estirose

This is me practicing my mad remix skillz on one of my own fics. It's "Harder to be Brave" from the guest character's POV. Thanks to her being a bit oblivious, for once I do not have to warn for suicidal ideation! This is a simple POV switch with a different ending point, one of the easiest kinds of remixes to do.

ETA: And now with 100% less weird characters. Bleh.

Summary: Stuck having a late lunch, Maria finds that old acquaintance Ziggy is meant for big things.

Now the City's Own
by Estirose

Things were messed up as usual. She was stuck at a graveyard-shift, dead-end customer service job, and she'd been stuck on the phones far longer than she expected with a less-than-pleasant caller who thought that she had no other customers and nothing better to do than serve his every need. Well, she'd ended that call and gone to her lunch. For half an hour, she'd take time for herself.

She spotted a familiar figure on the street, and wondered what he was doing out there so late. Last she'd heard, he'd turned to a life of crime; it wasn't exactly something to be proud of. Maria had tried to keep him on the straight and narrow, but it hadn't worked. She called out his name, greeting him, and saw him smile in response. It wasn't the usual broad Ziggy Grover grin; something was wrong.

"Maria!" he exclaimed, shoving his hands in his pockets. "What are you doing?"

"Late lunch," she said, jerking a thumb at her favorite eating spot, one that served up good food at some really odd hours. "Graveyard shift has its disadvantages."

"If you don't mind, I can join you. Well, if you want." He gave her the smile she'd expected in the first place, which only made her more worried. "I'm hungry."

"I'll be glad for the company," Maria smiled, figuring that it would be nice to talk to him, and besides, she could catch up with what he was up to and do some problem solving. "Did you get a graveyard shift job, or insomnia?"

"Insomnia," Ziggy said, running his hand nervously through his hair. "I got a new job, and I kind of don't get along with most everyone there."

New job, eh? Maria wondered what it was, and why he'd taken it. Of course, if it was on the right side of the law, she couldn't really complain. But he sounded less than happy about it. "How'd you end up there, then? Impressed the boss, and nobody else?"

"Well, I was kind of forced into it, and they were forced to hire me. Really weird circumstances. It's kind of a long story." He flashed her another grin, smaller, and she knew she was getting to the heart of the matter. "I'm doing my best to get de-hired, and I'm sure they'll go along with it."

"What kind of job did you get?" Maria asked, hoping he'd give her details. "Ziggy, did you get involved with the Cartel again?"

Ziggy shook his head, messy curls flying about. Maria wondered how long it had been since he'd brushed his hair. "It's... real complicated. But I'm good at getting out of things."

"Ziggy?" Maria asked, looking at him closely, and realizing he looked like he hadn't slept. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," he said, still smiling, and she would have been fooled by that smile if she hadn't known him for so long. It was really the "pay no attention to the upset guy" smile that he had. "Let's go eat, okay? I'm starving."

"Okay," she said doubtfully. But maybe he'd open up if he ate. He was always fond of food, and she'd always envied his ability to not pack on the pounds, no matter how much he ate.

He chose a table near the window, and by the way he looked around when he chose it, she knew that he was afraid of something, or someone. But who, or what?

He ordered scrambled eggs and hash browns, while Maria ordered a sandwich and salad. She recognized comfort food when she saw it, and was determined to press. "So," she said, "Are you in trouble again?"

Ziggy smiled, but it was forced.. "Kinda. Sorta. But I can take care of it."

"What did you do this time?" she asked, folding her arms. Whatever problems he had, she had to find out. No way was he going to screw something up, not this time.

"Um." He scratched his head. "I kind of pissed off some important people. When I got hired."

Maria facepalmed. That was Ziggy for you. You either loved him or you hated him, and he managed to screw his first impressions up. "Ziggy...."

"I'm trying to find a way to make it better." He looked at his hands. "It's just... I haven't found quite the right solution yet." In other words, he was in a lot of trouble, she could tell.

"Ziggy, what did you do to fuck things up?" She sighed. Maybe it wasn't just the first impressions. Maybe he'd majorly screwed things up. "I mean, seriously...."

He winced. "It's not anything I can't fix, really."

"Ziggy," she said, trying a different tack. "Hey, can I help at all?"

"Nononono." He waved her off. "I can fix it myself, really."

"You sure?" she asked. What if he screwed it up worse?

"I'm sure. Really, really sure. 'Cause there was never a mess that the great Ziggy Grover couldn't get himself out of, yeah?"

"If you wouldn't get yourself into these messes in the first place...." She sighed. She'd figure out how to fix this one if it killed her. "How'd this one happen?"

"That's... too complicated to explain." He was now playing with the salt, as if that would get her off the topic.

"Try me." She folded her arms, leaning forward. "I'll do what I can to help." That's what she did, after all. Helped people. Especially screw-ups like Ziggy.

"Um...." Now he was trying to weasel out of it. So Ziggy. She glared at him.

"I can't fix what I don't know about."

"Honestly, Maria, you really, really can't fix this one." He leaned back, trying to avoid talking about it. Definitely hadn't changed since they were orphans together.

She glared at him as the food arrived, and wished she'd had more time to talk. "Don't think you've gotten away so easy," she hissed, before she started on her food.

As she was eating, she looked over, and her eyes widened. One of the Rangers was outside! Ranger Black, she'd seen pictures. The city was lucky to have a Ranger team, and the new Ranger was a welcome addition. "Hey, a Ranger!" she said, bringing it to her friend's attention.

"Ranger?" Ziggy's head shot up, and he looked around. She frowned. What did the Rangers have to do with Ziggy's problems? It only made her more determined to find out.

"Outside. See him?" The Ranger was standing there, talking into his communication device. She wondered what was going on, with him up in the middle of the night? Was there an attack?

This was definitely something to tell her friends at the office about.

"Yeah, I see him." He didn't sound as thrilled as she did. She struggled to drag her gaze away from the Ranger to focus on Ziggy.

"Wonder what he's doing here?" Maybe he'd say something.

"Mission, maybe?" Ziggy asked, shrugging, but she could tell he was concerned.

"It must be important, for him to be up in the middle of the night," Maria told him. The way he was suddenly acting antsy said that something was deeply wrong, and the Ranger was at the center.

But before she could say anything the Ranger was walking into the cafe, and sitting down at their table. She wished she knew his name.

"Hi, Dillon," Ziggy said less than confidently to the Ranger. Well, that solved the name problem, and confirmed that Ziggy's current problems were Ranger-related. Obviously, he knew them, too. "Um, what brings you here?"

"You," Dillon grunted, not looking too happy at Ziggy. Oh, she definitely would have to find out what was going on! Maybe he or Dillon would say something and she'd be able to help.

"Um, I guess Dr. K's kind of pissed, right?" He was shrinking in on himself. Old habits died hard, apparently.

"Yeah," Dillon said, taking two things out of his jacket pockets. "You could say that. He said to give you these."

One was a box with a handle attached; the other was what the Rangers always were wearing on lanyards. Something clicked as Ziggy put on the lanyard and strapped on the device. "Ziggy... you... that new job? You're a Power Ranger?"

He winced. "Um, yeah." So that was his problem? He'd become a hero? Trust Ziggy to have problems being a hero!

"And you're upset about it? Do you know how many people would jump to be a Ranger, it's just that, well, not everybody gets the chance?" She'd jump at it, and he cowered, afraid. Or maybe something had happened that made him lose whatever confidence he had.

"Yeah," he said, looking down. "I can't fight, you see, and I mean I did keep the bad guys from getting the morpher, but, um, I wasn't exactly supposed to bond with it."

The words didn't make any sense, but then again, that was Ziggy for you. Then she remembered something about Rangers and bonds, and things started to make sense again. This being Ziggy, he had become a superhero by pure accident, and was whining about it. Definitely so him.

"Ziggy," she said, "You can learn how to fight. It's kind of harder, I think, to learn to be brave." She leaned forward. What he needed was a confidence boost, and that, she could do. "Who'd have guessed you had a hero in you?"

"Not me," he said, and he looked over at his teammate. "Um. Maybe I should finish breakfast."

"Box it up," his teammate said, and Maria regretted that they were cutting things so short. But then again, Ziggy was no longer just hers anymore; he was the city's now, a defender, no matter how worried and reluctant. He'd grow into it. He'd make her proud.

"But...." He looked at Dillon with pleading eyes. He was reluctant to leave his normal life.

"Ziggy," she said, "You've been called for something important. Leave everything else behind. Become the best Ranger you can be. You've got a great destiny in store." She gave him a smile. "Just don't get yourself killed or the city destroyed, okay?"

"Let's go, Ziggy. You need to go to bed. Doctor K's annoyed." Dillon looked big enough to pick up slight Ziggy with one hand. "Got training tomorrow, remember?"

"Yeah." Ziggy tore his eyes of his food. "Training tomorrow." He didn't sound thrilled. Maybe he was still shocked at the superhero thing. Or maybe his lazy streak was starting to show. She was sure that would be fixed quickly.

Maria signaled the waiter and asked for a box. Ziggy didn't seem willing to do so.

"He's always been this way," she told Dillon apologetically. "But he's a nice guy once you get to know him."

They'd know him and they'd love him, warts and all. She was sure of it. It was time to let them take care of him, now; from what she'd read and heard, it would be the best place for him, supporting and loving, once they got over their first impression of him.

"Right," Dillon said, and piled Ziggy's food into the box that the waiter handed him. "Thanks."

And then he was tugging Ziggy out of there, and she gave the two a smile and a wave. Ziggy would win them over, eventually, and become the hero he was destined to be. She knew it, and he would know it someday, too.

In the meantime, she had one more thing to talk about to her officemates. Finishing her own lunch more eagerly, she returned with a lighter heart to work.