Dateline: Monday, April 27, 1981, 6:30 AM, Pacific Standard Time.

"Dash, Ashley, José! Breakfast!" Violet bellowed from the kitchen.

Ashley and José responded to the breakfast call almost instantly. Dash, on the other hand, was still a little shaken from what happened last night. And understandably so, I mean, he watched his girlfriend chop her own arm off, for crying out loud! When he finally did come to the table, every eye was on him. Well, every eye except Ashley's, that is.

"Dash," Violet coaxed, "did something happen last night that you want to talk about?"

"Yes," he responded, "but I don't want to discuss it with you guys."

But this did nothing to stop the gang from finding out. Ashley read Dash's mind to discover what exactly it was that transpired between the two lovers last night, then she blurted it out for the whole state of California to hear, down to the last gory detail. Naturally, Dash was upset with her for invading his private thoughts like this.

"Listen, bro," José said, "if your woman is a super, and you are a super, things should be okay between you two, right?"

"Her power sounds awesome!" Ashley exulted. "She would be a welcome addition to the team!"

"You always said she felt like putty in your hands when you embraced her," Violet observed. "I guess you weren't joking!"

"He, He, He," Dash fake-laughed, "That was so funny I forgot to laugh!" He looked at his watch. "Oh, no! I'm going to be late!"

"You?" said Ashley. "Rocket? Late? Never! I'M the one that's going to be late! Unless, of course, I could begrudge you for a ride?"

Dash giggled. "Sure, why not? It's not going to be as fast as it could be, what with my leg still in a cast and all, but you're welcome to ride."

Violet and José got a kick out of watching Dash carry Ashley on his shoulders right out the door. "So," Violet asked as soon as the younger ones were gone, "what are you planning to do today?"

José cleared his throat. "I was thinking I could swing back by my parent's house to gather up my things, you know, settle into headquarters."

"All right," Violet said, preparing to return to work after a very long weekend. "Don't forget to lock the door when you leave. I just found that sofa a week ago, I don't want anything to happen to it!"

Meanwhile, Dash had just arrived at school with Ashley on his back. Kim was there waiting for her beau, like she always was, and she saw the whole thing. It was clear she was upset.

"So that's how it's going to be? I bear my soul to you, reveal my most personal secrets, and you turn around and pick up some floozy who can't even see straight?"

"Kim, honey, it's not like that, she's just a friend!"

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah," Ashley butted in, "I don't know what you see in this loser!"

"You stay out of this!" Dash exclaimed as he bucked his passenger.

"OW!"

"Kim, can we talk in private somewhere?"

"I suppose, I got nothing better to do, yet."

The two found an empty stairwell inside the building. "Okay, what is it, Dash?"

"I still love you, especially now that I know you're a super."

"So what's the problem?"

"When you chopped your arm off like that in front of God and everybody, I must admit, it scared the bejabbers out of me."

"Oh, perfect, that's just what I needed to hear, 'I love you, but you creep me out.'"

"I'm sorry, that's not what I meant to say at all." Dash sighed and gripped his eyes. He was on the verge of tears.

"Oh, come here, you big crybaby!" Kim grabbed the love of her life in a warm embrace. Dash hugged her back and she melted in his arms, literally. It felt kind of weird, but in a nice way.

"Thanks, Kim, I feel better already. So, now that we each know each other's secrets, we can be superheroes together, what do you say?"

"Oh, no! That is completely out of the question." Kim snapped back into solid form. "If my father found out I was doing hero work, he'd have kittens all over again!"

"Wait, I'm not quite sure I follow you, could you back up a bit?"

"Okay, both of my parents are normals, they don't have super powers. When I was born, I didn't exactly come out in one piece, if you get my drift."

"Continue."

"So, the doctor, he says that my 'condition' (that's what my dad calls it) shouldn't have any negative effect on living a normal life."

"He made it sound like you had cancer or something."

"Yeah, and I was raised to think that my powers were a disease. But then, when the Super Relocation Act was lifted, and all these super heroes came out of hiding, I was inspired. Suddenly I realized that I could use my 'condition' to the benefit of mankind."

"Let me guess, you told your dad you wanted to be a superhero and he said no?"

"What he said was…" She imitated her father's deep voice. "No daughter of mine is going to be a flying acrobat waiting for a circus to join! At that point, I gave up on mankind altogether and began focusing on motherhood."

"Your dad really thought of superheroes that way?"

"He still does. That's why I can't be a superhero, and I can't join Alpha Force."

"Kim, you're 18 years old. You're an adult. You can make your own decisions. You don't have to do what your father says anymore!"

"Dash, I'm not 18 yet, and I won't be until April 27th!"

"Uh, Kim, today is April 27th."

"It is?" She waved her finger around like she was thinking hard. "Oh my gosh, it is! I can't believe I forgot my own birthday!"

"Yeah, that's supposed to be MY job!"

They both got a good laugh out of that one.

"What do you say you come over to my place for a proper birthday dinner? I could introduce you to the team."

"That sounds fantastic!" Kim exulted. "Holy smokes! I'm going to be late for class!"

"Need a lift?" offered Dash.

"Okay, but if you make me lose my glasses again, I'll have to hurt you!"

Meanwhile, back at the "Cube Farm"…

"Hey, Vi!"

"Yeah, Smitty?"

"Listen, I need to know if you have connections to Python."

Violet knew about Smitty's unhealthy obsession with her super alter ego. "Why do you need to know?"

"I'd like to buy her lunch."

And that was the Parr family kryptonite: free food. "What time should she be there?"

"Have her come to my place at around noon today. You know my address."

"Sure, no problem."

Okay, I'll just have lunch with Smitty as Python, I'll let him down easily, he'll stop drooling all over me, and that will be the end of that, she thought.

Little did she know just how wrong she was.

(A/N: I've been waiting for this coming sequence since I set out to write this story! You're not going to believe what comes next! Hey, how'd I do with the romantic stuff so far? And is it just me, or is this story turning into a cheesy soap opera? Talk to me! Chapter 27 coming soon to a web browser near you!)