Thanks to everyone who is reading…especially those reviewing. Please feel free to R&R people. Even if it's bad, I'll probably just ignore you anyway…hehe
Disclaimer: Just in case anybody wondered where this was in my last chapter…I'm new to so please nobody sue me.
As always, no permission to use any of these characters except for the ones I make myself…which probably won't be that many anyway. I'll let you know when they come along.
Kim Possible characters belong to the Disney folks and all the Exalted stuff belongs to White Wolf.
CHAPTER TWO"Ron…Ron!"
Kim was about ready to give up. She had been trying to wake Ron for a good eight minutes now and nothing seemed to be working. She had done everything short of yanking the covers off of him, which she figured might be a bad idea. He was, after all a teenage boy. Who knew what types of dreams were floating around in that head of his when he wasn't conscious? Not to mention the fact that she had no idea weather or not he wore more than boxers to sleep.
"Got it." Came a small squeak from the direction of the door.
Rufus, Ron's small pink naked mole rat stood in the doorway, holding up a small paper cup filled with water. Kim walked over and retrieved his burden and walked back over to the side of Ron's bed.
"Last chance Ron." She said warningly as she dangled to cup over his face.
No response
"Okay, you asked for this one." Kim dumped the contents of the cup directly onto Ron's face.
Immediately, Ron sat up sputtering, coughing and yelling random bits of half formed questions.
"Easy there sleeping beauty." Kim chuckled as she placed the empty cup down on Ron's cluttered nightstand. Honestly, how can he live in this labyrinth of clutter? She asked herself.
"What, what was that about?" Ron asked dazed
"Hey, you're the one who wouldn't wake up. I had to employ drastic measures." Kim explained
"Yeah, well did the cup have to be full?" Ron asked. "I coulda drowned there."
"So not the drama Ron. Besides, we're gonna be late for school if you don't hurry." The redhead replied
"Yeah, I'm hurrying, I'm hurrying." He said, "You should go on without me though."
"Yeah, and I…huh?" Kim asked confused
"I said, you should go ahead." Ron repeated
"Uh…I…mean…you don't want me to wait?"
"Naw, I'll be all right. Besides, if you wait for me you'll just end up being late and ruin your attendance record."
Kim was surprised. "You sure?"
"Yeah, yeah. Go on, I'll catch you at school."
"Okay…I guess. I'll see you there then." Kim said as she turned and walked out of the door.
Once she was gone Ron rose from his bed. He felt a bit dizzy and disoriented. Which was why he had told Kim to go on ahead. To be honest, he wasn't even quite sure that he'd make it to school at all. It must have been that funky dream he'd had. It was rather unsettling, especially since it had been the same dream that he had been having every night for the past month. This time it had been a bit different though. The beach thing was definitely not a normal part of his dream. Usually, his dreams ended right as the big sphere of light exploded.
"Maybe it has something to do with what the voice said at the end of the dream." Ron said out loud to no one in particular.
He walked over to his dresser drawer and pulled out a clean set of clothes. He didn't have many clean sets left. He thought about asking his mother to do a wash for him but then remembered that she and his father were gone for the next two days. Some marriage retreat that they had planned for the past few months. He figured that he would have to do a wash himself when he got home today. After getting showered and dressed, he grabbed a package of toaster pastries and left the house and locked the door. Checking his watch, he decided to hurry. He might still make it to school if he did.
I might just make it. Ron thought as he broke into a dead run towards the doors of Middleton High.
It was 7:40 and school started and 7:45. Five minutes left, if I head straight for my first period I'll make it. He was past the front doors and into the main hallway rounding a corner when it happened.
"Ow!"
Ron collided with something as he was turning the corner and fell back flat on his butt. Looking up to see what it was, he found out that it wasn't an it but rather a he. Above him, a young boy who looked to be no older than fourteen stared back down at Ron smiling.
"Hey there, you all right man?" The boy asked offering his hand to help Ron up.
Ron took the proffered hand and slowly stood to his feet. "Yeah, I'm okay."
"Good, I thought that I might have hurt you." The boy responded.
Ron chuckled "Just my pride…but I don't think I've ever seen you around here before."
"No you haven't, I'm a new student." He boy said simply
"Oh, well welcome to Middleton High!" Ron said cordially
REWIND: TWO MINUTES AGO
Eight thousand years and he was still the kid. He had been alive for more centuries than anyone in this building had years. Yet, he was the one chosen for this task. He knew the logic behind it. He was the only one who could pull it off reasonably besides Jade, and she was busy keeping an eye out for…what exactly Dace hadn't said, but Dace was sure that when she saw it, she would know and told her as much. That left him, Panther or Lilith…and to tell the truth Yushuv felt better about himself taking on the role of watchful guardian to this new exalt that had brought them here. Speaking of which…he felt a strange feeling just now. It felt like…it was! There was an Exalt nearby. All he had to do now was find out where he…
"Ow!"
PRESENT
"So, what's your name?" Ron asked the boy standing in front of him.
"I'm Yushuv, and you are?"
"My names Ron."
Just then the class bell rang out signifying the start of class.
"And now I am late." Ron said.
"Oh I'm sorry, that's my fault. You won't get into trouble will you?" Yushuv asked
"Not much more than I usually do for being late." Ron responded
"STOPPABLE!" A loud voice bellowed from down the hall.
"Oh great, It's Barkin." Ron said sarcastically. "Just don't look him in the eye."
"Stoppable, what are you doing in the halls after the bell. Playing hooky I'll bet." Barkin barked.
"Well, I was…" Ron started
"I'm sorry sir, Ron here was helping me to find my locker and show me around. I'm sorry if we're late, it was entirely my fault sir." Yushuv interrupted.
"Oh, you must be the new student…Yushuv Dawn was it?" Barkin asked
"Yes sir." Yushuv replied
"Well then I'll overlook it this time. Stoppable, you better not go corrupting this kid on his first day."
"No sir, of course not." Ron said.
"Well then, you two better get to class." Barking ordered
"Yes sir, right away sir." Ron blurted
"Carry on then."
With that Barkin left the pair and went along his patrol through the halls.
"Uh…thanks…back there." Ron said when Barkin was out of earshot
"No problem man, we gotta stick together you know?" Yushuv stated and immediately wished that he hadn't.
"What do you mean?" Ron asked
Yushuv ran through a number of explanations and finally settled on one.
"I mean clumsy guys like us." He said
"Oh, yeah you're right!" Ron said
Yushuv silently sighed. The kid had bought it, which was good. Most exalts tended to be slightly paranoid people who suspected people when they said things that didn't quite fit. He knew that from personal experience. Even before his exaltation he had been quite the paranoid skeptic. Then again, he'd been pretty damn brave too. Wandering down in those catacombs farther than anyone else had ever dared to venture. He assumed that since the others shared some of these characteristics, that the Unconquered Sun had a tendency to pick people like that as his chosen. So far the exalt in front of him had seemed pretty trusting. Which was good for now, but they would have to train him out of that later. 'Solars can't afford to trust too many people.' At least that was what Dace had always said.
"So what's you first period?" Ron asked pulling Yushuv out of his inner thoughts.
"Oh, right…um…Chem. lab." Yushuv said glancing at the paper schedule in his hand.
"Hey cool that's my next class! What grade are you in?" Ron asked.
"Oh me, I'm a Junior." Yushuv stated.
"Hey, me too. Let me get a look at you schedule." Ron asked
Yushuv handed it to him, it should be pretty familiar to the young man in front of him…seeing as it was almost a carbon copy of his own. Jade had set that up by hacking into the school computers. She was pretty damned good at that too. Just another one of the useful tricks she had in her repertoire. Yushuv had decided that he needed to have something that he could do better than her besides fight, at which he was only slightly better than she was. So he decided to become the best undercover agent that the team had…which worked pretty well, since no one really paid a kid any mind at all.
"Whoa, dude! We have exactly the same schedule, the same classes the same teachers and everything!"
Yushuv tried his best to sound surprised. "Really! So I guess I'll just hang with you then. I mean if that's all right with you?"
"What? Definitely, I'll let you in on everything that's everything around here!" Ron exclaimed
Ron was feeling rather excited. It wasn't everyday that he got to look like a real authority on anything. So he took great pride in the fact that this new kid was going to be looking to him for advice. Together the pair walked to their first class of the day.
"So, you go out there like everyday, and put your neck on the line for the whole world because she tells you to?" Yushuv asked.
"No, no no no no. I mean…well She doesn't you know…order me around…" Ron stammered.
"But you just said that she calls all the shots." Yushuv responded.
"Well, she does…but I mean…It's not like I don't have a choice to follow her or not." Ron defended.
"Then why follow her? If you ask me the whole thing sounds a bit, insane."
"Well, KP's my friend. She's always been there for me and I'll always be there for her." Ron said confidently.
"Right, so where is she now?" Yushuv asked.
"She'll be here any moment now. I can't wait for you to meet her! You'll see, she's cool Yushuv!" Ron replied.
Just then Monique, Kim's best female friend sat down at the table with an audible 'humph'.
"Hey Mon, I got someone I want you to meet. Monique, this is Yushuv. Yushuv, this is Monique." Ron introduced them.
"Hi." Monique said simply.
She seemed irritated.
"Hey, what's up Mon?" Ron asked
"Oh nothing much, just feel like bashing Kim's skull in with a nice big hammer." She said nonchalantly.
"So how 'cool' is she again Ron?" Yushuv asked
Ron simply threw a glare at Yushuv and went back to asking Monique what had happened.
"We were supposed to hang out at the mall today after school, but she just blew me off." Monique said getting more irritated as she spoke. "She said something about a date with Josh tonight! On GIRL'S NIGHT OUT of all days!"
Yushuv sat back not saying anything. If he had learned anything from spending all these centuries with Harmonious Jade and Lilith around, one of those things was not to stand in the way of a pissed off woman. One must make oneself small so as not to draw fire.
"I'm sure she just forgot Mon. She'll hang with you next time. Yeah, that what she said last week and the week before that Ron! I swear Josh Mankey is having some adverse affect on Kim. She's starting to forget who her friends are."
Ron winced. He had argued this point with himself before, and hearing it come from Monique's mouth just made it all the more valid.
"Look, I'll talk to her Mon." Ron finally said.
"Yeah you had better. Before I get to her." She threatened.
Ron left the table and eventually found Kim with Monkey boy at a table outside in the courtyard.
"Hey KP, can I talk to you for a minute?" Ron asked as he walked up.
"Sure go ahead." Kim still giggling from some joke Josh just told answered with a smile on her face.
"Actually, it's kinda private KP." Ron said
"Oh okay." She said rising up from her seat with Josh "Be back in a sec."
Josh nodded and when Kim turned her back gave Ron an evil glare, which Ron chose to ignore. When they had entered an area where they could talk without being interrupted, Ron spoke.
"Hey Kim, look. Monique just came over and she seemed a bit tweaked."
"Oh, yeah about that. See Josh had asked me out before Monique had asked so I had to turn her down." Kim explained.
"Uh Kim, since when does Monique need to set up a appointment to hang out with you on girls night out. Even I know not to ask you to hang out on girls night out." Ron said.
"Well Ron things are different now." Kim said
"Oh and why is that?" Ron asked
"Because, I'm dating Josh now!" She said
"So, Monkey boy gets all your free time to himself all of a sudden and your friends can go suck a sewer pipe?" Ron retorted angrily.
"That is not true and you know it Ron!" She responded.
"Do I really? Because I don't think I do." Ron snapped back
"I would never abandon my friends Ron!" Kim said simply
"Yeah, sure KP. Just think about this. Monique hasn't spent time with you outside of school for the past three weeks if you count today's blow off. I haven't even so much as gotten a phone call from you in four weeks. In fact you went on your last three missions without me. I had to find out about 'em from Wade."
"Ron, look I get busy. I'm growing up."
"Yeah, well don't be surprised if your friends aren't there when you're done." Ron said flatly and turned and walked away
"Ron…Ron!" Kim called after him but received no answer.
"I just don't get it!" Ron said as he bit into a Naco.
He and Yushuv had gone to Beuno Nacho after school and they were now discussing the formers chat with Kim during lunch.
"How can we go to being best friends since pre-k to barely speaking at all?" Ron asked his companion.
Yushuv shrugged as he wolfed down his own Naco. "Hey, I know what you mean. One second you're just a normal, lovable, neighborhood kid and the next you're being hunted like a dog through the streets…" Yushuv slipped. "…People change man!" He recovered with an inward sigh. He was really gonna have to stop letting his guard down around this kid like that.
"No way, I mean…not Kim. We've been tight forever." Ron argued
"So what, you think she's being brainwashed or something?" Yushuv said jokingly between bites. Man these things were delicious. Where had this been all his life?
"I dunno, I mean, she has been acting different. But not brainwash different."
"So what else could be up besides what she was telling you…She's growing up. Maybe growing out of your friendship." Yushuv said calmly.
"No way man! Kim and me are tight forever! We always said we'd be." Ron defended
"So, that means about as much as horse shit on the road to Atlantis." Yushuv said coining an ancient phrase he had picked up in Greece sometime during his run in with that Plato guy. He had been one hell of a guy actually.
"Huh?" Ron responded.
"Old saying where I'm from. Anyway, it means that talk is cheap Ron. Kim could have said a great deal of things…and meant them at the time. That however, does not mean that she'll keep her promises."
Ron shook his head
"Look man I see it all the time. It's why I don't trust that many people…well that and because Dace tells me not to…but that is neither here nor there." Yushuv said simply. "People break their word. Unless you have some mystical way of making them keep it, then you're shit outta luck."
Ron sighed and dropped his head
Yushuv seeing that his words depressed the boy sighed and flashed him a smile "Hey, if it makes you fell any better, I actually trust you even though it's against my nature."
"Really?" Ron asked
"Yeah, you're a decent guy, and Kim is crazy for choosing a loser like that Mankey over you." Yushuv said
"Whoa, me and Kim are tight…but not like that though!" Ron said catching Yushuv's tone and meaning.
"Yeah, sure sure." Yushuv said chuckling. "On the subject of Mankey though…"
Rewind two hours earlier
Yushuv had been watching the fight between Ron and Kim and listening in with a bit of help from his solar abilities. It was then that he noticed through the window the boy, what was his name…Josh Mankey…staring at him. It was a bit disturbing, he had this look in his eyes as if he were seeing some kind of ghost or something. It was then that Yushuv got a feeling about Mankey. Not much at all but just an inkling of something was nagging at him. It seemed familiar in a way. He remembered something. Something from so long ago he thought he would have forgotten it all. Yet it was still burned into his memory. Two words that described something that he had only faced twice in his life. Something that he was one of the few fortunate enough to survive. Something every exalt knew no matter which god of the Old World they served. Something called the Wyld Hunt.
PRESENT
"What about him?" Ron asked
"Have you ever gotten…I dunno, a weird feeling about him?" Yushuv asked
"You know what? Yes, recently I've just been getting this…I don't know bad vibe from him. Like…spider sense or something."
"Spider-sense?" Yushuv asked chuckling.
"Oh you know what I mean, like he's dangerous or something." Ron explained
"Yeah, me too. When did you first start feeling it though?" Yushuv asked
"About four weeks ago, which is weird. It was around the same time as when I…" Ron trailed off.
"'When you' what?" Yushuv asked
"Promise not to laugh?" Ron said
Yushuv had an idea where this was going and agreed with a nod
"I've been having this dream lately Yushuv, I haven't even told Kim about this so I need you to keep a lid on this for me."
Yushuv nodded
"Well, it's a rather strange one." Ron continued "At first I'm in this really dark place. Then there's this light that talks to me. After it talks to me for a while it usually blows up and then I wake up…but…"
"But what?" Yushuv pressed.
"Last night, it was different. Well I mean, for the most part it stayed the same. Darkness, then a light, explosion, you know the usual dream. Then after that I was on a beach. I mean it was the most gorgeous beach I had ever seen. It stretched out as far as the eye could see and the ocean…the water was so crystal clear blue I could see to the bottom. Then this huge wave knocks me off my feet and I'm on my hands and knees looking at my reflection in a pool of water in front of my face. Behind my head in the reflection I can see the sun and I know that somehow it's really important that I can see it. Then I hear the voice again. It says something about me being chosen. That's when I woke up."
Yushuv sat stock-still and took it all in. The dream Ron had just described was definitely an exaltation dream and it was definitely an exaltation by the Unconquered Sun. Ron was indeed the one they had been looking for. Yet why had the dream been reoccurring for a month? That never happened as far as he knew. Usually, it wasn't even so much a dream as it was a vision/hallucination or whatever you wanted to call it, and they certainly did not reoccur over the period of a month's time. This was really something. He had better tell Dace and Lilith about this ASAP. Maybe they would have more insight.
"Whoa." Yushuv managed to get past his lips.
"Yeah, really." Ron said sitting back in his chair.
Just then Yushuv's cell phone rang. Reaching in his pocket he drew it forth. It was one of those really cool cellphones from the matrix movies that snapped open at the touch of a button and answered automatically rather than having to unfold the phone by hand. It also had a feature that allowed it to close the same way. Meaning you only needed one hand to use it and could use your other free hand to do whatever. Like Yushuv was using his free hand to jam another Naco into his mouth. He talked to the voice on the other end of the line simply saying things like "Uh-huh, yeah, sure, Beuno Nacho, definitely, and gotcha."
When he hung up he turned to Ron
"Hey, that was my…Uncle…he's sending my…uh…cousin to come and pick me up. You need a lift home?"
"Yeah sure." Ron said "If it's not any trouble?"
"No trouble at all. So where do you live?"
"Over on Crystalline drive." Ron said
"Yeah, see no problem."
"Where do you live."
"Not too far, Bluebell street." Yushuv said.
They talked a bit more about school and other things that came up and soon enough a cherry red Porsche pulled up in front of the Beuno Nacho. Looking out Yushuv spotted the car and looked over to Ron.
"There she is. You ready?"
"Yeah, wow! Nice car." Ron said
"She thinks so anyway." Yushuv said
The pair walked outside and Yushuv introduced his "Cousin" as Jade.
"Hey handsome, how are ya?" Jade said instantly giving Ron a good look up and down.
Yushuv groaned. Jade was hardly ever flirtatious except when it came to guys like Ron. The nice, unworldly, inexperienced, young man who could definitely do without a woman like her as an influence. If things went like they usually did with guys and Jade, she'd be sacking him by next week.
"Hey, nice car! You really own it!" Ron asked
Jade was caught slightly surprised. Usually guys were drooling over her dark chocolate skin and flashy, form fitting, choice of attire, which left only the essentials to the imagination from the first second they saw her. Ron however only seemed to be interested in the car.
Yushuv smiled. This kid'll fit right in. He thought as he climbed into the passenger seat.
"So tomorrow, well hang at the mall or something?" Yushuv asked as Ron hopped out of the Porsche that was parked in front of his house.
"Yeah, sounds good!" Ron said. "See you then man and thanks for the ride Jade!"
"Anytime cutie-pie!" Jade said as she watched him head inside.
"You do know that you're old enough to be his great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great…" Yushuv joked.
"Oh shut up! I am not that old!" Jade said
"Maybe not by our standards." Yushuv chuckled
Jade gave him a playful yet firm slap on the head. "You're just mad because all the ladies still see you as nothing but a fifteen year old boy."
Yushuv grumbled something
"What was that?" She asked.
"I said 'at least they don't call me a skank when I'm not looking'."
Jade simply laughed. "So what if they do, I'll just outlive the bastards and have the last laugh. When they're old and gray and can't get any, I'll be young and just as sensuous as ever. Exaltation certainly has its upsides."
Yushuv rolled his eyes. They'd had this conversation before a number of times over the centuries, and Jade's view never changed. He didn't mind though. Sure Jade was way too promiscuous for her own good, but he loved her like a sister. After all these years, she pretty much had become his family, just like the others.
"So did you read him Jade? Or were you too busy thinking of ways to sexually corrupt the guy?" Yushuv asked
"Oh I read him, and thee is no doubt about it. He's a Solar Exalted all right. His potential is through the roof though, it's like nothing I've ever sensed before." She replied
"Yeah, well it gets even weirder. He says that his exaltation took about a month." Yushuv said
"What?"
"He says that he had been having the same dream for a month, and in the dream the Unconquered Sun was talking to him, but then today or rather last night when he had the dream, the Unconquered Sun finally told him that he was chosen." Yushuv explained.
"Curiouser and curiouser." Jade said
"There's more Mad Hatter. Get this, I think there's a terrestrial at his school."
Jade looked at him with a serious expression. "You think?"
"Don't get me wrong, I'm not sure of it. I just got a weird feeling when I saw one of the kids there. It reminded me…of the Wyld Hunt."
Jade shivered at the mention of those words. "Well, don't go doing anything stupid Yushuv. You stay low key and keep working at bringing him into the loop as steady as you can. I'll see what I can dig up on this kid. What'd you say his name was?"
"Josh…Josh Mankey."
TO BE CONTINUED