Like Father, Like Son

"Argos Cruger, you stop spinning on that chair or so help me you'll be eating salmon for a week." Kat glances up from the Command Center console. Her eyes are stern but she wears a smile.

"Yes, Mom," Argos settles down into his father's mountainous chair sheepishly.

"Aw, come on, Kat, it's fun!" Bridge chirps from where he reads a comic book.

"Is that why you threw up the last time you spun on it?" Kat asks smoothly. Her son laughs brightly at it and her smile grows. "No one is spinning on that chair, it is for Commander Cruger, am I clear?"

"Yes, ma'am," all of B–Squad choruses, as well as her son.

"B–Squad," Doggie greets upon entry. They salute him and he nods at them. He comes to his chair and brings his son onto his lap easily. "How are you liking the Command Center?"

"It's awesome!" Argos exudes enthusiasm, watching every tiny going on in the room.

"Good, you might be working here some day," Doggie chuckles. From the time he could talk, Argos has insisted that he is going to be a great power ranger; it runs in the family, he says.

"I'm going to be Commander, like you, Dad!" Argos declares proudly.

"You've got a little while to go, pup" Kat glides over and gives her boy a fond kiss on the cheek, as well as a purring nuzzle.

"Mom!" Argos means for it to sound like a complaint but it's more loving than anything.

"I swear, the sound of your voice calms his soul like a tranquilizer," Doggie smiles at his wife and mate. Looking down at Argos: "when you were a baby pup you could throw a hurricane fit, but as soon as you heard your mother's voice you calmed."

"Kat has that calming effect," Z offers to the family's immediate left.

"Yeah, I mean, whenever you're mad at us she seems to calm you down," Jack chuckles to her left.

"He has a point, sir," Syd nods to his left, "you do go easier on us when Kat's around."

"Surely you don't all find this," Doggie looks around helpless.

"Actually, it's a well known fact that if you're angry, the best chance of survival is to find Kat," Boom nods. He throws a hand towards Bridge in their rock–paper–scissors game, which ends in another draw. "Remember the time I fried the console with soda? You were ready to kill me until I hid behind Kat and she convinced you that I would fix my 'naturally clumsy' mistake."

"You're also never as angry as when Kat's not around at all. In the one day she was gone to Supreme Command you chewed out, like, ten people," Bridge agrees.

"You were at Supreme Command?" Argos asks his mother innocently.

"Briefly, but I couldn't leave your father and my B–Squad," Kat smiles.

"You don't have to go back, right? Dad's Supreme Commander anyway, right?—I mean, even if you did, you'd still be here, right?" Argos' ears fold to a fearful angle.

"Oh, no, baby, I'd never leave. Even if I went anywhere, even for a week, I'd take you with me," Kat takes her son into her arms so he can sit on her hip.

"Really?" he perks up and she nods. "What would Dad do all by himself, though?"

"Excuse me, but why can't Dad come?" asks Doggie.

"Dad can always come," Kat leans over to kiss her husband.

"Eew, no, gross!—take it elsewhere," Jack scrunches his nose and buries it back into his book. The boys seem to agree, while Z chuckles and Syd says something about it being romantic.

"Eew, no, gross!" Argos copies his Uncle Jack, pawing at his parents' faces to pry them apart. They laugh a bit and he lets his tongue sit between his fangs. "That's yucky."

"I told you, I'm never going to get to kiss you again," Doggie says in mild jest.

"You're just jealous because I have a new man in my life," Kat teases back.

"Yeah!" Argos agrees and paws at his father's muzzle again.

"Rangers, problem downtown," Kat addresses evenly. She still holds Argos, if a little tighter, and tries not to alarm him.

"Can I say it?" Argos asks his father in a whisper.

"Go for it," Doggie smirks.

"Rangers, suit up!" Argos declares, already sounding eerily like his father.

"Sir!" they salute Argos more than Doggie and escape down the hatches.

"Doggie, I can't tell exactly what it is but I'm getting an energy reading from Zantarian Sector," says Kat.

"Go," he nods and takes Argos, "just be careful."

"Mom, where are you going?" Argos becomes worried as he sees his mother step away.

"Don't worry, little one, I'll be back before you know it," Kat gives her son a lasting kiss on his blue speckles and dashes away.

"Dad, where is Mom going?" the pup demands firmer this time.

"She's just going to look at the energy reading, don't worry, son, she'll be fine. She'll be with your uncles and aunts." Doggie senses his words are equally to quell his own worry as his son's. He worries about Kat going into the field too, but Argos has never been first hand to witness a field run happening.

Argos settles on his father's lap again, though his body language screams unhappiness. His ears are folded back, lips set in a pout. "I thought Mom stayed here for work."

"Usually she does, but sometimes she's needed to go into the city, because she's so smart," Doggie still tries to talk Argos' fear down.

"What if she get's hurt?" Argos tries his best to keep himself calm, but he can fear rising in his throat, and his lip trembling.

"She won't," this, Doggie can say with surety. He brings surveillance up and gets a glimpse of Kat working – beautiful, he thinks to himself – before some alien imbecile comes up on screen. "Boom, please take Argos to your lab."

"Yes, sir," Boom says seriously, sensing the pertinence of the moment and Argos' worry for his mother.

"No, I wanna stay!" Argos's eyes are glassy, now. "I want to stay to help Mom!"

"If something happens I will be there, but it's nothing you should have to see," Doggie tries to explain.

"No, I'm not going!" Argos digs his claws into the edge of the console, making dents in the chrome.

Boom looks helplessly to Doggie, who sighs, looking dark: "Argos, I am your father; do as I say and go with Boom. I will be here to protect your mother, if need be, but I can't work if I'm worrying about you too."

Argos sniffs in defeat, knowing his father has greater reason than he. He mutters fine under his breath and speeds off with the whirlwind speed of his father, past Boom and into his mother's lab. He clambers up onto her chair and accesses her own surveillance, although he knows he'll be in big trouble for it. The screen shows his uncles and aunts fighting against this thing, whatever it is. His mother is standing back, analyzing something with a wrist sampler she designed for herself.

"Hello, lovely lady," the alien addresses Kat after knocking B–Squad away with ease.

"Get lost," she bites at him, very unlike the loving woman Argos knows her as.

"Come on, sweetie," the alien reaches a tentacle forward, trying to draw her to him.

"I said no," she says coldly again. She extends her claws and slashes the thing away, though two more grow in its place.

"Get away from her!"

Argos is relived to see the rest of his family by his mother's side. Uncle Sky is on his feet first, and stands directly in front of Kat. The rest form a 'v' around her seconds later. They have all told him stories, of various things, such as ranger adventures or of his parents before he was born. Something they always emphasized to him was that they were family, and his mother was like their mother too.

However, Argos' worry comes back in full when the alien knocks B–Squad away and electricity courses through them. Their painful cries are upsetting, and as the alien nears Kat Argos is all but frantic.

A blur comes on screen and Shadow stands before her, his sword bared and ready.

"Don't even think about laying a hand on my wife!" comes his father's recognizable, angry growl.

"Oh, so this kitty cat's yours?" the alien laughs. He extends several tentacles but they're all deflected by the Shadow Sabre.

"We've got this, sir!" Jack stands and holds up his morpher: "judgement mode!"

Argos watches as the beast is captured and breathes in relief. Honestly, he wishes he could rush to his mother's aide like his father, but he's smart enough to know that's a battle he can't fight, let alone win. Knowing his mother is safe he slips off the chair and scurries back to the Command Center.

"Whoa, little man, what's up?" his Uncle Boom asks, kneeling down.

"I–I thought I'd see if my Mommy was back," Argos widens his eyes innocently.

"Sure, come on, buddy," Boom nods his spiky haired head and takes Argos' hand. "Worried about your mom, huh?"

"Yeah," Argos admits quietly. He will be able to celebrate properly when he sees his mother safe and sound for himself.

"Don't worry, pal, your dad's always taken good care of her," Boom assures his nephew. "Besides, your mom's a tough lady, she can take care of herself no problem."

"Sure, but it's Dad's job to take care of Mom." When Boom looks at him oddly Argos continues, "that's what he said."

"I bet he did," Boom laughs a little. "He's always been really protective of your mom, even before they were married."

"Good," Argos says, dead serious (so he doesn't know what's so funny to Boom).

"What were you doing in the lab?" Argos hesitates a moment, and it's all Boom needs. "Were you maybe looking at the satellite surveillance? Were you looking at it on your mom's computer like she told you not to do?"

"Yeah," Argos admits, folding his ears down again.

Boom leans down again and winks, "don't worry, little man, that can be our secret."

"Thanks, Uncle Boom," the pup smiles.

"Hey!" Bridge calls down the hall to Boom and Argos.

"Hey!" Boom greets back, still holding Argos' hand. "How'd it go?"

"No trouble," Bridge kneels as well and high–fives the pup in greeting.

"Where are my Mom and Dad?" Argos tries to ask casually, without worry.

"It's cool, pup, don't worry," Z smirks, "your dad takes good care of your mom."

"I know," Argos replies seriously, mouth set in a straight line (again, people laugh at his seriousness, and he can't fathom what's so hilarious).

"Here they come," Sky gesture down the hall to where Doggie carries Kat bridal style, both of them smiling. "Don't worry, that happens a lot; I think he just likes carrying her for fun."

"Of course I like carrying my mate," Doggie answers brazenly with an audacious smirk.

"Doggie," Kat scolds, giggling and blushing like young girl at something he's said.

"Then there are these two," Jack gestures to the two, "so cute it's idiotic."

"What have you been up to, Arg?" Kat is let down from her husband's arms and greets her son with a kiss.

"Nothing," he grins a little too innocently.

Kat regards her child with skepticism. She looks up at Boom, who nods. Both boys are dear to her, and equally bad liars. "Right, I'll let that slide until later."

"Did you beat that thing?" Argos asks upward in distraction.

"You bet!" Syd pats Argos' shoulder.

"You took care of Mom, right Dad?"

"Of course," Doggie looks down at his son seriously (finally, someone who gets it).

"Good," Argos's mouth is still neither a smile nor a frown.

"Were you worried he wouldn't?" Kat asks with the same suspicion.

"No, but since I can't, Dad is the next best thing." Argos folds his arms stubbornly, still unaware of what about his seriousness is so funny to the grownups in his life.

"Well, thank you for worrying about me, honey, but you don't have to. Your father takes excellent care of me," Katherine nuzzles her son, alleviating him of his cloudy demeanor. She purrs loudly and he giggles from the vibration.

"I know," Argos concedes.

"Come on, why don't you come back to the lab with me? I found some neat goop while I was out," Kat takes Argos' hand and leads him to the lab, everyone else behind them. He brightens considerably at the word "goop": one of his favorite textures.

"Yeah!" Argos cheers.

Everyone enters the lab, Kat taking her seat, Argos sitting next to her, and Boom, at the center console. Doggie stands by her side, a paw on his son's shoulder. B–Squad mulls about, going back to the things they were doing before they left. Things have been pleasantly slow since the fall of Omni, and they're still enjoying the leisure time offered. Jack and Z are reading. Syd flips through a magazine while Sky logs onto his personal system. Bridge and Boom are still playing rock–paper–scissors, still without a conclusive winner.

"Hello, everyone," Felix greets as he too comes into the lab area.

"Hi, Uncle Felix!" Argos waves.

"Hello, Argos," Felix waves back and ruffles the boy's hair. He comes over to the bio– analysis station and begins working, muttering things between Kat and himself.

"Argos?" Kat asks and he lifts his ears. "Why is my surveillance window open?"

The pup is at a loss for response. Boom chokes on his spit and hacks conspicuously.