My standard KP disclaimer:
I know Disney owns "Kim Possible"...lock, stock, and Rufus.
If they want to sue me, they have to get behind all my other creditors.
Since I am in south Florida, the line has formed to the right
…and goes all the way to Sacramento!
If a name has an ®, I own it. If it doesn't, I don't!
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Opening notes:
1) I want to thank all those who took the time to review the last chapter...whitem, Sentinel103, CajunBear73, Kwebs, screaming phoenix, Donteatacowman, Captain IT, and Mengsk.
2) To my loyal readers (both of you), I offer my humble apologies. Due to being at the mercy of my brother's whim, I did not have internet service from 12:01am on Friday, August 1st until 10:46am on Monday, August 4th, 2008.
For those who have stayed with me through it all, your patience will be rewarded, as we have a special guest in this chapter.
Who is it, you may ask? Why don't we find out together as we sit back and…
Enjoy the show!
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'ch-RON-icles: The Great One-Half'
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Chapter Four: 'An Encounter With Greatness'
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…For Tom Buckley, Gerry Fleming, John VanBiesbrouck, and (of course) Wayne Gretzky…
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Previously, in 'The Great One-Half'...
…After they finished supper, Ron piped up. "Dad, I know we were supposed to go shopping for skates tonight; but I think I've already found a pair I like. They seem to fit well and feel great. I'll be right back to show you how cool they look!"
Donald waited with anticipation as Ron left the room. His heart sank when the boy returned a moment later…with the skates and stick from the attic, which were autographed by a man now in the Hockey Hall of Fame…
…Isaac Martin Payne, the U-12 coach for the Ice Kickers, walked into the locker room before his team's second practice of the season…When he got to the rink, he joined most of the team in stunned silence. The young boy he was tempted to cut just minutes earlier was putting on a skating and shooting clinic. Young Ron Stoppable was shooting the puck with a level of speed and accuracy Coach Payne had not seen since spending that summer hockey camp with the boy's father and…No…It can't be…
…True to their name, the Ice Kickers…well…kicked some serious ice as blazed through the first half of the season…Ron, Steve, and Tommy were impressive in each game, with Ron scoring 'hat tricks' in the Lowerton and Wheat Ridge games…All in all, the 'STaR Line' (Steve, Tommy, and Ron) was the talk of the Colorado Junior Hockey League.
…The Arvada coach disputed the legality of Ron's skates and stick. As a result of the protest, Ron was forced to use a spare stick and borrowed skates while league officials inspected the items in question. This proved to be disastrous, as Ron seemed to return to the clumsy demeanor he last displayed in the first day of practice.
When Coach Payne walked into the visiting locker room after the game, what he discovered was not a pretty sight. Helmets were getting slammed against the bench and practice pucks were being thrown at the Arvada Gopher logo on the wall.
He bellowed, "You think you have the right to bust up perfectly good equipment just because we got hosed on some bad calls? Let me tell you something…Life is sometimes not fair. It's not the setback itself that shows what you're made of…it's how you react to it. Are you going to whine, gripe and throw things like little babies every time you get a raw deal…or are you going to learn from the whole thing and rise above it all like the young men you are all going to be soon enough?"
…Ron closed the speech. "We're the Ice Kickers…We know what we have ahead of us…And we still control our own destiny. All we have to do is…"
The entire team shouted in unison, "KICK SOME ICE!!"
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…Coach Payne made a few adjustments for the next few practices. Instead of keeping the lines the same as in game situations, he had all of his players, except the two goalies, reach into a hat and pull out a piece of paper. The players would then follow the directions on the paper slips they drew to run three sets of shifts with their randomly-selected line-mates. He figured this would help his players with team-wide communication, in case they ever got into another situation where a player had to miss a game due to injury or another scene like the debacle in Arvada.
The tactic seemed to pay off after the first two sets of shifts. Soon enough, it seemed like any player could fit into any line combination and execute plays well. Even with that capability, the team as a whole was relieved when Coach Payne said he would keep the 'STaR Line' together as long as they stayed healthy.
Whether it was the rousing speech in Arvada or the change in their training, the Ice Kickers roared to a season shutout of Lowerton, handing the Lemurs another 6-0 blowout to match the one they gave in the season's third week. The victory was a little sweeter than the earlier one, as the scoring was spread out among six different skaters. Coach Payne chalked it up to the increased level of teamwork among his players.
Upperton gave them a little more trouble, but the Ice Kickers prevailed again, this time with a 3-1 road win. It was a lot closer than the scoreboard indicated. With Middleton hanging on to a 2-1 lead, Upperton pulled their goalie in favor of an extra offensive player, in an attempt to tie the score in the closing minutes of the game. Benji Scott shot a stray puck from center ice and tallied the 'empty net' goal to clinch the triumph for Middleton.
The rematch with Greeley was clearly the longest and most grueling road trip the team would face during the regular season….and that was before they even got to the rink. First of all, the bus the team rented from Middleton High School had no air conditioning for the warm climate of Middleton and a broken heater when they approached the considerably colder temperatures of Greeley. On top of that, Irving misplaced his new glasses,causing him to read the misread the map. This gaffe caused the equipment truck to show up more than an hour late, forcing the team to do their warm-ups and begin the game in Greeley's old road uniforms and equipment.
Ron's performance in that gear was eerily similar to the way he started the second game against Arvada. The only good news out of the situation was the lack of penalties and serious injury. Thanks to Coach Payne's 'cross-shift' training, he was a little quicker to bench Ron in favor of Benji Scott.
The equipment truck finally arrived at the start of the first intermission, with the game in a scoreless tie. Coach Payne clearly realized the difference between Ron's hockey prowess using his own gear versus his disaster-filled antics with any other equipment. While he believed Ron's use of his own skates and stick was merely a measure of self-confidence, a little voice in the back of his head suggested a rather ridiculous notion…What if the kid's talent really did come from the gear, and not from his father's genes?
There was only one way to find out for sure. While the other players were picking through the equipment in the truck, Coach Payne grabbed another pair of skates in Ron's size. Using a black felt-tip marker, he made a few scribbles similar to the smudged ink embedded in Ron's skates. He handed those skates to Ron and put him back in the line-up to start the second period.
The ensuing face-off confirmed Coach Payne's suspicions. Through some freaky quirk in the laws of physics, Ron shot the puck off the crossbar of the goal. It then smacked against Ron's current skates and bounced off the helmets of three players before knocking out the plastic dental guard and taking its place in Ron's mouth. Before the referee could blow the whistle to stop play, Ron fell forward, causing the puck to shoot out of his mouth like a rocket. His arms were flailing around in front of him, with his stick redirecting the puck into the net for the only goal of the game…
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…The night after returning home from Greeley, Ron was about to go to bed when he heard the phone ring. Remembering a joke he heard at the Possible house a week earlier, he picked up the receiver and answered, "Stoppable Summer House…summer here and summer not. Whom do you wish to speak to?"
After hearing a few seconds of laughter, the caller answered Ron's question. Ron placed the phone on the table and shouted, "Dad…It's for you!"
A voice from the den boomed, "I got it, son. You can hang it up out there."
After Ron complied with the request, his father began, "This is Donald Stoppable."
The caller identified himself. "Donnie? It's Wayne."
Donald recognized the voice immediately. "Wayne! How have you been since you moved to Phoenix?"
Wayne laughed and responded, "It's been good out here. What about you? Is the actuary life treating you good?"
Donald had to sigh at that question. "I love my job, and it more than pays the bills…but I still miss the ice. At least Ronald has taken up the game now. His team has a 9-1 record right now."
Wayne noted, "That son of yours really cracked me up with that 'summer house' line!"
"Yes," Donald dryly agreed, "my son does have a unique sense of humor. Did you know that boy's using the stick and the skates you autographed for me back at 'RamCamp'? I still don't know where you got that stuff, but it fits him like a glove."
Donald paused to allow Wayne to explain the story of the equipment's true origins. When the man was finished, there was stunned silence for a moment.
"Donnie?" The caller asked. "Donnie, are you there?"
Donald finally stammered, "Yes…Yes, Wayne…I'm here. You mean…you didn't just autograph some random items from the camp? Are you actually telling me this was the gear YOU used in junior hockey?"
A smile was evident in Wayne's voice. "That's right…and it looks like I might see it again in action soon. I'm going to be in the area next week. Are they playing at home then?"
Donald looked at a nearby calendar and said, "As a matter of fact, they've got a game at the complex against Wheat Ridge on Saturday afternoon. If they win this one, they'll clinch a first round bye and home ice for the regional title game."
Wayne beamed, "Hey! That might actually fit into my schedule. Think you could score a couple of tickets for me?"
Donald wore a sly grin as he commented, "Wayne, some of the people in this town would give up their tickets, their cars, and probably their houses just to meet you. I think I can get you in."
Wayne had to chuckle again. "Just the tickets will be fine. By the way, what number does your son wear?"
Donald went into an uncontrollable laughing fit at that moment. Wayne had to prompt him to get a response. "What…what did I say, Donnie?"
After taking a moment to compose himself, Donald wiped away a tear and finally responded, "He wears number 49. When I asked him why, he said he did the math and discovered that half of 99 was 49.5. He said he chose 49 because his dream is…to one day be nearly half as good as Wayne Gretzky!"
Hysterics filled both ends of the line for a moment before Wayne finally broke through. "Forget about the schedule. I've GOT to meet this kid now!"
Donald stated, "You know the place. Middleton Ice Complex…Saturday…1 o'clock. I'll leave two passes for 'WG' at the ticket window. Don't worry, Wayne. I'll keep it under my hat."
Wayne declared, "I'll see you then. Bye, Donnie."
Donald concluded, "Good night, Wayne." He hung up the phone before he turned to his wife and said, "Well, what do you know, Jeannie? Instead of 'The Great One', our Ronald is 'The Great One-Half'!"
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…The regular-season home finale normally resulted in a packed Middleton Ice Complex. However, the noise was deafening when Wayne Gretzky dropped the ceremonial 'first puck' before the game. Fortunately for Wayne, he and the two teams were well secured, thanks to Kim and instructors from her dojo, located next door to the complex. His agreement to sign any and all autographs after the game, coupled with some pre-game demonstrations from Kim and her instructors, convinced the crowd to leave him alone long enough to enjoy the game.
Wheat Ridge was first to get over their nervousness at meeting 'The Great One', scoring a goal within the first two minutes of the game. Superstar or no superstar, that tally proved to be a 'wake-up call' for the Ice Kickers, as the 'STaR Line' rattled off six unanswered tallies on their way to a 8-2 Middleton victory. Steve Keyes had a goal for the infamous line, while Tommy Francis notched two scores of his own. In what could be considered as one of the proudest moments in Donald Stoppable's life, he watched his son…Ron Stoppable…record his third 'hat trick' of the season.
As a result of the accomplishment, Wayne presented Ron with an Ice Kickers hat after the game. A special message was written in the white underside of the hat's bill:
"To Ron Stoppable,
'The Great One-Half',
on your third hat trick.
I hope you never outgrow my skates.
Best of luck in the playoffs,
Wayne Gretzky
PS…Your dad was right.
You and Kim look like
you can make a great team of your own."
Upon receiving this autographed souvenir, Ron began to faint. Luckily, his best friend in the whole world stepped forward just in time to catch him before he crumpled to the floor. Had Kim not been there, Ron's descent would have broken the stick that had blessed him with so many goals over the season …
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Next week...Chapter Five: 'Big Brass Build-Up'
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Author's ending notes:
The production of this story, like that for any work of fiction, is solely dependent upon the constructive feedback of its readers. If you like it, I will gladly make more. If you think of ways to make it better, I am always open to suggestions. If you really think it's a piece of garbage, stop me before I strike again!!
Once more, Review me, e-mail me if you wanna reach me! When you want to 'PM' me, it's ok!
Your friend in writing,
The Samurai Crunchbird®