Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Casey, Theo, and Lily looked up at RJ as he stood between them and the mantis monster.

"I think it's time for your first lesson," RJ told them over his shoulder. He pulled his sleeve back and showed them his Master tattoo. "You can't judge a book by its cover."

RJ pulled his chef jacket loose from the apron he was wearing and stood there, calmly, with only one of his arms up as a guard. Not only did he not look scared, he looked cocky.

"Attack!" The monster ordered his minions.

They came at him at once, and RJ dispatched them calmly. Once he had defeated all the minions, he turned to the monster.

"Impossible!" The monster yelled.

RJ was obviously gathering energy from somewhere, Theo and Lily assumed it was from his animal spirit, and he proceeded to blast the monster back to its red-jacket mode.

"I'll get you!" The monster yelled as it ran away.

The three students had gotten up and looked at RJ with great reverence.

"You're him! You're our Master!"

They vowed to him and the master's face contorted in a grimace.

"Please, call me RJ," he said, smiling. "Now, my students, the real journey begins."

That had been the very first time RJ had joined them in battle to save their lives. It would happen again. Twice.

Six months after that first time, they were still RJ's students, and they loved it.

RJ was ahead of them in an obstacle course he had designed for the team. He was jumping from one log to another, landing at the tip on one leg, his balance perfectly kept.

"Come on!" he called over his shoulder as he reached the other side. He turned to find his students still on the other side of the log obstacle, just looking at him with stars in their eyes.

"Are you guys going to cross?" He asked them.

"Can you do it again?" Casey asked, pointing at the logs. "So we can copy you?"

"Do it again?" RJ asked, confused.

"Yes," Lily said. "So we can copy you."

"You don't need to copy me, just do it your own way."

The three students looked at each other, and Lily was the first to budge. "Ok, we don't want to copy you. We just want to see you do it again."

RJ crossed his arms, each hand on the opposite forearm, like he did when he was thinking instead of angry.

"Why?" He asked after a couple of seconds of looking at them.

"Because it was really cool," Casey admitted. Lily and Theo nodded along.

RJ looked at the ground for a few seconds, feeling his students stare on him. "I don't do very well with this kind of attention."

Casey, Theo, and Lily looked at each other.

"We didn't mean to offend," Theo said.

"We just..." Lily started.

"Admire you," Casey finished. "We-- well, I wish I could be like you."

"So do I!" Lily jumped immediately.

"And me!" Theo added, making the other three look at him as if he had just admitted to murder.

"Guys," RJ started. "I'm your Master, and that is a great honor, but I really don't deal very well with people admiring me."

Casey crossed his arms and addressed him: "Then you shouldn't have made yourself so admirable."

Chapter Text

Lily returned from the battle looking completely defeated. It didn’t go past RJ that she wasn’t being her usual bubbly self.

“I’m going to shower before my shift,” Lily said, walking to the bedroom area.

“What happened?” RJ asked Casey and Theo.

“Camille came to the restaurant in disguise and Lily gave her some advice,” Theo said.

“Oh.”

“She rubbed it on her face during the battle. Lily thinks she’s a terrible judge of character,” Theo added.

“Oh.”

“Yeah, she feels fooled and defeated,” Casey told him.

“I see,” the Master said. “Well, get ready for your shifts, great work against Jellica.”

“Thanks,” the boys said and left for the rooms too.

RJ sat on his chair, thinking.

About half an hour later, Lily came out of the room area, her apron in hand. She was still sad.

“Lily,” RJ called for her, also coming out of the bedroom area, and putting on a sweater. “You’re free from your shift this afternoon.”

“RJ, I really need the distraction,” she pleaded.

“And a distraction you will have, just not at work,” he said with a smile. “Go ahead, put some clothes on, we’re going to the zoo.”

“The zoo?”

“Yes.” He smiled wider. “Trust me.”

She nodded and did as she was told.

RJ paid for the tickets and into the zoo they went. Even the bright-colored and beautiful animals didn’t seem to cheer Lily up.

“Any cheetahs?” she asked.

“Sorry, no,” RJ said with a shrug. “I’m sure we’ll find something to look at.”

“Like the wolves?”

“No wolves either,” he said, shrugging.

“So what are we doing here?”

“Taking a walk,” he said, stopping to buy two ice cream cones. He gave her one. “Tell me what’s wrong,” he said as they walked.

“Camille fooled me completely. I feel angry and humiliated and… like I trust too much, or too easily. I think I need to harden up a bit,” she said on the verge of tears.

RJ wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “I wish I could trust like you.”

“Did you not hear what I just said?” She asked him.

“Lily, you saw something good in Camille—”

“She’s a demon, RJ!”

“And you saw the good in her. That says a lot about you and none of it has to do with you trusting too much or too easily.”

He looked around them and found what he was looking for.

“Come on,” he told Lily and walked towards the balloon vendor. “I’ll have the yellow one,” he told the man with a smile and received the requested balloon after he paid for it.

He walked away from the vendor, the yellow balloon floating between him and Lily as they walked.

RJ found an empty gazebo and got inside. Lily followed him.

RJ showed her the balloon. “This is your spirit, Lily. Not your animal spirit, not your warrior spirit, just your own spirit, as Lily.” She nodded to indicate she followed him. “Now look:” he said. He put a hand over the balloon and pushed it down, then he released it. The balloon went back to floating above their heads. “It doesn’t matter how much you are mocked, hurt, or lied to. No matter what pushed your spirit down, it always floats right back up. It's who you are. That is your biggest strength, Lily, not everybody can do that.”

“She fooled me completely, RJ,” Lily said. RJ repeated the motion with the balloon.

“I wish I could trust the way you trust,” he told her again, releasing the balloon.

“What do you mean?” She asked.

“Finding it hard to trust in anyone is the most isolating thing in the world. It takes a lot for me to trust someone, even myself, and that keeps everybody at arm's length. It’s very lonely.”

“RJ, I didn’t mean—”

“You have a gift,” he handed her the balloon’s ribbon. “You can see it float again, or you can puncture it and kill it forever. It’s up to you.”

Lily looked at the balloon but said nothing.

“Lily,” RJ said, putting a hand on her shoulder. “Don’t give Camille your smile. She doesn’t deserve it.”

With that, he walked out of the gazebo and Lily stayed for a minute there, looking at the balloon. She was smiling when she joined RJ by the rail he was leaning against.

“Thank you, RJ,” she said with a smile.

“Glad you feel better, my little cheetah.”

Chapter Text

RJ tore the wrapping paper from his present and found a brand-new snorkeling set underneath.

"Ah! Case! You didn't have to!"

"I dropped the old one in the ocean, so I kinda did," Casey said. RJ shook his head while smiling.

"It's great, Case, thanks!"

They looked around the sea of wrapping paper that surrounded them, looking for any remaining unopened presents.

"I think we are done," RJ said.

"We have one more," Dom called from the kitchen. They all looked up and RJ groaned. Dom was walking towards them holding a cake with a lit candle on it.

"Come on, guys!" RJ moaned.

"You didn't think we were going to skip celebrating your birthday, did you?" Lily said.

"We already celebrated my birthday!" RJ said.

"But not on your actual birthday," Fran said.

"Happy birthday to you..." Casey started singing, RJ looked at the flame, his cheeks going red, and looking mortified.

They sang "Happy Birthday" to him and he blew out the candle.

Lily got up to hug him. "Happy birthday, RJ," she said.

"Thank you, Lily."

Then Casey hugged him. "Happy birthday, man."

RJ hugged him back and he was replaced by Fran.

"I hope you didn't buy me a second set of presents!" RJ said over Fran's shoulder.

Dom approached them with a large bag containing more gifts.

"Of course we didn't!" he said, putting them in front of RJ. "It's only your birthday."

"Guys! I pay you your salaries, you don't have to spend your money on me!" RJ said as he hugged Theo.

"Maybe we don't have to," Dom said, pulling him out of his chair for a proper bear hug. "But we want to."

"I hope these are all symbolic," RJ said, sitting back down to open his birthday presents.

"Hey!" Lily said. "You deserve love and praise and gifts and being celebrated as much as any of us!"

"Exactly!" Theo said.

RJ looked at the bag of presents, his cheeks red again.

"Thank you, guys. I hadn't celebrated my birthday on the actual day in ages."

"We don't have to pick between our family and you," Casey said, smiling. RJ looked at him. "Because you're our family."

Chapter Text

Casey was sitting on the roof, looking at the sea across the street. He was trying to breathe deeply, like RJ had taught him, to calm himself, but he was shaking.

Was he shaking with anger or fear?

He wasn’t sure. Maybe both. Maybe neither.

He wanted to cry.

It was definitely fear.

He heard the door open and soon, his Master sat beside him.

“Hey.”

“Hey,” Casey replied, prying his gaze off the sea to look at RJ.

RJ put a hand on his back. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“There’s nothing to talk about,” Casey said. “It’s just another day,” he said, looking at the sea again.

RJ looked at him for a few seconds and then at the ocean.

“I got a call last week,” he started. Casey didn’t react. “About your mother being released early.”

That made Casey look at him. “They called you?”

“I am your legal guardian, Case. They called me to let me know she was being released today.”

“And you didn’t tell me?” Casey asked, showing his anger by looking at RJ with a hardened expression.

“No.”

“Why not?! Why let me discover she was out of her cage through a phone call from her?”

“Because I have no intention of letting that woman anywhere near you,” RJ said, averting his gaze from the sea to look at his student. “She won’t see you again as long as it's up to me.”

Silence fell between them.

Casey felt highly grateful for RJ’s promise, but he doubted the other man could keep it. “She’s my mother, you can’t stop her,” he whispered, looking at the sea again.

RJ put his hand on Casey’s shoulder. “Any woman who puts drugs before her children is no mother. I can stop her and I will. She’s a danger to you and her presence is detrimental to your well-being.”

“She was released for good behavior…”

“There is no amount of good behavior that will pay for leaving her children to starve. Look at me,” RJ ordered. Casey looked at his eyes. “There is no amount of good behavior that can make up for what she did to you and your sisters.”

Casey felt his eyes well up. “She has your phone, she probably has your address…”

RJ hugged him and Casesy started crying.

“Casey,” RJ started, rubbing the tiger’s back. “I promise she won’t lay eyes on you until you’re legally an adult. She doesn’t deserve you.”

“How can you stop her? Nothing will stop her…”

“Drugs will stop her. Believe me, now that she’s free, the first thing she’s going to look for is not you or the twins, it’s drugs. And she will land herself back in jail in no time.”

“I’m afraid they’re going to release him too. How are you going to stop them both?”

“I don’t have to. They will stop themselves.”

Silence fell again and RJ just rocked Casey softly. He ran his hand up and down his back, hoping the embrace would help Casey feel safer.

“I wish they loved me." Casey's voice was barely a whisper. "I wish I were enough to make her quit,” Casey said between sobs. “Why was I never good enough for her to quit?”

RJ kept rocking him softly, running his hand through Casey’s hair.

“You are good enough for me,” he whispered. “And for my dad. Believe me, they don’t want to mess with us.”

“You can’t just attack them…”

“The Pai Zhua isn’t our only resort, Case. We have an army of lawyers. We can send them back to where they came from.” He hugged Casey tighter, still rocking him. “Neither will lay eyes on you until you’re an adult.”

“Sometimes I have this nightmare… they’re both… they’re both standing in my room, looking at me… they want revenge for sending them to prison… they try to kill me…”

“Never.” RJ took a moment to dry Casey’s cheeks. “They will never see you again if you don’t want them to.”

“I’m worried about the twins…”

“I spoke to their foster parents this morning, they’re taking them out of town for the time being. As I said, it’s only a matter of time before your parents land themselves back in prison.”

Casey got out of RJ’s embrace and sniffed. “You have given me so much already…”

“I’m not done.”

“Do you promise she won’t come around here? That she won’t come demanding hugs and kisses from her beloved boy?”

“Her beloved boy that she left to starve?” RJ dried Casey’s cheeks again. “She will never touch you again unless you want her to.”

“What if she shows up with a gun?”

“Then, she better be ready to shoot me,” RJ said, the weight he put on those words making it clear to Casey that he wasn’t backing down. “If she shows up with a gun, she better be ready to use it because I won’t let her anywhere near you as long as I’m breathing.”

He hugged Casey again.

“She will land herself back in prison,” RJ promised. “What she did to you will never happen again. You will never be cold or hungry under my roof. There is no drug that can seduce me enough to put you in second place.”

They remained silent for a few seconds, RJ just softly rocking Casey.

“Thank you,” Casey whispered.

“She will always be one of the demons in your head,” RJ told him. “But she will never be your demon in real life ever again.”

Chapter Text

Theo groaned when he saw RJ walk towards him holding two yoga mats.
"Theo, we've been through this," RJ said, handing him a mat. "Your strength and speed are tip top but your elasticity needs a lot of help."
"But I hate Yoga!" The blue ranger complained.
"Theo," RJ warned. He pointed to the space behind him so Theo knew where to put his mat.
"Okay, let's start with the child's pose," RJ said, letting his butt touch his ankles while stretching his arms over his head. He breathed three times into the position and then looked at Theo, whose butt was still way up in the air.
RJ moved closer to Theo and put a hand on the base of his back and one on his neck. He pushed Theo's butt downwards.
"Theo, this isn't a time for perfection, it's a time for relaxing and aligning with yourself. Breathe and let go, the world will still be there when you finish."
Theo took a deep breath and as he exhaled, RJ pushed harder.
"Nice, keep the breath going, relax your lower back."
After Theo managed to rest his buttocks on his ankles, RJ went back to his mat.
"Now let's do downward-facing dog. Remember, start on your hands and knees, and then extend your legs, butt to the roof."
Theo's difficulty with this one was extending his legs properly.
RJ moved to him and corrected his posture.
"Separate your hands a bit, good, same with the feet, good job. Now breathe in, and as you breathe out, extend those legs, come on. Nice and easy."
After a mere 30 minutes, Theo let himself drop on the mat.
"I'm done."
Instead of insisting he continued, RJ took the thirty-minute mark as an improvement. "Let's do our closing meditation, then."
They closed their eyes and meditated for around ten minutes. Afterward, RJ used a gesture to keep Theo from getting up from his mat.
"Let's have a chat," he said.
"What do you want to talk about?"
"This problem with elasticity is not new. The difference between this and your other skills is quite a gap. Didn't you practice yoga and tai chi at the academy?"
"I was meant to," Theo said. "But most of the time I found a way not to."
RJ chuckled and got up. "You can't just skip the classes you don't like. The Pai Zhua has a very strict, very balanced training plan."
"I don't see you doing yoga or Tai Chi with Casey and Lily."
"I do yoga with Casey and Lily all the time. Every morning, in fact. You prefer to read in your room. And I prefer you read in your room too because you couldn't keep up with the rest of us."
RJ was setting up the kettle in the kitchen and Theo walked to him after rolling his mat.
"Seriously?"
"Yes," RJ said, preparing the mugs. "Also, it helps that Lily and Casey know how to relax. Master Swoop did a great job helping you focus on only one thing at a time, but you are still incapable of relaxing."
"I relax," Theo said as RJ passed him a mug. "I relax when Lily and I go out for lunch."
"That is a different kind of relaxing. I need to know you can let go of worries and emotions and go back to your center if you need to do so," the Master explained. "It will also help with your strength, balance, and defense capabilities. It's a basic Pai Zhua skill and a hole in your training. So we have to catch up."
"No, please, I really hate it…"
"Theo…"
"I'm really bad at it."
"Theo…"
"I look like an idiot…"
"That's what the practice is for, Theo. Remember the metaphor of the stool I told you on your first day here?"
"Yes."
"Well, when it comes to this, you are the broken leg. I need you to catch up. Is that clear?"
"As day."
"Wonderful, let's drink our tea and get ready for work."
RJ brought his mug to his mouth and Theo said:
"I didn't mean to weaken the team. I'll do my best to catch up."
RJ smiled at him. "I know you will." He put his mug down and then a hand on Theo's shoulder. "You can't help yourself."

Chapter Text

RJ had arrived that morning from the fresh market with tons of ingredients.

The whole team had helped bring them from the jeep to the kitchen and then everybody had gotten ready to start cooking.

RJ had taken over the turkey and stuffing, Lily had gotten to work on the pumpkin pie, with a family recipe, Casey had taken over the mashed potatoes, and Theo had taken the gravy and cranberry sauce.

Dom and Fran worked on bringing tables and chairs from the restaurant to create a big family table.

The time it took to complete the preparations was fun and lighthearted. They laughed, they helped each other when necessary, they danced and told stories.

RJ told them about a year he had spent wandering all over the world, learning new cooking techniques as well as martial arts techniques. He mentioned having trained in a ninja academy for a while and being told, to his surprise, that despite having a wolf animal spirit, he had the spirit of the water. He figured it was his way to honor his father.

Nobody believed him, except for Dom, who had met his teacher, Tori, when they bought surfboards from her.

Dom had the most stories, of course. Not only had his journeys taken him far away, but he had made it all more interesting by trying to assimilate everywhere he went, which led to him knowing the basics of many languages and how to do a lot of things, one of which was selecting wine. So RJ sent him to the store to get wine for dinner.

Theo spoke about growing up with Luan and their unbridled sibling rivalry. Lily told them about her adventures as a dancer before she joined the Pai Zhua.

Casey said he had had a boring life and had nothing really interesting to talk about, which RJ understood and made sure the rest of the table did too. Telling the story of your mother leaving you and your siblings to starve because she was too high to feed you was probably not the best story to share during Thanksgiving preparations.

They pushed Fran into telling stories about her trip to Europe with Dom and they were surprised by how out of her shell she was now, most of it due to having to keep up with Dom.

When the food was done, they all took a break to take a shower and get dressed. By the time the girls came out, the boys had set the table and were waiting for them to sit down.

The doorbell rang and in came Master Finn, a huge steamed stuffed fish on a platter in his hands.

"Damn, Dad, thanks!" RJ had said, taking it from him.

"I also brought wine, let me go get it."

"We already have wine," RJ told him with a dismissive gesture.

"Not this wine," Finn said, winking at him before he left the loft.

Swoop and Phant joined later and last, but not least, Jarrod and Camille. Camille let everybody know the reason for their tardiness was Jarrod not being sure they really wanted him there.

This made Casey hug him saying: "I don't know if they want you here, but I do."

"Of course we want you here, Jarrod!" RJ had yelled from the other side of the loft.

They sat down and started serving themselves, the conversation still animated, everybody interested in Jarrod and Camille's side of the stories. They didn't want to revisit most of it, but due to the eagerness of the others, they decided to share some of the least traumatic stories.

The evening went by, and a warm and protective mood settled over them. Nothing but smiling faces all over the table, the great wine Finn had brought starting to take effect on the elder adults.

They took a moment to say their thanks.

Thanks for this opportunity.

Thanks for bringing my son back to me.

Thanks for this safe place to hide.

Thanks for the forgiveness I have been granted.

Thanks for a reason to stay in one place.

Thanks for letting me teach one last student.

Thanks for my new friends.

Thanks for releasing me from that demon.

Thanks because we made it out alive.

Thanks for this family.

Chapter Text

RJ grabbed his guitar and sat on his chair. His students were downstairs, cleaning the restaurant after a rather busy day.

Meanwhile, RJ had a lot to think about, mostly about the Phantom Beast and how powerful and brutal they were. He plucked the strings distractedly as he processed all the information he had gathered.

There was also the issue of the Spirit Rangers. RJ figured they worked the same way their zords did, a projection of the other Masters’ animal spirits that had taken a solid form, only instead of giant animals, they were humanoid. RJ wondered if his father had ever been a ranger when he was young and just had never told him. Same with Master Swoop.

But if they had, why would they keep it a secret?

He continued plucking the strings as he thought and was so lost in thought he didn’t hear the others come up, ready for dinner and bed.

“Hey man,” Dom called, pulling RJ out of his musings. “Do you take requests? Because that is unnerving.”

“Shoot” RJ said, looking at them.

“Why don’t you sing us a song you want to sing?” Lily requested. “Any song you want to sing.”

“No!” Dom yelled. “He’s going to sing us an acoustic version of ‘Barbie Girl’,” he whined.

“Very funny, Dom,” RJ said with a smirk. “I don’t feel like singing ‘Barbie Girl’ today, to be honest.”

“Then what would you like to sing?” Casey asked.

“Well, I’d like to sing a slow song,” RJ said, correcting his own posture with the guitar. "Like something by the Backstreet Boys?"

"Which one?" Dom asked.

"Show me the meaning?" RJ offered.

"That's depressing," Dom said from the fridge.

Casey threw him a dirty look. He looked at RJ. "Show me the meaning is fine."

RJ started playing the first chords of “I want it that way”, and he noticed his mistake very quickly.

He put his hand across the strings to stop the sound. “Damn it!”

“Hey,” Lily said, walking to him. “That one's fine too.”

“My mind is all over the place,” RJ said.

Lily arrived next to him, and the boys were also making their way from the kitchen.

“What is it?” Lily asked.

“It’s nothing,” RJ dismissed, his eyes still on the guitar. There were a couple of seconds of silence, during which RJ closed his eyes. He opened his eyes and looked at them. “I can’t even remember the right song.”

“It’s okay, man,” Casey said. “It’s just a song.”

“No, it’s not,” RJ replied. “My mind is all over the place, I’m drowning in worry, I haven’t had a good night sleep in months, “ he looked at Casey, Theo, and Lily. “I can’t help you,” he admitted.

“You are an amazing master,” Casey told him. “I have learned so much from you.”

“You have been invaluable to us,” Lily told him.

“We’d be dead if you hadn’t rescued us,” Theo told him. “Three times!”

“Yeah, but the fights to come—“

“We have you,” Lily said, putting a hand on his shoulder. “And Dom. We’ll be fine.”

Casey knelt in front of him. “You have helped us. We’ll be fine.”

“We’ll take ‘I want it that way’,” Dom said, turning to go back to the kitchen. “What do you want for dinner?”

“Something to loosen the knot in my stomach,” RJ told him, and his students smiled at him.

“PB&J it is!” Dom called.

“Dom!” RJ called from his chair. “You haven’t learned how to cook anything else in all these years?”

“Nope. I didn’t have to!”

RJ went back to his guitar and started playing the requested song.

As he sang, his brain went through all the possibilities of harm that could come to his students. He looked at them, and they were singing back, except for Theo. They were so carefree and relaxed.

He shook his head and told himself to enjoy the moment. They’ll burn those bridges when they come to them, or however the saying went.

Chapter Text

"Remain calm!" RJ ordered.

Casey was scrambling to recover control over his animal spirit after accidentally letting it out.

"He's going to destroy the whole loft!" He told his master, his eyes wide in terror.

"Just breathe," RJ told him. "Breathe and try to be calm."

"How do I get it back inside?!" Casey asked.

He had only been at the Pai Zhua academy for a week, and after five days at RJ's home, he had not yet learned how to control his animal spirit yet.

He looked at his new master, who had a peaceful smile on his face.

"Breathe, Casey," he instructed. "You cannot have control of the spirit if you don't have control of yourself."

"It's making a mess!"

"We'll pick it up later, I need you to breathe."

"I'm sorry!"

"Casey! Breathe!"

Accepting that his student was not going to calm down any time soon, RJ let out his own animal spirit and it swiftly dealt with Casey's spirit, sending it back to him.

Casey looked at RJ but he didn't seem mad. He seemed disappointed.

"I'm sorry I panicked," He said.

"Panic is fine," RJ said. "Panic is normal. Especially when you're learning something dangerous like this. What is not acceptable is staying in that panicked state."

"I'm sorry."

"Being sorry doesn't help you." RJ moved to start picking up the mess Casey's spirit had caused in his loft. "Casey, being in harmony with your animal spirit is the most important lesson in the Pai Zhua. But you can't be in harmony with your animal spirit if you're not in harmony with yourself."

Casey started helping with the cleaning, his gaze on the floor in shame.

"So," RJ said, putting a photo back on the shelf. "Do you want to tell me what is it that's keeping you off harmony'?"

Casey didn't say anything for a while and RJ respected his time.

After Casey helped him put his chair back up, he decided to press.

"Nothing?"

"I guess I'm just embarrassed."

RJ walked to the kitchen, leaving Casey to internalize what he had just said for a few seconds.

"What are you embarrassed of?" He asked as he filled the kettle.

"Of being so far behind Theo and Lily."

"Theo and Lily have been training for years, you have been training for merely a couple of weeks. I assure you Theo and Lily didn't start being the great warriors they are today."

Casey joined RJ in the kitchen. "Why did you make me the leader? If you knew I was so far behind Theo and Lily?"

RJ smiled at him. "Because you were the right choice."

"I'm so far behind--"

"You're not as behind as you think you are. You have the potential to be a tiger master, it's only a matter of hard work and time." The kettle whistled, so RJ moved to grab it and put the water in two mugs. "You have a very strong core, Casey, the tiger doesn't just choose anybody. You have a good heart. And when you're not panicking, you have a sharp mind. What you don't have is the belief that you have all of these things."

"I'm still so behind."

"You'll catch up. You're the leader because you are a natural leader. Don't doubt my judgment. You are far behind Theo and Lily, yes, but you're not stuck in that position forever. You'll get better. Learn to live with that, and do what you must to accept it. You can't be in harmony with your animal spirit until you are in harmony with yourself."

Casey nodded to let him know he understood.

"Hey," RJ said after a sip of tea. "We were all there. We were all cubs. We all doubted we could ever control our animal spirits. It took hard work and time. You'll get there, we'll wait."

"Thanks."

"No problem. Drink your tea so we can do some meditation. We have more than enough time, Casey. You will achieve harmony. We all did."

Chapter Text

The only way Casey could accurately describe his new master was “he is intriguing”.

He didn’t know if Theo and Lily felt the same way, but Casey was more intrigued by RJ with every passing day.

Most people thought RJ was usually calm and collected but Casey thought the exact opposite. RJ was never “collected”. On the contrary, he expressed his emotions fully. If he was happy, he was smiling and talking animatedly, if he was sad, he could sulk in silence for days. If he felt inspired, then every single brain cell was occupied with whatever had inspired him, and if he was relaxing, his whole being, mind, body, and soul, was relaxing.

RJ was obviously capable of great violence, physical and verbal, but he seemed to never use it unless it really was the last thing he could do. RJ would rather engage in a sarcastic insults contest with Dai Shi than in a physical fight, but if Dai Shi wanted to kill his dad, then RJ had a physical problem with that. And said physical problem had a very physical solution.

He also behaved like a ditz, like he was hardly more than a stoned surfer dude who had opened a pizza parlor but at the same time was able to create very complex technology the sole name of gave Casey headaches.

He loved cooking pizza but not eating it. Well, he did, he loved eating pizza, he loved eating a very unhealthy diet, but he would feel much more satisfied with a good steak and a beer.

And speaking of steak, RJ also seemed to be against animal cruelty when it came to sports or entertainment but had no problem eating them. They had thought he was a vegetarian when they first met him and he had laughed them off as he sat down to eat his steak.

Right now, RJ was baking. He was holding the electric mixer into the bowl with one hand, holding the bowl with the other. His gaze was into the mixture and his attention seemed to be completely into the mix.

“Hey,” Casey said, walking up to him. “Do you need any help?”

“Only with eating it later,” RJ replied with a smile. “Anything I can do for you?”

“I have a question. Don’t try to guess the answer again.”

“Ask away.”

“Would you like to become a ranger with us?”

RJ didn’t answer immediately. He gave his words some thoughts and this was obvious to Casey because he was pouting and looking upwards and to the side, the way he always did when he was thinking.

“It’s not that I wouldn’t want to be a ranger,” he started, his gaze back on the cake mix. “I’d love to be a Power Ranger. But I think if I ever do join you, it’d have to be at the right time, and because you really need me. Not want me. Need me.”

“Why?” Casey asked, sitting across from RJ.

“Because it is important that you go through and win all these previous fights. These fights are part of your training. If I join you because you want me there, not need me, then I would help you easily win fights you may have found challenging but not impossible without me and that would, in the long run, make you weaker. If we, as a team, get too overpowered, we will get compliant, and that will herald our defeat. We need to always be just enough. Not too much, just enough. Does that make sense?”

“Yeah, actually,” Casey, purposely keeping a disconcerted expression on his face.

“Then why do you still look confused?”

“I’m just not used to you making sense, that’s all. I need some time to get used to it.”

“Very funny,” RJ said, looking around the table. “Very funny,” he repeated, grabbing some flour and throwing it at Casey’s face. The student laughed and RJ joined him. “I promise that if I ever consider the climb is too steep and you need my help, I will help you.”

Casey looked at his master as he smiled and returned to his cake. He was so intrigued by RJ, because he had so many fake faces, so many things people wrongly assumed about him that were never corrected.

RJ was a living wisp of smoke and only sometimes could anyone see his true shape for a second.

So intriguing.

Chapter Text

Jarrod was silently folding towels and putting them in baskets. Since his return to the Pai Zhua academy, he had taken that chore as his own and did it diligently and calmly every day.

He heard footsteps approach him and looked up, to find the wolf master in his purple jacket and black pants, still refusing to wear his master robes, despite having taken a more active role in the academy looking after the youngest children.

“Hello, Jarrod.”

“Wolf Master,” Jarrod said, vowing.

“Please,” the wolf master said. “Call me RJ.”

“What can I do for you,” he hesitated. “RJ.”

“I wanted to make you an offer.”

“An offer?”

“Yeah. Would you like to train with me? Away from the academy?” RJ said this with a calm smile, sitting next to Jarrod.

Jarrod looked at him, his brow furrowed in confusion. “I tried to kill you once…”

RJ held up three fingers. “Three times,” he said with a chuckle. “And my dad, twice.”

“I’m sorry.”

RJ looked at him and shrugged. “That wasn’t you.”

“It was me.”

RJ licked his lips and shook his head. “Jarrod, you didn’t strike up a partnership with Dai Shi. You were possessed. That wasn’t you.”

“I still caused so much harm…”

RJ looked at him in silence for a couple of seconds, as if trying to decide what to say. “Jarrod, you are not evil. You were never evil.”

“Tell that to everyone I bullied.”

“Yes, okay, you were a bully. You were rude, arrogant, mean. So what? “

“So what?!”

“Jarrod, when I was told I had the wolf spirit, I panicked.” Jarrod looked at him, wondering where the story was going. “it’s one of the hardest spirits to control. So, naturally, when I controlled it, I got cocky. I got arrogant. I was full of myself. I had controlled the wolf, it was a rare feat, look at me, I’m gonna be the wolf master one day, I am that good.” He chuckled. “Would you say I was evil?”

“No, of course not.”

“Exactly! Because I wasn’t evil, I was a teenager.” He shrugged again. “So you got cocky and full of yourself. You trained for ten years and you became one of our best students, you had reasons to be proud.”

“But not to be mean.”

“Teenager!” RJ said, pointing at his chest. “Jarrod, you are a great Pai Zhua student, you always were. You took all your teachings very seriously and your lessons to heart. You won that tournament, fair and square, as much as Lily and Theo did.” Jarrod shook his head, his gaze on the floor. RJ put his hand on his shoulder. “You did. And your prize was taken from you. You were angry. You were hurt. You felt betrayed. That was a very natural reaction Master Mao should have seen coming.”

“Would you have seen it coming?”

“Yes. Because once upon a time, when I was your age, I would have done the same. I would have felt the same way.”

“You… would have?”

“Yes,” RJ said, perfectly serious.

“I don’t see…”

“Jarrod, you were there when I fought Dai Shi. What was there from me other than hubris and rage? Was I calm and collected the times I fought Dai Shi?”

Jarrod hesitated, looking at him.

“Was I?”

“You were pretty angry when I almost killed Master Finn…”

“When Dai Shi almost killed him.”

“And when you rescued Masters Phant and Swoop, you definitely had had better days.”

“That was a very long day…”

Silence fell between them, as Jarrod tried to catch up with his racing mind. Was this the wolf master’s -RJ’s- way of getting revenge?

“I don’t understand your offer, master.”

“I want you to be my student, Jarrod. I owe it to you.”

“Owe it to me?”

This time, it was RJ who looked away. He took a deep breath and nodded, as if assuring himself.

“Jarrod, the reason we didn’t rescue you when we found out Dai Shi was in your body was because I made the choice not to rescue you.”

“You had other things—”

“No.” RJ took another deep breath and let it out softly. “Like I said, I never believed you were truly evil. I knew you had your values and beliefs shaped by the Pai Zhua and that was not something Dai Shi could just erase. I counted in you and your lion spirit helping us.”

“Oh,” Jarrod said, his gaze back on the floor. “I’m sorry I let you down.”

“On the contrary! Your help was invaluable!”

“I never did anything to fight Dai Shi…”

“You slowed him down. If he had possessed, say, Camille, he would have gotten back to full power long before Casey, Theo, and Lily were ready for him. But thanks to you, he didn’t. You gave me time to get them ready, and without that, without your help, we would have lost.” He put his arm on Jarrod’s shoulders. “I’m really sorry I made you go through that and I know I could never make it up to you, but I’d at least like to help in your recovery. I know being back here is not comfortable for you, and going back home is not an option. I’m offering you a relatively quiet place to live and train, just you, Dom, and me. Until you feel ready to come back here and become the lion master.”

Jarrod remained silent and RJ started folding the towels to give him time to think. After he had folded his sixth towel, Jarrod spoke:

“Thank you for your offer, wolf master.” RJ put the towel in the basket and looked at him with a sad expression. “It’s a great offer and I’d love to take it.”

“But?”

“No but. I’m taking your offer. I’d be honored to train with such a strong, brave, and wise master.”

RJ’s face lit up and he jumped to his feet. “Excellent! Let’s go! I’ll help you pack your things!”

“I have to finish the towels first.”

RJ sat back down and grabbed a towel. “Many hands make light work. Jarrod,” Jarrod smiled at him shyly. “I’m honored to have such a strong, brave, and wise student.”

Chapter Text

The door of the loft started to open and RJ's hand moved fast as lighting on the remote to change what the screens were showing.

"Hey!" Dom said happily as he walked in.

"Hey!" Said the other four nonchalantly, looking at the science fiction show on the screen having no idea of what it was.

"What are you guys watching?" Dom asked, taking off his jacket and putting it on the rack.

They all froze, looking at RJ.

"Hmm, we were watching Doctor Who," RJ said, pointing at the screen. "It started a discussion and we lost track of what they're playing."

"Uh, I see," Dom said, walking up to them and grabbing one of RJ's potato chips. "They air Doctor Who on Tuesdays and Thursdays only. Today is Saturday," He told RJ, looking straight into his eyes. "You weren't by any chance watching my date with Fran, were you?" Dom asked.

RJ blushed deeply.

"We weren't watching your date," he started. "It's not like it's a TV show. We just wanted to make sure things flowed smoothly."

"So you were watching our date."

"We weren't spying or eavesdropping, Dom. We were watching from across the street. There's a camera in the bank."

"Is that so?"

"Yes."

"Then how did you know I didn't have enough money to pay for dinner?" Dom asked him. The other three were watching the conversation like it was a tennis match, their gaze going from one to the other.

"What are you talking about?"

"You put money in my account, don't deny it."

RJ blushed again. "In my defense, I did that early, when you told me where you were taking her. Just in case."

"Just in case?"

"I wanted it to flow smoothly, for both of you."

Dom stared at RJ and RJ held his stare.

"Thanks. You saved my night."

"That's what friends are for."

Dom leaned in towards RJ, making the master lean back on his chair. "Were you watching my date with Fran?"

RJ held his stare. "Yes."

"Why?"

"I am rooting for you two."

Dom leaned in closer. "You're not jealous, are you?"

"I've never liked Fran that way."

"I wasn't talking about Fran."

"Oh." RJ's cheeks went red again. "No. I wasn't jealous Dom."

Dom leaned in even closer, now sharing air with RJ. "Robert James Finnsen..."

"Dominic?"

Dominic closed the distance between their faces and kissed RJ firmly on the lips.

"You will always be my first," Dominic said. They both started laughing and punched each other in the chest.

They laughed so hard they started crying, and it took several minutes for them to calm down.

"What the hell?" Casey asked.

"It's an inside joke, don't worry about it," RJ cleared, while Dom sat down with the others.

"So, how was the date?" RJ asked.

"It was great. You know Fran, she makes it so easy."

"Did you kiss her?" Lily asked excitedly.

Dom looked at RJ. "I would never spy on that!"

"Yes, we shared a little kiss," Dom said, making Lily squeal and Casey smile brightly.

"I'm glad to hear that," RJ said with a smile. "I'm gonna get us some drinks while Dom tells us the details."

"What do you want to know about?"

"EVERYTHING!"

Chapter Text

Casey, Theo, and Lily stood very still while RJ and Dom arranged the ropes in the harnesses they were wearing.

"Are you sure there isn't any other way to train us in courage?" Casey asked, his gaze on RJ's face.

"There are plenty of other ways, but this is a great way to do it while being safe," RJ replied, double-checking the knot. "Okay, Case, you are good to go."

"Thanks," Casey said, his eyes on the horizon, trying to forget where he was standing.

RJ moved on to Theo, who wasn't particularly intimidated by the exercise. He started working the ropes in silence, as Theo looked around him, measuring the task they were about to do.

"Good to see it's only the rats that scare you," RJ commented, his fingers tying the rope in a complex knot.

"Well, you had me juggle oranges while standing on a suspended log several feet in the air," Theo replied with a shrug. "I'm not scared of heights anymore."

"He did what?" Casey asked, turning to look at them.

"When we lost that fight to Gecko. That's how he got my head back in the game."

"He could have gotten hurt!" Lily chided, while Dom worked on her harness.

"But he didn't," RJ replied, checking Theo's ropes one last time.

"RJ! You're supposed to help us, not put our lives in more danger!" Casey complained, watching RJ and Dom work on each other's setting.

"Oh, well," RJ said, giving Dom's setup a final inspection and nodding. "You're all still here." He turned to grab color-coded buckets of soapy water and window cleaners. He handed them accordingly. "You guys take this side," he said, pointing at the glass roof of the loft, which they were washing. "And Dom and I will take the other side."

He handed Dom his cleaning kit and Dom walked away from him towards one end of the roof, as calm as if he was walking down the street.
"Race you!" Dom said, making Casey, Theo, and Lily turn to him.

"Race us?!" Casey asked, just to be sure he hadn't misheard.

"First team to finish goes chore-free for a week," RJ offered. The other four looked at him, smiling. "Guys, I need you to know you are perfectly safe. Let's have some fun," he said. They all got into position. "Ready? Set? Go!"

Among laughter, splashing soapy water, and friendly competitive banter, they cleaned the whole glass roof rather quickly. Casey, Theo, and Lily won the competition.

"We're done!" Casey proclaimed victoriously when he cleaned the last glass pane.

"Oh, well," RJ said, finishing his last pane. "Guess we're doing all the chores this week, Dom."

Dom just shrugged, finishing his last pane.

They made their way back to the center of the roof, and RJ and Dom untied them.

They didn't think it would make as much difference, but when they returned to the inside of the loft, it actually looked bigger, and the colors seemed brighter.

"Wow," Lily let out. "It looks great in here!"

"Ah, yes. It gets such good light when the roof is freshly cleaned," RJ said with a smile. "Pizza parlor, shift. Off you go."

The other four took a shower and put on their uniforms, leaving RJ alone in the loft to do whatever it was RJ did when he was alone in the loft.

At the end of the workday, they all went upstairs to find RJ in his pajamas, drinking from a plastic mug, in the center of a circle made of sleeping bags. There was one for each of them, including Fran, who had come up to say goodnight.

They all stood there, and the master smiled at them. "Go get in your pajamas, come on. Fran, you can borrow something from Lily. Stay with us tonight. I have a cool lesson today that you can partake in."

A few minutes later, they walked out of their rooms in their pajamas.

"Pick a bag," RJ instructed. "Today's lesson is not part of the Pai Zhua, it's just about something I'm very passionate about."

"What?" Casey asked with genuine curiosity. RJ laid back on his sleeping bag and the others copied him.

They all looked up and, with the clean roof, they could have been in the middle of nowhere. They could clearly see the stars shining in the night sky while hearing the sea across the street.

"Is this why you wanted us to clean the roof?" Casey asked.

"Yes," RJ said, smiling. "Now, do you see that one star? The one that looks bigger?" He pointed in the direction of the star.

"Yes," they all replied.

"That is the North Star. Tonight, we are learning about the stars."

Chapter Text

The JKP employees, minus RJ, were ready to start a new day.

Casey and Theo were finishing the moping of the floors and wiping off the tables while Fran and Lily arranged the condiments and Dom cleaned the bathrooms.

There was a sharp tap on the door's glass. They all looked up to see a sickly woman, somewhat older than RJ, on the other side of the door.

Theo was about to open when Casey grabbed him by the shoulder. “No,” he said, pulling him back. “Don’t let her in!” The red ranger's face was pale and his eyes were wide, his voice shaking.

“Casey, are you okay?” Theo asked with clear worry in his voice. This made the others turn to them.

“Casey?” The woman called from the other side of the door. “Baby! Can we talk? I’ve missed you so much!”

“Go away!” Casey yelled at her, stepping away from the door. “Go away and never come back!”

“Oh, baby, I’m so sorry. Please, just let me talk to you so I can apologize properly!”

“GO AWAY!” Casey yelled as loud as he could. The others moved instinctively to stand between them, protecting their friend.

“Casey, baby, please.”

The door to the kitchen almost swung out of its hinges. RJ had pushed it that hard as we walked out.

“Casey, go upstairs. I’ll go get you,” he ordered as he moved towards the door.

“I’m here to talk to Casey,” the woman said from the other side.

“Casey!” RJ urged over his shoulder since Casey hadn’t moved, his sight glued on the woman. “Casey! Go upstairs!”

Lily grabbed Casey by the arm and pulled him towards the kitchen door. Casey followed her lead, and they went upstairs.

“Fran, go with them,” RJ ordered. “Don’t let Casey come down until I go get him, clear?”

“Clear,” Fran said and ran upstairs too.

“I need you two to block that door as if your lives depended on it,” RJ told Theo and Dom over his shoulder.

Both nodded and moved to stand in front of the kitchen door.

RJ opened the door, positioning himself squarely across it to keep the woman from entering the building. “Hello, Petra.”

“Do we know each other?” she asked, looking at his face.

“No. I’m Casey’s legal guardian, Robert James Finnsen.”

“Nice to meet you. Thank you for looking after Casey.” She tried to grab his hand, and he unceremoniously pulled it away.

“Casey lives with me now, Petra,” RJ said with a harsh voice. He didn't even bother to look at her face. “Permanently.”

“I just wanted to talk to him,” she said in a soft voice. “To apologize.”

“He doesn’t want to talk to you.” RJ’s voice was inflexible and merciless. It was obvious he had no sympathy for Casey’s mother.

“You can supervise me.”

“Petra, Casey doesn’t want anything to do with you,” RJ insisted, finally looking at her face while putting his hand on her chest and gently pushing her away from the door. “And neither do I. Please, leave.”

“He is my son. You can’t keep me from seeing him.”

“Yes, I can. He’s more my son than he will ever be yours.”

“I gave birth to that boy,” Petra said defiantly.

“I feed him,” RJ said, his face carved in stone. He didn’t seem mad, just so hard he could have been carved in marble. “Every day, Petra.”

“That was just a mistake.”

“It wasn’t. It was neglect. I’m going to ask again, please, leave. Don’t make me call the police.”

“Robert,” she started, trying to put a hand on his shoulders. RJ evaded her hand again. “I have found God. Our Lord Jesus Christ has guided me back to the light.”

“Good for you,” RJ said, still scowling and cross-armed. “Please, leave. Let Jesus show you how much you hurt your children and give you an understanding of the fact that Casey doesn’t want to see you, not even for an apology.”

“You can sit with us.”

“Petra, this isn’t about me. Casey doesn’t want to see you.”

“He is my son.”

“He is my son now.” His voice boomed over her, his face still hardened. “Please, leave. I won’t ask again.”

“Just for five minutes…”

“Dom?” RJ called over his shoulder. “Call the police.” Dom immediately disappeared into the kitchen.

“Fine, I will leave!” Petra conceded. “I will pray for you, for both of you.”

“It’s appreciated.”

RJ closed the door, locked it, and turned away after she left the courtyard. He went upstairs and found Casey waiting for him at the top of the stairs, the two girls still holding him back from going back down.

“She’s gone,” he told the boy as he reached him.

“Thank you," Casey said, his voice a mere whimper.

RJ hugged him tightly. “She will never touch you again, I promise.”

Chapter Text

It had taken RJ physically getting to them and press the button on their morphers to get the three unconscious teenagers out of the quarry and into town.

RJ teleported to the same spot and started to check their vitals again.

He looked around and saw the emergency personnel helping the people the Rinshi had hurt during the attack.

"HELP!" RJ yelled at the top of his lungs, his eyes going from one of his students to the next. "SOMEBODY, PLEASE, HELP ME!"

He heard feet running in his direction. Two EMTs, a man and a woman, reached him and his fallen students.

"We had agreed I'd pick them up from here a few minutes ago," RJ started. "They wouldn't pick up the phone..." His voice broke as the EMTs worked on Casey, Theo, and Lily. He swallowed. "I got out of the car and came looking for them."

"Do you know if it was the monster who did this?" The male EMT asked.

"No," RJ said, despite his entire being wanting him to say yes. "I found them like this."

Watching his students' armors explode around them mid-air and disappear before they hit the ground had made RJ's blood run cold, his stomach sink, and his brain go into overdrive.

"What's your name, sir?" The female EMT asked, softly pushing him away from his students.

"Robert James Finnsen."

"And their names?"

"The blonde boy is Casey, the other boy is Theo, and the girl is Lily."

"Where do you know them from?" RJ didn't answer immediately. He was distracted looking at how they were putting his students on stretchers and putting oxygen masks on their faces. "Robert!" She called, shaking him.

"Sorry, what?"

"Where do you know them from?"

"They're my children," he replied, watching an EMT sticking a needle into Casey's arm.

He heard things like "MRI", "Call in three severe traumas" and "let's hope nothing else is broken". Then, something that brought tears to his eyes: "Let's do our best, and let's pray they make it".

"Robert?" the EMT called again, her hand on his shoulder. "What do you mean they're your children?"

"I'm their foster father."

"I see. Well, we're taking them to the General. We'll meet you there, okay?"

"Okay."

He didn't get to see them again. After being in the hospital for one hour, Theo succumbed to his wounds and died.

They let RJ see his body and he held Theo's still warm hand and wanted to tell him to just find that good state of mind again. But there was no mind. What lay before him once contained Theo but it wasn't him. He cried in absolute pain.

He had failed him. He had failed all of them.

He returned to the hallway when the morgue technicians came for Theo's body.

It was 10 pm when he lost Lily.

The pain of losing Theo had begun to go numb when they told him Lily had exhaled for the last time in the ICU.

He started crying with abandon, the whispers of 'Not Lily' escaping his lips many times.

He couldn't breathe. He couldn't think. He was engulfed in the most absolute pain, and nothing could make it better.

He didn't have the willpower to stop crying or heaving. He sat in a corner of the room, his face hidden in his hands.

"Mr. Finnsen," the doctor called softly.

RJ looked up at him and felt his very being shatter. "Please," he begged. "Not Casey," He grabbed the doctor's coat. "Not Casey, please, not Casey," he begged again.

"I'm sorry."

"No, not Casey..."

"He left us two minutes ago,"

RJ felt himself shatter. He knelt on the floor, wailing. His eyes burned from the tears. His throat felt torn by each wail of absolute pain. The air got stuck in his throat and never entered his lungs.

He wanted to die with them.

The image of the armor exploding around them returned to his mind like a castigating whip, making the wound rawer.

His rangers.

His students.

His children.

Gone. Forever.

He took in a sudden breath and opened his eyes. He found himself lying on his bed, covered in sweat, his face crossed with tears he had cried in his sleep.

He sat up slowly, feeling dizzy. His head hurt, and he was having a hard time returning his breathing to normal.

It was a nightmare.

It was just a nightmare.

He grabbed the shirt he kept by his bed and put it on, walking out of his bedroom in absolute silence.

He walked over to Theo's room and found him asleep over the covers with a book on his chest. He took the book and put it on the nightstand, watching Theo breathe as he slept. He managed to throw a cover over him without waking him up.

He went to Lily's room and found her deeply asleep, her face calm, almost smiling, in the moonlight. He watched her breathe for a few moments as well.

Last, he went to Casey's room. He was asleep spread on his bed, snoring softly. RJ smiled and watched him in the moonlight as well.

He walked back to his room. They were okay. They were fine. Not dead, only asleep.

He sat on his bed and took off the shirt.

"I will not fail you," He promised them in a barely audible whisper. "I will keep you safe. I promise."

Chapter Text

It was almost night when Casey came up from the restaurant to change shirts after an accident with a drink, and found RJ pensively looking out the window, towards the beach across the street.

"RJ?"

The wolf master jumped as if he had been caught doing something improper and looked back at Casey over his shoulder. "Everything okay, Casey?"

"Spilt a drink on myself," the boy said, slowly walking towards his master. "What's got you thinking?"

RJ looked out the window again, the immense, never-ending blue extending all the way to the horizon, glistening under the last rays of the afternoon sun. "This beach was probably here when Dai Shi was captured for the first time," he said in a very soft whisper. "It's just been here, not waiting, not longing... just... being, until Dai Shi came back."

"That sounds... heavy," Casey commented, standing next to RJ. But he wasn't looking at the beach, but at his master

"Can you imagine how many memories this sea would have? If it were sentient?" RJ asked, with the same soft voice.

"It would be a heavy burden."

"Do you think it would be impossible to carry?"

"I would definitely be hard."

"And yet, Master Mao..." RJ stopped talking, not completing the sentence, as if he had almost said too much. "I love the ocean. It makes me feel so... mortal. So temporary. So small."

"Why would you want to feel any of that?" Casey asked.

"Why, indeed..."

RJ finally turned his gaze from the ocean towards Casey and smiled at him, but there was a sadness in his eyes he couldn't hide.

"Are you okay?" Casey asked him, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"I've been better," RJ admitted.

"Do you... want a hug?"

"A hug from any of my children would be very welcome," the master said, wrapping his arms around Casey.

"We're not your children."

"Tell that to the social worker."

They let go. RJ's gaze returned to the ocean. "How would you guys like learning how to surf?"

"I don't know about Theo, but I think Lily would like it."

"You should ask dad to teach you about sharks, He has a boat with a glass floor, and he's an encyclopedia when it comes to sharks."

He tried to walk away, but Casey put a hand on his shoulder, "Hey." RJ tried to walk away again, and Casey pulled on his shoulder. "Turn around." RJ turned around, the start of an honest smile pulling the corners of his mouth. "We are here for you too. You know that, right?"

RJ smirked, his eyes glistening with joy. "I know." He hugged Casey again. "Where would I be without you lot?"

"Probably bored into madness"

"Probably. A peaceful life with a simple routine... that doesn't sound like a life worth living," RJ said. "Go change your shirt, I have things to build."

"Like what?"

"It's a surprise"

"Is it a new weapon?"

"It's a surprise."

"A new bike?!"

"A surprise!"

"A new ranger?!"

That made RJ laugh. "Yeah, Casey, I am building you a new ranger, the Frankenstein Ranger, right there in the basement."

"Well, I mean... all you need is a morpher."

"And a candidate."

"No, I mean... all YOU need is a morpher."

"It's not that simple."

"Yes, it is. We'd have a lot of fun!"

"Maybe."

"Really?!"

"Maybe!"

"Is that the surprise?!"

"The surprise is a surprise, Casey!"

"I have to tell Theo and Lily!" Casey screamed as he ran towards his bedroom.

"I said MAYBE!" RJ yelled back.

He smiled and threw a glance a the wardrobe where he kept his morpher hidden.

Maybe.

Maybe.

Chapter Text

Casey, Theo, and Lily were practising with their weapons when they heard a loud crash coming from the restaurant kitchen, closely followed by RJ screaming in pain.

“RJ!” They all called, running down the stairs.

They found Fran fussing over RJ, who lay on the ground screaming in pain, next to a toppled ladder.

“Oh, my god, RJ!” Lily called, kneeling next to him. “What happened?”

“He was trying to reach for something on the top shelf and the ladder toppled over,” Fran explained.

“My leg!” RJ groaned.

Casey knelt next to Lily. “Is your leg broken?” He asked his master.

“I think so,” RJ grunted through gritted teeth.

“Come on, we have to get him to the hospi—“ Theo was interrupted by the RinShi alarm going off above them in the loft.

“What do we do? We have to take RJ to the hospital!” Casey said.

“GO!” Fran ordered, pointing to the stairs. “Go do your thing, I’ll take RJ to the hospital.”

“Are you sure?” Lily asked.

“GO!”

The three rangers ran upstairs, leaving Fran to look after their master and most recent ranger addition.

The fight against Grizzaka’s monster was very hard, and Casey, Theo, and Lily were beaten within an inch of their lives but they had managed to escape.

Defeated and hurt, they dragged their feet back to the loft. There, they found RJ on his chair, with Fran sitting on the floor next to him.

“Hey,” RJ said with a tired voice. “Are you guys alright?”

Casey walked up to him. “Your leg,” he said.

They all looked at RJ’s leg, now engulfed in a cast. “Yeah,” RJ said. “I broke it.”

“That’s terrible!” Lily said. “Does it hurt too much?”

“Still, yes.”

“RJ,” Casey started. He looked at the others’ faces and swallowed hard. “Can you morph?”

“CASEY!” Fran and Lily chided.

“It’s a good question!” Theo defended.

“I’m sorry, Casey. I’m out of commission for the time being.”

“But… but we need you!” the red ranger whimpered. “That beast almost ended us!”

“Almost being the operative word,” RJ said. They all exchanged worried looks, and RJ smiled softly at them. “Guys, you didn’t need me a month ago, and you don’t need me now.”

“But Grizzaka’s beasts—“

“You don’t need me,” RJ insisted. “You’ll be fine. Have confidence. You are enough.”

The alarm went off again.

“We can’t keep hiding from him,” Theo told the other two.

“You’ve got what it takes,” RJ told them. “Believe in yourselves, you don’t need me.”

And he was right.

The battle was long and hard, but thanks to Casey’s quick thinking and leadership skills, they managed to defeat the beast.

Tired but in good spirits, they came back home, to find RJ cooking in the kitchenette, neither of his legs in a cast.

“What the hell?” Casey asked, pointing at his legs.

RJ looked down and then straight at Casey’s face. “What?”

“Your broken leg is gone?!” the red ranger yelled, letting his anger get the best of him.

“Oh! Yes.”

“Was it ever broken?”

“No.”

This left the three rangers looking at him in shock. “May yesterday be the last time I hear you saying this battle is beneath you and your victory is granted now that I’m in the team with you. I won’t be there when you fight Dai Shi, you can’t become dependent on me, is that clear?”

“Yes,” his students replied.

“I’m sorry I scared you, but I cannot allow that kind of thinking to grow in your minds.”

“Thanks, RJ,” Casey whispered. “Glad you were never hurt.”

“Thank you for worrying about me, it made me feel appreciated,” RJ said in a whisper.

Lily moved in to hug him. “We don’t appreciate you, we love you. Thank you for the valuable lesson.”

“Take today and tomorrow off from the restaurant, so you can rest. Fran and I will take care of everything. And great job against that beast. I wouldn’t have expected less from you.”

Chapter Text

RJ was in a great mood that day.

Sure, his rangers had had trouble defeating the current Dai Shi demon, but he trusted them and knew they would win eventually.

He picked a song from the jukebox, fixed his pants and sleeves, and then let the music guide him into a relaxing and fun dance session.

He jumped and turned halfway around, landing on his knee, and that was when he saw Theo, sitting on his exercise ball, his gaze lost.

"Theo?" RJ asked, walking towards him. He waved his hand in front of Theo's face but got no reaction. Finally, he used his bare foot to softly push Theo off the exercise ball and onto a bunch of cushions next to him.

"I pay you for working, right?" RJ asked

"Yes," Theo said, sounding defeated.

"Aren't you supposed to be working?" RJ insisted. Theo nodded in silence. "Are you going to work?" RJ asked with a hand gesture.

"Why bother? You can find someone better," Theo replied.

RJ took a moment to consider the suggestion. "Possibly. But right now, I've got you."

"Yeah, too bad for you."

"What are you saying?" RJ asked.

"Fire me," Theo asked.

"No. If you want to do this, you do it. You say the words."

"I quit," Theo said without any effort.

RJ stood there for a moment looking at him. The young man in front of him was not Theo, or maybe, this was the most Theo he had ever seen Theo, destroyed over one mistake. "Is this about the battle with Gecko?"

"He made fool of me."

"Yes, he did. You ate mat, HARD. I watched it on all the screens, it was ugly. I recorded it, played it back, still ugly." RJ took a moment to look at his student. "You're not going to let that stop you, are you?" he asked. Theo simply nodded his head. "That's it, we're going on a road trip, help me with my chair."

"You CHAIR?!"

It hadn't been easy to take the chair from the loft to the back of the jeep, but they managed. RJ then brought a small icebox and put it next to the chair.

He got on the driver's side. "Get in, loser, we're going training," he told Theo.

Theo dragged himself towards the other seat and put on his seatbelt.

RJ drove them out of the garage and towards the edge of the forest.

"You know, losing is something that happens to everybody," RJ started.

"I know that," Theo said. "It's not the loss that got me."

"Then what was it? The humiliation?" Theo didn't respond. "Pardon me, but I don't think you were taught how to fight on the side of a building without any equipment."

"Still..."

"Still what? If you never learned the skill, you don't have it."

"I know similar skills," Theo whispered. "He made me look like an idiot, and in front of--"

"Lily," RJ completed.

"And Casey," Theo added.

"I don't think you care about Casey's opinion as much as you do Lily's," RJ said, with a smirk he couldn't hold back.

"It's not funny, RJ!" Theo complained.

RJ forced his face back into a serious expression. "I'm sorry," he said honestly. "But, Theo, this is going to keep happening. Sometimes the monsters will be badder and meaner, and there's nothing you can do about it. You are a very skilled fighter, you just need a little--"

"Stature?" Theo completed bitterly, looking away from RJ, towards the forest.

"Confidence," his Master completed, parking the car. "Help me with the chair."

"What are we doing here?" Theo asked him as he dragged himself to help RJ with the chair.

"I plan to tire you down and leave you behind so you can find the way home with breadcrumbs, obviously," RJ said, his face completely serious.

"I'm serious, RJ."

"So am I," the Master said. He put a hand on Theo's shoulder. "Come on, let's get you out of this bad funk. You're not making anybody, except perhaps Gecko, happy with these low spirits."

Chapter Text

RJ waited for his tea to be ready while looking at Casey.

Earlier that day, he had asked him to train him "more", whatever that meant. RJ had made him promise to do anything he asked for, and so far, the student had been quite obedient.

Trying not to laugh while Casey gave him a shoulder rub had almost killed him, but it had been so worth it.

RJ blamed him for breaking his chair -technically, RJ himself broke it by sending Casey flying across the loft into the chair- and ordered him to fix it.

As he made himself some tea, his brain already planning Casey's next task, he watched Casey turn the heavy chair and stare at the mechanism, trying to see how it worked.

That was one of Casey's greatest strengths. He could look at things or situations and reverse engineer them, to figure out how to make them work or disarm them.

He saw Casey pick up a pair of pliers and try to force something under teh chair, RJ couldn't tell what from where he was standing.

"This coil has to be latched... here... and then this piece goes... over here? No..." Casey muttered to himself as he familirized with the chair mechanics.

RJ grabbed his mug and made his way to Casey.

"How's it going?" He asked.

"Well, the good thing everything here is in good shape so it's not as hard to fix it."

"Yeah, when I got it, everything down there was at least 30 years old. I had to replace everything."

"Had you done it before?" Casey asked, taking a moment to look at him.

"No, but I was very meticulous while taking it apart. You and Lily make fun of Theo and Fran for being methodical and meticulous, but that's how you win some of the races. Paying close attention to what you're doing."

"I'm still trying to figure out what this thing here does," Casey said, pointing at a piece.

"Oh, don't worry about that," RJ dismissed.

"It looks important."

"It's not broken."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"What does it do?"

"It turns on the teleporter," RJ said, pointing at the huge hole in the wall right next to them.

"Sorry I asked," Casey said,m with a smile.

"Do you think you can work in silence so I can do some light meditation?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Great!" RJ got up to find his yoga mat. He set it on the floor next to Casey and sat down to meditate. Casey did his best to remain silent, but the master could still hear him grunting and sighing, as his tools clanked and scraped.

After a while, he heard Casey say: "There, it's fixed! And my forearms will never be the same again!"

RJ's mouth briefly turned into a smirk Casey couldn't see.

"I was thinking maybe we can do some one-on-one training."

It took every inch of RJ's self-control not to laugh as he said, "Yeah, why don't you wash my yoga mat? I think there's something growing in it."

"Wash your yoga mat?!"

RJ raised his fingers and his eyebrows. "Whatever I say," He reminded.

He left Casey there, struggling with how disgusted of the mat he was.

That wasn't even RJ's yoga mat. He had found that somewhere in the messy garage of the building. Casey should have known because it was white.

RJ's yoga mat was purple.

And he washed it himself, religiously every single Sunday.

Chapter Text

RJ finished dressing and walked out of his room to find Fran waiting for him, her eyes on a book as usual. Dom and Casey were in the kitchenette drinking coffee and chatting softly.

"Ready, Fran?" RJ asked, making the girl look up.

"Yes, boss!" She said happily, putting the book in her bag.

He grabbed the keys from the holder and walked towards the door. "Come on, let's go."

"Where are you going?" Dom asked from the kitchen.

"Andrew Hartford is showing some of his collection at the Natural History Museum. Tons of stuff he recovered from the area," RJ answered, giving no explanation of why he was taking Fran and nobody else.

Fran and RJ made their way to the exhibit and were happy to learn Andrew Hartford had a talk later that day and they could buy tickets for it.

They walked around the exhibit, surprised at what Andrew Hartford had found. Very little of it was from the big archeological sites in the world. Andrew had made it his life mission to explore other areas and discover more of human history.

"He found these in London!" Fran said, pointing at an exhibition box containing coins, jewels, and a human femur.

The exhibit was created around the centerpieces: The Corona Aurora, with all five gems, and all the other relics his team had recovered in the process of getting the Corona back.

Fran was immediately drawn to that and moved immediately to the queue to see them, while RJ continued to scan the area.

After a couple of minutes, there it was. Hanging between two panes of glass that protected it from everything was the Pai Zhua's Scroll about the Crystal eyes.

Everything was on it: who were the Phantom Beast, where they died, where the Crystal Eyes were. No suggestions about defeating them, though.

Underneath, a sign from the museum said that Andrew Hartford had found five of the supposed eight existing Crystal Eyes and he had searched all around the area where they were supposed to be, according to the scroll, but couldn't recover them.

RJ focused on reading the scroll, until he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Robert?" He turned around to find Andrew Hartford next to him.

"Uncle Andrew!" RJ said warmly and hugged the man.

RJ's dad and Andrew Hartford had been doing business for ages, and RJ had grown up seeing him around the house, one of his father's closest friend, who took the title of "uncle" from a young RJ many, many years ago.

"So, did you like the exhibit?" Andrew asked,

"I haven't seen it yet," RJ dismissed. "Uncle Andrew, where did you find this scroll?" He asked, pointing at the relic.

"Not far from here, actually. Why?"

"It belongs to the Academy," RJ told him. Neither he nor his father had ever given Andrew too many details about the Pai Zhua but sometimes Andrew would find a relic that belonged to the Academy, so he was told it existed.

That day, he had six relics that belonged to the Order of the Claw.

"I figured it might," Andrew replied, looking at the scroll himself.

"I need it. I need the information on it," RJ said.

"You can read it?"

"It's ancient Chinese. I learned at the Academy." RJ's gaze fell on the exhibited Crystal Eyes. "Are those the originals of the eyes?" RJ asked.

"Of course not," Andrew replied under his breath. "Do you need the eyes?"

"I just need you to keep them safe for tonight. The stars will align and if it touches them, the Phantom Beasts trapped inside will escape, or resuscitate, you know the drill."

"They are in our safest vault," Andrew said. "But if the Academy can keep them better, I'd have no problem handing them over."

"Do you still have your team?" RJ asked, looking for Fran in the crowd around the Corona Aurora and not finding her.

"They're one call away. Why? What do you need?"

"There's three more Crystal Eyes. If you can't find them, that means Dai-- the bad guys have them. Having another team ready to go just in case would be nice."

"I'll make the call," Andrew said, needing no more explanation.

In that moment, Fran made her way back to RJ. In her usual breathless style she said: There you are! You have to see the Corona Aurora, it's unlike anything I've ever seen! And they found something from Atlantis! ATLANTIS! You have to--" She stopped mid-thought when she saw Andrew Hartford. "Andrew Hartford! Oh, my god! I have read all of your books. You are the greatest relic hunter in history! Your latest book about the gems of the Corona was a real page-turner--"

"Breathe, Fran," RJ reminded her.

"I'm sorry, that was so embarrassing."

"This is Fran," RJ introduced. "She's my right hand at the restaurant, and, as you can see, a big fan of yours."

"I see," Andrew commented with a smile. He grabbed a book from a nearby exhibit and signed it for her: "To Fran, who has so much wonder in her eyes, she forgets to breathe."

"Thank you so much, sir! This is the first signed book I've ever owned!" Fran said, looking at the book like it was her firstborn.

"RJ, why don't you enjoy the rest of the exhibit. I'll have everything set up as you asked. I'll up the security around the... items until you tell me danger has passed."

"Thanks, Uncle Andrew."

"Say my hello to your dad."

"Will do!"

RJ turned to Fran who was looking at him like he had grown tentacles. "Show me the Corona Aurora, I hear it's mesmerizing," RJ requested, but Fran didn't move. "Fran?"

"Uncle Andrew?! UNCLE Andrew?!"

Chapter Text

Casey, Theo, Lily, and Dom were woken very early by RJ tramping all over the loft, his heavy footsteps making Casey wonder if he had turned into a werewolf again.

Casey dragged himself out of the room he shared with Theo towards the common area, where he found RJ setting up five color-coded backpacks with what seemed to Casey like random stuff from the loft.

"RJ, what are you doing?" Casey asked.

The Master stopped and smiled. "Good! You're awake! Go get the others, it's gonna get late."

"Late for what?"

"We're going hiking. There's a new tramp that goes from the forest to the beach and has a fantastic view! We're going to have so much fun!"

"A new tramp?"

"Yes, a new trail. Go on, go wake the others!"

Casey turned back to the sleeping quarters and opened the door to his room. Theo was already awake.

"Great, get ready for the new tramp," Casey told him, and turned around to exit the room.

"The new WHAT?" Theo called after him.

"Tramp!" Casey replied from the outside of Lily's door. He knocked on the yellow door.

"Lil, you awake? RJ wants us to go on a hike," Casey said.

"I'll be right there," Lily called from the inside.

Finally, Casey walked to Dom's hammock, where the white ranger was deeply asleep. Casey thought he probably had spent all night reading.

He shook the blonde man softly. "Dom?" Dom grunted softly but didn't wake up. "Dom?" he said again, shaking him harder.

Dominic opened one eye. "Rinshi?"

"I wish. RJ wants us to go explore a new tramp."

"Hiking?!" Dom asked.

"Yes. That's why he's been stomping all over the loft.

They got ready, had breakfast, grabbed their backpacks, and RJ drove them to the start of the trail.

"The trail is really long, so we can take our time. It will be a tramp to get to the beach, but the long walk will be worth it."

They grabbed their backpacks and started walking. After a few minutes of silence, Casey turned to Dom.

"So, wanna tell us stories about your times as a tramp?"

"Oh, well, you know, the usual. Getting paid for odd jobs, travelling freely. Going from town to town, sometimes staying longer. It was all very interesting, wouldn't change it for anything." He pointed at RJ. "Now, this one, this one has a great story of when he was a tramp."

"Yes, I walked away from my parents and with that, from their fortune, but I managed to make it for about a month, pretty much the same as Dom. Different is I had a fully paid college tuition -that may have been my father saying sorry or mom trying to save me- but I still wanted to work. I found this Italian restaurant owned by a lovely couple, Bernadino and his wife, Ginevra. They took me in and taught me everything I know about cooking Italian food. They ended my days of tramping," the wolf master recalled with a tender smile.

After some walking with light conversation, Theo turned to Dom and RJ: "What about stories of you being tramps tramps."

"OH, no. Those stories will be shared after you can drink something from the alcohol cabinet," RJ replied, he and Dom sharing a laugh with Theo.

They finally made it out of the woods and to the top of a cliff. A ship could be seen in the distance. It wasn't rare to see tramp steamers and other boats close to the beaches of Ocean Bluff.

They all gathered to enjoy the view.

"Wow," Casey said. "You were right, this was totally worth the hike."

They gathered, enjoying the spectacle nature was giving them. After a few minutes, RJ spoke.

"It's a tramp to the bottom, but the beach here is insane! We can relax for a day!"

Chapter Text

RJ sat on his chair, his gaze lost in the floor of the loft.

He was worried. Very worried.

The rangers had barely made any effort winning their last battle and he was fearing they were getting too complacent.

And because when it rains, it pours, the restaurant was also in peril, this time from the bank. keeping up with all the loses the rangers were causing, as well as the fear for the area the constant monster attacks had cut his clientele in half.

They were becoming very strong warriors, but their training wasn't occurring in a vacuum like it would in the Academy.

He drank the last of his cold tea in one gulp, and got up to take the empty mug to the kitchen, noticing he was dragging his feet.

No amount of meditation or positive thinking could hide the battle may be slipping out of their hands.

As he watched the mug, he heard the others say good night to Fran and come upstairs.

"and I think I finally have enough for those badass red sneakers I saw at the store!" Casey was excitedly telling his friends.

"You've had your eyes on those for a while!" Lily exclaimed happily. "So cool you finally get to buy them!"

"Perhaps you should invest that money more wisely," Theo suggested.

"Or he can buy something that makes him happy, Theo!" Lily chided.

RJ watched them in silence from the kitchen. They were in very good spirits and he couldn't help but smile for Casey buying his new sneakers.

"What about you, Theo? What do you want to save for?" Casey asked.

Theo's cheeks went red. "I haven't decided yet," he said.

RJ knew he wanted to buy Lily a special necklace she had pointed out the last time they were at the mall, that cost a bit more than Casey's sneakers.

"What about you, Lily?" RJ asked, walking towards them.

"I found this amazing dance equipment stores and they have beautiful pointe shoes! I haven't worn them in years but I'm sure it will be like riding a bike!"

"Oh, sounds great," the mentor said, unable to contain a smile anymore.

"And you, Master?" Casey asked, mocking RJ with the title.

"I don't know yet," RJ said. "I was thinking a proper computer is long overdue," he added, pointing to his old, second-hand computer.

"That sounds like a great plan!" Casey said.

"Are you guys hungry?" Lily asked, walking to the kitchen.

"Yes," the three men replied, walking behind her. They all helped making the dinner and sat to eat together.

The other three shared stories about the customers for the day, but RJ barely noticed their words, soaking instead in their joy and carefreeness. The longer they talked, being enthusiastic even about fighting again the beast that had escaped earlier, the more RJ felt his mood uplifted.

They would never know how happy it made him to have them there. How even the darkest skies disappeared when they celebrated completing an exercise or winning a sparring match.

They'd never know how much better their sole presence made him feel.

After dinner, RJ grabbed the plates and took them to the sink.

"Okay, it's getting late, so off to sleep, all of you," he instructed.

He stayed doing the dishes and soon found himself humming a tune, his mood irrevocably uplifted.

Chapter Text

RJ heard Casey retching from the bathroom and ran from the kitchen to the bathroom. He found his student bent over the basin, effectively emptying the contents of his stomach in the toilet.

RJ ran his hand up and down his back, trying to reassure him. "You're okay, you're okay," he whispered. Casey finished vomiting and leaned against the wall.

"I'm going to die," he moaned.

"You're not going to die," RJ said as he flushed the toilet. "Stay seated for now, okay? I've got you. You'll be fine."

At that second, Lily started retching from her bathroom. "I'll be right back," RJ told Casey and ran to Lily's bathroom

"He picked her hair back in a ponytail with his fist, making sure to keep it away from the vomit. Lily also lay her forehead on the basin and moaned:

"I haven't even eaten anything..." she whispered, her voice sounding defeated.

RJ found a scrunchie for her hair and sat to braid her hair back, as he rubbed her back, trying to comfort her, too.

"It won't be forever, you'll be fine." He reassured her. He helped her lean against the wall and ran to Theo, who was retching and copiously vomiting in RJ's bathroom.

"Theo!" RJ got next to him and also ran his hand up and down his back. He also left Theo to wait for the next wave of vomiting, lying against the wall.

All three looked very tired and uncomfortable.

He went back to the kitchen where he was preparing a concoction of ginger, peppermint, and camomile, desperate to bring them some comfort.

The poisonus spider Rinshi had managed to bite all three of them, and RJ prayed the effects would disappear on their own, because if it didn't, he'd have to go to the Pai Zhua library to look for antidotes.

The doorbell of the loft rang, and he went to open it. He was beyond happy to see Fran..

"How are they?" She asked, handing RJ a bag full of rehydration solutions in a variety of flavors.

"They have been vomiting all night. I can't get anything to stay in, I'm making them a tea for the nausea but I don't know if it will work.

They walked to the kitchen where the three mugs were cooling on the bar.

"Can you take this one to Lily? RJ asked. "And a cherry solution, she'll love it."

"I'm on it," Fran said, grabbing the cup and the bottle of solution.

"Remember, she has to drink them slowly.

"Yes, boss," Fran replied and went to Lily's bathroom.

RJ grabbed a mug and a coconut solution and went to Casey. The boy looked exhausted, lying against the wall. He approached him.

"Case," he said. This made Casey retch and bend over the toilet again. The dry heaving had begun, and now it was just the physical pain fo the violent retching but his stomach was empty.

He helped Casey lean against the wall and put the mug and bottle next to him.

"Take them slowly, okay? One and then the other. Slowly or you will vomit them, okay?"

"Okay..." Casey answered weakly.

RJ went back to the kitchen and grabbed the other mug and a raspberry solution, and went to Theo. Theo was almost asleep, and in that moment, the dry heaving started again and he bent over the toilet but had absolutely nothing to throw up. RJ ran his hand up and down Theo's back and helped him lie back again.

"Here," he said, showing him the mug and solution. Drink them slowly, okay?" Theo barely nodded.

RJ went back to the common area and found Fran-

"RJ, they can't be in this condition," Fran said, her voice full of worry.

"If I bring them to lay down in the hammocks out here, can you stay to help me take care of them?"

"Of course, boss!"

With Fran's help, they set up three hammocks, and RJ showed his master superhuman strength by taking each of his students and putting them in a hammock.

"Fran will take care of you while I go to the Academy to look for an antidote for that spider Rin Shi. Try to rest, okay? Drink you tea and solutions slowly, okay?

"Okay," they all said weakly.

"RJ," Casey called weakly. "What if the Rin Shi comes back? What are we going to do?"

"Don't worry about that, I've got it covered. I need you three to rest as much as you can, okay?"

Neither RJ nor Fran got any sleep, but the combo of ginger, peppermint, and chamomile seemed to have worked, and the three exhausted rangers slept soundly through the night.

RJ spent the night going from one to the other, making sure there was no fever or anything else. After each round, he would sit with Fran and they'd talk about the book she was reading.

"Fran," RJ said, in his sleep-deprived state. "Would you like to know what your animal spirit is?"

Fram let out a chuckle. "It's probably some kind of ridiculous bird like a goose," she joked.

"it's a rat."

"A rat?" Fran looked disappointed.

"Hey, the rat is a spirit in the Pai Zhua council, very important spirit. They are very intelligent, they learn quickly, they're super loyal, strong for their size, fearless... Rats make for great animal spirits. Usually our best strategists at the academy are rats"

"Well, if you put it like that," she said, smiling at him.

He hugged her. "This night would have been even more of a nightmare without you, Fran. Thanks for being here."

"Let's hope the drinks work and they stop vomiting."

In that moment, Casey jumped out of his hammock and ran to the bathroom, and they could hear him vomiting the little tea and solution he had drunk.

RJ looked at Fran. "Make us some coffee. Looks like we're going to need it."

And with that, he went to Casey and started rubbing his back again.

"You're alright. It's alright."

"I'm going to die," Casey whined.

"You're okay. You're going to be fine." RJ kept rubbing Casey's back. "You're all going to be fine, I promise."

Chapter Text

Warriors.

The Pai Zhua had promised him warriors.

And they had sent him children.

That was RJ's first impression when he saw them in the restaurant wearing the ugly gray pajamas the Pai Zhua insisted on making all of its students wear.

And even though RJ's first lesson for his new students was to not judge a book by its cover, he had committed that mistake himself when he saw them for the first time.

The kids were gutsy at the very least. They ran towards the danger, got their little asses kicked but insisted on staying in the fight. He had rescued them, his original impression changed.

He saw them fighting the Rin Shi and had to admit to himself the academy had sent him warriors, as promised.

They turned out to be formidable, especially after he gave them the morphers he had build for them.

At that point, they were unstoppable.

As they came back home bruised and shaken, RJ smile when he saw them.

"Great work, my warriors," he greeted them.

"We got our little tails handed back to us like it's going out of fashion, Casey said with a sore voice.

"You'll figure it out," Rj said, patting him on the shoulder. "Are you guys hungry?"

"Yes," was the unanimous answer.

"Let me cook you something, why don't you change and wash up?" RJ said and they left to the bedrooms area.

His kids, for they were still kids, were hungry and tired, so he set up to cook them a substantial meal.

His warriors, still hurt and defeated, were already thinking about how they could defeat that beast.

His warriors.

He let himself smile at the thought: "Maybe what they need is a new warrior."

Chapter Text

It was Lily's birthday, and all her boys and Fran were happy to celebrate with her.

As she, Theo, and Casey had gone for a run and some light training in the forest, RJ and Fran moved at breakneck speed to set up the little surprise party.

Yellow balloons, yellow streamers, presents wrapped in yellow, and a cake with yellow icing (and a little wooden Cheeta RJ had found lying around) created the xanthous scene of her birthday party.

The three students came back from training, and as the door opened, they all yelled: "Surprise!!"

"YOU GUYS!" she yelled back, turning immediately to hug Theo.

Theo was very happy to celebrate one more of Lily's birthdays with her, since he had been celebrating them for a decade.

Lily was Theo's best, and quite frankly, only, friend at the Pai Zhua, and they had a bond that would last a lifetime.

Theo adored Lily. He kissed the ground she walked on. His love was true and honest, so much so that he was willing to be miserable his whole life if Lily met someone else who loved her like Theo did.

He looked at her: radiant, with her usual big smile and starry eyes, happy to see her happy.

Then she hugged Casey.

Casey hugged her back tight, making sure to show her how happy he was to have her in his life.

Casey didn't have romantic love for Lily, but he still loved her like a sister. If something were ever to happen to Lily, Casey would not let up until somebody paid for it.

She had been such a support for him, for all of them, during this war and he was very happy to have her in his team.

Lily then moved to Fran.

Fran hugged her back, each showing the other gratitude for not leaving her alone amongst the boys.

Another female voice, especially one as sweet and steady as Lily's, had helped Fran come out of her shell, and Lily had even taught her how to dance.

She was grateful to have all of them as friends, but Lily had the special place of being "the other girl" in this group of men.

Lily then hugged Dom.

Dom didn't know Lily much, if he was honest. But he knew enough. She was fierce, especially if it came to protect the ones she cared about. She was very strong and wise; Dominic had no doubt she would soon reach the level of Master in the Pai Zhua.

Dom thought that if there was anyone who could convince him to become a Master, it was probably Lily.

Finally, it was the Wolf Master's turn.

Lily was the daughter RJ hadn't had yet, and he felt immense pride in calling himself her master. She was strong and fast, but also quick-minded and caring.

RJ was sure that without her, the team wouldn't be anywhere as closely knit as it was.

He was her Master, but he admired her and had found himself learning something from Lily more than once.

He admitted to himself that the only one of his students who could keep up with him was Lily, which was quite a tall bar to clear.

Lily looked around, at the decorated loft, at her friends' faces and felt herself smiling wider.

It was so elating to have moments like these in the middle of a fight for humankind against a demon.

She looked at each of her teammates in turn and felt her heart swell even more.

This was a happy and safe place where they could relax and grow, safe from the Beast War outside. Sure, leaving this safe place to fight those monsters was always scary, but as she looked around, she thought there was nobody she'd prefer to accompany her in this fight.

Her boys, as she had taken to call them behind their backs, and Fran were her family now.

And just looking at them all, smiling at her, celebrating her achievements so far in the year, dancing, and eating cake, made this the happiest birthday ever.

Chapter Text

Y is for Yawn

RJ entered Casey's room, a mug in his hands.

Theo and Lily had woken up at dawn, like the good Pai Zhua students they were, but Casey seemed to think getting out of bed was optional.

The three kids had moved in with him the previous night, and RJ was taking his responsibilities as a master very seriously.

He looked at the sleeping boy and smiled in anticipation.

The kid needed a lesson about waking up on time, and RJ was going to provide it. He put the mug on the table and sat on Casey's bed.

"Casey," he called softly, shaking the boy softly. "Case, buddy, come on, it's late." Casey didn't move. "Casey," RJ called again, shaking him harder.

Casey stretched his arms, letting out a long yawn. "Hey, RJ," he whispered.

"Well, hello yourself."

"What's the matter?"

"It's almost eight and you're still in bed."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Casey said honestly.

RJ stood up from his bed so Casey could sit up. The Master grabbed the mug and handed it to his student.

"Coffee?" Casey asked, excited.

"Coffee? No, no, no. We don't drink coffee in this house." He handed the mug to the boy with a serious face.

Casey took the mug to his face, and the smell of whatever was in it hit his nostrils like a punch to the face.

"What the hell is this? He asked his master.

"Yee Sei Mei Leong Cha," RJ said in clear Cantonese. "Also known as the 24-flavour tea. It's used in Chinese medicine to treat a variety of health issues."

Casey took a sip of the mug's contents, and it took all his willpower not to spit it up. "I think I'd like to start with something with fewer flavors," he declared, stretching and yawning again.

RJ took the mug that Casey had put down and handed it back to him. Then he looked at Casey, straight in the eyes, and whispered: "I decide what you drink now."

Casey grabbed the mug and took another sip; it was just as disgusting. "How long do I have to take this?"

"21 days."

"I can't drink this every morning!" Casey yelled, looking panicked.

This broke RJ's resistance, and he started laughing. He picked the mug up from Casey's bedside table as he laughed.

"I wouldn't wish this tea on my worst enemy. May this be the last time you sleep in in this house. Is that clear? We have a predetermined waking-up hour. There's coffee in the kitchen."

"Yes, sir."

Chapter Text

Sitting at the bar of her favorite restaurant, Fran finished the book she was reading.

"Meh," she told herself. "I've read worse."

She looked up and saw the owner, RJ, carrying a pizza in each hand and a wide smile.

He approached a table and served them one pie, and then the other pie to a different table.

He laughed at the casual jokes and passing comments about his looks, and then made a beeline to her.

"Hey, Fran!"

"Hey."

"I hadn't noticed you were here. The usual?"

"Nah. I'm in the mood for something different."

"Surprise you?"

"Yeah, that sounds good, RJ, thanks."

He disappeared into the kitchen, and Fran looked around the dining area again.

She had started going to Jungle Karma Pizza because it used to be quiet and felt intimate, like reading RJ's diary. Now it was full of people, smells, shreds of conversations, laughter, and music, and Fran was very happy about that, because RJ certainly deserved the success.

RJ came back out from the kitchen, served the pizza, made a face at a baby, tested a regular's child on multiplication tables, and then turned the music on.

He stayed in the dining area, reorganising drinks as he sang along.

Fran felt her life was better since she had met RJ. She had never met anyone with that much energy, with such a bright smile, and such a kind heart. She knew he didn't just make her happy, he made all his customers happy, and that was the main reason JKP had so many regulars.

Laughter erupted when a young boy challenged RJ to a dance-off off and the chef obliged. He was a terrible dancer, but he looked like that was the most fun he'd ever had.

RJ went back to the kitchen, and Fran went back to her pile of books to choose one to read next.

A few minutes later, RJ came out of the kitchen.

"A delicious Melt pizza for my best customer!" He announced as she eyed the pizza. "Hope you like it," he said, moving his hands around like he had lost control over them.

"It looks delicious!" Fran said and grabbed a slice.

As she ate, he saw RJ's zest turn what should be an exhausting job into an adventure full of fun and love for the art.

Silently, she wished RJ would never lose the light that always seemed to come out of him; the world needed that kind of energy.

She picked two books, romance books, and was trying to choose.

"What are the options?" RJ asked when he approached her with a drink.

"Vampires or werewolves, it is October after all."

RJ pretended to think and said: "Wererolves. You can't go wrong with werewolves! They are my favourite monsters!" He said with more grandiose hand movements.

"Werewolves it is, then," she said and put the other book in her bag.

RJ left her side and approached another table, where a comment made him laugh with such a contagious and crystalline laugh that Fran wished he could laugh like that forever.

She came to JKP because the pizza was great. She stayed because she needed RJ's zest like a burn needs a balm.

His smile and happiness were her balm. A balm that soothed everything that happened outside of JKP.

Not only was she safe here.

She was happy.