Authors Note: I do not own any of the characters in this story, Kim Possible, et al, are property of The Walt Disney Company.

Ok, so, this is my first ever fanfic. I hope you'll like it.

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Hard yet easy choices

The bell rang in its usual tone, signaling the end of another lesson at Middleton High. The corridors were quickly filled with students hurrying to make the most of their lunch break before the next mind-numbingly boring class started.

"I still can't get my head around this interest thing", said a voice in the crowd. "There is just something off about it. It's -". Ron Stoppable paused in his rant.

"…Sick and wrong?" interjected Kim Possible, his best friend and girlfriend when the pause seemed to have lasted a little too long.

"I was going to say not chauncey, there KP. Sick and wrong is a bit strong."

"Well, to be fair, 'sick and wrong' is your go-to phrase in these matters." Ron smiled at how well his friend knew him.

"May be so, but I want to start branching my vocabulary. I mean, I'm a senior now. I should have started to sound just a bit smarter by now. Just a little", Ron remarked, hands in pockets.

"Well, considering that last year you would have said 'word inventory' instead of 'vocabulary', I think you're making progress." Kim smiled an encouraging smile.

"Thanks KP. Glad someone notices around here"

A tiny voice from one of the pockets of Ron's pants: "Hnk. Me too!"

"Aw, Rufus, my pal, I know you notice", Ron said, directing his voice at the naked mole rat who jumped out of his usual hiding place and onto Ron's shoulder.

"Anyway, what's so wrong – sorry – not chauncey about it? I mean, banks have to make money too." Kim was used to Ron expressing views that most times seemed… quite odd. At least at first glance. If you dug a little deeper into the mind of Ron Stoppable, there was usually an underlying wisdom or logic.

"I know that banks need to make money, but it just seems that it's not cool to charge someone for what should be an act of kindness. I mean, we've always been popularer than Team Impossible, and I like to think that some of it is because we don't charge anything. Popularer… that's not a word right?"

"Not really", answered Kim, while smiling at Ron's analysis of their popularity, "but I think you've got something there. Though I've always thought our popularity was more about you losing your pants all the time", she continued, punctuating her statement with a quick peck landing on Ron's cheek. Ron blushed a little, but smiled a big heartwarming grin, matching Kim's.

"POSSIBLE! CUT THAT OUT!" Barkin's loud voice boomed through the halls, drawing everyone's attention equally to himself and to Ron and Kim. He had let them get away with a kiss at last year's prom, but he was not going to tolerate it during normal school days.

"Sorry Mr. Barkin", mumbled Kim, embarrassed that she hadn't seen the vice-principal and all-subjects substitute teacher in the hallway. Barkin stared grimly at the pair for a few seconds, alternating his hard glare at Ron and Kim, before moving on to the mess hall. At the same time, Ron's and Kim's friend Monique approached.

"Hey, there love birds. Better be a little more careful with Barkin around, you know that, Stoppable", she ribbed her friends.

"One, it wasn't me he yelled at, it was Kim. Two, we didn't see him there and three…" He pulled Kim in for a kiss right on the lips, "I couldn't care less."

"Rooon" said Kim as her boyfriend's lips left hers, "as much as I like this, and I do, I can't afford to get stuck in detention today. The yearbook staff, you know."

"Ok, KP, I gotcha. No lip-locking 'til you're done with the… whatever it is the yearbook staff does. But after that-"

"Oh, I know", smiled Kim.

"Well, I don't know and I don't want to." said Monique, rolling her eyes at the couple. "I could imagine but… well, I don't want to do that either, frankly."

The trio reached Kim's locker. As she opened it, the screen immediately turned on, and Wade, the genius twelve year-old tech support greeted them, smiling as usual.

"Hey guys. School alright today?"

"Well, we're speedily working our way to detention the best way I can imagine", Kim responded while smiling at Ron, who blushed a little.

"Well, uhm, I, er… see", Wade responded. He was glad that Kim and Ron had finally gotten things together, but there had been a change in team dynamic that he had a little trouble coping with. He was a genius, but dealing with certain aspects of social life was not his strong side. "So, anyway, there's been a hit on your website. Duff Killigan's up to something in northern Sweden. He's taken over the Ice Golf Course there and… well, I'm not sure yet what he's doing."

"But if it's Killigan it's a sitch we need to take care of. Do you have a ride set up?" Kim asked, hoping that it could take a while to fix, so that she didn't miss any classes or the yearbook meeting.

"Sure, but you'll have to leave right away." Wade responded, happy to have steered the conversation away to more familiar ground. "Bruce Lemmini is flying out to study some of the local flora, but he can't be too late or he'll miss… some blooming of some flower."

Kim remembered the botanist Lemmini, who she'd rescued when an experiment in crossing a Venus flytrap and a sequoia went horribly wrong. Why anyone would have wanted to try something like that eluded her, but she'd gotten used to scientists with odd ideas.

" Ok, we'll get moving. Call if you hear anything else." Kim said to Wade, and the image disappeared. She turned to Ron. "Looks like we'll miss the rest of the day."

"Can't be helped ", Ron responded, as he, Kim and Rufus began moving toward the nearest exit.

"Hold it! Wait!" Kim and Ron were halted by Monique's voice. "Aren't you forgetting something?"

Kim and Ron looked at each other, confused. They had their mission clothes in their backpacks; the ride was on its way. Kim tried "Uhm… Please and thank you?"

"No, not you Kim. Ron, did you forget that I have to borrow Rufus for my presentation on rodents in biology?" Monique stared at Ron with a frown that let him know she wouldn't give this one up without a fight. "My grade practically depends on this presentation! I need Rufus as a live example".

"Hnh hnh! Representative!" Rufus said, smiling at Monique. He had been proud to be chosen to be displayed as an exemplar for the entire rodent family of animals.

"Well, we can't just leave on a mission without him! He's a team member! And more useful than seems possible sometimes!" Ron responded. "Oh, come on–", Monique started

"Anything's possible for naked mole rat, Mon", Kim said supporting Ron. Rufus had always been a good little secret weapon, and many missions would have failed catastrophically if they hadn't had Rufus.

"You're facing a guy lobbing golf balls at you! He doesn't even have any henchmen! I'm sure you can take him without Rufus' help!"

Rufus looked up at Ron from the assigned mole rat pocket. Ron thought that Rufus seemed to try the puppy dog pout, which didn't work as well as it did coming from Kim. Still, it did its work.

"Oh, all right", Ron said. Rufus jumped out of the pocket and scurried to Monique. "But if they try any experiments on him, like… making him run in mazes, I'm gonna be a sour Ron."

"Now there's a threat", Kim said. "Let's go, Ron. Bye Monique! Bye Rufus!"

Hours later Kim would be glad that Monique had claimed Rufus for the day. The only people who would know exactly what transpired on that icy, dark expanse would be Wade and herself, and even that was one too many for her taste.