Bueno Nacho
"Ron?" Kim waved her hand, trying to get the attention of the boy seated across from her currently noshing down on his third chimurito. "Ron? Trying to talk to you here." Shaking her head, Kim practically shouted as her best friend, after slurping down a big swig of cola through a straw, now began shoving cheese nachos into his mouth. "RON!"
"You don't have to holler, KP." Ron Stoppable mumbled, his mouth still full of nachos, "What is it?"
After taking a dainty bite of her taco salad, Kim took a deep breath, "You know that tomorrow we're going to Danville for the cheer competition—right?"
"Yeah, KP!" Ron grinned, "I know you're worried about how we're gonna do, but don't. The Mad Dog's gonna bring it on home!"
"It's great that you're so enthusiastic, Ron." Kim praised with a cheery smile on her face, "But…you know…you might want to pace yourself. It's gonna be a long bus ride to Danville and I know you like to…"
"Don't worry about it, KP!" Ron interrupted in a reassuringly cheerful voice. "That's why you've got me as the team mascot. I promise…I'll make sure everyone's psyched and ready to go for the competition."
Rolling her eyes, Kim blew out a breath of air through her mouth as she muttered in an inaudible tone, "That's what I'm afraid of."
Stoppable House—that night
"So, how's Kimberly?" Dean Stoppable, actuary and Ron Stoppable's father, currently seated on his favorite recliner watching the news inquired as his son entered the house.
"She's fine, Dad. She told me to say hi to you and Mom." Ron replied, "You two home tonight? I thought your flight for Miami left this afternoon."
Dean answered back, "Our trip got pushed back to Friday because of those storms in Florida."
"Nothing like a possible hurricane to put the kibosh on a vacation." Ron quipped before reminding his parents, "Don't forget, I'm going on a school trip to Danville tomorrow with the cheer squad. It's the cheer competition I told you about. You remember signing the permission slip—right?"
"Of course, son." Dean replied.
"That's nice." Jean Stoppable said as she entered the living room, taking a seat on the couch. "How long will you be gone?"
"We'll be staying in Danville overnight and then returning the next day." Ron answered back.
As he made his way up to his room, a chill ran up Ron's spine as he heard the teaser to the next news segment. "After our break, on our next segment of Unsolved Mysteries, we will be looking at the case of young Gil Moss who disappeared while attending summer camp at the now closed Camp Wannaweep…"
"Gil Moss?" Mrs. Stoppable called out to her son, "Wasn't he that boy you knew at summer camp, Ronnie?"
"Yeah, Mom." Ron answered back with a hitch to his voice, "I…uhhh…" the young man stammered as he fought to retain control, "I….uhhh…I have to go to my room. I've got homework I've gotta do before we leave tomorrow." Dashing up the stairs quickly and slamming his room door shut, Ron dived for his bed, cowering under the sheets as unwanted memories forced themselves into his mind while he drifted off into a fitful sleep.
"I wonder what that was all about." Jean shook her head as she saw her boy rushing towards his room and then heard the door slam.
"He's a teenager." Dean replied as he lit his pipe, "You know how boys are at that age."
FLASH—Ron and Kim as children
"Hi, Ron!" Young Kim Possible, her red hair done in pigtails, smiled as she entered her best friend's treehouse. "Whatcha doin'?"
"I'm packing up some comics to take with me to summer camp." Ron replied as he slipped several of his Fearless Ferret comic books into his backpack. Shaking his head, the young boy grumbled, "Mom and Dad are sending me to Camp Wannaweep for six weeks."
"Why?" Kim asked as she sat on the treehouse floor and idly paged through a comic book.
"They said they wanted me to make new friends and try out some new stuff." Ron complained, "But really, I think they just want me out of their way for a while."
"Why do you think they want you gone?" Kim asked.
"I overheard them talking in the living room a couple of nights ago when I snuck downstairs to get a snack from the fridge." Ron replied, barely holding back a sob. "Momma was telling Daddy that if they sent me to that camp that they'd finally have some time to themselves and Daddy said that it would be good for me to get off by myself for a while and that I'd have fun."
"Maybe you will have fun there, Ron." Kim suggested, trying to put a bright face on the situation. "And you'll be back in six weeks. We'll still have the rest of the summer to play and have fun together."
"But I'm having fun with you now." Little Ronnie protested, "I don't wanna go to camp!"
FLASH
The present—Ron sleeping
Ron murmured as he tossed and turned in his sleep. "I don't wanna go to camp."
FLASH
Camp Wannaweep—Ron as a child
As he got off the bus at Camp Wannaweep, the little blond-haired boy, still shivering as he recalled an old gnarled tree that the bus had passed on the way to the camp, the coon-skin cap given to him by his father securely on his head—unfortunately, the wrong way as the tail fell between his eyes and tickled his nose. He sniffled as he clutched on to the Fearless Ferret action figure in his hand given to him by his best friend as a going away present. Standing in line with the other campers, he remembered looking out the back window of his family's car as the pig-tailed girl waved goodbye to him. "Wish you were here, Kimmie."
"Who's Kimmie? Your girlfriend?" The boy standing next to Ron mocked.
"She's my friend." Ron answered back, "My bestest friend!"
"The squeeb has a girlfriend! Squeeb has a girlfriend!"
A heavy set man wearing a khaki shirt and pants and a green campaign hat blew his whistle. "Listen up! When I call your name, report to the clan flag you see on the brochure the camp counselors are handing out."
Taking a piece of paper from a teenage boy, Ron looked down at it and saw a picture of a monkey on a green background. Hearing his name called out, the blond boy looked up. "Stoppable, Ron!" Seeing the green flag with a monkey on it, Ron made his way over to it, gritting his teeth as he noticed that the boy who was teasing him earlier was also part of his clan.
Opening his backpack, Ron took out a picture of Kim and looked longingly at it, but before he could put it back where it belonged, a hand snatched it away from him.
"That your girlfriend, squeeb?" Gil mocked as he held the photo just out of reach of the grasping hands of the young boy he was having fun tormenting.
"Give it back!" Ron begged, "It's mine!"
"Squeeb's got a girlfriend!" The bully teased as the rest of the clan laughed, "Squeeb's got a girlfriend!"
"Give Ronnie's picture back to him, Gil." Hank Bulkerson, the Monkey Clan's camp counselor commanded as he barely kept himself from laughing at the hapless young boy being teased.
"Here you go, Squeeb." Gil laughed as he made as if to hand the picture back to Ron only to snatch it away at the last moment. The bully repeated the taunting two more times until the counselor once again commanded, "Moss…give Squee…Ron…his picture back."
"Take it, Squeeb." Gil snorted as he finally gave back the photo. "Bet she's got cooties."
"Take that back!" Ron hollered, balling his fists.
"Kimmie's got cooties! Kimmie's got cooties! Whatcha gonna do about it—Squeeb!" Gil taunted as he pushed Ron on the chest.
Pulling his fist back, Ron tried to hit the bully only to trip over a life preserver, causing him to fall face first into the dirt.
"Ha Ha!" Gil, joined by the rest of the clan, laughed at the humiliated young child. "Squeeb!"
"Get on your feet Squeeb." The counselor ordered, glaring at Ron. "This is a no wimp zone. Got that, Squeeb! No wimps!"
Fighting gamely to keep the tears from forming in his eyes, Ron pleaded, "I wanna go home! I wanna go home!"
FLASH
The Present—Ron sleeping
"I wanna go home…Kim doesn't have cooties…I wanna go home…I'm not a wimp…Take me home…" Ron murmured in his sleep as nightmares of Camp Wannaweep continued to haunt him.
FLASH
Camp Wannaweep—Ron as a child
"Stoppable…Moss…Duncan…Winters…you're assigned to Cabin 12." The counselor announced as Ron swerved to avoid Gil snatching his cap from his head. "Here's your schedule. Miss a meal, and you do without until the next one. Any questions? Good." Before Ron could ask a question, the counselor turned and walked away, leaving the scared young boy with his roommates, all three of whom were eyeing him with predatory grins.
"Let's see what the squeeb has in his backpack." Gil, who had rapidly asserted himself as the pack alpha, sneered as he snatched Ron's back pack, and, opening it, dumped the contents on to the cabin floor. Smirking as he picked up the picture of Kim in her pigtails with a big smile on her face, Gil made a production of shredding the picture into tiny pieces before tossing the fragments into the air like confetti.
As Gil and the other boys began rifling through Ron's comics and action figures, the hapless lad, tears flowing down his cheeks gathered up as many of the fragments of the ruined picture of his friend that he could find as he pleaded in vain to the teenager assigned as cabin counselor who was at that moment looking at the pictures in a supposedly contraband Playpen magazine. "Please…make them stop…please…"
FLASH—the present
"Make them stop…make them stop!"
Startled into wakefulness, Ron, sweat pouring down his body, sat bolt upright as he tossed away the sheets he had been cowering under. Picking up the phone with trembling hands, he hit a special number on his speed dial. After several rings, he sighed in relief as the party on the other end finally picked up. "KP?"
"What is it, Ron?" Groggy from being awakened from her deep sleep, Kim croaked out a barely audible reply as she glanced at her alarm clock, "Do you know it's three o'clock in the fucking morning?"
"I'm sorry, Kim." Ron muttered apologetically into the phone. "I shouldn't have called. I'll let you go back to sleep…" Pressing the button to end the call, Ron quietly placed the phone back on its stand as he took a deep breath and exhaled.
As she stared at the phone in her hands, Kim pondered on whether to place it back in its cradle or call her best friend back. After several moments of back and forth internal debate, she picked up the phone and hit the speed dial. "I'm sorry, Ron." Kim apologized in a placating voice. "Tell me what's bothering you."
"There was a special report on the news…" Ron recollected, "It was about Gil Moss…"
"Gil Moss?" Kim racked her mind as she tried in vain to place a face with the name. "Sorry, Ron. Not ringing any bells."
"You heard me talk about him before." Ron groaned, "He was the bully who always teased me at…"
"Camp Wannaweep." Kim sighed. "You had another dream?"
"Yeah." Ron replied, "I know you're sick and tired of me talking about my dreams of that place…"
"No, Ron." Kim shook her head as she spoke into the phone, "It's all right. What dream was it this time? The bugs? The food? Bobo the chimp?"
"None of them." Ron answered back, "This one was new. It was on my first day at camp. I don't think I've ever talked about what happened then."
"Go ahead and tell me." Kim simply asked as she made herself comfortable for what she knew would be a lengthy conversation. The young redhead listened patiently as her friend related to her his dream about Gil and the bullying he endured on his first day at camp. After he'd finished his tale, Kim remarked in a sympathetic voice, "You never told me about this, Ron. Did you tell your parents about it?"
"I tried." Ron whispered back, "But they didn't do anything about it…"
FLASH
Camp Wannaweep—Ron as a child
"We'll talk to the camp director, Ron." Mrs. Stoppable told her son over the phone, "It sounds like it's just this boy Gil who's causing all the problems. The other boys are just following his lead."
"Can't you just come and get me, Mom?" Little Ronnie pleaded, "This place is terrible. The food smells funny, the water in the lake is green and it smells yucky, and the squirrels have red eyes! I wanna go home!"
"Your father and I are in Cancun right now, Ron." Mrs. Stoppable sighed as Ron heard people laughing and glasses clinking together in the background. "We can't just drop everything and pick you up. Besides, we've already paid all the fees and they don't give refunds. We'll see about getting you transferred out of that cabin. It'll get better once you're away from that boy. I gotta go now, Ron. It's your daddy's turn to do the limbo. We'll talk to the director later on. Be good and try to have some fun!"
FLASH
The Present
"The next day, I was transferred to Cabin 13—the cabin they nicknamed 'The Hole'…"
"The Hole?" Kim gasped, "Why did they call it that?"
"It was Camp Wannaweep's version of solitary confinement." Ron explained. "It was located away from the other cabins and infested by spiders and bugs. They told my parents that it wasn't a punishment. That it was the only way that they could ensure that I wouldn't be bullied by Gil and the others. But really…they put me there because I complained. They could have transferred me to another cabin with a vacancy if they wanted to. Putting me in The Hole was their way of getting back at me."
"I'm sorry, Ron." Kim cooed in a soothing voice, "And I'm sorry about the picture. I wondered what happened to it—you always kept it with you…" She fondly recalled, "But when you came back from that place…"
"I still have it." Ron declared, "I put it back together the best I could, but I'm missing a piece. I promised myself that I wouldn't show it to you until I found that missing piece."
"Oh, Ron!" Kim exclaimed, "That's so sweet. But I can probably get you another picture. Mom said something about digitizing all our old photos…"
"It's okay, Kim." Ron interrupted, "You don't have to go through the trouble. I still have the original and who knows…maybe one day I'll be able to find that missing piece."
"Okay." Kim replied before gently inquiring, "Are you feeling better now?"
"Yeah." Ron answered back, "Thanks for listening to me."
"Anytime, Ron." Kim responded and then quipped, "But next time…do us both a favor and try not to call at three in the morning."
Chuckling, Ron joked back, "I'll pass the word on to the Wannaweep devils to only torment me during regular business hours."
"All I'm asking." Kim giggled, "Good night, Ron."
"Night, KP."
Another phone conversation on the evening before Camp Wannaweep (NOT at 3AM)
Her eyes focusing first on the card in her hands, then on the phone lying on her bed, and then again on the card, Crystal, her mind made up, took a deep breath as she picked up the phone and dialed the number on the phone. One ring…a second…a third. Letting out a breath of air, the tawny-skinned cheerleader had her finger on the disconnect button just as a lyrical voice finally answered.
"Hello?"
Kitty-Kat Club just before Crystal's call
"Here you go, Zee." Max, the bartender and general manager of the club, smiled as he handed his favorite dancer a Canadian and Seven on the rocks. "Sounds like you had a good set."
"Yeah." Zoe responded as she sat down at the bar and taking out a cigarette and lighting it, took a draw and exhaled before taking a sip of her drink. "Got some good tips." Taking another sip of her drink, the lovely Asian stripper inquired, "Any luck on that statue?"
"Yeah." Max nodded his head as he wiped off the counter. "Big Daddy found a seller who's willing to let it go for what he paid for it. Seems the collector got into a little tax trouble…" The bartender grinned as he handed a slip of paper to the dancer. "Here's the price. I'm afraid it's non-negotiable, Doll."
Nodding her head, Zoe took out a wad of bills—tips from her last dance. Counting out a number of tens and twenties, the stripper handed the payment over to her boss as her phone rang. "Here you go, Max. Tell Big Daddy thanks from me."
"Anytime, Zee." Max grinned as he quipped, "Better get that before whoever it is calling you hangs up."
Picking up the phone, Zoe spoke, "Hello?"
The Conversation
Crystal felt her heart skip a beat as she heard the sultry voice coming from her phone's speaker. Answer her…now! Taking a deep breath and exhaling, Crystal blurted out, "Hello? Mikey from the Old Town comic shop gave me your card and I saw your note to call you…"
Chuckling, Zoe replied, "I'm glad you called. My name's Zoe…"
"Oh…" Crystal, her face turning beet red, shyly interjected, "I'm sorry…I'm so rude…I'm Crystal…"
"Crystal…that's a pretty name." Zoe responded.
"So's Zoe." Crystal, her face still red, answered back.
"Thanks." Zoe replied, "Ummm…I guess you're wondering why I left that card for you…"
"Yeah." Crystal giggled, "A little…"
"Remember that Tiamat statue I bought a few weeks ago?"
"Yeah." Crystal responded with an inaudible sigh.
"Please forgive me…" Zoe began only to be cut off by the girl at the other end of the conversation.
"Forgive you for what?"
"I was in the bathroom when you and Mikey were talking." The Asian stripper explained, "I couldn't help but overhear. If I'd have known that you wanted to buy the statue, I…"
"Hey." Crystal interjected, trying to put a positive spin on her disappointment, "It's okay. I couldn't really afford it anyway. It's no big."
"Well…" Zoe, hearing the letdown in the other person's voice, responded gently, "I'd like to make it up to you…at least a little. Let me buy you lunch…say at the mall tomorrow? I've got some time off. It's the least I could do…please?"
She wants to meet me for lunch. Crystal paused, not believing what she had just heard, We don't even know each other and she's asking me out for lunch. Part of me says not to go…but part of me…that long silky hair…that voice.
"Ummm…" Zoe's voice broke Crystal out of her trance. "I realize you don't know anything about me. You must think I'm some sort of creep or perv or something. All I can tell you is that the offer is genuine. If you want to meet somewhere else, I'm open to that too, but if you don't want to…well…I understand. So…"
"It's okay." The youthful cheerleader responded, "You just took me by surprise. That's all. I can't meet tomorrow—I'm going to Danville with the rest of the squad for a cheerleading competition and we're gonna be gone for the next couple of days. But…what about this Saturday? Is that okay?"
Turning her head towards the bartender, Zoe smiled gratefully as she noticed the subtle nod of his head. Returning to her conversation, the lovely stripper replied, "Saturday would be great. Meet you in the food court in front of the coffee bistro?"
"Sounds good." Crystal replied, "I'll see you then."
"Great." Zoe exclaimed, "I'll see you on Saturday and…good luck in your competition. By the way…" The Asian dancer finished with a fond grin on her face that, unfortunately, the girl on the other end of the line couldn't see, "I used to be a cheerleader too. Bye."
Setting down her phone, Crystal shook her head in amazement as she smiled at her favorite stuffed animal, a koalacat cuddle buddy. "I'm not sure, Penny, but I think I just agreed to a date…or a date to see if we want to go out on a date."
Back at the Kitty-Kat Club, Max smiled at his dancer, "So…hot date on Saturday?"
"Not really." Zoe responded with a slight smile, "More like a let's see if we like each other and want to date each other date."
"Well…" The bartender answered back as he refilled the dancer's drink, "Good luck."
That same night—another couple talking
"Hear anything more about Margaret?" Jessica asked as she snuggled closer to her boyfriend sitting next to her on her family's front porch swing.
"They're keeping pretty quiet about it." Steve confessed as he hugged his girlfriend closer to him. "But her mother did tell me that the drug those bastards slipped her had some pretty bad side effects—including physical and psychological addiction."
"That sucks." Jessica replied with a grimace. "Are they any closer to catching the assholes who did this?"
"They're not saying." Steve replied with a frown. "Maybe they're holding off on making arrests until they get sufficient evidence. Maybe someone's parents paid someone off. I don't know."
"Shit."
"Yeah." The baseball shortstop agreed as he changed the subject, "So…how's the squad looking for the competition?"
"Pretty good." Jessica, relieved at the change in topic, responded. "I think we stand a good shot at winning…if we can keep Ron bottled up until the competition that is."
"This I've got to hear." Steve chuckled, listening as the pair sat and talked under the stars until, glancing at his watch, the young man exclaimed, "I better get home before I get docked for curfew." Giving his girlfriend a goodbye kiss, he smiled, "Good luck and I'll see you when you get back."
"Get moving, Farley." Jessica grinned as she returned her beau's kiss. "I'm counting on you taking me out to the mall this weekend and if you don't wanna know how pissed I'll be if I find out when I return that you got grounded for being late."
"Yikes!" Steve laughed as he took off for his truck, "I'm outta here!"
Middleton High—school bus parking lot the next morning
"Listen up!" Steve Barkin, clipboard in hand and whistle hanging by a lanyard around his neck, barked out at the gaggle of cheerleaders plus mascot gathered in the parking lot talking and giggling among themselves. Seeing that no one was paying attention, the former Marine put whistle to lips and blew it, at once silencing the teenagers. "I said LISTEN UP!" Seeing that he had now gotten everyone's attention, the permanent-substitute teacher ordered, "Board the bus when I call your name."
"Stoppable…Possible…Sundstrum…Magnusson…Baker….Gonzalez…Rockwaller…not you two!" Holding out his arm to block access to the transport, Mr. Barkin halted Hope and Tara as they got ready to board the bus. "Open your purses."
Shrugging their shoulders, both girls did as they were told. Seeing the package of domestic cigarettes in Tara's purse, Barkin's lips turned up in a triumphant grin. "I knew it! Contraband tobacco delivery systems. Taking the cigarettes out of her purse and examining them, the teacher observed, "Not your usual brand, Ms. King. Don't you normally smoke those expensive black jobs?"
Shrugging her shoulders, Tara replied, "They didn't have them in stock and I was desperate."
"Confiscated. Three days detention when we get back. Board the bus." Tara boarded the bus and gave a sarcastic bow as her fellow cheerleaders all chanted in unison, "Busted!"
"Let's see what you've got, Ms. Rossi." Barkin commanded as Hope opened her purse. Inspecting the contents within, the teacher's lips curled up in a sly grin as he saw a metallic flask. "Right again!" Opening the flask and taking a whiff, the teacher let out a disgusted, "Whew! What you got in there, Rossi? Rotgut?"
"Didn't have time to get the good stuff." Hope smirked as the teacher poured the contents of the flask out on the ground and then pocketed the container. "Confiscated illicit contraband alcohol containment device. Alcohol contained within destroyed. You get to join your partner in detention—three days. Get on the bus."
Boarding the bus, Hope gave her fellow cheerleaders an elaborate curtsy as they all serenaded her to chants of "Busted!"
"Sorry you two got caught." Kim whispered as the Dirty Pair took their seats.
"We wanted him to catch us." Tara whispered back. Smirking at the confused look on the redhead's face, the blonde British agent explained, "Misdirection. He would have torn our purses apart and had a female resource officer search us if he hadn't found something. So…we gave him something to find. My good cigs are in a hidden compartment in the purse."
"And I've got the good booze in another flask that's attached to a garter up near my happy fun place where Barkin would never look" Hope giggled.
"But a female resource officer would catch." Kim nodded her head, "Sneaky."
"Part of the game." Tara answered back, "It's something you need to learn how to do too, luv, because, like it or not, you're a player now."
Taking his place behind the wheel of the bus and putting the vehicle in motion, Barkin allowed a brief smile to cross his lips as he saw Possible talking with the Dirty Pair through his rear view mirror. The old pro recognized a scam job when he saw one—you didn't spend several years as a Marine doing special ops, most of which were still classified, without picking up on a few tricks that were popular in the spook community. Nor did you get through quite a few years of teaching without learning all the tricks his students were capable of pulling. Good job hiding those smokes, Ms. King. Must have learned that little trick from your grandmother. He also had a good idea as to where Hope had hidden the flask with the good stuff. Not worth fetching a female resource officer to frisk her. Barkin thought to himself, Gotta give her credit for finding a good hiding place though. Three days detention for the two of you is fair enough. Can't let you just skate because you got caught—even if that was your plan. Besides, Big Mike and the others were saying that they missed the two of you.
As he drove the bus off the school grounds, another thought crossed the mind of the grizzled teacher, Gotta admit, I'm curious about this competition. Something's off…it's just too sudden. It should have been on the schedule weeks ago, but we get a sudden announcement. The hairs on the back of the combat veteran raised as he muttered, "This is weird and I don't like weird."
On the bus
"Go Mad Dogs! Go!"
"Save some of that energy for the competition, ladies!" Steve Barkin barely repressed a laugh as he drove the chanting cheerleaders and their mascot to the competition. Shaking his head as he noticed Ron getting a little too caught up in the spirit, Barkin took a deep breath as the school mascot let out a fierce bellow.
"GOOOOOOO MAD DOGS! Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!"
"Tune it down, Stoppable!"
"Kim…" Bonnie growled, "Curb the mascot before I put him down."
"Bonnie's right." Tara pleaded, "Ron's starting to get on everyone's nerves here—us included."
"Yah." Hope affirmed, "Tell him to tone it down…way down."
"I'll see what I can do." Kim sighed as she joined her friend at the back of the bus. "Ron?"
"Grrrrrrrrrr….M…A….D….D…O…G…S. What's that spell?"
"Ron?"
"MAD DOGS!"
"Ron! Please!" Kim exclaimed, finally getting the young man's attention.
Calming down, Ron asked, "What is it, Kim?"
"I was thinking that maybe you should…you know…" The young redhead tried to phrase her request as gently as possible, "Pace yourself a bit…you don't want to burn yourself out before the competition—right?"
"No can do!" A big grin appeared on Ron's face as he enthusiastically exclaimed, "The Mad Dog came to play!"
"Yeah! Play!" Rufus cheered as he popped out of his hiding place in Ron's pocket.
"Ron…the other girls…even Hope and Tara…are getting irritated. Can't you just try to be normal for a little while?"
Lowering his head, Ron, his growing frustrations coming to the fore, grumbled, "You're bossing me around just like always."
"Ron!" Kim let out a sigh of exasperation, "I'm not being bossy. I'm just asking you to tone it down a little. Please."
The dejected mascot griped. "You think I'm a total moron."
"Don't be silly, Ron!" Kim let out a breath, "I don't think of you that way."
"You're always telling me what to do like I'm a child."
"You gotta admit, Ron…" Kim snapped back, "I usually do know what's best for you."
"Whatever." Ron scowled as he set the mascot head on the bench next to where he sat. "I'll sit still and shut up. Go tell the others you castrated the Mad Dog."
"Ron!"
"Just. Go. Kim." Ron growled as he turned his head the other way.
Returning to where Tara and Hope were sitting, Kim taking the bench seat behind them, leaned forward so that she could talk quietly with her two friends. "I really fucked it up."
"You were going great until that last comment." Tara bluntly stated. "That's when you made a cock up of it."
"Gotta go with my bestie here, Kim." Hope agreed. "You might as well have just cut 'em off and worn 'em around your neck."
Shaking her head, Kim whispered, "I shouldn't have snapped at him like that. I just lost my temper."
Glancing back and noticing how the young sidekick was nervously drumming the bench where he sat with his fingers, Tara pondered, "I'm ruling out speed or anything like that—Ron doesn't do drugs. I haven't even seen him take so much as a sip of beer."
"He doesn't drink." Kim affirmed.
"Do you think he drank too much coffee or ate too much sugar?" Hope asked.
"No." Kim shook her head. "At least I don't think so. He called me up at three this morning…"
"Oh?"
"Yeah. He had another Wannaweep flashback." Kim then related the contents of the phone call to her friends.
"Damn." Hope shook her head, "That place really did a number on him."
"Tell me about it." Kim moaned, "I don't know what I'm gonna do."
"This road…" Ron muttered to himself as the bus passed by a twisted old tree that was near the end of its life. "That tree! No!" The tormented young man shook his head violently, "No…No…No...NO!"
Hearing her friend's desperate plea, Kim quickly stood up and made her way back to him, "Ron? What's wrong?"
"No…nononononono…" Ron hysterically cried out. Grabbing Kim's Kimmunicator from her purse, Ron pressed the call button, "Wade! I need a GPS lock on our position…NOW!"
"Kim?" Wade asked, waiting for the redhead's approval before complying with the now near panicky blond sidekick's request.
"Go ahead, Wade. Do it." Kim calmly and quietly instructed.
"What's going on back there?" Barkin growled as he eyed the commotion in the back of the bus.
"Nothing, Mr. Barkin." Kim quickly responded, "Ron's just having a little trouble."
"Get him settled down." The teacher ordered as he continued to monitor the situation while at the same time paying attention to the road which was becoming increasingly rough.
"Give me a moment, Mad Dog." Wade commanded through the Kimmunicator, "Okay…I've got a lock. Here you are."
"We have to turn back NOW!" Grabbing Kim by the shoulders, the now panic stricken youth begged, "Please Kim, make him turn back!"
"Stoppable! Either settle down or you'll be in detention for the rest of the school year when we get back."
"If we don't turn around, we might not get back!" Ron cried out.
"He's finally lost his mind." Bonnie snorted as both Tara and Hope looked on with concern.
"Think we might need to get involved, bestie?" Hope asked.
"Not much we can do to help." Tara gravely answered, "Kim's probably the only one who can settle him down without getting physical and I'd rather not go there if it can be avoided."
"You don't understand!" Ron whimpered, "No one here understands!" He cried out as the bus passed a sign saying, Welcome to Camp Wannaweep. "This is Camp Wannaweep." He said, his voice now barely a whisper. "This is where I spent the worst summer of my life. The summer of Hell."
Kim suddenly found herself arm in arm with her best friend as the bus lurched and swerved. Quickly disengaging, she called out, "What happened?"
"No bus wipes out on my watch." Steve Barkin growled as he fought to maintain control over the unstable vehicle.
"Fuck!" Tara cursed as she and her best friend grabbed on to the seat in front of them to keep from spilling over into the aisle as Liz and Crystal had done.
Finally getting the vehicle back under control, Mr. Barkin braked it to a stop and then turning off the ignition, called out, "Everyone sound off!" As each girl called out their name, Steve paid close attention to be sure that they sounded okay and then, hearing Stoppable calling out, barked, "Stoppable! What was that display all about?"
"We've got to get out of here, Mr. Barkin." Ron pleaded, "Now!"
"First let me check to see if we've taken any damage." The teacher replied and then instructed his charges, "You all can disembark and stretch your legs. DO NOT leave the vicinity of the bus."
Camp Wannaweep
Taking advantage of the opportunity given to them, Hope and Tara got off the bus and surveyed the area around them. "Kinda like the setting for a horror movie, huh, bestie?"
"Yeah." Tara agreed. "I wish I could have brought my shuriken."
"And I wouldn't mind my pistol right now." Hope agreed.
"Great!" Barkin let out a breath of air, "Two flats. We need to call for help."
"Ladies?" Bonnie called out as the cheerleaders all broke out their cell phones only to discover they didn't carry a signal.
"I can't get anything on my Kimmunicator." Kim said as she turned to Hope and Tara. "What about you two? You getting anything from yours?"
Shaking their heads, the duo replied, "Sorry. No joy." Then, noticing a glint near the flat rear wheel, Tara gently touched Kim and Hope's elbows. "Over there." She muttered as the trio approached the object. Bending down, the blonde adventuress gritted her teeth as she picked up a board with nails driven in it. "Someone set a trap."
"It's not Drakken and Shego." Kim concluded, "Not their style."
"Locals then." Tara postulated. "Better be on our guard."
"I'll fetch Mr. Barkin." Hope volunteered. "He needs to know."
"Good idea." Tara agreed before asking Kim, "Do you want to bring Ron in?"
Seeing her friend's near panic-stricken condition, the teen hero shook her head, "He's at his wits end. If he finds out that this was a deliberate set up, I'm afraid he'll lose it completely."
Approaching the burly substitute teacher, Hope tapped him gently on his arm. Quickly turning about, the former Marine, at once catching the young cheerleader's gesture of a single finger on her lips, nodded his head as she inclined her head towards where her best friend and Kim Possible where huddled together talking. Walking casually alongside the raven-haired cheerleader, Mr. Barkin made a point of smiling reassuringly at the increasingly nervous looking young women in his care as he passed them by.
Waiting until the substitute principal was close enough so that they could talk without being overheard, Tara gestured for him to come over. As he reached their position, she showed him the board with the nails. "Boobytrap." A grim-faced Mr. Barkin declared.
"Right." Tara nodded her head.
"See or hear anyone or anything?" The teacher inquired as his eyes did a quick scan of the perimeter.
"Some animals rustling about." Tara replied, "But nothing human. What about you, Kim?"
"Same." The redhead affirmed, "I saw what looked like an owl and a couple of squirrels, but that's it."
"If this was an ambush set up just for us by a gang, they'd have already hit us." Mr. Barkin concluded as the three girls all nodded their heads in agreement. "Old prank maybe? It looks like this road hasn't been used in years."
"Could be." Kim nodded her head, "I'll be more comfortable when we can get someone here though. Problem is…cell phones are out and so is my Kimmunicator."
"Maybe they kept a working payphone because this is a wireless dead area." Hope suggested.
"Good thinking, Rossi." Mr. Barkin smiled approvingly.
"What do we do about Ron?" Hope asked as she inclined her head towards the young man who was nervously keeping watch over the area. "He looks scared to death."
"Don't worry about Ron." Kim declared. "I'll take care of him."
"No, Ms. Possible." Mr. Barkin shook his head, "You taking care of him is the last thing he needs right now."
"Sir?" Kim exclaimed, but before she could protest any further, the stern teacher silenced her with a glare.
"He's scared because he feels like he doesn't have any control over the situation." The former Marine diagnosed, "He's been here before. He knows where to go. I'm going to let him lead us to the payphone."
"Do you really think that's a good idea, Sir?" Kim protested, but before Mr. Barkin could snap off a reply, Tara interjected.
"I think it's a smashing idea." Ignoring the glare she was receiving from the redheaded cheerleader, the blonde explained. "Ron needs a confidence boost right now. This is perfect. All he has to do is lead us down the road to the phone and then Mr. Barkin calls for a tow truck and we wait. Easy-peasy." Gazing directly into Kim's eyes, the blonde adventuress cautioned, "If he doesn't have confidence in himself, sooner or later he's going to cock up a mission and get himself and possibly you or some innocent bystander hurt or killed. Now do you want that?"
"No…" Kim shook her head, "I don't."
"Ms. King's right, Ms. Possible...Kimberly." Mr. Barkin affirmed, speaking now in a fatherly voice. "The boy needs to know that you trust him as much as he trusts you."
"He trusts you with his life. The question you have to ask yourself, Kim is…" Hope said, weighing into the discussion, "Do you trust him enough to lead you to a payphone?"
"Okay…" Kim reluctantly conceded, "Let's go."
"Remember. Look confident. Everyone's going to be okay and we don't say a word about the board. No need to panic the others." Mr. Barkin instructed the three girls with him as they returned to where the rest of the group were all gathered in front of the bus. Fixing his gaze on the young boy standing off to himself, talking with his naked mole-rat companion, the substitute teacher barked, "Stoppable!"
"Yes, Sir." Ron responded at once, turning about quickly at the sound of the gruff teacher's voice.
"You know your way around here?"
"I know every God-forsaken inch of this place, Sir." The young boy replied grimly, "I know every tree, every tick, every rabid squirrel. This place haunts my dreams."
Momentarily questioning his earlier decision, Barkin, gritting his teeth, reluctantly decided to go through with it as he nodded his head. "Where's the phone."
"I think I remember where the payphone is, Sir." Ron answered back.
"Good. Lead the way." The substitute teacher commanded.
"All right!" Ron exclaimed as he felt his confidence returning, "Now Ron Stoppable gets to be the man in charge! The one to call the shots!" His eyes then focused on his best friend, "The big boss!"
"Just lead us to the payphone, Ron." Kim requested, adding as she received a sharp nudge to her side from Hope's elbow, "Please."
"Oh…I'll take you to the payphone." Ron asserted, his confidence growing. "But there's one thing you have to understand. I'm your only hope of getting through this."
"Ron…" Kim sighed, "Remember what we talked about? Normal…"
Ignoring the redhead standing next to him, the newly promoted leader announced in a loud voice, "Listen up, people! Camp Wannaweep is a dangerous place and I am the only one who knows how to survive here."
"I blame you two." Kim whispered to the Dirty Pair as they gritted their teeth.
"Don't believe me?" Ron pointed to a clump of weeds, "Poison oak. Wanna know how I know. I found out the hard way! This is a place of evil. The first thing we do is form a buddy system." He then began to assign partners. "Tara, you're with Hope. Bonnie with Marcella. Jessica with Liz. Crystal with me. And Mr. Barkin…you're with Kim."
"I'm curious, Stoppable." Mr. Barkin, genuinely intrigued as to his student's reasoning, inquired, "Why these particular team-ups?"
"Simple, Sir." Ron answered back. "Tara and Hope are best friends and work well together as a team. Jessica and Liz have become good friends recently. Bonnie and Marcella always hang out together, and you and Kim are our heavy hitters if there's trouble."
Nodding his head, the teacher responded with a simple, "Right."
"We stay together…" Ron commanded as he led the tiny troupe forward, "We stay close to each other…and maybe we'll make it through this alive."
"Drama much?" Kim sighed as she rolled her eyes.
"This is a place of evil." Ron answered back as an owl hooted and crickets chirped. "Evil!"
"This is just like those horror movies where a bunch of teenagers get stranded and then picked off one by one by a masked serial killer!" Crystal moaned nervously.
Smirking at Tara and Hope, Bonnie quipped, "You don't have anything to worry about, Crystal. You're probably near the bottom of any creeper's list. The sluttiest girls always get it first and we know who they are. Right Hope…Tara?"
"Poor Bon-Bon…" Tara riposted, "Hasn't had a good banging for so long it's shriveled up and dry as a desert down there."
"Oh…she doesn't need a guy…" Hope jibed, "She's got Dirty Harry to get her through…"
"Dirty Harry?" Tara laughed, "Oh do go on, dear…"
"He's about ye long…" Hope then held out her hands about a foot apart. "And ye…"
"I think we've heard enough from the Dirty Pair!" A red-faced Barkin loudly interrupted as all the other girls started giggling. "You too, Rockwaller. You should know what happens when you poke a hornet's nest."
"Just sayin'…" Bonnie jibed as she changed her target to the boy leading the tiny group deeper into the camp, "…if this were a real horror movie, there'd be more guys and they'd be way cuter than what we've got."
"Bonnie, you remind me of the cruel kids at the camp." Ron retorted. "Sticks and stones."
"They called you names?" Crystal asked in a gentle voice as she found herself feeling sympathy for the tormented youth.
"No." Ron shook his head, "They threw stones at me and beat me with sticks. And they stole my stuff and…" his eyes fell on Kim as he declared in a soft, mournful voice, "…shredded the picture I kept with me of my best friend."
Tara whispered to her friend, "It wasn't the chimp or the bugs that truly hurt Ron here."
"It was his fellow campers and the adults who were supposed to protect him." Hope concluded in a somber voice. "Including his parents."
"I saw something move!" Liz exclaimed as she ducked behind Jessica.
"It's just a squirrel." Jessica declared in a soothing voice.
"Just a squirrel?" Ron shook his head, "There's no just anything here. I keep telling you this place is evil. I'm not kidding." Reaching the payphone, Ron stood aside as Mr. Barkin picked up the receiver.
Shaking his head, the teacher declared, "No dial tone. Looks like we're stuck here for the night."
"Right." Ron took a deep breath as he summoned his courage, "Follow me."
As they passed a rotten hollowed out tree trunk, Ron recounted to his audience, "I hid in there when a bunch of bullies were chasing me. I thought I was safe. Then the woodpeckers came."
"Kim…" Bonnie rolled her eyes, "Do something about your freaky loser friend."
"He's not a loser!" Kim spat out, "And he's not freaky…" Shaking her head as she heard her best friend again rant about the dangers of Camp Wannaweep, the redhead backtracked slightly, "Okay…maybe he's acting kinda freaky. But it's not his fault."
"It's this place, Bonnie." Tara interjected, coming to Ron's defense. "Can't you tell? It's hurt him. Don't tell me you haven't been hurt or scarred by some horrible experience or by something someone did or said to you or by someone you trusted who stabbed you in the back?"
As Tara's words sunk in, memories of the cutting remarks made by her sisters throughout her childhood and adolescence raced through her mind. Turning her head so that no one else could see the desolate expression on her face, the chestnut-haired cheerleader, under the guise of fixing her makeup, wiped the stray tears from her eyes as she pulled herself together. "Fine." She said in a low voice, "Part of his problem might be this place. But he's still a loser."
"All right, people!" Mr. Barkin directed, "Let's build a campfire and settle down for the night."
Relaxing by the fire, Tara listened attentively as Ron recounted his encounter with Bobo the chimp. "So…" The young blonde shook her head in amazement, "The camp director put a tick infested chimpanzee in that cabin with you and no one objected?"
"No." Ron answered back somberly as he shook his head. "They all thought it was funny."
"That chimpanzee could have killed you." Hope remarked in a hushed tone. "Did you say anything to your parents about how you were treated?"
"Yeah." Ron nodded his head, "But they never believed me. This place holds a lot of memories for me. All bad."
"I'm going to get some more firewood." Kim groaned as she rose to her feet.
"I'll join you." Mr. Barkin announced as he stood up also.
"It's all right, Sir." Kim said in a reassuring voice, "It's just gathering firewood. I can manage."
"I'm coming with you." The teacher insisted.
"Buddy system, Kim." Ron called out, reminding his friend of the pairing off system he had earlier insisted on.
"Fine." Kim remarked as she and the teacher walked away.
"I've had enough of Stoppable's campfire stories." Mr. Barkin declared in a low voice as the pair moved out of earshot.
"Why do you think I left." Kim grumbled, "You're only hearing this stuff now. I have to hear it all the time. Including at three in the morning."
"They out of sight?" Tara asked.
"Yeah." Crystal responded.
"Great." The blonde sighed as she reached into the hidden compartment in her purse and pulled out her cigarette case and lighter. Taking a cigarette out, she lit it and inhaled. "What are you lot looking at?" She rolled her eyes at her fellow cheerleaders, "I deserve this."
Taking her flask out of her secret hiding place, Hope opened it and took a swig before handing it to her best friend.
"Thanks, luv." Tara replied as she took a swig and handed the flask to Bonnie. "Here Bon-Bon…we can all use a belt…even you."
"Thanks." Bonnie replied as she took a drink, "Damn! What is this?"
"Rum." Hope grinned, "Bacardi. Pass it around."
Tara then held out her cigarette case, "Anyone else?"
"I'll take one." Crystal replied as she took one of the cigarettes and lit it. "Thanks. I thought Barkin caught you both back at the school."
"He got the stuff we meant for him to catch." Hope grinned as she explained how the pair had hidden their good booze and cigarettes.
"Damn you two are sneaky." Jessica giggled.
"I didn't know you smoked, Crystal." Marcella remarked with a snort.
"There's a lot of stuff you don't know about me." Crystal flatly replied as she took a drag from the cigarette and exhaled.
Turning to Ron, Tara exhaled a plume of smoke, "What's with the lake? Is it supposed to be green and…bubble?"
"Lake Wannaweep…" Ron shook his head and launched on yet another tale as Tara lit a fresh cigarette and the flask made a second go round…
FLASH
Camp Wannaweep—Ron as a child
"All right, campers!" The counselor commanded, "Jump in the water!"
Young Ronnie, recoiling in horror at the bubbling oozing green fluid, grimaced, "Ewwww…Yuck…NO! NO!"
"What's your problem now, Stoppable?" The counselor growled at the scrawny kid who had become the butt of everyone's jokes and pranks.
"Look at the water! Smell it!" Ronnie insisted. "It's not safe!"
Doing the backstroke as he swam, Gil mocked, "The squeeb's scared of the water!"
"I'm not scared!" Ron countered, "The water's green, it stinks, and the fish are glowing at night!"
Spotting Gil in the water, the counselor called out to him, "Moss? You had morning swim. You're supposed to be in arts and crafts now."
"There's no way I'm getting out to make a bunch of stupid beads." Gil protested.
"He can have my swim time, Sir, and I'll take his arts and crafts for the entire summer." Ron suggested, hoping the counselor would take the path of least resistance.
"Fine. Whatever." The counselor replied as he changed the activity roster.
"Squeeb!" Gil teased as Ron walked away.
FLASH
Camp Wannaweep—the present
"And that was the last time I saw Gil." Ron recalled.
Taking a swig of Hope's rum, Bonnie jibed as she passed the flask on to Crystal who had lit a fresh cigarette, "So you've been a loser for what…ever?"
As they walked gathering firewood, Kim heard a twig snap. "Mr. Barkin? Did you hear that?"
As he approached a clump of bushes and dead wood, the teacher quipped, "It's just a squirrel. Don't tell me Stoppable's got you rattled."
Before Kim could reply, she heard a muffled yell and a sound like someone being dragged off. "Mr. Barkin? Mr. Barkin?" Hearing nothing but the sound of an owl hooting, the young redhead rushed back to the campfire. "Mr. Barkin! Have any of you seen him?"
"He's supposed to be with you, Kim." Bonnie replied with a snort.
"Well…he's not." Kim bit back.
"So where is he?" Tara asked as she put out her cigarette and Hope, recovering her flask, slipped it back into its hiding place.
"I don't know." Kim replied. "There were these weird sounds…more weird sounds…and then he disappeared." Doing a quick headcount and finding two of her cheerleaders missing, Kim inquired, "Where are Liz and Marcella?"
"They said something about going to the loo." Tara replied and then leaped to her feet as the sound of screaming filled the air.
"Buddy system!" Ron called out as Kim, Tara, and Hope all rushed towards the source of the screaming. Catching up to the girls, he pointed down at the ground. "That's not a human footprint."
"Okay…" Kim let out a breath of air as she gazed down at the alien looking footprint, "It's time to get a little freaky."
"Come on, girls!" Ron exhorted, "I know where to go. The only place here that's safe." Taking Kim by the hand, he guided her and the remaining cheerleaders to a still intact cabin. "Cabin 13. This is where they placed me. The Hole. It was also the only safe place in this entire camp…except for when they locked me in here with Bobo." The young man cringed as the horrible memory flooded into his mind. "Can't…" He shook his head, "Not now. You all need me. Freak out later. This will be our base of operations."
"Ron?" Tara tapped the young man on his shoulder.
"Yeah, Tara?"
"Food…water…weapons."
Bending down, Ron ripped up a section of floorboard. "Junk food." He proudly declared. "My old stash." Handing a bag of pork rinds to Tara, he joked, "They're probably way past their expiration dates, but they still should be edible.' He then took out a pocket knife, a steak knife, and a sharpening stone. "Here…" He said as he handed the steak knife to Tara and the pocket knife to Hope. Speaking to Kim, he apologized, "I've seen Tara practicing with a knife, Kim. She's good. Better than you. A lot better. And Hope's good with a knife too. Not as good as Tara, but better than you. Also…" He added, lowering his voice so that none of the others could hear, "If it comes down to it, they've done what you and I haven't had to do yet. They won't hold back like we would."
"I guess you're right." Kim reluctantly acknowledged as she noticed Tara expertly sharpening her knife and then, when she was done, hand the stone over to Hope who did the same with her blade. "Let's hope it doesn't come down to them having to use those knives."
"Stoppable?" Tara called out, "Hand me that piece of cloth over there and hand the other one over to Hope."
"What are you doing?" Kim asked as she noticed the blonde tying the cloth around her wrist.
"Making an improvised arm sheath." Tara replied as she slipped the blade into the homemade scabbard. "Wouldn't do for us to cut ourselves."
Taking charge, Kim announced, "Okay…here's the plan…"
Before Hope could object, Tara placed a gentle hand on her friend's arm. "Wait." She whispered as she tilted her head at Ron. "Let's see what he does first."
"Ummm…excuse me, Kim." Ron cleared his throat. "On the school bus, Mr. Barkin's in charge. When we're saving the world, you're in charge. If it's a messy sitch, Tara and Hope are in charge. At Camp Wannaweep, I'm in charge."
"This is serious, Ron."
"Note serious face, Kim." Ron forcefully replied and then turned to the Dirty Pair, "Hope…Tara?"
"It's your play, Ron." Tara responded as Hope nodded her head in agreement, "We'll back whatever you decide."
"Kim?" Ron asked, his face a mixture of pleading and resolution.
"Possible!" Mr. Barkin's voice strained and hoarse, called out.
"Mr. Barkin?" Ron called out.
"It's Mr. Barkin." Kim exclaimed as she dashed out the cabin door, "We need to get to him."
"It's horrible…" The former Marine trembled, "I've seen some bad shit in my time…but…" He shook his head, "The ooze…the smell…"
"What is it?" Ron asked, his eyes wide in fear as he saw this hardened combat veteran quaking in fear before him. "What could have done this to you?"
"It…" Barkin retched, "I can't…I get sick just thinking about it."
"It can't be that bad." Kim shook her head. "I've faced a lot worse."
"Someone's overconfident." Tara whispered to her friend.
"Gonna bite her in the ass one day." Hope agreed.
"Maybe tonight." Tara said as she heaved a mournful sigh. "I've got a bad feeling."
A piercing scream filled the air as the lovely blonde finished her words.
"That's it!" Barkin cried out, "That's the monster!"
"He is freakish." Ron agreed.
"I heard that squeeb." The monster growled.
"Squeeb?" Ron repeated, "I haven't been called that since…"
"You don't remember me?" The freak croaked, "We switched places…remember? I took your swim time and you took my arts and crafts time."
"Gil?"
"It's Gill with two ls now." Gill responded as he pointed to the gills on his neck, "Because I've got like…gills." The mutated freak then spat out a stream of muck that bound not just Kim, but Tara, Hope, and the rest of the cheerleaders as well.
"Kim!" Ron cried out as he rushed to his friend only to be halted by Gill's threat.
"Hold it right there, squeeb. Come closer to your girlfriend and I'll seal her up completely."
"How do you know Kim?" Ron asked.
"And I'm not his girlfriend!" Kim shouted.
"I know all about your life, squeeb. You've had it pretty good."
"I've had to deal with some issues." Ron replied, "It hasn't been all smooth going."
"At least you're not a mutated freak!" Gill screamed. "Yet!" Calming down, Gil mocked his childhood victim, "Did you hear why they shut down the camp, squeeb?"
"No." Ron answered back, "I've done everything I can to avoid having anything to do with this place."
"It was because of the toxic runoff from the science camp." Gill explained.
"You practically lived in that lake…" Ron concluded, "That's why you…"
"Changed." Gill snorted, "Figured that out on your own, didn't you?"
"We know plenty of scientists, Gill…" Kim pleaded, "Maybe someone can help you."
"I don't want to be helped." The mutant laughed, "I want revenge on you, squeeb! The competition…the flat tires…the jammed communications…all part of my plan to get even with you for turning me into this!"
"All this just to get back at me…" Ron shook his head.
"Oh…" Gill smirked as he regarded his bound prisoners, "Didn't I mention that contact with the muck will turn you all into mutants?"
"Fuck." Tara cursed as she managed to grab the hilt of her knife in her hand. "Hope? Can you reach your knife?"
"Yeah." Hope whispered back.
"Don't pull it out yet but be ready to cut through when I give the word."
"It's your turn now, Ronnie!" Gill laughed as he prepared to launch a massive stream of muck at his enemy.
"Not when I've got my handy Cabin 13 escape tunnel." Ron shouted back as he dived through the opening in the floorboard and disappeared into the caverns below pursued by his mutant nemesis.
"That son of a bitch ditched us!" Bonnie growled, "You saw that! He's a ditcher."
"Ditcher." Marcella echoed.
"He made the smart play." Tara declared as she pulled her knife out and began cutting through the muck. "Now, Hope, start cutting."
"Damn that's tough." Hope grumbled as she carved at the muck. "All right!" She shouted as she finally cut through and dropped on to the floor. "How're you doing T?"
"Got it." Tara cried out triumphantly as she also executed a smooth landing. Speaking to her fellow cheerleaders, she apologized, "We can't cut you out now. We don't know when that thing's coming back, but we're not ditching you. We're going to be close by and if we have to…" She glanced down at her knife. "We'll take care of Gill."
"It's okay, Tara…Hope." Jessica said, speaking for the other girls, "Just don't let him catch you. He's already taken out Kim and Mr. Barkin."
"Come on, bestie!" Tara urged as she and her partner exited the cabin. "Let's find a safe place close by to hole up and maybe ambush the Creature from the Toxic Ooze."
"Right behind ya."
"Okay Rufus…" Ron whispered as he and his companion slipped out of the cavern outside the camp. "The telecommunications camp is over there." He pointed. "We need to double time it and contact the authorities, then high tail it back." Glancing down at his watch he grimaced, "We don't have time to waste, so let's boogie!"
Several minutes later, Ron finally reached his destination. "Please…let there be a working phone!" Ron prayed as he made for what he felt had to be the director's cabin. Entering the cabin and seeing the phone on the desk, the young man took a deep breath and crossed his fingers as he picked up the receiver. Smiling as he heard a dial tone, Ron quickly dialed 911. "I need the police and someone who handles biological hazards." Ron declared. "Camp Wannaweep. Come right away. No…I can't stay on the line. People are depending on me. Just get here as fast as you can. I've gotta go."
Dashing out of the cabin, Ron smiled down at his companion, "Double time again, Rufus! We've got to get to the arts and crafts cabin. My plan depends on finding what we need there and having the time to put it together. If you know any prayers, little guy…now would be a good time to say 'em."
"Okay, Rufus…" Ron whispered as he tied the final knot, completing an important part of the trap he had planned for his childhood bully, stuffing it into his backpack. "You know what the plan is. We've got one shot and one shot only. Mr. Barkin, Kim, and the others are depending on us. We can't screw up."
"Uh Huh." Rufus nodded his head as Gill burst into the arts and crafts cabin where Ron and Rufus had been working.
"Gotcha, squeeb!"
"Go, Rufus!" Ron cried out as he took off running past Kim and the others.
"Ha Ha!" Gill gloated as Kim looked on, her mouth agape, "He ditched you too!"
"Ron did not ditch us." Kim retorted as the sound of a motorboat reached her ears. "He found a motorboat so that he could…"
"Ditch us." Bonnie growled. "He totally ditched us—again."
"Smart move, Stoppable." Barkin muttered to himself. "Take off and get help."
"Bestie?" Hope whispered from her position of cover behind a cabin wall.
"Not yet." Tara, also hiding behind the cabin wall, whispered back. "Ron's got to stand on his own. If he doesn't do it now…"
"He never will." Hope finished.
"Pity Kim doesn't understand that." Tara sighed as she nodded her head at her companion. "Looks like monster boy's going after Ron. I got a feeling that's what our boy had planned all along. Time we cut everyone free before they mutate."
"He's out on the lake!" Gill laughed, "That dumbass! The lake's my home!"
"No! NO!" Barkin screamed hysterically as flaps appeared on his neck. "I'm getting gills!"
As the motorboat engine sputtered to a stop, Ron looked down at his naked mole-rat companion. "Rufus…did you fill the tank with gas like I told you to?"
"Uh Oh." The little rodent uttered right on cue in apparent dismay. "I goofed."
"It's free swim, Ron!" Gill taunted as he swam towards his prey, popping out of the water like a dolphin or porpoise as he swam.
"You're on!" Ron retorted as he dived into the water. Popping up for air, he gasped, "Damn that water's funky."
"You can't win here!" Gill mocked as he gained on his hapless prey, "This is my natural element!" Catching up with his enemy, the mutant grabbed him. "Caught ya, squeeb!"
"We'll see about that!" Ron bit back as he took a deep breath and dived into the water, still grappled by his foe.
Feeling the pressure building in his lungs as he struggled with his former tormentor, Ron knew that time was running out for him. Sooner or later, he'd have to either try to break for the surface or drown. His opponent, thanks to his gills, didn't have that problem. Then, the opening he was waiting for appeared. Now or never. Slipping the rope around Gill's leg, Ron surfaced and yanked on the rope. "Now, Rufus!"
"Booyah!" Rufus giggled as he gunned the supposedly dead engine. "Fooled yah!" The little rodent gloated as the motorboat pulled the hapless mutant into the next part of Ron's trap, a net strung up at just the right depth and angle.
Smiling in satisfaction, Ron swam back to the motorboat and, taking control, guided it back to the shore. "Free swim's over." As the blond sidekick landed the boat and disembarked, he saw that Tara and Hope had freed all the other cheerleaders and were now working on Mr. Barkin and Kim as the wailing sirens signaled the approach of the authorities.
"I knew you wouldn't ditch us, Ron." Kim exclaimed, giving Bonnie a triumphant smirk as she spoke. "But…how were you able to contact the police?"
"I double-timed it to the telecommunications camp where I got lucky and found a working phone and called 911." Ron explained, adding in a reproachful tone, "If you and Wade would have trusted me with a Kimmunicator as you have Tara and Hope, I would have been able to contact someone sooner—once I got out of jamming range—instead of having to hoof it all the way to the telecommunications camp and then back. You know, I almost didn't make it back in time. If I'd have failed, that would have left Tara and Hope with no other choice but to try to kill Gill. And if they failed…"
Seeing a scientist and police officer approaching, Kim responded, "We'll talk about it later, Ron, okay."
"Yeah, Kim. Right." Ron sighed, knowing that this was his friend's code for no. There would be no future conversation and neither she nor Wade would trust him with a Kimmunicator.
"You're still a squeeb, Stoppable!" Gill taunted, "And you always will be!"
"Do you think you can help him, Dr. Lurkin?" Kim asked as they hauled Gill away in a liquid containment unit that looked remarkably like a goldfish bowl.
"I normally deal with genetically engineered crops." The professor replied, "But we'll give it our best shot."
"Hey, Mr. Barkin." Tara and Hope approached the substitute teacher who was now wearing a borrowed biohazard suit. "How're you feeling?"
"How's my neck?" Barkin asked as he exposed it for the girls' examination.
"Still as stiff as ever." Tara joked as she offered the substitute teacher a cigarette before lighting one of her own.
"Thanks." Barkin replied as he lit the cigarette from Tara's lighter.
"Here you go, Sir." Hope smiled as she handed the teacher her flask. Figure you could use a belt or two."
"Thanks, Rossi." The teacher responded as he gulped a big swallow from the flask. "Damn, that's smooth. Hid the good stuff, didn't you?"
"Of course." Hope chuckled as Barkin handed the flask back to his student.
"Just don't let me see it or that cigarette Ms. King's smoking once we get back on school grounds." Barkin said, managing a slight grin as he did so.
Glancing at Ron, Barkin remarked, "The kid did good, didn't he?"
"That he did." Tara readily agreed.
"Just hope Kim recognizes that." Hope said as she shook her head. "If she doesn't learn to trust him…"
"Yeah." Barkin nodded his head in understanding. "I'd hate for that to happen." He then gazed into the eyes of the two girls, "You two keep an eye on 'em. Got that?"
"Yes, Sir."
"Good. Now, I've got to tell a certain young man that he did a good job stepping up to the plate."
"Good work, Miss Possible." Officer Hobble praised with a big smile on his face.
"Actually, Officer…" Kim politely pointed out, "It was all Ron. He's the one you should be congratulating."
Laughing, the policeman quipped, "That's a good one, Miss."
"I'm serious!" Kim insisted, "Ron was the one who came up with the plan to trap Gill. I was neck deep in muck."
Shaking her head as the police officer walked away, Kim gave her best friend an apologetic look, "Ron…I'm going to do my best to make sure they all understand that it was you that saved the day. You're the hero here, and don't you ever forget it."
"She's right, young man." Mr. Barkin declared as he extended his hand to Ron, "You did a damned good job, Stoppable.
"Thanks Ron!" Crystal, Liz, Jessica, and Marcella all cheered.
"Way to go, Ron." Tara smiled as she gave the young sidekick a kiss on his right cheek.
"You kicked ass, Ron." Hope grinned as she kissed Ron on his left cheek at the same time her best friend was kissing the boy's right.
Bonnie then slowly approached. "You know…this doesn't change the fact that you're…you. But it would have sucked if that creep had turned us all into slime mutants and you were…kinda…sorta…brave and all…"
"Who rocks!" Ron exclaimed.
"You do." Bonnie answered back through clenched teeth.
"Listen up, everybody!" Mr. Barkin commanded in a loud voice, quickly getting everyone's attention. "The police are going to give us a lift back, so load 'em up. Rossi…King…do something about your contraband before you get in the police van."
Putting out her cigarette, Tara hid the case and lighter back in the secret compartment in her purse as Hope similarly slipped her flask into its hiding place.
"What contraband, Mr. Barkin?" Both girls answered back with totally innocent looks on their faces.
'We'll be there in a few minutes, Mr. Barkin." Kim shouted receiving a confirming wave from the teacher. Turning to her best friend, she smiled, "You were awesome."
"This is the one place where I know the score." Ron replied with a goofy grin.
"You were very resourceful and innovative." Kim commented approvingly. "And you were very brave. All those things don't have anything to do with this place. Those things are part of you."
"Really?" Ron exclaimed.
"Really." Kim immediately responded.
"Does that mean that I can be in charge on the next mission?" Ron asked with a grin.
"We'll see about that." Kim answered back with a smirk.
"That's code for not a chance." Ron replied.
"No, it's code for extremely unlikely." Kim retorted.
Nodding his head, Ron let out a breath, muttering softly as he began the walk to the police van, "Yeah…that's what I thought."
Shaking her head as she watched her friend walk away, Kim murmured to herself, "What's happening to us, Ron?"
The Saturday after—Middleton Mall in front of The Coffee Bean
At once spotting the lithe and graceful Asian woman as she approached the coffee shop, Crystal caught her breath at the sight of the woman's long hair as it cascaded down her back as a voice whispered in her mind. Damn she's hot!
No! Another voice within the tawny-skinned cheerleader's head chided. You're not supposed to think girls are hot. Boys are hot!
Is that why you're heart's pumping at a thousand rpms? The first voice chuckled. Better say hi before she decides you chickened out.
Taking a deep breath and exhaling, Crystal approached the woman. "Hi." She said with a smile as she drew nearer, holding out her hand in greeting, "I'm Crystal."
As she gazed on the reddish-brown haired, brownish-skinned young woman standing before he with hand outstretched, the Asian woman blinked and then, with a smile on her face, took the girl's hand in hers. "Hi. I'm Zoe. Would you like to grab a table after we get our coffee so we can talk?"
"Yeah." Crystal smiled as the two young women's eyes met, "I think I'd like that."