Chapter 2: Everybody Loves Kim

"I didn't think she'd take it this hard."

Bonnie looked up from the magazine she was thumbing through and glanced at her aunt. "What did you think she'd do, go out and celebrate? It's Josh Mankey."

Bonita shook her head. "I mean I thought she'd get over it faster."

"How would you know? You said it never happened this way before."

"It hasn't. But there were always implications."

Bonnie rolled her eyes. "Of what?"

"That the whole time she went out with Josh, she was only doing it in the hopes of making someone else jealous."

"Who, Kim?"

"No. Me. Well, you." Bonita shook her head. "You know what I mean."

"Then it didn't work." Bonnie went back to her magazine.

"Didn't it? You can't sit there and tell me you weren't relieved when she chose to listen to you."

"Of course I was. She chose life over death."

"She chose you over him. You said as much yourself."

"Whatever. The point is, she's not dead. Don't get all bent out of shape because things didn't happen like you said they would."

Bonita frowned at her. "Tara wouldn't be alive if it weren't for my warning you. Much as you hate to admit it, I have more power over whether you live or die than you do over what clothes you wear. I've been through the time stream, Bonnie. I know what will happen to you two, and you would be smart to listen to me."

"Wrong, Auntie. You know what happens to me. But your knowledge of Tara has already ended. Yours died in that car crash, didn't she?"

For a second, the expression on Bonita's face was nothing short of murderous. Then she looked away and forced herself to calm down.

"I am here to help you, Bonnie. To help us. Why do you insist on testing me?"

"Because I've seen better plots in a sci-fi movie and I don't like people telling me I'm not in control of my own life."

Bonita smiled. "You silly girl. Haven't you been listening? I AM control. I know your life, because it is mine. If you would only listen to me, I could give you everything. Wealth. Power. Fame. Even love, if you wanted it badly enough. All you have to do is trust me."

"Funny. That's the one thing I can't do," Bonnie replied, crossing her arms over her chest. "I don't need help with my life. Trusting you would be admitting that I can't shape my life by myself. And I think I've been doing just fine, thanks."

"You want your independence? You still have it. Bonnie, I'm not going to control you. At worst, you'd be getting advice from yourself. How much more independent do you need to be?"

"That's another thing. You look and talk a lot like me, but I'm not so sure. Don't they have cloning in the future? They have to, because I've seen myself in feral triplicate before. You could be anyone else in my body."

"With your memories, too? Even the personal ones, sugarplum?"

Bonnie glared at her. "I can't trust you. It's too easy."

Bonita sighed. "Fine. But you can't expect me to just stand by if I know you're about to do something that will jeopardize your future."

"You mean your future."

"I mean yours, Bonnie. I've already lived a full life. Several, in fact. Truth be told, I hadn't even really planned a return trip. I'm prepared to give you everything, even if it costs me everything. How many people do you know willing to do that?"

"Just one."

Bonita nodded. "And she's alive because of me. Because of us. Remember that."

Bonnie wasn't so sure that Auntie was right about that last one. Tara may have been alive because of them, but you wouldn't know it by the way she'd been acting. Since Josh's death, Tara hadn't done much of anything. She'd spent the last few days almost entirely in Bonnie's room, staring at the wall.

Naturally, Bonnie wanted to drag her out of there. But she knew this was a sensitive time for Tara, and she didn't know how to be firm without seeming controlling. She didn't want Tara to feel forced into anything, but she didn't want Tara to waste away in there. At least she was still eating, if only a little.

Auntie had been surprisingly helpful. She'd talked to Tara's parents, had gone to their house to pick up some of Tara's things, and was even thoughtful enough to grab a box of chocolates and a bouquet of lilies for Tara. Bonnie didn't notice until it was too late that Auntie had signed her (Bonnie's) name to the card on the box, and of course the signature was a perfect copy of her own. She had wanted to talk to Auntie about that, but the warm hug Tara gave her afterwards made her forget to be angry.

Despite that, Bonnie was determined to get Tara out of the house. She was hoping that a little sun and fresh air would do something about that distant look Tara had in her eyes lately. She'd decided on the quieter end of the mall, where the bookstores and jewelry places were.

Of course, first she had to get Tara to agree to come.

"I don't really feel like going anywhere, Bonnie," was Tara's reply.

Bonnie sighed. "Tara," she said quietly, sitting next to her on the bed. "I know you're upset about Josh, and I understand you need some time to deal. But you can't stop living, period. Josh wouldn't want that, would he?"

"No," Tara whispered. "But-"

"I want you to be happy again, Tara. Maybe leaving you here would make you okay, but I know it won't make you happy."

Tara didn't say anything.

Bonnie frowned and placed her hand over Tara's. "What if we went-"

They were interrupted by a light knock on the door. Auntie poked her head in. "Sorry to interrupt, but Kim's father just called. He wanted to know if Tara would like to see Josh's mural at the Space Center. He can get us day passes."

To Bonnie's surprise, Tara threw a pouty look her way.

"Could we go there?"

"Um...okay." Bonnie wasn't sure why that had never occurred to her. Maybe because she'd been trying to avoid reminding Tara of her loss.

"I'll be waiting downstairs," Auntie said as she started to leave.

"For what?" Bonnie asked sharply.

Auntie smirked at her. "Dr. Possible invited me, too. Apparently, you never mentioned me to him, and he's anxious to meet me. And since you were going to the mall anyway, I wanted to pick up a few things. I'll drive. It'll give you two a chance to talk."

Tara wasn't much for conversation on the way to the Space Center, although she did seem a bit happier.

There was also the way that both of them sitting in the back allowed Tara to hold Bonnie's hand the entire trip, which Bonnie found surprising, but welcomed all the same. Maybe this was the start of Tara opening herself up to new possibilities in life again.

But the instant they were out of the car, Tara latched onto her hand again, and Bonnie wasn't sure what to make of that. She didn't have a problem with it, and obviously Tara didn't either, but Bonnie couldn't be sure if Tara was doing it because she wanted to, or because she needed to.

Dr. Possible actually took time out of his schedule to meet them at the gate. Bonnie was more than a little surprised when he drew her and Tara into a combined hug and offered his condolences. Tara thanked him, and Bonnie made do with a slight nod. As an afterthought (after she was poked firmly in the back), Bonnie introduced her aunt. To her annoyance, they seemed to hit it off at once, and she could imagine them all being invited to a Possible family dinner in the near future.

After the greetings were exchanged, Dr. Possible escorted them to his lab, were the mural was housed. Bonnie could never recall being impressed by art, but this was definitely one of those times.

The mural was massive, stretching almost the entire length of the wall. It depicted children experiencing various aspects of the Rocket Booster program: building model rockets, watching a launch, shaking hands with what appeared to be a monkey astronaut, and floating in an anti-gravity room. A shiny new plaque on the right end held a picture of Josh, and proclaimed that Rocket Boosters would now take part in a painting workshop. There would also be a rocket, dubbed 'Mankey's Ark,' designed for the sole purpose of taking the children's art to the space station every year.

Tara stared at the plaque for a long moment. Then her eyes scanned the mural, as if looking for something. She finally spotted Josh's initials in the bottom right corner. She knelt down, gently brushing her fingers over the tiny gold letters a few times.

Bonnie jumped slightly as Auntie tapped her shoulder. She hadn't realized how hard she'd been staring at the mural.

"Give her a moment with him," Auntie suggested, gently pulling her away. "Did you know him well?" she asked when they were out of earshot.

Bonnie shook her head. "We went on a double date once, but Brick was so stupid by comparison that we never did again. And we never spoke much, after he turned me down and got interested in Kim."

"That never panned out, though."

"No. He started seeing Tara a few months later."

"So he had good taste."

"A third of the time, at least."

Auntie glanced at her rather sharply. "He had good taste, period."

Bonnie gave her a funny look, but said nothing else.

Tara stood up about five minutes later, her eyes damp but not spilling over. She made sure to thank Dr. Possible before returning to Bonnie's side. "I'm done," she said quietly, taking Bonnie's hand again. "We can go."

Bonnie caught a hint of a smile on Auntie's face at the sight of their joined hands, but decided not to call her on it. Truth be told, it made her feel better, too, and she didn't want to make a scene in public for no good reason.

The mall was crowded as usual, but not uncomfortably so. Bonnie claimed she wanted to buy a surprise for Auntie, which neither of them believed for a moment. But Auntie left her and Tara on their own willingly enough, with a promise to meet them at the food court in an hour or so.

There was nowhere special Tara wanted to go, so she tagged along with Bonnie, never releasing her hand for more than a few minutes. Though it had been endearing at first, Bonnie was starting to feel stifled and sweaty, neither of which she was a big fan of. So the next time she pulled her hand away to wipe the sweat off, she instead slipped her arm around Tara's waist without really thinking about it.

Tara missed a step and nearly tripped, but straightened up quickly and moved a little closer to make it easier on Bonnie's arm.

Bonnie noticed that there was a bit more color in her cheeks after that, but not once did Tara complain, so she left her hand resting lightly on Tara's waist.

They drifted from store to store, gradually nearing the food court. Bonnie wasn't really paying attention to which stores they were nearing until she noticed that Artsy Fartsy was having a sale on paint sets. Hoping that Tara wouldn't see it and think of Josh, Bonnie tried to maneuver her past it quickly. She had almost succeeded when Tara grabbed her arm.

"Bonnie," she said softly. "I want to go in."

"Are you sure?" Bonnie asked at once.

Tara nodded. "I know you're being sensitive to my feelings, and I really do appreciate it. But everything that reminds me of Josh isn't going to make me burst into tears. I'll be okay for a few minutes, if you don't want to go in."

"I'll go," Bonnie said simply, feeling a little silly. She'd been trying to protect Tara, and maybe she'd been doing too good a job.

Tara seemed to read her mind. "Don't worry. I like it when you take care of me." She gave Bonnie a quick hug before dragging her into the art store.

A few framed paintings actually did catch Bonnie's eye, and she ended up buying an odd one entitled "Plant Life," which depicted a farm with neon green crops and a nuclear power plant in the background. Bonnie had no idea why she was willing to pay ten dollars for it, but she did before she had a chance to change her mind.

Tara bought a few sketchpads and color pencils, saying she might donate them to the Rocket Boosters if she never used them.

Auntie was waiting for them in the food court, and Bonnie immediately shoved "Plant Life" into her arms. To her amazement, Auntie grinned hugely (and genuinely) before hugging Bonnie and kissing the top of her head.

"I love it, sugarplum. Thanks a bunch."

Bonnie felt a certain warmth pass through her, but ignored it in favor of the sights and smells of the food court.

"You two pick out a table. I'll take care of the food." Auntie vanished into the crowd before Bonnie could argue.

"She better not get anything fattening," Bonnie muttered.

"At least she's not predicting our doom anymore," Tara pointed out.

"Yeah. For now, anyway." Bonnie spotted a good table and made a beeline for it. She'd just sat down when she heard a familiar voice. "Oh, great. It must be Impossible to Escape the Possibles Day," she sighed.

Kim ran up a moment later, followed by a slightly out of breath Ron. "Tara, I haven't seen you out in a while. How are you?"

"Much better, thanks to Bonnie," Tara replied. "We just came over from seeing Josh's mural."

"I hope my dad didn't bore you too much?" Kim asked.

"Oh no, he was great. He asked if I'd help out with the Rocket Boosters next year. I think it would be good for me."

"Yeah, they had some trouble finding teenagers to be chaperones," Ron said, getting a quick elbow from Kim. "OW!"

"Anyway, I've been trying to catch up with you." Kim reached into her pocket and produced a silver watch. "Dad found it in his lab."

"Josh's watch," Tara said quietly as Kim handed it over.

"He told me once that he never liked to think about time when he was painting. He always took it off before he started working. I guess he forgot it."

Tara closed her eyes and clasped the watch to her heart. She blinked back tears and threw her arms around Kim's neck. "Thank you so much, Kim."

"Um...sure," Kim replied, awkwardly patting Tara's back. "I thought he'd, you know, want you to have it."

"I'm going to have this engraved right now," Tara decided impulsively.

Ron spoke up. "I'll pay for it."

All three girls looked surprised.

"You will?" Tara asked.

"Yeah. It's the least I could do." Ron looked at his shoes. "I never really got to know Josh, and that's mostly my fault. So I'm paying my respects. Just, uh, literally."

Tara smiled at him. "Thanks, Ron. That really means a lot to me."

As they left, Bonnie was only slightly relieved to see that Tara made no move to hold Ron's hand or loop her arm through his. She didn't actually think Ron had the guts to make a move on Tara, and she was equally sure that Tara had gotten over her little schoolgirl crush on him. She'd moved up to Josh, after all.

"Bonnie, can I ask you a personal question?" Kim asked suddenly.

Bonnie instinctively scowled at her. "What?"

Kim locked eyes with her. "Are you and Tara...dating?" she murmured in a hushed tone.

Bonnie's eyes widened.

"I only ask because I saw you two earlier. That, and...well, you know Tara's really vulnerable right now, and-"

"If you're about to accuse me to taking advantage of her," Bonnie snapped, her eyes blazing.

"I'm not!" Kim said quickly, holding up her hands in surrender. "I just thought I should warn you. If you want to be with her, that's between you two. But if you try to do something about it now, it'll be between you, Tara, and Josh. Let her come to terms with him first. That way you can both be sure she's not projecting her feelings for Josh onto you. You wouldn't want that, would you?"

Bonnie had to admit that she didn't. Maybe she hadn't felt this way about Tara until right before Josh died, but she didn't want Tara associating their relationship with him for the rest of her life.

Kim smiled warmly. "See? I'm good for something other than target practice every now and then."

Bonnie was forced to agree...though she wouldn't dare say so aloud. And fortunately, she was saved by the arrival of Auntie with three...actually, five sandwiches on a tray. Which was a little too convenient for Bonnie's suspicions.

"You must be Kim Possible," Auntie said with a broad smile. "I'm Bonnie's Aunt Bonita. It's a pleasure to finally meet another of Bonnie's good friends. I was starting to think Tara was hiding you somewhere."

"Oh, I just keep really busy," Kim laughed uneasily. "So, Bonnie told you we were good friends?" she asked, shooting a confused look at Bonnie.

"She never stops talking about you," Auntie raved. "'Kim did this, Kim did that, Kim saved what's-his-name.' I feel like I know you already!"

Bonnie's face was completely red now, either from embarrassment, rage, or both.

"You simply must come over to the house some time," Auntie continued. "We'd love to have you. Bonnie doesn't bring many of her friends home."

"Neither do I," Kim admitted truthfully. "Fear of imposing, I guess."

"Oh, not at all! Why, just today your father was telling me-"

Bonnie practically jammed her elbow into Auntie's side. "HEY, let's go look at some more paintings, Auntie," she said quickly.

"Bye, Kim!" Auntie practically shouted as Bonnie dragged her away. "Feel free to drop by anytime!"

"What the hell was that?" Bonnie demanded when they were out of earshot. "If you're really me, you'd know that Kim Possible is the bane of my existence!"

"The other way around, really," Auntie clarified. "Because guess what, Bon-Bon? If it wasn't for your attitude, you two would probably be as close as you are with Tara."

Bonnie glared at her. "I'm not interested in changing my attitude or being friends with Kim. And what was with all those lies? I never told you anything about her!"

"You didn't have to. Believe it or not, you need Kim Possible in your life. And the friendlier you are with her, the better off you'll be."

"How would you know?"

"Because she gave me a chance to do the same, and I passed it up, just like you are. If you're really interested in not ending up like me, sugarplum, you better start learning from my mistakes. This is another conversation I've had way too much with myself."

"Give me one good reason why I should be nice to her," Bonnie challenged.

"I'll give you two. One, Tara is. Two, a few years from now, you'll literally have to choose between living free, or becoming what I am today. The ONLY path that leads to living free runs right through Kim Possible. So I'd be a little nicer the next time you talk to her. It'll freak her out, but if you keep it up, she'll come to realize it's not an act. So will you, for that matter. She's genuinely a good person, Bonnie. You can be, too, if you'd listen to her."

"Oh, sure. It's always all about Kim, isn't it?"

"Actually, it's more about her family. But Kim's approval goes a long way, and not just with them."

Tara wasn't sure what had happened in the time it took for her to have Josh's watch engraved, but something clearly had. Auntie and Bonnie weren't speaking, and Bonnie seemed very upset about something. She hadn't even smirked or rolled her eyes when Ron had freaked out at seeing two of her.

Tara suspected that Auntie had made another of her predictions, this one affecting Bonnie, and not in a good way. She didn't want to ask, though, if it was Bonnie's business. On the other hand, if it was serious, she expected Bonnie to tell her.

"Is there something I should know?" Tara asked no one in particular.

Auntie glanced back at her. "Yup. You know that big game that's coming up?"

"Yeah?"

"Bonnie won't be there, on account of her leg acting up on her."

"There's nothing wrong with my leg!" Bonnie shouted.

"Damn right, and there won't be, so long as you don't go to that game."

"Oh, for-!"

"Bonnie, you don't believe her?" Tara asked in alarm. "But she was right the last time! She saved my life!"

"She didn't say I was going to die, Tara. She just said I'd get hurt."

"And I have the scars to prove it," Auntie added. "It's also the night you break up with Brick for good. Incidentally, for accidentally plowing into your leg and snapping it like a twig."

"You seem to walk pretty good," Bonnie muttered.

"I certainly do. But you've never seen me in shorts, and let's just say there's a reason for that."

Tara grimaced. "You have been complaining a lot about Brick lately, Bonnie. Maybe if you break up with him before the game-"

Auntie shook her head. "Tried it. That only makes him play worse. Costs you an arm instead."

"So there's no way Bonnie can go to the game without getting hurt?" Tara asked.

"There's one way, but she'd never do it."

"What?"

Bonnie snorted. "She claims that if Kim is at the top of the pyramid instead of me that night, Brick will hit her instead, and she'll come out of it with just a sprained ankle."

"All true," Auntie insisted. "It's in the seating order. You trade spots with Kim, that puts you further down the bleachers. You stay where you are, Brick takes out your leg. Oh, but you should break up with him at some point before you graduate. Save yourself a lot of headaches."

"Can you limit yourself to like one prediction a day?" Bonnie asked, rubbing her forehead. "This is a lot to take in."

Auntie flicked her eyes over at Tara. "You've faced the worst of it already and come out okay. You'll be fine."

"Says Kim Possible's number one fan," Bonnie muttered under her breath.

"Someday soon, you'll thank me for dropping in and ruining your life, sugarplum. As bad as it may seem to you, mine has been infinitely worse. You have no idea how lucky you are, or will be."

Bonnie had made up her mind. She was going to the game.

That, however, was before Tara entered the room in her pajamas.

"Um, aren't you going to the game?" Bonnie asked in confusion.

"No, and you aren't, either," Tara replied calmly. "I just got off the phone with Kim and told her to change the formation, since she'll be short two squad members."

"TARA! I can't believe you gave up my spot!"

Tara didn't seem too concerned. "When I missed the dance, you told me you'd make it up to me, Bonnie. Well, I'm calling in that favor tonight. So you're going to stay home with me, instead of going out and getting your leg broken."

"So what's one leg? Do you know how often I actually get to be at the top?"

"Yes, I've been there every time. But there will be other times. And maybe there would be more, if you took Auntie's advice and started being nicer to Kim. Don't think she didn't tell me what you two talked about, and she's right. There's no real reason why you can't be friends with Kim. I am."

"You are not," Bonnie muttered half-heartedly.

"I am, too!" Tara insisted. "I just don't talk to her much when you're around, because I know you two don't get along. I'm your best friend, not hers."

"Then why does it seem like you and everyone else are Kim Possible fans?"

Tara just smiled and shook her head. "Take the hint, Bonnie. She's a great person, no matter how much she gets on your nerves. And I'm sure she wouldn't if you just learned to let some things go, and accept the rest."

"Like what?" Bonnie asked with a frown.

"Like," Tara said, walking over to her and gently taking her hands, "you need to let go of all that anger you're feeling right now, and accept that you're going to stay here, with me, and still have a great time. Okay?"

"And what is it you think we're going to have such a great time doing?"

Tara grinned at her. "You'll just have to get changed and see, won't you?"

Ten minutes later, Bonnie was also in her pajamas, waiting on Tara to deliver the fun.

"So where's this great time, again?" Bonnie asked, sitting on the bed.

Tara stuck out her tongue. "You're snippy when you're impatient, did you know that?"

"I'm not a patient person, Tara."

"Yeah, I know," Tara replied, giggling. "You're kinda always snippy."

"Hey!"

"Well, not always. Two thirds of the time. The other third, you're alone with me, and actually decent."

Bonnie rolled her eyes. "Gee, thanks."

"Aw, you know I meant it in a good way!"

"You can't mean snippy in a good way, it's not possible!"

"You just don't see you like I do," Tara answered defensively.

"You're right, because I'm not snippy!" Bonnie snapped.

Tara pressed her fists to her mouth to keep from giggling. "So what would you call how you are right now?"

Bonnie crossed her arms over her chest. "Justifiably pissed."

"Oh, really. Well, how do you feel about being justifiably pleased?"

"What are you getting at?"

Tara grabbed Bonnie's hands and pulled her to her feet. "Dance with me!"

Bonnie stared at her. "And now I'm justifiably confused."

"C'mon, let's dance! You OWE me a dance, Bonnie!"

"But...that's not..." Bonnie trailed off, sensing she was serious. "I'm not in the mood."

"So get in the mood." Tara seized Bonnie's wrists. "I won't stop bugging you until you dance with me, Bonnie. And you know how pesky I can be. Especially when it's justified."

"You can't use my own words against me like that!"

"Just did. If you don't hurry up and dance, I won't let you lead."

"Wait, you want me to slow dance?"

"Yes," Tara replied. "What's wrong with that?"

"We're short about two guys, then."

"Let's pretend they're gorging themselves on spiked punch. Dance."

"Tara-"

"DANCE."

Bonnie sighed loudly, but resigned herself to her fate. She placed one hand on Tara's hip, and was surprised when Tara moved the other one there, as well. "That's not how-"

"I don't really care you do it with Brick, Bonnie," Tara said testily. "In fact, I don't much care how you do anything with Brick."

Bonnie was surprised by the hint of venom in Tara's words. "Now who's the snippy one?"

"You're ruining the moment by thinking about Brick. I'm justifiably snippy."

"So why don't you tell me who I should be thinking of?"

Tara actually looked hurt. "You should be thinking of me. You should be having fun." She looked away, her eyes damp. "I should be having fun..."

Bonnie mentally kicked herself. "You're right. I'm sorry. No more...him. Let's dance."

Tara didn't look impressed. "You don't want to."

"I do. Really."

"Just forget it."

"Why? You won't." Bonnie drew Tara into her arms. "I'm really sorry, okay? I didn't realize how much this meant to you. You missed that dance for me, and I did promise to make it up to you."

"Promise you won't think of anyone else?" Tara asked quietly.

"If that's what you want, I promise."

"Well...okay."

"Do you want me to put on some music?"

Tara shook her head. "We don't need it. Between cheerleading and ballet, you can make up your own music in your head."

"You've thought this out," Bonnie realized.

Tara smiled faintly. "Been planning it since that night. Only we were already dancing by this point." She slid her arms around Bonnie's neck, lacing her fingers. "Still want to lead?"

"You know it."

The two girls began to sway slightly, with Bonnie setting the pace and Tara following along contentedly. No more words passed between them, simply because they weren't need and would've only been distractions. Everything ceased to exist, save for themselves and the silent song they danced to.

But then doubt loomed in Bonnie's mind, and she gave voice to the question invading her peace. "Tara...did you...have a good time today?"

Tara laid her head on Bonnie's shoulder, murmuring in the affirmative. "Why?" she asked softly.

"Just wanted to be sure." Bonnie bit her lip. "So you're glad I made you get out of the house?"

"Yes, Bonnie. I needed to, even if I didn't want to admit it." She smiled. "You always think you know what's best for me, don't you?"

"No. But I know you deserve the best, and I plan on giving it to you."

"You already are," Tara sighed happily.

Bonita Rockwaller carefully fingered the strand of brown hair, a thoughtful frown on her face. It had been easier to acquire than she'd feared, and that worried her a great deal.

She could no longer remember a time when she'd been so unaware. Just the thought seemed ridiculous to her now. But that was why she was going to all this trouble: so Bonnie would never have to be that alert, because she would never come into any real danger, if things worked out.

There were so many possible flaws, when one played with time.

Bonita was reminded of that, as she turned around to find a four-foot, muscular naked mole rat glaring at her.

"You've been a very bad girl, Ms. Rockwaller," he said in a no-nonsense tone.

"Go away. This has nothing to do with you."

"I cannot allow you to corrupt the time stream. You know that."

"Well, you're too damn late, Mickey. I've done too much good here to stop now."

"You think you're making things better. That's how the Supreme One started out, you know: trying to help herself."

"I won't end up like her. All I want is to help Bonnie. Nothing else matters."

"I wish I could believe that. But I'm afraid you'll have to come back with me now. By force, if necessary."

"Oh, you better believe it's necessary," Bonita hissed.

"In the name of Rufus Prime, I place you under arrest!" The mole rat leaped at her.

Bonita smirked, even as a lock of her hair snapped up and struck the rat's face, sending him flying into the wall.

"Sorry, Rufus 4K," Bonita sighed, "but I can't let you stop me."

"How..." he gasped, his body stiffening.

"You don't time travel without learning some things." Bonita stroked her hair. "It's a mild tranquilizer. Shouldn't last more than a day. Or so DNAmy told me when she spliced in the jellyfish DNA. If she lied, I guess you'll find out before I do."

"Must...stop..." Rufus 4000 wheezed.

"Time for you to go home." She leaned over and made a few adjustments to the chrono displacement unit on his wrist.

Rufus 4000 vanished into a portal of blue light.

Bonita shook her head. "Four hyper-evolutions and they're still dumb as dirt." She turned back to her work, holding the strand of hair before her face. "Magnify."

A thin film slid over her left eye, and Bonita smiled. "The same. Or similar enough, anyway. Hope you're not too fussy about eating right, sugarplum, because it's almost time to take your medicine..."

Next Chapter: Auntie starts to show her true colors...or so Bonnie thinks.

Reviews!

Ranger117

This is definitely one of the better fanfics here. It's nice to have a change in pace every once in a while and this definitely provides it. Keep it up!

Glad you like it. I'm proud of this one.

gargoylesama

Very good and mind-twistingly weird... 12 Monkeys weird... Strange things can happen when you tamper with the time stream... Looking forward to more of this story.

Hopefully not THAT twisting, but thanks.

Forlong

An interesting story. One question: are you going to be doing a girl/girl pairing?

You did read the note before the story, didn't you? I don't put those in to hear myself talk. Well, not entirely. At current, I've made no final decisions, but more than likely, yes.

Sand Lord

Good start. Bonnie and Tara, nice plot. Maybe there's more than just friendship between them? Well, I'm looking forward for more!

Probably.