Power Rangers 1. Starting the Path

Disclaimer: Standard disclaimer applies. All non-PR series characters belong to me. So if it didn't come from Saban or Disney, it's mine and you still have no right to it.

Starting the Path

Tyler shifted slightly in the bed, and then moved closer to the body next to him. He sighed softly when the strong arms of his brother wrapped around him and held him close. The boy had had a nightmare during the night and Tommy had picked him up out of his bed and carried him into the teen's own room. Tyler had cried for a while until he fell asleep in his brother's arms. Now, he didn't want to leave the warmth and security they offered.

"Hey little man...you okay?" Tommy asked sleepily, barely cracking his eyes open.

"Need to use the bathroom, but I don't want to get up." He looked up at his brother. "Want you to still be here when I get back." His brother had scared him several times over the past couple of weeks. Plus, there had been times when the teen wasn't at home when he should have been. Then, when he was home, Tyler hadn't been welcome.

For the first time since their dad had died, the boy had been truly alone. Their mom had thought Tommy was just going through a phase, but something told Tyler that was far from the truth. It didn't help that his brother had gotten mad at him once and the warm, brown eyes that normally offered him so much love, had flashed green and grown hard, sending him running to his own room where he'd hid under his bed in fright.

Reaching up to stroke the boy's hair, Tommy gave him a smile, but there was sadness behind it. He knew that he had frightened the life out of the boy and he felt a deep sorrow for that. After all, he was now Tyler's father figure. "I'll be right here... I promise, okay?"

The boy was quiet for several moments, and then he nodded. "Okay." He sat up slowly before crawling out of the bed. Walking quietly to the bathroom, he quickly took care of business and washed his hands, then ran quietly back to his brother's room. Crawling back into the bed, he snuggled up beside his brother once again.

Taking him into his arms once more, Tommy rubbed Ty's back gently. "See? I toldja I'd be here," he smiled.

The brown head nodded. "Do you have to go anywhere today?"

"No, not really. Why?"

"Just wondering. Seems like you're gone a lot more since we've moved here. Especially when you weren't you."

"Well... I'm here with you now. I'm sorry if things have been kinda bad lately... I'm trying to make sure that everything is gonna be okay, but... it's complicated," Tommy said with a deep sigh.

"Like after daddy died and mommy cried a lot before she and Mr. Russell got married?"

"Yeah... something like that."

"Too bad we moved so far from Sam and David. Sam's really good about making things less com- compl-" he was having a hard time getting the word out.

"Complicated?" Tommy helped, grinning. "Yeah, he is..."

Tyler snuggled up closer to his brother. "I miss daddy."

Closing his eyes tightly, Tommy nodded. "I know you do, kiddo-so do I." He stopped and sighed deeply once again. Their dad had a way of getting the younger boy to cheer up. It was something both boys missed deeply. "But we have to keep our heads up, right? That's what he would want."

The boy nodded. "Yeah." He was quiet for several moments, and then looked up at his brother again. "Tommy? Will you make me cheesy eggs?"

Looking into the soft chocolate eyes, so like his own, the teen's heart melted. It was going to take time for everything to get better, but if Tyler was willing to give him the chance to fix things, he was going to take it. "Sure. I could go for some cheesy eggs myself," Tommy chuckled, pulling the covers back and hoisting himself to a sitting position. "Be right back," he said, getting up and heading for the bathroom.

Tyler got up and went over to his brother's closet. Reaching up, he pulled down his brother's green hoodie and tried to put it on.

When Tommy returned from answering nature's call, he found his kid brother awash in fabric, trying to find his way out of a hoodie that was threatening to swallow him whole. "Need some help there, Sport?" he laughed.

Two short arms went up, the hoodie covering everything. "Can't find the holes."

"Well hold still and I'll see if I can find you," Tom laughed, trying to get the boy's head uncovered first.

When his head finally came through the hole, Tyler grinned at his brother. "Thank you, Tommy."

"You're welcome," the elder Oliver laughed. "Now let's find your arms and then we'll go make breakfast.

"Okay." Once his hands were found and the sleeves rolled up so that the small appendages could actually be used, the boy held his arms up. "Piggyback?"

"I suppose it'd be a good idea-you'd probably trip on the way down the stairs," Tom said, kneeling so that the boy could climb onto his back. "Ready?"

He quickly scrambled into position, his small arms holding tight to his brother's shoulders. "Yep, all set." Wrapping his feet as far around Tommy as he could, Ty giggled. "Giddy up"

"Okay, hold on tight," he said and starting jogging toward the stairs, bouncing Tyler around as much as he could. "Here we go down the steps," and he bounded down them, always careful to keep the little boy on his back safe. "You like that?" he asked, walking into the kitchen.

Tyler giggled softly. "Uh huh." He grinned at his brother when the teen sat him down on the counter. "Can I stir the eggs?"

"Sure you can." Winking at the boy, he started getting things out to make them both breakfast. It had become a tradition of theirs that when things were rough or one of them was upset, then they'd have 'cheesy eggs'. The dish was just scrambled eggs with green peppers and cheese plus some diced ham. Add a couple of pieces of toast and it was their breakfast. It was something that Jacob had taught Tommy to make and since his death, had become a special thing between the boys. Tyler almost flatly refused to eat it if someone else made it, which their mom had caught onto rather quickly. Russell could make his brother eat it, but Ty was always quiet afterwards.

So, as the eggs were mixed and the other ingredients chopped, the two brothers spent the time making their breakfast and trying to heal from the rift that had been created between them.

Grinning around a mouthful of eggs, Tyler giggled a bit at his brother, and then turned his head when the doorbell rang. He didn't say anything as he watched his brother get up to go answer it.

Jason shuffled back and forth, almost tempted to start pacing. It had been a couple of days since they'd broken the spell on Tommy. In that time, they'd seen very little of the other teen except for during school. Now, he was checking to make sure the other boy was okay. Jason also wanted to try and get to know his new teammate a bit better.

When Tom reached the front door, he peeped through the hole to see who was there. Recognizing the young man in red, he thought, 'What's he doing here?' Opening the door, he nodded. "Jason, hi," he said, sounding a little surprised.

He grinned at the other teen. "Hey man. Um, sorry to just drop by like this, but since we haven't really seen each other since" He blushed slightly, "Well, since that day on the beach, I just thought I'd check to see if you're okay."

"Oh...well, I'm alright. Umm...come in," Tommy said, still a little shy around the young man who was now a teammate.

"Thanks." Stepping inside, Jason looked around a bit. "Hope I didn't wake you up."

"No, no," he said, running his fingers through his hair. "We were just having breakfast."

Before the other teen could ask what he meant by 'we', a small green clad form came running into the living room. "Tommy, I'm all done." Tyler was almost to his brother, when his feet caught on the hem of the hoodie he was wearing and tripped, heading for a hard meeting with the floor.

Grabbing for the boy, Tommy watched as his little brother crashed into Jason. "Tyler!" he gasped.

The Red Ranger reached down and caught the boy before he could rebound off of his legs and onto the floor. He grinned as he hoisted him up into the air a bit. "Well, who's this?"

"That's Tyler," Tommy informed Jason. "You okay, buddy?" he directed at the boy that Jason was holding, reaching out to take him from the Red Ranger.

"Yeah, I'm okay." He looked down at the teen holding him, his soft brown eyes, so like his brother's, meeting the deep, midnight eyes of this stranger. "Who are you?" He titled his head a bit, looking for all the world like a miniature version of the person that stood next to Jason.

It amazed the Red Ranger at the resemblance between the two. That's when he really took note of how deep the likeness between the pair actually went. His brow furrowed slightly as he began to wonder what Zordon would say to a Ranger with a son. Or if a Ranger could even have a child and still be an active Ranger. He turned his gaze to the newest member of the team, unsure of how to answer the boy and ask the Green Ranger what his relationship to the child he held was exactly.

"That's Jason, a new friend of mine," Tommy answered, taking Tyler from the Red Ranger. "And no, he's not my son," Tommy chuckled, apparently having been asked that before. "He's my kid brother."

"Ah, explains a bit." He blushed a little. "Guess you get that a lot, huh?" He watched as the boy climbed over Tommy's shoulder until he hung from the teen's back, his little face peaking around his brother's head.

"Yeah I do, actually," he replied, an odd look crossing his face. "Do I really look old enough to have a kid?" he asked, bouncing Ty around a bit and grinning at him.

"Well, as small as he is I can see how people could jump to that conclusion."

Tyler giggled, and then looked at Jason. For a moment he just stared at the teen, then the grin he'd been wearing turned into a full blown smile. "Do you like karate? Tommy's a black belt and he's teaching me!"

"He is? That's great!" Jason said brightly. "And yeah, I like karate-I'm a black belt too. Maybe I can teach you sometime."

The boy thought about that for a moment, then nodded before grinning again. "Do you want some cheesy eggs? Tommy makes really good ones."

"No thanks, I already had breakfast. Something to drink would be nice, though," Jason answered with a smile.

Tommy grinned at Jason. "We've got juice, water, Gatorade, Pepsi and Mountain Dew."

"Orange juice or apple juice?"

"Both actually. Ty drinks a lot of it so mom's always buying that and Gatorade. So it's up to you which one you want." He nodded for the other teen to follow him into the kitchen. Looking over at the table, he looked down at Tyler. "You need to go finish your juice and take your vitamin."

The boy looked at his brother. "Aw, Tommy." He gave his brother a set of puppy dog eyes. "Do I have to take it?"

"Is that one of those great chewable vitamins? I used to love those when I was little," Jason said to Ty with a smile. "Grape, cherry, or orange flavored?"

The boy sighed. "It's orange. We didn't have any cherry or grape left and the orange is yucky."

"Well, if you want to grow up big and strong, like I did, you need to take your vitamins and eat your vegetables."

"I don't mind the vegetables, but I just think the orange tastes yucky."

"I'll make a deal with ya. You take your vitamin and finish your juice like your brother asked and I'll give you a piggyback ride. Whatcha think?" He turned to Tommy. "Orange juice will be fine, by the way," he grinned.

Chuckling softly, Tommy poured the other teen a glass and set it on the counter.

Tyler thought about it for a moment, and then nodded. "Okay." He went back over to his place at the table and took the vitamin, making a face as he chewed it. When it was gone, he finished off his juice and took the empty glass over to his brother. "All done now Tommy."

Jason sipped his juice slowly. "So it's just you two for the day, huh? Got any plans?"

Tommy took the glass from his brother, and then ruffled his hair a bit. "Okay kiddo, why don't you go watch cartoons for a bit?"

The boy's eyes lit up. It was a rare treat for him to be able to watch TV and it not be something his brother picked. "Cool!" He ran off to the living room, his little legs barely missing the hem of his borrowed shirt once again.

Watching him go, the elder Oliver smiled softly, and then turned back to the Red Ranger. "Yeah, our mom and step-dad are out of town until Sunday." He blushed a bit. "They're kind of mad at me for my attitude the past couple of weeks."

Jason nodded. "Yeah well, it's not like you could help it, but I know you can't tell them that. I've had to make up all sorts of things to tell my parents since this whole ranger thing started." He finished his juice and rinsed out the glass in the sink. "What about the kid? Does he suspect anything's going on?"

The green clad teen snorted. "Yeah, considering I scared the shit out of him a few days before you guys got me back." He sighed and you didn't have to know Tommy very well to tell that he felt horrible about what he was going to say. "He just wanted to know when we were going to have another lesson. And I snapped at him, complete with glowing green eyes."

The Red Ranger grimaced. "Man, I'll bet he was petrified... poor kid." When Jason looked into Tommy's face, he could see the remorse and embarrassment there. "But you couldn't help it, man. You shouldn't feel guilty for something you had no control over," he counseled, putting a hand on his new friend's shoulder.

"You don't understand Jason. I have been there for Tyler constantly since our dad died almost two years ago. He trusts me, or did, without question. Now," He shook his head. "Now he refuses to sleep in his own bed and is almost glued to my side most of the day. Even then, there are times that he acts scared of me."

"Well you know, there's one thing that is good about this situation-he's young enough to where he'll probably forget most of it. He seems to adore you, so it doesn't look like he's been too scarred by it."

"You don't know my little brother. And Jason, he knows that I'm a ranger. He caught me fully morphed in my room shortly before we fought that last time." He shook his head. "Ty's love for me is about the only thing that kept me sane."

"Wish I had a kid brother like that- or any brother at all. It's really nice that you're that close. It'll all be okay, Tom... you'll see. Now, I believe I owe said brother a piggyback ride, huh?"

"If you can actually get him to trust you enough to climb up on your back, I'll buy you a drink at that Youth Center place."

Jason grinned. "Would that be with me standing or sitting?"

He returned the grin. "Standing."

"Okay, it's a bet." The Red Ranger walked into the living room with a grin on his face. He knew how much little kids seemed to love climbing on him-like he was their own personal jungle gym or something. Spotting Tyler on the couch, he walked over and sat down beside him. "Hey Sport! Ready for that piggyback ride I promised?"

Tyler looked over at him, then back at his brother, who nodded at him that it was okay. He grinned up at him. "Flip first?"

"Yeah, we can do that. Come on, jump up," Jason said and stood up beside the couch. He held out his hands for the little boy to grab on.

Giggling, Tyler took hold of the hands and started walking up his new 'friend'. When he reached his waist, the boy flipped backwards. With a grin he looked at Jason and held his hands out. "Again!"

"Okay, let's do it again," Jason grinned, looking over at Tommy. "Just be careful."

Ty giggled again and flipped three more times. On the fifth time, he got distracted by something on the TV and missed where he was putting his feet. When his left foot started slipping a bit, he drove his right foot down hard... directly into the teen's crotch.

Tommy saw it happening, but before he could do anything about it, Tyler's little foot had connected with a very sensitive part of Jason's anatomy.

Jason barely held himself up, going a deep red before turning pale. As the boy landed safely on the floor, Jason went to his knees. His hands were cupping that traumatized area as he leaned to the side and settled on the floor. "Oh God."

Tyler looked over at his brother, fear coming up in the expressive chocolate eyes. "Tommy?"

Moving quickly over to his new friend, he laid his hand on the young man's shoulder. "I'm so sorry, Jase. You gonna be okay?"

"Yeah... just... just give... me a... few." The words came out in pants and he opened his midnight eyes to look up at the other teen. "Not the ... first time."

"I'll get you something cool to drink and maybe some ice. Be right back," he said and turned to his brother. "Come on, Ty. Help me in the kitchen." Together they went to get something to help Jason feel better. "Tyler, it's okay. I know you didn't mean to-he does too."

Once in the kitchen, Ty lifted his arms up. When he was in his brother's arms, Tyler latched on and started crying softly. "I didn't mean to be bad." The last time he'd been flipping with Tommy, Russell had scolded him and told him that he was going to hurt someone. After that, the boy didn't ask to flip, but would do so if given the opportunity, which his brother did at least twice a week.

"Listen to me, Ty-you weren't bad. It was just an accident. Nobody's mad at you, okay?"

He looked at his brother, tears staining his cheeks. "What about Jason?"

Jason came into the room. He was limping a bit and winced slightly as he came up behind the pair. "I'll be okay, runt."

"Jase, sit down," Tom said, pouring soda with one hand and holding onto a whimpering Tyler with the other. "See Ty? He's gonna be just fine and he's not mad at you, are you Jase?"

Jason shook his head. "No, I'm not mad at you Tyler." He took a drink of the soda, and then looked at the boy. When Tommy brought him closer, the Red Ranger put a hand on the small back and started rubbing it gently. "It was an accident, kiddo. I know you didn't do it on purpose."

Tyler relaxed a bit in his brother's arms and looked over at Jason. For several moments, he just watched the teen, and then he held his arms out to the red clad boy.

In spite of the pain he was in, Tyler's gesture of trust made Jason smile. "Come 'ere, kiddo. Let me hold you," he said, taking the small boy into his arms and settling him on his lap. "Let me rest for a little while and I'll still give you that piggyback ride, okay?" He reached up and pushed the dark hair out of Ty's eyes.

"Okay." The little boy sighed softly and rested against Jason's chest.

Tommy's eyebrows rose slightly. He'd never seen Tyler take to anyone like this. Normally, the boy held people off a bit until he'd known them for a while. He was even shy around their Uncle John every time the man came into town to visit them and would stay that way for several hours.

Looking up, the burly teen noticed the mild surprise on his new friend's face. "He's adorable, you know that? Such a friendly little thing," he said, bouncing the little boy on his lap slightly.

The Green Ranger chuckled slightly. "Um Jase, don't know how to tell you this, but you're the first person he's let do that to him without knowing them for months. He's normally shy or clinging to me when someone he doesn't know is around." He watched as his little brother giggled while Jason bounced him around.

"Really?" Jason asked in surprise, looking down at the increasingly happy youngster. "You're kidding..."

Tyler grinned up at the teen, and then looked over at Tommy. "Can we go play at the park? I don't want to stay inside today." He turned back to Jason. "You can come, too."

Shaking his head, Tommy was really surprised at his little brother. "Sure we can, but you'll have to get dressed first." He grinned. "And that means you have to wear your own clothes."

"Yeah, I don't think this 'dress' is gonna work on the monkey bars," Jason laughed, pulling at Tyler's borrowed shirt.

Giggling the boy, held his arms up. "Off please."

Chuckling softly, Tommy walked over and pulled the shirt off. "All right, go get the clothes you want to wear out and then I'll help you get dressed before we comb your hair out."

"He's got a head of hair on him to be so little. I've been trying to figure out your heritage ever since I met you. I'm Italian and you don't really look like me...Native maybe?"

After sending the boy off, the other teen nodded. "Yeah, we're both half Paiute. Might be more, I'm not sure." He frowned, thinking about it for a moment. "Dad was full, but mom's only half. So I guess that makes Ty and me three-quarters."

"Oh, okay. Do you know anyone that lives on the reservation about an hour outside of town?"

"A few people. We've got a half-brother that lives there along with an uncle. Our dad was on the Tribal Council."

Jason was slightly impressed, but realized now wasn't the time to bring up why they had moved to Angel Grove and away from the Reservation. "So, whatcha wanna do at the park? We could drop by the Youth Center later and grab some sandwiches for lunch, if you want."

"Well, whatever we do, I need to run some energy off of him. He hasn't really been out of the house much since I got kidnapped by Rita."

Shooting him a mischievous grin, Jason stood up carefully. "Oh, I think we can manage that. There's all kinds of playground equipment at the park for him to wear himself out on. So, shall we go help the little guy get dressed?"

"Sure you're okay? I've caught a stray foot from him a time or two. He can kick pretty hard for as small as he is."

"Yeah, I'm okay. Might be a little slow walking for a little while, but I'll survive." They were walking toward the living room when Jason posed a question. "Tommy, I don't mean anything by this so please don't get offended, but...why is Tyler so small? I've worked with lots of kids his age at the Youth Center and other places, but he's one of the smallest 5year olds that I've met."

"I'm not offended. Our mom is kind of small to begin with and they had to take Tyler when she was eight and a half months along. I was the same way. We were both a little big for her to keep carrying. He might be a little on the small size for his age, but mentally he's above his age level."

"Billy Jr., huh?" Jason grinned. "Well, I'm sure he'll hit a growth spurt before long. Probably end up taller than both of us. Now, where'd lil' bit get off to?"

Tommy chuckled. "Maybe." He nodded. "Come on, his room's this way." He led Jason up the stairs and stopped in the doorway to his brother's room. In the middle of the floor, the little boy had the T-shirt he was going to wear stuck on his head with both his arms inside. He shook his head and laughed softly. "Least once a week."

Jason stayed a step or two behind and just chuckled. "Need some help there?"

"I'm stuck again, Tommy." He wiggled his arms a bit. "Help please?"

Tommy looked over at Jason. "You want to see if he'll let you help him?"

"Yeah, sure," the Red Ranger said, kneeling down beside the youngster. "Okay, lil' man...how'd you get yourself into this mess?" he asked, taking hold of the hem and pulling upward, revealing a mussed and frustrated Tyler.

The boy sighed, looking over first at his brother, then at his new friend. "Russell's always telling me that I need to stop being such a baby and do things for myself. But I always miss the arm things and it goes wrong."

"Oh well, we'll get you straightened out. Here, put your head through the hole first," Jason said, gathering the shirt in his hands and holding it out to the boy. Once the little dark head popped through, he helped guide the short arms through the arm holes until the shirt was on properly. "See? Not so hard," he smiled warmly at the boy.

"Thank you Jason." He held the little jeans out to the teen next. "Can you help me with these, too?"

"Sure, no problem. Here we go," he said, helping Tyler get his pants onto his legs and then stood him up. "Can you pull 'em up and fasten them yourself like a big boy?"

Tommy watched the pair. Inside, he was both angry and upset. He was angry at their step-father. The man knew that Tyler tried his best, but his coordination was still off at times. That was one of the main reasons why he'd started teaching his little brother karate. On the other hand, he was upset with himself, too. The last two weeks, he'd ignored his little brother, forcing the boy to interact more with a man who, at times, acted like he barely tolerated Tyler. Now, watching the boy with Jason, he couldn't help but wonder what about the teen set his brother at ease.

Nodding, Tyler buttoned and zipped the pants after pulling them up. He grinned. "Thank you." Going over to his brother, he looked up at him. "Will do you my hair Tommy?"

"What do you do with a mane like that on a 5-year old? Braid it? Ponytail?" Jason asked, watching his new friend taking care of the smaller version of himself.

Tommy laughed softly. "When we're going to be doing a lot, like today, I'll braid it for him. He's in kindergarten, so on school days I usually just put it in a ponytail for him."

Tyler reached into the nightstand by his bed and handed his brother a dark brown piece of leather. "Old tie? Like Davey wears?"

"Who's Davey? One of his friends?" the Red Ranger asked.

Taking the piece of leather, the elder Oliver used it to tie off the braid, wrapping it around several times before knotting it into place. "Actually, that's what Ty calls our half-brother, David." He grinned. "Think Ty has some long hair; you ought to see David's. If I hadn't gotten mine singed over a fire, it'd be past my shoulders."

Tyler giggled. "Tommy burned it with a marshmallow that was on fire."

"That conjures an interesting image, I gotta tell ya!" Jason chuckled. "You guys like to go camping?"

"Davey got pictures of it. Tommy looked like he was trying to do the Spirit Dance." He giggled again.

Rolling his eyes, Tommy blushed a bit. "Yeah, we do. Just don't give me the job of roasting marshmallows for s'mores. I almost always burn them. What about you?"

"Oh I love to camp! Maybe we can all go sometime, huh? And I'll do the marshmallows," he said, reaching over and giving Tyler's side a quick tickle.

The boy giggled, then climbed around his brother and quickly clambered onto the teen's back. "You can't get me now."

Raising an eyebrow, Tommy couldn't help but once again be amazed at how quickly Tyler was letting Jason in. He'd have to talk to their uncle about it the next time they went out to the Reservation. "Yeah, we can do that. If you want, we can go out to the Res sometime to camp. They've got some great spots."

"That'd be great. I've always wanted to see that place, but I don't know anyone out there and I'd feel weird going by myself." He paused and then made a lightning fast move, catching even Tommy off guard. Carefully latching onto Tyler's sides, he gently tickled the boy until he squealed.

Tyler squealed and laughed, giggling hard. After a few minutes, he started hiccupping between laughs.

Laughing softly, his brother grinned at him. "Again squirt?"

Tyler shrugged, grinning up at his brother and Jason.

"Uh oh...what'd I do?" Jason asked, grinning at the cute little boy clinging to his brother's shoulders.

"It's not your fault. Happens sometimes." He patted his brother's hands. "Hang on and we'll go get you a drink of soda. Then Jason can sit with you while I get dressed, okay?"

"O-kay." The boy giggled when he hiccupped the word out.

Once they were back in the kitchen, Tommy poured a small glass half full of Mountain Dew for the boy and sat him down with it at the table. Jason watched as the elder Oliver gave Tyler directions to sip it until the hiccups were gone while he went to get dressed. "Go ahead, we'll be fine. Won't we, Ty?" Jason said, smiling up at Tommy from his seat beside the youngster.

Tyler nodded slowly as he sipped at the soda, and then grinned at his brother. "I'll be okay." He took another sip.

"All right, I'll be right back." Heading back upstairs, Tommy had to chuckle softly. 'Ty's got Jason wrapped around his finger already, but doesn't realize it yet.'

"So Tommy tells me you're in kindergarten, right?" Jason started off, trying to remember how to make conversation with one so young.

For a moment, Tyler just met the dark eyes with his own chocolate ones, and then he flashed the teen a bright smile. "Uh huh. Mommy had me tested so that I could go ahead and start early."

"Wow. You must be really smart! What do you like to do at school?"

He shrugged. "Tommy already helped me learn my alphabet and Davey taught me how to count." He grew quiet. "Daddy taught me my name and stuff like circles and squares."

The older boy couldn't even imagine how it felt to lose one's father at such a young age. He felt so bad for the kid-and for Tommy too-but had no idea what to say, especially to Tyler. "My goodness, you must be the smartest kid in your class. I'll bet you'll be reading before long."

That perked the boy up again. "Tommy helps me read. I like 'Green Eggs and Ham'." He cocked his head to the side. "Can you really make eggs green? What do they taste like?" He frowned a bit. "Do they come from green chickens? Are green eggs smelly?" He started going a mile a minute. "I like green. So does Tommy, but I didn't like it when his eyes glowed green. He scared me then."

Raising an eyebrow, Tommy, now fully ready to go, looked over at Jason, wondering what the teen had said to turn his brother into a chatterbox.

"Whoa little man, slow down!" Jason laughed, looking from one Oliver to the other. "Umm...yes, you can make green eggs-you just use food coloring. They taste the same. No, I don't think there's any such thing as a green chicken. At least, I've never seen one. And yeah, green's a good color-I like it too," he finished and gave Tyler a big "Whew!" and a bigger smile.

Shaking his head, Tommy walked over to the pair. "You ready to go monkey?"

Nodding, Tyler climbed down from his seat and quickly climbed up his brother, coming to rest on the teen's back. "All ready."

"He is a monkey, isn't he?" Jason laughed. "So, we need to take anything with us?"

"A couple of Gatorades. Tyler can share one with me."

"Alright, so let's get going. Like I said before, we can get some lunch from Ernie at the Youth Center later, if that's okay."

"Yeah, that'll work." After a quick stop to grab the drinks, Tommy followed Jason out of the house and locked the door behind them.

Tommy sat in the shade of a tree and leaned back. He shook his head as he watched Tyler scamper over the jungle gym like it was nothing. "Kid can't put his own shirt on, but give him something to climb over or start him working on a kata..." He snorted softly. "Totally different."

"So how's he doing with karate? I've never tried to teach someone quite that small before."

Shaking his head, Tommy let out a sharp whistle and brought his little brother running over to them. He grinned at the smiling boy. "Show Jason your kata."

Tyler raised an eyebrow, and then realized that his brother wasn't talking about their special one. "Okay." He slipped easily into a stance and began throwing several punches, blocks and turns with a few kicks. The boy's technique was clean even if he was a bit slow.

When the boy finished, Jason gave him a big smile and turned to Tommy. "You taught him that?"

Tommy nodded. "Yeah, started shortly after our dad died. I had to do something to draw Tyler out of his shell. So, I started teaching him karate. He really took to it. Also helps improve his coordination."

Tyler ran over to his brother and took a seat in his lap. "Did I do good?"

Grinning at his brother, the green clad teen nodded. "Yeah, you did good." He handed him the bottle of grape Gatorade they'd brought. "Sit down for a few minutes and drink a little of that."

"You did really good, Ty. You're really gonna be somethin' when you get older," Jason said. "You wouldn't wanna help me out at the Youth Center, would you?" he asked Tommy. "I could definitely use some help with the kids and with the guys our age."

"Sounds like fun, but I'll have to figure out something to do with Ty when he's not in a class." He looked over at the other teen while his brother sipped at his drink. "I draw babysitting duty almost every afternoon. Mom's busy trying to take care of the house and she also does some clerking for the firm Russell works at."

"All of us hang out at the Youth Center after school, so I'm sure there'd always be someone there that could keep an eye on him for a little while for you."

"Yeah, but like I said, he's kind of shy sometimes. How you did it, I have no clue, but he seems to trust you and Ty definitely likes you. I guess it'll depend on how he takes to the others." He reached out and flicked his brother's nose, grinning before he looked back over at Jason. "So when's your next class?"

"Monday, after school. Why don't you come over and watch?"

"We can do that." He looked down at his brother for a moment. "I owe him a lesson before then. Couple of them actually."

"Tell you what," Jason began, "Why don't we give him one today? That will let me see your teaching style and see how you work with kids." He grinned. "Plus it'll give me the chance to work with someone his size. Tomorrow, if you want, we can do it again."

For a moment, Tommy was silent as he thought about his friend's proposal. A small grin broke out over his face that slowly turned into a smile. "You've got it."

Tyler grinned up at them both as he continued to sip at his drink. He had a good feeling about Jason and his feelings were right a lot of the time.

Author's note: I realized that in order for everyone to understand a bit more about Tommy, Tyler and Jason in 'Family Stands' that you needed to see the beginning. So here's the first of many glimpses into that start.


	2. The First Obstacle

Standard disclaimer applies. I own nothing you recognize, that once again, belongs to Saban. Thanks to my friend and beta, BeAWarriorCasseau, who keeps me on my toes.

The First Obstacle

A chorus of 'kiyah's' filled the air, greeting those that entered the Angel Grove Youth Center and Juice Bar. On the large mat, a group of kids ranging in age from 5 to 9 were spaced out, dressed in white or black gis. Various colors of belts tied around their waists identified their rank in the class.

All of their attention was focused on the two teenagers in black pants that were at the front of the group. The burly teen, that almost everyone called 'Sensei Jason', wore a red tank top and his black belt tied around his hips just above his pants. The lankier teen with curly hair wore a green tank top and green head band in addition to his black belt and pants.

As one instructed, the other moved quietly through the ranks, correcting forms and offering gentle assistance in adopting the proper stance or technique.

Once the class had ended and the students been bowed out, Tommy and Jason stood discussing their plans for the next class when a small, fast-moving creature suddenly darted across the mats and attached itself to the Green Ranger's left leg. Looking down with a grin, Tommy chuckled and said, "Alright monkey, what do you want?"

Tyler grinned up at his brother. "Piggy-back ride and a chocolate shake?"

Kim raised an eyebrow at the young boy. The Pink Ranger had finished her own gymnastic routine on the balance beam and had been waiting for the guys to finish their class. He seemed sort of familiar, but it took nerve for the kid to come up and ask a stranger something like that. She raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything just yet.

"Alright, since you behaved yourself in class, I guess you deserve it. Climb up," Tom said, turning to grin at Jason.

With a soft giggle, the boy scampered up his brother with ease, coming to rest on his brother's shoulders. "All set." He bent over and looked down into Tommy's eyes. "You still didn't show me a jump spin kick."

Jason grinned. "Next class, next class. You've got plenty of time."

Shaking her head, Kim reached for the boy. "You shouldn't climb up on people like that."

Tyler looked over at the short girl and practically hissed at her. "Back off pixie stick."

Tommy turned and tried to look up at Tyler. "Be nice, Ty." Turning to his teammate, he gave the girl a slight grin. "He's fine, Kim. Don't worry about it."

She tossed her hair. "Who is he Tommy? He obviously knows you."

Rolling his eyes, Tyler looked at Jason, ignoring the girl in pink. "You said next class two lessons ago when we were at the park." He showed the other man two fingers, and then rested his chin on Tommy's head.

Jason reached up and tousled the boy's hair. "Be patient, squirt." Turning to Kim, he replied, "Now Kim... you pride yourself in being observant, don'tcha? You seem to know everything that's going on around here. Don't you think the kid here looks like someone you know?" He loved to pick at the girl he considered his little sister. She was famous for being in everyone else's business.

Tyler felt his brother turn just a bit towards the girl in pink and he looked over at her as well, glaring slightly as he tried to fix his hair. "Not fair Jason."

For a moment, she could only stare at the pair, but it was the slight glare that the boy was giving Jason that cinched it for her. "Oh my God, he's your brother."

A grin broke out across Tommy's face. "Yep, this is Tyler. Tyler, this is my friend Kim."

He leaned over again and looked his brother in the eyes. His voice was just a whisper, but the others gathered around could hear it. The boy had figured out that his brother was one of the Power Ranger people that the adults talked about and were on TV. Now it seemed like all the people that his brother knew were Power Rangers. "Is she the pink one?"

Rather sarcastically, Tom replied while looking up at his brother, "Now what makes you think that?" He laughed as he started moving toward the counter to order their drinks. "Whatcha want, Jase? It's on me."

"A strawberry banana smoothie would be great, but you don't have to buy."

"No, I don't mind. I've gotta get the kiddo's here anyway," he grinned and looked up into the big brown eyes of the boy on his shoulders.

Tyler rolled his eyes and rested his chin once again on his brother's head. "Really want me to answer that? In front of everyone?" He grinned down at his brother, and then flopped backwards, knowing his brother had hold of his legs, giggling.

"Such a monkey," Tommy laughed and proceeded to swing him just a bit while keeping a firm grip on the boy.

"He's so little-he's more like your son than your brother, ya know," Jason commented.

"Well, since our dad passed away, I've kinda been a father figure to him, I suppose."

Ty twisted, then let himself swing around until he was spread across his brother's stomach, tickled him quickly and then let go before ending up hanging by his legs once again. Then he sat up once more and looked down at Jason. "He kinda looks like dad did, too." His voice was a little quieter as he rested against his brother.

"You miss him, huh kid?" Jason asked gently, rubbing Tyler's back.

The boy nodded, sighing softly before he answered. "Yeah." He was quiet for a moment. "Just wish I could have known him longer, like Tommy and Davey."

Tom gave Jason a pained look and then bounced his brother slightly. "Yeah, he was a good man. Now, let's get you that chocolate shake, okay?" he asked, trying to divert the boy's attention.

"Okay." He looked down at his brother, then over at Jason. He was quiet for a moment, and then bent so that he was close to his brother's ear. "Is he the one that helped you not be mean anymore?" His brother had never scared him before, except for the one time that he'd come to ask about his next lesson and gotten stared down by his brother whose eyes were glowing green. Tyler knew that someone had to have helped his brother and the teen in red seemed to be that person.

An embarrassed and apologetic look crossed Tommy's face. "Yeah, Jase is a good friend-you can trust him."

Tyler looked over at Jason, and then gave him a grin that left no doubt in a person's mind about who the boy was kin to. "Thank you."

Jason returned the grin with one of his own. "You're welcome, buddy. I knew your brother here was a good guy all along."

The boy tilted his head a bit. "How'd you know that I knew?" He tapped his brother on the head. "Cause he's really forgetful about some stuff."

Jason leaned in close to the boy. "Its super secret powers that help us do what we do." He grinned and winked at the kid, then tapped his nose, sending the boy into a fit of giggles.

Leaning over again, he looked at his brother. "You should invite him over again. He's fun."

"Oh... I have a feeling that you'll be seeing a lot of him," Tommy said and grinned at his friend in red. "How about we take you to the park this weekend, Runt?"

"Really?" His eyes went a bit wide. "Can we play soccer and work on our special kata and... and..." He couldn't get anything else out as he started getting wound up.

"Easy there... breathe," Jason said with a chuckle. "Come here," he said and held out his arms for the boy. "Your brother needs to be able to get to his wallet."

Tyler reached out and let Jason pull him from his brother's shoulders, then wrapped his legs around the other teen's waist and rested his head on Jason's shoulder. "Are you going to go too?"

"Oh yeah, we'll have alotta fun!" Jason answered, noting once again how light the 5-year-old was.

Tommy studied them for a minute-Tyler was a shy, friendly kid, but he didn't often take to someone as quickly as he had to Jason. He was thankful that the teen was someone his brother trusted. It helped knowing that they both had someone to talk to if they needed it.

The boy grinned at the Red Ranger. "Teach me flying kicks?" He gave Jason his best pair of puppy dog eyes, looking up slightly at the teen through his lashes. "Pretty please?"

"Okay, okay-we'll work on it, but you need to get your basic kicks down first. You can't do a flying kick until you can do one standing." He reached over and took the smoothie that Tommy was handing to him. "Thanks-let's go sit over here with the guys, okay?"

"Ty-you wanna sit and talk to the rest of our friends?" Tommy asked.

He looked over towards the table with the other people he'd seen his brother talking to, and then looked back up at his brother and Jason. "Can I sit between you two?"

"Sure-you can sit on my lap if you want," Tom offered.

He grinned happily. "Okay." He giggled slightly and then hid his face in Jason's shirt. The teen's fingers had found a ticklish spot in his side and teased it. "Stop Jay Jay."

Jason just laughed as Tyler continued to squirm. Cocking his head to the side and grinning, Tommy quietly said, "Jay Jay?" He shook his head. Sometimes his brother came up with the weirdest things and calling Jason 'Jay Jay' seemed to be one of Tyler's newest little trends.

Tyler continued to giggle as they joined the others and Jason finally stopped. Slightly breathless, the boy sat back a bit and looked at Jason, his eyes shining in delight. "You're nice Jay Jay."

"Who's your buddy there, Jason?" Zack asked from across the table.

"This is Tyler. Think he looks like anybody you know?" Jason asked, smiling.

Trini grinned. "I can think of someone he looks like." She looked over at Tommy. "So how much younger is he?"

"About 10 years," Tommy answered before taking a long drink of his smoothie.

Tyler shifted a bit on his brother's lap and took an eager sip of his shake. His eyes widened slightly and he grinned before licking his lips and leaning in for another drink.

Trini laughed softly. "Think someone likes his shake."

The boy grinned over at her as he took a break to get his breath. "It's chocolate." He said the words like it explained everything.

"So Tyler, are you learning a lot from Jason and your brother? Are they good teachers?" Billy asked.

The boy nodded, sending his damp bangs into his eyes. "Tommy started teaching me our special kata after daddy died." He leaned back against his brother. "And Jason is going to teach me a flying kick."

"Special kata? What's that, Tommy?" Zack asked.

The older Oliver was quiet for a moment, one arm going to his brother's waist and pulling him in closer. "Our dad was my Sensei. He was a 5th degree black belt and started teaching me when I was around Tyler's age. One of the first things he taught me was a kata that pretty much contained all of the basic blocks, punches and kicks that I ended up learning. It wasn't one of the normal or formal katas, but something that he'd put together to help him focus. He called it our special kata." He went quiet again, and then dropped a gentle kiss to his brother's head. "When dad died and I started teaching Tyler, that's what I started out with. Figured it would give him something of dad's to hold onto."

Tyler turned around as his brother finished and practically wrapped himself around Tommy, his forehead pressed into his brother's neck, finding comfort in the familiar position.

Jason took Tommy by the shoulder. "That's really special, bro-good that you can pass that on to little Tyler here." He smiled warmly as the boy looked up at him with eyes that were exactly like Tommy's.

Trini nodded. "It's important to pass things like that on and it gives you and Tyler something to bond over like it did you and your dad."

Tyler gave Jason a small smile, and then sighed against his brother.

"Aww Tommy, he's so cute. He could be your son if you were a little older," Trini said with a smile.

Kim almost rolled her eyes, but stopped. "I wouldn't say that too loud, Trini. Someone might think that anyway, especially considering that Tyler is so small." She reached out to ruffle his hair like she'd seen Jason do, but watched as the boy pulled away, almost laying in Jason's lap to avoid her hand.

Tommy noticed, but didn't say anything. 'Okay, so he doesn't seem to care too much for Kim-but he likes everyone else. That's good.' "Wanna sit with Jason?" he asked.

Looking over at Kim, he nodded, then slid off of his brother's lap and looked up at Jason. "May I?"

The Red Ranger gave him a trademark 'Jason' grin and reached down to grab him. "Come 'ere, you!" he said, taking hold of the boy's waist and picking him up over his head. "My backpack weighs more than you!"

The boy giggled. "Tommy's is real heavy and goes 'THUD' when he drops it." He giggled again while looking down at Jason. "It made mama jump once when he did it."

Sitting the boy on his lap so that he could still see his brother, Jason pulled the chocolate shake over closer so that Ty's short arms could reach it. "Better drink up-don't let it go to waste." When the kid leaned forward to grab the straw, Jason gave Tommy a warm smile. He was beginning to realize just how special the brothers were to each other.

When the 'watch' on everyone's arm beeped, Tyler tensed on Jason's lap as he looked over at his brother, fear coming quickly to the expressive features. "Tommy?"

"It's okay, Ty, nothing to be worried about," Tommy said reassuringly to the child. Looking up at Jason, he gave him a 'what do we do with him now' look.

"Come on, guys-we gotta jet," Jason said, standing up and taking Tyler with him.

"But Jase...what about..." Zack started, indicating the younger Oliver.

"We'll figure something out-come on," the Red Ranger said, moving toward the back alcove so that they could find out what the emergency was.

Tyler latched hard onto Jason, his legs going around the teen. He was a little scared with how everyone was acting after their watches had made that noise.

Trini and Kim went with them. Looking over at Jason, the Yellow Ranger gave the boy that was clinging to him a small wink and listened to what was going on.

Tapping his communicator once they were out of earshot of the other customers, Jason said, "This is Jason-go ahead Zordon."

"Rangers, teleport to the Command Center immediately."

"On our way," he said. "Tommy, do you want Tyler or you want me to hold him?"

"Umm...better give him to me. It might upset him a little the first time."

Tyler relaxed his hold on Jason and let his brother take him, then leaned in against his brother's chest. "Where we going?"

"You'll see. It's a really cool place-trust me, okay?" he said, looking down into those big brown eyes. "Nothing bad will happen, I promise."

The boy sighed softly, and then nodded. "I trust you." He rested against his brother again, wrapping his legs around the trim waist and holding on.

Together, they all transported to the Command Center, materializing seconds later. As soon as they were there, Tommy looked down into Ty's face. "You okay, little bro?"

The brown eyes widened and he looked up at his brother. "That was cool! Made me feel all tingly, but not in a bad way."

Zordon looked at all of his Rangers and their guest. "Tommy, please bring your brother forward."

"Come on, I want you to meet someone," Tommy said, stepping forward toward Zordon's tube. "Tyler, this is Zordon-he's sort of like our teacher. Zordon, this is my little brother Tyler. Sorry to have to bring him along, but I couldn't leave him alone."

Tyler stared up at the head in the tube. "Whoa." He put a hand out and pressed it against the tube, then giggled and pulled his hand back. "Tickles." He grinned. "Hi Zordon."

The old sage grinned down at the boy. "It is nice to meet you Tyler. Tommy, once we knew your identity, I became aware that you had a brother and what your responsibilities are where it concerns him. There is no reason that he cannot come to the Command Center when it is necessary."

"Thank you, Zordon. But... who will watch him while we're all gone?"

"He will be safe here in the Command Center with Alpha. If Tyler begins to grow tired, Alpha can show him to your chambers here until you return."

"Well, okay. I know you'll take care of him-I just don't want him to be scared."

"If he chooses, he can watch you on the viewing globe." The sage was quiet for a moment. "Although, something might have to be procured for him to stand on in order to see clearly."

Finally, Jason spoke up. "Umm Zordon, is there something going on that we need to take care of?" he asked, curious as to why they'd been called.

"I called you here because I wanted to meet Tyler and so that all of you were aware that he knows your identities."

"He does?" Zack, Trini, Billy, and Kim all said, almost in unison.

Tyler turned and looked at them. "It was easy after Tommy was good again."

Jason stood and smiled at Tyler sitting up in his brother's arms, grinning from ear to ear. "He's a bright one, guys-better watch it."

The boy giggled as his brother tickled him.

Zordon watched them all. "Tyler is indeed a bright one. I am quite sure that it was not hard for him to determine your identities after the scare he was given. That, however, is in the past and now we must all focus on the future." He looked down at Tommy. "Any time that Tyler is with you, if there is a fight, either you or Jason will teleport with him to the Command Center first before joining the others."

Zack looked up at their mentor. "Any of us can do that, Zordon."

"I believe it would be better if it was either Tommy or Jason, Black Ranger. It is nothing against any of the rest of you, but I can sense that Tyler feels most comfortable with them at the moment. In time, he might come to accept the rest of you as easily."

Jason nodded. "No problem, Zordon."

Billy spoke up then, looking at the boy before turning his attention back to the old sage. "Zordon, it might be helpful if I made him a communicator. That way if one of us can't get away to bring him here, Alpha can get a lock on Tyler and teleport him separately."

"That is a very commendable suggestion, Billy. It might be beneficial to add a tracker to it as well. This way, if Tyler is ever separated from the group and there is trouble, he can be easily located." He looked out at his Rangers. "It will not be hard for Rita to find out, if the information is unknown to her at this time, that Tommy has a brother. That will make Tyler a target for her attacks in the hopes that she can use him as bait. You will all have to be more careful, Rangers."

For several moments, no one spoke. Tyler was still in his brother's arms and rested there quietly. Slowly, the boy leaned back until he could meet Tommy's eyes. "Does he mean that someone will hurt me because you're my brother?" He definitely didn't like that idea and his soft, chocolate eyes began to fill with unshed tears.

Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, Tommy pulled his brother back in close to him. "I'm not going to let that happen Ty, I promise."

Jason reached out a hand and laid it against the boy's back for a moment before he began to rub small circles on the shaking frame. "We all watch out for each other, Sport and that includes you now. Billy's going to make you a special watch, kind of like ours."

The blue clad teen stepped forward, giving the boy a soft smile and to his friends' surprise, spoke normally to the newest addition to the Ranger family. "That way if we need to find you in a hurry, we can and no one can take you without us knowing about it."

Tyler met Billy's soft gaze before sighing softly. "Promise?"

"I promise, Tyler." The Blue Ranger could tell that the boy was still unsure of what he'd been told.

Stepping forward, Trini put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "If Billy says he can do it, then trust him to get it done for you just like you trust Jason to teach you karate."

A tense silence settled over the small group as they waited for Tyler to say something. Finally, he gave a small nod and seemed to relax a bit in his brother's hold. "Okay."

"While the decision to trust the others is hard for you, Tyler, it will serve you well throughout this time." The old sage watched his Rangers as the blue and yellow joined the small group of people that the boy trusted. He could feel the morphing grid reaching out to the boy and knew that Tyler would be protected, either by Rangers or possibly even by the Power. The future was unclear, but Zordon was certain that the people the boy was letting in now would always be a part of his life in one way or another.

As he continued to watch, the Ranger mentor realized that both Zackary and Kimberly were not as well received by the boy. That was when the old sage realized that it was the quiet inner spirits of his Red, Green, Yellow and Blue Rangers that called to Tyler. The more outgoing personalities of the Black and Pink Ranger were too much for the young boy. It was something that he would have to monitor, for the boy would have to trust all the Rangers to a certain extent if he was to be truly safe from their enemies.

Looking around at the others, Jason turned his attention back to their mentor. "Can we go now Zordon? I think it'd be best if we get Tyler back home before anyone starts to worry."

The floating head bobbed slightly as if he was nodding. "That is all Rangers. If there is trouble, you will be alerted as always."

"Okay guys, let's get out of here." Jason stated, then pressed a button his communicator.

Once they were all back in a secluded section of trees behind the Youth Center, Tommy looked down at his little brother. "You ready to go home?"

"I guess so."

Billy watched the pair before grinning. "I shall depart now so that the task of completing a communicator for our young friend here can be done in an expeditious manner."

Chuckling softly, Trini watched him go before turning to the others. "He's going to go get started on Tyler's communicator. I'll give him a hand." She leaned in and placed a soft kiss on the boy's soft hair. "See you later Tyler." With a wave, she followed after Billy, jogging to catch up with him.

With a sigh, Kim shook her head. "Well, I've got to get home before mom starts in on me again about being late. Plus I need to finish my book report for Mrs. Applebee." Heading towards the building to pick up her bag, she looked back over her shoulder and gave them all a wave before going on her way.

Zach shook his head. "I'll see you guys tomorrow." As the Black Ranger walked off, he couldn't help but feel a little jealous that Tommy's little brother was so accepting of the others, but Kim and himself were still on the outside. It was something he was going to try and fix. At least to the point where the kid would trust him if something went down and no one else was available.

Watching them go, Jason looked at the two brothers. "Come on, let's go get our stuff and I'll walk home with you guys."

It didn't take the two teens long to gather their gear and books before they started towards Tommy's.

Looking down at Tyler, who was starting to doze off in his arms, Tommy sighed. "Think this afternoon was a bit much for him."

"Yeah well, I think that learning the person responsible for turning his brother evil and might now be looking to take him would definitely wear someone out." He laid a gentle hand on the boy's back. "Guess he'll have more nightmares from this, huh?"

"Probably, but I'll deal with them just like all the others he has."

The Red Ranger frowned at the flat statement. "He has a lot of nightmares?"

"Not often, but ever since dad died he's had several really bad ones. After I got taken by Rita and scared him, he's had a few more." Tommy sighed softly. "It's why he sleeps with me a lot of the time."

Shaking his head, Jason watched the pair. "Well, if you need any help looking after him, let me know. I'll keep an eye on him for you."

"Thanks Jase." The green clad teen grinned at his friend. "I might just take you up on that."

A soft laugh came from the Ranger leader. "Yeah, I can tell you probably will."


	3. Kids, Katas, and KreepyKrawlies… Oh My!

Disclaimer: See previous chapters… unfortunately nothing's changed…

A/N: Since this chapter started getting so long with what I was trying to do and it had been a while for you guys to have an update, I'm breaking it into two. So here's the first part. Enjoy and I should have the second part done shortly. Again, a huge thanks to my beta BeAWarriorCasseau.

Kids, Katas, and Kreepy-Krawlies… Oh My!

Saturday morning dawned bright and clear, but it wasn't the sun that woke 15 year old Tommy Oliver. Instead, it was the cold foot on his leg that woke him. Frowning, he looked down and saw his little brother sleeping next to him. He barely remembered the boy crawling into bed with him after having a nightmare.

He was going to have to talk with their uncle, Sam, and see if he had any ideas about how to help the boy. Tommy was sure that part of the nightmares stemmed from his time as the evil Green Ranger, but for the rest of them he had no clue and his brother was being uncharacteristically silent about them.

Sighing softly, Tommy watched his little brother as he slept, waiting for Tyler to wake up on his own. If today stayed like this, he'd see if Ty wanted to go to the park for a bit. That way, if they saw Jason, he could invite the other teen over for a movie night. Maybe between the two of them, they could make his brother feel safe enough that he wouldn't have a nightmare.

It was almost an hour before the small body beside him showed signs of waking. For his part, Tommy had started to drift off again, but the movement from his brother woke him up once more. He grinned down at the sleepy brown eyes as they looked up at him.

"Morning, sleepyhead." Carefully, the elder Oliver wiped the sleep from the boy's eyes.

"Morning Tom Tom." Tyler stretched carefully, and then looked up at his brother. "Are momma and Mr. Russell still home?" The boy was aware that his step-father loved to take off on the weekend with his mother, but as long as his brother was still there he was okay with it.

"Sorry bud, but they left a little while ago." One hand drifted down to gently rub the small back. "But we've got a bunch of frozen pizzas, some movies, and money for ice cream. So how about we get some breakfast and then talk about the rest of the day?"

"Okay, but I need to use the bathroom first." Tyler eased out of the bed and padded softly to the washroom. Once he was done, he washed his hands before going back into his brother's room. "All done."

"All right, why don't you head downstairs and pick out some cereal for breakfast while I use the bathroom?"

The brown head bobbed a couple of times before heading for the stairs. Shaking his head and grinning, Tommy got up to take care of business himself before starting breakfast for them both.

-o-O-o-

"Want some more juice, Ty?" Tommy asked, getting up from the breakfast table to refill his own glass.

The boy nodded his mouth full of cereal. He was grinning as he watched his brother.

Tommy took Tyler's glass and poured more orange juice for him. "So... you wanna go to the park today?" he asked with a grin.

A smile spread over the boy's face. "Really? Can Jason go with us?"

Tommy smiled back. He was glad that his little brother had taken so easily to Jason. Especially since the teen was rapidly becoming Tommy's best friend in the world. "Sure, I'll call him and ask, okay?"

"Okay." He took the glass back from his brother and took a long, slow drink before setting it down again and going back to work on his cereal.

Grabbing the phone, Tommy dialed Jason's number and sat back down at the table while he waited for him to answer.

Jason had just finished eating when the phone rang in the kitchen. "I've got it!" He picked it up on the third ring. "Scott residence."

"Hey Jase! How's it goin'?" Tommy replied.

"Hey man. Not bad. Actually I just finished breakfast and was wondering how to spend the day. Trini and Kim are going shopping and Billy's supposed to be helping Zack study for a science test."

"So you're free... cool. How would you like to go with me and Ty to the park? I've been promising him, ya know, and it's just us two this weekend, so..."

The Red Ranger frowned at the 'just us two' part, but kept quiet about it for now. He'd bring it up again face to face. "Sure. We can meet there. I'll even bring some drinks for us. Will Tyler drink Gatorade if I bring it?" The boy wouldn't accept anything from Kim or Zach yet, but he was starting to relax a bit more around Billy and Trini.

"Oh yeah, he likes you and grape is his favorite. Hey, maybe we could stop by Ernie's later and grab some sandwiches for lunch."

"Works for me. So I'll meet you guys in an hour? Give you time to get him going and everything."

"Okay, we'll meet you by the big sign in front of the park. See you then," Tommy said and hung up. "Well, Jase is coming. We're gonna meet him there, so go ahead and finish eating so I can get you dressed."

Tyler nodded, and then drank the milk from his bowl. "All done." He'd already finished his juice. "Can I wear my green T-shirt like yours?"

"Yeah, if it's clean," he smiled. It was kinda cool having a little brother that looked up to him like Tyler did-even if he was a pain in the butt every now and then. "Go see if you can find it and pick out some jeans. I'll be there as soon as I clean up in here," he said, taking the dishes from the table.

He got out of his chair with a grin. "Okay." Tyler took off for the stairs, running as fast as his little legs would carry him and scampered up the steps. The boy had figured out rather quickly that he could get up them quicker if he used his hands along with his feet.

Once Tom had rinsed and stacked the dishes in the dishwasher, he headed for the steps himself. Hanging out all weekend with the kid wasn't exactly his idea of fun, but 1) He didn't really have a choice as his mom and step-dad told him he had to because they were going out of town, and 2) He couldn't say "no" to those big, brown eyes and the pout of that 5-year-old. _'So, we go to the park. I can hang out with Jase, so it's not too bad,'_ he thought as he reached the top of the stairs.

Tyler had found his shirt in the drawer and was trying to find a pair of jeans. The black ones that he finally pulled out would work. Sitting down in the middle of his floor, he took off his pajama top and tossed it down, then started trying to figure out how to get his T-shirt on.

Coming around the corner into the boy's room, Tommy stopped and watched for a minute. The scene reminded him of a picture that he'd seen of himself at that age. When Tyler managed to get both arms into his shirt, but couldn't get his head through the opening, his big brother intervened. "Here kiddo, let me help," he said.

The boy stilled and let Tommy help him. When his head was through the opening he grinned at him. "Thank you, Tommy."

"You're welcome. Now, are these the jeans you wanna wear?" he asked, picking up the little black pants that lay beside the boy.

"Uh huh, and my sneakers."

"Okay, let's finish getting you dressed so I can get ready. Hop up and I'll help," he said, holding the jeans for the boy while he stepped into them. "Find some socks," Tommy requested while he got Ty's sneakers ready.

Grinning, the boy went over to his dresser and pulled a pair of black socks out and brought them back to his brother. He grinned and dropped them in front of the teen before lying on his back and sticking his feet up, giggling. He liked it when it was just him and his brother.

Tommy just couldn't resist the temptation to give the kid a good tickling. Holding onto Tyler's ankles, he swung one leg over the kid's body and nearly sat on his chest. "You're in for it now," he laughed and gripped the kid with his legs while tickling the bare feet unmercifully.

The little boy started laughing. "No, stop Tommy." He, however, made no move to pull his legs away from his brother and continued laughing until he started hiccupping at the same time.

"Oh no, not again," Tom said, getting off the boy. The last time Tyler had gotten the hiccups it had taken hours to get rid of them. "Come on, get a drink of water from the bathroom," he laughed.

Tyler nodded his head as he made his way to the bathroom. Standing on the little step his mom had gotten for him, he got himself a cup of water and started drinking it slowly.

Tommy got dressed quickly and went back to help Ty with his shoes. "Come on, kid, Jase is gonna be waiting on us," he said, running his fingers though Tyler's thick, dark hair. While his brother worked on the water, the teen quickly undid the braid before brushing the long hair and then putting it up once again in a single, long braid.

After Tyler finished the glass of water and went back into his room, he sat down so that Tommy could help him with his shoes. "Is it going to be just Jason?"

"Yeah, the rest of the gang is busy today. That okay? You seem to like Jason."

"He's fun." The boy was quiet for a moment, and then looked at his brother. "He feels like you do."

Tommy cocked his head to the side and looked at Tyler. "What do you mean?"

"Like you and dad. I know I'm safe with you and Jason. He's calm, but strong." He sighed and shook his head. "Not coming out good. Sam could help."

"It's okay, I think I know what you're trying to say," Tommy said with a grin. "He likes you too. Thinks you're cute," he said, wrinkling his nose. "No idea where he gets that from," Tom said with a chuckle and started tickling the boy's stomach.

He curled up giggling. When his brother paused, he grinned. "Can we go now?"

"Yeah, come on. Race ya to the stairs!" The elder Oliver watched as the little one took off for the stairs with him following on his knees. "Ahh, you beat me! Guess I owe you a piggyback ride to the park, huh?"

"Yep!" He scrambled onto his brother's back and rested his head against the familiar shoulders. "Thank you."

"No problem, let's get moving," he chuckled. Carrying Tyler was no burden at all-his backpack weighed more than his little brother did. Once out of the house, they started off toward the park that was only a few blocks away. "So whatcha wanna do once we get there?"

"Can we work on our special kata? It's okay if Jason's around. He can watch us."

"Sure. He might wanna learn it too. 'Sensei Jason' is pretty good at karate, ya know."

"I know, but would it still be special if he learned it? Or would it become more special?"

"Well ya know, I think that the more of our close friends that know it, the more our dad will be remembered. Understand what I mean?"

"Yeah, but I don't want Kimberly to learn it. Trini's okay and so's Billy, but Jason the most."

Tommy couldn't help but grin. "Tell me... why don't you like Kim?"

"I don't know. She looked mad at me when I came up to you after class that day, like I didn't belong with you. And she doesn't feel like you do. She's always bouncing all over the place like she's had too much candy."

"She just didn't know who you were, that's all. Well, that and the fact that I think she likes me," he grinned. Tommy made a mental note to talk to Sam the next time they were out at the Reservation. These 'feelings' of Tyler's reminded him a little of Sam and how he could tell things about people with a single look or handshake.

"Ewww, girls have cooties." He leaned so that he could look in his brother's eyes. "Do you like her?"

Tommy shrugged. "Well... she is cute... but I don't know. We'll see."

Tyler poked him. "No little Tommys."

The elder Oliver's eyes widened immediately. "What? Tyler, what are you talking about?" _'There's no way this kid knows that much-he's only 5!'_ he thought.

"Jamie said that his big sister Kelly said that when boys and girls like each other and go out, then they have little kids like them."

"Well, there's a lot more to it than that, but I promise, no 'little Tommys' for a long while yet. You're the only little one I can deal with right now!" he said, bouncing the boy slightly on his back.

Tyler giggled. When he looked up and spotted the other teen waiting for them by the sign to the park, the little boy leaned down again. "Can I go surprise Jason?"

"Yeah, sure. Go ahead," Tom said as he bent down and allowed the boy to slide off his back. He grinned as the little scamp went running full tilt toward Jason.

Quietly, Tyler ran until he was about five feet from Jason, then he yelled. "JASON!" and launched himself at the teen.

Jason turned just in time to catch the little dark-headed projectile that had launched itself at his legs. "Hey buddy! Come 'ere!" he said and lifted the boy high into the air.

Tommy reached them about that time. "Hey Jase! Sorry about that," he said with a grin.

The little boy giggled from his vantage point, and then grinned down at Jason. "Tommy's going to work on our special kata with me. You can too if you want."

"Really? Cool-I'd love to learn it! Can you show me the parts you know already?" he asked the boy. "Hey Tommy-ready to play?"

Tyler nodded while his brother just watched him. "But we can't do it around here. Too many people. Has to be up by the rocky water."

"Rocky water?" Jason asked and looked up at Tommy for clarification.

Tommy grinned. "The rock water garden up by the foot path bridge. It's a nice flat area with a bit of shade. Works really well for doing katas and not a lot of people go up there during the day."

"Oh, okay. Well, let's go. Wanna race?" Jason asked Tyler.

"Okay. 1-2-3-go!" The little boy took off running up the small hill like only a child can.

Shaking his head, Jason looked over at Tommy. "You coming?"

"Oh yeah... but you gotta give the squirt a head start. Those short little legs, ya know!" he grinned and then together, they took off toward the hill, running side by side.

When he heard them coming Tyler tried to speed up, only to get swept off his feet by his brother. He started laughing as he was hauled to his brother's shoulder. "No fair Tom Tom."

Once they came to a stop, Jason looked over at his friend. "Tom Tom?"

Tommy shook his head. "I think it's a phase with him. Kind of like how he called you 'Jay Jay' the other day." He grinned. "Got to admit, it's kind of cute coming from him though." He looked up at his little brother and tossed him in the air a bit, then caught him, sending the boy into another round of giggles. "Times like this, I don't mind taking care of him. Other times, he can be a little hellion."

"Him? I don't believe it. What does he supposedly do?" Jason asked.

"For a little guy, if he hits you right, he's got quite a punch or kick. Plus he'll bite. And screaming temper tantrums?" The green clad teen shook his head. "Granted, it's very rare that stuff happens, but it does." He set Tyler down. "Go ahead to the rocks and start stretching like I showed you."

The boy grinned. "Okay." He ran ahead of them to 'their' place and stopped, then started his stretches.

Tommy watched him go and sighed. "Sometimes, I feel like mom's making me raise him. Really gets on my nerves, but I know it's more Russell's doing than hers. Then he'll do something or give me those puppy eyes of his" He shook his head. "It's hard to stay mad at him or say no then."

"So you said that you guys are on your own this weekend, right? Just the two of you? Do they often go off and leave him with you for the entire weekend?"

"Sometimes, doesn't happen enough so that people would notice and mom's never really happy about it, but she goes to please him." They paused out of earshot of the younger Oliver, but kept watch on him. "I can tell when it's going to happen. The freezer's stocked with frozen pizzas and microwave dinners. Pantry's got a lot of snacks and juice boxes in addition to the normal sodas and Gatorade. When I get home from school, there's always $30 or $40 under my pillow that I know mom leaves me."

"But Tommy... you're only 16. You shouldn't be left with a small child for that long. Don't you agree?"

"What else are we going to do Jason? We've got a half-brother on the Reservation, but Russell won't let us go out there unless he has to. Mom's family lives there as well except for Uncle John and he's on the racing circuit right now. Mom doesn't have that many friends that she'd trust Tyler with and Russell," He shook his head. "I wouldn't want Tyler staying with any of his friends for 5 minutes, let alone a weekend."

"Okay, I understand that, but still..." he stopped, not wanting to openly criticize his friend's mother. "Anyway, let's get to stretching. Don't want the kiddo there out-doing us."

"Look, Jase, if it makes you feel any better, my mom says you're welcome to stay over." He started walking with the other teen towards his brother.

"Really? That sounds like fun. We could have some of those frozen pizzas and watch some movies if you wanted to," Jason suggested, starting to stretch.

Tommy nodded, and then grinned. "Ask him what he thinks about it." He nodded towards Tyler, who had his legs stretched out to each side in a full split and was resting on his arms, leaning forward.

"Hey Ty, would you mind if I stayed over tonight and hung out with you guys? We could watch some movies-you can pick," he said by way of enticing the kid.

The little brown head popped up, his loose bangs falling into his eyes as he looked over at them. "Really? You gonna eat pizza with us? When we watch movies, we put our sleeping bags on the floor and turn off all the lights. Sometimes Tommy lets me watch the scary ones with him. Do you like scary ones or funny ones?"

"Oh, I like both! We can watch whatever you want," Jason said with a smile.

"Okay." He grinned at them before bringing his legs together in front of him, and then put his hands on the ground behind his head and arched his back, making his body into a bridge.

Shaking his head, Tommy grinned. "Our dad, from the time Tyler started running around the house, would help him do stuff like that. He could do a full split shortly before dad died."

"If he keeps it up, Tyler will be able to do aerials earlier than some of the other kids." Jason stated, watching the boy as he tried to kick his legs up so that he was in a handstand.

"Yeah, he's an agile little thing. I can't wait to start teaching him some advanced moves," Tom said.

"Depending on how well he does, I'd say you could probably start in the next year."

"Maybe. We'll see how his balance develops. It takes kids a little while sometimes, ya know." Tommy got up from the groin stretch he'd been doing and looked over at Ty. "You ready to start, lil bit?"

The boy dropped down from the handstand he'd managed to get halfway up and grinned. "Yeah!" He ran over to the two teens before looking at his brother. "So you're my sensei today, right? And Jason's just learning our special kata?"

"Yep, that's right. Let's go over here where we'll have more room and get to it, okay?" Tom said, indicating an open patch of grass nearby.

"Okay." Tyler followed his brother, and then looked up at Jason. "If you get stuck, I can help you."

The burly teen chuckled softly and gently ruffled the boy's hair. "I'll remember that, sport." He nodded at Tommy. "So where do we start?"

Grinning, the green clad teen nodded. "Beginning's usually good." Tommy stepped forward and stood a bit ahead of the duo. He moved into the position of attention before bowing. Behind him, Jason and Tyler both started, copying his moves as he began to flow easily through a series of basic punches and blocks to start, adding a few kicks towards the end. When it was finished, he turned back to the other two and nodded. "Now, let's break it down."

He grinned. "Okay, from the beginning." This time, he led the other two through the moves, stopping to correct Tyler from time to time. His little brother was definitely getting the hang of it and a feeling of pride filled him, knowing that something of their dad could be shared between them. As for Jason, the other teen had caught on quickly and grinned whenever Tommy would stop to correct his little brother.

-o-O-o-

After they'd gone through the kata a few more times, they finally came to a stop. Tyler was beaming at his brother and wrapped his arms around the teen. "Thank you Tom Tom."

"Aww, you're welcome, kiddo. Glad to do it," he said, rubbing Tyler's back. "So whatcha think, Jase?"

"Well, I can definitely see why your dad started you off with it. Pretty much everything you learn for the first three belts is in that kata. It definitely makes a great teaching tool and warm up exercise."

"Yeah, it's a good basic kata. You wanna show Tyler some advanced moves?" Tom knew that seeing things like that kept the little boy excited about doing martial arts.

"Sure, I'm warmed up enough to do a few things." He looked down at the boy who was now literally bouncing beside his brother and laughed. "Guess I don't have to ask if you want to see some moves." Still grinning, he stepped away from the pair a bit. He knew the boy liked aerial moves and decided to show him a few, including his tornado kick.

The red ranger took a couple of moments to compose himself, then moved easily into a complex combination of moves that culminated in a series of aerials with his tornado kick ending the little routine. When he was finished, Jason turned back to the other two and was immediately bombarded by a small, brown-haired blur.

Tyler latched onto Jason as soon as the teen was finished. "That was really cool!" He grinned up at the teen.

Jason ruffled the boy's hair. "You grow a little bit and I'll teach you some of that."

"Think that's cool, huh?" Tommy said, stepping up behind the pair.

"Uh huh," With a grin, the boy looked up at his brother. "But you have cool moves, too."

Chuckling softly, Jason looked at his friend. "Think that's his subtle way of telling you he wants to see what you can do."

"Probably right." Shaking his head, the elder Oliver moved away from the duo and began a small routine of his own. Each move was sharp and precise, the power evident as the green ranger moved with a fluid grace. His final three moves, a spinning jump sidekick, showcased the raw power that rested beneath the lithe frame. When he was done, Tommy came back over to them, grinning. "So whatcha think sport?"

Tyler tilted his head a bit before grinning up at his brother. "You got higher that time."

"Think so? Didn't feel like it," Tom answered, looking over at his friend.

"Considering one of the last times I was able to watch you throw that was in the tournament, I'd have to agree that it looked a little higher." Jason reached down and picked Tyler up, setting the boy on his shoulders. "Anyone getting hungry?"

Giggling, the little boy leaned over and looked Jason in the eyes. "Uh huh, can we get cheese fries?"

"Cheese fries? You don't need to be eating that junk, Tyler," his older brother said.

He sat up a bit and looked at his brother. "Just a small order? We can all split them."

Seeing a slight showdown getting ready to occur, Jason offered up a compromise. "How about a milkshake instead? Remember we're gonna have pizza tonight and if you eat all of those fries right now, you might not feel like eating any pizza later."

Tommy shot a _'Thank you'_ look to Jason. "Yeah, that's a good idea. I could go for a chocolate shake myself," he said, trying to encourage his little brother.

For a moment the little boy looked crestfallen, and then he nodded. "Okay, but can I get a roast beef sandwich instead of turkey this time?" Mr. Russell had made him eat a turkey sandwich for his snack while his brother had been doing something with Jason. It hadn't tasted right, but he'd learned quickly not to complain.

"Sure. You can have whatever kind of sandwich you want, okay?" Tom said with a smile. "Let's go and eat-I'm hungry."

-o-O-o-

Jason shook his head as he watched Tyler working hard at tying Zach's shoes together. He looked over at Tommy. "So were you that devilish?"

"Oh yeah, absolutely," Tommy said with a chuckle. "I used to practically torture my older cousins when I was his age."

"Somehow I can see that." Taking a sip of his shake, the red ranger nearly choked when he watched Tyler move from tying Zach's shoes together to tying one to each leg of the chair. "I can't believe that Zach is not feeling something."

"He's too wrapped up in talking to that girl. What's her name?"

"Angela. He's been trying to get her to go out on a date with him since the second half of 7th grade. She keeps turning him down."

"That long? Wow. He's nothing if not persistent."

"No kidding. He did take a break for a few months both that summer and this past one, but that was because he went to one summer camp and she went to another." He grinned as Tyler rejoined them, a grin splitting the boy's face. "You finally get Zach all tied up?"

The little boy giggled, and then nodded. "He tried to give me a noo... noo." He turned questioning eyes to his brother. "What do you call it?"

"Noogie," Tommy helped, laughing. "Although 'noo- noo' is cuter."

Rolling his eyes, Ty turned back to Jason. "Big brothers."

Jason couldn't help it. When the boy had looked at him, the expression on his face as he said that had been priceless. He was so serious and looked so much like Tommy, that it was just too much for the burly teen and he busted out laughing.

Tom reached down and poked Ty in the side. "Yep, that's what we big brothers do...deal with it," he grinned.

Zach sighed as Angela got up and left. Shrugging, he moved to stand up only to find himself suddenly in a heap on the floor. He frowned. "What the heck?"

Seeing the black ranger in a pile sent the still laughing red ranger into another fit of laughter, joined by the little devil that had sent the dancing teen to the floor.

Tommy tried to play it cool, but the look on Zack's face was just too much to take. In short order, he joined his friend and little brother in their giggle fit.

It took the teen a few minutes to get himself untangled and his shoes untied from the chair, but once he was free he joined the others at the table. Looking at each of them in turn, he finally settled his gaze on Tyler. "Okay short stack, so what did I do to you to earn this?"

Tyler leaned over the table and beckoned Zach forward, like he wanted to tell him so that others wouldn't hear. When the teen was close enough, however, he reached up and gave Zach a noogie. "I didn't like that." Sitting back down, he started sipping on his almost empty shake, sending the other two teens on another laughing fit.

"You know, I couldn't deny him even if I wanted to," Tommy finally managed to say once he'd caught his breath. He reached over and patted the boy's back. "Nice one, lil man...nice one."

Zach shook his head. "All right, I get the picture." He held his hand out to the boy. "Truce?"

For a moment, Tyler just looked at him and then he shook the teen's hand. "Okay, truce." He giggled. "I'd let Kim open your gym bag though."

"Should I even ask? What did you do to Zach's bag?" Jason asked.

Shrugging, the boy looked up at him, his soft brown eyes so much like his brother's bellying the look of pure glee on his face. "Just a couple of frogs and a garter snake."

With that, Tommy nearly choked on the milkshake he was drinking. Jason patted him on the back until he could catch his breath again. "What?" he asked Tyler, eyes wide. "Where did you get a snake?"

He looked up at his brother. "From Frankie and he got it from his brother Ted. Ted has a lot of bugs, spiders and stuff like that." He grinned. "Frankie brought one of the spiders to school for show and tell. Then he brought me the snake yesterday at our Cub Scout meeting."

"And what have you been doing with it since then?" Tom demanded to know. He wasn't exactly afraid of snakes, but he didn't like them all that much either.

Tyler shrugged. "I put him in your locker here after our meeting."

The red ranger raised an eyebrow. "Who did you get the frogs from?"

Turning to look at the other teen, the boy shrugged. "Jesse, he has a bunch of them in his yard. They stayed in Tommy's locker, too." He turned back to his brother. "But I had to put them in your bag because they kept trying to jump out."

"Oh my God... remind me to check my shorts before I get dressed in the locker room from now on!" Tom said to Jason, rolling his eyes. "If I find frog or snake poo in my gym bag, young man..."

Tyler giggled, but didn't say anything.

Zach just watched them all for a moment. "He put... there's a... bag..." He finally looked at Tommy. "Would he really have done that?"

Tom nodded readily. "Oh yeah, he most certainly would have. Better let Kim open it," he chuckled.

"Aw man," Zach sighed. "I am definitely not getting on your bad side again little man."

Tyler giggled, and then tried to fight down a yawn.

Jason grinned down at him. "Think someone's getting a little tired."

"Uh huh...might be time to head out," Tom suggested, ruffling Ty's hair.

Looking up at his brother, the boy nodded slightly before crawling into Tommy's lap. His forehead rested against his brother's neck and he sighed softly. "Want to see Kim open the bag."

As he looked down at the little scamp, Tom chuckled. "Do you really want to see her lose it? Cause she will..."

He giggled softly. "Uh huh, it'll be fun."

Jason laughed and shook his head. "Now I see what you meant when you said he could be a little devil at times." Turning to Zach, he grinned. "Looks like you're on man."

Snorting Zach got up and shook his head. "She is so gonna kill me later." Picking up his bag, he walked up to Kim as she waited for her smoothie at the counter. "Hey Kim, can you help me? I need a Band-Aid from my bag and I don't want to get blood on it." He'd swiped a napkin and was holding it to one of his fingers, his bag hanging on his arm.

Tommy, Jason, and Tyler all sat back and watched, trying their best not to look like they were up to something. "Man, I wish I had my camera," Jason whispered quietly to the Oliver brothers.

Tyler giggled softly and settled in more against his brother.

Kim turned around, smiling softly. "Sure Zach. What'd you do?" As she asked, the girl in pink took the bag from him and started to unzip it.

"I was helping one of the kids with something and cut it. It's not bad, but I still want to cover it."

She nodded and finished unzipping the bag. Kim had barely pulled the zipper all the way back when a frog hopped out, landing in her lap. "AAAHHHH!" She screamed, jumping to her feet and dropping the bag just as a small, rounded head with a forked tongue started creeping out of the bag. "SSSSNNNNNNAAAAKKKEEEE!" The word was screamed as she took off yelling, followed closely by Zach, his eyes wide at the realization that Tommy hadn't lied when he said that Tyler would do something like that.

The boys' table just exploded-Tommy had to wrap his arms around Tyler to keep the little one seated on his lap as the older boy nearly fell out of his chair laughing. Jason was holding himself up, face red, laughing so hard he couldn't breathe.

Tyler giggled from his place in Tommy's arms. He hadn't expected Zach to take off running as well.

Trini, after hearing Kim scream, had gone over to see what caused her friends to run off. When she saw the little snake crawling out of the bag, the yellow clad teen jumped onto one of the stools at the counter. "Oh my God."

Shaking his head, Billy went over to the bag and picked the snake up. "It is a garter snake. They're totally harmless and very useful in ridding insects from gardens and yards."

"It's still a snake, Billy." Trini stated. "Please, just take it outside."

"If you wish." The boy in blue started for the door, everyone clearing a path for him as he held the little snake up.

Once Tom had regained a bit of his composure, he glanced over at Jason. "See? I told you he could be a little devil. You didn't believe me, did ya?"

Shaking his head, the burly teen grinned. "No, I honestly didn't." He watched as the little boy started falling asleep in his brother's arms, head resting against Tommy's neck with a soft smile on his face. "Looking at him, you'd never think he could do anything like that."

"I know, but he's me made over-capable of all sorts of sneaky stuff. You'd do well to remember that," Tommy said, giving Jason a look that made the Red Ranger wonder whether he was warning him about Tyler or about himself.

"You know, somehow I get the feeling that pissing either one of you off would be a very bad thing." He looked at the boy once again. "Will he wake up when we start for your place?"

"Depends how tired he is. If he's just catnapping, then he might. If he's worn out all good and proper, he might sleep through the trip. Either way, I'll get him to take a nap once we get to the house. Otherwise, he won't make it through even one movie tonight."

"So what exactly does it take to get the little hellion worn out all good and proper?" Reaching out, Jason brushed a loose strand of hair back from the boy's face, noticing that he didn't even twitch.

"Quite a lot, actually. Kids his age have an overabundance of energy, ya know. He'll be rarin' to go again once he wakes up. Mom told me not long ago that she was glad he and I aren't closer to the same age. Said she couldn't take it," he laughed.

"I can imagine. Although with you being a built-in babysitter, she can always just hold off that next dessert until you tire him out a bit." He stood up. "Need any help getting up?"

"Nah, I'm good," Tom replied, easily standing up with Tyler. "Let's get goin'." The teenager cradled the young boy in his arms, holding him close to his chest. To be such a fierce fighter, Tommy could be as gentle as a lamb when it came to his little brother.

Tyler shifted slightly, but didn't wake as his brother started walking.

"Think he's well and truly asleep." As they started walking, the teens kept their voices low so as not to wake the sleeping boy. "So after he wakes up and we go to grab my clothes for the night, do we need to stop and get movies?" Jason asked, watching as Tyler sighed and seemed to settle deeper in his brother's arms.

"Nope. Movies, we got. Mom made sure of that before she left. If you have any at home that you want to bring over though, that'd be fine."

"Well, while he's sleeping, I'll look and see what you've got. Then we can look at the ones we've got when we go to my place."

"Okay, that'll work. And you can bring some 'R' rated stuff if you want. We can watch it after he conks out for the night," the Green Ranger grinned.

That earned a raised eyebrow from the Red Ranger. "Like horror movies?"

"Sure! I love a good slasher flick. Just as long as we can keep li'l bit here asleep through it, we can watch whatever." He paused and thought for a moment. "Well, with the possible exception of skin flicks. I'd get in so much trouble with the 'rents if they found out," he grinned.

Jason raised an eyebrow at that. "You've actually watched one?" He knew a couple of guys on the football team that had a few, but he'd never gotten a chance to watch one himself.

Tom looked just as surprised. "You haven't?" The Green Ranger had thought that it was a rite of passage for teenage boys-like hiding issues of Playboy and Hustler under your mattress.

Blushing, Jason shook his head. "Snagged a few of dad's magazines, but that's pretty much it. Zach and I were going to one time, but his mom walked in to see if we needed anything right as it started."

Tommy chuckled. "What you needed was some privacy! Anyway, we can watch anything except porn. What's your favorite movie, by the way?" he asked as they walked along, Tyler still peacefully sleeping in his arms.

"Terminator 2 was pretty good, and I like Army of Darkness. Think my favorites so far are the Star Wars movies.

"Yeah, the Star Wars movies are great. I kinda wish they'd make more of 'em. Myself, I guess I like Cliffhanger."

"That was good. There are a couple more that are coming out that I want to see, like the one about Bruce Lee."

"Oh yeah, you know it. So what do you want to have for snacks tonight? We've got plenty of pizza and soda already."

"If we're watching movies, then we've gotta have some popcorn. Other than that, maybe some chips and dip."

"Junk food smorgasbord, huh? Suits me just fine," Tommy said with a grin.

"Okay, so you're fine with that but not cheese fries?" Jason looked over at his friend as they turned down the street to the Green Ranger's house.

"Cheese fries are always greasy-upsets my stomach. It bothers Tyler too, but he won't admit it."

"Ah, so it's not something against junk food then, makes sense." When they got to the Oliver's house, he looked at the other teen. "Want me to hold him while you unlock the door?"

Tommy thought for a second. "Well, to tell you the truth, it might wake him up and it would take a while to get him to lie back down. See if you can grab it out of my right pocket."

"Sure, I'll give it a try." Stepping closer to his friend, the Red Ranger was glad that Tommy's pants were a bit loose as he slid his hand inside the pocket. It only took him a few seconds to grab the key and pull it out. "Got it." With a grin, he turned back to the door and unlocked it, then stepped in, holding the door for his burdened friend.

"Thanks," Tommy whispered and walked through into the living room where he put the sleeping boy down on the loveseat and covered him up. He motioned for Jason to follow him. Once they were in the kitchen, the teenagers helped themselves to drinks and sat down to talk. "I'm glad you could come over for the night. It'll be fun."

"No problem." The red clad teen grinned. "My parents could always use a night to themselves and this way we all get our own time." He glanced towards the living room before turning back to his friend. "Tommy, I don't mean to be rude or anything, but what is the deal with your mom and step-dad."

Tom put the glass down after taking a drink of soda. "Whatcha mean? Like I said, they take weekend trips and leave him with me," he said, figuring the question was centered on Tyler.

"Yeah, and I get that. What I don't understand is what the man seems to have against Tyler."

Tommy wasn't sure how to answer that-he didn't know himself. "I don't know if I'd say he has anything against Ty. He's just kinda strict."

"My parents were strict on me growing up, but just because I couldn't do something they didn't tell me that I needed to quit being a baby. Ty is small and does his best." He was quiet for a moment. "You know, I've started being able to pick out when Russell's told him something. Kid goes real quiet and won't meet your eyes, but it's over just like that and he's back to being 'Ty'."

The Green Ranger sighed and dropped his gaze, suddenly finding the glass in his hands very interesting. "I don't know, Jase. I mean, yeah, Tyler is your average 5 year old-hyper, talkative, messy, annoying sometimes-but he's also a really sweet kid. I wouldn't take anything for him."

"I've noticed." He put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "How do you get along with Russell? I mean, maybe it's just that he doesn't know how to handle a young'en like Ty."

"Well...okay, I guess. He doesn't try to run my life too terribly much. We're not close, though." Talking about this really made Tom miss his dad. _'Life just sucks sometimes.'_

"That's probably a good thing with all the running out you have to do." Jason took a drink. "You two should come spend the night some time or even a weekend when he and your mom are gone."

A smiled crossed the teen's face. "I'd like that. Think your parents would be okay with it?" He chuckled. "Doubt they're used to a hyper-active mini-ninja running around their house...anymore," he added and grinned.

"I'm sure they'd be okay with it." The Red Ranger laughed softly. "Just be prepared for mom to think you aren't getting fed enough, either one of you, and constantly asking if you're hungry or wanting a snack... stuff like that." He winked at the other teen. "Then there's dinner."

Tommy's eyes lit up. "I take it 'Mom' can cook, huh?"

"She comes from a couple of off-the-boat Italian families, so what do you think?"

The other teenager licked his lips. "Mmm, I think I wanna come over for dinner as soon as possible!" He chuckled. "So how do you manage to stay in shape then?"

Jason raised an eyebrow. "Why do you think I teach at least a class a day plus spar with you guys, workout on my own and take a gym class?"

"It's a good thing you do if the food is anything like I'm imagining," he smiled. Tom went quiet for a minute. "Jase? Can I ask you something now?"

Nodding, he looked over at his friend. "Sure, what's on your mind?"

"How do you get along with your folks?" he asked simply.

The teen shrugged. "Pretty well, I guess. As long as I keep my room reasonably clean, take out the trash and help mom when she needs me to, I pretty much can come and go as I please. If I'm going to be out late, then I have to let them know where I'm going and who I'll be with, but except during the school year, I don't really have a curfew. Since I get paid for teaching at the Youth Center, I don't get an allowance, but they match whatever I put into a savings account for school." He blushed slightly. "Mom's forever hugging on me and dad will, too when he thinks he's been neglecting me in that department."

Tommy listened, getting a faraway look in his eyes. He was remembering what it was like to have a family like that. Before his dad had been taken from them so tragically, his own home life had been pretty similar-warm, secure, happy. Now it was a different story. "Sounds nice," was all he said, getting up to refill his glass, not wanting to look Jason in the eyes right at that moment.

"It is, but at the same time they're pretty quick to pick up on some things, like new bruises and stuff like that." He snorted. "And I don't miss dinner unless it's absolutely necessary. That's family time and the one thing they insist on."

"I could deal with that," Tommy said. He needed to change the subject-all this talk about home and family was threatening to seriously depress him. "So...you wanna pick out some movies while the kid is still out?"

"Sure, show me to the collection. What do you want to watch?" He got the feeling that family was a touchy subject with his friend and didn't want to make him uncomfortable.

"Let's go into the living room-they're in there. As for me, I don't know... how about a comedy?"

"That'll work." Jason followed Tommy into the living room. Looking over at the loveseat, he grinned at the sleeping boy. "He looks so cute like that."

Tom turned to look at his kid brother. "Yeah, he does. He's easy to love when he's like that," he grinned.

"Hard to believe he tied Zach's shoelaces to a chair." Shaking his head, the burly teen took a seat in front of the movie rack. "Does he have any favorite movies?"

"Well, of course he likes "Three Ninjas" and the "Karate Kid" movies-that figures, huh?" he laughed. "He also likes sci-fi stuff."

"That'll work. So let's say "3 Ninjas" and mom got me that movie "Spaceballs". If Ty likes the "Star Wars" movies, he'll like it."

"Alright, so whatcha wanna watch after lil' bit goes to sleep?" he grinned.

"Well, I see you've got "Lost Boys", we can watch that one."

"Yeah, that's a good one. I love vampire movies-might even dress up as a vampire for Halloween, as a matter of fact," he laughed.

"Really? I haven't given it much thought. Then again, I usually throw mine together last minute." He chuckled softly. "Now Christmas? That's a totally different story."

"Dress up for Christmas, do ya?" Tom laughed. "Yeah, I can see you pulling off a Santa costume."

"Well, maybe not the full costume, but come time to pass out presents, the Santa hat definitely goes on." He grinned. "And between Mom and me, the house is totally decorated. I help her make dinner, especially the desserts." Jason straightened suddenly. "Oh man, you've got to come to the Christmas party. My mom throws us one every year. It's not really a party so much as it's a huge dinner and then we all swap presents."

"Oh? You want me there?" Tom asked, still getting used to being included in such a tight-knit group. "Umm, sure. Thank you," he smiled.

"Definitely, and you can bring the Runt along, too."

"He'd love that! I appreciate you including him," the teenager smiled warmly.

The other teen shrugged, blushing slightly. "He's a good kid and I've definitely come to like the little guy."

Tyler shifted slightly on the loveseat and opened his eyes. He grinned when he saw his brother and Jason sitting in front of the movie rack. Quietly, he slipped off his makeshift bed and onto the floor, making his way towards the red clad teen. With a little growl, he launched himself at the boy's back. "I've got you!"

Tommy was almost as surprised as Jason was-he hadn't seen the little scamp sneaking up on them. "You sure do!" he laughed, watching his brother tackle the burly teenager.

Jason grabbed the boy and fell over to the side. He was having a hard time not just breaking down into a laughing fit. Finally, he was able to get a hold of the small form and brought the kid around. Grinning, he knelt over the boy. "I'm gonna get you for that." He started tickling Tyler, going for the sides that he knew were sensitive.

"Stop!" the youngster managed to say between giggles. "Tommy... Help me!" he gasped as he struggled against the much-larger boy. Every time he'd wiggle a little further away, Jason would be right back on top of him. "Jay Jay! I've gotta pee!"

Tommy sat by laughing, knowing that Jason wouldn't hurt his little brother. "Oh no, you got yourself into this...you can get yourself out!"

Laughing, Jason finally sat up and let the boy go. "All right, go to the bathroom and then we'll go to my house so I can get clothes."

Scrambling to his feet, Tyler ran down the hall to the bathroom and went in. After he was finished, the boy washed his hands and dried them before grabbing the brush. Going back into the living room, he handed the brush to his brother. "Can you braid my hair for me?" He had little strands of hair all over the place after his nap because the tie had come off.

Tommy took the brush and grinned at him. "Yep, but you'll have to get me something to tie it with when I'm done," he said, looking over at Jason. "Is it weird that I know how to braid hair?"

"Considering your heritage, not really." He chuckled softly when Tyler held up a strand of leather in his brother's face. "Think he wants you to use that." The burly teen couldn't stop the small chuckle that escaped him at the little boy's antics.

Tyler held it so close to Tommy's face that he had to cross his eyes to look at it. "Ya think?" he sarcastically asked his friend. "Okay, lil' dragon, sit down in front of me and I'll work on this mop of yours." He paused as he waited on the boy to take a seat. "I should make you braid mine," he grinned.

The boy sighed, rolling his eyes as he sat in front of his brother. "I can't do that yet." He held his hands up. "My hands are too small."

"So make small braids," Tom laughed and gently popped the kid on the head with the brush.

Tyler turned his head and looked over his shoulder at his brother, one small eyebrow arching upward. "Did Jason kick you in the head when you two were sparring?"

Jason busted out laughing and flopped onto his back. "He's got you there, bro."

Tom took Tyler by the sides of his head and turned the boy's face back around. "Be still or I'll give you pigtails! I think we've got some pink ribbon around here somewhere."

Ty gasped. "Tom Tom! That's not funny!"

"Sure it is! You'd be sooo cute...Tyrenna," Tom said, knowing that he'd pay for it later. It got the intended response from Jason, though.

Doubling over, Jason practically howled with laughter. The look on little Tyler's face was priceless and promised revenge on his brother. The teen couldn't wait to see what the boy did to get even with the elder Oliver.

"Want me to get Kim to put a little makeup on you? Maybe pick out some new clothes for you?" Tom said with a chuckle, further tormenting the boy.

Tyler finally turned around and kicked his brother. "Not funny, Tom Tom." His lower lip trembled slightly as he stood in front of his brother, arms crossed over his chest.

"Awww, I'm just playin' with ya, kid. Since when are you so sensitive, huh?" the elder Oliver asked.

For several moments, the boy said nothing, and then he sat down in his brother's lap. "Mr. Russell said that I needed to start taking care of my own hair or he was gonna cut if off. He said that only girls have long hair."

Tom pulled his brother into a hug. "I'm sorry, Ty-I didn't know he'd said that. And that's not true-do I look like a girl to you?" He glanced over at Jason with a look of frustration and anger on his face, knowing that his friend would understand.

Scooting closer to the brothers, Jason reached out and put a hand on the boy's back before starting to rub it gently.

Tyler shook his head. "No, but you look more like Da did and Mr. Russell said that redskins look like that because they are different."

Suddenly, Tommy saw red. "Redskins? He called us redskins? He does realize his wife is native too, doesn't he?" he nearly growled.

The boy shrugged. "I don't think he knew I was there. He was talking on the phone to someone and I heard my name. That's when he said that."

"That asshole!" Tommy said, lifting Tyler off his lap and standing suddenly. "I need some air!" he said, walking quickly toward the back door.

Watching his brother, Tyler sighed softly and then walked over to Jason, climbing into the teen's lap and curling up. "Tom Tom doesn't like it when Mr. Russell says that kind of stuff."

Jason wrapped his arms around the small boy and held him close. "He's just mad right now. Let's give him a minute to calm down, okay?"

The small head nodded as long, loose strands of hair fell around the small shoulders. With a soft sigh, Ty rested his head on Jason's chest. "Are we still gonna watch movies tonight? And eat pizza and popcorn and have soda?"

"Oh yeah, absolutely! Just give Tommy a little while to chill out and we'll get to it, okay?" Jason thought that he should probably go check on his friend, but what could he do with the little one?

The boy nodded again and after a few minutes he got to his feet. "I need to get something from my room." Going over to the stairs, he started up them on his hands and knees intent on finding what he was after and leaving Jason alone.

Shaking his head, the Red Ranger watched the boy and then got to his feet before going over to the back door. He stood there for a few moments before stepping out onto the back porch and watching his friend.

Meanwhile out in the backyard, Tommy paced back and forth across the deck. "That sonofabitch...how dare he call me and family names! So help me, if I catch him being mean to Ty I'll...I'll..." his fists clenched over and over as he growled.

Tommy was so preoccupied with his anger that he didn't even hear the back door open. He continued to prowl back and forth, swearing under his breath.

"You know if you keep that up, you'll be able to pay for college off of today's swearing alone."

The Green Ranger swung around to face the voice. "What?"

Chuckling softly, Jason walked down the steps and over to his friend. "I said that if you keep swearing like that, you'll be putting a lot of money in Tyler's piggy bank."

"Yeah well, I think I have every reason to be upset," Tommy said sternly. "At least I'm not doing it in front of him."

"I'm not going to argue with you there." The teen shook his head. "Is the man that big of an ass?"

Because Tom was just getting to know Jason, he had, up to this point at least, keep his honest opinion of the man to himself. Now, however, he was too angry to censor himself. "Yes, he is. He's a creep and an asshole and if I ever catch him being mean to Ty, I'll take him down a peg or two."

"I'm sorry, bro. You know that if you two ever need a place to stay, you can come over to my place. No questions asked... well, at least until the next morning, but you'd be welcome."

Tommy softened just a bit at that. "Thanks, man. I hope that never becomes necessary, but I'm glad to know the offer is there. Where's Ty, by the way?"

"Little scamp said he needed to look for something and went up to his room." He was quiet for a moment. "That was after he climbed into my lap and sat there for a few minutes."

"Is he okay? I didn't scare him too much, did I?" Tom asked, suddenly looking concerned.

"He wasn't crying or anything. Ty just said that you didn't like it when Russell said stuff like that. Although," Jason cracked a grin. "He was a bit concerned that we might not have movie night."

Tom chuckled. "Well, as long as he's worried about the important stuff." He shook his head. "Come on, let's go back inside."

Putting a hand on his friend's shoulder, the burly teen gave it a squeeze. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm better now. Let's go see what li'l bit is up to," Tom said and headed back into the house.

"You do know that he's still likely to get back at you for teasing him. I mean the look on his face..." Chuckling softly, he followed his friend back inside.

"Well, I wouldn't have said it if I'd known all this was going to happen." He paused and looked around. "Where is he? Tyler!" he called.

Hearing his brother downstairs, the boy came out of his room and carefully worked his way back to the living room. Once there he walked up to his brother and held a necklace up to him. "I found this by the trash can. Mr. Russell was gonna throw it out."

Tommy took the item from the boy's hand and looked at it briefly. He then closed his hand around it and put his other hand up to his head, trying to cover the expression on his face. "You found it by the trash can?" he asked in a voice that was clearly strained.

"Uh huh, I don't think Mama knows that it's gone."

Jason frowned. The necklace wasn't anything spectacular. From what he had seen, it appeared to be an old arrowhead on a leather cord. It suddenly hit the teen that it had probably belonged to their father. Jason moved closer and put one hand on a shoulder of each brother, but didn't say anything.

Tommy glanced over at his friend, his eyes narrowed, but a bit shiny as if they contained unshed tears. "This belonged to our father. It was given to him by his father...and Tyler here found it by the trash can," he said in tense, measured tones. Then he turned to his little brother. "Thank you so much for bringing this to me, squirt. We're going to have to keep a better eye on Dad's things, huh?"

Tyler nodded. "I keep them in my shoebox in the back of my closet. He also threw away dad's bracelet that Sam gave him, but I dug it out and hid it." He picked his brush up and handed it to his brother again. "Will you braid my hair now so that we can go to Jason's?"

Tommy realized that Tyler was a bit too young to understand the gravity of the situation and there was really no need to lay that on the boy anyway. Not until he was older. "That's great, Ty. I'm so glad you're still doing that. You might want to give me the box and let me hide Dad's things so that Russell can't find them. I don't want him coming across the box while he's going through your things." He stopped and took the brush from the boy. "Okay, let's see about straightening out this hair of yours."

"All right. Want me to give it to you when we get back?" He stuck his tongue out at Jason while Tommy brushed and braided his hair.

"Yeah, please give it to me later and I'll hide it for us, okay?" Tommy said

Tyler nodded. "Okay." When his brother was done with his hair, the boy grinned up at him. "Can we go now?"

"Yeah sure, let's go before you worry me to death," Tom replied with a grin. "You ready, Jase?"

The burly teen nodded. "Yep, let's go." He reached down and grabbed Tyler, swinging the boy up onto his shoulders.

The boy giggled as he was swung through the air and placed on the Red Ranger's shoulders. He waved at his brother from his spot, but only grinned.

"Okay, let's hit it. We've gotta a couple of stops to make," Tommy said, heading for the door. After locking up, they started out for Jason's house.


	4. And Folks Dressed Up Like

Disclaimer: Please see chp 1. No money being made here, unfortunately.

To all of my readers: The stories will ALL be finished. I have a lot written it's just a matter of tying some parts into others. The next thing out will be chp 3 pt 2 of this story. In the meantime, please enjoy a holiday one shot. This is a little jump ahead from where the story currently is (Tommy and Jason are about 18 and out of high school, Tyler is around 7 [8 at the most]). And for those that are not familiar with the title, it comes from "The Christmas Song" or "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire". Look the lyrics up and you'll understand a bit better. So please, enjoy and have a safe and happy holiday season.

-o-O-o-

And Folks Dressed Up Like…. A Christmas Tree?

Jason shifted the end of the tree as he dug into his pocket for the keys. "Hang on a second while I get the keys out."

"Are we taking it in the right way? Don't wanna strip the branches off," Tommy said with a note of humor in his voice. He looked around at his little brother standing behind them, covered in small boxes. "You got those, Ty?"

The boy started to nod his head, but when the stack shifted he stopped. "Yeah, I've got'em."

Laughing softly, the former Gold Ranger opened the door. "Yes, we're going in the right way. That's why we're taking it in stump end first."

"Okay, just making sure, Mr. Christmas," Tom replied. "You think this tree is big enough?" He asked that knowing that the pine they'd brought home stood every chance of being entirely too big for their little apartment, but Jason had set his eye on it so Tommy didn't dare protest.

Rolling his eyes, Jason started pulling the tree in through the door after stepping into the apartment himself. "It'll fit just fine in the living room. Besides, we need to cut about three inches off the stump so that it'll absorb water to help keep it alive."

"Alright, we can handle that." Turning his head slightly, he spoke to Tyler. "Okay Ty, put those boxes over there out of the way, okay? We have to wrestle this monster into the room and then make it fit into the stand, alright?"

"Okee dokee smokey!" The boy made his way over to a spot out of the way and carefully set the boxes down before running down the hall towards the bathroom. They'd had hot chocolate at the tree place and a Gatorade on the ride, which he thought took forever. He was excited about getting to help his brother and Jason decorate their tree.

"So you think we can keep him occupied while we get everything together? He sure is excited," Tommy said, carefully putting the tree down in the living room.

Jason grinned and nodded at one of the totes his mom had given them the other day. "There is a whole bunch of lights in there that mom was getting rid of and they all need to be checked to see if they work. I figured he could untangle the lights and see which strands work and which ones don't."

Tommy chuckled. "Okay, that oughta work. Nothing in there that could hurt him is there? Don't want any cut fingers or anything."

"I'll grab the lights out and set them down for him, just in case any ornaments in there broke." He laughed softly. "But considering how particular mom is about packing her ornaments, I doubt it."

"Well yeah, that's true-knowing your mom," Tom chuckled. Just then, Tyler came back into the room from his side trip to the bathroom. "Okay Ty, have a seat over there and Jason is gonna give you an important job to do, okay?"

The boy took a seat against the wall next to the outlet that his brother had pointed to and looked up at Jason as he came over with a green tote. "What do you want me to do Jay Jay?"

It warmed the Original Red Ranger's heart to hear the boy call him that. It was something that he missed when they were busy with college and weren't able to spend time with Tyler. After he set the tote down, Jason knelt in front of the boy. "Well, all Christmas trees have to have lights on them, right?" When he got an enthusiastic nod, Jase continued. "In this box are a whole bunch of lights, but they're in a huge mess. Do you think you could untangle them for me and then see which ones work and which ones don't?"

Tyler's eyes lit up and he nodded again. "I can do that, I promise."

"Just be careful, okay Ty? There might be some broken bulbs and I don't want you to get glass in your fingers. Watch out for that, Sport."

A small eyebrow rose slightly as Ty looked up at his brother. "I'm not crazy Tom Tom."

Jason bit back a laugh as he started pulling the rat's nest of lights out of the box and set it beside the boy.

Tyler's eyes grew larger as he beheld the snarl of wires and bulbs on the floor. "Did you make that mess?" he asked, looking up into Jason's face.

Tommy couldn't help it he burst out laughing. Even he could see how much Tyler looked like him when he cocked a bit of an attitude. "Well 'Jay Jay'? Did you?" he asked, standing beside his best friend, hands on hips.

For a moment Jason could do nothing other than blush, but then he laughed softly. "I might have had a little to do with it, but only because I was in a hurry to get somewhere." He pushed lightly at his boyfriend. "Like picking you up to go to the movies."

"Oh yeah, right-blame it on me," Tom said with a grin. "Ty, just do the best you can. We're gonna go fix some snacks. Whatcha want?"

The brown head cocked to the side a bit before grinning. "Ants on a log and chocolate milk?"

"Ants on a log? What's he talking about?" Tommy asked Jason, looking perplexed.

Jason grinned over at his boyfriend. "Something my mom made up. It's usually celery sticks with peanut butter in the middle with raisins sprinkled on the top. Looks like ants on a log," he said with a grin.

Ty nodded. "Uh huh and it's really good. She sometimes mixes the chocolaty stuff with the peanut butter and puts it on toast with strawberries on top. That's really good too."

"Sounds good. Leave it to Mama Scott," Tommy said, heading toward the small kitchen. "We'll make you something to eat-get started on the lights, okay?"

The boy grinned up at the two young men who he knew would take care of him. "Okee dokee smokey!" He pulled the knot of lights over in front of him and started trying to find at least one end of a string of lights.

In the kitchen, Tommy stuck his head in the fridge, looking for something to make a snack out of. "Whatcha want, Jase? We don't have all that much food in here."

"We should probably make a trip to the store after we get the tree set up." He opened the door to the pantry. "Well, we've got some peanut butter and Nutella. There's also some popcorn in here. If we've got bread then we can make some cup-on-toast."

"Yeah, I think we've got bread. Your mom needs to come over with some more gifts to keep us from starving," Tommy laughed. It had become Mrs. Scott's habit to bring over several covered dishes so that the boys would have hot meals. She'd been doing that ever since Jason had first moved into the small but functional apartment.

The other teen laughed softly. "Well, it is Friday so anything's possible. For now we'll make do and while the tree's settling, we can take a trip to the store." He grabbed the peanut butter and Nutella out of the pantry before shutting the door and moving over to the counter. "Besides, we need to get some more Gatorade for Ty along with some juice."

"Alright, so after we have a snack we'll head to the store," Tom said, helping Jason to get some food together for the two of them plus Tyler. When they were done, they put it all on a tray and carried it out to the living room where Ty was busy with the lights.

Jason had their drinks and was leading the way when he came to a stop just inside the living room. "Oh my God." He could only stare at the sight in front of him.

Coming up behind him, Tommy nearly ran all over his boyfriend. "Jase? Why'd you st-..." he started but couldn't finish his thought when he caught sight of his little brother. Tyler was sitting just in the same place they'd left him, but now he was completely covered in tangled light strands. From his forehead to midway down his little chest, the boy had green wires wrapped all around him.

For a moment, Jason could only stare and then he carefully set the drinks down before crossing his arms over his chest and raising a hand to his chin. "Um, Ty... you okay there Sport?" The former Gold Ranger's hand moved to cover his mouth as he fought not to laugh out loud.

Tyler glared at him through the wires that kind of draped crosswise over his face. "No, I can't get out." He tried to raise his arms, but was unable to do little more than flap his hands like a young chick trying to fly.

Tommy put the food down and stood beside Jason, trying not to laugh. "I'm guessing you need some help, am I right?" he said with a slight chuckle.

The boy snorted. "That's a silly question Tom Tom." He sighed. "Please get me out of this."

Jason chuckled softly. "We'll help you out, just give me a second." He leaned over close to his boyfriend and spoke softly. "You plug him in while I get the camera."

A deep, mischievous little chuckle came from the former Green Ranger as he nodded and then moved over beside his brother. "Just hang on a minute and we'll get you out of that snarl," he said sweetly, but instead of starting to unwind the boy, he picked up the plug and snapped it into the extension cord, lighting up the entire cocoon that Tyler found himself in. "There. You're all lit up," he said with a chuckle and a grin. "Aren'tcha pretty?"

Tyler stared up at his brother in disbelief as the lights started to blink on and off. "Tommy I'm not the tree!"

As the Original Red Ranger came back into the room, camera in hand, he busted out laughing. "Ah man, we just need a little Christmas music and the decorating would be done."

"Okay Laughing Boy, take the picture before Ty finds a way out of that mess and attacks us with something," Tom said, noticing the indignant look on the younger Oliver's face.

"Okay, okay..." Focusing the camera, Jason grinned. "Say cheese!" When he got a glare in return, the teen snapped several pictures before laughing softly. "Guess we should work on getting you out of there."

Anna Scott shut the door of the car with her foot as she held a box with dishes of food for the boys. Making her way up the walk and to the door, she propped the box against the frame while she opened the door and went inside before coming to a stop with the box in her hands. "What on Earth-"

Tommy's head jerked up when he heard the door open. "Oh...hey, Mama Scott. We were just doing a little decorating," Tom said, trying to hide his amusement at his little brother's predicament.

She looked over at the boy, who was trying his best not to just outright start throwing a tantrum, pleaded at her with his eyes. Shaking her head, she laughed softly. "Okay boys, you've had your fun. Now release my baby boy before I take this lasagna back home with me."

"Oooh, now there's a threat!" Tommy said with a smile, kneeling down beside his brother and unplugging him. "Okay, let's get you out of this mess." He started working and after a minute or so, he looked into Tyler's face. "Okay, I'm sorry. But you were just so cute all tied up that we just had to take a picture. Forgive us?"

Jason put the camera down and walked over to his mom to take the box from her. "We were fixing to, I promise." He kissed her on the cheek. "Thank you for this."

Ty sighed and met his brother's eyes. "I guess." He grinned. "Besides, I can always get you back."

The former Ranger Commander chuckled out loud. "Oh I have no doubt about that! I'm gonna sleep with one eye open tonight!" He turned and looked up at Jason. "You better watch your step too. Don't wanna find itching powder in your pants again, do ya?"

Laughing softly, Mrs. Scott shooed her son away to put the food up while she went over to the two brothers. "You would think that over the years you two would have learned that he's just as bad as you are." Kneeling next to Tyler, she started helping Tommy untangle his little brother.

Tyler shook his head a bit. "I think they've kicked each other in the head too much."

"Entirely possible," Tom said, smiling over at Mama Scott. "So what else did you bring us besides lasagna?" he asked, his mouth nearly watering at the thought.

"I brought you boys some stuffed peppers, chicken parm, baked ziti, and some of my spaghetti sauce." Moving one last strand, they were finally able to get the boy free. "There you go." Standing up, she looked at the older Oliver. "There is also some tiramisu, chocolate chip cookies, and the chocolate mousse torte you boys like."

Tyler stood up only to bend over and let his arms hang towards the floor as he stretched. "Thank you mama Scott."

Jason came back into the living area and grabbed the tray of drinks, taking them over to the dining room table. "I put all the food away mom, plus Tommy and I made some snacks just before you got here."

"Good. Did you make something for Ty too?" his mom asked, always looking out for her little one.

He grinned. "Yes ma'am, he's got a piece of cup-on-toast and some apple slices along with chocolate milk."

"Oh that sounds good. You ready to eat, Ty?"

He nodded causing a loose strand of hair to fall over his eyes. "Uh huh. I was getting hungry all tangled up like that."

"Oh, you're always hungry, Lil Bit," Tommy said with a grin, passing out the plates and making sure Tyler could reach his. "Sit down and eat. We got lots of decorating to do."

"Okay," The boy grinned as he took his seat and sat on his knees to reach the table. He gave Mrs. Scott a grin before picking up an apple slice and taking a bite.

Chuckling softly, she brushed the loose hair off of his face as he ate and then turned to the older boys. "So if I looked in your refrigerator am I going to find a science experiment gone wrong or a bunch of empty shelves?"

Tom laughed and then said in a dramatic voice, "When potato salad goes bad..."

Jason chuckled at Tom and then turned to his mom. "No, we have some stuff in there that's still good. Just not a whole bunch-we go through it too fast."

"Well at least I know you two boys are eating and not living off of fast food or canned soup." Moving over to her son she hugged him. "Just remember that you are expected home for the party on the 22nd."

"Wouldn't miss it, you know that!" Jason said, returning the hug. "You leaving?"

"Not yet, I figured that I'd make you boys something for dinner before I get back on the road." Turning to her other 'son', she put an arm over Tommy's shoulders. "And you young man, are expected to be there as well."

"Oh yes ma'am. Wouldn't miss it," he said with a warm smile. Mrs. Scott was a world-class mom and Tommy really felt close to her. "Can we come over and help out with anything?"

"If you boys want to come up after your exams are done, you know that you're more than welcome." She laughed softly. "I'll be more than happy to put you to work chopping and peeling."

"We'll be there," Jason replied. "Need some help decorating? I don't like you getting on a ladder, you know that."

Tyler looked over at her, the chocolate and peanut butter mixture all over his face. "I can help Jay Jay and them decorate the outside. That way you don't have to get up on the ladder and scare us again." Last year he and Tommy had gone over to the Scott's to pick Jason up for a movie only to find Mrs. Scott on a ladder that was starting to slide a little. It had scared both of them.

"Aww, that's so sweet of you. Okay, you can help," she said with a warm smile. "Okay, so I'm going to start dinner while you three finish up and start your decorating."

Jason winked at the boy who went back to eating before gazing at his boyfriend. "You know, I'm really glad that mom and dad were accepting of my choice." He took hold of Tommy's hand. "Because it gives me a great boyfriend and an awesome little brother."

Tom gave him a nice smile and squeezed his hand. "Me too. I'm really glad that Ty took to you like he did, too. He needs more people that he can look up to."

Tyler watched both of them for a moment after taking a drink of his milk. Then as he picked up another slice of apple, a grin appeared on his face. The boy, who many said was a little angel, gave a small laugh that would remind many of the one issued by the Evil Green Ranger.

Eyebrows raised on both of the older boys. "And just what was that for?" his brother asked.

For his part, Jason just watched the boy; his mom's words about Tyler getting even with them coming back to him.

"You'll see." Still grinning, the boy went silent as he continued to eat all the while plotting how he was going to get even with his 'brothers'.


End file.

Power Rangers, Family, Friendship