Walking thru life.

One month later.

"Ready?" Ron asked. "Remember, you give it 100 percent." Hirotaka nodded. Ron had the quarterstaff, and Hirotaka his hands—but he was much, much more skilled then Ron…even this more focused Ron. Rufus was perched behind Ron in a tree, watching to see what would happen.

The fight moved fast, blinding blows exchanged. When it ended, Ron was on the ground, clutching his chest, face pale.

"Ron-san!" Hirotaka said, "I am sorry." He smiled, "You rushed me—you are getting much better." Ron grimaced.

"I don't feel better." He grunted. "Let's try it again."

"Are you sure-"

"yes-" Ron said. "My ribs are almost all back, and I can't sit around waiting." Hirotaka nodded. Ron was his best student—in a month, he had learned more than many students did in a year—and his determination was plain to all. Ron forced himself, sometimes forcing Hirotaka to call an end to sessions—few students could ever be accused of pushing themselves too far! Hirotaka also knew why—Kim and Ron had been partners, but Kim had always been the main fighter…and Ron had been content to let that state of affairs persist.

No more.

"uh-uh!" Rufus chattered, Ron shrugged.

"Don't worry, Rufus…I'm fine." He said, banishing the ache in his ribs.

All their times together, Kim had been the protector. When he had been called on to protect Kim he'd failed. She shouldn't be here. She should be at home, being driven crazy by the tweebs. She shouldn't be so thin that you could see the light through her, stuttering over every other word, bolting up at night before curling back into his arms. Sleeping with Kim even with no sex, was wonderful…except for the fact that it was because she was still afraid to sleep alone.

And he would protect her, and the first step was to become someone who could stand against Hirotaka. "Mystical Monkey power" had been a joke—but it's effects were not. Ron realized that he shouldn't be progressing as fast as he was, and winced at the fact that such potential had lain wasted for so long.

He took guard position with the quarterstaff.

"Hirotaka-san…please continue." He wondered how Kim was doing.

"Agh!" Kim snarled as she hit the ground hard.

"Again." Yori said. "You cannot progress beyond this stage, Kim-san until you have relearned how to maintain your balance." Kim got up, and prepared to mount the narrow board again. Her classmates remained quiet, but it didn't help that Kim Possible…was right now the oldest student in this class. By a lot, considering the next oldest was eight. On the other hand, she grumped, she could pass for a ten year old now. Out of everything that had happened, one last little smack was the fact that she was now so thin that a bra was completely unneeded—given that she'd been (albeit well concealed) jealous of Bonnie and some of the other girls, the annoyance plagued her. Not as bad as the nightmares, but Yori (working out some latent anger) had a solution for that—she worked Kim so hard that she fell over into a dead sleep and was only awakened by nightmares once or twice.

Her days were full—morning workout, mid-day work in the garden (for range of motion, Sensei said), swimming in the afternoon, more working out in the evening, and then, off to blessed sleep…until 5:00 AM when the cycle started anew.

Ron had protested, but Kim needed to get back in shape, and that was what it was going to take. One day, Kim had decided to sleep in….she winced.

"Jus another minute mom…." Kim murmured.

"KP… I think you'd better…"

"Ron?" she asked, still half asleep.

KERSPLOOSH!

"AIEEE!" Kim erupted out of the soaked sleeping mat. That water was ice cold!

"It is good that we have a mountain stream fed by glaciers to help us wake up." Yori said with a devilish smile, holding the bucket. "As my student, It will be my honor to utilize them whenever needed to help you awaken."

As Kim dressed, she grumbled.

"What did that mean, Ron-san?"

"Don't worry—it's physically impossible."

Kim stood up, and started trying to balance. Like before, she began to wildly overcorrect… but then managed to recover it, and slowly stopped quivering. Yori paused. Waited, walked around her and threw a few mock punches. Kim blocked them and remained balanced.

"Very good." Yori said, then motioned for Kim to stand down. Kim did, slowly.

"You are progressing well, Kim-san." Yori said. "And I see there is no more talk of sending Ron-san away." Kim ducked her head in embaressment.

"You were, r-r-r." Stop, take a deep breath, and continue, "Right, and I hate this damned stutter." Yori nodded. Kim did not often curse.

"It will pass, as the turmoil in your soul passes." She said.

And how many years will that take? A little voice asked in Kim's head. Yori was continuing.

"You have continued to eat according to the diet." Kim nodded. Three big meals, and that horrible concoction that was supposed to replace calcium and build up muscle mass. It seemed to be working—Kim would walk across the compound, swim and work in the garden…without becoming exhausted…much.

"I wish I could do more martial arts." Kim said. It humiliated her—Ron was sparring with the best at the school…and here she was with the eight year olds and a single advanced student who had to teach her how to fall all over again. Yori smiled.

"I believe America has a saying—'you have to crawl before you can walk'. Kim-san, between the drugs, your injuries and the purging process, you lost nearly all muscle mass and unlearned all your skills. We must retrain you in the basics…unless you want to fall poorly, break an arm, and spend another month before you can try again." Kim shook her head.

"No…but it doesn't mean I have to like it."

"Now that is Kim Possible." Yori said. Kim looked over at her mentor, comparing her curves with Kim's… lack of same.

"Yori?"

"Yes, Kim-san."

"I didn't mean to be mean to you back when I…"

"Say no more of it—I was wrong too…and proved it that night polishing the wood floors!"

"But about Ron… don't you like him?"

"Greatly, Kim-san." Yori said. She looked at Kim.

"Are you worried that I might take him away Kim-san?"

"No! But, well, maybe." Kim said. "Ron… I mean he always liked girls who had, well…" Her face burned. Yori smiled.

"Boobs, to use the American term?"

"Yes." Kim said, now focusing on the ground. She hoped nobody was in front of her, because she'd run into them. "And I'm…well, I never was, you know, big, but now I look like a ten year old, boy." Yori raised up a hand, gently brushing Kim's hair back. Her hair had more life then it had when she first came, but even now, you could tell where the hair had been cut, though Yori and Kim had managed, between them, to minimize the visible effects. Yori softly laughed.

"Kim Possible-san, Ron is my friend, my close friend…but I could never take his heart. That belongs to you." She smiled at Kim, "And I fear you may be using this to delay your time in the garden. Come. We will both weed until lunch, and then see if Hirotaka-san has any amusing stories to tell about Ron's training." Kim looked up and smiled at Yori.

"Maybe Ron will have an amusing story to tell about Hirotaka-san." Yori threw back her head and laughed.

"Maybe he will!" Then she looked more seriously, "maybe he will." The two teens looked at each other, and headed for the garden shed to get the tools.

"Ah, Ron-san…please, walk with me… I would speak to you." Ron blinked.

How does Sensei do that? He wondered. Maybe that ability to just appear was a tenure thing. Ron had been fully involved with Hirotaka, when the senior student had decided to spring a surprise pop quiz on him, in the form of a half dozen second year students with their own staffs.

Simple grading procedure—pass/fail. If he was on his feet and they were not, he passed. Otherwise, he failed. He passed. It was then, standing among the groaning students, trying to put air back into his lungs, that the sensei did his "pop up in front of you" stunt.

"Yes, Sensei?" Ron asked.

"You are far more focused then you have been before…"

"Thank you."

"Why?" Ron blinked. Why? Every other answer ran through his head, but there was something about Sensei that discouraged any dodging of the question.

"So I can protect Kim."

"Ah… " He paused, and Ron realized they were on one of the dueling pads. Sensei extended his hand, and a quarterstaff just flew into it. Ron looked down at his quarter staff.

"I fear I have little time for exercise, Stoppable-san…if you would attack me, please?" Ron nodded…and started. Slowly at first—he was an old guy after all. But Sensei blocked every blow, and even though he was holding it with one hand, it was like hitting an iron bar embedded in concrete for all Ron could do. Ron started to get annoyed, and moved faster. No go. Sensei was also talking and didn't even have the grace to be breathing hard.

"So, you need to protect her… to keep her safe?" Ron nodded,

"Yes-whaa!" Sensei didn't seem to move, but all of a sudden Ron was on the ground, with the end of Sensei's staff lightly touching his throat.

"That is a fool's errand, Ron-San…" Sensei paused, "You cannot protect her…not without locking her in a box—a box with boundaries that you decide. You would destroy her as anything more than your shadow…make her a child, forever again unable to stand on her own feet." Ron got up, and suddenly he looked more like a 16 year old then Sensei had seen since they'd arrived her, lost and confused.

"But she's been hurt so badly Sensei…is it so wrong to want to protect her?"

"No…"

"She still has nightmares—she tries to keep them quiet, but in the middle of the night she'll roll into me, grab, me, and I know where she is."

"But because she trusts you, they go, and leave her in peace." Sensei paused. "There is a difference between being there to catch someone when they fall, and help them to rise again, then being a smothering safety blanket. You have always been wiser then you let on… you know the difference. Pleasant match." He said. Ron racked his own staff and followed the Sensei as they entered the main hall, where some students were polishing the wood.

"Sensei…how is Kim?" Ron asked.

"You see her at every meal and you sleep together." Sensei responded.

"Yes, but well… she doesn't' like it if I pry on how she's doing with Yori." Ron admitted.

"Of course not—she is embarrassed that she has fallen so far—it is a natural, and not-unhealthy reaction." Sensei raised one eyebrow. "She wishes to work to regain her strength, and I feel, she fears that you might think ill of her if you see her trying to keep up with eight year olds."

"Yeah…her natural Kimness probably doesn't like that much."

"No….but it will not last." Sensei faced him, "Kim must restore her body—these exercises are not so much to train her to fight, as to train her body to the movements. Once that is done, her old knowledge will come back and she will quickly rise to her old level—maybe beyond."

"Quickly?"

"four months." Sensei said. "Quickly." Ron had to nod. That was fast.

"And because of you." Sensei said, "No doubt she will work hard, especially for the day when she may ease your fears… in the simplest way possible."

"Which is?" Ron asked, and then groaned, as Sensei indicated the dueling field.

Yep…make Ron feel better by beating the tar out of him. He caught the glint of humor in Sensei's eyes. Japanese people never make jokes my ass. Ron thought, thinking about all the stories of polite Japanese. They just liked to keep it low key so you couldn't blame them.

Later that night, after dinner, Kim and Ron were preparing for bed. Ron spread out the mat, while Kim pulled off her clothes and grabbed the oversized T-shirt that she wore at night. Kim was still sensitive about her thinness, but she assumed that Ron had seen all he'd wanted to.

Ron hadn't, and snuck a quick glance at her. Counting ribs was no longer easy, and he could see curves in her cheeks. She was not the old Kim, not yet, but not the twig of a month ago.

Ron finished skinning out of his Gi, leaving his underpants on as he lay down on the mat, Rufus taking up guard position by the head of the mat. Kim lay down next to him, and they faced each other.

"So…" Kim said, "I hear that Hirotaka had a pop quiz for you today." She smiled, "Was it as bad as the algebra tests?" Ron grinned.

"No, but that's a great idea KP."

"What?"

"When we go back, we change things—ninjas leap out into the middle of class and you have to do quadratic equations while dodging shurikins and bo-staffs." Kim blinked.

"Don't do that." She said.

"Why?"

"Because I just saw Ms. Harrison in a gi."Ron shuddered.

"And you had to mention it to me?"

"Why, yes, Mr. Stoppable, I did…so what are you going to do?"

"You still ticklish?"

"Tick-Ron!"Kim said, too late, as Ron launched the assault against her ribs. Soon, she was convulsed with laughter, as he ruthlessly attacked her ribs. Soon enough, she subsided, and comfortably ensconced herself in the crook of his arm. Her eyes were drooping, and Ron reached to put out the light. In the darkness, he could dimly see her.

"Ron?"

"Yeah?" Kim was drifting off to sleep.

"Love you." Ron leaned down and gave her a kiss.

"Love you too, KP." He said, waiting as her breathing deepened into the natural rhythm of sleep. If Kim had any nightmares…she didn't remember them in the morning.

The next morning, Sensei called for Ron.

"Ron san." He said, "I would like you to travel down to the village at the bottem of the mountain. Ron nodded. It was a walk… but nothing he couldn't handle, now.

"What for, sir?"

"Just to purchase some herbs the school uses." Sensei smiled. "You have done very well, and you no longer must be near Kim at every moment of the day—it is time to take at least a short break—and I promise that none of Hirotaka's pop quizzes will intrude, either up or down the mountain. Ron thought about it. It would be cool…but.

"Ron-san, remember our talk about Kim…and safety blankets." Ron looked at him and grinned.

"OK, sensei—some dried fruit coming up."

Later, Ron round himself whistling as he walked down the path. It was a lot easier then he remember, and Rufus enjoyed exploring the area around the path. Unlike the first time, he enjoyed looking at the green trees and growth. Ron found himself amazed at how such a crowded country could have so much rural area…

Finally, he came to the small village, huddled in the base of the mountain range the school was in. Except for the streetlights and occasional sattalite dish, it could have been taken right out of any kung fu movie Ron had seen—so much so that it was jarring to see people walking around in modern clothing, and cars instead of horses and samurai on the street. He consulted his address and spoke to Rufus.

"Well, little buddy, time to get the groceries—feel like some snackage if we have the time?"

"Um-hm!" the rodent chattered, rubbing his belly. Ron grinned.

"That's the spirit!" He said as they strolled down the main street. Ron saw some people, including groups of teens that he had long since realized saw people like himself as natural targets. It was odd to see them move aside for him, although he certainly didn't press the issue. Ron figured it was the natural politeness of the people, not realizing that bullies had had previous experience with students from the school—to their great sorrow.

"Ah! Ronald-sama!" The shopkeeper said as Ron entered. Ron paused and bowed low.

"Just Ron-san." He said, "I'm just a student at the monestary."

"Not according to Sensei," the wrinkled old man said, a twinkle in his eyes. "He says that you have the best potential of any student he has ever seen."

"I have good teachers." Ron said. "They deserve the credit."

"And polite too." He laughed, "Come in and tell me how the school fares." Ron entered, and much to Rufus's chagrin, forgot about eating. The old man had been a student at the school, long, long before, and seemed to like Ron… and even gave him some priceless info on Sensei that he could use…if he thought he could get away, fast enough, of course. Still, it was nice to know that once Sensei had beenRon's age.

Later, as the sun was going down, Ron had made his farewells, and was heading back.

"Sorry Rufus…no snackage this time." The rat humphed, and dove back into his pocket.

"Tell you what—when we get back, you get double portions." Rufus appeared again and all was forgiven. Ron grinned…and suddenly stopped. He'd heard something. He waited, trying to hear what it had been, when he heard it again.

Someone crying. He turned and walked in the direction of the sound. There was a small alley, and within it were several dumpsters. Ron quietly walked up to one of them. Inside, he saw a young girl, about Wade's age—10, maybe 11. Well, time to try out his language skills on someone who wasn't bilingual.

Hello. Do you need help?> She looked wildly around, before seeing the teen looking down at her.

"You…you are English." She said in heavily accented, but (Ron was certain) far better English than his Japanese had been.

"I'm American." Ron answered, "Ron Stoppable..." He paused. "Now, why are you hiding in the garbage?"

"I have to hide—they're after me! They came to my house, and almost got me!" Ron frowned. This was no kids joke—she was scared. She also wasn't dressed like someone who spent a lot of time in dumpsters. Scrambling out, she looked around wildly.

He would take her back to the store and see if the shopkeeper could call the cops. He'd also have to get a call into the school, because Ron was going to be very- Ron heard a new noise and spun around. Beyond the opening of the alley, several foreign cars had come to a stop, and out of them, nearly a dozen, big, big, men. Ron looked at them and saw the tattoos that adorned their arms, the expensive sunglasses that hid their eyes.

Oh. Shit. Ron had either stumbled onto a location film being made…or these were Yakuza.

"Hi guys." Ron said, putting on his best dufus face. "Can you tell me where the nearest Bueno Nacho is?"

"Out of the way, Gaijin." The biggest guy, someone who could probably moonlight as a dumptruck growled. "This isn't your concern." Ron felt the girl shrinking back behind him.

"Look…" Ron said, trying one last time to recover things. "I'm going to take her to the shop, and we're going to see if we can find out where she lives. If you want to come with me, I'm cool." Maybe they just thought I was the bad guy. Stranger things have happ- With one accord, pulling knives, they charged down towards Ron and the girl, filling the alleyway with their muscled forms.

Guess not this time. Ron thought as he dropped the bag and got ready to receive.

Hmph. And Sensei said there would be no pop quizzes. I'm going to have words with him.

To be continued.