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Walking Into Danger With Eyes Wide (PR RPM) part 6
Okay, after getting sidetracked by Remix Redux/Madness, I'm back on track!
Walking Into Danger part 6
Babbly Puzzle Pieces
Ziggy settled into his new room without a lot of fuss. He really didn't see the point of doing anything other than maybe putting a poster or two up and settling his books in his bookshelves. It wasn't like his parents had any choice other than to bring him along, so he wasn't going to protest. He had a pretty good selection of books that he'd brought with him, and his room was soundproof, so he could listen to his music without bugging anyone else.
It was a little weird to live in one place with his parents and their teammates. Sure, everyone was friendly enough, other than Dillon, who just shot him looks and avoided him as much as possible. But he still felt that he was out of place, no matter what everyone said. His dad had presented him with his morpher, and it still didn't feel like it belonged on his wrist. He'd rather have had morphers like his parents' and Flynn's, to be honest, that looked like cellphones, instead of his awkward wrist-mounted model.
Of course, that had been after they'd moved in, and Doctor K had run him through upteen million tests to gage his physical condition and training needs. Which had been a fair amount, because he wasn't really a warrior and really knew only what he'd learned from his parents. At least he wasn't fighting boredom, because he was getting frequent physical training. That was, of course, on top of his classwork; Doctor K had gotten his assignments and textbooks, and so he was doing homework as much as he ever had. Except his classes had never included Biofield Manipulation 101, or had a teacher as brilliant - and as impatient - as Doctor K. Sometimes she let Gem or Gemma tutor Ziggy instead, which was infinitely more fun, because they were into the more practical side of things, and didn't care about perfection as much. "As long as it blows up, that's what counts?" Gemma had told him one time, a grin lighting up her face.
Between it all, Ziggy was getting used to the long days of school and training. Sure, he wasn't doing school in one big block anymore, and he could take breaks when he wanted to, when he wasn't with Doctor K. But his parents and their teammates couldn't replace being with kids his own age, and he was expected to keep himself in good shape even when Doctor K wasn't training him. There was talk of teaching him to drive, since he had to help drive a megazord and all. In all, it kept him very tired.
It didn't keep him from having the occasional insomnia, even as he should be dead to the world.
One evening, he'd crept down to the hallway leading to the rather large rec room, intent on seeing if there was something down there that he could raid to read. He was surprised to see light coming from the room, and remembered belatedly that Dillon, having been implanted with Venjix hardware, rarely needed more than an hour or two of sleep.
Apparently he hadn't gone to bed yet. Ziggy wondered how pissed he'd be if Ziggy joined him, if he'd make things worse by trying to talk to him.
Quietly, he crept down the hall itself. Halfway down, he could hear voices, and froze.
"Put the video camera down, Zig." Dillon's voice reached him, the slight distortion telling ZIggy that this was a recording. Besides, Dillon avoided him and had never called him by name.
"Hey, this is worth recording!" his voice announced. "And you've got to admit, the Z-man can handle a camera like an expert."
"An expert moron, you mean," but the tone was fond, nothing he'd ever heard from Dillon. "Put the camera down. Now."
"Look, this might not seem important to you now, but think of the future! Think of the historical significance! The first interview with the new Ranger Black!"
"You're not a journalist." There was a little less amusement in Dillon's voice.
"Hey, cut me some slack. I'm here, you're here, you've taken the offer of a lifetime. How does it feel?"
"Ziggy-"
"Okay, okay, okay! We don't have to record this right now! Really! We can always.... mmmrph!"
There was nothing more said. Ziggy could guess that Dillon had probably caught his boyfriend in a liplock, but he wasn't about to look. Besides, he wasn't ready to deal with the fact that some version of him had been in a physical relationship with another man.
Ziggy very quietly crept back out of the hall and back upstairs. He had no desire to cause Dillon more pain, even though he wanted desperately to ask about the man that Dillon had known and loved, the man in the video. He wondered if he could get his hands on the video, or something else that had shown how the other him had acted. From the one recording, he and his older self sounded absolutely nothing alike.
It was pure luck, or maybe bad luck, that he'd run across Dillon and the video. He'd always been curious about the world around him, and his place in it. With what his parents had told him, what had happened, he felt like he knew where he belonged even less. Knowing Dillon would help him figure himself out, and he thanked everything that he'd walked down the hall. Maybe Dillon would be willing to share his treasure store. As long as it didn't include porn starring his body. He didn't think he could take that too well, not yet. But anything else would be wonderful, giving him a glimpse of the person Ziggy Grover.
However, he knew better than to disturb Dillon in the middle of the night. He'd talk to his parents in the morning, and plan out an approach. Whether Dillon liked it or not, he held the big piece to the puzzle that was Ziggy, and Ziggy hoped to convince him to give it up.
Walking Into Danger part 6
Babbly Puzzle Pieces
Ziggy settled into his new room without a lot of fuss. He really didn't see the point of doing anything other than maybe putting a poster or two up and settling his books in his bookshelves. It wasn't like his parents had any choice other than to bring him along, so he wasn't going to protest. He had a pretty good selection of books that he'd brought with him, and his room was soundproof, so he could listen to his music without bugging anyone else.
It was a little weird to live in one place with his parents and their teammates. Sure, everyone was friendly enough, other than Dillon, who just shot him looks and avoided him as much as possible. But he still felt that he was out of place, no matter what everyone said. His dad had presented him with his morpher, and it still didn't feel like it belonged on his wrist. He'd rather have had morphers like his parents' and Flynn's, to be honest, that looked like cellphones, instead of his awkward wrist-mounted model.
Of course, that had been after they'd moved in, and Doctor K had run him through upteen million tests to gage his physical condition and training needs. Which had been a fair amount, because he wasn't really a warrior and really knew only what he'd learned from his parents. At least he wasn't fighting boredom, because he was getting frequent physical training. That was, of course, on top of his classwork; Doctor K had gotten his assignments and textbooks, and so he was doing homework as much as he ever had. Except his classes had never included Biofield Manipulation 101, or had a teacher as brilliant - and as impatient - as Doctor K. Sometimes she let Gem or Gemma tutor Ziggy instead, which was infinitely more fun, because they were into the more practical side of things, and didn't care about perfection as much. "As long as it blows up, that's what counts?" Gemma had told him one time, a grin lighting up her face.
Between it all, Ziggy was getting used to the long days of school and training. Sure, he wasn't doing school in one big block anymore, and he could take breaks when he wanted to, when he wasn't with Doctor K. But his parents and their teammates couldn't replace being with kids his own age, and he was expected to keep himself in good shape even when Doctor K wasn't training him. There was talk of teaching him to drive, since he had to help drive a megazord and all. In all, it kept him very tired.
It didn't keep him from having the occasional insomnia, even as he should be dead to the world.
One evening, he'd crept down to the hallway leading to the rather large rec room, intent on seeing if there was something down there that he could raid to read. He was surprised to see light coming from the room, and remembered belatedly that Dillon, having been implanted with Venjix hardware, rarely needed more than an hour or two of sleep.
Apparently he hadn't gone to bed yet. Ziggy wondered how pissed he'd be if Ziggy joined him, if he'd make things worse by trying to talk to him.
Quietly, he crept down the hall itself. Halfway down, he could hear voices, and froze.
"Put the video camera down, Zig." Dillon's voice reached him, the slight distortion telling ZIggy that this was a recording. Besides, Dillon avoided him and had never called him by name.
"Hey, this is worth recording!" his voice announced. "And you've got to admit, the Z-man can handle a camera like an expert."
"An expert moron, you mean," but the tone was fond, nothing he'd ever heard from Dillon. "Put the camera down. Now."
"Look, this might not seem important to you now, but think of the future! Think of the historical significance! The first interview with the new Ranger Black!"
"You're not a journalist." There was a little less amusement in Dillon's voice.
"Hey, cut me some slack. I'm here, you're here, you've taken the offer of a lifetime. How does it feel?"
"Ziggy-"
"Okay, okay, okay! We don't have to record this right now! Really! We can always.... mmmrph!"
There was nothing more said. Ziggy could guess that Dillon had probably caught his boyfriend in a liplock, but he wasn't about to look. Besides, he wasn't ready to deal with the fact that some version of him had been in a physical relationship with another man.
Ziggy very quietly crept back out of the hall and back upstairs. He had no desire to cause Dillon more pain, even though he wanted desperately to ask about the man that Dillon had known and loved, the man in the video. He wondered if he could get his hands on the video, or something else that had shown how the other him had acted. From the one recording, he and his older self sounded absolutely nothing alike.
It was pure luck, or maybe bad luck, that he'd run across Dillon and the video. He'd always been curious about the world around him, and his place in it. With what his parents had told him, what had happened, he felt like he knew where he belonged even less. Knowing Dillon would help him figure himself out, and he thanked everything that he'd walked down the hall. Maybe Dillon would be willing to share his treasure store. As long as it didn't include porn starring his body. He didn't think he could take that too well, not yet. But anything else would be wonderful, giving him a glimpse of the person Ziggy Grover.
However, he knew better than to disturb Dillon in the middle of the night. He'd talk to his parents in the morning, and plan out an approach. Whether Dillon liked it or not, he held the big piece to the puzzle that was Ziggy, and Ziggy hoped to convince him to give it up.