Disclaimer: The usual; I don't own Kim Possible, blah, blah, blah.

Training time for Ron!! Nuff said! Oh, and Kim is… somewhat distraught. And…THANKS for the reviews!! Infinitely appreciated! Well, read on!

Chapter 4

Ron, drenched, freezing, and bleeding from his forehead, was hurled to the floor. Joints still stiff from sleep and shock, he was unable to move quickly. Michael walked by him, grabbing him by the back of his collar, dragging him outside with ease. Ron finally came to focus as he was dragged into the front yard of the sleeping quarters, and turned upwards to face his attacker.

"Michael, what the HELL ARE YOU DOING?!"

Michael smiled. "I warned you on the plane. Now, time for muffin to play with the big boys."

With a swift motion, Ron was pulled upright, and half dunked headfirst into a barrel of ice water. Ron yelled, but only bubbles rose to the surface. The ice burned like fire, and Ron felt frost form on his eyebrows as he was wrenched back out of the barrel.

Michael whirled him around, and stared into his eyes.

"Stuck behind enemy lines, you're carrying crucial documents that need to be brought to your superiors, which will be at the drop point 5 km. away in 15 minuets. But the remainder of your team was captured, and awaits almost immediate execution. You're the only one free, so you can save them. But you have to deliver the documents or you're mission was a failure. What do you do?!"

Ron blinked, breathing hard.

"Uhhh…I…uhhh,"

"WRONG ANSWER!!!"

Michael dunked him back in the barrel, then hurled him ten feet away. Ron fell on his back, to out of breath of get up. Michael stooped over him.

"When you're on a mission, and you're faced with impossible decisions, and you're out of time and exhausted, the only wrong answer is to hesitate. Hesitate and both windows for either option vanish."

Ron blinked, and nodded.

Michael nodded in return, and offered Ron a hand up.

"Kid, welcome to the first day of the next four months."

…

"…yes but…well I don't see how that's any of your business, but…fine…well…oh, just shut up."

Kim hung up the phone in disgust. U.S. Embassy people were some of the most boneheaded people she'd ever met, or at least spoken with on the phone. She'd been at this all day, and still no answers. Not even Wade could turn up anything. Sighing, Kim sat down on her bed and tried to think of any other contacts, tipsters, or errands she could call in for some info, but she was out.

Putting her hands into her head, she strained.

Come on, Kim. Think. Okay, he probably went off somewhere because of the…incident. Where would someone go, and why for that reason? To repent? No, Ron's not that kind of person. To find himself? Possibly. Where would someone go if they had to re-examine themselves? A place of peace and tranquility. Like a spa. Not like Ron. A Psychiatrist? Probably not. A monastery? …a monastery…well, that's one place, like a Tibetan monk place, with meditation and stuff. That's an option.

OH, WHO THE HELL AM I KIDDING?! Like, Tibetan monks suddenly got Government Issue document forging equipment, and set up an elaborate scheme just to get him to go there?! Godamnit! WHERE THE HELL IS HE?!

Kim suddenly felt an emotion she hadn't felt in ages. A feeling of helplessness. Wherever Ron had gone, he'd covered his tracks too well. And there was nothing she could do about it. She felt near to tears. Forcing them down, she stood up and walked over to the phone. Moments later, she was on the line with Monique.

"Hey, girl. Any luck on your BF?"

"No, not yet. I kinda…need a pal at the moment. Care to join?"

"Ohhh, girl friend, you know you don't even have to ask."

"Thanks. When can you come over?"

"On my way."

"K, see ya."

Hanging up, Kim at least felt some comfort knowing that even though Ron was gone, she could still live a little.

…

Slap, slap, slap, slap,

The methodic pounding of Ron's feet against hard pavement, and the sound of his own strained breathing was only drowned out by the hammering of his chest and pounding of his head.

Michael casually jogged up to him, keeping Ron's pace with ease.

"Let's go, muffy. Five kilometers before breakfast. You're only on 2, and you're already out of it."

Ron tried gasping out a response, despite being out of breath.

"Well…I've…jogged…five k…but…never…SPRINTED IT BEFORE!"

Michael smiled and shrugged. "Now Ron, remember our talk from this morning. Our agreement?"

Ron turned back to the task at hand, (not passing out or vomiting,) partially wishing he could take back those words:

Earlier that morning, after the dunking incident.

Ron sat, shivering despite given hot tea and a blanket. Michael sat down next to him with a cup of coffee. Taking a sip, he turned to Ron.

"Look, man. I know this may be tough. But look, this is just the way it's done here. Simply put, we're gonna train you're ass off."

Ron finished his cup and spoke.

"Well, I've never had a problem with conditioning before. I just want to learn how to use my powers, ya know?"

Michael set down his coffee and leaned back, thinking. "Okay, I'm gonna explain this to you. You may have those monkey powers, but you're body can't cope with them at a constant level, which is our goal; to make the powers a part of you, not something that has to be summoned. In order for those powers to take a constant hold, you need to be in prime physical condition. Which, put bluntly, you aren't. So, I'm gonna ask you're permission."

Ron tuned to face him. "Yes?"

"Will you allow me to make you the best possible ninja you can be?"

"Yes."

"In order to achieve that, I need to teach you how to make those powers a part of you. Will you allow me to do that?"

"Duh."

"And in order to do that, will you allow me to raise your conditioning to an optimal level?"

"Again, duh."

Ron snapped back to the present.

Man, talk about eating crow.

Michael laughed and slapped him on the back. "You're half done! Just 2.5 k left to go!"

…

Again, Ron regretted his promise, as only minuets after breakfast, he was hauled to the weight room. After half an hour of bicep curls, bench presses, chin up, (he could only do one,) and clapper pushups, he could barely stand up, and had failed in keeping down breakfast. Michael shook his head in disappointment as Ron gagged in the bathroom.

"Well, day one could have gone a bit better."

Ron looked up in fear. Michael shrugged. "Hey Ron, don't sweat it. This is day one. One of many. Don't worry. In a few weeks, this will get to be easy."

Ron moaned and leaned back over the toilet. "It better."

…

three weeks later

Kim rose from her bed, yawned, and stared into her mirror. Her eyes were bloodshot and swollen. She'd cried again last night. And came near to it again this morning. She couldn't help it. She really missed him. It seemed like everything reminded her of him: she couldn't even bring herself to cross Bueno Nacho on the way to school, much less go eat there. And not having Ron around really reminded her about just how much their friendship meant to both of them. For real, true friends, all she really had was Monique. Everyone else was just a mild acquaintance, or a friend out of her popularity. She was spending increasing amounts of time with Wade and Monique, but no one was able to fill the void like Ron was able to: both as a boyfriend and a best friend. More often than not, she found herself angry with Ron for leaving without any explanation, (save the cryptic video,) and very close to hating him. Then she remembered that she couldn't hate him, because her close feelings for him would win over. This left her very confused and hurt. Sighing, and not even caring that she'd slept through first period, she gathered her things, and began another solitary walk to school.

…

Ron, with Michael tailing just behind him, crossed the last checkpoint and bent over, hands cupped to his knees, gasping for breath. He was exhausted. But also, exhilarated. The feeling was indescribable; a combination of being tired and yet filled with energy. Michael clapped him on the back again. "Congrats, Ron. That's a new personal best: five kilometers in 25 minuets. You're really coming along, and much faster than I originally anticipated. Want some breakfast?"

Ron shook his head and he took a long pull from his water bottle. "Naw. I'll get some b-fast after my first workout. See ya in bout, say, an hour?"

Ron turned and jogged over to the gym. Michael smiled and turned. Rather than walking to the mess hall, he walked to the headmaster's office. Knocking, he let himself into the high-ceiling room. The old man looked up and smiled.

"Michael! How are you doing? And how is you're student?"

Bowing, Michael answered. "Excellent. He has progressed twice as fast as I originally anticipated. He is ready for the second stage."

The headmaster nodded. "And you intend to use you're new method with this boy?"

Michael nodded. "The issue lies within his inability to summon the powers in non- primal circumstances. So my technique is perfect for his situation. Permission to initiate in three hours?"

"Permission granted, naturally."

Bowing again, Michael exited the room.

…

Ron grunted, forcing himself to keep going.

Four, five, six, s…s…even…EIGHT!

Forcing one last chin up out of himself, he dropped to the ground in a crouch. Letting the burn pass out of his muscles, he stood up and moved over to the squat rack, slid on 150 lbs, and started his squats. Halfway through his set, Michael walked in.

"Hey, champ. How's the workout?"

Ron smiled. "Great. I'm doing, like, at least five times better than I was awhile ago. I'm almost done. I'll catch some eats with you in a sec."

Ron walked over to the rowing machine, setting in to highest resistance. Michael stepped forward. "Actually, Ron, I think we're gonna cut you're workout short today. There's something we need to discuss."

Pausing, Ron looked up. "What is it?"

"I think you're ready for the next stage of training. So you're gonna need a day to rest up and pack up."

Standing up, Ron walked over to him. "Next stage?"

Michael smiled and sat down on the bench press. "Take a seat. I'll explain."

Ron sat down. Michael started. "Okay, so from what I've gathered from our intelligence and what you've told me so far, you have no real control over when you activate you're monkey powers."

"True."

"But, it seems that whenever you fight Monkey Fist, or other similar primal-type enemies, the powers come to you every time."

Ron blinked. "Hey, yeah. You're right!"

"So, (stay with me here,) whenever you fight Monkey Fist, it brings out the natural state of you're powers. Being close to something that primal and similar to the nature of your own powers, they are nearly automatically activated."

"Okay."

"So, the plan is to put you in an environment of pure primal status, which will allow you to get in touch with yourself, your primal self, and your real self, without any social distractions, or otherwise."

"So, where's this environment?"

Michael smiled. "Look out the window."

Ron did, and saw the enormous forest that sat on the borders of the academy. "You mean…"

"Yep. We're throwing you in the forest for a little while. Out there, you'll be forced to revert to your natural, primal instincts to survive. And I'm betting that if we keep you in a primal state of mind for awhile, you're powers will take permanent hold."

Ron looked away. For a moment, a look of fear passed over his face. Then, he had a flash.

To not be afraid. To drive my own life.

Ron stood up. "Let's make me a ninja."

Michael smiled. "Cool. You get the day off. Eat, sleep in a bed, and say a long, loving goodbye to indoor plumbing. Cause for at least a week, you're in that forest. With no supplies. Or tools. Meet me down by the helipad tomorrow morning, 4:00 am."

Ron smiled. "Wouldn't miss it for the world."

…

Sitting at lunch, surrounded by false friends, dancing around her problems, making stupid small talk, and her trying to keep a casual, happy face, Kim felt her thoughts drift to Ron again. The confusion returned, and it exhausted her again. She excused herself to run to the fountain, eager to just be alone for a second. In her haste, she didn't even see the guy she bowled over until he was already on the flat of his back. Gasping, she knelt down.

"Oh, god, I'm so sorry. I didn't even see where I was going…are you alright?"

The guy looked up, laughing a little. "Don't worry about it. That happens more often then you might think."

It took a whole three seconds for her to realize that that was a joke. She laughed openly when she realized the jest. Offering a hand up, she lifted him to his feet. "Yeah, sorry, I'm in another place right now."

The guy chuckled. "The caf food do that to ya? Or maybe it was today's physics lesson. I know at least I wished I was anywhere else."

Kim chuckled in response, and gave a good look at the guy. He was tall, at least six one or two. He was well tanned, had shoulder length black hair, and bright blue eyes. She blinked. Then smiled.

"Well, again, I'm sorry for knocking you over."

The guy shrugged. "Naw. Hey, tell you what. How's about you make it up to me by letting me buy you a non-cafeteria lunch. Say…Bueno Nacho. Just down the street."

Kim smiled. "I'd love that."

And walking in perfect unison, the two of them strolled out the doors.

xxxxxEndxxxxx

Well, how was it? Not a lot of action, but I swear I'll make it up in the next chappy.

I'm going into finals, so I probably won't update for at least a week, probably not for three. But, hey, stranger things have happened.

PLEASE R+R!! It's so I know I have readers out there! You guys inspire me!

closet fan 16