A/N

Chapter 13 is up and running!

Team Possible reacts to the attack on Felix.

Sheila learns what's wrong with her unborn children, and the revelation brings an old skeleton out the family closet.

Team Possible does some recon on D.N. Amy, and thanks to Joss they catch a break in the case.

A night out after an unexpected game reveals a few unexpected things.

And then it's time for the fateful trip to see Kim's grandparents, where more than one confrontation will reveal some dark secrets hidden in the Carmichael closet.

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.

Kim's hand flew to her cell phone and she quickly dialed, tapping her foot nervously as the rings ticked by. Finally, her intended party answered, and Kim spoke with a determination Ron had rarely heard her display. "Zita, it's Kim…no, I'm fine…but listen, something happened to Felix. We don't know what yet, but we will find out, I promise…They're taking him to Upperton Medical…Do you want someone to come down there with you?…Okay, but make sure Marcella's the one to drive…Okay, call us when you know."

After she closed her phone, she walked over to Ron and placed her hand on his shoulder. She was surprised to feel him shaking with strong emotion, though whether that feeling was anger, sorrow, or helplessness she couldn't tell. Changing her mind, she wrapped her arms around him from behind and stood there, offering her presence but not intruding on what he was feeling. After a few minutes, he turned around to look at her, and the fire behind his eyes was blazing furiously while they flashed between blue and brown.

"KP, have Wade find D.N. Amy's hideout. I'm not waiting for them to strike at us or our friends and family again."

Kim looked at him, her eyes grimly set. "Ron, calm down. I want to get back at them for Felix just as much as you do, but this isn't the time for rash action. We still don't know what they're after, and if we go in blind we'll be the ones who get caught by surprise. Now take a deep breath and settle down."

Though he didn't want to do it, Ron had to admit Kim was right. Going in now would be like offering themselves up for capture, especially since they still didn't know what item the monkey ninjas and D.N. Amy were after.

"Alright. But you know I don't like this, Kim. It just doesn't sit right, especially since it makes twice now they've raided my room in their search."

Kim nodded. "I know Ron. It's a ferociously messed up sitch, but right now there's nothing we can do about it except keep playing a strong defense."

Monique, who had been silent, placed her hand on Ron's shoulder. "Ron, I know this doesn't help, but Felix is tough. I'm sure he'll pull out of this soon, and then you can ask him exactly what happened."

Ron took another deep breath, this one filled with the strength he was gathering from the two young women. "Okay. I just hate that I can't seem to do anything to protect those I care about. I mean, I beat back an alien attack, and yet I can't fend off a bunch of flea-bitten ninja primates."

Kim smiled. "Ron, we'll figure this out. I promised Zita, and now I'm promising you—we will get to the bottom of this."

Sheila awoke in an unfamiliar bed that had the top elevated, the blinds of the room drawn against the bright lights of Go City at night. Her head felt like she'd just gone ten rounds with Kim Possible's alter ego Lady Kigo with her hands tied behind her back. A sharp, repetitive beeping was going, and glancing over she saw that she was hooked up to several medical monitors. Sheila squinted against the darkness in the room and the harshness of the green and orange lights on the machines. Glancing around, her eyes fell on the one person she wanted to see. He was sitting in a chair next to her bed, and though he was leaned over the edge of the bed and asleep, both of his smaller-than-average blue hands were clasped tightly around her left. Even though his hands were small for a guy, they still were larger than her own, and she relished the warmth she could feel being transferred between them. She took a deep breath, sat up slightly, and leaned over to place a light kiss lovingly on the back of his head.

Almost immediately, he sat bolt upright, so fast that he almost cracked his head against her retreating nose. After glancing around in confusion for a few seconds, he eyes fell upon her smiling visage. Andy blinked a few times, and then pulled his hands from hers to grab her in tight hug.

"Sheila, you're okay!" he exclaimed.

"In a manner of speaking," she quipped with a smile as she returned the hug. "Now where the hell am I?"

He leaned back from her a little. "Go City Memorial. I know your feelings towards using public health institutions, but Hector said that Go Tower didn't have the resources to properly take care of you so we brought you here. And Sheila, there's more." His eyes cast down at her stomach.

"What? What's going on?" she said, suddenly very worried.

"Sheila, both the babies have inherited your particular glow power."

"Well, we knew one of them would based on Xander showing up this summer," she said with a smile. Then she frowned. "There's more, isn't there?"

He nodded. "Unfortunately, they can't control it right now."

She glanced down nervously. "So what does that mean?"

Andy sighed, his uni-brow twitching in thought. "Well, it means for one that when they sense you getting upset their powers will activate. Kind of like some expectant mothers get sicker than normal because their baby is responding to the mother's stress. So we have to somehow keep you from getting stressed out in even a small way until we figure something out."

Sheila looked at him expectantly. "Why do I sense there's something else you want to add?"

He puffed out his blue cheeks. "There is at least one option, but there's no guarantee that it won't take yours as well."

Sheila closed her eyes in disbelief. "The technology behind Aviarius's staff."

Andy nodded. "If, and that's a big if, if I could recreate it, we could use it to remove their powers until they're born. But…nnnngg…there's no telling whether or not we'll be able to give them their powers back."

Sheila shifted against the elevated back of the hospital bed. "But Xander had his, meaning we have to make sure he has them."

Her boyfriend nodded. "Yes…and…erm…we…or at least your brothers…"

"Don't know where Aviarius is," she finished for him.

"Right," he replied solemnly. "And Sheila, there's something else that Hector didn't tell us before, something he did mention when I suggested using the staff to remove the twins' powers."

"What?"

"Sheila, Aviarius isn't the one who came up with that technology—all he did was adapt the original plans which he stole into a handheld form. The main creator was a scientist named…nnnngg…"

"Who?" she said, her eyes narrowing. "C'mon, spit it out."

"It was a woman who used to live here in Go City. Named Dr. Sheridan Godfrey."

Narrowed green eyes had never popped wide in surprise faster.

Despite knowing that they couldn't go barreling in without gathering more intel, Kim still had Wade run a search on D.N. Amy's current whereabouts. However, all three of her previously known hideouts appeared to have been deserted, including the Mt. Middleton lab, the house in Middleton that she had lived in when she teamed up with Dr. Drakken, and the old Japanese castle she'd used when she'd kidnapped Sensei in her plot to find Monkey Fist. However, of the three, the Middleton house seemed the most recently lived in, so that's where Team Possible found themselves searching on Saturday a week later. In the basement, they found the bio-geneticist's lab in somewhat of a shambles, as if it had been lived in until very recently before being evacuated in a hurry.

Joss righted a control panel of some sort and wiped the perspiration off her brow. "Ah don't get it. It looks like she was here, but now she ain't. And if she ain't, why're we lookin' here?"

Kim sighed as she searched through a pile of scattered papers. "Joss, we still need to see if there are clues to where she might have gone too, or at least a clue to what she's up to. Part of the mission work is gathering intel."

Joss kicked softly at a piece of machinery. "But isn't the type of stuff Wade usually does?"

Ron frowned as he went through a stack of abandoned books. "Normally, yes, but he can only do that if he has something to look for. Right now, we're pretty much going only on the stuff we told you about, and he can't find anything right now with only that information."

The younger woman squatted next to a pile of junk. "So in other words we got nothin' unless we find something here, right?"

Kim nodded. "Yep. And trust us, Joss: we don't enjoy this part of the job any more than you do."

Joss smiled at that. "Guess this is what you meant when you said that a lot of the hero work goes unappreciated."

Ron laughed. "Something like this, yeah."

Lifting a piece of metal, Joss immediately dropped it to the side when she saw the black cloth that had been revealed underneath. "Uh, Kim, Ron, I think you were right about D.N. Amy hookin' up with them monkey ninjas," she said as she lifted what looked like the tattered remains of a monkey-sized black gi.

"Monkeys," Ron said quietly through clenched teeth as he came over to inspect the outfit.

"Looks like," replied Kim as she followed suit. "Now if we just knew why."

Then she looked down, and saw some random bits of a food she recognized but couldn't quite place. Pressing the call button on her Kimmunicator, she smiled when she saw Wade's face.

"Hey, Wade, do you still have that program you used to rebuild the golf ball on the first Killigan mission?"

The tech genius smiled. "Kim, you know I never delete a program unless I develop something better."

Kim nodded. "Okay, then I need an analysis and rebuild of these food scraps."

"Scan ready," Wade replied.

The scan took maybe three seconds, and when Kim turned her Kimmunicator back towards herself, the analysis was already nearly done. The skeleton slowly rebuilt, taking much longer than normal due to the nature of the differences of foods in the world. While that was going, Ron knelt down and inspected the crumbs.

"Kim, we've got not one, but two foods here."

"Two?" she said confusedly.

"Yeah," the blonde replied. "You can tell because the crumbs are aerated differently, meaning two different types of breading."

"I knew there were other perks to being engaged to a chef," Kim said with a smile. "Did you get that, Wade?"

"Got it, Kim" the young man replied. "And he's right. If you separate the crumbs that are different, you get two different items."

The hologram that had been rebuilding the items came up. One was triangle-shaped and had a biscuit texture, and the other was a crumpled and porous flat cake. It took a few minutes for them to place the items until Joss snapped her fingers.

"A scone and a crumpet," she said with a grin.

"How do you know that?" Ron said with a smile and cocked eyebrow.

Joss frowned. "The boyfriend Ah just broke up with, Nigel, is an exchange student from England. The family he was stayin' with always had a fresh plate of these things sittin' around. So's he'd feel more at home, Ah guess."

Kim smiled. "Joss, are you absolutely sure?"

The shorter girl cocked an eyebrow at her cousin. "As sure as Ah am that he ain't worth the cow pies off mah boots. 'Specially since he broke up with me over doin' these missions."

Ron smiled. "Good for you, Joss. The right guy for you is going to accept who you are completely."

"Ah know that, Ron," she retorted with a smile. "Es why I said that Nigel ain't worth the cow pies off mah boots."

"Cow pies?" he replied with a confused look. "Oh, you aren't referring to beef pies, are you?"

Kim shook her head. "Ron, you can be ferociously dense sometimes."

"Hey…" he started to complain, but she silenced him with a kiss.

"Shh…I like dense," she said with a smile. It wasn't that she did, but it was their own little private flirtatious joke, based on the first time she told him she liked weird.

"Uhh, guys, focus here," Wade said when the two relocked lips.

"Alright," Kim said with a good-natured roll of her eyes as she pried her lips off Ron's. "So the question is: who do we know that likes scones and crumpets?"

"Killigan, maybe?" Joss offered. "After all, he is Scottish."

"Nah," Ron replied, "he's more into haggis and stuff like that." The young man cringed as he remembered the time he'd been trying to retrieve Kim's overdue library book and the mad golfer had force-fed him nearly eight full servings of his Granny Killigan's recipe for the disgusting dish. To this day, it was one of the few things Ron would not eat again willingly.

Kim thought hard for a second before an idea popped up. "Wade, who was that guy who was with Monkey Fist the first time we met him?"

Wade immediately pulled up the mission profile. "According to our information, his name is Alfred Bates, and he was the butler to the Fiske family. But that's the only time we ever met him."

Ron frowned. "And where is Mr. Bates now?"

The tech genius typed up the search on another computer. "According to the files we have, he was sentenced to about two years in prison for his part in the first Monkey Fist caper, but then he disappeared off the radar upon his release after only six months served. He got out on good behavior, but hasn't been heard from since. And all known addresses for him are currently occupied by other people who have absolutely no affiliation with him or the Fiske estate."

Kim sighed as she checked the time on her Kimmunicator. "Alright, well keep looking for him, Wade."

Joss smiled. "You think Bates is connected to this somehow?"

Kim shook her head. "No clue. But unfortunately it's the best lead we've got at the moment." She turned to Ron. "Now we need to get back to G.V.U., because the game against Temple starts in about three hours."

"Can Ah come?" Joss said with a hopeful smile.

Kim grinned. "I don't see why not, although you'll have to either find Monique or sit by yourself since Ron and I have to be down on the field. And call Uncle Slim first to let him know what you're doing."

"No big," Joss replied, echoing her cousin's favorite phrase. "Should be a good game to see, 'specially after you guys beat Navy so easily last week. And Ah'll just hop the transport tube home afterwards."

Ron smiled. "Yeah. If you go by the stats, Temple shouldn't be any problem for the guys to handle."

…
…

The campus that evening after the game was very subdued, however, after the Owls came in and upset the previously unbeaten Guardians in overtime 31-28, knocking G.V.U.'s record to 6-1. If the team had missed Ron's presence the past few weeks, they had looked completely lost without it this time. Of course, it didn't help that linebacker Jean-Luc Brissart as playing on a banged up knee he'd gotten against the Navy Midshipmen, or that Vinnie James couldn't seem to tell the difference between the blue and orange jersey's of the Guardians and Temple's cherry and white uniforms on his passes as he threw a career high six interceptions. Still, the Guardians kept fighting hard, and it was only a last-second field goal by the Temple kicker that decided the game.

Despite not playing a single minute or even dressing out because of his still banged-up shoulder, the player who probably took the loss the hardest was one Ron Stoppable. It was clear to him from the beginning that while the Owl defense was prepared for the smash-mouth running of Daniels and Highland and for the long-bomb passing of James, he could have easily outstripped every single player on the field with his quickness and agility. The knowledge that if he had confessed to his injury sooner he would have been back out on the field with his teammates as early as the previous week against Navy and could have contributed even more this evening only added to the feeling of guilt. The look on his face was so disheartening that, in the locker room after the game, both Vinnie James and Viktor Tretiov came over to his locker after they'd gotten cleaned up and dressed in their street clothes.

"Ron, it's not your fault," Viktor said with warmth in his smile and in his brown eyes. "I know I should have picked off at least two of their passes on the second drive, but instead I judged it wrong and they scored because of it."

"He's right, Stoppable," Vinnie added as he ran a hand through his blonde hair. "And if I'd been better on my accuracy tonight, three of their touchdowns never happen. Trust me, there's nothing you could have done."

Ron frowned as he ran his left hand over his still-slinged right arm. "Guys, I appreciate it, I do, but I know I could have made a difference out there tonight. I mean you saw it as well as I did: their most agile player could barely match Brent Gundy. And while Brent's got better footwork than most of the team, everyone knows I can outmaneuver him."

"Hey, so can I," remarked Vinnie, "but I didn't do that well either. Ron, one player doesn't make as big a difference here as he does in high school. Tonight just wasn't our night, and everyone who saw the game knows that. To tell the truth, I think we would have lost even if you had been out there with us."

Ron sighed. "Maybe you're right. Still, I know there's gonna be a lot of people blame me for it."

Viktor grinned. "And anyone who does doesn't fully understand the game. Trust us, Ron, the only people whose opinions matter are gonna know there wasn't a thing you could have done. Now, come on, join us at the Pit tonight. I can about guarantee the place'll be pretty empty."

Ron smiled for the first time since the Owls opening score two minutes into the first quarter. "Alright, but only if KP agrees to it."

Both Viktor and Vinnie laughed, though Viktor had enough control over his to still speak. "Man, Stoppable, the way you two act you'd think you guys are already married. Or at the very least that that Finkman guy is right about you two being already engaged."

Ron laughed as well, although he did rub the back of his neck a little nervously. "Nah, just seriously dating is all. We've just always been really tight, so I guess we act a lot closer than most couples."

When the three exited the locker room about ten minutes later, they found Kim waiting for them. Her smile was all Ron needed to perk up back to his normal self, or at least as normal as could be expected after the loss. When he asked, she agreed that hanging out for a bit at the Pit might be a good way to relax a little. When she said it, Ron could tell she also needed to relax a bit, especially with the trip to her grandmother's now less than a week away. At the Pit, they met up with Mitzy and Monique, and the six of them found a table near the back of the club. Eventually, despite everyone trying to avoid it, the conversation did drift to the game.

"All I'm saying is that I really think you might want to get your eyes checked, Vinnie," Mitzy remarked. "It wasn't like you to misjudge your passes so badly."

Vinnie sighed. "Look, Mitz, we just had a bad night. It's like I told Ron after the game, the way we played they could have beaten us any day of the week. And that's even if he had been out there with us."

Mitzy turned towards Ron and frowned apologetically. "Oh, sorry Ron. I didn't mean to bring it up."

The young man grinned. "It's okay, Mitzy."

Monique smiled. "So when do you get your arm out of that thing anyhow?"

Kim patted Ron's good shoulder. "He has an appointment this Wednesday, and the doctor said if everything checks out he'll be ready to restart practice on Thursday," she said brightly.

"And it means I should be back up to full strength by the time we play Notre Dame on November 4th," Ron added with a large grin.

"Good, man, cause the Irish have one of the better pass defenses this year, so you guys are probably gonna be pushing the ground attack," Viktor said with a grimace. "I just hope we can stop that Option offense of theirs."

Monique grinned. "I'm sure you guys'll do fine."

Viktor blinked, then smiled and held out his hand to Ron. "Okay, that's over an hour, so I win. Pay up."

"Aww, man," Ron replied as he handed the other young man a twenty.

"Wait…what?" Kim said with a confused look.

Vinnie laughed. "Me and Viktor were trying to get Ron's mind off the game, so Viktor here had the rather insane idea of betting Ron that for at least an hour after we got here Monique wouldn't use a single acronym."

Monique immediately got a not-amused look. "You bet against me, Viktor?" she said with a frown.

The cornerback held up his hands in defense. "C'mon, Snipper, it was only to get Ron to quit beating himself up about the game."

Kim also fixed Ron with an equally put-off stare. "And you went along with it, Ron?"

"Well…" he stammered nervously.

Mitzy immediately put one hand between each of the two couples. "Girls, bigger picture here. I agree they shouldn't have done it, but you have to admit it obviously got Ron to stop focusing on what he could have done and to stop putting himself down. Right?"

"Yes…" replied Monique in a half-convinced voice.

"I suppose…" echoed Kim.

Vinnie couldn't help but laugh. "Guys, I think you just sold my girlfriend your souls for that save."

Mitzy grinned. "Nah, first one's free. Next time it costs them their first-born."

The whole table laughed now.

When she'd calmed down, Kim smiled. "Okay, but to make up for it, I think Ron owes me a dance or two."

Ron pointed at his arm. "Uh, KP, arm still in a sling here."

She grinned and leaned over to whisper in his ear. His face turned a little red, but he immediately got up and smiled.

"Dance it is. Just…umm…let me hit the restroom first."

He walked away a little awkwardly, and Monique couldn't resist a giggle. "Girl, WDYTH?"

Kim grinned mischievously. "Just something he'd better not repeat if he knows what's good for him. About what I've got on."

The sparkle in her eyes immediately told her BFF what was up. "Girl, you didn't…" Monique said with a smile.

Kim's only response was to wink and grin even wider. And when Ron came out, she led him out on the dance floor, where he proved exactly how bon-diggity a dancer he still was with only one good arm. And later, back in the privacy of his Unit and bedroom, she proved that what she'd told him was completely one-hundred-percent true.

The next week was a complete and total blur for Kim and Ron. The only miniscule break happened Wednesday night when a mission came in and Kim and Joss took it on alone. Ron wanted to go as well, but Kim put her foot down.

"Ron, you just got out of the sling this afternoon, and the doctor told you to take it easy tonight just in case. Besides, it's only Chester Yapsby causing trouble in Las Vegas, so we should be back before 10:30." With that, she kissed him softly.

Ron sighed but smiled. "Okay. Just let me know the minute you two get back. Even if you don't make it back until 4 AM."

Joss gave him a thumbs-up. "Ah'll make sure she's careful, Ron."

As the girls took off through the air in the Sloth, Ron couldn't help but smile. He knew they'd be safe, and his faith was rewarded when they returned two hours ahead of schedule at 8:30. It turned out Chester had tried to recreate the Rophlex he'd once stolen from Professor Acari, but he had been unable to make the change permanent as the roaches returned to normal size not one hour after Joss and Kim arrived on the Las Vegas strip. It had taken slightly longer to locate Yapsby among the crowded Las Vegas nightlife, but the girls did and now Yapsby sat in the LVPD jail awaiting pick-up by Global Justice. Joss grabbed some late night dinner with Kim and Ron at the Outpost before hopping the transport tube back home to Montana.

The moment Joss left, Ron insisted on a full inspection like she'd given him after her first missed mission back in August, though he also threw in a complete full-body massage along with it. Kim relished the gentle rubbing, a pleasure that was sorely needed considering all the stress she was under about the coming weekend. As she lay there, she was tempted to tell Ron they should call off the "hiatus status" they'd told Wade to put them on during the trip. However, Ron wouldn't hear of it.

"KP, if she already knows, putting it off longer isn't going to help. And if she doesn't, the longer we wait the more likely she is to find out," he said as he gently worked her lower back. "Besides, we specifically set it for this weekend because there's no football game Saturday."

"I know, Ron," Kim said with a sigh. "I just don't want to put you through this. I mean, from what I've heard, Grandma Dorothy raised a ferociously unnecessary stink over my mom and dad, and that was with Daddy only being Baptist. What's she going to do when she finds out you're family is Reform Jewish?"

Ron stopped rubbing her back and laid down next to his fiancée. He smiled at her, and she cuddled up to him with her head pressed against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her, and slowly petted her hair as he spoke.

"KP, I don't know if you've noticed this, but I've developed some pretty thick skin over the years. It's part of the reason I don't get embarrassed that easily. Well, except for some of the stuff you do to get me to blush."

She giggled at that, and snuggled up closer. He smiled and kissed the top of her head before continuing.

"Besides, what can she throw at me that Bonnie or someone else hasn't already? And regardless of what she says, I asked you to marry me, not her. So no matter how she views me, I'm still going to want to marry Kimberly Anne Possible, the most amazing woman I've ever had the pleasure of knowing or being friends with or dating."

Kim smiled, and leaned up to place a kiss on his cheek. "Thanks, Ronnie. I needed that."

Ron gave her one of his goofy grins that he knew she liked so much. "Anytime, KP, cause it's completely true."

Friday morning dawned dark and gray with clouds rumbling above the G.V.U. campus, as if Mother Nature herself could sense the impending storm that Kim and Ron were about to face. They'd originally planned to use the Sloth to fly down to Mississippi so they could leave if they wanted, but Anne Possible had convinced them it would go a long way, at least in Amos Carmichael's eyes, if they stayed the whole trip. So they were boarding a plane like the rest of the clan. Of course, they were taking the Sloth down to Middleton first so that there would only be one vehicle at Denver International Airport. Since the flight left that morning at 11:00, the original plan was to go to their first classes but skip the rest. That, as it turned out, worked out in their favor, since Professor Ryder had their Biology class just doing research for a paper in the library, and Professor Khuluhuboni was out sick and had cancelled College Algebra. And of course, Coach Devereaux and Coach Williams both understood, especially since there was no game the following day.

As Ron sat with the Possibles in the terminal, he couldn't help but notice how agitated Kim seemed. He had caught glimpses of this when he'd picked her from her Unit that morning for breakfast, and more shadows of it when they met after his Cooking class and her Philosophy class. And surprisingly, she'd insisted he be the one to drive the Sloth down to Middleton. Now though, the nervousness seemed to be reaching fever pitch, and she kept twisting her engagement ring (which she was wearing on her right middle finger to throw off any suspicious eyes) back and forth repeatedly. Hoping to help her calm down a bit, he lightly placed his hands on her shoulders and began softly rubbing.

"Ron, I appreciate it, but now's not the time," she said agitatedly as she shuffled her shoulders to get him to stop.

Ron smiled, but Kim's mother frowned. "Kimmie, Ron's just trying to help you relax a little. No reason to bite his head off."

The young man grinned again. "It's okay, Mrs. Dr. P. I know that's the stress talking and not KP."

Kim sighed. "No, Ronnie, she's right," she said as she leaned her head appreciatively on his shoulder. "If anything, you should be the one person who I let help me let go of these nerves."

Ron smiled, and wrapped one arm around her. "Hey, remember what I told you Wednesday night?"

Kim took a deep breath and smiled. "Regardless of what Grandma says, you're still going to want to marry me."

"That's right. There's nothing she can say or do that's going to change my mind. Besides, I have a secret weapon."

"Secret weapon?" she asked with a dry laugh. "And what would that be?"

Ron grinned at Anne Possible. "Your mom told me about one of your grandmother's favorite chicken dishes, as well as coordinating with your Grandpa, Aunt Laura, and Uncle Z. So tomorrow night, I'm fixing up a feast with that as the main course."

Kim looked over at her mother with an appreciative though tired smile. "You rock, Mom."

Anne merely smiled and turned back to her magazine.

…
…

The flight down wasn't nearly as smooth as it could have been, but they managed, although they did almost miss their connecting flight in Houston when one of the security guards tried to stop Ron from carrying Rufus in his pocket. Thankfully, the guy's co-worker recognized them almost immediately, and quickly cleared them. He even called one of those shuttle carts to get them to the gate on time. When that plane landed at the Gulfport/Biloxi airport around 4:30 that afternoon, Kim's agitation was beginning to once again approach critical status. As she, Ron, and the Tweebs sat in the lobby with the luggage while her parents talk to the rental car company, she began once again twisting her ring around. Finally Ron had to ask the question he'd been burning with since the first time they'd discussed this trip and the coming confrontation.

"KP, I don't get it. Why are you so nervous about this? I mean, she is your grandmother after all."

Kim didn't respond, but Jim spoke up in his sister's defense. "Ron, Grandma has never approved of a single thing Kim does. She hates that Kim's friends with Monique, she dislikes what she wears, she thinks it wrong that she goes on the missions…"

Tim also spoke up. "…not to mention she doesn't like how Kim acts, or that she spends so much time with…"

"Tim!" Kim bit sharply.

Tim turned on his sister, though he did it softly. "Kim, he has a right to know. Especially with what you two are about tell Grandma and the Colonel."

Kim winced slightly. "I know, but I'd prefer it if I were the one to tell him, okay?" She took a deep breath. "Ron, there's more to her not liking us together than the fact that you're of the Reform Jewish faith. She…she doesn't like that we spend so much time alone together on missions…calls it 'socially wrong and morally reprehensible', and thinks you took advantage of the situation."

Ron smiled. "And what do you think, KP?"

She sighed and smiled back at him. "I think you were there right when I needed you most just like you always have been."

"Then that's what I choose to believe," he answered as he enveloped her in a warm hug that she couldn't help but snuggle into.

At that moment, Anne and James returned, and Kim's mom immediately took notice of the look on the faces of the younger people.

"So I take it he knows the whole story now?"

Kim turned her head towards them, blinked back a tear and nodded, a quivering-lip smile on her face as she continued to enjoy the safety she felt wrapped in her love's arms. As they walked to the car, she kept her steps in perfect time with Ron's, making sure to keep contact with him as much as possible without causing either of them to walk awkwardly. When they piled into the van her parents had rented, she retreated with him to the back seat where they could cuddle a bit. As they started on the relatively short drive to the Carmichael Place on the northern outskirts of Biloxi, six pairs of eyes stared out the windows, taking in the picture before them. It had been a year since Hurricane Katrina had decimated the area, but things were still not entirely up to speed, and the Lorwardian invasion in May certainly hadn't helped matters. While most of the debris had been cleared from yards by this point, there were still numerous buildings with heavy damage to them. A few streets still remained closed, several trees remained knocked over. For Kim and Ron, this was the second time seeing the destruction, as they had come down for a few weeks the year before to help out with the starting clean-up after the hurricane had hit.

Glancing around, Kim shook her head in slow disbelief. "I still can't believe how ferociously much there is left to do down here to clean up from the hurricane. I mean, it's been a year."

Ron nodded. "Yeah. I actually feel pretty bad for them, getting hit with the Lorwardian invasion so soon after Katrina. Speaking of which, you've never told me how your grandparents did during all of this."

Anne sighed. "Thankfully, the actual house part of Carmichael Place didn't take too much damage beyond the wind taking bits of the roof off. And that got fixed pretty quickly. The main problem they had to deal with was they lost quite a few trees."

Now Ron scratched his head. "Umm, just curious, why do you all keep calling it Carmichael Place?

Kim pointed out the front windshield. "That's why."

"Ohhh…" Ron replied as his eyes got just a tad bigger.

Rising before them, behind a neatly trimmed hedge wall, was one of the nicer Southern-style homes Ron had seen in person or in pictures. It was a brilliant two-story affair, with beautiful Ionic-style fluted columns lining the front of the main face of the building. The whole of the house was painted a dazzling white, apart of course from the roof, and looked like it was constantly tended to and washed. Around the large front porch and most of the rest of the house, another 4-foot, flat-top hedge wall provided a nice contrast the grass surrounding them, which was surprisingly still somewhat green. In all actuality, it wasn't so much a house as it was a Southern-style mansion.

Ron whistled in surprise. "Man, this must have been one badical place to grow up, Mrs. Dr. P."

Anne smiled. "It was nice, Ron, but other aspects weren't so great." She trailed off a bit, and returned to staring back out the window.

Kim softly smiled. "Mom and Grandma have never really gotten along, Ron. And since Grandpa was a fighter pilot in the USAF, he was away a lot, so a lot of times Grandma was the only parent she could talk to."

Ron smiled. "You never told me he was Air Force."

Kim shrugged a bit. "Wasn't left out on purpose. I just never thought to mention it I guess. He's retired now, but he still helps out down at Keesler Air Force Base from time to time. Made it all the way to Colonel before he stopped, though, and was one of the best fighter pilots around back in his day. They also say he has a 'Will Roger's mentality' towards most people."

Ron grinned. "'Never met a man he didn't like,' huh?"

She nodded and giggled. "Might be why I like the quality in a certain blonde hottie I know."

Ron laughed at that, and hugged her tight. She returned it, but he could feel the nervous tension she was still holding. He hadn't even seen her this nervous when she was trying to ask Josh Mankey to the dance their freshman year, and that was the most agitated he could ever remember her being. He also noticed that she was starting to nervously tug on the end of her hair, something he hadn't seen her do since junior high. Glancing out the window as James pulled the van into the driveway, he immediately saw why. There was a group of four people waiting for them. He recognized Kim's Uncle Z from having previously met the man when he'd been over to the man's house to have chats with Cousin Larry about various things, and guessed the woman who looked like Mrs. Dr. P. with longer hair and just slightly larger hips to be Aunt Laura. There was also an older couple there, a tall gentleman with very little hair up top and a white mustache, and a woman who Ron could swear was staring right at and straight through him.

The gentleman, who Ron took to be Grandpa Amos, stood a very imposing 6'5", but had the smile and aura of someone who would probably make a good Santa Clause if he were to add a pillow or two under his shirt. He was neatly dressed in a pressed white polo shirt and dark slacks, and looked like someone who could probably live another fifty years just so he could laugh heartily in Death's face. From what Ron could tell of his build, it was obvious he still kept up the fitness he'd most likely dealt with in his Air Force days, and more than likely could probably take out a dozen henchmen if he were called on to do so. He wore a pair of large, rimless glasses that seemed to add to his calming presence. All in all, he looked like the type of man it would be very hard to tick off unless one were really trying, but that if they were successful they should run for the hills.

The woman, on the other hand, gave off a completely different impression. She looked like an older version of Anne Possible, but without the constant, sunny disposition or bright, gleaming eyes. No, this woman looked like the classic version of a battleaxe, her features hard and lined behind wire-rimmed, half-moon glasses. She wore a pale green blouse with a slightly paler green skirt that extended past her knees, and her hair was so neatly combed that it looked like it had been glued in that style. Unlike the rest of the welcoming party, her arms were crossed in a disapproving gesture, and her face lacked the warm, greeting smile. As the Possibles and Ron disembarked, Dorothy Carmichael's stare stayed trained on the young man, and Ron was distinctly reminded of the look on Kim's face when she'd first gotten over the shock of his "secret borrowing" of her first battle suit and had called him a liar, a cheater, and a thief all in one breath. In Ron's mind, there was no mistaking that this was Grandma Dorothy, the woman that Kim was nervous about revealing their engagement to. Seeing the woman also made him understand why just before they got out Kim slipped her ring off her right middle finger and hid it in her pocket.

"Annie!" Amos Carmichael exclaimed in a warm, deep voice accompanied by a hearty smile. "It's been too long."

"Yes it has, Dad," Anne Possible said with a grin and a hug for her father that set off a string of hugs among the family, all except for Dorothy Carmichael, who remained stone-faced and silent with her arms crossed disapprovingly.

"James, my boy, how are you?" Amos continued. "Still obsessed with those expensive missiles?"

James laughed as he shook Amos's hand. "Yes, Sir. Still building and testing rockets. Lot faster than any jet engine."

Amos laughed heartily. "Still the one thing wrong with you, James. When will you learn that nothing beats the roar of a jet engine? And where are Goose and Maverick? Since you made it here safely I'd almost assume you didn't bring them."

"We're right here, Grandpa," the Tweebs said in unison.

"These two string-beans?" he said in surprise as he ruffled their hair at the same time. "I swear, Annie, what are you feeding them, fertilizer? At this rate they'll be as tall as me before too long."

"No, just regular, wholesome food," Anne replied with a smile.

"Sure, you are," Laura commented with a laugh as she came forward to hug her twin sister. "Just like I only give Kylie and Dylan meat and potatoes."

"Where is Dylan?" the Tweebs asked.

"Think he's out back with his dad helping with the barbecue," she replied.

The Tweebs immediately took off around the side of the house.

"And where's my Captain?" Amos said with a smile. "I'd better get in a hug before she has to go save the world again."

"Hi, Grandpa," Kim replied as he bent down and she threw her arms around his neck. "And by the way, we're on a break from the missions for this trip. Speaking of which, sorry we didn't get to come see you last year when we were helping with the clean-up from the hurricane."

"Pshaw," the old man replied with a smile. "Nothing to apologize for, Cap. I know you two were busier than a flight mechanic in a war zone." As they parted he grinned. "Though I am glad to finally meet the young man I've heard so much about."

Ron stepped forward, extending his hand. "Ron Stoppable, Sir. It's a pleasure to finally meet you too. Kim's told me a lot about you as well."

There was a twinkling in those wizened blue eyes. "Hopefully nothing too embarrassing. To be honest, I could probably put your U.N. pants-drop stories to shame with some of the blush-worthy stuff I've done over the years."

Ron smiled. "No, just a few stories about where she gets her adventurous side from."

"HMPH!" Dorothy Carmichael voiced loudly. "If she were a proper young lady, she'd stop these infernal missions. Just not right for a young woman to go out looking for trouble. And getting mixed up with all that bad crowd makes a wrong impression on people."

Anne sighed. "Hello, Mother. Nice to see you too."

"Annabelle, I don't know why you couldn't raise a proper daughter who knows how to behave and dress like a young lady should. All this gallivanting all over the world is completely shameful. Why, if you'd even thought about pulling the stuff you let your daughter get away with, I would have had you locked in your room for a month of Sundays."

Amos turned towards his wife. "Now, D, you and I both know that Kimberly is well-respected for what she does."

"Which is even worse," the old woman bit back. "A proper young woman doesn't use her fighting skills to impress people; she uses her charm, grace, and elegance. And all this time spent in the company of this young man…the shame of it. It's no wonder people draw so many conclusions about you two."

Ron kept smiling under the torrent. However, glancing over at Kim, he could tell the criticism was starting to get to her. He knew her well, and only someone who did would see the internal struggle she was going through. Her smile seemed plastered on, and her posture was that of someone who was secretly bristling while presenting a straight, attentive face.

Dorothy continued. "And the outfit you wear, Kimberly Anne…you might as well have just painted something on with how tight that thing is. Why, it's even worse than that one you used to wear that exposed your stomach."

Amos frowned. "Dorothy, that's enough. They just got here, and already you're tearing into your eldest granddaughter for everything under the sun."

"Well if I don't correct her, who will? Certainly not her parents."

"Mom, that's enough," Uncle Z cut in. "Can't we have at least one family get-together where you're civil with Annabelle and her family?"

Aged green eyes narrowed. "Fine, Zachary. Annabelle, for tonight, I will hold my tongue."

"Mother, can't you at least try for the whole weekend?" Anne said with a smile. "We just wanted to come see you for a nice little visit."

Instead of answering, however, the Carmichael matron turned on her heel and went into the house, letting the door close none too gently in her wake. The minute she was out of sight, Kim turned towards Ron and buried her head in his chest. Ron immediately wrapped his arms around her and held her comfortingly.

"Ron, I can't do it. She's always like this. How are we going to deal with this when she won't even smile at me?"

Amos smiled and leaned in towards his granddaughter. "Don't worry, Cap. She didn't see the broadcast."

Kim immediately stood straight up and stared at him with wide surprised eyes. "She didn't?"

He winked at her. "Lucky for you it was on her bingo night down at the rec center. She asked me to record it, but when I saw what that Finkman gentleman said about you two, I erased the DVR before she got home and claimed I fell asleep and forgot."

Anne smiled. "Thanks, Dad."

Amos grinned at Kim. "Oh, and if he was telling the truth on anything that he said, Cap, I'd wait until after Ron fixes the dinner tomorrow night to tell us. Your grandmother is always more receptive to news after she's had a dish she really likes."

As he turned and walked inside, Uncle Z and Aunt Laura both came up and hugged James, Anne, and Kim and shook hands with Ron. Well, Uncle Z shook hands with Ron; Aunt Laura, who he'd only just met moments before, hugged him as if he'd been in the family for years.

"Congratulations," they both said as they pulled back. Then Uncle Z headed around the side of the house while Aunt Laura went in the house.

Kim caught the comments, and turned towards her mother with a questioning eye. "Mom, what did they mean?"

Anne smiled innocently. "About what, Kimmie?"

"Mom…" pushed Kim, her eyes taking on a not-amused look.

James smiled. "Now, Kimmie-cub, when have you ever known your mother to keep a secret like that from her brother or her sister?"

Kim sighed and rolled her eyes. "Please tell me that you didn't tell Grandpa and Grandma."

Anne shook her head. "I didn't, Kimmie, I promise. Doctor's oath and mother's honor. And Laura and Z are under implicit instructions to not tell anyone either."

Kim shifted her weight and folded her arms across her chest. "Not even to Uncle Philip or Aunt June or their kids?" she stated more than asked.

"Not even them," assured Anne. "Especially for Laura not telling Kylie."

Kim breathed a sigh of relief that she knew in her mind was more for show than anything else. "Okay, good. Then I think I'm going to follow Grandpa's advice and tell them after dinner tomorrow." She turned towards Ron. "You realize that means you're gonna have to pull out all the stops in the kitchen, right?"

Ron smiled. "As my bon-diggity lady likes to say, 'No big.' After all, I am ze badical master chef."

Kim laughed a bit. "Okay, Mr. Badical Master Chef. How about we unload and take our suitcases inside?"

After they pulled their stuff out of the van, Anne led the way into the house. If possible, the inside had even more Southern charm than the outside. And for Ron, who had never seen Carmichael Place before, the entrance was like stepping on to the set of some civil war movie like Leaving with the Breeze. The foyer held a medium-sized, circular wooden table with a beautiful floral centerpiece, perfectly centered under a glass chandelier. Behind that, there was a pair of mirroring, curving staircases leading up to the second floor, both with polished cherry wood banisters that were run smooth from years of Anne, Laura, and Z sliding down them. Off to the right was a beautiful-looking dining room with a large table big enough to seat sixteen comfortably, and a door beyond that which most likely led to the kitchen. To the left, a large living and drawing room with dark blue cloth furniture, all except for a single black leather recliner that faced the television, as well as an easel with a half-finished painting of a seaside sunset and a desk table with a magnifying lamp and a mostly completed model of a P-51 Mustang.

"This place is badical boo yeah material, KP," he said as he turned around slowly at the base of the stairs.

Kim smiled as they headed up to the second floor. "Been in my mom's family since the 1840's. During the Civil War it was actually on both sides of the conflict, being a plantation at the beginning and a part of the Underground Railroad by the end. Supposedly there are still a couple of hidden passages and rooms to find."

Anne shook her head. "Kimmie, don't go getting any ideas. I'm sure that your grandmother knows every single nook and cranny of this house top to bottom, and the last thing you two need is for her to find you alone in some secret tunnel."

James grinned. "You just don't want her to find the one with our names inside a heart on the wall."

Anne blushed. "James!" she said like an embarrassed school girl.

Kim smiled. "Mom, I found that one when I was ten."

Her mother drew herself up to her full height. "Well, be that as it may…considering what you came here for, it would probably be a good idea if the two of you didn't go looking for secret passages until after tomorrow night. Ah, here we are."

They'd come upon a series of rooms, one of which had "Anne" on a plaque on the door.

"Kimmie, according to Grandpa you're staying in my old room, and your father and I will be in the one across the hall. The twins will be in the one next to ours, while Ron, you'll be in the one next to Kim."

Ron, who had carried Jim and Tim's suitcases as well as his own, deposited the Tweebs suitcases in their assigned room before heading into his. Kim was tempted to follow him in, but decided it wasn't a good idea at this particular juncture and headed into hers. It turned out to be a good thing, because she found her grandmother sitting on the bed in her assigned room.

"Kimberly Anne, please shut the door and sit down," the grey-haired woman said with a frown.

Kim nodded and sat down, instantly feeling like a criminal under interrogation.

"Kimberly Anne, I can tell by the way you're acting that something is going on between you and that boy your parents saw fit to bring along. And I will tell you right now that there had better be nothing happening this weekend. Furthermore…"

At that moment, Anne came through the door. "Kim, the rest of us...Mother! Can you not give Kim five minutes of peace without…"

Kim raised her hand. "Mom, it's okay. She wasn't doing anything."

Anne crossed her arms and glared at her mother. "Kim, I want to have a word with her if you don't mind. Alone. Take Ron and your father and go down to the barbecue."

Kim started to protest, but the complaint died in her mouth when she saw the lightning being exchanged in the stares the two older women were giving each other. She quickly and quietly moved her suitcases off to the side out of the way, and did exactly what her mother had directed. A few minutes after she left, Anne blew out an exasperated breath.

"Mother, I don't know why you feel the need to take out your frustrations at me on my daughter, but I want it to stop. Yes, I went to college out of state when you and Dad had me all set to go to Ole Miss. Yes, I became a doctor when you wanted me to become a missionary. And yes, I married the first guy I ever dated for more than a year."

"More than a year?" the old woman huffed. "Annabelle Marie, you married the first guy who told you he loved you and actually meant it!"

"AND WHAT IS THE PROBLEM WITH THAT, MOTHER?" Anne practically yelled. "James and I are happy together. We were happy then, and we're happy now. Why can't you understand that?"

"Because that boy took you off of God's path with his false religion! If not for him, you don't take a job that has you working on Sunday!"

"False religion? Mother, listen to yourself! We still go to church every single Sunday morning. Do you realize that is the one time I've told the hospital to never schedule me or any of my appointments? That despite the fact that I'm considered the best neurosurgeon at the hospital by my peers, I don't go in until after the service lets out? I could fill up a book with the number of accident victims over the years who have had to go under the knife of my colleagues instead of mine because of that, and while I would trust them operating on my own brain, I know I could have wrapped it up cleaner and faster! And I do that because of you! Because of your obsessed view of no work on Sundays!"

"Which is the way it should be!" her mother retorted. "The very fact that you agree to work on Sunday afternoons perverts the Lord's commandment, and I pray every night that you will see the light!"

Anne puffed out her cheeks as she shook with her angered disbelief. "Mother, I get that you don't like how I choose to live my life, but it's my life! And furthermore, it's up to me and James how we choose to raise our daughter! Have you ever stopped to notice how many people she's saved over the past five years? How many times she's made the world better? Or have you ever thought about how many people come up to me or James and say, 'I hope my daughter grows up to be just like your Kimberly.'?"

"So she leads another generation into sin! That's just perfect!"

That blew the gasket in Anne's mind. "INTO SIN! MOTHER THAT IS YOUR GRANDDAUGHTER YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT! PROBABLY ONE OF THE MOST MORALLY RESPONSIBLE PEOPLE ON THE ENTIRE PLANET! HOW IS IT THAT DAD CAN ACCEPT THAT KIM MAKES THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE WITH WHAT SHE DOES WHEN YOU CAN'T SEE PAST THE FACT THAT HER PARTNER IN ALL OF THAT IS A BOY?"

"Because I know what she really does on those missions of hers, that's why," Dorothy said calmly. "It's the Devil's work, and I'm surprised you have yet to open your eyes and see it."

"WHAAAAAAT?" Anne yelled lividly at the top of her lungs, so loud that the group outside, who had been so far doing a good job of ignoring the commotion, couldn't help but pause for a second and wonder just what was happening.

"Annabelle, if you had half a brain you'd put two and two together and realize that the only reason those two started dating was so they could feel just slightly less sinful for sharing an unwedded bed on those so-called missions."

Anne Possible needed five deep breaths while she glared at her mother before she could reply. "Mother, I'm telling you right now: if you voice one word of that falsehood to my daughter, I promise you that I will do my absolute best to make sure you never bother her or any of my children ever again." She turned to leave, and paused with her hand on the door. "And to be honest, I find it completely sickening that you believe any of the trash that Willie Finkman has said about her or the wonderful young man she's with. He's known as 'Willie the Weasel' for a reason, and even you should know that your granddaughter has a thousand times the moral fiber of that lying snake. And if any of what he says is true, it would only be the good parts."

She exited, slamming the door behind her. Once out in the hallway, Anne's brave face broke completely, and she walked slowly into the room she and her husband would be using for this trip. Once inside, she closed the door slowly and sat on the bed, burying her face in her hands and letting the tears she had been holding back come forth. If not for her father and her brother and sister, she knew she would be packing up her family and her daughter's fiancé and heading to a hotel for the rest of the trip. The very idea that her own mother thought those things about Kim tore at her heart, and she couldn't help but offer up a soul-driven silent prayer that the rest of the weekend would only improve.

…
…

Down in the backyard, Amos Carmichael sighed wearily when he heard the door slam loudly and shook his head. As James went inside to check on Anne, he turned towards where Ron and Kim were sitting and talking to his other granddaughter Kylie Quinn. The skinny, raven-haired seventeen-year-old was telling her cousin and the young man about her current senior year in high school and asking questions about college.

"Ronald, if you don't mind, I'd like a word with you about my granddaughter. Would you care to take a walk with me?"

"Sure, Sir," Ron replied with a smile.

Kim got up to go with them, but her Uncle Z shook his head.

"Kim, I know you want to help him, this is something Ron has to do alone."

She nodded her understanding, and returned to the conversation she'd been having with Kylie. She was understandably still nervous about the sitch, but something about the way her mom's brother had made his statement made her feel slightly better about what was about to happen.

After Ron and Amos had gone a few blocks and were sure that no one, including Kim, was following after them, the old gentleman turned towards the young man and smiled with a sigh.

"Ronald, I'm going to ask some things you may be uncomfortable answering, and I would very much appreciate it if you told me the truth."

a/n

To those offended, I apologize, but certain aspects had to be brought out into the open for Kim and Ron to deal with. And I assure you, I am not attempting to put anybody down with my writing-I am merely fleshing out characters.

As always, reviews and comments are more than welcome - they're greatly appreciated. :)