"Have I mentioned before, that I hate the mall?" Adam asked, as he and Ron lugged several heavy bags from the Shoe Emporium. "I guess it's my fault for giving them a bottomless credit card."
"No, that's not the problem. The problem, was letting them find out it was bottomless." Ron replied, grimacing. "And we haven't even hit Club Banana."
"I guess you're right. When we get there, how about I guard the bags, while you rent a truck?" Adam suggested cheerfully. Ron leveled a glare at him, to which he laughed.
"Ronald Stoppable." The voice carried through the mall, well over the conversation. Turning, slowly due to weight restrictions, Ron and Adam spun to face the direction from which it came. The voice belonged to the blond former high school cheerleader, Tara. Beside her, stood Zita Flores. Ron blinked. Kim and Shego appeared beside them.
"Hey Ron, long time, no see." Zita grinned. "You here for the premiere?"
"Premiere?" He asked confused.
"Of Dragon Souls." She grinned. "The new Everlot expansion." Ron and Kim groaned.
"I thought you had enough of Everlot when we were trapped in there." Kim asked, sliding an arm around Ron.
"Nah, just waiting for the expansion." Zita grinned. "Got a surprise for ya." She whistled. A moment later two boys appeared through the crowd. Josh Mankey, and Malcolm. Josh crossed toward Tara, Malcolm to Zita. Shego nudged Adam with her elbow.
"Any clue what's going on?" She asked.
"Ron, and Zita got sucked into a game at some point, and Kim and Wade had to try and save them. The guy with Zita, is the guy that did it. Ron sent me a photo." Adam replied.
"Oh." Shego sighed. Josh and Tara walked up.
"Hey Kim." He waved. "So, where you going?" He asked, pointing at the bags.
"We..."
"Just bought out Shoe Emporium." Ron grinned, cutting her off. She poked him in the side.
"Are going to Shego's estate, to get it transferred to her name. She inherited it when her great aunt died." Kim finished.
"Oh, sorry to hear that." Josh commented to Shego.
"It's okay, we weren't that close." She shrugged. "I sort of got it by default. No one else qualified."
"Hey, Ron, I wanted to say something." Tara spoke up. She glanced at Josh, who winked, though only Adam and Shego could see that. She stepped across the intervening space, and kissed him, full on. After a moment, she stepped back, breaking the kiss, leaving Ron staring at empty space. Kim poked him again. He shook it off. "That was for what you did the second time at the lake. I just never had the courage until Josh said I should."
"Wow." Ron managed after a moment. He smiled wide. "Go Mankey." He grinned. Josh blushed, so did Tara. Ron laughed. Kim poked him again. "What?" He grinned, and kissed her on the cheek.
"So, are you excited about Dragon Souls? Or what?" Zita asked.
"I don't know, I kinda had a bad experience last time." Ron replied.
"Well that's what you get for being a N00b." Malcolm wagged a finger, with a mocking tone of voice. "Seriously, we'll help you this time. The wraith master has been reformed by the mighty queen." He chuckled. Zita laughed.
"He's really a puppy dog when you get him away from that kind of thing." She chuckled. "And I mean dog in more than just on sense of the word, she said with a wink. The four women grinned, and Ron and Josh blinked. Malcolm joined the girls in laughing, and Adam choked.
"I didn't hear any objections from you." Shego grunted, elbowing him in the ribs.
"I was busy." He grinned nastily.
"Am I missing something important?" Monique asked.
"Such as?" Kim grinned.
"What it is you're laughing at." The voice didn't instantly pair with a face, for everyone except Adam.
"I'll be damned. Excellent taste Monique." He grinned, shedding bags. He turned, and found himself face to chest with a basketball player. The fact that he was about nine feet tall precluded most other sports from consideration, though, track, and baseball were certainly not inadmissible.
"Do I know you?" He asked. A second look made one realize he was only seven feet or so, give or take six inches, but it was still like looking up at the stars.
"Think red bird suit, two years ago, humiliated." Adam grinned.
"You were the mascot?" He laughed. "Sorry about the eggs."
"Don't be, I got ten cents on the dollar. At five bucks a dozen I made a fortune." Adam grinned. Blank looks crossed the faces of all but Monique. "This is Duane Davers, his team beat my former team at the regionals, two years ago. I was the mascot." Adam explained. "We met after the game."
"The humiliation you mean." Duane grinned. "We won, seventy-two to zip."
"The very reason, that I decry my association with that team at all venues." Adam grinned. "Bloody idiots."
"We thought so too." Duane nodded.
"Is there anyone I can date, that you aren't going to know?" Monique asked.
"Probably, but I doubt it." Kim answer. Adam leveled a glare, but said nothing. "So Mon, you going to college?"
"Nah, I've got a second job." She grinned. "You're looking at new assistant manager at Club Banana, as well as a seventh degree black belt. Now a teacher, in my dojo." She grinned.
"Master eh? What style?" Shego asked.
"Dragon Kung Fu." Monique replied.
"You've just won her heart, Dragon is Shego's signature style. She knows others, but Dragon works best against Mantis, Kimmie's signature style. Neither are more or less effective against Ron's Monkey style, but..." Adam shrugged.
"And what style do you use?" She asked.
"Ass kick." He grinned. "Or the Great art of R."
"R?" She asked.
"Running away." Shego supplied. "He developed it for escaping from unwinnable fights."
"You helped." He pointed out. She shrugged. "Ass kick combines the best parts of each style I've sampled, and meshes them together for maximum effectiveness." He was about to open into a further discussion, when Kim tapped him on the shoulder. "Yes?"
"Club Banana just announced a five minute sale." She informed him. He didn't bother to ask how she'd heard that.
"Go for it, we'll bring the bags." A moment later the boys were left to themselves. "We should be qualified for sainthood." Adam joked. They all nodded.
---
"I said you should have let me drive." Adam called from a lawn chair. Shego reached over and slapped him in the head.
"Leave him alone, he's doing just fine." She scolded. Ron was backing the rented truck into the Possible driveway. He'd already taken out the mail box, the garbage cans, and a large chunk of Shego's Ferrari. Even with Kim as a spotter, he managed all that. He finally got it backed in.
"At least this is the last stop." Adam shrugged. Shego hit him again. He rolled his head around, and reached out, grabbing the front of her shirt. He pulled her across the intervening distance, and kissed her. "I love when you play rough." He grinned roguishly. She pushed him, but he pushed back, and she fell over instead. Adam decided not to laugh, he was still reeling from the last fight, they'd had and that was only sparring. Ron finally cut the engine, and Kim came around the side of the truck. It wasn't a big one, but it still required two people to backup. He stepped out.
"I still can't believe the five of you managed to buy that much stuff." Ron commented, as he met her at the back of the truck. Kim shrugged.
"Guess that's why normal cards have limits." She grinned at Adam, who was rising to his feet.
"And guys, go inside, I'll be a martyr, and get this one." He waved the three of them off. With a collective shrug, they wandered in. He smiled, rolled his eyes, and cheated. Magic flashed to his finger tips, and packages unloaded themselves from the bowels of the truck, to the bowels of Kim's garage. The truck, and Adam vanished a second later. Adam reappeared after another moment. He dusted his hands, and turned around. Face to face with Kim. He smiled, and fainted.
"I'm going to kill him." She muttered, throwing him over her shoulder. She made it a point to bounce her shoulder into his stomach with each step. About half-way along the walk, he barfed on the sidewalk. Kim made a face, and lifted a hand towards it. Fire lashed out, and annihilated it. She carried him in, and dropped him on the floor. "You can wake up now." She kicked him.
"What?" He asked, yawning and smiling as he stretched.
"Why didn't you do that earlier?" She snapped.
"Move the stuff out of the truck?" He asked, she nodded. "I couldn't tell what was yours, and what was someone else's. With just your guys stuff in there, I could just move it all." He replied.
"Ah. Can you teach us?" Kim asked.
"Sure, sit down." He sat up, against the couch, reaching out to drag the remote from the coffee table. He set it between them, as she sat, legs crossed. "I'll show you, and you can show them." He glanced around. "I hate to say it, but you learn faster than they do."
"Do we have to learn this? You've shown that you can deposit memories directly into my head, can't you?" She waved vaguely.
"No, it takes to much energy to do it that way. It'd kill me. No matter, this is a simple exercise. Visualize the remote where it lies on the floor, and then where you want it on the table. Got it?" She nods. "Overlay the two images, with the one showing where it is on the bottom, and the other on the top." She nodded. "Apply the energy." There was a slight pop, as air filled the vacuum, and then the remote appeared on the table. It held together for almost a full second, before it exploded. They both reacted instantly. Adam lashed up with a glowing force wall around them, while Kim decelerated time. She saw the shield, and grinned. Time restored, and the shards of the remote slammed into the field. Adam flashed a quick look around, before waving his hand. Wind ripped through the room gathering bits and pieces. "Two things. First, too much energy. Second, it's time for another lesson. This one is entitled: Repairing high-tech electronic equipment magically, before other people find out that you broke it. It's terribly useful." He bent his head, explaining to her.