The Tainted and the Broken- Part 5
Author: dream-edge
Title: The Tainted and the Broken
Summary: In an effort to protect Ziggy, Dillon is thrown into te future. A future where everything he knows is drastically different. During his struggle to get home, he finds himself drawn into the twisted, broken mess his best friend has become.
Rating: T
Pairings: Dillon/Ziggy, Doctor K/Tenaya
Disclaimer: I do not own the Power Rangers or anything related to the franchise.
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
The Tainted and the Broken
Chapter 5
Dillon's sleep was short-lived that night. He woke up early, about half-an-hour before the sun rose and got dressed, leaving his room. He passed the door to what he now knew to be Ziggy's room, pausing to stare at it. There was no light showing from between the door and the floor so he assumed the younger man was still asleep. He was glad for that; Ziggy needed the rest.
He walked down to the lower level, surprised to see a light coming from the kitchen. He walked towards it, blinking against the harsh florescent as he stared at the young woman sitting at the counter. "Hey Doc." he greeted, making the light blue eyes rise to stare at him. "What are you doing up?"
Kat smiled slightly. "Couldn't sleep." she whispered. He nodded in understanding. "Yeah, that's going around." he agreed. She snorted in amusement and told him, "I've been going over the data recorded during the shift 4 tests on Sunday. I haven't been able to do anything with the data till now because you arrived."
"That's what Ziggy and Gem were doing when I first saw them wasn't it?" He asked, remembering the image of a gold fighter plane flying through the sky when he had woken up three days ago. She nodded in agreement, her eyes falling down again. He finally noticed the small data pad lying on the counter in front of her, the screen displaying numerous statistics. She caught his staring and spun it towards him, explaining the system to him.
He got so involved in it that he didn't realize someone else had joined them till Kat turned her head, smiling softly. "I thought you were asleep." she whispered warmly. He turned his head as well to see his sister leaning against the door frame, staring in at them with tired eyes. Tenaya was wearing a loose white undershirt and very small purple shorts which revealed nearly the entire length of her legs. She smiled at them, walking forward to wrap her arms around Kat's waist.
"I was." She whispered softly, her voice coated in affection. "But then you were gone." Tenaya nuzzled into the side of the young doctor's neck like a cat, her eyes closed and her hair falling into her face. Dillon leaned back and observed them, amazed by how comfortable they seemed with each other. A soft smile crossed his lips when Kat reached up, running her hand calmly through Tenaya's dark hair.
It was amazing that these two people, who just two years ago were mortal enemies, had fallen so completely in love. It was a startling bright light in this rather bleak future and the one thing he really didn't want to change about it.
---
Dillon decided later that if having him and Ziggy beat the crap out of each other was what it took to finally break the ice between them then he should have done it a long time ago. It wasn't much of a difference between today and yesterday, not something that could be seen by an outsider. Ziggy wasn't suddenly back to being his old self but this morning his eyes had been warmer, his expression more open. He'd even slapped him, which, according to Gem who always seemed to be getting smacked, was one way Ziggy showed he cared.
Ziggy was still broken and lost but he seemed just a little lighter, just a little bit freer.
The team settled back that day, seeming to all breathe a sigh of relief now that the tension between Dillon and Ziggy had lessened slightly. They were all off doing different things, which some how ended with him and Ziggy alone in the same room, something he realized the team had probably been trying to avoid this entire time. Ziggy was curled up in one of the chairs in the rec room, a book settled in his lap. He looked much smaller than normal, resting there.
And with the sun streaming through the window next to him, much more beautiful.
Dillon leaned against the wall, running his eyes over the pale skin and soft curves of Ziggy's lightly muscled, long-limbed figure. He had been hyper-aware of Ziggy since he'd arrived, so he'd observed every small difference in him. But he had also noticed, with a starting clarity, the younger man on a much more physical level than he had before. After last night, after the fight and the break-down where he had seen the real Ziggy, he had to admit that he was defiantly attracted to his friend.
Ziggy's dark brown eyes flickered up to stare at him from above the top of his book. A brief war raged within them before he calmly set it aside. His voice whispered out, surprising him. "Thank you."
Dillon frowned at him, trying to understand what he meant. "For what?"
Something flickered in Ziggy's eyes and his expression faltered for just a second before the blank look returned. However, his eyes dropped to watch his fingers trace patterns across the cover of his book. "For last night. All this time I was always the one comforting others, I was always the one they turned to. I've never had someone to turn to myself because everyone needed me to be the strong one, even before Summer died. But you're not really a member of my team; you'll be going home soon. So, thank you for... letting me break down like that." He whispered with a note of gratitude. Ziggy looked up at him, the hints of a familiar smile on his face.
Dillon nodded. "No problem."
Ziggy opened his book and returned his attention to it. But before he could get too absorbed in it, Dillon asked him, "You want to finish that fight?"
The Green Ranger paused and looked up at him. Slowly, a smirk formed on his face. He set the book down again and stood. "You are so on." He said, a challenge in his voice. His eyes shone with a surprising playfulness that he'd only known existed through the stories Tenaya had told him once. He followed Ziggy down to the ground floor, glad to see a bit of life returning to him.
When they entered the training room, Ziggy shrugged off his jacket, revealing the tattoo on his lower arm again. Dillon traced its twisting black pattern with his eyes, a part of him still unable to believe he had a tattoo. Ziggy seemed to know what he was thinking because he trailed his fingers over the mark briefly before shifting into a stance. Dillon smirked at him and motioned him forward.
Immediately, he wondered why he'd suggested this. This wasn't his Ziggy. This Ziggy could kick his ass. He twisted away from one of his attacks, managing to grab his arm and twist it behind him. "Where'd you learn to fight like this?" he asked him, his breath ghosting over the younger man's ear as he trapped Ziggy's arm between his back and his chest. Ziggy squirmed, his arm twisting roughly in his hold as he replied. "Nice guy at a former Power Rangers base taught me. Strange man though, had an even stranger name. I think it was Link, or Arch, or something like that."
Ziggy jerked suddenly, moving in such a way that he barely held on. It didn't matter that he did though because Ziggy brought his leg back so sharply that his heel hit him soundly on the head. He winced, his reflex reaction making him drop his hold on Ziggy's arm. The minute he was free, Ziggy ducked down, sweeping his feet out from under him. Groaning, Dillon quickly rolled to the side to get out of Ziggy's range of fire.
"And that tattoo?" he asked, catching Ziggy's kick and trying not to wince from the force. Before Ziggy could pull the same move on him that he did with Tenaya, he threw him to the side. To his surprise and startled amazement, Ziggy caught himself and forced his body into a quick round-off that ended with a no-hands cart-wheel. "Where'd you get that?" He continued, trying to hit him.
Ziggy easily slapped away his punch, ducking past his defenses to jam his elbow into his stomach. "In Briarwood." he answered. And much to Dillon's amazement, Ziggy grabbed his arm and threw him over his shoulder onto the ground. Ziggy straddled him, one of his hands moving behind him while the other pinned his shoulder to the ground. Before Dillon could break free Ziggy leaned forward, pulling a knife from nowhere and leveling it against his neck. "And for the record," He said, his breath a soft pant and his cheeks flushed the faintest of pinks. "It's not a tattoo."
He didn't reply as he stared up at his friend, horribly aware of just how close they were. Ziggy's chest pushed against his own as they breathed and his soft pant whispered past his face, teasing his senses. They were very, very close. So close he could feel the heat soak from Ziggy's body into his own and see every ridge in Ziggy's dark brown irises. Dillon suddenly really wished Ziggy would return to the cool persona he'd been hiding behind when he arrived if it got them out of this situation.
Some strange emotion he couldn't name flashed through Ziggy's eyes and the younger man bit his lip as they stared at each other. After a long moment, Ziggy slowly pulled back, pulling the knife from his neck and standing swiftly. Once the younger man's weight was gone, Dillon lept to his feet, staring at Ziggy. "You've gotten good." he complimented into the awkward silence.
A tight, small smile wormed its way across Ziggy's lips. "For you, I've always been your ally. For me, I've been trying to kill you these past two years." He told him. Dillon watched as he slipped the knife back to where ever he got it from and walked calmly to the door. But he could tell from the sound of his footsteps that the minute he exited the room he ran. He sighed, dragging a weary hand across the back of his neck. What the hell was going on between them?
---
"We owe you." Tenaya said later as she made dinner. Dillon slowly turned his head to watch his sister in surprise and confusion. She didn't look at him as she continued to cut up a group of tomatoes. "For helping Ziggy."
She paused briefly, her knife hovering over the cutting board. "Half the time it seems like he can't face the past. The other half it seems like he can't escape it. You being here... it's helping him lay his ghosts to rest."
She turned to him and he was rewarded with a bright, grateful smile. "It’s going to make him easier to live with. And I think, it'll make it easier for him to live with himself. So thank you."
He nodded at her in acceptance even though he thought he didn't need to be thanked. Ziggy was his friend. Helping him was only natural, especially since he had been the one to cause the damage. Helping Ziggy was the least he could do to make up for everything he had done. Or would do. Something like that.
---
If Dillon was honest with himself, he'd admit he really had no idea how it happened. One minute they had all been enjoying a nice, quiet dinner. The next, they had been engaged in an all out food fight.
By the end of it, there was salad dressing smeared against his shirt, bits of tomato in his hair along with the tomato juice, and something he thought could be the soup they'd had on his hands, pants, and shoes. The kitchen was a mess and it had been a complete waste of food that would take hours to clean. But at the end it was all worth it.
Because Ziggy laughed.
They had all jumped when the clear, wind-chime like sound echoed through the room and turned towards the new team leader. Ziggy was sitting on the floor, one leg pulled up to his chest, soup dripping from his long hair and bread crumbs dusted across his pants with dressing painted across his cheeks. And he was laughing.
"I... I hope you know," he said between laughs, pointing a finger at them. "I'm not helping you clean this up."
With that said, he stood and, still chuckling slightly, left. Dillon helped them clean for a bit, all of them a bit high on Ziggy's rare laughter, before he went looking for his friend. He found Ziggy perched on the counter in the men's bathroom, carefully wiping away the dressing from his face. "You are a mess, Grover." he said in amusement.
Ziggy raised an eyebrow at him, pausing in his work. "And you're not?" he asked.
He nodded in understanding. "Touché." he agreed. He stepped forward, reaching out for the hand with the towel. "Here, you missed some." he whispered.
Their hands met, Dillon's nearly wrapping completely around Ziggy's slim one. The younger man's dark eyes shot up to his and after a minute he let go of the towel so Dillon could wipe away the rest. Dillon carefully tipped the Green Ranger's head up and stepped closer, gently wiping away the dressing dotting his cheek. Once it was gone he let go of Ziggy's chin so he could lower his head.
They both froze when he did so, so close their noses brushed. Dillon could feel Ziggy's breath catch and then flutter across his face. He leaned into it, taking a slight breath. Ziggy smelt like a rain forest and soup and just the slightest hint of sandalwood. He jerked suddenly, realizing just how much closer he'd put himself to Ziggy and pulled away.
Ziggy's eyes were wide and his breathing was uneven. Dillon tried to ignore it and turned away. "I'm going to let you take a shower." he told him. He glanced back as he left, seeing Ziggy still staring at him. This time he recognized the look in his eyes. It was a mix of longing, want, and fear.
---
Ziggy sighed and let the hot water of the shower pound against his back, leaning his head against the cool, damp tile. The day had been hard. After last night he had decided to try to make Dillon's stay here a little easier and all it had done was land him right where he'd started, a helpless little boy praying for his attention.
He closed his eyes, trying not to think about it. But it was too late; the memories played out inside his head.
He stared up at the man in front of him, hating the dark, evil look in his eyes. "Dillon, come on. It's me, Ziggy." he whispered, unable to raise his voice very high. "Beat it Dillon."
Dillon didn't reply, just reached forward and ran careful fingers down the side of his face. He shivered, his eyelids fluttering shut briefly before he tried to will the sensation away. Dillon didn't make it any easier because he stepped closer, his breath ghosting across his ear. "You won't win Zig." he told him, a hint of maliciousness in his tone. "I am going to so enjoy tearing the Rangers apart. I think I'll even leave you for last."
Ziggy gulped thickly, fear tightening his throat and tears pushing at his eyes. Dillon's hand moved downwards, curling in the chain of his necklace. "And one day, at the end." he continued, pulling on the wolf necklace. The chain gave and snapped, making him wince. "You will be just like this thing. A broken mess."
The Green Ranger felt something slam into his head and he winced, his vision starting to swim. He crumpled to the ground, his breathing weakening. "Dill...on..." he breathed, the echo of his necklace falling to the ground and Dillon's footsteps burned into his memory as the world went dark around him.
Dillon and he had been going out for two months before that had happened. He had loved every single second of it and Dillon had never looked so happy. And then, just like that, it had ended. When he had woken up, he had cried, hard and long and for everything he had lost.
After that it was mostly a blur. All he could remember was the pain and the tears and god, when was it going to stop? That was the first time he'd broken. It would happen once again a year and a half later after Scott and Flynn's funeral. After that he'd sworn it would never happen again. And he'd never doubted that. Not until the other Dillon had appeared on their doorstep, still with that beautiful life in his eyes that Ziggy had long forgotten was there.
It was the first time he'd ever even thought about having another mental break-down. And he'd held on by the tips of his fingers.
"How many times can I break till I shatter?" he wondered aloud.
Chapter 6
---
Kudos to anyone who can guess who taught Ziggy to fight.
Title: The Tainted and the Broken
Summary: In an effort to protect Ziggy, Dillon is thrown into te future. A future where everything he knows is drastically different. During his struggle to get home, he finds himself drawn into the twisted, broken mess his best friend has become.
Rating: T
Pairings: Dillon/Ziggy, Doctor K/Tenaya
Disclaimer: I do not own the Power Rangers or anything related to the franchise.
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
The Tainted and the Broken
Chapter 5
Dillon's sleep was short-lived that night. He woke up early, about half-an-hour before the sun rose and got dressed, leaving his room. He passed the door to what he now knew to be Ziggy's room, pausing to stare at it. There was no light showing from between the door and the floor so he assumed the younger man was still asleep. He was glad for that; Ziggy needed the rest.
He walked down to the lower level, surprised to see a light coming from the kitchen. He walked towards it, blinking against the harsh florescent as he stared at the young woman sitting at the counter. "Hey Doc." he greeted, making the light blue eyes rise to stare at him. "What are you doing up?"
Kat smiled slightly. "Couldn't sleep." she whispered. He nodded in understanding. "Yeah, that's going around." he agreed. She snorted in amusement and told him, "I've been going over the data recorded during the shift 4 tests on Sunday. I haven't been able to do anything with the data till now because you arrived."
"That's what Ziggy and Gem were doing when I first saw them wasn't it?" He asked, remembering the image of a gold fighter plane flying through the sky when he had woken up three days ago. She nodded in agreement, her eyes falling down again. He finally noticed the small data pad lying on the counter in front of her, the screen displaying numerous statistics. She caught his staring and spun it towards him, explaining the system to him.
He got so involved in it that he didn't realize someone else had joined them till Kat turned her head, smiling softly. "I thought you were asleep." she whispered warmly. He turned his head as well to see his sister leaning against the door frame, staring in at them with tired eyes. Tenaya was wearing a loose white undershirt and very small purple shorts which revealed nearly the entire length of her legs. She smiled at them, walking forward to wrap her arms around Kat's waist.
"I was." She whispered softly, her voice coated in affection. "But then you were gone." Tenaya nuzzled into the side of the young doctor's neck like a cat, her eyes closed and her hair falling into her face. Dillon leaned back and observed them, amazed by how comfortable they seemed with each other. A soft smile crossed his lips when Kat reached up, running her hand calmly through Tenaya's dark hair.
It was amazing that these two people, who just two years ago were mortal enemies, had fallen so completely in love. It was a startling bright light in this rather bleak future and the one thing he really didn't want to change about it.
---
Dillon decided later that if having him and Ziggy beat the crap out of each other was what it took to finally break the ice between them then he should have done it a long time ago. It wasn't much of a difference between today and yesterday, not something that could be seen by an outsider. Ziggy wasn't suddenly back to being his old self but this morning his eyes had been warmer, his expression more open. He'd even slapped him, which, according to Gem who always seemed to be getting smacked, was one way Ziggy showed he cared.
Ziggy was still broken and lost but he seemed just a little lighter, just a little bit freer.
The team settled back that day, seeming to all breathe a sigh of relief now that the tension between Dillon and Ziggy had lessened slightly. They were all off doing different things, which some how ended with him and Ziggy alone in the same room, something he realized the team had probably been trying to avoid this entire time. Ziggy was curled up in one of the chairs in the rec room, a book settled in his lap. He looked much smaller than normal, resting there.
And with the sun streaming through the window next to him, much more beautiful.
Dillon leaned against the wall, running his eyes over the pale skin and soft curves of Ziggy's lightly muscled, long-limbed figure. He had been hyper-aware of Ziggy since he'd arrived, so he'd observed every small difference in him. But he had also noticed, with a starting clarity, the younger man on a much more physical level than he had before. After last night, after the fight and the break-down where he had seen the real Ziggy, he had to admit that he was defiantly attracted to his friend.
Ziggy's dark brown eyes flickered up to stare at him from above the top of his book. A brief war raged within them before he calmly set it aside. His voice whispered out, surprising him. "Thank you."
Dillon frowned at him, trying to understand what he meant. "For what?"
Something flickered in Ziggy's eyes and his expression faltered for just a second before the blank look returned. However, his eyes dropped to watch his fingers trace patterns across the cover of his book. "For last night. All this time I was always the one comforting others, I was always the one they turned to. I've never had someone to turn to myself because everyone needed me to be the strong one, even before Summer died. But you're not really a member of my team; you'll be going home soon. So, thank you for... letting me break down like that." He whispered with a note of gratitude. Ziggy looked up at him, the hints of a familiar smile on his face.
Dillon nodded. "No problem."
Ziggy opened his book and returned his attention to it. But before he could get too absorbed in it, Dillon asked him, "You want to finish that fight?"
The Green Ranger paused and looked up at him. Slowly, a smirk formed on his face. He set the book down again and stood. "You are so on." He said, a challenge in his voice. His eyes shone with a surprising playfulness that he'd only known existed through the stories Tenaya had told him once. He followed Ziggy down to the ground floor, glad to see a bit of life returning to him.
When they entered the training room, Ziggy shrugged off his jacket, revealing the tattoo on his lower arm again. Dillon traced its twisting black pattern with his eyes, a part of him still unable to believe he had a tattoo. Ziggy seemed to know what he was thinking because he trailed his fingers over the mark briefly before shifting into a stance. Dillon smirked at him and motioned him forward.
Immediately, he wondered why he'd suggested this. This wasn't his Ziggy. This Ziggy could kick his ass. He twisted away from one of his attacks, managing to grab his arm and twist it behind him. "Where'd you learn to fight like this?" he asked him, his breath ghosting over the younger man's ear as he trapped Ziggy's arm between his back and his chest. Ziggy squirmed, his arm twisting roughly in his hold as he replied. "Nice guy at a former Power Rangers base taught me. Strange man though, had an even stranger name. I think it was Link, or Arch, or something like that."
Ziggy jerked suddenly, moving in such a way that he barely held on. It didn't matter that he did though because Ziggy brought his leg back so sharply that his heel hit him soundly on the head. He winced, his reflex reaction making him drop his hold on Ziggy's arm. The minute he was free, Ziggy ducked down, sweeping his feet out from under him. Groaning, Dillon quickly rolled to the side to get out of Ziggy's range of fire.
"And that tattoo?" he asked, catching Ziggy's kick and trying not to wince from the force. Before Ziggy could pull the same move on him that he did with Tenaya, he threw him to the side. To his surprise and startled amazement, Ziggy caught himself and forced his body into a quick round-off that ended with a no-hands cart-wheel. "Where'd you get that?" He continued, trying to hit him.
Ziggy easily slapped away his punch, ducking past his defenses to jam his elbow into his stomach. "In Briarwood." he answered. And much to Dillon's amazement, Ziggy grabbed his arm and threw him over his shoulder onto the ground. Ziggy straddled him, one of his hands moving behind him while the other pinned his shoulder to the ground. Before Dillon could break free Ziggy leaned forward, pulling a knife from nowhere and leveling it against his neck. "And for the record," He said, his breath a soft pant and his cheeks flushed the faintest of pinks. "It's not a tattoo."
He didn't reply as he stared up at his friend, horribly aware of just how close they were. Ziggy's chest pushed against his own as they breathed and his soft pant whispered past his face, teasing his senses. They were very, very close. So close he could feel the heat soak from Ziggy's body into his own and see every ridge in Ziggy's dark brown irises. Dillon suddenly really wished Ziggy would return to the cool persona he'd been hiding behind when he arrived if it got them out of this situation.
Some strange emotion he couldn't name flashed through Ziggy's eyes and the younger man bit his lip as they stared at each other. After a long moment, Ziggy slowly pulled back, pulling the knife from his neck and standing swiftly. Once the younger man's weight was gone, Dillon lept to his feet, staring at Ziggy. "You've gotten good." he complimented into the awkward silence.
A tight, small smile wormed its way across Ziggy's lips. "For you, I've always been your ally. For me, I've been trying to kill you these past two years." He told him. Dillon watched as he slipped the knife back to where ever he got it from and walked calmly to the door. But he could tell from the sound of his footsteps that the minute he exited the room he ran. He sighed, dragging a weary hand across the back of his neck. What the hell was going on between them?
---
"We owe you." Tenaya said later as she made dinner. Dillon slowly turned his head to watch his sister in surprise and confusion. She didn't look at him as she continued to cut up a group of tomatoes. "For helping Ziggy."
She paused briefly, her knife hovering over the cutting board. "Half the time it seems like he can't face the past. The other half it seems like he can't escape it. You being here... it's helping him lay his ghosts to rest."
She turned to him and he was rewarded with a bright, grateful smile. "It’s going to make him easier to live with. And I think, it'll make it easier for him to live with himself. So thank you."
He nodded at her in acceptance even though he thought he didn't need to be thanked. Ziggy was his friend. Helping him was only natural, especially since he had been the one to cause the damage. Helping Ziggy was the least he could do to make up for everything he had done. Or would do. Something like that.
---
If Dillon was honest with himself, he'd admit he really had no idea how it happened. One minute they had all been enjoying a nice, quiet dinner. The next, they had been engaged in an all out food fight.
By the end of it, there was salad dressing smeared against his shirt, bits of tomato in his hair along with the tomato juice, and something he thought could be the soup they'd had on his hands, pants, and shoes. The kitchen was a mess and it had been a complete waste of food that would take hours to clean. But at the end it was all worth it.
Because Ziggy laughed.
They had all jumped when the clear, wind-chime like sound echoed through the room and turned towards the new team leader. Ziggy was sitting on the floor, one leg pulled up to his chest, soup dripping from his long hair and bread crumbs dusted across his pants with dressing painted across his cheeks. And he was laughing.
"I... I hope you know," he said between laughs, pointing a finger at them. "I'm not helping you clean this up."
With that said, he stood and, still chuckling slightly, left. Dillon helped them clean for a bit, all of them a bit high on Ziggy's rare laughter, before he went looking for his friend. He found Ziggy perched on the counter in the men's bathroom, carefully wiping away the dressing from his face. "You are a mess, Grover." he said in amusement.
Ziggy raised an eyebrow at him, pausing in his work. "And you're not?" he asked.
He nodded in understanding. "Touché." he agreed. He stepped forward, reaching out for the hand with the towel. "Here, you missed some." he whispered.
Their hands met, Dillon's nearly wrapping completely around Ziggy's slim one. The younger man's dark eyes shot up to his and after a minute he let go of the towel so Dillon could wipe away the rest. Dillon carefully tipped the Green Ranger's head up and stepped closer, gently wiping away the dressing dotting his cheek. Once it was gone he let go of Ziggy's chin so he could lower his head.
They both froze when he did so, so close their noses brushed. Dillon could feel Ziggy's breath catch and then flutter across his face. He leaned into it, taking a slight breath. Ziggy smelt like a rain forest and soup and just the slightest hint of sandalwood. He jerked suddenly, realizing just how much closer he'd put himself to Ziggy and pulled away.
Ziggy's eyes were wide and his breathing was uneven. Dillon tried to ignore it and turned away. "I'm going to let you take a shower." he told him. He glanced back as he left, seeing Ziggy still staring at him. This time he recognized the look in his eyes. It was a mix of longing, want, and fear.
---
Ziggy sighed and let the hot water of the shower pound against his back, leaning his head against the cool, damp tile. The day had been hard. After last night he had decided to try to make Dillon's stay here a little easier and all it had done was land him right where he'd started, a helpless little boy praying for his attention.
He closed his eyes, trying not to think about it. But it was too late; the memories played out inside his head.
He stared up at the man in front of him, hating the dark, evil look in his eyes. "Dillon, come on. It's me, Ziggy." he whispered, unable to raise his voice very high. "Beat it Dillon."
Dillon didn't reply, just reached forward and ran careful fingers down the side of his face. He shivered, his eyelids fluttering shut briefly before he tried to will the sensation away. Dillon didn't make it any easier because he stepped closer, his breath ghosting across his ear. "You won't win Zig." he told him, a hint of maliciousness in his tone. "I am going to so enjoy tearing the Rangers apart. I think I'll even leave you for last."
Ziggy gulped thickly, fear tightening his throat and tears pushing at his eyes. Dillon's hand moved downwards, curling in the chain of his necklace. "And one day, at the end." he continued, pulling on the wolf necklace. The chain gave and snapped, making him wince. "You will be just like this thing. A broken mess."
The Green Ranger felt something slam into his head and he winced, his vision starting to swim. He crumpled to the ground, his breathing weakening. "Dill...on..." he breathed, the echo of his necklace falling to the ground and Dillon's footsteps burned into his memory as the world went dark around him.
Dillon and he had been going out for two months before that had happened. He had loved every single second of it and Dillon had never looked so happy. And then, just like that, it had ended. When he had woken up, he had cried, hard and long and for everything he had lost.
After that it was mostly a blur. All he could remember was the pain and the tears and god, when was it going to stop? That was the first time he'd broken. It would happen once again a year and a half later after Scott and Flynn's funeral. After that he'd sworn it would never happen again. And he'd never doubted that. Not until the other Dillon had appeared on their doorstep, still with that beautiful life in his eyes that Ziggy had long forgotten was there.
It was the first time he'd ever even thought about having another mental break-down. And he'd held on by the tips of his fingers.
"How many times can I break till I shatter?" he wondered aloud.
Chapter 6
---
Kudos to anyone who can guess who taught Ziggy to fight.