Losing the Blues
by Kittie

And grow it did, towering over the now helpless Rangers. But how helpless were they?

The NinjaZords quickly joined the rangers, evening up the battle. "Mega Falcon Zord, engage," ordered Tommy, and they began to move together. Then the Wolfzord stumbled.

"Something's wrong," Billy's voice crackled through his transmitter. "It's not— AAAAGGGGHHHH!" His words were cut off by a horrible scream, then silence. Before any of the Rangers could react, the Wolfzord exploded in a fireball of metal and glass. The monster was caught in the explosion and added to the mess. Then, things were silent again, and hunks of burning metal began to fall from the sky.

Kimberly jumped out of the Cranezord and ran to where Billy should have been. "Billy! Where are you? Billy!"

Twisted pieces of metal were still falling out of the sky. Something hit her helmet and bounced off. She gasped when she saw what it was: Billy's morpher, black and charred. Then she began to scream.

~*~

~*~

Katie had seen it, too, and she knocked Danielle aside and ran toward the tree. "Katie, don't!" Katie paid no heed, and ran to the fallen body, turning it over onto its back.

Danielle ran to her and got there in time to hear Katie gasp in amazement. "It's a boy!"

It certainly was. He looked about seventeen or eighteen, and his clothing was burnt and torn. "He must have been caught in that fight," Danielle murmured, almost to herself.

"Mommy, is he dead?" Katie's voice was filled with fear as she stared wide-eyed at the young man.

"No, sweetie, he's not. But he needs help. Come on, we've got to find a phone."

"We're gonna leave him here?" Katie's eyes filled with tears.

"We have to." Danielle picked her daughter up and began to run. "Don't worry, Katie, Angel Grove High isn't too far from here, so we can call from there."

~*~

ALPHA AND I WERE OBSERVING THE FIGHT ON THE VIEWING GLOBE, TOMMY, he informed them. ALPHA, SCAN THE AREA FOR BILLY'S LIFE ENERGIES.

Rocky looked up, his face almost as pale as Adam's. "But Zordon, how could he be... it exploded! And his morpher...."

"There's still a chance, Rocky," insisted Aisha, ever optimistic. She watched hopefully as Alpha puttered around one of the control panels.

The little 'droid seemed to jump a bit. "Zordon! Rangers! I found him! Billy's... he's alive!"

"What?!?" Rocky's head whipped around to stare at the viewing globe. Billy lay motionless under a tree, somehow still in one piece. "Kim! Adam! He's alive! Look!"

Kimberly looked up from the floor, not daring to hope. "What? Billy's... alive?" She saw the viewing globe and jumped to her feet. "My God! Adam! Adam, look!"

Adam didn't respond right away. When he did, his voice was slightly slurred. "What? What? No, I saw. He's dead, I saw."

Kimberly grabbed his arm, still crying but now for a completely different reason. "Look, Adam, see? He wasn't blown up!"

"Come on, guys, let's go." Tommy punched in the coordinates on his communicator and vanished in a flash of white light. The others soon followed.

~*~

They reached him and gathered around him, Kimberly pulling his head into her lap. "Billy?" She began to stroke his hair gently. He didn't look too good, but at least he was breathing. He moaned a bit.

"Billy, you're going to be okay," insisted Tommy, placing a hand on Adam's shoulder. He had spoken as much for Adam's benefit as for Billy's. Adam still looked a bit shell shocked.

A woman ran up to them, holding a small child in her arms. "I've called an ambulance," she said breathlessly. "Do you know him?"

"It's our friend Billy," answered Rocky, embarrassed to have been caught crying by two females.

The woman nodded. "He came flying out of nowhere. I guess he was caught in the fight between the Power Rangers and that... thing."

The little girl nodded. "He landed in that tree. He broke the branches."

"Katie, hush."

Billy stirred. "Katie?"

Kim clutched him tighter. "Billy, just relax." She had regained her composure and was determined to keep Billy calm. "You're gonna be fine, someone's called an ambulance."

Billy's eyes fluttered and then opened, and he saw his friends gathered around him, all just the way he remembered them. Added to the group was a woman he didn't recognize, and....

"Katie?" Billy looked closer. "My God, it's you. Katie...." He remembered now where he'd seen her before; the day care center next to to the high school. He'd actually bought her an ice cream once, just for the hell of it.

Danielle stepped back, a little suspicious. "How do you know Katie?"

The rangers were as confused as she was. Billy merely smiled slightly and closed his eyes. "I did it," he murmured. He heard the wail of the ambulance getting closer and he let himself drift away.

~*~

Tommy, Rocky, and Aisha watched the two of them, concern evident in their eyes. Adam hadn't spoken at all since the accident, and Kimberly looked frightfully pale. Apparently, Danielle noticed the state they were in, for she suddenly appeared in front of them.

"Listen, maybe you two should go to the cafeteria and get some hot chocolate? There's no point just sitting here like this."

Adam looked up at her vaguely and Kim took it upon herself to answer. "What if something happens to Billy? We have to be sure he's all right!"

Danielle shook her head and took Adam's chin in her hand. "Listen to me." He looked shocked, but he nodded slightly. "It is not going to help Billy at all if you torture yourself. He's in there with a bunch of very knowledgeable people. People who have studied for years so they could help people in situations just like this. Billy's going to be all right. You have to concentrate on you."

Adam gulped and pulled away slightly. "I know. But... but they said he was really sick. They said—"

"I know what they said. Come walk with me, will you? All of you."

The five teens looked at one another, considering. Then Tommy stood, and the others followed his lead. Danielle led them down the hallway toward the cafeteria. She waited for a moment before speaking. "I want to tell you a story. You see that little girl out there? My Katie?"

Rocky nodded for the others and Danielle continued. "When she was born, the doctors said there was something wrong with her. Something abnormal, but they didn't know what it was. They said it didn't appear to be hurting her, but as young as she was, they had no way of knowing. They said she could die."

Kimberly gasped and Aisha placed a hand over her mouth. Adam looked like he was about to faint. Tommy and Rocky merely listened expressionlessly. "When they told me that," Danielle continued, "I nearly died myself. I stopped eating, I stopped sleeping... I spent all my time by her crib, watching her, making sure she was still there. One morning, Jacob found me unconscious on the floor, barely breathing. I was suffering from malnutrition, and had contracted a bad case of pneumonia to boot. And from spending all that time with Katie, I'd given it to her. We were both in the hospital for a long time, but she recovered speedily. Much faster than me, in fact." She stopped and turned to look at the kids, warmth reflecting in her eyes. "Do you understand what I'm trying to say?"

Adam surprised them all as he spoke. "You're saying it won't do any good to beat ourselves up, when... when whatever's gonna happen will... will just happen. Right?"

Danielle smiled and hugged him gently. "Exactly. Now what say I buy you all a cup of hot chocolate?"

~*~

He nearly fell out of his seat trying to get up. "What? Who? Mr. Cranston, what—?"

Hank laughed wearily. "Billy's doing all right. I'm sorry, kids, I should have said something sooner."

Tommy sank back into his seat with a sigh of relief. Rocky spoke up next. "Did they figure out what was wrong with him?"

"No, I'm afraid not. Not yet." He shook his head and took a seat next to Adam. "They've ruled out all kinds of horrible diseases, but they're still no closer to figuring it out."

"So he could still... He might still...." Adam couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence.

Hank put an arm around the boy, and the kids saw that his hand was trembling. "Adam, we just have to think positively. The doctors are optimistic. Every time they rule something out, they get more excited." He laughed again, though somewhat mirthlessly. "Billy keeps insisting he'll be fine. I'm inclined to believe him."

"He's talking? He's awake?" Aisha's eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Yes. Would you kids like to go and visit with him?"

"Can we?"

"Of course. He'll be glad to see your faces."

"Come on, Adam," Aisha pulled Adam to his feet. "Let's go say hi!"

Aisha's excitement was catching, and the teens hurriedly followed Hank back to Billy's room.

Adam couldn't muster up the same excitement as the others. They seemed so certain that everything would be okay. He tried to take Danielle's words to heart, but there was still a feeling of dread deep in the pit of his stomach. He took a deep breath as they approached the closed door and forced himself to smile.

"Billy," Hank was saying, "I brought some guests for you."

"Guys!" Billy's voice was weak and hoarse, but he was talking. "Hi!"

They crowded around the bed, and Hank stepped back to give them room. "Are you okay?" asked Tommy cautiously, taking in Billy's appearance.

Billy chuckled a little. "Compared to what? But seriously, I'll be fine. Trust me."

Rocky grabbed his hand and squeezed it. "Billy, you really scared us!"

"I know." Billy closed his eyes and smiled. "I'm sorry."

The teens stayed for a few minutes more, engaging in a bit of small talk. Finally, Hank chased them out of the room, saying Billy needed his sleep. It was only after they'd left that Billy realized Adam hadn't said one word.

~*~

Jason laughed and stepped forward, easing him back down to the bed. "Whoa, relax, buddy. Take it easy!"

"Where's Trini? Where's Zack? Why aren't you in Switzerland? How—?"

"Whoa!" Jason held his hands up in mock surrender. "One question at a time! Trini and Zack are coming, they... got held up for a second. And we're not in Switzerland because—"

"Because we just couldn't stay away knowing you were stuck in this place," finished Zack, bursting into the room.

Trini followed, holding a large bouquet of flowers and a bunch of balloons. "We are so glad you're okay, Billy," she smiled at him, dark eyes sparkling.

Billy felt his heart flip over and he gulped. "Uh...."

Trini laughed and put the flowers down on the table next to him. She kissed him gently on the cheek and Billy felt his face turn bright red. Jason and Zack shot each other a look and chuckled slightly.

"How did you get away?" Billy asked when he could speak again.

"You make it sound like we were trapped," teased Jason. "We just told them a friend was sick and they gave us tickets home."

"We're free to go back any time, though," Zack finished. "All we have to do is call the local office here in Angel Grove and they'll get us tickets back."

"Okay." Billy nodded, relieved. Jason had to go back to Geneva if he wanted to meet Christine. He made a mental note to get Jason back out of the country as soon as possible. Trini's voice broke into his thoughts.

"When I heard what happened, I got so scared!" Trini took his hand and looked deep into his eyes. "I thought... Billy, you could have been gone! Just like that!"

Billy nodded, mesmerized by her eyes. "I know."

Jason and Zack were backing slowly out of the room. "Uh... maybe we should go... to the cafeteria? And get some lunch?" said Zack, nudging Jason.

Jason agreed. "Yeah, we'll bring you a candy bar or something."

Billy heard them laughing as they walked away. He smiled at Trini, trying to screw up the courage to tell her what he desperately wanted her to know. "Um, Trini? I have to tell you something."

She looked a little concerned. "What?"

"Um... you know how you always used to ask me why I never asked anybody to school dances, and... stuff?"

She nodded, looking slightly amused.

"Well, the reason was because the only person I ever wanted to go with was you."

Her mouth fell open. "Really? But... but what about Marge? Laura?"

Billy looked sheepish. "Those were momentary infatuations. They couldn't hold a candle to you. There was one more... Violet... but we only went out once."

"Because of me?"

"Yeah." Billy nodded and looked away, wishing his face wouldn't turn so red when he was embarrassed. Then he remembered Trini saying she'd liked that, and it didn't bother him so much.

"Well..." she hesitated, and Billy waited, nervous even though he was almost positive he knew what she was about to say. "Well, I... I like you, too."

He let out a sigh of relief. "I was hoping you'd say that."

She kissed him, on the mouth this time, and his face went red all over again. "I've wanted to do that for a long time," she laughed.

~*~

He made a face and saw Ms. Appleby glaring at him. He blushed and sank back down into his chair. Another glance at the clock. 2:44. He sighed again and rested his head on his hand, drumming the fingers of his other hand on the desk.

"Mr. DeSantos, I realize it's fifteen minutes until the end of class, but if you insist on being a distraction I'll be forced to ask you to leave!" Ms. Appleby's voice broke into his thoughts.

Rocky perked up. "Really? Thanks, Ms. Appleby!" And he grabbed his things and left, much to the amusement of his classmates and the annoyance of his teacher.

Rocky then waited impatiently outside Mr. Stimmel's room. He peeked in and saw the class finishing up their dissection experiment. He gulped a little as he eyed what looked like it may have been... a pig? Or not. That was the one thing about Biology he couldn't stand. But he'd have to get over that if he wanted to—

The door flew open and the Biology class filed out ten minutes early. Rocky pushed his way through the crowd of laughing science nerds (not that being a science nerd was a bad thing) and approached the teacher's desk. "Um... Mr. Stimmel?"

The man looked up and smiled slightly. "Ah, hello. A friend of Billy Cranston's aren't you? I've seen you with him in the park."

"Yes, sir," answered Rocky meekly. "But see the thing is... um... I was thinking. After what happened to Billy and all... and I've always liked Biology... well, anatomy anyway... and sometimes it takes me a while to understand stuff but I get it eventually, I just need time to... you know, mull it over... and I'm not stupid, but sometimes—"

"Excuse me, son... I don't know your name—"

"What? Oh, it's Rocky."

"All right, Rocky. You're babbling and I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh." Rocky blushed again and forced himself to make some sense. "I think I want to... to be a doctor."

"Ah!" The man's face lit up. "A new disciple! Come, Rocky, m'boy, sit! We have a lot to talk about!"

~*~

Adam himself had visited the hospital every day after school, but somehow it wasn't enough. He still woke up sometimes in the middle of the night, scared to death that something had gone wrong and Billy had died after all. He was a little angry at himself for being so dependent on Billy. After all, he'd only known him for just over a year now. Then again, he'd always had a tendency to get overly attached to people. He figured he'd be in the same shape if it had been Rocky or Aisha.

Or maybe not. Billy was different. Billy understood him like none of the others did. Not even Rocky, who he had known since he was two, had as complete an understanding of him as Billy did.

Adam's thought were interrupted by Billy's sleepy voice. "Adam, what are you doing here?" Billy yawned and stretched, smiling at him.

"I just wanted to make sure you were okay," Adam answered, slightly embarrassed.

"You say that every day," teased Billy, rolling over to face him. "What's up?"

Adam shrugged. "Nothing."

Billy snorted. "You know better than that," he insisted.

"Well...." Adam let his voice trail off, unsure of how to proceed. He snuck glance at Billy, who was merely waiting patiently. "Well, I was just scared."

"Of what?"

"I don't know," Adam lied. He looked up and saw that Billy wasn't buying it, so he rephrased it. "Okay, I do know, but... I don't know how to... or why...."

"It's okay." Billy smiled at him. "Don't worry about it. But you know, Adam, you really ought to consider... talking to someone other than me."

Adam looked slightly alarmed. "What do you mean?"

"I mean a psychiatrist. Don't look so shocked. A lot of people see psychiatrists."

"Yeah, nutcases!" Adam burst out.

Billy chuckled. "I guess that would make me a nutcase, 'cause I've been seeing one since I was twelve."

Adam blushed. "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it. I understand your hesitancy. I didn't want to see one at first, either, but as it turned out, it all worked out for the better."

"How so?"

"Well, I learned to deal with some of the things that had been bothering me for years. I never would have worked through them on my own. Sometimes you just need someone knowledgeable to help steer you in the right direction." Billy saw Adam about to speak and cut him off. "And no, that someone can't be me." Adam closed his mouth. "Look, Adam, I know you're hurting, and it's more than just this whole thing with me. I mean, your self-esteem is even lower than mine, and until I met you, I never would have thought that was possible."

"Well... yeah, I guess I have a pretty low self-esteem, but—"

"But nothing," said Billy firmly. "You'll never succeed in life if you don't believe you can. Trust me."

Adam stared hard at him for a moment, as if trying to figure out what to say. Finally, he spoke. "I guess I could talk to my Dad. About getting someone to talk to, I mean."

Billy nodded and lay back down. "Good."

He yawned again, and Adam stood. "I should go," he said reluctantly. "You still look tired."

Billy shook his head. "You don't have to go if you don't want to. Why don't you stay a while?"

Adam considered, then sank back down into the chair beside the bed. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes, feeling more content than he had in a long time.

Billy smiled to himself. Tomorrow he'd call Kimberly and ask her over. There were a lot of things he wanted to say to her, and the sooner the better. There was also the little matter about Trini. Kim didn't know yet that they'd hooked up, and she would definitely be glad to hear it. Billy sighed. So much had happened to him. Would he ever be able to tell them about it?

He glanced over at Adam as the boy let out a light snore. Billy chuckled slightly and closed his eyes. Adam had the right idea. As he drifted off to sleep, he thought of the tiny gold pendant that rested in a box on the nighttable. He'd give it to Kimberly after they spoke, and maybe it would remind her to be strong in times of uncertainty. He sighed to himself and began to dream.

"You got some mail," Hank answered, handing him a small white envelope.

Billy took it, confused for a second as he saw Adam's small, rounded handwriting gracing the front of the envelope. "It's from Adam?"

"It appears to be," answered Hank, taking a seat on the bed next to him.

"But why would he write? He lives two streets down!"

Hank shrugged. "Open it and find out." He kissed Billy lightly on the cheek and stood. "I'm going to get started on dinner, all right? We'll see if you can handle a bit of baked chicken and rice?"

"Sure." Billy waited until Hank had closed the door behind him to open the envelope. He pulled out a piece of lined paper.

Hi, Billy, this is Adam. But I guess you knew that. Sorry. I was thinking about what you said and my Dad got me a really nice shrink named Janice. I've been seeing her for three weeks now, ever since you suggested it. I guess you're wondering why I wrote you and didn't just call or come over. It's because Janice told me to write down what I was feeling. She says it's easier than saying it in person. Which it is. Do me a favor and do not mention this letter to anyone. Not even me. It's embarrassing. Anyway, here's what I wanted to say. You're very important to me and I was really scared when I thought I'd lost you. You seem to understand me better than anybody, and you never make me feel stupid or small. Not that the others do, not on purpose, anyway, but sometimes I wonder why I'm on the team. I can't hold a candle to you and Tommy and Rocky, and even the girls. You've been around so much longer and you know the ropes. Tommy, well, sometimes I think he's too perfect. Doesn't he have any flaws? Besides his forgetfulness, I mean. Okay, I guess that's it. Not it for the letter, but it for what I was trying to say. Remember, this does not leave your room! Ever! On penalty of death! Or not. I showed a poem I'd written to Janice and she said I should show it to you. I'm not so sure I like that idea, but here it is. Don't laugh, okay?

Billy smiled to himself as he folded up the letter. _Stupid, indeed._ There was another knock on his door. "Come in!" He hurriedly shoved the letter under the covers, just in time to see a very sheepish Farkus Bulkmeier shuffle into the room. "Bulk? What are you doing here?"

Bulk scuffed his feet on the carpet. "Uh... well.... here's the thing, see.... Um... I wanted to... uh... apologize for... you know. Before."

Billy raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you know... freshman year, and... stuff."

"You do?"

"Well, I wasn't exactly... you know, nice... and all. And... I've been seeing a therapist and—"

"You have?"

"Shut up. I mean... yes. And he says the only way I can move on is if I out all of that stuff behind me so I'm apologizing and... that's it. Okay?" Bulk whirled around and started to leave.

"Hold it!" Billy stopped him. "Why are you leaving? You can stay and talk for a while, if you want."

"I can?"

"Sure. Have a seat."

Bulk approached him awkwardly and sank down into the chair beside the bed. "So... you're doing better?"

"Yes. It's slow going."

"Have they figured out what was wrong with you yet? That mystery illness they were talking about?"

"No. I still have to go to the hospital every week for a checkup. They say whatever it is, it seems to be going away."

"That's good." Bulk paused. "There was a rumor going around school that you had cancer or something like that. People were scared."

"Scared? Of what?"

"That you were gonna die or something. There are all kinds of rumors. Cancer, AIDS, Multiple Sclerosis—"

"If I had something like that, it wouldn't be a mystery, would it?"

Bulk thought about it for a second. "I guess not, no. Maybe I should tell them that, huh?"

"Maybe."

Both boys were silent for a moment. Billy decided he might as well ask the question that had been nagging at him ever since he'd returned to his own time line. "Say, Bulk, have you told Skull about... your therapy, and all?"

"Hell no!"

"You should."

"What? Why?"

"Don't you think Skull would benefit from therapy, too? Besides, he looks up to you. He'd do anything you told him to."

"Yeah, I guess. But what if he laughs at me?"

"He won't laugh," insisted Billy. "Tell him how much it's helped you. I'm sure he'll take it to heart."

"Hmmm. Maybe. I guess I'll talk to him tonight. We were gonna go camping."

"Just camping?"

Bulk looked sheepish. "Well, we were gonna hope the Power Rangers showed up while we were out there."

Billy chuckled. "You guys never give up, do you?"

"Did you see them? When you were in the park?"

"Yes. But they were in their Zords and all. I didn't see who they were."

"Oh." Bulk looked disappointed. "Okay. Did they apologize for catching you in the middle of their battle?"

"No. I don't think they knew I was there."

"Oh." Bulk stood up and stretched. "I should go. I need to pack for our camping trip."

"Okay, have fun." Billy waved.

Just before Bulk left, he turned around. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"I was thinking. After I graduate, do you think I should join the army?"

Billy's mouth fell open. "The army?"

Bulk nodded. "It'd be good for me, don't you think?"

"Well.. yes, but.... I think maybe you're better suited for the police force."

"Police force?" Bulk looked deep in thought. "The police force. Hmmm." And as he closed the door behind him, Billy started to laugh.

End