Nicole stretched, looking over her coursework. She was bored, and that was always dangerous for someone with the kind of power she held. She’d tried to keep up with the work, but it was proving difficult to remain focused. Adrenaline was a hell of a drug and her work as a Ranger gave her a rush unlike even the peak of her gymnastics career.

  With a heavy sigh Nicole rolled out of her seat into a handstand before she stood back up. Clapping almost startled her as she spun, finding Rebecca in her doorway with a big grin.

  “Smooth as always,” Becca said. “I’m glad to see you doing silly stuff like that again.”

  Nicole blinked. “What do you mean?”

  “Back before,” Becca started before she caught herself with a wince. “You used to do stuff like that all the time. I remember Aunt Kelly telling you to stop doing flips in the living room when you were supposed to be cleaning.”

  Silence followed as Nicole let several memories float back to the surface. Becca trying to do cartwheels at Nicole’s direction shortly after she came out, how they broke the living room table in the process. Both of them ended up grounded for it, but Nicole held no regrets whatsoever. Teaching her best friend things that she’d never gotten to do because everyone thought she was a boy was something Nicole had greatly enjoyed.

  “Those were simpler times,” Nicole said with a soft smile.

  Becca snorted. “Kinda fucked that we can call those simpler times. Remember all the shit I got when I came out at school?”

  “I remember a suspension for breaking Teddy’s nose,” Nicole said coyly.

  Laughter broke out almost immediately between the pair. That suspension had been one of the last moments of levity in the world, before the Sylan arrived. She could still remember watching the news reports alongside Becca, the fear and terror that she felt watching the machines tear through the armies of the world.

  The hope that surged when the first Rangers appeared in New York and fought back, how the Sylan withdrew in the face of this new force… Now she was one of them, and more aware of the conflict that most people involved. Then there was Becca, working alongside some of the brightest minds to come up with new ways for humanity to fight back.

  “Say, I was wondering if you wanted to do something that might be amusing,” Becca said, and Nicole recognized the tone.

  Crossing her arms, Nicole glared at her friend. “Last time you had an idea, the school had to be evacuated because all the toilets exploded.”

  “Not my fault they couldn’t take a certain chemical mixture,” Becca said with a snort. “No, this is just meeting some people.”

  “What sort of people?”

  Becca paused, clearly considering her words. “It’s a group that I sort of joined as a joke, and I think it would be hilarious if you and your friends all went with me.”

  Nicole’s eyes narrowed. “What are you trying to rope us into?”

  “Just a gathering of people from a group,” Becca said evasively. Nicole started to tap her foot as she crossed her arms. “You know, a bunch of us who appreciate certain heroes here in the city, nothing more.”

  Eyes widening, Nicole’s jaw dropped slightly. “You want us to meet with a Ranger fan club?”

  “Something like that,” Becca said, looking away. “First I did it just to keep track of rumors and stuff, you know, to help keep my best friend safe.”

  Given how much footage of the battle with Bartran had made it to the public, that was probably a good thing. If Becca had been in the center of the rumor mill, she could have easily steered it away from her own identity before shit hit the fan.

  Nicole stepped forward and pulled her best friend into a hug. “Thanks for watching out for me.”

  The hug was quickly returned. “Anytime.”

  “What’s the real reason you want me to meet this group?”

  Becca turned away, her expression bashful. “Is it bad I only want to do it because it would be funny?”

  There was a beat of silence, then a snort escaped from Nicole before she could help it. Just the idea of having all the Rangers show up to what essentially amounted to a gathering of fanboys was too humorous to pass up.

  “I’ll have to ask the others,” Nicole said, “but I have a condition.”

  “Name it,” Becca said without hesitation.

  Struggling to get her laughter under control, Nicole gave into her demand in fits and starts. It took her a minute to get it all said, but once she did, Nicole wasn’t the only one laughing hysterically.

  The air was cool, though not as biting as it could be for late winter. She had dressed in a jacket, though it remained unzipped. Convincing her fellow Rangers to show up hadn’t taken nearly as much effort as she had expected, and everyone had agreed to the dress code she had asked for. They weren’t arriving together, with Nicole riding in Rebecca’s new car. At least one of them wasn’t shy about using their newfound wealth for personal benefit.

  Not that Becca was ever shy about that sort of thing when given the chance to show off.

  Shaking her head, Nicole followed Rebecca into a public library, trying to keep her own amusement under control. She was wearing black jeans as well as a black shirt, but the shirt had very specific branding. Her own helmet along with her daggers, the shirt having been bought for her by Rebecca some weeks ago as a gag gift. She’d gotten one for each of them, and now Nicole knew where she had found someone who was making them.

  “Think they’ll figure it out?” Nicole asked, eyeing Rebecca’s shirt.

  It was green, with Kayla’s helmet and staff plastered on it. It was all so hilariously tongue in cheek, and despite the risk to her identity she couldn’t help but be amused. Stepping inside the library, glorious warmth washed over her. Rows of books stood ahead of her, framed by polished hardwood. The counter was to her left, and several meeting rooms adorned the far wall.

  One of those rooms was occupied with several people, the open door showing more than a few wearing colorful shirts. Smiling, Rebecca pulled her along towards the waiting group. Most of the members looked up from whatever they were doing when Nicole joined them, though her eyes were on the TV. It was playing the recent battle with Maraline and her machines outside the fire station.

  It was a stroke of luck that nobody managed to link them to their Ranger identities from that incident, or perhaps this very meeting was to go over the available pictures and video to learn what they could. Then again, the stack of merch with their likenesses plastered all over it might be the reason for the meeting. Her attention turned to those gathered, and she was a bit surprised to see that Jeff and Kayla arrived ahead of her.

  That still left Grace, who was working in her forge but promised to join them, and Devon who was finishing up a movie he’d wanted to see, likely leaving out that he was with Anita. Nicole smiled brightly at all the unfamiliar faces, pleasantly surprised that several women were present and that it wasn’t just a bunch of sweaty guys being creepy about skin tight suits.

  Then again, women could be creepy about that stuff too, and it wasn’t like she and Grace hadn’t messed around in their own suits before the battle with Bartran…

  “Hi, I’m Nicole, Becca’s friend,” she said to the group.

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  Kayla raised an eyebrow but didn’t mention that they knew one another. Jeff however didn’t seem to have the same level of tact as he hurried over and pulled her into a hug.

  “Nicole, good to see you!”

  She hesitantly returned the embrace. “Jeff, it’s been a minute. How have you been?”

  “Living the dream,” he said with a grin. “Have you met my girlfriend Kayla? She’s a delight!”

  Kayla shook her head and moved to join them. “Why am I dating you again?”

  Jeff rolled his eyes and leaned in close, holding up a hand even though he didn’t bother to whisper. “She only likes me for my streaming accounts.”

  Kayla punched his arm and she couldn’t help but laugh as he rubbed it, his grin all the wider for it. Shaking her head, she turned to the others in the room.

  “Gordon,” one man said.

  He was wearing a shirt that featured all five Rangers arrayed in poses that Nicole wouldn’t catch herself dead in. Seriously, one team from San Francisco does a bunch of poses for the camera and suddenly it’s expected from every Ranger team.

  “Julie,” a brunette girl who couldn’t be eighteen said with a happy wave. “You’re Nicole Hayes, aren’t you?”

  Nicole froze, wondering how the hell this girl knew her last name. Becca might have mentioned it, but that question seemed a bit more familiar than a passing familiarity. Looking closer, Nicole thought she might have recognized her, but it felt like a lifetime ago.

  “I am.”

  The girl squealed. “I was on the gymnastic team with you! You were such an inspiration to me and I have to say it was bullshit that they didn’t let you have another go after the accident. You would have totally rocked the Olympics!”

  The familiar pang of regret hit Nicole like a brick, that fateful call that told her she’d lost both of her parents to the Sylan attack. How her grief cascaded into that fateful fall in the middle of her routine, all because she couldn’t stop the tears. Those tears threatened to fall once more only for a strong hand to fall on her shoulder.

  Nicole looked up, and couldn’t help but cheer up at the sight of her girlfriend’s stunning hazel eyes. She found herself lost in them for but a moment, then Grace leaned down and kissed her oh so tenderly. Just a peck, but it was enough to get her out of the impending spiral.

  “Hey, sorry to make you wait,” Grace said. She’d shown up in her own red shirt, just as agreed, which meant only Devon was missing. “Traffic was hell.”

  Nicole rolled her eyes and bumped Grace with her hip. “At least you didn’t have to ride with the crash test dummy here.”

  “Hey!” Becca squawked. “I’ve wrecked exactly once and it wasn’t my fault!”

  “Yes, because some idiot put a crash test dummy behind the wheel and pushed it into traffic,” Colin said with a grin. “I still have the video from the news report saved, should I show it to everyone?”

  “Nope,” Rebecca said, reaching for his phone. “Unless it’s Ranger related we aren’t talking about it!”

  “Aww,” Julie said. “But I wanted to talk shop with Nicole!”

  If only she knew…

  Nicole pulled on the hem of her shirt, the gesture almost subconscious as she listened to the chatter around her, only able to follow some of it. Another two slipped in as they all caught up with one another, or made further introductions, and Nicole was slowly beginning to feel overwhelmed. Grace took her hand and squeezed, pulling her over to one of the tables.

  “There’s more people here than I expected,” Grace said, her eyes flicking to the looping cell footage on the monitor where the Red Ranger had just put her axe through a machine. “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that.”

  “Yeah,” Gordon said, sitting across from them. Nicole tried to keep the irritation off her face, but she knew she would need to deal with some people at a gathering like this. “It’s interesting how we’ve had so many new people join up today.”

  “Blame Becca,” Nicole said with a shrug. “She’s been trying to talk me into this for weeks now.”

  The man hummed, his eyes wandering over to the door where Devon was approaching, his shirt was a heather gray, but it had the Silver Ranger’s helm printed on it just as it should. Of greater surprise was Anita, wearing a bright yellow sundress with black leggings.

  “And the last pieces arrive,” Gordon said.

  “Oh?” Grace asked.

  Gordon’s grin turned almost predatory. “Five new people,” he gestured at each of them, then at Jeff. “All wearing my merch.”

  Oh he was the person that Rebecca had bought the shirts off of.

  “Sounds like Rebecca is trying to pull a prank,” Nicole said truthfully. “She does that sometimes. She’s probably going to have half the room convinced we’re Rangers before the day is done.”

  “She’s doing a damn good job of it,” Gordon said. He gestured over at Kayla and Jeff. “It’s just interesting, that’s all.”

  “Now we just need a goth elf girl to walk in,” Nicole said. “May as well get the nemesis in on this too.”

  Without thinking, Nicole’s eyes drifted to the door, almost as if she expected Maraline to stroll up in street wear. It was a silly thought, but it was proving hard to shake the bizarre experience she’d had outside the fire house.

  “I’d pay to see that,” Gordon said. “So, what do you think of our illustrious Rangers and all the work they do?”

  “Black is pretty cool,” Nicole said, and a devious idea crossed her mind that she just couldn’t pass up on throwing out there. “She actually works at the same fire station I do, so I’ve met her and Gold before.”

  “No way,” Gordon said with wide eyes.

  “It’s true,” Grace said, grinning. “I’ve hung out at the station a few times and I’ve seen them around.”

  Shaking his head, Gordon glared at the pair. “I’m calling bullshit right now. No way anyone would keep quiet about something like that. Hell, why hasn’t Rebecca brought it up on any of the group chats?”

  “I have, actually,” Rebecca said, joining them at the table. “You were just too busy talking about how hot the evil Sylan lady was to listen.”

  Gordon’s jaw dropped, working silently for a moment as Becca smirked at the reaction. Rather than continue, Gordon stood and moved away to stand awkwardly with two other guys that were eyeing them in a way that was a bit uncomfortable.

  Thankfully some of the others in the room had seen the exchange, Julie took the opportunity to sit across from them but not in the same seat that Gordon had vacated. She offered a sheepish smile, then set a tablet on the table which showed a picture of Nicole in her gymnastics uniform. She recognized it from a rehearsal just weeks before the conference, and in the background she could see her parents in the stands.

  “Where did you get that?” Nicole asked, her voice distant.

  “I took it myself,” she said sheepishly. “I was a freshman that year and you were basically my idol.” She then flicked the picture over to the next in line and Nicole froze. “Still are.”

  Looking back at her was another picture of herself, bloodied and covered in dirt as she staggered back to her feet right before she engaged the second morph that nearly ended her life.

  “I was one of the people you saved that day,” Julie continued softly. “I never got to say it in person, but thank you.”

  Then she deleted the photo.

  Nicole stared blankly as another picture took its place, this one of Kayla sending vines into one of the machines that had been unleashed in that same battle. Had this girl really just deleted a picture that might have set her up for life? Nicole barely remembered her, and yet…

  “Oh, that’s a cool shot,” Rebecca said, joining them. “I’d love to get a print of that if you are willing to get some made.”

  “I can do that,” Julie said, then her smile turned predatory. “Okay Rebecca, be honest. Was this whole thing an attempt to convince everyone that your friends here are the local Rangers?”

  Grace groaned, cupping her face in her hands. “Please tell me it wasn’t.”

  Rebecca smiled sheepishly, then shrugged. “Eh, it was worth a shot. Plus, it was fun to let Julie meet the girl that inspired her to get into gymnastics full time.”

  Nicole eyed her best friend who just winked back. This whole thing had been arranged to get her to meet Julie? That could have easily backfired so badly! Yet, the girl could have taken that photo to the press at any point, or just shared it with the group. She hadn’t, which meant she was being genuine.

  “Always happy to meet a fan.” Nicole then flashed a thumbs up and her cheekiest grin.

  Becca’s head hit the table and Nicole couldn’t help but laugh.

  “Alright people,” Gordon announced with a clap. “Now that everyone is here, let’s get this show on the road. We’ve got a lot of footage to cover, as well as something that hasn’t been seen from a Ranger event before.”

  “You mean Black’s new outfit?” Julie asked.

  “Exactly so, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Gordon continued. “We had an appearance by the unknown Sylan again, and we are really lacking information on her.”

  A photo of Maraline was on screen, her blades locked with Nicole’s own. It was obviously taken from a distance, but the quality was still top notch. A reporter no doubt, with one hell of a zoom lens. Nicole recognized the moment as when Maraline was whispering her warning of things to come.

  “Hot damn does she look yandere for Black,” Anita said with a whistle.

  “Oh god, not another shipper,” Colin groaned, dropping his head to the table.

  Anita cackled, leaning back in her chair as she did. Nicole glared at the woman but she had the audacity to fucking wink at her. With a resigned sigh, Nicole settled back in, ready to endure the next two hours of hell as everyone took potshots at her and her friends. At least she wasn’t in it alone.

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