Power Ranger Mania The Fanfic Shoppe The Yost  

 

Disclaimer: This is fic number five in my Candle in the Wind series. The song 'Stop' is performed by the Spice Girls. The copyright is owned by Virgin Records, maybe? Either them or Windswept Pacific Music. My eyes aren't good enough to read the fine print. Anyhow, this fic is rated R for adult situations. Hope you like it. The teens in this fic, including Angela, are owned by Saban Entertainment. (Remember Angela from Season One? Zack's love interest? Right, that Angela.) Maxwell Watson is a man of my own creation. The general Chest/Demon idea came from "The Thirteen Ghosts of Scooby Doo."

Stop
by Jeremy Ray Logsdon

"You just walk in, I make you smile, it's cool, but y-" the Spice Girls sang from his travel clock radio. Adam groaned and reached out with a sleepy hand, smacking the snooze button and interrupting them in mid-song.

"At least I didn't have it set on a country station," he murmured into his pillow. He sat up in bed, idly scratching his chest. His sleep had been fitful, continually interrupted by horrible dreams.

Hoping that a nice, hot shower would make him feel better, he left his bed and trudged to the bathroom.


Tommy and Trini lay in near silence for a few moments, listening only to the sound of their breathing. Then, Trini interrupted the silence. "No offense to you, but you are honestly about the last person I ever expected to wake up with."

"Yeah," Tommy said with a nod. "I know what you mean."

"Any regrets?" Trini asked.

"I dunno."

"Me neither."

"It was fun, though," Tommy murmured, his cheeks reddening as he said it.

"Tommy Oliver," Trini chided good-naturedly. "You are such a man."

"Why thank you," he shot back with a wry grin, annihilating her loose insult.

"I think this part is better, though," he said.

"Oh?" Trini asked, lifting an eyebrow.

"Well, yeah," Tommy said. "Sex was great, but it's... it's really just fancy masturbation. This, though, you can't do this by yourself." His face turned even redder as he continued talking, but he didn't let up. "Your skin feels so nice and warm against mine, the way your hair feels through my fingers, how your legs are resting all tangled up in mine, the pillow talk... Is this pillow talk?"

"No, I take back what I said earlier," Trini said with a laugh. "You're a total chick!"

Tommy gave a contented sigh, but said nothing.

"So... where does this leave us?" Trini asked.

"I don't know," Tommy admitted.

"Is there something between us?"

"Dunno. Would you like there to be?"

"I don't know, either," Trini admitted.

"We can't do this again," Tommy said. "No relationship, no sex."

"Good relationship, good sex?" Trini asked with a grin.

"In theory," Tommy agreed.

"But we can't have a relationship..."

"Probably not."

"It was fun while it lasted," Tommy grinned.

Trini stretched up a bit and kissed him on the end of his nose. "We agreed to have s- make love last night to make up for what we had to do yesterday," Trini said.

"And we made love this morning because we woke up naked together and that was the first thing we thought of," Tommy told her, smiling.

"Right. We don't have any more excuses," Trini said. "So we either start dating, and I'll automatically turn into a slut because I put out way too soon, or we just... be friends. And friends don't have sex, unless they're in pornos or poorly written works of fiction by hormonal writers."

"Maybe when we get all of the demons captured, we could try a real date?" Tommy suggested.

"Maybe," Trini said with a smile.


"Zack, there isn't a deadline anymore," Angela insisted. "One of us is the Cutter. I think it's Kimberly. And she'll extend the deadline. We don't have to be done by Christmas."

"We're not going to be home by Christmas?" Zack groaned, poking at his breakfast with a fork.

"We might be," Angela said. "It's the end of November. We have... nine demons to go. Figure... three days a demon if we're lucky... Nope, not a chance."

"Where are we going next?" Zack asked.

"Don't know yet," Angela answered. "And where the sam hill has everybody been?!"

"I'm here," Kimberly said as she pulled a chair up to their table in the hotel restaurant. She smiled her thanks as a waitress swooped in and handed her a menu.

"How'd ya sleep?" Zack asked.

"Like I had to have sex with a man I didn't love yesterday," Kimberly snapped with a smug grin.

"Sorry," Zack muttered under his breath.

Kimberly sighed and set the menu down on the table. "No, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap. It's not your fault."

"You ready to order?" the waitress asked.

"Eh, surprise me, and put cheese on it," Kimberly said, handing her the menu.

"Okee doke," the waitress returned. "To drink? Hot or cold?"

"Tomato juice, please."

"It's not- it could be worse," Angela tried.

"I agree completely," Kimberly said. "Now let's talk about anything else."

"You know where we're going?" Zack asked.

"Ireland," Kimberly answered suddenly. She then frowned and said, "Man, that still freaks me out. I didn't know fifteen seconds ago, you ask, and I just start answering."

"Don't you have some Irish blood?" Angela inquired.

"A little," Kimberly said. "Grandma's side of the family. This could prove... oh crap." She covered her face with her hands, scowling. "I just saw- nope, it's gone. I just lost it."

"What?" Zack asked with a grin. "A leprechaun?"

"Have you ever seen that movie?" Angela asked. "Leprechaun. That is a weird little movie. And what's really weird is that Jennifer Aniston is in it. It was made like a year before 'Friends?' And her character in Leprechaun is just like Rachel from Friends! So now, whenever I watch her sitcom, I'm always wondering to myself if she told any of the other guys about the time she fought the leprechaun. Isn't that weird?"

"Wow, that was fast," Kimberly remarked as the waitress came back to the table.

"Hash browns, sausage, and scrambled eggs," the waitress said, setting the platter and a gravy boat filled with cheese down before her. "Cheese on the side, melted, and tomato juice. How's that?"

"Wonderful," Kimberly smiled. "Thanks."

"Aren't Leprechauns friendly little things?" Zack asked. "And even more important than that, fictional?"

Kimberly paused as she was pouring cheese over her eggs. "Nah," she muttered to herself, resuming. "Not gonna happen."


"Hey Adam?" Tommy asked, knocking on the door to Adam's room. He opened the room and peeked in. "Adam man, you around?"

"In the shower!" he shouted back. "Be out in a minute."

"Me and Trini are in Angela's room talking to the Dean," Tommy told him.

He shut the door and hurried back to Angela's room. Trini had the entire laptop communication set-up working, quite a feat for a self-proclaimed technology-phobe. "Do you know where we're going yet?" Trini asked.

"Ireland," he answered. "Kimberly woke me up at three a.m. to inform me of as much."

"Three a.m.?" Tommy asked.

"They have that freaky mental thing goin' on," Trini reminded him.

"She didn't even know she told me," Dean Watson said. "Wait a minute... Bingo, I've got it. You're off to the middle of nowhere. A little family farm... Gonna have to get those people out of there. Kids, I gotta go take care of this. I'll fax you the information you need."

"Thanks Dean," Trini said as the screen flickered and went black.

On the plane
"Would you mind?" Adam asked, gesturing at the empty seat next to Kimberly. "Trini and Tommy are sitting together."

"No, of course not," Kimberly said. She forced a smile and said, "We can be civil."

"Can we be friends?"

A warmer smile replaced the first. "Of course," she told him, patting the seat with her hand. "It's a long way to Ireland, and we're flying straight. Did you buy a book in the airport?"

"Slipped my mind," Adam admitted.

"Mine too," Kimberly said. "Guess we'll have to- oh my God..."

"Kimberly?" Adam asked. "Did you just see something?"

"No, I just realized something," she said, panicked. "Tommy, get up. We're switching seats. I'm sorry, Adam. It's nothing personal. It's not you, it's me. I'm sorry. Really, I am. We'll take later, like... a few weeks from now."

"I don't wanna move," Tommy complained.

"I will," Zack offered hurriedly. As he passed Kimberly in the aisle, he shot her an inquisitive look. She ignored him and sat down beside Angela, burying her face in her hands.

"Girl, you need to talk?" Angela offered.

"No thanks," Kimberly groaned.

"What was that all about?" Zack asked as he sat down beside Adam.

"I don't know," Adam answered simply.


Kim, you can hear me, right? Angela projected mentally.

Loud and clear, Kimberly responded.

Mind letting me know why you just destroyed Adam's self-esteem?

It's hard to explain, she said.

Try anyway.

I was flirting with Adam.

And? Angela inquired.

"Anything to drink," the stewardess asked of them.

No thanks, Kimberly projected.

You have to say it out loud to her, Angela said. "No thank you."

"Me neither," Kimberly said with an awkward smile. "Maybe later."

I can't flirt with Adam because the only thing we have in common right now is the fact that we had sex last night.

Ahh... You want to fall in love with him so you won't feel so bad, Angela ventured.

Yeah, I think so.

You had better apologize to that boy when we land in Ireland.

I know. I will, I promise. Do it now. Adam? Angela beckoned.

NO! Kimberly shouted to her. On my own time, and in speech! Please!

Angela? Adam asked.

Never mind. Just practicing, Angela covered. She directed a mental eye-roll at Kimberly, who just squirmed in her seat.

Dublin, Ireland
"I've got your bags," Zack offered as Angela ran ahead of them with the chest in her arms.

"You've always got her bags," Tommy muttered under his breath as he picked up his duffel and slung the strap over his shoulder.

Hurry up, you guys! Angela sent mentally to the entire group.

"Kimberly, I want to talk to you later," Adam said forcefully as he retrieved his luggage from the carousel.

Kimberly's eyebrows quirked. "Finally got pissed off, eh?" she asked. "Good, I can deal with that. Okay, we'll talk as soon as we have a chance to be alone."

She picked up her suitcase and reshouldered her pink carry-on. However, as she did so, she voiced a complaint. "My zipper thingie is gone..."

"Zipper thingie?" Trini asked.

"Yeah, I had a little smiley-face that fit on the zipper... thingie," Kimberly sighed. "It's not here anymore..."

"You'll find it in your stuff later," Trini said. "Come on, Angela's about to have a conundrum."

Rural Ireland
"We're just gonna get to stay in these people's house?" Zack asked as he walked around the large, wrap-around porch.

"Grampa's taking care of it," Angela said. "They've already had their possessions moved out. I dunno, he had some official looking people give some b.s. story. They'll be moving back in as soon as we're done here."

"But there's furniture in there," Kimberly observed, peeking through the window.

"The dean must've had it refurbished for us," Tommy theorized.

"He did," Angela answered. "It should be unlocked. Ah, and it is." She pushed the door open and stepped in.

"It's beautiful," Trini said in awe, looking all about her. Smiling, she added, "It looks like how a farmhouse should. Nice 'n rustic."

"It's gonna be dark soon," Angela said thoughtfully. "I'm gonna go check out the immediate property. Trini, would you set the computers up for me? We need to contact Grandfather."


"The camera is gone," Trini complained. She looked through the empty case again. "The wires are here, the battery pack is here, but the camera is gone."

"Well that's odd," Kimberly decided. "What do you figure happened to it?"

"I'll have the Dean call the Hilton," Trini said as she began to dial up. "We probably just left it behind. At least we have the mike with us."

"Angela? Are you there? I'm not getting a visual," Watson said.

"It's Trini, actually," she announced. "We seem to have misplaced our camera."

"Oh," he said. "Well, I'll have a new one waiting for you when you get back here. Kimberly, do you know anything about our beast yet?"

"Not a thing," she answered. "My mind is as silent as a bank vault."

"Have Adam read from the Book," Watson suggested. "It should have information in it now. I'll talk to you girls later."

"I can't," Adam said as he walked into the room. The communications ended with a brief crackle of static electricity. "The Book is missing."


"The Book can't be missing," Angela insisted, rummaging through her things. "Oh God, this isn't happening. It isn't happening..."

"Keep saying that, that'll fix things," Zack said sarcastically.

"Go look!" she snapped, pointing out of her bedroom. "Maybe it got mixed up in somebody else's stuff!"

"All right," he said, backing out of her room with his hands help up in a gesture of peace. He hurried up the stairs and into the room he had designated as his. His lone suitcase still sat on his bed, waiting to be unpacked.

Zack unzipped a side panel of his suitcase. He reached inside and pulled out a healthy amount of change. "Where does all of this come from?" he muttered to himself. Holding it in both hands, he placed it on the otherwise bare dresser.

He turned back to his suitcase and rummaged through. Clothes, magazines, CDs, but no Book. "I didn't expect to see it," he muttered to himself. He walked over to the dresser to scoop up his change, and then he stopped.

The dresser was completely bare.


"Can I come in?" Kimberly asked, peeking into Adam's room.

He turned back from the bed. He had just gotten out of the shower, and he was nude from the waist up. "Yeah, come on in," he said, rummaging through his duffel bag.

"I'm sorry for freaking out on you on the plane like that," Kimberly admitted, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

"Good," Adam said simply. Frowning, he turned his duffel bag upside down and dumped it out.

"I, uhm..."

"I can't find any of my shirts," Adam complained, rummaging through the pile of clothing on the bed.

"Adam, we were flirting on the plane," Kimberly managed to spit out.

"Flirting?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Well, I was. And... I think I was trying to make myself... I dunno, fall in love with you or something."

Turning away from his clothing, he asked, "Huh?"

"Because we made love, and I always wanted my first time to be with someone I loved, and since I don't love you, I'm trying to make myself love you. And that's bad, we can't do that."

Adam nodded slowly a few times before saying, "Okay."

"So, it isn't that I don't like you, it's just that I don't want to think I've fallen in love with you unless I really do. Not that I have plans to, but I don't have plans to not to, either, but... I'm gonna go now."

Adam watched as she self-consciously left his room. "If you see my shirts, would you let me know?!" he called after her.


"Oh God, oh God, oh God," Angela chanted as she walked around the kitchen. "We've lost the Book, we've lost the Book..."

"We should tell your grandpa," Trini said.

"NO!" Angela cried. "Oh Lord, I'm about to FREAK OUT!"

"Has anybody seen Kimberly?" Trini asked, looking to Tommy for support. "She'll be able to tell us where the Book is."

"Yes, yes," Angela sighed. "Kimberly, that's right."

"Hope we haven't lost her," Tommy muttered.

"My necklace is gone," Trini suddenly realized, patting her chest. She pulled her shirt out a bit and looked down. "It's gone!"

"What was it?" Tommy asked.

"It was that silver and gold yin yang I always wore," she said. "I had it when we got here, I know I did."


"Thanks for the shirt, Zack," Adam said, stepping out of Zack's room as he tugged the black tee into place. "I can't believe all of my shirts are missing."

"It's the demon, I know it is," Zack told him. "I'm not going back in my room."

"How come?"

"Whatever is stealing our stuff stole it with me in there," he said. "I had some change on the dresser, I turned away, and when I looked back, it was gone. Nope, I'm sleeping... elsewhere. Can I crash in your room?"

"Sure," Adam said. "Whatever you do, though, avoid Angela. She's about to flip out. The Book is missing."

"I've heard," Zack muttered. "Uhm... would you care to run back into my room and grab my suitcase? Please?"


Later that night, the sextet of ChestKeepers were scattered around the house. Angela was still going through her things, desperate to find the missing Book. Adam and Zack had already gone to bed, both of them crammed in Adam's too-small bed. Kimberly was in her room, reading a book, and Trini had just left for bed. Tommy was alone on the front porch, thinking about everything that had happened in the past twenty-four hours. And he really wished he didn't have to go sleep by himself. Not necessarily the sex, he just didn't want to sleep alone. It had felt good to have a warm body pressed next to his. But, if it wasn't meant to be...

"Maybe tomorrow will be a productive day," he muttered to himself as he went back into the house, locking the door behind him.

He soon found himself on the second floor, before his bedroom. However, as he opened his door, he got a big shock.

His entire room, right down to the brown carpet that had been on the floor, was stripped bare. There was absolutely nothing present. Even the faceplates for the wall outlets had been removed. He consciously began to glow a subdued green, thanks to his current magical powers. Even the lightbulb from overhead was gone. "Now this is weird," he muttered to himself.


Kimberly suddenly sat straight up, dropping her book. Her Visionary powers had finally kicked in, and a massive info-dump had just happened.

She jumped out of bed, shouting, "Tourmaline Crane Power!" Pink light flashed around her, and she was clad in her glittering, pink ChestKeeper outfit. This time, her hands and face her bare, though a pink headband stretched across her forehead.

"Tommy can go," she realized, bounding up the stairs. She stopped by his room, furrowing her brow as she realized a green glow was coming from his room. "Tommy?"

"Huh?" he asked, spinning around. Noting she was morphed, he quickly blurted out, "Is something wrong?"

"I know what's going on now," she said. "I don't know what the demon is, but it's stealing our stuff. And I know where his lair is. Come with?"

"Ruby Falcon Power!" he cried, morphing. Instantly, the glow changed from green to red. "I'm ready. Should we get anybody else?"

"Everybody else is asleep," Kimberly said. "I just want to get the Book back so Angela won't freak out."


As Tommy and Kimberly ran away from the farmhouse and into the woods, they were cloaked in an inky darkness. Tommy's glow provided them with enough light to see where they were going. Kimberly reached up and tapped the diamond on her headband. It instantly changed into a halogen headlight, enabling her to cast light on whatever she looked at.

"How far is it?" he asked as they raced through the woods.

"Not far," she said suddenly, stopping. She pointed at a small opening in the ground. "There."

"We're supposed to fit in there?" Tommy asked.

"I can," Kimberly decided.

"What if the demon is in there?"

She thought for a moment before saying, "He isn't. He's out stealing stuff, apparently. Look, just wait here, and if you don't hear anything from me in a few minutes, then go get the others. Okay?"

"All right," Tommy relented. "Just be careful."


Kimberly dropped ten feet as she slid past the opening. She suddenly found herself in a small cavern, carved from the earth. Torches around the room provided the light.

At one end of the cavernous space were a great amount of personal belongings. "Our stuff," she said, crossing over to it. "Geeze, everybody's stuff."

She walked over to the horde, her eyes landing on her smiley-face zipper tab first. "Where's the Book?" she asked herself.

"Just what ye be doin'?!" an angry voice demanded in an Irish accent.

With a gasp, Kimberly spun around. Then, when she saw the voice's source, she frowned. "What are you?" she asked.

"I be a Leprechaun," the creature snapped. He was about three feet tall and dressed in a green shorts suit. Atop his head was a three-cornered hat, and his socks were green and white striped. Large buckles were on his belt and his shoes, and what little hair could be seen peeking out from beneath his hat was a fiery red.

"You're our demon?" Kimberly asked in amusement.

"I be your worst nightmare, Lassie," he told her.

"I don't think so, Greenie," Kimberly said, walking up to him. She crouched down so as to be eye-to-eye with the creature. "Aren't you supposed to be a friendly little critter?"

He suddenly reached out and grabbed her by the wrist. "Mine is mine, and fair is fair," the Leprechaun giggled, "a Pink ChestKeeper to add to me lair."

"No, I-" However, before Kimberly could say anything else, she found herself trapped in a cage at the back of his lair. "Hey! What do you think you're doing?!"

"Collectin' things, of course," the Lep said. "You'll make a lovely bride. Or a meal." He laughed at her before he disappeared in a glimmer of green light.


Tommy raced up the front porch, shouting both with his voice and mentally. "WAKE UP, WAKE UP, WAKE UP!" he shouted.

"Tommy, what are you yelling about?" Angela asked as she stepped out of her room.

"Get the Chest," he told her. "I've found the Leprechaun."

"The Leprechaun?" she asked.

"The Leprechaun is the demon, and it just stole Kimberly," Tommy said.

"Right," she said, barely fazed. She turned back into her bedroom, but before she had taken more than two steps, she stopped cold.

"Mine is mine, and fair is fair," the Leprechaun taunted, "a chest to add to me lair!" He held the Chest above his head just before he disappeared in a flash of green.

"NOOOO!" Angela screamed angrily.


"Do you think he's in there?" Adam asked as the five remaining ChestKeepers gathered around the Leprechaun's lair.

"We need Kimberly," Trini muttered.

"I'm in here alone!" Kimberly shouted from beneath the ground.

"I'll go see if I can get her out," Angela volunteered. She transformed into a green snake and slithered into the hole.

As soon as she landed in the lair, she transformed back into her human form. "Kim, are you okay?" Angela asked as she ran back to her.

"I'm fine," Kimberly said, "but there's no way to get out of this cage. There aren't even any seams or anything. It's one piece."

"You'll probably be set free as soon as we capture the Leprechaun," Angela told her.

"Ah, a Blue ChestKeeper!" the Leprechaun called from behind them. With a gasp, Angela spun around. "I was hoping I could get the complete set!"

Angela changed into a giant lioness, growling low in her chest at the tiny creature.

"Don't let him touch you!" Kimberly cried. "If he steals you, too, we'll never get him in that chest!"

The lionness backed up a bit, creeping backwards into the lair. Someone get down here and cover my butt! Angela projected.


"That's a little hole," Zack said, kneeling beside it.

"Hold my hand," Trini requested, backing up to the hole. As Zack took her hand, she stuck her feet into the hole and scooted backwards. "Okay," she said, letting go of his grip.

As soon as she landed, she found herself standing behind the Leprechaun. Angela, still in lionness form, stood between the Lep and his horde of treasure.

"Hey!" Trini cried, grabbing the Leprechaun's attention.

Don't let him touch you, Kimberly warned.

"Yellow, Blue, Pink!" the Leprechaun cried happily. "The female sect!"

Angela leapt into the horde of stolen goods, turning back into her human form as she did so. I see the Chest! she cried happily. Picking it up, she launched herself out into the opening.

The Leprechaun grabbed Trini's leg as she tried to kick him. "Mine is mine, and fair is fair, a Yellow ChestKeeper to add to me lair!" In a flash of light, Trini appeared next to Kimberly in a cage of her own.

"You!" Angela shrieked, dropping to her knees and opening her chest. However, by the time the lid was fully opened, the Leprechaun had already disappeared.

He's escaping you guys! Angela sent.

I've got an idea, Adam said. I'll come down there and find the Book. I might be able to make it.

Let me make the opening a little bigger, Angela suggested.

Suddenly, she transformed into an elephant, lifting up on her hind feet. She slammed her massive head into the roof, tearing it asunder, and opening the lair. She turned back into her human form and grabbed the Chest, leaping into the air.

"Tommy, Zack, come with me," she ordered. "Adam, find the Book and read it."

"On it," the Green ChestKeeper agreed, leaping into the opening.


Tommy, turn your glow off, Angela said. That thing might be able to see you.

Zack, you gettin' anything? Tommy asked.

The Black ChestKeeper stopped moving, scanning the area around him. Yeah, he's going this way. Follow me!


"Adam, the Book is over there!" Trini cried, pointing from the confines of her cage. "It's on that big roll of carpet!"

"Yes!" he cried triumphantly, running over to it. He dropped to his knees and flipped the book open.

The Leprechaun, he read. Guys, can you hear me?

Loud and clear, Angela returned.

Unlike his folklore companions, this Leprechaun has nothing good to offer. He is notorious for stealing anything, including humans, to feed his voracious appetite, both physical, economical, and sexual.

"Yuck," Kimberly said simply.

It is extremely difficult to capture a Leprechaun, although such can be done. Their teleportation abilities can be confounded by attacking on all sides. Should you catch a Leprechaun, you must keep an eye on them at all times. If you look away for even a moment, they will escape.

Is there anything more? Trini asked.

That's all she wrote. Will you-?

"We'll be fine," Trini said. "Go help."

He tossed the Book to Kimberly and launched up into the air, sailing out of the lair.


There he is! Zack cried, pointing at the Leprechaun, currently standing beneath a tree with his back to them.

I've got an idea, Tommy said. As soon as I do it, go grab him.

Got it, Zack told him.

Tommy looked up at the tree, concentrating. Suddenly, a sound not unlike that of ice cracking filled the air. Each and every single leaf on the tree turned to stone. As they became too heavy, they thundered to the ground. The Leprechaun shouted angrily as he was practically buried beneath the leaf-shaped stones.

"I got him!" Zack cried, leaping into the air. He wrapped his arms around the Leprechaun, pointing himself in Angela's direction.

"NOOOO!" the Leprechaun wailed, struggling in Zack's arms.

"Don't take your eyes off of him!" Tommy shouted to Angela. He, likewise, was staring at the small demon.

"Hurry up!" Zack cried. "These rocks hurt!"

"See ya, Lep," Angela taunted, opening the lid of the Chest.

A blast of white light shot out of the Chest, covering Zack and the Leprechaun. The Leprechaun screamed, his voice reaching a frenzied pitch. He began to glow green, and suddenly, a cloud of green light flowed from Zack's arms and into the Chest. The Leprechaun gave one final scream, and the white light disappeared. Angela slammed the Chest shut, dropping it to the ground.

"Four down," she announced simply.


The six had decided to spend the night in the farm house. After letting the Dean know that the demon had been captured, they decided to get some sleep, rather than have Zack teleport everyone home.

"Zack, there's no need for you to sleep with me, now," Adam said, pointing his friend out of his room.

"Oh yeah," Zack mumbled sleepily, heading up the stairs.

"I'm going to bed, too," Kimberly said. "Angela?"

"Nah, go ahead," Angela told her. "I've got a little bit of stuff to do; there's no need for you to wait up with me."

Out on the front porch, Tommy and Trini stood talking. "Everything just sort of flashed green," Trini said. "Next thing we know, Kim and I are just standing in this big hole in the ground. I didn't even get a chance to use any of my special powers this time."

"I wish I could move stuff with my mind," Tommy grinned.

"Hey, glowing in the dark has its uses," Trini said, smiling back at him.

"What's your other ability?" Tommy asked.

"I dunno yet," she said. "Angela thinks I might be the Doctor."

"So you'll be able to heal physical injuries?"

"I guess," she said. "Kiss and make it better, kind of thing..."

Tommy reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder, sucking in a sharp breath at the rush that raced through him. Trini swallowed hard, turning her gaze to meet his.

He brushed her hair over her shoulder, letting his fingers gently brush her cheek. He bent toward her, when she suddenly turned her head, his lips landing on the side of her face. "Trini?" he asked, pulling back.

"No," she said simply, pushing past him. "I'm sorry, we can't... It's nothing personal." She rushed into the house, leaving him alone on the porch.

A diffused green glow began to spread through Tommy's body. "Oh Lord, this is embarrassing," he muttered. He walked back into the house, chanting to himself mentally. Baseball... sewer systems... dirty diapers....

He hurried up the stairs, going into his room and not bothering to turn on the light. He stripped off his shirt and pushed his jeans to the ground, quickly changing into the pair of boxers he always wore to bed. He was still glowing, although the light was starting to subside.

Then, he turned to face the bed and stopped stock-still. Trini was sitting on the edge of the bed, wearing a long, yellow night-shirt. "Trini?" he asked in confusion. "What are you doing in my room?"

"I changed my mind," she said simply.


Stop
You just walk in, I make you smile
It's cool but you don't even know me
You take an inch, I run a mile
Can't win you're always right behind me

And we know that you could go and find some other
Take or leave it or just don't even bother
Caught in a craze, it's just a faze
Or will this be around forever?

Don't you know it's going too fast
Racing so hard you know it won't last
Don't you know, what can't you see
Slow it down, read the sign, so you know just where you're going

Stop Right Now, Thank you very much
I need somebody with the human touch
Hey you, always on the run
Gotta slow it down baby, gotta have some fun

always be together
stay that way forever

And we know that you could go and find some other
Take or leave it 'cuz we've always got each other
You know who you are and yes, you're gonna breakdown
You've crossed the line so you're gonna have to turn around

Don't you know it's going too fast
Racing so hard you know it won't last
Don't you know, what can't you see
Slow it down, read the sign, so you know just where you're going

Stop Right Now, Thank you very much
I need somebody with the human touch
Hey you, always on the run
Gotta slow it down baby, gotta have some fun

Gotta keep it down honey, lay your back on the line
'Cuz I don't care about the money, don't be wasting my time
You need less speed, get off my case
You gotta slow it down baby, just got out of my face

Stop Right Now, Thank you very much
I need somebody with the human touch
Hey you, always on the run
Gotta slow it down baby, gotta have some fun

Stop Right Now, Thank you very much
I need somebody with the human touch
Hey you, always on the run
Gotta slow it down baby, gotta have some fun

Stop Right Now, we wanna thank you

Stop Right Now, thank you very much

The End... for now