Yo, everyone!

A\N - I don't own Kim Possible or Totally Spies... sadly... if I did Ron would receive the appreciation he deserves! and the shows will have 25 more seasons at least!

I hope you will enjoy this chapter and don't forget to tell me what did you think.

And id like to give a HUGE! thanks to 'JRC1700' for agreeing to Beta so the fic will be even better! You are awesome on so many levels!

P.P.S: As some of you might have noticed I received a fan art cover for the fic from 'MaksmoNero'! I think it looks really awesome! And I'll leave a link on my profile page so you guys can check his other work! You are awesome!

UPDATE!

P.P.S: I have to again ask for some help in the cover art department! So if anyone can help with any of the new future fics just PM me and let me know!

BTW!

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X-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-X

Chapter 12: In The Shadows

Working late was something the head of WHOOP was all too used to doing. Pouring over paperwork, examining new intelligence and reports, it was all something he was fine- and even accustomed- with (and had been for a long time now). It wasn't anything hadn't seen, or done himself in the past when he'd been just another spy. There had always been a sort of charm to knowing that what you did was important, enough to warrant such hard work and dedication.

Jerry had never cared for agendas, favors, or politics. All he'd ever wanted was to make the world a better place, he had done exactly that in his own way… Giving his agents proper support, advanced gadgets, training- or simply good, old-fashioned, reliable intelligence to assist them.

Jerry had been troubled over the past few years, worried by the prospect of control over the organization being taken from him… and given to someone who was more willing to bend the rules for favors, or continued support. In other words… a puppet.

Just as he'd feared, he HAD lost control. All in favor of some overgrown man-child that had the 'idea' of improving HIS spies, by brainwashing them into puppets. 'How fitting, a child that wants to play with dolls…' He almost shuddered at the thought of letting them have their way with HIS spies… but Jerry's trepidation quickly vanished upon recalling his newest 'agent'.

Ron Stoppable had simply appeared out of nowhere to not only provide support to the organization, but also help the girls in dire times indeed. He'd interceded on their behalf, over and over, even as they had viewed him as a threat and attempted to apprehend him. He was embarrassed to admit that Ron's whole 'Actor' persona had even JERRY suspecting him of being a new villain, or an agent of one of the usual clowns they routinely dealt with. But luckily his own little gambit had paid off, netting someone who could help the girls with any issue they might have moving forward.

Even better, apparently, he was quite skilled! Impossibly so! From what they'd gathered about 'the Actor' at the time he was strong, fast, and extremely clever- to a frightening degree… That would all have been completely understandable by itself. But, according to what the girls had told him, Ron was strong- absurdly so! Snapping metal like it was nothing, ripping prison bars (and the wall they were attached to) like it was child's play to him.

It only made the older man more and more curious as to how all this came to be. He did the only thing he could to slake his curiosity (and calm the worry it had stemmed from) …he started digging around.

"Ron Stoppable…" he mused to himself, beginning his search using the normal channels. His only discovery had been that the young teen was a bit of an underachiever, in pretty much every aspect… His grades had been lackluster in almost every subject, as was his attendance record (it was full of late arrivals and the like). He was in no clubs whatsoever, despite him trying (and failing) to make it on the football team of his original high school over and over. "This can't be right…" Jerry muttered, continuing to dig for more accurate info.

Someone with so many skills, that could give both himself and the spies so hard a time… He couldn't have failed to make it onto anything, Jerry prided his girls on being the best of the best!

There was DEFINITELY something going on…

Suddenly his screen appeared to be frozen, no longer responding to his attempts to do pretty much anything. 'Why did it suddenly stop working? Is it a bug in the system? Or, something else entirely?'

Before Jerry was able to try anything more, the screen suddenly changed. All he could see was static, before it dissolved into what looked like a video feed.

"Wha-" the older man started to exclaim, before being cut off by a voice coming from his computer.

"Well… never expected YOU to try and hack OUR network… I'm disappointed Jerry… I expected more from someone like you…" the voice declared.

"You're… Director Betty?" the older man questioned, now staring at said eyepatch-wearing woman. She was sitting in an office, watching him. What did Global Justice want with him? …and why had she accused him of hacking into their systems?

"Ah, I see your memory has not left you yet… despite what I've heard…" the woman replied. "Now… care to explain why you were so keen to try and accesses OUR data?"

"Your data? Director Betty, I assure you I did no such thing! All I was doing was trying to inquire about-" the older man tried to explain. He had no intention of making an enemy out of Global Justice, they had essentially the same goals he did.

"Just to search for some random student in our data? Looking into their records? I know that WHOOP is a spy agency… but this is a bit much, wouldn't you say?" the commander prompted, waiting for Jerry's response so she could tear it apart.

"I don't believe this issue is as large as you're making it out to be… The student in question is currently residing in Beverly Hills, which means he falls under my jurisdiction. It is perfectly understandable why I would want access to those records… or is there any particular reason why I shouldn't?" Jerry asked, carefully studying the commander's expression. She betrayed nothing, simply eyeing him with a serious gaze.

"It's an ISSUE when you're trying to get your hands on information that falls under OUR CARE… You know damn well why we restrict access to even outside agencies…" Betty challenged.

Jerry did know why, it was a fear they had all shared and still did today…

If someone had access to every piece of information, it was all too tempting to let that sort of power go to their head. It was inevitable that they would do something they shouldn't, it was also only a matter of time before such an aggregation of intelligence was hacked or breached in some way. It had happened to WHOOP, to Global Justice, to every other major organization out there really. So, if the breaches were unavoidable, the best they could do was limit how much data the enemy could get their hands on before they could find the guilty party and apprehend them. To that end, everyone had decided to split into regions and sectors… There were too many to count, but it had given them all a small measure of protection they'd desperately needed. It was the same logic as a school of fish, one or two could be struck down but not the whole!

"You're right… I apologize for everything and deeply regret going behind your back. As I said, I had no ill intentions… only an interest regarding a single student that is now under my jurisdiction… I have no need, or desire, to access Global Justice's data…" the old man admitted honestly and calmly, disappointed etched upon his face.

"I understand your reasoning… but that still falls under our care and the answer remains the same…" Though her voice had adopted a timbre of understanding, her resolve remained unchanged. "I believe you've already got more than enough about that student you wanted to check on… so I'd appreciate it if you left everything alone from now on…"

"I suppose I will have to… Well, until I have a talk with him myself-"

"I'm sorry? I thought we'd already agreed to drop the matter entirely… did we not?" Betty prodded, her tone a bit more guarded.

"No, you are completely right… I only want to have a small chat with him- nothing bad, I assure you… I just need to get a feel for a few things, I promise he won't even remember it…" The head of WHOOP swiveled around and prepared to get up when the woman on his screen called out.

"Wait!" she suddenly exclaimed, panic leaking into her voice- only to noticed the smile on Jerry's face. "So, you noticed… and here I thought my acting was pretty good…"

Jerry simply shrugged. "Oh, you WERE good, trust me… Anyone else might have fallen for it, but I happen to deal with a lot of teenage girls trying to lie to me. I know exactly what it sounds like…" the man sighed, turning back to the woman.

"Yes, I suppose so… what do you want to know exactly? And why?" Betty asked, chuckling at Jerry's small joke.

"Let's just say that I happened to get a glimpse of some of the skills he has… I need to find out if he's an ally, or something else… This is important Betty, I wouldn't ask if it wasn't…" The older man watched as Betty sighed.

"Wow… and here I thought that he would keep a low profile… But I suppose this should be expected from him…" the director muttered.

"Who is he, for a start? …and where did he get his training?" the man asked. There were many more things he wanted to know, but those would do for a start.

"I'll make you a deal… I can answer some of your questions, but you can't say anything about it…" the director offered, Jerry agreeing in response. "Have you ever heard of Kim Possible?"

Jerry nodded a few times for confirmation. 'Kim Possible…' He'd been surprised too, when he'd heard of her for the first time. A teenage cheerleader that went around the world, stopping evil plots and doing so almost singlehandedly. She reminded him of himself in his younger days- minus the cheerleading part, obviously. Just someone who wanted to do good, make the world a better place. An individual who sought no recognition, fame, or fortune along the way.

"Yes, of course, who hasn't heard about her? But, what does SHE have to do with… this?" he asked, unsure as to why the director had mentioned her.

"HE is her partner…" was all Betty said in response.

The leader of WHOOP was surprised to be sure, he'd never heard that the redheaded teen even HAD a partner. She had some help yes, but nothing in the form of another regular who had never even been named. "Really now? I was under the impression that she was working alone…"

"That's because I've made certain that his name never went public… It was already impossible to scrub any traces of Miss Possible's name from notoriety, but Ron… now that's a different story…" Betty explained with a smirk.

"Ron? You're being quite familiar right now, don't you think?" the old man questioned, upon hearing her answer.

"I've obviously worked with him before…" Betty admitted, chuckling upon recalling the last time she'd done so.

"You have? So, he's one of your agents then?" That did make sense, considering how much he could accomplish, Jerry noticed her shaking her head for a no.

"No, he's no agent of mine… I wish he was…"

"Could you please elaborate? How can he NOT be one of yours? Was he a member of a different organization in the past?"

"I couldn't say… I have no idea…" Betty smiled at the confused expression on the man's face. "Don't look at me like that… Ron's ability is something special, confined to him alone… Even I haven't managed to get that little tidbit out of him… yet."

That was worrying for sure. If he was so strong and skilled… did that make him more of an asset, or a liability?

"But… despite that, I can firmly say that he's on OUR side" Betty declared with a smile. "We can thank Miss Possible for that… so you can calm down about him. Now… I would prefer to know why you felt the need to look into him in the first place…"

Jerry started to explain the situation, after a few minutes he'd brought her up to speed concerning Ron appearing and 'assisting' the girls. Betty's expression had been amused at first, before it devolved into worry… and then confusion.

"Wait… how did he even manage to discover your spies?" she asked, her question only garnering a shrug from the older man.

"I'm not sure… My guess is that it had something to do with them being in the same school."

"I see your point… but I admit I'm surprised that you managed to get him on your team…" Betty's tone turned a bit darker. "So, all I needed to do was offer him a new spot on an all-girl team… I'll be sure to remember that for next time…"

Jerry simply laughed at that. "I seriously doubt that it was due to THAT… and what do you mean by next time?"

"Well… obviously when he come back to his old teammate" Betty stated with absolute certainty.

X-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-X

It had been a few days since Ron's last mission with the girls, thankfully his new boss\uncle hadn't had anything new for them. He had seriously needed some time off, Ron still had to call Kim whenever he got the chance.

The blonde teen had been heading to the public library located next to his school, it was another gargantuan building that made him feel small in comparison. Glancing around, his eyes scanned the area for a specific person. Surprisingly there were a great number of people walking around, looking for books. Others were sitting and studying alone, or with company.

Ron managed to spot someone waving at him, the blonde teen moving towards the person. He easily identified her as Alex, the girl having eschewed her yellow bodysuit in favor of a short, black skirt paired with a light-yellow shirt. She was standing next to a free table, a pleased smile on her face that had appeared as soon as she'd seen him.

"Ron! You made it!" Alex's happy tone matched her bright smile.

"Well, we DID agree to meet so…" Ron pointed out, glancing away. It was hard to look at her now, after recalling the few times he'd gotten so close to her during their missions. Ron found it impossible to ignore, now that his mind had switched off its 'mission mode' (as Kim had so eloquently named it).

"Yeah… I still haven't apologized for blowing you off the other day-" the ravenette girl observed.

"Oh! Don't worry about it… I had something that came up anyway- so it all worked out! Honest!" Ron insisted. He didn't want the girl to feel bad, especially considering everything that happened so far. He also really did NOT need the images that came instantly to mind, the second she'd mentioned "blowing him off".

"Okay, if you're sure… So, shall we get started?" Alex prompted, Ron sitting down and going over the material with her. Neither one of them got stuck TOO long, as the pair mulled over their coursework for the next few minutes.

"Oh! I see… that's how you do it!" Alex exclaimed, going back to solving her problems. She glanced at her partner every few minutes. "Say, Ron…"

"Yeah?" the blonde teen replied, still diligently working on his own task.

"I was just wondering… do you have any plans for after we finish?" she asked, her gaze now focused solely on him.

"Plans?" Ron took a moment to mull it over, all he really needed to do later was call Kim… and Mandy had already told him that she had a family thing going on. "No, I don't think I do…" he finally admitted.

"Oh really?" Alex replied, her tone changing to delight, a pleased smile sprouting on her face. "Then do you maybe-" the ravenette began, cutting off upon noticing someone moving towards their table.

"Hey Alex, sorry for being late!" apologized an excited redheaded teen.

"O-Oh… hi Sammy!" Alex quickly shot back, recovering from her sudden surprise. She'd honestly forgotten that she'd even ASKED her friend to join their little study session.

"Hey Sam, what are you doing here?" the blonde teen inquired. 'Did Alex invite her too?' he mused.

"Oh… hey Ron! Let me guess, Alex roped you into studying too?" the redheaded teen asked with a big smirk, she took a seat in front of her ravenette friend.

"Hey, not cool! …and I didn't rope him into anything!" the spy defended herself angrily (pouting all the while).

The blonde boy laughed. "No… not really. Honestly, we both needed to go over some stuff, I'm just as guilty as she is." Ron's response earned him an amused smile from Sam… and that slight pout on Alex's face growing bigger.

"You two are just the worst…" Alex muttered, Ron having failed to explicitly deny Sam's words.

After Alex had calmed down, the group continued their studying with Sam. The redheaded took on the role of a helpful teacher, periodically moving between the two of them. She made sure everything was going smoothly, checking that the pair were not making any mistakes. After a few minutes Alex's phone went off, garnering herself a few annoyed looks from the people around the trio.

She answered with an apologetic look, her eyes widening briefly. Alex quickly got up, hurriedly gathering her things, almost as if she was in a panic.

"Alex… what's wrong?" Sam asked, staring at her friend. Had Jerry called to tell her about a secret mission or something?

"I completely forgot that I was supposed to meet with the rest of the soccer team! If I don't get moving RIGHT NOW, I might not be able to participate in our next match!" The ravenette grabbed her bag and rushed out. "Sorry! I'll make this up to you!" she apologized, the doors closing after her.

"Of COURSE she had something else planned…" Sam facepalmed, this WAS Alex after all… and some things never change.

"I'm guessing that this is normal behavior for her?" Ron asked, putting down his pencil.

"Pretty much… She's fine most of the time, but if she's swamped then stuff like this slips her mind…" the redheaded spy explained, it was all just a part of her friend's charm.

"Yeah, I know the type… Always trying to make the most of her time, forgetting about taking time off…" Ron reminisced, chuckling as he thought about his childhood friend. "So, shall we call it a day?" he asked.

"I suppose we may as well… since one of my students ran away on me…" Sam joked with a smile.

"Honestly! What was she thinking, skipping out on one of your fantastic classes!" the blonde teen exclaimed overdramatically, Sam laughed in response.

"I know… don't worry, I'll make sure she regrets it…" Sam watched him as he started grabbing his things, a stray thought passed through her mind.

"Say Ron… do you have any plans right now?"

"Not really, why?" he admitted, just like he had to Alex earlier.

"I was just thinking of heading to the mall for some lunch, wanna join me?" she offered. "I would usually be going with Alex and Clover…"

"Oh yeah, sure! I was thinking about some Bueno Nacho!" he exclaimed excitedly.

"Bueno Nacho?" Sam parroted, eyeing him oddly, thrown by such a strange name.

"Oh… sorry, it's just something I used to love back home." Ron scratched his head embarrassedly, talking with Sam really made him think of Kim.

"Really? Well then, how about we go get ourselves some Mexican food? Maybe we'll even find that Bueno Nacho place! Our mall is huge, after all…" the redheaded spy suggested, noting the smile on Ron's face. 'He must really miss it…' she guessed.

The boy agreed wholeheartedly, both teens leaving the library and heading for the mall.

The walk had been pleasant, the pair talking about normal stuff. Sam had taken a particular interest in how Ron was liking Beverly Hills. Conversation had come a little slow to the blonde boy at first, as he searched for the right words. It was difficult to see just how pleasant she was, when Ron wasn't wearing his 'Actor' persona. 'Or, did I leave that bad an impression the first time we met?' Despite Ron's minor struggles the two kept talking, Sam now complaining about Clover (who was once again chasing after some new guy she had her sights set on).

Ron simply laughed in amusement. "Yeah… that sounds like her. That was even how we first met, remember?"

"I-I can't believe it…" Ron whispered, awe and amazement clear in his voice. His eyes widened as he stared at the huge sign. 'Bueno Nacho' Ron read, wearing a wide smile.

"So, this is the place you were talking about?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, it is! How did I ever miss that there was a branch here?!" His shocked tone spurred the redheaded teen to pat his shoulder and giggle.

"I wouldn't worry about it too much, this place is HUGE… and they just keeping adding more shops. That reminds me of the time Clover nearly had a panic attack when they added a smoothy bar" the girl reminisced, recalling said incident. "So, how about we go inside?"

"R-Really? You don't mind?" Ron asked excitedly, he was practically vibrating in place.

"Yeah! I mean, I was the one who wanted to come… and it would be great to try something new! Besides, from the way you described it, it sounds really good" Sam explained. She was wondering what it was like, plus the excited way Ron talked about it was kinda cute- in a silly way. A sort of childish innocence.

"Well then… I shall take this opportunity to introduce you to the wondrous world of Bueno Nacho!" The pair walked inside, noticing that the place seemed pretty popular. Many different people were getting their orders, or sitting at tables.

Ron inspected the place, noting that there was a line of people waiting to order. "Sam, how about you grab a table while I order for us?"

"Oh, okay, sure…" The redheaded teen was a bit hesitant, trusting him to pick Sam's meal for her. Admittedly, she was a BIT of a picky eater. That was before he asked her if she had any issue with spicy, or oily, food.

A few minutes later the blonde sauntered off with two trays containing their orders. Ron approached the table he'd spotted Sam sitting at, in front of her was a guy he didn't recognize. That wasn't much of a stretch, Ron still didn't really know many people here in Beverly Hills.

The guy looked a bit older than Sam and Ron, although that could have been due to his demeanor and the confident manner he carried himself. The blonde teen simply shrugged, moving closer. 'Maybe it's one of her friends?' he speculated.

"Hey man, mind moving to the side?" the blonde ex-sidekick requested, pushing the tray next to the guy and spurring him slide over. Ron pushed the other tray in front of Sam. "Sorry for the wait… the line was horrible! Just goes to show how awesome this place is!"

"O-Oh, thanks Ron…" Sam sounded confused for a moment, like he'd missed something.

"Um kid? I don't know who you are… but mind packing it up? You're bothering us…" the guy interjected with an annoyed look. He didn't understand, why wasn't the blonde boy worried about him? Ron looked short and scrawny compared to him.

"Huh? Did we sit at your table or something?" Ron glanced towards Sam. "Is he one of your friends maybe?" the ex-sidekick inquired, pointed at the man in question.

"No, no he isn't…" the girl replied, smiling broadly. "I think we better move to a different table Ron, we wouldn't want to bother him…" The girl proceeded to grab her tray and got up, her blonde friend following her.

"Right! Sorry to bother you, man!" the young Stoppable apologized, pointing his smile at the now-stunned guy left sitting at the now-empty table.

Sam huffed in exhaustion as soon as she'd set her tray down at the new table. "Well, THAT was a fun little chat…" she moaned.

"Yeah… I kind of figured you weren't a fan of people butting in, sorry about that-" Ron started, Sam cutting him off.

"Why are you apologizing? If anything, you saved me from having to deal with THAT guy… This doesn't usually happen when I'm out shopping with the girls…" she mused.

"Oh? Do you usually go to these kinds of places? Or, only to the fashion boutiques on the lower floors?" Ron challenged with a smirk.

"We do go to other shops you know…" She eyed him carefully, watching Ron's reaction with annoyance.

"Like…?" he prompted.

The redheaded teen took a moment, watching the rising smirk on her friend's face. "Give me a second to think- and that doesn't prove that we only hang out in clothing stores!"

"I didn't say anything…" His smirk got even wider, as if he'd already won the small skirmish with her.

"Right…" Sam felt slightly annoyed, turning red at being called out on something she usually mocked Clover for. Say, that gave her an idea. "By the way… how are things going with Mandy?"

"With Mandy? Well… she's awesome!" the blonde teen praised. "Ever since I moved here, she's been such a huge help… showing me around and stuff!"

"Mmm… and what about her boyfriend?" Sam asked, trying to gauge Ron's response. She didn't expect him to look so surprised.

"Really? She had one?" He simply sounded surprised at the knowledge. "I wonder why she never mentioned it?" Ron mused, he did spend a lot of time with the girl.

"No, ah… sorry, I must have confused Mandy with one of my friends…" the redheaded teen quickly retracted, the last thing she wanted was to have the once-mean girl come down on her hard for this. "So, how were things before you moved?" Sam shot back, quickly changing the subject.

"Before? Well… I would usually sit at Bueno Nacho after school with Kim…" he recalled, noticing the look Sam was levelling at him.

"Kim? One of your old friends?" she speculated.

"No, she's not just a friend… she's my best friend! I've known her since pre-K…" Ron swore, a sad smile gracing his features as he gushed on about this Kim person.

Sometime later the two teens emerged from Bueno Nacho, having finished their meal. Sam was quite surprised to find that, despite the food failing to look like she usually preferred it… it was still quite tasty! She'd have to work out a little extra, but she'd chalk this up as a cheat day so it was no big deal.

The two had broken off, heading for their respective homes. Sam was surprised that she'd had quite a pleasant time with Ron, especially considering that they'd been interrupted by some jerk who'd tried his luck with her. Sam could've easily dispatched the boy, or embarrassed him into going away… but watching Ron do so in such an amusing manner had proved to be even better.

The redheaded spy had definitely enjoyed herself, quite a lot actually! So much so that she was even thinking of maybe offering to hang out together once more. It would CERTAINLY not be a date… not when both Mandy AND Alex seemed interested. 'But Mandy isn't making any moves… and Alex is WAY too into our newest addition to the team…' she reasoned, choosing to simply drop the topic… for now.

X-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-X

Ron had just arrived home, now laying upon his bed. Everything had honestly gone much better than he thought it would. The atmosphere between himself and Sam didn't really seem very good when they'd started. But after spending some time with her, both with Alex and alone, Ron had concluded that Sam was really fun.

The redhead was smart, levelheaded, a blast to tease… She really WAS similar to Kim in so many ways… and that didn't even include her hair color, or her work as a spy!

That reminded him, he really needed to give Kim a call. It had been some time since he moved… and left her behind. 'I didn't leave her… I just moved away.' Even if it wasn't Ron's fault, he still felt bad about not being able to be there for her.

With a heavy sigh he turned and faced the phone sitting on his desk, what should he tell her? About his new school? About the new friends he'd made? Maybe how he was now a member of a spy team?

He groaned in annoyance before turning away from the desk, why was it so hard to simply pick it up and call her?

X-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-X

Chapter uploaded on March 21.