Disclaimer: I do not own Kim Possible. She is owned by Disney and Mark McCorkle and Bob Schooley. Any original characters shown or mentioned belong to me and can not be used without permission. Got it?
Sidekick, No More
Chapter 4: The Train Goes On
Ron let out as close to a content sigh as he could as he sank into the soothing, warm water of Yamanouchi's outside bath. He did find it was a little odd that it was outdoors and...communal but he eventually got over it. It helped that he was able to schedule his bath time around the others so he could enjoy a nice, peaceful bath all by himself. He hated to appear anti-social or worse homophobic, but he was still just a little uncomfortable being around a bunch of other naked guys. Partly do to his less than manly physic, though that was slowly changing, but mostly do to the fact that he was still self conscious about the scars on his body. While they weren't as numerous as the ones on his face he felt they still made him stand out a bit. Though he had a feeling some of the students had similar scars over their bodies.
He still wasn't ready to take that chance though. Nor was he ready to take the bandages off his face in the company of others. That was the main reason he wanted to take a bath by himself. Due to his excessive training sessions his bandages were starting to be soaked with sweat and a bit stinky. It was definitely time to change them and figured why he was doing that he might as well wash his face now that it didn't hurt so much anymore. He reached up to the back of his head and was just about to unwrap them when he heard someone else walking over to the warm pool of water.
He quickly dropped his hands and in morbid curiosity turned to see who was walking over to him. His eyes nearly bugged out of his bandages and his skull when he saw the approaching figure. It was Yori dressed in nothing by a white towel that seemed to cling to her rather voluptuous body. She smiled sweetly at him and gave a small wave as she walked over to the edge of the large bath. Ron's eyes grew even wider when he saw her reach up and start to unwrap the towel. He quickly shut his eyes then turned away from her, his face becoming even hotter from the flush of embarrassment. Yori gave him a curious look as she slowly sank into the warm, soothing water.
"Is everything alright Stoppable-San?" she asked, tilting her head a bit in confusion.
Oh yeah sure everything's fine. I'm just sitting naked in a pool with a hot girl who's also naked but not my girlfriend who probably kill me if she found out about this! his mind screamed.
Outwardly though he just nodded his head vigorously and hoped she would leave it at that. Or just leave soon. Unfortunately, she didn't. If anything she seemed to move closer to him.
"Are you sure? Because you seem rather...uneasy," she pressed.
I've never wanted to be able to talk more in my life! He cringed, trying to scrunch himself up even more.
Yori continued to stare at him, reading his body language to try to figure out what he was feeling. She quirked an eyebrow when she finally realized why he seemed so on edge.
"You...did know this was a coed bath, didn't you?" she asked curiously.
His shoulders relaxed a bit as he hung and shook his head shamefully. She quickly brought a hand up to her mouth to try to suppress an amused giggle but it did little good.
"Oh Stoppable-San, you and your American style obliviousness to the obvious," she mused. "This bath has been coed for many years. It is actually a part of our training. It is a way to show that we trust each other in even our most vulnerable state."
Ron nodded as he tried to relax a bit.
That makes sense, he mulled over. It's nothing sexual just watching out for a friend's back. Or is that washing a friend's back? Well either way this really shouldn't be a problem. Right?
His shoulders came down a bit more as the nervous tension started to melt away from his body. Unfortunately when he finally opened his eyes and titled his head towards Yori, he remembered her state of undress. Although the steam coming up from the water helped conceal most of her body but he could caught a hint of her breasts. Enough to give him a few more than friendly ideas which forced him to shut his eyes and turn his head away again.
Okay those thoughts are more than friendly! More than friendly!! I gotta think of something else! Think of...Bonnie. And how mad she'd be if she found you like this! Yes it would be very bad if she where here right now. Actually if it was just her...
A crooked grin formed beneath his bandages as that train of thought gave him some very pleasant ideas. Unfortunately, they ended up being a bit too pleasant and his body started to respond accordingly. While normally not a bad sensation, he had a feeling the company he was with wouldn't really appreciate it. Or maybe she would and really that would just end up causing more problems.
Gaaaah! I'm in a no win scenario here! Where's Commander Kane when I need him?! His inner voice screamed.
Yori continued to watch Ron with a curious fascination. While there were many cultural differences between them, she was able to read body language fairly well and even if she couldn't see his face she had an idea of what all his fidgeting about meant. A small blush flared on her cheeks as she forced herself to keep her eyes above the water. She scooted away from him and leaned back against the edge of the bath then pulled her legs up to her chest and lead her head on her knees as she tried to think of a subject that would ease the tension.
"You are doing very well in your training," she complimented softly. "You have improved more in three weeks here than most students do in three months. It is quite impressive."
Ron nodded as the mulled the information over. He thought he had been making some progress but he didn't realize he was doing that well. Of course he knew it was mostly do to the Mystic Monkey Power, which felt a bit like cheating to him. Still he was there to improve his skills and that was part of skills whether he liked it or not. Even if he did just get them in a freak accident. Sensei kept saying it was "destiny" but he still wasn't quite convinced.
Well I guess there's really nothing I can do about it now than what I've already been doing. Learn to accept them and use them to improve myself so I can stand next to Kim and Shego, he mused. Sensei's mental training is helping a lot, I'm at least through the monkey mouth but I'm pretty sure I still have a long way to do. He then shuddered. And I never want to think the phrase "through the monkey mouth" again.
He was brought out of his reprieve by the feeling of a soft, warm hand laying gently on his shoulder. It was then he remember he wasn't alone and just who was sitting next to him. He cautioned a glance over his shoulder to Yori and fought his natural inclination to have his eyes dart downward. Instead he focused his stare on her dark eyes and did his best to keep it there. Any impure thoughts he may have had though were washed away the second he saw the nervous look in her eyes.
Ron always prided himself on being there for his friends to offer as good advice as he could or just be a shoulder for them to cry on. From the way Yori was looking at him he could tell she needed him in the shoulder crying capacity. So with that in mind he was able to keep his focus on her troubled face rather than the other parts of her body. He turned to face her to show he was ready to give her his full attention. She nodded in understanding of this action then closed her eyes and took in a deep breath to calm her nerves. She let it out slowly and opened her eyes to look back into his.
"Stop-" she paused and chided herself on still being so formal. "Ron-San, while I am happy that you decided to continue your training here, there is another reason I am excited you returned. If you remember from the last time we met when I left I..." she turned her eyes away as she blushed slightly, "...kissed you."
Ron nodded. He certainly did remember that little incident. Quite well. Course he also remembered the look on Kim's face and some of her subsequent rants against Yori once they started dating.
And that is one of the reasons I haven't told Bonnie about that little peck on the cheek yet, he thought .
He pushed the thought back so he could continued to focus on Yori and the confession he knew was coming.
"I know it was rather improper of me," she continued, "but I found I could not help myself. You see when you first came here I quickly grew...attracted to you. I did not mean to do so but you were so...different from the others here. Please don't take that the wrong way, I care very much for the others here. They are my friends and family and I would gladly lay down my life for them."
She then paused and looked away from him, as if she were ashamed to admit the next part.
"But...because we have all been taught in the same disciplines, a lot of the students here are very...similar," she revealed before a look of embarrassment crossed her face. "Do not get the wrong impression, everyone here does have their own unique quirks and personalities, I simply never found them very...appealing."
She was quiet for a moment as she just stared down into the water, like her own reflection was judging her for what she had just said. It passed quickly enough though and her eyes brightened once again when she lifted her head up to look at Ron.
"But then you came here and you were so...different. You had such an exuberance about you. Not to mention your American style sense of humor. It was a refreshing change from the other students here that I couldn't help but become attracted to you. I tried to suppress my feelings because I knew you would only be staying a limited time at Yamanouchi and that I was most likely not see you again. I thought I had suppressed those feelings after you left but when Gorilla Fist brought us back together those feelings returned and as I said before I could not help myself."
A small smile slowly spread across her face as she scooted just a bit closer to him.
"Now that you have returned, though, I was wondering...if...perhaps..." she stammered a bit, which was a rarity for her. "I understand it would be difficult given how far we live from one another and I would never ask you to leave your friends and family but with today's technology it is much easier to keep in contact with each other so I would not have to. Plus I am for the most part done with my training here at Yamanouchi so in all honesty it really is time for me to move on so I could return with you to America."
She paused when she realized how presumptuous that sounded and immediately covered her mouth with her hand and looked away in embarrassment. After a few seconds of awkward silence she hazard another glance at him.
"That is...of course if you would want me too. I certainly wouldn't want to impose," she tried to correct herself. "I simply meant to inquire...if you would like that is...perhaps we could..."
Ron quickly held up a hand to stop her. When he did, he saw exactly what he knew he was going to see but really hoped he wouldn't. There was a glint in her eyes. One he had no doubt had in his eyes countless times before. The glint of hope. The hope that someone you have feelings for will return those feelings. That he had definitely felt before. Worse yet he felt the heartbreak of having those feelings rejected. Course he was used to always being on the receiving end so now that he was on the other side he really wasn't sure how to proceed. He had heard many of the speeches before but no matter how softly and gentled they were delivered, the words always sounds harsh and painful. So he had to be careful with what he said so he wouldn't hurt Yori as much as he had been hurt. Worse yet he had to convey this message without actually being able to talk!
You know, you'd think getting my face blown off and losing my voice would be enough punishment for one life time but noooooo!! What does the world have against me?! Ron wailed mentally.
On the outside he scratched the back of his neck and fidgeted around nervously as he tried to figure out how to convey what he wanted to tell her. He looked around desperately for something, anything, he could use to write her a note or something.
Of all the times to forget my stupid note pad, he chided himself.
Yori watched with a heavy heart as Ron twitched about nervously. Even without her highly honed skills to read body language she could tell something was bothering him. Something she feared she had known a long time before she even thought of trying this risky gambit. It was why she was so afraid to voice her feelings but she couldn't stay quiet any longer. She had to know one way or another so she could move on. Still to be faced with faced with the very thing she feared was a bit...unsettling.
"You...already have someone in your life, correct?" she asked, as she held her shoulders and shrank away a bit.
Ron's eyes widened in surprise and horror at the fact that she figured it out so quickly. He then closed them as he nodded, lacking the courage to look at her as he broke her heart. She nodded with him, a sudden chill running through her body despite the warm water they sat in. She forced herself to look at him again as she asked the next question she already knew the answer to.
"It is Possible-San isn't it?"
His eyes snapped back open at that statement. Now that was a question he really wished he could actually tell her given how much back story was involved with it. Failing that though, he did the only think he could think of; the world's worst and most depressing game of charades. He held up his right hand to give her attention then mimicked the motions of reading through a book. After a few seconds of that he acted like he was pulling a piece of string or taffy with his hands. Yori quirked an eyebrow as she tried to make sense of these strange motions.
"It is...a long story?" she guessed.
Ron nodded vigorously and gave her two thumbs up. She smiled a bit in self congratulations at having quickly picked up his meaning. It lasted only a second though as she realized that answer still didn't bode well for her. Nevertheless she trudged on.
"So you are not going out with Possible-San right now then?" she asked.
He nodded.
That cold feeling returned as she readied her next question.
"But...you still have someone else, yes?"
Again his eyes closed a bit as he nodded slowly. He forced himself to watch her to see how badly he had hurt her and if there was anything he could do to comfort her. Her ninja training must have kicked in though because he barely saw the expression on her face change at all. If anything it went rather neutral a few seconds after he had delivered the news. While her face, and even her body, remained stoic, he could see the small glint in eye that told him he had just completely devastated her. He tried to move forward to comfort her but she held a hand out to stop him.
"Thank you for your honesty, Stoppable-San," she said her voice surprisingly level. "I am sorry to have troubled you with my problems and I will speak of them no more. Now if you will excuse me I believe I have other matters to attend to."
With that, she practically leapt out of the large bath, splashing water around and completely exposing her well shaped body. Ron screamed inwardly in shock then closed his eyes and turned away. When he opened them again, he noticed both Yori and her towel where gone. He was about to stand up and run after her but a quick bout of dizziness due to the steam, and perhaps a bit of blood loss from the brain, sent him crashing down into the warm water. He coughed a bit as he pulled himself up and struggled to the edge of the bath.
Well, I really messed that up! he scolded himself with a slight sigh.
Elsewhere in the school, those students who were still wandering around the courtyard and the halls were surprised to see one of their most highly decorated and honored classmates running through the halls in only a pink towel wrapped around her. Water traveled after Yori as she ran as fast as she could to her room. She would have been a little more embarrassed at her classmates gawking had she really paid that much attention to them. Instead she was focusing more on putting as much distance between herself and Ron as fast as she could. She wouldn't dare let him see what his revelation had done to her. Not only would it be vastly embarrassing for her it would give him unwanted guilt she he simply didn't need to deal with right now. It stupid and selfish of her to even bring the topic up.
When she reached her door, she slid it open as quickly and forcibly as she could then bolted inside before she slammed it shut again. Her breath came in ragged gasps as she leaned against it and slowly started to slide down it until she was sitting in a crouched position on the floor. Again she hugged her knees to her chest as she panted and the water and sweat ran down her face. There was so much dampness on her face that she failed to realize that some of it was coming from her slightly reddened eyes. She sniffed a few times as she replayed the events in her head. It really was stupid of her to admit her feelings to him. As much as she wanted it to be different it seemed that she and Ron were destined to be with other people. And as Sensei also taught them, was something to be embraced.
"But that does not mean I have to like it," she muttered bitterly as she laid her head against the door.
She closed her eyes and despite all the training she had had over the years in strength and discipline and willpower she found there was only one thing she could at the moment to make her feeling any better; cry.
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The next morning, after a rather restless night's sleep and a fresh change of bandages, Ron walked into one of the school's many dojos for his next sparring session with Yori. When he spotted her standing in the middle of the room's padded circle he would tell that something was...off. He had a sneaking suspicion he know what that was but he pushed the thought aside and put on a cheerful face. Or at least he did so under his bandages. To help convey his sentiment he gave her a friendly wave as he stopped just in front of her. She simply placed her hands in front of her and bowed in return before she immediately took a fighting stance. He was a bit surprised by this reaction but his newly honed instincts quickly took over and he took a fighting stance of his own.
He barely registered that she moved forward when he saw the closed fisting coming at him. He crossed his arms in front of his face to block it then lashed out with a backhanded fist. She caught it easily then twisted around so her back was pressing against him, allowing her the perfect vantage point to flip him over her shoulder. As he spun through the air, Ron controlled his descent enough to land on his feet but not enough to keep his balance. He fell onto the mat with a dull "thud" and before he could recover he saw Yori about to bring another fist down on him. He rolled out of the way then tried for a leg sweep which she easily jumped over. He used the small break to spring back up to his feet and ready himself for her next attack.
The session continued on like that for half an hour, with each combatant trading and blocking the other's blows. It was a pattern Ron had become familiar with now and he was getting really good at reading Yori's body language in preparation for her next strike. It was this new found ability to helped him realize that something was wrong with her. Her blows were a lot harder than they had been in past and filled with a kind of....anger he had never seen in her before. Her whole body was tense but instead of tripping her up it just seemed to make her attacks that much faster. He ducked a high sweeping kick that would have taken his head if it had connected, which is probably would have a few weeks ago. He struck back with a quick uppercut that she leaned back to avoid. That was the real danger of the situation. Despite how much he had improved over the weeks, she had years of experience on her side. That put him at a severe disadvantage. At some point the exercise went from a training session to simple self defense. He just hoped he would find a way to reach Yori before she did something they would both regret. Though he had a feeling he'd regret it more.
Unfortunately, that small moment of thought caused him to lower his defensives enough that Yori's latest kick connected directly to his stomach. The blow knocked the wind out of him and sent him stumbling backwards. It took all his strength to keep standing even as he bent over and fell into a coughing fit, his own hot breath stinging his eyes. Through his blurry, tear soaked vision he saw Yori take a few steps forward with her fist cocked back to deliver the finishing blow. He was still too winded from the kick to even try to a counter move so instead he just closed his eyes and waited for the hit the come.
It was a much longer wait than he thought. In fact he wasn't totally sure he hadn't already been hit and was just knocked into dreamland. Though things seemed far too real for that. When he realized he was still awake he cautiously opened one eye to see Yori's outstretched fist just half an inch away from his face. He looked beyond it to see her face which lost the blank, almost emotionless, expression she wore during the most of their training session. Now her bottom lip was trembling a bit as her own eyes watered up at the corners as she looked regretful. She slowly lowered her now shaking fist as she took a deep breath to try to calm her nerves. Ron stood straight up as well, his breath now returned to him as the pain in his stomach subsided a bit. He had little time to think about that, however, as Yori suddenly flung herself towards him and wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. He was quite surprised by this sudden change in attitude but he still brought his arms up and wrapped them around her so return the hug in comforting manner.
"I am so sorry," she sobbed into his bandaged ear. "I have...dishonored myself and you."
It was a surprising statement. He knew how important honor was to her and all the other students here at Yamanouchi so to say something like that she had to be feeling pretty miserable. He tightened his grip on her as she shook his head.
"It is true," she countered, feeling the movement of his head. "I should never have revealed my feelings to you last night. It was a selfish acted that only shamed myself and may you uncomfortable. You came here to continue your training, not to have me, how do you Americans say...throw myself at you. Especially since I already suspected you had someone special in your life. I was simply indulging in a fantasy that will never come true. For that I am truly sorry."
She tightened her arms to deepen the hug for a bit then slipped out of his grasp and walked over to the other side of the dojo,her head bowed and staring at the floor in shame. Ron's fists tightened a bit in annoyance as he watched her shamble around in such a state. This time he was prepared, however, and he quickly produced a small note pad and pencil from his pocket. He quickly scribbled something down then tore a page out and walked over to her to place it in her hand. Yori gave him a quizzical look then inspected the small piece of paper.
"You don't need to be sorry, it's not your fault," it read.
She offered him a small smile even as she shook her head.
"It is my fault," she insisted. "I have been taught to put my own personal feelings behind the best interest of the school and the students. Right now, training you to master your Mystical Monkey Powers is in the best interest of the school and yourself. It was not my place to put that training in danger because of my own feelings."
Ron stared at her for a moment before he wrote something else and handed her another page.
"Then maybe that's why you did it, because you couldn't hold it in anymore."
"That is exactly why I did it," she agreed. "But I am saying that it was wrong and I never should have done it. Therefore I have dishonored myself."
He let out a soft sigh from behind his bandages then wrote up another note.
"You know, you remind me a lot of KP."
Yori blinked and looked up at him in confusion. He quickly handed her another piece of paper with simply read:
"Kim Possible."
"Oh," she nodded in understanding then smiled a bit. "Do you mean that?"
"Yes because you're both too stubborn to admit you're wrong," another note read.
She flashed him an annoyed and insulted look. He held up a finger to keep her quite then quickly wrote something else down.
"I mean that you're wrong about this whole "dishonor" thing. You made a mistake and that's human. It happens. It happens to me. Quite a lot."
Despite her current mood, Yori couldn't help but giggle at that remark. She was handed another note before she could speak again.
"And honestly I'm flattered and if I wasn't already going out with Bonnie I'd totally go out with you," he "said".
A hopeful look flashed across her face.
"Do you really mean that?" she asked brightly.
He nodded and gave a thumbs up. He suddenly stopped when a horrible thought occurred to him. He wrote down another note and quickly gave it to her.
"Now that I said that you're not going to try to kill Bonnie or anything, are you?"
Again she laughed and shook her head.
"Well first I would have to know who this 'Bonnie' person is," she explained. "And secondly I would never willing do something to hurt you. I may not be able to be with you in that manner but I still care deeply for you and I only wish to see that you are happy."
Ron smiled happily behind his bandages before he handed her another piece of paper.
"And now you're me," it read.
The confused expression crossed her face again. If he could have chuckled he would have. Instead he relayed another note.
"I said the same thing to KP when she started dating Shego."
The note didn't help clear up Yori's confusion.
"She is dating...Shego? The criminal?" she asked with a quirked eyebrow.
Ron nodded and was about to write something else but she held up a hand full of the crumpled notes.
"I have a feeling that to explain it all properly you would need far more pages than that small notebook supplies," she remarked.
He bobbed his head from side to side as he thought it over and then nodded again.
"I thought as much. Perhaps I can offer you another way to communicate that wouldn't produce so much..." she paused as she looked at all the pages in her hands, "waste."
Though she couldn't see it, he was giving her a confused look of his own. She giggled a bit then wiggled a finger as sign for him to follow her, which he did. They walked over to another part of the dojo where a small backpack sat on the floor. She knelt down unzip it then quickly produced what looked to be a textbook. Ron instinctually cringed at the site of it but once it passed, he took a closer look at the cover and was surprised to see it read:
Sign Language 101
He blinked a few times then looked over at Yori's beaming face.
"I had this specially ordered once you explained why you were returning," she explained. "It is written in English so you should be able to understand it. I have a few more volumes in here once you have mastered the basics."
Ron raised a finger like he was going to say something but realized he couldn't. Even if he could Yori would have cut him off.
"Consider it another part of your training," she said as she sat cross legged on the floor and patted the spot next to her to indicate that he should sit down.
With a shrug, he did just that and made himself as comfortable as he could on the hardwood floor of he dojo. He peered over her shoulder as she cracked open the book. Inside there were pictures of hands in various positions with phrases underneath them. It all looked a bit overwhelming for him and reminded him a bit too much of school, but at the very least Yori made a much better looking teacher than Mr. Barkin ever did. He smiled a bit as he looked over at her.
"Now then, we shall start with the simple signs first," she instructed.
She noticed him look at her and smiled slightly as a small blush crossed her cheeks.
"Before we begin I wish to say thank you," she said almost sheepishly. "For cheering me up and for comparing myself to you. To be honest if there was anyone I was to be compared to I could think of no one better."
He stared blankly at her for several seconds. Despite her earlier request he couldn't help but write up another note.
"Okay now I know that's the first time anyone's ever said THAT!!" it read.
She giggled again as she read it.
"Oh Ron-San, always with your American style sense of humor," she mused with a shake of her head. "Now let us begin...."
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Ron stood perfectly still as he faced his oldest, and perhaps most frightening, foe of all: the Camp Wannaweep monkey mascot. Oh how he hated that monkey. He had to spend week after torturous week living with that beast and couldn't get a moment's peace because of it. Most say that's where his irrational fear of monkeys came from but her preferred to think that's where he learned the truth about their nefarious nature. It showed them just how evil and traitorous they could be. It still gave him nightmares to this day.
"Funny though, I always remembered him as being bigger," he said to himself. "Course maybe that's cause I was just a little kid."
He shrugged the looked back at the chimp wearing the camp's T-shirt and a raccoon skin cap. It howled and flailed about on the other end of the cabin, as if it challenged him to make a move. That part was exactly how he had remembered it. It would stand there and make a racket all day while he stood pressed up against the other end of the cabin, too afraid to even wet himself. It was just one of the many horrible, horrible experiences he had at Wannaweep that scarred him for life.
But that's exactly why he was here. In his weeks of training with Sensei on the astral plane, and in his own mind, he had learned to overcome most of his fears. He had long ago passed through the giant "space monkey's" mouth and began to go deep in his own psyche. It was all a bit too psychobabble for him to really understand, but he did know that conquering through all his old Wannaweep fears one by one actually was helping his confidence grow. It seemed literally coming face-to-face with the things that scared him helped him beat them back.
And now he was facing down the biggest one of all.
He clenched his fists up and took a few deep breaths to calm his nerves. Rationally, he knew this was all in his mind and that the monkey wasn't really there and couldn't really hurt him. Of course, no one would ever mistake Ron for being rational. He usually let his imagination run wild with him but in here that wasn't a good thing. He had to control it. Control his fears, his doubts, his insecurities, all of it. He had beaten the rest of them and now all he had to do was beat that damn monkey.
"No wait," he remarked with a shake of his head. "That doesn't sound right at all. Anyway, time to get this done."
With that he marched bravely forward and shot his arms forward to quickly snatch the moneky's flailing arms wrists then yank it up so he could stare it right in the beady little eyes.
"I am not scared of you anymore!" he shouted with as much bravado as he could muster. "I'm not scared and you can't hurt me!"
As if to challenge that statement, the monkey suddenly brought it's legs up to shove it's feet into Ron's face and push him away. He let out a surprised scream and dropped the monkey as he stumbled backwards. Once he regained his footing he glared at his furry foe.
"Man, why do all my fears always want to do things the hard way?!" he exclaimed as he tossed his hands in the air. He sighed and refocused. "Alright monkey, we're not leaving here until one of us is gone! And I'm pretty sure it's going to be you!"
The Wannaweep monkey let out an enraged shriek and flailed its arms again before it lunged at Ron. Instead of screaming and cringing in fear, the blond boy simply planted his feet firmly on the wooden floorboards and readied himself. Once the raging simian was within range, Ron thrust out his hand in an open palmed attack that struck the monkey in its small, hairy chest and sent it flying back towards the cabin's door. It let out a small grunt of pain as it bounced off the wooden door then fell to the floor. It pulled itself up and wobbled around a bit as it tried to recover from the blow.
"You know I'm actually surprisingly sorry I had to do that," Ron said softly to it. "But if you keep being a pest I'm gonna have to do this. So whattya say, give up easily?"
The monkey glared at him before it leapt again. Ron sighed and slumped his shoulders a bit.
"Always the hard way," he muttered again before he prepared himself.
The fight was much more difficult than Ron had expected. Of course he wasn't sure why exactly he expected it to be easy considering all the challenges overcoming his other fears presented. Still this one was more than a little persistent. Much like the real Camp Wannaweep monkey had been. Their fight raged all over the small cabin room, destroying the bunk beds, breaking the lambs, shattering the mirror, and splitting the dresser in half. Even if it was all in his mind Ron still couldn't understand how that happened.
After what felt like hours, the struggle finally came to a rather abrupt and unceremonious stop when Ron side-stepped one of the mad monkey's lunges and it smashed its head against the wall. He blinked as he watched it hit the floor with a small bounce then let out a small groan as it twitched slightly. He continued to stare in disbelief for a few seconds.
"That's it?" he asked incredulously. "After all that fighting and all that time improving my mad ninja skills I beat my greatest fear with just...dumb luck?!"
"It would appear so," Sensei's voice called out in amusement.
Ron turned his attention to the door where he heard the voice just in time to see Sensei shimmering into view. Although he couldn't see the old ninja master's mouth behind his long, grey whiskers, Ron could tell he was smirking at him. His suspicion was only confirmed when he heard Sensei chuckling a bit. His brow narrowed a bit in annoyance as he walked over to him.
"Although I believe you called it 'dumb skill' if I'm not mistaken," Sensei remarked.
"Well of course I called it that! It was just to cover up it was dumb luck! It's like when people say they meant to do that even though they obviously didn't," Ron clarified.
"But in your case it is true."
A confused look crossed the blond's face as he tried to process that statement.
"I don't get it," he confessed with a shake of his head.
Sensei chuckled again. "It is your method."
"My 'method'?"
"Yes," he nodded wisely. "You see although we teach our students all the same style here, the method in which they chose to use that style is as unique as each of them. Like a fingerprint, which fighting method is different for each person. For instance, although you are learning Tai Shing Pek Kwar the way in which you use it will be different from how Monkey Fist uses it. That is how masters are born. They find a way to employ the style that will trump others of the same style. Do you understand?"
"I think so," Ron replied. "It's like how Kim knows all those different styles of kung-fu and can kick mucho butt with them on people who know everything about them, right?"
"Something like that, yes."
"Cool," the blond smirked then looked around the wrecked cabin. "So...this is it, right? I beat my greatest fear and now I'm ready to move on to something else in this whole mystical, mind training."
"You are ready to move on, yes but you have not defeated your greatest fear," Sensei said rather ominously.
Ron stared nervously at the old ninja master for a few seconds, a feeling deep dread starting to flow over his body. He was sure the monkey would his last fear. After all that thing tormented him when he was young and haunted his nightmares ever since then. So really what else was left to be afraid of?
"The answer lays just beyond that door," Sensei said, pointing to the plain, wooden door of the cabin.
"Hey did you just read my mind?!" Ron exclaimed in an accusatory manner.
"We are already in the mind, so technically I am reading your mind with everything you say," he remarked with a hint of mischievousness.
"Yeah...I guess that's true," the blond mumbled then looked at the door. "So really...what's on the other side of that thing?"
"Pass through and find out."
Ron stared at him for a few seconds longer then sighed and slumped his shoulders.
"Alright fine I get it, hero's journey and all that," he remarked as he walked up to the door.
Hesitantly, he reached out and grabbed the doorknob. He took a few deep breaths to summon up his courage then twisted the knob and flung the door open was quickly as he could. A blindingly bright, white light filled his vision for a moment and when it finally passed he found himself standing in a very familiar room. One he actually hadn't been in for quite awhile as the person who used to live there moved out many months ago. And yet here he was. More importantly, there she was. Standing in the middle of the room and looking at him with those bright green eyes and friendly smile he had seen a thousand times before. For a moment it seemed just like old times, but he remembered all too quickly that this was just an illusion created by his mind.
Still he couldn't believe his greatest fear was:
"Kim," Ron whispered in disbelief.
"Yeah Ron?" she asked cheerfully.
"Wait, you can hear me?!"
She gave him an odd look. "Yeah, why wouldn't I be able to?"
"Oh right, yeah I guess that monkey could hear me so it make sense you could too," he muttered under his breath.
"Ron are you sure you're alright?" the redhead asked in concern.
"Actually no," he confessed as he sat down on the edge of the bed.
Kim moved over to the bed and sat down next to him then placed a comforting arm on his shoulder.
"Ron you know if you need anything I'll be there to help, right?" she asked him.
"Yeah I do KP and I've always appreciated it," he remarked as he laid his head on his hands.
"No big."
"No, it's a very big. You've always been there for me. Helping me out with school work, trying to help me work up my courage to talk to girls, bailing me out whenever I got into trouble on our missions, saving me from countless henchmen and robots and stuff and...and..." he paused and lifted his head up as his face took on a look of complete clarity. "And I can't do it anymore."
Kim blinked and looked at him in confusion. "What?"
"Yeah I get it!" he exclaimed, completely ignoring her as he stood up. "Yeah this is my greatest fear! I totally get it now!"
"Ron, you're starting to scare me here," Kim said nervously as she looked up at him.
The smile disappeared from his face as Ron realized what he had to do. Even with an imaginary Kim this was going to be hard to do, but it had to be done. He took a deep breath then look down at the redhead he known practically his whole life. He reached a hand down to her and with a questioning look on her face, she placed her hand in his. He helped her to her feet before he took her other hand into his so he could look her in the eyes as he talked to her.
"Kim," he started, almost sorrowfully. "You've been my best friend my whole life and you've done some wonderful things for me. Heck you even dated me for awhile and while it ended kinda awkweirdly it was still one of the happiest times of my life and I wouldn't trade it for anything."
"Why do I sense there's a 'but' coming up?" Kim remarked with a sad smile.
"But," he stressed as he smirked back at her. "You also set an impossibly high standard. I mean, do you have any idea what it's like being next to you on a mission? To watch you out there kicking bad guy butt while I'm stuck either being the distraction or just running away screaming from everyone? Heck even Rufus has done more to help than I have."
"Ron that's not true!" she protested.
"Kim, just-just let me finish," he requested.
Although it was obvious she wanted to say more, she respected his wishes and merely nodded for him to continue.
"I use to wonder why people couldn't remember my name," he started up again with a slight sigh. "But really I've always kinda known the answer. It's because next to you I'm just completely invisible. Most people would be. I mean, you're amazing! But...that also makes it hard to stand next to you rather than just...in your shadow."
He tilted his head away in shame of what he just said. He wasn't proud that he said it, but it was something that had been eating away at him for awhile now. Still he wasn't sure he could look her in the eye for awhile, even if she was a figment of his imagination.
To her credit though, Kim smiled softly as she pulled one of her hands free from his so she could bring it up to turn his head back around to look at her.
"Ron, you're not in my shadow," she insisted.
"Yes I am Kim!" he practically screamed as he tore himself away from her.
He walked a few steps away then turned to face her again, a look of indignation on his face.
"I've always been in your shadow! I've always been 'just the sidekick' or 'the buffoon' or 'that guy with Kim Possible'. You keep telling me how I have all this potential I need to live up to but I haven't because you never gave me the chance!"
That did it. Kim's face went from concerned and caring to annoyed and ticked off in the blink of an eye. Her brow furrowed, her teeth ground together and her hands clenched up into fists as she glared daggers into Ron.
"Oh so it's my fault now?!" she cried out. "All I've ever done is try to help you get over all your irrational fears so you'll be a better, stronger person! And this is the thanks I get?!"
"I know you tried to help me, but it wasn't so I'd be better it's so you'd look better!" he retorted.
Kim stammered a bit in shock. "Th-that's not true!"
"Oh really?" he asked, crossing his arms over his chest. "Then what was with that new haircut from a few years back. That definitely wasn't my idea, I liked my hair the way it was. You were the one who wanted to change it."
"Hey, you liked that hair style after awhile!" she countered.
"And when I did and I started acting just a bit more confident, you got all insecure and got me to change it back."
"A little confident?!" Kim scoffed. "You so full of yourself you had to turn sideways to fit through doorways. And that's what always happens when you get just a little bit ahead. You always let it go to your head and act like God's gift to the world."
"Well did you ever stop to think that maybe I acted that way because I usually don't get any kind of break in life?!" Ron shouted, his voice cracking just a bit.
Kim's expression fell as she took in that statement. This time it was her turn to lower her face and turn away in shame. She hung her head and brought up her right arm to hug and rub her left on as she dug her feet into the carpet a bit.
"No. I never actually thought of that," she said sheepishly.
"Kinda figured that. And I admit I kinda got out of control those times, so it's mostly my fault," he confessed. "I know you were just looking out for me KP and I really do appreciate that. But you can't keep doing that all the time. I'm not some helpless little kid being picked on by bullies anymore or some frantic sidekick flailing about. Well...okay maybe I was that last one for awhile there but I'm changing that!"
"And I respect that Ron, that's all I've ever really wanted for you," Kim said as she took a few steps closer.
"I know, but I just couldn't do that with you around. I know you'd try to help me but..." he stopped as the words caught in this throat.
"But what?" she asked nervously.
"I'm...I'm...not sure if you'd be sincere about it. I know you like being in the spotlight, and that's totally where you belong, but I just want to be able to share it with you. I'm just not sure you'd feel the same way."
"Ron of course I would!" she tried to convince him.
"Yeah, maybe now, after...Shego," he growled. "Because...well being Shego, she kind of forced her way into it with you. I mean I'm sure having Shin and being around someone else that was just as strong willed as you helped, but let's be honest, this is Shego we're talking about here."
"Yeah," Kim chuckled and smiled happily. It was quickly replaced by another frown though. "But that's not why I'd share the spotlight with you. I'd do that because I care about you. You're my best friend."
"And you're my best friend. That was never in question. I just needed to get away from awhile and do this on my own," he said then thought about that last comment. "Well more or less. The point is I'm just trying to get better so that I'm not a sidekick anymore and instead a partner to you. I just wasn't sure if you'd get that."
"Oh Ron," she sighed then stepped forward to give him a comforting hug. "Of course I understand that. I'm just not too happy about it."
"I know," he muttered as he returned the hug. "But I promise I'll come back to you. It just may take me some time."
"Just don't take too long."
"I won't," he whispered as he held her tighter. "I promise."
He closed his eyes and rested his head on her shoulder as he relaxed into the embrace. He let out a soft, content sigh as a warm feeling washed over his body. It was a feeling that told him everything was going to be alright. That this would all work out in the end and that no matter what, Kim would always be there for him.
When he reopened his eyes he found himself back in the candle lit shrine where he trained with Sensei, who was sitting cross legged next to him. Ron blinked a few time as he readjusted to being in the real world. He slowly stood up, letting his muscles ease their way back into working. After a few stretches to work out the kinks he looked over at Sensei, who was already standing.
"That will be all for today Stoppable-San," he said. "You have made great progress today. Now, go with my blessing and enjoy the rest of the day."
Ron nodded then placed his hands in front of him to give a respectful bow to his master. He then walked outside, his legs still a little wobbly from being crossed for so long. When he made it outside he saw Sensei's remark of enjoying the "day" was a little generous as the sun was just starting to set. As he watched it slowly sink between the high mountains surrounding the school, he thought over what had just happened in his mind.
So that was my greatest fear, he thought in disbelief. Just tell Kim how I really felt. Well...I guess it was pretty terrifying and I do feel better getting it out, so to speak. Still I wonder if even after all this training I'll ever have the courage to actually tell her all that stuff in real life?
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Ron kept his breathing slow and steady as he sat on the nearly frozen ground. He watched as snow gently fell all around him, coating the school grounds, the trees and even the mountains in a soft white blanket. It gave everything a serene, peaceful look that only helped him keep his restful state of mind. It was in that state of mind that he was able to keep up the soft, glowing blue aura around his body that kept the bitter winter cold away from his body. While the other students had donned their coats and other protective gear to keep them warm during their winter training sessions, he only switched out his bandages for one of their normal masks. That was simply because he had finally run out of medical gauze and despite being in the school for four months now was still not ready to let them see his face.
Four months. Has it really been that long? He asked himself. Really doesn't seem like that. But I guess time flies when you're having fun. Or trying to master an ancient ninja mystical force that was accidently transferred into your body. Either way, time goes by quickly.
Even with this cheerful attitude, Ron couldn't help but feel a little down that he was so far away from home at this time of the year. Though he hadn't seen a calendar for awhile he was relatively sure it was Christmas back home. That was really what he regretted the most about his self imposed exile, missing Christmas with Kim and especially Bonnie. It was going to be their first one together as a couple and he had actually looked forward to it. Of course he never expected to have his face blown off before then either. Still he knew he was going to have to find away to make it up to her and Kim next year.
At least his trek had not been for nothing. He had learned quite a lot in his relatively short time here and Yori and Sensei were quick to remind him of that. He still didn't quite feel like the Mystical Monkey Master that they told him he would be, but he definitely had better control over it now than he did before. It was, in fact, those same powers that allowed him to stay out in the cold without the need for heavier clothes. He found if he concentrated hard enough, the blue aura that surrounded him whenever he tapped into the power could not only act as a shield from the cold but keep him as warm as he wanted to be. Right now the weather felt to him like a nice and breezy seventy-two degrees. It was a rather unique experience and would save him a bundle on winter clothes when he finally did get home.
Of course for now this ability only worked if he concentrated on it, so when he felt a slight tap on his right shoulder it brought him out of his slight daze and the bitter winter wind brought him back to reality. He shivered a bit but thankfully the person next to him was quick to over him a long, heavy black coat. He wrapped it around himself as fast as he could then focused on Yori's smiling face and signed:
"Thank you."
"It is, how you say, no big deal," she replied cheerfully. "I also brought you this."
She then reached into her own long coat and produced a small, metal thermos. She unscrewed the lid and poured a bit of steamy, light brown liquid into it.
"I thought perhaps some hot chocolate might help you warm up," she explained as she handed him the cup.
He thanked her again as he took it. He turned away from her and lifted up his mask enough to he could take a few careful sips and enjoy the feeling of being warmed from the inside out. After a few more sips he pulled his mask back down and handed the cup back to her.
"Are you sure you do not want any more?" she offered.
He simply held up a hand and shook his head.
"Then perhaps we should head into where it is warmer. Your control of the Mystical Monkey Power has grown substantially since you arrived here, but even you cannot stand to be out here all night. I'm sure you'd agree a warm room is much better than a mystical shield."
Ron nodded vigorously and Yori chuckled at him before they both turned and started to walk towards the personal quarters of the school.
Unbeknownst to them and the other students and teachers, they were all being watched from several yards just outside Yamanouchi. A small collection of hooded figures crawled along the small rocks and hills overlooking the school, shrouded in shadows to avoid detection. Their leader sat crouched behind a rock outcropping, staring through a pair of night vision binoculars to carefully watch the two figures walk inside. Once they were gone he lowered the device in amazement.
"I never thought he would be there," he growled spitefully. "But this actually works to my advantage. Now I can have my revenge on all my enemies."
To Be Concluded...
Author's Notes: Well FINALLY this chapter is finished! Finally after, what? Two months or so I get this friggin thing written. Sorry for the massive delay folks, I really don't know what happened. I'm pretty sure it was a combination of my summer schedule at work which has me on evening shifts as well as spilttng my creative energies between this chapter here and my video projects over on my YouTube account. Which if anyone wants to see can be found here:
http:// www. youtube. com/user/ Blackbird26155
Just fill in the gaps and it should work. As always feedback is always appreciated even on the videos. Especially on them.
So enough shilling, I need to correct something from last chapter. As you can see that was not the end of this story I was just tired and accidently wrote "The End" instead of "To Be Continued...." that has since been corrected. Now the next chapter should be the end of the fic and there will be an epilogue after that. Hopefully it won't take me nearly as long as this one did and again I apologize for that.
Before I end my ranting I want to say a big thanks to my friend Slyrr who came up with the title for this chapter because I simply couldn't think of one. I think it's a fun little pun that helps lighten up a pretty heavily emotional chapter. I know it's a lot but there was stuff that needed to be done.
I also know I went through Ron's training pretty quickly but that's because what I had in mind to show his progression was a montage and well...you can't really pull that off in writing like you can in TV and movies. Again I know there's a lot of stuff left out but I think I touched on the most important stuff. Plus I can always go back and fill in the gaps in future "Spotlight" chapters so there's that. Hopefully this doesn't feel like too much of a cheat though.
Alright I'm done rambling, thanks for reading and I'll see you next time! Which will hopefully be sooner rather than later.