We are at the 2 year anniversary of my divorce proceedings. Yay. Color me unresolved. Unemployed for a year and a half.

Been over at Xanga. Wrybreadspread, in case y'all are interested. Rather cumbersome to type out. Discovered blogging. A new venue of expressing my random ruminations. But like I keep saying, among my writing pursuits, fanfiction is my first love.

Approaching the 2 year anniversary of my seminal story, A Heroine's Legacy. Still composing chpts. Still working on my other fic's also. Have flirted with other fandoms, notably Beauty And The Beast.

This tale is part of my Heroine's Legacy arc. Inspired by my correspondence with Alice Shade and daccu65

We will recap. My man Captainkodak1 wrote a story based on Edgar Allen Poe's A Cask Of Amontillado, where the protagonist is sealed up alive, called A Box Of Cuddlebuddies.

My man daccu65 wrote a sequel to Cap's story: Family Legacy. The protagonist, i.e. Kim, is transformed into a ghoul.

I was intrigued. I took the theme and reworked it. Redemption by a slower means than instant transformation. Into it I put all my bad vibes. A Heroine's Legacy was born.

My gal Alice Shade had to weigh in with her variation. Beyond The Grave; We Do What We Must.

Hey, it's all good. As my man The Wise Duck once told me, "Hey, it's fan fiction!"

But Alice has brought up some relevant points, like the ever-resourceful K.P. would've found a way out of her prison, and her speech would've deteriorated in the decades she spent underground away from human contact and interaction.

Moi couldn't leave well enough alone. This tale was born to account for Kim's continued imprisonment.

Alice Shade uses the technique described to thwart the Undead reformation in her story.

Rounding out the recap. Tara lured Kim to her house with a box of Cuddlebuddies. She buried Kim alive. Five years later, she married Ron. They had their three kids, Lon, Roy, and Kim. When Lon was sixteen, the kids heard sounds under the cistern cover. They wanted to see what it was. Kim (Possible, not Stoppable) got out. She tried to kill Tara, Lon, and Ron. They sealed her up. And she's royally ticked off.

Now for notes. Lorrie Mankey courtesy of daccu65. Yori's last name Kansumi courtesy of Captainkodak1. Her full name Yoriko courtesy of me. Tara and Ron's kids' names courtesy of daccu65. Their full names Alonzo, Elroy, and Kimberly courtesy of me. Hirotaka's last name Abe courtesy of me. Cousin Larry's last name Rivederci courtesy

of me; a K.P.-show-naming-scheme pun "Larry" ®"arrivederci"® "Larry Rivederci". Japanese words courtesy of Google Translate.

I gotta a hang-up about details like that.

Disclaimer. This is a dark tale. Consider it a Halloween selection. It involves murder, dismemberment, death threats, and foul language. There is no happy ending. Not yet. Moi loves drama. Moi promises a glorious redemption in the parent tale of this story.

And I sought for a man among them, that should build up the wall, and stand in the gap before Me for the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found none. (Ezekiel 22:30)

For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work: only there is one that restrains now, until he is taken out of the way. (2 Thessalonians 2:7)

A HEROINE'S LEGACY

A Barrier That Restrains

chpt 1

Ron Stoppable wondered-should he use the modern means of communication? Or the ancient? In his left hand, he held his old Ronnunicator. His right hand was curled up into a fist.

The device was a twenty-two year old gift from his beloved K.P. At the time, it had incorporated cutting edge technology. It was now an antique-almost as primitive as an old CD player.

Wade's kids were as gifted technologically as their father was. They might somehow overhear a radio transmission. So Ron finally elected to use the more ancient form of communication.

Having decided, he lifted his clenched right hand and closed his eyes in intense concentration. A faint chattering of monkeys was just barely audible. A bright blue glow seemed to originate from his palm and seep out through his fingers.

The bright blue glow lit the room. An image of an old man in a bright red caftan with long white beard and white scalp lock appeared.

Ron addressed the man. "Sensei."

Atop Mount Yamanouchi, the old man attired in a bright red caftan sighed deeply. "My Stoppable-san?"

'I've got to come see you," said Ron somberly. Something happened."

"I feel it-an awareness came to me. I agree. It is urgent. Bring your wife and son."

Ron's lip curled in disgust. "Bring that little bitch? Hell, no!" He suppressed his rant. He heard his daughter's voice in the other room. He couldn't risk the discovery of this secret. "I'll dump her in the damn Pacific before I take another ride with her!" he hissed.

"Then bring your son only."

Next was his sister. For this the Ronnunicator sufficed. He keyed in the call sign. Hana had her own mystical ability, which he barely understood. It wasn't quite like the Mystical Monkey Power. It had more to do with her hidden ancestry as a descendent of the ninja school's founder, Toshimiru.

They had hardly seen each other since the kids were born. Ron was busy being a husband, father, and provider. Hana was-well, doing missions or reading scrolls, or Sensei-level stuff-he was never quite sure. Hana seemed like what he remembered growing up of Dad or Kim or Kim's parents-always into books or being busy. In some ways, she was more a mother to him than his own mother, Rachel Stoppable née Bergstein, had ever been.

The recorded answering message played, first in Japanese, then English. His sister's voice was lyrical and courteous, pleasing to listen to-but strangely distant.

"Kon'nichiwa, kore wa Noriyuma Hanako ga arimasu. Mōshiwake arimasenga, watashi wa kotaeru koto ga dekinai ndesu. Anata no o namae o nokoshite."

"Hello, this is Noriyuma Hanako. I'm sorry that I'm unable to answer. Please leave your name."

Ron sighed. That was another thing. Somewhere on the road to adulthood, Hana had undergone a personal change of attitude. She became markedly conscious of her ethnic heritage-to the point of abandoning the Stoppable name in favor of her birth name, as a descendent of Toshimiru, the Yamanouchi School's founder. No longer "Hana Stoppable", it was now "Noriyuma Hanako".

"Hello, Han. This is Ron." He smiled to himself at the slight rhyme.

"Ronnie-what is it?" broke in Hana's voice suddenly. "You sound awful."

It was both disappointing and encouraging. Hana was using the message to screen calls. That was considered bad form twenty years ago. Ron's own mother had scolded him for the same thing. His sister would not have picked up if it had been a mere social call. But the fact that he sounded in trouble prompted at least an appearance of sisterly concern.

"Something happened, Han. Something really bad. Lon and I are going to Yamanouchi. I could really go for having my little sister around."

"Okay-I'll see you there."