SWITCHING PLACES II
DISCLAIMER
This didn't start out as a remake of the ep, but that's how it turned out. I even checked with Alex B. Goode who assured me that the plot was fine. Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. I only own the subplot.
It was early, right before school. The time when most kids would be frantically trying to decide what to wear, or grabbing a quick bite to eat. However, a small group of kids were already awake and busy. In Ernie's Gym And Juice Bar, Kimberly was practicing on the balance beam as Katherine spotted her and Trini executed a kata. Tommy, who was wearing a white gi with a green trim along with a black belt, led Billy, who was wearing a white gi with blue trim with a red belt, in a kata as Adam and Justin prepared a stack of boards. When Billy and Tommy were done with the kata, they bowed to each other.
"Tommy, I'd like to express my gratitude for your willingness to contribute to my inculcation of the Martial Arts," Billy stated, as they walked up to the boards.
"Huh?" Tommy and Justin asked, looking at him.
"He said 'Thanks for helping him further his training'," Adam translated.
"Oh, no problem, man," Tommy answered. Then, "You think you're ready for board breaking?"
"I suppose I can make an attempt."
"All right." Tommy smiled.
"You've really come a long way, Billy," he commented as Kimberly, Katherine, and Trini stopped what they were doing to come up to their friends.
"Yeah, no one should try this without the proper training," Adam agreed.
"And even then, you have to be careful," Justin commented.
"Yeah, but you're ready for this," Tommy assured.
"Totally," Kimberly agreed. Trini and Katherine added their agreements.
"All right," Billy grinned. It's too bad Jason couldn't be here to witness this monumental event. He'd be pleased, he thought to himself. He got into position as Rocky and Marge walked into the youth center. Rocky struggled underneath the weight of the textbooks, and one fell to the ground. He groaned in exasperation.
"Don't fret, Rocky. I've got it," Marge assured, and bent down and picked up the book as the rest of the pile was placed on a table.
"Hey, what's up, man?" Tommy wondered.
"Yeah, what's with all the books?" Richie wondered as he cleaned one of the tables.
"Well, you know about that Teacher For A Day project, right?" he asked, as he and Marge stepped closer to their friends. Marge and Billy shared shy glances, ignoring the knowing smiles of the other teens.
"Oh, you mean where a student and teacher trade places?" Tommy recollected.
"That's the one," Rocky confirmed. "Well, I got chosen to be it, so now I gotta be a teacher."
"Wow. What an honor," Kimberly said.
"Yeah, great job," Katherine added.
"Thanks," Rocky said glumly.
"What's wrong?" Trini wondered.
"Well, I've been telling him that there's no reason to agonize over the situation due to the fact that his accumulation of academic sciolism has him well prepared for the challenge, but he still feels extemporaneous," Marge continued. Adam, Kimberly, Billy, and Trini nodded in understanding as Katherine's mouth dropped. What did she just say? she wondered. Richie looked at the girl, silently mouthed the words, trying to puzzle out her statement, but gave up with a shake of his head. Then, someone called him over. He walked up to them, got their order-a smoothie-, and then walked back behind the counter to make the drink.
"What she said," Rocky commented.
"What makes you think you're not fit for the challenge?" Adam wondered.
"Yeah, who are you trading places with?" Billy added. Rocky pointed to a man who had just walked into the youth center and everyone's eyes widened.
"Mr. Wilton," Tommy and Billy chorused.
"Oh, man," Tommy sighed.
"No wonder you're feeling apprehensive," Billy stated.
"Yeah, his science classes are brutal," Justin agreed.
"I'll say," Kimberly said.
"And he's really strict," Adam continued.
"Yeah," Trini murmured.
"That's for sure," Katherine stated.
"Yeah, well, tomorrow I'll be teaching classes for him, and he'll be going to classes for me," Rocky told them.
"Well, who knows? It may be sort of fun," Billy stated.
"Well, well, well. This will certainly be an intriguing experiment," Wilbur Wilton commented. I can't wait to go back to classes and reconnect with my students, he thought to himself. "Won't it?" Justin, Kimberly, Adam, Trini, Billy, Katherine, and Tommy straightened their stances.
"Yes, Sir," they chorused.
"To see if I can fit in as a modern-day teenager," Mr. Wilton continued.
"And Mr. Wilton was kind enough to loan me his teacher edition books to help me with the classes," Rocky added. Though, he had to admit, the offer still surprised him. He hadn't expected it from the man.
"Rocky, listen carefully," the man said seriously. Rocky nodded. "Discipline is the most important thing for a teacher to maintain order. Students won't respect you unless you're tough, tough, tough!" The boys reacted in surprise as Mr. Wilton's right fist broke through the board. Marge jumped and grabbed Billy's arm. Having peeked out the kitchen door as he was preparing the drinks, Richie dropped the fruit when he saw the boards breaking under Mr. Wilton's fist. He hurriedly picked the fruit up, put them in the trash, and then got more fruit. Seeing the students' expressions and hearing their quiet exclamations of shock, Mr. Wilton let out a nervous laugh. I didn't mean to unsettle them, and that hurt, he thought as he discreetly rubbed his fist. "Remember, in order for this experiment to work, you kids are going to have to treat me just as you treat Rocky," he told them. "Is that clear?"
"Yes, Sir. Perfectly clear, Sir," everyone chorused.
"I like your tie," Tommy added. On the moon, Rita had witnessed the whole thing.
"So, Rocky's switching places with science teacher, how cute," she sneered.
"You know, it's too bad you can't really make them switch places," Rito commented.
"What, you mean like switch their bodies?" Scorpina asked, somewhat sarcastically.
"Hey, that's not a bad idea!" Rita shouted. "I can cast a spell over the two, causing them to switch!"
"Excellent! If he's inside the science teacher, the Gold Ranger won't be able to morph when you send down a monster, leaving the Rangers short-handed," Goldar approved.
"Hey, uh, where's Ed?" Rito wondered.
"Taking a nap in his chambers. He said he was feeling…tired," Scorpina answered. She glanced at Goldar, and they laughed while Rito looked at them in confusion. Ignoring them, Rita brought forth the skull she used for spells and began chanting in a foreign language.
AUTHOR'S NOTE
Yes, I'm aware that gis are generally one color, with no trims, but this was the only way I could realistically incorporate Billy and Tommy's colors for the scene.