Multiversing with Kim

Chapter 7:

Sitch 2 World: A Matter of Perspective

(A/N: Kim Possible has just returned safely from her first alternate reality, and has left Wade's room to take care of some personal matters before embarking on her second trip "out there". However, a phone ringing at Wade's computer desk may spell an end to her planned six universe adventure for earlier than either she or Wade had planned. Just why is a call coming in from Kim's home, and what, if anything, can she do about?)

As Kim entered the room, carrying her Sitch Two backpack, she saw Wade talking on the phone.

As the young boy saw Kim entering the room, he stopped in mid-sentence, added "she's here now, Mrs. Possible", and then handed the phone to the teenager, mouthing the words "I did not call her" with a pained look on his face that he hoped would convince her that he was telling her the truth.

As she took the phone from the downcast boy genius, Kim smiled wanly, nodded, and mouthed back "I know".

"Hello, Mom, what's the Sitch?... No, Mom, I was not in the bathroom patching myself up. Mr. Luthor never laid a glove on me, and in fact, Supergirl felt she had to block one of my martial arts' moves to protect him from me…. Well, Mom, if you think I'm trying to pull another 'Halloween' stunt, I can go back to the bathroom and give you a real-time detailed visual inspection using the Kimmunicator to scan a visual image into your own personal home computer, you'll be able to clearly see that I have no scratches, bruises, bumps, or anything else to indicate I was injured in any way in my first visit beyond our own version of reality…."

Kim then completely stopped talking for an extended period of time, and Wade noted that she was now intently listening to her mother's response to her own reply on the question of injuries and her reference to the infamous Halloween incident, when Kim had lied to both her parents and to Ron regarding her plans and whereabouts that evening in order to attend a party where Josh Mankey was in attendance. Needless to say, the grounding she had gotten for those transgressions had clearly impressed upon her the need to avoid any remote chance of a repeat, or doing anything that might even give her parents any impression she might be considering a repeat of that action.

Wade noted that although Kim's face remained almost expressionless, she had now closed her eyes as her mother continued to talk to her. It was obvious that Kim wanted to go to the second Sitch reality as soon as possible, but also clearly realized she had to patiently wait until she could respond to her mother's concerns and thoughts regarding her only daughter's adventures in the Multiverse. She fully realized that one mistake or mis-statement could easily result in a permanent termination of mission.

"Yes, Mom, I do understand the adjustments you've just made to this mission, and I also understand why you felt it necessary to do so. And I do greatly appreciate what you did for me and Wade by taking responsibility for mission commander away from him before we started on the first Sitch."

Kim again became silent for about 20 seconds, again listening intently to her mother. When she responded, it was in a very calm but very affirmative tone—Kim was taking no chances that her mother would even start to suspect that her daughter might be unhappy or displeased with the mission adjustment.

"Yes, Mom, I confirm that, at the end of the next Sitch, and each one that follows it, I will give you a call as soon as I return back to Wade's room before I do anything else, including "powder my nose". If I acknowledge that I have sustained injuries, whether major or minor, or if you would just like to "double check" for yourself my post-Sitch physical condition, I will then go to Wade's bathroom and perform a self scan with the Multiversal Kimmunicator. You will then determine whether or not I am a "GO" for the next Sitch, and I will not argue your decision on that matter."

Kim stopped talking, and listened to her mother's response. She then spoke again, but it was only a single sentence, followed by a single word.

"Thank you, Mom, for giving me a 'GO' for Sitch Two, and for trusting me to do the right things regarding my safety 'out there'. Good-bye."

Kim opened her eyes, and placed the phone back on Wade's desk. She smiled weakly at Wade, and said "Well, she says I'm a 'GO' for Sitch Two. Do you concur as well?"

"Well, Kim, let's see what the MK says about lock-on; you do remember that I said that this alternate reality seem to have a greater element or degree of magic or metaphysical energies involved, and that this might slow down the locking-on process…."

"Understood, Wade, and I realize that this concern will also force you to more likely demonstrate a hair trigger reaction to pressing the auto-retrieval button. And after listening to my mother's concerns, I fully concur about your hair trigger response. We both have to do what we can to make sure my mother never regrets giving me permission to go…And to make sure YOU don't need to make any calls to her… "

"I fully concur with that statement, Kim. So, I guess it's time for you to go again, isn't it?" Wade asked.

"Yes, Wade, I agree that it is indeed time for me to begin a second visit to the Multiverse. Ready for Sitch Two!" confirmed Kim, as she positioned herself on the same spot she had started from for the previous Sitch.

"Beginning lock-on sequence to second Sitch location…" declared Wade, pressing the key that initiated the process of synchronizing the MK device with the second target universe/alternate reality.

As Wade had suspected and Kim had accepted, the lock-on to Sitch Two's world was not nearly instantaneous.

"Only eight of eleven dimensions showing lock, Wade." reported Kim, a note of concern creeping into the teenager's otherwise leveled voice. "…Correction, nine of eleven locked now! …We have ten of eleven!" rapidly updated the redheaded adventuress, measured optimism displacing her earlier concerned tone.

That optimism, however measured, was short-lived.

"We've lost one, Wade! We're back to nine of eleven!"

Wade noted the emotional content in those two clipped sentences, and was shocked when Kim spoke a third sentence that lacked all trace of the emotions filling them.

"Wade, do we have a Sitch Two World abort sitch here?"

His own emotional conflict within notwithstanding, Wade had to tell Kim the truth.

"No, Kim, sitch abort is not confirmed; I repeat, sitch abort is not confirmed. The metaphysical energies interference is simply slowing down the locking-on process. It jumped from 9 to 10 too quickly and the fallback was unavoidable, but it is now more stable, and the next time 10 comes up it should stay on."

"Patience is a virtue right, Wade?" Started Kim, who quickly followed up with a second sentence of the more declarative kind: "ten of eleven locked on and holding… eleven of eleven locked on… Correction, lock-on premature back down to ten of eleven and holding."

Wade noted that Kim was now being much more accepting of the fallback; once again his teenager friend and teammate was quickly adapting to the changing environment. The young computer genius once again found himself questioning whether the redheaded teenager was actually just an average girl.

And then, it finally happened.

"Lock-on is confirmed, Kim! We are go for Sitch Two!"

"Roger, Wade, the Multiversal Kimmunicator has an 11-dimensional space lock, but I'm not sure how hard a lock we have on all eleven. Can you reconfirm we have a go for sitch two?"

"Yes, Kim, you have a reconfirmation that we're locked on to your next stop. It took awhile longer than we expected or hoped, but we do now have a definite lock on Sitch Two world, and you're good to head out when you're ready."

"Very well, Wade," responded the redheaded teenager speaking again with a wide smile on her face, and a merry twinkle in her glistening green eyes. "Here are another few small steps for a cheerleader, and another giant leap for Ronkind!"

She again pressed the "MPI" button on her Multiversal Kimmunicator, which re-initiated the Multiversal Portal Interface function, opening the "door" into a second alternate reality. The so called door appeared to be the same paper thin sheet of pastel white light fog roughly 8 feet high by 6 feet wide that had jumped into existence for the first trip. There seemed to be no indication of the lengthy lock-on process that had led up to it, and no indication that the new world she was about to enter was far different from the one she had already visited.

Kim chuckled, turned back to the young boy one, and quipped, "It certainly looks 'good to go', Wade, but I think I'll walk, not run, through this one, just in case. Besides, your view screen indicates a little less open space over there than Sitch One World, and I don't want to give you any excuse to push 'Retrieve' by bumping into a tree or bush, or by tripping over a root on the ground surface. And just imagine my Mom if I have to report any self-inflicted injuries; after she finishes laughing at me, she may start to think twice about even letting me go on missions with Ron in THIS world…!"

Kim turned her face away from Wade and back at the portal. As she did so, Wade could see her face again change, and he realized that she was now truly back in 'mission mode'. Although he would still worry about her, he realized that she was ready as she ever could be for this adventure, and that this was something she had to do, for both Ron and for herself. The best he could do now was to do all he could to watch her back, and be ready to pull her out if needed.

Kim started moving forward, but at a walking pace of about 2 or 3 mph, ready to halt immediately if either Wade or her MK device indicated any lock-on issues. Just before she reached the portal and stepped through, Wade shouted "Good Luck with Sitch Two, Kim!"

As she stepped through the doorway to her second "elsewhere", Wade again spun around in his chair to view her entry into that "elsewhere" on his monitor screen. As she continued walking forward, away from the doorway, and as the doorway again faded away, Wade again positioned his hand protectively over the large "Retrieve" button that was just to the right of his regular keyboard, again hoping against hope that he would not need to use it…..

…..Kim looked around her as the door behind her faded out of existence, leaving her alone in a small clearing which itself was surrounded on all sides by a lush temperate-zone forest.

It was, in fact, very much like the various lush forest areas she had often visited during missions on her home world, and if she had not known she was now in another alternate reality, she might have easily concluded that she had returned to one of them. She might have, that is, except for one thing: the complete absence of any sound or motion beyond her own breathing and her own movement. No chirping, buzzing, croaking, or any other sound that indicated the presence of life in her immediate vicinity.

Kim paused her movement forward, and again glanced to the left and right before looking straight-ahead. She then tilted her head to the right, and her brow furrowed as she gave the matter some thought.

She thought she had heard the expected sounds of a regular forest from Wade's monitor screen before she left his computer room through the door of light. But, now that she was here, she heard none of the sounds that she associated with nature from her own world, except, possibly….?

Suddenly having an idea, Kim held her own breath for 30 seconds to remove even that sound from the environment, and listened intently to the resulting nearer to absolute silence to double check that inspirational thought.

Her idea resulted in her finally hearing a sound that was not of her own making. To Kim's ears, it appeared to be the sound of running water, possibly a babbling brook or a small waterfall. Though faint, Kim definitely recognized it, and was able to generate a fair estimate of the direction of the sound. Since she expected the object of her search in the first phase of her mission here to be near or in a body of water, she now had a pretty good idea of what her heading should be when she left the clearing.

That left only the question of the otherwise total silence since her arrival. Why was it so quiet?

Kim suddenly had another idea, and immediately investigated that new thought by activating the local scan mode of the Multiversal Kimmunicator. However the MK did not indicate any large life forms like an elephant, tiger, or horse within 300 yards of her own location, or anything that might support her idea that some sort of large creature had scared the local inhabitants into silence.

As she tried to puzzle out this conundrum, Wade, who up to now had kept his thoughts to himself and simply monitored Kim from his computer console monitor, decided to break his own self imposed silence and communicate with his off-world teammate.

"Kim, what's wrong?" inquired Wade carefully, realizing that anything that had his teammate concerned required his full attention as well.

"Well, Wade, I hate to sound like an actress from a classic melodrama, but I think it's too quiet here. Weren't you picking up normal forest sounds from this world before I came here?"

"I sure did, Kim. There were birds chirping, bees buzzing, and I wasn't sure, but I thought I heard some frogs croaking as well."

"I thought so" replied Kim. "But now all I hear is my own breathing, and the sounds of that babbling brook nearby. It may not be quiet enough to hear a pin drop, but it is certainly in the running for the honor. I thought it might be a large animal in the area nearby, but the MK is not showing anything I can see definitively on the local scan. Could we be looking at a minor malfunction?"

"No Kim, I also don't detect any large creature in the area, certainly nothing large enough to threaten you. And I do confirm that the Kimmunicator is detecting small creatures just beyond the clearing and deeper in the forest itself, but somehow they're not making any sound. And if it's working well enough to detect small objects, it couldn't be missing even larger ones. I have to admit that I don't really understand what is happening-"

"Wade, we're both idiots!" declared Kim as she slapped a free left hand against her forehead with the sudden realization of the truth. The answer is staring us in the face!"

"What do you mean, Kim? What are we missing?"

"There is a large creature in the area that the MK cannot detect. But you don't have to panic and push the 'Retrieve' button Wade; I am in no danger from the creature in question."

"UUhhh, why not, Kim? How can you be so sure? "

"Because I'm that creature! Wade, the Multiversal Kimmunicator is not detecting anything because the large creature in question is holding the Multiversal Kimmunicator."

"Oh! You're right, Kim; I just never thought of you as a large creature."

"Just keep that line of thought in your head, Wade, and you'll make your future girlfriend very happy someday." quipped Kim. "And if she ever asks you whether a new piece of clothing makes her look fat, just tell her that she looks beautiful in it."

"Good to know. I'll try not to 'crash and burn' then," acknowledged Wade, thankful yet again for the umpteenth time that he had made the acquaintance of the young girl who was now known by her world as the teen heroine Kim Possible. In the midst of an unprecedented adventure to a brave new world, the teenager was taking time to give him useful advice for use in his far future (well, maybe, his not-so-far-future) relationships with friends of the female persuasion.

Returning to the current sitch at hand, Wade confirmed Kim's thoughts on the question regarding the "unseen large creature".

"You're right, Kim; the MK would normally exclude you unless you turned it either to self scan mode or omni-scan mode."

"True, Wade, and couple that fact with the idea that between a door of light appearing out of nowhere in a peaceful, but anything but, quiet glen, and soon after that a fairly large 'thing' is then stepping through it, makes it perfectly clear why everything near me is now carefully minding its own P's and Q's"

"I'm really sorry, Kim, I really should have realized that sooner."

"So not the problem, Wade," replied the redheaded teenager, cheerful that the mystery was now solved. "We're both learning things as we are going along this multi-sitch mission, no matter how much we practiced for this and how much we thought we had everything prepared."

Kim paused for a few seconds, then, smiling at her friend on the MK screen, continued.

"Well, Wade, with that mystery solved, I'm sure all the forest sounds will comeback almost as soon as I leave the clearing and head off to see if I can find the object I need to get before moving on to phase two of Sitch Two world's mission."

"Yeah, sure, Kim, that's exactly right on again; I'm just sorry that I didn't…"

"No problem, Wade! Sometimes you just need to do on the job training," replied Kim joyfully, as she headed off in the direction of the babbling brook.

Soon after Kim left, sound quickly returned to the clearing. And, along with the birds chirping, bees buzzing, and frogs croaking, it also seemed that a strange chattering could also be heard. Unbeknownst to Kim, who had always claimed to be "just an average girl", she was now the stuff of legends, and many of the inhabitants of that area would, over the ensuing years, regale their descendants and visitors with the retelling of the day that the furry-topped "mobile mountain" appeared without warning to briefly terrorize the peaceful "true people" before departing for lands unknown and far away. Some of the braver storytellers, who actually been courageous enough to quietly poke their heads out and view the immense creature more directly, indicated that the terrifying living mountain had almost appeared to look like a real person, but was terrifically distorted in size. Many of them also enjoyed shocking their listeners by noting that the fur on top of the monstrous being was blood colored and wondering whether this was due to the many unfortunate creatures it had consumed in other far lands. A few of the storytellers, however, noted that it had not killed any of the people who had observed its arrival as it had slowly emerged from a leaf-thin and ghostlike cloud that itself appeared without warning, so perhaps it was not a true monster, but only a frightening mimic of one. Others warned of the possible dangers should the giant creature ever return. And one even gave the unusual opinion that if the creature ever returned, it would be there to help and not to hurt. Of course, no one took her seriously; how could any creature that large want to help anybody as small as them? Large was dangerous, large was frightening, and everyone else was very happy that the creature had gone away and had never come back….

Carefully moving through the forest towards the sound of the running water, Kim quickly arrived at the edge of a small stream at a point just slightly downstream of a small waterfall. She also quickly located the target of her search, trapped against some rocks in the stream. It was useless where it was, and Kim's current mission was to take it to where it would do some more good. The action girl in her wanted to move fast, and finish the mission quickly, but her other two facets advised caution in all her motions in this world. Remembering the impact that just her arrival had caused in the clearing, action girl ceded the point to her other facets, and tempered her speed a bit. She certainly did not want to cause fear or worse to the ones she was trying to help.

Then, carefully grabbing the object and holding it tightly, the redheaded teenager set off to take it to a place where it could possibly "save the day"…

….Meanwhile, at the location in question, sadness permeated the area, and the conversation was far from a joyful one.

"I'm sorry, Tink, we searched the entire stream for the treasure box, "said Silvermist, tears streaming down her face as she told one of her best fairy friends very bad news. "Rosetta, Iridessa, Fawn, and Vidia helped me check out every possible location between here and the Great Falls, but we couldn't find even a trace of it. I'm afraid that yesterday's thunderstorm-caused flash-flood that washed the box into the quickly swollen stream also pushed it over the Great Falls themselves."

Tinker Bell bowed her head, and acknowledged her friends' efforts to help. "I know, Sil, and I thank you and my other friends for doing what you could to find the box. I just wish you could have gone beyond the Great Falls to find it; I'm sure it must have come to rest somewhere. It may even be at the base of the Falls themselves…."

"But we can't go there, Tink," interrupted Rosseta, hating deeply having to cause pain by stating the obvious. "The Queen's proclamation clearly states that we're not to go beyond the Great Falls…."

"I know, I know, responded the crest-fallen tinker fairy, but I just wish it wasn't so. It just seems so unfair..."

Queen Clarion had declared the region beyond the Great Falls a forbidden zone until the end of the summer season. She had not given a reason for this edict, and many had cautiously questioned why the area was now "off-limits". But most had accepted the proclamation without significant protest, since almost all felt that Queen Clarion always had the best interests of her subjects in mind as she ruled over them. "She must know something that we don't, and that's good enough reason for me" was the most commonly voiced statement in support of the queen's action.

Tinker Bell and her friends had been among those who had accepted the restriction without major complaint (after all, it was "only for the summer"), but the lost box of treasure had now raised the issue of conflicting priorities and needs to a new level. What would the tinker fairy do now?

"…but I know the Queen must have a good reason for her order, and I won't ask any of you to disobey it..."

Tinker Bell suddenly noticed there was absolute silence-her friends were all holding their breaths! She raised her head, and was shocked to see near absolute fear on all of her companions' faces.

"And I will not disobey the order either!"Quickly added the tinker fairy in an emphatic tone, realizing that her reputation for sometimes acting without giving said action due thought had caused her friends to become fearful that she was about barge off on a one fairy rescue mission into the forbidden zone.

As smiles replaced the fearful looks on her fairy friends faces, she realized she had guessed right about their concerns, and that she had responded correctly to reassure them regarding that issue.

Unfortunately, that brief happy moment was quickly spoiled by Vidia. The fast-flying fairy truly cared about Tinker Bell's well being, but took extraordinary pains not to admit it. As a result, her own statement on the matter was not one of a conciliatory and uplifting nature.

"Besides, dear, there were only useless things in that dirty old box. It's no great loss, after all.

"Vidia, that's a terrible thing to say!" Shouted Rosetta, in response to the other fairy's words. She herself tended to judge a "book by its cover" too often, and she had also considered the box belonging to Tinker Bell to be almost criminally unattractive. However, Rosetta appreciated that tinker fairies had a different standard of what was "beautiful", and she also realized that this loss had deeply affected one of her friends. She could not stand by and say nothing.

"I agree!" Added Fawn, an animal fairy. "Taking 'things' from a tinker fairy is like taking away animals from me, flowers from Rosetta, water from Silvermist, or open space from you, Vidia! How well could you practice your own skills if you were stuck in a small cave that made it impossible to fly straight for more a second or two without hitting the wall, forcing you to fly in circles only 10 fairies wide in diameter?"

Vidia was takened aback by the one-two verbal punches from two of Tink's other friends. Perhaps she had misjudged the timing of her tart remarks. This opinion quickly received additional support from two other speakers.

"I also agree with Rosetta and Fawn" said Iridessa, a light fairy who also deeply appreciated the inner light in those around her. She also tended to be a bit of a worry wart, and she was now greatly concerned about the dimming of Tinker Bell's own inner light in the aftermath of this notable loss. "And you couldn't even practice in Fawn's 'small cave' without light to show you the walls-you'd quickly be covered by more bruises and cuts than you could count!"

"Vidia," started Silvermist, "we all need things to do what we do, and we almost always need different things from what other fairies need."

The water fairy then turned back to her saddened friend to address her own regrets regarding the loss itself.

"And I'm so very sorry, Tink, that I didn't know that the flood waters had taken your precious box away. I'm not sure if even my water talents would have been strong enough, but I would have done all I could to guide it to safety, and I'm sure that Marina and my other water fairies would have done all that they could help."

"I know Sil, I know. And I realize that it wasn't the prettiest box in Pixie Hollow, but what was in it was very precious to me, nevertheless. I don't know what I'm going to do now, but I appreciate that all of you, including Vidia, did your best to help me. I think-"

"What was that?" interrupted Fawn, as the ground briefly shook.

"A tree fell nearby?" Opined Iridessa, who then immediately winced as she saw Rosetta's facial response to the statement. A garden fairy never liked to think of any harm occurring to any of its "charges" or related members in the plant world.

"Two trees?" Questioned Silvermist, as the ground shook a second time. "That's impossible, isn't it, Rosetta?"

Before the increasingly shocked Rosetta could respond, the ground shook a third time.

"No, not tree-fall…tree-kill!" Screamed Rosetta (the legend of the Beast, an animal so large that no tree could bear its touch, sprung to her mind, and that thought also echoed in the minds of her companions as the vulgar word "tree-kill" touched their own memories and released the terrifying story of the "Thing that could not Be!").

"No, none of my animal friends would do that to a tree! Not ever!" Exclaimed Fawn, increasingly fearful that, somehow, she would soon be shown to be horribly wrong, as some Thing that dwarfed her friend animals appeared to terrorize all living things.

A fourth, a fifth, and a sixth ground shake were felt by Tinker Bell and her companions, the intensity building with each occurrence.

"It's almost like footsteps…" opined the tinker fairy, her sorrow over the lost treasure box temporarily overwhelmed by the rising concerns of her friends and herself over this increasingly puzzling situation now developing. "But how could anything that big even move-?"

Tinker Bell suddenly noticed that her friends' jaws had dropped, and their eyes pupils had narrowed, even as their eyes had widened, and their faces displayed absolute terror.

"As with one voice, they all shrieked in terror and flew away from Tink quickly, with Vidia clearly the fastest of the rapidly departing group.

Tink was so shocked by their actions that she herself froze up, and did not even attempt to follow them in their panicked flights.

Another footstep ground shake, and then, nothing; there were no additional ground shakes. The "foot-stepper" had stopped moving.

She slowly turned to face the footsteps' owner, and then froze again, unable to move a single muscle, or make a single sound.

It appeared to rise up to the sky, immensely huge, unimaginably large. And it was less than two footsteps away from crushing her into nonexistence.

Tinker Bell then realized that the failure to promptly follow her friends was the last mistake she would ever make. There was no way that she could escape now. Not from that…"Thing". It was all over, now.

The creature, stopped less than 100 fairy heights away from her, began to speak. Even through her overwhelming fright, Tinker Bell could understand the giant being quite well.

"P L E A S E D O N ' T B E A F R A I D , T I N K E R B E L L . M Y N A M E I S K I M B E R L Y A N N E P O S S I B L E , A N D I ' M H E R E TO H E L P A N D N O T T O H U R T."

"Help… me…?" Squeaked Tinker Bell, having put her hands over her ears to deaden the sound level of the giant creature's speech. She was also very confused: why would a monstrous giant even bother to try to convince her that it was there to help her before devouring her?

"Yes, I found something that belongs to you, and I thought it best to get it back to you soon as I could. Here, let me put it down on the ground next to you so that you can check it out, and make sure that everything's okay."

Tinker Bell took her hands away from her ears as she realized that the giant creature had softened its voice and was speaking at a more normal rate. Her fear induced paralysis of the rest of her body also lessened a bit, allowing her to move her head to follow the giant's bending down in order to place a fairly large object near her. It was her treasure box, her lost treasure box, the one she had thought was gone forever!

Her joy at the reappearance of the lost box completely canceled out her paralysis and she quickly flew to the top of the box, completely forgetting that this brought her almost directly into contact with the giant creature itself, who had not yet moved its hands away from the box that it had been holding up to now.

This loss of fear and period of forgetfulness was indeed only momentary, and she once again froze in abject fear after she had reached the box top and realized that she was now only 20 fairy Heights away from the face of the giant creature, and practically right next to two gigantic hands.

Even gripped by her great fear, the tinker fairy was able to make an interesting observation: the giant was actually a giantess. The face that calmly observed her was indeed female, as was her monstrously large torso. Tink was not sure whether her fear was somehow lessening because she now felt a possible kinship with the huge being in front of her, or because she was now accepting her eminent death at the creatures' hands. She was even able to muse about whether the creature had brought her the box to make her happy before it consumed her. After all, her friend Rosetta told bedtime stories to her beloved potted plants to make them happier plants; might not a predator do the same for its meal-to-be?

But the female creature made no move to claim its "just desserts". Tinker Bell began to wonder if it was waiting a little while longer so that the fear in her would fade away and not spoil her delicious meal. Strangely enough, this one thought banished the remaining fear in her instead of intensifying it as she might otherwise have thought it would. With a haunting certainty that these would be the last sentences she would ever speak, the tinker fairy addressed the giantess with a very calm voice.

"You know, mighty giantess, I probably will not taste as good as I look. Are you sure I couldn't offer you some delicious strawberries or lemons instead?" Tink half expected the response to be: "no, you'll do fine", followed by a quick gulp, as the giant female decided to delay the inevitable no longer.

Instead, the tinker fairy observed that the giant female's face began to contort itself, and she was shocked to see a look of revulsion and surprise appear on her "dining companion"'s face. But, as she tried to puzzle out whether it was the strawberries or lemons that had particularly caused a change in expression, the face changed again, and the giant female appeared to be smiling instead. Tink's increasing confusion was finally put to rest as the giantess spoke again.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, Tinker Bell, but my doctor has me on a strict fairy-free diet. I can't even have one fairy per week. Besides, if I do get a little hungry, I can always chow down on this energy bar instead."

The giantess then reached into a pocket in her clothing, and pulled out a rectangular solid object that was as big as Tink and five of her best friends put together. She placed the object right next to the tinker fairy, and moved her giant hand away.

Tinker Bell walked over to the object and closely examined it. As she did so, the giantess asked her a question.

"Is it all right with you if I sat down on the ground? I think I would not look quite as large, and I may be less frightening to you if I'm closer to the ground."

For some reason that she could not really understand, Tink was no longer truly frightened by the presence of the immense female, and she replied, matter-of-factly, "of course, giantess, please sit down."

As the creature gently sat itself down on the ground, Tinker bell spoke again to the visitor.

"You know, giantess, your 'energy bar' doesn't seem to be giving off any energy; is it broken, or did I misunderstand what you called it earlier?" Tink looked away from the bar and at the recipient of her question, and waited for an answer.

"No, Tink, the energy bar is not broken, but I'm afraid that there is a misunderstanding involved here. We call it an energy bar not because it gives off energy in its current condition, but because it gives us extra energy after we consume it. Are you able to read human writing, or rather, human printing?"

"No, I cannot, but I do recognize these markings as being human lettering. What do they mean?"

"Well, these markings indicate that some of the ingredients of this bar include sugar, honey, peanuts, chocolate, figs, dates, and apples. Oh, and by the way, please call me Kim."

"OK, Kim, I will." Agreed the tinker fairy, now marveling at the fact that she still felt no fear as she talked with this extremely large creature so close to her. Was it because this "Kim" now somehow appeared to be no more or less than a giant wingless fairy? Was it because her friendliness exuded from her like light from Blaze? For whatever the reason, Tinker Bell now felt a little silly at ever having been frightened of the red-haired female. And she was now able to voice a question that had been buzzing around her head since she had squeaked "help me?" right after Kim had politely (though loudly) first introduced herself.

"Kim, since you weren't doing it to get a 'free meal', why did you decide to help me out and bring my wonderful box of things back to me? How could I possibly reward or pay you back for what you have done for me and my fairy friends? This box will help me help them in so many different ways. I don't know what I can do for you that could even begin to equal what you have done."

"So not the Drama or the Mystery" answered Kim. I decided to help you because I saw that you could use a little help with this sitch-"

"Sitch?" Questioned Tinker Bell, wondering if she had heard Kim correctly.

"Oh, sorry, Tink, it's the way I usually say 'situation'; I save three syllables that way. It's sort of like saying 'Tink' instead of 'Tinker Bell'." The fairy noticed that Kim suddenly displayed an apologetic look and seemed to be readying a question for her.

"By the way, it is alright that I call you Tink instead of your full name? I know it's your nickname but I didn't double check with you before using it."

"So not the Drama" answered Tinker Bell, who almost laughed out loud as she saw Kim's smile widened upon hearing the fairy re-using a portion of the human's own recently used phrases. "You are most welcome to use my nickname, especially since you've allowed me to use your nickname. Besides, despite the fact that only a short while ago I was frozen in abject terror when I first saw you, I somehow feel very comfortable talking to you right now. It's almost as if there was some sort of connection between us."

"You mean sort of like we belong to the same extended family, but that this is the first time we're having some sort of long delayed family reunion?"

"Yes, exactly that!" Exclaimed Tink. "Do you feel it too?"

"I think so, and I do have a theory or possible explanation for why we may feel that way, but I must warn you that it's going to sound awfully weird."

"Weirder than a fairy talking to a human in Pixie Hollow?"

"Now, that's a good point" responded Kim, chuckling lightly. "Just remember that I warned you it might sound weird, and that it's only a theory, not a fact. In our own case, it might just be that, except for the obvious size difference, you and I are actually very much alike."

"You mean, like you're a giant, wingless, fairy?" Asked the tinker fairy, who then quickly added, apologetically, "No offense intended, of course!"

"Or like you're a tiny, winged, human?" Countered Kim, who then also quickly added, also apologetically, "No offense intended, of course!"

This mimicking response was just too much for Tinker Bell, who was seized by a fit of uncontrollable laughter and who quickly found herself flat on her back, trying to catch her breath. If the giantess—er, Kim had wanted to relax the fairy to "increase her flavor", now would be the perfect time for a "quick gulp" before Tink could even begin to regain control of herself.

"Hey, Tink, it wasn't THAT funny!" Said Kim, even though she had meant it to be light-hearted, and was herself giggling a little in reaction to her own quip and to the fairy's apparently over the top response.

"I'm sorry, Kim, between what we were just talking about the possible connection between us, and how you reversed the you/me comparison AND how I'm no longer terrified by you or your size, I just couldn't help myself" apologized the tiny fairy, as she slowly began to regain control of herself.

"So that's the sitch, eh?" responded the teen adventuress, happy that the "very little person with wings" was past her fear of the "giant wingless fairy".

"Yes, that's the sitch!" confirmed Tinker Bell, now firmly back in control, but still smiling broadly at the redheaded visitor. "Now, tell me about the weird connection between us…"

"Are you sure?"

"Pretty sure" reaffirmed the perky pixie, eager to hear more from her newest friend. "After all, you did say it was just a theory. If I don't agree with it, I could always say that you or it was 'all wet'."

Tink paused for a moment, then added "However, that would more likely be said by Silvermist; she's very much into all things watery".

Kim's face darkened for a moment at the mention of one of the fairy's friends, and she began a long delayed, but heart-felt, apology to her newest friend.

"Tink, I'm so very sorry that I so seriously frightened all of your companions. After my experience in the clearing near the base of the waterfall, I thought that if I walked more slowly, and clearly displayed that I was bringing you an object you all recognized, it would minimize the level of panic. Obviously, that didn't play out that way. Please let your friends know how sorry I am for causing such a scare with all of you. I really don't like terrifying the people I'm trying to help."

"That's okay Kim, for a brief while, our apparent differences overwhelmed what we had in common. I will pass your apology to Silvermist, Rosetta, and the others. And I am sure that most, if not all of them, will also regret not having the chance to talk with you and thank you for helping me."

Tink suddenly leaped off the treasure box and flew up to within 2 fairy heights of Kim's face

"Now what about this weird connection" she added, as she placed her hands on her hips, reminding Kim of a picture she had seen in her own world of a non-flying pouting Tinker Bell. The redheaded teen smiled before she responded; it was so different to see the "real" fairy unknowingly imitate her cartoonish counterpart. It also reminded her how much she was learning during this Multiversing adventure.

Which included the fact that she would soon have to leave Tinker Bell and her Pixie Hollow world and return to her own world so that she could move on to the next alternate universe mission. The tick, tick, tick of a phantom clock echoed within her mind, and Kim was determined not to let time run out on her six-sitch-mission if she had any say about the matter. The still unanswered question in the back of her mind remained, however: In the end, how much say would she have in the matter at hand, and in the overall mission itself? That led to a second equally important question: What would or could she do when she found out the answer to the first one?

****To Be Continued****

(A/N #2: I saw that this second sitch was turning out to be at least a "double sized" chapter and decided that I would split it in two at this point, with part one of this mission completed, and part two and mission closure in progress. I will do my best to keep things on track in the next chapter and get Kim home before its end ["hey, you out there!...stop laughing so hard—it wasn't meant to be funny!"]. In the mean time, thanks again, in advance, for any reviews or PMs you may care to send my way on this chapter; they will be greatly appreciated)

Kim Possible and her friends © Disney (created by Bob Schooley and Mark McCorkle)

Tinker Bell and her friends in Pixie Hollow © Disney (Tinker Bell created by J. M. Barrie)

Additional Disclaimer: I, like whitem, do not own either Wal-Mart or WalMart or any similarly named organization; and the actual owners retain all rights, etc., regarding same.