Storm Chaser

Chapter 54

Hi, and belated, or projected, Holiday Greetings! It's been a while and life does intrude…

While Kim and Wade were being brought up to speed at GJ regarding Ron's life as Yamanouchi's newest and brightest 'Mechanic'…Dean, was dealing with the Future of his Field, which included dealing with the turbulence that came from this generation's 'Bonnie in the sky'…who was getting put in her place by those who really know the score in the world she's set herself in.

Friends getting presents, meetings between old and new friends as convergence begins…

Before we start, we'd like to thank those who've hung in with us as we've plodded along: Neroscurse, Evil spirits of self, Sentinel103, Bobtrumpet, Jimmy1201, Uberscribbler, Randamwriter, Guest, ajw1970, 123poasmawia5, , Jtswole23 and siege98. Thank you one and all!

Now…on with the next installment…The end is nigh…but not quite yet.

Denver Colorado:

As each present took another slice of pizza, "How have you been doing Anne?", Barbara Kaminsky slash Stoppable asked Kim Possible's parents.

"Not bad Barb.", the surgeon responded, "The kids are full grown now and as you know Kimmie is out of college and working in her dream job of keeping bad guys in line. We are getting ready to go over to Europe for a couple of weeks and take in the sights in the next two months."

"Stay away from Norway.", Dean chuckled.

The rocket scientist asked, "Why is that, Dean?"

"Meat pies.", was his two-word answer as Barbara rolled her eyes.

From the raven-haired child's jacket pocket, "Meat pies! Bleah!", as the pink rodent expressed his feelings on the culinary topic.

Smirking, "What Rufus said, but it's still better than grubs.", Hanna retorted, as she wasn't a fan of them either.

The rodent turned red, "Hnk, bleah.", he reiterated. Then he mimed gagging.

Dean Kaminsky slash Stoppable laughed as he picked up his glass of water, "Neither one of them is a fan of meat pies.", he said, tilting his glass to the pair in agreement, "But I have to agree with them."

James smiled, "Changing the subject, when is Ronald getting his degree, Dean?"

"Degrees, Jim.", Barb corrected, "And that'll be in three weeks. We have our flight to Miami scheduled as well as the rooms. Ron has secured a few days off from his job since he is working in his field already. Now have you informed Kimberly yet?"

James, with a cat-ate-the-canary-smile, "Yes I gave her an idea about the time she needed to travel with us to go somewhere…I can't get over the boy…"

Dean laughed, "He's not a boy anymore and he has been out in the world living on his own for ten years."

(AN…Of course, Dean Stoppable/Kaminsky had NO idea what his Son had been up to for all those years he'd been away from them or Middleton...)

James had a large smile on his face, "And Ronald has no romantic entanglements?"

"He said before that he was a confirmed bachelor…although he is open to meeting Kimberly and, I hope, rekindling what they had. And since Kimberly, according to what you have said, is interested in Ronald romantically, you never know we might end up being related. Just think, they are old enough to have to brood of kids and if I'm not mistaken, twins run in Anne's family…"

The raven-haired child suddenly grabbed her temples as she began to sway, "Brother…"

"Hnk, bad…Bad. Ron gone.", Rufus climbed out of Hanna's pocket, turned to the side and heaved.

A now distressed Barb Kaminsky reached for her daughter as the mole rat fainted and fell on the floor, "Hanna? Are you feeling alright?"

"Mom, something is wrong with Ron…I…I can't feel him, any more."

Dean looked concerned, "You can feel Ron? How?"

"I don't know, I just can…I always have…And now…I can't."

XXX

Middleton:

A massive arm instinctively and protectively wrapped around the red head as she sagged to the floor. "Mikie, be careful with Kim, you can hurt her.", Justine cautioned. The Littles had just followed everyone else into the bar and luckily, he was in a position to catch her.

Mike set Kim down in a chair and Monique plopped down next to her and tightly grabbed on to her friend.

Josh noted as he stared at the screen, "Why are the newsies calling Ron, 'Dean'?"

Nate replied, "I don't know about Ron, but Dean was how he introduced himself to me. He is like the star of the weather program at school. He's a genius…As in, double PhD type genius. I read his papers and I can tell you that he's an expert."

As Monique kept hold of the unconscious red head, Justine almost got whiplash from her doubletake, "Say again?"

"Dean…ah Ron, is like a prodigy of the school, maybe the country. He's even lectured grad students and seminars.", Nate told them.

"What's Ron, errrr Dean like now?", Tara inquired.

"I can tell you he's damned good at lying if what you are telling me is true. He told me he was from northern Illinois somewhere and now I find out he's from Middleton, Colorado. We came here on one of his planes to get his pet.", Nate informed them.

Tara's eyes narrowed, "Rufus?"

Nate nodded.

Kim started to come to. "What happened…God! Ron!" She tried to get up but was restrained by several hands.

Monique leaned in, "Mike caught you Kim, stay where you are for now."

Kim's eyes opened wide as she nodded, while following the news clip now on a loop on TV, replaying every few minutes. "I gotta call Wade…and my 'rents. They need to know."

Tara Mankey sat down next to Kim on the opposite side from Monique. There were tears streaming down her cheeks, "I…I don't know what to say…Ron, he uh was my crush, but he only had eyes for you. I thought I could steal him away, back when…but I was just kidding myself. I…I thought he would have returned by now…"

Struggling, "It wasn't you Tara, it was because I was weak.", she huffed. Starting to scramble, "I have to make a call to my 'rents, they have to know."

XX

Josh asked the meteorologist, "How high to those airplanes fly, Nate?"

"They take readings at different altitudes, I'd say they were at least at five thousand feet, but Dean…errrr Ron liked to be higher like ten to twelve thousand….", he trailed off in realization. "Shit! Do you know what would happen to a body impacting the ocean from two miles up?"

Josh paled, "Uh…not good?"

Nodding slowly, "If that happened to you, I think you'd end up a grease stain on the water…It would be the same as hitting concrete. Terminal velocity could be as high as one-seventy.", the MIT alumni informed him as he calculated the physics as his Mom was a medical doctor and his dad was an engineer. (Dinners at the Blances' home for Thanksgiving dinners made for interesting conversations…More so than most, actually….AN)

After visualizing this, the artist's eyes narrowed, "Ron is a 'grease stain'? You mean…like dead?"

Nathan frowned as he nodded, "I think my best friend from college is dead.", he grimaced. Then looking to his fiancée', a little dazed at this information overload about his best friend, "And I can't believe that he knows Moni…" Continuing to dither in his memories, "He knew we were getting married and he didn't say anything. That rat, he was going to be my best man at the wedding."

"So, you knew Ron well, I take it?"

Smiling fondly, "Yeah, me, him and his mole rat went out to bars a few nights a week."

Josh thought for a moment, then remembered. He heard his wife's question and just wanted to make sure, "Rufus, right?"

"The rodent? Yeah."

XX

"Hi Mom,", Sniff, "uh, we…sorta found out about Ron…", the red head told her Mother over the phone.

"Honey something bad happened. Rufus and Hanna had a fit a little while ago, but they're better now.", Anne replied.

Stunned, "How…do you know about Rufus and Ron's Sister?", the younger red head inquired.

"We were having dinner with the Stoppables, honey."

"Huh? Where are you? And why haven't you told me that you guys had been seeing them?"

"Near Denver, Kimmie and we wanted to surprise you. Now, we have to go. We'll talk to you later…we were asked to keep this from you until Ronald was able to show how he had changed…We were taking you to his graduation later this summer. I don't know about him though.", the surgeon didn't want to be blunt with her daughter, but at the moment she just had to get off the phone.

"Mom, don't hang up. Ron's picture was on the news…he might be dead. Sob. He might be gone, I'll never have my forever guy…", the younger red head began to break down.

"Kimmie, get a hold of yourself. You are scaring me and considering this is Ronald who defeated those aliens by himself, I think he would somehow survive falling out of an airplane.", Anne hardened her tone although she didn't believe it for an instant.

Sniffing, "Yes Ma'am."

"Honey, we've thought for years Ronald was gone, never to see him again, but his family lives close…well now. Anyway, we were going to surprise you with that trip we talked about…that was to see Ronald graduate."

"Mom, did Ron know…that, that I was coming?"

"We spoke with him over the phone, but he didn't tell us what he was doing or where he was going to school. He wanted it to be a surprise. To show you how much he changed, how much he had to change to be worthy of you."

"Mom, it was me being worthy of him. I was the one who screwed up…"

"Kimmie, you didn't screw up. Things just happened."

"Yes Ma'am, I have to call Wade. If you talk to the Stoppables, please give them my best and my sorrow over Ron."

"We don't know anything yet honey. Please stay calm, I have a feeling that things will work out for the best."

"I hope so, bye."

Kim then dialed up her friend. "Hey what's up Kim?", the genius asked.

The red head decided to keep it simple, "Turn on the news, they found Ron. He's the weather guy missing from that airplane."

"Hang on Kim, lemme change the channel…Oh shit! That does look like Ron."

"Yeah, Mom all but confirmed it. We have to track this down. Monique's fiancée here at the bar just happens to be Ron's friend from school and he didn't have any idea either. Is Betty still interested in finding Ron?"

"As far as I know, yeah. But we have to be assigned the mission. Do you want me to ask, or do you, via the intelligence end?"

Wade frowned, knowing his night with Uroki was screwed more than he planned for it to be. "I'll do it. You might want to bring Ron's friend in because GJ is gonna want some background."

"Okay Wade, no more beer for me. We'll get some kind of dinner and wait for your call."

X

A half-hour later, the four-tone ring that Kim's unit had been famous for, rang out:

The group was now seated in the bar having transferred their orders there.

"Go Wade.", the red head stated as she hit the 'Connect' button.

"Head into GJ, Betty wants to debrief your friend as to Ron. Oh, and be prepared to call your folks. I'll meet you there in an hour. You also might want to contact Yamanouchi. They need to know that Ron has disappeared."

"Yeah, I already spoke with them, we'll finish up dinner and meet you there. Is Betty pissed?", Kim inquired.

"Not so much pissed, just annoyed that Ron was so close, yet so far away. I'll see you at headquarters, we're gonna meet in Betty's office."

XXX

Global Justice:

"Doctor Director, this is Monique Jenkins and Nathan Blance. Monique's my roommate and Nathan's her fiancée. Nathan is also a friend of Ron Stoppable's.", Kim introduced the couple as she again wipes the tears out of her eyes.

"Glad to meet you. Now I must inform you that you cannot speak to anyone about what you see or hear today. Is that understood?", the one-eyed director of the United Nations' law enforcement arm asked.

A wide-eyed Monique Jenkins nodded her head while her boyfriend, Nate, muttered, "I've heard of the organization…" Sighing, he nodded, "Yeah."

"Good. Now I am going to show you something that was just on the networks. If what they are saying is true and that was Ron Stoppable who was on that airplane…well, it isn't good."

Wade inquired, Uroki sitting next to him, "Just how bad is this, Ma'am?"

With a grimace Betty pushed the button on a remote. After a screen extended down from the ceiling along a wall, she then pushed another button. In front of them an airplane pulled up and stopped, a hole near the rear-top of the aircraft, very apparent. After a few minutes people in coveralls began to exit the plane as groundcrew put chocks around the wheels.

A tall man walked up to the camera. Another man began, "Colonel you radioed in that you had a mishap during your flight. Could you tell us what happened?"

"I am Colonel Warmarster, the CO of this squadron, I've been given permission to make a statement at this time. We were on a routine mission. We just entered the eyewall of Hurricane Donnie and one of our crewmembers noticed the floor was wet near the rear of the airplane, so he investigated. When he did so, part of the airframe at the aft-ceiling of the airplane came apart opening, us to the storm. He was starting to get sucked out when our Chief Meteorologist unstrapped himself from his anchor point and went back to assist the crewman. He somehow got the crewman to safety but was sucked out of the plane while doing so.", Warmarster explained.

"Where is the weather guy now?", the newsie asked.

"We do not know, he's gone. You see, we were over the ocean and we were also at ten thousand feet."

"Did he, ah…"

The Colonel interrupted, "His name is Dean Kaminsky, sir."

"Ah yes, did Mister Kaminsky have on a parachute?"

"No, no he didn't. A freefall like that would have been like hitting concrete, you see."

"Oh…I thought these airplanes are safe…"

"They are, but you have to understand that we fly through some very tough storms. I would advise everyone who is in the way of Hurricane Donnie to move inland since it looks like it is going to come onshore in Florida. This is a bad storm…it already cost me a member of my crew…a friend I have had the privilege of knowing for over five years."

"Tell us about him please."

"Sure, his name is Doctor Dean Kaminsky. He had just earned two PhDs from the University of Miami. He first flew with us when he was going to school in Japan, years ago. He was an intern then.", the old man informed while looking into the camera.

"Where is he from, you just mentioned Japan, is he Japanese?"

"Not with a surname of Kaminsky. His parents moved to Japan for work from the US and Dean just stayed there to go to college after they moved away. I think they were in Norway then. After Kaminsky finished his undergraduate studies, he came back to the US. His folks moved home somewhere too, although I do not know where."

"Then this must be terrible news for them…"

"I would call them, but I have no way of contacting the Kaminsky's.", the officer informed the reporter.

"This Kaminsky must have left contact information on how to get a hold of his relatives…"

"Not to personnel he didn't. He might have that information at his apartment. I do know where that is and that he took his pet to stay the summer with his parents like he usually did. Maybe we can have the Manager of Dean's apartment open the door for us, but we should have the local Police there when we do."

XXX

Betty pushed a button on the remote, "Well?"

"That was the Officer that Dean talked about. I don't know Dean's apartment number either. It was just a place he used during the season, you understand…Listen, I can try and call his cell, that will at least eliminate some things…"

Betty nodded, "Please do, I will release the shielding so that you can get a signal." She pushed a button, then nodded.

Betty turned to two of her agents, "Kimberly, Doctor Load?"

"We wait until Mister Blance has had a chance to make contact."

Uroki spoke up, "I could call Sensei, he would want to know anyway."

"Please go ahead, I would like to know what your Master Sensei can tell us and give us some insight into this mystery.", Betty offered.

"I can say this before the call; as you have been told, Ronald Stoppable, who we call the Chosen One is a problem solver for Japan. If he were to depart from this plane for the next one there could be dire consequences for Asia and the world. As you are aware the Chosen One defeated the Invaders. When Kim-san had her troubles, our asset returned to Yamanouchi for spiritual help. Sensei provided the help needed and persuaded Stoppable-san to continue his studies to become the Master, which he did to his honor. After completing his training, he served the Nation of Japan. He also pursued his studies in college and you can see what had become of him becoming an expert in his chosen field."

Doctor Director inquired, "And Stoppable's…chosen field?"

Uroki blushed and pointed to the now blank screen, "He is a Meteorologist, working with the people watching cyclones and hurricanes. He is supposedly very good at what he does."

"Will, would you please get that Colonel on the line?", Betty asked.

"Yes Ma'am, I'll have him on loudspeaker."

X

A few minutes later:

"Colonel Warmarster?", Betty Director inquired.

"Yes Ma'am, how may I help you?"

"I understand you lost a crewmember today."

"Ma'am…he was a friend as well. A fine young man whom I have known for years."

"I am sending a team of my Agents to debrief you. Please expect them in the morning."

"Why is that? We need to inform his next of kin before we release any more information about him…Ma'am I must speak with my superiors…"

"Don't worry Colonel, they will speak with you because I will speak with them. I apologize for not introducing myself earlier and the confusion you must have, but I represent Global Justice; we report directly to the United Nations. Expect this debriefing to be Classified. Agent Kim Possible will be leading the team.", Betty informed the officer, "You have our condolences, but this meeting will be about the young man in question."

"Yes Ma'am, I will notify my staff that they will be on base in the morning."

"Thank you. Good night, Sir.", Betty then disconnected.

"Well he'll sure wonder what is going on now won't he?", Wade asked.

"Well we need to get information about Stoppable…Kaminsky, or whatever Kim's sidekick goes…"

"Partner slash love interest…maybe forever-mate, not sidekick Ma'am.", Kim cut in as she caught Nathan and Monique out of the corner of her eye. Nate was a little wide-eyed, obviously taken aback that his friend from college was in reality, someone entirely different.

"You have said this before, but going on what we have found out about Ron Stoppable's disappearance we have to be logical about what his chances are.", Betty told them.

"Ma'am?", Uroki inquired.

"Go ahead."

"I need to contact Yamanouchi, Sensei must have felt something by now."

"Go ahead, Doctor Load you can show her where she can get good coverage.", Doctor Director instructed.

"If the Chosen One's friend can get a signal, I will be able to as well.", Uroki replied as she remained seated.

Kim muttered, "I need a drink."

Du asked, "Are you sure that is wise, Kimberly?"

The red head stared for a long moment at the Asian GJ Agent, "I might have just lost the man that I love…that I may never have happiness with, again, and you ask my reason to knocking one back?"

Betty Director nodded as she looked over at Monique and her boyfriend, "If there was ever a reason for something to dull the ache, I think we're at that moment." She opened a desk drawer and continued, "You'll have to use your coffee mugs however, I only have a couple of glasses."

Kim drained hers and slid it over to Betty.

XX

(Sensei, Stoppable-san has disappeared. It is all over the news.), the Japanese woman said into her phone.

(Do not worry child, we at Yamanouchi are well aware of the situation. I feel the Chosen One will resurface soon. You may give more information about him since all this is now in the open.)

(Yes Master, I must go back to speaking in English, the other people here are giving me funny looks.)

(Be well child.)

She disconnected the service and told Wade, "Sensei already felt something."

Wade and his girlfriend looked around the room as Betty told them, "We are having a drink to calm our nerves, feel free to have one."

Uroki nodded as she moved her cup over to Doctor Director, "In my country I am of age to imbibe and will do so. If Erabareshi Mono has met his end we will have a toast to his memory that should be the least we should do for him."

Nate looked puzzled and figured that he and Monique had better do as the others around the table were doing. "What does that mean?", he inquired.

"Ron Stoppable, Dean Kaminsky or any of the other names that he has used when on missions were just covers. His title is 'The Chosen One' or Erabareshi Mono. He is a Warrior of the Light who fights evil from the shadows. The title 'Chosen One' means he was chosen by the Lotus Blade to fight the good fight so that others do not have to. He is also imbued with the Mystical Monkey Power and is the Mystical Heir of Lord Toshimiru to aid him in this conquest between good and evil.", Uroki explained.

Kim's eyes watered, "A mystical warrior? My Ron? Why didn't Sensei tell me? I know Ron did some things for them…"

Sighing, "He wanted it to be a surprise Kim-san…for you to be whole again. Ron Stoppable-san wears the blue robe at the school…which you have seen pictures of, no?"

"No. I mean, yes…I understand that only one person can wear blue…"

"You are allowed to wear a little blue, a shorter one than he has…Well you would have once you and Ron Stoppable become one." The petite shinobi raised the cup, saluted in Japanese, (For the Mountain.) She then drained the cup in one gulp.

The red head cocked her head to her friend, "I've heard that before Uroki, at Yamanouchi and other places. What does it mean?"

"It is a battle cry that one would give when he knows that his chances at survival are very bad. It is 'For the Mountain', meaning that one is giving his life for our security and way of life because those mean more than one's existence.", the young Japanese explained, "It is the battle cry of a hero who expects his or her demise."

Betty studied Kim for a moment. "When did you hear that, Kimberly?"

"When we raided your brother's warehouse in New York. Ron, I suppose it was Ron, who used it when he jumped on the missile when it was taking off.", the red head frowned and tossed her drink back.

"Then he was the one who killed my brother…", quietly reflective, "Sheldon was dirty and had tried to take over the world several times. If he was the one who was behind those nukes being stolen in China then he deserved to die.", Betty took another sip of her 'beverage', "Do we have any idea who broke that up?"

Uroki half-smiled, "I can confirm that Erabareshi Mono accomplished that task; though he was heavily injured while doing so. I was a young student at the time and remember him coming to Yamanouchi for treatment."

Will rolled his eyes, "Stoppable made a big splash? I suppose he has been a busy little beaver over the years…"

Kim coughed, "Ron mutated into a giant beaver to stop Gill Moss, Ma'am. He didn't want to, but Moss jumped into that lake in one of the coves where he knew the toxic chemicals were so that he could mutate again. Ron followed him and after seeing Moss change, Ron jumped in and changed too. They fought and Ron won. Now we hear other stories about what he has done…Yes, Yamanouchi supported him, but I should have too."

"Miss Possible…Kimberly are you alright?", Betty asked more than a little worried about the younger red head.

"I…I was just thinking…remembering him and what we had at one time and how that life is over now. I'm sorry for the distraction Ma'am."

Uroki half-smiled, feeling the sixty percent alcohol enter her bloodstream, "There are other stories about Stoppable-san. He has all sorts of scars on him. Two of which are shaped like a large seven. After that in Singapore he got stupidly drunk. Two other shinobis tried to bed him in his weakened state. The whole team was in one room. There were only two beds, a lot of booze and quite a bit frustration and the relief of living through something they shouldn't have."

Kim coughed, "You were there?"

"No, no, I was too young. Only the adults and most adept were allowed on that assignment, but I heard the stories when they returned."

Will asked, "Ma'am, should I make preparations for the upcoming mission?"

"Yes Will, please do so, but Agent Possible will not need her full team since we are not sending her into a hostile environment. Afterward please escort Miss Jenkins and Mister Blance back to her accommodations since you drove here in Agent Possible's vehicle. Kimberly and Wade will be on the mission and will stay here for the night."

The Senior Agent pressed a device on his chest and used his authority to order the mission and the crew. When he was finished, he stated, "The mission is scheduled to begin at zero five hundred, Ma'am. Agent Possible, your team has been notified. You and Doctor Load are billeted here tonight in your assigned rooms. Miss Jenkins, Mister Blance please follow me."

Kim looked at Will and warned, "Don't use the tubes. If you scare Moni, she might rip your head off and that's not half of what I would do to you."

"No worries, staff vehicle only Kimberly, we use the tube system to make an impression."

Will half-smiled, "Please follow me."

After they left Betty advised after pouring Wade and Kim another drink, "Think of this as a nightcap, and since you have an early flight in the morning, let's finish your drinks and get some rest."

As Kim brought the cup up, Betty wondered out loud, "Do we really need to be worried about Ron Stoppable?"

The younger red head cocked her head to the side and inquired, "What do you mean Ma'am?"

"We have information that your old Sidekick survived a fall from that exploding rocket which took out Sheldon, and from what I wonder right now, is how was he able to do that? If he was able to do that from a rocket, he might have been able to do that with being sucked out of an airplane at altitude.", Betty observed, "That and we have a video of him floating after he killed those aliens."

Uroki put down her cup, "There is a technique…I am not able to do it myself which is one of the reasons I decided to come here, but Sensei and a few others can…With enough concentration it is possible for some members of the clan to float in the air. Maybe half the members of the clan are able to do so…"

"Clan?", Wade inquired.

"Yes," Uroki explained, "Yamanouchi is a clan. You and Kim-san are, in fact, members of our clan. We are a family. Anyway, Stoppable-san has always had trouble with 'the floaty thing' as he calls it. He is much better at staying unobserved to the point of actually becoming invisible."

Kim stared down at her cup as Uroki continued, "He survived the rocket launch because he was able to center himself and concentrate and focus himself to slow his descent back to Earth. If he wasn't able to accomplish that he would have died. However, the problem with the warehouse incident and the one with the plane is that when Stoppable-san was on the rocket he had already activated the Monkey Power, according to what Sensei as revealed. If he was not able to or if he had been injured, he wouldn't be able to concentrate."

"I did see 'Ron' come into view when the rocket was taking off.", Kim agreed or agreed with this part of the explanation, "I saw Sensei float once when we were on a mission years ago, but it's hard to get my mind around Ron being able to do something like that."

Wade frowned, "Well, we don't know much right now but we should know more in the morning. I am beat, Uroki let me walk you to your dorm."

Kim finished her drink and rose, "Great idea, just my Intel guys tomorrow, right Ma'am?"

"You do not need your combat ready people Kimberly…Oh, and minimum body armor."

The younger red head mock saluted her boss, "Yes Ma'am, excuse me for the evening."

Betty nodded, "Sleep well."

XXX

Will Du pulled up to the condo and said, "This is your stop, thank you for coming in to GJ and for the information."

Nathan frowned, "You people are not very concerned about Dean, are you?"

Du turned half around in his seat, "If your friend is Stoppable, he left his best friend in a lurch and I for one am not happy about that…"

Monique snapped back, "IF?...If you remember, my GF shut everyone out…for three long years. No word from her…and why? Because she didn't want people to see her as the non-teen heroine." Glowering at Will's tiny smirk, "I know, I was on the receiving end of that as well as our whole class from HS. Ron? Ron must've been devastated. The person who had been with him since he was four, disappeared. Her 'rents didn't help either and they could have by assuring Ron while that was going on. They broke all interaction with him and his family…and with her supposedly best friend." Fixing him with a glare, "Let me tell you something; Ron Stoppable would do anything…anything for that girl I live with and don't you forget it Mister Number One Agent. This little ten-year incident almost cost me my best friend and so far, it has cost me my up-to-now best male friend and I don't want to think of the consequences on Kim's psyche his not coming home is going to have on her. Kim Possible wants to become Kim Stoppable in every way and it will devastate her. So, let's hope we can find skinny boy and bring him home to the woman who loves him more than she loves anything else, including herself and Global Justice." The fashionista unfastened her seatbelt, emotionally depleted from her rant and told her boyfriend, "Come on Nathan, it's late and you have to work tomorrow."

XXX

The one-eyed leader of Global Justice snapped another shot back as she thought, 'Would it be better if Stoppable was dead? At least Kim would move on.'

XX

"Alright board up and strap in. Does everyone have their IDs?", Agent Possible told her core team as they walked towards the hover jet."

Getting nods, Kim sped up.

Ten minutes later:

"Okay here we go.", Wade exclaimed always getting a rush out of the vertical takeoff.

XXX

Middleton International Airport:

The taller of the two Japanese women asked, "Did Sensei say that the Lotus Blade had returned to the shrine yet?"

Huffing in exasperation, "For the tenth time, no it hasn't Wanda, that's why we're flying down to Mississippi. The word was that Stoppable was experimenting with putting the blade in suspended animation…"

"Huh?", Wanda Wang questioned.

"You so need to get some scroll research in Sister, it was documented in a few scrolls from nine hundred years ago.", Suzy informed her friend.

Totally flummoxed, "Where did you find those?"

Smugly, "While you were out on a date with Antubi, I made myself useful and did some studying with Yori.", the more petite shinobi told her friend.

XXX

Drakken's Caribbean island:

Adorable excitement dragging amused exasperation across the beach, the little spitfire led her bemused Mom to the 'discovery' she made earlier in the morning.

Youthful enthusiasm growing, with elder bemusement diminishing, the closer the pair came to what came into focus.

"Mommy! … Mommy look! Look what I found!", the little girl hopping up and down as she pointed to her 'find'.

Eyes bright, a familiar facial expression forming (something Mom just realized wasn't just particular to only two other people on the planet), the precocious tyke turned to the former villain/former heroine, before uttering the inevitable words…

"He's kind of cute…Can I keep him?", pout on full blast…Mom frozen to its power.

While the tide lapped at the soggy, lightly breathing, helmeted form lying in the surf.

XXXX

I wonder who will have the toughest time of it, once all parties appear at the Lipsky's home…

The Yamanouchi group, for finding their usually wayward Chosen One, GJ for finally catching up to someone they wish to…recruit…Kim for catching up with the world's greatest player of 'Where the hell is Ron Stoppable?' and her still hoped for love of her life…or the littlest Lipsky, who will be very possessive of her 'cute find' on the beach…

Either way, once Drew learns of Samantha's first Crush…I'm sure he'll have a coronary…