Legal Disclaimer and whatnot: Just to be clear; Disney owns Kim Possible. I just write about them. I don't profit from this fictional work. Got it? Good. Now, onto the story.

Thanks to CajunBear73 and Ran Hakubi for reviewing.

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Second Mission, Second Thoughts

Chapter 4: Sky Diving

Kim was amazed at the lung power that her best friend had: he had screamed for the last few minutes, starting from the split second they leapt off of Mr. Cutter's plane. He was quiet now and Kim's cursory glance showed that he wasn't flailing about wildly, out of control, or signaling for help.

Looking into the helmet's HUD, Kim saw the homestead displayed on screen. They were a little ways off, only needing a minor course correction, but would it cost them some time. She didn't mind it though; it would give her more time to be up here.

"I am so glad Ron convinced the 'rents to let us go here," she thought to herself, "This is, like, the best..."

Kim relished being in freefall and took the opportunity to perform a few flips, spins, and changes to her speed. An outside observer would have thought that she was born up here.

Ron on the other hand would give anything to have both feet on terra firma. Unlike Kim, he was rigid and focused on the rapidly approaching earth. He would have screamed more but his throat was raw and could only gasp now. Tears streamed from his face but, thankfully, he didn't have any 'unexpected surprises of the biological kind.'

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Kim checked the time on her display and seeing that enough of it had expired, she moved in close. "Ron?" she said with a raised voice.

He did not answer nor respond. Closer she moved, within arm's length. "RON?"

Still nothing from the blonde teen but she was certain he heard her. Kim's worry escalated as well as her guilt. "Should I have waited for the plane to land instead of pulling this stunt?" she self-questioned. "Too late now, Possible," her mind voiced. Kim shook that thought away and took action. Ever closer she moved, face to face. Her distress, as well as her regret, skyrocketed as she saw his expression. He was wide-eyed and stared through her. Her hands shot out, grasping his shoulders. She shook him vigorously, screaming, "RON!"

Within moments Ron's fear ridden voice replied, "K-K-Kim?"

"Yes! It's Kim, you're best friend," she retorted. Taking his hands, Kim continued, "Now listen to me, Ron! It's like before, the only diff' that you're solo…But I'm here. Okay?" She smiled at him as she waited for a response.

Ron looked at Kim, wondering how she could be so calm as they hurtled to the ground. But he had to do this; he convinced the parents. He promised to watch over her. He would have to be there for her. So, he would have to do this. Breathing deeply, he nodded a 'yes'.

"Okay, I'm letting go and then we're going to pull the cord on three. Got it?"

Ron drew in a deep breath. "Yeah. Got it."

"Good," Kim replied, released her grip and steered herself a short distance away.

"One…two…three."

Both teens were jerked back as the cloth unfurled itself and blossomed into a lifesaving arc. As they quickly slowed to a comfortable rate of descent, Kim hollered to Ron, "See? No big." She smiled a reassurance to her best friend.

"Yeah," he gulped, "No big."

Ron had to admit that gliding was much better than freefall; having a calming effect. Kim's warm smile further enhanced that feeling.

"So according to Wade's map, we aim for the road and follow it. It'll take us right to the Davis Ranch. We'll land just outside the front yard. Can you follow me, Ron?"

"Yeah," came his reply, "This part I can do."

Kim looked back to see that Ron was true to his word. He followed Kim as if had been parachuting for years. The worry and guilt she felt earlier had left her. "Maybe, we'll wait to land next time," she said to herself, "But, that was fun at least for me. Maybe I should take Ron on more skydiving lessons…"

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As they gently glided to their target, the scenic Montana countryside unfolded before them. From their vantage point, the teen pair could see rolling hills, vast emerald plains spotted by small clusters of trees and the small rugged mountains to the south and west. The sun was moving towards the horizon making the whole view even more picturesque.

In the distance, they could see their target; a large, two-story house surrounded by a large wooden fence. Four bungalows, two on each side, flanked the main house and a large barn was to its rear. A small stream was off to one side and a large group of trees was to the other. Overall, the scene looked like your typical western dude ranch.

"There," she pointed to a clearing just before the front gate. "Mr. Davis should be able to see us from there."

"Okay. Sounds good, KP."

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The redhead performed a landing worthy of a professional, touching down just before the main gate. Ron, on the other hand, wasn't quite so lucky. He guided himself to land close to Kim but somehow managed to hit the only tree in the vicinity. "Ow!" he cried and as he hit the top of the tree.

"RON!" Kim screamed as she released the chute and ran towards him.

"Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!" Ron exclaimed as he fell from the top, bounced off several branches and came to rest a couple of feet off the ground. He found himself suspended by the chutes lines, resembling a marionette.

"Ron? Are you okay?"

"Yeah…Nothing broken – just a few bumps," he replied as he struggled, "Now, eh, let's, eh ugh…going eh to that ranch ugh."

The more he struggled, the most entangled he became, and the more of an awkward position he found himself in. Kim could only watch in disbelief.

"KP, a little help here!"

"Sorry, Ron. It's just you managed to hit the only tree here," she replied moving in to help.

"Heh-heh, yeah…sorry KP," huffed Ron as he struggled further.

"Hold still! You're tangling the lines more. We're going to be late!"

"Wait wait uhhh ehh I think I ehh got it" Ron replied, "…No that's not ugh right..."

Kim huffed and attempted to unravel the cords. With Ron struggling, this actually worsened the predicament. "No Ron…Stop…No ugh…Ron now it's really…Ron!" Kim's frustration was growing exponentially.

Kim and Ron struggled for a few more moments but to no avail – Ron was actually more entangled than when he started off. The red-haired teen sat on the ground, rested her head on her palms and sighed in defeat. "Great. Just great. This will make a wonderful first impression. Thanks a lot, Ron."

"…Sorry KP," Ron replied, "But it wasn't my fault. The wind changed on me and––"

"This happened to you other two times with an instructor. An instructor, Ron, an instructor!" she broke in, holding up two fingers.

"But the second time wasn't into a tree."

"Ron, ya landed in the hangar. No one lands in the hangar."

"Heh…oh yeah, that's right…Oh, hey wait. Wade packed our gadgets, right?"

"Yea. Your point?"

"Uhh isn't there something in your backpack that, like, could cut me out?"

Kim rummaged through her pack but found nothing of use. "Other than a nail file, no," she said dejectedly.

"Aww man, that tanks! Maybe next time Wade could whip us up mini cutting torch cufflinks or something like that. Kind of a spyish thing. That would be so cool!"

She frowned, "First of all Ron, I don't wear cufflinks. Second 'spyish'? Not a word. Third, you're still stuck. Besides at the rate we're going, there may not be a next time…"

"What?" Ron said, "Ah c'mon KP, it's just a little setback. 'sides it's not so bad up here – it's kind of like a hammock." To emphasize his point, he made the tangled mess swing back and forth.

"Ron, this is no time to be fooling around," she stated as her gaze fell downwards "…Maybe I should have stuck to––"

"Ahem," squeaked a small voice. Within an instant, a small pink hairless mammal appeared from the mess of Ron, cords, and a parachute.

"RUFUS!" Ron exclaimed.

"Rufus? You brought your pet?"

"Hello," Rufus waved causally.

"Well, yeah. He's my best – next to you, of course. He practically goes everywhere with me."

"Hnk Hnk Yeah, best friend!" Rufus squeaked.

"Ooookay," Kim replied derisively, "So what's Rufus got to do with this?"

"Heeeeeello? Naked mole rat. Big teeth?"

Rufus put his hands in the air and flashed his two huge teeth. "Tah Dah!"

"Rufus, can you chew through these ropes, buddy?"

"Okay!" the naked mole rat chirped, and scrambled up the tree.

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Within minutes of chewing, Rufus had cut through the ropes, dropping Ron unceremoniously on the ground with a resounding "thud" and sounding an "Ow!". After shucking the ropes and dusting himself off, the blonde smiled, "Booyah! The Ronman is ready to go."

Ron's non-human best friend quickly scampered onto his shoulder. His best friend, however, stood up but didn't move. She wore a troubled expression. "All of this, the flight here, the skydive, being tangled up and yet he pulled through and took all in stride," Kim thought to herself, "And what do you do? Ya yell at him. Some friend you are, Kim."

Kim sighed sadly at the thought. Slowly, she moved to her blonde haired friend.

"C'mon, KP," Ron beckoned, "The Davis Ranch awaits. And I've heard that these places have bon-diggety meals."

"Uh huh, meals!" Rufus added, licking his lips.

She quickened her pace to catch up. "Ron?"

"Yeah, KP?"

"Sorry I made you jump when you weren't ready," she uttered, biting her lower lip, "And sorry that I harshed on you back there…It's just that I want to make this first meeting just right, ya'know? This is, like, majorly important and I thought you were…well, goofing off."

Ron looked at her strangely, snorted and then displayed his lopsided grin "Kim. Maybe the parachuting was a bit much but it really wasn't that bad – I just got to get used to it. I mean, it looks like it could be fun if I didn't have to worry about, like, falling. And the tangled in the tree thing? Pshaw! It was just a little set back. Nuthin' we couldn't handle, right?"

"Oh yeah," Rufus squeaked.

Kim forced a smile. Ron put his hand on her shoulder, "Look, I know this is important to you. I wouldn't screw up something like this. Stuff like this happens sometimes – well, maybe not the parachute thing, but, sometimes stuff does happen, so ya gotta ride it through, right?"

"Ron,' Kim smiled in response. "Ron's right. After all of this, it still turned out okay."

"'sides, it's not like it's going to happen again…at least I don't think so, being the third time and all…C'mon," he motioned towards the Davis residence, "This is your thing – your website – show 'em what you can do, KP. I gotcha back."

Kim strode forward, grinning. She whispered to herself, "Yes, you do Ron. Thanks."

To be continued…

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Chapter End Notes: I haven't skydived myself but I've seen some actual ones. At the beginning of the series, Ron appears to be afraid of skydiving but does it anyway. I took the opportunity here to describe Ron's first jump and to add a little Ronness. Next stop, the ranch and why Kim and Ron got this mission.