Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers Ninja Steel.

Life without her mom was unexpected. Of course, it wasn't like her mother had died of an illness, or even had been struck by a car. Her death had been a murder – absolutely and completely preventable.

But that wasn't the kind of unexpected that Hayley felt. Life without her mother wasn't as hard as Hayley anticipated.

Without a doubt it was difficult. There were times, days, even, when Hayley couldn't bring herself to move. She would wake up in the morning with the thought of her mother being gone and couldn't even will her eyes to open. There were times when she didn't want to do anything or say anything. There were times when she could hear her mother's voice, her laugh, in her head, or see her smile as bright as day and it would hurt so much, Hayley felt paralyzed.

And then there were times where life felt… fine? It wasn't the best way to describe it, but it was just fine. There were days when, despite her mother being gone, Hayley could get herself out of bed, get dressed, share a laugh over breakfast and head to school. There were times where she could hear her mother's voice, her laugh, and see her smile and it would bring her comfort.

"That never really goes away," Sarah said to Hayley, after the white Ranger had confessed to her that the mixed feelings were confusing. "It's really good, then really bad, then okay, then bad, and good and… it's like a roller coaster that you can't get off, but the hills and the dips get a little smaller the longer you ride it. You know, until your dad shows up again, murders your friend's mom and then sides with the bitch you've been fighting for about a year and a half."

"Hopefully that last part doesn't happen," Hayley said. "But the rest of it… you felt it too?"

"Me too," Kelly nodded. "Though, when my parents died, they were already pretty evil. A different type of evil, but evil none the less. I'm still riding that roller coaster too."

"It does get a little easier," Sarah promised. "You'll learn new ways to deal with it all. You'll start to recognize the things that make you miss her."

"And dad?" Hayley asked as she glanced into the other room at her father. While living in a house full of people had kept him distracted, he was still living without his wife. Jenny did her best to help, to give him advice and tricks on adapting to life as a single parent, but the process was still hard on him. He had gone back to work shortly after the funeral to get back into a regular routine, and to distract him from his loss. However, coming home, not seeing Anne, not being able to tell her about his day, or hear how her day went, was taking its toll.

"He's got some things to figure out too," Sarah said. "But mom's been there. She'll know how to help."

"She's trying too hard, if you ask me." Kelly gestured around, at the kitchen, which was clean, despite breakfast having only just finished. Jenny, like usual, had gotten up early to ensure everyone had eaten a good meal, and then took it upon herself to clean up afterwards. She washed, dried, and put away the dishes, and cleaned the countertops, the stove, and even vacuumed and mopped. "It's so clean in here, by dinner I'm sure it'll still be safe to eat off the floor."

"She's just helping out," Sarah said. "You weren't there after dad died. This place away always a bit of a mess because neither of us really cared to keep it clean."

"Maybe overcompensating," Hayley suggested. "You know… because of who's to blame for all this?"

"It's not mom's fault…"

"Yeah, but her husband is the one who killed his wife," Kelly reminded Sarah. "She knows that."

"Of course she does. But you don't blame her and your dad doesn't even know."

"We don't blame her," Hayley promised while Kelly nodded in agreement. "We'd never blame her. She was just as surprised by all this as we were."

"She was betrayed by your dad too," Kelly added. "But Aaron doesn't know that."

"So he really doesn't blame her," Sarah shrugged.

"Okay, how can I put this gently?" Hayley said, and quickly looked over to see if Kelly would have any ideas. When the green Ranger shrugged a response, Hayley knew it was on her. "Okay, well… dad… might blame your mom."

"That's not fair, though."

"Not for the murder," Hayley shook her head. "He's a reasonable guy even in the worst of times but… Jenny might be digging her own grave by helping out so much. If dad did ever find out that Jenny knew about everything, all along, and instead of telling him the truth, she just… cooked him meals and cleaned up after him. He might not take that so well."

"But mom isn't to blame."

"But dad's looking for someone to blame," Hayley said. "We know this is Oedius' fault. We can blame her, take out our anger on her or her monsters. Dad… he knows Oedius killed mom but… she's not as much of a presence in his life as Jenny is. If he finds out your dad played a part in this, and Jenny knew about it, and she didn't say anything…"

"She doesn't owe your dad anything," Sarah growled. "Mom had no idea it was going to happen. If she had, unlike my dad, she would have done everything she could to try and stop it…"

"I know, Sarah," Hayley assured her. "I know that. We both know that. Deep down, dad will know that too. But Jenny's just…"

"Too convenient," Kelly said.

"He's not going to want to go after Oedius. She's a monster and he's…"

"A marine biologist," Kelly said with a chuckle. "If she were a shark or something, he might be able to take her but she's an alien..."

"So… the one thing mom can do to help out, to ease her own guilt over being married to the guy who killed Aaron's wife, is going to be the thing that tears them apart?"

"If he ever finds out," Hayley said. "And I don't want that."

"But… we can't leave your dad… just stranded," Sarah frowned. "I mean… when mom needed help, my uncle Shane came down to help. He stayed if she needed, until she had this all figured out again. If mom ducks out… who will your dad have?"

"I think Jenny's doing the right thing already," Kelly stated. "She's not actually to blame here, and she's doing all she can to help Aaron. It'll just suck if, on top of all this, she turns into a punching bag for him too."

"That's… that's also not fair."

"It's not fair my mom's dead," Hayley said. "Sometimes, things just… aren't fair, I guess."

"That's not fair," Sarah pouted.

-Ninja-Steel-

Though Bill had sided with Madam Oedius, his goal was still to keep his family safe. In the end, it didn't matter what else happened, if Sarah and Jenny were safe and sound.

His daughter wanted nothing to do with him. Understandably, his betrayal had hurt her, and when he had refused her help, refused to turn his back on Oedius, she turned her back on him. Bill was sure he wouldn't see his daughter again off the battle field.

His wife was another story. She would visit, check in on him, if only to make sure he was keeping his distance from Sarah and the team.

Though Bill knew this wasn't a happy reunion, he did still smile when he saw Jenny coming through the trees. He still loved her deeply – maybe more than ever before. It took all he had to stop himself from taking her in his arms.

"Jen…"

"This is really how you're going to play it?" Jenny asked him. She wanted to skip the small talk and spend as little time here as possible.

"Oedius is too strong."

"So, you'll make her stronger?" Jenny said. She had been thinking of what to say to her husband to convince him he had made the wrong choice. "You'll side with her, and give her every advantage you possibly can…"

"I'm helping her," Bill confirmed. "But I don't want to win."

"So you're messing with her plans? Feeding her false information?"

"No. If I did that, and if she found out…"

"She'll come after me?" Jenny asked. "Turn Sarah into a target? Bill, she's trying to take over the planet. We're already in danger."

"Yeah, she's taking over the planet, but people don't have to die for her to do that," Bill said. "It's the ones who resist who aren't protected. If I help her, you and Sarah…"

"You're being loyal to a monster you know will never show you that same loyalty?" Jenny frowned. "You do understand, if she gets the chance, she'll kill Sarah, regardless of what you did for her?"

"If I don't help her, that's a guarantee. If I do help…"

"She pledged her loyalty to Galvanax for years, all while plotting to overthrow him one day. If she can do that to him…"

"I have to do something, Jen. I can't just… leave Oedius then sit around and do nothing."

"This is better than doing nothing?"

"I can help, here."

"Help who? Us?" Jenny frowned deeply then shook her head. "You already said you wouldn't stand in Oedius' way. You won't tell us what she's up to."

"I…"

"You're not the man I married," Jenny told him. "The man I married, the Bill I know, he would never do this to his daughter."

"Jenny."

"She was your whole world, Bill. You cancelled dates when she was sick, you took days off work to watch her in school plays, go on field trips…"

"I still love her."

"You sacrificed anything and everything to make sure she was safe and happy."

"That's exactly what I'm doing now."

"You sacrificed your daughter so you can feel useful," Jenny told him. "All that hurt you were trying to save her from growing up… you're the one who caused her the most pain."

"Jenny…"

"And despite everything you've done, despite how much I hate you and who you've become… I'd marry you all over again."

A smile appeared on Bill's lips. He had been sure his wife was chewing him out – calling him on his bullshit. He was sure she wanted to make him hurt as much as he had hurt her and Sarah. But hearing that despite everything, she still wanted to marry him, made him feel better.

Until she stabbed the knife right in his chest.

"I'd marry you again because as much as it hurt to know that this is who you've become, there's no way I'd ever want to leave Sarah alone with a monster like you."

"I'd never hurt her!"

"You have!" Jenny shouted. "And I know you have. I know that, no matter how much this hurts me, this has to hurt her more. I can distance myself from you. I can remarry, I can drop your name. I can move on with my life. Sarah… she'll always be your daughter."

"Jenny…"

"It's a wonder a kid like that could ever come from two people so… so absolutely vile," Jenny said, then turned to leave. "Let me know if you change your mind about all this, Bill. Just know, this window I'm giving you, it gets smaller every time you don't use it. Soon, it will be shut, and I promise, you'll want to get in."