SuperRonII

Disclaimer: I don't own anything in here and it vexes me so

Chapter Four: Clarity

-Two Weeks Later, Metropolis-

"I'm just as puzzled as you are," Oliver sat across the desk from Ron, "Clark's been working all his contacts, I've made every inquiry I can think of but there's no evidence that Luthorcorp people are in any places they're not supposed to be."

"Dang," Ron sighed, "I knew Kim was good at fighting villains but I never imagined she'd make this good of a villain. There's not even the littlest tiniest sign of some Luthorcorp operative being somewhere they shouldn't be?"

"Oh there's all sorts of Luthorcorp people in places they shouldn't be if you look hard enough," Oliver smiled, "but nothing like what Kim told you. You don't think she lied to you to try and throw us off her real plan do you?"

"No," Ron shook his head, "Kim could pull little ones over on me but we still know each other enough that she couldn't hide a lie that big. And she was making a job pitch to me, I don't think Kim would risk my signing on for one thing and then as soon as she tells me the truth I split and head right back to the good guys."

"Good point," Oliver's smile faded, "I'd bet Kim hoped you'd say yes but made plans for if you said no. Not to mention that she's been working on this plan for over six months, she's had time to cover her tracks and after so long doing the tracking I'm not surprised she can hide something this well. What about your tech guy, he find anything?"

"Actually he did," Ron perked up, "but not anything that really helps us. A whole bunch of governments made payments to Luthorcorp at about the same time and then at fairly regular intervals for the next few weeks others did and then others and you get the point. Kim managed to cover the details of what those payments were for but we know that Luthorcorp had a fairly similar deal with most of the world in a pretty short amount of time, just like Kim told me."

"Now that is interesting," Oliver leaned forward and interlaced his fingers in front of his mouth, "when we're done here have Wade send what he found over, there are ways to hide those sorts of things in corporate numbers and he might not have been able to find him since he's a computer man. I'll let my guys look over it, tell them it's just normal trying to gain an advantage and if I find anything I'll be sure to call you."

"Alright," Ron leaned back and rubbed his eyes, "then what's next?"

"I was going to talk to you about your friend," Oliver looked concerned, "but are you sure you're doing alright? I know you and Clark can work harder and longer then anyone like me could ever dream of but even you have your limits, do you need a day off to get back up to full speed?"

Ron stared down at his feet for some time before answering, "No, I'm… it's just I haven't gotten over thinking about Kim as a villain. As long as Monkey Fist and Luthor were in charge she was being manipulated and it was like if I could just beat them the old Kim would come back. But now Kim's pulling the strings, she's the one I have to beat. And I don't know if I can do that, I'm not sure I'm even wired to be able to really hurt Kim. Both times I've fought her it was because she was trying to kill Bonnie and Yori, it was one thing to do fight Kim when I was trying to keep people alive but I don't think I can set out to intentionally hurt her."

"I wish I had a nice easy solution for you," Oliver smiled wanly, "but all I can say is to remember that even though she looks like your Kim, talks like your Kim, and might even act like your Kim from time to time that's not your Kim out there. But stop moping around like that it's not going to change anything and it's not like you. I've got the test results for your friend though, Tara was it?"

"Yeah," Ron dragged himself out of his despair by force of will, "so what'd the tests say?"

"Well," Oliver said, "she's just as human as you or... okay biologically not so much you but she's just as human as I am. I wasn't even expecting a blood test to show anything, you always tell me that your Mystical Monkey Power is more mental than physical, I don't see how all that ninja stuff should be any different. If you really want to find out how she's able to do what she does I'd have an MRI or a CAT scan done, maybe she's somehow using more of her brain than most people, or her subconscious is more active. I don't have any better idea than you do but I'd bet the secret to her powers is in her brain."

"Maybe," Ron mused, "I'm not sure how comfortable Tara is with all this poking and prodding. She didn't exactly choose to be an all powerful ninja and Bonnie and Yori are only showing her enough so she doesn't hurt anyone. I think she'd rather just forget about this whole thing if she could and I know there are days I wish I could. Maybe we should just let it rest, Tara doesn't have to get into the ninja thing like Bonnie, Yori, and I, she can just have the power and not use it."

"You could be right," Oliver sighed, "but most every power has a weakness and far too many people who don't even want to live with their powers find out the hard way what their weakness is and they find out too late. Tara doesn't have to use her powers if she doesn't want to but she should know everything about them she can for her own safety."

"I'll talk to her," Ron stood up, "but I've got an appointment in Japan, Sensei has been digging through all the old prophecies trying to see if there's anything about Tara or what she can do and I'm heading over to see what he's found."

Oliver got up and walked Ron out to the roof of his office, then Ron took off and as soon as he was outside the city limits he let loose and set off for Japan and Yamanouchi.

-Bonnie and Yori's house-

"I just don't know how she does it," Bonnie sat with a scowl on the steps to her door, "we've spent years learning to do what she does on her first try, it's like we're not teaching her she's teaching us."

"We shouldn't become jealous of what Tara is able to do," Yori was considerably calmer as they sat on their front porch watching Tara work through jutsu from every element with little apparent effort, "once Ron returns we will hopefully be able to understand what is behind Tara's abilities and after we rescue Kim with any luck Tara will never have to think about jutsu or ninjas or any of our troubles ever again."

"I know," Bonnie let irritation seep into her voice, "I'm just in a bad mood because this whole thing is reminding me of Kim. I would always work harder than everyone else and do more then them and then she'd come along all little miss perfect and do more than I did and make it look easy. The worst part is that Tara doesn't even want any of this, she's too good a person to get dragged into all this and I don't want to get angry at her but I keep seeing Kim over and over."

"And do you have this same jealousy towards Ron," Yori asked, "he is capable of doing even more things than Tara."

"Well no," Bonnie said slowly, "he can do things that I couldn't hope to do no matter how hard I worked and that makes it different because I know he's not trying to lord anything over me he's just being who he was born as."

"The same is true of Tara," Yori pointed out, "her abilities are not of her choosing nor are they what she would choose if given the option. Whatever the source of her abilities is it is one that she has no control over. We must help Tara gain enough control over her abilities that she is no longer a danger to those around her and then I believe that will be the end of that."

"I guess you're right," Bonnie sighed, "it's just not processing that that's the Tara I went to preschool with out there. I used to be the one to chase off the bullies and when my sisters would tease us it was me who would bite back. I've been protecting her for so long that I can't quite get my head around the fact that not only does she not need it anymore but right now she's more likely to be protecting me."

Yori looked up at the darkening sky before replying, "Protecting someone is more than simply being able to throw around jutsu that someone else cannot, your looking out for Tara for all those years went far deeper than simply exercising your popularity to discourage those who would pick on her. I have not observed Ron to be different for his powers, instead his maturity is the result of wishing to save Kim. I do not believe Tara's powers will change her to any great degree, as long as you are willing to be her friend she will be yours."

"Obviously the student has not quite gotten around to surpassing the master," Bonnie smiled, "I'd still be sitting over here comparing Tara to Kim and my sisters if you hadn't snapped me out of it."

"Think nothing of it," Yori smiled back, "It is after all what friends are supposed to do for each other. You helped me overcome enough difficulties when I first arrived here that I would feel greatly dishonored to not do the same for you in your time of need."

"You're forgetting I was one of those difficulties at first," Bonnie laughed dryly, "but thanks anyways. Between Kim and Ron coming back, Tara being able to do whatever it is she does, and Kim apparently being a villain now I think I'm about maxed out for how much weirdness I can take without some time to reboot."

"Then this is as good a chance as any for you to reboot," Yori said calmly, "Tara is not trying anything new despite the skill she is showing, Ron is unlikely to bring any news requiring any immediate action, and unless Kim springs her plan on us tonight you can relax and reboot for the rest of the night."

Bonnie and Yori sat there as Tara twirled a column of fire in one hand and a column of water in the other. This was a feat that thousands of years of ninjutsu had taught to be impossible but Bonnie and Yori were well past shock at Tara being able to accomplish yet another feat the greatest masters could not dream of despite having never taken a day of martial arts in her life. Bonnie's largest concern at the moment was if Tara would be able to live a normal life with her abilities, Ron was able to by and large but when duty called he seemed unable to escape the responsibilities his powers brought and Bonnie wondered if someone like Tara would be able to resist using her powers with her desire to help everyone she could and moreover if she could keep going once she saw through the glamour and glitz most saw as the life of a hero.

But that was for another day, tonight Bonnie had to work on wrapping her head around the last few weeks.

-Yamanouchi-

Even though Ron didn't think of it as home he still felt like it was a return of sorts to finally see the mountaintop monastery appear on the horizon as the sun began its downward trek in Japan. The school had been a refuge for him in more ways than one in the past few years and as he neared its lofty rooftops he felt as though somehow all the problems he was faced with were somehow farther away and unable to reach him in this place that seemed by some means unknown removed from the normal flow of the world.

He set down in the main courtyard with less noise than any normal human could hope to hear but he felt eyes all around him and knew that his arrival had not gone unnoticed by the ninjas of the Yamanouchi school. This of course left unsaid that his arrival was expected and Sensei had arranged for several of his students to wait for Ron's coming so he could be escorted to Sensei in his private study. But Ron had little doubt that even if his arrival was unexpected it would have gone unnoticed, those who trained here were simply too good for anyone to be able to sneak into their sanctuary without their knowing of the intrusion.

"Stoppable-san," a ninja emerged from the shadows bowing and speaking in Japanese, "welcome back to Yamanouchi, Sensei has instructed me to escort you to him and ask if you require anything before that."

"Hirotaka," Ron bowed and replied in the same language, "I'm good, nothin' but peace and love, how're you doing?"

"I am well," Hirotaka spoke as they began walking, "but I am curious to know how you knew my identity with nothing but my eyes showing."

"That's easy," Ron easily fell in beside him, "you and Sensei are the only ones at this place who call me Stoppable-san, everyone else is all Chosen one this and Stoppable-sama that. It was always pretty nice to know there were two people here who saw plain Ron and not the guy holding the Lotus Blade."

"Sensei has gone to great lengths to remind me that no matter how great a man is we are all still men in the end," Hirotaka paused before the doors into the central building, "even if you did not wield the Lotus Blade I would still consider it an honor to know a man such as you."

"You're not so bad yourself," Ron smiled as they walked into the central building, "anything I should know before I head on in?"

"Sensei has not revealed any of his discoveries," Hirotaka said, "approach this as the ninja approaches all things and be ready for everything."

Ron paused for a few more seconds before walking into Sensei's study, the old man himself was seated on his knees behind a low table already set with tea.

"Greetings Stoppable-san," Sensei was serene as always, "I trust all is as well as can be expected with you."

"I guess," Ron knelt at the table, "it's still taking some getting used to having to think about Kim as the villain but I've got enough people counting on me that I'm not going to screw this up."

"It does you great honor to remain strong for the sake of others in the wake of such troubles," Sensei calmly sipped from his tea, "and how do Bonnie and Yori fare with all that has occurred?"

"They're doing fine," Ron picked up his own tea, "worried about Tara but other than that it's all good with them."

"I am glad to hear all is well with you and yours," Sensei set his tea down in one smooth motion, "but we both know this is not a social call and as much as we would like to put off an unpleasant reality it is better that we stand and face it."

"Yeah," Ron put his tea down less smoothly, "so did you find anything?"

"Yes and no," Sensei's voice betrayed mild irritation, "I did find some mentions I believe may reference your friend but many times when I attempted to dig deeper I found that the document I was looking for had been destroyed in attempts to destroy knowledge of the Omega Simia. What little I did manage to find is in many places contradictory, often times prophecies are written and then circumstances change that invalidate the prophecy and a new one is required. I am almost certain this is the case with your friend but I am unsure which are the invalid prophecies and which are the ones we should pay attention to."

Ron scratched at the back of his head, "So that means I should…"

"The only advice I can offer you has likely already occurred to you," Sensei laced his fingers together on the table, "obviously it would be bad to allow Possible-san to know about what your friend can do, to allow her to gain control of that power would be catastrophic at best. Your friend's desire to live without using her powers seems a wise choice, people like Possible-san would go to great lengths to control those powers and do horrible things with them. If it is possible for her to not draw attention to herself I would encourage her to do so."

"I don't think Tara's going to have any problem with that," Ron looked down into his empty tea cup, "I don't think anyone else will either, she's too innocent to want to be a hero and if she doesn't have to she shouldn't have to be dragged into this whole mess."

"It speaks highly of you that you wish to protect others so much," Sensei had a proud look on his face, "if there is anything the Yamanouchi school can do to aid you in your struggles you have but to ask."

"Thanks Sensei," Ron stood up, "but I have a feeling I have to take care of this myself and you've already let me know that what I planned to do was the best thing I could do anyway. I'll make sure to call you if anything new comes up."

Sensei saw Ron back out to the courtyard where they exchanged final goodbyes before Ron took to the skies and began his trip home.

-Metropolis-

Tara looked around warily as she walked back from Bonnie and Yori's house to her own apartment. Her friends had offered to walk her back but she had declined saying they'd put enough of their time into her over the last few weeks and they deserved some time to spend on what they wanted. Now though she was beginning to regret that decision, she had a very bad feeling as she walked along with no one else.

It wasn't like she was afraid of a bunch of guys walking along drunk deciding to have a little 'fun' with her, this was a pretty good neighborhood and was well lit so she didn't worry about anything like that. This was something she couldn't put her finger on and that was enough to make her really wish she'd taken Bonnie and Yori up on their offer. A few weeks ago she would have just passed off not being able to put her finger on her worry as simple paranoia but now that she'd heard so much since that day she'd seen Bonnie and Yori do all sorts of things not being able to put her finger on her worry scared her a great deal indeed.

Suddenly Tara turned around on a surge of that bad feeling and her breath left her in a gasp as she saw none other than Kim Possible standing in front of her. After the attack that one day Bonnie and Yori had called Ron and the three of them had told her the real story of what happened their senior year of high school and coming face to face with Kim knowing full well what had happened to her made Tara take several steps back in fear.

"Hi Tara," Tara saw Kim was holding some sort of statue in the hand she hadn't waved with.

"Kim," Tara stuttered, "I haven't seen you for awhile."

"I've been a bit busy," Kim's smile chilled Tara to the bone, "what have you been up to?"

"Not much," Tara said nervously, "just going to college, which has me really busy so if you want to give me your number I'd love to get together sometime but tonight I'm really busy."

"I'm afraid 'sometime' isn't going to work," Kim mock pouted, "I'm on a tight schedule and I'm pretty sure Ron told you what I asked him. So I'm going to make you the same offer, help me save the world Tara and I'll make sure you can have anything you want."

"No," Tara tried to make her voice stronger, "I do know what you want to do and it's not saving the world. I looked up to you in high school because of what you did but this isn't the Kim I knew and I won't help you with anything."

"I'm afraid that's where you're wrong," Kim said before she disappeared.

Bonnie and Yori dashed down the street as fast as they could manage, both had gotten the worst feeling about Tara at the same time and that easily caused enough panic between the two of them to make them run after their friend. A gust of wind went by and they breathed ever so slightly easier knowing that Ron had gotten back and was as concerned as they were. They all arrived at the same time to see Kim pull the Omega Simia away from an unconscious Tara and before any of them could do anything blue flames leapt up around the two of them and when they cleared Kim and Tara were nowhere to be seen.

AN: Yes I am evil, I know it and I've come to accept it. I'm going to remain tight lipped on the last chapter of this story and instead distract you with some schedule updates. Next week is going to be the last chapter of this story, then May 4 will be the first chapters of two stories, yes I'm going to tackle two stories at once. Bad Girls and The Ninja and the Princess will likely take most of the summer, but I'll still be taking May 11 off for finals as you could probably guess. Now you know the news and I shall leave you with this question, what would you do for a Klondike Bar?