Warm. Comfortable. Her head was on something firm and warm and her arm was draped over something gently moving up and down. A hand slowly traveled from her shoulder down her side to high on her hip. Wait, what? She opened her eyes to find herself snuggled up to a slumbering blond with her head on his shoulder and an arm wrapped around his chest. A blond who apparently caressed things in his sleep. Sitting up, she grinned and yelled "Hey! Watch those hands, Blondie!"
Ron Stoppable woke with a scream, "AAAAH! Monique! Sorry! I wasn't…" Trying to move away, he backed up over the edge of the bed, falling to the floor with a thump.
Kim came running up and surveyed the scene from the door of the RV's bedroom. "Monique, that's mean!"
Nana called out, "You two girls leave Ron alone and come have some coffee". She was soon pouring coffee for the two snickering young ladies both clad in sweatpants and tee shirts. Waving them to the little booth she said, "Monique dear, just move that sword over there to the floor by the driver's seat to get it out of your way." Monique, without pausing her conversation with Kim, picked up the samurai blade and laid it down beside the driver's seat. 'That's interesting', thought Nana. "How about we go out for a quick morning workout and stretch before breakfast" She nodded to Ron who had just stepped out of the bathroom.
"After the coffee, please and thank you." chimed Kim and Monique.
"Some juice first please?" asked Ron.
Presently they were assembled in the grass next to their campsite.
Monique moved behind Kim and Ron, "I'll just stand back here. I do aerobic dancing all the time, and I should be pretty quick to catch on to the moves".
Nana ran them through the simplified form of Tai Chi that she knew Kim had studied and that Ron had surely seen. Kim followed smoothly, Ron did fairly well and Monique was following easily although a half move behind. She switched to some beginning drills from Tai Sheng Pek Kwar. Kim was the smoothest because when it comes down to it, there are only so many ways to move your body in martial arts and Kim's years of study had loaded her muscle memory on nearly all of them. Ron did OK, but Monique did amazingly well for a young person that Nana knew had never studied martial arts. Monique's ancestral line was loaded with performing and creative artists and mathematicians, not athletes or warriors. Although Nana had to admit that dancers often did well with martial arts.
"OK, that should be enough for now, why don't you all go use the campground's showers and get dressed for the day. I'll have breakfast ready when you get back." The RV campground they had parked in last night was pretty swank. Certainly, their showers were much nicer than the tiny one in the Winnebago. They had taken advantage of the pool and Jacuzzi last night and grilled burgers for dinner.
Standing out of the way while the three teens came trotting out of the RV with towels and shower kits, Nana went back in and went to the driver's seat. After giving a napping Rufus a pet, she bent down to pick up the Lotus Blade. She was delighted to find that she still couldn't pick it up.
Monique had shown up yesterday evening with Susan to deliver Kim and Ron's clothes for the simple reason that she had heard rumors of their ordeals and insisted on seeing for herself that they were doing OK. After hearing a simplified and sanitized tale about the pair's adventures in space, the conversation switched to what everyone's current plans were. When Monique said that she had planned on visiting an aunt a couple of states over, but that the Lowardian attack had messed up her ride, Nana said "Not a problem dear, that's on the way to Kim's uncle's ranch. We can drop you off on the way." It was a testament to the quick thinking of Team Possible that Kim and Ron agreed even though they knew it was pretty much in the wrong direction from Slim's ranch. Susan offered to run to Monique's house and pick up her bags. After that and a quick phone call from Nana to Monique's parents, they were on the road. They had only driven a couple of hours when Nana pulled into a campground just after dark. A quick swim, soak in the Jacuzzi, and a few burgers later, Nana shooed three relaxed, drowsy teens to lounge on the bed in the back to "watch TV or something while I do some paperwork in peace in the little booth up front".
Thirty minutes later, Nana walked back to the little bedroom and tossed a blanket over the sleeping teens. She was pleased to see that Monique was in the middle and was a sprawler, touching both Kim and Ron as they slept. She was sure that James would not approve of the sleeping arrangement, but James didn't have to know about this experiment.
"Come on Rufus" Nana pulled out the couch into a bed. "Let's get some sleep ourselves." When Rufus chattered and pointed to the bedroom, she told him "Well, OK, just don't wake them up." Rufus dashed onto the bed and curled up on Monique. 'Hmm,' thought Nana, "I wonder if Monique is softer than Kim or Ron? Could she be warmer?'
Kim was the first teen to wake and came into the front carrying a samurai sword, a wakizashi to be exact. "Nana, if this is Ron's idea of a joke, it isn't funny," she growled, holding up the sword for emphasis.
"Why do you think it was Ron?"
"I don't see you or Monique doing it and I think that I would have heard Rufus dragging it around."
"Dear, I can guarantee that Ron isn't doing it."
"Well, why do I keep tripping over it? It's not like I am carrying it with me. Wait, does that mean you know what is happening? Is something wrong with me? Am I going crazy?" Kim sounded worried as you might expect from someone concerned about their sanity while they held a samurai sword.
Nana gathered up her granddaughter in a big hug. "No dear, you aren't crazy, at least no crazier than any other young woman who regularly saves the world with her best friend and a mole rat. It isn't Ron playing a trick on you, he isn't that kind of man. There is an explanation and I will tell you all about it after we drop off Monique."
Just then they heard Monique yell at Ron. "Go save your boyfriend, it sounds like he could be in danger of almost certain temptation." Distracted, for now, Kim tossed the sword on one of the cushions of the little booth and went to the open bedroom door, "Monique, that's mean!…"
Nana heard the chatter of the three friends as they came back from the showers. "Breakfast is ready," she announced putting a platter of waffles on the little booth's table alongside a large bowl of oatmeal, a bowl of berries, and a plate of scrambled eggs with sausage. Kim and Ron slid into one side with Monique and Rufus on the other. Nana pulled out a folding chair and sat at the end. They made quick work of the food while talking about the route to take to get to Monique's aunt's house. After breakfast and the completion of a route that was both scenic and maximized tourist traps, Monique said she would wash and put away the dishes while Nana took Kim and Ron outside to show them how to disconnect and stow the utility hoses and power lines. A few minutes later Nana came in and started to help dry and put away the few items that Monique had left to do.
"Ms Nana," Monique quietly asked, "What really happened to Kim and Ron out there?"
"What do you mean, dear?"
"Kim was crying in her sleep last night and then once Ron jerked awake, jumped up looking all panicked and then sort of shook himself and laid back down."
"What did you do?"
"I didn't know what to do! I just put my arm around them in a little hug to let them know they weren't alone. That was all I could think of."
"Let's just say that it was bad, Monique. Someone was killed in front of them that they couldn't save and then they were forced to kill someone in self-defense."
"What can I do to help?"
"Just be their friend, Monique and be ready to listen if they need someone to talk to."
"Ready to shove off Captain! All lines disconnected and stowed!" Ron bounded up the steps and through the door.
"Tires have the correct pressure and all the fluids under the hood look good!" Kim followed him into the vehicle.
"OK," Nana said, "Monique and Kim, you two start driving and we'll switch off every thirty minutes or so."
Kim beat Monique to the driver's seat by milliseconds. "I'll pull into the gas station at the campground entrance. Since Monique and I are navigator and pilot, that means Ron gets to gas us up and fetch us sodas from the mini-mart" Kim grinned.
Nana showed Ron how to latch all the cabinet doors securely shut and they sat down on the couch, pulling seat belts out of the cushions.
Kim eased the behemoth out of its parking spot and down the road to hit the gas station before starting the day's journey.
Their first full day of travel went just as if Nana was only an ordinary grandmother with three ordinary grandchildren on an extended road trip to see relatives.
Or maybe not so ordinary, she thought to herself late in the day while driving and listening to Monique laugh so hard the poor girl was having trouble breathing. Kim and Ron had been telling tales of past missions and were currently on the mission where they had swapped bodies for several days.
"No way!" gasped Monique trying to catch her breath.
"Way!" replied Kim, "Come on Ron, fess up."
"In my defense, I was bleeding and it looked like a band-aide." Ron tried to reply with dignity.
Monique dissolved into shrieks of laughter.
"Hey, the only picture on the box was a picture of a woman jogging and the box called them 'liners'. If the box had said 'panty liner' then maybe I would have figured out that you stuck them on your underwear and not your body like a band-aide"
"You mean my body, Ron", Kim pointed out.
"I got it off before you got your body back" retorted Ron.
"Yeah, well that body was missing some hairs down there," retorted Kim.
"Hey, they grew back," answered that Ron.
"Baby boy, how do you know that?" asked Monique.
Nana was able to save Ron from self incrimination and save herself from too much information by pulling into the RV campsite they were to use that night.
"Ron, hook up the utilities please, and girls, go check out the pool." Nana set the parking brake and turned off the engine.
"Dr Drakken, may I ask a question?" WP came up to the cockpit of Drakken's large stealth hoverjet.
"Certainly" Drakken put his coffee cup in a drink holder and turned away from monitoring the console displays to face the young Lowardian. "We will be landing at the meeting site in forty five minutes if that matters."
"You are being hired to help some people with a sick forest on the other side of the world?"
"Yes, they are from a foundation that supports and protects a rain forest in Tasmania. They heard of my abilities and knew I was the one that could help protect their rain forest."
"How did they hear?"
"I'm sure the success of my Super Mutant High Pollinator in saving cities from the Lowardian landers made the news."
"Drew, WP has a point. Any news stories wouldn't have really mentioned your mutant plant juice as something that could save a forest," interrupted Shego who had been snoozing in the co-pilot's seat. She thought that saying 'Drew' instead of 'Doc' or 'Dr D' felt a little odd, but was doable. She reached over to Drakken's console and pressed a red button. The hoverjet launched a decoy and then slowed to a stop. Settling on the surface of the ocean, it then sank about 20 feet under the waves and released a floating buoy with antennas.
"Let's think about this for a minute. Who did you tell about WP, Drew?" Yeah, using 'Drew' was doable. And Drakken was rapidly getting in pretty good shape, although she wanted to check out his six pack abs to make sure that they were made of muscle, not wood. She made a note to boost his calories to prevent him from losing too much weight too quickly.
"Nobody. Even Kimberly didn't know about him. I talked to Big Daddy Brotherson only about the video, but didn't show it to him or tell him who took it. He was going to see about a buyer for it. I figure that WP should get some money for it. You think that this is a setup?"
"Maybe we were spotted leaving the island and they figure that grabbing you will also get WP…" Shego pondered.
"Dr Drakken, what league do you and Shego belong to? Can we ask them for assistance?"
"League? What are you talking about?", asked Drakken.
"Perhaps that is the wrong word. One of the briefing papers written for this planet told of competing leagues that control the planet. The word that I translate as league literally means 'Those who shine a light to guide others'. Did I misunderstand? The two groups that were marked as most interesting were the Evil Geniuses for a Better Tomorrow and the Temple Knights of the Sacred Platter."
Drakken's face lost all its color. "WP, who are you really?"
"Just like I said the other night, I am a younger son of a large rural family who signed up for this voyage to get experience to help get me into a military academy."
"Your goal is to get in the Lowardian Queen's guard? And you carry a weapon used by your father?"
"Yes"
"WP, that is the plot of 'The Three Musketeers' by Alexandre Dumas."
"They were the King's Guard, not the Queen's Guard" interjected Shego.
"Maybe technically, but they acted to save the Queen," retorted Drakken.
"And it was a letter of introduction, not a weapon. Are you sure you aren't thinking of the 'Princess Bride?'" pointed out Shego.
"NNGGHH", growled Drakken, "Maybe I am remembering the movie version with Michael York."
"Even if my story matches this story, I am what I say I am", broke in WP, trying to stop the argument. "I am alone and without resources except for you and Lady Shego. "
"WP, I have no league for protection. I do get occasional assistance from a council that actually is called the Evil Geniuses for a Better Tomorrow. Brotherson is my main gateway to that group."
"We are in the same evil union as DNAmy and Dementor?" Shego sounded amused.
"No, Dementor is a sergeant in the order of the Knights Templar, a division of the Bavarian Illuminati. DNAmy is a direct member of EGBT, we are sort of independent contractors."
WP was furiously making notes. "So the Knights Templar is based in Germany?"
"No, Benjamin Franklin moved it to the United States in 1785" Drakken replied, then looked annoyed. "Listen WP, people who study this stuff too heavily just disappear. Forget all this league stuff and don't mention it to other people. Was the mission that you were on just to support Warmonga or did it have any other objectives?"
WP paused, trying to look sincere, but failed. "Our mission was to support Warmonga in her search for the Great Blue."
"And what else?" asked Shego.
WP was saved by the beep. Literally. A display on the console started flashing and beeping. Looking at the display, Dr Drakken said "The decoy was destroyed. Looks like four missiles were fired and two hit. The decoy was over the water. It will take divers to figure out that it wasn't us."
"OK, Drew, so now that we are dead, what do we do?" Shego seemed calm and unconcerned.
"I think that we should assume that Brotherson is working for some other group that would find our disappearing to their advantage, maybe the Gnomes of Zurich? Or maybe his comms aren't secure. Or maybe it is some other player. I have an emergency contact that I can use to see if EGBT can help us or knows anything."
"Is it anybody I know?" asked Shego.
"Yes, you stayed at her house once for a few days, it is Dr Ann Possible."
So lean a little on your friends
They will carry you
Shelter from the stormy nights
Lean a little on your friends
They will guide you through
You know you're gonna be alright [1]
Ron paused the music. "OK for Guardians of the Middleton, we recast it. I figure Shego for Gamora, Drakken for Groot, Rufus for Rocket and Kim for Draxelle. That fits pretty well with the song, Shego could pull off 'Sisters scorned', Kim is the poster child for 'Brothers worn' with Jim and Tim always doing strange stuff, and finally, Drakken and Rufus match 'Flora tall' and 'Fauna small'.
Monique seeing that Kim was still blinking in disbelief, said, "And I suppose the part of Starlord will be played by 'The Ron'?"
"Nope, can't cast yourself in your own movie. The role of StarLady, the glamorous space rogue, and former pirate would be played by Monique. I can just picture you putting on tunes and stylishly dancing your way into ancient ruins looking for long lost treasure."
"Wait a minute, Drax was a fighter with bulging muscles covered in tattoos and not very intelligent. Are you claiming that I am a good fit for that?" Kim refrained from throwing anything at the driver's head.
"KP, Drax wasn't stupid, his culture was just very literal. As for the muscles, you would look smoking hot with a barbarian alien type costume. You are already a fighter, a couple weeks with a trainer to bulk up a little and some makeup tattoo magic and you'd be perfect for the role."
"I know where you sleep Ronald", growled Kim.
"No, no, just wait a minute girl friend, I think he is on to something here. We just have to rearrange the plot a little." Monique pretended to ponder. "How about Draxelle is out for revenge against the evil Ronanna who stole away her partner of 15 years and got him killed in a double cross while cornering the supply of nacho cheese on Xandar."
"Ronanna?" asked Ron.
"We can use Bonnie and then make Ronanna and Draxelle sisters in the back story."
"But what about the big fight scene where Ronan and Drax fight, there is already one later where the sisters fight" pointed out Ron.
"That fight is between Gamora and her sister, this is between Draxelle and her sister - totally different" argued Monique.
"Oh and we can have Barken play the part of the chief pirate Yondu. But instead of that little remote control flying spike thing, he takes out the bad guys by screaming at them and giving them detention" said Kim, warming to the idea.
Nana smiled, listening to "her kids" banter. Yesterday, their first full day of travel had been enjoyable, stopping often for scenic turn outs and popping into cheesy tourist traps. Monique had watched Kim and Ron like a psychiatric hawk, alert for strange behavior while trying her best to be her normal self. Km and Ron seemed to sleep a bit more than she thought was normal and slept poorly at that, but seemed to generally be in good spirits. Last night, they had popped popcorn and stayed up late watching old movies. Nana let them sleep in and they got a late start, leaving the campground about ten. But now the first part of the trip was about to end and Nana feared that it was all downhill from here.
They were about a half hour from Monique's destination when Nana said, "Ron, pull in here. I want to have some quick work done on this beast and they will loan us a car to run Monique to her aunt's house."
"Nana, this is a Harley-Davidson dealership" Kim sounded puzzled.
"Exactly dear, this is the right place. I called them earlier and they are expecting us."
Ron pulled into a strip mall and parked in a spot where they could pull forward instead of backing up. That was just easier when it came time to leave. Not to mention that he swore that dumpster moved behind him while he was backing up that one time…
Getting out of the RV, they were met by two men, one in his thirties, the other had to be in his sixties. Both were heavily tattooed and definitely weight lifters. The older one stepped up to Nana and snapped a military salute that was fit for a parade ground. "Captain!" he said, "Pleasure to see you, ma'am!"
Nana smiled and returned the salute just as smartly. "As you were. I haven't been in the military for decades, Antonio,"
"In that case," the man took a step forward and engulfed Nana in a massive hug. "It is really good to see you again Cap."
Nana turned to the kids. "Allow me to introduce you to Antonio Baker and his son Nick." Turning to the two men, "This is Kimberly Possible, Ronald Stoppable, Monique Jenkins," and pointing to the mole rat on Ron's shoulder, "and this is Rufus."
"So" Antonio sized up Ron like he was going to fit him for a suit of clothes. "This is the young trooper that lost his wheels racing to save his friend in the recent action?"
"Yes, I am afraid that while all of these young people run toward the sound of friends in trouble, Ronald needs some fast wheels to get to the trouble faster." Nana grinned at Antonio. "So please fix him up, put a trailer on this beast and let me borrow a car to take Ms Jenkins to her aunt's house."
Antonio handed her a set of keys, "These go to that Ford parked over there, it has a full tank of gas." Turning to Ron, he put his arm around Ron's shoulder and started them walking towards the showroom. "Ronald, my man. You look like the type of rider that kind of loses himself when it's just him, his machine and the blacktop…"
Monique dashed back in the RV to grab her bags, then Nana led the two girls over to the Ford. Kim hopped in the back as Monique was giving directions.
"Nana", said Kim, "I didn't think that Harley-Davidson made scooters."
"Not in over fifty years dear. But I am sure Antonio can find something that will do. I noticed that Ronald has a motorcycle endorsement on his driver's license. Do you have one on yours?"
"Yes, actually Ron and I got ours at the same time. I thought it would come in handy for missions."
Nana turned onto the bypass and after about thirty minutes they were at Monique's aunt's house. Her aunt was delighted to see them all and finding that they hadn't had lunch yet, insisted on fixing them something to eat.
They gathered in the kitchen and had a very pleasant time cooking, eating and talking. When it was time to leave, Kim was surprised to find that they had been there well over an hour. After hugs all around, Kim and Nana drove back to see how Ron had made out with scooter shopping.
"Ron, is it OK to call you Ron?" asked Antonio.
"Sure"
"What experience do you have with motorcycles?"
"Lots of hours on a normal scooter, a decent amount of time on a rocket powered scooter, only a little on motorcycles like these" Ron looked around in awe at all the gleaming chrome and enamel in the shop."
"Dude!" exclaimed Nick, "That was you that stopped the Little Diablo attack?"
"Well, I had help." admitted Ron.
Antonio and Nick stepped aside to talk while Ron looked around. Ron was looking at a 750cc street model that looked really sweet when Nick came over.
"Ron, come look at this one." Nick pointed to a much larger cycle.
"Nick, do you guys know that I can't afford any of these?" Ron was starting to feel uneasy as he realized that they might think he was actually shopping for one of these motorcycles and he didn't have more than a couple of hundred dollars on him from graduation cards.
"Hey dad, Ron wants to know how we expect him to pay for his new bike!" called Nick.
Antonio came over. "Ron, a lot of us owe the Captain our lives. The cost of a nice bike is nothing compared to that. But, even so, there is a foundation that I can apply to get reimbursed for most of the cost and the rest will be a tax deduction as a donation for hero support. When all this is said and done, I won't make any profit, but I won't be out any real money and most importantly, you won't owe anyone anything for the bike. Of course, when you or your friends want to buy a new one, we would appreciate the business." Antonio clapped Ron on the back.
Nick pulled Ron over to the larger bike. "Now Ron, we glanced through the mission files on your website and it looks like on almost all of them you could have used a street bike. That is, an all-terrain bike wouldn't have helped. For the missions where the terrain is a problem, you guys airdrop in. This is the Electra Glide Classic Ultra. It is a touring bike that can take you and your partner across the country in comfort. At 900 pounds it is almost twice the weight of the 750cc street bike you were looking at, but then it has a 1750cc engine to handle the extra weight. Both bikes will do 0-60 in under five seconds. The extra weight is going to give you and your partner a much smoother ride and unlike the 750, this bike has a heated passenger seat with backrest. Tell you what, we have a similar one you can ride on our practice track in the back. Let's go give it a spin."
Ron was led out to the back and found a similar model of bike ready to go and a test/training track that looked a little like the test track at the DMV, but much larger. Nick gave Ron a quick run through of the controls, had Ron put on a leather jacket and helmet then turned him loose to play on the track, trying out leaning on curves, stop lights, stop signs, parking, etc. All the common things Ron would encounter in a typical city/urban environment. After almost an hour, Nick was satisfied that Ron was a good enough rider and waved him in. Ron reluctantly rode back to Nick, parked and dismounted. "OK Ron, we have a silver and black bike, fully loaded and ready to go. Do you want it?"
"Let's talk" grinned Ron.
Ron sat down with Antonio and with attention to detail that would have made his actuary father proud went over all the paperwork. After a half hour of examining and signing papers, he was the majority owner of a Harley-Davidson Electra Glide Classic with paid up insurance for the next three years. The only lien was effectively a stipulation that he could not sell it nor give it away for five years starting from today. Somehow they even had Colorado tags for it.
By the time Kim and Nana got back, Ron's new "scooter" was on a trailer behind the RV under a protective cover.
"That's awfully big for a scooter isn't it?" murmured Kim getting out of the car. There was a metallic clatter as she nearly tripped over a sword that fell out of the car. Kim rolled her eyes, muttered something unladylike and scooped up the errant blade.
"Dear, I told Antonio to make sure he set up Ron with something really nice in case you and Ron do any touring before college starts."
"I have a car that we can use for that."
"Do you? I thought I heard Jim and Tim talking about doing some major rework on your Sloth to get it ready for you to take to college."
Kim growled under her breath as she jogged over to the RV and tossed in the sword. She followed Nana into the showroom where they found Ron, Rufus, Nick and Antonio chatting at a desk covered in empty Bueno Nacho wrappers. Nick intercepted Kim and Nana taking them over to the clothing racks to pick out helmets and leather jackets.
After saying goodbyes and accepting hugs from Antonio, they loaded up and took off for the evening's campsite. The remainder of the day was quiet, without Monique as a distraction, Kim and Ron tended to be lost in their own thoughts. Even after pulling into the campsite, the pair was quiet. Some laps in the pool, a quiet dinner and they turned in for the night.
They pulled into an RV camping area early on the next day. Unlike the previous night, the campsite they were directed to was remote, quiet and private. No hookups either, neither Kim nor Ron were looking forward to a military style shower in the morning.
"Nana," asked Kim, "Why didn't you want to push on to Uncle Slim's ranch? We could make it by midnight or maybe a little later."
"This way we show up at a decent time, rested and besides, I suspect that Ron is dying to take you on a ride on his new scooter. Why don't you all make a run to the laundromat and pick up some dinner? Then when you get back, you need to know some things before we get to Slim's. We'll take a walk and talk before we eat."
Kim had to admit that Ron's new ride was amazing compared to his old scooter. Even though it wasn't that cool of a day, she turned on the heated seat just to bask in the warmth.
"Ron, stop at the bank, I want to use the ATM." Kim's voice was clear over the helmet intercom built into Ron's new "scooter".
"Sure KP" Ron pulled into a parking spot in front of a little bank. KP dismounted while Ron held the bike straight. Handing her helmet to Ron, she jogged over to the ATM on the outside of the building. She saw a note taped to the machine - "OUT OF ORDER, please come inside". Turning to Ron, she pointed at the note, shrugged and went inside the lobby expecting to find another ATM, but instead, walked into a robbery in progress.
"You! Get over to the wall over there and sit down and shut up! Dammit Roy! You were supposed to be watching the door!" a man dressed in coveralls with a stocking mask waved a pistol at her while another man was tying up a couple of people already sitting off to the side.
She began to hear the sound of monkeys screaming starting softly in the background. "Oh God, no, no, not again!" she thought as an unnatural calm settled over her and a faint blue tint covered her vision. Stifling the impulse to spit in scorn at the excited man waving the pistol, she started to walk over to the wall by the other people when she almost tripped over something that fell to the floor at her feet with a metallic clang.
Outside, Ron was feeling uneasy when he started hearing monkeys. "KP!" he thought, and raced to the bank door and cautiously peered around the corner.
"Freeze lady!" shouted the excited gunman. "Just kick the sword over here, real easy like."
Kim smirked and started to point out that she couldn't freeze and kick the sword at the same time, but decided that wouldn't help the sitch. Reaching out with her foot, she hooked the hilt and slid the sword across the floor, the sword coming to a stop right next to the gunman's feet. The gunman, keeping his eyes and his gun on Kim bent down to pick up the blade. He might as well have been trying to pick up Thor's hammer.
Ron froze at the door unseen by anyone in the bank. Regardless of the monkeys screaming at him to protect his mate, he knew better than to charge a gunman when that gunman had his gun pointed at Kim. The gunman called to Roy to come give him a hand and then to Ron's amazement, he put his gun on the ground so he could use both hands to pull at something by his feet. Kim flew at the now unarmed gunman, leaving Roy for Ron to disable.
Thirty minutes later, the pair were leaving the local police station after giving their statement. The robbers had claimed that Kim had attacked them with a sword, but no sword was found and they had no cuts on their clothes or anywhere else. The bank's camera had shown the gunman reaching to the ground, but no sword was seen in the video. Kim was coming down from the adrenaline rush and the thought "Nobody died!" kept joyously repeating in her mind. Mounting the bike behind Ron, she gave him a hug before settling back in her seat. "Ron, nobody died, we didn't kill anyone!"
"Yep KP, I'd put this in the win column for us." Ron started the bike and started down the street to the laundromat. Kim started to talk about the monkey voices and the magically appearing sword but decided to wait until that night to let Nana explain it as she had promised.
Across the street, an oriental woman pointed them out to her companions. "We will follow them to their campsite. We must find out what has happened to the chosen one."
"Ron, you know how to wash clothes?" Kim put her sack of clothes down on a table.
"Sure KP. Been washing my own clothes for years. It's easy, the instructions are on little tags on the clothes." Ron found a tag on a shirt and showed it to her. "See? These symbols mean 'machine wash warm', 'no bleach', 'tumble dry, low heat'"
"You know all the symbols?"
"Nah, the other side of the tag has words", Ron grinned at her.
They quickly had the clothes sorted into three loads. Placing the loads in machines, Ron added soap and fabric softener and started the machines.
Leaving the laundromat, they went next door to a sandwich shop for sodas. Returning to the laundromat, they sat down to wait for their clothes.
"So, KP." Ron took a sip of his soda. "What are you going to study in college? Any idea of what you want to do after college?"
"I figure I'll be an undeclared major to start. I want to take some time to think about the future. I know I don't want a desk job, at least not at first."
"Think you will have time to actually think?"
"Yes, I do. I think Drakken is out of villainy for at least a while. I'm not going to do cheerleading and cut way back on clubs and stuff. Sort of make my first year of school a break. How about you? Going to study cooking or business? Going to start a restaurant?"
"No, being a professional chef is a job with long hours and hard to get off at a moment's notice. Like when a mission pops up."
"Right. Missions. Do you think it is maybe time we got out of the mission business? We've been ferociously lucky so far. I am afraid that it will only get more serious in the future. I mean look at what just happened with the Lowardians, never mind the bank. I don't know if I can do it anymore. I don't want to be in the position of hurting someone again."
"Oh Kimilla, Kimilla. You know that the world is going to come crying to you sooner or later to save its sorry butt and then you know where I'll be?"
"Calling me up to say, 'I told you so'?"
"No! I'll be right behind you guarding your back, of course. Unless you find a better sidekick."
Kim reached out, putting her hand on his cheek. Pulling his face to hers, she whispered, "There will never be a better mission partner than you." She pulled his face in even closer for a kiss. Releasing him, she said, "OK, no restaurant, so what then? Captain of a mighty shrimping ship?"
"Nah, although that is appealing with the parrot on your shoulder, eye patch and all. Rufus would be jealous and a mole rat on your shoulder just doesn't say "Ship Captain". No, I figure physical therapist. I get to help people, but no one will die if I have to leave on a mission on short notice. Plus it should be pretty easy to get a job almost anywhere. I figure that could be important in the future."
The pair got up, transferred their stuff to a dryer and sat back down.
"You know KP, Monique was really looking out for us. A lot of these new clothes are quick dry without a dryer. Perfect for rinsing out in a hotel room, hang up in the room to dry overnight and you are all good to go the next day."
"I guess she was thinking about us and traveling."
After a short pause, Ron took a deep breath. "KP, what about us in the future? Do you want there to be an "us"? Maybe you need some alone time to think?
"Ron, I don't know what I need. I do know I like having you at my side. I like that you watch out for me. I like that you are a really good hearted and fun guy." Kim paused, looking for words to express how she felt.
"But?" Ron spoke softly.
"What? Ron, no! No buts! Swear to me that you won't leave me unless we have had a chance to have a long talk about it first!"
"What if I need to use the bathroom?"
"Ron, swear it! I am serious!" growled Kim.
Ron took her hand, kissed her fingers and placed her hand over his heart. "I swear it. But I really do have to use the restroom."
With the tension broken, Kim snorted a laugh while Ron gallantly bowed to her and left in search of a bathroom.
Returning refreshed a few minutes later, Ron and Kim folded the dry sheets and clothes, loaded it all on Ron's bike and after picking up several orders of various kinds of barbecue at a drive through place, they headed back to Nana and the RV.
Nana took them out to a walking path that followed a small river and found a sandy area near a bend. "Ronald, call the Lotus Blade".
Ron looked down, rubbed the back of his neck, "Uh Nana, I…"
"Ronald, call it. Kimberly is a bearer of the Lotus Blade, it is only right that she know about it."
Ron held out his hands and made 'tch', 'tch', 'tch' noises like he was calling a cat.
Kim was looking at her BF like he was crazy when the wakizashi she had been tripping over for the last couple of days whistled past, missing him by inches and sticking into a tree trunk. Ron shook his head and started walking toward the sword when Nana stopped him. "Ron, wait. Kim, hold out your hand to the side, palm open."
Kim held out her hand and the wakizashi flew out of the tree towards her. It flashed blue in flight changing its shape. When the grip of a falchion slapped into her palm, she gave a little shriek and jerked back her hand. The sword rotated as it fell, sticking point down in the sand.
Ron was stunned. His mind spun until he remembered a question that Nana had asked him a couple of days ago: "Who chose you?". He turned to Nana and murmured, "I'm not the chosen one, Kim is." He turned and started to walk back to camp.
"Ron, wait!", Kim was shaken and her face was pale. "This is the sword I killed the Lowardian with. What does this sword have to do with you?"
Ron stopped. "Montgomery Fisk was searching for this blade, the Lotus Blade. His goal was to keep it out of the hands of the people who controlled the Chosen One. I think he had some monkey king ambitions as well. To get it, he stole four jade monkey statues that could imbue him with the Mystical Monkey Power. That would allow him to claim and control the Lotus Blade. You were meant to go to his place with me that night, you were meant to absorb the MMP, not me, you were meant to control the Lotus Blade, not me. The blade comes directly to your hand but not to mine. You are the Chosen One, not me. The Chosen One's destiny was to save the planet and you stopped the alien that was threatening to burn the planet."
Ron gave a mirthless laugh. "But this once, just this once, I thought I was chosen." He turned back to look at Kim and Nana. "Kim, I didn't mean to take anything from you, I swear I didn't know it was supposed to be you. I just knew that this once, Ron Stoppable, the guy who asked every girl in the school to go to a stinking dance and was turned down every time, was chosen for something. Chosen for something important and cool, even if it was monkey related."
"Why didn't you tell me?" Kim pleaded, "didn't you think I needed to know? Don't you trust me?"
"I was sworn to secrecy at Yamanouchi! I was only told because they said that I was the Chosen One. Which appears to be you, so now I can tell you what I know. But I will probably screw that up too, so perhaps you should go to Yamanouchi to learn about it." Ron turned away and started back to their campsite, walking like most of the life had drained out of him.
Kim stood and numbly watched Ron walk around the bend and out of sight.
"Kimberly Ann, talk to me." Nana thought that this was not going well. These two were not as tough and resilient as she had hoped.
"Kimberly!"
Kim looked to Nana with a jerk. "Maybe if I had been prepared, I wouldn't have had to kill that alien, Nana!" Kim was angry. "Maybe I could have stopped Warmonga from being killed! Ron knew about the sword but didn't tell me! He probably knew about the monkey voices and didn't tell me about that either! And I don't want to hear about me not telling him about the tracking chip, that is nothing compared to this!"
"Kimberly, " Nana spoke slowly and softly. "I believe that Ronald's training in this was incomplete and that he had no idea that you could wield the sword. I can't even pick it up. Somehow, you got enough Mystical Monkey Power to pick it up, and I believe that the Lotus Blade has imprinted on you somehow."
"But Monique could pick it up, I saw her!"
"Monique had slept next to you and Ron all night and from what I could see, that girl is a serious cuddler. Perhaps extended physical touch is enough for Ron to charge someone at least partially with the power. Let's go back to the RV and get something to eat. And make sure Ron doesn't decide to leave or do something else stupid."
"He wouldn't leave, he swore that he wouldn't leave without a long talk and we are really going to have a talk about this."
"Dear, teenage boys often have strange ideas and he might be thinking that the best thing he could do for you is leave."
They heard the sound of a motorcycle engine. "Dammit Ron!" Kim took off at a run for the RV campsite.
Nana followed at a quick, but not panicked jog. "I guess Kim hasn't ridden with Ron long enough to know the sound of a Harley-Davidson two cylinder engine. I'm guessing that is a six cylinder. Maybe even two engines."
Next time on Graduation: Chapter 8: Way Too Much Information
"Drew? Drew honey? Come out and talk to me. I'm sorry. Please come out and talk to me."
Shego rested her head on the door to the bathroom and tried not to snicker. 'But it was funny', she thought to herself.
"Lady Shego, what is the problem with Dr Drakken?" WP stopped on his way to the galley.
"I embarrassed him by, uh, using a slang term for a body part that turned out in his case to be accurate."
"How can accuracy be embarrassing? Was his performance last night lacking? I have an effective ointment from my mother that might be of use."
"Listen d'Artagnan, the problem isn't a lack of ability, it's more like he has enhanced equipment, that uh, oh hell, come over here." A frustrated Shego pulled a curious WP away from the door, far out of Drakken's hearing.
"What do you know about human sexuality?"
"The ship's briefing documents about the Earth suggest that it is very similar to Lowardian from a physical point of view. The major difference is that the Lowardian male has a bone that descends and makes the penis erect where as the human male has a complicated system where blood inflates tubes in the penis making it erect. That is really odd since most other Earth male mammals including primates have a penile bone, but not the human male."
"Well, slang for an erect penis is 'wood'. For example, a male who wakes up in the morning with an erection is said to have 'morning wood'. In Drew's case, it appears that his 'morning wood' is really due to a wooden equivalent of a penile bone. I, uh, might have teased him about it this morning and he is now ashamed and thinking that he is not up to the standards of a true human male."
"Would you like me to give Dr Drakken a translated copy of the ship's briefing on recommended seduction strategies for humans? The auto translator on my document reader does a fair job of translating Lowardian to English." WP had the look of pure helpful innocence.
"No no, that's not necessary" Shego blurted out. Then after a moments reflection, "Perhaps you could set me up with a copy?"
Author's Note. On my last reading, I thought this chapter probably needed more Rufus. Will try harder to include him more later.
[1] 'Friends' by MiracleOfSound. Definitely worth a look and listen on youtube.