Legal Disclaimer: Disney owns Kim Possible. Now if I did, well I already said my piece in chapter 1...
Thanks to Jeriddian, CajunBear73, JAKT, RonHeartbreaker, and Mr. Wizard for reading and reviewing.
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Second Mission, Second Thoughts
Chapter 2: Asking Permission
Earlier that day, at the Possible's split level ranch house…
"Please, Daddy? It's totally legit – Wade checked it out. Mr. Paisley even got us a ride there and back – it's for a close friend of his…It's like the other 'favors' we've done…except this is out of Middleton…in a different state – but it's only a couple of states away and it's really close to uncle Slim's ranch," Kim pleaded to her father, using her best "puppy dog pout" or "PDP".
James Possible remained silent behind his newspaper fortress. The rocket scientist knew it was the last time before Kim and Ron would miss their 'launch window'. Since he had not given his answer, he knew full well that his daughter would try her hardest, resorting to the PDP. He was prepared and knew the one secret to counter the puppy dog pout: it was rendered useless when its victim couldn't see it.
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Kim recognized her father's tactic, and ceased using the pout. She would have tried something else but she couldn't; the PDP was the last thing in her 'arsenal'. Collapsing in her chair, she muttered, "…It's, it's what…I…do…" Kim glanced at Ron, who simply smiled sheepishly and shrugged his shoulders from his chair. Realizing that she had inadvertently omitted her best friend, she corrected herself, "It's what WE do."
Ron seemed to brighten up at that moment, flashing a small grin. Kim briefly returned his smile with her silvered one. Suddenly, the notion of 'reinforcements' came to mind and she looked to the elder redhead in the Possible family. Unfortunately, that idea was dashed. Within an instant, an unspoken conversation had passed between them, the auburn haired teen knew that her mother's answer was a 'yes' but only if her father also agreed. The younger redhead sighed slightly; she had been pleading with him for thirty minutes. Normally, something like this would have taken but five minutes, but her father was being 'impossible', this time.
Mr. Possible simply snorted behind "the Examiner". Truth be told, the rocket scientist was torn. He cared for his little girl's safety and to him Kim was still his little "Kimmie-cub". However, he also knew that she could take of herself; she was bright and perceptive, versed in sixteen forms of kung fu, and had previous experience with rescues and helping people in need before.
This required a great deal of thought.
If he said 'no' now, he could be comfortable with the fact that his only daughter would be safe – well much safer than out there – but it would crush her spirit and, most likely, Kim would resent him for a long time.
If he said 'yes', then she would be happy, but her hobby – Mr. Dr. P. thought of this as just her 'hobby' – could get her in potentially dangerous situations. Plus, she was growing into a beautiful young woman and being so far from home would make it much harder to keep an eye on her. It was difficult for him already with all the extracurricular activities Kim was currently involved in.
He needed help on this one…
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"Mr. Possible," Ron said quietly.
Despite Ron's voice being a little louder than whisper, it had the effect of a sonic boom. Almost as soon as the friendship between Kim and Ron had been forged back in the early days of Pre-K, Ron had called Kim, "KP" and her parents, "Mr. Dr. P." and "Mrs. Dr. P." Sometimes, he would call her "Kim" but her parents were always called "Mr. Dr. P." and "Mrs. Dr. P." Formally addressing them meant something very important, meriting full attention.
Both Kim and Anne Possible, looked at Ron wide-eyed and slack-jawed, and had the twins been here instead of soccer practice, they, too would have had the same initial reaction. James Possible was shocked as well but his eyes and jaw were in check. The paper wall, however, buckled and bowed slightly.
"I know this doesn't sit well with you," he said and drew in a deep breath, "but Kim can do this."
Ron then stood up from his chair and continued, "She's helped out a lot people: Mrs. Mahoney, Mr. Paisley, Mr. McHenry, Heinrich, Mr. Jacobs, Mrs. Dwight, umm…err, the guy who…well he, umm – I can't remember the rest right now but you get the idea," he said as he rubbed the back of his neck and grinned nervously.
Ron abruptly stopped his nervous twitch, cleared his throat, and continued; this time with greater conviction, "She's also done a lot of good things in Middleton – helped a lot of people here. Like Kim said, it's what WE do."
He took a step towards Kim's father. "People need her. People trust her. People want her help. I mean look at all the requests she's gotten ever since her website went up. Kim's good at what she does, and she loves every minute of it. I see it every time we go on these things, and I'm amazed every single time."
Ron glanced back to see Kim smiling, with eyes glistening. Her mother mimicked her daughter's reaction. Turning back to Kim's father, "Oh, I'm sure she'll do well here, in Middleton," he continued, stressing the last part of the sentence, "but I think Kim will do better out there. I could be wrong but I'm betting that I'm not. But…we really won't know unless we get that chance…And I don't know what will happen if we miss this chance. And who's to say we'll get another one, if we don't go?"
Mr. Dr. P's paper wall started to descend – he was faltering and Ron knew it. He could see it in Mr. Dr. P.'s eyes – the paper was low enough for that.
The blonde haired teen paused for dramatic effect.
"After all Mr. D. P.," he smiled brightly, "What do you always say in times like this?"
"Anything's possible for a Possible," James Possible replied.
The Examiner fortress had fallen. A moment of silence followed.
"All right, Ronald," he sighed in defeat, "She can go, as long as you go with her, Ronald."
"Ah, Booyah!!!" Ron exclaimed, raising his fist in the air. "Thanks Mr. Dr. P.!!!"
For an instant, Ron could swear that he saw sadness in the rocket scientist's eyes. It had reminded him of his own father who, earlier that day, had the same brief look just after he had given his permission for Ron to go with Kim. He could have looked into it further but Kim had rushed to her father, obscuring his scrutiny.
"Thank you, Daddy!" Kim gushed as she hugged her father tightly. "Thank you, thank you! I promise I'll be careful."
Quickly, Kim turned towards to her blonde hair best friend. "Ron," Kim said, her emerald eyes still shimmering, "I can't believe you said all that for me! Thanks, Ron, you rock!"
He put his hand to the back of his neck, flashing his trademark smile, and said, "Well, KP it's true. It's no b –"
Ron's response was cut short by a flash of red hair. Kim embraced him, almost bowling him over. Despite it being almost a crushing hug, and his eyes practically bulged out of their sockets, he appreciated it – really appreciated it, especially when she hugged him a little longer than she usually did. Plus, he did notice that her hair smelled really nice. But deep down, way deep down, a small part of him wanted a little more – he was at that age where he really started noticing girls. However, the greater part of him was, well, a tad uncomfortable – this was his best friend, not his girlfriend, after all.
"KP…Can't…breathe…" he wheezed, part of his response being true.
Abruptly, Kim released her grip. "Sorry," she said, her cheeks blushing. "But thanks, Ron. I don't think I'd get this chance if you didn't say something," she continued, and then biting her lower lip.
A faint pink tingle grew on Ron's cheeks. "Heh heh," he replied bashfully, "No big, KP."
Anne Possible hugged them both, "Be careful out there you two."
James Possible smiled and added, "Now Ronald, you take good care my Kimmie-cub."
"Daddy!" Kim exclaimed and then growled slightly. She started to speak when Ron spoke up again.
"Mr. Dr. P., Mrs. Dr. P.," Ron replied honestly, "Have been, always will. You got my promise."
The Possibles, satisfied with his oath, simply smiled in response.
"Come on, Ron. Let's get ready," Kim said, pulling him upstairs, "Wade sent me new stuff to try."
"Gadgets? I'm all about the gadgets! Booyah!"
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Shortly after the two adventuring teens disappeared into the upper level of the ranch house, Mr. Dr. P. folded his paper and placed it on the table. "Ronald's right: Kimmie-cub is good at this," James admitted, "Just the other day, I talked to Mr. Henderson at lunch and he wanted to thank Kimmie for finding his dog…"
He grabbed his now cold cup of coffee, sipped it, and made a face, "I can't believe I'm letting her go out there. It's just that she's so…driven, so into this hobby of hers. It's not like I could really say 'no'."
Mrs. Dr. P. sat down next to her husband and raised an eyebrow. "So what was with the hiding then?" she asked, pointing towards the fallen paper wall.
"I guess I thought I could keep her here a little longer," he admitted, pushing his frigid cup of java away, "But I really can't, can I?"
"She's growing up, James," Anne replied, "She's not a child anyone. She's older than her age."
"Older than her age?" the rocket scientist questioned.
"Yes, in some ways, she's more mature than most girls her age. She's done a lot of things that most adults haven't and probably will do a lot more."
"That's what I'm afraid of Anne."
"James, she'll always be our daughter."
"I know, Anne," he sighed, "Maybe I do worry too much. It's just…" James Possible couldn't finish his sentence.
"Oh, James," she smiled, "Kimmie will be alright. Ron's with her and you know those two. They'll take care of each other. They've been doing that since Pre-K."
"I'm sure he will."
She then went to her husband and kissed him on the forehead. After refreshing her husband's cup of coffee, the neurosurgeon gazed fondly upstairs and silently echoed what Ron and said. "Have been, always will."
To be continued…
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Chapter End Notes: Asking permission - something that kids do at some point. In regards to the series, it focused more on Kim's parents so I echoed it. This was a little difficult for me trying to rationalize why a father would allow his teen daughter to go to some far off place with only her best friend. I'm assuming that the KP world is a lot less harsh, Kim meets the right people, or both.
The dog's name is Jack, he's from the old series "Tales of the Gold Monkey". It is thought that Disney's Talespin was loosely based off of that series. (JAKT was the closest to guess). Hey, I liked that dog…
