Double Entendre: Summer Heat

by David Falkayn

Returning to the DE universe-KP, Tara, Hope, and friends enjoy the summer. AU take on the KP universe with British Avengers series and some parts of 60s spy genre thrown in

7. Chapter 7: Stormy Weather

Stormy Weather

Possible Home a few weeks after the Florida Trip

"Have you heard anything more about Amelia?" Mrs. Doctor Possible asked as she joined her family and Ron, an unofficial member of the family himself, at the breakfast table.

"I talked to her a couple of days ago." Kim replied as she took a sip of coffee, "I'm the only one other than her family and doctors that she'll talk to right now."

"Mmmm…that sounds worrying." Anne commented, "Have you talked to her parents about that?"

"Yeah." Kim nodded her head, "They said they were worried about that too for a while. They told me that the psychologist Amelia's seeing said that she's processing everything that happened now, but she's getting better every day and should be ready to return to a normal life soon—probably by the time of the Picnic."

"That's good." James nodded his head, his expression becoming increasingly more sullen as they talked.

"The bruises and cuts are healing." Kim further related, "Thankfully, there aren't any scars. But, like I said, she's still dealing with everything that happened." Shaking her head, Kim took a small bite from her plate before washing it down with some orange juice. "At least they didn't…I got there before that man could…" heaving a sigh, she moaned dejectedly, "I just wish I could have gotten in time to help those other two girls before…"

"You can't be everywhere at once, Kim." Anne interrupted, placing a hand on that of her daughter's. "By arriving when you did, you stopped them from being sent off to who knows where and brought them back home to their families. That's something to be proud of."

"Mrs. Dr. P's right, Kim." Ron asserted, adding his support. "You did good. You saved Amelia and those girls."

"So…" Kim drawled, "No hard feelings about me not calling you in?"

Smiling at his old friend, Ron joked, "I think we can let it slide this one time. Like you said, I was in Danbury with Zita and the others. There was no way they could have reached me and gotten me to you in time. If they'd have tried…" her blond partner shook his head, "You might have been too late to save Amelia and the others."

"I still can't see why Doctor Director couldn't have gotten someone else." Mr. Dr. P. grumbled. "Someone with more experience doing this sort of stuff."

"Dad!" Kim sighed, "We discussed this. It was a sudden intel breakthrough. There wasn't enough time.

They were shipping that drug—Incubus from there and MALUS was involved…"

"All the more reason to leave you out of it!" James exclaimed loudly, his sudden outburst stunning everyone at the table. "You don't have any business dealing with these people. They're dangerous—too dangerous for my little girl. If I'd have known that letting you put that website up a couple of years ago would have led to this, I'd never have let you do it."

"James…" Anne, quickly intervening, spoke to her husband in calming and soothing words, "We've talked about this several times. Our daughter has always been very careful and has always exercised good judgment. Dr. Director and those other agencies wouldn't have called on her if she didn't."

Sighing inwardly in relief as Kim saw that her mother seemed to be calming her father down, her phone happened to pick that moment to ring. Seeing Josh's name on the caller id, she answered with a smile as her father, as soon as he heard Kim mention her boyfriend's name, once again began to grumble under his breath. "Hey, Josh!"

"Hey, Kim! We still on for the mall this afternoon?"

"As far as I know, yeah." Kim responded, her voice tone indicating to her boyfriend that she had to be cautious.

Picking up on his girlfriend's hint, the sensitive artist/musician inquired in a concerned tone, "I call at a bad time?"

"Yeah. Kinda." Kim replied, maintaining their code, "We've just sat down to breakfast and are in the middle of a family discussion."

"Ah. I understand." Josh responded at once grasping the hidden message behind Kim's phrasing. "Call me back when you're able to. Probably not a good idea for you to say back what I'm gonna say to you unless I wanna end up on a deep space probe to a black hole."

"Probably not." Kim replied with a giggle, "But right back at ya anyway." Her words, earning a subtle eyebrow lift from her mother.

Chuckling, Josh said his goodbye with a simple, "Call me back and I love you."

"That was Josh." Kim announced to the table, "He just wanted to remind me about our mall date this afternoon."

His surliness returning in full force, James groused, "Another date with Josh? You're spending too much time with that boy, Kimmie-cub."

"Dad!" Kim exclaimed, heaving a sigh of exasperation, "We haven't seen each other in two weeks! We're just going to the mall to do some window shopping and grab a bite to eat. That's it."

"James." Anne chided gently, "It's the mall. It's not like they're sneaking off somewhere. Right, Kim?"

"That's right, Mom." Kim affirmed. "It's a Saturday afternoon. There are going to be a lot of people there."

"All right." James reluctantly relented, "But I want you home by dinner."

"That was the plan, Dad." Kim responded with just the slightest hint of sarcasm in her voice, again earning a subtle eyebrow raise from her mother.

"Mom…Dad?" The Tweebs pleaded.

"Yes, Jim and Tim?" Anne asked, thankful to steer things in another direction.

"We were wondering if it would be all right for us to play with our chemistry set today?"

"I think that's a great idea!" James exclaimed, "What's your project boys?"

"We're wanting to try to make a better rechargeable battery." Jim announced proudly.

"That is a worthy goal." James agreed, "All right. We'll give you back your chemistry sets."

"But no more supergluing your sister's door shut." Anne warned, "Or this will be the last time you see your chemistry sets until you're in college."

"Yes, Mom!" The Tweebs joyfully shouted as they took off racing from the table.

Also excusing herself, Kim got up with her best friend, "Mom…Dad…if it's okay, I'm gonna walk with Ron for a bit."

"Okay, Kimmie-cub." James replied, some of his good humor coming back. "Have a good walk."

The front door closing behind the two teens, Ron arched an eyebrow, "Am I imagining things, KP, or have things gotten tense between you and Mr. Dr. P recently?"

Heaving a sigh as the pair walked together, Kim admitted, "It's not your imagination, Ron. I wish it were. Yeah…it's been kinda like walking on egg shells around Dad ever since that mission I went on for Dr. Director in Florida."

"Yeah, that's what I thought. It also looks like Josh is setting him off too."

"No surprise about that." Kim sighed, "Just hearing that a boy might be interested in me or that I'm interested in him is enough to set him off. Combine that with the fact that me and Josh are going steady…and…well…you saw."

Ron contemplated his friend's situation for several moments before commenting, "Could there be something else that's triggering him? Like maybe what happened with Tara, Hope, and Sergei? You think that might have put him on edge more than usual?"

"I don't know." Kim moaned, shaking her head. "Could be. I haven't said anything about it to Mom or Dad because—well—it's Hope, Tara, and Sergei's business, not theirs. But I'm sure Sergei told his father—they're pretty close. Maybe Mr. Radovsky let slip something to Dad that he didn't intend to. I don't know!"

"It'll be okay, KP!" Ron exclaimed as he gave his best friend a hug while Rufus, slipping out of his human's pocket, gave the redheaded teen a thumbs up. "He just needs some time to amp down and you just need to curb that impulse to let your natural Kimness take charge, that's all."

"I hope so." Kim sighed, following her sigh up with a giggle, "And yeah, you're right. I do need to count to ten before I say or do anything. That's why I've decided to hold off on buying that Corvette until at least my birthday. I'm hoping things cool down a little by then, but cooled down or not, I'm getting that 'Vette and I'm also gonna…well…we'll talk about that next."

"How are you able to buy a car on your own, Kim?" Ron asked, his curiosity getting the better of him, "Much less a Corvette?"

Reaching into her wallet, the teen hero took out a driver's license. "Take a look."

"Nineteen years old?" Ron exclaimed, his eyes widening, "A fake id?"

"Oh no." Kim laughed, "It's a one hundred percent real government issue license—thanks to Global Justice, Mother, and MI 6. Sometimes I need to pass as a legal adult. I can't get away with twenty-one like Hope can…so I have to settle for nineteen for now. But in another year or two I should be able to pass for twenty-one."

"Wow!" Ron gasped.

"It's like Walther. I don't like to use it often." Kim admitted. "One, because most of the people around here know me and know how old I am. And two, because well…I kinda don't want to take too much advantage of it."

"But you're buying a sports car with it." Ron pointed out.

"Yeah." Kim blushed, "You're right. That does make me come across as a little hypocritical, doesn't it?"

"A little?" Ron arched an eyebrow.

"Okay!" Kim sighed, "A lot! But Ron, the moment I saw that car, I knew that I just had to have it! It's me!" Excited, she took a picture out of her wallet—a cherry red with white interior Corvette Stingray convertible. "I found it online. Isn't it badical?"

"Totally." Ron agreed, sounding a note of caution. "I just hope it doesn't make things worse between you and your Dad."

"Yeah." Kim sighed as the pair walked through the old playground where they used to play as children, "But…I got a bad feeling it's gonna get worse between us anyway—even without the car—before it gets better." Changing the subject, she gave her best friend a playful punch on the arm. "Okay—enough about me and my problems for now. Let's talk about you. How are you and Zita doing?"

Blushing, Ron responded, "Well. Better than well. Badical actually…bondiggedty badical."

"Uh Huh." Kim smirked, "So…dish…did the two of you…"

"Did the two of us…what?" Ron chuckled, his blush deepening.

"You know what, Ronald Dean Stoppable." Kim quipped, "Did you two do it or are you going to make me say the word—and you know I will."

"Okay." Ron admitted, his face about as red as it could get, "Yes…we did."

"I knew it!" Kim exclaimed as she again playfully punched her friend's arm. "So…how was it? And I want details…okay…not too much detail…but…come on…inquiring minds wanna know! How was it!"

His face still red, Ron answered his friend's questions with a shy smile. "It was…it was…" he stammered, "It was a little awkward—not awk-weird—but awkward for us both at first. We were kinda learning how to do things—you know?"

"Yeah." Kim replied, blushing herself, "I think I understand. But it got better—right?"

"Oh yes!" Ron exclaimed. "It got better each time." A shy smile still on his face, Ron continued, "Zita just said that we needed practice—lots and lots of practice."

"So…" Kim teased, "Have you been getting practice?"

"Yeah." Ron, his face still red, responded, "Whenever we get the chance."

"Good thing your parents are gone a lot." Kim chuckled, continuing the good-natured ribbing.

"Yeah…but hers aren't. And she's still working at the movie theater in the mall. So…we can't get together as much as we'd like."

"I know what you mean." Kim sighed, "Josh and I have to be careful in the house too."

"So…" Ron interrupted, "Since what's good for the gander is good for the goose, have you and Josh…"

Kim laughed as a blush appeared on her cheeks, "No…not yet. Right now, we're still just going down on each other. But that's probably going to change soon."

"How soon?"

"Hmmm…" The young redhead shrugged her shoulders, "Most likely a few weeks—definitely by the time school starts. It's just…" taking a deep breath and exhaling, she groaned, "It's just finding the time and place. Neither one of us wants it to be sleazy, so that rules out the back seat of a car or a cheap motel room. Doing it in my room while the 'rents and the Tweebs are away is kinda like playing Russian roulette. Sooner or later, Dad's gonna come home early and catch us or the Tweebs will run one of their little probes and then…"

"All hell breaks loose." Ron finished.

"Right." Kim affirmed with a single nod of her head. "It's just so infuriating sometimes! Every time Josh comes over—even if all we're planning on doing is snuggling together on the sofa to watch tv—which is what we do most of time—believe it or not, if Dad sees us when he comes in, the first place he heads is my bedroom. And yes, I've set little markers around my room to let me know if someone's going where they're not supposed to like through my drawers or into my jewelry box or places like that, and I've got Walther and my booze hidden in a place no one but me can find."

Shaking his head, Ron sympathized, "I don't know what to say, Kim. Things must really be getting bad between you two that he's doing that and that you feel you have to do what you're doing."

"Yeah." Kim sighed dejectedly, "The level of trust between us has gone down a lot recently—ever since I started dating Josh seriously and when I started going out on more dangerous missions. So far…other than the bed, my desk, and the top of my dresser, nothing's been disturbed. He hasn't been poking in any of the drawers or opening any boxes or hampers yet thank God."

"Well that's a good sign." Ron pointed out, wanting to sound a note of optimism.

"It is." Kim agreed with a nod of her head. "But I'm still expecting one day to return and find something out of place that's not supposed to be. Hell…I already have to do a sweep of my room every so often in case the Tweebs decide to slip in a bug or something."

"Did you find any?"

"Once." Kim replied with a frown. "I showed it to Mom. She called the Tweebs in and then all hell broke loose." An evil grin appearing on her face, she finished her story, "They got grounded for a month and had to cough up all their electronics. What makes it better was that Mom called T and H over and they ran a full sweep just to make sure that there wasn't anything left."

"I didn't know things were so bad, Kim." Ron commented sympathetically.

"I don't know if I'd call them bad so much as tense." Kim responded, also wanting to sound a positive note. "If Dad would just lighten up a little and cut me some slack it would be a lot better. I don't have any problems sticking to curfews and I watch my swearing around the house, and I don't come home drunk. I also don't mind doing my fair share of the chores and I clean up after myself. I'm perfectly happy following about ninety percent of his rules. Almost all of our problems stems from the fact that he wants me to stay twelve years old permanently and…well…I'm going to be seventeen in a few weeks. Not so long ago, I'd be married running a household. Not that I'm looking to get married…" the teen hero chuckled, holding up her hands as if she were fending off evil spirits, "…but I'm not twelve years old anymore either. He needs to understand that." Sighing, Kim confided, "I don't know what I'd do if Mom weren't here to keep the peace."

"Yeah." Ron agreed with a warm smile, "Mrs. Dr. P is badical."

"She sure is." Kim agreed. "You saw a little bit of what she does today—she's about the only one with the possible exception of you who can cool both me and Dad down. The bad thing about that is that it puts her in the middle and that's not fair to her. Added to that, she knows that me and Josh are going down on each other and that it's only a matter of time before we're doing what you and Zita are doing now. Ron…" the young redhead moaned as she kissed her best friend on the cheek, "I don't know what I'd do if I didn't have you around to talk to."

"What was that for?" Ron asked, "Not that I'm complaining."

"That's for being my best friend." Kim answered back before returning to the original topic, "But yeah, like I told you, my house is problematic for Josh and me to get together for more than cuddling, and his house is out because it's too small and…" she blushed a brilliant crimson, "I do tend to be a little loud at times."

"Yeah. Zita does too." Ron chuckled as his blush returned.

"Hmmm…I could always spring for a room or suite in a nice hotel…" she paused for a moment as she gave serious consideration to the option, "…and I probably will go that route if all else fails. But if I do it'd have to be in Upperton or a town close by like Danville or Rockville and we'd both have to come up with good excuses as to why we're gone for a night or two or three." Shaking her head, she admitted, "Maybe that's not such a good option after all."

"Probably not." Ron agreed.

"Another possibility would be asking Tara and Hope if Josh and I could have Hope's room when we want some alone time." Kim pondered, "She's pretty much moved into Tara's room anyway, along with Sergei when he stays over—which is almost all the time now. But I don't want to put them out and I definitely don't want them caught in any blowback if Dad finds out."

"He will eventually." Ron cautioned, "Mr. Dr. P's not stupid."

"You're right, Ron." Kim sighed, "Like I was saying I don't want T and H caught in the shitstorm that's gonna happen when Dad finds out. Hell…if he found out that Josh and I are having oral sex that would cause an earthquake of Biblical proportions!"

"Yeah." Ron chuckled, "I have a feeling there'd be nothing but a crater where your house is now if he finds that out."

Heaving a sigh of resignation, Kim confided, "I don't know. Josh and I will work something out somehow…some way." Smiling at her best friend, she again kissed his cheek, "You know, Ron. It's nice that we can talk to each other about this kind of stuff. I mean—Hope, Tara, and I talk about it all the time—you should hear some of the shit we talk about. You think your face is red now, just catch one of our conversations sometime. But I'm glad I can talk to you too. It means a lot to me that you're my best friend. Tara and Hope are my BFFs—Best Female Friends—but you'll always be my bestest friend." Reaching her best friend's house, the young redhead smiled. "Thanks again, Ron, and tell Zita I said hello."

"Will do, Kim." Ron smiled back, "And…good luck with your father. I hope you get things settled soon too."

"So do I Ron." The teen hero sighed as she waved goodbye, "Catch you later, Ron-man!"

"Later, KP!"

Mr. Dr. P and Mrs. Dr. P

After making sure that the Tweebs had gone out to play and were out of earshot, Anne returned to her husband with the coffee carafe. Refilling both hers and her husband's cup, the redheaded neurosurgeon, after taking a sip of coffee, gently reprimanded her husband, "Don't you think you were a little hard on Kim during breakfast?"

"Maybe." James relented with a sigh as he took a sip of coffee, "It's just that I don't know how to talk to her anymore. She's…"

"What? Defiant? Rebellious?" Anne questioned, "She didn't come across as being either to me."

"No, of course not." James replied, shaking his head, "That's not it."

"Is it because she's grown up now? That she's no longer a little girl. She's now a young woman with a young woman's desires and goals? Could that be it?" Anne asserted with a warm smile, knowing as soon as she saw the look on her husband's face that she'd hit the mark.

"No." James shook his head vehemently, refusing to even entertain that notion. "She's not grown up yet."

"James." Anne declared as she placed her hand over that of her husband's, "She is."

"I refuse to accept that, Anne." James exclaimed, "But that's not what's eating at me now."

"Then what is?" The redheaded doctor asked in a soothing tone

"I don't like her seeing that boy regularly." James declared, his eyes narrowing into angry slits.

"Josh?" Anne shook her head in a mixture of surprise and frustration, "What's your problem with him? From everything I've seen, he's been very good to Kim."

"She shouldn't be involved with any boy seriously right now. She's not ready for that yet." Mr. Dr. P asserted forcefully.

"James." Anne chided, "If she were going out with a different boy a week you'd be upset. Be honest. You don't like the idea of her going out at all."

"That's not true." Mr. Dr. Possible answered back.

"Yes. James." Anne persisted, her gaze not wavering from her husband's. "It is. You're going to have to let go of this illusion of yours that she's still a child. She's a young woman now. You need to respect that."

"So…" James bit back, "We should let her do whatever she wants whenever she wants?"

"Of course not." Anne riposted. "But let's be honest here, Hon. Have we ever had a serious problem with her violating our rules?" Taking advantage of her husband's silence, the neurosurgeon pressed her argument, "She always comes home by curfew—right? And when something happens that might cause her to be late, doesn't she always call in and inform us?"

"Yes." James nodded.

"And she always does her chores, doesn't she?"

"Yes."

"So…what's the problem?" Anne demanded, pushing her apparent advantage.

"Well…you already know about how I feel about her spending so much time with Tara and Hope." James replied with a scowl.

"We've been over this ground many times before, James." Anne sighed, "I don't see any need for us to go over it again. The positives of her friendship with them outweigh any negatives that they might bring—which in my opinion are minimal."

"All right." James pressed, not wanting to give up, "What about her missions? I'm worried about her." Mr. Dr. P admitted, "The missions she's going on now…they're a lot more dangerous than they were before."

"I'm not so sure about that, James." Anne gently reproved. "Remember Halloween? Drew and that crazy Scotsman were plenty dangerous. Her and the girls saved our lives and the lives of a lot of innocent people. And don't forget that Monkey Fist guy. If it weren't for her, Ron, Sergei, and the girls a lot of people—you included—could have been hurt. And even if she's not taking on bad guys, she still puts herself at risk—remember when she rescued that baby bird and returned it to her mother? That could have gone bad for her real quick and in any number of different ways. Honey, she's been putting herself at risk a long time before taking jobs from these other agencies."

"I don't care! She shouldn't be doing those kinds of missions and…"

"They're a lot more dirty and gritty." Anne finished. "Yeah. They are. And I'll be the first to admit that it worries me when she goes out on them."

"So we should put our foot down and tell her no more missions." James proclaimed forcefully.

"No." Anne shook her head. "That's the exact wrong thing we should do. Maybe…" she conceded, "when she first put up that website a few years ago we could have put a stop to it—and maybe we should have—I don't know—what's done is done. Past is past. All we can do is look forward. But James…think about this…what do you think her reaction would be if you tried to stop her from going?"

"She'd be mad for a while." James replied before asserting confidently, "But she'd get over it eventually."

"No James." Anne shook her head, "She wouldn't. And you thinking that she would reveals just how out of touch you are with her now. If you do that, you will lose her for sure. Odds are she'd follow Hope's lead and pack up and move out the moment you told her she couldn't go out anymore. We'd be lucky if she's still willing to talk to us if that were to happen"

"Then I'll make her come back—in the back of a police car if I have to." James declared, his face reddening in anger.

"Listen to yourself, James." Anne sighed, "You're talking about treating our daughter as if she were a prisoner. I'm not going to stand for that." The redheaded physician declared issuing her husband a clear warning, "I hope you take some time, cool down, and then, when you both are calm and wanting to have a rational discussion, sit down with your daughter and have a real talk with her. But…if you put your foot down and try to forbid her from going out on missions or from seeing Josh, I won't back you." Seeing the look of shock and disbelief on his face, the redheaded mother doubled down, "I mean it, James. You do that, you'll do it without my consent or support."

"So…" James growled, "You're taking her side?"

"No." Anne shook her head, "I'm not. I'm not taking anyone's side. When she comes back from her walk I'm going to talk to her too and I'm going to tell her the same thing I'm telling you—the two of you need to fix this communications gap you've both contributed to." With that, the frustrated mother sighed as she picked up the carafe and both coffee cups. "Think about it, James. Communication is more than just talking. It's about listening too."

James and Kim

Closing the door behind her as she entered the house, Kim at once spotted her father sitting on the sofa watching television. "Hey, Dad." She called out hoping to start a conversation, "What's on the tube?"

"Oh." James looked up giving his daughter a smile, "Kimmie-cub. It's a new documentary on the Knowledge Channel."

"What's it about?" Kim asked as she sat down next to her father.

"They're ranking the hundred most important inventions of the past hundred years." James replied with a grin, "I think number one has to be 3D maps of the universe—of course I might be a little biased. What do you think?"

"I gotta go with metal 3-D printing." Kim replied thoughtfully. "It just opens up so many opportunities."

"So…" James questioned, "Have you decided on what you're going to take when school starts?"

"Well…" Kim answered back, "Besides the required courses—you know—math, English, history…I'm staying on as captain of the cheerleading team, so that takes care of PE. I'm planning on one of my electives being driver's ed…"

"Driver's ed?" James raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah." Kim replied, nodding her head, "Gonna need the course if I'm going to drive a car."

"Why would you need to drive a car, Kim?" James asked leadingly.

"Dad." Kim responded, counting slowly to ten like she promised Ron she would, "I'll be seventeen in a couple of weeks. I think I've shown that I'm responsible enough to own a car."

"I'll decide whether you're responsible enough or not." James snapped back.

"Dad…" Kim retorted, taking a deep breath and exhaling, "I'm taking driver's ed. I'd like your support and help, but with it or without it, I am taking it."

"Not without my permission you're not." James answered back, a stern expression on his face.

"Then I'll ask Mom." Kim at once snapped, then quickly regretted her words. "I'm sorry, Dad," the young redhead apologized, "I lost my temper. But…it's just a course…that's all. And I am going to need it—you know that. Please…"

Heaving a sigh, James, somewhat mollified by his daughter's apology, granted his reluctant approval, "All right, Kimmie. You can take the course."

Her lips turning up in a smile, the teen hero bent down and gave her father a kiss on his cheek, "Thanks, Dad."

Watching the increasingly rancorous discussion between her husband and daughter from the kitchen doorway, Anne heaved a dejected sigh. As her daughter made her way towards the kitchen, the redheaded mother called her over. "Your bedroom, Kim." She commanded, "Now."

"Yes, Mom." Kim obediently replied as she followed her mother up the stairs into her room.

"Sit down, Kim." Anne urged, patting the edge of the bed next to where she was sitting. "I saw your…conversation…with your father."

"I'm sorry, Mom." Kim apologized, "I didn't mean to drag you in. I lost my temper. I know it's no excuse, but he gets me so angry sometimes."

"He loves you, you know."

"Yeah." Kim nodded her head, "I know. And I love him too."

"I know that." Anne affirmed with a smile on her face. Her smile replaced by a serious look, she pointed out to her daughter, "We both know that he has some serious letting go issues where you're concerned."

"Yeah." Kim agreed, "But what am I supposed to do? I can't stay a kid forever. And what's he going to do when I go to college and I'm out on my own? Look, Mom…" the young redhead shook her head, her voice forlorn and somber, "I'm doing my best to not cause problems. I'm doing everything I promised I would do: Josh and I are being careful…I do the best I can to humor him…I obey your rules…but…"

"I know." Anne sighed, "You're at the stage in your life where you're wanting to spread your wings and assert yourself more." An ironic grin appearing on her face, the older redhead quipped, "It doesn't help matters that in a lot of ways you're mature for your age while in others you still have your moments…"

"My inner Kimness as Ron says." Kim chuckled.

"Right." Ann smirked. "You let it come out a little a few minutes ago."

"Yeah." Kim nodded, "You're right, Mom. I lost it for a bit when I mentioned you. I shouldn't have done that."

"That's right." Anne replied with a single nod of her head, "If you hadn't apologized and smoothed things over, that would have put me on the spot. Off the record—I think you're right. If you haven't already gotten your eyes on a car you will soon—and knowing Tara and Hope, I have a good idea what sort of car it's going to be. I'm going to ask you to do a favor for me, Kim…"

"Of course, Mom." Kim replied, "What do you want me to do?"

"Hold off on parking that car in the driveway until after you've completed driver's ed at the earliest. That will give me a chance to work on your father. Can you do that for me?"

"Yeah." Kim promised, giving her mother a smile, "I was planning on holding off on buying it until after my birthday anyway, so I can wait a few extra weeks if it'll help keep the peace."

"It will, Kim" Anne declared with a nod of her head, "Also, if that car is the type of car I think it's going to be, then you're going to have to pay for it, the insurance, and any maintenance. Now, I'm not stupid. I know you're not doing those jobs out of the kindness of your heart, and honestly, that doesn't bother me. I get paid for caring for my patients and paid well. It's only fair that you be paid as well for your work—I'm sure Global Justice or whatever other intelligence agency you're working for can afford it. I'm also sure that if someone really needs your help and can't afford it, you'll deal with that person accordingly."

"Of course, Mom." Kim vowed, "I'd never refuse to help someone who needs my help because they can't pay."

"I'm glad to hear that." Anne said with a smile before broaching the next topic, "Oh…one other thing…your relationship with Josh. I'm getting the impression that you're about to take the next step—am I right?"

"Yes, Mom." Kim admitted, her face reddening.

"I'm not surprised." Anne responded, "Like I said a few weeks ago, I wish we wouldn't be dealing with this for another year or so, but…we're dealing with it now. So far, you've been doing a good job keeping it on the low down. Your father's wary, but no more than usual. You need to continue to be discreet. You're doing a good job keeping to curfew and everything else. Keep that up. Also, continue being honest with me—and with him. Can you do that for me?"

"Sure, Mom." Kim smiled, before sincerely declaring, "I don't like this tension that's built up between me and Dad any more than you do. I hope we can get back to the way we were soon."

"So do I, Dear."

Jessica and Steve

"So…what do you wanna watch?" Steve Farley, Middleton's all-star baseball shortstop asked as he and his blonde freckle faced girlfriend settled down on her parent's sofa, a bowl of popcorn on the coffee table.

"Hmmm…" the other blonde cheerleader mused, "What about something funny? After having to babysit Hope's brothers, I'm due a laugh or two."

"How are things between Hope and her family." Steve asked as he searched through the dvds. "Still not talking to each other?"

"We talked about it some before she went on her trip to England with Tara and Sergei. She said that things were improving a little bit with her mother. They're talking to each other now and she's able to spend more time with her brothers, but her father's still being a prick."

"That's too bad." Steve commented as he held up a movie. "What about this one? Major League. It's a classic."

"Hmmm…" Jessica mused before picking another dvd. I'm kinda in the mood for cheesy. What about Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine?"

"Works for me." Steve responded with a shrug of shoulders as he slid the dvd into the player, "One cheesy flick coming up.

"Perfect way to spend an overcast Saturday afternoon." Jessica giggled as she picked up the bowl of popcorn and snuggled up next to her boyfriend. "Veg out, munch popcorn, and cuddle up with a handsome baseball player."

"That's a plan I can get behind." Steve chuckled as he placed his arm around his girlfriend's shoulders. "So…guess who I saw while I was working at my Dad's mini-golf course while you were babysitting Hope's brothers?"

"Who?" Jessica asked with an impish grin.

"Brick…" Steve chuckled, "And he was not alone."

"So he and Bonnie got back together again." Jessica snorted, "Figures. It's been a couple of weeks so it's time for the ritual crawling back."

"Nope." Steve grinned, "It wasn't Bonnie. Someone new."

"Oh? Tell me more."

"All right." Steve laughed, "On one condition—hand me the popcorn."

Brick and Sue

"I've always liked to come here whenever I get the chance." Brick exclaimed with a big childlike grin on his face as he walked hand in hand with his date into the mini-golf park.

"How often do you come here?" Sue, smiling warmly at the sight of her boyfriend's joyfulness, asked as the couple walked towards the concession stand.

"Not as often as I'd like to." The all-star football player replied, "Between football practice and everything else, I don't get much of a chance to play anymore."

Realizing that the gentle giant was talking about his old girlfriend, Sue smiled warmly at him as she avowed, "Good thing I happen to love playing mini-golf then. We had a course back home I'd always go to. They designed to look like it came from the Old West."

"Cool!" Brick exclaimed, the big smile returning to his face. "What was it like?"

"It was fun." Sue grinned back, "You had to go through a tunnel with a water fall, then there was an old fashioned jail, general store, old-timey school house, train station, and a water tower."

"Then you're gonna love Mr. Farley's park." The good-hearted quarterback declared. "The sixth hole is a castle and there's a clown head, and all other sorts of fun stuff."

"I can't wait." Sue replied as the pair arrived at the concession booth where Steve Farley worked.

"Hey!" Brick grinned, "Steve's working today. He's a cool guy. You're gonna love him. He plays shortstop for the baseball team and goes out with Jessica…Jessica Sundstrum."

"She's a cheerleader—right?" Sue inquired.

"Yeah." Brick affirmed with a nod of his head, "She's cool too." As the pair reached the counter, Brick called out, "Hey, Steve! Your dad got you working today?"

"Yeah, Brick." Steve grinned as he heard the football player call out to him. Turning around, the shortstop very quickly realized that the woman standing beside his friend holding his hand was not his traditional girlfriend. "Jess got stuck babysitting Hope's brothers, so I pulled Nathan's shift today so that he could go to the GWA wrestling match in Danville." After a momentary pause, the shortstop inquired, "Who's your friend?"

"Oh." Brick exclaimed his face reddening in embarrassment, "Sue…this is Steve Farley. Steve…this is Sue Gibson. She transferred to Middleton last semester and plays clarinet in the concert band."

"Cool." Steve replied, giving the new girl a friendly grin. "So…how do you like Middleton, Sue."

"It's a nice place." The light-brown haired clarinet player replied with a shy smile. "It took me a little time to get to know people. I'm a little shy if you haven't already guessed."

"Hey, that's okay." Steve remarked reassuringly, "My friend, Kevin, is much the same."

"How's Kevin doing?" Brick inquired.

"Doing pretty good." Steve answered back with a nod of his head. "He, Liz, and the rest of the chess club went to some sort of tournament in Danville and Liz won third place."

"That's not bad." Brick remarked before explaining to his date, "Liz is another cheerleader and she's dating Kevin."

"The other redhead." Steve laughed.

"Other redhead?" Sue queried, "Somewhere I heard that Jessica was called the other blonde and Liz is the other redhead. Why do you call them that—if I might ask?"

"Sure." Steve replied with a grin and shrug of his shoulders. "It's because two other cheerleaders, Kim…you know…Kim Possible?"

"Yeah." Sue chuckled, "Kinda hard to go to Middleton and not know about her."

"True." Steve laughed, "Well, she's got red hair and Tara…Tara King…has blonde hair. Have you met her yet?"

"She's the one who hangs out with Kim and the dark-haired cheerleader?"

"Hope." Steve interjected, "Yeah. Not to be confused with Marcella—another dark haired cheerleader who's also almost an exact double for Hope."

"Kinda like Kim." Sue replied, "I've heard about Tara, but never met either her or Hope."

"You've heard their nickname, right?" Steve chuckled.

"The Dirty Pair, is it?"

"Yeah." Steve nodded, "And believe me, they've earned that name. When Kim's with them, they become the Trashy Trio."

"Trashy Trio?" Sue giggled on hearing the name.

Laughing, Steve, carefully editing out Bonnie's name, explained how the three girls got the nickname after coming into school hungover from a night of partying.

"Oh." The slender clarinet replied, rolling her eyes.

"Don't let their nicknames fool you." Steve admonished, "Yeah…the Pair can get a little wild—especially when they're together—add Kim to the mix and…"

"Boom!" Brick interjected with a laugh.

"Right." Steve snorted, "Put all three together and you've got a hurricane. But they're good people and you'd be surprised at some of the stuff they've done."

Agreeing with the shortstop, Brick recalled, "They were the ones who got that stop the bullying thing started and got all the cheerleaders to help make sure that boy who got hurt had a good time at the Spirit Dance. They, and Stoppable, also saved my rear end when that crazy lady tried to kill me."

"I know about the anti-bullying campaign." Sue responded, "I just started here when it was going on, but I didn't know they were the ones who got it going, and of course I know about Kim and her friend's other stuff, but I never knew the Dirty Pair was involved."

"Tara and Hope like to keep it low-key." Scott explained, "But yeah…they've been in some pretty hairy stuff. And Ron rarely gets the credit he deserves even though Kim and the Pair do their best to try to make sure he does. It's just…"

"The reporters here are dumber than I'm supposed to be." Brick declared with a scowl.

"There's one thing I've found out about you since we started going together, Brick…" Sue declared as she squeezed her new boyfriend's hand, "You're not dumb."

"Congratulations, Sue." Steve exclaimed, half-jokingly and half in earnest, "You've picked up on what his last girlfriend and her friends never did." Returning to the subject of Stoppable, Steve commented, "For a while the bullies liked to pick on him because he never fought back. But then one day the bullies in D-Wing got trashed by him and after that, they've left him alone except for the odd insult that he just lets roll off his back."

"Yeah." Brick recalled, "He puts on an act of not being fit, but I can tell you for a fact that he's an athlete. You gotta be to keep up with Kim and the Pair and be the mascot—that job's a lot tougher than it looks."

"You're telling me!" Steve guffawed and then began ticking items off with his fingers, "One, he's gotta wear that costume—that's gotta be hot and that Mad Dog head ain't light. Two, he spots for the girls when they do their pyramids."

"He's gotta be able to catch a hundred-hundred twenty pound cheerleader if she falls and all that weight's muscle." Brick interjected.

"And three…" Steve finished, "Those routines he does call for him to be fast and quick on his feet. Yeah…he's an athlete."

"So…" Sue inquired, "Why does he act the way he does?"

Shrugging his shoulders, Steve responded, "Because he wants to, I guess. I get the feeling that he mostly doesn't care what people think."

"Not always." Brick pointed out, "Sometimes he tries too hard to be popular like when he got that makeover or when he wrote that thing in the paper about Kim having a crush on me."

"Yeah." Steve conceded, "That caused a lot of problems. He also really got Kim and the Pair mad when during the student council president elections he switched from being Kim's campaign manager to Wally's." Chuckling, Steve recalled, "You should have heard Kim at the lunch table when she found out. She called him stuff I've never heard before—not even in the locker room. Believe it or not, that girl can cuss like a pirate."

"Thanks for the info." Sue smiled, "Remind me to never get on the bad side of the Trio."

"Usually a good move." Steve laughed, "But I don't think you got anything to worry about. You seem to be good people."

"Well thanks." Sue chuckled, "I try to be."

Grinning, Steve continued from where he left off, "You've got to really work at it to get on those girls' permanent bad sides. But if you do…"

"It ain't pretty." Brick finished.

"You can say that again." Steve laughed, "So…you two gonna play a round or two?"

"Yeah." Brick smiled, "How much for two?"

"We're running a date special today, two for the price of one." Steve replied, "Plus our special friends only discount."

After money had changed hands and the couple received their putters, Brick grinned at his date. "You wanna go first?"

Jessica and Steve—the Present

"So…Bonnie hasn't found out yet?" Jessica asked as she snatched the popcorn bowl back and shoved a handful of popcorn in her mouth.

"Nope." Steve chortled at the sight of his girlfriend putting all that popcorn into her mouth all at once. "How did you manage to do that?" He laughed.

"Practice, babe." Jessica winked, "Lots of practice. So…back to topic…Bonnie doesn't know about Sue yet, does Sue know about Bonnie?"

"Yeah." Steve nodded, "Brick told me later that after their second date he filled her in on everything and warned her about what to expect when Bonnie does find out."

"Which won't be much longer if she hasn't already." Jessica pondered, "Hmmm…I better get hold of Kim, the Pair, Liz, Crys and her girlfriend, and Zita and clue them in so that they can keep an eye on both of them. We've got the Picnic coming up soon and everyone's gonna be there."

"You think there might be a blowup?" Steve asked.

"If my sources are right—and you know they usually are…" Jessica frowned, "I think there are going to be a lot of little blowups and at least one…most likely two or three…big ones. Lots of tension around here—you can cut it with one of Tara's knives. Plus there's the whole thing with Amelia—no one knows what's really going on with her except maybe for Kim, Ron, Sergei and the Pair, and none of them are talking. That alone tells me something bad happened."

"Guess we'll find out when we find out." Steve replied with a sigh. "And I thought this summer was going to be fun."

"I'll show you fun." Jessica leered as she set down the popcorn bowl and began tickling her boyfriend.

Laughing, Steve began tickling his girlfriend back until he heard a low moan coming from her as he touched a sensitive spot.

Gasping, Jessica whispered in her boyfriend's ear as she nibbled, "Don't you dare stop Steve Farley."

Bonnie and Monique—Middleton Mall

"Have you heard from Amelia yet?" Monique asked as she and her best friend, cruising the Middleton Mall, made a beeline straight towards Club Banana where the fashion diva worked as a sales clerk.

"No." Bonnie shook her head, her facial expression showing genuine concern, "I've tried calling her, but her parents always answer the phone and they say the same thing—that she's not feeling well and isn't up to taking any calls right now, and when I asked if I could come over, they said that Amelia's not up to seeing anyone right now and to try again later. That maybe in a week or two she'll feel better."

"That's weird." Monique observed, her normal smile now replaced by a worried frown. "That's not like her at all. Something bad—really bad—must have happened on that cruise."

Bonnie agreed, "I'm thinking the same. I hate to say this, but the only people who might know something are…"

"LMP, Little Miss Perfect, and the Dirty Pair." Monique finished, "If anyone knows it's them. Now all we gotta do is get them to spill." Letting out a sigh, the school gossip queen moaned, "And that's gonna be easier said than done. Those three hos do a good job of keeping their mouths shut when they wanna."

"Yeah." The brown-haired cheerleader replied with a frown, "You're right. They're not going to tell us anything they don't want to tell us." Sighing, she remarked as the two teens entered the store, "So…where's that top you wanted to show me?"

"Right over here, GF." Monique smiled as she picked out a blue with white trim crop top. "Try this on. If you like it, there's a pair of short-shorts that'll match it perfectly."

"Okay." Bonnie grinned, taking the top as she made her way to the fitting rooms, "See you in a bit."

Kim and Josh—Middleton Mall

"And that's the sitch so far." Kim moaned as she relayed her earlier discussions with her mother and father along with a somewhat edited account of her talk with Ron, making sure to leave out any confidences. "I've decided to hold off on buying the 'Vette until after I've finished the school's driver's ed course even though I've already completed GJ's tactical driving course—which was pretty damned tough!"

"Driver's ed's only six weeks long." Josh commiserated, "That's not too bad."

"Nah." Kim agreed, "It isn't. Hopefully, by then Mom will have had enough time to get Dad used to the idea."

"Well, the fact that you're willing to tote all the expenses should earn you some points." Josh declared optimistically.

"Not really." Kim answered back with an ironic smirk, "Remember, we're talking about my dad here. As far as he's concerned, my paying for everything is another sign that I'm becoming more independent, and that's the last thing he wants."

"So…what are you going to do if your mother doesn't convince him to go along with it?" Josh asked.

Taking a deep breath and exhaling, Kim carefully answered her boyfriend's question. "Well first thing I'm gonna do is clue Mom in on my plans so she's not blindsided. Then I'm buying the car whether Dad likes it or not. If he puts up a fuss at me for parking it in the driveway, then I'll park it on the curb. But make no mistake, I'm getting that car and…" lowering her voice so that no one but the young man walking beside her could hear, she declared, squeezing her boyfriend's hand, "…we're making love. Have no doubts about that. I'm ready right now, Josh and I know you are too. The only thing holding us up is logistics and believe me—we'll get there and it'll be great and it'll be wonderful and it won't be in a sleazy motel room or the back seat of a car."

"Look Kim…" Josh replied, his tone both supportive and loving, "I want this as bad as you do, but I don't want to cause any more trouble between you and your father than you already have. I can wait."

"Don't worry about it, baby." Kim smiled, "It's not you who's causing the problems." Shaking her head, the young redhead declared in a soft voice, "This has been building up for a long time—even before I met you. He'd be acting the same way about any boy I dated." Chuckling, the teen hero lightened her tone, "Remember when Ron wrote that stupid story about me having a crush on Brick?"

"Yeah." Josh chuckled, "We'd just started going out and I almost broke up with you because I figured…yeah…" he laughed, his face reddening with embarrassment, "I know it was stupid…Tara and Hope made it very clear to me that I was behaving like an ass…"

"Yeah." Kim laughed, "They have a way of doing that."

"Tell me about it." The sensitive artist/musician grinned, "Anyway…I was being an idiot…"

"Yes you were."

"No comments from the peanut gallery, please. Like I was saying, I was being an idiot and thought cheerleader dates football star—it's in the rules."

"In Bonnie's rules maybe." Kim laughed, "Definitely not mine. But go on…I want to hear the rest of this."

"Well…" Josh grinned as he placed his arm around his girlfriend's waist. "What can I say? I was being stupid. I know better now. You're the best girlfriend a boy could have."

"Damn right I am." Kim replied with a chuckle as she leaned into her boyfriend's embrace. Then, heaving a sigh, she continued where she had left off, "Okay…serious face now. Well, when Dad found out that I was supposedly going out with Brick, he immediately assumed the worst and went off on his usual rant. You know the drill—deep space probes, yada…yada…yada."

"Yeah." Josh snickered, "I still think he's got a probe with my name on it somewhere."

"He probably does." Kim snickered before getting serious once again, "Anyway, like I said, all this trouble with Dad was going to happen sooner or later no matter what. Dad needs to understand that while I love him and still need him and I always will, I've got to begin making my own decisions and yeah, that means I'm gonna screw up sometimes…"

"Yeah." Josh nodded his head in understanding, "We all do."

"Right." Kim affirmed, "It's a part of life. What he has to understand is that these screwups are my screw ups not his. He's got to let me make them and then handle the consequences if I'm going to learn anything in life. He can't stand guard over me forever—no matter how much he wants to. He's gonna have to accept that fact whether he likes it or not and the sooner he does, the better for all of us. And that's enough of that for now."

"Sounds good to me." Josh responded as they passed by the different stores. "Where do you wanna go first?"

"Hmmm…" Kim mused for a few moments, "Why don't we check out that new music shop that just opened? The one you talked about? Then we can go to Blarneys so I can check out some blouses and jackets." Lowering her voice, she whispered, "Besides the temp dropping soon, I need to buy a few so that I can hide Walther when I have to."

"You're not carrying now, are you?"

Chuckling, Kim answered back, giving her boyfriend a playful slap on the arm, "Josh…I'm wearing a crop top, short shorts, and sandals. Where am I going to carry Walther where no one can see him? I'm not about to carry him in my purse and while he's small—he's not that small. Besides, I only carry him when I have to. Most of the time he stays locked up at home in a very safe and secure location along with the rest of my private stash where Dad and the Tweebs can't find him."

"That's my pistol packin' mama." Josh laughed, his girlfriend paying him back with another mischievous punch to his arm.

Whispering in his ear, Kim teased, "Mmmm, baby…Walther's not the pistol I wanna hold in my hand right now. Too bad we can't find somewhere we can be alone. Cause if we were I would…"

"Kim!"

The mood ruined at the sound of a familiar and very unwelcome voice, the teen hero closed her eyes and gritted her teeth before taking a deep breath and responding, "Yes, Bonnie? What is it?"

"You know damn well what." The teal-eyed cheerleader, her eyes piercing into those of her rival's barked loudly, commanding, "What happened to Amelia? And don't you dare tell me you don't know!"

"I don't have to tell you a damned thing." Kim fired back, matching Bonnie's gaze. "Now, if you don't have anything else to say, Josh and I have places to be. See you later."

"Wait!" Monique cried out, playing good cop to her best friend's bad cop, "Bonnie's just worried about Amelia. So am I. Let's talk over at the coffee shop. I'll buy." Making herself say the word, she appealed, "Please."

Glancing at her boyfriend and seeing in his eyes that he would back whatever decision she made, Kim let out a breath of air. "All right. We'll talk. But advance warning—I'm not going to tell you anything I haven't already told you. But if you're wanting to spring for the coffee…well…lead on."

"Thank you." Monique grudgingly replied.

Glancing down at the cup of coffee on the table in front of her, Kim, after taking a sip, spoke guardedly to her rivals, "Okay. You've bought my time. Talk."

"What's wrong with Amelia?" Bonnie asked, forcing herself to be polite.

"I'm sure you've tried to call her." Kim replied, not answering the question.

"We have." Monique confirmed, "She won't talk to us and her parents always say the same thing—that she doesn't want to see or talk to anyone right now."

"We've even gone over to her place and they meet us right at the door." Bonnie declared, "They won't even let us in the house."

"Then maybe you should respect her wishes and wait until she wants to talk." Kim suggested.

"Please, Kim…" Bonnie, in a rare act, forced herself to plead with her hated rival, "Tell us what happened to our friend."

"Why do you think I know what—if anything—happened to her?" Kim countered as she took another sip of the hot coffee.

"You were in Florida at the time she was on her cruise." Monique replied, "We stopped hearing from her shortly after you left. Something had to happen and I think you were involved somehow. Please…tell us what."

Feeling sympathy for her two nominal high school opponents, Kim answered back in a kindly, sympathetic voice, "Listen. I can't tell you what happened. All I can say is that if you two really are her friends, you'll give her the time and space she needs now because when and if she does decide to call you, she's going to need all the friends she can get." Finishing her coffee, the teen hero and her boyfriend rose from the table. "I'm sorry, but that's the last I'm gonna say on the matter. You're going to have to accept it. Thanks for the coffee, but we've got to go."

Watching as her competitor walked away, Bonnie shook her head, "Fat lot of good that did. She didn't tell us a damned thing."

"Actually, GF…" Monique sagely replied, "She did."

"What? She didn't tell us anything about what happened to Amelia." Bonnie blustered, "We're back where we started—with nothing."

"Not really, GF." Monique patiently explained, "LMP couldn't flat out tell us what happened—probably because she's not allowed to for whatever reason. But she did let something slip—and I think it was deliberate."

"Okay…" Bonnie listened, "What?"

"LMP told us without saying it that whatever happened to Amelia was really bad. If what I think she's talking about is true…" the fashion diva advised, "Then, much as I hate to say it, we should do what she says—wait until Amelia's ready to talk to us. Because, much as I don't like LMP, I think for once she's right. Amelia's gonna need all of the friends she can get—and—much as I hate to admit it—like it or not—and believe me, I don't—one of those friends will probably be LMP."

Liz and Kevin—back home after the Danville chess tournament

"Hail the conquering heroine!" Otto Magnussen, a redhaired slightly portly middle aged man with a big grin and jovial manner, called out, greeting his daughter and her boyfriend, his wife Carla, a slender middle aged woman with light brown hair, standing beside him at the door of their suburban Middleton home.

"Welcome home, dears!" Carla waved as the two teens approached.

Hugging her mother and father, the other redheaded cheerleader blushed, "It's only third place, Dad."

"Nonsense, pumpkin." Otto replied, the wide grin still on his face as he pointed at the tiny trophy of a bronze chess knight and the placard which read, Elizabeth Magnussen, Third Place Overall, Danbury Beginner's Open Chess Tournament. "You took third place when you thought you weren't going to win anything. I'd call that conquering."

"He's right, you know." Kevin smiled at his girlfriend as he shook her father's hand. "A third place finish in your first tournament is nothing to sneeze at."

"Listen to that young man of yours." Carla commented as she ushered her daughter and the young man with her into the house. "You put a lot of time and effort into learning chess and it's paying off. You should be proud."

"Oh…I am." Liz replied as she and her boyfriend sat down on the loveseat together while her father sat down in his recliner and her mother went into the kitchen to fetch refreshments. "And I had fun. Everyone treated me great."

"I'm glad to hear that." Otto replied as he settled into his chair. "So…Kevin…still planning on going to medical school?"

"Yes, Sir." The wiry youth politely responded, "Neurology."

"Just like the old man, eh?"

"Yes, Sir." Kevin again answered in a respectful tone.

"Well I think that's terrific." Carla declared as she came back from the kitchen bearing a tray with glasses of soda and a bowl of chips in the middle. Setting it on the coffee table, the matronly woman smiled, "Help yourselves."

"Thanks, Mom." Liz replied as she first handed a glass of soda to her boyfriend and then took one for herself.

"So…what colleges are you applying to, Kevin?" Carla asked as she settled down on her easy chair.

"My first choice is Dartmouth, Ma'am. But I'm putting in for Upperton U. and a couple of other colleges as backup."

"Good idea." Otto commented thoughtfully, "Always smart to have a Plan B ready."

"Ummm…Mom…Dad…? Remember when we were talking about college several months ago?" Liz ventured in a somewhat timid voice.

"Yes, Dear?" Carla replied, "As I recall, you said you weren't sure what you were going to do yet, have you made some decisions?"

"Yes, I have." The young redhead answered back. "You know how much I loved taking that Latin course back in ninth grade?"

"Yeah." Otto nodded, "You really had a knack for that dead language. I was kinda hoping you'd continue on to the second part of the course."

"I quit because Bonnie and a few other cheerleaders were making fun of it—saying that only nerds took the course and that if I did, I'd drop down on the food chain and that would put my place on the squad at risk."

"You know what I think of that Rottweiler girl." Carla frowned.

"Rockwaller, Mom." Liz chuckled.

"Don't contradict me, young woman." Carla bantered back, "Rottweiler…Rockwaller…whatever. I'm glad you've gotten out from under her shadow." Her frown now turning into a gentle smile as she turned her head towards the young man seated next to her daughter, she continued in a much gentler tone, "And I think I know who deserves the credit for that."

Shaking his head, Kevin politely demurred, "It was all your daughter, Ma'am. I'm just lucky she puts up with me."

Laughing, Otto slapped his daughter's beau on the knee, "Young man, you've just learned the most important rule for a man in any relationship—the woman's always right."

"And don't you ever forget it." Carla laughed, giving her daughter a wink. Returning to the topic, she asked Liz, "So…have you decided on something?"

"Yeah." Liz nodded her head, "I'm thinking about applying for a Classics major at Dartmouth."

"So you can go to the same school as Kevin?" Carla immediately surmised.

"Mostly." The young redhead admitted truthfully, "But also because Dartmouth does have a good classics program—I've been reading up on it and talked some with Mr. Amberson—he knows a few people who were in the program there."

"Have you got backups in mind?" Otto asked, "Dartmouth's pretty selective, you know."

"Yes, Sir." Liz politely responded, "Upperton U's got a good classics program and there are a few others I'm looking at in case that doesn't pan out."

"So far, so good." Carla pondered before asking, "What about prep courses? What do you plan on taking now?"

"I'm planning on finishing out the Latin sequence first semester for one of my electives and, since I've already knocked out world history and mythology, taking humanities, culinary arts, and driver's ed for my other electives this semester." Liz replied, earning a smile of approval from her boyfriend.

"Very good choices." Otto nodded his head approvingly, "And don't worry about getting permission from us for driver's ed. If you're gonna drive that car we're looking at buying you for your birthday, you're gonna have to prove to us you're ready for it."

"What about second semester?" Carla asked, pleased so far with her daughter's answers.

"Second semester I want to start the Greek sequence and add on some math courses because they'll come in handy for the classical architecture sequence." Liz replied thoughtfully. "Senior year I'm planning on finishing out Greek, taking more math and physics, and dual enrolling at Middleton Community to take their art history and western civ courses."

"That's a lot of work, Dear." Carla pointed out, "You'll be doing all that and cheerleading on top of that. I don't want you biting off more than you can chew."

"I can do it, Mom." Liz asserted positively.

"I can help her out with math and physics Ma'am." Kevin declared respectfully, adding his support to his girlfriend.

"And I'll be taking Mr. Amberson for the math courses." Liz added, "He's a very good teacher. Also, I can probably work in either the art history or the western civ course during my junior/senior summer. I know it's a lot of work Mom…Dad…but I can do it. I want to do it."

Turning to his wife and taking her head nod as approval, Otto turned back to his daughter, the big grin back on his face, "Then you got our blessing, pumpkin. Go for it."

"Thanks Mom…Dad!" Liz squealed as she leaped up out of the seat and hugged her parents around their necks.

"So…young man…" Otto asked, turning his attention back to his daughter's boyfriend, "You decided where you're taking my little girl tonight?"

"We were thinking about doing some roller skating and then grabbing a pizza, Sir." Kevin responded.

"Sounds good." Otto nodded his approval. "You two have a good time and…as a reward for finishing third…we'll extend your curfew by an hour."

"Thanks, Dad!"

Laughing, Carla ushered her daughter and boyfriend to the door. "You two have a good time tonight."

Shego—Middleton Medical Center

"Hey Cheeky!" Tara beamed as she and Hope strode into the private room of their green-skinned friend, each bearing flowers. "How're they treating you?"

"Hey Cutie…Cheerleader." Shego responded in a considerably more subdued voice and manner than usual, "Heard about London and David. I'm sorry—he was a good man—good oppo too when we tangled. Tell me you got the bastards who did that to him."

"Dead and gone." Hope answered back as she and her best friend placed their flowers into vases near the former villain's bed. "So…how have you been?"

"Oh…" Sheila sighed, "You know…some days are better than others and all of them are boring."

"Heard they were moving you into the prison ward." Tara remarked as she and Hope sat down in chairs near the bed.

"I thought that was where I was headed too." Shego replied, "Then before they moved me, Betty came in and made me an offer I couldn't refuse. Join up on a probationary freelance basis and once I complete my indenture, all charges against me dropped and my record sealed."

"Damn." Tara whistled, "Good deal."

"Yeah." Sheila nodded her head, "Couldn't turn it down—especially after what that blue piece of shit did to me."

"So…you're joining the side of the angels?" Hope quipped.

"With strings." Shego joked back, some of her old self beginning to come back. "Like I said, one screw up and I'm back in hack." Pausing for a moment, she admitted in a rare moment of weakness, "I wouldn't last five minutes in the general population. Not after they pumped me full of enough drugs to turn me into a zombie. There are plenty of Blue Boy's henchies in there, not to mention a bunch of others, who would jump at the chance to even the score with me. Like I said…" her humor once again returning, "It's an offer I couldn't refuse." Smiling at her friends, the ex-supervillain pleaded, "So…talk to me. Fill me in on all the gossip. I don't get too many visitors. The Princess pops in when she's around, and Max comes by when he can. A couple of other club regulars like Scott and Janet will also pop in once in a while, but other than them and the Princess's mother, I've got no one to talk to."

"That's why we're here, Cheeky." Tara smiled down warmly at her friend, "We're going to talk to you until you're sick and tired of hearing from us."

"Good." Shego grinned, "So…what's the Princess been up to? Has she fucked that boy of hers yet?"

"No." Hope chuckled, "Not yet. But we're thinking soon. We've even started a pool. Want in?"

"Hell yeah!"

Tri-City Maximum Security Facility for Men—Drakken

Picking up his tray consisting of a plate with a ham sandwich and paper cup of milk, Dr. Drakken muttered under his breath, "When I take over the world I will make everyone who humiliated me pay: Shego…Kim Possible and her entire family…the dark haired witch who kicked me and her blonde accomplice…the Buffoon…my former classmates…" glancing up at a guard who had taken pleasure mocking him, "…the guards and everyone else who dared stand against me. They will all suffer." Biting into his sandwich, the blue-skinned evil genius at once spotted the piece of paper sitting on top of the thin piece of meat. Picking it out of the sandwich after making sure no one was watching, Drakken read the note and smiled an especially evil grin.

Soon.

Crystal and Zoe—Coming out

Looking up as her mother had vacated the living room PC, Crystal called out to her father, "Okay if I use the computer, Dad? I wanna surf the web for possible colleges."

"Good idea, Chrissie." Nathan Edwards, the tawny-skinned cheerleader's daughter grinned, "Never too early to think about your future."

"Right, Dad." Crystal responded as she sat down at the computer terminal, her eyes immediately drawn to the webpage just visited by her mother. Her curiosity getting the better of her, the auburn/brown haired girl clicked the link. Then, as the webpage opened, she gasped in horror at what she saw. "No…" she murmured in a low voice, not believing what her eyes were clearly seeing, "Nonononono…she wouldn't…she's my mother. She wouldn't send me to a place like that!" Then, throwing caution to the winds, she called up her mother's email account and checked the sent messages folder. Reading the email correspondence between her mother and that site and then looking at the final messages, the young woman's eyes misted as she tried to keep from crying. "She's sending me to one of those places." Quickly forwarding the email her mother had sent to her own, secure, email account and then copying the url for the webpage, Crystal quickly closed out the browser. Standing up, she choked back a sob as she called out to her father, "Dad? I gotta go to my room for a bit."

"You okay, Chrissie?" Nathan asked in a concerned tone.

"Yeah." Crystal lied, "I'll be fine. I just have to take care of a couple of things…girl stuff you understand."

"Okay, Sweetie." Nathan smiled, "Take your time. Dinner's not for a few more hours yet."

Slipping past her mother who was currently fiddling about in the kitchen, Crystal quietly made her way up the stairs to her room. Closing the door and locking it behind her, the young woman, tears rolling down her cheeks quickly took out her cell phone and dialed a familiar number.

"Zoe?"

"Yeah, love." The Asian stripper replied, "I'm at the Club now and getting ready for my set. What's wrong?" hearing what sounded like sobs coming from her girlfriend, Zoe pleaded, "What is it, dear? What happened?"

"Mom." Crystal wept, "Website. She's gonna send me…send me…"

"Send you where, baby?" Zoe gently prompted.

"I'm forwarding her emails to you." Crystal replied as she wiped the tears away from her eyes. "Did you get it? She's sending me to one of those places."

As her girlfriend's email came through her smartphone, Zoe felt a sinking feeling in her stomach. "I've got your email love and I'm opening it." The raven-haired dancer said in a soft reassuring tone. Opening the email, she then read it, her teeth clenching as she read. "Do you have that place's url?" Zoe asked in a soft tone.

"Yeah." Crystal replied, "I'm sending it to you now."

"Got it." Zoe declared as she opened the url. "That…" she muttered to herself as she examined the website.

"Something wrong, Z?" Max, the Kitty-Cat Club's general manager and bartender asked as he noticed the worried look on his favorite dancer's face. "Something wrong with your girlfriend."

"Honey…" Zoe spoke to her girlfriend, again, doing the best she could to maintain a calm exterior, "I'm gonna show this to Max, okay?"

"Okay, baby." Crystal responded as she tried in vain to hold back another wave of tears, "I trust you."

"Take a look, Max." Zoe growled, "Crys's parents are planning on sending her to one of those conversion therapy camps."

"I thought those were against the law here." Max commented as he examined the displayed webpage.

"In Colorado, yeah." Zoe replied, "But they're sending her to Kansas where they're legal."

"So…" The head bartender questioned, "What do you plan to do about it?"

"Gonna get started on that now." Zoe declared as she took the phone back from her boss, "Hey, baby? You still there?"

"Yeah, Zee." Crystal replied with a sniffle, "What are we gonna do."

"Darling." Zoe replied in a gentle tone, "I don't think we have any choice but to come out to your folks. You got my word, baby, I am not going to let them send you off to one of those places."

"Okay, baby." Crystal replied, "I trust you. But how are we gonna do it? I don't think I've got much time."

"Just a sec." Zoe replied, turning to her boss, "Max? I can ask Jenna to take my set—she was telling me she needed the tips—she's getting ready to move to a new place and they're wanting a security deposit in advance."

"Go." Max responded, "I'll let Jenna know. And hey…" the bartender then crooked his finger, summoning two heavy-set, muscular men wearing dark suits and ties, "Take Tony and Bruno with you—just in case."

"Thanks, Max!" Zoe smiled as she leaned over the bar and gave her boss a kiss on the cheek, "You're the best."

"Just take care of our girl." Max replied with a smile. "Now get the hell outta here. You got a damsel in distress to save."

"This is the place." Zoe said as the sedan pulled up to the curb of her girlfriend's house. Getting out of the car, she spoke to the two men accompanying her, "Stay out here for now, Bruno…Tony…but be ready to come in if I call you."

"Sure thing, Zee." Bruno replied, "Don't worry, we're not going to let anything happen to you or our Crys…right Tony?"

"Right, Bruno." The dark haired bouncer affirmed, "Go get your girl, Zee. We'll be waiting."

"Thanks guys." Zoe smiled, "You're the best." Approaching the front door, the Asian stripper knocked.

The door opening to reveal Mr. Edwards, Zoe asked, in as polite a voice as she could muster, "Is Crystal home?"

"She's upstairs." Nathan replied, at once spotting the two men standing at the side of the sedan. "Who are those guys?"

"Insurance." Zoe flatly responded, "May I come in? Me and Crystal have something very important to tell you and your wife and the sooner we get it done, the better."

"All right." Mr. Edwards, matching the Asian woman's stern look with one of his own, nodded his head as he opened the door. "Come in." As his guest entered his house, Nathan called out in a loud voice, "Crystal! Naomi! Can you both come to the living room? Zoe's here and she's got something to say and I have a feeling that we'd better listen."

"On my way, Dad!" Crystal's voice, strained and hollow sounding, responded, followed moments later by her coming down the stairs and taking her place close to her girlfriend's side, unconsciously placing her arm around her waist as she did so with Zoe doing the same.

"What is that woman doing here?" Naomi snarled and then, noticing her daughter and the object of her scorn in a mutual embrace, blustered angrily, "Get your paws off my daughter you homo and get out of my house before I call the police!"

"Mom!" Crystal, her face red and puffy with tears, shouted in a loud voice, "If you're gonna call Zoe a homo, then you'd better call me one too. Yeah—that's right. I'm a homo…gay…lesbo…dyke…whatever you wanna call me. And yes—Zoe's my girlfriend and I love her."

"And I love Crystal." Zoe declared.

"Mom?" Crystal pleaded, her eyes doey, "Are you really planning on sending me to that camp where I'd be…"

"You'll be made better dear." Naomi replied in a soft voice, "They'll fix you. It's not your fault—it's the people you hang out with. Those two girls…"

"Tara and Hope?"

"They're gutter trash." Naomi declared with a sneer, "And that redhead?"

"You mean Kim? Kim Possible?" Crystal exclaimed, shaking her head, "What could be so bad about her?"

"She's as bad as those other two—if not worse." Naomi asserted. "Jetting off with that boy half way around the world…getting into fights with those crazies. Those rotten eggs just steered you wrong. These people I'm sending you to—they'll put you back together again."

"No they won't." Zoe announced in a calm, level tone, "I'm not letting you send Crystal to one of those places."

"Like hell you're not!" Naomi screeched as she reached for her phone, "I'm calling the police!"

"And I'm making a phone call of my own." Zoe responded as she took out her own phone.

Listening quietly until now, Mr. Edwards finally spoke, his voice calm, level, and firm. "Both of you…put away your phones." Turning first to his wife and then to Zoe, he implored, "Please."

"I will if she will." Zoe responded in a placatory tone.

"Naomi." Nathan, this time his voice carrying greater weight, repeated, "Put the phone away. Now."

Reluctantly acceding to her husband's demand, Mrs. Edwards placed the phone down on an end table.

"All right." Mr. Edwards demanded, "What is this place your mother wanted to send you to Crystal? What's its purpose?"

"It's a place where they try to turn people like me, who are gay, straight." Crystal responded with a sniffle.

"It's called conversion therapy." Zoe explained, "It borrows techniques used by people who deprogram those taken in by cults, but it doesn't work because being sucked into a cult is a completely different thing than being gay."

"Bullshit." Mrs. Edwards muttered.

Ignoring the simmering mother standing near her, Zoe pressed on, "It also often causes permanent psychological and sometimes physical harm to those who go through it."

"Show me." Nathan requested, maintaining his level, grave tone and expressionless face.

Dipping her head towards the computer, the Asian dancer asked, "May I?"

Inclining his head, Mr. Edwards acceded to his guest's request. "Go ahead."

"Nathan!" Mrs. Edwards pleaded only to be gruffly cut off by her husband.

"Not now, Naomi."

Standing behind the keyboard, Zoe opened several tabs. One to the conversion therapy center's website. Others to sites detailing exactly what conversion therapy was and its effects. She then opened up a third site indicating where it was legal and illegal. Done, she called Mr. Edwards over. "Here, Sir." She indicated, pointing to the tabs. I'll let you read for yourself."

"Thank you." The concerned father responded as he carefully read through the information on all of the tabs, following links where appropriate. His brow furrowed, Nathan spent several minutes behind the computer before looking up at his wife. "Naomi?" He asked in a deceptively calm voice, "Were you really going to send our daughter to that camp in Kansas to be brainwashed?"

"They're going to heal her—not brainwash her!" Mrs. Edwards protested.

Shaking his head, Mr. Edwards replied, "No, Naomi. That place is at best an indoctrination center. At worst…"

"A concentration camp." Zoe finished.

"No one asked for your opinion!" Naomi spat back.

"She's right though." Nathan declared, "I'd call a place where chemical lobotomies and castration along with other forms of physical torture take place a concentration camp, wouldn't you?" Speaking to everyone in the room, but especially towards his wife, he proclaimed in a firm voice, "Crystal is our daughter, Naomi. She deserves our love. I am not going to kick her out of the house nor send her to some concentration camp just because she is who she is."

"If she doesn't get fixed and that whore isn't kicked out…" Mrs. Edwards answered back, pointing to Zoe, "Then I'm going to my sister's."

"Go then." Mr. Edwards responded in a quiet, somber tone. "Do whatever you want to do, Naomi. I am not about to turn my back on my daughter."

"Fine." Naomi sneered, "I'll call Janice and pack my things."

Resisting her initial impulse to say, Don't let the door hit your ass on the way out, Zoe instead spoke to Crystal's father in a soft, apologetic tone, "I'm sorry, Mr. Edwards. I wish this could have come out better."

"I do too, Zoe." Nathan replied in an equally soft voice as his daughter hugged him.

"Daddy!" Crystal sobbed as she embraced her father, "I love you so much!"

"I love you too, precious." Mr. Edwards murmured back, "And darling, don't be too hard on your mother. Let's give her some time to think things through. She really does love you, you know. It's just that…this has kinda hit her hard."

"I understand, Daddy." Crystal replied with a sniffle, "I'll try."

"That's my princess." Mr. Edwards replied before once again taking on a stern expression as he regarded his daughter and her girlfriend. Maintaining that same calm, level voice he used throughout the difficult confrontation that had just ended, he directed, "Look. Crystal…Zoe…I'm not going to pretend to understand your relationship. And I'm not going to say I approve or disapprove of it. It's not for me to decide. However…" he declared, this time sounding more like a protective father than anything else, "Since the two of you are going out with each other, the standard rules for dating now apply. You've got a twelve o'clock curfew young woman when the two of you go out, and no more unsupervised sleep overs at Zoe's place."

"What about stuff like GamerCon?" Crystal asked.

"We'll take events like that on a case by case basis." Mr. Edwards answered, "Fair enough?"

"Yes, Sir." Zoe acknowledged.

"Listen girls…" The faintest glimpses of a sardonic grin appeared on Mr. Edwards' face only to quickly disappear as he spoke, "As you just saw, I'm not a fool or an idiot. I know that whatever might or might not have happened between the two of you already has or hasn't by now. What I'm trying to do now is give us what I think we all need—the appearance, at least, of a structure of stability. I trust that I'll have your cooperation in that."

"You will, Sir." Both Zoe and Crystal readily acceded.

"Good." Nathan nodded his head in approval, watching as his wife silently came down the stairs with a pair of suitcases in her hands. "Crys? If you want, you can walk your girlfriend to her car."

"Okay, Dad." Crystal smiled for the first time since the storm began.

"And Zoe?" Nathan called out as the pair made their way to the door, "Don't forget—that's my little girl you're dating. If you do anything to hurt her, I don't care what those 'friends' of yours outside do to me afterwards, I'll do a Red Forman on you and jam my foot so deep up your ass that they're gonna need a surgeon to get it loose."

"Understood, Mr. E." Zoe responded with a smile. Her expression once again serious, she vowed, "Don't worry, Sir. I won't do anything to hurt your daughter. I love her."

"Good." Nathan replied, holding back the grin that wanted to appear on his face, "Let's keep it that way."

Jessica and Steve

"Hmmm…" Jessica purred as she snuggled into her boyfriend's arms. "You certainly know how to use those magic fingers of yours."

"You've got the magic touch too." Steve leered back as his girlfriend's phone chimed.

"It's Crys." Jessica said as she read the caller id and accepted the phone. "Yeah Crys. What's up? No! Really?"

"Something wrong, Jess?" Steve, seeing the startled look on the freckle-faced blonde's face, queried worriedly.

Holding up her hand, Jessica mouthed, "Later," receiving in return an answering dip of the head from her boyfriend. "You're not kidding—are you Crys? How are the two of you? And your father? I'm sorry, Crys. If there's anything I can do. Of course you can. Whenever you want. Bye."

"So?" Steve asked, "What happened?"

"Remember when I said to expect at least one—more likely two or three major blowups coming?"

"Yeah." Steve nodded.

"Well." Jessica sighed, "Major Blow Up Number One just happened. Crystal and Zoe came out to Crys' parents."

"I get the feeling it didn't go well." Steve remarked in a grave tone.

"That's an understatement, babe." Jessica replied as she filled her boyfriend in on all the details.

"Shit." Steve shook his head, "That's rough."

"Tell me about it." Jessica moaned, "And that's just number one. I'm guessing we've got at least two more big ones and a bunch of little ones coming up at the picnic if not before."

"Gonna be a helluva a Mad Dog Picnic this year."

Jessica rolled her eyes, "Is it too late to book that flight to Rodegan?"

A/N: (Warning: Lengthy)

My goal is to avoid being preachy in my stories-there are plenty of other places to go to if you want to see or hear sermons about whatever topic you choose. However, I had been building towards the Zoe-Crystal storyline for some time. While it might seem that I've tarred Naomi with a harsh brush, I ask you to please not be too harsh on her. In many ways, she's actually more scared than anything else, and so, is more deserving of pity than scorn. Hopefully, time and reflection will allow her and her family to reconcile. On a personal note, I do believe that conversion therapy should be outlawed as it is a form of coercion and brainwashing and only causes harm to all concerned.

Now on to our next coming blow up-James and Kim. Again, this has been building for a long time. Kim is stretching her wings and becoming more independent and James is having problems accepting that. He still wants to see his little girl as his little girl-which is how most fathers feel. Tensions are going to get considerably worse as summer ends and the new school year begins. Expect some major fireworks with poor Anne caught in the middle of a confrontation between irresistible force and immovable object.

A somewhat smaller blowup will be-as you probably have already figured out-Bonnie vs. Brick and Sue. Don't worry, Sue will surprise people as to just how well she deals with the situation . It's the shy, quiet ones who are often the most surprising.

Speaking of Bonnie, here's another flash point. As we're going to see, she's facing increasing pressure at home from her 'loving' sisters and her father's growing problems. Added to that, her precious food chain is starting to fray and fall apart-and believe me, Connie and Lonnie are only too glad to remind her of that fact. With Amelia now moving away from Bonnie's orbit, our favorite teal-eyed cheerleader is going to find herself lonelier than ever. But she's also a very determined young woman whom I'm sure will rise from the ashes a better person.

Drakken is also going to be a problem for our heroes as we go into Junior Year. He's one who keeps grudges and boy does he have a lot of 'em right now.

Speaking of which-Shego is also now beginning to heal as she struggles to find a place for herself.

Another very important note: As my readers have seen, the DE universe does go off in a radically different direction from the canon KP verse. For one thing, Kim and Ron have broken the little codependency bubble that they lived in through much of the canon series. This has played a major role in shaping them in this 'verse. Frankly speaking, I'm enjoying writing them as best friends. Don't get me wrong, there have been many very good stories written about the Kim/Ron ship over the years (Mr Dr P, daccu65, campy, Jeriddian immediately come to mind—along with many others) but I'm finding it fun writing them as best friends with no intention, at this time, of pursuing a relationship with each other. This, in many ways, has caused them to become closer-can you imagine the Kim of canon talking to canon Ron about sex? Also, I enjoy writing unconventional relationships and so little has been written about Kim/Josh and Ron/Zita that I couldn't resist exploring those relationships in greater depth. Both minor characters possessed a lot of potential and I'm having fun developing that potential.

One more thing and then I'll go: I can't help but get the impression that people really aren't enjoying this story here. Maybe it's the AU element or maybe the ships or maybe something else entirely. It could also be problems with Cloudfare—I know having to go through the silly captcha checks and the slow processing time as it goes through its security protocols has frustrated me on more than one occasion, so might have something to do with the relative unpopularity of this story. I'm not sure what it is, but it just doesn't seem that people here are interested in it. For those who are reading it, don't worry, I am going to finish the story out here—I've only got a few more chapters to go and it'll be done. But, as for the next story in the series: Junior Year, I'm thinking about posting that exclusively on AO3 along with my other stories as it has a much more user-friendly interface. In closing, I'm sorry that this story isn't appealing to you all. Please read and enjoy the works of all the other fine writers here and elsewhere and give them your support—it really does make a difference. Thank you.