Disclaimer: The fans make the show, but without the show there would be no fans. Saban owns the Power Rangers.

Home
by Starhawk

Zhane looked at him as though he had gone completely insane. "What?"

Andros tried to remember exactly what Zhane would know. "Remember the--" he caught himself just in time. "The Shadow Ranger, from Eltare?"

Zhane frowned a little, obviously taken aback by the change in subject. "Yeah--he's always at those Frontier Defense meetings. I could never figure him out, but you two seem to get along all right."

Andros nodded. "He goes by the name 'Phantom Ranger' now, and he's been helping the Earth Rangers in between Defense operations."

"Your teammates?" Zhane surmised, looking to his friend for confirmation.

"Yeah," Andros agreed. "I don't know what brought him to Earth in the first place, but I guess he fell for one of the Rangers there, and for a while, he was going back every chance he got."

"Wait," Zhane said, straightening up. "Did you just say what I heard? The Shadow Ranger--fell in love?"

Andros couldn't help smiling. "It does sound weird," he admitted. "And believe me, I was just as shocked when he told me about it."

"He *told* you?" Obviously, Zhane was having trouble reconciling his view of the passionless enigma with the person Andros was talking about.

"Well, not exactly," Andros amended. "But he said a few things that made me realize what was going on. And since the Earth Rangers have been on the Megaship, we've seen him a couple of times--and it's pretty obvious when he's around her."

Zhane was silent for a moment. When he spoke again, it was clear that he had totally forgotten their original subject of discussion in favor of this one. "Maybe I'm confusing them with some other people, but--don't Elisians bond for life?"

The Phantom Ranger's identity had been bothering Andros for days now, ever since his demorphed form had triggered a vague memory from the days when the frontier had had time to care about politics. He had searched the Megaship's database, but for some reason, DECA had not been able to find any visuals for the former Elisian team.

In his search, though, he had come across some references to Elisian culture, and he now he could tell Zhane, "Some of them. And I think that's what happened with him and--this girl."

Zhane didn't question his assumption, just gave him a worried look and asked, "Is she all right?"

Andros didn't understand what he meant at first, but after a moment he realized that Zhane still didn't know the whole story. "The Phantom Ranger's on the Megaship now, actually, and the two of them are trying to work it out."

Zhane grinned, grabbing Andros's other chair and swinging one leg over it to perch backwards on the swivel seat. "Man, Andros, since when did you turn the Megaship into a passenger cruise?"

"Very funny." Andros tried to look annoyed, but couldn't with Zhane grinning at him like that. "He's the only non-team member on board."

Zhane's smile faded into puzzlement. "But you said--Saryn…"

He trailed off, giving Andros a skeptical look. "No way."

"The Shadow Ranger helped form the Frontier Defense," Andros said quietly. "Just a few months after the attack on Elisia that destroyed their Ranger team--he had never been heard from before that."

Zhane looked past Andros at the computer screen where KOSN was still displaying the last record they had called up. A record with a name that most of the galaxy had known, and the smiling face of a boy who had had the rest of his life in front of him. A string of numbers that marked the day that life had shattered into pieces and fallen like dust around him. And the two words that kept him from having to try and put those pieces back together: *Presumed dead*.

"Saryn of Elisia--is the Shadow Ranger?" Zhane asked at last.

"The Phantom Ranger," Andros corrected gently. "Yeah. That's him."

Zhane put both hands on the back of his chair and rested his chin on them in a gesture that made Andros smile again. Zhane used to do that all the time when he was thinking, but Andros had never thought to see it again.

"So you've seen him demorphed," Zhane said suddenly, tilting his head to look up at Andros.

Andros nodded. "He's been demorphed for the last couple of days--for her, I think. At least, I can't think of any other reason."

"He never used to demorph around anyone," Zhane mused. "Not as the Shadow Ranger, anyway. This girl must be pretty special."

Andros looked down, and Zhane didn't miss his sudden hesitation. "What?"

"They're all special," Andros whispered, staring at the floor. "Without them… I don't know who I would have become."

Ever since Zhane's "death", he had held off the tears by refusing to feel. It was one of the reasons that he and Phantom had gotten along so well--both were hiding behind their uniforms, and neither asked the other to be anything *more* than the uniform. But now, with Ashley melting the walls that had surrounded him, it was harder than it had ever been to keep his emotions at bay.

Before he knew it, Zhane was at his side, a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I'm glad you had someone," he told his friend quietly. "Even if it couldn't be me. I never got the chance to apologize for leaving you like that."

Andros tried to smile. "You're sorry for saving my life?"

"Of course not," Zhane said, hitting him lightly in reproof. "I'm sorry I had to go into a two-year coma to do it." He paused. "Man, I still can't believe it's been that long."

"It felt longer," Andros told him, trying to keep his voice light.

But Zhane saw through him, as always, and a moment later he heard the Silver Ranger's voice in his mind. *Andros, I'm so sorry. I never wanted to leave you; you know that.*

The familiar mindtouch brought the tears he had blinked away back to his eyes. "I know." *Thanks for coming back, Zhane.*

Zhane grinned at him. "Thanks for saving me."

Just then, there was a timid knock from the hallway, and they both looked up. Their doors had been open all afternoon while the two of them had come and gone, and Andros saw Zhane take a small step forward to put himself between his friend and whoever wanted their attention.

Andros blinked quickly, composing his expression and getting to his feet to stand beside Zhane. He realized even as he did so that the two of them might seem a little intimidating to someone younger than they, but the child in the doorway didn't flinch.

"Dinner has been prepared," she said, sounding as though she was reciting something that had been said to her. "The celebration has begun, and Rayven welcomes its Rangers home."

"Thanks, Myri," Zhane said, giving her his most charming smile.

Her stiffness melted away, and she giggled at him. "You're welcome, Zhane. You're coming, aren't you?"

"Of course," he promised. "We could never turn down such a well-delivered invitation." She giggled again, and he added, "We'll be there in just a moment, all right?"

She nodded, clearly disappointed that she wouldn't get to escort them, but when Zhane smiled at her again, her expression brightened and she waved before darting away.

Andros gave him a knowing look as she disappeared down the hallway. "You'll never change, will you."

Zhane shrugged. "Hey, just because you have a girlfriend doesn't me *I* should stop looking."

"Zhane!" Andros exclaimed, trying not to laugh. "Myri's at least four years younger than you!"

There was a sparkle in Zhane's eyes that said he was teasing. "She's a lot older than when I last saw her. And when I'm thirty and she's twenty-six, it won't matter so much, will it?"

***

The summertime pavilions glittered along the forested edge of the town square, like a rain of stars that had descended from the sky to illuminate the evening. Music emanated from one end of the simply decorated stretch and the food was delicious, but Zhane knew how much Andros hated crowds.

Searching for the telltale glimpse of red, he caught sight of his friend standing alone, staring off into the night. There were enough people around that Andros had to be deliberately ignoring attempts to draw him into conversation, and Zhane felt a flash of guilt. Andros had come back to Rayven for the sole purpose of giving him a familiar face in the midst of a time no longer his own, and now it was Andros that felt out of place.

*Wasn't that always the way, though,* he thought, working his way through the people gathered in the pool of light surrounding the festivities. Andros had always been as reserved as Zhane was outgoing, as quiet as Zhane was boisterous. They complemented each other, and Zhane didn't want to think what it would have been like to have woken up and found that his friend had changed.

*Hey,* he thought, slipping the word into Andros's mind as he came up behind him. *You okay?*

Andros didn't start--the mindtouch was more subtle than the spoken word, but at the same time, easier to notice than yet another voice in the midst of the surrounding noise. *Yeah. I'm good, actually.* He turned to catch his friend's eye. "What about you?"

"Ready to get away from this crowd," Zhane said, not missing the relief in Andros's eyes at his words. Leaning forward, he whispered in his best little kid voice, "Wanna ditch 'em?"

He saw a smile tug at the corners of Andros's mouth, and he grinned. "Come on," he urged. "You don't want to be here, and I can think of a dozen things I'd rather be doing. Let's go."

Andros didn't take much convincing. Trying to hide his smile, he nodded, and they edged away from the pavilions, trying to look inconspicuous. Zhane had never been very good at that, but something about Andros made people's gaze slide over him when he didn't want to be seen. Some of that must have covered Zhane this time, for they made it into the shadows of the trees without anyone calling to them.

He turned to his friend and winked in the relative dimness. Andros was grinning like a kid who had just escaped from his parents' dreaded dinner party, and without another thought, Zhane offered his right arm. Andros did the same, and they slapped their arms together and clasped hands as they always had.

"Let's go," Zhane said again, suddenly glad to be alive.

Andros cocked his head. "Where?" he asked curiously.

Zhane didn't wait, just turned and took off deeper into the woods. "Come on!" he called, running as hard as he could and feeling his breath come faster. The reflected light of the planet above lit his way, and his feet pounded across the forested ground.

He couldn't hear anything but the sound of his heart drumming in his ears, and it was the best sound he had heard in a long time--two years, in fact. He laughed aloud as the calm of the woods dissolved into the crack of twigs and the wind of two rapidly moving bodies. He didn't have to turn to know Andros was behind him--they had always followed each other, and no amount of time was going to change that.

A massive tree loomed in front of him, and he slowed, reaching up to grab the lowest branch. His leap powered by the momentum of his pace, Zhane swung up and onto the branch. Turning, he saw Andros crash into the clearing created by the tree's giant branches and come to a halt, staring up at his friend.

"Are you crazy?" he panted, bending over to catch his breath. "What are you *doing*?"

"Living," Zhane answered happily. He saw his friend look up again with a startled expression on his face, and he extended a hand. "Come on up."

A reluctant smile spread across Andros's face. Clasping the proffered hand, he grabbed the branch with his other hand and managed to hook one leg over it. Zhane hauled him the rest of the way up, and they sat there trying to catch their breaths and grinning like idiots at each other.

"I'd forgotten how much I missed you," Andros managed at last, and Zhane laughed.

"I definitely got the better end of the deal," he agreed. "I don't remember *any* of the last two years. So I got to save my best friend without ever giving him up."

Andros closed his eyes, smiling. Letting go of the wide branch they were perched on, he held his arms out to his sides and tipped his face up toward the stars twinkling through the leafy canopy. "You're right," he agreed after a moment. Opening his eyes, he caught Zhane's eye again. "Living is a good thing."

Zhane edged backwards so he could lean against the trunk of the tree. "So tell me about it," he invited, genuinely curious. "What are you doing now? Who are these teammates of yours?" Then, unable to keep the grin off his face, he added, "And don't forget your girlfriend."

Andros smiled again, looking down at the rough bark of the tree, and Zhane wondered if he was blushing in the pale light. "They used to be the Rangers of Earth," he answered. "They lost their powers when their command center was destroyed, and four of them took off into space to find new ones. DECA pulled their shuttle on to the Megaship while I was gone, and I ended up giving them the astromorphers."

"Right," Zhane interrupted dryly. "That's an abbreviated version if I ever heard one. You were gone? And when you came back you just happened to give them the Kerovan morphers?"

"I was on an infiltration mission," Andros said with a sheepish shrug. "I left the Megaship in another solar system and just took my Glider. When I came back, they were all on board and poking around. I figured they were enemies, and we were fighting when the Megaship was attacked by the Dark Fortress."

"The Dark Fortress?" Zhane asked, raising an eyebrow.

"One of Dark Spectre's new battleships. It's not even complete yet, but you wouldn't know it by the way it fights. Astronema is Dark Spectre's newest lackey, and she commands the Fortress. She'd followed me, and if it hadn't been for the Earth Rangers doing emergency repairs while I was holding her off, I would have been so much spacedust."

*Or worse, imprisoned, with no one to come to your rescue,* Zhane thought to himself with a shiver. "I owe them, then," he said quietly.

"I've owed them many times since," Andros agreed. "I tried to leave them behind, that first day… but I thought of you, joining me after the first team was dissolved, and DECA talked me into giving them a chance."

"And you haven't regretted it?" Zhane asked, searching his friend's expression.

Andros grinned ruefully. "I regretted it plenty, at first. They were all friends--it felt like me against them for the longest time. But you know what it's like when you have to live with people; you find ways to get along. And finally, I realized they were *trying* to include me… I was the one keeping them away, not the other way around."

Zhane tried not to laugh, but he knew Andros could see his amusement. "And how long did that little realization take you?"

Andros gave him a sheepish look. "I don't know. Maybe a month or so."

This time, Zhane did laugh. "Man, Andros, when are you going to learn that not everyone in the universe is against you? They probably thought you had some kind of superiority complex."

Andros rubbed his thumb against the tree bark uncomfortably. "Well, I might have mentioned once or twice that being a planetbound Ranger wasn't quite the same as a space Ranger."

"As well as rubbing their inexperience in their faces, if I heard correctly," Zhane added with a grin. "'Earth isn't the only place where humans live'?"

Andros looked up at him in surprise. "How did you hear about that?"

"Ashley told me," Zhane said, watching in amusement as his friend groaned.

"She's never going to forget that," Andros muttered. "Not that she should. I was really terrible to them at first, especially her."

"To Ashley?" Zhane asked, surprised. "But you--" He stopped, not entirely sure how to word his question.

Andros seemed to understand anyway. "I liked her," he admitted. "If that's what you meant, yeah--she was so…"

"Innocent?" Zhane suggested softly. That had been his first impression of the new Yellow Ranger, and he could see how the trait might appeal to his battle-hardened friend.

"Yeah," Andros said after a moment. "I guess that's it. I was so--scared for her. All the time. I kept hoping she'd give up and go back to Earth. I was sure she was going to get killed, and that would be my fault too…"

"Andros," Zhane interrupted, leaning forward. "Nothing is your fault. We've discussed this, remember?" he kidded gently.

He saw the corner of Andros's mouth quirk up, and he smiled. "Besides, she's a Power Ranger. Didn't it occur to you that that probably means she can take care of herself?"

Andros offered a one-shouldered shrug but did not otherwise reply, and Zhane suddenly knew what he was thinking. Zhane, too, was a Power Ranger, and though he was alive now, Andros had believed for two years that he had died on KO-35.

"All right, stupid question," he murmured. "Sorry about that."

Andros shook his head. "No, you're right. She *can* take care of herself… but even now, that doesn't stop me from worrying."

Zhane didn't answer for a moment, remembering his own compulsion to follow Andros into battle once the other had begun to use the Red Ranger powers. The urge had not abated once he had his own powers--if anything it had become stronger, and he found himself almost physically unable to watch the other fight alone.

"You never stop worrying," he observed finally, and saw Andros nod in agreement.

"Yeah," he said, staring off into the trees. "If something happened to her…" His voice dropped a little. "I don't know what I'd do."

Zhane watched his preoccupation for a moment, not surprised by the seriousness in his friend's demeanor. They were so opposite. Zhane had flirted with every girl of age in the Kerovan colony, while Andros had to be coaxed into offering a simple smile. But Zhane had always suspected that when and if Andros fell for someone, he would do it all the way.

"Andros?" Zhane whispered into the night, wanting to be sure. "Do you love Ashley?"

Andros's gaze snapped back to his, and the flash of fear in his friend's eyes was answer enough for Zhane. "I do," he answered just as quietly. "I love her--and I have no idea what to do about it."

"Does she know?" Zhane asked after a moment. He remembered the way Ashley had brightened at the mere mention of Andros's name, and he was certain his friend's feelings were not one-sided.

Andros nodded wordlessly.

Zhane waited to see if he would say anything, but his friend remained silent. "I mean, does she *really* know. I know how you are, Andros." He smiled to take any possible sting out of his words. "Have you actually said 'I love you' to her?"

Andros nodded again. "I wish I could say it more," he confessed. "But I'm so *scared* around her…"

He looked at Zhane helplessly. "What would I do if Dark Spectre appeared tomorrow? What if she was killed in battle? What if I lost her--or you… again?" More softly, he repeated, "What would I do?"

*Andros,* Zhane thought firmly, staring at his friend. *That's the risk we take just by *living*. No one knows how long they have, and being a Ranger is no different. Maybe we risk our lives more, but we also have a much better chance of fighting back.*

His friend did not answer, but neither did he look away. *You know you can't live being afraid of what's going to happen tomorrow,* Zhane told him. *You have to just live, and make sure the people you care about know it. Don't try to live without them before they're gone, or you'll miss everything you were living for in the first place.*

Andros just looked at him for a moment longer. *You're right,* he said at last.

*I know,* Zhane assured him with what he suspected was one of his cockier smiles. *Honestly, though, what's the point of worrying about losing something you never let yourself enjoy in the first place?*

Something about that struck home. He could see the flicker of comprehension in Andros's expression, and he smiled again. "So are we going to head back to the Megaship, or what?"

Andros looked surprised. "Are you ready to go? Are you--" he looked suddenly worried again. "Are you even coming?"

Zhane looked around them, imagining he could see through the trees to the outskirts of town. "To be honest," he told his friend, "Rayven is as much my home now as it ever was. It was never the moon, but the company--your company--that made it a place where I belonged. I'm glad we came, but you need to be with your team. And my place is with you… if you'll have me."

"Of course," Andros answered without hesitation. "You remember that promise we made, right?"

How could he not? *We'll vow to fight as a team forever,* he thought at Andros, remembering the first time they'd said those words to each other.

*We'll vow to fight as a team forever,* Andros agreed. *I still mean that, Zhane.*

Andros reached his hand out, and Zhane leaned forward to clasp it. *Me too.*

***

The sun shone down from an alien sky, and the smells on the wind were not those she had been born to. But this was home, and she could barely remember a time when she had lived anywhere else.

"So are you," he said lightly, and the moonlight sparkled in his hazel eyes as he returned her smile. "Are you ready to go?"

The scene shifted again, but this time there was no dream haze to smooth the transition from place to place. She stared into the darkness in confusion for several seconds before she remembered where she was.

Then the sound that had woken her came again, and she caught her breath as she heard Andros's voice saying her name. "Andros?"

But he wasn't there, of course--he had gone to Rayven with Zhane. She sighed, pieces of that dream still lingering in her mind. He had said she should have grown up on KO-35… *What would it have been like, really?* she wondered.

Then, very quietly but just as clearly as two nights before, she heard him say, *I guess she's still asleep.*

She sat up, eyes wide. It wasn't his *voice* she was hearing--it was his thoughts. *Andros?*

*Ash?* She felt something then, something more than his presence but not strong enough to identify. His voice went quiet again, barely more than a whisper, but she could hear the words, *Well, sometimes she's up earlier than the others. How was I supposed to know I'd wake her?*

*What?* Ashley demanded, wondering what was going on. *Who are you talking to?*

Just then, there was a gentle knock on her door. She looked down, straightening her shirt a little and running her hand through her hair. "Come in!"

The door slid open to reveal Andros, looking a little uncertain of his welcome as he peered into the still-dark room.

Ashley's eyes went wide, and she scrambled off her bunk. "Andros!"

She ran over to him and flung her arms around him, feeling him return the hug without hesitation. "I missed you," Andros whispered, and she smiled.

"I missed you too," she murmured, squeezing harder and feeling him instinctively do the same.

Just then, Zhane stepped into her line of sight from the doorway. "Man, you'd think you two had been separated for months," he told them with a grin.

She made a face at him, but didn't let go of Andros. It felt so nice to have him holding her again she thought she might *never* let go--but then the door next to hers slid open, and Carlos poked his head out.

Blinking sleepily at the three in the hallway, he mumbled, "Ash, you never lost that cheerleader shriek, did you?"

Andros pulled away from their embrace, but he left his arm around her waist. Not about to move away, she gave Carlos a sheepish look from her own doorway. "Sorry about that--he surprised me."

"I guessed," Carlos replied dryly, leaning against the doorframe. "Hi Andros; Zhane. Good to have you back."

"Who's back?" another voice slurred, as TJ's door slid open.

He peered down the hall at them, clearly even less awake than Carlos. "What's going on, Ash?"

"Sorry, TJ," she muttered, embarrassed. "Andros is back."

He hesitated in his doorway, rubbing his eyes. "I can see that--sort of. Hi Andros. Ash, some of us were trying to sleep…"

"I said I was sorry," she reminded him, squirming a little.

"I know, I know," he said, stumbling a little as he came out into the hallway. "Just teasing. Hi Zhane."

Zhane watched him with amusement. "You don't wake up very quickly, do you?"

Andros reached over and poked his friend. "You're not one to talk."

Carlos laughed. "At least Zhane's awake."

Zhane smiled, but Andros just rolled his eyes. "That's because it's midmorning on Rayven. And even that's a little early for him--" He cut off as Zhane cuffed him, and he pushed the other Ranger in return.

"Hey," Ashley complained, as the mock-fight made her position--leaning against Andros's side--unstable.

Andros stilled immediately, pulling her closer. "Sorry," he apologized with a smile, and she tilted her head slightly to smile back.

Suddenly she heard, *Can I--may I kiss you, in front of them?*

Startled, she had to remind herself not to nod. *Anytime…*

He leaned forward and kissed her mouth gently. "That was a good apology," she heard Zhane comment, but this time they both ignored him.

"I'm glad you're back," Ashley whispered, as he pulled away.

Carlos cleared his throat. "Well, nice to see you guys again. I think I'll just be going back to bed now."

He backed into his room, but peered out again a second later. "TJ." The Blue Ranger looked up, blinking. "Go back to bed."

TJ squinted at him for a moment. Finally he nodded, mumbling, "See you at breakfast," and wandered back into his room.

Carlos's door slid shut as well, and Ashley gave Zhane a sidelong glance. Andros saw it, and followed her gaze to his best friend.

Zhane held up his hands. "I can take a hint," he assured them, grinning knowingly. "I think I'll just pretend I have something else to do and see you later."

"Breakfast is at seven," Ashley offered, catching Andros's free hand with hers. "I guess you already ate, but you should come just to talk."

Zhane inclined his head. "I will; thank you. Don't have too much fun, you two."

He strolled away, but as he left, Ashley felt the same flicker of added presence in her mind that she had noticed earlier. She looked at Andros questioningly, and found him glaring after his friend.

"What?" she asked, looking in Zhane's direction again.

"Nothing," he muttered, shaking his head.

Suddenly, it clicked. "You were talking to *Zhane* earlier," Ashley exclaimed, then clapped a hand over her mouth, shooting a nervous look after the retreating figure of the Silver Ranger.

Andros frowned, and she continued in a quieter voice, "When you called me a few minutes ago, and you said something about me being asleep. You were talking to Zhane, weren't you?"

"You could *hear* that?" Andros asked, regarding her with surprise.

"Well, no," she said, looking down. "Just your side of the conversation. I didn't even realize it was Zhane you were talking to until just now."

"But you could hear me?" he asked again, and she nodded. He paused a moment, and his eyes got a faraway look. "I'm trying to remember if you should be able to do that," he said with a quirk of his lips when he realized she was waiting.

"Why shouldn't I?" She gave him a curious look.

"Because I wasn't talking to you. I was thinking at Zhane--and if you can't hear him, I don't think you should be able to pick up on my thoughts to him." He looked at her closer. "You're sure you didn't hear Zhane?"

She had to smile at his inspection, as though her features would reveal something she wasn't telling him. "I'm sure," she said, resisting the temptation to kiss him.

Andros frowned again, and this time it was harder to resist. She settled for lifting their clasped hands and kissing his fingers. "So? What did he say?"

Andros shook his head. "It wasn't worth repeating."

"Oh, so he was saying something horrible about me," she teased, and his frown lessened.

"You don't give up, do you?" he asked, a smile threatening to erase the lingering traces of annoyance.

She shook her head, smiling back. "That's how I got you, remember?"

"Thanks for being so persistent," he whispered, leaning forward to kiss her.

She let him do it, but as soon as he drew away, she reminded him, "You were going to tell me what Zhane said."

He groaned. "I'm going to kill him."

She laughed. "Come on," she coaxed. "It can't be that bad."

Andros looked away. "He just said that if we don't have at least a little fun there's something wrong with me because you're too pretty not to," he said in a rush, his voice low.

She couldn't help smiling at his embarrassment. How he had gotten to be friends with someone like Zhane, she had no idea. "Well, I would have said that you're too cute not to, but I guess that would sound strange coming from Zhane."

He glanced back at her with a look of adorable surprise on his face, and she had to kiss him. She leaned forward slowly, meaning to give him plenty of warning, but he tilted his head and met her halfway.

Their lips just barely touched, and she hesitated, waiting to see if he would draw back. When he didn't, she let go of his hand and lifted hers to touch his face. His eyes opened a little, and she let her fingers slide across his jaw and trail down his neck as she kissed him again.

His free hand went around her waist, pulling her closer, and she took it as an invitation to deepen their kiss. She didn't want to alarm him with her aggressiveness, and she *knew* how skittish he was when it came to anything beyond casual touches. But at the same time, she couldn't forget the flicker of passion she'd felt in him two mornings ago when her kiss had ended their tickle fight, and she wanted to feel that again.

He let her kiss him, but in her mind she heard him whisper, *Ash…*

His distress came through loud and clear with that one word, and she pulled away abruptly. She caught his eye, and the shadows there only confirmed what she had heard.

"Andros," she whispered apologetically. "I'm *so* sorry. I promised myself I wouldn't do that--"

"No," he interrupted. The struggle inside him was obvious on his face. "*I'm* sorry--I can't believe you put up with this…"

She put her fingers over his lips. "Shh. I love you, Andros. I love you a little too much, sometimes," she added ruefully. "I can't keep myself from wanting to touch you, but if you don't want to, that's all right."

"I *do* want to," he said with a sigh, taking her hand and kissing her fingers before he drew them away from his mouth. "I just can't turn off the part of me that's still doubting everything. Can you--can you give me just a little longer?"

She smiled at him. "As long as you want."

He just looked at her for a moment, his expression going completely inscrutable. Then, just as she was wondering what he could possibly be thinking, he kissed her. No warning, just his lips pressed against hers with an intensity that took her breath away and the warm feel of his mouth as he let his heart take control of his brain for a moment.

It was a moment that was over far too soon, but it served to remind her of exactly what she was waiting for. His expression was nervous as he pulled away, and she knew that the reserved Andros was back. But that flash of passion reminded her that he felt as deeply as anyone else; he had simply gotten used to hiding it.

"I love you," she said quietly, and his expression cleared.

"I--I love you, too," he replied, with only the briefest hesitation.

*Three,* she counted mentally, smiling up at him. "Come on," she said, linking her arm through his. "You have to tell me everything that happened yesterday."

He let her pull him into her room, but out of the corner of her eye, she saw him wince at the disheveled state of her bed. "I'm sorry I woke you up," he said. "I really didn't mean to."

"It's all right," she assured him, letting go of his arm to go and neaten her bunk a little. "You were in my dream, too, so I guess it was yours to interrupt."

She turned to smile at him over her shoulder and caught his surprised look. "What did you dream about?" he asked, then immediately blushed. "I'm sorry…"

"Don't worry about it," she told him, amused. She couldn't tell if he was apologizing for his curiosity or for what he thought her dream was about. "All I really remember is that we were both kids, on KO-35. It was weird. Nice," she amended, remembering the untroubled smile of his younger self, "but weird."

"Did we--get along?" he wanted to know, and she laughed.

"Of course we got along." Then she paused, turning to walk back toward him. "Actually… I seem to remember something about you knocking me over."

Snatching her brush off her bureau as she passed it, she giggled at his chagrinned expression. Only Andros could take something that happened in a dream so personally. "I must have forgiven you, though, because I think we ended up going out."

He was quiet for a moment. "We haven't done that, have we."

"What?" she asked, not understanding. Tugging the brush through her hair, she tried to loosen the tangles put there by sleep. She didn't want to think about how she looked right now, but she also didn't want Andros to leave, even long enough for her to change.

"Gone on a date," he answered, stepping forward as her brush caught on a particularly stubborn tangle. "Would you--can I help?"

Her heart skipped a beat at his innocent question. "Be my guest," she said, passing him the brush.

"Would you like to?" he asked, coaxing the brush's bristles gently through the tangle. She was amazed at how quickly he got it out, and, distracted by the sensation of his fingers on her hair, she almost forgot the question.

"Go on a date?" Ashley closed her eyes for a second as he started to brush the rest of her hair.

"No, battle the quantrons," he retorted. "Of course, go on a date."

She smiled to herself. "I'd love to."

"Good," he said with a sigh. "I was actually worried there for a moment."

Her breath escaped in an amused huff. "Andros, you can't really have expected me to say no."

"Well," he said, and she knew he had shrugged without having to see him, "I wasn't quite sure enough not to be nervous."

She smiled again, wondering if he had any idea how endearing that sounded. He was still running the brush through her hair, even though she was sure it was once again tangle-free. She wasn't about to complain, though--as far as she was concerned, he could play with her hair for the rest of the morning.

"Did I ever tell you," he said suddenly, "that everything feels better when I'm with you? Even being nervous is kind of nice, as long as it's with you."

"No, you didn't," she said with a happy sigh. "But it's unbelievably sweet of you to say."

"It's true," he insisted, giving up any pretense of brushing her hair and just running his fingers through it over and over again. "I notice it more after being away, I guess. You make everything better."

She turned to face him, and he let his hand fall. "You, too," she said softly. "It wasn't the same without you."

He went to hold her, and she leaned into his embrace, content in his presence once more.