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Perception

Summary:

Sky is sent to prison in Wootox's body, and gets help from the last person he wants to see again.

Notes:

Everyone say thank you to Skye for reminding me that I wrote this so I could keep up my completionist streak. Also if you enjoy mine because we've been enabling each other for months

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Work Text:

Dru watches the guards bring in the new prisoner, the self-proclaimed Wootox The Destroyer. The others steer clear of the fresh meat and Dru walks over to him.

“Hello,” Dru says, flashing a smile. “Let me introduce myself. I’m Dru Harrington. As the others have hopefully informed you, I’m the guy who can get you whatever you need.”

“I don't need anything from you,” Wootox says.

Dru laughs. “Oh funny guy, why are you trying to speak Terran.”

“You can understand me?”

“I’m Tangarian,” Dru says and Wootox looks confused. “We have similar vocal chord structures?”

“Of course. Well, whatever, leave me alone.”

Dru narrows his eyes. “One thing first, I need to know if you did anything to the Blue Ranger.”

“What if I killed him?”

“Well it'd be on your rap sheet,” Dru says, “but for your sake it’s better if you didn’t hurt him.”

“Why do you care, you shot him.”

“Well you know he was the only guy willing to do it in a broom closet five minutes before an exam so I probably owe him for that.”

The very human startled reaction doesn’t look quite right on Wootox’s body.

“Hello, Sky.” Dru says. “Thank you for confirming Wootox’s ability to switch bodies for me.”

“I’m happy to help,” Sky says, “now leave me alone.”

“And how could I abandon my Angel when he needs my help.”

“I’m not your Angel, and I don’t need your help.”

“Really? You’re planning on escaping prison and getting back to Earth on your own? When you’re a wanted criminal who’s already escaped once?”

Sky glares at him.

“Do you think they’ve noticed you’re acting off yet? Or has Wootox already gotten rid of anyone who might get suspicious. Bridge can find him out easily if he gets a whiff of something wrong, and he’s your roommate. Or maybe he's just taken whatever SPD tech he can get his hands on, run off, and sold it to the highest bidder, and now your friends are facing upgraded Krybots and criminals who know their every weakness. Or–”

“Enough,” Sky growls. “Why do you want to help me? I thought you didn’t need me.”

Dru leans back and smiles. “Maybe there is some goodness left in my heart. Maybe I’m just enjoying the irony of this whole situation.”

“So you’re helping me for a laugh?”

“I’m helping you because if anyone’s going to have you weak and screaming on your knees, metaphorically or otherwise, it’s going to be me, Angel, and it’s no fun if you’re already at my mercy.”

Sky turns away.

“Tick tock, Sky. Every second you waste is another second Wootox can use your body to hurt your precious SPD.

“Fine.” Sky says. “What’s your plan?”

“It’ll take me time to come up with something.”

“I know you Dru, you had a plan the second you figured out it was me.”

“Always so needy,”

“You’re the one who said I don’t have time to waste.”

“Alright, but just because it's you,” Dru says. “I do have a plan, but I won’t tell you what it is.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re just going to have to trust me.”

Sky is clearly mulling it over, looking for something to argue against, but they already both know the plan is sound.

“How soon can you get it done?” Sky asks.

“Oh, I'm a pretty busy guy, running an information network from inside prison, you’ll have to convince me to move it up on priority list.”

“What now, Dru.”

“Let me remind you how to have fun, Angel.” Dru takes Sky by the arm and leads him to a closet, then presses up against him.

“I don’t know how to use this body like that.”

“We figured it out once, we can do it again.” Dru shifts to his Tangarian form. “You have no idea how much I've thought of getting to do this with you like this.”

“Let’s just get this over with.”

“You can try and have a little fun,” Dru says. “I’m going to make this pleasurable for you too.” He gives Sky a shock Sky shudders. “See? I remember the kind of things you liked. Different body doesn’t mean a thing.”

Sky moans a little, and Dru gets to work.

~

The chemicals released by Wootox’s body after sex are even stronger than the ones humans have, so Sky’s practically a giggling useless puddle once they’re done.

It's easy enough to get the guards to turn the other way as Dru takes “Wootox” back into his cell and says they’ll be sharing for a bit, so now all Dru has to do is send a message.

“Hello, Jack,” he says into the recording. “Thank you so much for sending Sky over here to visit me. I’m having so much fun with him, I can only assume you did this on purpose, right? Surely you’ve noticed Wootox in Sky’s body before this. I mean Bridge is psychic, so you must have known and decided to do me a favor. Thank you so much, I really owe you one.”

There, that should get those idiots to actually check and come rushing over to get Sky back in his body. He sent it along a secure SPD channel, so they’ll notice soon enough.

As much as Dru would love more time with Sky, he’s not stupid enough to rock the boat on a whim. If he’s whisking Sky off to the furthest corner of the galaxy so that stupid blue boy will stop sticking around in his mind, he’s going to take longer than a day to plan it.

So he’ll just have to settle with leaving Sky a reminder of how good they can be together, and mocking the other rangers for being such idiots. If it puts a seed of doubt in his mind about whether he belongs at SPD, then so be it.

Although… maybe there’s one more thing he can do to rub salt in the wound.

~

“This is all my fault,” Syd groans. “If I hadn’t hit him so hard–”

“Someone sneaking into our room deserves an iron fist to the face,” Z says, “it’s not your fault Sky – or Sky’s body? – was so exhausted it kept him out for three days.”

“But it was still weird! We should have checked if something was wrong there!”

“One weird thing isn’t enough to assume someone’s been body snatched,” Bridge says. “And my powers don’t work if I don’t know to check… maybe I should learn to read minds or something.”

“You can work on that after we get our Sky back,” Jack says, gripping the shuttle controls a little too tightly. 

That fucking message from Dru. Self righteous prick. If he’s done anything to Sky, Jack will beat him up himself.

It’s clear he wants something, and Jack's a little worried he already for it from Sky.

They arrive at the prison and haul Wootox-in-Sky’s body to the meeting room, where Sky-in-Wootox’s body is waiting, alongside Dru.

“What are you doing here?” Jack asks.

“I want to make sure you don’t mess this up,” Dru says.

“Bridge?” Jack says and Bridge scans Sky-in-Wootox’s body.

“Yep. That’s Sky!” Bridge says.

They shove Wootox-in-Sky’s body towards Sky-in-Wootox’s body and hold him still while Sky-in-Wootox’s body touch their foreheads together.

There’s energy and a bright light, but suddenly Sky stumbles back and he’s stopped glaring.

Jack ungags him. “Sky? That you?”

“Yeah,” Sky says. “I’m me, and why does my head hurt?”

“Sky!” Syd hugs him. “I’m so sorry I knocked you out!”

“Hm?”

“That creep snuck into my room and was watching me and I was holding an hair iron and when I tried to push him away I launched him across the room with an iron fist.”

“Wootox has been passed out in your body for three days,” Z says.

“Oh! So he didn’t do anything!” Sky says. “I was worried he’d hurt you guys.”

“No, as it turns out your body was just exhausted already,” Bridge says, “so when Syd hit him he just slept it off.”

“Still burning that midnight oil?” Dru asks and they’re suddenly all reminded he’s here. “Sky, do you really need me to help you get to sleep.”

“We’ll finish this conversation later,” Jack says, “let’s go.”

“What no thank you for fixing your catastrophic mistake before something serious happened?”

“Thank you,” Jack grits out. 

“I want one more thing.”

“If it’s a lighter sentence, you’re lowering your chances.”

“I want it from Sky.”

“No.”

“And if I say that I strapped a bomb to Wootox and will blow us all up if I don’t?”

“You care too much about money for that,” Jack says. “You’re a guy who knows when to cut his losses and run.”

“Oh, that your professional analysis,” Dru says, pulling out what looks like a detonator. “Willing to stake your life on it?”

Before Jack can say anything, Sky rushes forward, pulls Dru close and kisses him for far too long. 

Even without his translator, Jack’s pretty sure he understands what Wootox is saying.

They finally separate, and Sky has the detonator in his hands.

“This is a pen.”

“Did it’s job,” Dru says. “I hope we can catch up again soon, Sky.”

He knocks on the door, and guards arrive to take him and Wootox away.

Sky coughs and straightens up. “Ok, well we’ll have to go check in with Commander Cruger so–”

“Are you ok?” Jack asks. “Dru didn’t do anything to you?”

“No, it's fine,” Sky says. 

“Are you–”

“It's fine,” Sky says, “I don’t want to talk about it, let’s just get back.”

Sky leaves first and the others follow out, and Jack can’t get that damn look of Dru’s out of his mind.

Like he’s telling Jack he’s got something Jack can never have.

Notes:

Have you considered that Recognition is the funniest fucking body swap episode in anything ever?

Alien with ADHD steals body of cadet, last like 20 minutes before getting bored of faking it and just attacks the first person he sees.

His ass is somewhat saved by the fact that he stole the body of the one cadet so emotionally constipated he can barely communicate when in his own body, much less non-verbally in someone else's, resulting in monkey brain panic mode taking over.

(For the record, I also find Idol hilarious because Jack and Dru instantly hate each other for no reason other than both being in love with Sky)

I fucking love SPD and my stupid idiot children (who I thought were cool adults when I was 6) so much, I just wanna put them in a jar and shake them.

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