The KP and P & B short little saga continues… This may end up being a little longer than I originally thought…

Disclaimer: See previous chapters…

Chapter 3

Recognition? No. Repressed memory resurfacing? Maybe. Rufus wracked his tiny little brain to try and get rid of a sense of deja' vu. Had he seen these little rodents before? He just wasn't… quite… sure.

Kim's voice pulled him out of the thought. "Where's Shego, Drakken? And why are you here?"

"I could ask the same of you." Drakken shot back.

"Well, I could say it was dumb luck…" Kim started to say.

"Dumb SKILL, Kim. Dumb skill."

"Do you always talk so much?" Brain said quite loudly.

Kim looked down at Drakken's pocket where she heard the voice. A corner of her mouth ticked up to a slight smile, but not enough to be noticed. She just couldn't pass up the opportunity for a great line.

"Is that a mouse in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?"

"Oh… Ha Ha… Kimberly Anne! Now let me get the Occipital Protection Circuit, and we'll be on our way."

"What? He's after the same thing we are, Kim!"

"Now why would you want that?" Kim asked getting more irritated by the minute.

"That's for me to know and you to find out!"

"Please, must you two fight? I'm sure we can come up with an amicable agreement?" Brain spoke again, causing the two heroes to finally react to a talking mouse.

"What in the name of…" Kim said in wonder, squinting her eyes at the mouse in his pocket.

Ron's reaction was a little more, shall we say, vocal? "Ahhhh! Talking animals! Talking animals! Evil mice, evil mice!"

While Ron and Kim continued to banter back and forth, neither of them noticed that that the scrawny little mouse had scampered out of Drakken's pocket, and was now running along the floor towards an open cabinet that the other mouse had pointed to. That is, Rufus noticed, but they didn't.

He immediately jumped out of Ron's pocket, and ran towards Pinky. The two arrived in front of the cabinet, but not very gracefully. Rufus had used a flying tackle to take Pinky down, and they rolled into a heap at the base of the cabinet.

After they stopped tumbling, Rufus launched Pinky off of him with a push of his legs. He then stood up, chattering furiously, and shaking a small paw at the mouse, who was slowly getting up off the floor.

"Wait…," Pinky said, his hands out in front of himself for defense. "Do I know you?" Rufus walked angrily up to the small mouse, his little paws balled into fists.

"Are you…? Were you…?" Pinky then said something that caused Rufus to stop dead in his tracks. "Dr. Warner?"

Rufus was suddenly awash with memories: Being carried in a cage, and being presented to a kindly old man, who took him in his hand, and closely scrutinized him. His eyes were barely even open from being born just yesterday, but it was enough to see some of his surroundings. The doctor had set him down in a cage with two white mice, to see what their reactions would be to each other. Apparently all three needed to be comfortable with each other, for some reason. The meeting went far from perfect. The two mice immediately had seen him as a weak and helpless intruder, and began to circle him, chattering furiously. A small white fist swung at his chin, and he was suddenly pulled from the cage, saved by the kindly old doctor. "I'm sorry, he just won't do." Scared and alone, the little mole rat, no more than a day old, curled up, shut his eyes tight, and began to cry. He never opened his eyes again until he felt himself being placed on a soft bed of wood shavings. Then he remembered being placed in the hand of a scrawny little kid with big ears, and a mop of blond hair. The rest is history.

"Hey Brain!" Pinky called out, pointing at Rufus. "I think this is the little guy we tried to pick a fight with before we were changed!"

"Pinky… How can you remember that? Forget about him and get the circuit!"

Drakken and Kim had started to circle each other. Drakken knew he didn't stand a chance with her in a fight, but all he had to do was stall them for a few seconds so that the OPC could be taken.

"What are you gonna do, Drakken? Hit me? You don't want to hit a girl now, do you?" Kim taunted him as she circled around, looking for the right time to take him down. She didn't notice that the other little mouse had now left Drakken's pocket.

Brain leapt from the coat pocket to the table nearby, and started to look around for something he could use to help his newfound partner out. His eyes landed on a bottle of acid. No, I can't do that. Then he saw a bottle of glycerin. That could work… a coolant that is very slippery. He pushed the glass bottle on the floor just before Kim stepped down on the same spot.

She never saw it coming. Suddenly Kim stepped on something VERY slick, and her foot went out from under her! She promptly fell on her butt, and Ron then tripped over her, causing both to tumble.

Seeing the two teens go down, Rufus rushed over to help out his partners. Left alone, Pinky quickly scampered up the shelves of the cabinet, and found what they were looking for. Drakken quickly stepped over to the cabinet, picked up the circuit and Pinky, and stuffed both in his coat pocket.

"Until next time… Kim Possible!" Drakken waved, and rushed out the door, slamming it shut. Kim and Ron tried to stand, but kept slipping on the glycerin, and falling over each other.

Drakken had beaten them, and without Shego! And who were those little mice?

To be continued…

Sorry for the short chapter, but thought this would be a good place to end it. Kim Possible and company defeated by Drakken and a couple of mice! What did y'all think of my little history of Rufus? As always, please R & R…