Chapter 4 Differing Opinions

Alyssa had calmed down and stopped crying now, though Cole didn’t let go of her. The whole group was sitting together, surrounding Alyssa with her friends.

"Where did Merrick go?" she asked.

"Tara took him off somewhere." Max offered. "They were talking, then they left."

"They left?" Alyssa repeated.

"Not the Animarium." Cole told her. "They’re still here."

"We are." Tara agreed from behind Alyssa. "We were just checking something."

"Checking what?" Taylor asked. Tara ignored her, kneeling in front of Alyssa.

"Alyssa, you can still morph. Merrick tried, just now, and you can. You can help, if you want."

"Of course I want—but how can I fight? I can’t…" she swallowed heavily.

"The elephant and tiger can fight on their own. Listen, Alyssa. I can’t help, not with this. The Rangers need you."

"Stop." Cole said tightly. "Leave her…"

"I can’t!" Tara exploded. "Cole, I can’t help you. Even by doing this, I am pushing it. You need Alyssa."

"We’ll manage." Taylor’s voice was tight. "Alyssa doesn’t have to…"

"Enough." Shayla’s voice was soft, but it carried over the others. "We will not discuss this now. No, Tara. We have time. Laserorg will not attack again so quickly."

"I have to get back to work." Tara sounded subdued. "I’ll come back this evening."

"I’ll take you." Max offered.

"I want to speak to you first, Tara." Shayla said. Tara nodded and followed Shayla to the edge of the clearing.

Merrick concentrated, filtering out all the other sounds until he could hear them clearly.

"I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset Alyssa." Tara said, before Shayla could say anything. "I just…I want to help, and I can’t. It’s killing me."

"You are helping." Shayla reassured her. "But that’s not what I wanted."

"Oh? What, then, Princess?"

"Merrick tells me you spent the night with him." Shayla said quietly.

"I did." Tara agreed.

"Why?"

"So that someone would be there with him. Merrick is a warrior, Princess. It’s what he has always been, and he relies on his vision. I have seen people go mad for the loss of a sense. I came close myself some years ago. I was not about to let Merrick go through that alone, even if all I could do was let him know he wasn’t alone." Shayla must have moved or spoken, something Merrick didn’t hear, because Tara went on in a totally different tone of voice. "I like Merrick, Princess. But mine is not the heart he treasures. Merrick is yours, now and always. There’s nothing I could do to stop that, even if I wanted to."

"Alyssa told me," Shayla said, obviously picking her words with care, "that you love—true love—only once. And that you have chosen not to."

"Then Alyssa heard me wrong. My love is as true as yours is. Just as strong, just as real. It’s just platonic where yours is romantic. And I have *chosen* not to only because inevitably, whoever I love I will lose. I choose not to spend all my years with my heart broken any more than it is." There was a pause before she went on. "If Merrick were not yours, then yes, I could love him. But there have been so many through my years…Merrick is my friend. That is *all*, Princess."

"I am sorry I upset you." Shayla said quietly.

"We seem to say that a lot, you and I." There was movement for a minute, and then Tara spoke again. "You don’t approve."

"Approve of what?"

"Of how I’m acting towards them."

"I don’t understand why you’re acting that way."

"It’s the right way to act, Princess."

"In your opinion." Shayla said sharply.

"No. Not just…" Merrick could picture her gesturing the way she did when she was searching for words. "OK. When Merrick came back to Willie’s earlier, he sat down first. Then he got up, to go outside. But he wasn’t sure—where the tables and chairs were, how to get out without hitting them. If you’d been there, Princess, you’d have taken his arm and helped him, yes?"

"Of course!" Shayla said quickly.

"Of course." Tara murmured. Raising her voice, she went on, "I told him he wasn’t trying. Then I turned my back on him."

"Why? Why not help him?"

"Because if I’d helped him then, he couldn’t have done it alone the next time. He’d have become accustomed to having the help.

"You speak as though this were permanent." Shayla murmured.

"Permanent or not makes no odds. Not for this."

There was a brief pause before Shayla said, "You’re treating them so differently."

"Merrick doesn’t need as much yelling as Alyssa does." There was faint amusement in Tara’s voice. "He’s already doing things on his own, but it’s for the wrong reasons…and Alyssa’s surrounded by people who are going to tell her to take it easy, relax, don’t worry. That’s not what she needs."

"But you stayed with Merrick all night. I thought that was…"

"To help him. It was. But that’s different. Besides, I’m not sure he’d have had me stay, if I’d given him the choice." There was a pause before she went on, "I make it harder for him. Just by being there, I make it harder…besides I’ve been slightly less help than he needs, really. He may not realize it, but he’s been doing most of the work."

There was a long pause; Tara seemed content to wait this one out, and it was Shayla who finally spoke.

"I don’t approve. But I can’t stop you."

"You could ask me. They’re yours, Princess, I won’t go against that. But I’m right. Please, listen. Alyssa’s still in shock right now, but when she comes out of that, get her back into as regular a routine as you can. Don’t sit her in the corner and feed her soup."

"I…" Shayla’s voice was troubled. "I will think about it."

"The others will fight you on it." Tara warned her. "Except…maybe Taylor."

"What about Merrick?"

Merrick blinked, wondering if he was imagining the bitterness in Shayla’s voice.

"He’s your Protector. You tell me." Tara, on the other hand, was perfectly calm. He wondered, for a minute, if maybe she just didn’t realize what the Princess meant; then he shook his head. She knew perfectly well.

Shayla didn’t answer, and Tara laughed softly. "Merrick’s a warrior, Princess. I think—I hope—that if he knew what I was doing, he’d approve."

"You may be right." Shayla mused.

"I don’t suppose we’ll find out." Tara sounded faintly wistful, but Merrick knew she was right. Neither woman would ever discuss this with him, and if he brought it up Tara would stare blankly at him and manage, without saying it, to imply she had no idea what he was talking about. And the Princess would just deny it point blank.

Someone moved away—Tara, he thought, listening: Tara’s footsteps were oddly arhythmical—and went past him towards the clearing. He waited until Shayla came back to rise to his feet.

"Merrick." she said, sounding faintly surprised. "Were you listening?" He nodded.

"Forgive me. But…she has helped me."

"It’s all right, Merrick." Shayla said, gripping his arm to guide him back into the courtyard.

"She would not have said that if she’d known I was listening." Merrick offered.

"I think she would." Shayla’s voice was wry. "Tara is not above meddling."

"She’s trying to help." Alyssa’s voice was unexpected and Merrick jerked slightly, throwing Shayla off-balance.

"I’m sure she is." Merrick retorted, steadying Shayla. "That doesn’t give her the right to interfere."

"She’s not interfering in anything." Alyssa protested. "She’s just…talking."

"How are you feeling?" Merrick asked, hunkering in front of her again.

"Blind." Alyssa muttered.

"Besides that."

"I’m not sure yet." Merrick nodded.

"You’re probably still in shock. Don’t worry about anything yet."

"Merrick?" Alyssa caught his hand, pulling him closer. "What Tara said…"

"Tara’s not thinking clearly right now." Merrick interrupted her. "Don’t worry about it."

"But she…"

"But she nothing. Alyssa, we don’t need to worry about it now, all right? We’ll talk about it when she comes back." Cole said quietly. Alyssa nodded, leaning back against Cole again and letting go of Merrick.

"I guess I’m not thinking very clearly either, huh?"

"No one’s expecting you to." Cole said reassuringly.

"Merrick is." she muttered.

"I am?" Merrick said, pausing in the act of standing up. "Thinking clearly, or expecting you to think clearly?"

"Thinking clearly. You’re not even bothered. I heard you earlier…no one’s even helping you around. I can’t even stand up on my own."

"Ah. That." Merrick said.

"Yeah. That." Merrick rose to his feet.

"You could do that…it’s nothing more than listening and paying attention. "

"I’d rather not have to do it." Alyssa murmured, sounding very young.

"We’ll get him." Cole promised her. "All right? I promise we’ll get him."

******************************************************************************

The group sat, mostly in silence, for the afternoon. Every so often, someone started talking; but the silence was too heavy to be easily broken, and every conversation petered out.

It was mostly evening when Cole jerked, waking Alyssa from her doze.

"What’s wrong?" she asked, sitting upright.

"Nothing. Max? Could you go get Tara? She’s waiting where you let her off this afternoon."

"Sure." Max rose and left the clearing.

"Sorry, Alyssa." Cole went on. "I didn’t mean to disturb you."

" ‘Sis ok." Alyssa leaned back against him. "Does she do that often?"

"Hardly ever. She just doesn’t have another way to get here." His next words were much softer—for Alyssa alone, Merrick surmised, and stopped listening. After a moment Cole stood and moved towards the edge of the clearing, intercepting Max and Tara as they arrived.

"Tara. Talk to you for a second?"

"Sure. Just hang on a second." She must have turned to face them; her voice was clearer when she spoke again. "I talked to the doctors in the hospital—they’re treating the civilians who got caught earlier. There’s nothing wrong with your eyes; Laserorg’s somehow blocking the impulses from your eyes to your brains."

"So?" Merrick asked.

"So, Merrick, when you defeat him you’ll be back to normal." Alyssa sighed, relieved.

"Good."

"OK, Cole?" Tara asked.

"Yeah. Come on."

"Cole." Merrick called, rising to his feet.

"Yeah?" Merrick took a couple of steps towards him and halted. A moment later Cole’s hand touched his arm, guiding him out of the clearing with Tara behind.

******************************************************************************

"Where are they going?" Taylor demanded, watching the three leave.

"Cole wants to talk to Tara." Alyssa said.

"So why is Merrick going?" Danny asked. Alyssa shook her head.

"Cole didn’t say anything about Merrick." Raised voices could be heard.

"I can’t hear." Max complained.

"Possibly that’s why they’re out there rather than in here where you could hear." Taylor reminded him.

"Oh. Yeah." Max wandered away. Alyssa sighed, turning her head in the direction Cole had gone.

"Miss him already, huh?" Taylor asked quietly.

"Am I that obvious?" Alyssa asked.

Before Taylor could answer, the fountain bubbled.

"Princess Shayla?" Taylor was on her feet; Alyssa struggled upwards.

"It’s Laserorg. Cole?" Shayla paused for a minute before going on, "Laserorg’s in the city."

Everyone’s growlphone went off at once; Alyssa fumbled hers open to hear Cole order tersely, "I’ll be there in a minute. Princess Shayla, don’t let Alyssa…"

"I can hear you." Alyssa interrupted him.

"Good. Stay there."

"No way."

"He’s right." Tara’s voice was breathless and hard to make out. "I was wrong before, Alyssa. I’m sorry for what I said. Please stay here with me."

"Is Merrick staying?" Alyssa demanded. She lowered her growlphone as they entered the courtyard; the lack of a response from anyone was enough. "Then I’m not staying either."

"Merrick’s an idiot." Tara muttered. "Alyssa, if you go I’m going to have to go as well."

"Neither of you are going." Cole said.

"I am." Alyssa said stubbornly.

"I can protect us, Cole…I can’t protect you, but if we’re far enough from the fight I can protect us." Tara put in.

"Cole, we don’t have time." Taylor muttered.

"I’m a Power Ranger." Alyssa said quickly. "And you’ll need the Zords."

"Merrick?" Cole asked. Merrick just shook his head. Cole shook his head ruefully.

"All right. You’ll keep them safe, Tara?"

"I will."