He stared at the screen, not reading the words so much as acknowledging their existence. Not even that, so much, if he admitted the truth to himself. He was supposed to be reading. He was supposed to be at least marginally aware of the topics that had been discussed at the last Council meeting, but his mind refused to focus.

More accurately, it refused to focus on the minutes of the Council meeting. It wasn't having any trouble daydreaming, which was a kind of errant focus in and of itself. It just wasn't any help to the things he was trying to accomplish.

A tap on his open door made him look up, grateful for the intrusion. A legitimate distraction wasn't the same as wandering attention, and he smiled at his sister in welcome. "Hi, Kerone."

"Hi," she said, taking that as an invitation. Sauntering into the room, she came over to his workstation and draped her arms over the back of his chair. "Did the Council talk about anything interesting yesterday?"

He straightened up with a sigh, turning away from the screen. "I wouldn't know," he said ruefully. "I haven't gotten past the roll call yet."

"Just another exciting day for civilian government," she teased. "So have you seen the news recently?"

He glanced up at her, searching her expression. There could be nothing idle about that question, but her face was as casual as her tone. "Not since this morning. Why?"

"Zhane's on it." She was watching him as carefully as he was watching her. "With you. You should probably know what people are saying."

"What are people saying?" he asked quietly. He had known this would happen, but he had hoped the media would allow more than a couple of appearances before pouncing on them. Was it so much to ask that he be allowed to have a halfway normal relationship?

She freed her left hand and held it up, lifting one finger for each point. "That you're involved. That he's using you. That he has some kind of hold over you. That you're using him. That he's going to be the next Ranger.

"There are a lot of jokes about what he does," she added apologetically. "Things like, 'if that's all it takes to get the Red Ranger's attention,' and how he's going to start a new fashion trend. They're really slamming him."

He sighed, annoyed on Zhane's behalf but not surprised. Pushing himself away from the workstation, he went to stand up and she took a step back, releasing his chair. "I'm going to the beach."

"Andros--" She stopped when he glanced at her, a troubled expression on her face. "I know you like him. And I know you would never hurt someone on purpose. But... we deal with this stuff all the time. It's part of being in front of the cameras."

"He doesn't," Andros interrupted. "I know. It affects his life a lot more than it affects ours; I know. That's why I need to talk to him."

"What are you going to say?" she wanted to know.

He shook his head, grabbing his jacket as he headed for the door. "I don't know."

He really should get moving. He'd offered to pick up ice for the party tonight, and it wouldn't do them any good if the drinks got there before he did. With a sigh he grabbed his jacket and stood up, turning to head down off the rocks.

The Red Ranger was standing there, mouth quirked in an odd half smile as he took in Zhane's stunned expression. "Surprise."

"You're telling me," he managed, slinging his coat over his shoulder in a half-hearted attempt at casualness. "Didn't think I'd be seeing you again."

Andros' smile faded. "I'm sorry about... what they're saying." His tone was perfectly neutral, and his expression was about as readable as a blank book.

His game face. Zhane tried not to let his dismay show. "So am I," he said quietly. There was no way the Red Ranger would let himself be seen with Zhane now. "I didn't mean for this to happen."

"Neither did I," Andros said with a sigh. "If they have to report everything we do, I wish they'd keep their opinions to themselves. I never meant for you to get hurt."

Zhane snorted. "Are you kidding? It's doing wonders for my reputation around here. Even if I never see you again, I'll always be the guy who went out with the Red Ranger."

"Do you?" Andros hadn't taken his eyes off of him.

That stare was easily the most flattering thing that had happened to him all day. "What?" he asked finally, when he realized Andros was waiting for an answer.

"Do you want to see me again?" Andros might as well have been asking for the time. "Obviously I--I'll understand. Just tell me what you want."

That little stammer was the only crack in his facade, but it was enough for Zhane to suddenly see the facade for what it was. Damn, but he was good at that. With an expression like that, who needed a visor?

"I want to see you more often," he said frankly. "Is there any way to manage that?"

Something like hope flickered in Andros' eyes. "Do you?"

"Yeah," Zhane said with a grin. "You really don't have any idea, do you. Does the word 'gorgeous' mean anything to you?"

Andros just shrugged, but his gaze wandered for the first time. Staring out at the ocean, his tone was somber and quiet as he answered, "Not really."

It didn't take Zhane long to decipher that. "Andros... I'm not talking about how you look. I'm talking about how you are. And--" He shrugged too, self-conscious as Andros' gaze came to rest on him again. "I need you to believe that, because I don't know how to convince you."

Andros just looked at him for a minute, but it wasn't the impassive expression he'd worn a few moments ago. "I believe it," he said at last, smiling a little. "So... how much more often?"

The wind off the water was still warm, surprisingly so this late at night, and he leaned over the railing to collect deep breaths of the refreshing air. It tossed his hair back from his face and made the lights dance on the water as it rippled and bounced off of the hull below. Between the shifting of boats and the creak of rigging, the marina was never quiet, and he wondered sometimes how anyone could sleep here.

Especially on nights like this one. The revelry of the boat behind him had spilled out onto the dock, and the shouts and laughter must have carried for miles across the water. There was nothing at all to dampen the sound. Little, too, to contain carousing once it got started, and Andros wondered if the empty berths at the dock tonight belonged to people who had known what was coming and sought to avoid it.

He started as someone bumped his shoulder, but it was only Zhane, bracing himself with one hand as he bounced up on the railing and settled there, facing Andros. Hooking his ankles under the lower bar, he took in Andros' expression and let go of his shoulder. "Didn't mean to startle you," he offered apologetically.

Andros shook his head, dismissing it with a smile. "I'm... more jumpy in large groups of people. Harder to keep track of them all, you know?"

"Sure," Zhane agreed easily. "Warrior instinct and all that." He hesitated for just a moment. "I know this sounds like a pickup line, but--do you want to go somewhere quieter?"

He knew he shouldn't say yes. He wanted to, but everything Kerone had drilled into his head finally made him stop and think. He was already at a dock party. There weren't any media in the immediate vicinity, but word would get out. If he left the dock party, in the company of the same person he'd been seen with at the Keyota festival--

He found Zhane staring back when he glanced over at him, and the blonde blinked as though surprised to be caught watching. He looked away quickly, and Andros' mouth quirked. "Is it a pickup line?" he wondered aloud.

Zhane caught his eye, his startled expression fading when he saw Andros' smile. "Maybe," he said cheerfully. "What would you say if it was?"

"Maybe," Andros echoed, leaning on the railing again to hide his smile.

He could feel Zhane watching him again, and this time he didn't jump at the feeling of fingers in his hair. He turned his head carefully, catching Zhane's eye as the other played with the lighter colored strands of his hair. "Sorry," he said, letting his hand fall but not looking particularly repentant. "I like it."

Andros shrugged, inexplicably pleased. "Thanks."

Zhane slid off the railing without another word, keeping his gaze fixed on Andros'. His intent was clear even before he stepped closer, and Andros caught his breath in anticipation. He couldn't explain the nervous feeling that Zhane's kiss instilled in him, but he knew it had nothing to do with the cameras.

He woke with a gasp, burning up inside and aching for release. For a few seconds it was all he could think about... and then he remembered where he was. He forced himself to his feet and stumbled stiffly toward the bathroom, biting his lip to keep from making any noise.

Leaning back against the wall afterward, he tried to catch his breath. He should have just taken Taizer up on his offer. The other had made a point of proving how drunk he wasn't, which Zhane supposed was a compliment, and there were worse people to sleep with. At least he knew Taizer was clean.

Still, those were extracurricular activities that he hadn't engaged in for a long time. Longer than he cared to think about. Since last winter, really. Since before he had met...

Dream images returned to his mind unbidden. He closed his eyes, though he wasn't sure whether he was trying to block them out or see them more clearly. He couldn't help feeling guilty for thinking of the Red Ranger this way... but this was Andros.

Andros, who was easily one of the sexiest people on the planet, yet refused to acknowledge physical beauty in any way. Andros, who was at once arrogant and charmingly naive, demanding respect but giving it only in the most distant of ways. Andros, who had an entire world at his beck and call and still seemed totally unaware of his effect on others.

He sighed, running his fingers through his hair absently. He needed to get out of here. He pushed the door open and made his way through unconscious heaps of people and discarded possessions. He wasn't going back to sleep anyway, and the air would be clearer topside.

He took a deep breath as the seabreeze washed over him, and the stars spread clear to the horizon when he turned his back on the shoreline lights. The water's surface gleamed dark and impenetrable below him, and he thought about diving in. Swimming was forbidden in the marina, of course, but who would stop him at this hour?

He hovered over the railing, tempted. It would wake him up, no question. Everything that was swirling in his head would be momentarily gone, overwhelmed by the water's embrace. For one brief moment, the ocean would be more real than any impossible dream he cared to conjure up.

He turned away. Leaning back against the metal bars that encircled the deck, he wondered what Andros was doing now. He wondered what the embassy would say if he called right now and asked to speak to the Red Ranger. He wondered how he had been drawn into this bizarre fantasy life--and how long it could possibly last.

He wondered if Andros ever wondered about him.

"What do you mean, 'gone'?"

"Saw him talking to the schooner crew out of Kataisa," the man answered gruffly. "Probably shipped out with them this morning."

Andros just stared at him, lost and more than a little hurt. Zhane hadn't gone more than a few days up or down the coast in months. He'd gotten used to catching up with the dockworker whenever he had time... but Kataisa was on the other side of the ocean.

"Where was the schooner going?" he demanded at last. Maybe it wasn't headed home, but to a local port that would see Zhane back by the end of the week.

"Don't know." The man hesitated, then jerked his head toward the marina. "Try Kerry. He's drawn up contracts for Zhane before."

Andros thanked him absently, already scanning the nearest docks for Never Again II. He found the little boat nestled at the end of one of the private launches, and he wondered at that. He had gathered that Kerry ran a tourist business during the summer season, and there were weeks of good weather left yet.

Kerry must have seen him coming from the lookout, for he didn't look at all surprised when Andros paused at the bow and lifted a hand in his direction. He grabbed the sides of the ladder and slid down to the deck. Pausing to gather up the rope at the bottom of the ladder, he kicked a buoy under the bench and threw the rope on top of it before answering Andros' silent summons.

"Been expecting you, Ranger Andros." He spoke before Andros could, coming to a halt on the other side of the railing. Standing on the deck, he had a considerable height advantage over Andros on the dock, but he didn't make any move to join him or invite him aboard.

"I'm looking for Zhane," Andros informed him. And Kerry knew it, too. That knowing didn't bother him, most of the time, but when Zhane did something like this it made him uncomfortable. He was always left with the feeling that the dockworkers knew something he didn't.

"Headed for Caleigh this morning. Said if you came by, I should tell you he'll be back in a couple of weeks."

Caleigh. Farther than he'd been since Quon, but not as bad as Kataisa. Andros tried not to sigh. It was good news--really, it was. And it wasn't like it was any of his business where Zhane went anyway.

"Thanks," he told Kerry, turning away. As a Ranger, he had access to every dock log and crew manifest. And no one could cite confidentiality when answering his questions. He could track Zhane down in Caleigh if he wanted to.

He could... but he wouldn't. Zhane had told him when he was coming back, but not how to find him. The fact that he could do it anyway wasn't the point. He hadn't been invited to. So he would wait.

The waiting was getting harder every time.

The dock was solid beneath his feet, and he took a deep breath of the hot, land-warmed air. The ocean spray was already drying on his skin, the cold wind of their passage long gone since they had slowed to navigate the harbor. And it felt like summer again, with the call of the gulls welcoming him back to the beach that had been his only home for years.

A glint of red caught his eye as he swung his bag over his shoulder, and he looked again. It couldn't be--but even the thought made him grin. The thought of the Red Ranger haunting the docks in anticipation of his arrival was at once terribly funny and somewhat disconcerting. And...

If he admitted it to himself, it was also flattering. And foolish. He gave Dar a shove as the kid plowed into him from behind, steadying him and ruffling his hair as the boy stuck his tongue out and squirmed away. "Someone's gonna think that's an invitation!" Zhane yelled after him

"Can I have one?" a familiar voice asked, so close at his shoulder that he almost dropped his bag.

"Didn't mean to startle you," Andros added. He was there after all, gold Ranger insignia embroidered into the red fabric of his shirt and his hair loose in the sun. The sparkle of amusement in his eyes belied his grave tone. "I was only curious."

"About what?" Zhane managed, finding his voice at last. Andros had paused beside him when he stopped, too surprised to think of anything but the fact that Andros was here, in the middle of the morning, when he had to have more important things to do.

"The invitation," Andros said solemnly. "Do I get one too?"

Zhane just stared at him. Did someone like Andros even know what that meant? Maybe that wasn't fair... it wasn't exactly ship slang, but it wasn't a high-class thing to say, either. Maybe he hadn't understood what Zhane was saying?

Andros took a step closer, and the look on his face said exactly the opposite. He couldn't bring himself to stick his tongue out at the Red Ranger, but it didn't look like Andros cared. There at the end of the dock, in the middle of the departing crew and the small crowd that had gathered to meet them, he pressed his mouth to Zhane's and made the world disappear.

Zhane felt his bag slide off his shoulder and he let it fall to the ground as he put his hands on Andros' shoulders and kissed him hungrily. There were days when Andros didn't kiss him like this even if they were alone... He was going to leave more often if this was the welcome he got when he came back.

He caught Zhane's hand and forced him to stop, paying no attention to the water splashing around their feet or the looks of curious beachgoers all around them. He slid the red-banded communicator under Zhane's wrist and fastened the clasp on top. Twisting it around, he let it settle into place on its own as he released the other boy's fingers and started down the beach again without a word.

"Andros--" He didn't pause, and he heard Zhane quicken his pace to catch up with him. "Andros, I can't take this."

Andros put his hands in his pockets and stared out across the water, his bare feet enjoying the feel of the sand as he walked. "Don't want it?" he inquired mildly.

"No! I mean, yes, but..." Zhane sounded nervous, and Andros smiled to himself. He wasn't sure he had ever been able to make Zhane nervous. He would have to remember this.

"It's not that I don't want it," Zhane said quickly. "I do. But I can't take it. I mean, how's it going to look if I start wearing your communicator? You can't think people aren't going to notice. And what do I tell them? They're going to ask--"

"Tell them that the Red Ranger is tired of not being able to find his boyfriend," Andros interrupted. That nervous feeling was contagious, and it was twisting itself around his stomach. But if there was one thing cameras had taught him, it was how not to let that show.

"Say that you've disappeared one time too many," he continued, staring toward the horizon. "And since you're still blaming it on not being able to get a message to me, I'm fixing that. What else do they need to know?"

Zhane didn't answer. He could hear shouts all around them, kids playing in the surf and parents trying to keep up, teenagers trying to look suave and the lifeguards not bothering. And most of them probably stealing glances at Andros and Zhane from behind sunglasses or just openly staring. He didn't care about any of them right now.

"I'm not trying to tie you down," Andros told the ocean. His stomach had clenched painfully tight, and he wondered if he had made a mistake. "If you don't want me to know where you are, don't tell me. But keep the communicator, all right? I just--I want you to be safe."

He hadn't meant to say that. He didn't think Zhane would like the implication that he couldn't take care of himself. But it worried him, having the kid out here all alone in the middle of nowhere. What if there was another attack?

"You're crazy," Zhane said at last, and the words brought him up short.

He turned to stare at Zhane, wondering whether that was a thoughtful accusation or just an automatic reaction. "Excuse me?"

Zhane held the communicator up, looking from it to Andros with a grin. "You're crazy," he repeated, shaking his head. "Every time I start to doubt, I think maybe you're just this normal guy who happened to get stuck with responsibility for the entire world, you go and pull something like this."

Andros considered that. Finally he asked, "Does that mean you'll keep it?"

"Yeah," Zhane said with a laugh. "Hell yeah, I'll keep it."