A/N

Chapter 7 is up and running!

Kim and Ron meet the rest of their teachers, and the first week comes to a close.

Sheila (the former Shego) and Hego have a long-needed discussion about important people, and Hego reveals he hasn't been entirely truthful with his sister.

Kim and Ron have some extracurriculars to take care of, but not before they face a dire situation.

Then it's time for the trip to the Lazy C, where an unexpected sitch awaits them.

A much needed talk takes place about matters of the heart, and then a surprise for a certain character.

Finally, a new and dire problem is revealed, and one person appears to be at the center of it.

Ready or not, here's the sitch!

And here is the necessary stuff:

Kim Possible and all related characters are (c) Disney, Bob Schooley, and Mark McCorkle.

Original Characters are my creations, and I would appreciate if you ask before you use them. Thank you.


Ron grinned a bit. "Guess that means we have plans this weekend."

"Plans?" Kim said a tad bit confused.

Ron smiled. "Sounds to me like we need to make a trip with just the two of us up to Montana and the Lazy C."

Kim nodded. "Good idea. I just hope you're ready."

Now Ron was the one puzzled. "Ready for what?"

Kim grinned. "Nana's reaction to our engagement. She's still staying with Joss and Uncle Slim, remember?"

Ron laughed nervously. "Oh, right. Sure."


Hego cringed as the woman before him made her anger known.

"Alright, Hector, I want the truth, and I want it now!" One of her hands held a fairly recent photo of Hego posing with a man and a woman, and the other was starting to gain a faint green shimmer to it.

"Honestly, Sheila, I don't know where they are. I'd tell you if I did." He held up his hands in defense, well aware of what his sister could do when she got angry. "Please, calm down."

Prior to that summer, the request would have fallen on deaf ears, but this was not the same Sheila Godfrey that had once blasted her older brother just to show him that she had been on the side of evil. However, she and her boyfriend Andy Lipsky had undergone a radical personality rewiring using the last Attitudinator in existence that June, and along with the switch she had gained a large amount of self-control. It was a fact that Hego now found himself very grateful for, as the green glow building around her fist quickly dissipated.

"Alright, but I want the whole story, and I do mean the whole story. Everything you know from the day they disappeared just a week after my fifteenth birthday up through now."

Hego sighed. "Sis, I can't tell you everything."

Andy Lipsky, who had been sitting quietly through the whole fiasco that had developed after his girlfriend had found the picture of her older brother with a couple who appeared to be their parents, decided he couldn't keep quiet any longer.

"Hector, she has a right to know."

Another sigh. "Look, I'd love to tell you both everything, but I don't know the whole story myself. I don't know why they left, or why they faked their own deaths. I also don't know why they only contacted me when they decided to resurface a few years ago, nor do I understand why they wanted me to keep it a secret from the rest of you. And I certainly don't know what made them decide to reappear when they did, or where they are hiding now."

Sheila eyed him with annoyed disbelief. "Okay, so what do you know? And if I think you're lying you'll find out just what I'm still capable of—just because I'm good now doesn't mean I've lost any of the fight I had a few months ago. And don't think the fact that I'm now three months pregnant is going to slow me down either."

Hego dropped into the blue chair around the Team Go conference table and picked up the remote, clicking it at the screen. A picture of the surveillance camera at the Go City Bueno Nacho appeared. "All I do know is that about a year after you left, they showed up at my Bueno Nacho location and demanded to know why I had let you turn to evil. I didn't even recognize them at first, mainly because they were wearing disguises, but they knew things that only our family knows."

"Like what?" Sheila asked as she stared at the picture, still not believing this.

Hego looked at her pointedly. "Like the fact that Wesley and Werner were only up in the tree house because you wanted them up there. Or that the reason we all suspect I look somewhat normal and can turn off the Go Team Glow, apart from the blue hair, is that I wasn't in the tree house but climbing up to bring the twins down when the comet hit, and was partially shielded by the impurities in the metal that made up the floor of the structure."

Sheila's mouth dropped open in an instant, and for several minutes she was unable to find her voice. Most people who knew of the Godfrey siblings' powers assumed the five of them had all been playing in the tree house. Even fewer who knew that Hego hadn't been up there knew that their parents had told the oldest sibling to bring the twins back down because they were only three at the time. As she turned these thoughts over in her head, another thought occurred to her, one that stung quite a bit more than she expected it to. If in fact their parents were alive, they had seen her sometimes gradual, sometimes drastic fall from the side of justice. In response to this realization, Sheila suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to speak to them and try to explain herself.

"Hector, I need to find them. Please, I've got to talk to them."

Hego looked at her with sympathetic eyes. "Sheila, I would like to help. Honestly. But I really don't have any idea where they are. All I know is that they're safe but in hiding. I really don't know anything else."

Andy looked at him for a second, and both the others could see the wheels turning. "You say that they've contacted you a couple times, right Hector?"

Hego nodded. "Yes. Around twelve times since they first showed back up."

"Always in person?"

Hego thought for a moment. "All except for this last time. The last time they got in touch it was over the phone, and the call was filled with static, like they were using a line that wasn't well connected or something."

Andy's mouth curled into a smile that looked similar to the one he used to wear when a scheme was going well. However, this one had a warm glow to it, and seemed to be filled with intrigue. "That's perfect."

The look Sheila gave him left no doubt what her response was going to be. "Have you completely lost it? How is that perfect?"


The rest of the week for Kim and Ron went relatively smoothly compared to the surprises they'd run into on Monday and Tuesday. On Wednesday, they met the other teachers they would have that semester, and the experience proved just how varied a faculty G.V.U. possessed. Ron's first cooking instructor, Chef Carmine Angelo, immediately threw them into the fire, so to speak, when he had them prepare the best dish they could in one hour—Ron of course won the "unofficial" competition with a succulent and mouth-watering variation on a rather simple recipe of ratatouille that made Chef Angelo actually break form and devour the whole plate rather than take the customary single bite taste. Kim's other class by herself was an Honors Philosophy class, and Professor Alejandro Quitos, while barely understandable with his Spanish accent, proved to have a very intellectual mind behind his quirkiness. He had every single member taking the seminar pondering some rather deep questions by the end of both classes that week, one of them being how they could be expected to take and pass a course that was already pretty much abstract in nature when it would be taught by a teacher they would barely be able to understand on the best of days.

The other two classes Kim and Ron were taking together were also experiences in themselves. Their professor for Honors Biology 101, Dr. Maria Ryder, pretty much just handed them the syllabus and dismissed them, but not before assigning them to read through the synopses on every chapter of the whole book and telling them to be ready for an open book test on the following Monday! The Math class, Honors College Algebra I, also held a teacher who they could barely understand, or at least Ron could barely understand him. Kim understood Professor Akeem Khuluhuboni just fine, even through his South African English accent, and suspected that this might be one class where she was going to have to tutor her fiancé to get him to pass it.

All in all, it was a fairly normal week, even by their unique standards. True, there was one relatively late night mission to Paris on Wednesday to stop a rather large art heist from the Louvre, but it turned out rather well all things considering. As a matter of fact, they used the mission as a test of Ron's solo abilities, with Kim basically doing nothing but being the lookout. Ron performed admirably well, not even needing his Monkey Kung Fu as he took out the ringleader and his five henchmen inside of half an hour. What impressed Kim most was her partner's stealth during the whole thing, as he was able to go practically unnoticed and pick them off one by one right up until it was down to the boss and the last thug. There was even a period of about five minutes where, even though she was watching him like a hawk, Ron completely disappeared from Kim's sight, reappearing a few minutes later behind a thug who had just fallen over unconscious.

On the flight back, she couldn't resist asking him where he'd picked up his apparently new skill set.

Ron shrugged. "I'm not really sure, but I think my tapping into the Mystical Monkey Power against Warhok and Warmonga might have removed some of the blocks I had when it came to the training I got back at Yamanouchi. Ever since then, it's like I understand what they were telling me a lot easier."

Surprisingly, that wasn't the only area Ron seemed to be improving. During Professor Barkin's discussion of The Epic of Gilgamesh on Thursday, Ron seemed to be the only one in class who could go toe-to-toe with the teacher on the various topics and ideas the story brought forth. And even though Kim had always been the faster and more thorough reader, Ron seemed to be absorbing like a sponge not only the two novels they'd been assigned, George Orwell's 1984 and Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, but also the information from their biology textbook. And when they quizzed each other on the basics, he missed only one of her questions while she needed review on six missed concepts. Needless to say, Kim was impressed.

"I'm serious, Ron. You're really surprising me this week," she told him as they walked hand in hand to the dorms after their S.P.E.A.R. class let out early Friday afternoon around 1:30. Felix had taken off for Sentinel Station to grab a bite to eat, while Monique had one more class before she was done for the day.

"Just think what you could have done back at Middleton if you'd been this focused," she continued as she laced her fingers with his and gave his hand a loving squeeze.

Ron smiled a bit. "Guess I just needed the proper motivation."

Kim picked up on the game, but kept her mock-seriousness. "And just what has got you so focused now, Mr. Stoppable?"

Ron's grin grew a little. "I've got this truly badical fiancée I'm trying to impress. I just want her to be proud of me."

Kim smiled. "Oh, I think she is," she replied as she planted a kiss on his cheek. "As a matter of fact, I think she might have a bit of a surprise planned for you this evening after you get finished with football practice."

"Sounds fun, but aren't we leaving for Montana right after my practice and your tryouts?" he replied, pulling her closer so he could wrap his arm around her waist.

Kim's grin said it all. "Oh, I think we can make time for this," she whispered seductively.

"Boo Yeah," he whispered in her ear, giving it an affectionate little nibble.

They both dropped off their book bags in their respective Units and grabbed their sports bags. Ron of course had football practice down at G.V.U. Stadium, while Kim had the cheerleader tryouts to get to at Guardian Coliseum. Since the two athletic facilities were relatively close to each other, and since they were both carrying somewhat heavy sports bags, Kim consented that they should take the Sloth. Especially since, as Ron pointed out, that would mean a few extra minutes for fun before they left on their weekend trip to see her relatives.

After dropping him off at the field house entrance on the north end of the stadium, Kim pulled out and was starting to turn towards the arena when she saw something that looked a little off. She knew she would be cutting it close to get to the tryouts as it was, but something about the sitch she was witnessing just didn't seem right. Cautiously, she pulled a little closer and sat there for a minute observing.

In the parking lot, there was a pair of young men who were apparently having some sort of argument, and it was starting to turn physical, although that she passed off as two guys needing to be guys. Judging from their sizes and the lettermen jackets they were wearing, Kim could only assume that both were members of the football team. She could also safely assume that both of them were easily two to three times bigger than she was, but that was the normal size of your basic henchman, so that didn't strike her as strange either. No, what caught her attention was that one of them seemed to be constantly reaching for his pocket and then pulling away, as if he were trying to decide whether or not to pull something out. She put the car in park, and stepped out, and was starting to approach when she felt Ron's hand on her shoulder.

"KP, what's up? Did I forget something?"

Kim shook her head. "Ron, do you know those two?" she asked as she pointed at the quarrelers.

Ron took in the scene in an instant, and an immediate look of dread crossed his face. "Kim, mission mode! Now!" Then he pointed at another player crossing into the field house. "Jerry! Go get Coach D. and the trainers! Hurry!"

"Jerry" took off at a sprint into the building, while Ron immediately began running towards the two scuffling behemoths. Without a word needed, Kim followed. As they were running, Kim saw the flash a second before she saw the blood. The guy who had been debating with his pocket had finally decided, pulling out a butterfly knife. In an instant, he'd flipped it a few times to open it and slashed it across the other guy's arm, evidently nicking something serious as blood started spurting out and wouldn't stop.

In the next second, Team Possible had reacted. Although he was half the size of the assailant, Ron had the knife flying out of the his hand and the young man on the ground with his arms behind him in the blink of an eye, while Kim quickly formed a makeshift bandage by removing the injured player's letterman jacket and tying it tight over the wound, holding her hand to the spot where the cut was. She also tried to get him to keep looking at her and stay conscious.

"My name is Kim. What's yours?"

The young man's face was a tad green from seeing so much of his own blood. "Danny," he said with a ragged breath. "Danny Adams."

"What position do you play, Danny?"

He gasped. "Umm…right guard."

Kim could see the shock from blood loss coming. "Danny, look at me. Focus on my face. Keep it clear as best as you can."

A few feet away, Ron was snarling at the young man he had pinned to the ground. "WHAT THE HELL, Warren? Why would you take it that far? Nothing, especially not that, is worth this!"

Kim could hear the ambulance coming, and prayed she was doing enough to keep the young man in her arms alive. Less than a minute later, a middle-aged man that Kim could only assume was the team's head trainer dropped down to his knees on Danny's other side. He immediately began assessing the young man's vitals, as well as putting more pressure on the jacket-bandage covering the gash. Kim shifted her position so that she could keep Danny's head cushioned easier. By this point, a group of players and others were starting to circle around. A few of them were assisting Ron in holding Warren down, but several were crowding around Kim, Danny, and the trainer.

"Keep back, everyone!" Kim shouted. "The more air he can get the better chance he's got!"

The effect of her outburst was immediate, and everyone took a few steps back. Thankfully, the ambulance and campus security arrived a few minutes later. EMTs took over care of Danny, and Kim stood up and backed out of their way. She stood there observing as they loaded him onto a gurney and put him in the ambulance, then took off with the vehicle's lights and sirens blaring. A few members of campus security also took over custody of Warren from the players, while one of them questioned Ron and Kim on what they had seen and heard. Through Ron's explanation of the altercation, Kim learned that the fight was over a misunderstanding about a girl, and had to agree wholeheartedly that it definitely wasn't worth what the sitch had become, with one of the players under arrest and the other fighting for his life. They were just about to leave when the officer who had been questioning them got a call on his radio. He nodded as he took it, and then turned towards them with a large smile on his face.

"You're Kim, right?"

She nodded. "Yes sir."

He smiled again. "The doctors at the hospital told me just now to pass along their thanks to you. They say that what you did with that jacket and keeping Danny Adams conscious probably saved that young man's life."

Kim smiled, and was about to say something when Ron put his arm around her.

"Don't you dare say it, KP. This was very big. Someone's still alive specifically because of you."

Kim smiled, and let him win. "Okay."

A few minutes later, Kim finally made it to the cheer team tryouts. Coach Leslie Williams took one look at the red-head and her still blood-stained clothes and instantly understood, even without the young woman's explanation of why she was late. At Kim's request and insistence, the coach still put her through the regular tryout once she'd changed into her workout clothes and washed the blood off her skin, but it was clear from the look on the faces of the rest of the team that the audition was now nothing more than a formality. Of course, it probably helped that Danny just happened to be the very-well-liked boyfriend of one of the top junior cheerleaders, Paula Henson. The moment she heard what had happened, the girl took off for the hospital, but not before she made it known that Kim had better be on the squad when she got back.

By the time Kim and Ron made it back to the dorms around 4:00, they barely had time to grab their suitcases for the weekend so that they could leave and make it to her uncle's ranch before midnight. As they started out on the road, Kim made a quick call on her cell to let her Uncle know they were leaving and would be at the Lazy C that night. Then she looked over at Ron in the driver's seat with a smile on her face. She noticed with a bit of pride that he was smiling as well.

"Sorry we didn't get to enjoy the fun I wanted us to have before we left," she said after a bit.

"Nah, don't worry about it. I'd say it was small price to pay for Danny's life."

"Definitely," Kim agreed. Then she thought of something. "Hey, Ron? What would you do if something like that involved me?"

Ron glanced at her with a puzzled look on his face. "What do you mean, KP?"

"I'm talking about what would you do if you were in Warren's place and the girl that he and Danny were fighting over was me?"

He scratched his chin. "To tell the truth, I'm not really sure. I know I wouldn't take it that far, but I don't know how far it would go. I mean, I'd like to think I'd just try and talk it out, but you never really know what your reaction will be until the situation is put on you. Know what I'm getting at?"

Kim shifted in her seat a little. "Not really, Ronnie. I mean, I definitely wouldn't go so far as to hurt someone like that."

Ron sighed a bit. "Kim, what about that fight with Adrena Lynn?"

"That was different, Ron. She's a villain who took…"

"Who took your guy, right? Kim, we're both human, and we both have things about our personalities we don't like. I mean, I can get pretty focused on something, and if it were on the fact that someone is putting you down or saying some not-so-nice things about you, I can't guarantee I wouldn't overreact to some extent."

Kim pondered that for a moment. "Okay, then promise me something, Ron."

"Whatever it is, I promise, KP."

Kim shook her head. "No, seriously, listen to this before you agree to it, because I'm very serious about it. Not that I think anything ever will, but if something happens that you think might hurt me if it gets back to me, please tell me regardless. I'd rather here it from you than from someone else. Will you promise me that?"

Ron took a deep breath. "KP, I made that promise to myself the day I put that ring on your finger."

She turned towards him and placed her hand on his arm. "Then let me hear you promise it to me now."

Another deep breath, this one followed by a smile. "Regardless of what the problem is, I promise I'll tell you, KP."

She smiled. "Thanks, Ronnie. And I promise I'll do the same."

"Sounds good. Now," he said as he patted her hand, "why don't you try and get some sleep, okay? It's probably gonna be a few hours before we get to the Lazy C, and you look kind of tired."

The suggestion brought an unexpected yawn from Kim's mouth. "Okay, just make sure you wake me if you get too sleepy to drive."

"You got it, KP," he said with a grin. "By the way, do you mind if I turn on the radio a bit?" No answer. "KP?"

He looked over at her, and noticed with a smile that she was already slightly curled up in her seat and fast asleep. He also noticed that Rufus had crawled out of his pocket, and was now curled in a ball on the young woman's lap, nestled under one of her hands and snoozing right along with her. With a grin he turned his eyes back towards the road. Normally, they'd cover this distance by flying, but there was something gratifyingly peaceful to Ron about a normal drive like this, so he decided to go it on the ground, taking I-25 north out of Colorado and up to I-90 in Wyoming before following that into Montana. Kim slept through most of the drive, only waking just minutes before they arrived on the outskirts of Shepherd, Montana, where Uncle Slim Possible's ranch was located. They both shared a dry laugh as they drove past what was left of the Crooked D, remembering with some humor the ridiculous outfit that Drakken had worn during that scheme.

It was very nearly 11:30 at night when they pulled through the welcoming arch to the Lazy C, and they were surprised to still see several lights on in the main house. One light in particular that definitely intrigued them was the light that was still on in Joss's room. That one wasn't so much on as it was apparently searching. In fact, it looked to both of them like the main light was out while a high-powered flashlight scanned the darkness outside. The moment the light spotted them, it winked out quickly. Kim and Ron looked at each other with matching 'oh boy' expressions as Ron turned off the engine. A few minutes later, Slim Possible came out on the porch waving, his customary cowboy hat sitting straight on his head as always.

"Hey there, Kimmie. How's my fav-o-rite niece doing?"

"Doing fine, Uncle Slim," she said as she walked up and hugged him. "And how are you?"

"Cain't complain none. Ol' Tornado threw me for a ride a few days back, but Ah'm pretty much back to normal. Ah see you're still hanging around the lanky drink of water yeh had with you at gradjeation." He extended his hand towards Ron. "Welcome back to the Lazy C, Ron."

Ron set down their suitcases which he'd pulled out of the Sloth's trunk and shook the man's hand. "Glad to be back, Mr. Slim."

"Eh, c'mon. Tain't no need for any formalities here. Jest call me Slim."

Ron smiled. "I'll work on that, Sir."

Slim laughed a bit. "Well, at least mah niece roped herself a guy who can learn to be a respectful gentleman in yeh."

Kim grinned. "Wish I could take credit, Uncle Slim, but that's all Ron." She glanced into the house. "Are Joss and Nana still up?"

Slim sighed. "Well, Ma's already done hit the hay, and Joss's supposed to have done that, though Ah reckon she's prolly still up. But why don't we jest get yeh both bunked down and do the welcomin' thing in the mornin'. After all, Ah'll bet yeh both are dog-tired at this point, especially with the week yeh jest had and the long drive."

Both Kim and Ron nodded, and Slim led them into the house and to one of the guest rooms. The two teens were a bit surprised to see only one bed, but before Kim could ask, her uncle held up a hand.

"Now don't go gettin' no ideas, but if that piece o' shine on my niece's left hand is any indication, you two're already a lot more comfortable with each other than mah little brother wants to admit. Jest don't do anything beyond what yeh've already done, and we'll leave it at that. And once Ma sees that lil' sparkler, Ah'm sure she'll agree with what Ah got set up. Now good night, and we'll talk again in the mornin'." With that he smiled and shut the door, clicking the switch as he left so that the only light in the room came from a single lamp on the far nightstand.

Kim and Ron looked at each other with a touch of nervousness. Sure, they'd thought about this, and a few times had set it up where they did fall asleep in each other's arms, but this was the first time it appeared okay for them to do that. And slightly worse than that, in Ron's mind at least, was that he hadn't brought any real pajamas, just boxer shorts. Quietly, he turned around and began stripping down, intending to slide over under the covers the moment he was down to his boxers. He paused only long enough to turn his pants into a bit of a nest for Rufus on the dresser next to his side of the bed. The mole rat chittered in a mix of appreciation and exhaustion, and was asleep almost the moment he'd regained his balled up position.

"Something wrong, Ronnie?" Kim asked after a minute.

"N…n…no," he stuttered a bit, still not looking at her as he sat down on the bed. "I just didn't plan this very well cause I thought we were going to be in separate rooms. So I…"

"Didn't pack anything to sleep in?" she finished coyly.

"Yeah…that," he said nervously.

"Me either," she said as she kissed the back of his neck sensuously.

Ron immediately noticed something…or rather, he noticed the absence of something. He should have been feeling the soft cotton or silk of her pajama top. Instead, he felt only skin and satin pressed against his back. Nervously hiding his gulping, he reached back and wrapped his arms around her lithe form as it pressed up against him. The maneuver served a dual purpose: first of all, it allowed him to touch her, and second, it allowed him to deduce what she was wearing without actually looking at it. With a bit of nervous excitement, he realized she wasn't wearing pajama bottoms either. Immediately, his body reacted, and he started taking deep breaths to calm certain things down. Once that difficult task was accomplished, he turned back towards her, and immediately realized that the past few minutes he'd spent getting his anatomy to relax had been a completely futile effort.

Kim was kneeling there on the bed in a dark plum colored satin and lace underwear set, and the small table lamp lighting the room had her perfectly silhouetted, making it look like she was a shining beacon in the dark. The lighted outline also had the effect of accenting every single curve she possessed, which made her look even more perfect than he already saw her to be. But what really set his heart to thumping was the way she was looking at him. Her eyes were a mixture of lust and shy nervousness, and the curve of her mouth was just barely tilted upwards in a shy smile. Evidently, despite the confidence her voice had possessed just a moment earlier, she was as nervous about the sleeping arrangements as he was. Or maybe it was that she was nervous about his reaction to them intentionally sleeping in the same bed for an entire night. Whichever it was, at that moment, he couldn't think of a single thing beyond touching her beautiful face.

The kiss started tame, but it didn't stay that way long. Soon, hands were roving and tongues were dancing, and while the hands didn't go anywhere they hadn't been before, they certainly went everywhere they knew. There was one tense moment when, in a normal make-out move, Ron's hands slid over Kim's butt and she pulled back in surprise. However, she quickly recovered, assuaging his fears by going after his earlobe. Her efforts were rewarded by the same treatment on her own ear, followed by a trail of kisses placed softly down the side of her neck and ending just above the thin strip between the cups of her bra.

At that point, she pulled a move he could swear was straight out of her sixteen forms of kung fu that landed him softly on his stomach. He was about to gently protest when he felt her settling in to position, and then the rubbing began on his shoulders and slowly progressed to his back. He shifted his arms to cross up under his head, and let her soft fingers work out the stress.

"Ronnie, you're really tense back here between your shoulder blades. Is something wrong?"

Ron sighed. "No, not really. I guess I'm just nervous about talking to your cousin tomorrow."

Kim continued her rubbing. "Why's that?"

Ron turned his head to the other side to glance out the window. "I'm not really sure, KP. I guess I just don't want to hurt her feelings if she has been crushing on me."

Kim stopped massaging and lay down on the side he was facing, her hand gently laying on his face. "You're thinking we should talk to her first before we let the engagement cat out, huh?"

Ron sighed, and pulled her in closer as he rolled onto his back. "I guess."

Kim snuggled up closer into the crook of his arm, laying her head on his chest. "Ron, Joss's a big girl, and if there's one thing I know about her as my cousin it's that she's tough. And I also know it would be better to do this now than put it off. Especially if she's been looking at you the way we think she has."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Thanks KP," he said with a kiss to the top of her head. Then he shifted them both so he could pull the sheets up around their shoulders.

She yawned demurely. "No big, Ron…" she mumbled as she drifted off to sleep, her fiancé not far behind her as the exotic smell of her shampoo proved a potent sleep aid.


Felix returned to the Patriot Towers around 8:30 that evening to find campus security combing the building. At first that seemed normal, as there had already been a few incidents in the halls caused by new students getting their first true taste of real freedom. However, Eli Zenkman stopped him just inside the door with a look of worry on his face. Monique was standing next to the bearded young man, an identically frantic look on her face.

"Hey, Felix, have you seen Kim or Ron? We can't get in touch with them," she said with a frown.

Felix smiled a bit as he waved his hand through the air. "Most likely near the Colorado/Wyoming border by this time. Ron said something last night about them heading up to Montana this evening to see some of her family."

Monique snapped her fingers. "Oh, that's right. She mentioned they were heading up to visit her Nana and Uncle Slim this weekend."

Eli smiled a small bit. "Well, that's one part of the mystery solved."

Felix scratched his head. "One part? What are you guys talking about?"

Eli shook his head. "I think it's best if you see it for yourself, Felix. And Monique, I think it's safe for you to see it now too."

The young man started to lead them both down the hallway, stopping only momentarily to assure the two policemen who were blocking the way. "It's okay, officers. This young man is one of the occupants of the Unit. And she's a close friend who can help us determine if anything's been taken."

The officers let them pass and Felix and Monique followed the RA to the entrance to the guys' unit where they received a huge shock. The main room itself seemed fine other than the cabinets and drawers being in disarray, but both bedrooms were in shambles. Books were thrown everywhere, and there were several papers littering the floors. In Felix's room, several of his models had been knocked off the shelves, and his clothes were everywhere. But other than that, nothing of significance appeared to have been done.

However, Ron's room appeared to have taken the brunt of the damage. The window was smashed, revealing the point of entry and exit the would-be thieves had probably taken. Several of the young man's pants were lying on the ground with their pockets haphazardly turned out, as well as practically every shirt he owned save for a few t-shirts. His sock drawer had been tossed completely, and was now hanging out at a drunkenly rakish angle. The same could be said for the drawer where he kept his towels, and for the area next to where Rufus's sleeping cage used to sit. Said item was now on the floor with the majority of its cedar shavings spilled out on the floor. Felix immediately pointed to the closet and whispered something to Monique, who quickly walked over and punched in a code on a keypad. The back panel of the closet turned, revealing Ron's battle suit still waiting and ready to go. Monique quickly pressed in a second, different code, and the panel closed back up to look like a normal wall.

Felix scanned the room and rubbed his chin. "Well, I don't think anything is missing. Do you Monique?"

She scratched her head. "No, and it really FMO. I mean, who breaks in and doesn't take anything."

Eli scanned the room with them. "Someone who didn't find what they were looking for, maybe?"

Felix furrowed his brow. "But then…what were they looking for?"


The next morning, Kim and Ron woke early and dressed for their early morning workout. Today was a running workout, and they wanted to get an early start so they could get cleaned up before breakfast. However, they somehow forgot about the Lazy C being a real, working ranch, and they ran into a fully-dressed-for-the-day Joss as she came down the stairs. Apparently she'd stopped dressing in an outfit similar to Kim's old mission wear since they'd last seen her, as she now had on a pair of faded jeans, a dark red work shirt, and a pair of somewhat scuffed, western-style boots. She'd also let her hair grow out a bit, and had it pulled back behind both her ears.

"Hey, Kim. Nice trip?" she said with a country-style grin.

Kim smiled at her younger cousin. "Not much different than any other, Joss. Though Ron did the driving while I slept through most of it."

For some reason, it appeared the younger Possible hadn't noticed that Ron was there until that moment. When she did, her cheeks quickly gained a very un-Possible like flush. "Oh…mornin'…mornin', Ron."

She then slowly backed up, stumbling on the bottom step before turning and racing back up the stairs. As she left, Kim and Ron turned to look at each other, the same unwanted thought running through their minds.

Yep, she's crushing hard on me/you.

The run for the morning traced the outer-most fence of Slim's property. They actually ran it on the inside, using the junctures with the inside fences as sort of makeshift obstacle course. The two of them ran/jogged the circuit a few times, alternating what they did at each fence joint with each new circuit. The first go-round they vaulted over the top rail, then the second time they rolled under the bottom one, and then alternated it on the third lap before returning to vaulting on the fourth trip. After that, they alternated who called out what was next. The last of their ten laps was actually done entirely like this, with one of them calling out what to do just before they reached the joint. Surprisingly, even with the barb wire encircling the top most rails, Ron never once snagged or ripped his pants.

As they headed back towards the house, they both caught sight of a pair of bluish-green eyes staring out through a crack in the barn. Nodding to each other, they entered…just in time to see a head of brownish-red hair disappear out the back door, leaving only them and the robot horses that Slim stored in the building. Kim sighed as she sat down on a hay bale.

"Ugh, is she gonna be like this the whole trip?"

Ron smiled and sat down beside her. "You know, maybe we're approaching this from the wrong angle."

"Meaning?" Kim replied with a cocked eyebrow.

Ron sighed. "Maybe what she's worried about is talking to me in front of you."

"So then what do you suggest? That we talk to her separately."

Ron nodded, and whispered the next part in her ear. "Unless I miss my guess, she's watching us right now. I'll sit here, and you go try to find her and talk to her. I'll wait here, and if she shows up here first, I'll talk to her. Then afterwards we can talk to her together."

Kim nodded, and got up to go look for her cousin. The moment she disappeared around the corner, Ron heard a sneeze coming from the other side of the robot horses' stall. He slowly got up and casually walked towards the sound as if he were inspecting the mechanical equines. Right before he reached the last one, Joss appeared from her hiding spot. Even though she no longer wore an outfit identical to Kim's old mission wear, it still struck him just at that moment just how similar the two cousins looked, and how if he weren't with Kim he might be tempted to look into what he felt towards the younger girl. However, he knew his whole heart was devoted to Kim, and so he steeled himself for the conversation to come.

"Hey, Joss. Something on your mind?"

The younger Possible leaned against the front fence of the stalls. "Not really. Jest wonderin' what the sitch is between you and Cousin Kim. Cause you two're acting like you either got the biggest secret or are completely blind to whatcha got."

Ron smiled. "Look, Joss, before I go into that, I have to ask something. What did you mean by those emails you sent me?"

Joss blushed a little and looked at her feet. "Well, to be honest, Ah think yer kinda cute…"

Now Ron sighed, and sat down on a two-high stack of hay bales. "Look, Joss. Things between me and Kim are different than the last time we were here."

"Meaning?" she said with a shy look at him.

"We're more than just friends now. We've actually been dating since the end of the Lil' Diablos mission."

"Oh," she replied a little forlornly. "Ah see."

Ron could tell the revelation stung a bit. "Joss, I'm sorry if you got the wrong idea, but that's part of why I stopped replying to your emails."

Joss smiled, but Ron could still see the hurt in her eyes. "Ah guess Ah kinda figured that. Does Kim know 'bout it?"

Ron sighed again. "Joss, I had to tell her. And not just because you're her cousin. I don't know if there's any easy way to tell you this, but I'm completely in love with her, and I have been for some time."

Joss turned away and leaned so that her arms were on the fence of the stall. "When?"

Ron was a little confused. "When what?"

"When did you start realizin' you loved her?"

Ron got up and walked over towards her, trying to comfort her. "I honestly don't have a good answer for you, Joss. I mean, me and Kim have always been close, but I can't really pinpoint when it turned into more than best friends. I know there were some clues to it, but I don't think either of us ever really stopped to look at it until that night we were tied up at the Bueno Nacho Headquarters."

Joss looked at him, a slight ray of hope in her eyes. "So if you'd found someone else before that it might have worked out?"

Ron shook his head. "To tell the truth, I did a couple times, but it never felt right. I can't really explain it, but me and Kim have a connection with each other that neither one of us can explain. It's part of why we're good friends, part of why we have so much success on all the missions. And it's a big factor in why we work as a couple. I know for me at least that it seemed like every other relationship I had could never go beyond just having a good time."

Joss hung her head again. "So then you two were meant to be together."

Ron was silent for a moment. Then he placed his hand on Joss's shoulder, and was relieved when she didn't do anything to object. "Joss, I can't guarantee it would have been that way with everyone else. Just like I can't guarantee that me and Kim would have worked if we'd gotten together any earlier than we did. And besides that, I'd bet all my Mystical Monkey Powers and every bit of my cooking skills that everyone has someone out there for them. Sometimes that person is like me and Kim, and right in front of the person they're supposed to be with. Other times, they may be on opposite sides of the globe, like Bonnie and Junior…"

"Who?" Joss said with a questioning look.

Ron laughed a bit. "Bonnie Rockwaller is Kim's high school rival, and Junior is the younger member of the Seniors."

Joss smiled. "Oh, you mean the cheerleader who hates my cousin and the guy who wants to be a pop star."

Ron nodded. "Right. That has got to be the oddest hook-up in the world, apart from their similar personalities, and it wasn't until Bonnie tagged along on a mission with us that the two of them were able to meet. Point is, there's no way to know who you're supposed to end up with until you do manage to find them. For me and Kim, that's us, and for you, you might meet him later today if you're lucky. Or it might take a few more years. You just have to follow your heart, and speak up when you think you found what it wants."

Joss looked up and grinned again, then wrapped her arms around Ron in a friendly hug. Ron smiled, and returned the gesture. He smiled again when he saw Kim looking around the barn door at the two of them and nodding, a grin on her face as well. Joss noticed her cousin a moment later, and smiled at her as well.

"Sorry, Kim. Guess Ah let things get a little outta hand," she said as she hugged her cousin.

"No big, Joss. And I'm sure Ron's right about there being someone out there for you."

"Ah hope so," Joss said with a shrug. "Cause Ah'm gettin' tired of the solo act."

Kim smiled. "Speaking of which, me and Ron were wondering something."

"What's that?" Joss said as she once again leaned on the stall fence.

Ron grinned. "Do you still like to follow Kim's missions?"

"Well, of course," she huffed with a smile. "Shoot, Ah still keep track of 'em as accurately as Ah can."

"Well," replied Kim, "how would you like to get a little first-hand experience then?"

The young girl's blue-green eyes got wide as saucers. "Are you sayin' what I think you're sayin'?"

Kim held up her hand. "Yes, but you've got to understand you'd have to work your way up just like we did. We're not going to be Okaying you going on missions against the likes of Dementor or the Seniors yet. First you've got to prove you can handle yourself. Also, you can't just go on the big missions and pass on the small ones. One of the reasons Team Possible exists is to help people, and sometimes that means something as simple as getting a cat out of a tree."

Joss looked like she could about pop with excitement. "But I get to join the team!"

Ron smiled. "There's a couple of other conditions as well, Joss. First and foremost, you're dad has to approve. And second, the missions are just a side project, a hobby if you will. You've got keep up with your school and your social life and not let the missions consume you. Also, if it comes down to it, your health and your life take precedence over the hero work."

Joss grinned like a cat that had eaten a canary. "Meaning no goin' on missions if Ah've got a cold and Ah'm supposed to be home in bed."

Kim rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "Right. So, what do you say? Do you want to join Team Possible?"

The response could be heard for miles.

"YAHOO!" Joss yelled at the top of her lungs as she jumped a lot farther into the air than Ron or Kim thought she was able to. "You bet Ah do!"

"What's all tha commotion about?" Slim asked as he rounded the corner and entered the barn.

Joss was fairly dancing on the spot. "Cousin Kim just asked me to join the mission work with her and Ron!"

"She did?" he asked with a bit of surprise as he eyed Kim a bit.

Kim smiled. "Yes, but there are conditions, Uncle Slim. The first is that you have to approve of it, and the second is that she can't let it affect the rest of her life. She still has to keep up with her school and her social life."

Slim removed his hat and scratched his head. "Well, if you two think she's ready, Ah guess Ah don't have any complaints. Jest as long as she stays safe."

Ron nodded. "We plan to make sure of that, Sir. And she's gonna have to work her way up to the super-villains just like we did."

Slim seemed to relax a little at that. "Iffn you don't mind, Ah got one or two other conditions she's gotta meet before Ah'll give mah okay."

Joss paused mid-hop. "What's that?"

Slim smiled. "Iffn you stop havin' fun with it, yeh quit. And yeh never quit a mission in the middle—yeh always see it through to tha end."

Joss grinned and ran up to throw her arms around her dad's neck. "Deal."

Kim smiled and extended her hand. "Well, then, welcome to Team Possible, Joss."

Kim swore the handshake Joss gave her could have ripped her arm off if her cousin had tried any harder.

Ron grinned. "Now the only thing to do is make it official." He pressed the button on his wrist Kimmunicator, but nothing happened. "Uh, KP, looks like I forgot to charge my batteries. Maybe you should do this."

Kim was about to admonish him when she realized her own activation button wasn't working either. She grinned sheepishly. "Guess we both forgot," she said with a nervous laugh. "I'll just use the one in the Sloth."

A few minutes later, Ron and the others were gathered around the driver's side door while Kim sat in the driver's seat and activated the Kimmunicator system that Jim and Tim had installed in the Sloth. The minute it came on, the familiar tones started ringing in urgency.

Beep, Beep, Be-Deep. Beep, Beep, Be-Deep. Beep, Beep, Be-Deep.

Kim's grin was one of embarrassment as Wade's face appeared on the screen.

"So there you guys are," he answered with a relieved sigh. "I've been trying to contact you since yesterday afternoon."

"What's the sitch, Wade?"

"Sitches, I'm afraid," he said with wry smile. "You guys picked kind of a bad time to go off the grid without telling anyone."

Ron ducked his head in the vehicle. "Actually, we forgot to charge our Kimmunicators."

Wade grinned. "Well, be that as it may, we've got a couple of situations to deal with. Thankfully it's nothing world-threatening, so it can't wait until you tell me what you called me for. Because I'm betting you wouldn't have called me on the Sloth line if you hadn't tried to contact me already with your personal units. Where are you guys, anyway?"

Kim smiled. "Well, first off, we're in Montana at Uncle Slim's ranch. And secondly, can you make another wrist Kimmunicator?"

Wade grinned. "Who for and what color?"

Joss poked her head in through the passenger side door. "The light brown of desert camo, please."

Wade nodded. "Well, then, welcome to Team Possible, Joss. Should be ready in about two days, and I'll have it shipped to you. To the Lazy C Ranch in Shepherd, Montana, right?"

Joss smiled. "That's right."

Kim nodded. "So what's the other sitches, Wade?"

The tech genius's grin vanished. "Okay, first of all, I have specific instructions that you two are not to rush back and are to enjoy your weekend at the ranch. Those orders come directly from your parents and your roommates."

Kim cocked an eyebrow. "What happened, Wade?"

He sighed. "First, someone broke into Ron and Felix's unit. Felix and Monique confirmed that nothing was missing, but that it looks like whoever did this was searching for something Ron might have with taken with you."

"Something we took with us?" Ron said, scratching his head. "But all we brought were clothes. We didn't even bring the battle suits on this trip."

Wade nodded. "I know. Felix and Monique checked on the suit, and it doesn't look like the thieves ever touched it. Secondly and probably related, Ron's dad and sister were attacked at home."

"WHAT?" Ron shouted in shock. "Who did this?"

"Calm down, Ron," Wade said with a grim look. "We don't know all the details yet. All we know the following few things. First, your dad was knocked unconscious from the start, and never saw who or what did it. All he remembers is a black shadow as he slumped to the ground. Second, Hana wasn't hurt, but she keeps saying that "Monkeys hurt Daddy and the house." Third, whoever did this gave the same treatment to your room at home that they gave your room at G.V.U. And finally, even though they were apparently searching for something, it appears they didn't find it, because once again nothing was taken."

Kim thought for a moment. "Well, I think it's obvious that Monkey Fist's monkey ninjas are behind this, but I've never heard of them acting on their own. And I wonder what they were after. Ron, are you sure you didn't bring anything on this trip but clothes?"

Ron was silent for a bit with his hand to his chin as he went through everything that he had packed in his suitcase. "Only other things with me are my toiletries, the two books we're supposed to read for Professor Barkin, our biology textbook, and a couple of recipes Chef Angelo gave us to look over and figure out what spices we can add without losing the flavors. Other than that and the normal stuff I carry around, nothing else got brought."

Joss looked at him for a bit. "Maybe it's something you always have with you?"

Ron took a deep breath to calm his thoughts. "Hate to say it, but nothing comes to mind."

Wade nodded grimly. "Well keep on it, Ron. The sooner we figure out what whoever's been doing this is after, the sooner we can figure out their motives and put a stop to their plan."

With that, the screen switched off, and Kim turned towards Ron. "No ideas at all?"

Ron shook his head. "Nothing. It's weird. What could I always have with me that they'd be after?"


a/n

Apologies to anyone who can translate African languages. When I was naming Professor Akeem Khuluhuboni, the math professor, I wanted something that sounded like it came from Africa, but I don't speak any of the dialect that come from there. So for all I know I could have called him a "perverted pig fart" or worse. Hopefully, his name doesn't translate to anything offensive, and I achieved my goal. If it does mean something bad or wrong, please let me know, and I'll find some other name for him.

And as always, comments and reviews are always welcome. I'm also trying to get into the habit of responding to all my reviews, as I value all the comments I get, even if I don't necessarily agree with it. Point is, I enjoy any and all comments and reviews you feel called to give. :)