of the voice she'd heard when the golden wave hit her, just before she demorphed.
"'I love you'," Trini whispered, a tear slipping down her cheek. "'Goodbye'."
They stood in silence for several minutes, Cassie holding onto Andros protectively while he waited for Trini's judgment, and Trini crying softly.
Eventually it was Trini who broke the quiet again, looking up at Andros with a slight sniffle as she tried to compose herself. "He was your friend?"
Andros nodded, swallowing hard. "If Zordon hadn't contacted me ... " He stopped, closing his eyes. "Without Zordon, I wouldn't be here now."
Neither of them needed to ask what he was implying, and Cassie felt tears prick her eyes at the thought.
Trini reached out, taking both of his hands in hers. Andros looked startled, and it was all Cassie could do to keep from pushing the other girl away. "I'm glad," she said simply, giving his hands a squeeze. "I'm glad that he was there for you."
She took a deep breath, closing her eyes briefly. Tears shone when she opened them again. "I'm not ready to forgive you," she admitted. "I understand, and I know now that it wasn't your fault. This was Zordon's choice. I just - " Her voice caught, and she shook her head. "I don't blame you. And I know that someday I *will* be able to forgive you. I'm just not quite there yet."
There was a long silence.
"I understand," Andros said finally, and Cassie cringed inwardly at the flat, emotionless tone.
Trini gave him a sad smile. "No, you don't." She took another deep breath. "I'll talk to the others," she said finally, turning to include Cassie now. "You're right. Things can't go on like this. We need to start working together again." She swallowed. "For Zordon, if nothing else."
"We'll do what we can," Cassie told her as Andros remained silent. She hesitated. "We're holding a press conference next Wednesday - "
"We'll be there," Trini assured her. She frowned slightly. "I'm not sure who yet, but some of us will be there to help."
"Thank you," Cassie returned, because it needed to be said even if she didn't mean it.
Trini smiled warmly at her before turning to consider Andros again. After a moment, she leaned forward to kiss his cheek. "We'll be in touch," she promised, squeezing his hands briefly before releasing him. "Good night."
They stood in silence, watching her walk away. Cassie pressed closer against his shoulder again, and he leaned into her gratefully. "Do you really think she'll talk to them?" she asked finally.
"I don't know," he returned quietly. There was a pause. "Do you think she meant it?"
She didn't pretend to misunderstand. "I don't know." But she better have, she finished silently.