"Zhane said that?" Ashley murmured, letting Andros draw her away from the volleyball game. She did her best not to glance over her shoulder.

"Surprised?" Andros asked, sounding amused by her reaction.

"No, of course not." His hand slid down her arm to take her hand, and she smiled. "Well, maybe a little," she admitted. "I didn't expect him to be concerned for Saryn."

"I think he's trying not to be overwhelmed himself," Andros confided, and he *did* glance over his shoulder. "That's why he recognized it in Saryn. But Zhane's always been good at adapting to situations."

"And he's more social than either of you," Ashley teased, squeezing his hand. "Zhane makes friends instantly, no matter where he is."

"Like you," Andros said fondly, leaning over to kiss her on the cheek.

She shrugged. "Character trait," she informed him. "Some people are just like that."

"And the rest of us are just attracted to people like that." He smiled when she looked at him in surprise, and she couldn't help giggling.

"Lucky for us," she agreed, swinging their clasped hands happily. "Hey--" She broke off, frowning as they approached the picnic blanket. "Did we, or did we not, tell everyone to pick up their stuff?"

"You did," Andros said. "I think I was too busy making fun of Zhane to pay attention."

She laughed, shaking her head. "You shouldn't be so mean to him; you'll scare him away from her."

"I don't think there's much chance of that," Andros said wryly. "And believe me, he deserves it. You have no idea how much grief he gave me over you those first weeks."

She dropped down onto the edge of the blanket and glanced casually back toward the volleyball game. Zhane was trying, for maybe the third time, to explain what were and were not considered appropriate serving and hitting techniques to Kerone.

Somehow, Ashley didn't think Andros' sister was having half as much trouble with the concept as she pretended. But every time she complained, Zhane would call a halt to the game and demonstrate serving, setting, or bumping for her again. It was funny how he was always the first one to volunteer, especially considering how many of those demonstrations seemed to require him to put his arms around her.

"I think you're right," she said, as Carlos complained about the delay and Zhane completely ignored him. "It doesn't seem to be stopping him."

Andros sat down beside her, just as Carlos accused Zhane of postponing their inevitable victory. "Nothing does," he said, his gaze turning in their direction as well.

"Part of his charm?" Ashley suggested with a smile, and Andros nodded.

"Although I wouldn't have said 'charm'," he added a moment later.

Ashley giggled. "I knew what you meant."

They watched in silence for a few minutes, as Zhane's team proceeded to score two more points before being defeated by Cassie's "spike"--an interesting feat, in a game without a net. There seemed to be some indecision about whether to play again, until Ashley realized that they were just trying to switch teams in some way that would keep things even.

She frowned a little as TJ once more invited Saryn to join them, and the other politely declined. Saryn was sitting closer to the game than they were, alone beneath a tree whose branches reached almost to the water's edge. "Are you sure we should just leave him there?" she whispered.

Andros followed her gaze. "Yeah," he said quietly. "He knows he can come join us if he wants to, and if he was really upset, I think he'd try to leave. Zhane's probably right; he *does* just want to be alone for a while."

"Alone, with all the rest of us?"

He smiled a little. "There's a difference between being by yourself and being alone," he observed. "He just got thrown into the middle of Earth culture for only the third or fourth time, and believe me, it can be overwhelming. I think he needs time to figure out how to react."

She paused, looking sideways at him. "Is it strange to suddenly be the adjusted one?" she asked, only half joking.

His expression was surprised. "What?"

"For the longest time, it was us helping you get used to things here," she said idly, watching the breeze stir his loose hair. "Now you're trying to help them--Saryn, and Zhane, and Kerone."

His eyes darted back toward the volleyball game. "Was I as bad as Saryn?"

She tried not to smile at the barely restrained dismay in his tone. "Yes," she said honestly. "But we didn't care. You were worth it."

He turned to her with a smile, and she reached out to pull him close enough to kiss. He leaned into her willingly, sliding an arm around her shoulders and opening his mouth to hers. She forgot the rest of the sheltered beach for a moment, melting into the kiss.

She didn't forget what he had said about control the night before, though, and she pulled away just before she thought he would have. "You're a good kisser," she murmured breathlessly, and he smiled.

"Lots of practice," he whispered.

"All with me?" she teased gently.

His hazel eyes stared into hers, and his innocent question made her smile in return. "Why would I want anyone else?"

***

"In!"

"Oh, it was not," Karen shot back good-naturedly. "See this line here? It has to be on *this* side to be in."

"It *was* on that side!" Carlos exclaimed. "You're experiencing selective blindness!"

"You must be near-sighted--how could you possibly tell from way over there?"

"It was out," Zhane broke in, turning to Cassie for support. "It's our serve!"

"It wasn't out!" TJ protested, but Cassie interrupted before he could continue.

"TJ, they're called rules! This side is in, and that one's out--Tessa, which side was the ball on?"

"It looked like it was out, to me," she admitted, and TJ laughed at her.

"Tessa, you're not supposed to be *honest*. You hit it, so it was in. Got it?"

"It's four against two," Cassie declared. "That was out!"

"Your serve," Karen said with a grin, tossing the ball to her.

"It's Zhane's," Carlos corrected, from the other side of their "court", but Zhane shook his head and waved his turn off to Cassie.

"Don't be silly," she said, laughing at his gesture. "You serve better than me; get over here."

"Nope," he insisted cheerfully. "I'll enjoy watching you serve more than I would doing it myself."

"Oh!" Karen exclaimed. "No sexual harassment on the court!"

"This isn't law school!" TJ reminded them. "Serve the ball!"

"Here, I'll help you," Zhane said, with a devilish grin. He went over and grabbed the ball from her, stepping around behind her and putting his right arm under hers.

Some distance away, Saryn closed his eyes and let his head rest against the tree he sat beneath. He didn't want to watch, but he had to. She was right when she said his jealousy was unfounded, and these were her *friends*--of course they would be... comfortable with each other.

And Zhane was that way more than the rest of them, he thought, trying desperately to suppress a flash of irritation. The fact that Kerone didn't seem to mind only added weight to Cassie's assertion that he *shouldn't* feel like this. Was it possible that he really didn't trust her, and he just couldn't admit it to himself?

The music of Cassie's laughter found its way across the beach to him. It was a sound he had delighted in many times, and only now did he realize that he hadn't heard it in several days. Unwillingly, he opened his eyes and followed her giggles to their source.

She was doubled over, leaning on Zhane, who ostensibly was making attempts to help her up. His eyes narrowed, watching the Silver Ranger's hands slide across Cassie's waist as she clutched at his arms and tried to straighten up.

"How was I supposed to know you're ticklish?" Zhane demanded good-naturedly, which only set her off into another round of giggles.

"Hey, some of us are trying to play a volleyball game here," TJ told them, and Cassie stuck her tongue out in his direction.

"The rest of us are trying to have fun!" Zhane shot back, and Karen laughed.

"It's supposed to be the same thing, Zhane," she reminded him.

"I think they want us to serve," Zhane told Cassie, and she grinned.

"We'd better, because I've almost reached my maximum sun tolerance." She pushed her long hair back over her shoulders again and shifted to resume her "serving" stance. "If this game goes much longer, I'm going to get burned."

"We can't have that!" Zhane exclaimed in mock-horror. "We'll have to win quickly!"

"Shut up and serve!" was Carlos' retort.

Cassie giggled again, and Saryn's heart ached. He was trying, but he still couldn't remember when he had last heard her laugh. Not since last weekend, surely.

"You hold the ball," Zhane was telling her. She took it, and his left hand settled on her hip as he wrapped his arm around her and stepped closer. "On three?"

Saryn wanted to close his eyes again, wanted not to see this. They were pressed against each other, and Cassie's obvious delight was a bittersweet thing to watch. He was blocking her awareness out of his mind as best he could, and could only hope it was working to keep her from sensing his emotions as well.

His whole body was stiff with tension, and he had long since stopped trying to make himself relax. He couldn't control this. There was simply no way to do it. But he *would* deal with it; he had to. He forced himself to watch as Zhane took Cassie's right hand and started to count.

When he reached three, Cassie let go of the ball and they swung their joined hands at it. The ball's wobbling trajectory sent it across the sandy line--barely--and Cassie looked over her shoulder to catch Zhane's eye. He grinned at her, holding her hand above her head and letting her spin out from under his arm.

"That never would have gone over if we had a net!" Carlos complained, lunging after the ball.

Peripherally, Saryn saw Karen leap forward to intercept the beach ball's return course. But all he could focus on was that image of Zhane and Cassie together, her turning to him with a smile and seeing it mirrored on his face.

Something in him was dangerously close to snapping, and he didn't dare push it any further. He couldn't watch this anymore. No matter what Cassie said, he couldn't watch her with someone else and be happy. A failing on his part, obviously, but if he didn't leave now there would be nothing left of his heart.

Leaning forward, he was about to get to his feet when movement behind him got his attention. "Drink?" Andros' sister offered, dropping to the ground beside him and passing him a water bottle.

Startled, he could only stare at her. He hadn't even noticed when she left the game. "No--thank you," he managed at last. "I was just--"

"Leaving?" she suggested. "Don't; I won't have anyone to talk to."

He blinked, uncertain what to make of that. Her statement was half-command, half-plea, and he could not understand why she had picked him, of all people, to talk to.

"I will stay if you wish," he said reluctantly. She tilted the water bottle in reminder and he reached up to take it, embarrassed to realize his fingers were clenched into tight fists.

"I do," she said. "I feel like I don't know you at all. We've seen so little of each other, on the Megaship."

He twisted the cap off the water bottle and looked at it for a moment, studiously avoiding the scene in front of him. "I have not been on the Megaship very much, of late."

"No," she agreed. "The Phantom Ranger's life is a busy one, it seems."

He lifted the water bottle, but as soon as he tilted his head he saw Cassie crash into Zhane in what turned out to be a futile attempt to return Tessa's set. His arm went around her automatically, steadying her before she stepped away, and suddenly it was all Saryn could do to swallow.

"Yes," he said shortly, replacing the cap and setting the water bottle on the sand next to him. "If you will excuse me--"

"I won't." The sudden authority in her voice made him pause, and she turned to give him a level stare. "We're teammates, now, whether you like it or not. If you won't tell me about yourself, then I will tell you something about me."

Her tone reminded him of who she used to be, and he felt a flare of curiosity. He didn't appreciate being ordered around--did *everyone* feel the need to order him into things today?--but he couldn't deny that the princess of evil had insight he might, at almost any other time, have found interesting.

"I was kidnapped before I was old enough to remember properly," she said, not waiting for his reply. "I was told I had no family anymore, that Power Rangers had killed them all and that my home had been destroyed. Needless to say, I didn't respond very well."

He stared at her, shocked into listening.

"It fell to Ecliptor to raise me," she continued. "He came to care for me, and he worried about the safety of a small human girl in the middle of Dark Spectre's monarchy. He called in a favor from a friend he had made longer ago than he would tell me, and suddenly I found myself with something to occupy me. The beginning of my sorcery," she elaborated, as though she did not expect him to make the connection.

He hadn't, and he wondered at her use of the words "care" and "friend" in reference to Ecliptor. He had never thought of the dark being as anything more than a villain to be outwitted--a dangerously intelligent villain, and one unfailingly loyal to Astronema, but a villain nonetheless. Villains, in his experience, did not care for anyone.

He didn't even notice when she picked up his water bottle and unscrewed the cap, and she continued talking as though she had rehearsed a speech for him. "I turned myself into a sorceress who could do more than just protect herself, as I'm sure you noticed. I used my magic, and the power I began to accumulate, to hunt down Power Rangers. They had destroyed my family, and I wanted to destroy them in return.

"Of course it didn't happen that way," she added, raising the water bottle to her lips and taking a casual swallow. "Dark Spectre doesn't allow personal vendettas to interfere with the running of his forces, and before long, I was being promoted higher and higher--mostly to keep me out of trouble."

She shrugged then, as though the story didn't really affect her one way or another. "I assume you can guess the rest. From the Dark Fortress, I met Zhane, and I learned the truth about what had happened to me. I broke away from evil and rejoined the family I had thought was gone."

It was a moment before he realized that she would say nothing more. "It is certainly not so easy as you make it sound," he said, trying to comprehend what she had told him. "You do not simply 'break away' from evil."

She smiled a little, a friendly smile that took him by surprise on a face that he still associated with Astronema. "We do what we have to. Do you believe in fate?"

He frowned, not sure how to answer that. An exclamation from the others' game diverted his attention momentarily, and he glanced over in time to see Tessa helping TJ to his feet. "Gravity always wins," she was telling him. "Remember that."

On the other side of the imaginary net, Cassie was laughing at her friend's predicament. A breeze off the water tugged at her hair, making it ripple behind her, and he sighed. "Yes," he admitted. "In some things, I do."

"So do I," she told him, holding out her hand. She turned it palm up and studied it for a moment, and he found his gaze drawn back to her by the strange gesture. "Andros tells me our parents always used to look at our hands and tell us stories about the people we were going to be," she said. "The funny thing is, everything he remembers them saying has come true."

"Like what?" he felt compelled to ask.

"That we were both strong, and that we would be able to overcome anything that happened to us," she said with a smile. "That we were both leaders, and that we would never be able to love anyone we didn't respect. And that we were meant to bring people together."

He looked down at her hand inadvertently, and she actually laughed. "Here, give me your hand. I'll show you how to do it."

"You know?" he asked, surprised. "I thought your parents--"

"Andros knows more than me," she said, reaching for his hand. "But it's funny what you remember from childhood. I barely remember Zhane from back then, even though he says we knew each other for years, but I remember what the lines on my hand mean."

She turned his hand over, and he tried to relax his fingers. He was a little surprised that she had managed to distract him so thoroughly. He couldn't quite forget the game taking place nearby, but he managed to some extent to ignore it.

"See this?" she said, tracing a line that started between his thumb and first finger and extended down to his wrist. "That's your life line. See how it's sort of frayed, here and here, and it's not very deep? You're looking for a purpose, not sure of what you really want. Here, mine hasn't changed much since I was Astronema--look."

She held out her own hand, and pointed to the corresponding line on her palm. "I knew--or thought I knew--exactly what I was fighting for, and where I was going. All my energy was focused into one thing, and it shows. My life line is really strong, and it only splits a little here at the end."

"It... changes?" he asked, puzzled by her reference to her time as Astronema. "It will be different, now that you are different?"

She shrugged. "Some. Major changes in your life, or the person you are, really don't happen that often. But when they do, yeah, the lines change."

She titled her head to look at his hand again and smiled suddenly. "You have an inner life line, too. Not everyone does." She reached out and ran a finger over a line almost parallel to his "life line".

He heard Cassie's voice ring out, announcing the score for their game, and he tried not to listen. "What does it mean?"

"It means you're not exactly what you seem," she said, and he thought suddenly that she was trying not to laugh at him. "I suppose that's to be expected. The Phantom Ranger doesn't even have a face, let alone a past, or a personality."

He raised an eyebrow, wondering if that was an insult or simply a statement of fact. "As it was intended."

She nodded once, but her smile didn't fade. "I assumed so. It's easier to fight like that. But it's almost impossible to live that way.

"Is this the hand you usually use?" she asked, and he blinked at the non sequitur.

"No." He held out his right hand, and she glanced at it.

"See, that's another way to tell. Your hands are different."

He frowned. "What do you mean?"

"The lines on your right hand are different from the lines on your left," she elaborated. "The hand you use shows what you let other people see, and the hand you don't use is who you really are. Your life line is much stronger on your right hand," she added.

He looked down, surprised. His palms did look different. He had never thought about it before.

"Mine are different too," she said, holding both her hands out for him to look at. "And so are Zhane's, I bet. But you and I have both had to show a certain face to the universe, and a lot of times that makes people develop two sides to their personality."

"And Zhane?" he asked, lifting his head to look at her.

"Zhane's just really bad at expressing his feelings," she said, with the hint of a smile.

"Funny," she added, glancing back at his hands before he could react to that. "Your heart line is much fainter on your right hand."

"My... heart line?" he repeated, not sure he wanted to know.

"Right here," she said, tracing a line on his left palm. "See how it goes almost all the way across your hand? But over here--" she reached out and took his right hand, pointing to a short slash above his life line. "It starts later, and it barely reaches the middle of your hand."

He stared down at his hand, refusing to ask what it meant. Not when he already knew, and just didn't want to hear her say it.

She laughed softly. "It's all right," she said, turning her favored hand over again for him to see. "I don't even have one on my left hand, and *everyone* has a heart line."

He didn't realize he had sighed until she reached out to touch his shoulder. "It doesn't mean you *can't* show your feelings," she said quietly. "It just means you don't, so much."

He winced as he heard Zhane shout Cassie's name from further down the beach, and his gaze shifted unwillingly in their direction. "Sometimes, I wish I did not *feel* so much," he muttered.

She followed his gaze. "You wish you didn't love her?"

"No," he said, startled and a little uncomfortable to be telling her. "I wish... I trusted her more."

She looked at him oddly. "You don't trust her?"

He almost didn't answer, but she had told him so much of her own life, with no prompting from him. And what little of his empathy was not caught up in the struggle to block Cassie told him that she was only curious, that there was no malicious intent behind the question.

"I thought I trusted her," he admitted quietly. "But I am not--content to watch her, when she is with others."

She asked frankly, "Jealous?"

He sighed. He was beginning to hate that word.

"It doesn't mean you don't trust her," she said, frowning slightly. She was silent for a moment, and he found himself watching her as she considered his words.

Finally, she told him, "Andros says jealousy is part of loving. When you care for someone, it's natural to be afraid of losing them. I guess it's kind of a compliment, even, to say that you love a person so much that you're scared to be without them."

"It is selfish," he said uncertainly.

"Maybe," she answered, tucking her hair behind her ear. "So what? Emotions aren't good or evil, you know. I should be proof of that. They're just whatever you make of them."

"Cassie does not see it that way," he said, trying not to sigh again.

She looked at him intently. "Does she know how it feels?"

Surprised, he looked up and caught her eye. "Of course. She must."

"Why? No one even knows who you are except our teammates, and there's no threat there, at least to her. What makes you think Cassie understands how you feel?"

"I can't be her first--"

"Kerone." Cassie's voice startled him, for he had been distracted enough that he didn't even notice her approach. "Saryn. Hi."

"Hi," Andros' sister said with a smile, but before she could say anything else, Cassie interrupted again.

"What are you talking about?"

"Relationships," Kerone said honestly. She made no move to stand up. "So who won?"

"Your team," Cassie told her. When Kerone did not reply, she added, "I think Zhane wants to talk to you."

Kerone's lips curved, and she murmured, "I'm sure he does." She gave Saryn an encouraging pat on the shoulder before getting to her feet. Stretching slowly, she glanced around for Zhane.

Spotting him over by the blanket with Carlos, she wandered in that direction. She was no more than three steps away when Cassie put her hands on her hips and stared down at him. "What was *that* about?"

He looked up, puzzled by her reaction. "Kerone was explaining--"

"Kerone?" Cassie repeated. "You never call her Kerone!"

"It is her name," he said simply. It was true he had tried to avoid using it in the past, for he had difficulty accepting that her time as Astronema was over. But if their conversation was any indication, she had most certainly put that life behind her. "Kerone was explaining some of her people's beliefs to me."

"She was *flirting* with you!" Cassie burst out.

"She was not," he said, startled. He could feel the jealousy inside him flare again, and he pushed harder against the block. To his shock, reestablishing the block between them helped, and his eyes widened as he realized that he was feeling *her* jealousy, not his.

"Oh, she definitely was." Cassie's expression was distinctly upset now. "You were holding hands! She shared her drink with you, and she kept touching your arm, and with the way you were staring at each other..." She trailed off, glaring down at him and clearly waiting for an explanation.

He glanced over his shoulder, toward the picnic blanket, and saw Kerone watching them. When he caught her eye, she winked at him and turned away.

"I did not realize you were watching so closely," he said slowly, not sure what to think. It had not even occurred to him that Kerone was "flirting", and he had had even less idea of her doing it for just this purpose.

He heard her words again--"Does she know how it feels?"--and he frowned up at Cassie. "Are you--jealous of her?"

She blinked, and her expression smoothed over a little. "Of course not. I just want to know why you two are suddenly so friendly. You've barely even talked to Kerone for the last two weeks. Why now?"

"Because she is an interesting person," he replied, watching her reaction closely. "I suspect I was wrong about her. She is certainly not evil."

Cassie frowned, and he hesitated. What Kerone had done was wrong--there was nothing between the two of them, and to imply that there was to Cassie was not appropriate. But...

"She seems very friendly," he added, before he could stop himself. "I would like to know her better than I do."

Her expression darkened, and her feelings surged against his block, completely overwhelming it. He winced at the onslaught, pressing his fingers against his temples in a futile effort to separate their emotions.

"I'm sure she'd be happy to tell you more," Cassie muttered, and he could no longer tell which of them was more upset.

"Stop it," he growled, glaring up at her. "You are doing exactly what you accused me of!"

"I am not," she snapped. "She obviously can't keep her hands off you, and you didn't seem to mind much!"

"That is ridiculous! I wish us to be *friends*, nothing more!" Provoked, he added, "You and Zhane were far closer than that while you were playing 'volleyball'."

"Zhane's *like* that," she insisted. "Kerone isn't. I don't want to see her around you like that!"

His eyes narrowed, and he got to his feet deliberately. Now he was looking down at *her*, and he ground out, "I may be, to a large extent, ignorant of your world and your traditions. But you will *not* tell me what I may and may not do!"

"If she'd stay away from you, I wouldn't have to!"

"Don't you trust me?" He threw her own words back in her face, getting a perverse satisfaction from seeing her flinch. "If you did, you would have no reason to worry!"

Her eyes flashed, and she opened her mouth to reply--

Then she spun away, her hair swinging free across her back as she walked away. The angry set of her slim shoulders made his fists clench--what right did *she* have to be angry?

He reached for his ruby without conscious thought, and the world washed away in fiery crimson.

***

Andros stared after Cassie's retreating figure, then glanced over at Ashley. Her eyes were wide as she gazed back at him, and the group gathered around the picnic blanket was uncharacteristically silent.

Cassie and Saryn had been far enough away that they had had some privacy, but as their voices got louder it became obvious that they were arguing. Andros had tried to ignore them, but when they started to shout at each other it became next to impossible.

The strained conversation by the blanket finally halted altogether as the rest of the team exchanged glances. Cassie and Saryn had never fought, to his knowledge, and it was more than a little unsettling.

When the two took off in opposite directions, no one said anything for a long moment. Finally, TJ cut into the quiet. "I'll go after her."

"No," Ashley said, shaking her head at him. "I... don't think that's a good idea. Maybe we should give them some time to calm down."

"Fine by me," Carlos agreed quickly. "I've never seen them fight like that."

"I've never seen them *fight*," TJ said, echoing Andros' thought. "What was that about?"

Kerone shifted uncomfortably. "I'm afraid it may be my fault," she admitted quietly.

To Andros' surprise, Zhane spoke up, and his tone was thoughtful in a way it usually wasn't around the rest of the team. "That wasn't about you," he said slowly. "I think that's come up before, just... never so strongly."

"You didn't help," Ashley said with a small smile. " 'I'll help you serve'? What was that?"

Kerone gave him a pointed look, and Zhane almost looked embarrassed. "Don't you know a joke when you see one?"

Quiet fell again, and no one seemed inclined to break it this time. Finally, Andros caught Ashley's eye again and asked silently, *Should we stay, or go?*

She frowned a little. *I guess there's not really anything we can do...*

"Why don't we stay here for a while, and see if Cassie comes back," Ashley offered aloud. "If she's not back in half an hour, I'll go after her and see if she wants to talk."

Kerone sighed. "I shouldn't have tried to interfere," she said quietly. "I didn't know enough about the situation to get involved."

"No--" Ashley put an arm around her shoulders and gave her a quick hug. "You meant well, and you didn't do anything wrong. It was nice of you to want to help."

Andros felt a smile tug at his lips as he watched, and he saw Kerone catch his eye over Ashley's shoulder. She smiled tentatively in return, and in his mind he heard, *You have a nice girlfriend, Andros.*

*I know. I have a nice sister, too.*

Her smile was more sure of itself then, and it probably helped when TJ added, "They weren't fighting over you, they were fighting over each other. It wasn't your fault, Kerone."

"It wasn't anyone's fault," Ashley said firmly. "We'll just have to let them work it out."

She glanced around then and frowned. "Where's the sunscreen?"

Andros tried not to smile at her abrupt annoyance, but he couldn't help it. Carlos laughed, although whether at her question or Andros' reaction, it was impossible to tell.

"Next to the cooler, where you left it?" he suggested.

Ashley rolled her eyes. "Do you *see* it next to the cooler?"

Karen reached down and flipped the cooler top over, revealing the sunscreen underneath.

"Oh," Ashley said brightly. "Thanks!"

"Saw you put it there," Karen said with a grin.

"Can I borrow some of that?" Tessa asked.

"What, are you planning to give it back afterwards?" TJ teased, and she made a face at him.

"Is anyone going swimming?" Carlos wanted to know, and Karen glanced over at him.

"Why am I putting on sunscreen, if not to go swimming?"

He pretended to think about it. "Oh, I don't know--so you won't get sunburned?"

Kerone sat down on the blanket, and Andros' eye was immediately drawn to her. "Do you want to swim?" he asked, sitting down beside her.

She shook her head a little, and he glanced over at Ashley. She looked up as he did, and he tried not to be distracted by her activity. Watching someone put sunscreen on, he decided, was not conducive to serious thought, especially when that someone was your girlfriend.

"I think I'll stay--" he began, but Kerone gave him a gentle shove.

"Oh, don't be silly, Andros," she said. "Zhane isn't going either; I'll have plenty of company."

Andros looked up at his friend in surprise, and Zhane shook his head. "Nope," he said cheerfully. "I figure after sneaking onto the Dark Fortress last night, which probably took about ten years off my life, I deserve a break."

"As though you had the hard part," Kerone remarked. "You just had to crash. I had to rescue you and then put up with you following me around."

TJ snickered, obviously overhearing. "That's enough to wear anyone out," he agreed.

Zhane sighed dramatically. "I get no respect!"

"You crashed?" Tessa asked.

"Here," Andros offered, getting to his feet as Ashley reached across her bare shoulders. "Let me help." She held out her hand willingly and he scooped some of the sunscreen up, rubbing it into her back carefully.

*You're hopeless,* Zhane informed him, taking his place beside Kerone.

"Long story," he added, turning his head in Tessa's direction.

"I'll tell you," TJ offered. "Do you want to go for a walk?"

"Sure," she said, tilting her head up to cover her neck with sunscreen up to the line of her t-shirt. "I burn so quickly--I put sunscreen on before I came and I'm probably sunburned already anyway..."

"Nope," TJ said, interrupting her complaint with a quick kiss. "You look fine."

"Just fine?" she asked, and even Andros heard the mischief in her voice.

"Beautiful," he amended.

"All right, we can go then," she told him with a smile.

*I'm sure that's good enough, Andros,* Ashley said, startling him, and he tried not to blush.

*Sorry,* he apologized, letting his hands fall at last.

She just giggled and turned around to look at him. *Don't apologize; I think it's cute.*

"Have fun," Carlos said wryly, taking Karen's hand as they headed for the water. "Remember you were planning to go swimming."

Ashley wrinkled her nose at his back, and Andros smiled. *You're cute when you do that, you know.*

*You're cute when you smile,* she replied immediately, and his smile widened.

*You're cute all the time.*

She sighed in mock-exasperation. *It's always a competition with you, isn't it?*

*You're just mad you can't beat "all the time",* he told her, leaning forward to kiss her gently. *And it's the truth.*

She sighed again as he pulled away, but this time it was a happy sound. He glanced over her shoulder, suddenly remembering his sister and Zhane, but they were both staring out at the lake--probably absorbed in their own silent conversation, he thought, with some amusement.

*Andros?* Ashley asked, a curious look on her face. *This is going to sound strange, but... do you trust me?*

He recognized the reference to the fight they had overheard, and his lips quirked a little. *With my life--and my heart,* he said simply.

She laid her head against his shoulder, and he hugged her tightly. Her mental voice was content as she answered, *I trust you with mine, too.*