DISCLAIMER - This is a work of fan fiction, yadda, yadda, yadda...

Sorry, had to make a few alterations and corrections. If anyone is reading this, that is. Otherwise, I'm just talking to myself...


Dinner was excellent, as always. Rufus, bloated after the feast, lay in the center of the table, his usual cute yet disgusting centerpiece. Ron scooped him up and asked: "Can I help you with the Dishes, MrsDr P?"

"Why yes, Ron. That would be wonderful," said MrsDr P, "You're so sweet!"

"Yes, yes he is," Kim agreed, silently. "Do you need my help too, Mom?" she asked.

Before her mother could answer, Ron ushered Kim out of the dining area. "Nonsense! I know my way around a kitchen, Miss Possible," he said.

"We've got it covered, Honey," said MrsDr P. She enjoyed Ron's company almost as much as Kim did. MrsDr P was overjoyed (and occasionally a little envious) by her daughter's good fortune in finding such a loving, thoughtful and fun man. She sometimes wished James could let loose like Ron did. "Why don't you go see what your father is up to?"

"Good idea! You go relax a few, my dearest Kimness. If you're good, there"ll be a treat for you!" That meant Ron had something special in mind for dessert. She could hear her mother and Ron chattering away merrily as they cleaned up. God, how she loved him...

Kim went into the living room and found her Dad sitting on the couch, engaged in that favorite of male pastimes – channel surfing. She lay down on the couch next to him and laid her head on his lap, something she had done since she was small, when she felt vulnerable and needed his fatherly guidance. Which wasn't very often these days. "Everything OK, Kimmie-cub?" he asked her.

"Everything's great, dad! I've never been happier!"

Not believing her, but playing along anyway he said "Great to hear. Ron's a good catch. You two were meant to be..."

"It's not Ron..."

A-ha! He knew something was bothering her. Knowing his role was to help her figure it out, he remained silent, pretending to be engrossed in finding something decent to watch. He waited. And waited some more. OK, maybe she needed a little prodding. "Everything OK at school?"

"For the most part," Kim said, "Don't get me started on Bonnie!" Except even Bonnie had mellowed over the summer, she hadn't really bothered Kim at all lately. Kim sighed and stared at the TV.

Silence.

"How's the volunteer thing going?" he asked. Kim had been filling her time by helping out the community as she could. She had a lot more time for it now...

"OK," she replied, "I'm going to help at the Lowerton relief mission this Saturday..."

More silence.

"So,...it's going to be like this, is it?" thought Dr. Possible. He felt like a dentist. He let the remote control roulette stop where it would. "Oh boy! 'TV Trash Heap' is having a 'Fearless Ferret' marathon!" Kim said nothing. "Heard from Mr. North lately?"

"No...he talks to Ron from time to time." She thought of North's offer to become Ferret Girl.

"They ought to make a show about a real superhero. About you, for example..." Dr Possible was very proud of his little girl.

"Daddy!" Kim said, blushing a little. After a moment she added, " I could sure use the excitement."

"So that was it." Kimmie had a case of teenage ennui. "Enjoy it while you've got it, Kim..." he thought. "Don't you think you've had a little too much excitement in your life already?" Pointless to ask, he knew, his daughter thrived on challenges.

"I guess..." she sighed. "I'm just afraid..." She went silent again.

"Afraid that it's all over? That the rest of your life is going to be one giant ball of comfortable boredom?" he asked.

"Yeah,...I s'pose..." she sighed. "How did you know?" Kim was amazed that her father could be so insightful at times.

"I was once your age too, believe it or not," he chided her gently.

"I know that, daddy. It's just that things with Ron are so perfect...I feel like we've known each other forever," Kim said.

"Well, you have," interjected Dr Possible, knowing where this was going. "What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing, I guess...it's just..."

"You're worried there are no more surprises in him?" he asked.

"Yes!" Kim was close to tears. "We're going to grow old and boring just like.." she cut herself off.

"Like your mother and I?" he said, half joking. How Kim could consider her parents and their lives, with a thrill-seeking superhero daughter and her mad genius twin brothers, and all that came with it, as boring made him want to laugh out loud. Seeing how upset Kim was, he restrained himself.

"I'm sorry, daddy. I didn't mean that." Kim was genuinely contrite.

"It's OK, sweetheart. I know what you were getting at." He smiled his best Fatherly smile at her. "Trust me on this one, Kim. Peace and quiet, or 'boring' as you put it, is very underrated," Proving his point, a small explosion followed by a loud CRASH came from the tweeb's room upstairs. "SORRY!" they shouted, "Don't worry about it! We're good!"

"It's not you I'm worried about!" Dr Possible hollered back. "Excuse me for a moment, hon," he stood up, "I'd better go make sure whatever they're working on up there doesn't eat through the floor." As he reached the stairs, he turned and reminded her, "Don't underestimate Ron. I'll bet he's got surprises in store you never even dreamed of."

"Thanks, daddy! I won't..." she said, embarrassed that her father had caught her making the same mistake she had made many times before.

Here came Ron with a nice little surprise right now. He carried two bowls of cake with ice cream, drenched in chocolate syrup. "Here you go, KP! My 'Chocolate Dream Cake Surprise'." Kim's favorite diet-be-damned dessert! " The surprise is the ice cream," he smiled, "...it was the best I could do on short notice."

After they finished, Kim and Ron settled in on the couch, and watched the campy "Fearless Ferret" battle his feathered nemesis "The Waddler."

"Dad is right...," Kim thought, "This is better than battling bad guys for real," she told herself as she hugged Ron just a little bit tighter.


To be continued