Man and Machine
Disclaimer: I own neither Kim Possible nor Darkman.
And I was not thinking about Teen Titans' Cyborg when I first thought up this fic.
"Talking"
'Thinking'
Flashbacks
Dad is a man beyond comparison and normal comprehension. He's always told me that trust is something should never be given out freely and the only ones deserving of it are those who know what it means to work to gain it. He knows more about pain and loss than anyone I've ever seen. Dad also knows the meaning of working to achieve something beyond what was thought possible. He's always worked hard in getting what he knew he wanted. I once asked him why he created me and he answered that he wanted to know what it was like to be a father, to have a full time job, taking care of a child, and to be able to say how proud he was when he knew that every bit of my personality, positive and negative, was a result of his parenting. This only makes me want to be the perfect child for my perfect parents. I see pride in his eyes when he sees Ron alive, knowing that he was able to save a life through his methods of science, this pride is similar to when he looks at me. I just wish that I could see any hint of happiness within his eyes. He always shows so many different emotions, but as far back as I can remember, he's never been truly happy. I only wish that I knew what would make dad happy so I could give it to him.
- Sarah Veronica Williams
Chapter 3: Back to School
Ron was spacing out, he's been like this for nearly a week, since he met Erik. He'd been enduring the necessary training because it got his mind focused, because anyone fighting against someone with his uncle's skills had better better keep their focus. It kept his mind off of the emptiness that he'd been feeling since that day. He looked to his pet and asked, "Rufus, do you think I'd have been able to be with Kim? I mean if Erik didn't step in."
Rufus just shrugged.
"There's something about him, though," Ron told him. "Almost like I missed something when we first met. Do you think I'm a bad person for not trusting someone without knowing them?"
"Uh uh," Rufus shook his head.
"It was only recently that I noticed these feelings I have for Kim," Ron said, just a little relieved that he could tell someone. "No matter how long something exists, the existance, itself, doesn't matter if it isn't discovered in time," Ron sighed as he lay on his bed. "And it was only when Dementor's lab exploded, and I felt I would die, that I knew what I felt," he closed his eyes before turning to the naked mole rat. "I'm in love with Kim and I'm too much of a coward to tell her. I probably have been for some time."
Rufus patted Ron on the back.
"As much as I appreciate the effort in trying to cheer me up, I'm really gonna need some time alone," Ron told him as he sat on the bed. Ron seriously needed this time alone to get his thoughts together and figure out what to do.
Rufus walked out of the room and closed the door behind him.
A few hours later, the door opened to reveal Zeke.
"Oh wise man," Ron said as he noticed his uncle walking into the room. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"It seems to me that you need advice, I may not be in public as often as you, but that doesn't mean that I can't give words of wisdom," he told his nephew. "From what I've been observing, you're having a hard time with the situation between Kim and Erik," Zeke said knowingly.
"Have you ever felt like something within your reach seems so unattainable?" Ron asked cryptically. He figured his uncle would have had to at least know something like this.
"Yes, I'm still trying to grasp it," Zeke admitted.
"So what do I do?" he asked.
"In the end, all I can say is that you need to be honest with her and yourself," Zeke told him wisely. "It's probably best to do something or you might just live the rest of your life regretting and thinking about what could have been."
"So what are you so desperate to grasp?" Ron asked his uncle.
"My freedom," Zeke told him. "You know my basic life story, but what you don't know is that I'm not truly free. I'm basically under house arrest until the corruption that put me here is taken care of."
Ron, not wanting to push the subject, let it go, "Do you think I'm a bad person for not trusting Erik?"
"It's not so much of not trusting itself as it is not trusting for the wrong reasons that would make you a bad person," Zeke told his nephew. "I, as you know, don't trust him, and one of the reasons is because of his behavior. He's far too polite, in my opinion, like he's trying to get close to someone."
"It's not his attitude, there was just something about him when I first saw him," Ron admitted. "It's like there's something there, I just can't seem to figure out what."
"When you first saw him, I think your focus was on something else," Zeke joked, remembering the incident. "At that point in time you had better be glad I had a remote to your systems or you probably would have fainted right after you woke up."
Ron was blushing while chuckling nervously, "Eheheh, yeah."
"Another reason is that he seems too perfect," Zeke said. "You know what I mean?"
"Not really," Ron admitted.
"How did he react when he first saw Rufus?" Zeke asked.
"Like he was envious, he said that he'd always wanted a naked mole rat as a pet," Ron answered while thinking about it.
"Don't you find that the least bit odd?" Zeke told him. "I haven't heard of one teenager that wanted a naked mole rat as a pet."
"Hey!" Rufus said from the door as he came in.
"Sorry, Rufus, no offense intended," Zeke told the hairless rodent. "All I'm saying is that it wasn't your never be normal attitude that insured your friendship with Rufus, it was your father's allergies. And, from what you've told me, your closest friends, even if they did give Rufus a chance, were skeptical at first."
"You have such unbelievably reasonable logic that sometimes I wonder what would happen if you were wrong," Ron told his uncle jokingly.
"Although it's been a while, I have been wrong before," Zeke told him. "And, think about it this way, how well is he hitting it off with Kim?"
"Very well, actually," Ron said as he was starting to look down. "She described their meeting as magic."
"And wasn't Kim one of the most skeptical about having Rufus as a pet?" Zeke asked cryptically.
"You're right, she was," Ron said as he started to put a few pieces together. "So you're saying that I should warn Kim about these suspicions?"
"What I'm saying is that you should keep your eyes open," Zeke replied warningly. "Keep yourself well guarded while making it seem like you're at least comfortable around him. You have to make sure that he's not suspicious about your suspicion of him. My suspicions could be explained through my paranoia."
"Unbelievable!" Ron exclaimed. "People think my paranoia is weird while they accept yours."
"I've had several years to work to gain the respect I have from the science community," Zeke explained. "And my paranoia has been proven to hold water behind it," he interjected. "Well, you'd best prepare yourself," Zeke told him. "Because tomorrow will be a big day."
"And why is that?" Ron asked, not thinking with complete clarity.
"Well, in my professional opinion, I believe that you've recovered enough," Zeke answered. "You'll be returning to school."
"Booyah," Ron shot his fist into the air.
"Booyah," Rufus copied.
"I have a few rules you need to follow though," Zeke told him, in complete seriousness.
"Go ahead," Ron said.
"Rule No. 1, no using any of your enhancements, unless the situation is life or death, and, even then, use them only as a last resort," Zeke explained.
"Obviously," Ron said as he rolled his eyes.
"Rule No. 2, no showing off," Zeke eyed him. "We can't have people wondering how you gained your fighting skills or physique."
"Well there goes flirting," Ron said sarcastically.
"Which leads me to Rule No. 3, don't smart off too much," Zeke told him. "We can't have you getting into trouble for a smart mouth. And keep your profanity down. There's no need to let everyone know just how advanced of a vocabulary you have."
"Is that it?" Ron asked.
"This final one isn't a rule," Zeke told Ron honestly. "If someone crosses the line, and you'll know when that happens, rules 2 and 3 can be null and void if you wish. I won't hold them against you if that happens."
"Got it, and I'll follow as best as I can," Ron said to his uncle.
"I'm not finished. Rule 1 is an everywhere that's not here rule," Zeke said. "Rules 2 and 3 can be ignored ouside of school, but it's not recommended."
"I'll take that to heart," Ron told him with complete sincerity.
The next day Ron was riding to school on what looked like a motorcycle that was tricked out to the point where Motor Ed would be jealous. It had a blue, silver and gold coloring with black streaks and looked to be made for a combination of speed, style and stunts. The helmet he was wearing had a matching color of the bike with pictures of gears and circuitry on it. The license plate simply read 'CYB0RG' Ron himself was wearing a leather biking jacket to keep his injuries to a minimum, he was wearing his trademark cargo pants except Rufus wasn't in his pocket, he was in the storage compartment in the back to better insure his safety. The bike was fast, and if it reached its top speed, things had a tendency to go flying off.
'I gotta hand it to uncle Zeke,' Ron thought as he rode. 'He certainly knows how to trick out a ride, and with style too.'
Needless to say, Ron was drawing attention to himself.
So many people were wondering who was driving such a nice ride. The rider in question, looked like he knew what he was doing, he was handling every twist and turn with ease. An african-american junior noticed this and went straight to her closest friend.
Kim was getting her books out of her locker with Erik by her when Monique ran straight to her.
"Girl, you have got to see this," Monique exclaimed wildly.
"And what, exactly do I have to see?" Kim asked with her textbooks in hand.
"We got ourselves a serious rider out there," Monique told her. "The guy hugs every turn like an X-games motocross pro. And the bike he's got has serious style of designs and color and doesn't look like it was cheap."
Kim decided to humor her friend and followed Monique to the parking lot where the mystery rider. "Later, Erik."
"Right," Erik responded.
Ron had to ride around for a bit until he could find a space to park his bike. When he dismounted his mad machine, he was surprised when he noticed that a crowd had gathered clearly curious about his identity.
'What's with them?' Ron thought as he opened the storage compartment and put Rufus into his pocket before anyone could see him. 'They act like they haven't seen someone ride to school before,' he thought as he placed a tarp over the bike.
Kim saw the mystery rider walking away with the crowd following him.
"Hey, KP," he said, though his voice was muffled. He turned to Monique, "Monique."
"Ron?" they both asked, recognizing his voice.
"Yeah?" Ron asked.
"People are staring," Kim informed him.
"Why is that?" Ron asked, clueless to the obvious.
"Maybe because you're still wearing your helmet," Monique answered.
"Huh," Ron said as he started to feel around his head. "Oh, right," and he took it off to reveal the messy hair, hazel eyes, big ears and freckled face of one Ron Stoppable. "Props to uncle Zeke for the helmet, it's comfortable enough to forget you're wearing it."
Everyone looked shocked to see Ron back, most actually believed him to be dead. The bell was about to ring so the questions to him would wait.
When the crowd cleared Kim asked while she and Monique were walking with Ron, "So what happened to your scooter?"
"Uncle Zeke did an extreme trick out on it," Ron said matter-of-factly. "He had some spare parts that were just gathering dust, so he decided that my ride could use a tune up and a new look. And I will say right now that his upgrades were badical."
"Your uncle aside," Monique said. "Where on earth did you learn to ride like that?"
"You wouldn't believe what kind of time you have on your hands after the physical therapy and tutoring," Ron answered. "I've had about five weeks with a lot of free time, I couldn't leave the premises so I decided to occupy my time."
Monique was more surprised about Ron's word usage than she was about how constuctive he was using his time. "Just how well- rounded is your vocabulary?" she asked.
"Uncle Zeke was also surprised that I could use words in context as well," Ron said to her. "I just happen to know how to use a few words in the English language. Though Uncle Zeke did specify that I shouldn't use any form of grammar enhancers."
"What kind?" Kim asked.
"The vulgar kind," Ron answered as he openned his locker and put his helmet and jacket into it and got his books. "Basically, I am not to use any form of profanity during school hours."
"Sounds like this guy is a little too old fashioned," Monique voiced her opinion.
"I think this is just to keep Ron out of trouble," Kim said. "Ron gets detention pretty frequently and I think this is to break that habit."
"Let's just get to class," Ron said. "I'd rather not get detention on my first day back. That and I want to see the look on Barkin's face."
"Don't we all," Kim said as they rushed to their class.
They made it just before the bell rang.
Assistant Principal Barkin was taking role.
"Possible."
"Here."
"Renton."
"Here."
"Rockwaller."
"Ugh, Here."
"Stoppable."
"Here."
"Huh?" Steve Barkin looked up and noticed that Ron Stoppable was indeed there this day. "Glad you were only MIA. Good to have you back."
"Good to be back," Ron answered back.
For the duration of the class period, Ron couldn't help but notice that people were giving him odd looks.
'Probably wondering how I'm still in one piece,' Ron thought to himself. 'Be it from the lab explosion or the Kim explosion, I'd rather take the former.'
When the rang, Barkin called out, "Stoppable."
"What did I do this time?" Ron asked as he walked over to his teacher.
"It's not that, I was sent an e-mail this morning about the school assignments you missed," Barkin told him. "Do you have the work?"
"Oh, yeah," Ron reached into his binder and pulled out the work he'd missed while recovering. "That should be all of it."
"Hmmm," Barkin said, a little surprised that Ron actually made up his work. "I'll run this by your other teachers, which shouldn't be too difficult since I teach about half your classes. Now get to your next class."
"Sure," Ron said as he left the room, leaving Barkin to check up on the work.
'Hmmm,' Barkin thought as students started entering the class. 'This is certainly Stoppable's handwriting, but it just doesn't make any sense to me. He's a slacker that has no real interest in school.' He was snapped out of his thoughts when the bell rang. 'I'll talk to him about it later,' he thought as he began teaching.
It was lunch time and Ron seemed to be getting a whole lot of attention, moreso than Kim use to. Someone who would take an explosion to save a life was definately something more, and the fact that he survived meant that he had serious appeal, particularly to to female portion. The male part just wanted to know about Ron's bike and how well he could handle it.
"Geez," Ron said as he sat to Kim's left. "I'm back for not even a day and I'm already the talk of the school."
"Considering that you were willing to sacrifice yourself to save someone, even if it's Kim, says something about your character," Monique told from Ron's left.
"I just did what I thought was best for the world," Ron admitted. "There are probably quite a few guys in the world just like me." 'Well, maybe not exactly like me,' he added in thought.
"I don't know, Ron," Kim told him. "How many guys in the world would be willing the risk their lives if it meant that another could live on? You're certainly not a dime a dozen," she said, still wondering if ingesting the substance in front of her would be safe.
"I have to agree with Kim," Erik told him. "Not many people, male or female, are willing to risk themselves in the ways either of you do. No offense, but it's hard to believe that you don't have many dates."
"None taken," Ron answered, his guard up. "It could just be because of Bonnie's influence, she isn't exactly the best judge in character, and she has no real qualms about vocalizing her distaste for someone."
"That's an understatement," Monique said bluntly.
"Hey, my main man," Felix rolled up holding his fist out.
"Felix, what's happenin?" Ron said as he returned the gesture.
"I think I should be asking you that question," Felix replied. "From what Kim's told us you saved her and took an explosion full force. Care to explain how you suvived?" he asked with complete interest.
"To tell you the truth, I have not clue," Ron admitted. "A little over a week until I woke up from a coma in my uncle's lab. Apparently I was worse for wear when he found me. He said that he had to do quite a few sugical procedures to insure that I lived."
"Good Doctor," Felix said, looking Ron up and down. "You don't look like you have a scar on you."
"It's too bad he couldn't do that for himself," Ron said, more to himself. "That burn scar on his back looked to be very painful when he got it."
"A burn scar?" Felix asked curiously.
"Yeah," Ron said. "It takes up the majority of his upper back, he got it when one of his experiments went to the point of disastrous," he admitted.
"How often does that happen?" Kim asked. "And when did it happen?"
"That was the second time something life threatenning occurred with one of his experiments," Ron said. After a pause and a few thoughts he replied, "And it happened about ten years back."
Knowing that was all they were going to get from him Felix asked, "So what's up with the bike? I thought you'd keep you scooter."
"First off, that is my scooter, uncle Zeke just put quite a few of his own touches to it," Ron told his video game chum. "And second, how did you know that the bike was mine."
"There was a Fearless Ferret and Nakasumi stickers on it," Felix answered simply. "Anyone who even remotely knew you would recognize your style of decoration."
"Right," Ron said.
"Nice license plate though," Felix commented. "Cyborg, certainly an interesting custom."
"Though it wasn't my idea, I do like it," Ron admitted.
"You're uncle's idea?" Kim asked.
"Actually it was Sarah's," Ron corrected. "Her mind appears to be that of a genius. She's already figure out the basis of playing advanced strategies in the Zombie Mayhem games."
"And how old is she?" Felix asked.
"She's twelve," Ron answered.
"Well now," Felix said thoughtfully. "Maybe we should take her under our wing."
"You'd have to ask uncle Zeke first," Ron said. "He would have to like you first and he's not very trusting to new faces," he finished.
"I guess that explains why he doesn't trust me," Erik added, relieved that his cover wasn't blown.
"Sure," Ron said with as normal of a face as possible.
The rest of lunch was pretty much uneventful, save for people staring at Ron, wondering if he was actually in an explosion.
'Geez, how little do they trust Kim's word, she's not one to go make something like that up and then go into a depression at random,' Ron thought to himself as he was wary about the people around him. 'I mean I like attention, but this is just creepy.'
The rest of the school hours were jsut about as uneventful, save for the bombardment of questions Ron got occasionally. Whether they about the explosion or his bike, the questions were still annoying. The only real downside about leaving school was that he wouldn't be able to spend more time with his friends, and especially Kim.
Ron had his helmet on and was about to put Rufus into the storage compartment.
"Hey, Ron," a voice called out to him.
Ron turned to see Erik approaching him. Ron waved, acknowledging that Erik had his attention.
"Kim's been wanting to hang out," Erik told him. "And to be honest, so have I. Other than the fact that your pants fall frequently on missions, I don't know anything about you," he admitted. "Kim's important to me, and you're important to her. I don't really want any tension between us tearing you two apart."
"Sure, I just have to go home and drop my books off," Ron told him through his helmet. "Uncle Zeke will also want to know where I'll be, for medical purposes," he explained.
"Still recovering, I see," Erik said. "That's cool."
"So where are we meeting?" Ron asked.
"Bueno Nacho," Erik replied. "From what I've been told, you both enjoy eating there and I figured you probably have been eating healthy since you woke up."
"Uncle Zeke is a good cook, but his focus has always been health before taste," Ron told him with a bit of excitement in his voice. "It'll be good to finally eat there again."
"Later," Erik told him as he went to his bike.
"Sure," Ron said as he put Rufus into the storage compartment before starting his own bike and riding off. While riding, Ron had a Johnny Cash song in his head.
It was about half an hour later when Ron arrived at Bueno Nacho. He walked in and went straight to the front counter.
"Welcome to Bueno Nacho," Ned said as he turned around. "How may I... Ron!?"
"How may I Ron?" said person retorted with an amused smile. "How's it going, Ned?"
"Better now," Ned answered honestly.
"How have things been since I was last here?" Ron asked, curious as to how exciting thing got.
"Boring, to say the least," Ned told him. "It only got worse when the new CEO sent the new manager, Lars."
"Sorry to hear that," Ron replied with a look of sympathy.
"You weren't when it was you who took the position as assistant manager," Ned challenged with a smirk.
"Hey, I earned that position," Ron argued back. "The Naco was, and still is, a hit to the public."
"Can't argue with you there," Ned said honestly. "I just wonder how this guy was seen as management material," he said, pointing to Lars.
"I see what you mean," Ron said to him. "He looks like he can barely figure out how to work a Microwave oven."
They both had a laugh until Lars gave Ned a glare.
"So what would you like?" Ned asked, now all business.
"Just a Grande Sized Naco combo," Ron answered.
"Would you like some Diablo Sauce with that?" Ned asked.
"Most definately," Ron said.
"Coming right up," Ned said as he started to prepare what Ron ordered.
When Ron was given his food he said to Ned, "I noticed that there are more kids than usual, what's up?"
"The Little Diablos are what's up," Ned replied pointing to a poster on the wall. "The CEO introduced them and the kids just couldn't resist. They may help with sales, but the noise and running get old very quickly," he finished.
"So I can see," Ron said as kids were running around. "Well, I'll see you later."
"Have a Muy Bueno day," Ned replied immediately.
"Sure, you too," Ron called back as he went to the booth he and Kim normally shared, except, this time, one more person occupied the booth. 'At least he's not in my spot,' Ron thought as he sat across Kim and Erik.
"Hey, Ron," Erik said with a smile.
"Nice of you to join us," Kim scolded playfully.
"Yeah, well Ned hasn't seen me for a while, he might have thought that I ditched Bueno Nacho for Cow n' Chow," Ron said as he started engorging himself.
Rufus started feasting as well.
"Yeah, the day that happens is the day I eat my entire collection of Cuddle Buddies," Kim joked as she took a bite of her salad.
"Don't tempt me," Ron told her after he swallowed a bite from his Naco. "I might end up losing one of my food pleasures, but entertainment like that would be priceless," Ron finished, causing all three of them to laugh.
The three were conversing and laughing and, basically, having a good time, mostly Kim and Erik. During the entire time, Ron had been keeping a wary eye on Erik, he still didn't trust the guy. And during the times that Ron wasn't watching, Rufus took over.
After they ate, Kim asked, "So where should we go now?"
"How about the park?" Ron suggested. "I need to view some outdoor scenery after being stuck indoors for so long, and being stuck in uncle Zeke's house didn't help either," he finished with a joke.
"Huh?" was all Erik could say as he scratched his head.
"He was talking about school," Kim explained.
"How did you get that?" Erik asked, clearly curious about Ron's mystery of a mind.
"You wouldn't believe how easy it is when you've been friends for so long," Kim told to him. "And, occasionally, I tend to agree with him on that subject," she admitted, sheepishly.
"I'll take your word for it," Erik said as he was preparing to get on his motorcycle.
"Still not acquainted with Middleton's streets, are you?" Ron asked, amused at what Erik was about to do.
"What do you mean?" Erik asked.
"He means that there's be no point in riding to a place that's only a few blocks away," Kim explained again. "We'll ride back later."
It took them about eight minutes to reach the park. They started walking, which allowed Ron to take in the scenery before him.
'The only way this view could be even more beautiful is if KP was standing in the picture,' Ron thought to himself as he looked over at the couple. He still felt empty inside, and knew there was only one way to fill in that void. 'But if he makes her happy, then who am I to stand in their way,' he finished is thought miserably.
The situation didn't exactly look cozy. Erik was pushing Kim on the swing, while Ron was on the see-saw alone. He began to feel even more alone than before.
Ron decided to speak up, "I'll see you guys later."
"Sure, Ron," Kim said to her best friend.
"It was nice spending time with you," Erik told him.
"I feel the same," though it looked like he was talking to them both, he was only referring to Kim. He started walking back to Bueno Nacho, where he parked his bike. When he reached his bike, he pulled the tarp from off of it and started folding it to insure that the storage compartment would have some space.
"You're probably not going to get used to riding in there any time soon," Ron told him as he put the tarp away and put his helmet on. "How about you just jump in my shirt for now?"
Rufus jumped in excitement and climbed up Ron's shirt and into the neck where his head poked out.
Ron pulled out a small helmet out of his coat pocket, "Uncle Zeke thought you migh need this." He handed the helmet to Rufus.
Rufus strapped the helmet on.
"You ready?" Ron asked.
"Yep," was the reply Rufus made.
"Here we go," Ron said with less vigor than normal as he started his bike. He may have to keep his focus, but that didn't stop him from being depressed. He rode off in the direction of his uncle's house, hoping to get to bed soon.
When he arrived, he parked the motorcycle in the garage and placed his helmet on the bike and his jacket on a coat rack.
At this point in time he was too depressed to have a appetite so he told them he'd just be going to bed.
'Must've been spending time with Kim and Erik,' Zeke thought to himself. 'This must be really hard for him, especially considering how much those two have been through.' Zeke didn't dwell on these thoughts because he had too much research to do and he knew that Ron needed to be alone.
Ron walked up the steps and into his room, where he just layed on the bed, his day clothes still on. He fell asleep with on last thought going through his head, 'Is Kim happy with him?'
To be continued...
Not exactly action packed, but I had to bring out more of a plotline than anything. I actually have a rich uncle who built his own house, so I know how it feels to be in a big house. I'm poor with description so it may take a bit for me to get a chapter out. Anyway, Read & Review.
