By yon Bonnie Banks
By yon Bonnie Brea
Where the sun shines Bright
On Loch Lomon
For me and my true love
Will never meet again
On the Bonnie Bonnie Banks
Of Loch Lomon
Billy broke into a guitar solo as Gracie began circling, planting a kiss on her boyfriend's cheek. Mary was making her fiddle truly sing while Jimmy looked downright high while hammering on his drum set. This was by far becoming their group's best song and Gracie especially loved it, especially the twangy flavor that Billy brought to it. The lyrics could be a little depressing when you thought about it but Gracie wanted The Gang from Galway's rendition to be as peppy and upbeat as humanly possible for their performance. She still couldn't believe it! She'd been thrilled when Mom and Momma had informed the family that Momma had asked Mom to remarry her. The ring had been…did Momma really find something like that in a French Canadian antique shop? But as excited for her parents as Gracie had been, it all paled in comparison to her parents' request that The Gang perform most of the music for the ceremony. They had said that could be Gracie's wedding present to them. A present for THEM? This was practically the best gift they could've given HER! And Gracie was determined to give her mothers a phenomenal show!
By the Bonnie Bonnie Banks
By the Bonnie Bonnie Banks
Those Beautiful Banks
Of Loch Loman!
"THANK YOU WELLINGTON!" Jimmy shouted as he leapt up from his stool.
"I think we've got just enough personal flavor," Gracie smiled at her longtime friend's antics. "But I am feeling REALLY parched." Popping over to the small fridge Momma kept in the garage, she snagged a bottled water. "Anybody else thirsty?" Mary whistled and caught the thrown bottle just as she'd set her violin down. Their circumstances still constantly made the four laugh. They probably had to be literally the only garage band in America that played Dulaman instead of Dirty Deeds. Downing the bottle of water in several gulps, Gracie returned to her position. "How about we get one more run through of Seasons of Love before we call it quits?" The one caveat Mom and Momma had put in place was that the group learn her parents' favorite song, Seasons of Love from the Broadway play Rent. It wasn't exactly in their repertoire but Gracie spied on them dancing to it when she was little and had walked in on them dancing to it on several occasions in recent years and was all too willing to agree to it. The four of them wouldn't be able to handle playing it but Gracie had gotten ahold of a great karaoke version of it that they could play on the sound system.
"Man, I'm beginning to hear that song in my sleep," Jimmy muttered, wiping the sweat from his brow. He'd been as excited as any of them at the prospect of an actual gig and not just a song here and there. But one of his best friends of going on ten years was starting to develop a SERIOUS tyrant complex. The Mrs. Possible as he called them were totally cool, especially Gracie's Momma. As the son of a master mechanic, Jimmy got along well with anyone who understood the beauty of a six cylinder V8 engine. And both of Gracie's Moms had been like a second set of parents to Jimmy and Mary since kindergarten. Billy…the poor schmuck had to be the one to be crazy about Gracie and ask out the only girl in school whose Momma could literally MELT said six cylinder V8 engine into a steaming pile of goo. So all four of the bandmates wanted to give a good performance…but Jimmy wasn't sure how much more of this he could take.
The band had taken their starting positions when Jimmy and the rest were saved by the bell…or rather the car horn to be more precise. Billy's dad and Mary's mom pulled up ready to escort the trio back home. Though it might take Gracie several tries if her record remained the same, she couldn't wait until all four of them got their licenses next year. As the cars pulled away, Gracie's ears picked up Momma's call to dinner. Making a mad dash through the new fallen December snow, Gracie burst through the kitchen door and shook the snowflakes out of her long red hair.
"Young lady, you're going to catch your death of cold," Momma scolded, warming up her arms and pulling Gracie into a hug. "There now; toasty warm."
The fourteen year old rolled her eyes and thanked Momma for the warm up. Gracie's ears perked up just in time to hear Mom wrap up another phone tirade on the wedding planner front. Needing to decide on a country that recognized their lifestyle, Mom and Momma had settled on Wellington New Zealand as the location for the ceremony and reception, likely in mid-July so Abby would've given birth and could act as one of the bride's maids. However, the logistics of planning such an affair as Mom had in mind, let alone transporting all of the guests proved to be an unending migraine. Team Possible held a laundry list of favors but no one any member of Team Possible had ever helped could seem to handle something like this.
"AND SAME TO YOU," Mom screeched, a white-knuckle grip on the phone and looking like steam was about to pour out her ears. "YOU TWO BIT EXCUSE FOR A CHARLATON!" Mom hammered the "end" button and throwing the phone against the couch.
Mom had now pretty much become the center of attention, forcing the family to oh so delicately take their seats, trying to ignore the elephant in the room. Gracie planted herself next to Aunt Betty Director, staying for dinner to discuss some Global Justice stuff with Mom and Momma. Everyone joined hands for a prayer and then dug into the delicious meal of Momma's homemade chicken nuggets. A chorus of laughter sounded from Gracie and the twins as Nicky tore with gusto into the food Mom offered but inevitably wound up wearing for the sauce than he actually consumed. Aunt Betty inquired about how each of the girls was doing in school, and gradually the conversation began to shift to Kim's little disagreement with the Pan AM official.
"So Kim," She questioned. "About your little logistical problems?"
Each of the girls and even Momma herself had to suppress a chortle of laughter as Mom caught a sauce soaked piece of chicken to the forehead. "Nicholas Possible so help me, I'm THIS close to cutting you off from honey mustard for the rest of your life!" Taking a deep breath, she remembered that Betty had asked her a question. "Uh…yes; what about them?"
"Well as a wedding present, Global Justice would be more than happy to handle the transportation of all the wedding guests."
The room became deathly silent. The twins' forks hovered over their plates. Gracie' eyes darted from her mother to Aunt Betty afraid to blink for fear she might miss something important. Ever so slowly, Gracie could spot a tear roll down her Mom's cheek and she darted over to Aunt Betty, pulling her old friend into a hug.
"Thank you," Mom sobbed with joy. "THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!"
"Ha…just let me know the date and I'll make all the arrangements."
"You…you…have…no…" Mom gasped, looking like she was about to start weeping in joy.
"Believe me, it's my pleasure," Aunt Betty replied, reaching over and hugging her good friend of almost twenty years. Gracie's childhood had been peppered with bedtime stories of Mom and Momma's exploits but Aunt Betty had worked for Global Justice nearly all her life and a bedtime story by her had always been a special treat. "It's actually interesting that you chose New Zealand for the ceremony. Our Auckland R&D station is working on some new tech down there."
"Oooooh…is it a new type of fighter?" Gracie gasped, nearly choking on her mouthful of chicken, eyes now riveted on her aunt.
"Young lady," Momma barked at her eldest daughter. "Remember you table manners. Your mother and I didn't raise monkeys."
"Sorry Momma," Gracie replied, trying her best to look downcast. Turning back to her aunt, the event was soon forgotten and Gracie's original inquiries were remembered.
Teenagers, Shego thought to herself, rolling her eyes. A weasel has a longer attention span…and eats less to boot. Although…when you thought about it, Shego and Kim should probably count themselves lucky. Everywhere they went, Kim and Shego received compliments about how truly well behaved their children were. Gracie's teenage hormones may cause her to make a few small slip-ups but Shego knew that they could always trust their oldest daughter to do the right thing and make them proud.
Betty savored the look of anticipation on her surrogate niece's face. Gracie was so much like Betty at that age that it was scary. Every time the aspiring young agent would get wind of new tech from Aunt Betty, the fourteen year old wouldn't let it go. Frankly, Betty knew without a second thought that if there was one place she could trust even the most classified information, it would be here at the Palace. Kim and Shego were consistently the best freelance agents Betty had at her disposal. She owed both of the her life on more than one occasion; and "little Gracie Possible" as Betty couldn't help but think of the teenager before her? Betty couldn't think of a young agent who could keep technological secrets better, ESPECIALLY when it came to aircraft. If it flied, Gracie wanted to know absolutely everything about it.
"Well, it's not an aircraft per say," Betty taunted, savoring the look of extreme anticipation on the fourteen year old girl's face. Whether an aunt by blood or not, Betty couldn't resist the urge to tease her niece on occasion. "Okay, check this out," She drew a pen from her pocket and began sketching on a nearby napkin. "What they're working on is a mechanized battle suit, kind of the same as what you see in a lot of Japanese cartoons." Gracie's eyes got wider and wider as the drawing became more and more complete. "There's a variety of models in the works, each for a different form of combat, each with its own strengths."
"This…is…so…totally…SPANKIN," Gracie gasped in utter awe of what she was seeing before her.
Shego let out a whistle as she took the offered sketch. "Spiffy piece of tech. I wouldn't mind getting my hands on her controls."
"You and about every other pilot we have," Betty smiled. If only Shego knew. Though she was thoroughly too humble to ever claim to be so, and freelance or no, Betty reckoned Shego Possible to be one of if not THE best pilot currently flying for Global Justice. As soon as the prototype of the second model was up and running, Shego would be receiving a call inviting her to take part in a little project.
KPKPKPKPKPKPKPKPKP
SUCH a weight off her shoulders! With the question of transportation for the wedding wrapped up, Kim Possible was going to sleep oh so well tonight. Getting ready for bed that night, it truly DID feel like a magnificent weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Spitting her mouthwash into the sink, Kim returned to the bedroom and climbed in next to her spouse.
"Eme, are you sure you don't mind staying behind to keep an eye on Abby while I scout locations in Wellington?" Kim inquired, snuggling up to her wife's toasty warm body.
"We really don't have a lot of choice," Shego answered, closing her laptop, putting it on the nightstand, and wrapping an arm around her wife. "We'd kind of be straddling the no flying window with her pregnancy. Better to err on the side of caution…and besides; Gracie is going in my place. I think I can trust the two of you not to screw up TOO badly without me," Shego couldn't help but smile in spite of the playful elbow to the ribs. Even after nearly fifteen years of marriage, the two still had a competitive and playful streak a mile wide, tossing back and forth playful jibes like most people did tennis balls. "My only concern is that some little Maori hussy might try to lure my little Princess away while I'm not there to defend her honor."
"Yeah…run away with some little exotic beauty," Kim wistfully sighed rolling up on top of her wife, pinning her to the bed. "We'd travel the world getting into all kinds of adventures together," She leaned down and started planting kisses across her wife's bare chest. "But wait! I'm already married to an exotic goddess like no other, with pale skin like porcelain, flowing ebony locks that shine like black velvet. Together, we've raised four of the most wonderful and beautiful children that ever existed." Kim began working her way up until she was face to face with her lady love. "And this July, I'm going to stand before the people who mean the most to me and proclaim to the heavens above that I am going to love her until they day I die!"
"Kimberly Anne Possible…I…who'd have thought that I'd be the happiest, most content woman alive," Shego leaned up and planted a kiss of her own on Kim's ruby lips. "And it would be DRAKKEN who'd be responsible?" She focused on those emerald green eyes that she'd come to love so much. "What that blue dolt did to us was monstrous…but I wouldn't trade my time with you for anything in the world." Heated plasma began coursing through Shego's body, warming the bed and the woman in her embrace. Leaning towards Kim's ear, in a breaty voice, Shego began to sing.
You are my sunshine
My only sunshine
You make me happy
When skies are gray
You'll never know dear
How much I love you
Oh please don't take
My Sunshine away."
From there, the bed became a whirlwind of exposed flesh and satin sheets.
Author's Notes:
Somehow I knew that with all her little quirks and eccentricities, Kim Possible would most definitely be a bridezilla. This new story marks the inclusion of something that I've wanted to include since I started writing on this site. While it is still very early on in the story, look for the appearance of a certain mythical creature in the chapters that follow.