Our Place in the Food Chain: Part VI
Kim smiled to herself as she transferred her books from her locker to her bag. If the first day of school was an omen, then she was off to a bon-diggity school year. Her smile got even wider when she realized she was actually starting to think in Ron-speak. That kind of thought would have spooked her once upon a time, back when he was just 'best-friend' Ron. He was just plain weird then and weirdness was not something 'The Kim Possible' wanted rubbing off on her.
Weird how some things change.
Ron never managed to make it home to get his bike and they never managed to sneak off to spend their unclaimed 'homework time' making out. Oh, there had been some kissing but it was only the kind that made her mother grin and her father tug at his collar slightly in embarrassment. Oh and it also grossed her brothers out to no end as they wandered by from time to time, spying the quick little pecks they kept giving each other.
After dinner Kim just sat in the dining room with her parents, leaning on one fist watching Ron in the family room, cavorting with the twins, hooting and screaming at the widescreen as Steel Toe gave Pain King his customary drubbing.
"It's not all about the hugging and kissing, is it Kimmie-cub?" Her father asked over the top of his paper after looking at the three boys in the other room.
She looked back at her father, a touch of confusion on her face. I wonder if Mom fed him that line she thought. She got her answer in the form of a wry smile on the older woman's face as she sipped the last of her tea.
Kim sighed, sitting back in her chair. The Tweebs had wrestled Ron to the floor and were in the process of giving him noogies. It didn't matter to that pair that the older boy was actually kind of dangerous in his own right. He may scream a lot and prefer running away, but he was actually quite skillful when it came to hand to hand fighting, and that wasn't even considering when he could access his Mystical Monkey Power. When they had been warming up for their sparring match she put him through a Tai Chi routine and instead of being clumsy or cracking jokes about it he mimicked her moves with a fluid grace she had never seen him use. It was an incredibly strange thing for her to watch. I wonder what they actually did teach him that week in Japan. How much can one person actually learn in a week?
Ron wasn't faring too well against her brothers. Every time he tried to roll away they pinned him with another hold. Maybe 'Ninja' Ron wasn't a match for tag-team Tweebs after all.
"You seem awfully happy for somebody who had the rug pulled out from under you today, Kimmie." Her mother said, clearing the last of the table.
"Huh? I thought today went pretty well for the first day and all."
"I mean about your Kimmunicator."
"It's no big. Barkin is just going to act as a go-between, that's all. I'm sure the school system had a ferociously good reason for that rule."
"It still grinds my beans they couldn't give you a special exception." Her father said, putting the paper down on the table. "It's not like you're using it as an excuse to get out of class or anything."
"You know this gives Mr. Barkin even more control over you this year, don't you." Anne asked.
"What? Just because he's going to take the calls for us?"
"Yes. This lets him screen your missions."
"He wouldn't do that. He just said he would relay the call to us if it was an emergency. To be honest it would be nice not to have to hear every little update on Drakken's new trial and everything."
"Kim, you just said it yourself. He would come get you if it was an emergency. That means it is up to him to decide when and if a call reaches that status. It puts him in a position to judge whether something is important enough for you to handle it, or whether he tells Wade to turn around and call the regular authorities. If you think about it, what is Mr. Barkin's job."
"He's the Vice-principal."
"Yes. That means his job is to make sure you get and education and you stay safe when you are under his care. Imagine you get a call from that bug doctor down in the Amazon…"
"Professor Acari?"
"Yes, him. Suppose he wants to call you in to investigate something being stolen from his lab again, something even worse than that thing that made all the roaches the size of a delivery van." She hesitated a moment as her daughter turned visibly green. "Now he's got to make a decision. You've got a test coming up in AP English, it's a school night and even if he knows that is not going to affect your performance, it might impact Ron's. He's invested a lot of energy in him and it's starting to pay off. He's probably put as much into him as you have to tell the truth. He gets the call and thinks there is no demonstrated clear and present danger. So, he just tells wade to let the local authorities handle it. After all, you're not the only person on Earth charged with being a hero."
"Wow. I guess I didn't think of it like that. I guess I've gotten way used to it being quiet all the time like this."
"It has been an unusual summer, with the exception of all that to-do when your arch-foe popped up again." She actually smiled thinking about him. The last time she had seen the former "Drew Lipsky" face to face he thought she was Kim's sister. He may have be an evil super-freak, but a compliment is a compliment.
"I've already had Wade put in a call to Doctor Director at Global Justice but until I hear back from them I don't see where I really have a choice."
"Oh, I agree." Her mother said. "Right now it's a rule in black and white backed up with a specific ruling from not only the school administration but the school board itself."
"As much as I hate to admit it, I tend to agree with the rule as it stands right now." Her father said, putting the paper down and picking up a bound stack of paper a quarter inch thick. She recognized it immediately, it was the copy of the student handbook her parents had been sent.
"Dad, what I do is important. I help people."
"I know, Kimmie-cub, but so is school. Face it, you may have gotten off easy today, but that's simply because they have better funding to hire more teachers this year. Somebody named Felíp Bullión donated a very large sum to the school system, so Steve Barkin can do his real job instead of teaching half your classes this year. Your teachers sound like they want to ease you into your subjects, but that doesn't mean there won't be work. In fact I suspect you are about to work harder than you ever had in your life."
"But Dad…"
"You're also forgetting something your Mother just said. I know you work very hard and you do incredibly well at school and I am so proud of you…but think how much harder Ronald has to work just to get by. Before when you dragged him on all your adventures I think he cared more about you than he did himself. Now he's in a position where a setback is going to hurt him, and hurt him terribly. Is that something you want to happen."
"No, it isn't." she answered in a soft voice.
"Like I said, caring for him is about a lot more than the kissing and the dates and holding hands. You have to care for him as a whole person."
"I am doing that Dad. I'm trying to make him watch what he eats and I'm going to start trying to get him in better shape."
"Yes, and that's a good thing. This time you're trying to change him in positive ways instead of just a haircut or something. Just remember, he's not you. His gifts are different from yours. You can't make him over into a mirror image of yourself."
Kim sat at the table thinking about that for a long time. She didn't want to change him, only to make him better. Yes, she could be bossy and controlling but she wanted Ron to be around for the long haul.
Ron had different gifts. He was smart in his own right and actually far more creative than she ever was. Even the years when she had been his science project partner he wasn't totally a slacker about it. Sure, she did all the physical work and the research, but that wasn't Ron's strong suit anyhow. He was still there the whole time making suggestions, his imagination providing the spark that pushed the project from a mere technical success to the A plus they always earned.
He had also walked out on stage and sung an impromptu song about Rufus with no more than a few lines written on a page, in front of a national TV audience no less. She had been prepared to go out there and sing the same song she had done a year earlier in the school talent show, hoping her good but undeveloped voice would carry her.
Ron also launched a gourmet restaurant in the school, cooking mostly from his own imagination rather than simply preparing recipes by rote.
Kim couldn't recall precisely at the moment, but she remembered him saying once he had the "Power of Imagination." He certainly did and it was very strong. If she could just channel that power and make him work his hardest, he was capable of great things, possibly even greater than she could.
Anne came back in from the kitchen and saw her daughter, chin down on her arms, staring wistfully into the den. She walked around the table and whispered in her ear. "Just because togetherness isn't everything, that doesn't mean you can't go in there and be together with him right now."
Kim started to get up but changed her mind as the sounds of furniture and other décor being knocked over spilled out of the den. "I think the boys are having too much fun for me to spoil it right now." She said, putting her head back down on the table. He mother just smiled and headed upstairs.
Eventually things calmed down as the trio wore themselves out. The GWA was only on for an hour that night, so when it was done they popped a DVD into the player…Return of the King: Special Super-Extended Directors Cut – the Everything even the Scouring of the Shire Edition. She shook her head, wondering exactly how they intended to watch a five hour long movie on a school night.
Jim and Tim finally wandered off, hopefully just to do some harmless tinkering (though there was always the danger they would come up with something that could vaporize half the block.) Kim wasn't even aware that she had somehow vacated the dining room to take up her old traditional position on the couch, lying on her belly with her feet up, her head propped up on her forearms.
They stayed that way for a long time, silently watching the movie until her father came in. Automatically Ron got up out of his chair, respectfully yielding the throne to the man of the house. Kim took the move as a chance to put her head on his shoulder, nestling comfortably against him as the three of them enjoyed the classic, if long-winded story.
They never made it to the end.
At a quarter of six Kim woke to the sound of her mother once again in the kitchen, making her morning coffee. She was still snuggled up to Ron, who was snoring softly. Some time during the night they had been covered up with a blanket and it was likely one of her parents had called his house to let them know not to worry.
They had walked to school just as they had done for so many years, only this time they went hand in hand. It was still a shame they didn't ride his motorcycle, but that was overkill anyway as beautiful as the weather was that day. They said their temporary goodbyes at their lockers, exchanged quick hand hugs (along with a little move where he stroked her palm with his thumb – a gesture that had a slightly naughty meaning) and he headed off to his first period class as she finished packing her books. It was very likely she'd have a much heavier load on her way home tonight. Like Ron said before dinner, it was going to hit the fan today. Good, she relished the prospect of hitting the books. Today was going to be the real first day.
Barkin emerged from his office, a clipboard in one hand, his briefcase in the other, headed the same direction Ron had taken just minutes before. She had the horrible notion that her boyfriend's trigonometry class was about to acquire a semi-permanent substitute teacher. Poor Ron. He was so stoked yesterday when the gruff Vice-principal hadn't appeared in any of his classes.
Oh well. Barkin may be a hard case but he got some of the best results from marginal student of almost any teacher in the school. There was something to be said for his old-fashioned, up front methods.
Her packing done, Kim activated the computer, checking her email. There were a dozen notes from Wade but none of them were flagged urgent. Probably drivel about Drakken's new trial. This time it wasn't being put on the fast track. They were going to dot every 'I', cross every 'T.' Nothing was going to be left to chance, especially since Shego was still missing. That done she shut it down, watching with amusement as the screen folded back up out of the way.
There was a small stack of clippings still sitting on the now-empty shelf. There were two faded arrest photos of her old enemies that had been taped inside the door of her old locker. She still hadn't decided if she would put them back up. This time something inside her told her that part of her life was done for good. After a moment she reached back into her pack and pulled out two photos, one of her and Ron kissing at the prom, the other a picture of them standing hand-in-hand at Fort Summerdell Beach, their faces a shade of red somewhere between blush and boiled lobster. She taped them above and below the small mirror, respectively.
Nodding in satisfaction she closed the door and turned to head for her class, coming face to face with what was likely the most beautiful young man she had ever seen.
Kim Possible and all related characters © Disney