Chapter 3

Ron Stoppable, slept soundly, with his best buddy Rufus the naked mole rat next to him on his pillow. The mole rat snored cutely, as he dreamed of eating the giant piece of cheese that Drakken had once used as his secret lair, until it melted. The heater in his house was pumping warm air into his room, along with a dangerous airborne virus. As Rufus breathed in the virus his breathing became uneven as his lungs swelled with the virus. It passed through his little body, infecting every organ of the defenseless sleeping pet.

The sun had risen and Ron's alarm clock beeped. He got out of bed and got dressed in some warm clothes.

"Time to wake up little buddy," he said to Rufus.

Rufus remained unmoved on the bed with a blank stare. Ron's heart sank with fear.

"Rufus? Buddy!", he shouted as he ran to the bed. He picked up his pet. Rufus had a very high fever, and was lethargic as a result. He laid limp in Ron's hand.

"Rufus, you're sick!", said Ron, "Don't worry little buddy. I'll take you to the vet, right now."

And for once, Rufus didn't protest going to the vet.

Ron opened his cellphone and dialed Kim's number, "KP it's an emergency! Rufus is sick! He looks really bad. I gotta take him to the vet. Can you make up an excuse for me at school. I don't know how many classes I'll miss, but I can't leave him like this!"

"Sure thing Ron, and keep me posted", said Kim as she left for school. She worried about Rufus, and wondered how Ron was taking this. 'What if Rufus died?', she thought to her self. She cleared her head of the negative thought and headed into her first class.

Meanwhile Ron ran into the vet's office, jumped over a dog, and pushed his way past other customers.

"Outta the way, we have an emergency here!", he shouted, and ran up to the counter. He set Rufus on the counter looked at the veterinary assistant and said, "My pet is really sick!".

"No kidding," said the assistant, "I've never seen a rat lose all his hair like that."

"No! He's a naked mole rat. Emphasis on the 'Naked'! He's not supposed to have hair. But he's got a fever, and he's not moving!", said Ron.

"I'll have the veterinarian take a look at him. Sign in and take a seat", she said.

Ron reluctantly sat down. His eyes began to well up with tears. He looked at his sick naked mole rat and said, "Hang on Rufus, you're going to be ok."