OF MICE AND A TEEN GIRL-2007
Author's notes: In this installment of "Of Mice and a Teen Girl", Ron Stoppable joins the Disney All-Stars as a free safety. Why a free safety when he was portrayed as a running back for Middleton High School in the fourth season of Kim Possible? When we were putting the rosters together for the 2007 season, "Ill Suited" hadn't aired yet, so we had no idea that Ron was even going to play football on the show, let alone what position. And once the rosters are set, they are "locked and loaded" and can not be easily changed.
All characters mentioned in this work are owned by their respective companies.
FALL-EARLY WINTER 2006-07
After the 2006 season ended, Kim Possible felt that while she had made great strides in 2006, she still wasn't totally satisfied with her performance. The Disney All-Stars hadn't made the playoffs, and that sort of left everyone feeling a little down. Mickey Mouse told Kim that she shouldn't worry about that; she worked hard and gave everything she had, and that's all that really mattered. He then gave Kim a "laundry list" of things she should work on during the off-season. Among them; crossing patterns, and "da bomb", which both felt was the weakest parts of her game. He also told her to expect more passes thrown her way in 2007. In 2006, the ratio of passes thrown to Minnie Mouse vs. Kim was about 70/30 or 65/35. In 2007, she should expect this ratio to be 60/40 or even 55/45. Mickey also told Kim to expect to get yelled at more. Mickey had treated Kim relatively gentle in 2006; she was new and wasn't expected to know it all. Mickey told her that when he yells at her not to take it personally; she would be an experienced player, and with that she would be asked to carry greater responsibilities. He put the yelling aspect this way: "I deplore profanity myself, and try not to use it in casual speech. But here, I may use it as a motivational tool. If I call you a name during practice, don't listen. But if I tell you why you're such a name, listen. That way, you'll get better." Kim thanked Mickey for imparting his wisdom upon her, and returned to Middleton to begin preparations for 2007.
Upon her return to her hometown, Kim resumed attending Middleton High, now as a senior. She also resumed her "save-the-world" missions. Amid all that, "Team Possible" (as Kim and Ron Stoppable liked to call themselves) began having football practice sessions of their own every chance they got. Ron had joined the Middleton High football team as a running back that fall, so they would hold practices on weekends. Ron would play quarterback, and Kim would practice catching passes under various game simulations. Kim pushed herself hard during these sessions. Most of the passes Ron threw were in the five to twenty yard range which is about the average in the USCFL. When she was satisfied that the number of receptions vs. number of passes thrown were in an acceptable range, they worked on some other aspect of the passing game. If she felt she didn't perform to her expectations, she punished herself with wind sprints or pushups.
On weekends, the Middleton High football field was free, so the two held their Saturday and Sunday practices there. While Kim missed hanging out at the mall and shopping on Saturday afternoons, she felt that making herself better at football came first. The two "recruited" some of their friends to participate in these four-on-four workouts. (They couldn't use any of the high school varsity players as doing so could jeopardize their eligibility.) They got Monique and Tara to play on their side, and Kim's school nemesis Bonnie Rockwaller to play on "defense". An added bonus was that some of Kim's teammates made the trip to Middleton on weekends, namely Mulan, Snow White, and Cinderella, playing on Bonnie's team. (Upon checking with his coach, Ron's holding these practices with Kim would not jeopardize his eligibility, since they would be considered "pickup games", provided no USCFL coaches or administrative staff were present.) Mainly they worked on the four-on-four passing drill, emphasizing the crossing pattern that Mickey had suggested Kim work on. Bonnie played her defensive role to the hilt. Once, when Kim caught the ball, Bonnie came after her. Kim saw the "Shego maneuver" coming, stopped play, and told Bonnie not so nicely, "Don't even think it, Bonnie." Bonnie learned her lesson, and toned down her aggressive defense after that. Another thing they worked on was "da bomb". Kim began making some long receptions, some over 80 yards. Her goal through all this wasn't to reach the point where she could "show up" Minnie Mouse on the playing field; she just wanted to be equal to Minnie. To this end, Kim pushed and punished herself all that autumn. But was it enough?
The first test came on Thanksgiving Day as Disney traveled to Miami to play the Five's A Mob Currents. Even though this was just an exhibition game, it was treated just like a regular season contest. Mickey wanted to beat the Mob so bad, after all the times the Mob knocked Disney out of the playoffs. This day, Disney came out smoking, and sent the Mob packing with their tails between their legs 39-14. Kim had a fairly good game, beating Minnie in receptions 9-8. Kim also had the edge on total yards receiving 78-73, though Minnie had more yards per reception, 9.1 to Kim's 8.6. Neither wide receiver scored any touchdowns, though. Kim, when asked about her performance, said, "Not as good as I would have liked, but it was acceptable." Translation: Kim had a little ways to go yet to be totally satisfied with her performance.
2006 became 2007, and with that came a major scare when on New Year's night, both Kim and Ron found their dreams invaded by the spirit of Verona Dempsey. Both teens thought they were either flipping out, or had been drugged, so Kim's mother had both undergo brain scans and drug tests, which came up negative or normal.